Ask me about my dragon

Imagine a medieval time filled with magic and bravery, quirky characters and ferocious beasts. Now, imagine that you are a key player in this world, a champion that can cut a path of good or evil into history.

This is the world of Dungeons and Dragons. For those that don't know, D&D is a fantasy, tabletop role-playing game, also known as a pen-and-paper game. The term ‘pen-and-paper' refers to the way in which the game is run — a group of three to seven players gather together with D&D rule books, pencils, pens, character sheets and their own imagination to aid them.

To keep order, a game leader known as the Dungeon Master is appointed to create and rule the world in which the players operate. He or she must voice antagonists, describe situations and surroundings as well as keep the game under control — in a word, the Dungeon Master is God.

The game involves whimsical settings like Abeir-Toril, the classic D&D land, Eberron, a darker, more technologically advanced setting and even Oriental and Arabian settings.

Each setting can be tailored to fit each group of gamers and the journey these participants take is referred to as a campaign. The members must each pick complementary characters that can work together to accomplish the campaign goals, whether they be accumulating wealth, creating chaos or saving the world.

Players can choose to be human or they can become any number of creatures — an elf, an orc, even a kobold, though I'm not sure that would be wise unless you're building Pun-Pun. These characters then chose a role to fill, including classic archetypes such as Fighter and Wizard.

Players can also choose to be a tricky Rouge, an explosive Barbarian, an inspiring Favored Soul or any number of other premade or home-brewed characters. D&D was originally created by Tactical Studies Rules, Inc. in 1974 and quickly became a cult phenomenon.

The original three booklets outlined flexible rules that allowed gamers to create their own world. Based off of war and strategy games, D&D sought to individualize the player experience by bringing creative characters into a mythological setting.

It was the precursor to the video game, fueled by imagination with none of the restrictions of a gaming console. As more players got involved, the company began issuing revisions to the original books and in the 1990s, TSR was purchased by Wizards of the Coast, a gaming company that also hosts the card game Magic: the Gathering.

Wizards repackaged D&D and created the versions gamers know and love today, including revised editions D&D 3, 3.5 and most recently, 4.0. Personally, I'm a 3.5 kind of girl — I understand 4.0 is "easier" and "more fun" to some, but I cut my teeth on 3.5 and I've grown to love the technicalities and flaws in the old system.

Today's version of D&D utilizes four, six and eight-sided die; but the star of the show is the infamous 20-sided die known as a d20.

This icosahedron is used to create a sense of drama in what might otherwise be an unbalanced game. In order to perform certain actions that involve chance, the player must roll the dice and add any bonuses their character has accumulated.

A roll of 20 means that no matter how difficult the task, the character has successfully accomplished their goal. A score of one means a serious misstep at the discretion of the Dungeon Master.

A one has left several characters in hot water, including a time when one of my cohorts stood two feet from a 100-foot wide zombie and instead of hitting his target, stabbed himself in the foot. D&D is often scoffed at for its use of fantasy settings and its reliance on imagination. This aspect of the game, however, is the most charming and beneficial.

Call me old-fashioned, but I appreciate the ability to laugh face-to-face with my friends as we use logic and resourcefulness to bend rules and outwit foes. Of course, the game is not always so high minded—we spend many an evening cracking crude jokes, participating in imagined bar brawls and making way too many Monty Python references.

This game, however, helped me become open minded and allowed me to appreciate the remnants of my innocence. I am proud to admit that I am a fully-functioning member of society who enjoys the occasional D&D session in my mother's basement.