I'll start - the average age in my group is 42.5 approximately.
OK, you got us -- with Jess and Andostre included, our mean was only 41.0.
Really? I thought the first ones came out in '79 or so...there were D&D books published in early '77?
I was born in '77 and started gaming in '84 (red box). AD&D came out in '77, but the Original books were first published in '74.
Actually, my first gaming book was MERP. I asked for D&D for my birthday, and my mom wasn't certain about what it was. She knew the Hobbit though, so she figured MERP should be ok.
So I'm 32 (33 next month, ack!) and I've been gaming 26 years.
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I am 53 and have been playing D&D since the fall of 1975 when I started college (35 years). Chainmail, Arduin Grimoire, etc. were some of the first books I remember.
The same for me. I still have my white box collector's edition, although the box bit the dust a few years ago. I had the early supplements: Blackmoor, etc., but they were borrowed and never returned.
Me 36 - gaming since 1981, Red Box, 1E AD&D, 2E AD&D, MERP, GURPS, Rolemaster, Robotech, Maelstrom, Shadowrun, Starwars, Rifts, WFRP, WOD,and D20.
I know there are people out there that are older then me and have played more games.
Well, it is almost certainly *not* me. I'm almost 49 and started playing D&D back in '75 and sat on several panels with GEG himself over the years.
Still, I know I'm just a whipper-snapper on these har messageboard thingees.
In service,
Rich
www.drgames.org
The average age of our group is mid 30's
We have been playing together for about 16-17 years off and on. We all met at Uni.
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what IS the average player age for your group?Currently, the group is disbanded. As far as the mean age when we were active... that would require me to ask Jess her exact age, which I'm unwilling to do (don't know Andostre's to the year offhand, either).Heheh, no issue, I posted above it's 32 - 33 in December. Star Wars and I were born the same year! Go 1977!
Really? I thought the first ones came out in '79 or so...there were D&D books published in early '77?Anyone for early 20s? Anyone? Anyone? :DYoung lady, I have SHOES older than you. ;) And original D&D books for that matter...
Monster Manual came out in '77 for AD&D. OD&D came out in '74.
Edit: Ninja'd by another Houstonian...
I'm 66.
My wife and I started playing D&D in 1979 after hearing a description of the game. We didn't even have rules, we just made it up imagining how this new type of game should be played. Then, the next morning I walked uphill in the snow to work, and at the end of day got paid in fruit.
Tosses out the plaque he was working on and begins anew. "Wizard, ya say?"
Ladies and Gentleman... we have a contender. Considering that 6 year olds have visited these boards... that's an impressive range of shared interest.
Can anyone top 66 years of age?
More than three times older than me. I am only 19.
41 right now.
I'm 66.
My wife and I started playing D&D in 1979 after hearing a description of the game. We didn't even have rules, we just made it up imagining how this new type of game should be played. Then, the next morning I walked uphill in the snow to work, and at the end of day got paid in fruit.
Tosses out the plaque he was working on and begins anew. "Wizard, ya say?"
Ladies and Gentleman... we have a contender. Considering that 6 year olds have visited these boards... that's an impressive range of shared interest.
Can anyone top 66 years of age?
Nope, not even me.
40, soon to be 41!
Started with B/X in '80/81, then 1E ... skipped 2E for other rpgs and then went back to B/X for many years ... discovered Pathfinder when Paizo rolled out their 'new' rules set and have been playing that since, but with SWSE and CoC thrown in ... and a generous helping of Labyrinth Lord!
Have played most of the 'classic' rpgs during the TSR years: Gamma World, Star Frontiers, Boot Hill, Bushido, Top Secret and a mess of other older rpgs, like Judge Dredd (from GAMES WORKSHOP!!), V&V, Heroes Ulimited, Robotech, and too many more to list!!
I'm 47. I started gaming in September 1985 with the 1e rules.
Age 43 (October 1967)
Ages of others in current Group 30-40, skewing towards upper end.
Started playing In/around 1980(-ish) in AD&D 1E.
First memory of playing Inside some sort of giant tree module (may have been from a Dragon or White Dwarf magazine or something... anyone have any ideas which one that is/was?)
Favorite Earliest Adventure Memories
1) Ravenloft... playing on screened in front porch of home with school friends running from trolls, looking for the sunblade...
2) Barrier Peaks... Retiring my female thief because the love of her life (an NPC Bard) got locked inside... forever. She couldn't take it any longer and decided that was it for her.
3) They're all good really.
First memory of playing Inside some sort of giant tree module (may have been from a Dragon or White Dwarf magazine or something... anyone have any ideas which one that is/was?)
Were there drow involved? There was an early Dragon module where the drow had made a giant tree into a base for shenanigans. That was even before Dungeon, when Dragon still had modules published in it.
After quick Internetz search: Issue #73 The Forest of Doom.
