"Shemping" in RPGs

While it’s something I suspect most game masters do, we probably never talk about it because we’ve never had a term for it. I’m fairly well convinced that it’s influenced a lot of tabletop role playing game design over the years, particularly in rules-lite systems such as Risus and Fate and fast-play designs like Savage Worlds and Unisystem. I’ve used to term a few times around here, to the confusion of many readers. I’m talking about shemping, and realizing that you’re probably lost and need me to back up a little bit.

The term “fake shemp” is a Sam Raimi-ism for stand-ins and body doubles in a movie, used when the “real” actor isn’t available. It was picked up by other folks in Raimi’s circle, including the Coen Brothers, Rob Tapert, and Bruce Campbell, as well as fans of all of the above. The word comes from Shemp Howard, one of the Three Stooges. In the 1950s, the Stooges had two films left on their studio contract when Shemp passed away. To fulfill the contract, footage of Shemp from older films was intercut with new footage of Larry and Moe. For shots that required all three to be together another actor was used, shot from behind or with his face obscured. When done well, no one notices the fake shemp.

In tabletop role playing games, shemping involves substituting stats for one character or monster for another. For instance, if you need stats for a were-jaguar and didn’t feel like writing one up in the system of your choice, but you had stats for a werewolf, you’d use the werewolf. The werewolf is the “fake shemp” for the were-jaguar. The players would likely never know unless you told them. If your storyline suddenly grows a major character that should be fully written up but you don’t have that write up, use a similar character you’ve already got. Shemping also includes using “mook rules” for characters that should have a full set of stats.

I said that shemping has probably had an influence on game design over the years, and that shows in the form of easy-to-create non-player characters. In a rules-heavy game like D&D, it’s unlikely that every game master stats out ever fighter, thief and wizard the party comes across; they get shemped with stats at hand. Rules-lite games, and games with rules for mooks (or “extras”, or whatever), evolved to eliminate the need to create every supporting character in detail or, by extention, the need to have to shemp incidental characters.