Today, enjoy this conversation between 3rd edition D&D lead designer Jonathan Tweet and TTRPG historians Shannon Appelcline and Ben Riggs! They discuss one of the hotbeds of gaming ferment, St. Olaf College, which produced nerd legends like Lisa Stevens, Mark Rein-Hagen, Nicole Lindroos, and Tweet himself. Then they move on to discuss one of the most influential games of all time: ARS MAGICA.

Because Ben is a nerd, he wrote poems introducing the pair of them:

 

This is a poem named Jonathan Tweet: 

Behold the mage of rules, whose art is deep,

The spellwright bold, our guest Jonathan Tweet.

From ARS MAGICA’s birth to d20’s grand reign,

His hand has shaped the games that fire the brain.

With visions vast, mechanics deft and true,

He forged new worlds for countless fans to view.

Tonight we call his wisdom to our show,

To learn how tales of wizards first did grow.

 

This is a poem named Shannon Appelcline:

Behold the sage who tracks our gaming lore,

The chronicler of nerdy days of yore.

From Designers & Dragons he drops the whole score,

The wins, the fails, the beefs, the stats, and more.

So buckle up folks, ‘cause tonight we’re online,

With gaming’s hot chronicler, Shannon Appelcline.

 

You can find Shannon's latest history, THIS IS FREE TRADER BEOWULF, here.

 

Jonathan suggest you check out his book on evolution for kids, GRANDMOTHER FISH, here.

 

And you can always buy Ben's book, SLAYING THE DRAGON: A SECRET HISTORY OF DUNGEONS & DRAGONS, which is excellent, here.