Wednesday, August 29, 2018

#RPGaDay 2018 Day 29: A Friendship I Have Because of RPGs

Welcome to Day 29 of #RPGaDay 2018!

"A Friendship I Have Because of RPGs"

So I bring to you, an Ode to Scott.

My friend Scott is one of the original members of what we uninspired called "Our High School Gaming Group." (Well before the Society of Neffs).  I don't remember sharing more than a class or two with the man, so if it were not for his previous gaming with Charles, we probably would not have realized our mutual hobbies and became friends until much later.

Scott filled in the classic role of Metalhead Gamer.  His Drunken Warrior and Stupid Ranger anchored the core of our AD&D group that ripped through the Temple of Elemental Evil.  And thanks to him, anytime my mother hears about me gaming, she asks if I have a big 'ol bag of plain M&M's.

With the recent heat wave and non-air conditioned schools dismissing early, fellow alumni reminice fondly of the day during our Junior year when a water main break closed the high school at 9:30am.  Half the school seemed to be at various impromptu parties by 11am.... and shut down by the cops by 1:30pm.

Scott and myself?  We were playing an all-day D&D session with Charles, Wooly, George, and Crazy Darryl.  There may have been pizza.

In a semester or two of community college that I attended, he was the vanguard who introduced me to a motley assortment of characters outside my home zip code... and a wacky evening Alternative radio program, "The Rusty Nail and Tetanus Show."  Those DJs were EPIC!

Despite living only a few blocks away, we've wandered in and out of gaming together (especially since Wooly's basement was Battletech HQ for quite awhile.)  He did a lot more LARPing and White Wolf with some zany individuals than I wanted to.  He did jump into my "Army Game" that I ran for my Reservist buddies and had significant impact in the "College Game"  (Now referred to as Ballad of the Pigeon God), even if he got eaten my a smaller sized Dune sandworm.   He even participated in some of the epic road trips to Buffalo for UBCon.  I won't mention any of the shenanigans he got himself into up there...
Not the UBCon Scott got hit in the groin with a belt...  or maybe it was....
Moving into the 00's, he managed some time between school and work to jump into the epic Hackmaster Burning Trogs Rule! campaign, including bringing his then-girlfriend, soon-to-be first wife Kelley to the group.

Then both of us pretended to grow up and be responsible adults.  A few games here and there.  An occasional game at SATLOF.   A fun little game of Battletech at my birthday party. Even a  big game of Risus-IOU where his current wife, Bridget,  dove into all the zaniness of a ViscountEric production.

Dude.  It's been awhile. We really need to do something... and we have enough kids between us to make up an adventuring party... or a Clan Star for Battletech.
The 90s were not kind to Scott..... and I think this was a decade later....

2 comments:

  1. Yes, that was the UBCon where Scott got hit in the groin by a belt, then fell down in between the bed & wall of the hotel room and moaned like he was dying for 45min while we watched tv and drank beer.

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  2. ... and the ice bucket showers... and off-roading on the University of Buffalo campus. Good times!

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