Last week, Gary Gygax, co-creator of Dungeons and Dragons, the grandfather of tabletop roleplaying games, passed away at the age of 69.
On a personal level, news of his passing made me very sad. I had hoped to meet him at GenCon some day, shake his hand, and thank him for creating a product that had such a profound impact on not just the person I am today, but the writer I strove to become. The house I live in now, with the friends I have down here in Texas, I would not have if it was not for D&D. My work with RPGX? A fellow D&D player in our gaming group introduced me to RPGX's head honcho. One of my best friends, a man who became ordained just so he could be the one to officiate at my wedding was someone I first got to know via a few sessions where he ran some amazing Dungeons and Dragons games.
Tributes have been pouring in from all over the 'net in ways personal, profound, profane, hilarious, and heart-warming.
Here's a run down of some of the best tributes:
Web comics:
Online Communities:
Also of note are three illuminatingt looks at Gygax: a cute interview with Gygax from 2001,
and video of Gygax reflecting upon the influence of D&D in the movie Uber Goober: A Film About Gamers, and an article about Gygax from The Believer published September 2006.
Every tabletop or fantasy gamer owes this man a debt of gratitude. I'd say if you're a nerd of any stripe, you probably have a memory of your first encounter with Dungeons and Dragons.
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Wanted to mention that there will be a tribute to the man at the end of the RPGX Update Video to be released March 21st on the RPGX.org homepage. I have written a song and music video that will be performed in his honor.
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