Just to prove to everyone I can make posts that aren't "Current-affairs" related, I've decided to start a thread based on one of my favorite Role Playing Games, good old Dungeons and Dragons, 3rd Edition.

I've loved role-playing type games ever since I discovered the "You're the Hero" type interactive storybooks. Especially the "Lone Wolf" series, my first real experience. ^^ Now you know where I got the handle from.

And I must here make the difference between computer games like Final Fantasy, which are really more like Interactive stories then true table-top RPGs like D&D, which essentially have no limits as to how a character can react to a given situation.

I remember one of my favorite D&D sessions, where I managed to prevent a battle between my party and a troup of town guards by using a "Friendship" spell on the troup's captain, convincing him to let my friends go. It was very kewl.

And now, Scott Kurtz's Five Reasons Your Kid Should Play D&D.

1. It Encourages Teamwork.
In Dungeons and Dragons, players take on the roles of adventures with their own special strengths and weaknesses. To complete their tasks, your kids are going to have to figure out how to combine their character's unique abilities with that of their teammates to solve puzzles, defeat villains and complete quests.

2. It Encourages Reading.
D&D is a pen and paper game. It doesn't install on a computer or play on a VCR. Your children are actually going to sit down and crack open a book. And they're going to enjoy it because the history, stories and game mechanics are interesting and engaging. Don't be surprised if after playing D&D for a while, they suddenly find an interest in reading fantasy novels. TSR offers a wide range of incredible fantasy novels based off many of their campaign sets. I recommend the Dragonlance series myself.

3. It Encourages Positive Social Interaction.
D&D encourages your kids to interact face to face in your home with their friends, rather than anonymously with strangers over the internet. I understand that if you place two or more teenagers in a room and leave them there for an hour there's bound to be a conflict. But working through those conflicts and learning to interact with their peers is going to teach them communication skills they're going to use later on as adults.

4. It Stimulates Imaginations and Encourages Creative Expression.
After living out the stories created by the Dungeon Master, kids want to write their own stories and adventures. The beautiful illustrations in the D&D books and modules inspire many budding artists to do their own illustrations and paintings (and cartoons). I know one budding artist who used to spend too much time drawing his character portrait and not enough time paying attention to the game.

5. It's Something You Can Do With Your Kids
You heard me. You can play Dungeons and Dragons with your kids and have a good time with them. It's a great opportunity for you to communicate and roleplay with them. I guarantee that if you play Dungeons and Dragons with your child, you'll learn something about them that you didn't know before. It also gives you an opportunity to get to know their friends and social circles. Plus it makes you the cool parent in the neighborhood. Trust me on that one.

-The LoneWolf is Back. Accept it.