Holy God, D&D Helped Me IRL

[Deth Muncher]

So, my basic question to you all is this- has any knowledge you've gotten from a game you've played helped you in some way in real life? The story that spawned this question is thus:

I was just taking a Russian test, and we had to read an advertisement and figure out what it was saying. There was a word surrounded like <<so>> which means, as far as I can tell, a non-Russian word spelled in Cyrillic. The word was Полиглот. Which, by the way, if you don't read Cyrillic, is "polyglot." I kinda looked at it for a sec, and then my mind went here. So thanks D&D, for telling me this advertisement was about learning languages.

[Gorbash]

Well, that isn't really a D&D term...

[Dust]

Only last week I was enjoying a delicious Dr. Pepper and reading some hella sweet MS Paint Adventures when I was attacked by a Bodak. Luckily, years of playing D&D reminded me to avert my eyes from their deadly gaze attacks and to pull open the curtains, since I knew Bodaks are vulnerable to direct sunlight. It burns their impure flesh.

[JeenLeen]

I've learned a few words through D&D.

The only one that comes to mind that I am sure I learned through D&D is geas, although I imagine some others--simulacrum, disjunction (and the adjectived disjoined), and some others have been learnt.

Furthermore, D&D's mythology isn't great, but you can learn some things which could give you an insight when reading literature about the mythological.

Rules lawyering can also help you learn logic. (Though, seriously, I've had a lot of fun comparing internal consistencies of a system which I think will be useful exercise for when I try to apply it to real-world philosophy, religion, or just logical looking-at things.)

Only last week I was enjoying a delicious Dr. Pepper and reading some hella sweet MS Paint Adventures when I was attacked by a Bodak. Luckily, years of playing D&D reminded me to avert my eyes from their deadly gaze attacks and to pull open the curtains, since I knew Bodaks are vulnerable to direct sunlight. It burns their impure flesh.

Yes, well, obviously that's a use.
Still, I wouldn't trust D&D's advice too far. I question if vampires have all the weaknesses stated in D&D. Maybe it's undead propaganda, at least some of it.

[shadow_archmagi]

Only last week I was enjoying a delicious Dr. Pepper and reading some hella sweet MS Paint Adventures when I was attacked by a Bodak. Luckily, years of playing D&D reminded me to avert my eyes from their deadly gaze attacks and to pull open the curtains, since I knew Bodaks are vulnerable to direct sunlight. It burns their impure flesh.

I hate when Bodaks come for my Dr. Pepper.

I'm not sure how they keep getting into the house though.

[Ossian]

Polyglot, as the word suggests, means many tongues. D&D helped you in a class? Thats all good, Amen bro. Amen.

[Dr Bwaa]

I'm not sure I've learned anything lexicographically from D&D, but I certainly have from MtG. Though I also come up with things that aren't words except in that context, and I don't remember where they came from, which gets me in trouble in Scrabble.

[Deth Muncher]

Well, that isn't really a D&D term...

No, you're absolutely right. But were it not for D&D, the chances that I would have known that word were astronomically small.

[Optimystik]

I'm not sure I've learned anything lexicographically from D&D, but I certainly have from MtG. Though I also come up with things that aren't words except in that context, and I don't remember where they came from, which gets me in trouble in Scrabble.

This. M:TG broadened my vocabulary considerably.

[Talon Sky]

I started breaking down RL events to D&D logic, like when a friend of mine slipped on an ice patch, I teased him for failing his balance check. Or when someone does something very awesome, I say they rolled a nat 20.

I dunno if this is necessarily helpful, but it is certainly funny to me and my friends. People I'm not friends with have no idea what I'm talking about, and sometimes when someone does recognize a vague d20 reference, I make a new friend ;p

[Swordgleam]

Not the game directly, but the people I've met in the online gaming community have been pretty helpful for a bunch of different things, including my career.

[Grommen]

I honestly learned how to study a text book from reading my D&D books in collage. It was not until the information a book was worth understanding and repeating that I gave a crap about learning from them. Then I learned to apply it to my text books for accounting and life got a lot better.

Don't do accounting any more but I still game. Interesting how life works out.

And studying history in order to write better plots has given me a rather robust knowledge of life, the universe and everything.

[herbe]

I thanks for my language exam to D&D. I learn a lot of new word.
Reading part was the best 85%

[Gan The Grey]

I thanks for my language exam to D&D. I learn a lot of new word.
Reading part was the best 85%

This is awesome.

[Admiral Squish]

I thanks for my language exam to D&D. I learn a lot of new word.
Reading part was the best 85%

It certainly helped my reading speed. I'm up to 450 WPM and 90% comprehension.

[Harr]

MTG, D&D, and just RPGs in general have always been an awesome way to learn more vocabulary.

