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"...the nobility of a
paladin in the form of a web page." - Wired
GeekDad
First time here? Visit the FAQ page to find out what all of this is about. |
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Welcome to The Escapist, a web page devoted to the betterment of role-playing games and the education of the public and media of their benefits to society.
Unfortunately, the role-playing hobby has acquired a reputation for being geeky, dangerous, occultic, satanic, and even causing players to be prone to suicide or homicide. Only one of these is accurate - sure, it's a bit geeky, but that's the worst thing that can be said about it. The rest of those claims are pure urban legend.
Don't
know where to begin? Try the Basic
Gaming FAQ for starters - or for the latest news and updates, visit the Escapist Blog. |
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Tabletop role-playing
games like Dungeons & Dragons are an
engaging and intellectually stimulating activity that promote teamwork,
problem solving, and creative thinking. Even better, in hands of a
parent, guardian, or educator, they can be a fantastic teaching tool.
June 3rd, 2009 (link to this) THE ESCAPIST HAS A BLOG! - After a lot of teeth-grinding and hair-pulling, I have managed to install a Content Management System in a special section of the site. This means news and site updates will now be posted to a proper blog (complete with comment system), and later I will be able to add a new forum and wiki. The current Escapist wikis will be moved there when they go live.I figure it's never too late to catch up with the 21st century. I would have done this a while ago, but certain tech limitations prevented it. The news and updates will now be posted at www.theescapist.com/blog This does mean that any of you who are following the updates on the LiveJournal feed will want to subscribe to the RSS feed, as I will stop updating the LJ feed after a while. I plan on keeping the 2009 updates here on the main page for the rest of the year before archiving them. (Big thanks go out to Jacob Ezzell for his help and patience, and Stormbringer (from the Citadel of Chaos  ) for suggesting a CMS and answering my myriad of questions about it.) May 20th, 2009 (link to this) RPGGAMEFIND.COM - Finding other gamers in your area to enjoy roleplaying with has always been a challenge, but the internet age has been making it a lot easier. I recently received an email from the admin of RPGgamefind.com, asking if I would help spread the word about this new networking tool. Check it out, sign up, and find some people in your area to adventure with!WORLDWIDE D&D GAME DAY - This Saturday (May 23rd) is Worldwide D&D Game Day! Play some D&D! Find a WWDDGD event at a store near you! Teach some new gamers to play! Teach some kids to play! Start up a group at your local library! Share the hobby, and share the fun!  (Boy how the time flies. It seems like the last Worldwide D&D game Day was just a couple of months ago...) May 12th, 2009 (link to this)  D&D AS A SAVING THROW VS. LIFE - It's
funny the way things happen, sometimes.
I recently found the ad on the right while fooling around online. I'm
not sure where it ran, or if it's even legitimate, but it made me smile.Then, I received the following email, and it made me smile even more. It wasn't until I was getting ready to post them seperately that I realized how they were connected. Dear Escapist, I just recently became aware of your site after stumbling on it while I was surfing the web. I spent what turned out to be a few hours looking through the material and am fascinated by what you have to present. I’m inspired by what you’ve put together as I’ve faced many of the same obstacles over the years.
I was introduced to Dungeons and Dragons at the age of 12 by older family members who had discovered it while they were in college. The game inspired me as nothing else could. I’m now 33 years old and am still a very active gamer.
I grew up in a small town in Minnesota. I had been involved with D&D periodically until I was about 16 and then it became a foundation of stability for me.
There were five of us at the core of our group of friends. From the age of 16 through my early 20’s many weekends were full of drunken parties and wild times. We often would get very much out of hand resulting in 20 plus run-ins with law enforcement. To make things worse, home lives for some were less than desirable.
To this day I know D&D is what kept us together and prevented us from going over the edge with any of our crazier activities. When game night came around each week, no alcohol or any other influence was wanted by anyone. The game was pure and we wouldn’t let anything get in the way of what we could envision with our minds. The game is what pulled us away from the other “activities”.
Over the years each of us faced physical and emotional challenges in life and if it wasn’t for the game I don’t think we would all be around to talk about it. I very much believe that D&D saved lives for some of us and kept us off a trail leading to disaster. No matter what was going wrong, our friends and the game were always there.
Today we all have families and successful careers. We can’t get together as much as we would like but still will make game night happen a few times a year. We often reminisce about the early days, not about the problems but about the great adventures we had rolling dice around the table in my parent’s basement.
We all have faced the negative connotations about the game from parents, friends and others many times over the years and all of us have stood our ground on the subject because we know what it ultimately did for us.
It is really great to see that you had the initiative and took the time to compile this information. Thank you.
