Dungeons and Dragons: An introduction to a world of fun 

A hooded traveler enters a tavern late at night; the jaunty sounds of a lyre fills the air as the orcish innkeeper wipes down the bar. The traveler eyes the quest board on the back wall of the room. They don’t know it yet, but they are about to embark on an adventure that will save the world. 

This is the start of many campaigns in the tabletop role-playing game (TTRPG) known as Dungeons and Dragons. D&D is a fantastic game and way to make friends, escape from the world, create things and have fun. The main components of D&D are the Dungeon Master, the players and the dice. The Dungeon Master is the person who builds the world, comes up with the adventures and speaks for the non-player characters, or NPCs. 

The players are responsible for interacting with the world. They create characters to inhabit it; these characters typically are the heroes of the story. The last piece of the puzzle is the dice. Most TTRPGs utilize polyhedral dice in their gameplay. D&D is no different and uses a set of seven dice of six different shapes. 

Dice are used for a variety of things, such as deciding if a character can perform a certain action (i.e., hitting a combatant or charming a dragon), calculating the amount of damage done in an attack or for determining which random event occurs. All of this is crucial to the spontaneous storytelling of the game. 

Once you have all of the components, you can start playing. But why should you play? Well, people play for a variety of reasons. One is for the social aspect. D&D is a great way to make friends. If you don’t know a group of people, a good way to break the ice is cooperating in combat or getting to know each other through your characters. 

Similarly, D&D is a great way to spend time with people you already know. Friends can bond by intertwining their characters’ stories and solving problems that they would never face in real life in a game. A casual game is a good excuse to get together, order a pizza and have fun. 

Another perk of D&D is the creativity it inspires. Designing a character, writing their backstory and picking out their voice are all parts of the game that allow players to have fun creating. 

At its core, D&D is also a way to collaboratively tell stories. Each person at the table has their own perspective that contributes to a totally unique experience for everyone. 

With the current state of the world, perhaps the most valuable aspect is the ability to escape into fantasy. 

Playing pretend with your friends for a couple of hours is a nice way to escape from the stress of living in the current world. 

When I need a break from it all, I can just think about what my bard would be doing with her friends before returning to my life. 

One final reason to play D&D is simply because it is fun. If you enjoy role-playing video games or other games with a fantasy story and turn-based combat, trying out D&D could be a fun expansion to your gaming library. If you like to act, do improv or enjoy other forms of embodying a character, also give it a chance. 

I first got into D&D after listening to podcasts of people playing it. From there, I made friends with similar interests and have had so much fun building characters, exploring worlds and laughing with my friends while we create something that is just ours. I believe anyone who is interested should definitely look into getting a game started. The easiest way to start a D&D campaign is to gather a group of friends and offer to be the Dungeon Master. Don’t worry too much if no one has played before, it’s easy and fun once you get into it, and it doesn’t have to be heavy on the rules. If you don’t know anyone who is interested, looking into local game shops that may run weekly sessions or searching online are good ways to find people to play with. 

If it doesn’t sound like D&D is for you, don’t worry. The world of TTRPGs is full of lots of different systems for everybody. Two that I have personal experience with are Glitter Hearts, a system based around magical girls and friendship, and Thirsty Sword Lesbians, a system focused on telling more dramatic, queer stories. I have also heard good things about Kids on Brooms (small town mystery), Call of Cthulhu (cosmic horror) and Pathfinder (a modified version of D&D 3rd edition). 

No matter who you are, TTRPGs are a great way to escape from the world and spend time with friends. There is nothing better than building a story with people you care about that you can carry around with you forever.