Roleplaying games such as Dungeons and Dragons have in the past received some bad publicity and been seen as the domain of geeks and nerds. Thankfully that image and misconception about what roleplaying games are and just now social they can be has changed in recent years.
The rise of streams such as Critical role (hosted by the fabulous Matt Mercer), Dice Camera Action (hosted by the amazing god of wizards of the coast Chris Perkins), Acquisitions Incorporated and a myriad of other fantastic Twitch/YouTube shows has allowed a wider audience to see what really goes on during a roleplaying game. No longer seen as the purview of loner geeks or basement dwellers, more and more people are seeing the benefits and joy of Dungeons and Dragons!
I started playing AD&D (that is advanced dungeons and dragons for anyone not around in the 80/90's) in 1995 at the age of 12 with some friends parents, quickly I fell in love with this hobby and have been playing for 24 years! Its not just a game, its a way of exploring your own imagination, psyche, mind while making new friends and engaging in a hobby which increase language/communication skills, critical thinking, and social interaction skills. As a kid who had speech problems, social anxiety issues and was very shy D&D soon became a way for me to work on my problems with out realising it at the time.
After about 20 years working in IT struggling with depression I decided to change my life and start doing something I was truly passionate about, after months of tossing ideas around I decided to start two companies which encompass my love of nature, wildlife and my love of gaming! The wildlife and nature side was satisfied with my wildlife and environment focused gardening company Compassionate Roots, while the gaming side has become Mystic Pigeon Gaming where we run social games sessions for kids/adults and make some awesome tabletop gaming accessories and terrain.
We would love to hear your gaming stories and how roleplaying games have helped you. Over the next few months we will be releasing new terrain, minis and tabletop accessories alongside some new gaming events for kids in Nottingham and the surrounding areas over the long summer holidays!
