Events & Play Wednesday - D&D @ Gary's House & ExtraLife4Kids

A small but dedicated band of gamers got together on Saturday, August 24th, 2019, to game for twelve hours and raise money for "Extra Life 4 Kids."

The place was 330 Center Street in Lake Geneva, WI, the former home of Gary Gygax, the place where he first published the original Dungeons & Dragons.  The games were 5th Edition Dungeons & Dragons, four sessions, each DMed by a skilled storyteller for a handful of intrepid player-adventurers, some with gaming experience that dates back to when Gary still resided and ran games in this storied home.

One of the players involved was the youngest son of Gary, Alex Gygax, and another was a grandson of Gary's, Mike Gygax.  The event was streamed live as viewers could pledge to the cause and doing so allowed the benefactor to give support to either the players or the Dungeon Master with re-rolls, advantage, critical hits, healing potions, magic items, and even naming the characters.  The event raised over three thousand dollars in donations!

This is the first time a D&D game was live-streamed from this historic site.  Yolanda Frontany and her husband, the current owners of the home, were kind enough to allow this event to take place.  They've been very generous opening up this treasured location for gamers from time to time, particularly during the Gary Con Gaming Convention, an annual event started by Luke Gygax to commemorate the many achievements of the father of roleplaying games.  It's a celebration happening every March in Lake Geneva which highlights Old School gaming.

John Gilbert was a player and the Extra Life coordinator (with special thanks to Jason O'Brien) while Bill Allan was the producer, as well as being a DM and player.  Working with Bill on the technical side of the event were the director, David Karaffa, and Tony K adding technical support (as well as playing in the final game).  Alongside Bill, the DMs also included Larry Hamilton, Fenway Jones, and Travis Taube.  I was also honored to be asked to play in the event.

The event streamed on Twitch and has since been uploaded to YouTube and there is a playlist for the full event to watch here.

Events & Play Wednesday on CreativeMountainGames.com 

News of Conventions and Gamedays as well as pictures

from those I have attended and games I have played.

Please Like, Share, Plus, Tweet, Follow, and Comment!

RPG Media Monday - D&D Played for ExtraLife4Kids!

On Saturday, John Gilbert and a group of D&D players (including myself) gathered at the former Gygax house in Lake Geneva at 330 Center St to play some 5E D&D for the Extra Life 4 Kids charity and raised over $3K.  It was streamed on Twitch and I snagged a few behind the scenes photos.

RPG Media Monday on CreativeMountainGames.com 

News for Movies, Television, and more
of gamer-relevant Media.

Please Like, Share, Plus, Tweet, Follow, and Comment!

Events & Play Wednesday - Con of the Lakes 2019

The second annual Con of the Lakes, a small fundraising gaming convention based in Twin Lakes, WI, and hosted at the American Legion Post #544 with room for 125 gamers, took place last Saturday, June 22nd, 2019.  This year it included wargaming, boardgaming, and RPGs.  The 2019 convention successfully raised funds for Women's and Childrens Horizons in Kenosha, WI.  It's a wonderful, one-day event run by family and friends and featuring some of the finest game designers and game masters like Nancy Hutchins and Tom Wham.

 

Events & Play Wednesday on CreativeMountainGames.com 

News of Conventions and Gamedays as well as pictures

from those I have attended and games I have played.

Please Like, Share, Plus, Tweet, Follow, and Comment!

Saturday Crowdfunding Roundup - Champions of Aetaltis, Epic Card Game, & the Army of Steptos

A couple of Kickstarters first and then a call for assistance for a gamer in trouble.  Let's start with "Champions of Aetaltis: A Heroic Fantasy Anthology" by Marc Tassin.  It's getting close to funded and these last ten days should put it over the top.  See more here.

Also, check out "Epic Card Game" by Robert Dougherty.  It's got some fine artwork associated with it already and though is has a couple weeks left in the campaign, it has already climbed extremely high.  Take a look here.

Finally, a tragedy has struck Stephen Jamie Toulouse but you can join the Army of Steptos on youcaring.com to help crowdsource some assistance here.

Saturday Crowdfunding Roundup on CreativeMountainGames.com 

Keeping an eye on those Kickstarter & IndieGoGo
projects plus other crowdfunding efforts.

Please Like, Share, Plus, Tweet, Follow, and Comment!

The Friday Grab Bag - Lloyd Metcalf, SimonTodd, & the RPG Creators Relief Fund

There are some fine independent artists working in the RPG field these days and one of the many bright spots is Lloyd Metcalf.  Learn about his background and check out his artwork here.

Another artist that also bears mentioning is Simon Todd.  He's got an Etsy store with some wonderful pieces you can check out here.

In their own words, "The Roleplaying Game Creators Relief Fund (RCRF) is a charitable organization founded to provide financial assistance to tabletop roleplaying game creators suffering hardship due to medical emergencies, natural disasters, and other catastrophic situations."  You can join in the support here.

