08122018 Rivals
Rivals cast before our 8/12 show. Missing is Perrin Underbow (Cicero Holmes) pic by Greg Tito

I couldn’t sleep so a wee thread (inspired by ) on D&D. Photo by and missing from our crew is who was away this week.

D&D is and has been important to me in a way videogames aren’t. It let my wild imagination run free and helped me form worlds & stories where I could be the hero or villain. I was one of those kinds with a mom who thought was satanic 🤨😒🙄 but y’all know it’s not. Having to sneak and play until I was older then finding other folks to play with was a challenge in the pre-virtual tabletop world.

Going to conventions was a pipe dream for me as a teen and adult, they simply cost too much. Even playing D&D regularly was getting too expensive.PDF’s opened the game back up to me as well as folks willing to share their PHB’s at the table. There were other challenges back then. Affording books and dice notwithstanding, distance was an issue. As well as finding a LGS that was welcoming was its own Sisyphean task

Finding groups that were not all white dudes (pre-virtual TTRPG) that I could get to, actually enjoyed spending time with was another.I fell away from D&D and all tabletop because of these factors as well as being tired of not being able to easily find other poc & especially other black folks who enjoyed role play.

All wasn’t lost though. I eventually made friends via ye olden internets, and unbeknownst to me, a whole new virtual way to play was coming up. Don’t think it was all angst & woe; I have had good experiences going to North & Lynn’s for almost 2 years, or closer to 3? For shenanigans. Vilotso Fletcher, my elven rogue who became dragon food in that campaign.

Vilotso Fletcher_RIP my old Rogue
Vilotso Fletcher, by North Roberts.

Then I joined a game via later, and while it didn’t work out interpersonally it helped rekindle my passion for tabletop. It made me want to get back to the table, either virtually or in person more than before.

Time and a FT job wasn’t going to let that happen though. So skip ahead a bit to 2017, being a guest on Dragon Talk with and getting 5e books back in my hands (thanks to Greg). Still wanting to scratch that itch.

Then a little later, getting to do some games on Roll20, including GM’ing on a stream for the first time earlier this year! Which was before and a whole other side of TTRPG’s opened up to me. It’s where I met so many amazing folks, got to show people that D&D is for everyone not by being showy about how diverse is or Wizards wanting a cookie for helping us come together.

But by showing a cast of folks who have different skill levels, knowledge all together enjoying themselves, having fun and being visible to others who might think there is no spot for them at the table. It’s why I’m glad, and grateful for being on Rivals. It’s giving younger folks and those that felt left out a place and showing we do belong here. That we do get a spot at the table.

It’s why I’m glad for folks like and so happy that & said yes when I asked them to join Rivals. Thanks y’all for being part of something so special for me. Thank you for bringing back my love of the game so, so deeply. I’m grateful for all of you. Honored to be part of the stream family 😭😍🙏🏾💜

Published by cypheroftyr

Tanya DePass is the founder and Director of I Need Diverse Games, a not-for-profit organization based in Chicago, which is dedicated to better diversification of all aspects of gaming. I Need Diverse Games serves the community by supporting marginalized developers, attendance at the Game Developer Conference by participating in the GDC Scholarship program, helps assist attendance at other industry events, and is seeking partnership with organizations and initiatives. Tanya is a lifelong Chicagoan who loves everything about gaming, #INeedDiverseGames spawn point, and wants to make the industry better and more inclusive for everyone. She’s part of the Rivals of Waterdeep actual play stream on twitch.tv/rivalsofwaterdeep, a partnered Twitch variety broadcaster; and often speaks on issues of diversity, feminism, race, intersectionality & other topics online, at conventions and as a public speaker.. She’s also contributed to publications at Green Ronin, Paizo and Monte Cook Games and is the co-developer for the Fifth Season RPG based on N.K. Jemisin’s three time Hugo award winning Broken Earth trilogy. She’s the creator and Creative Director of Into the Mother Lands, a Twitch supported RPG and Actual Play stream, airing weekly on her channel, twitch.tv/cypheroftyr. Additionally, she is a Senior Annenberg labs Civic Media Fellow at USC. She’s also the creator and Creative Director of Into the Mother Lands, a new sci fi afro-futurist RPG developed with a team of all POC and Black creators; live streamed on her twitch channel, /cypheroftyr. She’s named as one of The Game Awards Future Class 2020, a diverse group of builders, thinkers and dreamers whose voices elevate and diversify our artform. It recognizes individuals around the world who represent the bright, bold and inclusive future for video games. She was also named as one of Gamers of the Year 2020 by Kotaku along with three of her contemporaries. She was also invited to the Xbox MVP program in February 2021. Her work to make the industry more inclusive has been highlighted in Game Changer, Directed by Tina Charles, WNBA star & olympian as well as filmmaker. The short documentary premiered at Tribeca 2021, as part of the Queen Collective; an initiative started by Queen Latifah, supported by Proctor & Gamble in an effort to get more Black women into film making. Game Changer was also featured as part of BETHer’s 2021 Juneteenth Programming on 19 June 2021. Tanya is the programming & diversity coordinator for OrcaCon and GaymerX. She also serves on the Board of Directors for OrcaCon and was named the Chair for Take This in January 2023. She often speaks on issues of diversity, feminism, race, intersectionality & other topics at conventions. Her writing about games and games critique appears in Uncanny Magazine, Polygon, Wiscon Chronicles, Vice Gaming, Paste Games, Mic, and other publications. She’s the editor of Game Devs and Others: Tales from the Margins (2018, CRC Press) and contributed to The Advanced Game Narrative Toolbox. (2019, CRC Press) Writer Bio for pubs: Tanya is the Founder and Director of I Need Diverse Games, a not-for-profit organization based in Chicago. She’s part of Rivals of Waterdeep, an actual play D&D show on twitch.tv/rivalsofwaterdeep; the programming coordinator for OrcaCon & GaymerX; and often speaks on issues of diversity, feminism, race, intersectionality & other topics at conventions. She’s on the Board of Take This as well as a Stream Ambassador, and was part of the inaugural cohort of The Game Awards Future Class. Her work to make the industry more inclusive has been highlighted in Game Changer, Directed by Tina Charles, WNBA star & olympian as well as filmmaker. The short documentary premiered at Tribeca 2021, as part of the Queen Collective; an initiative started by Queen Latifah, supported by Proctor & Gamble in an effort to get more Black women into film making. Game Changer was also featured as part of BETHer’s 2021 Juneteenth Programming on 19 June 2021.