Dungeons and Dragons Article Limited 3rd Revised Special Edition Part II

Director’s cut

Ben Poggemiller Staff

Illustration by Ted Barker

Let’s do a little word association exercise here. Think of the first thing that comes to your mind when I mention:

1. Dungeons
2. Dragons
3. Dungeons & Dragons (D&D)

For number one, you may have thought of dank, dark catacombs filled with torture victims and hooded dungeon masters whipping you mercilessly. For number two, you may have thought of scaly, winged creatures that breathe fire and speak like Sean Connery (see Dragonheart). Now, what did you think of when you saw number three? If you thought of a dark, dank basement filled with torture victims and scaly creatures in costumes playing a stupid game, then you’re not alone. Let me tell you that you couldn’t be more wrong about this game.

I am pretty confident you would like Dungeons & Dragons if you have the following characteristics:

1. A pulse
2. A good imagination
3. You like fun
4. You enjoy Lord of the Rings (even a little bit)

This weekend, I had the privilege of playing with a Winnipeg-based D&D group I found on Meetup.com. I got to create my own character and play out a short story that was wonderfully integrated into the larger story of the group’s ongoing campaign. I never felt like I was a tacked-on car chase or an obligatory sex scene. I felt like I was part of the story.

I knew virtually nothing about D&D before I started. All I knew was that it involved role-playing, decision-making and dice rolls. Beyond that, I was clueless. Dungeons & Dragons involves these things but it also requires quick thinking, problem-solving and thinking outside-of-the-box.

As soon as I walked into the residence of the organizer, the first thing I experienced was a warm welcome and a handshake. Secondly, I was given a gift. He gave me a copy of the 317-page Dungeons & Dragons Player’s Handbook. The handbook outlines the basics of character creation and the method of playing. It proved to be extremely useful reference, and I hope I get to use it again someday. Even if I don’t, it will remain one of my most treasured gifts.

Allow me to describe my character so you can realize how personal a character can be. I decided to be a human, since I’ve lived among them for so many years; but I could have been a dwarf, elf, gnome, half-elf, half-orc or halfling. I chose to be a rogue rather than a barbarian, bard, cleric, druid, fighter, monk, paladin, ranger, sorcerer or wizard. Unfortunately, there was no balloon-animal artist class. So I chose to be a rogue because I wanted to be what the handbook describes as “a tricky, skillful scout and spy who wins the battle by stealth rather than brute force.” The idea of silently creeping around in the dark, picking locks and attacking swiftly appealed to me, so I got skills like “Hide,” “Move Silently” and “Tumble” that allowed me to do so. My weapon of choice was the composite short bow and the concealed dagger for maximum speed and efficacy. His name is Strangelove.

This is basically how the game works. The Game Master (GM) begins telling the story of where you are and your surroundings. You can ask questions at any point, like, “Who is around me?” or, “Does that man-eating ogre look friendly?” Any time you try to attempt something that requires a skill, like “Diplomacy,” “Bluffing,” “Intimidating,” “Jumping,” or “Basket-Weaving,” you must roll the die to see if you succeed. First you roll the 20-sided die (d20). Then you add your skill modifier, which is determined by various factors of character creation. If the number is higher than the minimum number that the GM deems successful, you complete the action. The rest of the game happens in your mind.

What surprised me most was the fluidity of the storytelling in D&D. The GM had to conceive of the story and guide us through it but he also had to adapt to whatever decisions we made and whatever questions the players asked. For example, when we approached a town, the guards came out and started circling around us. Being wary of their intentions, I chose to hide. I rolled a very high number on my d20, allowing me to hide. The GM then had to explain that the guards were confused about how many of us there were. The guards turned out to be friendly, welcoming the rest of our party into the town and leaving me outside the gates. I had to find a way to get into town and meet up with them later. There is so much give and take between the characters in the story and the GM. No one can be set on situations working out perfectly. It helped that our GM is a kung-fu instructor, so the detailed descriptions of combat were particularly entertaining.

It seems that Dungeons & Dragons is considered to be “bottom of the barrel” in terms of geekiness. The truth is that, according one of my computer science professors of yesteryear, everyone is a geek of some kind. If a person has ever gotten excited about anything, then he or she is subject to the same criticism.

D&D seems complicated to a beginner, so it might be daunting to jump into full-fledged D&D. There is, however, something called the Dungeons & Dragons Adventure Game that can be bought on eBay.com or Amazon.com for a pretty reasonable price. The game contains everything needed to start a simple D&D game with some friends. I’m going to look into purchasing it and forcing my friends to play it in the summer.

I’ve been saving the best thing about D&D for last. Let’s see if I can tell you. (I roll my d20.) Damn, I rolled a three. I guess I can’t.