Joe Manganiello Gifts D&D Staff With "Death Saves" T-shirts

Actor Joe Manganiello, who is also a Dungeons & Dragons superfan, has a range of t-shirts called "Death Saves". While at Gary Con this weekend he gifted various WotC staff and others with personalised shirts.

Mike Mearls

Satine Phoenix

Liam O'Brien

Jeremy Crawford

Chris Perkins

Luke Gygax
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The first weren't all one-way, of course! Luke Gygax presented this beautiful Arkhan-themed DM kit (custom designed by Cognitive Merchant) to Joe Manganiello.

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And D&D historian Jon Peterson, who was one of the quartet who created the recent Art & Arcana book, got his book signed by so many people!

 

[Shardstone]

This is the least "news" thing I've ever seen touted as news since Obama wearing the wrong color suit.

 

[Morrus]

This is the least "news" thing I've ever seen touted as news since Obama wearing the wrong color suit.

To be fair, this comment ain’t much cop, either.

 

[MNblockhead]

This is the least "news" thing I've ever seen touted as news since Obama wearing the wrong color suit.

Yeah, but it was enjoyable to read, unlike your kill-joy whinging.

 

[Ace-Azzameen]

Mearls has the look of a man that was dropped on his head at birth- six or seven times.

 

[Morrus]

Joe Manganiello Gifts D&D Staff With "Death Saves" T-shirts

Mearls has the look of a man that was dropped on his head at birth- six or seven times.

What the hell was that? If you want to make mean-spirited comments about the appearance of other people, find some other platform to do it.

 

[Robert Morris Jr]

Also Margret Weiss got one and Tracy Hickman.

 

[JediSoth]

Sure would be nice to be D&D famous enough to have waves of people giving you free stuff. Luke Gygax has given Joe Manganiello soooo much stuff.

Yes, it's one of those ironies of life that when you're rich and/or famous enough to be able to afford pretty much anything you want, you'll have people lining up to give you stuff for free. From Joe Manganiello's perspective, giving those t-shirts away is probably a pretty good marketing tact. He'll grow his brand as well as increase visibility of the game he loves so much. He's been a good ambassador for the game (so have the Critical Role folks, too).

I really only get annoyed at it when it's crap like championship-winning sports stars getting free cars. Why can't they just buy them like everyone else?

 

[Jester David]

Yes, it's one of those ironies of life that when you're rich and/or famous enough to be able to afford pretty much anything you want, you'll have people lining up to give you stuff for free. From Joe Manganiello's perspective, giving those t-shirts away is probably a pretty good marketing tact. He'll grow his brand as well as increase visibility of the game he loves so much. He's been a good ambassador for the game (so have the Critical Role folks, too).

I really only get annoyed at it when it's crap like championship-winning sports stars getting free cars. Why can't they just buy them like everyone else?

Joe Manganiello is the most interesting example. Because he came out of nowhere as a gamer and WotC tripped over themselves catering to him. They had him open the Stream of Annihilation and play in several games. They had him on the second season of Force Grey. They let him tour WotC and do some early playtesting of the Tomb of Annihilation. Most regular gamers would have killed for any one of those options.
Heck, the reason I mentioned him was that Luke Gygax gave him a set of Gary's dice? Who here wouldn't have given Luke hundreds of dollars and a nut to borrow Gygax's dice, let alone own a set?

Yeah, it's paid off. Because he is such a good ambassador. He's been on Big Bang Theory and is always talking about his love of the game with earnest and truly nerdy enthusiasm. And seems like a really nice and decent guy. He's likable. He's been good for D&D. But, man, was D&D good to him...

 

[JediSoth]

Joe Manganiello is the most interesting example. Because he came out of nowhere as a gamer and WotC tripped over themselves catering to him. They had him open the Stream of Annihilation and play in several games. They had him on the second season of Force Grey. They let him tour WotC and do some early playtesting of the Tomb of Annihilation. Most regular gamers would have killed for any one of those options.
Heck, the reason I mentioned him was that Luke Gygax gave him a set of Gary's dice? Who here wouldn't have given Luke hundreds of dollars and a nut to borrow Gygax's dice, let alone own a set?

Yeah, it's paid off. Because he is such a good ambassador. He's been on Big Bang Theory and is always talking about his love of the game with earnest and truly nerdy enthusiasm. And seems like a really nice and decent guy. He's likable. He's been good for D&D. But, man, was D&D good to him...

I read about the dice. Heck, Luke killed my dwarf with a frying-pan wielding ogre (or maybe it was a troll) and all I got was a sheepish "Sorry."

I hadn't even heard of Joe before the D&D thing. He just wasn't on my radar at all, not even as Sofia Vegara's husband.

Ah well, it's all above my pay grade.

 

[DEFCON 1]

It's all marketing. A car company gives a free car to the MVP of a sporting event as part of their payment for having their car advertised and named at said event. Even if the person receiving it doesn't need to get it given to them.

Joe gives away free swag to the folks at WotC as marketing for his brand, and the folks at WotC use him as an ambassador so that he can talk about D&D in all the places that WotC's marketing can't reach (like late-night talk shows and such.)

The whole goal is to get the people who don't get stuff given to them for free to be willing to buy it instead. And if anyone takes issue with it, their only solution is to just not buy the stuff, thereby rendering the marketing ineffectual in this single case.

Of course though if you actually want the stuff, then that's cutting off your nose to spite your face.