Roughly 5 characters, not including spaces.

If you're getting hung up on the specific mechanics of what a word is, this contest is probably not for you. As much as I enjoy a good rules lawyering, it's not going to lead to putting together something which works out.

They don't want a 200 word short story about an RPG. They want a 200 word RPG. They want a game encapsulated in 200 words.

You know, like it says on the tin.

I did say it was a bit of a challenge.