Hi folks!
Today, we’re talking about Dungeons and Flagons (DNF) here in Lansing, Mi. I’ve talked about DNF before, when I played Cats in Meowter Space, but this past weekend, I got to drop into a one-shot campaign (one shot means the game wraps up in one sitting instead of over several get togethers).
It.
Was.
AWESOME.
I brought along two friends who have never played Dungeons & Dragons (D&D) before and we sat around a huge table with 4 other folks, including our Dungeon Master (AKA DM) Peter. DMs are the people who run the game, including creating the story, setting up any materials, voice acting even! Peter explained mechanics as our mixed experience party of 6 went along. The story took place in a fantasy town called Shallow River. We were mercenaries stopping in for the night while the caravan underwent maintenance. Mysterious things were happening in town and we needed answers. For gold. We needed answers for gold.
It was a 2 hour game that flew by. We all had so much fun stepping into this fantasy and collaborating on the story as it unfolded, even as strangers. It felt like each one of us had a special role to play.
The magic of D&D is that you get to try on someone else’s perspective and see the world through different eyes. Instead of being a shy introvert, I was Karmin, a dragonborn fighter with silver scales who hated teamwork but loved money; intimidating, compassionate, troubled. Each character has a flaw because flaws make us unique and interesting. It’s what makes us human – or in this case, dragonborn, dwarfs, and elves.
The research on the benefits around roleplaying games like Dungeons & Dragons is plentiful, so I recommend every team try it if they’re interested as part of their play practice. Roleplaying games fit well in a monthly or quarterly cadence. It can be challenging and time consuming to learn how to run larger scale roleplaying games like Dungeons & Dragons, so take a look around your town for places and people who could run one for your team, like DNF here in Lansing, Mi! It’s owned by some stellar folks, too, Wyatt Russ and Colton Hughes, who are super passionate about what they do.
DNF runs role playing games like Dungeons & Dragons(D&D) in a totally decked out room with high tech tools and fantasy ambience. You can either rent a gamemaster (someone who facilitates and runs the game) or rent the room for your own game. I’ve been part of a couple games already and it’s awesome!
Check them out!
Lissy
