Roleplayers Chronicle is proud to announce that a regular columnist has signed-up to publish a regular article series titled Tales from the Gazebo. The articles will feature on Wednesday nights and we hope that you truly enjoy this gamer’s perspective.
Before we get started, introductions are in order. My name is Cape Rust. Yes, Cape Rust! Cape is a family name and come to think of it, so is Rust. In writing this article, I will attempt to cover some emerging topics in the RPG world as well as give you some tips and advice I’ve gained from my time throwing “polys”. I view gaming as a community and with all communities, there are different “neighborhoods” with their own unique quirks and personalities. Having said that, I am interested in trying to cover a wide variety of topics and games. Now, soon to be loyal readers, I’m sure you are asking, “What qualifies this guy to write about RPGs?” The answer is simple. NOTHING! There is no school that I have attended that has given me a Masters degree in “RPGs.” I don’t claim to know it all and you might not like all of my opinions, but remember, opinions are like underarms: Everyone has them and they all stink.
Now is the predictable part, where I give my gamer credentials and tell you about all of the different colored “boxes” I’ve played. We’ll skip the whole “I played the original red box and had to color in my own dice” discussion. All of those things are great but they don’t always make a great gamer. In fact, I’ve seen it ruin a few. Before I put you to sleep with my gamer cred, I’d like to fill you in on what I have done and do away from the table. I was born and raised in San Antonio, Texas. I joined the US Army right after high school as a Military Policeman and got to go to lots of great places like Korea, the Balkans, and Germany, to name a few. I then decided to change jobs and go into Military Intelligence, had fun with that, then made a family decision to get out of the Army. I got a job training African Soldiers for peacekeeping missions and now I train Army staffs on how to combat Improvised Explosive Devices. I do not live in my parents’ basement, in fact I am married with two teen aged girls, who rock out loud. I love technology, reading, and community theatre and sadly know way too much about dog breeds and their history.
As for gaming, I have gamed off and on for over 20 years. Some games were good, some were bad, and some will never be mentioned again, ever! I have gotten to enjoy quite a few systems and genres during my time at the table and enjoy getting the chance to try new systems. I am more of a role player than a roll player but I’m not above “optimizing” my characters. I try to play a variety of characters but I have found it hard to escape from my outgoing nature. I’ve played quite a few bards and “face men” – I blame those bad habits on Community Theater. A majority of my game time has been with D&D but it is by no means the holy grail of gaming.
I’ve also played some bad systems that were great because of the people I got to game with. I know that not every gaming session will be great, but as long as I’m gaming, it’s all good. Join us next week when you learn why in the hell I’m calling this Tales from the Gazebo.