Elon Musk Calls for Wizards of the Coast to "Burn in Hell" Over Making of Original D&D Passages

Elon Musk, the owner of the app formerly known as Twitter, is calling on Wizards of the Coast and its parent company Hasbro to "burn in hell" for the publication of Making of Original Dungeons & Dragons. On November 21st, former gaming executive turned culture warrior Mark Hern posted several passages from Making of Original Dungeons & Dragons on Twitter, criticizing the book for providing context about some of the misogyny and cultural insensitivity found in early rulebooks. These passages were pulled from the foreword written by Jason Tondro, a senior designer for the D&D team who also worked extensively on the book. Hern stated that these passages, along with the release of the new 2024 Player's Handbook and Dungeon Master's Guide for D&D's "40th anniversary" (it is actually D&D's 50th anniversary) both "erased and slandered" Gary Gygax and other creators of Dungeons & Dragons.

In response, Musk wrote "Nobody, and I mean nobody, gets to trash E. Gary Gygax and the geniuses who created Dungeons & Dragons. What the [naughty word] is wrong with Hasbro and WoTC?? May they burn in hell." Musk had played Dungeons & Dragons at some point in his youth, but it's unclear when the last time he ever played the game.

Nobody, and I mean nobody, gets to trash E. Gary Gygax and the geniuses who created Dungeons & Dragons. What the [xxxx] is wrong with Hasbro and WoTC?? May they burn in hell.

- Elon Musk​

Notably, Making of Original Dungeons & Dragons contains countless correspondences and letters written by both Gygax and Dave Arneson, including annotated copies of early D&D rulesets. Most early D&D rules supplements as well as early Dragon magazines are also found in the book. It seems odd to contain one of the most extensive compliations of Gygax's work an "erasure," but it's unclear whether Hern or Musk actually read the book given the incorrect information about the anniversary.

Additionally, Gygax and Arneson are both credited in the 2024 Player's Handbook and Dungeon Master's Guide. The exact credit reads: "Building on the original game created by Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson and then developed by many others over the past 50 years." Wizards of the Coast also regularly collaborates with Gygax's youngest son Luke and is a participant at Gary Con, a convention held in Gygax's honor. The opening paragraph of the 2024 Player's Handbook is written by Jeremy Crawford and specifically lauds both Gygax and Arneson for making Dungeons & Dragons and contains an anecdote about Crawford meeting Gygax.

Musk has increasingly leaned into culture war controversies in recent years, usually amplifying misinformation to suit his own political agenda.

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

I think Musk is more of the NuTSR type and would have stopped at 9 Hells.

Once the blue checks explain to him about NuTSR, watch him purchase the museum and go all-in on LaNasa and company.

 

[Maxperson]

Once the blue checks explain to him about NuTSR, watch him purchase the museum and go all-in on LaNasa and company.

That's a scary thought. With actual money backing, they could do a lot of damage.

 

[overgeeked]

Once the blue checks explain to him about NuTSR, watch him purchase the museum and go all-in on LaNasa and company.

Please. He’ll just buy Hasbro.

 

[Laishiec]

It was just a matter of time really. The danger is, if as others have suggested, he follows up hollow comments like these with actual money.

A person of Musk's wealth and temperament could invest a large sum into some fairly toxic gaming forums/groups and not feel any impact personally. It's worth being concerned about.

Yes, chances are it was just a stupid comment and will merit no further thought from him, but the risk isn't zero. Welcome to the era of billionaire influence, I suppose.

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

Please. He’ll just buy Hasbro.

I assume he's a big fan of Monopoly.

 

[Remathilis]

On look, another cultural tourist sticking his opinions into things he doesn't understand just to score points with the grifters and their rubes.

Apparently he doesn't have enough to do running four companies into the ground and being a part of government.

 

[Parmandur]

I wonder if its as good as his independent history or if it is controlled by WotC...

It is as good as any independent history: in point of fact, it is mostly just primary documents reprinted, very little actual commentary aside from contextualizing them (some of that context is "this bit here aged poorly, sorry" hence the controversy).

 

[Mannahnin]

I wonder if its as good as his independent history or if it is controlled by WotC...

It's mostly just reproductions of primary source documents. It's great.

 

[overgeeked]

I have to assume he's a big fan of Monopoly.

Capitalists are. As long as it’s them in charge.

Anyone who knows about stocks and publicly traded companies know how many Hasbro stocks Musk needs to buy to get ownership? I’m assuming it’s 51% for control if not outright ownership.

 

[darjr]

Huh. That person that musk is responding too talks about Lee Gold but yet never talks about what she actually thought.

Meet the Woman Who by 1976 Was the Most Important Gamer in Roleplaying After Gary

In 1976, after Dungeons & Dragons co-creator Gary Gygax, the most important person in roleplaying games was a Los Angeles woman named Lee Gold. She still contributes to the hobby and still runs…

dmdavid.com

Lee Gold is still alive too. They can ask her. I think she recently crowdfunded a game of hers.

Here is @BenRiggs article, he just recently posted it again to Facebook.

D&D Co-Creator Gary Gygax was Sexist. Talking About it is Key to Preserving his Legacy. — Ben Riggs

“Damn right I am a sexist. It doesn’t matter to me if women get paid as much as men… They can jolly well stay away from wargaming in droves for all I care.” -Gary Gygax, EUROPA 10/11 August-September 1975 Do TTRPG Historians Lie? The internet has been rending its clothes and gnashing its teeth

www.writerbenriggs.com

Edit:

I think it's important to add Heidi Gygax's response to Benn.

Regarding the post by Ben Riggs “D&D Co-Creator Gary Gygax was Sexist” IMO much seems to be taken out of context and pieced together. I cannot verify the sources, although I truly believe they are incomplete and/or incorrect. I think Frank Mentzer states his insights on this eloquently. As for my perspective, I do not believe my father was racist or misogynistic. Was he sexist? He was born in 1938 to a father born in the 1880’s and a mother born in 1906. He was raised in a traditional Anglo-Saxon Protestant family with traditional biblical family values where the male was the head of the household. In my adult opinion, yes, this is sexist and doesn’t hold up to our more enlightened standards today. Yet, he was a loving father and husband who valued all of his children and his wife. All 3 of his daughters played D&D with him at some point, but I happen to be the only one who still plays. In short, he wasn’t perfect, but he was far from all of the negative accusations that are (re) surfacing, and I’m extremely proud - as a strong, independent female - to have E. Gary Gygax as my father and my family legacy.