NCompass Live: The Do's & Don'ts of D&D

NCompass Live - October 8, 2025
http://nlc.nebraska.gov/ncompasslive/

Want to know more about Dungeons & Dragons and TTRPGs in general? Want to know of ways to integrate it into your library - and other ways of playing the game? Tune in and settle down for a sesh with Liz the Librarian to learn more!

Presenter: Liz Hittle, Librarian & Dungeon Master.

1. The Do's & Don't's of D&D  by Liz Hittle

2. About Me! Mother of a 12-year-old middle-schooler Librarian for 13 years, Director for 7 Dungeon Master and D&D player for 5 years Gamer for 30+ years Nerd Forever!!! 2

3. But first! A tiktok ! https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZT6brXLg6/  

4. What in the world is D&D? Presentation title 4

5. Dungeons & Dragons a fantasy tabletop multiplayer roleplaying game TTRPG = tabletop roleplaying game D&D is just the most famous one – other examples are The One Ring, Pathfinder, Call of Cthulu , Warhammer, and many more! anything can happen, and you can be anything! great way to teach empathy, unwind, and can be used as a learning tool for all kinds of things! 5

6. Getting D&D (or another TTRPG) going at your library Choose your age range and set a player limit Pick a date, advertise, and let them come! Always start out with a Session Zero of some kind You can use this game for the regular and special things you do at your library! Summer Reading Program Learning the sections of your library Scavenger Hunts and Escape Rooms Learning about a particular subject Acting out scenarios from a book 6

7. D&D at the SRP 7

8. " DMing is a massive, authorized loop of intellectual property theft." ~ bugfishhhh (Jay) on tiktok

9. Copyright is only as bad as its owner You can say "Dungeons & Dragons" and publicly advertise about your campaign, BUT - you cannot use official logos, trademarks, or artwork of D&D or Wizards of the Coast ( WotC ) if you do want to publish or stream, you must state that your campaign is unofficial fan content and is not endorsed by WotC your campaign must be free to join and play   Don't be afraid to "borrow" ideas from your favorite pieces of media for your story, so long as you don't plan on publishing or livestreaming your campaign!  Some creative entities are better than others – for example, the Tolkiens LOVE people using Middle Earth and the Lord of the Rings universe for their games, and they encourage people to do so! 9

10. Questions so far? Presentation title 10

11. Two more tiktoks ! https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZTMhMEHmy/   passive programs, Mad Libs, break down books https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZTMhMgkWv/ Teen Advisory Boards, crafting and painting clubs 11

12. DO'S! create rules for playing (in- and out-of-game) provide food and drink for your players if at all possible, ESPECIALLY if the campaign is for teens! have a little distraction as possible, but don't outright ban phones (it won't work) start your players at level one – it's just easier! check out Discord: keep in touch with your players, host virtual sessions, and make it so that long-distance or absent players can still play and join in on the fun treat DMing like running a story time (facial expressions, inflecting your voice, hand gestures, etc.) use the internet to ask questions – Google and Reddit threads are your friends! learn the lingo embrace the chaos!!! 12

13. DON'T'S! play as someone else's character without their express permission hinge an entire plotline on one player character – players come and go,  c'est la vie let one player try to take over the entire campaign (main character syndrome) exclude anybody from playing . . . don't worry about getting the rules right; you learn as you go! . . . don't fret over making your character absolutely perfect – they'll evolve as you play! . . . and don't ever be afraid to ask for help!!! 13

14. Review tiktok is a great resource, surprisingly! D&D is just one of many TTRPGs getting started is easier than you think! copyright is annoying, but easy to avoid do's & don't's 14

15. Thank you! Liz Hittle, she/her/hers [email protected] dragondoll9#0511 on Discord