My nephew grew old, he became profoundly interested in fantasy rpg's, came to me and asked: "Many beautiful things happened before i even opened my eyes. It is as if i woke up late in an hour of the day where all the best events already took place. So, what should i do to recover the time lost, if there is a way to do so, which i am no certain about?
My dear (i replied), first and foremost you should learn the very basics, the fundamentals-as a minimum, i urge you to discover the Original Dungeons & Dragons, and then pass to the so-called Advanced, which in itself may suffice to all your needs, today and tomorrow.
Is there more?
Yes, there is. Should you ever be unsatisfied, keep in mind that the manuals alone are not enough. If you are still thirsty, go and find the magazines where many scholars delved and reasoned about every conceivable aspects of that venerable game.
But- if i learnt AD&D, will my background be sturdy enough as to be able to understand any fantasy rpg's that might cross my road? Again, will it suffice?
No, it won't. But it could require a lifetime for you in order to learn AD&D in all its majestic profoundity.
after that, you can rest at your will.
This is an amazing story, please tell me something else. My ears are open now as they will never be again.
Oh..listen then, and don't forget that there were others who barely realized the passing of AD&D, they spent their strenght elsewhere, they wanted to imagine in a different way-as an example they landed here, and stayed there forever. If you have doubts concerning the different kinds of sensations and feelings you are able to experience taking such a different path, i want to soothe you now and assure you they were different indeed. Up to the point you will have to choose which of those paths to take in your life- i rarely encountered persons who lived fully both.
But please tell me, is there even more?
What do you mean, where are you intentioned to arrive?
I want to see the recesses of fantasy, explore what other minds conceived, what other hearts were able to imagine, i want to collect the love that dripped from their hearts when they wrote what they wrote.
So, you'll find yourself alone in that voyage. Be aware of that. You'll have as company only your craving and their sparkling thoughts.
If you ever turn your shoulders from the long road, you'll find persons who dared conceive other facets of fantasy, some who laughed in front of Dungeons & Dragons, others who scorned it, and others who just left it with a tear on their cheek, knowing it would never have quenched their desires.
These tomes that you desire are piled in forgotten libraries, shunned by many players you once gamed with. You will soon discover that they just couldn't bear their shining light or could not comprehend it. But sometimes they just were not in need of it, so please do not ever scold them or lambast them. They are your brothers and sisters in any case.
So, you are free to listen to me or ignore my advice entirely- maybe i cheated you.
But you wanted to know what you missed,so i started telling you this odd story.
No comments:
Post a Comment