Posted on 04/13/2009 6:25:40 AM PDT by Abathar
Dungeons & Dragons co-creator Dave Arneson, whose fantasy role-playing game guided the socially awkward through adolescence, has rolled his last dice. Arneson, the Associated Press reports, died on Tuesday of cancer in St. Paul, Minn., at the age of 61.
He and Gary Gary Gygax – who died last March -- invented D&D in 1974, and the game became a cult favorite among geeky teen boys, giving way, as ScientificAmerican.com tech editor Larry Greenemeier notes, to the nerd power of the 1980s embodied by Bill Gates. (It is also a favorite of a number of actors, including Vin Diesel, who describes how he would battle orcs, the game’s common bad guys, here.)
(Excerpt) Read more at sciam.com ...
RIP Dave, thanks for all the fun.
Eventually, we all fail our saving throw.
So where will the grieving geeks gather?
Ran out of hit points...
Believe it or not, D&D was a great intellectual exercise, and we learned a lot about teamwork, creative thinking, problem solving, and Norse mythology;) Of course, there were always a few nutcases who took it way too far, did something stupid, and gave the game a bad name. However, we had fun and it kept us out of trouble when other guys we went to school were out drinking, doing drugs, and otherwise getting themselves into trouble with the law. Gygax and Arneson will be missed!
And another icon of my youth has passed to the next dimension.
Thank you, Dave. Your legacy, and Gary’s, will live on.
I don’t know, but I guarantee there will be more than a few private jet owners who are sorry to hear of his death. Funny thing about geeks, when they do decide to leave the basements they tend to do very well.
D8 moments of silence.
Bill Gates comes to mind.
My screen name Abathar was my favorite characters name years ago. I actually lost a friend who to this day still won’t talk to me because I killed his character by sacrificing him to my god.
Hey, I was chaotic neutral and I needed the edge.
Failed his system shock roll, did he? No 14th level clerics available?
You name the game, D&D influenced it. To this day.
But once, I had a Chaotic Neutral barbarian (2nd Edition Rules), and had the pleasure of accidentally destroying an entire realm by smashing a super powerful relic (just for the heckuvit). Needless to say, he didn't survive the blast, nor did my compadres, who were ticked at me for a couple of weeks, before we started all over with new 1st level characters.
We preferred beer, which led to some pretty amusing evenings. There’s nothing quite like a bunch of drunk college students venting their frustrations on an imaginary small town. :)
Yes indeed, truly sad.
I do agree...as has been mentioned upthread...that D&D is most certainly a fun exercise in problem-solving and using your mind to think strategically. I know my nephew (currently getting ready to deploy to Iraq) played D&D ibn his younger days, and he’s a wonderful, upstanding young man who serves his country today.
However, I’ve also seen the other side of D&D. The side side where the participants have no social skills, forego personal hygiene, and the focus of their lives is nothing but D&D.
In any case, Mr. Arneson will be missed. Rest In Peace.
LOL.
I did much the same. PLayed a world where there was a subtext of just coming out of a milti-year war between the Dwarven kingdoms and Elven.
One of our party members was a half-elf who kept it hidden pretty well. My character was a Dwarven Warrior, and had been involved in the final battles of the wars.
Well, we came across an Elven corpse in a dungeon, and dipstick half-elf cleric decides he needs to bless the body and kneels to pray over the dead elf.
I looked at the DM and said, “Praying over a scum Elf huh? Called shot to the neck.” Proceeded to roll a 20 and remove his head. Looked down, spit, and said “Don’t think a rez in the cards old friend.”
What the hell is this picture supposed to convey? That D&D is evil witchcraft and Dave deserved to be burned at the stake?
Grow up.
GET A GRIP!
Well, then, that’s my bad in a big way.
I’ve dealt with too many freaks these days who somehow think D&D is “evil.” Given some of the over-the-top religion posts I’ve seen on FR lately, I had a knee-jerk reaction. I figured that someone was bringing their holier-than-thou ideology to a tribute thread.
I still play every Wednesday night, so anyone who thinks the game is evil can kiss my keister.
Sorry, man.
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