Well the specifics vary depending on the school, but you probably need a faculty sponsor and a minimum number of members to form a club.
Ask someone about advertising (bulletin board, morning announcements, newsletter, or something), and definitely make some fliers or pamphlets to hand out.
You will probably get a lot of interest (people dropping in to look or try playing), but few that stick around and become regular members (such is the curse of d&d).
Here is a suggestion to maybe increase interest... When I was in high school, there was a club called "Games of Strategy." Most of us thought of it as a D&D club because most of the people in it played D&D. But, people also played chess, checkers, other RPGs, and so on as they wanted.
The teacher had some games right there in her classroom for us -- a couple of checker boards, checker and chess pieces, a battered copy of the D&D basic and expert sets from back in the day, a slightly less battered Star Frontiers boxed set, Risk, Othello, Backgammon, etc.
Having it be a club about all manner of strategy games increased the potential interested student pool... and it also got more people playing D&D, because they'd show up to play checkers or risk, and then see a group of us playing D&D and come over to watch/listen... and then before you know it they are asking to join.
This is also, if I remember correctly, how we got a whole bunch of new people playing Champions in 9th grade with us (at the time only like 4 of us would play anything but D&D because "it's not D&D"). But the D&D group saw us playing Champions, came over to watch, and before you know it they were creating superheroes to play with us.
PM me. There are a few of us Game Club sponsors on the Forum. I have been doing it for around 4 years...oh wait 5! My first group are juniors now! :O !
When informed on at my high school back in the mid ‘90s we needed a minimum of 5-10 members (I don’t remember) and a faculty sponsor willing to give up their free time one afternoon every week.
It helped that we called it a “gaming club” so it was more inclusive. People who played all kinds of games (MtG, L5R, D&D, Shadownun, Cyberpunk, World of Darkness, Warhammer/40k, etc.) were happy to join. Once there were 30 students on the list it made it easier to find a sponsor.
Yep, this is my point with "Games of Strategy." Make the club more all-encompassing and you will get more interest. Easier sell.
Yeah, same concept. We honestly didn’t care if you played Candyland though, any and all games were welcome. Cooperative games, whatever. It actually helped a lot of people get into games they probably wouldn’t have otherwise.
Hi there, Googleguy. There's a lot of ways to do this. At the risk of repeating others' advice, I'd say be prepared.
When you suggest the idea to a teacher, principal, counselor, or someone else at your school that makes decisions about these types of things, have some things prepared to show them. For example, an adventure you'd play. An example Code of Conduct for participants. A plan of how you'd advertise. A plan of what kind of materials you'd need (would you want help from the school to buy Player's Handbooks or to print out sets of the Basic Rules?) and whether students would provide any of these (e.g. would I need to bring my own character sheet, pencils, etc.?). How you plan to teach new players (I recommend the New Player Guide here on DNDBeyond - click on "New Player Guide" tab in the navigation bar at the top of the site, just below the search box). What you plan to do if you only have 3 people show up, including the DM. What you plan to do if you have 20 people show up, including the DM. When you show decision makers that you've put a lot of thought into something and have thought about the logistics, it shows you're dedicated and makes it a lot more likely for them to agree with you!
Similarly, I recommend your group uses a code of conduct. It can really help keep things fun. Here's an example code of conduct I would use for a DND club I would run at a community center last summer. Your school club might not need all of the same guidelines as we used, and it might need some we didn't have.
Code of Conduct
Dungeons and Dragons participants agree to the following code of conduct:
I will not bring food or drink to the map table. I will not touch the maps or materials provided by others with greasy or dirty hands.
When I or my character encounters misfortune, suffers from bad rolls, or faces inconvenient rules, I will accept it gracefully. If I cannot accept it gracefully, I will remove myself until I may.
I will use positive and uplifting language, so all feel welcome. I will support, validate, and encourage myself and others.
If I am having trouble getting everyone’s attention, I will raise my hand and wait for the DM to call on me at an appropriate time.
I will avoid excessive conversation that is not relevant to the adventure. I will listen to others. I will allow others to get attention from the DM.
I will make by best effort to come on time and stay until the end.
Some people would rather not be identified on social media or outside of our group. I will not take photos or videos.
There are lots of resources that can help with running school clubs too. WotC now run an Educator program, where they provide free resources to help school DnD clubs: https://dnd.wizards.com/resources/educators.
I also provide free accessible print at home player aids including rules reference cards, class trackers, spell tomes, and even full character journals for school DnD clubs through my business DanDMadeEasy. If you're running a club, please reach out, I'd really love to help! www.dandmadeeasy.com/outreach
Hi! I need help. I want to create a D&D club at school because I almost never get to play, but I don’t know how. Help??
jack l p
Well the specifics vary depending on the school, but you probably need a faculty sponsor and a minimum number of members to form a club.
Ask someone about advertising (bulletin board, morning announcements, newsletter, or something), and definitely make some fliers or pamphlets to hand out.
You will probably get a lot of interest (people dropping in to look or try playing), but few that stick around and become regular members (such is the curse of d&d).
