Gary Gygax died this morning.
Didn't really know Gary. Only met him once. But I have no idea what kind of person I would be without the fruits of his creativity and labor.
Dungeons & Dragons has been a pillar of my life, starting in childhood, straight up through my time spent working at TSR, the company he founded, and into now. D&D was not merely my hobby, it was my job, and it was the banner under which I made many dear friends, all over the country.
The influence the game has had on every member of modern Western civilization goes largely unrecognized, but it is there. Does that sound grandiose? It is not. It is not. The good gained from D&D's existence wildly outweighs any harm ever done by it, even fake, trumped-up harms imagined in the early '80s.
I ran through the standard D&D joke headlines for this post: "reduced to 0 hp", "failed his save". Har har. But those are ways you describe a simulated "death" in a game. We won't be rolling up a new Zagyg.
Gary Gygax has moved on to the next thing, and though I know nothing about his spiritual state, I genuinely pray that God has mercy on his soul.
Tuesday, March 04, 2008
Gary Gygax, Dead at 69
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2 comments:
"It really meant a lot to him to hear from people from over the years about how he helped them become a doctor, a lawyer, a policeman, what he gave them," Gail Gygax said. "He really enjoyed that."
After talking to you last night, I think this hit home a bit more this morning. I was just remembering all the great times I've had around D&D (or any RPG). I miss some of those people i gamed with, but look forward to making more friends around his great game.
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