Have you seen Stranger Things? Been enticed by the boys playing and wanted to have a go yourself? Or wanted to start your own Hellfire Club? Well, you’ve come to the right place! I’ve been playing Dungeons & Dragons for about two years and this is your one stop guide to getting involved in the most imaginative and fun hobby you’ll ever get into! I started playing in 2020 when the dreaded plague was keeping us all locked inside. Armed with a group of the UKs finest players and a Welsh DM (Dungeon Master), who loved inflicting horror stories on his players, I sat and played pretty much until lockdown ended and then some! I have spent so much of my time rolling clingy rocks (dice) and so know all the basics to help guide you. Why should you play D&D? It is beautiful game filled with fantasy and in short, can be whatever you want! All you need is a group of friends and your imagination. The rules and such are for guidance which allows you to pick and choose which ones you follow. The dice tells the story so you win some and lose some, but it’s all part of the fun!
Some Key Vocabulary for D&D
- DM- Dungeon Master, often called Game Master (GM) who runs the game. They are both referee and lead story teller.
- Player Characters- You and your friends, the characters that you create!
- NPC – Non-player character, usually another character in the story, played by the DM
- Dice- In this context you have seven dice which all do different things, d4, d6, d8, d12, d20, d100 (made up of two dice)
- Campaigning – A story, like a book, which is what you play through
Lets get started!
Instead of talking about the rules and how to play, follow this useful link here. From my personal experience, I will now be talking about some game-based advice;
First be comfortable
Always put your comfort over any content of role-play that may happen. At the end of the day, it’s your story and fantasy, you don’t have to do anything you’re not comfortable with alongside any issues you don’t want to face. This does not make you a difficult player for not wanting to do something, after all, D&D is meant to be an escape from reality and any real life problems you may have. What many DMs have is a ‘Consent Sheet’ that allows players to highlight any areas of the game they are uncomfortable going into. This can include any social and cultural issues, as well as romance between PCs and NPCs.
It’s ok to not know something!
Google is your best friend when it comes to D&D, the book can be super expensive but there are tons of forums and communities where they explain things. Websites such as Reddit, DNDBeyond and Roll20 all have forums where people talk about rules and any confusion they may have. You will find everything and more online.
Find like-minded people to play with
The people you play with can make or break a game so find D&D groups, for example in Brighton the BSU TTRPG Society is filled with people who are both beginners or experiences players. Before I finish off, I’d like to share a few D&D themed shows and podcasts that I personally enjoy which are also a great way to learn the rules and see the playing in action.
- Just Roll With It – ‘An absurdly powerful Dungeons and Dragons podcast where we just roll with it’. An enjoyable take on D&D and their Halloween one-shot has just started!
- Not Another D&D Podcast – ‘Welcome to the campaign after the campaign!’ One of my absolute favourites, a good place to start is campaign 1 as Jake (or Hardwon Shorefoot) is also a newbie.
- Critical Role – One of the most famous RPGers has a podcast, TV show and even an Amazon original animation! High-scale and super high budget, Matthew Mercer is amazing at roleplaying many NPCs as well as tense moments that you’ll get invested in!
My parting words are, if you want to start playing D&D, go for it! It’s one of the best things I’ve ever done, it led me to make new friends, start a new hobby and be productive in my creativity. It can be a bit of work but if you’re prepared to work then it will pay off. Good luck adventurers, happy rolling!