Böcker av Ben Riggs

Role-playing game historian Ben Riggs unveils the secret history of TSR- the company that unleashed imaginations with Dungeons & Dragons, was driven into ruin by disastrous management decisions, and then saved by their bitterest rival."Ben Riggs manages to walk the fine line between historical accuracy and fun about as well as anyone and SLAYING THE DRAGON is equal parts historical accuracy and entertainment. It was an essential read for me while directing and producing the Official D&D documentary but I'd recommend it to anyone regardless of the subject material. It's a wild and fun ride through the turbulent history of one the most influential brands in our lifetime." - JOE MANGANIELLOCo-created by wargame enthusiasts Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson, the original Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game released by TSR (Tactical Studies Rules) in 1974 created a radical new medium: the role-playing game. For the next two decades, TSR rocketed to success, producing multiple editions of D&D, numerous settings for the game, magazines, video games, New York Times bestselling novels by Margaret Weis, Tracy Hickman, and R. A. Salvatore, and even a TV show! But by 1997, a series of ruinous choices and failed projects brought TSR to the edge of doom-only to be saved by their fiercest competitor, Wizards of the Coast, the company behind the collectible card game Magic: The Gathering.Unearthed from Ben Riggs's own adventurous campaign of in-depth research, interviews with major players, and acquisitions of secret documents, Slaying the Dragon reveals the true story of the rise and fall of TSR. Go behind the scenes of their Lake Geneva headquarters where innovative artists and writers redefined the sword and sorcery genre, managers and executives sabotaged their own success by alienating their top talent, ignoring their customer fanbase, accruing a mountain of debt, and agreeing to deals which, by the end, made them into a publishing company unable to publish so much as a postcard.As epic and fantastic as the adventures TSR published, Slaying the Dragon is the legendary tale of the rise and fall of the company that created the role-playing game world.

In The Triumph of Principles: A Story of American Spirituality in Twelve Steps, Ben Riggs walks readers through America's storied intellectual past to arrive at the Twelve Steps. Why the Steps? We've all heard of them, but do we really know what they are or why they are important? The Library of Congress named the book that launched the Twelve Steps one of the eighty-eight books that shaped America?Riggs explains how and why the path blazed by this exceptional group of recovering alcoholics embodies the quintessential American spirituality. He explores the influence of democracy, pluralism, egalitarianism, Transcendentalism, and American Pragmatics on the Twelve Steps, revealing a practical approach to spirituality that benefits everyone. Riggs also provides in-depth commentary on the practice of each Step, inviting the reader to experience their simplicity and effectiveness firsthand. The Triumph of Principles is a must-read for students of American philosophy, practical spirituality, and of course, practitioners of the Twelve Steps.