Blue Collar D&D; Transferable Skills, Experiences and Lessons
A Collection of Connections and Correlations, on the things learned halfway through an apprenticeship in the Trades. ;3
After a year and a half as a Cement Mason, specializing in Epoxy Flooring and Resinous Coatings, there are a great many things i've come to learn after living a life of secluded sheltered-ness.
Of course, me being me they all eventually became things I related to the various lessons I learned Playing/Running Old School D&D games x3
Concrete Classes, Construction Experience and Dungeon Building ;3
A dungeon map is just a Simplified Blueprint folks, as an experiment I spent a bit of time working on a 5e Greyhawk Campaign with a home-made expansion to the Delian Tomb from MCDM. The keys included measurements, grades and various details like running water in the hallways flowing to a specific part of the dungeon (Stairway down to level 2).
Learning to calculate the price of labor, materials, time that will be needed to complete a certain project all directly translate to D&D. Hirelings, Item Shop, Projected Cost of Undertaking a Dungeon Crawl. Thus comes the need to calculate how much hard earned cash you will need to make in order to profit from the venture, how much you will need to make at minimum in order to break even at the very least.
Some things, like pitons and rope can be reused many times and so you can buy a bulk portion of them to cover you for many dungeon adventures. Torches and Rations as consumables will typically be the thing you spend the most money on, so using your time effectively becomes part of the Dungeon Game Loop.
IRl, Concrete Workers reuse Forming Materials (Stakes, 2 x 4/6/12's, etc) and make sure to clean them after removal to save on material costs. You become a competent worker in order to finish things in a timely manner, thus making it more likely the work will continue falling into your lap.
Specified details add character and verisimilitude to the underground environments of a D&D World, and any given trade will include instill upon you the ability to accurately describe a specific piece of architecture.
A Plumber would be able to include a diagram of the plumbing network for bathrooms, running water facilities and such. This leads to the natural conclusion of Random Burst Pipes as a form of Shitty Trap to ruin a PC's Day.
My plan is have Underdark Citizens rising to the surface over the course of my OD&D Campaign, tearing down and rebuilding various dungeons and tunnels in a mountain range. The PC's will encounter constructions crews in the dungeon in the process of replacing floors, building new rooms/divisions and otherwise altering the dungeon as time goes on.
I'll have to stat out the various machines they'd be using for combat, and other utilitarian functions that would come in handy for PC's down in the hole ;3
Knowing your trade, knowing what to do in the dungeon ;3
A big part of the apprenticeship life is paying attention to what the journeymen/Dungeoneers around you do on the job. Unloading materials, the process you go through to prepare your worksite along with what you actually build/construct on site, cleanup and the miscellaneous tasks one does (For Example: Filling holes with patching materials, sweeping up debris and consolidating trash, moving material to more accessible locations, machine maintenance when machines are consistently needed to run a job)
You want to get a feel for what it is you're actually doing down in the dungeon, or on a jobsite. How to look for traps, where they usually appear, how to form your ranks in order to ensure a more likely win when you do encounter a baddie, what sorts of puzzles typically appear and their common solutions.
All of these things can only be learned by watching those around you, trying it yourself and adjusting everything to find your personal preference in how to do these things. You begin to pick up weight on the crew, and eventually you go from a minor inconvenience to everyone to The One Who Gets Called In To Do The Job Right!
Navigating To and From The Jobsite/Dungeon x3
Both occupations require your ability to get to and where the action takes place in a timely manner. Whether it is loading up your gear into your car, planning the route the night before along with departure time, keeping the car full of gas and mechanics maintained; or the Dungeon equivalent of loading your cart/backpack up with torches and rations, dungeon equipment and then hexcrawling to your destination.
Knowing your situation regarding travel, adjusting and making it happen is what makes the game and world go around.
Gossip and Rumors, how to find truth in the nonsense ;3
Eventually on the jobsite you'll witness something crazy, or hear something crazy. Same goes for the Tavern where you gather clues about what you're getting yourself into in the dungeon. It is wise to keep your ears open for the information willingly and freely spouted by those who do not know how to keep secrets. Much of it will be malarky, simple "He Said, She Said, I heard from So and So". Some of it malicious by someone whose motive is to sow seeds of distrust about a particular person or location.
Knowing how to parse through to find truth is vital. You will learn many things about the trustworthiness/character of those around you, the people you work for and the nature of the projects you embark on. They help with making informed decisions about how much you are willing to share about yourself, what gear and how much you are willing to share, what boundaries you will have in place and how you will prepare for the Project/Dungeon.
You may bring different spells/tools, you may want to have some spare or extra gear in preparation for specific conditions, maybe some failsafes in place if you are forced to work with those who are untrustworthy.
Your Party Members and You! ;3
On the construction crew, you've got your brethren in labor. A group of people brought together, each with their own specialties in skills and array of knowledge about the general trade you work in along with more specific acts within that trade that they've chosen to focus on. Dungeon Equivalent would be the Mapper, The Ten Foot Pole Bearer, The Shot Caller/Leader, The MU With the Spells, The Fighter with the Polearm and Shield etc.
Part of synergizing as a group requires the ability to co-exist with people who you would otherwise never want to know in some cases. You may fully dislike some of these people, like some more than others. But at the end of the day, there is a job to do and everyone carries their own weight.
This comes with the unfortunate reality of having healthy distrust for those in the group :/
Some people are potential backstabbers, thieves and occasionally betrayers as well. Some because of their inability to cope with themselves and the things that transpired in their lives to leave immense psychological scarring, others simply because they are exploitative of others and seek to win regardless of who has to lose...
Not every party member, or hireling is fully trustworthy until you have genuinely been in the trenches together. Building a rapport, a reputation as a reliable and proficient proletaire is vital to your success in your trade and in the dungeon. You will be trusted more to handle the Cool Shit. Whether that be running the bullfloat on a large Concrete Pad, Operating a Blast-Trac to Grind down a Concrete Floor to the needed Elevation, or the Dungeon Equivalent of running the Ten Foot Pole or Searching for secret/hidden doors.
It is this experience of going through the trenches with others that builds a genuine trust in your Crew/Party Members, where you can turn your back and know shit will get done whilst no funny business going down. The untrustworthy either fall behind as you continue onwards to greater and greater heights, or you deal with them how you will to ensure that they know you are not the one to double-cross or disrespect.
Conclusion ;3
This is the first blogpost i've made not specifically related to my OD&D Campaign World, and by far the longest one i've written as well.
My journey in relearning to be passionate about one of my favorite hobbies continues on, along with my journey in learning how to take on the responsibility that is being a Journeyman and Experienced Tradesman.
The lessons learned from one, are applicable to the other. For even in the fantasy world of D&D, those who are born in sub-standard conditions with low accessibility to life prospects will turn to Labor as a means of surviving. The Proletaire will toil away with their chosen tool, and if their cards are played right then they'll rise above the shackles of the role society casts upon them and go on to become a Shaker & Mover themselves. ;3