Is D&D a heroic game?

[Crothian]

depends on the people playing it

You are!!

 

[Odhanan]

Yes, D&D is a heroic game.

In its most basic expression, it focuses on a narrow, particular definition of heroes: a group of adventurers leaving the community to go deep in the dungeon, kill monsters, overcome a variety of obstacles and bring back the fat loot to the surface. It can be much more without derailing from its basic principles, of course.

 

[was]

You are!!

well, not at the moment

 

[Illirion]

Yep,

It's a game that has become hugely succesfull, while it uses only pen, paper, dice and your imagination in an age that basically revoles around computers, televsion and other visual media. Sounds pretty heroic to me . Almost about as heroic as a game can get IMO.

 

[MarkB]

I voted yes. D&D defaults to being a heroic game, and many of its conventions are built upon that assumption. However, it has ample potential to be played in other ways.

 

[Particle_Man]

The literary heroe thing is interesting, as in 1st ed and in B/X, there were provisions for the "settling down" phase after the "2nd quarter" of the literary hero, where one founds a stronghold, attracts followers, and pretty much retires (becomes an NPC, except for special adventures). Thus "name level" pretty much meant "You win! Time to retire!"

With 3rd ed., you keep on keeping on, if you like, just finding bigger and badder monsters to slay, all the way through Epic rules.

 

[Land Outcast]

Doesn't offer itself to the heroic spontaneously.

My characters (excepting one or two ) do.

BTW: see my sig...

 

[Flexor the Mighty!]

The characters can perform feats that are super-hero level things...but IME most parties are Neutral and mercenary in nature. So I vote...

 

[Squire James]

I voted yes.

If the game is played in an enjoyable fashion, the characters are acting the hero (or anti-hero, or "dark hero", or other terms for "hero"). Several of the people who consider the game "not heroic" also seem to be describing an amount of dissatisfaction about the game. I theorize that this dissatisfaction derives from not playing or not being allowed to play the game in a heroic fashion. Of course, I may be completely off-base here.

 

[Aaron L]

Certainly it's heroic... in the classic Hellenic sense.

Bingo.

The game is set up for the characters to progress to levels of ability beyond common mortal man. Its Heroic in the classic literary sense of the word, where heroes struggle to prevail against mighty opponents, do amazing things, and overcome great obstacles.