You’re standing in the centre of a dark and dusty tomb. Your friends are searching the room for treasures when you spot something out of the corner of your eye. With your trusty blade in hand you look upwards just in time to see a dozen goblins climbing down the walls around you. You smile, because there are few things as fulfilling as the sound a goblin makes when you hit it with your +1 longsword.
Dungeon & Dragons understands this, and that’s why I love it. I’m going to be honest, I like the game so much that I’m nervous that I won’t do it justice in this piece.
There’s a lot of stigma around Dungeons & Dragons. People think it’s for outcasts and nerds. But even if it was, that doesn’t make it any less of a beautiful game. It’s such a rich experience because it has what makes any game good: friends, choices and high stakes.
You sit down with your friends and immerse yourself in a story. Everyone creates a persona through which they explore the setting they’ve chosen. We usually play Lord-of-the-Rings styled characters but there’s really no limit to what you can do.
Are you a tough bar fighter with more enemies than teeth? Are you a graceful, nature loving elf who protects the forest at all costs? Perhaps you’re a hobbit with a love of gambling, it’s completely up to you. Once you’ve imagined your character, you and your friends set out on an adventure. It won’t be easy, there will be all kinds of challenges in your way, but you’ll have what it takes.
Your character has many skills and weaknesses, you would choose these based on how you see your character. Those decisions are then taken into consideration during the adventure. You see, any difficult action you decide to take requires the roll of a 20 sided die.
The D20, a perfect little decider of fates.
A high number means you succeed, a low number means you fail. Your bearded dwarf can try all it wants to talk to the forest animals, but short of rolling a 20, all those little critters are going to hear is the bad fake accent. That’s the beauty of it, your character is more or less competent in a certain areas, but it all comes down to how well you roll the dice. There will be some things you excel at and others you won’t.
You sit around a table to play, but there’s no board. There’s only the Dungeon Master, and it’s up to them to describe the forests, caves and villages you’re group will explore. It’s the hardest role in a game of D&D, but it’s also my favourite. To create a world and then fill it with treasures, traps, peoples and monsters is a true art.
It’s such a good game because the only limit is your ability to tell a story. I used to like imagining what would make a good video game, now I create those games for my friends to play. The game I just played through I mixed Dante’s Inferno, Gilgamesh and Prometheus Bound. If I am an artist, it’s because I am a Dungeon Master.
If any of this appeals to you, then I encourage you to give it a try. Girls, that means you too. The days of basement dwelling boys-clubs are over. Together we can through the stigma (and dragons) to rest for good. Dungeons & Dragons is one of the most social games possible, because when it comes down to it, it’s all in talking with friends. Oh, and I’ve heard rumours the goblins have found an ancient treasure and I’ve been looking for worthy adventurers such as yourselves to investigate.
