Playing at the World, 2E, Volume 2: Three Pillars of Role-Playing Games

The second volume of two in a new, updated edition of the 2012 book Playing at the World, which charts the vast and complex history of role-playing games. The second volume of two in a new, updated edition of the 2012 book Playing at the World, which charts the vast and complex history of role-playing games. This new edition of Playing at the World is the second of two volumes that update the 720-page original tome of the same name from 2012. This second volume is The Three Pillars of Role-Playing Games, a deep dive into the history of the setting, system, and characters of Dungeons & Dragons-the three pillars indicated by the volume's title. (The first volume of the new edition is The Invention of Dungeons & Dragons, which explores the publication and reception of that iconic game.) In this second volume, Jon Peterson covers the medieval fantasy setting-the first pillar-and addresses why the first role-playing game evolved around fantasy and medieval settings as opposed to some other historical setting. In the second pillar, the author explores how the rules of wargames, from their roots in chess variants from eighteenth-century Germany, developed into those of role-playing games. Finally, the third pillar focuses on character, perhaps the most elusive of the three pillars, and investigates how precedents governed the introduction of characters to games more so than the original D&D rule books. Filled with unparalleled archival research (from obscure fanzines to letters, drafts, and other ephemera), this new edition of Playing at the World is the ultimate geek's guide to the original RPG. As such, it is an indispensable resource for academics and game fans exploring the origins of the hobby.

Table of Contents:
Contents
General Introduction to the Three Pillars
Pillar I: Setting The Medieval Fantasy Genre
Preface to the First Pillar
I.1 The Evolution of Fantasy
I.2 War and its Opponents
I.3 The Influence of Tolkien
I.4 Portal Fantasies
I.5 On Dungeons and On Dragons
I.6 Fantastic People and Creatures
I.7 Classes
I.8 Alignment and Parties
I.9 Economics and Equipment
I.10 Beyond Dungeons and Beyond Dragons
Pillar II: System The Rules of the Game
Preface to the Second Pillar
II.1 A History of Wargames
II.2 System in Dungeons & Dragons
Pillar III: Character Playing Roles
Preface to the Third Pillar
III.1 Coalitions at RAND and in Diplomacy
III.2 From “Let’s Pretend” to Coventry
III.3 Personalities by Post
III.4 Improvisation and Anachronism
III.5 Hyboria and the Campaign as Story
III.6 The Midgard Phenomenon
III.7 Characters and Role-Playing
A Note on Sources
Selected Bibliography
Index

About the Author :
Jon Peterson is a New York Times-bestselling author and Hugo Award finalist. He is the author of The Elusive Shift and Game Wizards and the coauthor of Dungeons & Dragons- Art & Arcana, Lore & Legends, and Heroes' Feast- The Official Dungeons & Dragons Cookbook, as well as its sequel Flavors of the Multiverse.