Sincerely, Steve Thanks for the story and the kind words, Steve. I always love get emails that share fond memories of gaming, and the good things that come out of it. Do you have one, too? Why not send it to me? April 24th, 2009 (link to this) TWO GREAT BLOG POSTS - I read a lot of roleplaying blogs, and I'm always finding posts that I'd like to share. I've been considering posting a list of my favorite blogs, and maybe even listing some of the best posts of the week every Friday, or something like that.This time, it just happens to be two posts from Gnome Stew: RPGs are Engines for Making Interesting Decisions
- A discussion on the opportunity for interesting decisions in RPGs,
and how some games promote decision-making in more areas that just
combat and skill use. 10 Reasons Why Roleplaying Games Are A Positive Force For Kids and Adults Alike - This would be a great post even if it didn't have a great plug for my lil' ol' website at the end of it. Honest! If you have a roleplaying blog that you think I may not know about - or you've read (or written) a blog post on gaming advocacy that everyone should read, be sure to drop me a note - 
April 8th, 2009 (link to this) It's been a year and a month since we lost one of the co-creators of the original Dungeons & Dragons, Gary Gygax, and today the news comes to the roleplaying community that Dave Arneson, the other half of that creative team, has passed away. I didn't post anything more than a picture and a caption when Gary left us last year, and I think that was mostly because so many others had covered his life and contribution so well, from the blogs of some of my close friends to Time magazine and Stephen Colbert. There wasn't much that I could say that hadn't already been said. Mr. Arneson's passing, however, will probably not receive the same amount of attention. Some have remarked that he was more of a silent partner, and uninterested in being known for his contribution to the game. Because of this, his name hasn't gained the same level of recognition as Gygax's. Regardless, both men were responsible for a wonderful creation that inspired millions of players to create heroes and stories, and worlds to contain them both. It would never be possible to estimate the positive effects that Dungeons & Dragons had on our present day culture - the friendships that were forged, the artists and authors who became inspired, and the imaginations that were set free - but we can make a pretty good guess that they were great. Thank you, Dave and Gary.
March 31st, 2009 (link to this) FETCH ME SOME LARPERS - For a couple of years now, my daughters and I have enjoyed Fetch! with Ruff Ruffman, a spoof game show on PBS that encourages a group of six kids to earn points by exploring and thinking creatively. Today I read a blog post by GeekDad writer (and friend of The Escapist) Daniel Donahoo (who in turn found it on Purple Pawn) about an epsiode of Fetch! that features LARPing as the theme.Okay, maybe it's not LARPing as most of us know it - it's really just a bunch of kids in costumes, running around and solving riddles and physical puzzles. And the fact is, that's really the content of every other episode of Fetch!, minus the costumes, of course. But it's good to see LARP mentioned on a show that promotes creative and critical thinking for kids, and in a way that presents it realistically - as a little bit geeky, and a lot of fun. And who knows? It could inspire a few viewers to explore the LARP hobby further! The videos are below. (Watch them soon - you know how YouTube is!)
March 28th, 2009 (link to this) OGWWTBATE, DAY 69 - It appears that our target, Wil Wheaton, has recently been involved in two things that are relevant to our interests: He began
blogging about playing the new edition of Dungeons & Dragons
with his son and some of his friends. (You can read the posts here - part
I, part
II, part
III, part
IV, and a
few thoughts...) I would imagine that someone holding an important position like US Secretary of Geek Affairs would want to have access to every available resource that would help them serve the interest of geeks all over the country. Gee, if only there was a website that would provide him and his readers with all sorts of information on roleplaying advocacy, playing RPGs with kids, and other ideas and inspirations for the positive promotion of roleplaying. Gosh, just think, if there were such a site, he could post a link to it in his blog! March 20th, 2009 (link to this)  SQUARE ONE, EPISODE FIVE - It's
been a year in the making - you've waited one entire solar cycle - but
now the wait is over. Episode five of the Square One podcast is now
available! This episode is all about finding a game group, while
staying safe and having fun at the same time.
Square One is a podcast devoted to helping new gamers discover all of the great things about the hobby. If you know someone who is thinking about giving RPGs a try, let them know about the podcast! You can listen and subscribe at www.squareonepodcast.com WORLDWIDE D&D GAME DAY - Tomorrow (March 21st) is Worldwide D&D Game Day! Play some D&D! Find a WWDDGD event at a store near you! Teach some new gamers to play! Teach some kids to play! Start up a group at your local library! Share the hobby, and share the fun! ARE THOSE THE DUNGEONS AND THE DRAGONS? - I found this on YouTube recently and got a big kick out of it.: (Pay close attention to the hands on the clock at
the end. They're
sending you a subliminal message!) March 8th, 2009 (link to this) ESCAPISTCAST EXTRA - I was recently contacted by Ed Healy about creating content for a syndicated internet radio program called War Pig Radio. Since I rarely pass up the opportunity to promote the site and the cause, I agreed, and Escapistcast Extra was born.Escapistcast Extra is a "minicast" - a single serving portion of roleplaying advocacy audio - a short discussion on a particular advocacy topic, served up by yours truly. I've made it available to anyone who wishes to add it to their podcast or internet streaming station - all I ask is that you leave the episode intact and complete, and notify me that you're rebroadcasting it - I've got a short blurb and an album art image to go with the minicast that you are free to use as well:
The episodes will run between 10-20 minutes, and I will include them in the regular Escapistcast feed so that you'll be able to catch them along with the full episodes. The first episode, on RPGs in libraries, is ready for your listening pleasure at: As always, thanks for listening, enjoy the shows, and please let me know how I'm doing!
March 6th, 2009 (link to this) RV PARK HOSTS A LUAU LARP - The Desert Sun has a short article about a Hawaiian-themed murder mystery party event held at the Happy Wanderer RV Park in Palm Springs, California.There's just something about the concept of a luau LARP at an RV park that makes me really love this country.
