Title: All-nighter stretches young imaginations

Source: The Citizen, October 22nd, 2007 - http://www.citizen.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071022/CITIZEN_01/710220028/-1/CITIZEN

NOTICE: The following material is copyrighted as indicated in the body of text.  It has been posted to this web page for archival purposes, and in doing so, no claim of authorship is expressed or implied, nor is a profit being made from the use of the material.

Monday, October 22, 2007
All-nighter stretches young imaginations

By ERIN PLUMMER
eplummer@citizen.com

A group of adventurers surrounded by undead, a lonely boy's discovery of a magical doll, a military assault and a few thank-you cards being written all took place in the same room as students at Franklin High School took part in an all-night lock in to benefit an upcoming trip.

Members of Franklin High's Dungeons and Dragons and Anime club took part in the lock-in as a fundraiser for the club's trip to Anime Boston in March of 2008, a large convention of enthusiasts of the popular form of Japanese animation.

Students arrived at 7 p.m. Friday and were locked in until 7 a.m. Saturday where they played Dungeons and Dragons and video games as well as watching anime.

Students in the Dungeons and Dragons club played a game run by Werner Horn, the husband of club adviser Molly Horn, using characters they commonly used in the clubs previous games.

Werner Horn has played Dungeons and Dragons since 1992, running games through his time at Franklin High and the University of New Hampshire.

"Whenever three or more are gathered, we play," Horn said.

Franklin High chemistry teacher Molly Horn was recently introduced to the game by her husband and runs the school's Dungeons and Dragons club.

Molly Horn has recently gone from being a player to running games, keeping characters in line with a "giant slug" falling on their characters if players become too distracted by out of game conversation or "if they ever make some ridiculous decision, the giant slug could fall from heaven at any time."

"I was really surprised by how strong a following my wife had when she started the D&D club," Werner Horn said.

Junior Andrew Chippinelli is an enthusiastic member of the Dungeons and Dragons club, speaking about the benefits of role-playing such as learning social skills through various complex character interactions from conversation to diplomacy.

"It gives them their imagination they lost when they were younger," Chippinelli said. "It teaches you to never say everything is impossible because it could have just happened. It helps you with your self-esteem, self-confidence."

"It's one of those things, you might not do sports but there's something you can do," Molly Horn said.

The club has been well received and supported by school administration. It is also sponsored by Casey Family Services as a positive after-school activity for students.

"We had a lot of questions, a little bit when we went to the school board," Molly Horn said, such as some school board members asking what the club was doing and clarifying what anyone had heard about the game. "Some of the kids were there as well."

The school board voted to approve the trip.

As students played Dungeons and Dragons, others reclined on blankets and watched anime, including "Rozen Maiden" about a boy who finds a series of enchanted dolls.

Anime Club President Noel Johnson said club members also receive a Japanese lesson every third meeting and so far have learned numbers, a few greetings and suffixes.

Students also played video games and wrote thank-you cards those who donated food for the lock in.