Growing and Learning with RPGs

Hey Game Fans, I’ve got a brief editorial today that i wanted to share with you before i got back to the more regular work of breaking down adventures and options.  I wanted to talk about those moments that we all experience where we grow and learn things about ourselves from the games we play.  I have been playing RPGs and other games since i was in 2nd grade (I was terrible at it, but i was trying).  In the intervening 25+ years, i have had moments where i was playing a game or reading a book (or in modern times, watching a live play game on Twitch) and something in experienced changed the way i look at games and their role in our lives.  Let me share two of these instances with you, and maybe you can think about some of these instances that have affected the way you look at games.  

Expedition to the Barrier Peaks (Why this is my favorite adventure ever)

I’m going to take a minute today to tell you a story about how i fell in love with the Expedition to the Barrier Peaks.  I was still in middle school when my brother dropped off a giant assortment of 1st edition Advanced Dungeons and Dragons books at my mom’s house (evidently his college girlfriend at the time wasn’t a fan of fun).  With my usual calm approach, i tore through the books like a house afire and learned the game quickly.  I fell in love with the old art work, and the math, and the ideas behind the game.  I would eventually grow out of this phase, but i look back on those old books fondly (and i’m still only missing one book to have a complete set of 1st edition, Curse you Dragonlance Adventures!).