A day late and saving roll short, but Dungeons & Dragons co-creator, Dave Arneson passed away April 10, 2009, after a 2 year battle with cancer. Just a year ago, Gary Gygax, D & D’s other co-creator, passed away March 4, 2008. I haven’t played D & D since junior high, but it’s still sort of a sad occasion. But perhaps all is well and Gygax and Arneson is rolling ability scores for that big character sheet in the sky.
Dave Arneson’s interest in gaming started with wargames like Avalon Hill’s Gettysburg. Arneson and Gygax formed a friendship through a shared interest in sailing ship and navel games. These pen and paper games would eventually evolve into Chainmail, then Blackmoor, and finally Dungeons and Dragons. Arenson kept more of a low profile than the more up front Gygax.
Gary Gygax was known as the father of the tabletop role-playing game, and in turn the grandfather of all RPG’s. Gygax helped develop all the role playing conventions that have become standard—hit points, character classes, and leveling up. Dungeons & Dragons and later Advanced Dungeons & Dragons would go on to influence video games like Final Fantasy and Fallout. Gygax first started taking part in wargaming clubs at various comic book conventions in the 1960’s known for his Hawaiian shirts and 20-sided dice. By 1973, Gary Gygax was well established in the gaming community and co-founded the company TSR with the help of Dave Arenson, the eventual makers of D & D.
Those unfamiliar with Dungeons & Dragons may best know Gary Gygax by his appearance on Futurama. He was part of Al Gore’s Vice Presidential Action Rangers, along with Stephen Hawking, Nichelle Nichols, and Deep Blue.
I’ll remember them for filling those pre-teen days before I could even fathom taking to girls without a character sheet in my hands. And even though a did learn to talk to girls (albeit only a small bit), I’ll always have a warm spot for good ol’ pen and paper role playing games. Perhaps Gygax said it best himself, “I would like the world to remember me as the guy who really enjoyed playing games and sharing his knowledge and his fun pastimes with everybody else.”
Gygax died from a heart attack after many years of struggling with a heart condition. He was survived by 6 children. Arenson lost a long battle with cancer and is survived by his daughter and two grandchildren.
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