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Thread: Ex-WotC Employees
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Wednesday, 17th July, 2013, 12:15 PM #1
Ex-WotC Employees
This is a list of ex-employees of WotC and their current jobs. Note that there are hundreds of such employees. This list goes back to about 2000, and isn't intended to cover all ex-TSR employees. It's here to help you find your favourite D&D designers and check out the awesome gaming stuff they're likely still making! Be sure to also check out our page From TSR to WotC: A History of D&D.
Name Date Last Job at WotC Reason Current Company Project Lisa Stevens 2000 Brand Manager, Star Wars RPG Lay off Wizards Lay-offs: Lisa Stevens Paizo Publishing Pathfinder Peter Adkison 2001 CEO Voluntary Peter Adkison's Open Latter, 2000 Gen Con Monte Cook Monte Cook worked for WotC on two separate occasions. He left voluntarily in 2001 to form Malhavoc Press. He returned to WotC to work on D&D Next a decade later, and left voluntarily in 2012 and formed Monte Cook Games. 2001 Senior Designer, 3E Voluntary wiki]Monte Cook Games Numenera Ryan Dancey 2001 Vice President Voluntary Ryan Dancey Steps Down as D&D Brand Manager Goblinworks Pathfinder Online Owen K.C. Stephens 2001 Designer, Star Wars RPG Lay off Super Genius Games Jim Butler 2001 Creative Director Troon Worlds RIFT Chris Pramas 2002 Creative Director for Miniatures R&D Lay offI choose you, Pramas-chu! Green Ronin Publishing Mutants & Masterminds, Dragon Age RPG, A Song of Ice and Fire, True20, Freeport, and more Skip Williams 2002 Senior Designer, 3E Lay off Freelancing Skip Williams freelanced for WotC in 2013, writing the A0 AD&D adventure for the special edition Against the Slave Lords reprint Penny Williams 2002 Lay off Crystal Unicorn Enterprises JD Wiker 2002 Lead Designer, Star Wars RPG Lay off The Game Mechanics Jeff Grubb 2002 Designer Lay off ArenaNet Guild Wars 2 Sean K Reynolds 2002 Designer Lay off Paizo Publishing Pathfinder Stan! (Stan Brown) 2002 Designer Lay off/Rehired Super Genius Games, WotC Stan! had a contract expire and due to the wording had to leave for 6 months. Offered full-time, but required not self-publishing other games. [Part 1 Part 2 Part 3] Anthony Valterra 2003 Brand Manager, D&D Lay off Anthony Valterra breaks his silence North Seattle Community College Charles Ryan 2005 Brand Manager, D&D Lay off Charles Ryan (and others) out at WotC? Monte Cook Games Numenera Scott Rouse 2008 Brand Manager, D&D Lay off Thank You Microsoft Jennifer Paige 2008 Online Community Manager Lay off Microsoft Julia Martin 2008 Editor Lay off Microsoft Linae Foster 2008 Associate Brand Manager Lay off Passport Game Studios Dave Noonan 2008 Designer Lay off Sasquatch Games Primeval Thule Jonathan Tweet 2008 Lead Designer, 3E Lay off Fire Opal Media 13th Age Rob Heinsoo 2009 Lead Designer, 4E Lay off Fire Opal Media 13th Age Logan Bonner 2009 Designer Lay off Paizo Publishing Logan Bonner freelanced for WotC extensively for 4E before joining Paizo full-time. Chris Sims 2009 Designer Lay off Andy Collins 2010 Designer Voluntary Gazillion Entertainment Torah Cottril 2010 Editor Lay off Bill Slavicsek 2011 Director of RPG Design & Development Lay off ZeniMax Online Studios The Elder Scrolls Online Michele Carter 2011 Editing Manager, D&D Group Lay off Richard Baker 2011 RPG Group Manager Lay off Sasquatch Games Rich Baker freelanced for WotC on the Search for the Diamond Staff season of D&D Encounters before joining Sasquatch. Primeval Thule Stephen Schubert 2011 Development Manager, D&D Lay off Sasquatch Games Primeval Thule Steve Winter 2011 Designer Lay off/Rehired Wizards of the Coast Steve Winter freelanced for WotC after departing, then joined as a contractor in 2013. Monte Cook Monte Cook worked for WotC on two separate occasions. He left voluntarily in 2001 to form Malhavoc Press. He returned to WotC to work on D&D Next a decade later, and left voluntarily in 2012 and formed Monte Cook Games. 2012 Designer, D&D Next Voluntary Monte Cook Leaves WotC: No Longer Working on D&D Next Monte Cook Games Numenera Kim Mohan 2012 Designer Retired WotC's Kim Mohan Retires; reviews of THE LOST DUTCHMAN and SEASONS; plus Why Do You DM? Bruce Cordell 2013 Designer Voluntary Bruce Cordell leaves WotC Rodney Thompson 2016 Developer, D&D Voluntary Bungie Last edited by Morrus; Monday, 11th December, 2017 at 06:03 PM.
