Why is Dungeons & Dragons sweeping through the Illawarra?

As a youth development worker for Wollongong Youth Services, Joshua Wiffen always looks for ways to connect with young people on their level and as it turns out, that entails slaying the odd dragon.

For the past two years, he has been the “Dungeon Master” in a series of Dungeons & Dragons (D&D) sessions held at Wollongong Youth Centre and across Wollongong City libraries, for people aged 12 to 24.

D&D is a group storytelling game where players roleplay a single character within a fantasy world, and one extra player – the Dungeon Master or DM – plays every other character. A single story is called a “campaign” and can be held in one session (called a “one shot”) or across multiple sessions, some of which span years. The DM is in charge of organising the game, creating details and challenges of a given adventure and maintaining a realistic continuity of events governed by a series of rules and a measure of luck, decided by dice.

In the past, the game was considered a niche interest in geek culture, and in the 80s was even vilified as an occult tool, sparking a moral panic. Today, perhaps due to the surge in the popularity of tabletop games during the pandemic and pop culture references such as Netflix’s Stranger Things, D&D is more or less a mainstream pursuit.

This is perhaps why Joshua’s research identified it as an ideal addition to the Wollongong Youth Services’ offering.

“Our overarching goal is to connect with young people and provide a touch point for them via a bunch of different avenues. That includes anything from providing resources and activities to upskilling opportunities and programs to improve mental health and build capacity,” he says.

“Whatever the avenue, you have to meet young people at their level. There’s no point in us adults saying, ‘Hey, let’s start a chess club or cooking program’ – we have to find out what young people want to do, and one thing that came out of consultation was D&D.”

A multifaceted game, D&D is as much a social outlet as it is an activity for fun, inviting people from different walks of life to sit at the table and work towards goals.

According to Joshua, it’s an excellent vehicle for practising concepts of mathematics and probability, literacy, logic, critical thinking, imagination, creativity and collaboration. To varying degrees, it can involve a bit of performance, too.

Throughout the Wollongong local government area (LGA) DM Joshua runs low-commitment one-shots, longer campaigns over regular sessions for players who want to get into the nitty-gritty, and school holiday programs that allow beginners to dip their toes, and decide if they want to upskill in the game.

In Kiama, a weekly Dungeons & Dragons Adventurers Club takes eight- to 12-year-olds through campaigns ideal for new players and those simply wanting to try a short campaign.

The Shellharbour LGA is DM Bradley Ward’s territory. The Shellharbour City Libraries staff member with a decade of D&D experience up his sleeve, says his school holidays “Introduction to D&D” series is an effective alternative to screen time.

“In its simplest form, it doesn’t take long to master all rules – it’s a game that anyone can pick up and play. Generally within the first hour, they can create their character and know enough about the mechanics to dive into playing,” he says.

“I try to incorporate a taste of everything the game has to offer in the sessions – a bit of role-playing, puzzle solving and engaging in a bit of combat.”

These introductory sessions have been a bit of a test run in what Bradley hopes will become regular D&D clubs across the Shellharbour LGA.

While rooted in the rules of logic and probability, there’s one rule most DMs value above all others – the Rule of Cool.

“The DM is in charge but in my experience, the best results come from rewarding player creativity,” Bradley says.

“The DM creates this world, they know the basic beats of where the story will go, but the joy of the game is that the characters have agency, they get to make their own decisions and approach stimuli in unexpected ways. As a result, this world you’ve created takes on a life of its own and goes in directions nobody could anticipate.

“When the people you’re playing with shock you in a world of your creation, that’s special.”

DM Bradley says the buffer D&D creates between real life and make-believe can be a powerful tool for self-expression and a great equaliser.

“The fantastical realms of D&D can become a space where young people have a greater capacity to express parts of themselves they’re not otherwise able to express, and sometimes, better annunciate their own existence.”

Curious? Check out Wollongong Youth Services Instagram, Wollongong City Libraries, Shellharbour Libraries and Kiama Library to find your nearest portal into the realms of Dungeons & Dragons.