Newsgroups: rec.games.frp.misc
From: [jeff freeman] at [whytel.com]
Subject: Playing with Dragon Fire
X-Mailer: TBBS/PIMP v3.34
Date: Sat, 08 Apr 95 01:16:59 -0600


[Breakaway is a magazine for teen boys published by Focus on the Family]
[Focus on the Family is "Dedicated to the preservation of the home"
James C. Dobson, PhD, President]

A True Story by Manny Koehler
PLAYING WITH DRAGON FIRE
...and trapped by a "hot game" that was going to leave us burned
1994 August Breakaway

Photo's by Ron Nickel
[picture of 3 gamers with 15-20 "tea-lights" (little candles)
surrounding a mass of those cardboard mini's that come with the
great big D&D boxed set.]

Dave, my buddy, looked kind of faint.  Stan, my other friend,
squirmed around like he had to go to the bathroom. For a couple of
guys supposedly having fun, they sure seemed upset.

"Please, pleeeease don't peg out on me, Dude," Dave moaned, almost
too late.

Belvar, Last of the Netherfeld Six, was close to death. Smelt, the
Red Dragon of Wyvern Creep, had scorched him three times, scoring
heavy-duty damage.  One more bad roll and Belvar would be cooked
meat.

Dave squeezed shut his eyes and rolled.  The die bounced wildly on
the hard table, taking forever to stop.  *Two*.

"Oh, no.  Oh, sick!" Stan shook his head in disgust.

"What?" Dave said, frantically opening his eyes.  "What happened?!"

He focused on the number with anguish.  "No way!" he said. "It can't
be."  Dave was desperate, but I didn't bat an eye.

"Belvar," I announced, "has breathed his last."

I was the dungeon master in a role-playing game that had been going
for nearly 11 hours.  Though it was now 5 am, we would keep going
until 7 the next night. We were tired ... shaken ... but driven by a
monster that controlled us.  And we were the last to know it.

CAGED WITH A DRAGON
Before that time, I'd been heavily involved in my church's youth
group.  Many of the younger teens respected me, and I was doing a
lot of good things for God that really counted. But when I got
involved in fantasy games, I messed up--big time.

A guy in my senior high algebra class got me started by lending me a
few rule books.  I studied them like crazy, hardly able to learn
fast enough. Everything else in my life took a backseat.

The books described dozens of different characters a player could
be:  monks, paladins, dwarfs, elves, clerics, magicians.

I read about cool-sounding items like weapons, traps, gold, jewelry,
maps and potions.  And I was amazed by the gruesome details for
hundreds of monsters: golems, ghouls, shadows, wraiths, furies,
demons.

I learned that my characters could do anything they wanted when they
encountered a monster.  They could talk to it, barter with it,
capture it, cast a magic spell on it, rob it and even kill it with a
smile--as long as they didn't get killed first.

Soon, I was hooked ... and headed for trouble.

SLAYED IN BATTLE
I eventually pulled my buddies, Stan and Dave, into the "fun".  They
caught on fast.  After school and on weekends, we'd retreat to the
basement of my house. Then we'd pull out exotic maps and spell books
and escape to a medieval land of castles and dungeons.

During our marathon games, we'd explore every crevice and sinkhole
of our fantasy world.  We'd barely finish one adventure before
slashing our way into another.

Much of the game activity centered on killing.  The more our
characters killed others, the more experienced and powerful they
became.  We had no idea how warped our minds had become.

On one occasion, we fought a powerful, evil queen.  We cast a spell
of levitation on her, causing her to float helplessly to the
ceiling.  Then, as we laughed our heads off, we imagined ourselves
pumping her full of arrows.

When we finally decided she was dead, I felt sort of lousy
inside--just as I had when my own characters would die.

And that was a strange thing about the game.  While we enjoyed
killing anyone (or anything) that crossed our paths, our emotions
always took major nose dives when our own guys bit the dust.

I'll never forget when my absolute favorite character, a sword
bearer named Balic, died in a battle against a giant scorpion.  It
took me two days to get over it.

As crazy as it may sound, I'd even heard of other teenagers "taking
the final crash"--committing suicide--for the same reason.

