The German astronaut Rabea Rogge was the first German in space on a mission to explore the Earth’s polar regions from orbit. A twenty-sided die, which is typically used in D&D campaigns in tabletop, has also made it into zero gravity and functions despite the weightlessness.
What did the astronaut demonstrate? Astronaut Rabea Rogge posted a clip on Instagram that she recorded a year ago during the Fram2 mission over the North and South Poles of the Earth. And indeed, in space, right in the zero gravity. Rogge is not only one of the first 13 Germans in space but also the first German among them.
The clip shows her throwing a W20, that is, a twenty-sided die, without gravity. She throws it with a spin so that it rotates, catches it with her hand, and then looks into her fist to see what number she got. In her example, it’s unfortunately only a 7, but she was still able to prove: “Be happy! Role-playing games in space are absolutely possible!”
Thus, she is not only the first German woman in space but also the first D&D-playing German woman in space. What a title.
Dungeons & Dragons makes it to space
What does the community say about this new milestone? The Instagram reel on Rogge’s account @rabearogge has been viewed over 4.3 million times and received a lot of love from the D&D community, including from well-known names:
The official Dungeons & Dragons account dedicated a completely new rule to the astronaut: “Every roll in space is a critical success.” So the rolled 7 from the clip will not lead to a catastrophe.
Even Sam Riegel from Critical Role, who is primarily known for Scanlan from Vox Machina and Nott from The Mighty Nein, wanted to comment: “My throwing technique is quite similar.”
The account of the German retailer selling the astronaut’s die also expressed their feelings about her first W20 that made it to space: “Seeing one of our dice floating in space is something we could have never dreamed of, and frankly, it completely blew our entire team away. Our founder even had tears in his eyes when he saw it – real tears of joy. Watching something that began as a small idea eventually orbiting the Earth was a truly surreal moment for all of us. […] Safe travels, and may all your missions be critical successes!”
Besides these emotional thoughts, user @aaron.stanlee couldn’t resist commenting: “We got D&D in space before GTA 6.”
What does the astronaut say about the reactions from the community? After her clip went viral, Rogge responded in the comments with words of thanks. She adds that her group’s astronaut training was very similar to a good old round of D&D: “You get a scenario (in a training spaceship) and have to deal with everything the training leader (alias DM) throws at you.”
If astronauts can play in space under complete weightlessness, that should invalidate all excuses from former players or those curious who haven’t yet become players. To bring an old former D&D player back to his old hobby, the community is trying to explain that he has already found his sign: Former D&D player rediscovers his old box after 40 years, the community says he must play again
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