I have to admit that I am some what of a gamer that is still in the closet. I have not told my family that I partake in roleplaying games (RPG). Not that I am worried that they would make fun of me, but most of them do not even now what role-playing is even about. I have a brother that plays WOW, or not, I think he is back to EverQuest. I had never had any contact with anyone that played games like Dungeons and Dragons (D&D) or RuneQuest when I was younger. Then in 2009 I started dating the man that would become my husband. When I asked him what he liked to do he told me that he roleplayed. When I asked what he meant, he told me he played games like D&D. He told me he was playing in a pirate game and something about vampires. I was a little surprised, as I thought gamers were geeks and very wierd. I started doing research about what D&D was and my big mistake was looking on wiki and reading some of the information on it. I think that I questioned "D" over and over about some of the information that I was on wiki. I just was not sure what it was all about.
After dating for about 2 1/2 years, I decided I needed show some interest in what this was all about. D's house was full of gaming books and he had a friend that lent me a book about girl gamers and some understanding about what RPG's were all about. So I read the book and even skimmed over some of the books that D had. I was fasinated with the stories and some of the concepts that seemed to be involved with RPGs. D ran a one on one using the Pathfinder system. It was after that game that I wanted to play more and gain more knowlegede of how this all worked. D has a friend that invited us over to play a couple of play tests and it was so much fun. I tended to be the player who would choose to play a barbarian and kick the crap out of other non-player characters (NPC). I felt empowered to have this character who would go in, kick butt, and take loot.
My first real RPG was All Flesh Must Be Eaten. I played a survivalist that loved guns and could craft her own bullets. This game was about a zombie outbreak wherein four other players and I had to survive while figuring out what caused the outbreak. It was great to bring me in as a rookie player and surrounded by 4 guys that have been playing for a while. I learned a lot from this experience, the most important point, that I needed to always stay with the group. This game pushed me to my limits at times, getting upset with the game master or the other players. I struggled to learn how to play with the different personalities not only from the players, but also the players' characters. This is also something I still struggle with from time to time. I think I am starting to get a hold on it, but sometimes I want to scream.
This first game also taught me a lot about what I wanted out of a character. I wanted someone who was strong, but with some sort of a weakness that would make me lean on the other players. Someone that could get the job done that was being asked of her, but at the same time making the mistakes that needed to be made to get farther in the game. I am still learning the curves of role playing and like learning about new games.
I am currently in a game, with 3 other people, that D is running. So far, my character is an Elf barbarian that does not know magic. I know it was a little extreme for a setting where almost all Elves cast magic and I can not wait to see where this game goes. This will be a big topic on my blog. As the game progresses I plan on using this blog as my journal and put down my thoughts about the game and how I think I am doing as a woman gamer. I should tell you that D was the game master (GM) on the zombie game that I played in as well.
This blog will also post reviews about books that I read and even board and card games that I play. I will also be posting pictures of my wonderful stiletto heels that I love to wear and the good times that I have with my other gamer women.
So in ending this first post, I hope that you look forward to reading as much as I look forward to giving you a little insight into a stiletto wearing gamer girl.
