Of Dice and Men: The Story of Dungeons & Dragons and The People Who

by Ewalt, David M.

  ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

  To learn the story of Dungeons & Dragons, I interviewed hundreds of designers, players, and executives who made the game what it is today. They gave up valuable time to share their memories, and I am grateful to all of them.

  First and foremost, thanks to the guys in my weekly game night: Alex Agius, Brandon Bryant, R. C. Robbins, Phillip Gerba, and Morgan Harris-Warrick. They’re good friends, and I’m grateful for the time they’ve shared. They are also, in a very real sense, coauthors of the Vampire World sections of this book. We wove those stories together, so I’m lucky they’re all so clever. My old gaming buddies deserve recognition too, particularly Mike Bagnulo, Ray Cuadro, and Everett Meyer.

  Special thanks are due to Peter Adkison, Tavis Allison, Rich Burlew, Monte Cook, Cory Doctorow, Jeff Gomez, Eric Hautemont, Kristi Hayes, Jerry Holkins, Mike Krahulik, Mary Kirchoff, Ian Livingstone, James Lowder, David Megarry, Frank Mentzer, Michael Mornard, R. A. Salvatore, Lorraine Williams, Skip Williams, and Tracy Hickman. And thanks to everyone at Wizards of the Coast, including Greg Leeds, Jerome Lalin, Shelly Mazzanoble, Mike Mearls, Chris Perkins, Liz Schuh, Rodney Thompson, Laura Tommervik, and especially Marcella Kallmann and Tolena Thorburn.

  It would have been impossible to complete this project without the support and forbearance of my editors at Forbes, especially Randall Lane, Bruce Upbin, and Eric Savitz. I am particularly grateful to Lewis DVorkin, who gave me an extraordinary opportunity to report on the game business while I worked on this book. I’m lucky to benefit from his commitment to entrepreneurial journalism.

  Thanks to all the people who helped get this book started. Jessica Stockton Bagnulo, good friend and world’s greatest bookseller, provided my first introduction to a publisher. Elisabeth Eaves and Michael Noer gave invaluable edits and advice on my first attempted chapters. My agent Chris Parris-Lamb helped craft a half-baked idea into something with value, and I appreciate his counsel, intelligence, and hard work. Amelia Mularz did a brilliant job fact-checking the final manuscript, and John Sellers read it and provided great advice.

  Thanks to everyone at Scribner, especially Susan Moldow and Nan Graham, for taking a chance on a weird idea and showing great patience during its production. I would also like to tell them that whatever they’re paying my editor, Brant Rumble, it’s not enough. He’s insightful, funny, talented, and understanding. I can’t imagine a better editor, and I am in his debt.

  Thanks to my parents, Larry and Barbara Ewalt, and my sister, Elissa Ewalt Ghosh. Thanks to my nieces and nephew—Casey, Maddie, Sophia, and Sid—for being awesome. And all my love and thanks to my wife, Kara, who was incredibly supportive and understanding while I worked on this project. I would have to write a hundred books to describe how amazing she is.

  Finally, thanks to Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson for the good times.

  COURTESY OF CAMERON R NEILSON

  DAVID M. EWALT began playing Dungeons & Dragons when he was ten years old. Now an award-winning journalist, he writes about games for Forbes magazine, talks about games on television and radio, and plays games in and around his Brooklyn, New York, home. Join him or find out more at www.davidmewalt.com.

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  NOTES

  Like a beholder, my eyes are bigger than my stomach. While researching this book I consumed far more information than I could possibly fit into the final printed product, from books, newspaper and magazine articles, websites, panel discussions, seminars, and podcasts to more than a hundred original interviews with past and present D&D designers, executives, and players.

  But thanks to the Internet, the story of Dungeons & Dragons doesn’t have to end here. To learn more about the history of the game—particularly the Lorraine Williams and Wizards of the Coast years, which are given regrettably little space in these pages—please visit www.ofdiceandmen.com.

  I recommend that readers interested in taking a much deeper dive into the history of war games and role-playing games read Jon Peterson’s Playing at the World (Unreason Press, 2012). Other books worth your attention include the following:

  Archer, Peter, ed. 30 Years of Adventure: A Celebration of Dungeons & Dragons. Wizards of the Coast, 2004.

  Cover, Jennifer Grouling. The Creation of Narrative in Tabletop Role-Playing Games. McFarland, 2010.

  Fine, Gary Alan. Shared Fantasy: Role-Playing Games as Social Worlds. The University of Chicago Press, 1983.

  Hughes, Paul, ed. Cheers, Gary: Celebrating a Lejend. Gygax Memorial Fund, 2011.

  Laws, Robin D. 40 Years of Gen Con. Atlas Games, 2007.

  Mackay, Daniel. The Fantasy Role-Playing Game: A New Performing Art. McFarland, 2001.

