Dungeons and Dragons (often shortened to D&D) is a popular tabletop game that includes rolling dice, telling stories with your friends, and lots of jokes. There's no cards, game board, or screens, but it's still an amazing game that you should DEFINITELY play, for all the following reasons.
1. It's a blast
What's better than getting together with a group of friends, eating your favorite snacks... and slaying a dragon?
2. You can be whoever you want
You want to be a huge, buff warrior who does his talking with fists instead of words? You got it! You want to be the sexiest person on the planet, capable of seducing anything or anyone? Sure! Maybe you want to be a chosen one, or an average guy, or Beyonce? Why not! You can create and be any type of character that you can think of.
3. It's totally customizable
Not into elves, orcs, and magic? Try playing a game set in space, the Wild West, the 1920s, or even modern day. The possibilities are infinite!
4. It's more popular than ever before
When D&D was created in the early 80s, people thought it was just for geeks and nerds. Now that nerdy media is mainstream, Dungeons and Dragons is more accessible than ever. Popular shows like The Adventure Zone and Critical Role have catapulted D&D into the spotlight, and there are creators on the web with tons of resources and ideas.
5. Celebrities love it, too
Stephen Colbert, Anderson Cooper, Vin Diesel, and more have all admitted they love to play Dungeons and Dragons (or used to before they got famous). You never know — maybe you'll learn some skills that will catapult you to fame!
6. It's not all serious
If you're looking for something more like "Lord of the Rings," which is detailed, dark, and dirty, you can go for that. But if you're not into something that deep, you and your friends can easily create something more lighthearted and hilarious. Before you know it, you and your friends will have all kinds of crazy inside jokes that'll sound completely incomprehensible to anyone not in your party.
7. You'll finally get all the references in your favorite TV shows
Tons of popular shows have a Dungeons and Dragons episode, and after you've played it, you'll finally get the hype. "Stranger Things," "Futurama," "Buffy the Vampire Slayer," and even "Spongebob" all have references that you might've missed.
8. It's easy to find representation
In the most recent handbook, the generic human character is a black woman in non-sexualized armor. The handbook makes references to tons of media created by women, includes tons of racial and gender diversity in its illustrations, and encourages players to create characters outside of the gender binary and explore different sexualities. Plus, you're the one running the game: give your characters any characteristics you want!
9. You can put it on your resume
No, I'm not kidding! Dungeons and Dragons includes working with a team for hours at a time, conflict resolution skills, character development, and lots of creativity. With a little spin, you're developing skills that employers definitely look for!
10. You're gonna get REALLY good at math
No, you don't have to do calculus to play. But you'll get really good at simple addition and subtraction, which comes in handy all the time. Quick! What's 13 + 4 - 1? You'd know the answer faster if you played D&D.
11. Dice are just really pretty, okay?
You need seven dice to play D&D, and you can get them cheap. But most importantly: so shiny...
Well, what are you waiting for? Grab some dice, get your friends, and get playing!
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