Back when I first got into gaming in early '80s, I went off the deep end--in the Mazes and Monsters sense, mind you - I wasn't running around in costume pretending to cast spells on my friends. What I mean is that I had a voracious appetite for game products. At the time I was a big AD&D and Gamma World junkie, and I spent countless hours reading the books, designing scenarios, and adventuring in dungeons and radioactive wastelands. I also eagerly awaited each issue of Dragon, which gave me a monthy TSR fix. Back then it still had Wormy, too, which was a big bonus.

Well, now it's 1996 and I find myself in the curious position of actually working for a game magazine. Instead of waiting for Dragon in the mail I'm in the business of helping to dish out SHADIS. I never thought I'd be able to turn my biggest hobby into a career. If you ever get the chance, jump at it... It's a big change going from reader to provider though, and I'd like to enlist your help in making the transition. Pick up the phone, send us some email, or shoot us a fax if you've something to say. Start a thread on rec.games.frp.misc, or join the fray in our folder on AOL. Believe it or not, your input means a lot to us. Hey -- without you, we wouldn't be here.

We were really surprised to hear all the rumors flying around after #23 hit the streets. My personal favorite was, "ODS - the Battlelords guys - bought SHADIS!" Rumors of some insidious relationship between AEG and ODS flew thick and fast, based on the review and scenario we ran.

Well, you guys, you might want to sit down before you page through this issue any more, because there's a lot of Earthdawn material in here. Has FASA bought us out? Nope. We're just doing our best to support as many of the great games on the market as we can. Each issue we're going to cover something different, and there will be subscription deals, contests, and scenarios.

This issue I'd also like to welcome our newest contributor, Matt Patterson. Matt publishes the ezine Ooze, home to some of the most irreverent humor I've yet to find on the net, or anywhere else for that matter. I've managed to cajole him into providing The Edge with a monthly humor column after reading an absolutely hysterical account of his experiences at a Los Angeles game convention.

Being a gamer himself he's wellsuited to poke at the soft underbelly of our hobby, so check out "Plays Well with Others" on page 73. Afterwards cruise over to the Ooze home page at http://www.io.com/~ooze. The humor-impaired need not make the trip.

Well, I don't play much AD&D anymore, and they canned Gamma World, but I have found other vices like Vampire, Millenium's End, and Call of Cthulhu. Now I even get to run around in costume pretending to cast spells on my friends, when I game in the IFGS. Compared to most people I suppose I'm still off the deep end, though, with land nowhere in sight. But come on in, the water's fine, and SHADIS doesn't bite.

Be seeing you.

This article appears in MagWeb (Magazine Web) on the Internet World Wide Web.
Other military history articles and gaming articles are available at http://www.magweb.com