TSR Q&A with Gary Gygax

This is the multi-year Q&A sessions held by D&D co-creator Gary Gygax here at EN World, beginning in 2002 and running up until his sad pasing in 2008. Gary's username in the thread below is Col_Pladoh, and his first post in this long thread is Post #39.

 

[Col_Pladoh]

Gary,

First of all, since this is the first time I’ve spoken to you, albeit virtually, I’d like to thank you for the following:

1) Thank you for creating something that has given me endless hours of enjoyment for over 25 years.
2) Thank you for posting in this forum and taking the time to answer so many questions.
3) Thank you for providing a means for me (and many others) to meet interesting people and cultivate life-long friendships.

I’d be remiss if I didn’t take the time to thank you after all you have done. I don’t mean to sound sycophantic, but thanks are in order.

Now to my question: I understand you are attending GenCon this year. Do you plan on partaking in any role-playing, or even running some games? I didn’t see you listed under any of the events in the online catalog.

Thanks,
~Alan

You are most welcome across the board. It should go without saying that I have gotten a lot of enjoyment doing the things noted, and I do enjoy the virtual fellowship provided by these and other gaming boads.

As to my schedule at GenCon, I don't believe I will be GMing more than a single special game on Wednesday evening. The panels, autographing, and schmoozing in store for me will likely pretty well wear me out. The medications I have to take tend to drain a good deal of my energy is seems :\

When the small Lake Geneva Gaming Convention and its sister event Winterdark occur here I am not hassled, so I normally run about three RPG sessions.

Cheers,
Gary

 

[Col_Pladoh]

Gary,

One last question if I may, and forgive me if this has already been asked, but how close are we to seeing Castle Zagyg released?

TBK

Only the Trolls can speak authoratively, but...

My best guesstimate is that the several parts will be released incrimentally over this coming autumn and winter, then into the spring and summer of 2008.

The introdctory Eastmark Gazetteer with some of the castle's immediate environs will be available at GenCon.

What I am personally hoping will make release there is my King of England - King of France card/boardgame for 3-5 players. Although extensively playtested several years ago, I have not played in in some time, and I hope to have it for boardgaming sessions held here in Lake Geneva with a crew that includes my son Ernie, Tom Wham, Dennis Harsh, Russ Ingram, and occassional other participants (likely including my grandson Mike Gygax). Of course if more that five show up it will be another game, but often there are only four or five available to participate.

Cheers,
Gary

 

[Col_Pladoh]

Well I figure once he got started on those first few he woudl find the rest of your hiding spots
Ken

Got me Ken!

...only the FansForChrist boards have been down since yesterday :\

Cheerio,
Gary

 

[Col_Pladoh]

Yes but Gary why do all mine end up in yourspam file is the question LOL
ken

You mean sorta like this one?


Gary

 

[the black knight]

Hey Gary,

Thanks for all the forthright responses to my questions. It's greatly appreciated.


I keep saying this, but I've got one last question for you.

What's the cruellest thing you've ever done, as a DM, to a player character?

Was it deserved? Do you regret doing it?


Curious,

the black knight



P.S. Have you watched Chimes at Midnight yet?

 

[Col_Pladoh]

Me too. My local public library has a large theatre screen in it. I showed the movie and it was simply INCREDIBLE on the big screen. I noticed all kinds of details in the jungles of Skull Island that I never noticed just watching the DVD on my TV set at home.

I miss stop-motion.

I suspect the chaps that had to move the models a fraction of an inch repeatedly don't missit much at all

My older brother tantalized me with his description of the movie when I was jsyt a tad of four or five. I vowed then and there that I would see it for myself at the earliest possible time. That came in the late 50s when it was shown on the TV--in an edited version. I recognized that when what my brother described to me was lacking in the sequence where King breaks through the gates and demolishes the native village. Since then I have seen it on a theater screen only once, but manytimes on my own big screen telly as i have a video tape of the movie. The jungle background is hard to pick up even on that large a screen.

Cheers,
Garyt

 

[Col_Pladoh]

hey Gary

Sorry if this has been asked and answered (I feel sure it has). Will you be at Gen Con next month?

Sure will be. Peter made me an offer I couldn't refuse. It is the 40th GenCon after all, and i doubt I'll be around to attend the big 50th...save in spirit

I won't be doing a lot there, a few panels including the one of Christian gaming, autograpahing at the Troll Lord Games and Piazo Exhibits, at the opening ceremonies, the special dinner, Tracy's Killer Breakfast most likely. That's about all the formal events in which I will be participating. On down time I plan to kick back at the Trolls booth...and answer questions/schmooz with those that stop by to do same.

Cheers,
Gary

 

[Col_Pladoh]

Agreed!

I hope this doesn't count as continuing to beat up on them, as I do have another question on this topic that I'd like your wisdom on:

How do we best deal with munchkins? Can we use rules to discourage them? Do we kick them out of the game & tell them to return when they've matured?

Encourage them to be more mature in play--and the other players will likely employ peer pressure to reinforce what you suggest. Only if the munchkin's play was spoiling the game for the remainder of the group would I give one the boot--that alone with him, gently and encouraging a retur, when a less childish approach to participating would be used by him.

Cheerrio,
Gary

 

[Col_Pladoh]

(very solemnly, quietly)

I guess this, for me, is The Question.

-

Gary Gygax, do you consider my character Edena, 1st/2nd Edition cleric 121st / wizard 40th (dual classed) to be a legitimate character?

If you require information and background on Edena so you can determine the answer, I will provide anything you ask for.

Yours Sincerely to the Creator of D&D
Edena_of_Neith

Now dude! How can I answer that question? I do not know the nature of the campaign or campaigns in which your PC has played, how your DM(s) managed the campaign, for how many years you have played that one character, etc.

O must admit that the levels stated are very high indeed for even the super-powered campaigns that I know of, one, for example, where my 13th level PC was as a 1st level 1s to one of c. 10 level. My leige lord was 40th level, and there were more powerful PCs and NPC in the setting. He managed the challenges for such high-level PCs very well.

So, again the campaign, DM, the number and nature of adventurs completed, and the numebr of years played to reach those incredibly high levels are necessary to even begin to judge the validity of things.

It doesn't really matter either way, because if you like the character, feel satisfied with how you played and atained those levels, what else counts?

 

[Col_Pladoh]

You really can't expect an honest answer without detailing the...interesting way it gained those levels.

Pretty much what I said...in part

Cheers,
Gary