Dungeons and Dragons - Why the Hype?

Dungeons and Dragons - the one game known to be played by nerds and geeks everywhere, that outsiders don't totally understand and that makes us players sound like we suddenly come from a different planet. 

Hey, all! 

How's it going, nerds? My name is Caaaaaro! (The day after Pewdiepie's 100M, a bit after his wedding, I'm in a mood to watch all his videos, ok?) And welcome to a new why the Hype! Today, we're discussing Dungeons and Dragons. 

Yes, I play D&D. I have for a long time, and it's something I really love! I have one main character and a bunch of other characters I'm not as invested in (yet), I am the game master for a campaign and have, indeed, suffered from D&D withdrawl after spending a month or so unable to play. 

D&D has not only been super entertaining, but has also helped me make friends! So today, with the help of The Magic Mates, I am going to be telling you why D&D is so, so worth it! 

Just note: The Magic Mates is the group name of the campaign I'm currently in, with my character, Lila. It includes 6 amazing characters and just as amazing players, who have been shouting ideas my way! 

1. It's an amazing creative outlet
D&D is one of the most creative things you can do without having an ounce of artistic talent in your body. You start by creating a character (virtually any character you can think of!), their personality, and allow a Dungeon/Game master to walk your character through a story, where you take actions and make decisions based on their abilities and personality. Want to make an eagle-man? There's a race for that! Want to make someone who is really good at tinkering and inventing stuff on the spot? Awesome character arc! The possibilities are virtually endless, and the worlds you can create are even more so. 

After my main character, I have a half-drow (dark elf) ranger who believes she's the next Sherlock Holmes and is searching for the worlds best Lemonade recipe, and a few back up characters including a Human Cleric who is incredibly nerdy and is easily scared, and a steampunk alchemist who believes she's all that. 


2. It's actually super smart 
D&D actually takes its time to model the probabilities of real life super well! There are 6 statistics that modify your character to be better or worse at certain things - Intelligence, Strength, Wisdom, Dexterity, Constitution and Charisma. When you make your character, you get points for each of these. You can't be good at everything, but can't be bad at everything either! If you have high points for strength, you are more likely to perform well on a task that involves strength. 

How well you perform all depends on one little piece of equipment - a d20. *Magic angel sounds*. This is a 20 sided dice that you roll to see how well you perform. You add any bonus points to the roll. The higher the score, the better the outcome! What I love about that is that, even in real life, if you are good at something, you can still mess up. Even the best chef can mess up a recipe, or do exceptionally well, or anywhere in between. 

3. It's easy to understand 
This is a game that is both full of rules and has no rules. You can certainly ask your DM wether you can tame a shark and keep it as your pet, if you want. But you must roll a certain combination of dice to see if you do well. Once you know when to roll what, it's easy sailing! And usually your DM should be happy to tell you when to roll what, if you're starting out! 

Plus, the rules essentially boil down to how to make a character and what to do once it levels up! Super simple! 

4. You can do (almost) anything 
You should be able to do anything the dice lets you do. I've had one of my players ask if he could pick up a tree to use it as a bat when a giant was trowing stones at him. The roll failed, but had it passed, it could have happened. 

I once had Lila in a narrow passage, in front of a group. Seeing something shiny in the distance, she just started absolutely sprinting towards it. She dodged another character that tried to catch her, not once but twice, and avoided another tackle. She showed another character the shiny thing in the distance, and they both started running. 

Both the other player and I knew that the shiny thing was one of our enemies. But Lila and Tide? When they see something shiny, they go for it. 




5. You end up with the funniest stories, intense drama and very real emotions
More of these will be written further down, but I have had moments where I was crying as things were happening, I've had moments where we couldn't stop laughing at what was happening, and I've had moments where I was stress-eating bell peppers (paprika) because we all almost died. It's wild. 

6. It is accidentally social 
Most players I know are quite socially anxious or quiet in everyday life, but all that seems to change during a D&D session. It's always fun to create a fun character and laugh with others (or make others laugh! Bards are amazing for that!). Even creating a world for people to explore makes you consider a whole army of side characters and invites you to interact with the people sitting at your table. 


Now, I want to tell you about Lila, a character I absolutely love. Lila is a Halfling Rogue (a hobbit who steals stuff and stabs other stuff). Lila grew up with her brother, Bart, in a small village where her parents had a small farm. Every week, her and her brother were meant to take the produce to the market to sell it. However, the family was in need for more money, so the pair took matters in their own hands. Lila used her sleight of hand to steal, while Bart performed some melodies he had created on his guitar. 

Lila's best friend was Taegan, the youngest and most appreciated prince of the Elves. They had been through thick and thin. Taegan one day showed her how to use daggers to defend herself, after she had witnessed an attacked and felt helpless. Since then, she always had a dagger at her side. After having done a favour for the elves, she was gifted a Moon Dagger - carved from the bones of the Titans that once roamed the world. It is now her most precious possession. (That, and anything shiny). 

However, one day, Taegan disappeared. This happened during a time of unrest in the world, where a dark, corrupted high lord had decided to separate the races to avoid conflict. Naturally, this was a source of conflict in itself. For years, she believed that Taegan was taken by the dark lord, and promised herself that she would fight to find him. 

Since that day, Lila has been on quests to gain enough strength and bravery to find her friend. For how much can a small, quick halfling actually do? 

Recently, Lila has been waking up in different places. Unsure how to control it, she has been joining groups of adventurers on their quests for as long as she stayed around. These places were never twice the same, and she never stayed there long, until she met The Magic Mates and started helping them... look for missing children?! In any case, finding one thing can only make finding another easier, right? 


Do you play D&D? Who's your favorite character you made? Let me know!

Stay Bookish!