Judgment and Rudeness About D&D Alive and Well

We used to play D&D all the time in High school, then one day after I had been playing at a friends place the night before my mum confronted me and with real venom in her voice asked "What exactly do you do when you play Dungeons and Dragons?" I was really taken back as she was the one that bought me the game for my 12th birthday (and is responsible for my lifelong addiction).

It turns out she got a call form the mother on one of the guys that played who told her we spent the night worshipping the devil and other nonsense. It took me a while to convince her that all we were doing was playing a game but she came 'round and would continue to buy me D&D products for many more years.

Upgraydd said:

We used to play D&D all the time in High school, then one day after I had been playing at a friends place the night before my mum confronted me and with real venom in her voice asked "What exactly do you do when you play Dungeons and Dragons?" I was really taken back as she was the one that bought me the game for my 12th birthday (and is responsible for my lifelong addiction).

It turns out she got a call form the mother on one of the guys that played who told her we spent the night worshipping the devil and other nonsense. It took me a while to convince her that all we were doing was playing a game but she came 'round and would continue to buy me D&D products for many more years.

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Heh. My mom had heard about religious hoopla surrounding D&D and asked me about it. Rather than try and explain the game I had her roll up a character and ran a short adventure for her, explaining how the game worked as we played. That was the end of that.

Rune said:

The argument that convinced my mother when I was playing D&D in high school (in the latter half of the 90s) was that even pretending to be a character who casts spells or portraying fictional demons gave real power to and drew attention from The Devil. It's hard to counter that kind of reasoning in any meaningful way when someone fundamentally believes that that is possible.

And, though the specific argument was unique, the sentiment most certainly was not in that part of the country.

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There is actually a specific injunction in the Bible not to "cast spells or pretend to cast spells", at least according to a Jehovah's Witness I occasionally game with.

Greenfield said:

There is actually a specific injunction in the Bible not to "cast spells or pretend to cast spells", at least according to a Jehovah's Witness I occasionally game with.

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A quick concordance bible check has not revealed any mention of the pretense of casting spells or the pretense of using magic. This would seem to be an interpretation unsupported by the texts.

joshinminn said:

Wife had minor surgery this morning. While in recovery, nurse saw I had the PHB with me and said, "Gosh, that led to suicides some years ago. Very sad." Her judgy pants were pulled in tight.

I said that was religious propaganda, and widely debunked. She then told me about a boy who hung himself, and mused about vulnerable people being pushed to this by games like this.

I was so tempted to say that far more people have done bad things in the name of religion than were inspired by D&D.

Best part: she then told us about the Wizard of Oz game she is addicted to on her phone. I hope it doesn't drive her to commit evil acts! Lol.

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I was not religious propaganda at all; it was "moral gauradian" propaganda perpetrated by one woman who was searching for something to blame her son's death on.

If you don't want people do be judgemental about D&D, don't make baseless generalizations about "religion". Amazing as it may seem to some people, a LOT of religious people enjoy RPGs. It might be a good idea not to alienate them.

I've encountered avowed atheists object to sci-fi oriented RPGs before because they discuss nuclear weapons and firearms and "induce death" somehow. It's not confined to religious people at all.

So.... stupid people will be stupid people. D&D just happens to be the vector this time. If you can point at something and say that nobody's ever thought or done something stupid in relation to that thing, you've got one on me.

Diamondeye said:

If you don't want people do be judgemental about D&D, don't make baseless generalizations about "religion". Amazing as it may seem to some people, a LOT of religious people enjoy RPGs. It might be a good idea not to alienate them.

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A very solid comment. Especially apt in a thread complaining about others making biased and uninformed judgments about things we do.

Originally Posted by Diamondeye
If you don't want people do be judgemental about D&D, don't make baseless generalizations about "religion". Amazing as it may seem to some people, a LOT of religious people enjoy RPGs. It might be a good idea not to alienate them.

Very well said. My apologies for that insensitivity.

Greenfield said:

There is actually a specific injunction in the Bible not to "cast spells or pretend to cast spells", at least according to a Jehovah's Witness I occasionally game with.

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Well Mr. Gygax who designed D&D was a Jehovah's Witness, obviously he didn't think it was a problem.

Rune said:

A quick concordance bible check has not revealed any mention of the pretense of casting spells or the pretense of using magic. This would seem to be an interpretation unsupported by the texts.

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I believe it is a misread or misinterpretation of Deuteronomy 18:11.

Regarding the suicides attributed to D&D: I can't imagine any actual mental health professional saying that a suicide, any suicide, can be attributed to a single cause in a young person's life. The very idea is laughable.

Yet the tales were told by distraught parents, again and again, about how their child was perfect and happy, how their life was perfect and happy, about how the child told them everything, and then one day killed themselves. Afterwards the family found D&D books, so they just *KNOW* that D&D was responsible.

I'm actually paraphrasing what was said by families to members of Congress in the 1980s, on the subject of D&D.

There were also tales spread about a college student who went missing from school, and was believed to be living out a D&D fantasy in the steam tunnels under the school. He later committed suicide.

That story is actually true. Sort of. Technically. In a way. Kinda.

There was a student in Michigan who disappeared from school. And yes, it was *believed* that he was playing out a D&D fantasy under the school. And yes, he later committed suicide.

The reality was that he had left school, and was found in jail somewhere down south, Florida or Louisiana. He was a "Child prodigy", entering college years ahead of his friends. No friends there his own age, you know the story. And yes, he did later commit suicide. It had nothing to do with D&D, but rather was because of pressure and loneliness.

The news reported his disappearance, and the speculation on the cause, on the front page.

The reality, being far less juicy, was someplace back of page 17 when it finally came out, and everybody just remembers the headlines.

But these are the half truths from which great lies are forged.