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Five Gaming Turning Points

This would be the newest thing to do.

1. Theo shows me this cool Tunnels and Trolls game. I was like 12? 13? Something like that. My first RPG, and you could play it solo. Theo was a pretty messed up guy; he wound up ODing on heroin some years later. I’ve always wondered where he found T&T.

2. Three submissions to Alarums and Excursions, which led to my first paid freelance work (for Over the Edge, as it happens). Amazing APA. That was back when Robin Laws was writing up what became GURPS Madlands, and so on. I think I met Rob Heinsoo in the pages of A&E as well. I note that items 3, 4, and 5 are closely related to A&E as well, given the presence of Mr. Laws, Mr. Stolze, and of course the then Lion Rampant crowd. Really, I owe Jonathan Tweet for much of my current gaming life.

3. The Feng Shui years, which included various one-shots, Carl’s game, Brad’s game, and a lot of fun attitude. Feng Shui still flavors all my gaming. I love it so!

4. Unknown USA, the confusing layered game about the war between the gold and silver standards of currency. Hey, it really was that good. It also defined my Boston gaming crowd, led to a lot of indie play, and so on. Rob: we miss you! Trivia question: who was originally going to publish Unknown Armies? I think this is one of those pieces of information not available on the Internet.

5. Orlando Trash, my 80s-themed hyperkinetic Vampire: the Requiem game. True confession: this was the first campaign I ran to conclusion and the second campaign I really ran, period. The first one was a Vampire: the Masquerade game back in Iowa City, which petered out for no reason I can recall. This game gave me the confidence to run whatever I wanted and the knowledge of what I wanted to run.

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