And The Tome Show recently did a show featuring "Hal Greenberg, Steven Long, and Rachel Ventura, who are all on the board of RPG Creator's Relief Fund. They discuss this new charity which sells RPG bundles and uses the money to support freelance game designers and artists who have suffered a sudden tragedy. This podcast was recorded on November 16, 2014."  Learn more here.

The Friday Grab Bag on CreativeMountainGames.com 

Essentially, a clearinghouse for topics not covered
elsewhere or needing a particular focus.

Please Like, Share, Plus, Tweet, Follow, and Comment!

The Gamers: Hands Of Fate Necktie

Jen Page wore a specific necktie during the filming of The Gamers: Hands Of Fate.  It is blood red and little crossbows all over it.  Thus, it is very cool in and of itself.  However, she has put it up on eBay and is sending 10% of the proceeds to Save the Children: Emergency Response, so that makes it even cooler.  See more here!

Ernie Gygax Relief Fund and GM's Day Sale Ending

I've got one more thing to add to the GM's Day sale as it winds to a close this year and this one has some history attached to it.  As many know, I've been a tabletop gamer since the early 70s and a RPGer since D&D came out in 1974.  A few years ago, i got to know my buddy Ernie a bit better than just to spot him or nod at conventions despite seeing him around since my first Gen Con in 1975.  We started gaming together a bit more and I've gotten to know him rather well and call him a good friend.

Sadly, about a year ago, the building on the East end of Lake Geneva, WI, where Ernie had an apartment caught fire. He lost a great deal of his personal belongings, including a lot of games and particular gaming-related memorabilia that can never be replaced.  His brother Luke kindly set up a Fire Relief Fund to help him get back on his feet.  Folks have been helping and he even got a place to stay until he could acquire a more permanent dwelling.  But his troubles for last year didn't end there.

In late November, Ernie suffered from a bout of congestive heart failure.  He was hospitalized for a handful of days and still has regular visits, to make sure he won't have another episode. The medical situation and bills that piling up has kept him in his temporary location longer than he'd like.  His physical situation also leaves him was some restrictions regarding getting a new residence in that he cannot climb stairs except in an emergency and he has a service dog.

So here's what I have done to help.  Some time after the fire last year I began work on an adventure.  It is themed around fire and has some inside references to gaming, the history of gaming, and the Lake Geneva area.  I worked it out with Luke to sell this adventure and send 33% of the proceeds to the Ernie Gygax Relief Fund (originally the Ernie Gygax Fire Relief Fund, and still named so, but it now needs to be so much more).  Hopefully, so who may not have donated or now can go a little further, can pick up this fun, system-neutral adventure and assist Ernie in the process.

Check out the adventure here!

Thank you in advance for your help.

Dungeon Bastard's Maps on eBay

Over on Bay, the Dungeon Bastard has put up his maps from The Worst Dungeon Crawl Ever that he drew for his event at Gen Con 2013. The proceeds are going to "Mackenzie's Animal Sanctuary in Lake Odessa Michigan. Mackenzie's is the largest dog rescue in the Midwest and gets dogs from local county animal controls that would have to be euthanized. The dogs are rehabilitated (medically and behaviorally) and then adopted to their forever homes." See more here!

Ernie Gygax Fire Relief Trust Fund

I recently mentioned the tragic situation that has befallen Ernie Gygax in Lake Geneva, his apartment fire leaving him homeless and the many irreplaceable heirlooms and collectibles lost forever.  Well now a way to help has been set up by his brother Luke and other concerned friends in the form of the Ernie Fire Relief Trust Fund.  Read more here on the Gygax Magazine website.

Artist Daniel Somerville Assistance Fund

Artist Daniel Somerville has gone through some rough times, undergoing brain cancer surgery, so some friends have set up an assistance fund to help with the bills through Indiegogo.com.  Read more here and here and see if it moves you to help.

The Jeff Freels Transplant Fund

The good folks from FieryDragon.com have been spreading the word about helping a fellow community member in dire need.  Jeff Freels, and artist that maybe is best known for his contributions to Tunnels & Trolls, has been struggling with medical conditions his whole life, particularly with his ever-failing vision.  Through all of this, and even though his wife Racquel has had kidney failure, they have managed  to keep their outlooks positive.  Unfortunately, things have gotten even worse and Jeff's degenerative condition is causing kidney failure for him.  They have been through this with Racquel, so they have a very good idea what they are facing and Jeff needs a transplant.  If you can help them with a donation, you might consider giving a little something to their Jeff Freels Transplant Fund as soon as you are able.

Susan G. Komen 3-Day for the Cure

Creative Mountain Games is proud to be supporting the Susan G. Komen 3-Day for the Cure with prize support for one walker's raffle.  You can get more details and find out how to purchase raffles tickets here!

Legend RPG from Rule of Cool

Just a quick shout out to the good folks at Rule of Cool for the release of their Legend RPG.  All of the proceeds from sales of Legend go to Child's Play, which "seeks to improve the lives of children in hospitals around the world."

Wargaming Against Hunger

There's an effort going on just north of the US/Canadian border in Langley, B.C., that I thought should draw some more attention.  Here's an article on the Langley Advance news website that gamers should check out!