Welcome! If you're reading this blog, you must be interested in pencil-and-paper role-playing games--especially of the "old-school" variety. I certainly am. That's why I decided to start writing this blog. I like these kinds of games. I like to play them, I like to run them, and I like to talk about them.
For anyone reading this blog, I hope that you feel the same way. I hope that you look forward to these blog entries and that they make your own RPG sessions more enjoyable and fulfilling. As far as I'm concerned, that's what really matters. Are we all having a good time when we sit down at the game table with our friends to play these games? If we're not, all the blog entries in the world won't make a bit of difference. We might as well go watch football on TV, garden in the backyard, or participate in any of the hundreds of other hobbies and leisure-time activities that 21st-century people enjoy. And, let's face it, out there in the wider world, the old caricatures of RPG players as nerds and social misfits die hard. I've titled my own blog "Not My Parents' Basement" in order to poke some gentle fun at these stereotypes. Given these still-prevalent attitudes, I think it's especially important that playing these games be FUN. Otherwise, why bother?
Now, as you read this, I suspect that many of you may also be thinking, "Do we really need another blog dedicated to "old-school" RPGs?" There are all sorts of great blogs out there that focus on these games. I've linked to three of them here: Greyhawk Grognard, Dreams in the Lich House, and Tenkar's Tavern. I read these blogs almost every day. You should too. They are interesting. They are thought-provoking. And, most important of all for anyone interested in role-playing games, they are inspiring. I can only hope that I will write as well about role-playing games as these bloggers do. These three are not the only ones either. The Internet boasts a veritable treasure-house of RPG riches, ripe for the taking.
In light of all that, here's my honest answer to the question of whether the world really needs another blog like this one: it doesn't. The world, and the Old-School Role-Playing community in particular, would go on just fine without it. But I don't think that really matters in the final analysis. I'm writing this blog for myself and for anyone else who happens to read it. If these entries stimulate the intellect, foster creativity, and--most important of all--make all our gaming sessions more fun, then that's good enough for me. The rest will take care of itself.
In my next entry, I will explain a little more about myself, my interests, and the RPG I'm currently running. Until then, I wish you good gaming!
