Part 1 of 1, by Jay Watamaniuk
My first official D&D game was run by my older brother when I was in Grade 5 (it came in that sweet box with no dice, but chits you pulled out of bag for random numbers). That first D&D game evolved from another game that I bought while looking for something to keep his spirits up while he underwent surgery.
He was stuck in the hospital for several weeks and, as the little brother, I was feeling powerless and small. Seeing my distress and my brother’s increasing restlessness due to his captivity, my mother dragged me to a game store located on the university campus next door.
We found a game called Dungeon! It took forever to set up, but would draw us both into a lifelong love of gaming. We both got to be heroes for the day, despite the dire circumstances.
A slippery slope indeed. Some 30 years later I find myself in a 3.5 edition D&D game, a Shadowrun game and even an All Flesh Must Be Eaten zombie campaign set in the Vietnam war. I keep on playing these games and they keep fascinating me, each serving its purpose.
That is why I still do this after so many years. Yes, I am fortunate that I have been able to pursue a kind of adventure with a life of travel and living abroad in one place or another, and the odd athletic pursuit, but gaming allows me to write different stories in widely different settings with my friends along to share the danger and excitement. I know I have romantic notions about gaming that might seem a little crazy, for some view gaming as merely a mechanism for socializing. As I picture my many treasured friends I met through gaming I have to agree, but when you pursue a hobby for 30 years, you have found something fundamental to what is important to you.
Gaming in whatever form is my chance to right some wrongs about reality. I think I should have been a gruff ex-cop who smokes too much and wears a bandage over his knuckles, or a bestial bandit king who sacrifices himself to save the last druid, or an eccentric spymaster with too many secrets, or a terse Paladin who can’t admit he is painfully lonely or many more. What other pastime allows you this?
It was a revelation when I realized all these characters over the years were just facets of me wanting a little hero time. It makes me wonder how some people can stand to live their whole lives without being – just once- the guy who saves the day.
Jay Watamaniuk has lived in such faraway and make-believe places like Thailand, Greece and Japan but has always returned back to Edmonton, Canada to put down some roots and to avoid the fricken’ huge insects that lived in those places. He has been BioWare’s Community Manager for over 7 years and has never once- not once- dressed up like a pirate at work. Shameful.
I have been a: visionary nun, a tortured prophet, an innocent social worker, a glamourous bombshell, and a broken vessel. Among other things.
So much of our lives are spent simply dealing with life. At times we feel nothing, we’re just doing things. At times we can feel anger, joy, irritation and love, but it’s a very rare thing to feel without something clouding that feeling. We have tasks numbered 1 to 42 for the week, and ten of them compete for our time at the same instant on Monday morning.
Gaming puts up a big brick wall to all that.
The joy of roleplaying is that it gives us the chance to clearly and honestly feel magnanimous or miserly, brave or terrified, heroic or sinister. The joy of games generally is that they give us a chance to focus on a couple of difficult tasks, with maybe a couple of little passive tasks on the side, and see these tasks through to a successful conclusion. Then we move on to the next.
Dang, now I want to go play… great post, and a great reminder, thanks Jay.
Thanks Sean. Yeah, I get a little zealous about gaming but…hey man after so many years clearly I love doing it.
The sense of adventure has taken me around the world and into my community to help as well. Strange and potent mix this drive to make a difference and save the day from the gaming table to the local youth center.