  Schick, Lawrence. Heroic Fantasy: A History and Guide to Roleplaying Games. Prometheus Books, 1991.

  Tresca, Michael J. The Evolution of Fantasy Role-Playing Games. McFarland, 2011.

  Williams, J. Patrick, Sean O. Hendricks, and W. Keith Winkler, eds. Gaming as Culture. McFarland, 2006.

  The sources for unique facts or uncited quotes are as follows:

  2: Little Wars

  archaeologist Gary O. Rollefson: “A Neolithic Game Board from ‘Ain Ghazal, Jordan,” Bulletin of the American Schools of Oriental Research 286, May 1992.

  carved stone dice and an ebony board: “World’s Oldest Backgammon Discovered in Burnt City,” Payvand.com, December 4, 2004, http://www.payvand.com/news/04/dec/1029.html.

  The Bronze Age settlement of Mohenjo-daro: “Play Was Important—Even 4,000 Years Ago,” ScienceDaily, February 8, 2011.

  the ancient folk tale about a queen: H. J. R. Murray, A History of Chess (Oxford University Press, 1913).

  3: Grognards

  Steve Jobs was a Kriegsspiel fan: Walter Isaacson, Steve Jobs (Simon & Schuster, 2011).

  4: Druids with Phaser Guns

  To be conversant with the Principles of War: Charles S. Roberts, “Charles S. Roberts: In His Own Words,” 1983, http://www.alanemrich.com/CSR_pages/Articles/CSRspeaks.htm. Last accessed April 23, 2012.

  I’d given the defending brigands: Gary Alan Fine, Shared Fantasy: Role-Playing Games as Social Worlds (The University of Chicago Press, 1983).

  Frankly, the boys in my club were bored: Douglas Alger, “The Keepers of the Realm: Fantasy Fans Still Game for Dungeons & Dragons,” Los Angeles Times, August 21, 1995.

  That sealed my fate: Ciro Alessandro Sacco, “The Ultimate Interview with Gary Gygax,” Dungeons.it, undated, retrieved from http://www.thekyngdoms.com/interviews/garygygax.php.

  Even now I vividly recall my first perusal: Gary Gygax, “The Influence of J. R. R. Tolkien on the D&D and AD&D Games,” The Dragon, March 1985.

  Since we’re only talking a couple hundred people: Allen Rausch, “Dave Arneson Interview,” GameSpy, August 19, 2004, http://pc.gamespy.com/articles/540/540395p1.html.

  I asked Dave to please send me: Gary Gygax, “Gary Gygax on Dungeons & Dragons: Origins of the Game,” The Dragon 2, no. 1 (June 1977).

  a slightly concave, circular plane of force: Dungeons & Dragons Player’s Handbook, Core Rulebook I, Version 3.5 (Wizards of the Coast, 2003).

  The reaction . . . was instant enthusiasm: Gary Gygax, “Gary Gygax on Dungeons & Dragons: Origins of the Game,” The Dragon 2, no. 1 (June 1977).

  The reaction was so intense: Ciro Alessandro Sacco, “The Ultimate Interview with Gary Gygax,” Dungeons.it, undated, retrieved from http://www.thekyngdoms.com/interviews/garygygax.php.

  They laughed at the idea: Ibid.

  One fellow had gone so far: Gary Gygax, “View from the Telescope Wondering Which End Is Which,” The Dra
gon 2, no. 5 (December 1977).

  a security guard who couldn’t afford shoes: Allen Rausch, “Dave Arneson Interview,” GameSpy, August 19, 2004, http://pc.gamespy.com/articles/540/540395p1.html.

  Don Kaye saw the turnout: “The Story of TSR,” in TSR Silver Anniversary Collector’s Edition (Wizards of the Coast, 1999).

  We published Cavaliers & Roundheads: Paul Hughes, ed., Cheers, Gary: Celebrating a Lejend (Gygax Memorial Fund, 2011).

  badgered Gary into letting [him] in: Timothy J. Kask, “In the Cauldron,” The Strategic Review 1, no. 5 (December 1975).

  5: Strength of Character

  This spell functions like Summon Monster I: Dungeons & Dragons Player’s Handbook, Core Rulebook I, Version 3.5 (Wizards of the Coast, 2003), p. 286.

  6: Temple of the Frog

  Sales are really quite good: Gary Gygax to Dave Megarry, letter, June 2, 1974.

  Counting all of the illicit photocopies: “The Story of TSR,” in TSR Silver Anniversary Collector’s Edition (Wizards of the Coast, 1999).

  Although this was not exactly a ‘hot’ reception: Gary Gygax, “View from the Telescope Wondering Which End Is Which,” The Dragon 2, no. 5 (December 1977).

  We will never allow TSR to become: Gary Gygax to Dave Megarry, letter, March 6, 1975.

