What's included
1 live meeting
2 in-class hours per weekHomework
1 hour per week. Learners will need to create a Player Character on DnDBeyond.com, and connect to my campaign through an email I'll send via Outschool class communication, once learners have enrolled. Outside of that initial effort, learners will be expected to research and understand their Player Character skills, abilities, items, weapons, spells, etc. It is certain that we will "level up" our Player Characters during the course of campaigns, and learners will be expected to make those decisions, edit their DnDBeyond character sheet, and continue to research their abilities as they develop. I expect students should not need to spend more than half an hour a week on study outside of class, although I quite enjoy learning about D&D on my own time. I require at least 24 hours to input DnDBeyond Player Character info into my Virtual Table Top for gameplay, so anyone who wishes to play with their own character will need to join my DnDBeyond campaign a day in advance of the class. Otherwise, they will be able to use a pre-generated character and still participate in the class.Class Experience
Come play Dungeons & Dragons 5th Edition with me, as we adventure through different D&D 5e game modules. Learners will make their own characters, and play through different challenges every week. Even though the story will progress, the encounters we will create each week are self-contained, so players may join or leave the campaign at any point without impacting the game or their gaming experience. My goal is to help make our campaign so exciting that players will look forward to our games every week in anticipation of what comes next! We will start by playing through the Dragon of Icespire Peak Adventure! The class will continue in one module until it is completed, at which point we will begin a new campaign in a different adventure. There is a long list of exciting adventures to choose from, like Curse of Strahd, Hoard of the Dragon Queen, Storm King’s Thunder, Cloud Giant’s Bargain, Waterdeep: Dragon Heist, Waterdeep: Dungeon of the Mad Mage, The Lost Mine of Phandelver, Ghosts of Saltmarsh, and many more! Here is a quick look into the agenda for the first few weeks: Week of 1/17/22: Our heroes assemble for the first time! We will make sure everyone has a Player Character ready to go, and then begin our game! Our adventurers meet a mysterious stranger that offers them the chance of a lifetime, with fame, fortune, and glory for the taking. The players find themselves in a new land, with a new mission: protect the local people from a terrible white dragon! Week of 1/24/22: The party must choose from three different starting quests. Will we choose the Gnomengarde Quest, the Dwarven Excavation Quest, or a rescue mission at Umbrage Hill? Week of 1/31/22: Our epic story continues! After completing two of the three initial quests, all Player Characters will level up! We go through this process in class, so we can review the mechanics and strategy involved with those decisions. Week of 2/7/22: There are new paths to explore! The Townmaster's brother runs a logging camp deep in the Neverwinter Woods. The party must deliver a payload of much-needed supplies to the loggers. What dangers and mysteries lurk in the woods? Of course, as all good Dungeon Masters should, I reserve the creative right to home-brew and modify the campaigns as needed to make them engaging. However, those who don’t wish to spoil the story too much should still avoid reading through the game guide on their own. Classes are learner led, and will evolve only as the learners play the game. Players may come and go, but the story will keep moving forward. This means that every session will be unique and approachable to everyone, regardless of when they join the campaign. Players of all experience levels are welcome, though I strongly recommend having some knowledge of D&D before joining. Learners will need to make a Player Character, and I believe players have an easier time relaxing if they are familiar with the rules. If you’re just getting started, please consider taking my Outschool class, “Come Learn How to Play D&D With Me!”: (4 classes in 1 week): https://outschool.com/classes/dandd-gaming-learn-how-to-play-dungeons-and-dragons-with-me-ljlntvjf?usid=0BlD7jmH&signup=true&utm_campaign=share_activity_link (1 class a week for 4 weeks): https://outschool.com/classes/dandd-gaming-learn-how-to-play-dungeons-and-dragons-with-me-CWnyFWBI?usid=0BlD7jmH&signup=true&utm_campaign=share_activity_link I work hard to create a safe, positive learning environment in my classes and at my game table. I encourage learners to practice respectful communication, and we appreciate the ideas and contributions each learner has to offer. I am so excited about this class. Playing D&D with friends and family is my favorite way to have fun. I can’t wait to see what amazing memories and stories we create together!
Learning Goals
Learners will participate in a live Role Playing Game. We will employ communication skills, creative thinking, strategy and situational problem solving, resource management, teamwork, and leadership in our combined effort to promote group success.
Other Details
Parental Guidance
Dungeons & Dragons is a Fantasy Role Playing Game, and as such, may contain scenes of imagined suspense or combat. I will ensure that material discussed in the class remains age appropriate, and no learners will be permitted to Role Play in a way that violates Oustchool policy. It is impossible to predict what scenarios may make a player feel uncomfortable, so I use three safety tools in class.
Safety Tools: I use a layered approach to maintain a healthy and positive gaming experience. The three separate tools in our toolbox are “Lines and Veils”, “Pause For a Second”, and “Open Door”.
Lines and Veils: Lines are subjects or themes that are never brought up or into the game; any player may add to the list. The current lines are: anything that violates Outschool Participation Guidelines, character-driven torture or harm to innocents, and Player vs Player mindsets or behavior. Veils are subjects that are alluded to but never directly brought up or into the game (kept “off-screen”); any player may add to this list, as well. The current veils are: torture, slavery, sacrifice, and NPC-based harm to animals. Lines and Veils can be updated as frequently as needed, based on teacher and player input.
Pause For a Second: "Pause for a second” is a verbal way for players or the teacher to stop what's going on in-game and pop out of character to make sure things are going in the right direction, or steer the direction. The person calling for the pause can bring up what they need, the others agree, and the game moves forward.
Here are a few examples:
"Pause for a second. Can the spiders be something else?"
"Pause for a second. I don't need the details of this scene, can we skip forward?"
"Pause for a second. I'm not comfortable scaring this goblin for information."
"Pause for a second. I'd like to slow down and make sure we're all cool with the decisions we're making."
The person asking for the pause need not explain why they're asking. It's important that the group respect the privacy of the person asking and recognize that they simply don't want something or want to steer the game away from certain subject matter.
"Pause for a second" can be used for numerous purposes. If the characters are having a conflict about what to do with a potentially dangerous magic item, we can say "Pause for a second. Out of character, are you ok destroying the item if the others vote that way? Do we need to do something else?" Not everything needs to be about big traumatic experiences, we can normalize its use by ensuring everyone's on the same page in lots of circumstances. This makes it less confrontational when someone does use it to check in on a potentially traumatic situation.
Open Door to DM: I am committed to creating and protecting a safe, respectful, positive gaming environment, and I expect others to uphold those values, as well. Anyone, at any time and for any reason, may choose to leave the game, and not be judged for doing so.
The game is never more important than personal well-being.
Do not pressure others to play or stay in a game.
Do not bad mouth anyone who leaves.
It’s ok to stop play, and easy to get going again.
Leave for physical, emotional, or practical/life needs anytime.
Always feel free to contact me (the Dungeon Master/teacher) outside or during the class if there is an unresolved issue that needs to be addressed. This can be done privately, my door is always open.
Supply List
Learners will be expected to create a Player Character on DnDBeyond.com, and may need parental support.
External Resources
In addition to the Outschool classroom, this class uses:
Teacher expertise and credentials
I have successfully taught children as young as 6 to play D&D. My goal is to make the game engaging, safe, and fun for all involved. I have spent years working on my craft, and my goal is to promote D&D as a safe and fun way for families to connect and bond in a shared sense of adventure and creativity.
Reviews
Live Group Class
$35
weekly1x per week
120 min
Completed by 15 learners
Live video meetings
Ages: 7-12
2-7 learners per class