Admittedly, my dice always hated me.

Sep 22, 2006 10:58

I was talking to my parents a few weeks ago, hearing of how the younger of my sisters' visit home had gone. My sister and her husband were kindly clearing out some of the accumulated stuff that had built up over the years in my parents' basement. My parents, being elderly and confirmed packrats, had built up quite the collection of ... well, "stuff" really is the best description, as there was no way to narrow the description or break it down into classifications. As an example, one of the things my sister found buried beneath the boxes was a dining room table that my parents had forgotten they'd ever owned. Now, before I continue, I want to try to communicate the scale of this. About a decade ago, my father decided he was going to eliminate at least half of the boxes in that basement. He did so, effectively cutting a valley through the mountain. This made a walkable path through boxes on either side. Enough boxes remained on both sides that this table remained completely hidden to one side of that path, and I can vouch that my father added no more boxes to that basement in that time. (He collected more junk in boxes; he just didn't put any of them in the basement so he wouldn't block that walkway.)

Anyway, my parents mentioned that boxes of things belonging to me had only been culled if they contained things I was certain to not care about, such as clothing from my grade school years, papers from that time period, et cetera. Boxes of toys and books were kept, especially pointing out the comic books and role-playing game books that had essentially defined my high school years. Waves of nostalgia have crashed over me, and in the aftermath, I took a look at Wikipedia's listing of role-playing games and have gone through that list, marking those game lines of which I owned rules books or supplemental material. My fellow RPG geeks may find this meme-worthy. It's long, so I'm leaving it under a cut-tag.

