Sophomore Noah Pendo is a frequent user of the library and he occasionally witnesses the gathering of students excited to participate in a game at the big wooden tables. He describes them as “passionate” and “loud,” and describes their game as “mysterious.”

Pendo is referring to one of Parker’s newest clubs, the Upper School Dungeons & Dragons (D&D) Club. The Upper School and Middle School D&D Clubs at Parker were created this year by library assistant and long-time player of D&D, Eric Rampson. The Upper School club meets after school on Tuesdays, and the Middle School club meets after school on Fridays.

D&D is a fantasy tabletop roleplaying game in which players use their imaginations to complete a journey. It was created by Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson and was first published in 1974.

“There are basically no rules, and it is literally up to the characters to do anything they want,” freshman and Upper School D&D club member Ellis Brown said. He explained that there is a “Dungeon Master” who runs the game and “guides the experience” for the players.

Rampson and other librarians began theorizing about the club a few years ago before the COVID-19 pandemic began, but the plans were put on hold. Rampson finally established the clubs earlier this year acting as Dungeon Master of both clubs.

Brown learned about Parker’s new D&D club at the Club Fair in the fall of this school year, and he and a few friends decided to sign up. They even recruited some new players to join them. Brown already had some D&D experience prior to the club.

When D&D was originally recommended to him by his parents, Brown was not interested, thinking it was a “huge nerd game.” Brown’s friend later invited him to play, and they started meeting to play the game over Zoom every week.

The Upper School club began with primarily students who had never played D&D before. Brown found that frustrating at first as he was a more experienced player who was ready to get going at a faster pace. However, many new players progressed, and the Upper School Club boiled down to seven devoted members.

Sophomore Davu Hemphill-Smith had never played D&D when he decided to give it a try at the Upper School D&D Club earlier this year. “Learning it was pretty easy because it’s a game where you kind of learn as you go along,” he said.

Hemphill-Smith said that playing D&D is like writing a book with your friends. The story “blooms” as the game-play goes on and as the players introduce new ideas and plots.

Each D&D player creates a character that has certain attributes and abilities that dictate how they contribute to the journey. Hemphill-Smith’s character is a “mountain dwarf barbarian” who is aloof but very protective of his family.

According to Rampson, playing D&D has educational value for different grades. For Upper School students, Rampson said that D&D helps students practice teamwork and empathy as they move through a story together. He also said that for Middle School students, D&D is a good practice in having “agency” and being “in control” of what you are doing.

“The Middle School Club is insane,” Rampson said, “they have to have two tables.” The Middle School D&D Club is supported by very invested students, including eighth grader Chase Wayland and seventh grader Sienna Nikitas who act as Dungeon Masters.

“Chase might actually know more than I do,” Rampson said, “and he’s really into getting other people into it.”

Rampson estimated that at least half of the Middle School Club is brand new, and others knew about the game but had never sat at the table. Wayland has created many aids and resource sheets to keep the new players on track. Rampson believes that introducing new players to the game and relying on players who care deeply about D&D will likely keep the clubs going for years to come.

According to Brown, the club is not very well known because many people do not understand or appreciate the game of D&D. “People see us in the library and they’re like ‘Oh, what are you doing?’ ‘we’re playing Dungeons & Dragons,’ and then they just walk away awkwardly,” Brown said.

Rampson was impressed with the amount of student interest in both clubs, but there are many stigmas around D&D that prevent it from being even more popular. He said that many people believe that in order to play D&D you need to dress up and do a funny voice, while in reality, those pieces are not essential and there are many ways to enjoy the game.

Rampson encourages everybody to stop by the clubs, watch them play, and think about if they might like it. “I think it has a wider appeal than it seems,” he said.