In a time of extreme stress everyone needs a break from covid. Mental stress is at an all time high, with not only students frantically preparing for testing but also having a virtual barrier between them and their academic success. We need breaks and ways to blow off steam, and some people may have it more down than you or I.

 Trying to help with the stress filled environment, Ben Labee works to introduce role playing games to act as healthy stress relief from school.

“It’s always fun to get to play with your friends in a world fueled by imagination”, Ben tells me “It relieves stress to not focus on reality for a while.”

 He has been playing a roleplaying game called “Dungeons and Dragons” for three years now, and has run many games.

“A roleplaying game is to role play another person, typically in a fantasy setting. You assume your player, character, and act in how you want them to.”   “For most of the player base (currently) we have had to use the internet to play because of covid. We use applications such as role 20 to play together while being online”.

Labee elaborated on this.

“Every game has a game master, who makes the story. He will give a situation and you will play. When given a situation, the player uses the resources at their disposal to figure it out. If the dm is skilled they will make the situation more complex etc.”

As for materials “To get started all a new player would need is a players handbook of whatever module you where playing, or just a pencil and paper depending on who your playing with” He assured me that it was simple if the person running the game was competent

Apparently there are many different roleplaying games.  “..each has different rules for each situation. Certain games focus on dice and math, and other lean into roleplay pretty heavily. Depending on which module you have the results can be anywhere from a horror story to fantasy.”

When asked when there were any clubs at Lincoln  “there are no clubs that i know of at lincoln, but there is a place called otherworld games that host online sessions in hillsdale.” Ben stated. For reference that game shop he referenced was Other World games