March 3rd, 2009 (link to this) THE FO(U)RTH OF MARCH - Tomorrow is GM's Day, a holiday created by gamers to pay special tribute to those tireless, selfless souls who supply us all with so much adventure.Like any good holiday, it has become terribly commercial - numerous RPG companies are offering GM's Day discounts during this entire week. (You can find an extensive list of them at the original GM's Day thread on ENWorld). But for those traditionalists out there, who remember the true meaning of the holiday, it is a time to let gamemasters know that we appreciate all that they do for us. So do something nice for a GM tomorrow. And if you are a gamemaster - Happy GM's Day from The Escapist! (It also happens to be the first anniversary of the day we lost Gary Gygax, so remember to pour a 2 liter of Mountain Dew on the curb for him tomorrow.) March 2nd, 2009 (link to this) ASK LYNN - Lynn Harris (journalist, essayist, and creator of breakupgirl.com) recently gave out some refreshing advice on her MSN Lifestyle column Ask Lynn.A reader asks what to do about her boyfriend, who spends most of his time playing Warhammer and Dungeons & Dragons, to the detriment of their relationship (and even some of his other adult responsibilities). I'm sure in a lot of cases, the stock advice column answer to such a problem would have been something along the lines of "Dump that loser and find someone who has a real life." But Lynn seems to have much more wisdom and savvy than that - she remarks that she's "even impressed that your partner seems to be kicking it old-school, as D&D and Magic still rely on the “classic” interface otherwise known as "playing with people who are actually still in the same room as you." She even recommends that she talk to her boyfriend about "whether you should check this gaming thing out for yourself; perhaps, if you enjoy it, that could be some couple-time, too." Sure, it sounds like Warhammer Widow's boyfriend needs a big reality check - but gamers still get written off as worthless all too frequently. It's always nice to see someone break that nasty habit (and recommend that they try out the hobby, to boot!). (Hat tip to W. Douglas Bramlett, who posted this to the Escapist group on Facebook.) February 26th, 2009 (link to this)  R.I.P. PHILLIP JOSE FARMER - The
author of the Riverworld
and Dayworld
books, Phillip José
Farmer, passed away yesterday at the age of 91. The Riverworld
series,
for which he was best known, was about a massive social experiment
where everyone who ever lived in the history of Earth was reborn on a
new world and left to rebuild new societies and cultures.Farmer wasn't a roleplaying author, designer, or publisher, or even a gamer (as far as we know), but his connection to roleplaying illustrates two of the great benefits of the hobby: Putting
noses into books - Roleplaying games like GURPS Riverworld
have brought many new fans to books that they might not have been aware
of otherwise. I can vouch for this one  personally - I knew nothing of Riverworld
or Farmer before the GURPS sourcebook came along, and I dug into the
series not long afterwards. That is one of the greatest benefits of
the roleplaying hobby - encouraging gamers to read and
discover
new books and authors. Sharing the sandbox -
According to today's
SJGames Illuminator,
Farmer not only recognized roleplaying games as a storytelling medium,
he approved of people playing in and exploring the world he created. He
even went as far as to make GURPS
Riverworld the official 'series bible' for others who
wanted to write stories in his world. (Now if we could only get some other
authors to feel the same way about it.)Thank you for the stories, Mr. Farmer... and for encouraging us to create our own. ONE OF US, ONE OF US - Thanks to our old friend Nate and an anonymous commenter on the site feed, who both pointed me to Tim Duncan's Wikipedia entry. Yep, it appears that he's a big ol' gaming geek. It looks like we can add him to the list after all.
February 25th, 2009 (link to this) D&D IN THE NBA? - A friend recently pointed out a USAToday Weekend article on the myriad of tattoo designs on NBA players that includes this:The Spurs' Tim Duncan can hurt
you on the court -- and in the Forbidden Forest. He
likes playing Dungeons & Dragons so much, he got a tattoo of
the wizard Merlin on his chest.
So, does anyone know if this is true? Is Tim Duncan really a roleplaying geek? If you can confirm this story, please let me know.
February 24th, 2009 (link to this) ALA TO GIVE GAMING GRANTS - The American Library Association is planning to issue grants to ten libraries that are "interested in developing and implementing innovative literacy gaming services for youth ages 10-18." This could be an excellent opportunity for anyone interested in promoting RPGs in the library. For more information, check out the Terra Libris page. GAMES ON THE TABLE - TimothyP at the Games on the Table blog gave my lil' ol' site and podcast a very nice review a couple of days ago. So this is a quick "thank you" to him, a warm welcome to GotT readers, and a promise that I will check out GotT some more when I get a little free time!
(Please remember to watch with discretion - Gold contains language and content that is not suitable for all audiences.)
February 20th, 2009 (link to this)  HEADED
TO DREAMATION - This
is just
a quick reminder that I and my entire clan - both of my daughters, my
partner Paula, and
myself - are heading out to Dreamation
this weekend. We'll be there all day the 21st and 22nd,
and I'm
going to run a TOON session for kids & adults on
Sunday at
2:00pm.If any Escapist readers are planning to attend, and you would like to meet up, drop me a message on the Escapist's Twitter account. (I won't have email access while I'm there.) If I find the time, I'll try to post some remote Twitter updates while I'm there.
February 16th, 2009 (link to this)
EPISODE 5 OF THE ESCAPISTCAST IS LIVE - The fifth episode of The Escapistcast, "Schools & Studies," is now ready for your listening pleasure at www.theescapist.com/escapistcast
February 6th, 2009 (link to this) GARY GYGAX: BITTER ARCHITECT? - The Daily Vidette at Illinois State University has an interesting column about pass-it-along legends that includes a reference to D&D co-creator Gary Gygax:Gary Gygax,
the creator of Dungeons & Dragons, was the architect
who designed Watterson Towers. Yes, in his late twenties he sat down
and drew up the plans for the infamous twins that tower over campus. He
did so right after he finished fleshing out the rules for his cult
classic game.
