Rodriguez reaches for an adventure, finds family

The happiest moment in my life would be when I finished 8th grade with an honor roll. I wasn’t really a good student back then, having missing assignments and arguing with my parents and teachers about them. But the moment I picked up the honor roll, I knew I could do it. Plus to see the joy in my parents faces made me think, “I did it, I finally did it.” And since that moment, I’ve

I guess I could say the happiest moment of my life would be moving places.I moved from a small downtown in Pasadena when I was around 7 or 8. It was a rough area and [living] around here is just much nicer. When I moved people here were really welcoming and kind towards me. I moved about 6 years ago and while it took some adjusting, I’m definitely much more comfortable.

BY JEREMY GUTIERREZ EDITOR-IN-CHIEF PRINT

Rolling up her sleeves, Junior Yadanica Rodriguez rolls the ruby red dice in her hand. She needs a 20 to hit, or her character faces certain death.

“Dungeons and Dragons,” colloquially known to most as D&D, is a roleplaying game wherein a group of players led by a dungeon master (DM), engage in combat, exploration, and character development set solely in the minds of the players. The DM develops the story, setting, and characters for the players to explore.

“I quite prefer the roleplaying aspect of the game,” Rodriguez said. “It allows you to flesh out your character and show sides to them that would never be able to make it on paper. You can build relationships between party members and get into all sorts of shenanigans.”

Rodriguez first learned about D&D through YouTube, watching videos of people drawing their characters, then playing the game. After doing some research, Rodriguez discovered the Adventurer’s Guild, the D&D club at the school.

“[My friend Charlotte] was the former president of SG’s D&D club, and [she] had reached out to me about joining,” Rodriguez said. “So I decided to give it a shot.”

This interest in the game grew quickly, developing into a passion that occupies much of Rodriguez’s time. By the end of her sophomore year, Rodriguez was president of the club. Despite her multitude of other responsibilities — including school and other extracurriculars — Rodriguez was able to make the time to do something she could just escape from her other duties with.

“Playing is no longer just about myself, but rather the whole club,” Rodriguez said. “ While it does put a bit more pressure on me, I feel better knowing I was able to bring D&D to more people, and possibly help them find an escape in it as well.”

According to Rodriguez, D&D is a balanced way of having social interaction without it being too draining. It gives her a respite from academic expectations, but it does not isolate her from other people. All she has to do is mess around with her friends and let the hours pass her by.

“While reading and having alone time is nice, you’ve got to have some human interaction that’s not school related once in a while.”