Patrolling a community in the dark of night. Defending citizens from trouble. And providing residents with a sense of security and well-being. What do these have in common? Well, all of them could apply to either an upscale apartment community or an enchanted castle. Which brings us to Will Stark, a Night Service Manager at Homecoming Eastvale—a very enchanting Lewis community in Eastvale, Ca.
As a Night Service Manager, Will’s main responsibility is to provide service and security to residents once the community office is closed. As Will puts it, “The needs of our residents still need to be met even though the office is closed, so I focus on great customer service and being the eyes and ears of Lewis when no one else is there.” Sounds like the perfect job for someone well-versed in security, service, and adventure! Enter Dungeons and Dragons.
Dungeons and Dragons Podcast: The Dungeoncast
For those of you who don’t know the game, Dungeons and Dragons is a massively popular role-playing game that started in 1974. Since then it has remained the best-known and best-selling role-playing game in the US, with an estimated 20 million people having played the game, and more than $1 billion in sales worldwide. Will got interested in D&D about ten years ago: “Eventually I became so well versed in D&D I would share stories with friends and co-workers and their eyes would light up. They would become enamored with the stories, the characters and what you can do in the game.”
That’s when Will and a friend started a podcast known as The Dungeoncast. “The early days were just a couple microphones,” Will said. “It was me and my friend Brian. I would detail the episodes, almost like the expert, while Brian was the comedy, asking questions and cracking jokes. In each episode we pick a specific topic, whether it’s a monster, a character build, a race or even a specific game mechanic we want to talk about.” Will related the essence of the podcast to friendship: “I have made so many friends at Lewis—lifelong friends–and one of the ways we’ve started those friendships is through playing and sharing stories about Dungeons and Dragons.” Will shared what he enjoys the most about his job at Lewis is the attitude and atmosphere of the Homecoming Eastvale office, even though he doesn’t see them throughout the day. “At some other company they might just see me as ‘the night service manager guy,’ but it’s not the case at Lewis. We’re a team. And it helps that the residents are so nice, and I know their names, their apartments, and we have shared many nice stories.”
Speaking of stories, a lot of work goes into telling them on the podcast. “It’s very organized, sometimes seven or more pages of notes. It’s a nice flow where we break down the notes, go off on tangents and return to the overall format of each subject.” Will added, “a lot of people appreciate how much information we give, saving them time searching the internet. We can give them everything about a subject in one episode. We like that we even get some good feedback from people who suffer from ADHD or reading disabilities, they like that they can listen to us and learn and play.”
As of today, the Dungeoncast podcast averages 1.2 million downloads and has grown to two podcasts: “One where we discuss and examine D&D and the other where I Dungeon Master a game, kind of like the Umpire or Director of a game.” Will and his friends are also on Youtube, attracting almost 30,000 subscribers and earning some additional income: “I like earning money from these two things I love to do so much.”
These days, Dungeons and Dragons is more popular than it’s ever been and with the internet, players are not just limited to playing with the people they know. “You can play with people all over the world. I’ve played with people in Canada, Sweden, Australia and of course, California. With video gaming becoming a popular game format, that has extended to board games as well. People are attracted to the imagination, the creativity and the connection among friends.” You know, there’s a word for all this adventure, good work and friendship: Enchanting.
If you would like to learn more about The Dungeoncast, you can find them on Youtube, iTunes, Spotify or anywhere podcasts can be found. And if you’d like to join our own team of Lewis adventurers, visit us at www.lewiscareers.com.
David Draper is the Director of Talent Acquisition for Lewis. David is proud to be a part of a successful, stable, and winning team dedicated to its projects, its people and its community. Follow David on Twitter @LewisRecruits.