He died last year a bitter man, knowing that Watterson got the credit for his masterpiece. That's just one of the legends that surround the local landmark, and columnist Brett Gould goes on to explain why we shouldn't believe everything we hear or read in an email, nor should we pass it along to 10 friends in our address book in the next 20 minutes to avoid something bad happening to us. Now, if only THIS was the worst urban legend that had ever been circulated about Gygax and D&D... Read the full column here: Pass on to 10 people  February 5th, 2009 (link to this) DREAM
A LITTLE DREAMATION - It
looks like my entire clan - both of my daughters, my partner Paula, and
myself - will be attending Dreamation
on February 21st and 22nd, in Morristown, New Jersey. I will
probably run a couple of RPG sessions for kids & adults - I
just
haven't decided which ones at the moment.If any Escapist readers are planning to attend, and you would like to meet up, drop me an email at  - or on the Escapist's Twitter account.(Please note that the convention runs much longer, from February 18th-22nd, so if you go, don't miss out on half of the fun!) Special thanks go out to the Albrights, some good friends of ours who offered to share a room with us - and of course, the good folks at Double Exposure, who were kind enough to let me in at such short notice. OGWWTBATE, DAY 17 - It is day seventeen of Operation Get Wil Wheaton To Blog About The Escapist. I've heard some reports from operatives who have emailed him, including David Nett (from Gold: The Series) and my old friend Stormbringer (organizer of the Citadel of Chaos). Recently, Wil made a blog post about a D&D 4e game that he played in, and I dropped in a comment recommending the site. But he still hasn't taken the bait. We may have to ramp things up sooner than expected. Tell Unit W to stay on alert and wait for my signal to drop the leaflets.
February 2nd, 2009 (link to this)  DARK DUNGEONS: BETWEEN THE PANELS - It's
been a long time in the works, and I am happy to announce
that
the latest installment of Random Encounter is finally up! Twenty-five years ago, Chick Publications released Dark Dungeons, a comic tract that followed the story of Debbie, a young girl involved in a dangerous game of life and death. Dark Dungeons: Between the Panels takes a look back at the creation of that tract, with interviews with five of the characters from the story. Learn the tale between the panels of Dark Dungeons! January 31st, 2009 (link to this) CONTEMPLATING A CHANGE - I have recently learned that I have some new options available to me with the site, and I'm considering my options. I can now set up a WordPress account and begin doing the news updates in blog format, which will make subscribing to the feed a bit easier & tidier, and allow for reader comments.I'm considering going all the way and rehauling the site with a Content Management System, something that will help make everything more consistent & clean. I know very little about this, however, and I'd really like some advice on how to set it up and maintain it. If anyone out there is willing to help out a complete N00B, please drop me a note at
Thanks!January 28th, 2009 (link to this) HELPING LARPERS FIND LARPS - Writer Lizzie Stark, who gave us the excellent Philadelphia Inquirer article Well Organized Make-Believe last September, is putting together a tool to help LARPers find LARPs in their area - The Massive LARP Calendar. She is using Google Calendar to make a searchable resource of LARP events everywhere.Find out more at her blog. January 23rd, 2009 (link to this)
The story has started to build as the group prepares for the upcoming Goblins & Gold World Tournament, and in this episode we get a brief introduction to their competition. (Please remember to watch with discretion - Gold contains language and content that is not suitable for all audiences.) OPERATION GWWTBATE: DAY 4 - It is Day 4 of Operation Get Wil Wheaton To Blog About The Escapist. On Day 1, I sent an email to his address (found here) with a friendly request to visit the site and consider blogging about it. Today, I also got an email from David Nett (from Gold: The Series) informing me that he dropped him an email about his web series, and mentioned the site as well. I've also been monitoring his blog for relevant posts (we're not trying to "spam" him, after all), and the next time he posts about RPGs, I'll make a comment suggesting the site. So, how about you, soldier? Have you done YOUR part?
January 19th, 2009 (link to this) A NEW MISSION - This morning I got the word, via my RSS reader, that the most excellent gamemastering blog Gnome Stew just got mentioned on Wil Wheaton's blog.I'm very happy for them. Martin Ralya and company put together a quality blog, and the attention is well deserved. But I also want some of that action for myself. I want Wil Wheaton to mention The Escapist on his blog. The fact is, I have emailed Wil Wheaton on a few occasions since 2001 or so, asking if he'd take a look at the site and maybe mention it on his, if he liked what he saw. I've been friendly and polite, but I have never received a response - either my emails went directly to his spam filter, or were just lost in the massive amounts of fan email that he probably gets daily. Or maybe he didn't like what he saw. But I seriously doubt that. Wil loves playing RPGs with his kids, and is all about activism in so many ways. So it's got to be one of the other two Therefore, I am initiating Operation Get Wil Wheaton To Blog About The Escapist, and encouraging Escapist readers to find any way that they can (short of breaking any laws or inflicting property damage or injury to themselves or others, of course*) to put this site on the Wheaton radar. Why is this so important? Because I think the kind of exposure that Wil's blog would bring to this site would do some great things for the positive promotion of roleplaying games. Here are my calculations, which I worked out on paper over coffee this morning:  I'm certain you'll agree that those are some pretty solid calculations, right there. I've set up a special WHEATON WHATCH notice near the top of the page, below the left menu - it is updated constantly, and will change from red to green on that fateful moment when our mission is accomplished. So send those emails, write those blog comments, and send me your ideas on how to encourage Wil Wheaton to blog about The Escapist - Good luck, my minions! *
It's very pitiful that we live in a time when a person has to say
things like this, but here's my legal disclaimer in plain English -
Don't do anything illegal, dangerous, or stupid and then try to say
that it was my fault. If you do, it's not my fault, it's yours, and I
cannot and will not be held legally responsible. Got it?
