SCARBOROUGH — The Scarborough Public Library is hosting online Dungeons & Dragons campaigns for middle school and high school students this fall.
Dungeons & Dragons, or D&D, is a fantasy tabletop role-playing game, Chris Libby, adult services assistant, said. Players create a character for an adventure in a fantasy world.
“The game has a dedicated fanbase, which has helped keep the game relevant and refreshed since it was originally released in 1974,” he said. “Since then, there have been five editions of the D&D system, and many spin-off games. With the internet, and popularization through other media (like the TV show “Stranger Things”), the game is more in the public eye — in a positive way! — than ever before.”
The high school and middle school campaigns will take place on every other Sunday in the fall, the library said. For example, the high school session will begin on Sept. 13 and the middle school one will begin on Sept. 20.
Registration is required, and will be due on the Friday before the first session. People can find the registration link at www.scarboroughlibrary.org/teens/dnd.
Lucy Jackson Norvell, coordinator of programming and communications, said that the library recently shared a Facebook post highlighting the educational benefits of Dungeons & Dragons.
An article written by Paul Davarsi in KQED said that according to research from David Simkins, a professor at the Rochester Institute of Technology, the game and other role-playing games can boost learning as well as stimulate intellectual curiosity and growth.
“It’s a game that can be played by anyone, of any age, gender, race, background, orientation, etc,” Libby said. “It can be played by a family, a group of friends, or with people you’ve never met before.”
The social aspect of the game also lets people be cooperative and share an experience, he said. Players aren’t competing against one another but rather with one another.
“Who doesn’t love becoming someone else, especially when that someone else has exceptional powers and abilities, and can fight the forces of evil?” Libby said. ” The only real limit to D&D gameplay is the imagination of the dungeon master and the players.”
The official website for the game, Wizards of the Coast, said that the company’s values include community, collaboration, empowerment, stewardship, and fun.
People who cannot make the weekly sessions can participate in the library’s one-shot adventures, the library said. They will take place one Tuesday each month and registration is also required to participate.
An adult campaign will also be offered, Libby said. The registration deadline for adults is Sept. 14, and more information is at www.scarboroughlibrary.org/DnD
“D&D programming at the library started in 2018, with a focus on teaching the basics of playing the game, especially with younger players,” Libby said. “There were some campaigns, as well as monthly games at the library where participants could develop their characters and the settings they were playing in. Some teens also started learning how to run games (to be the ‘dungeon master’).”
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