There are a few names that have absolutely changed the face of the roleplaying world. If you're a fan of geek culture in general, you probably know one or two. If you're a member of the general public, though, there's perhaps only one name that you'd possibly know - Gary Gygax.Gygax was many things during his life. Twice married, the father of six children was a founder of the roleplaying world and an elder … [Read more...] about RPG Legends: Gary Gygax
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RPG Legends: Middle-earth Role Playing
If you look at Dungeons and Dragons, you can see several major influences. If you go all the way back to the beginning, though, it's clear that one influence stood above all others - J.R.R. Tolkien's Lord of the Rings. Tolkien's estate was able to see that as well, which led to a few lawsuits and some revisions that led D&D to become the game it is today.That wasn't the end of the story for Lord of the Rings … [Read more...] about RPG Legends: Middle-earth Role Playing
RPG Legends: Blackmoor
Dungeons and Dragons is the original table top role playing game. While many other games have come and gone, Dungeons and Dragons has maintained its spot at the top of the list. In its early days, though, it wasn't quite the institution that it is now.Early Dungeons and Dragons was very much a game in which things were figured out as they go. As such, a number of great campaign settings came and went - and were … [Read more...] about RPG Legends: Blackmoor
RPG Legends: Ravenloft
D&D's settings have been, for the most part, different flavors of fantasy. One setting, though, decided to go in a very different directions. Instead of sword and sandals, it went for howling wolves and the children of the night.This setting is Ravenloft, and it brought true horror and dread to the world of Dungeons and Dragons for the first time. Publication History Ravenloft is particularly unique when it … [Read more...] about RPG Legends: Ravenloft
RPG Legends: Al-Qadim
As Dungeons and Dragons began to find some success with its more popular settings, there was a sense that players wanted more. Most of the settings only concentrated on small areas of their constructed worlds, leaving a great deal of room for DMs to create their own new areas within those settings.It should come as no surprise that TSR thought they could tap into that same market by creating new sub-settings in … [Read more...] about RPG Legends: Al-Qadim
RPG Legends: Fallout
Some of the greatest CRPGs were built from the bones of table top games. One series, though, managed to blaze its own trail. Sure, Fallout has its roots on the table and borrows liberally from earlier games, but it's become something of its own. This game series is nothing short of a phenomenon, a series that has managed to entrance players over the course of over twenty years. A History of Fallout Fallout is a … [Read more...] about RPG Legends: Fallout
RPG Legends: Shadowrun
When most people think of role playing games, they think of fantasy settings. After all, the origins of the genre were strongly tinged with fantasy and most of the games that followed tried to copy what was already successful. There have been some games, though, that have seen more potential in these games. Their creators realized that the mechanics could be adapted to almost any setting.One game that proved that … [Read more...] about RPG Legends: Shadowrun
RPG Legends: Spelljammer
At some point during its development, Dungeons and Dragons just got weird. It took a gamble on embracing every aspect of its cosmology and pushing out settings that seem incredibly odd to today's players.Fortunately, some of these settings ended up being spectacular. While they weren't anything like the D&D players know and love today, they provided for fantastic worlds that still have strong fan … [Read more...] about RPG Legends: Spelljammer
Super Mario RPG
Anything can be an RPG. All you really need is stats, a story, and a good system in which everything can take place. There's no better example of this fact than the existence of the Super Mario RPG series. Yes, Super Mario - the tubby plumber who is best known for being the shining mascot of the platformer genre - stars in his own RPG series. If you take a look at everything that went into the series, though, you'll … [Read more...] about Super Mario RPG
Grimoire: Heralds of the Winged Exemplar
Pigs are strapping on their wings. The devil is enjoying a snow cone. Despite all common sense and reason, one of the legendary unfinished games of the RPG world has finally been released. Grimoire: Heralds of the Winged Exemplar is a game long in the making, with twenty-plus years of hype and development behind it. It now comes time to examine how this quasi-mythical game came to be, what the finished product ended … [Read more...] about Grimoire: Heralds of the Winged Exemplar
