At a ripe age of 12 while perusing a gifts wish list in Playboy I came upon several Milton Bradley games on the list. Dogfight was one I didn't have, so I petitioned my Aunt to purchase it for me and we made the rounds to the Five & Dimes in Commack. The Waterloo's assistant manager indicated that they did not carry the MB line of board games, but that maybe I should try Third Reich by Avalon Hill, which was in stock. I purchased the game, studied it and was hooked.

From there thers hooked me up with other AH games, miniature wargames, chess, and shogi (Japanese chess) and eventually the Dungeons & Dragons FRP Rules by Gygax and Arneson, which added a fourth dimension to games as we knew them.

My participation in D&D was hands-on. I ran a D&D campaign pretty much non-stop from 1976-1983. In college, it was Star Trek the Role Playing Game by FASA from 1983-1989. Except for a D&D game that ran from 1997-1999, I have been a leadpusher exclusively since 1990. Warhammer, 40K, Ogre, Space Marine, Johnny Reb, and Clan War have pretty much had my undivided attention.

The greatest thing about the "fellows" gathered to game was the camaraderie, the unselfish input, the many hours spent seeing projects through to their proper conclusions, and the sheer immensity of hours, days and weeks spent playing.

The greatest treat for my 30 years in gaming has been to meet so many warm-hearted people. Those who have endeavored for pennies or less and out of love for the industry itself--out of love for the camaraderie, the fun and the ultimate enjoyment of gaming. The soul of this industry has always belonged to its fans, bless them all, for without them what are writers and designers worth, anyhow?

The rest of my story has yet to unfold. Wish me luck as I do you! And in between, let the dice continue to roll, and loudly so!