There seems to be a new trend growing among Wayne State College students, one that has been around for decades but has only begun picking up steam, Dungeons and Dragons. 

D&D is a tabletop role playing game that has been around since 1974 and has been growing and evolving ever since. Through the years, it has undergone many different iterations, and has had its share of hardships throughout the history of the game, but as of the last few years, it has become more popular in the mainstream media, with numerous references in the hit Netflix show, “Stranger Things,” and even a feature length film set to be released next year. With this growing popularity, it seems to have taken effect on WSC’s campus as well. 

“Just in terms of the last three, four years walking around campus most dorm buildings will have some form of game, whether it be D&D or some kind of board game going on in the lobby room,” John Vuchetich, president of the WSC FANclub, said. “You’d be hard-pressed any night to not find something going on in one of the dorm halls. It definitely helps that both the mainstream media and the general social media has acknowledged D&D a lot more and put it on the plate of lots of different people which is awesome.” 

D&D has often been looked at as a way for different types of people to get together, and the growing culture of D&D on WSC’s campus can allow for more of that to grow.  

“I think stereotypically people think that D&D players are one specific type of person, but I do not think that,” Cam Turner, a student at WSC and D&D player, said. “I’ve seen all shapes and sizes. I’ve seen people who seem like they would not like this and then they play it, and they do fantastic.” 

One of the things that seems to draw people away from D&D is its apparent difficulty. 

“It is a very easy game to learn,” Sam McPhillips said. “Actually, I kind of just jumped in as a complete noob on a one shot and picked it up right away. You develop a character, and you roll dice to determine whether or not you succeed in the actions that you do. D&D can be whatever you want it to be, but there are rules for those who are new to it.”  

“I think at its core D&D and Tabletop RPG games are a format, you can do really whatever you want to make of them,” Vuchetich said. “At the end of the day, what it is, is some dice, pens and paper, and people telling a story. If you have a group of friends that just wants to sit down and hang out, talk, you can do that, if you want to purchase and play by the books and play in a structure for the game, you can do that.” 

Not only is it a fun game to play with friends, but it also has served many benefits to those who play it.  

“Stereotypically, people who are playing D&D are a little nerdier, maybe not as involved in other stuff, so it does give them that place,” Vuchetich said. “That community and that creativity allows a welcome break for college students and really does a lot to kind of space out the whole classes studying kind of thing.”  

“It definitely boosts creativity,” Turner said. “It actually allows us to communicate with each other instead of being on our phones, so it’s actual conversations that are happening in order to play.”  

With D&D growing in popularity, many groups are forming all over WSC’s campus, and people who never thought they would have interest seem to be growing fond of this game. Whether through the WSC FANClub or some friends, there are many opportunities to play D&D at WSC. As Vuchetich said, “Be imaginative and go try stuff, it’s different, it’s weird, but it’s fun.”