THE RESCUE
Soon I no longer cared about my other friends at school. (Hey, I
didn't have time for them.)  What's more, my family life was a
washout.  I'd eat supper at my desk while studying monster manuals.

I hadn't read my Bible in weeks--something I actually used to enjoy.
And I certainly wasn't doing any homework.  It was way more fun
drawing dungeons.

The fact is I had turned into a social and spiritual zombie. But
that's when it happened.

The day after we played for 25 hours straight, God's gentle voice
got my attention.  He began to impress upon my heart the ugliness of
the game--and how it was warping my values. He made me miserable and
I didn't like it.

I fought what I knew he was asking me to do (give up the obsession).
I tried to enjoy the game in spite of God.

The fight lasted four days.  But during that time, our loving Lord
was good to me.  Even though I didn't want to listen, He got his
point across.

ONE LAST FIGHT
The dreaded day finally arrived.  I packed up the game books, stuck
them in a bag and began a hard walk to the trash.

*Dave and Stan might not understand, but God does*, I told myself.
Then, I stood over the can and ripped every page into microscopic
particles.  I didn't want to give myself a chance to change my
stupid mind.

I went back to my room, feeling kind of queasy from the withdrawals.
But I knew I'd done the right thing.  God told me so, way down deep.

I wish I could say the game ends there, but I can't.  I gave in to
one more ugly encounter.

Years later--when I became a cool, collected, mature adult--I bought
my first computer.  That's when I discovered it.

One day during a trip to the computer section at Wal-Mart, I noticed
a copy of Dungeons & Dragons on a shelf.  I stared for a long
time--my first mistake. You can guess my second.

I bought it, took it home and loaded it up.  I plunged back into
another long session.  It was great!  Fast, realistic--with just as
much killing as ever.

And like the first time so many years earlier, I traded in my Bible
for the game's rule book, trying to shut out the voice of Someone
who loved me.  Then, somewhere in the middle of the "fun", I came
back to my senses--and got back on my knees.

*Lord, what have I done?*  I prayed.  *I'm sorry for turning my back
on You-- again.  Give me the strength to resist this deception from
the Devil ... and to keep my eyes on You.*

And again, I made a hard trip to the garbage can.  This time, I used
a match. As I watched the diskette melt, I couldn't help but feel
like it was a waste. I'd spent good money for that thing!

*So what?*  God impressed upon my heart.  That's when I smiled.  It
*was* finally over.

Yes, getting occultic role-playing stuff out of my life was the
right thing to do.  And that's exactly where the game ends--for
good!

[SIDEBAR-ONE]
HOW TO DETECT DRAGONBREATH
Unsure about a particular fantasy game?  Then sniff around and ask
yourself some hard questions.  (If the answer to any of these is
yes, then LEAVE IT ON THE SHELF!)
    @  Are you asked to cast spells, use witchcraft or align
yourself with evil spirits and New Age-believing "heroes" who have
supernatural powers?
    @  Does the game make you dwell on evil things instead of good
(see Philippians 4:8)?
    @  Is the game filled with violence, killing and "buckets of
blood"?
    @  Are characters blown away as casually as you'd buy a stick of
gum, leaving players with the impression that life isn't worth much?
    @  Will the game tend to take too much time away from other,
more important activities?

[SIDEBAR-TWO]
AWESOME ALTERNATIVES
Keep in mind that not all fantasy-type games, books or videos are
harmful. Stop by your local Christian bookstore and take a peek at
some of these cool resources.
    @  THE CHRONICLES OF NARNIA (a seven-book series) by C.S. Lewis.
    @  DRAGONRAID--an intricate adventure game (previously available
from *Breakaway*) that helps you memorize Scripture and learn to
engage in spiritual battle.
    @  DRAGON KING TRILOGY (a three-book series) by Stephen Lawhead.
    @  the videos THE LION, THE WITCH & THE WARDROBE, PRINCE CASPIAN
and THE SILVER CHAIR, from Vestron Video, based on the books by C.S.
Lewis

--END

Please direct your comments to:

    James C. Dobson, PhD, President
    FOCUS ON THE FAMILY
    Colorado Springs, CO  80995

Remember to reference the article "Playing with Dragon Fire" by
Manny Koehler from the August, 1994 issue of *Breakaway*.