Once a week, Roanoke teenagers get together to fight monsters, find treasure, and explore new worlds.
On a recent evening, they gathered in a marketplace, only to hear faint bleating sounds. They investigated, only to find a sheep, who eventually speaks and informs them he is an "honest thief" who was transformed by an evil wizard who lives in the “Feywild.” Thus begins a quest to right a wrong and to transform the sheep back into its human form.
This is a game of Dungeons & Dragons, or D&D: a fantasy tabletop roleplaying game that was developed in 1974. A group of 8 teenagers sit around a table, sipping soda and munching snacks as they guide their characters through scenarios presented by Jeffrey Wood, the gamemaster.
Dungeons & Dragons is a game where players take on the role of a fantasy character in a fantasy world, and explore that world," says Wood, a youth services librarian at the library's Main Branch in downtown Roanoke. "It’s dangerous. They have to work together. There’s treasure, there’s monsters, there’s challenges and traps. My basic goal is to help kids learn literacy skills."
Woods says as far as he can tell, this is the longest running, library-based D&D game for kids in the country. He's seen a lot of teenagers come and go during that time.
"Dungeons & Dragons is unique because it attracts an extremely diverse group of kids," Wood says. "In the source materials, if you're trying to learn how to facilitate these games, it'll say, 'You've got the kiddo that's interested in beating all the monsters. You've got the kiddo that's interested in making friends. You've got the kiddo that wants to tell an interesting story, or be the one that makes the jokes.' It's very much a motley group."
The game gives them a reason to work together. They use pencils, paper and books to learn and play the game. The weekly gaming session then gives them a chance to meet other teens, and learn how to work together -- and maybe, to make some new friends.
"This is a weekly recurring program, and so when they’re year-round the same people every week, and going through these tumultuous adventures that I put them through, they tend to make friends and try and get along with one another," Wood says. "Some of them have stuck with this into their adulthood, and still hang out even outside of the library, and so they've made some lifelong friends, hopefully."
The program has changed Wood, too, and taught him a few life lessons.
"The most important thing that I've learned is not to make assumptions about what's going to happen next, because I've seen these stories, not only the stories of the kids and their personal lives, but also I've seen the stories in the game and the game world, go in fantastic directions that I did not expect to happen," he says.
Back in the game, the group progresses through the adventure, encountering the evil wizard ... and some of his associates. One player notices a character has what wood describes as a "comically large" head and yanks his hood, only to reveal the face of a grizzly bear. The players shriek in shock and laughter.
How will it turn out? It's entirely up to the players — and that is what's kept them coming back, for 15 years, and counting.