* Aberrant by White Wolf
* Action! System - Gold Rush Games [1] - a simple generic open gaming system with a cinematic feel, similar to Fuzion
* Advanced Dungeons & Dragons - see also Dungeons & Dragons
* Aliens by Leading Edge Games
* Alternity by TSR
* Amazing Engine
* Amber Diceless Roleplaying - based on the works of Roger Zelazny
* Ars Magica by Lion Rampanteditions 1 & 2), White Wolf Game Studio ed. 3), Atlas Games ed. 4)
* Babylon 5 by Mongoose Publishing
* Battlelords of the 23rd Century by SSDC, Inc.
* Beyond the Supernatural
* Big Eyes, Small Mouth by Guardians of Order - anime based RPG
* Blood of Heroes
* Boot Hill - TSR - Wild West adventure
* Bunnies and Burrows
* Call of Cthulhu - based on the works of H. P. Lovecraft
* Castle Falkenstein - steampunk fantasy
* Champions by Hero Games
* Changeling: The Dreaming original World of Darkness)
* Chill
* Chivalry and Sorcery
* Cliffhanger by Fantasy Games Unlimited - 1930s adventure
* Conan a GURPS version by SJGames, and an OGL System version by Mongoose Publishing)
* Conspiracy X by Eden Studios, Inc. - extraterrestrials, UFOs, and government coverups
* Cyberpunk 2013 by R. Talsorian Games Out of print and superseded by Cyberpunk 2020
* Cyberpunk 2020 by R. Talsorian Games; based on the mirror shades authors
* Cybergeneration by R. Talsorian Games alternate setting for Cyberpunk 2020)
* D6 System - West End Games' in-house system, based on the Star Wars RPG
* d20 Future - generic futuristic game by Wizards of the Coast, using the d20 System
* d20 Modern - generic modern game by Wizards of the Coast, using the d20 System
* d20 System - based on Dungeons & Dragons 3rd Edition rules
* Danger International by Hero Games - espionage adventure
* Dangerous Journeys - created by E. Gary Gygax
* DC Heroes by Mayfair Games
* DC Universe Roleplaying Game by West End Games
* Deadlands: The Weird West by SJGames
* Demon: The Fallen original World of Darkness)
* Doctor Who - based on the BBC television series
* Dungeons & Dragons - created by Dave Arneson and E. Gary Gygax, further editions by TSR, Inc. and Wizards of the Coast
* Earthdawn
* Elric!, by Chaosium, based on Michael Moorcock's Elric of Melniboné stories
* Espionage! by Hero Games - based on Second Edition Champions
* Everway
* Ex Machina
* Fairy Meat by Kenzer & Company
* Fantasy Hero
* FATE - Fantastic Adventures in Tabletop Entertainment based on the FUDGE engine
* FUDGE - Free, Universal, Do-it-Yourself Gaming Engine by Steffan O'Sullivan
* Fuzion, a simple and customizable generic open gaming system co-produced by R. Talsorian Games and Hero Games, based on principles from R. Talsorian's Interlock System and Hero Games' Hero System
* Gamma World by TSR, Inc.
* Gangbusters by TSR - 1930s urban crime adventure
* Ghostbusters based on the Ghostbusters film series.
* GURPS - Generic Universal Role Playing System by Steve Jackson US)
* Hackmaster
* HârnMaster/Hârn
* Hawkmoon - an addendum to the Stormbringer RPG aka Elric!)
* Hero System by Hero Games
* Hero Wars/HeroQuest role-playing game)
* Heroes Unlimited by Palladium Games
* Human Occupied Landfill
* Hunter: The Reckoning original World of Darkness)
* In Nomine - based on In Nomine Satanis / Magna Veritas
* Indiana Jones role-playing game) by TSR - based on the Indiana Jones films
* James Bond 007 by Victory Games - based on the James Bond films
* Judge Dredd by Games Workshop, another by Mongoose Publishing
* Justice, Inc. by Hero Games - 1930s Pulp fiction oriented adventure
* Kindred of the East spinoff of Vampire: The Masquerade)
* Kult - Swedish game based on Gnostic concepts with some Kaballistic undertones. The tag line is "Death is only the beginning." Kult is generally considered to fit into the horror role-playing game genre.
* Lace and Steel - - an Australian RPG set in a world of civilised Centaurs and Harpies with a musketeers/swashbuckling feel. Published originally by TAGG and re-released by Pharos Press
* Legionnaire by FASA Standalone roleplaying game for the Renegade Legion universe)
* Living Steel by Leading Edge Games - Futuristic game on the world of Rhand. Power armor galore.
* Lord of the Rings RPG - based on the fantasy works of J. R. R. Tolkien
* Macho Women with Guns
* Mage: The Ascension by White Wolf Game Studio, set in the original World of Darkness
* Marvel Super Heroes Role-Playing Game by TSR
* Marvel Universe Role Playing Game by Marvel Publishing Group
* Masterbook
* MechWarrior
* Megaverse by Palladium Games
* Mekton - by R. Talsorian Games based on Anime Mecha science fiction)
* Metamorphosis Alpha 1976)
* Middle Earth Role Play - based on the fantasy works of J. R. R. Tolkien
* Mummy: The Resurrection original World of Darkness)
* Mutants and Masterminds by Green Ronin Publishing
* Nephilim
* Nightbane
* Ninja Burger
* Ninjas and Superspies by Palladium Books - martial arts and espionage adventure
* OGL System by Mongoose Publishing
* Palladium Fantasy Role-Play
* Paranoia originally by West End Games, later by Mongoose Publishing - a satire of dystopian futures
* Pendragon or King Arthur Pendragon) Arthurian legend
* Phoenix Command by Leading Edge Games
* PowerGame
* Rifts by Palladium Games - crossover system
* Risus
* Robotech by Palladium Games; based on the Robotech anime television series
* Rocky and Bullwinkle
* RMSS Rolemaster Fantasy Role Playing) by Iron Crown Enterprises - fully expandable and customizable rules system
* RuneQuest
* Serenity by Soverign Press, based on the Firefly television series.
* Shadowrun cyberpunk fantasy)
* Silver Age Sentinels by Guardians of Order
* Space 1889 by GDW - Victorian Era Sci-Fi steampunk)
* Space Opera RPG) by FGU
* Spacemaster - the SF adaptation of Rolemaster
* Star Frontiers by TSR
* Star Hero - the SF adaptation of Fantasy Hero's Hero System
* Star Trek
* Star Wars - the D6 System ancestor published by West End Games
* Star Wars - the D20 System version published Wizards of the Coast
* Star Wreck RPG - a parody game based on the Star Wreck movie franchise, written by Mike Pohjola.
* Stormbringer, by Chaosium, based on Michael Moorcock's Elric of Melniboné stories
* Superworld by Chaosium
* Tales from the Floating Vagabond
* Talislanta by Bard Games
* Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and Other Strangeness by Palladium Games - based on the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles comic books.
* Teenagers from Outer Space, an anime based RPG.
* Toon - Cartoon adventure inspired by the classic cartoon series from Warner Brothers and MGM by Steve Jackson Games
* Top Secret by TSR - espionage adventure
* TORG - published by West End Games
* Traveller - by GDW, Marc Miller
* Trinity - by White Wolf
* Tunnels and Trolls by Flying Buffalo
* Unisystem by Eden Studios, Inc.
* Usagi Yojimbo - based on the furry comic book series, Usagi Yojimbo, by Stan Sakai
* Vampire: The Masquerade original World of Darkness)
* Villains and Vigilantes by Fantasy Games Unlimited
* Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay by Games Workshop
* Werewolf: The Apocalypse original World of Darkness)
* The Whispering Vault - a RPG about god-hunting
* Witchcraft
* World of Darkness original) and the World of Darkness "2.0" product line by White Wolf Game Studio
* Wraith: The Oblivion original World of Darkness)

And that's just the published stuff on the list, which is extensive but not completely comprehensive. I also want to point out the following:

1) In each of these cases, I owned at least one book from the series, that often being the core rulebook. However, in many of these cases, I had the ENTIRE series, every book from that series. For example, the first edition of the White Wolf Storytelling system was broken into five product lines, those being Changeling, Mage, Vampire, Werewolf and Wraith. I owned every single book from the first edition of all those games. Every. Last. One.

2) I did not in fact get to play all these games. I owned the rulesbooks and in many cases did play at least once, though probably half that list were games I owned but never played. The majority of my role-gaming career can be summed up as follows:
Champions (Hero System)
Dungeons and Dragons
BattleTech
MechWarrior
Palladium system games of various flavors
HârnMaster
and "The Game," a homebrewed rules set that went through a number of names before abandoning the concept of a name for it. (No one else played it, so why did it need a name?)

Dear gods, I miss table-top, "pen and paper" gaming.

nostalgia, roleplaying, memery, gaming

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