Jon Peterson
@increment.bsky.social
Author of game histories, mostly wargames and role-playing games. Playing at the World, Elusive Shift, Game Wizards, Dungeons & Dragons Art & Arcana, Making of OD&D, Heroes’ Feast, etc.
Maybe someday - up to @mitpress.bsky.social really, but the more demand for it, the better change something might happen...
August 16, 2025 at 1:40 PM
Maybe someday - up to @mitpress.bsky.social really, but the more demand for it, the better change something might happen...
Hey @chrisperkinsdnd.bsky.social can you ping me at jon at unreason re: Gen Con? Wanted to get you an invite to something...
July 15, 2025 at 6:58 PM
Hey @chrisperkinsdnd.bsky.social can you ping me at jon at unreason re: Gen Con? Wanted to get you an invite to something...
(My short essay in the MITP "Fifty Years of D&D" anthology is basically dedicated to identifying what was novel about dungeoneering and experience in Blackmoor vs. early wargames.)
July 15, 2025 at 5:20 PM
(My short essay in the MITP "Fifty Years of D&D" anthology is basically dedicated to identifying what was novel about dungeoneering and experience in Blackmoor vs. early wargames.)
Veterancy systems (units get better by surviving battles) were pretty common in wargames of the 1960/70s. Accumulating points to advance in rank was in other games like Armageddon (German) before D&D. The term "level" though seems connected to dungeoneering and to Blackmoor / Twin Cities practice.
July 15, 2025 at 5:19 PM
Veterancy systems (units get better by surviving battles) were pretty common in wargames of the 1960/70s. Accumulating points to advance in rank was in other games like Armageddon (German) before D&D. The term "level" though seems connected to dungeoneering and to Blackmoor / Twin Cities practice.
Reposted by Jon Peterson
The second volume of Jon Peterson's new edition of "Playing at the World" focuses on the three pillars of role-playing games to provide a deep dive into the history of the setting, system, and characters of Dungeons & Dragons. @increment.bsky.social: mitpress.mit.edu/978026255231...
April 8, 2025 at 6:11 PM
The second volume of Jon Peterson's new edition of "Playing at the World" focuses on the three pillars of role-playing games to provide a deep dive into the history of the setting, system, and characters of Dungeons & Dragons. @increment.bsky.social: mitpress.mit.edu/978026255231...
Taking the question literally, probably Commando (1979): "A role-playing game is a game in which several players assume the role of a character or person in an imaginary (or simulated) world" etc. But lots of descriptions that fall short of formal definitions went in print beforehand.
March 25, 2025 at 10:10 PM
Taking the question literally, probably Commando (1979): "A role-playing game is a game in which several players assume the role of a character or person in an imaginary (or simulated) world" etc. But lots of descriptions that fall short of formal definitions went in print beforehand.
The best early description I know of is Charles Grant in 1954 Bulletin No. 2, talking about playing by the Bantock-Cass rules in 1952. It singles out how play is "governed entirely by the throw of the dice" and how "each individual in combat is considered," morale rules, and so on.
March 6, 2025 at 1:56 AM
The best early description I know of is Charles Grant in 1954 Bulletin No. 2, talking about playing by the Bantock-Cass rules in 1952. It singles out how play is "governed entirely by the throw of the dice" and how "each individual in combat is considered," morale rules, and so on.
I haven't looked at any Slingshots that late, so that's news to me, nice find.
March 6, 2025 at 1:55 AM
I haven't looked at any Slingshots that late, so that's news to me, nice find.
I don't think the Bantock-Cass rules were published as such, just widely used in the British Model Soldier Society. I just go by the many accounts published of playing by the rules in the BMSS Bulletin from the mid-1950s to the early 1960s.
March 4, 2025 at 6:56 PM
I don't think the Bantock-Cass rules were published as such, just widely used in the British Model Soldier Society. I just go by the many accounts published of playing by the rules in the BMSS Bulletin from the mid-1950s to the early 1960s.
Employment-related stuff is mostly relegated to Game Wizards, not PatW. He basically had odd jobs, including doing some painting, working as a ticket taker, and so on. He hoped to open a travel agency, and he ended up reusing its name for his own game company later: Adventures Unlimited.
February 11, 2025 at 6:45 PM
Employment-related stuff is mostly relegated to Game Wizards, not PatW. He basically had odd jobs, including doing some painting, working as a ticket taker, and so on. He hoped to open a travel agency, and he ended up reusing its name for his own game company later: Adventures Unlimited.