Military officers and d20/other RPGs?

[Niveria]

Okay, I'm a US Naval officer who has been a gamer for a long time. I've mostly kept my gaming life to myself, based on an assumption that most officers just don't play RPGs. However, I've recently found a gaming group at my current command and I've been introduced to a larger community of military officers who still enjoy gaming (even those as old as or older than me, at the ripe old age of 30 ).

I'd like to get an idea of how common gaming is among the officer corps and thought a poll would be a good way to guage the demographics. I'm not sure if the poll question will provide the most accurate results, but I think it'll give me a some idea of the number of military officers in the gaming community.

My thought is that, if there is sufficient interest, I would look into starting a website/group for military gamers, particularly officers, so that we can find groups of people who share our interest in RPGs.

So here goes...

 

[Eosin the Red]

I got a friend who is a USAF Major and he played with us until a transfer to the pentagon. When he comes home he always stops by for a game session and has a reserved spot at the table. My group is also older and mostly professional - RN, rPh, Manager of a Bank, & Draftsman for DOT.

 

[BV210]

For some reason I can't place a vote, so I'll reply this way and you can add me to your totals. I am a Captain in the USAF, but haven't had much luck finding any other officers to game with here in Alabama. I hope my upcoming move to Oklahoma (Tinker AFB - 3rd Combat Communications Group) will open a few doors.

 

[Ace]

I answered "game with military" although my current group doesn't have any military folks in it, almost all of my adult age gaming groups did

 

[cptg1481]

I'm Here

I'm an Army Officer - Captain, Military Intelligence with an enlisted background in Infanty and Special OPS.


All of the guys in my group are non military but one is a defense contractor.

 

[Piratecat]

Niveria, welcome to the boards! Good to have you.

One of my gaming buddies from high school just got called up, as a matter of fact. I think quite a high percentage of military folks are gamers.

Hey, how are you accounting for ex-military in the poll?

 

[Niveria]

Thanks, Piratecat!

Actually, I've been around for a few years. It's just that I rarely do much posting on the boards. (I usually spend too much time gleaning great info from other people, so I don't have time to respond. )

I think my dilemma is based on the fact that I'm an officer. I know that many enlisted personnel are gamers. The problem is that I'm usually not able to join groups with enlisted folks, or if I do, I have to be very careful to avoid forming improper friendships with them. I'm not sure what your knowledge of the military is, but there's a regulation against fraternization (that's becoming too familiar with enlisted service members, among other things).

Having found a group of fellow officer geeks at my current duty station, I've managed to do something I haven't done in a while...form actual friendships above and beyond normal work relationships. Additionally, I've been able to do more than write great characters and adventure plots that never get used. I'm currently playing in a D&D campaign and I'll be taking the reigns of a d20 Modern adventure in about a month.

I'm actually fishing around in the hopes that I'll be able to find some other officers to game with when I move on. I'll probably make use of the "gamers seeking gamers" forum later, but for now, I'm just looking to satisfy my curiosity.

Thanks, again!

Sincerely,
Paris Crenshaw

 

[Niveria]

Oh...and as for the ex-military...

I suppose it would be fair to include them, but my main focus is on the number of current military folks who play D&D.

And as another point, I'm not averse to gaming with civilians. (I don't want anyone thinking I'm a snob. ) Of course, a group of people my own age is always better for me, if I can find one.

Cheers!

 

[Richards]

I'm an Air Force Major and a gamer. I've met a few fellow officers that were gamers, but not many. The biggest concentration was when I was stationed at Minot AFB, North Dakota in the late 80s/early 90s. My neighbor was a B-52 pilot who gamed with his entire flight crew (officers and enlisted). It was a good way to pass the time when they were on alert duty in the bunker (for a week at a time) when not otherwise occupied by the mission. I didn't get to game with them often, due to conflicting alert schedules - they were a B-52 flight crew, and I was a missileer.

Johnathan

 

[Zeddan]

I am a Air Force Captain and Pilot. I've played since High School. When I was deployed to the desert last year I brought out my D&D books and started running a campaign with fellow pilots and navigators. A year later we are still playing solidly and we have up to 10 people that play, though not everyone is always there.

So even pilots can be geeks.