BroXT: A Final Assignment From the Man Himself

During one of the previous BroXT challenges, Jeffro left the fields we know and passed across the veil to Elfland. Prior to his departure, however, he had assigned me one last piece of reading. It has taken some time to get to it between my Gods of Pegana order being cancelled, Shagduk daily reading (still truckin'!), and dealing with IRL responsibilities. I finally caught a break and powered through it!

Rumours say he's been sighted near the standing stones during the full moon.

The Dragon Masters

 I've read very little of Vance's work; only a few short stories in Living Urf's required reading. Dragon Masters is what I think of when someone describes "80s Fantasy" to me: Monsters, Dragons, a variety of not-quite-human races all at war for dominance or survival in an alien landscape with armor, swords, lasers, and explosions!

 

I love his little maces.

It's a fairly quick read, though I found myself having trouble parsing the reality of all the proper nouns strewn about. Gulch this, valley that; This might as well have been ancient lore in Norazona!

Over the course of the story, we see several factions and ideals clash. In fact, nearly the entire book is battle after battle that takes course over "two days" (about two weeks in Earth time). If we're talking gaming, it's pretty much Braunstein in a Book (Read Brozer)!

That aside, I wanted to muse about change; growth. Watching my seedlings come up and the various IRL events has me looking back at the previous years, and I'm starting to notice interesting things about myself. Some years back, I would have scoffed at the idea of including rifles, lasers, aliens, or spaceships in my games. "That isn't D&D! D&D is medieval-adjacent!" As I've continued to delve into Bro philosophy, read Appendix N and adjacent fiction, and explore AD&D; I find myself becoming more accepting; chill even. Now, I've begun to notice something else.

I can't remember the place anymore, but something Jeffro said has stuck with me. It was about rebuilding your imagination and sense of wonder. He'd mentioned it taking something like 70 novels to really reignite that spark and keep feeding the flame. While I've not sat down to do my own count, and doubt I'm anywhere near 70, I'm beginning to see this change. Like a fresh spring wind at sunrise, I feel inspired, confident, and happy; faithful even!

Despite the IRL happenings, I feel hopeful. I continue to learn and find my place among brothers, Bros. So thank you, Mr Johnson.