Some Dungeons & Dragons stories become legendary: a perfectly timed natural 20, a ridiculous use of a spell or item, or a plan of attack the Dungeon Master never expected. I've been a Dungeon Master for a while, so I’ve been witness to many such moments. Now, whenever I see a meme template, hear a song, or watch a movie, somewhere in the back of my head is a D&D story that fits right along. So of course, with the upcoming release of the Wicked movie (and the soundtrack I've had memorized since 2009), my brain has been pairing up my favorite songs with my favorite D&D stories, which I have decided to share with you. Enjoy these moments from my many D&D campaigns along with a matching song from the musical Wicked. 

One of the great strengths of Dungeons & Dragons is getting to play with others: going on adventures as a team, interacting in-character, and getting to spend time with geek-minded friends. But this strength can also be a weakness. Many a well-intentioned campaign has fizzled out due to scheduling mishaps, interpersonal conflicts, or difficulty finding a Dungeons Master - and that's if you can get a party together in the first place! This struggle has many D&D enthusiasts asking if it’s possible to play the game alone. With a little bit of creativity, the answer is yes! Here are a few different options if you want to play D&D by yourself.

Did you know homeschooling is the fastest-growing form of education in the U.S.? I didn’t until I saw recent research showing that, even post-pandemic, the number of homeschooled kids continues to climb—up to 2.7 million, according to the Washington Post!

Families from all walks of life are choosing to homeschool for various reasons, so there’s no single “type” of homeschooler. Still, anyone considering it has probably faced the same question: How do homeschooled students socialize?

As a therapist, I can confirm that socialization is crucial to every child’s emotional and cognitive growth, especially for preteens and teens whose development relies on peer relationships. So, whether you’re asking this yourself or fielding questions from curious (or nosy) neighbors, it’s a topic worth exploring.

Socialization can be challenging for all kids, regardless of school setting. Homeschooling families just face different hurdles than their public school counterparts.

In this post, I’ll dive into the importance of socialization, why not all social events are equal, and how parents can intentionally set their kids up for social success. We’ll also look at how online platforms (like our D&D games) can add valuable support to a homeschooler’s social world.

We are big fans of The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings here at Young Dragonslayers, and we aren't alone. Many of the very first people working on Dungeons & Dragons loved Lord of the Rings, taking inspiration from the books as they crafted the rules and world of the game. So, that got us wondering - what would Tolkein's stories have looked like in D&D? Could we use these classic tales to teach people how the game worked? Let's find out together!

If you're around the D&D sections of the internet, whether that's subreddits, YouTube channels, or even your TikTok FYP, you've probably at least heard about the upcoming release of a new version of D&D. This news raises a lot of questions, especially for new players. What is a new version exactly? What will happen to the old version? What changed? And, most importantly, how can my D&D group deal handle this? D&D is our bread and butter here at Young Dragonslayers™, so let us guide you through what this means for D&D and how you can expect the game to change (or not).

Many Dungeon Masters use official materials to find elements like magic items, terrible monsters, or even entire stories to run for their parties. These elements can be found in books like the Dungeon Master’s Guide, the Monster Manual, Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything, or Waterdeep: Dragon Heist. But sometimes people want to create their own elements for their games to realize their own vision for a character, story, or battle. These unofficial elements are called homebrew; some materials are made by individual players to share with their friends or on sites like Tumblr, Reddit, DMs Guild, or D&D wikis, and some by professional companies like Kobold Press, Green Ronin, and MCDM Productions. These materials can breathe new life into your Dungeons & Dragons games…but they could potentially ruin an already-great game. Here’s what you need to know if you’d like to incorporate homebrewed elements as a Dungeon Master.

Dungeons & Dragons has so many different elements to incorporate into your games: swordplay masters, magical fireballs, or eyestalked monsters. These work great for the high-fantasy world of many D&D games and have given players hours of fun for years and years. But sometimes people want to create their own elements for games. This is called homebrew! Individual D&D players make homebrew materials for their games, sharing it with their friends or on sites like Tumblr, Reddit, DMs Guild, or D&D wikis. So do professional companies like Kobold Press, Green Ronin, and MCDM Productions. With so many homebrew options, it seems like you could play anything you want! But randomly shoving in new elements could potentially muck up an already-good game. Here’s what you need if you’d like to incorporate homebrewed elements as a Dungeons & Dragons player.

Many of us are familiar with the sensation of being invested in a story while reading books, watching movies, or playing games. The connection can be even more intense with games like Dungeons & Dragons, where you’re playing a character inside the story itself!

But sometimes, being too “into it” is inconvenient (like having to try not to cry while watching anime on the bus) or even painful (like being unable to step away from grief over a work of fiction). On the other hand, trying to “cut off” this emotional investment can lessen the experience and disconnect you from the story. Here are some ways to harness the healthy aspects of gaming-adjacent emotions while looking out for the ways it can veer into being unhealthy.

D&D (owned by Wizards of the Coast, owned by Hasbro) is more than just a game—it’s also a brand and a business. There are endless tools, accessories, and add-ons available for purchase, and you can spend quite a pretty penny when it comes to buying books, constructing intricately scaled landscapes in the middle of your living room, and/or developing a crippling dice addiction.

