Foreword
Derek W. White
Preface
Acknowledgements
List of Abbreviations
Introduction: On Dungeons & Dragons, Fantasy, Religion, and Theology
Brandon Simonson and Scott Donahue-Martens
Part One: Perception & Performance
Chapter One: Healing Words: D&D Magic, Speech-Act Theory, and Chaplaincy
Scott Donahue-Martens
Chapter Two: Roll for Discernment: Dungeon Master as St. Ignatius’ Spiritual Director
Susan Haarman
Chapter Three: From Redemption Arcs to Making Your Own God: Redemption and Authenticity in Critical Role and Dimension 20
Michael Buttrey and Leah DeJong
Chapter Four: Role-play, Spiritual Formation, and Theological Education
Fred E. Webster, Jr. and Thomas G. Hermans-Webster
Part Two: Heroes & History
Chapter Five: Canon in Dungeons & Dragons: Insight from Ancient Judaism
Scott Donahue-Martens and Brandon Simonson
Chapter Six: The Harrowing of Avernus: Delving into Hell from Antiquity to Dungeons & Dragons
Andrew J. O’Connor
Chapter Seven: The Role and Function of Religious Names in the Creative World of Dungeons & Dragons
Brandon Simonson
Chapter Eight: Tolkien’s Shadow: The Sub-Creating Influence of Middle Earth on Dungeons & Dragons
Scott Donahue-Martens
Part Three: Adventures & Alignment
Chapter Nine: Abandon All Hope and Roll for Initiative: Reading Dante into Baldur’s Gate: Descent Into Avernus
Victoria Hawco
Chapter Ten: The Gilded Gothic Cages: Corruption, Judgment, and Moral Development in Ravenloft’s Domains of Dread
Martine Gjermundsen Ræstad
Chapter Eleven: “Does Anyone Here Eat Elf?” Ecotheology in the Dark Sun Campaign Setting
Daniel Ambord
Chapter Twelve: A Chaotic-Historical Reflection on Alignment in Dungeons & Dragons
Nathan P. Gilmour
Epilogue
About the Editors and Contributors