The ABC's of the OSR - Read It, Know It, Live It

This is a must read article for anyone treading in the water of OSR goodness. Enjoy!

Digital Orc's ABC's of the OSR

So A Geek Walks Into A Bar... Stop Me If You've Heard This One

So there's been this small, quirky comics shop in downtown Myrtle Beach for a while now. I checked it out once, but that was pre-OSR obsession, and gaming really wasn't their thing.

We Shall See

Fast forward a few years, and I hear they have remodeled the place into something called the Nerd Bar and are doing game nights, bands, beer, movies, and other very cool stuff. Today, I finally made it by there to see what all the fuss was about.

I think I have been procrastinating on doing this because I was getting tired of that disappointing feeling of thinking I'd actually discovered a good way back into RPG life. The few times I got excited about a situation, things just did not work out. If you go back a little in this blog, you'll see the type of people I don't want to game with. It seems like I've found every single one of them lately. And it's really starting to suck.


After some small talk with the owner, I started in on the most important question - "Do you have any older version D&D groups?"

And here was the answer.

"See that clipboard on the counter, one of the guys here is looking for people to play first edition."

WTF? Seriously.

"Yeah, it's the first time we've tried it. He's looking for around twelve people to have three groups going."

Really? What just happened here?

"So it's 1st Edition AD&D?" I said.

"No, the FIRST D&D, the three small books"

Get. The. F. Out.

So, I signed up.

... to be continued.

Disappointment with a Dash of Hope

TRS-80 Coolness

A few years back (ok, maybe more than a few years), I had never worked on a computer. Nope, nothin'. The closest I had been to one was my cousins Radioshack TRS-80 wayyyyy back. I did use one in college once, completely under protest, but that was it. I just didn't get computers. Even though I consider myself a huge geek, I was in my surfing, skating, metal, guitar playing phase of life and had no time or money to pursue that boring stuff.

Ironically, 90% of my job now is spent on a computer. A real computer. A Macbook Pro.

Yeah, that's right, I said it. My distain for Windows is legendary. It blows.

But, I digress.

When my brother moved near me to go to college (around 2000-2001), he gave me an older Windows 98 loaded PC. I had no idea what to do with it, but I soon learned how to get on this new internet thingy and that you could play some kick ass games with it. He gifted me a copy of Might & Magic VI and the big old cheat book for it and BAM, I was hooked!

My drug of choice

I played the crap out of that game. Played until my hand went numb. For months I probably got three hours of sleep a night because of my obsession (if that... there were more than a few all nighters). My wife was getting worried. I was crabby, irritable and loving every second of it. So what if the computer was glitchy and slow, I was so caught up in the whole thing it was like a drug.

So, I got to a point where the computer was crashing left and right, and it was time to get back to real life. I put it down, and never looked back.

Until now. I miss it. I miss it lots.

When my interest in all things OSR was reawakened a few years ago, the memories of M&M VI also reemerged. Unfortunately, the game had come and gone, a few new versions had come out, but nowhere was it available for Mac. I tried everything, but just couldn't get it to work. I had lost my old copy of it in a move, so after a few months of trying to find it, I moved on.

I tried a few other games, Diablo was cool, World of Warcraft was alright, but none of them had the kitsch of M&M. But then, I saw hope on the horizon! A new M&M was coming, it was in an early release mode, with full release coming in early 2014! With a Mac version! Sweet!

Well, that has now come and gone. No Mac version as promised.

So, I will watch and wait. I will hold on to my dreams of New Sorpigal and the Dragoons, of the      a-hole Kreegans and the evil they brought to Enroth. I will hope, just a little, for my heroes to return to glory, to look death in the face and say boastfully, "We have survived the long years and thirst for battle!"

... and to stay up until 4am every night after consuming large quantities of Mountain Dew and Gummi Bears. To beat a computer game. Damn right.