For a few hours, they were elves, goblins — whatever they imagined themselves to be. They didn’t know a lot about “Dungeons and Dragons,” not yet, but they had a renowned dungeon master to teach them.
Leading the group at UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh was actor Joe Manganiello. A Mt. Lebanon native and a member of the hospital’s board of trustees, Mr. Manganiello dropped by Tuesday afternoon with his brother and fellow D&D devotee, Nick, to instruct the next generation. Having donated several carts of starter sets and books, Joe sat down with three patients and his brother in the library and began to explain the rules.
There are many, many rules, but the beauty of it was, the boys just went with it. Roll these dice and then subtract one of the figures? Sure. Gain points and chose what attributes and abilities your character has? Of course.
Mr. Manganiello clearly relished the storytelling, as he described the action and each player’s choices. When Yaheim Young, 15, of Penn Hills scored the first goblin kill, the others cheered. Gabriel Bowers, 9, of Shaler, also took down a bad guy, thumping his chest in imitation of Mr. Manganiello.
“I think at the heart of this game, it’s about immersion, and it’s about being able to step out of reality for a little while. And when it comes to Children’s Hospital and kids, [who are] here for a while, I think that becomes really necessary.”
Luke Maeding, 17, of Nazareth, Pa., underwent a double lung transplant at Children’s in 2010. His mother, Heather, said he is back for the possibility of a different procedure. “My brother [Logan] plays, but he’s an expert,” Luke said. “I’m a beginner.”
As the boys waited for the brothers in the library, they talked about shared video game interests: “WWE2K” is a favorite. Given that players of that game create their own characters, D&D would appear to be right up their alley.
For their part, the kids knew Mr. Manganiello mostly from his voice work as Hefty the Smurf in “The Lost Village” film. But he’s been a werewolf (”True Blood”), an exotic dancer (”Magic Mike”), a super villain (”Justice League”) and even half of a bromance in “Pee-Wee’s Big Holiday.”
Dungeons and Dragons players often wear their geek cred with pride. Pop culture has embraced those who play it (see: “Stranger Things,” “Freaks & Geeks,” “Community” and “The Big Bang Theory.”)
A Carnegie Mellon University grad, Mr. Manganiello has his own line of fantasy/heavy metal-inspired streetwear, and an actual dungeon in cellar of his home in Beverly Hills.
“Populated with giant dragon heads, mounted on plaques,” he said, adding that he regularly hosts fellow D&D enthusiasts. Nick Manganiello also lives in the Los Angeles area, and is a film producer. He said he remembers tagging along with Joe and the older boys as they played until dawn.
Now, Nick Manganiello said, “We just play until we have to go home because we have jobs and responsibilities, as adults. But it’s still fun.”
The brothers said they hoped Tuesday’s game would inspire others to learn and play: “Kids should be allowed to play… to be kids while they’re going through these medical issue that are forcing them not to be kids, but to be grownups.”
Reflecting on how enthusiastically Gabriel took to the game, the actor added, “There is one boy I think will probably become dungeon master by 5 o’clock this afternoon. He’s well on his way.”
Maria Sciullo: msciullo@post-gazette.com or @MariaSciulloPG.
First Published: January 9, 2019, 4:10 a.m.
