The “Vacation Beyond Imagination” Experience

Last year, I was walking around the JW Marriott during GenCon to check out some of the rooms that were hosting different tabletop roleplaying games (TTRPGs). This was my first time attending, so I wanted to get a feel for how large the convention was and what the games looked like in other buildings outside the Indiana Convention Center. I strolled by the room where Baldman Games were hosting their Dungeons & Dragons gaming sessions, and right outside of it was a table that had a monitor showing a video that grabbed my attention: an image of a castle in the UK with the words “D&D In A Castle: Vacation Beyond Imagination.”

I was immediately hooked. Who wouldn’t want to play a game of Dungeons & Dragons inside an actual castle? But as I read through it more, my heart sunk a little bit as I saw the initial price to attend, and the events were hosted in Europe, which means additional costs for travel.

Too bad there’s no real castles here in the U.S., I thought. I would definitely go then. Maybe for a birthday celebration.

A few months later, that all changed. D&D In A Castle would for the first time in its history would host an event at a castle, Landolls Mohican Castle, in the United States. Even better – I wouldn’t have to pay for flights since it was only a 4 hour drive away from where I lived! Is it a real castle like the ones in Europe that are centuries old? No. But did the castle and the grounds transport me into a world of fantasy that makes you feel like you’re living in Faerun or Greyhawk? You bet. So after talking to my wife about finances and deciding to use this to celebrate my 40th birthday, I was going to make this dream a reality in 2024.

World-Class Service

One feature of D&D In A Castle that makes this a “Vacation Beyond Imagination” is the world-class service that attendees receive from initial interest to post-event. Before arriving to Landoll’s Mohican Castle in Loudonville, Ohio, I had a lot of nervous energy and baggage leading up to the event. This was going to be a one-time expensive event for me so I wanted to make sure this ended up being an amazing experience. Like many people, I’ve had many negative experiences playing with other players at the table that I was frantic about what this was going to be like. I also had a lot of personal experiences over the summer that put me in a negative mindset and a brief state of depression (loss of a close college friend and layoffs at my place of employment. Luckily I wasn’t laid off but I was the only one left on my team and it makes you worried about your job in the future). The staff at D&D In A Castle, however, helped me through all this.

The Manager, Justin The Charming, and the Managerial Assistant, Hopper The Devoted, were amazing and supportive in every step of the way. From deposit confusions to my overactive imagination of party dynamics, they were quick to respond, very supportive and caring, and every piece of communication made it felt like my feelings and experience mattered. In all of the vacations, destinations, experiences that I have had in my lifetime (which includes cruises and Disney World), their professionalism and care was by far the best I have ever received and experienced. And it didn’t stop there.

When we arrived to the event, that world-class service continued. When I pulled up into the parking lot, Hopper was there, directing me where to go and ensuring that my luggage would be delivered to my room, no need to carry it. At every session, the staff always asked if there was anything we needed and they made sure it was delivered. In our room where my D&D party played, we inquired about adjusting the air conditioning and receiving various forms of snacks and drinks and it was delivered promptly and right away. Every event that they offered was professionally delivered that matched the price that you paid for, from additional one-shots to mini painting to archery, to the food and drink options. Never at any point did I feel like I was ever neglected or pushed aside. Every day at the event was truly magical, and it was due to the efforts of Justin, Hopper, and the staff of D&D In A Castle and Landoll’s Mohican Castle.

World Immersion

In the month leading up to the event, we had access to a “digital tavern” where attendees, the professional DMs, and the staff can communicate with one another. When they provided the schedule of events to us, they listed locations of events such as “The Fey Ballroom” and “Glimmerbrook Tavern”. Never attended before, I had no idea what those places were or what those terms meant. But when I got there, it was like stepping into a fantasy world.

We had an outdoor covered pavilion that was transformed into the Glimmerbrook Tavern filled with tables, a bar, and a snack table for various snack times throughout the day (pretty sure we had Elevenses). It was decorated with various Dungeons & Dragons artwork and statues, as well as tavern accessories such as barrels where you could store your cosplay weapons. The main dining area of the grounds was the “Fey Ballroom” where we would have our meals under decorated banners and stringed lights. This was also where we had our opening dance ceremony (for those who wanted to participate) as well as a table for mini painting and for playing the one-shots that were available during various break times throughout the day. The castle itself is where everyone would play their D&D games, giving it another layer of a fantasy experience during gameplay. They encouraged attendees to cosplay if they desired for the opening banquet as well as any day of the event. But the highlight of this immersion experience was Justin The Charming would become Garethalon Silvershade, a charming, Lord Of The Rings-like elf who would lead archery sessions, announcements, and sing from the top of the castle.

