Become a wizard! Tabletop role-playing game makes fantasy fun

In the 1980s, folks worried that the fantasy board game Dungeons and Dragons could somehow lock young people into a fantasy world from which they could not escape.

That didn’t happen. But the worriers are now warriors, playing the tabletop game, which involves fantasy, strategy, role-playing — and you don’t need a partner to do it. All you need are some other people who want to be an elf, a wizard, or a knight, or a troll or another fantastical creature.

Each player creates a detailed description of their character and its skills. The Dungeon Master starts the game by telling a story.

As the Dungeon Master tells the story, players can respond to danger or challenges by yelling out their strategy. A Druid character might cast a spell, for example. A troll might use a hammer.

In the meantime, lots of table talk propels the game forward with players rolling dice to see what damage their strategy created — all this directed by the Dungeon Master, so there is no doubt what each player has to do next.

What? You are in a castle with a barred door?

“I smash the door with my magic sword,” says one senior player.

“You could have just tried the handle,” says another.

“Sword, I say,” asserts the player, flailing the imaginary sword around for all to see.

The Dungeon Master tells the player to roll the dice to see what kind of damage is done. A high roll. The door opens, and somewhere inside that castle is a treasure.

Although no one really remembers where the game left off the week before, the Dungeon Master knows and directs the play. Players might even dress up in character to play.

Best yet: No one needs a computer to play (except maybe the Dungeon Master).