Tuesday, April 14, 2015

Introduction

Let's start with a "soft open" - an introduction to my RPG history and other influences. 

I received the Holmes Basic Set with B1 in '78 (based on research - I don't recall the year, just the contents). My first experience was with running a session with my parents as they humored me as I ran BX at 10 years old. I didn't play again for a while after that, though I 'ran' characters through it. I eventually got the Player's Handbook and Dungeon Master's Guide, found a gaming group consisting of a friend who was 2 years younger and his little brother, and we played while I 'babysat'. I usually GM'd and played a PC following the lead of the others, and they played one or two characters each. I also found friends at Jr. High School who played, but they didn't live close enough to join. I didn't have the money for all of the books, so when MM came out, I transcribed entries by hand (yeah, during class).

When I moved away and went to high school, well, that's when I found my clan. I gamed all the time with my friends and on holiday with my cousin. I recall designing dungeons (my dad had tons of engineering graph paper) and writing up stats for the Sandgorgon from The Chronicles of Thomas Covenant, and a slew of weapons for Top Secret based on stats from from the backs of "Men's Fiction" (War Porn) books. We alternated playing and running (75/25 for me) AD&D, Gamma World, Paranoia, Star Frontiers, TMNT, Twilight 2000, Top Secret, and then in college added Champions. 

Post-college included 2E, Champions, Call of Cthulhu, and then a decade-long spell of playing, not running, 3E, 3.5E, and Pathfinder. My current passion for the last couple of years has been Dungeon Crawl Classics, which has been sparse but fun.

Non-Gaming:
I was a Space Program and Sci-Fi kid, raised with plenty of Star Trek and Planet of the Apes, as well as a solid library of classic Science Fiction and later, Fantasy as well. I was also in the prime age bracket for seeing Star Wars. I was a voracious reader from elementary school through college. 
I'm a second-generation geek, and though I intended to be a physics major (astrophysics!), I ended up as computer engineering with a BSCE.
Some time after graduation, I found Renaissance Faire (RPFN), performing as a parade drummer. Even though I didn't act much, I always took improv workshops which were great fun, especially never having been in theater. I eventually joined a musical group that performs nautical and maritime music - music from and inspired by the age of sail. 

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