In Which We Learn That Richard Garriott Inspired “Ready Player One’s” James Halliday
Ernest Cline, author of Ready Player One, has penned a blog post explaining how Richard Garriott partly inspired the character of James Halliday in the novel. (And if you need a reference for the term Anorak, go here.)
In case you were like me when you read the blurb here (“Yeah, whatever, who gives a shit?”), actually read TFA:
http://www.ernestcline.com/blog/2011/10/19/how-lord-british-inspired-anorak/
It’s not long and worth the time. And it has audio of Garriott in a D&D session acting like his usual crazy self.
The D&D session is well worth a listen. One gets the sense that Richard Garriott is a whimsical and dangerous GM.
Heh heh. I could probably give him a run for his money. One time I was DMing and a player wasn’t taking the game seriously, not role playing and all that. He suddenly found himself possessed by a spirit of madness and I described to him in detail how he walked to the edge of a seaside cliff and cast himself down to the rocks. It took him a minute to fully digest that I’d just killed him and he was out of the game. Priceless…
Oh, I’ve known GMs to do a few wild and wacky things over the years. A number of my friends have played — and many still do play — D&D or some other P&P RPG. Strangely, I’ve never really caught that bug; I’ve played a grand total of perhaps three sessions in my entire life. Four, if you include TROGDOR! Quest.
I actually miss it. The thing I discovered (after playing as a player rather than a DM), is that the DM makes all the difference. To me a bad DM is one who knows all the rules lets you know it. A good DM may or may not know the rules, but tells a convincing story off the top of their head such that not only do you fail to notice how well they know the rules but you just don’t care. A good DM paints a picture of every moment, sound, smell and reaction to what you do as a player. They are the “engine” providing you with infinitely detailed feedback the world offers as the players act. A good DM can roll the dice and not even look at them and still provide you with an unforgettable experience that is a real (if not moreso) than any fantasy novel. The best D&D session is, essentially, the ultimate “choose your adventure” book.