January 15th, 2009 (link to this) IS A BAD ECONOMY GOOD FOR RPGS? - I'm no expert on how the game industry (or ANY industry) works, or how it reacts to a bad economy, but I've usually heard others say sales of role-playing games can drop when the average disposable income does the same.This piece from a Fox affiliate seems to point in the other direction, however: Remember dungeons and dragons and magic the gathering? They're making a big comeback. Sam Reed is the assistant manager of Quarterstaff Games on Church Street. He says the store had record sales for the holidays. The hobby gaming craze is branching into the younger crowds. Reed says since families aren't traveling as much, they're buying games as an alternative. "It's cheaper to stay at home, buy a board game, buy a card game. It lasts a little longer. You get a lot of replay out of it, versus a trip where you only get to go once," Reed said. It does make some sense - RPGs are great entertainment value, and provide many more hours of entertainment than going out to a concert or movie or buying a new DVD. I'm just not sure if this is a localized phenomenon or not, and if it applies to RPGs as well as board and card games. Does anyone have more information on this? ANN COULTER DEFENDS D&D - And no, I'm not kidding: Consider the
harmless fantasy game, Dungeons and Dragons -- which
happens to be played almost exclusively by young males. When murders
were committed in the '80s by (1) young men, who were (2) Dungeons and
Dragons enthusiasts, some people concluded that factor (2), rather than
factor (1), led to murderous tendencies.
She's completely off on the "played almost exclusively by young males" part, but at least she got ONE thing right... ...right? January 14th, 2009 (link to this) CLERICAL ASSISTANCE - It's been seven years since Spellcasting 101, but I still get emails about it from time to time. I recently recieved this one:Bill,
I am a seminarian studying to be an Episcopal priest. I run a bi-weekly white-wolf game where all players are Lutheran or Episcopal seminarians or priests. Sometimes I feel like taking pictures and showing how evil we are when we are not at Eucharist or attending multiple worship services each day. *sigh* Spellcasting 101 was awesome. However, I am curious about your logic about how you became a 20th level wizard? You can play D&D forever and not level if all you do is roleplay. The question is: How many orcs and goblins have you killed? And that's just to get you to level 2. They aren't a high enough CR to level you much higher. To be level 20, you'd have to kill wyverns or something. just thinking. -Chris Yeah, right. Like I'm going to listen to a lecture from a 0-level cleric. What do you know about arcane magic, anyway?
January 10th, 2009 (link to this) D&D ON TO THE BEST OF OUR KNOWLEDGE - The Wisconsin Public Radio show To The Best of Our Knowledge recently featured Mark Barrowcliffe, author of The Elfish Gene, that includes a discussion of some of his most memorable Dungeons & Dragons moments. You can listen to the episode on their site, and it's also available as a podcast on iTunes.The rest of the episode is pretty good listening as well, with interviews from biblical scholar and Lovecraft expert Robert A. Price (of whom I am a big fan), Spiderwick author Holly Black, and Narnia skeptic Laura Miller. (You can read an Escapist-exclusive exerpt from The Elfish Gene right here, by the way...)
January 2nd, 2009 (link to this) "A CASE FOR TABLETOP RPGS" IN THE LIBRARY - The School Library Journal has posted an article on the benefits of role-playing games in the library. Read more at the Terra Libris project.
December 31st, 2008 (link to this) HAPPY NEW YEAR! - Here's to an adventure-filled 2009 for all! Thanks to everyone for reading the site, sending me your comments and suggestions, participating in the projects and mad ideas here - but most of all, thanks for gaming, and helping to keep the hobby alive. Keep up the good work in the coming year! I've uploaded a special New Year message at The Escapistcast, if you would like to give it a listen. Take care of yourselves, celebrate responsibly, and let's all look forward to a Brave New Year!
December 30th, 2008 (link to this)
The first episode of the Gold web series is available for your viewing pleasure. You can see it at www.goldtheseries.com - and please watch with discretion - the language and situations aren't exactly kid safe. The next episode premieres on January 23rd, 2009, so keep an eye out for it - and as always, be sure to let them know The Escapist sent you! ESCAPIST UPDATE ON TWITTER - If you're a Twitter addict, as I'm sure many of you are, you can now get Escapist site updates on your Twitter account - just follow RPGadvocate!
