Girlz 'N' Games webcomic #63: Alice in D&D Land

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This Girlz 'N' Games comic was mostly born from my desire to do some drawing based on Tim Burton's just released Alice in Wonderland film (my movie review here). However the strip did ultimately end up having a geeky focus, even if this time the gaming being discussed is tabletop pen-and-paper role-playing as opposed to good old electronic video games.

Speaking of video games, initially I had sat trying to apply the World of WarCraft template to the Alice film world - just as I had done with my recent Avatar centred strip. However, apart from Alice changing her reputation to acquire an impressive ground mount (the Bandersnatch) and getting her hands on an Legendary weapon (the Vorpal Sword), the 2 fantasy universes just didn't match up comfortably.

However, I then began pondering the Alice movie and the filmmakers' strange decision to rename Wonderland "Underland." It took only a little tweaking of that name to arrive at D&D Land, referencing the Big Daddy, and that most influential of role-playing games, Dungeons & Dragons. Once this happened, the comic concept fell into place.

You see, the point of this strip, for those who don't quite get it, is that for non-initiates or newcomers, pen-and-paper role-playing - with all its rules, statistics, mathematics and dice rolling - can seem just as crazy and confusing as anything in Lewis Carroll's deliciously absurd, original Alice books. Sometimes it can even feel like your fellow players are speaking a completely different language.

Even if you don't play role-playing games I hope you can identify with the frustrating bewilderment experienced by Alice in this GNG comic.


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As usual, if you like my latest Girlz 'N' Games comic, please forward it on to your like-minded friends. You can also show your support by joining the Girlz 'N' Games Facebook fan group, which is open to all. The big advantage of joining is that you'll immediately receive an email notification every time a new comic is uploaded.

If this doesn't suit you, you can also follow me on Twitter - I tend to tweet when a comic is in production, as well as provide a heads up when it's about to debut online.

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