PREFACE xi
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS xiii
1 IS THIS THE GOLDEN AGE OF DUNGEONS & DRAGONS? 1
Premeet Sidhu, Marcus Carter, and José P. Zagal
INTRODUCTION TO DESIGNER VIGNETTES 13
Sam Mannell
FIFTY YEARS OF DUNGEONS & DRAGONS 15
Designer Vignettes I
2 FANTASY GAMES AT FIFTY: AN ACADEMIC MEMOIR 17
Gary Alan Fine
3 EXPLORATION AND EXPERIENCE: THE GAME CHANGERS 23
Jon Peterson
4 COMBAT IN DUNGEONS & DRAGONS: A SHORT HISTORY OF DESIGN TRAJECTORIES 43
Evan Torner
5 “DOCTOR HOLMES, I PRESUME?”: HOW A CALIFORNIA NEUROLOGY PROFESSOR PENNED THE FIRST DUNGEONS & DRAGONS BASIC SET 63
Tony A. Rowe and Zach Howard
6 REFLECTIONS ON THE OPEN GAME LICENSE: AN INTERVIEW WITH RYAN DANCEY 79
Michael Iantorno
7 PLAYING CUSTOM: A CURIOUS HISTORY OF DUNGEONS & DRAGONS–BASED DIGITAL GAMES MODIFICATIONS 91
Mateusz Felczak
8 A RETURN TO THE MAGIC CIRCLE: DUNGEONS & DRAGONS AND FRIENDSHIP & MAGIC FIFTY YEARS ON 109
Stephen Webley
INFLUENCING DUNGEONS & DRAGONS 119
Designer Vignettes II
9 “YOU’RE GOING TO BE AMAZING”: THE MERCER EFFECT AND PERFORMATIVE PLAY IN DUNGEONS & DRAGONS 121
Esther MacCallum-Stewart
10 THE OTHER D&D: RELIGION(S) IN DUNGEONS & DRAGONS FROM DEITIES & DEMIGODS TO TODAY 141
Adrian Hermann
11 SPELLING WITH DICE: THE ROLE OF DUNGEONS & DRAGONS IN CONTEMPORARY SPECULATIVE FICTION 161
Dimitra Nikolaidou
12 CLASSROOMS AND DRAGONS: LEARNING FROM DUNGEONS & DRAGONS 179
Premeet Sidhu
13 AN ENSEMBLE OF (ROLE-)PLAYERS? EXPLORING THE INFLUENCE OF PERFORMANCE ON DUNGEONS & DRAGONS 197
David Harris and Josiah Lulham
14 FORGING FAMILY THROUGH QUEER DUNGEONS & DRAGONS 211
Jay Malouf-Grice
CRITICALLY PLAYING DUNGEONS & DRAGONS 229
Designer Vignettes III
15 “RACE” AND RACE: LONGITUDINAL TRENDS IN DUNGEONS & DRAGONS CHARACTER CREATION 231
Amanda Cote and Emily Saidel
16 HACK THE ORCS, LOOT THE TOMB, AND TAKE THE LAND: REFLECTIONS ON SETTLER COLONIALISM, INDIGENEITY, AND OTHERWISE POSSIBILITIES OF DUNGEONS & DRAGONS 259
Daniel Heath Justice
17 SEEKING THE UNIMAGINABLE: RULES, RACE, AND ADOLESCENT DESIRE IN DUNGEONS & DRAGONS 275
Aaron Trammell and Antero Garcia
18 DEFAMILIARIZING DUNGEONS & DRAGONS: PLAYING OUT WESTERN FANTASY IN SINGAPORE 283
Kellynn Wee
19 SOFT COMMUNITIES AND VICARIOUS DEVIANCE IN DUNGEONS & DRAGONS 301
Victor Raymond and Gary Alan Fine
FUTURES 323
Designer Vignettes IV
20 D&D&D&D&D: IMAGINING DUNGEONS & DRAGONS AT 150 AND BEYOND 325
Jonathan Walton