A Tribute To The Finest Friend

[ned-kogar]

I've not looked in on this forum for a good while, but this morning my best friend of 42 years died. From the age of 10 to just 12 days ago, Ben and I role-played together.

 

Of all the systems we explored (a fraction, I'm sure like many of you, of those we owned), Champions had the longest campaign and most characters. Our main campaign, with my brother Steve playing too, ran from 1993 (aout 3 months after my dad died) to 2012, and was a delight.

 

Set in 'the real world' of 1993, but with the first powered individuals appearing since the ancient Bronze Age heroes of myth, Ben played a gay Glaswegian clubber with mind powers (plus "generally a bit super" with slow flight, 28 STR and a bit of Damage Resistance), reluctantly drawn into battling other supers through a chance meeting, then generous friendship, with the super-keen, tornado-wielding nerd Airman.

 

They didn't know how to be supers (no-one did in this campaign, at first, and the amusingly basic names - and John Wilson's refusal to adopt one - are a nod to this), and memorably spent most of our second session eating chocolate biscuits in a tree, waiting for a monster to turn up.

 

Other PC heroes joined Ben's roster: Star Man, a skinny, arrogant, cynical, nigh-invulnerable brick determined to squeeze every benefit he could from being super; Dog-Boy, an uncouth 15 year-old homeless kid and God of Dogs, who scrapped like a terrier and whom dogs thronged to (and then gradually devolved into huge ancestral bear-dogs, resulting in a very intimidating pack of followers); and, when we wanted a villainous adventure, British Bulldog, a brutal fascist bigot with a leather-bound iron club and super-Charisma (ie. mob control).

 

Thanks to one of the great joys of Champions being chargen, we shared years of ideas and character sheets. We'd intended to return to the campaign to see where the heroes were 10 years later, but never got round to it, so Airman and John Wilson will forever be where we left them: in New York City, attending the Third World Conference of Psychics and Magi, where John had aced his opening speech and was revelling in the glow of his peers' admiration.

 

I hope it's okay to pop in and post this after a long absence. In the sorrow and muddle of the day, I wanted to record my love of my friend and his ideas somewhere.

 

Thanks.

[death tribble]

It is nice to see you back.

 

Sincere condolences on your loss

[unclevlad]

Sharing love is never unwelcome.

[ned-kogar]

You can tell we'd been playing in other systems: I wrote 'super-Charisma' instead of 'super-Presence'!

Edited September 30 by ned-kogar

[tkdguy]

Condolences, ned-kogar!

[Ranxerox]

Those early friendships tend to be some of the most heart felt and rewarding.  I'm sorry for your loss but happy that you got to enjoy such a good friendship. 

[Pariah]

Let us raise a glass to absent friends, in memory yet bright.