However, one of the best things about Dungeons and Dragons (in my humble bardic opinion) is that you can absolutely play for free. Whether you’re a first-time player or the forever DM, there are countless official and fan-made resources that won’t put you out a single copper piece.

This list could very well be endless, but here are a few of my personal favorites.

Online gaming aficionados, we have gathered here today to discuss a potentially controversial topic: Discord for kids. If you’re the parent of a D&D-loving child, you’ve likely heard your child talking about this app. And if you’re a gamer yourself, you’re probably using it already!

Depending on who you ask, Discord is either a fun and easy way for kids to connect with friends (often while playing games) or the supreme source of internet evil. The opinions I hear from fellow parents about Discord as a therapist, D&D professional, and mom are all over the map.

So what’s a parent to do? Cave to the pressure and let your kid use Discord even if you feel a little uncomfortable? Restrict Discord entirely and risk your child missing out on quality social interaction? Go on a deep internet dive trying to figure out how to make Discord as safe as possible for your kid?

We run online D&D games for kids and teens, so internet safety is an absolute top priority around here. We use a variety of tools to play—and yes, sometimes Discord is one of them! In this guide, we’ll be breaking down everything you need to know about Discord to make an informed deicision about whether to allow it for your child.

With Halloween coming soon, many Dungeons & Dragons players are in the mood for one thing: spooks, scares, and skeletons (or your monster of choice). Fortunately, the game contains loads of fun monsters and creatures perfect for the season. But newcomers to the game can find sifting through all of the available materials intimidating; luckily, there are many adventures out there that have already been put together. We’ve selected three great starter adventures for beginning Dungeon Masters that may be just the thing to get a Halloween one-shot together this spooky season.

Hail and well met, future Dungeon Masters! You’re ready to dive into the world of facilitating your own Dungeons & Dragons games. Welcome to a realm where your imagination runs wild, and you can bring your wildest dreams (or nightmares) alive for your friends and family. But wait: before you start crafting epic quests and summoning mythical creatures, you might be wondering, "Where do I even begin?" Fear not, my fellow adventurer, because we've got your back.

As the world becomes increasingly digital, the ways in which all players, especially kids and teens, engage with these games has expanded beyond the traditional tabletop. This piece is meant to unveil a fraction of the plethora of methods for young adventurers to embark on epic quests, emphasizing online play while also delving into the enchanting realm of play-by-post. Whether you're a novice or a seasoned player, there's a mode of play waiting to whisk you away into a world of wonder.

Since the pandemic, the rates of childhood depression have doubled: worldwide, 1 in 4 teens report having “clinically significant” symptoms. We know that the disruption in routines, missed milestones, and isolation of the pandemic had a huge impact on kids’ mental health, and we’ll probably see after effects for years to come.

Our company, Young Dragonslayers, was founded in 2020 as a direct response to the huge wave of depression that swept through the lives of kids and teens in my therapy practice. I was looking for a way to help kids stay connected to something meaningful during that chaotic and lonely time. D&D is predictable, socially supportive, and lets kids experience “wins” every time they play. It’s a wonderful option for kids struggling with depression, and today I’d like to talk about why.

It’s hard to meet new people when you aren’t putting yourself out there, and kids with social anxiety may quickly feel isolated from their peers. They need to find ways to meet new peers that feel safe and nonjudgmental, so they can gradually face their fears. If your socially anxious child has geeky interests, I’ve got some great news: D&D is an amazing tool for helping kids overcome social anxiety.

Today, we’re going to take a look at the ways that social anxiety affects kids, and the specific aspects of D&D that can help kids learn to navigate their social life with less fear.

The collaborative, immersive nature of D&D makes it an amazing vehicle for social and emotional learning. You’re literally putting yourself in another person (or elf, or gnome, or giant talking cat’s) shoes. How you interact with others has a huge influence on the success or failure of your game. You almost can’t help but improve your people skills!

But what exactly are social-emotional skills, and how do they get used in the game? Therapists are sometimes guilty of dropping buzzwords like “SEL skills” without really unpacking what they mean. So today, let’s get into it! We’re going on a deep dive into the social-emotional skills we see kids use over the course of a standard D&D campaign. You’ll learn what SEL skills are, why they’re important, and how they play out in D&D.

Dungeons & Dragons is a very creative game that builds friendships and provides hours of imaginative fun to millions across the world. In this blog post, we’ll tell you everything you need to know as a beginner to get started playing the game. If you want to join in the fun, you’re definitely in the right place.

Howdy, partner! Welcome to the wild west of Dungeons and Dragons. To best get you going on your tabletop game, you’ll be needing some fine dice. There are all different colors, styles, shapes, and sizes, so you’ve got a lot of options to choose from.

We’ve compiled the information you need on everything dice-related. We’ll tell you what dice you need, cool specialty dice options you might not have heard of, and where you can find them. We’ll also share our top 10 recommendations for online stores that sell dice and other D&D supplies.

When you play D&D, you’re getting hands-on education on subjects like music, literacy, math, and emotional intelligence. But you don’t have to take our word for it. Amazingly, we have actual research that shows role-playing games like Dungeons & Dragons can help you become a smarter, kinder human being.

Ready to design the Studio Ghibli-D&D mashup of your dreams? Check out this video to learn how you can incorporate elements from movies like Spirited Away, Ponyo, and Howl’s Moving Castle into your next Dungeons & Dragons campaign.