Bridge Year Costa Rica – Spring 2026

Discovery & Dialogue, or “D&D”

By Mayo O.

“And… roll for initiative.”

One of the highlights of my week here is exploring the world of “Ash & Aether,” our current D&D (Dungeons & Dragons) campaign. My character is a mechanic fiercely motivated to protect her family, and she’s in the middle of, with her companions, trying to figure out evil demon attacks that have to do with nuclear warheads and the Bible. I’m sure that Owen, our Game Master, would probably have a better summary of the world and plot he’s written, but that’s my best shot.

Although I absolutely love playing board games (those like Ticket to Ride, Isle of Cats, Catan, and Seven Wonders made up countless weekends with my friends before Bridge Year), I’d never played D&D before coming to Costa Rica. And out of all the things I thought I’d learn from this experience—things like project planning, the Spanish language, and environmental knowledge—playing D&D was absolutely not on the list.

I knew about D&D, of course. My dad used to read the manuals, I knew it was a storytelling and roleplaying game with a random element of dice-rolling, and a couple of my friends used to play before I got to know them, but that was the extent of my knowledge. So when my fellow Bridge Year friend Owen mentioned that he was wondering if we’d be interested in playing a campaign, I was a little worried, but excited to try it out. 

Not all of our group of six plays (whether it be due to preference or lack of time), but we’ve been lucky enough to have a group of five, involving a member of the local youth program here! One thing I love about the fact that we’ve started this campaign is that we’re able to create stronger bonds than what would have existed otherwise. We have inside jokes about dice rolls and giant cockroaches, group excitement about new spells and infusions, and still-kept secrets in our backstories (I really need to figure out what’s going on with Lena’s character!), and it’s made my whole year’s experience so much more fun and memorable. From being extorted to make bread in order to ensure that everyone will play to reaching out to a 3D printing company in San Isidro for our character miniatures, I’m absolutely certain that this campaign will remain forever memorable of my time spent on Bridge Year.

To me, this being such a keystone is funny because it’s not a Costa Rican thing. Yet it just shows that what matters most is the quality time we spend with others; the excitement and love and inspiration that we can take from one another. I’m witnessing Owen pour hours of planning into crafting us this world and its characters and applying it to examining my character’s abilities and actions; I’m watching Lena act out her character in such a real way that I spend time figuring out the headspace of my character more. D&D is just a microcosm of what, in the real world, learning from the people around me has been like; it goes to show how much I take away from watching and being around my companions here—Alain’s compassion, Lena’s motivation, Eddy’s philosophies, Owen’s creativity, Hannah’s kindness, and so much more! Every time we play, I’m reminded of the hidden depths every person (or character) has, and how we’re all constantly changing to be someone slightly different than we were yesterday. It may be a big change, it may be something barely noticeable—but our time together brings out different qualities in us all, and I hope that I’ll be able to bring the stories and lessons I’ve learned in a tabletop roleplaying game in Costa Rica with me throughout the adventure of my life.