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A Simple D&D Overview

What is Dungeons & Dragons?

 Simply, it is your story to tell. You are the protagonist. It’s a journey that you co-create with friends. It’s your favorite book you can’t seem to put down, “just one more page,” you remind yourself. It’s your favorite movie keeping you on the edge-of-your-seat as you wonder, “what in the world will happen next?”

D&D is a collection of epic tales within fantastic adventures that are placed in any setting. You can become anyone. The possibilities extend to the heights of your imagination.

It’s a Tabletop Role-Playing Game

3 resource dnd books

D&D is one variation in the realm of Tabletop Role-Playing Games (TTRPG). Know that you’re not limited to the cliché of traditional high fantasy with elves, dwarves, and dragons who hoard heaps of treasure—though this setting shouldn’t be overlooked, there’s a reason it’s a cliché. High fantasy is simply tapped into due to its presence in movies or books like “The Lord of the Rings” or “A Song of Ice and Fire”.  

You can instead branch off and partake in a noir “whodunnit” mystery murder case, a horse wrangling western, a haunted horror thriller, or a deep space opera. As I mentioned earlier, you can become anyone within any setting. Popular variations of TTRPGs have been crafted by individuals and can also be crafted by you. Your imagination is critical.

How does it work?

Typically, there’s one to five Player Characters (PCs) and a Dungeon Master (DM)—sometimes called a Game Master (GM). The players are the protagonists that own center stage. The DM is behind-the-scenes shifting the plot points and world elements or mechanics to match or challenge the Players’ decisions. The DM also manipulates the Non-Player Characters (NPCs) that the PCs interact with. Everyone uses their imagination to portray their respective character with the intent of conveying their traits, quirks, and personal goals.

What about the dice?

The dice bring the exciting element of random chance or uncertain fate into the game. Your character will have attributes assigned to them. These attributes are given different numerical values. These values are added to the rolls you make. Roll high and you will probably succeed in your chosen action. Roll low and you may not succeed, but your character’s story becomes that much more dynamic.

All of this is under the caveat of keeping the game fun. Rules can be bent. Characters can be changed. Stories can be rewritten. As long as everyone’s enjoying themselves you’re doing it right!

(Checkout Dndbeyond.com for more in-depth information if you’re interested)

Next up: The Growth of D&D

You can follow Simply DnD on Twitter: @SimplyDnD
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