

You can also find games using platforms like StartPlaying, which connect would-be players with professional game masters.īut the fact is, you don’t need to meet in person with the other players at all. D&D’s publisher, Wizards of the Coast, has an event locator that you can use to find a friendly local game store where you can drop in and try the game regardless of your experience level. Luckily, there are plenty of resources to make it easier to find like-minded would-be heroes. While D&D is often best played around a table, gathering your best friends at home together isn’t always practical.

The best way to truly experience D&D is to play it yourself Polygon’s guide is designed to help get you started. The game’s long history and books full of rules might seem intimidating, but its popularity makes it easier than ever to get an adventure going. It provided the language and the lore for Netflix’s Stranger Things, inspired the mystery at the heart of the novel Ready Player One, and was adapted into the major motion picture Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves.īut while stories of flawed heroes coming together in the face of terrible odds makes for great media, the best way to truly experience D&D is to play it yourself. It’s the game that gave birth to actual play, a format that inspired the likes of Dimension 20, The Adventure Zone, and Critical Role and its The Legend of Vox Machina animated series. Since then, it’s served as the inspiration for countless daring adventures - and, arguably, entire genres in the video game industry.

The story of Dungeons & Dragons, the iconic tabletop role-playing game, began in 1974. An unrepentant min-maxer, she has played and run games on the Critical Hit podcast. She also regularly reviews TV and movies, with a focus on science fiction, fantasy, superheroes, and generally all things nerdy. Samantha Nelson is a freelance journalist who has been covering tabletop RPGs and board games for nearly 10 years for numerous outlets.