I was lucky to have lived in the states for a few years, but my cousin, who has never been exposed to any kind of english-speaking environment but has played console and computer RPGs obsessively since childhood, today not only understands, speaks, and writes English perfectly, but does so at a much higher level than many native speakers I know.

He does have a bit of an accent though

[Lost Demiurge]

It helped me learn to socialize with people. Used to be really shy, D&D and other games let me get over that.

[goken04]

It taught me Excel. If I hadn't had D&D to inspire me to make character sheets, I'd know less than half of what I know about using Excel.

[Indon]

It helped me learn to socialize with people. Used to be really shy, D&D and other games let me get over that.

This. I've gotten so much better at interacting with others due to the face time I've gotten from tabletop RPGs.

[shadow_archmagi]

It taught me Excel. If I hadn't had D&D to inspire me to make character sheets, I'd know less than half of what I know about using Excel.

I've got a 39 page binder with clear plastic dividers for sections.

To be honest, I think I went a bit overboard on my character sheet's length.

[NotJesus]

Only last week I was enjoying a delicious Dr. Pepper and reading some hella sweet MS Paint Adventures when I was attacked by a Bodak. Luckily, years of playing D&D reminded me to avert my eyes from their deadly gaze attacks and to pull open the curtains, since I knew Bodaks are vulnerable to direct sunlight. It burns their impure flesh.

I'm having a hard time believing this story - everyone knows a D&D player's flesh is far more vulnerable to sunlight than any Bodak.

[Dust]

Well, I was wearing my afternoon trenchcoat + hoodie, of course.

[Starbuck_II]

I'm having a hard time believing this story - everyone knows a D&D player's flesh is far more vulnerable to sunlight than any Bodak.

Some of us are daywalkers.

[Evil the Cat]

D&D has helped in many ways with giving presentation/speeches in high school and college. When, for fun, you come up with dramatic speeches for your characters, it makes giving a speech or presentation just another form of roleplaying.

More than once I've received comments about how good I am at presentations, since I talk naturally, maintain connection with my audience, and exhibit no sign of stage fright.

Make up a character for your speeches and presentations, and the rest is easy.

[Superglucose]

Only last week I was enjoying a delicious Dr. Pepper and reading some hella sweet MS Paint Adventures when I was attacked by a Bodak. Luckily, years of playing D&D reminded me to avert my eyes from their deadly gaze attacks and to pull open the curtains, since I knew Bodaks are vulnerable to direct sunlight. It burns their impure flesh.

That's like the time I was being accosted by a homeless guy in an alley. Thanks to D&D, I knew how to cast Charm Person and get away without any problems! Thank you wizards of the coast!

[Seatbelt]

D&D has helped in many ways with giving presentation/speeches in high school and college. When, for fun, you come up with dramatic speeches for your characters, it makes giving a speech or presentation just another form of roleplaying.

More than once I've received comments about how good I am at presentations, since I talk naturally, maintain connection with my audience, and exhibit no sign of stage fright.

Make up a character for your speeches and presentations, and the rest is easy.

Great idea. Thanks. :)

[Starscream]

Assuming hundreds of hours of fun doesn't count as "help", then I guess it has helped to shape me a lot into the intelligent, witty, charming person I am today.

Actually, reading my cousin's 2nd Edition Monster Manual when I was very young got me into reading fantasy books. From there I went to science fiction, and from there to actual science. I probably wouldn't be a college grad today if it weren't for some of those monsters looking so cool.

[randomhero00]

When I was younger (tho more RPGs in general than DnD specific) I learned a lot of vocabulary that wouldn't normally come up. Like feint, feign, ethereal, prismatic, scintillating, enervate, encumber, etc. My teachers and parents were impressed I knew such words that were pretty rarely know around age 10-15.

Other than that, its good stress relief. And fun socially. So I suppose its helped me a decent amount.

[shadow_archmagi]

To be honest when I got to D&D I already know most of the words and it always kinda amazed me that not everyone knew what "Encumber" and "incapacitate" meant

[Thiyr]

To be honest when I got to D&D I already know most of the words and it always kinda amazed me that not everyone knew what "Encumber" and "incapacitate" meant

Yea, by the time d&d rolled around to me, I already learned a good number of stuff from MtG or WoD (Like obfuscate. Such a fun word :D). Though that doesn't beat the time i was in a Brit Lit class in high school, and somebody asks what a buckler was. When the teacher responded that it was a type of hat, I had to correct him, making good use of good ol' Diablo. This teacher was one of those angry, no-nonsense types though, so I was quite afraid when he whipped out a dictionary and was proven wrong. Thankfully, he apparently had a policy of extra credit to those that catch him making a mistake, so bonus for me! Thanks, gaming!