'DUNGEONS & DRAGONS' CREATOR 'ROLLS' INTO HEAVEN

B”H

OK, not Jewish, not Israeli, but, I think, an important figure to Jewish geeks everywhere. I don’t know about you, but I played this game with relish (I had a 24th level magic user with psyonic abilities!).

D&D gave birth to all the role-playing games of today’s video world. I am convinced that Tomb Raider, Diablo, Legend of Zelda, Oblivion, Assassin's Creed, etc. would not exist if it weren’t for D&D (We would all probably be playing the closely related but not as addictive “war games” without it!)

I remember sitting for hours with friends, 20-sided dice, and a lot of graph paper in the early eighties. Between D&D and long poker games, I don’t know what I would have done with my time! (Written a novel? Composed a Symphony? . . . )

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By TIM PERONE and DAVID K. LI
http://www.nypost.com/seven/03052008/news/regionalnews/dungeons__dragons_creator_rolls_into_hea_100524.htm

March 5, 2008 -- Gary Gygax, co-creator of board game Dungeons & Dragons, rolled his last 20-sided die yesterday and passed away to his ultimate castle in the sky.

He was 69.

Gygax had been in failing health for years, and most recently had suffered an abdominal aneurysm.

But the weakened Gygax still enjoyed regular "Dungeon and Dragons" games at his Lake Geneva, Wis., home as recently as January, said his wife, Gail Gygax.

"It really meant a lot to him to hear from people from over the years about how he helped them become a doctor, a lawyer, a policeman, what he gave them," Gail Gygax said. "He really enjoyed that."

In 1974, Gygax and Dave Arneson introduced their first edition of D&D - and quickly sold out 1,000 copies.

"Wow, I'm incredibly sad," said D&D enthusiast Jose Nagron at the Midtown game store Compleat Strategist.

Nagron, a 30-year-old elevator porter from the Upper West Side who plays in a weekly D&D game, thanked Gygax for 16 years of fun with friends.

"D&D's a good opportunity to hang out with friends and pass the time," he said.

Rich Armstrong, an analyst for Google, has rolled D&D dice since 1982 and still keeps a 20-sided die on his desk.

"I waited until my fourth date to tell my fiancée I played D&D," said a laughing Armstong, who lives on the Upper East Side. "We took the mockery and nerd-ery as a badge of honor." With Post Wire Services