Re: Age and Complexity

 This has been an interesting thread so far, even though it is off topic
at 
 times.  I have been able to identify a few people within the first 
 sentence or two (my mailer only gives me the source as FTGZG-L)  So now

 its my turn....
 
 I'm 31, married, no children but my wife and I are trying again after 
 loosing a girl at birth last July.  I was concluding a PBeM game that I
was 
 running at that time and got some great support and messages from the 
 players who were mostly list members.
 
 My gaming life began sometime in the late 1970's when I saw an ad in 
 'Boy's Life' magazine for this cool miniature metal starship.	Star
Wars 
 was still big in my thoughts so I sent in to ALNAVCO for more
information. 
 I got back a bunch on information on Superior's Starfleet Wars
miniatures 
 and other games.  I wanted to get one of every mini but no funds to do
so 
 at that age.  I soon got into AD&D, Car Wars, Battletech, and SPIs War
of 
 the Ring.  I kept on looking for good space combat games though and
picked 
 up SFB.  I though "Starfleet Wars" / "Starfleet Battles", they should
be 
 similar.......WRONG.  I also picked up FASA's Star Trek Starship
Tactical 
 Combat Simulator and Leviathan in addition to TFGs Starfire but none of

 them fit the type of fleet battles that I wanted to play.
 
 I published a Car Wars fanzine called 'Duelist's Design Forum' from my 
 dorm room.  It is the type of thing that you would now see on the web. 
It 
 lasted only a few issues but was fun (Newsroom on the Apple IIC :).  I 
 drifted away from gaming some time after that since Car Wars had moved 
 away from its original feel and it was too hard keeping up with all the

 expansions.  Similar things happened to Battletech.
 
 So then I'm out of college and not much into gaming anymore but I still
hit 
 the game store every month or two looking for a decent space combat
game 
 but I found nothing after FASA lost their Star Trek rights.  Then one
day 
 I'm looking through a copy of 'Vortex' magazine and see a review for a
game 
 called "Full Thrust".	I quickly buy the magazine and memorize the
review.  
 Next time I'm at the store I ask about ordering the game from GeoHex
(the 
 end of the review mentions that GeoHex just got the rights to
distribute FT 
 in the US).  Unfortunately there is no listing for GeoHex in the 
 distributor's catalog so I wait a year and a half before asking again. 

 This time GeoHex and FT are there and I order it.  One week later FT
shows 
 up and I'm so happy a couple of days later I'm back at the hobby store
and 
 order More Thrust.  3 months go by and nothing has shown up yet so
while 
 visiting the in-laws in Minneapolis, I pick up MT there.  I survived on

 these basic rules for another couple years, checking the stores when I 
 could to see if the Fleet Book was out like it said it would be in MT
;)
 
 The next major event is when I got internet access at my office in
November 
 1996.	My first search is "Full Thrust" and it brings back a link to
Mark 
 S's UFTWWWP.  I click the link and I'm in heaven.  I waste paper
printing 
 off an 8" stack of rules and ships to take home.  I then subscribed to
this 
 list, talked to other people for the first time who had some of the
same 
 interests as me, went to GenCon for the first time in 12 years, and 
 generally am having a good time.
 
 There is a down side to it though.  My wife is getting tired of me
dealing 
 with my "spaceship games".  She has been pretty good and I have been 
 spending too much time in this miniature world.  I also now have this 
 strange compulsion to buy almost every space combat game I can find. 
My 
 luck has been almost too good on this since I've gotten 25+ new games
in 
 the last several months.  There are a few I'm still looking for though 
 (Voidstriker and Galaktik Taktik).
 
 That's my story, thanks for reading the whole way through.
 
 Dean
 <dean.gundberg@bcbsnd.com>