Mathias
March 5th, 2008, 07:52 PM
http://www.giantitp.com/index.html
Rich Burlew - 3/4/2008 I never got the chance to actually meet Gary Gygax. Despite both of us being in the same convention center several Augusts in a row, I never managed to figure out where he would be and how I could get myself in front of him so that I could tell him how much his creation has meant to me and my life. I'm sure he got that all the time, actually, but it wouldn't have deterred me.
Knowing that I won't ever get that chance now is hard. For those of you who have not heard, Mr. Gygax died today (http://blog.wired.com/underwire/2008/03/report-gary-gyg.html). I've decided that since I have a character hanging around in the afterlife anyway, I would let him say the things that I no longer have the opportunity to express (at least not on this side of -10 hit points).
I don't know if he even knew The Order of the Stick existed, much less how he felt about it if he did. But it doesn't matter if he thought it was derivative slop, ultimately, because when you help create something as big as D&D, you're changing the world in a billion tiny ways that are out of your control�including inspiring a graphic designer to start drawing a bunch of silly stick figures on ridiculous adventures. For all my mocking of the current rules (a point on which I strongly suspect Mr. Gygax had many things to say), OOTS is still a loving tribute to a game that hasn't just changed my life, personally, but has given us all a new way to tell stories going forward into the new century.
Wherever he is, I hope he rolls good stats on his next incarnation.
Rich Burlew - Order of the Stick tribute to Gary Gygax.
http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0536.html
---
http://blog.wired.com/underwire/2008/03/report-gary-gyg.html
Gary Gygax, 'Father of D&D,' Dies at 69
By Lore Sjoberg http://blog.wired.com/images/icon_email.gif (loremt@lungfish.com)March 04, 2008 | 1:43:14 PMCategories: Current Affairs (http://blog.wired.com/underwire/current_affairs/index.html)
http://blog.wired.com/underwire/images/2008/03/04/450pxgary_gygax_gen_con_2007.jpg (http://blog.wired.com/.shared/image.html?/photos/uncategorized/2008/03/04/450pxgary_gygax_gen_con_2007.jpg)
Gary Gygax, one of the co-creators of the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game, died Tuesday morning at his home in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin, according to Stephen Chenault, CEO of Troll Lord Games.
Gygax designed the original D&D game with Dave Arneson in 1974, and went on to create the Dangerous Journeys and Lejendary Adventure RPGs, as well as a number of board games. He also wrote several fantasy novels.
"I don't think I've really grokked it yet," said Mike Mearls, the lead developer of the upcoming 4th edition of Dungeons and Dragons. "He was like the cool uncle that every gamer had. He shaped an entire generation of gamers."
Gygax was not directly involved with Dungeons & Dragons after 1985, and his relationship with his former company, TSR Inc., was not friendly at first. The company sued him over his competing game Dangerous Journeys, and in a 2004 interview with GameSpy (http://pc.gamespy.com/articles/538/538820p1.html) he stated that he was "pleased to say" that he thought the cost of the suit and settlement drove TSR to sell the rights to the game.
While reportedly unimpressed with the current edition of the Dungeons and Dragons game, he created adventures and settings that could be used with it, which were published by Troll Lord Games.
Gygax went well beyond the role of game developer and became an icon to gamers, appearing as himself in episodes of Futurama and Code Monkeys and participating in discussions on roleplaying-related message boards.
Gygax had been in poor health for some time, according to his wife Gail. Chenault says he will publish more information, including funeral arrangements, on the Troll Lord message board (http://www.freeyabb.com/phpbb/viewtopic.php?t=4373&mforum=trolllordgames) as it becomes available.
'Tis a sad day in roleplaying. :( Lord, please bless and keep safe the marvelous soul that is Gary Gygax.
Rich Burlew - 3/4/2008 I never got the chance to actually meet Gary Gygax. Despite both of us being in the same convention center several Augusts in a row, I never managed to figure out where he would be and how I could get myself in front of him so that I could tell him how much his creation has meant to me and my life. I'm sure he got that all the time, actually, but it wouldn't have deterred me.
Knowing that I won't ever get that chance now is hard. For those of you who have not heard, Mr. Gygax died today (http://blog.wired.com/underwire/2008/03/report-gary-gyg.html). I've decided that since I have a character hanging around in the afterlife anyway, I would let him say the things that I no longer have the opportunity to express (at least not on this side of -10 hit points).
I don't know if he even knew The Order of the Stick existed, much less how he felt about it if he did. But it doesn't matter if he thought it was derivative slop, ultimately, because when you help create something as big as D&D, you're changing the world in a billion tiny ways that are out of your control�including inspiring a graphic designer to start drawing a bunch of silly stick figures on ridiculous adventures. For all my mocking of the current rules (a point on which I strongly suspect Mr. Gygax had many things to say), OOTS is still a loving tribute to a game that hasn't just changed my life, personally, but has given us all a new way to tell stories going forward into the new century.
Wherever he is, I hope he rolls good stats on his next incarnation.
Rich Burlew - Order of the Stick tribute to Gary Gygax.
http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0536.html
---
http://blog.wired.com/underwire/2008/03/report-gary-gyg.html
Gary Gygax, 'Father of D&D,' Dies at 69
By Lore Sjoberg http://blog.wired.com/images/icon_email.gif (loremt@lungfish.com)March 04, 2008 | 1:43:14 PMCategories: Current Affairs (http://blog.wired.com/underwire/current_affairs/index.html)
http://blog.wired.com/underwire/images/2008/03/04/450pxgary_gygax_gen_con_2007.jpg (http://blog.wired.com/.shared/image.html?/photos/uncategorized/2008/03/04/450pxgary_gygax_gen_con_2007.jpg)
Gary Gygax, one of the co-creators of the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game, died Tuesday morning at his home in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin, according to Stephen Chenault, CEO of Troll Lord Games.
Gygax designed the original D&D game with Dave Arneson in 1974, and went on to create the Dangerous Journeys and Lejendary Adventure RPGs, as well as a number of board games. He also wrote several fantasy novels.
"I don't think I've really grokked it yet," said Mike Mearls, the lead developer of the upcoming 4th edition of Dungeons and Dragons. "He was like the cool uncle that every gamer had. He shaped an entire generation of gamers."
Gygax was not directly involved with Dungeons & Dragons after 1985, and his relationship with his former company, TSR Inc., was not friendly at first. The company sued him over his competing game Dangerous Journeys, and in a 2004 interview with GameSpy (http://pc.gamespy.com/articles/538/538820p1.html) he stated that he was "pleased to say" that he thought the cost of the suit and settlement drove TSR to sell the rights to the game.
While reportedly unimpressed with the current edition of the Dungeons and Dragons game, he created adventures and settings that could be used with it, which were published by Troll Lord Games.
Gygax went well beyond the role of game developer and became an icon to gamers, appearing as himself in episodes of Futurama and Code Monkeys and participating in discussions on roleplaying-related message boards.
Gygax had been in poor health for some time, according to his wife Gail. Chenault says he will publish more information, including funeral arrangements, on the Troll Lord message board (http://www.freeyabb.com/phpbb/viewtopic.php?t=4373&mforum=trolllordgames) as it becomes available.
'Tis a sad day in roleplaying. :( Lord, please bless and keep safe the marvelous soul that is Gary Gygax.