here's the 1d4chan version in case anyone wants an easier read.
1d4chan.org/wiki/Desirebro%27s_Tale

Pencil and paper games. There is a map that you can use for battles (a hex map that can be erased for later use), but not a board of play, as the board would be the size of a large living room, as in D&D your characters can travel hundreds, if not thousands of miles in their travels.

Yeah, it's imagination. DnD, Warhammer, Pathfinder. All tabletop RP with set rules, but you can really RP anything. It's extremely fun, but you have to get a good group of people, as evidenced by the story. Some people try to cheat because they are just faggots, who cheats in a made-up game? Anyway, they ruin it for everyone. Try it out, shit's fun man. Video games have their own charms, but RP is a whole other level of escape. And it's social!

Months, years maybe. Or it could be they just started out powerful. It's up to whatever the group wants to do.