I’m writing this because I genuinely want to convince more people to try Dungeons & Dragons, so please read the whole thing before you decide it’s “not for you.” I don’t go out much. I don’t have a huge group of friends, and I’m extremely shy when it comes to trying new things. When I started university, I kind of fell into a routine that felt like a vortex. I would go to class, come home, scroll on my phone, maybe study, sleep, repeat. I wasn’t really taking time for myself or doing anything new. It was just automatic mode every day. Then, at the end of the first semester, I saw a small announcement looking for new players to try D&D. That alone shocked me. I always assumed that kind of thing barely existed here, or at least that it wasn’t popular enough to casually find a group welcoming beginners. It felt like something that only happened in movies or online. I wanted to go, but I was terrified. So I begged a friend to join me for a couple of sessions, just so I wouldn’t feel so exposed. Having someone I knew there made it easier to walk into that first game without wanting to disappear. And I got lucky. Our Dungeon Master was amazing. She taught us how to build character sheets from scratch and how combat works without making it feel overwhelming. She made it very clear that you don’t need to memorize the entire rulebook to play. We’re there to have fun, not to take an exam. If something interests you, you look it up. If it doesn’t, you don’t. It’s not school. You can focus on your race, your class, your abilities, and that’s perfectly fine. We were a pretty big group, which made everything more chaotic but also more fun. And then there’s my character. My daughter. I created her from zero, sketched her little design, thought about her personality, her backstory, everything. Her name is Haalari, and she’s a bard. Maybe one day I’ll share her character sheet and some drawings because I love her an unreasonable amount. Poor Haalari, though. She’s a half-elf drow, which already puts her in an awkward social spot, and on top of that she’s a trans woman. She really said, “let’s collect minorities like achievements.” I promise it makes sense in context. Her story is complicated, but that complexity makes her interesting to roleplay. We haven’t finished the campaign yet. Not even close. We’ve had several sessions already and every time I leave feeling energized. At the beginning I was painfully shy. I struggled to speak in character, I overthought every decision, but something shifted over time. Because here’s the funny part: I’m very shy, but Haalari is not. She’s explosive, dramatic, morally questionable at times, and flirts with basically everyone. Playing someone so bold forced me to step outside of myself. The more sessions we play, the easier it becomes to embody her. I’m learning to improvise, to react faster, to trust my ideas instead of immediately doubting them. And I didn’t expect this, but it’s actually helping my confidence. It makes me think more creatively. It pushes me to speak up. It lets my imagination run wild in a way that daily life rarely does. So if you’ve ever been curious, try it, PLEASE!!! 🙏 And if you don’t know where to start, my messages are open. I’ll happily help you build your first character. Trust me, it might surprise you how much you end up loving it.