General Discussion

Like so many others i had never met Gary Gygax but still hearing about his death it was like hearing a family member or a close friend had passed. There are a few stories about D&D i could share but i'll stay with three things that will always be with me. I had always had a love of fantasy but had never actually played dungeons and dragons untill Junior High, Still to this day i remember my first charaters name class race and his first and last small adventures. 

The second memory stems from reading an AD&D book back when TSR owned it, The book was about Gnomes and Halflings i stumbled across a name Kepli, which i had used a few times then i started playing Everquest and that name was taken so i switched the vowls and Kiple was born and i've used that name ever since in everything from D&D to WoW for atleast six years now

The Final memory ironically is similar to the Episode of futurama mentioned before, I was in study hall my friends and I planned to play 3rd edition for the first time. i was bored and messing with my dice, without realizing it i was making enough noise to be noticed by the teacher. I hear "MR. Simmons! Put the Dice away or i'll take them away" coming from the end of the table, although i was embarresed at the time i laugh even harder at that line in the episode.

I wish i could have said this in person but Thank you Gary, you helped fill my life with creation, laughter, and help me decided that i wanted to go to school so i could work on games like D&D, you will be missed

He can be proud of the legacy he's leaving behind. There was the gaming world "before" and "after" D&D, simple as that.

I was introduced to D&D in elementary school at about age 10 (23 years ago) by a friends brother at his birthday party.

That night , 12 of us unknowingly created a bond that would last to this day. For quite sometime we played as much as possible in the evenings , on weekends etc... As we grew older and a little more distant , and even to different towns , we all grew in to our own,  very different identities - VERY different! We were , high school/college football players , wrestlers , metal heads , a hippie , business owners, military lifers , factory worker - all very different - but we still got together to game when ever it is possible - maybe a few times a year - still do. Still very good friends +5.

Kinda sounds like a book or something huh ? heheh

Thanks and RIP Mr. Gygax!

(I still have my 1st set of dice covered in white crayon bits)

I remember being a kid(7years,1985), standing in the book store with a AD&D box in my hands. My eyes went from the cover of the box to my Mothers eyes and back. I turned the box around and looked on the text on the backside.

Knowing that our family couldnt afford to much luxury at the time and being the considerate,courteous kid in the family, I put the box back and said to Mom "I really would like to have it, but maybe we could buy it when it becomes cheaper". My Mom smiled at me and we continued on with the shopping. Half way home in the car my Mom asked me to take a look in the big paper bag in the back seat.

And honest, I didnt have a clue what was in the bag. I didnt even imagine what it was. And as I pulled out the box out of the bag my hands began to shake and I yelled out in happiness. I just yelled. I remember looking into my Mothers eyes and saw that she was as excited as i was, because she knew I was happy. Toys and gifts was not amongst the usually things in our family, and to once be able to give her son a gift must have made her very happy.

I almost jumped out of the car before it was parked at home. Rushed to my room. Laid down flat on my stomach on the floor with the box infront of me. Ripped off the plastic wrapping paper. Pulled off the lid and ... God... the smell in the box was just amazing. Ink, newly printed rule book, glossy paper. I just smelled the inside of the box over and over again without touching the content. Ha ha ha. I still remember how it smelled.

My eyes caught the most peculiar dices I have ever seen. I took them in my hand and just felt them. I have never felt a plastic dice before, and never seen one with 8 sides. I tried to roll it a couple of times on the floor. It felt great! Ha ha.

Later that evening I was lying in my bed and just skimmed through the rulebook back and forth. Very careful to not damage or rip the pages.That day was the start of something amazing. Something amazing I shared with family and friends for many, many years to come.

Being a shy kid when I was young, D&D was amazing to make new friends. Friends that I still have to this day. Remembering my mothers eyes in the car means much to me. She and my father died in a tragic car accident 11 years ago. I was the driver. Vortex500 ended up in a wheelchair for life. To have all those memories of playing D&D together as a family and with friends brighten up even the most sad day here for me.

