Deck: The lands of daring heroes, horrible monsters, and dangerous sword fights didn’t disappear with childhood. Several Hamline students are keeping magic and mystery alive through tabletop roleplaying games, such as Dungeons & Dragons. Pass by a campus lounge or crowded dorm room on any given night, and you might see a group of college students huddled around laptops, notebooks, and a pile of snacks. What might appear to be a rambunctious study group is actually a party of adventurers in a game of Dungeons & Dragons (D&D). Dungeons and Dragons, stylized as Dungeons & Dragons, DnD, or D&D, is a tabletop roleplaying game (RPG) often set in medieval-inspired fantasy realms. Games are run by a Dungeon Master (DM) or Game Master (GM), who acts as the storyteller, giving challenges and quests to the players. Players design characters with fantasy races like elves or orcs and give characters occupations, called classes. These determine how characters navigate through their make-believe worlds, allowing players the chance to be brutal fighters or crafty spellcasters. Outcomes in the game are determined by rolling dice. Players with higher dice rolls will have more successful or more powerful attacks. Even forty-five years after its initial creation in 1974, Dungeons & Dragons is showing no sign of slowing down. In the mini-documentary, "Why is D&D So Popular Again?", gaming news outlet IGN claims the game has more players than ever before. The rise of Twitch streaming culture, where Internet personalities are able to live cast their RPG games to thousands of fans, is cited as the main cause for this influx of new players. However, sophomore Hunter Tyler Weber has another guess about D&D’s rise in popularity. “I also think nerd culture, in general, is a lot more acceptable than it has been in the past, so people may be more willing to try things like D&D,” Weber said. Weber, who was introduced to Dungeons & Dragons through his dad, has been playing tabletop RPGs for most of his life. While D&D is currently in its fifth edition (5E), Weber has also played 2nd edition, 4th edition, and a similar RPG called Pathfinder. For Weber, tabletop games are a way to connect with friends. “I like to spend time with my friends, and D&D to me is the best way to hang out and interact with them. I often find myself thinking about D&D a lot in between sessions,” Weber said. Fellow sophomore Emma Coleman also plays for the social factor. “I love being able to sit down with a group of friends and have everyone focused on one thing: being creative and having fun,” Coleman said. “I think people feel lonely a lot, especially with social media. D&D is an activity that makes you interact with people while still giving them a character to let their guard down with."
SPRING 2020 | 17