December 4th, 2008 (link to this) 'TWILIGHT' AND MAKING NEW GAMERS - I have to admit to coming pretty late to the Twilight phenomenon. I hadn't even heard of the books until the movie came out, and when I asked my kids about it, I got my first dose of "Jeeze Dad, that's been popular for forever! Where have you been?" Of course, it instantly got me thinking about how the popularity of a new movie and book series about vampires could bring new roleplayers to the hobby. And it wasn't long after I started thinking that I spotted this article from City On A Hill Press, which discusses the new vampire craze, and its connections to tabletop and LARP games based on bloodsuckers: These games are referred to as roleplaying games, or live action games, in which participants create vampiric characters to play out scenarios. The most popular of these games, “Vampire: The Masquerade,” can either be played in real time, where participants play out the scenario in public, or in a private, sit-down setting with dice, much like the ever notorious “Dungeons and Dragons.” Most seasoned gamers said that the addition of the vampire archetype makes “Vampire” different from other fantasy roleplaying games (RPGs) in many fundamental ways. I'm never one to miss a good opportunity to create new gamers, and this seems like a good one to me! There is, of course, Vampire: The Requiem - or if you'd rather go old-school, I'm sure you can find good deals on the original Vampire: The Masquerade books on eBay or your local Half Price Books. But those aren't your only options - there's the Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel RPGs, and the anime-styled Cold Hands, Dark Hearts for the Big Eyes, Small Mouth RPG - plus a bunch more that I'm sure I've forgotten about. Consider running a vampire-themed RPG at your local game store or library, and see if you can bring some new gamers to the hobby!
THE
NEED FOR DEFENSE - This question was posed by
Daniel
Donohoo in the review of this site that he posted to GeekDad recently: ...(do we
really need to keep explaining that D&D is not satanism, I'm
not sure?)...
My
answer is yes. And here are my two reasons why: -
In 2002, the brother of Stephanie Crowe and his friend were found
innocent of her 1998 murder when new evidence linked the crime to
someone else - until that day, the only evidence against the boys was a
coerced confession by police that revealed that both were D&D
players. As one news story put it: "Prosecutors portrayed the slaying
as an open-and-shut case against three boys warped by an unhealthy
passion for dark role-playing games like Dungeons and Dragons." (full article)
- That same year, the DC Beltway Snipers were incorrectly profiled by Robert Ressler (a reknowned expert on criminal profiling) as possible D&D players, based solely on the fact that they left a Tarot card behind at one of their shootings (even though Tarot and D&D have practically nothing to do with each other). - In 2003, Christianity Today's website featured a letter from a young person who was looking for alternatives to mainstream RPGs like Dungeons & Dragons and RIFTS. The response to the letter featured the apocryphal story of "Steve" and his downward spiral from mainstream RPGs to "anti-Christian" games, to pornography. It was a callback to an earlier time, when such horror stories were rampant, and never confirmed. - In 2005, a town in Brazil passed a law banning the sale of RPG books after rumors began to fly about a possible connection between an RPG and a triple murder case. 2. It's not just about defending games, but about promoting critical thinking as well. Just like the age-old concerns about comic books in the 50s and 60s, the claims about the dangers of D&D were ridiculous, but at the time, they struck fear into the hearts of many parents who didn't take the time to think critically on the subject and explore the truth themselves. The same thing has happened more recently with the Pokemon and Harry Potter crazes - games and books were banned from schools and libraries, and pastors frothed about them behind pulpits (and even ritually sacrificed a few, in at least one case). While this site's focus is on the positive promotion of the roleplaying hobby, I sometimes like to think that encouraging others to be skeptical in the face of ridiculous and extraordinary claims is one of the by-products of the work done here. Hopefully, a time will come when critical thinking will prevail, and the panics over comic books, D&D, Pokemon, and Harry Potter will become a positive lesson to all of us.
December 2nd, 2008 (link to this) WELCOME, GEEKDADS (AND GEEKMOMS)! - Daniel Donahoo has been making some great posts about roleplaying with kids on the Wired: GeekDad blog. The most recent installment of the series - and I may be a little biased here - is by far the best. If you've wandered over here from the GeekDad blog, welcome! And please let me know what you think of the site -THE PLAY'S THE THING - The Associated Press released an article on the importance of play in education that gives a brief mention to fantasy role-play: Vivian Paley, a former kindergarten teacher at the University of Chicago Laboratory Schools and now an author and consultant, says the most vital form of play for young children involves fantasy and role-playing with their peers. "They're inventing abstract thinking, before the world tells them what to think," Paley said in her speech to the conference. Read more here: article | archive
November 26th, 2008 (link to this) NATIONAL GAMING DAY A SUCCESS - Jenny at the ALA's News about Games and Gaming site has issued an early report on the results of National Gaming Day @ Your Library:
If you participated in National Gaming Day, and ran an RPG for library patrons, let us know about it! Contact me at
November 21st, 2008 (link to this)
(And speaking of strong, the language isn't kid or work safe, so please watch with discretion.) You can see it at www.goldtheseries.com - and if you like it, consider dropping a donation into their tip jar. They would greatly appreciate it!
November 10th, 2008 (link to this)
The focus seems to be primarily on video and board games, but Wizards of the Coast has donated copies of Dungeons & Dragons to help promote the event. This would be an excellent time to contact your local library about organizing a roleplaying program - it may be too late to prepare one in time for Saturday, but most libraries would love to have volunteers the rest of the year. Find out more at the ALA's website and at ilovelibraries.org
November 4th, 2008 (link to this) UPDATE ON CHRISTIAN CHILDREN'S FUND - More information has begun to come in on the situation between Gen Con and the Christian Children's Fund - which is looking more and more like a misunderstanding that anything else. Read more at the BeQuest News page.
October 31st, 2008 (link to this) HAPPY HALLOWEEN - NOW MAKE SOME GAMERS! - Halloween and role-playing games have a lot in common. Not only do both involve pretending to be other people, but both have a reputation for being the product of dark and sinister forces - when really, they're just about having harmless fun. The most excellent roleplaying blog Gnome Stew has a great post on how to use this dark, sinister holiday to indoctrinate new participants into our dark, sinister hobby. Check out Halloween - The Perfect Holiday To Turn Non-Gamers Into Gamers! Then, go recruit some new minions! And Happy Halloween!
