Avast ye Bastards!
Much to my mother's horror, I still play Dungeons and Dragons. The discussion went something like this:
Mom: "I mean, really, can you see yourself still playing that game at 30?"
Me: "Yep. And I'm going to teach my son to play too."
You can imagine the rest - and no, it was not pretty.
The funny thing about Dungeons and Dragons is how much hate and mistrust it has inspired - when in actuality, those of us who are avid players will generally admit to being dyed in the wool GEEKS. Whatever you have heard about this game, I guarantee you that observation of an average game day would reveal a bunch of geeks with dice, saying terrifying and mystical incantations such as:
"I think I missed."
"Did you add your bonus from Bless?"
"Oh! I forgot. In that case . . . ::roll dice:: ummmm... I hit for 2 points."
"Did you add your strength bonus?"
"Crap. Um . . . I hit for 4 points."
"The monster growls at you."
If you think that was boring - imagine eight people gathered around a table, repeating similar conversatons for eight hours (or more). D&D players do, in fact, hide a secret weapon. We hold in our mortal hands the power to BORE PEOPLE TO DEATH.
In my experience, the general composition of a group tends to include those that are fascinated by computers, those that are fascinated by science fiction and fantasy, and those that are fascinated by extremely complicated games, such as recreations of the civil war in which you must individually control and move entire armies. Playing with miniature paint is just a fortunate side effect of D&D addiction.
But seriously, I think that D&D has quite a few points in its favor. It encourages the use of imagination. It encourages problem solving skills. And for anyone who has never seen a D&D rulebook - the rules are over 200 pages of reading. Any teenager (or youth) capable of reading and retaining 200 pages of rules governing everything from mock battles with monsters to scaling the cliffs of the Grand Canyon - had better not fail his science test with the excuse "I don't know, mom. It's complicated."
D&D is not a game that you win or lose. And it is most definitely a TEAM EFFORT. Everyone involved is playing a different character, with different skills - and different personalities. If you are determined to run off in your own direction, without telling anyone or working with the group, you usually end up dead, or embarrassed, or both. And thanks to such spells as Speak with Dead - your friends can quiz you about your excruciating stupidity even beyond the grave (though, apparently, not underwater (seriously - check the rule book)).
D&D teaches strategy and forethought - and, to a certain extent, division of knowledge - which is a fancy way of saying, different perspectives. And D&D teaches you to VALUE those perspectives. An elf is a creature that loves beauty and sunlight, air, wind, and trees. A dwarf loves the earth and the soil, carving deep caverns into the world, and prying out gems. An elf loves fine wine, while a dwarf loves strong, dark ale. And while neither may actually be friends with the other, the dwarf can appreciate the elf's ability to locate water and animals to be hunted - while the elf can appreciate the dwarf's strong arm and sharp axe.
And I would like to break here and mention: ANYONE WHO BLAMES D&D FOR ATROCITIES THEY COMMITTED BECAUSE THEY ACTUALLY THINK THEY ARE AN ELF had a host of mental problems anyway.
As for me . . . I hope I never tire of the game (which is highly unlikely - especially since I seem to have made friends with the entire floor of computer geeks in college). I love the clatter of the dice as they roll on the table and the good natured ribbing and jokes that grow out of living a story together. Even now, when all of my friends get together for a special occassion (a wedding, a party, yet another frickin' person needing assistance with a move...) we relive old games. We probably sound like a cryptic language to anyone else, but all it takes is one spark to light the tinder. . .
C: "Yo, M. Do you remember when you failed your dex check and fell in a gelatinous cube?"
M: "That wasn't funny."
C: "Dude, that was hilarious. Even better than the black squirrel incident."
M: "I told you we would never speak of the black squirrel incident again."
S: "What? Black squirrel incident?"
C: "Okay, so we have M. tied to a tree, 'cause we think he might turn into a werewolf. And he makes us promise that we won't untie him, no matter what - when suddenly the entire tree begins swarming with these black squirrels . . . "
If your eyes haven't glazed over yet, you just might be a closet D&D player. It may be time to buy a set of dice, dust off the imagination, and make new friends in very geeky places (though I never have to worry about computer repair - SCORE!)
