The Origins of RPGs

While the late Gary Gygax is universally hailed as the father of the RPG as we know it, one cannot forget his inspirations for Dungeons and Dragons. Robert E. Howard is plainly listed as one of his primary inspirations for creating D&D in the 1970's, and anyone who has read his Sword and Sorcery work will see why.

Robert Howard created Kull the Conquerer and Conan the Cimmerian, which were of great inspiration to Mister Gygax when he created his game. One can see the influences in this pop culture gaming icon's work rather readily, especially in early versions of the game where the settings are openly used. Gary always professed to be a fan of Howard's creations, and is sorely missed by both the roleplaying community and the fandom of Robert E. Howard.

I bring this up because I just came home today from the 2008 Robert E. Howard Days and Barbarian Festival in his home town of Cross Plains, Texas. One of the keynote speakers brought up a personal conversation he'd had with Mister Gygax about Robert E. Howard's influences on his games and ideas, and it reminded me - sometimes, the origins of a game can be more interesting and rewarding than the gamer would ever believe until they've tried.

I encourage all gamers, whether they play video games, table tops, miniatures, or live action games to investigate the humble beginnings of their games. On the way, they may well come across something that opens a whole new world for them. The whole wide world awaits.