Here is a suggestion to maybe increase interest... When I was in high school, there was a club called "Games of Strategy." Most of us thought of it as a D&D club because most of the people in it played D&D. But, people also played chess, checkers, other RPGs, and so on as they wanted.
The teacher had some games right there in her classroom for us -- a couple of checker boards, checker and chess pieces, a battered copy of the D&D basic and expert sets from back in the day, a slightly less battered Star Frontiers boxed set, Risk, Othello, Backgammon, etc.
Having it be a club about all manner of strategy games increased the potential interested student pool... and it also got more people playing D&D, because they'd show up to play checkers or risk, and then see a group of us playing D&D and come over to watch/listen... and then before you know it they are asking to join.
This is also, if I remember correctly, how we got a whole bunch of new people playing Champions in 9th grade with us (at the time only like 4 of us would play anything but D&D because "it's not D&D"). But the D&D group saw us playing Champions, came over to watch, and before you know it they were creating superheroes to play with us.
WOTC lies. We know that WOTC lies. WOTC knows that we know that WOTC lies. We know that WOTC knows that we know that WOTC lies. And still they lie.
Because of the above (a paraphrase from Orwell) I no longer post to the forums -- PM me if you need help or anything.
PM me. There are a few of us Game Club sponsors on the Forum. I have been doing it for around 4 years...oh wait 5! My first group are juniors now! :O !
When informed on at my high school back in the mid ‘90s we needed a minimum of 5-10 members (I don’t remember) and a faculty sponsor willing to give up their free time one afternoon every week.
It helped that we called it a “gaming club” so it was more inclusive. People who played all kinds of games (MtG, L5R, D&D, Shadownun, Cyberpunk, World of Darkness, Warhammer/40k, etc.) were happy to join. Once there were 30 students on the list it made it easier to find a sponsor.
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Yep, this is my point with "Games of Strategy." Make the club more all-encompassing and you will get more interest. Easier sell.
WOTC lies. We know that WOTC lies. WOTC knows that we know that WOTC lies. We know that WOTC knows that we know that WOTC lies. And still they lie.
Because of the above (a paraphrase from Orwell) I no longer post to the forums -- PM me if you need help or anything.
Yeah, same concept. We honestly didn’t care if you played Candyland though, any and all games were welcome. Cooperative games, whatever. It actually helped a lot of people get into games they probably wouldn’t have otherwise.
Creating Epic Boons on DDB
DDB Buyers' Guide
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Thanks! You guys are awesome! I’ll work on it at school tomorrow!!
jack l p
Step 1: Find out what your school policy is for clubs.
Step 2: Follow that policy.
Some things that will help:
A) Have a teacher or other staff member that has told you they are willing to sponsor/ let you use their room after school
B) Have a few friends ready to meet at the first few meetings. It will help get the group going if it appears popular.
C) Decide how you want to handle more players than one person can comfortably DM. Are you going to have a split party? Run two of the same module?
D) Plan to have "adventures" that last 2-3 sessions. That way you can start and stop often and rotate players around.
Good luck!
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Hi there, Googleguy. There's a lot of ways to do this. At the risk of repeating others' advice, I'd say be prepared.
When you suggest the idea to a teacher, principal, counselor, or someone else at your school that makes decisions about these types of things, have some things prepared to show them. For example, an adventure you'd play. An example Code of Conduct for participants. A plan of how you'd advertise. A plan of what kind of materials you'd need (would you want help from the school to buy Player's Handbooks or to print out sets of the Basic Rules?) and whether students would provide any of these (e.g. would I need to bring my own character sheet, pencils, etc.?). How you plan to teach new players (I recommend the New Player Guide here on DNDBeyond - click on "New Player Guide" tab in the navigation bar at the top of the site, just below the search box). What you plan to do if you only have 3 people show up, including the DM. What you plan to do if you have 20 people show up, including the DM. When you show decision makers that you've put a lot of thought into something and have thought about the logistics, it shows you're dedicated and makes it a lot more likely for them to agree with you!
Similarly, I recommend your group uses a code of conduct. It can really help keep things fun. Here's an example code of conduct I would use for a DND club I would run at a community center last summer. Your school club might not need all of the same guidelines as we used, and it might need some we didn't have.
Code of Conduct
Dungeons and Dragons participants agree to the following code of conduct:
Rule of Thumb: I will not be a buttface.
Thank you guys!
jack l p
Well, what we did was just start playing on the bus ride to and from school. But that was 35 years ago. You might have to try something different now.
There are quite a few resources online that go over this. https://blogs.glowscotland.org.uk/or/stromnessacademylibrary/activities/dungeons-dragons/setting-up-a-d-d-group-in-school/ seems a good one!
There are lots of resources that can help with running school clubs too. WotC now run an Educator program, where they provide free resources to help school DnD clubs: https://dnd.wizards.com/resources/educators.
I also provide free accessible print at home player aids including rules reference cards, class trackers, spell tomes, and even full character journals for school DnD clubs through my business DanDMadeEasy. If you're running a club, please reach out, I'd really love to help! www.dandmadeeasy.com/outreach