Life is too short not to go on grand adventures.
Mom: "I mean, really, can you see yourself still playing that game at 30?"
Me: "Yep. And I'm going to teach my son to play too."
You can imagine the rest - and no, it was not pretty.
The funny thing about Dungeons and Dragons is how much hate and mistrust it has inspired - when in actuality, those of us who are avid players will generally admit to being dyed in the wool GEEKS. Whatever you have heard about this game, I guarantee you that observation of an average game day would reveal a bunch of geeks with dice, saying terrifying and mystical incantations such as:
"I think I missed."
"Did you add your bonus from Bless?"
"Oh! I forgot. In that case . . . ::roll dice:: ummmm... I hit for 2 points."
"Did you add your strength bonus?"
"Crap. Um . . . I hit for 4 points."
"The monster growls at you."
If you think that was boring - imagine eight people gathered around a table, repeating similar conversatons for eight hours (or more). D&D players do, in fact, hide a secret weapon. We hold in our mortal hands the power to BORE PEOPLE TO DEATH.
In my experience, the general composition of a group tends to include those that are fascinated by computers, those that are fascinated by science fiction and fantasy, and those that are fascinated by extremely complicated games, such as recreations of the civil war in which you must individually control and move entire armies. Playing with miniature paint is just a fortunate side effect of D&D addiction.
But seriously, I think that D&D has quite a few points in its favor. It encourages the use of imagination. It encourages problem solving skills. And for anyone who has never seen a D&D rulebook - the rules are over 200 pages of reading. Any teenager (or youth) capable of reading and retaining 200 pages of rules governing everything from mock battles with monsters to scaling the cliffs of the Grand Canyon - had better not fail his science test with the excuse "I don't know, mom. It's complicated."
D&D is not a game that you win or lose. And it is most definitely a TEAM EFFORT. Everyone involved is playing a different character, with different skills - and different personalities. If you are determined to run off in your own direction, without telling anyone or working with the group, you usually end up dead, or embarrassed, or both. And thanks to such spells as Speak with Dead - your friends can quiz you about your excruciating stupidity even beyond the grave (though, apparently, not underwater (seriously - check the rule book)).
D&D teaches strategy and forethought - and, to a certain extent, division of knowledge - which is a fancy way of saying, different perspectives. And D&D teaches you to VALUE those perspectives. An elf is a creature that loves beauty and sunlight, air, wind, and trees. A dwarf loves the earth and the soil, carving deep caverns into the world, and prying out gems. An elf loves fine wine, while a dwarf loves strong, dark ale. And while neither may actually be friends with the other, the dwarf can appreciate the elf's ability to locate water and animals to be hunted - while the elf can appreciate the dwarf's strong arm and sharp axe.
And I would like to break here and mention: ANYONE WHO BLAMES D&D FOR ATROCITIES THEY COMMITTED BECAUSE THEY ACTUALLY THINK THEY ARE AN ELF had a host of mental problems anyway.
As for me . . . I hope I never tire of the game (which is highly unlikely - especially since I seem to have made friends with the entire floor of computer geeks in college). I love the clatter of the dice as they roll on the table and the good natured ribbing and jokes that grow out of living a story together. Even now, when all of my friends get together for a special occassion (a wedding, a party, yet another frickin' person needing assistance with a move...) we relive old games. We probably sound like a cryptic language to anyone else, but all it takes is one spark to light the tinder. . .
C: "Yo, M. Do you remember when you failed your dex check and fell in a gelatinous cube?"
M: "That wasn't funny."
C: "Dude, that was hilarious. Even better than the black squirrel incident."
M: "I told you we would never speak of the black squirrel incident again."
S: "What? Black squirrel incident?"
C: "Okay, so we have M. tied to a tree, 'cause we think he might turn into a werewolf. And he makes us promise that we won't untie him, no matter what - when suddenly the entire tree begins swarming with these black squirrels . . . "
If your eyes haven't glazed over yet, you just might be a closet D&D player. It may be time to buy a set of dice, dust off the imagination, and make new friends in very geeky places (though I never have to worry about computer repair - SCORE!)
Life is too short not to go on grand adventures.
posted by Andrea Peach | 9:25 PM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home