About the Bard

"the Bard" is a moniker that I adopted sometime around 1997 or so when I was being trained for a new position at a retail store. I was told that I should come up with some sort of nickname for myself for use on the intranet e-mail system. Having been a roleplayer for years and having always enjoyed writing and recounting stories of all types, "bard" seemed the only good option. At this point, it has stuck quite firm and I couldn't let it go if I wanted. Fortunately, I'm happy with it.

A short biography, then, if anyone is interested. Born in 1972, I have lived in Oklahoma my entire life and have no plans of moving away. I am a graduate of the University of Oklahoma, having earned a Bachelor of Science in Education (Secondary Social Studies) in 1995 and, more recently, a Masters of Education (Adult and Higher Education) in 2007. I have no inclination to continue my educational pursuits, being quite content to be called the Bard, M.Ed. I value my time with my son more than I would benefit from more classwork. Besides, Dr. Bard just sounds so pretentious. ;)

My gaming history is long, but somewhat narrower in focus than some. I began roleplaying in 1979 at the ripe old age of seven. Dungeons & Dragons was my bread and butter with side trips into other TSR titles, such as Top Secret, Top Secret S.I., Gamma World, and Star Frontiers. I also had my fill of early Star Wars, GURPS, MERPS, and various other "off-brand" titles. Most recently, I have taken the gaming online with Everquest, Everquest II, and a brief stint with Lord of the Rings during thier beta testing phase. Unfortunately, my time is fairly limited so I am not actively pursuing any roleplaying at this time.

Miniature wargaming takes up most of my available time these days. The list below gives you an idea of what I've played or focused on in the past. My primary game at the moment is most definitely Flames of War. I have always enjoyed WWII history and this game fits the bill of being fun, playable, and feeding my appetite for history.

That is me, as a hobbyist, in a nutshell. A lot more going on in this thick skull of mine, but making sense of it would take much, much longer than I have available. I've got a lot going on in my life and every day, it seems, the possibilities just keep piling up.

the Bard

The List

While not comprehensive, the following is a listing of the miniature games which have held my interest over the years or, in some cases, the rules and miniatures are in the never-ending queue waiting to be painted and/or played. I have tried to indicate my earliest involvement with each game, but my memory is somewhat fuzzy in places.

I know I've forgotten a few that fell by the wayside, not because they weren't fun, but because I have a tendency to keep too busy to play everything I'd like to play. I also have a decent collection of old lead for RPGs, some of the Ral Partha figs dating back as far as 1977 when I was but a wee pup learning to play. I've been painting miniatures since about 1981, but a look at my paint jobs will reflect on me as poorly as my military tactics on the game table. There is a lot of room for improvement.