Generally thought of as the grandfather of all role-playing games it is the most widely recognized and played role-playing game. Dungeons & Dragons, or D&D, was originally published by TSR, then by Wizards of the Coast, and now by Hasbro. The game made its first public appearance in 1973 and has been extremely popular ever since. It was later revised to Advanced Dungeons & Dragons, or AD&D (1st and 2nd editions). The word "Advanced" was removed from the name when the 3rd edition, a hole new system, was released.

     Swords and sorcery best describes what this game is all about, for those are the two key fantasy ingredients. AD&D is a fantasy game of role-playing which relies upon the imagination of participants, for it is certainly make-believe, yet it is so interesting, So challenging, so mind-unleashing that it can seem to be a reality of its own. AD&D is a world, but this world is not complete. It needs organizers and adventurers to order and explore it. A fantasy role-playing game is an exercise in imagination and personal creativity. The organizer of the campaign, the Dungeon Master or DM, must use the system to devise an individual and unique world. Into this world of weird monsters, strange peoples, multitudinous states, and fabulous treasures of precious items and powerful magic stride the fearless adventurers.

     As a role-player, the participants interact with each other, not as themselves, but as player-characters (PCs) such as Hunter the fighter, Nikolai the cleric, and Rolnier the wizard. The DM acts out the parts of "everyone else", and presents a variety of new characters for the PCs to talk with, drink with, gamble with, adventure with, and often fight with. Each of the players become artful thespians as time goes on by acting out their PC's actions and reactions - and their characters acquire gold, magic items, and perhaps great renown. This game lets the participants' fantasies come true in a fantasy world where monsters, dragons, good and evil high priests, fierce demons, and even the gods themselves may enter the PC's lives. The characters and races that the players can select from are carefully thought out and balanced to give each a distinct and different approach to the challenges posed by the game. Advantages and disadvantages, advancement in level, characteristics and abilities are all detailed and explained so that selection of a player-character type - or the integration of an existing PC - can be done with foreknowledge and projection. In a similar vein, the DMs running the campaign games will have available more data and guidelines upon which to build more interesting and detailed character stories and histories. Inexperienced and of low power at first, through hard work, hard fighting, clever deeds, and degree of luck, these characters advance in ability to become forces to be reckoned with - high priests or priestesses, lords, wizards and arch-magi, or master thieves. Even death loses much of its sting, for often the character can be resurrected, or reincarnated. And should that fail there is always the option to begin again with a new character. Thus AD&D is, as are most role-playing games, open-ended. There is no "winner", no final objective, and the campaign grows and changes as it matures

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