The Wraithstrike comes in at 33 years. I start with 2nd edition(Dark Sun) in 2001, and ended up on 3rd edition. I took a year or 2 off until I chanced upon a group and I took the time to learn the rules this time instead of just rule dice. I eventually became the group rules lawyer. I have stepped away from the rules to a more story based approach over the last 3 years or so.
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42, playing since '76 or thereabouts ... starting playing with the original brown box of mini books (Men & Magic, Monsters & Treasure and Underworld & Wilderness Adventures) ... quickly added the Greyhawk and Blackmoor booklets and Gods, Demigods and Heroes. And I think I still have most if not all of them in storage ... should definitely try to find these suckers and try running a game using them.
I'm 55. Started playing with the brown box in '74.
Met Gary Gygax at the Lake Geneva Con (was it called GenCon back then?) in 1978. At a time when he was spending about 5 minutes per person talking to fans, we talked for about half an hour.
I will start a new category - Group with the biggest age spread.
Me, the DM at 55. My youngest player is 13. Spread of 42 years.
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First memory of playing Inside some sort of giant tree module (may have been from a Dragon or White Dwarf magazine or something... anyone have any ideas which one that is/was?)
Were there drow involved? There was an early Dragon module where the drow had made a giant tree into a base for shenanigans. That was even before Dungeon, when Dragon still had modules published in it.
After quick Internetz search: Issue #73 The Forest of Doom.
I played that one.
26.
Not sure about the year but I played 3rd edition for about a year before switching to 3.5.
I will start a new category - Group with the biggest age spread.
Me, the DM at 55. My youngest player is 13. Spread of 42 years.
Current group is pretty tight, I would say about 14-16 years at most, but I'm not sure about everyone's age.
The group I was in before moving had a spread of 58 years at one point. The youngest was one guy's 9 year old daughter and the oldest was 67, her grandfather.
Gaming was a family affair for them.
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I guess that at 24 i am at the low end of the spectrum on this forum...well, i started playing RPGs when i was 12, with AD&D 2nd editon, back in 1999. My friend introduced me to 3rd edition in 2001 and i started playing 3.5 several weeks after all three core books were published. I transfered to Pathfinder in 2009. Haven't looked back since.
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All you youngings have it easy. When I started playing I could'nt just download the book in PDF right to my computer. I had to walk to my gamestore, in a snowstorm, uphill both ways, 5 miles each way. Thats how we got our books.
Also we never had no message board thingie to share info/ questions and get a response almost right away. If we wanted info we had to wait for the magizines every month or right a real letter to the company and hope it got a response.
And we liked it.
Kids these days. ;)
I just turned 43 this year, been gaming since 1982. AD&D was my first system.
I fell really really old, does that count.
First memory of playing Inside some sort of giant tree module (may have been from a Dragon or White Dwarf magazine or something... anyone have any ideas which one that is/was?)
Were there drow involved? There was an early Dragon module where the drow had made a giant tree into a base for shenanigans. That was even before Dungeon, when Dragon still had modules published in it.
After quick Internetz search: Issue #73 The Forest of Doom.
I played in that module. Big fun!
I turn 45 in August. Been playing since 1984. My first character was a 1e Paladin for The Vault of the Drow.
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Wow, I just noticed this post i don't usually make it this low on the forums page.
I'm 38 and i played my first game at the age of 7 in 1979. I played a Elven Ranger in T-1 the village of Hommlet. My father was the GM and he killed me off during that first adventure. I guess chaotic good Rangers were not meant to kill and loot the villagers 8(.
I heard JC was the first LARPer. Puts him at around 1900-something.
43, started with the 1st edition DMG.
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Ha! I'm 18 until the 7th! I will use my boundless youthful energy to complain about things and take stairs two steps at a time!
3-4 yrs of experience 3.5 to Pathfinder
35 here. Started world-building in ~1988 before I even really knew what D&D was. When I was introduced to 2nd Ed during lunch break my sophomore year in high school (1992), I knew that D&D and I were made for each other. ;)
In terms of gaming group ages...
PbP Group
44 Stormraven
41 Eric Swanson
35 Laithoron
29 Jason Beardsley
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37 Average
Local Group
35 Nathan T.*
35 Me (GM)
23 Hannah H. (big sister)
22 Gina P.
22 Camielle W.
21 Nathan H. (little brother)
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26 Average
* Poor Nathan T... He comes from a VERY conservative/religious family. Growing up, his parents were convinced that D&D was the tool of the devil (thank YOU Jack Chick!) and never allowed to play. However now that the name of the game we are playing is "Pathfinder RPG", that provides a handy loophole to keep his mother from blowing a gasket. As such, just introduced him to the game within the past month. The odd thing is, his folks never had a problem with them playing video games like the Final Fantasy series, etc. Go figure...
I turn 45 in August. Been playing since 1984. My first character was a 1e Paladin for The Vault of the Drow.
You have me beat by a month. I'll be 45 in September. Been playing since '79 or '80. First game I played, my oldest brother DM'ed the sample dungeon in the original Box (this one).
It's been a heck of a lot of fun...
Greg