Epic Dungeons & Dragons Adventures

Playing Dungeons & Dragons is the main focus of the week (obviously). Every day you’ll play at least 8 hours of D&D with your adventure party and your Dungeon Master (DM). If you selected Hardcore mode, you’ll play 12 hours a day with your party (selecting this option basically means all you’ll do is eat, play D&D, sleep, repeat). You’ll also have a chance to play one-shots with other attendees and DMs as well during your break in the day if you like. I did get to participate in two of these one-shots that were ran by Jayden King, who is a masterful storyteller and one that I plan to play with in the future again!

Each D&D campaign will have a professional DM that will run the game and their styles varies greatly, which gives you a great variety of gameplay to choose from. (When you register, you can either be placed at a table at random or you can pick your DM for an additional fee). The DM that I played with was Beth The Bard, who is known for her emphasis on storytelling and roleplay, as well as writing popular adventure modules, such as She Is the Ancient. I was excited to play at her table, but I had no idea just how much of an amazing, emotional experience I was getting myself into.

Beth ran an adventure for us and our characters that was loosely inspired by the D&D adventure, Wild Beyond The Witchlight. In this adventure, our party experienced some wild rides and encounters with memorable characters, amazing stories and roleplay opportunities , and some epic battle encounters that included a dragon for our campaign ending (and yours truly delivered the final death blow to it).

My table was filled with players and characters that were also phenomenal. We had Goggles, the Kobold artificer who quickly became a lovable character that helped everyone; Slator, a human Polearm Master Fighter that encompasses the values of honor and valor; Titus, a private investigator rogue who provides world-class investigation services at discounted rates; and Drake, a teenage human wizard that could see the Weave like magical webs.

But the highlight for me of this campaign was how Beth tied our characters into the story, especially mine.

When I create a character for a D&D campaign, I get into a lot of details with their origin story but also leave holes and openings for the DM to work with. In this campaign, I created Navarak, a Silver Dragonborn Barbarian whose earliest memory was when he was 4 years old with no idea of where he came from or what the mysterious tattoo on his left bicep meant. He was also missing his left arm which a Giant mage performed a ritual that gave him a permanent spectral left arm in the form of fire since the mage was a follower of the Fire Giant god, Surtur.

Throughout the campaign, my character’s goal was to try to find out what his tattoo meant and more about his past. Halfway through he had a chance to find out but he wasn’t sure if he was ready to learn it yet, so he held off on it until the very end when the Queen of the Feywild shared with him his past; that before his life as a Dragonborn, he had a previous life as a Giant warrior of Bahamut. In battle, he lost his left arm and died, but Bahamut favored him and decided to have him be reincarnated as a Dragonborn but without the painful memories of his past. There was something so gratifying about having your character go through a personal journey and development that this was like no other D&D experience I’ve ever had. It will truly be hard for any other campaign to reach this level of meaningfulness for me.

And this kind of experience wasn’t just limited at my table. Every person I spoke with that played at other tables couldn’t stop talking about the adventures their characters were going through and how amazing of a time they’ve been having playing their game.

TL;DR – The D&D campaigns at D&D In A Castle will be the best you’ll ever experience.

Fellowship and Camaraderie

Last but not least – what made this event so wonderful were the people that were there. Everyone, from the staff to the professional DMs to the attendees, were amazing people to interact with. I’m always someone that’s a little nervous going to these things solo and not knowing anyone there, but within the first 30 minutes of being there, I was chatting up conversations with people that I never met before or knew the first thing about them. But by the end of the first day, I felt like I knew everyone’s name and that I could talk to anyone there about anything and that we were all tied to our love of the game. You spend most of your time with your adventure party and DM, but you get a lot of opportunities to speak to other attendees there. I got to know Jayden King and B. Dave Walters a bit more during my break time; I connected with some fellow adventurers from Texas who were also Critters like myself (the name of Critical Role fans), and my roommate and I got along great and talked every night about what was happening in our campaigns. There were a lot of great experiences that we all had with each other, from dancing at the opening ceremonies to mini-painting, having fun, casual conversations to screams and laughter during our Ghost Tour & Haunted History Walk. It truly felt like this was a place where you could find lifelong friends that just happen to play Dungeons & Dragons.

Put “D&D In A Castle” On Your Bucket List

Is D&D In A Castle a high priced event? Yes. Is it worth the cost? Absolutely. By the end of our adventures, it was clear to me that the money was well spent to provide an experience of a lifetime that wasn’t just charging premium prices for the sake of it. The service, world immersion, gaming experience, the fellowship, and the swag were all well worth the cost of attending.

If you’re a fan of Dungeons & Dragons and had to save up money for only one lifetime experience, this would be it. Nothing else will come close.