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First published in 1974, Dungeons & Dragons is an influential tabletop role-playing game. Inspired by wargames, in which players command armies in simulated conflicts, Dungeons & Dragons sparked a new genre of role-playing games in which players create their own characters within different classes such as bards, fighters, rogues, druids, and wizards. Player characters (PCs) also have different abilities, split between strength, dexterity, constitution, intelligence, wisdom, and charisma. The game is led by a dungeon master (DM), who narrates the game’s story and directs the gameplay. As the adventure or campaign winds through different scenarios, players describe their reactions (for example, attacking, negotiating, or escaping), with the outcome determined by rolling polyhedral dice. The most famous of these die is the D20, a 20-sided polyhedron. Players can buy published adventures to play, which include the backstory, illustrations, maps, and goals, but many D&D players invent their own campaigns, and the game’s structure allows for a great deal of creativity.

As the most famous role-playing game, D&D has been used as shorthand in pop culture to denote “nerd” or outcast status to people or friend groups. D&D has been referenced in shows and films like The Simpsons, The Big Bang Theory, Freaks and Geeks and E.T. One famous example is Stranger Things, where the main characters are avid D&D players and the game is used as a storytelling tool in the series. Similarly, D&D is used to characterize the friend group in Posted as outcasts, and when Rose joins them, they use polyhedral dice to play a game to get to know each other.

The kids also correspond to different classes in the game—Deedee is the DM, and Eric and Wolf are bards who are most notable for their artistry. D&D is one of the things that drives Bench out of the group because he is more interested in sports, but he can be understood as a Paladin, a knight who is concerned with “lawful good”—a commitment to the truth and goodness. While he does not want to be a core part of the friend group anymore, he still defends his old friends and even reports the “TOTAL ROMAN” bully to the principal. Rose is a rogue and could be considered a well-balanced player—she is physically capable, charismatic, smart, and independent. Crucially, Rose provides a different way of looking at the game altogether; while the boys balk at her breaking the character creation rules when they play, she counters that they can make up their own rules. This sets up the group for their coming-of-age journey together.