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Aug 2, 2023Liked by Brian Reindel 👾⚔️

I’ve been wanting to get into D&D for a while! This article was a fun reminder to just dive in. Thanks, Brian!

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Thanks for reading and commenting, Alexa! As a top-notch storyteller, you're perfectly suited to take up the role of DM. 😉 I would love to play a couple games as well, but I just can't find the time. When I'm retired, I may end up playing lots of D&D.

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Aug 2, 2023Liked by Brian Reindel 👾⚔️

What a great interview, Brian. Thanks for sharing! I love what Mike says about the cultural shift regarding the game. In my experience it’s 100 percent true. I do think Stranger Things has helped in some way.

I’ve been running a DnD club at my middle school for a couple of years now, and there has never been a parent concern. If anything, I’ve had parents reach out asking, “What should ___ buy next?” It’s been a fun and rewarding venture introducing young players to the game! 🐉 ⚔️

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That's awesome, Justin! Further confirmation of what I already knew, which is that Mr. Deming is a student favorite. 😁

When I was in grade school, the D&D influence at the time was E.T. because they play it prominently in the movie, although it's never explicitly stated that's the game. I was too young to know what it was, but I remember thinking it sounded fun to play. When the mother asks how you win at the game, the one friend says, "There's no winning. It's like life. You don't win at life." 🤣

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Aug 3, 2023Liked by Brian Reindel 👾⚔️

Haha, I love that quote. And thanks for the kind words! Oh, I’m not sure about favorite, but I believe they think I’m kind, perhaps funny, and slightly strange. 🤣

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Aug 2, 2023Liked by Brian Reindel 👾⚔️

Haven’t played D&D for over 30 years but had some of the best times growing up being involved in campaigns that lasted months and caused us to stay up all night at the weekends. Still have my old Players Handbook and Dungeons Masters Guide from back then. Both held together with nothing more than dust and memories

This article was a great reminder about a wonderful game 👍🏼

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That sounds amazing, Daniel! I had some experiences like that centered around movie nights at a friend's house, but never D&D. I'm so glad the article brought back some good memories.

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Aug 2, 2023·edited Aug 2, 2023Liked by Brian Reindel 👾⚔️

Conventions are a great way to try out different games. Almost every con will have at least a little bit of gaming, but really the way to go is a dedicated game day or game convention. There are literally hundreds to choose from (though for some reason this list has none of our NC locals).

https://www.meeplemountain.com/articles/the-board-gamers-guide-to-board-game-conventions/#world-boardgame-convention-list

For a quick survey of three little locals, just to get some idea of flavor, https://randallhayes.substack.com/p/three-little-cons

Also most game stores run demos, and even libraries are now hosting games.

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Thanks so much for the additional information, Randall! Our local comic book shop runs games of Pokemon, Magic and I think D&D as well. Our library does Pokemon for youth, but I'm not sure if they have D&D. They recently opened up a board game rental section, so it's very possible. There's no shortage of places to give it a try.

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I haven't played D&D for 35 years. I had great (obsessive) fun playing Basic/Expert for five years in the 1980s. We moved to playing Traveller and then Marvel Super Heroes with some Star Trek alongside.

I found 'Imagine' magazine a great resource to help flesh out the original game. I spent hours designing campaigns.

All time well spent.

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That's awesome, James! I only played D&D maybe 2-3 times in my youth, but right around when I would have been most interested was the golden years for NES, and my friends and I ended up being sucked into that world. Later in life as an adult I played HeroClix with some coworkers, but that's the closest I ever got again.

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