When We Were Wizards

Chapter 3 – Seizing the momentum of D&D’s growing popularity, Gary and his partner Brian Blume press on with an investment from Brian’s father, Melvin. The company moves into a new headquarters and hires on friends from the Twin Cities and Lake Geneva. It looks like Camelot, but underneath the surface, grievances fester and friendships fracture. Then, a reckoning at a shareholder’s meeting threatens the company’s future.

Chapter 1 - In the early 1960s, Gary and Mary Jo Gygax move their young family to Lake Geneva, Wisconsin to escape their urban life in Chicago,. Though he works as an insurance underwriter by day, Gary spends his nights and weekends as a central figure in a burgeoning community of wargame players seeking camaraderie and a distraction from a turbulent era. When he’s fired from his job, Gary begins a second career as a shoe-cobbler while continuing to pursue his creative ambitions. Barely able to make ends meet, Gary is on the verge of abandoning his dream altogether when a fellow gamer from the Twin Cities introduces him to a game that will change both of their lives forever.

Chapter 6 - When James Dallas Egbert goes missing, the press and concerned parents start to question the influence D&D holds over impressionable young minds. As a result: the game explodes into the national consciousness and Gary Gygax becomes a multi-millionaire.

Chapter 5 - To keep up with growing product demand, TSR hires a new crop of young designers, developers, and editors. Wages are low, but it’s a chance to work with their hero in a brand new industry. On the management side, Brian Blume's older brother Kevin joins the company and rises through the ranks.

Chapter 2 - In Minneapolis, a hive-mind of creative synergy reaches a critical mass with a game from Dave Arneson called “Blackmoor.” Convinced of its potential, Gygax and Arneson work furiously to develop the idea into what eventually becomes Dungeons & Dragons. But when he is unable to find a publisher for it, Gary and a childhood friend start their own company to print and sell D&D. The future looks bright until a tragedy tests Gary’s resolve.