Quest for new ways to learn the law leads to Dungeons & Dragons courses
Know elaborate laws, precedents and procedures. Present cases to the keeper of the law, who determines the outcome. Tell stories well. Behave ethically—or face real consequences.
All of the above reflect what happens in a courtroom. And in a game of Dungeons & Dragons.
At two law schools, that connection is not just a fantasy as students go on role-playing quests in classes based on the popular tabletop game.
In the summer, the University of Iowa College of Law offered a new simulation-based course where instruction was based on D&D rules. And this spring, Santa Clara University School of Law students can go on fantasy role-playing game quests led by professional dungeon masters as they learn key legal skills.
D&D players use “a really complex set of rules that enables all kinds of possible actions based on their character skills and abilities,” says Chris Ridder, an intellectual property lawyer and name partner at Ridder, Costa & Johnstone. Ridder, a longtime D&D enthusiast, will teach Santa Clara Law’s course.
In the collaborative game, players create fictional personas with specific backstories and special abilities as they set off together on adventures through an imaginary world. Players roll dice to solve problems but must do so within the myriad rules overseen by the dungeon master, who informs the players how the world reacts to their decisions.
“It really trains teamwork; it trains strategy, but it also trains improvisational narrative storytelling,” Ridder says. “It is very similar to a lot of what lawyers do in practice.”
At Iowa Law, professor Mihailis Diamantis typically teaches corporate law. But this summer, his son’s deep interest in D&D inspired him to launch a one-week, one credit intersession course called “Foundations of Corporate Law” that is loosely based on D&D-style quests. He hoped the gamified format would engage students who might typically not be interested in corporate law, he says.
“We have two goals: one, to make it fun, to tell an interesting story that we’re all enjoying; and two, to learn corporate law,” he adds.
Ahead of the first class, each student filled out a character sheet creating a persona with a professional backstory and various levels of intelligence, instinct, charisma and tendencies to be law-abiding. Each class, they performed in character as they negotiated different scenarios, such as the liability of a helicopter pilot whose friend crashes his aircraft into a zoo, building their case using actual corporate laws.
As each student played a role, “their goal was to make the stage as even as possible between plaintiff and defendant as they decide what facts to allow or reject,” he says. They considered financial issues, and they chose a CEO and board of directors who sometimes didn’t see eye to eye, Diamantis says.
Role playing helped students consider different perspectives and put them different roles, such as a game leader, a neutral mediator or an advocate, he adds. One student’s avatar even became wily, “always trying to pull shenanigans in his corporation and cut secret deals.”
Diamantis served as the game master, who ultimately sets the rules in stone—as well as grades the students’ performance and logic.
Leveling up
At Santa Clara Law, D&D has been part of the ethos for a while, says Eric Goldman, associate dean for research and the faculty sponsor of the course. To encourage socializing at its academic conference, the California law school often includes a D&D game night with quests led by professional dungeon masters.
“That’s been a huge hit for us,” he says. “It was a blast.”
That made Goldman wonder: Could there be a class utilizing D&D? So he approached Ridder to create the one-credit, pass-fail “D&D and the Law.”
The class is scheduled for three Saturdays and will look at research and published opinions showing the connection between D&D skills, including problem-solving collaboration, persuasion and creativity.
Ridder says class time will start off with a lecture; then students will have a few hours to role play in their own avatars; and before class ends, there will be a structured debrief.
“We translate the role-play experience very explicitly into a professional lawyering context,” he adds.
Each class will have a theme, and the first will focus on professional identity as the students develop their D&D characters.
“The character levels up. And as you level up, you choose new skills and abilities,” Ridder says. “This parallels developing your own professional career. It’s hard when you’re in law school and trying to get a job to take a longer-term view of your career development.”
At Iowa Law, there was a waiting list of 25 for the summer class, indicating there’s enough interest to do it again, and Diamantis would like to find professors at other schools who might want to exchange syllabi involving D&D.
“D&D is not about winning,” Diamantis says. “It’s more about storytelling, and the goal of D&D is to create, in collaboration, a compelling narrative and good case.”
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