Well maybe I got a little offtopic, I dunno. All I know is that when I heard Gary Gygax died, I cried like a baby. I have never meet him or talked to him. But somehow he felt like a really close friend of mine. All I know about Gary is from interviews and other stuff I read.

Well that is all I had to say about that. Sure I could write about every single roleplaying session I had. But they are too many and I really remember this memory more. My Mothers eyes. Happiness.

Well enough of my ramblings... ;-)

May the Angels carry you gently to the Elysian fields Gary. Your biggest adventure awaits you there. Godspeed Gary, godspeed. In time we will join you for the greatest adventure of them all, we all meet then.

The Second Day Vet

I heard about it yesterday and was actually a little sad when I first heard it, another legend gone for me. Then as I sat here at work and thought about it I started thking back to that first game way back in 7th grade when my rought this new game to school called Chainmail. We loved board games but all that was ever around back then was monopoly or clue and stuff like that. This was something new and cool. We played that 1st weekend for hours and hours, loving it. For those that don't know it, Chainmail was his first minature wargame and D&D rules were based off that game. Gary was co-maker of Chainmail but all that got me thinking about my friends back then and what they were doing now. We used to spend weekends over someone's house and just roll up characters and play and play for hours on end, sometimes days. I was that nerdy little pale ng mountain dew like on the Doctor Demento show (google it if you've never heard it).

My character was always the rough and tumble drunken dwarf leading with his axe or head and not so much his wits. God I loved those days....we're all old now of course but man that really brings back memories. I'm now working on a mmorpg myself, and my old cronies also work in the IT industry, some of you might know of us but i'll leave out names to protect the guilty parties.

To the man, the myth and the legend!  /roll   *stands with out falling during the wake

"G'on ye Gary, may yer cup be filt n n'er empty'

Now-Do you have any mountain dew? Where's the Cheetos?

truly a sad day. Gary Gygax has left a mark on all our lives to this day. D&D is his legacy. god bless him and  may his family find strength  through this hard time in their lives.

I can't count how many times I played P&P D&D back when since I was  8 and stood up late with a couple of my friends creating in our minds a believable world and beliveable characters with this game. He has influenced so many games, genres. he is truly a remarkable human being contributed so much,and will continue to contribute even after his passing. that is the true mark of a remarkablly unique person when even after they are gone, they continue to influence and inspire us.

GOd bless him for living and giving us so much during his time on earth.  hes probably up there in heaven already breaking out his 20 headed dice and a D&D board :P he will be missed, and never forgotten.

The greatest game I have ever played.  2-3 times weekly for the last 20 years and still nothing has compared. The work that artist's like Brom, Clyde Caldwell and Kieth Parkinson did for D&D in the 80's inspired me to learn to paint.  I would be lost without that.

My friend, Mike, got me into D&D when I was 12.  My sister was playing too; and I had a magical time that first night.  Hours later, my sister killed my character!  I was mad but luckily my Mom yelled at her :P.  Not really yell, but you get the idea.  It was trivial, kid stuff.

What fun I had and what great friends I made through D&D.  One of my best friends was first met at a gaming convention that was held monthly in town.  That first convention was amazing; 100+ players and some fantastic Dungeon Masters.

As an adult, I was fortunate enough to meet Gary when he attended Rock Con (Rockford, IL).  He seemed nice; and when taking a break in the hot dog stand (with that best friend mentioned above), Gary walked up and sat down next to us to eat a hot dog too.  He was great to chat with.  I told him I had always hoped to see a D&D movie; and he informed me that they had not one, but two motion pictures planned for the 80's, but the drama at TSR killed that.  It was a real treasure to have such one on one time with the "master."

Long before meeting him, he was a childhood hero to me even though we knew him only by the name printed on the cover of the game manuals.  Thank you Gary; rest in peace.  Few of us will have even remotely the impact that you've had on the world.

D&D and all the Pen and Paper RPG's of the 80's were a huge part of my past.  I spent hundreds of hours playing with friends in many worlds.  I just found about this and I am really sad to hear that the father of RPG's has passed away.  He will be missed and remembered by those of us that grew up enjoying what this legend created.   Rest in peace Gary.