Although most fans are still waiting on the movie, Community ran for its promised six seasons before ending in 2015. The beloved comedy series had two episodes that featured Greendale's finest playing Dungeons & Dragons, and the episodes (especially the first one) are some of the best the show had to offer. Although the episodes do a great job as serving as an introduction into D&D, there are a few rules that were either ignored or reworked to fit the confines of a network TV episode.
In both D&D episodes of Community, "Advanced Dungeons & Dragons" from Season Two and "Advanced Advanced Dungeons & Dragons" in Season Five, Abed serves as DM and the rules are essentially the same. So, reasonably, they may just be playing D&D set to Abed's rules, which isn't anything unusual. D&D rules can be modified and changed as needed, and often rely on a DM's preferences, so it's possible Abed is just avoiding some D&D rules as the DM. However, Abed's D&D campaigns differ from the typical way the game is played in a number of ways.
The other thing to remember is that Community was a network comedy at the time, which means its episodes couldn't veer too far beyond twenty-two minutes. So, some of the rules and gameplay mechanics from D&D were likely cut for time and narrative flow. Community's episodes about D&D are all about the wonders the tabletop RPG provides in terms of inclusivity and making friends. "Advanced Dungeons & Dragons" is still one of the best episodes of Community Season Two, and its follow-up in Season Five is pretty great, too. So, what D&D rules did Community get wrong?
Rules Community's D&D Episodes Ignored Or Cut
At the time of the first episode, the only main character who's played Dungeons & Dragons is Abed, which is why he provides the others with their characters. Traditionally, players make their own characters, but in a situation like this, it's completely believable that Abed might've pre-rolled characters for everyone else.
Another noticeable rule that's skipped over is rolling initiative. This was likely done for time constraints, and because watching so many characters roll initiative would've gotten old really fast. This could also explain why Abed is always rolling for everyone. This is the most glaringly obvious rule that's overlooked, since Abed rolls for everyone at the time - instead of players performing their own rolls and checks. Again, it could just be the way Abed chooses to DM, but it's a big difference from the way a lot of D&D campaigns are played.
Overall, Community's D&D episodes are a pretty accurate - if somewhat streamlined - portrayal of how Dungeons & Dragons is really played. Realistically, some rules probably just had to be ignored to fit into a single episode of network TV, and Abed may just DM games a little differently. Still, these episodes remain two of the best that Community has to offer and are definitely worth watching.