October 28th, 2008 (link to this)
While the idea of "professional" RPG players is a little bit out there, Gold does address a very real issue with the future of the hobby:
Gold is set to premiere this fall, right here on the internetstubes, but if you can't wait, you can always watch the trailer and a teaser on the Gold website.
October 24th, 2008 (link to this) CHRISTIAN CHILDREN'S FUND REJECTS GENCON DONATION - A $17,398 donation from an auction held at Gen Con 2008 in Gary Gygax's honor was rejected by the Christian Children's Fund because the donations came from the sale of Dungeons & Dragons products. For more on the story, check out the BeQuest News page.
October 19th, 2008 (link to this)
EPISODE 4 OF THE ESCAPISTCAST IS LIVE - The fourth episode of The Escapistcast, "Editions & Excursions," is now ready for your listening pleasure at www.theescapist.com/escapistcast
October 9th, 2008 (link to this)
Make sure you don't miss the other speakers they've scheduled for the month of October - actual gaming industry people you've heard about, like Ken St. Andre, Chuck Welon, Eddy Webb, Sean Patrick Fannon, Matt Forbeck, Stan!, and Keith Baker. If you haven't joined RPGLife yet, you should - it features exclusive events, comics, podcasts, articles, maps, miniatures, product reviews, resource files, a player locator, social groups, members gallery, gamer blogs, and news aggregated daily. All of this, for the low, low price of FREE! And once you've signed up, be sure to add me as a friend! OZ NEEDS PLAYTESTERS - Game designer F. Douglas Wall is looking for people to playtest his upcoming RPG based on L. Frank Baum's Oz. Since this is a roleplaying game that would be of particular interest to many young people, I have agreed to help him find suitable playtesters. If you would like to participate, you can contact him at konradthebarbarian /at/ yahoo /dot/ com.
September 24th, 2008 (link to this)
Within its pages you will find some classic quote-mining, a comparison of D&D spells to references in occult and anti-occult books as well as both the Holy Bible and the Satanic Bible, and a "Special Center Section" on graveyard desecration, missing children, Satan worship, and witchcraft. There's no date on the booklet, but I would estimate that it was printed and handed out with passionate fervor sometime around 1984-85, at the height of B.A.D.D.'s viligant work to keep our young people away from the evils of twenty-sided dice, graph paper, Mountain Dew, and cheese curls. Like it or not, this booklet is part of the history of Dungeons & Dragons - it was used to keep the game out of schools and libraries, and was used as "police education" in many places. 'Cult cops' like Don Rimer continue to use resources like this booklet to this day when investigating crimes that they believe have occultic elements. I've scanned every page and put them up on the site, along with a few comments and refutations of my own. I'll be adding more of my own commentary as time goes on, but until then, you can view the entire booklet here: As BADD As It Gets
September 12th, 2008 (link to this) WELL ORGANIZED MAKE-BELIEVE - That's the title of a great article from the Philadelphia Inquirer that focuses on LARP events at Dexcon, a gaming convention in New Jersey. The hobby even gets a pretty good description, for the benefit of those who know nothing of LARP:
(It's interesting to note that LARP can now be explained to the general public as "like... Dungeons and Dragons." It looks like we may have passed the point where the concept of a tabletop RPG has to be explained in an article like this.) Reporter Lizzie Stark goes on to explain the variety of LARP genres, the use of boffer weapons in some LARPs, and terms like "one-shot" and "campaign." She even gives a glimpse into one players' real life pursuits - a chaplain who works with drug and alcohol addicts. This sort of positive interest piece has become more common over the last decade or so, and it's nice to see this one in the Philadelphia Inquirer, which was not very RPG-friendly over a decade ago during the Caleb Fairley murders. But I've rambled enough - read the article here - article | archive - and visit author Lizzie Stark's site at elizabethrstark.com (And if you're in the East Brunswick, New Jersey area, be sure to visit Dexcon in July - they even give a discount on registration to Escapist readers!)
August 27th, 2008 (link to this) 60 MINUTES ON D&D - Back in 1985, the CBS news program 60 Minutes ran a story on the then-current controversy over Dungeons & Dragons. It featured interviews with Gary Gygax and Dieter Sturm from TSR, B.A.D.D. founder Patricia Pulling, and shamed psychiatrist Thomas Radecki. I caught this episode when it first aired, and I've been trying to get my hands on a video copy for well over a decade. Now, thanks to YouTube and James Edward Raggi IV from Lamentations of a Flame Princess (where I found these videos posted), we can all enjoy this relic from a darker time, when police were given seminars on how to handle 'RPG crimes,' towns held meetings on whether or not their schools should allow a particular game as an activity, and hardly anyone understood the difference between causation and correlation.
Setting the record straight on the claims made in this piece of 'journalism' would take a lot of effort, and most of it has already been done - refutations for every negative claim made here can be found either in the Escapist FAQs, or in Mike Stackpole's Pulling Report. Due
to the ephemeral nature of YouTube, these videos may not stay up for
long. If you've missed them, and really need to see them for a research
project or the like, contact me at
August 19th, 2008 (link to this) AN OPEN LETTER TO MICHAEL GOLDFARB - The following is an open letter to Michael Goldfarb, blogger for the John McCain campaign here in the United States, and author of both of these comments:
It's unlikely that Mr. Goldfarb would read this message if I sent it to him directly, given the amount of ire that these statements have stirred up recently (including an unofficial "Pro-Obama Dungeons & Dragons Crowd" t-shirt) - and it's just as unlikely that he will pop on over to this site to read it here - but there are some things that need to be said in reference to his comments, and I can't think of a better place to say them. Before I begin, I must make it clear that The Escapist does not support any political candidates, and these comments are only in reference to statements made about role-playing games, which this site is focused on. Please don't decide your vote on an issue as trivial as this one, or any other trivial issue. Go for the big issues instead. And please vote. Thank you.