  A magic-user can use a given spell: “Questions Most Frequently Asked about Dungeons & Dragons Rules,” The Strategic Review 1, no. 2 (Summer 1975).

  This is a super-intelligent, man-shaped creature: “Creature Features,” The Strategic Review 1, no. 1 (Spring 1975).

  Greyhawk had a fountain: Gary Gygax and Robert Kuntz, Dungeons & Dragons Supplement I: Greyhawk (TSR, 1975).

  Ours is known as the ‘Living Room’: Ibid.

  Tactical Studies Rules is not a giant company: Brian J. Blume, “TSR—Why We Do What We Do,” The Strategic Review 1, no. 2 (Summer 1975).

  impossible to work with: “AD&D and My Leaving TSR,” Gygax.org FAQ, archived April 21, 1999, at http://web.archive.org/web/19990421153255/http://www.gygax.com/gygaxfaq.html.

  There is no question in my mind: Ciro Alessandro Sacco, “The Ultimate Interview with Gary Gygax,” Dungeons.it, undated, retrieved from http://www.thekyngdoms.com/interviews/garygygax.php.

  Deep in the primaeval [sic] swamps: Dave Arneson, Blackmoor (TSR, 1975).

  Pool of the Frog: A downward sloping area: Ibid.

  like a grist mill: Gary Gygax, “TSR News & Editorial,” The Strategic Review 1, no. 4 (Winter 1975).

  It started out being fun: Jeremy L. C. Jones, “Interview with Dave Arneson,” Kobold Quarterly, April 9, 2009, http://www.koboldpress.com/k/front-page460.php.

  7: The Breaking of the Fellowship

  This is the last issue: Timothy J. Kask, “In the Cauldron,” The Strategic Review 2, no. 2 (April 1976).

  Somewhere along the line, D&D lost: Gary Gygax and Brian Blume, Dungeons & Dragons Supplement III: Eldritch Wizardry (TSR, 1976).

  gaming, variants, discussion, fiction by authors: Timothy J. Kask, “Dragon Rumbles,” Dragon 1, no. 1 (June 1976).

  TSR had sent a cease-and-desist: Jon Peterson, Playing at the World (Unreason Press, 2012), 552.

  a heavily muscled dark skinned man: Robert Kuntz and James Ward, Dungeons & Dragons Supplement IV: Gods, Demi-Gods & Heroes (TSR, 1976).

  a lotus flower capable of restoring all lost hit points: Ibid.

  Perhaps now some of the ‘giveaway’ campaigns: Ibid.

  We’ve told you just about everything: Ibid.

  Gygax told a war-gaming newsletter: Jon Peterson, Playing at the World (Unreason Press, 2012), 536.

  Blackmoor is finally done: Timothy J. Kask, “In the Cauldron,” The Strategic Review 1, no. 5 (December 1975).

  My first assignment, fresh out of college: Robert Kuntz and James Ward, Dungeons & Dragons Supplement IV: Gods, Demi-Gods & Heroes (TSR, 1976).

  contradictory, confusing, incomplete: James Maliszewski, “Interview: Tim Kask (Part I),” Grognardia, September 18, 2008, http://grognardia.blogspot.com/2008/09/interview-tim-kask-part-i.html.

  His function will be to help us co-ordinate: Gary Gygax, “TSR News & Editorial,” Strategic Review 1, no. 4 (Winter 1975).

  the introduction to Valley Forge: Jon Peterson, Playing at the World (Unreason Press, 2012), 572.

  a credit for “special effort” in Lankhmar: Ibid.

  even less in promoting the game: Ibid.

  Perhaps Arneson simply preferred: Ibid.

  8: Why We Play

  Everything around me takes the shape of the Knight: David Shenk, The Immortal Game: A History of Chess (Anchor, 2007), xvii.

  Duchamp’s wife, Lydie Sarazin-Levassor: Ibid.

  As we wandered around, uncertain: Clifford Geertz, “Notes on the Balinese Cockfight,” in Clifford Geertz, The Interpretation of Cultures (Basic Books, 1973).

  A play community generally tends to become permanent: Johan Huizinga, Homo Ludens: A Study of the Play-Element in Culture (Beacon Press, 1971).

  American culture has some nuances: Michael J. Tresca, The Evolution of Fantasy Role-Playing Games (McFarland, 2010), 13.

  A hero ventures forth: Joseph Campbell, The Hero with a Thousand Faces, 2nd ed. (Princeton University Press, 1968), 23.

  I see role-playing as an opportunity: Leonard H. Kanterman, MD, “My Life and Role-Playing,” Different Worlds: The Magazine of Game Role-Playing 1, no. 1 (1979).

  a 2011 study of middle and high school students: G. E. Harrison and J. P. Van Haneghan, “The Gifted and the Shadow of the Night,” Journal for the Education of the Gifted 34, no. 4 (2011), 669–97.

