Appendix N: Bearly Considered
I haven’t put much thought into this post, but it seems like a good opportunity to get a post up (which I’m horrible about). Also I have a really spotty memory, so we’ll see how it comes out.
I didn’t start playing RPGs until the end of high school when D&D 3e released. I didn’t really get into reading fantasy fiction until late middle school or early high school. Because of that, there won’t be much of it on this list.
ZooBooks Magazine, National Geographic, and Popular Science
I had a subscription to ZooBooks when I was growing up. I loved it. All sorts of animals, so much interesting information. I can’t say my love for wildlife started here, but this didn’t hurt it any. I also loved reading my dad’s National Geographic and Popular Science magazines. I’ve always had a fascination with understanding how the natural world works and these were early insights into that. I still love including mundane animals in my games in all sorts of forms.
The Hardy Boys and Encyclopedia Brown
The earliest fiction I remember reading. Mystery and adventure being pursued by a small group. I don’t run explicit mysteries in my RPG campaigns, at least not in this style. But I do include a lot of non-explicit mysteries as ways for the party to learn more about the world. The Encyclopedia Brown stories have also influenced my tendency to frame opportunities for the party through the lends of helping the local community (or a member of it) in some way or another.
Great Illustrated Classics
The rest of the early fiction I remember reading: Charles Dickens, HG Wells, Jules Verne, Alexander Dumas, Mark Twain, James Fenimore Cooper, Robert Louis Stevenson. This series was my first exposure to all of them. They were and still are hugely influential on me. I’ve returned and read many of the full versions of these in adulthood (and this is a good reminder to put the rest in my list for a read).
I don’t know if it’s possible to sum up the influence these have all had on me or my gaming. They could be an Appendix N all to itself. I think I can trace my love for 17th and 18th century aesthetics and muzzle-loading firearms to some of these adventure stories.
The Belgariad & The Mallorean
I’d be remiss if I didn’t include at least one fantasy series on this list. I don’t think this was the first one I read, and it’s not my favorite (not even my favorite by this author), but I can’t deny the influence it’s had. It has all the staple elements of classic high fantasy: prophecy, evil god, powerful artifacts, wizards, and a chosen one.
It was the worldbuilding that really hooked me. That’s not really a huge surprise though. Some of it is definitely simplistic (or archetypal to be kinder) in hindsight, but it was fascinating to high school Teddy. Cool monsters though, when they show up.
Godzilla
I don’t remember what my first exposure to Godzilla was, but I watched the VHS of the 60s or 70s films I had so much that they wore out. I don’t even think it was my first exposure to monster movies, but it’s definitely related. There’s some goofiness in the old Godzilla films (okay, a lot of goofiness in some of them) but they still took themselves seriously. That’s influenced my approach to the strange and weird in my own work. No matter how odd or goofy or obviously derivative I make something, it’s still treated seriously within the game world.
Saturday Morning Cartoons
Where to start with these? Thundercats, GI Joe, and Thundarr the Barbarian stand out the most here. These have all contributed heavily to the science-fantasy streak I indulge in sometimes. They all feature fantastical technology or a blend of technology and magic that seemed so prevalent in 80s fantasy (for a non-animated example, see the movie Krull).
Warcraft
This is my last entry for this list. As far as I can recall, Warcraft and Warcraft II were my first exposures to D&D-adjacent fantasy with orcs, goblins, elves, dwarves, etc, as well as my first exposure to strategy games beyond checkers, chess, and risk. Before these games, I mostly played puzzle games or flight simulators on the computer (Red Baron 2 and X-Wing vs Tie Fighter both saw a lot of playtime).
While Warcraft directly influenced some of my early ROG adventures and worldbuilding, it’s long lasting impact has been once I began to see the influences it took from D&D and how it adapted and changed them. This encouraged me to do the same, letting me branch out and really look at anything as a potential source for game and worldbuilding ideas.
Warhammer Fantasy Battle
Alright, I was wrong. This is definitely my last entry. WFB was my first exposure to tabletop gaming that wasn’t board games. The dark nature of the world was a sharp change of pace from everything else I was familiar with at the time, but even then, it wasn’t afraid to be weird or unusual. The Lizardmen of Warhammer are such a major influence that I default to a similar depictions when using them in games, just like I default to medieval stereotypical fantasy for most of the standard kindreds.
I can probably expand on more or all of these entries in their own blog posts and maybe I will. I might even revisit some of them. I know there’s a few I haven’t seen or read in over 25 years. It’d be nice to refamiliarize myself with them again after all this time.