Ever since the creation of such board games as Mice and Mystics and Gloom that utilize aspects of tabletop roleplaying games, the line between roleplaying game and board game has become murkier and murkier. However, where the line should be drawn can be found in the distinction between the original roleplaying game, Dungeons and Dragons, and its predecessor, Chainmail. For some background, Chainmail was a miniature wargame designed heavily by Gary Gygax, one of the creators of Dungeons and Dragons. The seeds planted in Chainmail’s Fantasy Supplement were the basis of Dungeons and Dragons. Despite the inspiration drawn from Chainmail, Original Dungeons and Dragons had three clear distinctions from previous games that set it apart as a genre-defining classic in the making: character change, unique characters, and cooperative and compulsory roleplaying… Continue reading “What Made D&D a Genre-Defining Classic?”