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Wednesday, 17th July, 2013, 12:44 PM #2
Magsman (Lvl 14)
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I believe that Sean K Reynolds says his departure was voluntary.
Edit: Oops, my mistake per Morrus's next post.Last edited by Scrivener of Doom; Wednesday, 17th July, 2013 at 01:52 PM.
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Wednesday, 17th July, 2013, 12:47 PM #3
Wikipedia says he was laid off, as does his own website.
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Wednesday, 17th July, 2013, 01:35 PM #4
Kim Mohan retired this year.
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Wednesday, 17th July, 2013, 01:49 PM #5
Novice (Lvl 1)
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Rob Heinsoo and Jonathan Tweet do not work for Pelgrane. They have their own thing, Fire Opal Media. Pelgrane is simply the publisher for 13th Age.
Also, Jeff Grubb's name has two Bs/.
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Wednesday, 17th July, 2013, 03:04 PM #6
Novice (Lvl 1)
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I don't follow the goings-on at WotC much since 4E was released, so I wasn't aware of what some of these respected designers were doing. This list gives me a few new game publishers to check out. Thanks for that.
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Wednesday, 17th July, 2013, 03:43 PM #7
Acolyte (Lvl 2)
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Jeff Grubb is a story designer on Guild Wars 2 for ArenaNet
Anthony Valterra is a grant manager at North Seattle Community College
Andy Collins is a story designer for Gazillion Entertainment
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Wednesday, 17th July, 2013, 04:39 PM #8
Magsman (Lvl 14)
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Rich Baker was RPG Group Manager - responsible for all the designers and whatnot - before he was so rudely backstabbed.
http://community.wizards.com/wotc_ri...ea_sneak_peeks
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Wednesday, 17th July, 2013, 05:35 PM #9
Myrmidon (Lvl 10)
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It doesn't seem there is any animosity and I doubt "rudely backstabbed" captures the reality. After leaving he worked with Wizards as a freelancer to write the current season of D&D Encounters. This is pretty typical and something that is hard to capture on the list. For example, Steve Winter worked for Wizards, transitioned to being on the editorial staff for Dragon and Dungeon, then was let go. Stan! was hired as a contractor to do the same work, but due to a strange contract had to leave after a certain amount of time. He was replaced by... Steve Winter. Another example is Chris Sims. He was laid off, worked as a freelancer for both Wizards and Paizo, and then was hired back on as Wizards.
We really don't know the whole story behind any of the firings or voluntary leavings. As with any of our workplaces, why an employee stays or leaves is often a mix of how an employee fits a need at a particular time, how the employee likes their job, and how their performance is viewed by others. And of course, you have interpersonal relationships. Nothing suggests Wizards is a terrible employer - people that leave tend to continue working with them and often come back. It remains the premiere place to work in the industry and the list above shows how good a job it does at seeding the industry - great for our hobby!
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Wednesday, 17th July, 2013, 05:42 PM #10
Myrmidon (Lvl 10)
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And it probably does bear mentioning for some above when they continue to work with Wizards. Chris Sims is shown as laid off above, but is a current employee (rehired after freelancing for WotC and others). Logan Bonner freelanced on tons of 4E work before becoming full time at Paizo. Richard Baker has freelanced for Wizards since leaving. Steve Winter has freelanced for Wizards and is now a contractor on-site for them (essentially doing what he did when he left). Stan! was recently a contractor but had to end due to contract wording. It won't shock anyone to see him back. Skip Williams recently worked as a freelancer for the A-0 adventure.
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