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RPG Evolution: The Road Trip That Changed a World
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<blockquote data-quote="talien" data-source="post: 7715435" data-attributes="member: 3285"><p>TSR's legacy of publishing fantasy worlds is well-known, but only one of them came about through a couple's adventurous car ride across the country in search of a new career: <em>Dragonlance</em>.</p><p style="text-align: center"></p> <p style="text-align: center">[ATTACH=full]114559[/ATTACH]</p><h3><strong>Desperation</strong></h3><p><em>Dragonlance</em>'s origins begin at a difficult time in Tracy and Laura Hickman's lives. Tracy explained in an <a href="http://theauthorhour.com/tracy-hickman/" target="_blank">interview with Matthew Peterson</a>:</p><p></p><p>Those two adventures turned out to be <em>Rahasia </em>and <em>Pharoah</em>. Mike Gray, now vice president as Hasbro, recommended that the Hickmans might have better luck selling their adventures if they applied to TSR. Taking a gamble, the Hickman's packed their children in the car and set off for a new start:</p><p></p><h3><strong>Basement-Dwelling Cook or Game Designer?</strong></h3><p>Tracy reminisced about the experience <a href="http://www.trhickman.com/dragonlance-and-blarney-stones/" target="_blank">on his blog</a>:</p><p></p><p>The Hickmans' family wasn't too pleased with their decision:</p><p></p><p>Against his father's advice, the Hickmans set out on their adventure:</p><p></p><p>As if things weren't challenging enough, the Hickmans faced weather difficulties too:</p><p></p><p>The Hickmans couldn't even afford dinner at the hotel restaurant:</p><p></p><p>The Hickmans weren't the only ones facing struggles. Co-creator of <em>Dragonlance </em>Margaret Weis had her share of challenges:</p><p></p><p>Looking back, it's clear that both Hickman and Weis succeeded as much through their own skills as through force of will.</p><h3><strong>Dragonlance, Finally</strong></h3><p>In the end, Dragonlance went on <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dragonlance#Publication_history" target="_blank">to become a blockbuster for TSR</a> both as an adventure and as a series of novels. The Dragonlance legacy is massive; as one of TSR's most popular novel series in the 90s, making TSR one of the most successful publishers of fantasy at the time. There are now nearly 200 novels in the Dragonlance franchise, which reached over 20 bestseller lists and sales of over $22 million.</p><p></p><p>And what of those two adventures? They were originally proposed to be part of a series known as "Nightventure". Both were published by TSR, laying the framework for future groundbreaking adventures like <em>Ravenloft</em>. This was also a pivot away from what is now known as the Old School form of dungeon-crawling. Tavis Allison's <a href="https://muleabides.wordpress.com/2012/03/23/manifesto-of-the-hickman-revolution/" target="_blank">excellent sleuthing</a> digs up a fascinating look at the Hickmans' vision that would influence many of TSR's adventures afterward:</p><ol> <li data-xf-list-type="ol">A player objective more worthwhile than simply pillaging and killing.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ol">An intriguing story that is intricately woven into play itself.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ol">Dungeons with an architectural sense.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ol">An attainable and honorable end within one to two sessions playing time.</li> </ol><p>The Hickmans didn't just help create Dragonlance, they ushered in a new age of adventure design.</p><h3><strong>Always Kiss Your Blarney Stones</strong></h3><p>The Hickmans and Margaret Weis have gone on to pen other adventures in a wide variety of game mediums. Tracy has never forgotten his humble roots:</p><p></p><p>He's philosophical about his fateful ride to a bright new future:</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="talien, post: 7715435, member: 3285"] TSR's legacy of publishing fantasy worlds is well-known, but only one of them came about through a couple's adventurous car ride across the country in search of a new career: [I]Dragonlance[/I]. [CENTER] [ATTACH type="full" alt="Dragonlance-Logo.jpg"]114559[/ATTACH][/CENTER] [HEADING=2][B]Desperation[/B][/HEADING] [I]Dragonlance[/I]'s origins begin at a difficult time in Tracy and Laura Hickman's lives. Tracy explained in an [URL='http://theauthorhour.com/tracy-hickman/']interview with Matthew Peterson[/URL]: Those two adventures turned out to be [I]Rahasia [/I]and [I]Pharoah[/I]. Mike Gray, now vice president as Hasbro, recommended that the Hickmans might have better luck selling their adventures if they applied to TSR. Taking a gamble, the Hickman's packed their children in the car and set off for a new start: [HEADING=2][B]Basement-Dwelling Cook or Game Designer?[/B][/HEADING] Tracy reminisced about the experience [URL='http://www.trhickman.com/dragonlance-and-blarney-stones/']on his blog[/URL]: The Hickmans' family wasn't too pleased with their decision: Against his father's advice, the Hickmans set out on their adventure: As if things weren't challenging enough, the Hickmans faced weather difficulties too: The Hickmans couldn't even afford dinner at the hotel restaurant: The Hickmans weren't the only ones facing struggles. Co-creator of [I]Dragonlance [/I]Margaret Weis had her share of challenges: Looking back, it's clear that both Hickman and Weis succeeded as much through their own skills as through force of will. [HEADING=2][B]Dragonlance, Finally[/B][/HEADING] In the end, Dragonlance went on [URL='https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dragonlance#Publication_history']to become a blockbuster for TSR[/URL] both as an adventure and as a series of novels. The Dragonlance legacy is massive; as one of TSR's most popular novel series in the 90s, making TSR one of the most successful publishers of fantasy at the time. There are now nearly 200 novels in the Dragonlance franchise, which reached over 20 bestseller lists and sales of over $22 million. And what of those two adventures? They were originally proposed to be part of a series known as "Nightventure". Both were published by TSR, laying the framework for future groundbreaking adventures like [I]Ravenloft[/I]. This was also a pivot away from what is now known as the Old School form of dungeon-crawling. Tavis Allison's [URL='https://muleabides.wordpress.com/2012/03/23/manifesto-of-the-hickman-revolution/']excellent sleuthing[/URL] digs up a fascinating look at the Hickmans' vision that would influence many of TSR's adventures afterward: [LIST=1] [*]A player objective more worthwhile than simply pillaging and killing. [*]An intriguing story that is intricately woven into play itself. [*]Dungeons with an architectural sense. [*]An attainable and honorable end within one to two sessions playing time. [/LIST] The Hickmans didn't just help create Dragonlance, they ushered in a new age of adventure design. [HEADING=2][B]Always Kiss Your Blarney Stones[/B][/HEADING] The Hickmans and Margaret Weis have gone on to pen other adventures in a wide variety of game mediums. Tracy has never forgotten his humble roots: He's philosophical about his fateful ride to a bright new future: [/QUOTE]
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