July 31st, 2008 (link to this) A CALL FOR HELP - I've had a sudden and unexpected technical problem that will prevent me from doing podcasts for a while. I was getting ready to begin recording episode 4, when I discovered that my headset mic is dead. No amount of cable-switching and wire-jiggling will bring it back to life. On top of that, our financial situation isn't allowing us a lot of disposable income for a little while, so I'm not sure when I'll be able to get a new one. So, as much as I don't like to, I'm biting the bullet and asking for help from my readers and listeners. Here is my request:
June 21st, 2008 (link to this)
Free RPG Day's home page is at www.freerpgday.com - you can find a participating store on their participating stores page, and get a sneak peek at what will be available on the sponsors page.
June 7th, 2008 (link to this) WORLDWIDE D&D GAME DAY - JUNE 7TH - The fourth edition of D&D is here, and through some sort of bizarre coincidence, it is also the fifth Worldwide Dungeons & Dragons Game Day.
(Wow, time sure flies. It seems like the last D&D Game Day was just last November...) So get some gaming buddies together and play some D&D this weekend - find a localtion near you that will be running demos of 4e - or play some 3.5, 2nd edition, or even (gasp!) first edition! Spread the word, invite non-gamers to try it out, and get some kids involved, too! RPGS FOR KIDS AT ORIGINS - The Origins Game Fair is fast approaching, and I am hosting a series of six RPG events especially for kids and their grownups. For more information, check the Origins 2008 Excursion Agenda page over at the Young Person's Adventure League.
March 17th, 2008 (link to this)
EPISODE 0 OF THE ESCAPISTCAST IS LIVE - The introductory episode of The Escapistcast, "Intros & Inspirations," is now ready for your listening pleasure at www.theescapist.com/escapistcast
March 4th, 2008 (link to this) GARY GYGAX, R.I.P.
Ernest
Gary Gygax
March 3rd, 2008 (link to this) HAPPY GM'S DAY! - March 4th (or 'March Fo(u)rth!') is GM's Day, a holiday organized by the folks at EN World to recognize the efforts of RPG gamemasters everywhere. So do something nice for your GMs tomorrow. It doesn't have to be something material - you could send a grateful email, card, or phone call, offer to help out at the next game, or anything else to let them know how much you appreciate all of the time and effort they put into your entertainment. To all GMs - Happy GMs day!
March 1st, 2008 (link to this) COMING SOON, THE ESCAPISTCAST! - I have been knocking around the idea of doing an Escapist podcast for a couple of years now (because I don't have NEARLY enough on my plate as it is...), and I think the time as finally come.So, consider this the official announcement - keep your eyes and ears peeled for The Escapistcast, coming soon!  FACEBOOK ESCAPIST GROUP - If you're a Facebook member, consider joining the Escapist Roleplaying Advocacy Group to get site updates, join in discussions, or just leave some graffiti on the wall! Hope to see you there!
February 16th, 2008 (link to this) SQUARE ONE, EPISODE THREE - The
globally anticipated third episode of the Square One podcast is finally
up and ready to enjoy! This episode is all about creating characters,
which is why it is titled "Creating characters (and giving
them character)."
Square One is a podcast devoted to helping new gamers discover all of the great things about the hobby. If you know someone who is thinking about giving RPGs a try, let them know about the podcast! You can listen and subscribe at www.squareonepodcast.com "GOTH BONNIE AND CLYDE" FAIL THEIR SNEAK CHECKS - A young couple from Cleveland, Ohio dubbed the "Goth Bonnie and Clyde," were arrested for the theft of nearly 8.5 million dollars in cash and checks from the armored car company where one of them worked. Roger Dillon and Nicole Boyd staged the ill-planned heist to escape their poor financial situation and give themselves a better life. True-crime websites and other media outlets have dubbed the pair with the "Goth Bonnie and Clyde" moniker due to their love of vampire novels and Dungeons & Dragons. Few, if any, have tried to make the connection between gaming and the crime, other than to mention that the couple were known for having their heads in the clouds. The two face up to 25 years in prison and a $250,000 fine if convicted. Read more: Fox News (article | archive) -Telegraph (article | archive) - New York Times (article | archive)
Previous News and Updates > 2007 - 2006 - 2005 |
"GOLD"
EPISODE 3 IS LIVE - The
third episode of 
11/15/08 IS NATIONAL GAME DAY @ YOUR LIBRARY -
This Saturday,
libraries all over the United States will be participating in National
Gaming Day, an effort to raise awareness about the use of games in
library programs, expose people to new kinds of games, and enable
networking between game clubs and libraries.
GAMING ADVOCACY CHAT - The folks
at 
AS BADD AS IT GETS - Since
the recent discovery of the 
FREE RPG DAY - That's right
folks, today is the second annual Free RPG Day,
when game stores everywhere hand out special role-playing goodies.
Visit your Friendly Local Game Store today and see what they have for
you!
