Photo courtesy of Dragon's Sandbox
Dragon's Sandbox Session at The Chef's Table
A Dragon's Sandbox session at The Chef's Table in Milwaukee's Walker's Point
Fantasy role-playing tabletop game Dungeons & Dragons (D&D) is massively popular, yet some get overwhelmed by how complex the game mechanics, campaigns and character classes can be. Others just have trouble finding people to play with. Whatever the case, aspiring players are in luck, as Dragon’s Sandbox organizes ticketed beginner D&D sessions for all ages and all skill levels multiple times a month, with family-friendly sessions held at Old Guard Games (3132 N. Downer Ave.) on Milwaukee’s East Side and adult sessions at The Chef’s Table (500 S. Third St) in Walker’s Point.
Started in 2023, Dragon’s Sandbox structures D&D campaigns around singular quests, utilizing a simplified scope of the game’s universe where players may explore, battle and socialize. Experienced Dungeon Masters lead each game with all gaming materials provided. Dragon’s Sandbox sessions can host a maximum of 24 players, with tables divided based on the number of those who show up. Returning players are always welcome and may engage in long-form story arcs.
Dragon’s Sandbox founder Daniel Glass was in elementary school in the ‘70s when D&D first came out. “A friend of mine invited me over to play this game and we had a lot of fun,” he remembers. “In high school I started playing it more, and then in college my stepbrother and I worked with two guys who were hardcore gamers; we went down to their basement and they had all the miniatures and terrain and books.”
Seeking Dungeon Master
Photo courtesy of Dragon's Sandbox
Dragon's Sandbox Session at Old Guard Games
A Dragon's Sandbox session at Old Guard Games on Milwaukee's East Side
Glass subsequently started his own library of D&D books and would tinker with different game systems. After years of not playing, Glass got into the game Gloomhaven upon its release in 2017, which ultimately inspired him to start playing D&D again.
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“I went to seven different gaming stores in the Milwaukee area and nobody could find me a Dungeon Master,” Glass continues. “The biggest obstacles I’ve found when getting into Dungeons & Dragons are finding a Dungeon Master to run it, finding enough players to play and the commitment of time.”
Glass decided the best way to solve these problems would be to start a club of his own. Once he found a local Dungeon Master online, Glass gathered a handful of interested friends at The Chef’s Table - which his stepbrother owns - and they played a four-hour session. It was Glass’s first time playing D&D since the ‘90s. “We started getting friends, and then friends of friends,” he says. “Momentum was starting to pick up, and I got a good stable of a few Dungeon Masters, and that fall we got enough people where we could do two events per month.”
By 2024. Dragon’s Sandbox had garnered enough interest to start having three events per month as well as family-friendly “Dragonling” sessions. Originally hosted at North Avenue Market in Wauwatosa, “Dragonling” D&D moved to Old Guard Games after the original venue’s closure. “We just added an event at Beyond the Board in Brookfield, so we’re going to be using that facility as well,” Glass mentions. Dragon’s Sandbox also participates in local gaming conventions like Midwest Gaming Classic as well as Midwinter in Pewaukee.
“We have players who have been to over 60 events of ours,” Glass notes. “To me, that’s mind-boggling. The community and friendships we’ve built have been amazing.”
Contact Daniel Glass at dm@dragons-sandbox.com if interested in joining Dragon’s Sandbox. For upcoming events, visit the Dragon’s Sandbox calendar here.
