How Dungeons & Dragons Saved the World

Jeff Rients is a native of Flanagan, IL and graduate of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. He currently teaches writing and literature at Illinois State University while pursuing his PhD.

Jeff has been playing Dungeons & Dragons since 1981 and his blog Jeff’s Gameblog has been a force in the hobby since its inception in 2004. Jeff’s recent book, Broodmother Skyfortress offers a modern updating of the classic story of the giant who lives in a castle among the clouds while also serving as a master class in the intricacies of running your own Dungeons & Dragons adventures. Jeff’s presentation “How Dungeons & Dragons Saved the World” will trace the origins of the hobby, its explosion into mainstream success in the 1980’s, and its continuing influence in popular culture.