  Comeliness reflects physical attractiveness: Gary Gygax, Advanced Dungeons & Dragons Unearthed Arcana (TSR, 1985).

  9: Arneson vs. Gygax

  Before the third supplement: Gary Gygax, “D&D Relationships: The Parts and the Whole,” The Dragon 2, no. 8 (May 1978).

  The ‘Basic Set’ of D&D is aimed: Ibid.

  an imaginative game: Gary Gygax, “View from the Telescope Wondering Which End Is Which,” The Dragon 2, no. 5 (December 1977).

  approximately 1,000 Peasants, 100 Soldiers and Nobles: David Arneson, The First Fantasy Campaign (Judges Guild, 1977).

  the main livestock: Ibid.

  there is some evidence that the company considered: Jon Peterson, Playing at the World (Unreason Press, 2012), 582.

  hateful, aggressive, and avaricious: Gary Gygax, Advanced Dungeons & Dragons Monster Manual (TSR, 1977).

  the molecular vibrations of the displacer beast: Ibid.

  is loathsome beyond description: Ibid.

  ideal for cleaning: Ibid.

  they roam such: Ibid.

  Imitation is claimed to be the sincerest: Gary Gygax, “View from the Telescope Wondering Which End Is Which,” The Dragon 2, no. 5 (December 1977).

  Gandalf is quite ineffectual: Gary Gygax, “The Influence of J. R. R. Tolkien on the D&D and AD&D Games,” The Dragon 9, no. 95 (March 1985).

  The seeming parallels and inspirations: Ibid.

  Giants have been raiding the lands of men: Gary Gygax, Steading of the Hill Giant Chief (TSR, 1978).

  diligent prayers and deeds: Gary Gygax, Advanced Dungeons & Dragons Players Handbook (TSR, 1978), 20.

  There is one dweeb-like chap on the back cover: Col_Pladoh (Gary Gygax), “Gary Gygax Q&A Part VIII,” EN World message board thread, comment #359, March 22, 2005, http://www.enworld.org/forum/archive-threads/121380-gary-gygax-q-part-viii-36.html.

  TSR sold ten thousand copies: Gary Alan Fine, Shared Fantasy: Role-Playing Games as Social Worlds (The University of Chicago Press, 1983), 27.

  inspires the sort of fanatic devotion: Liam Lacey, “Dungeons and Dragons: An Underground Game Is Ready to Surface,” The Globe and Mail, November 29, 1978.

  the J. R. R. Tolkien of the games world: Ibid.

  Only the most severe critic could: Don Turnbull, “Open Box,” White Dwarf 16 (December 1979/January 1980), 15.

  Our once lonely pastime has arrived: Timothy J. Kask, �
��Dragon Rumbles,” The Dragon 4, no. 9 (March 1980).

  The course of TSR Hobbies’ development: Gary Gygax, “What’s Ahead for TSR?” The Dragon 4, no. 9 (March 1980).

  commercially and artistically valuable right: Plaintiff’s Memorandum, Arneson v. Gygax, 473 F. Supp. 759 (D. Minn. 1979), May 7, 1979.

  Advanced Dungeons & Dragons is a different game: Gary Gygax, “D&D, AD&D and Gaming,” The Dragon 3, no. 12 (June 1979).

  any revised edition or foreign language translation: Arneson v. TSR Hobbies, Inc., US Dist. LEXIS 21340 (D. Minn. 1985), March 27, 1985.

  We don’t hate each other: Allen Rausch, “Dave Arneson Interview,” GameSpy, August 19, 2004, http://pc.gamespy.com/articles/540/540395p1.html.

  10: The Satanic Panic

  experimenting may occur . . . craving and preoccupation . . . compulsive use: “Stages of Addiction,” Intercept Interventions, http://www.interceptinterventions.com/stages-of-addiction/.

  the hottest game in the nation: Geoffrey Smith, “Dungeons & Dollars,” Forbes, September 1980.

  The continual press coverage: Ciro Alessandro Sacco, “The Ultimate Interview with Gary Gygax,” Dungeons.it, undated, retrieved from http://www.thekyngdoms.com/interviews/garygygax.php.

  of working with the Antichrist: Molly Ivins, “Utah Parents Exorcize ‘Devilish’ Game; Fomenting Communist Subversion Complaints Began Right Away,” New York Times, May 3, 1980.

  very definitely . . . These books: Ibid.

  Real-life Clerics: TSR Hobbies needs you: The Dragon 5, no. 2 (August 1980), 49.

  This is indeed only a game: Martin Wainwright, “Child’s Play for Satan,” Guardian, April 6, 1984.

  My understanding is that once you reach a certain point: “Dual Deaths Are Linked to Fantasy Game,” United Press International, November 4, 1984.