Character Descriptions

In the order of their appearance in the book:

Prologue:

Ethan Gilsdorf- The narrator of the geekdom guide, forty year old Ethan becomes several fantasy characters throughout the story: Ethor, Ethorian, and Ethor-An3. A devoted Dungeons and Dragons player throughout his teenage years, Ethan struggles with the geeky life, which is still a part of him today. To explore his own self as well as answer questions about the life of geeks, he sets out on an epic quest to travel the world and find his inner geek.

Momster- Ethan’s mom who suffered from a brain aneurism. Her real name was Sara Lynn Gilsdorf, but Momster was the name Ethan gave her when her aneurism began to take a stranglehold on her life, torturing Ethan’s life. She was the reason he was driven to escape through fantasy in D&D.

JP- Ethan’s best friend growing up who got him hooked on D&D and his fantasy lifestyle. JP, born with a growth defect causing his bones to be extremely brittle, uses D&D as an escape. He is now married with kids, and him and Ethan still talk regularly.

Chapter 1:

The D&D Crowd- Mike, Bill K, Bill S, Dean, Eric M, Eric H, and John.

Chapter 3:

Mark Egginton- A retired British infantryman, a member of the Tolkien Society, Ethan’s guide on his Tolkien assignment in 2003. He taught Ethan about the need and meaning of escapism.

David- Ethan’s long time mentor who opened Ethan’s eyes on why people turn to fantasy. He helped to create Ethan’s list on page 41.

Chapter 5:

Pete Nelson- A thirty-six year old with an obsession with D&D minis. Nelson was a competitive gamer on the world circuit but failed to reach the world tournament after a win happened to late to register. He now realizes he should reevaluate his time with his wife and kids.

Chapter 6:

Gary Gygax- Gygax now deceased was the founder of TSR Hobbies, which eventually became the creators of D&D. Gygax published D&D himself after other gaming companies turned him down. Gygax is credited to changing the face of gaming. He died the year before Ethan went to his gaming conference at Lake Geneva.

Frank Mentzer- Right hand man to Gary Gygax in the early 80s.

Alex Clark- Young boy who has been playing fantasy games for as long as he can remember, used to show that graph paper and imagination can still stand up to the lure of virtual worlds as in World of Warcraft.

Chapter 6:

Christopher Tang- The Forest of Doors cofounder and Ethan’s personal chaperone into the world of LARPing.

Nick Perretta- A frequent LARPer who shows that it is gratifying to play a character depending on how you were feeling, i.e a hero, pacifist, fighter, or a even self-proclaimed scumbag.

Chapter 7:

Elyse Boucher- A seemingly established woman at work whose house is decorated with medieval objects. She’s loved fantasy since she opened her first D&D set and still continues today participating in Society for Creative Anachronism.

Mike Scott- Elyse’s husband who too is a geek yet loves the future instead of the past. Creates beautiful replications of famous aspects from media representing the future.

Chapter 8:

Michel Guyot- founder of Guedelon, a period castle made as a replica of twelfth century architecture. Eventually set to open to visitors as an attraction outside of Paris.

Chapter 9:

Paul and Joe DeGeorge- Together they make Harry and the Potters, a ‘wizard pop’ group that makes songs based on fantasy material. They are rock stars in their own right and dress as two separate Harry Potters, year four and seven.

Chapter 10:

Anna Bradley- Ethan’s unofficial guide to Pennsic 37.

Sir Gareth- An example of an extremist in the world of SCA. He was Ethan’s companion for most of Pennsic 37.

Chapter 11:

Phyllis Priestly- A fifty one year old mother who has immersed her life in WoW, allowing it to change her life.

Chapter 12:

Rajeev- An American-Indian student pressured into medicine by his parents, who turned to video games in solace and eventually let them control his life until he left medical school.

Levi Hunt- A medical soldier who loves fantasy games and the feeling of saving people. He plays WoW to relive that ‘rush of sacrifice’ feeling.

Nissa Ludwig- A thirty-nine year old woman with a muscle disorder who plays games to escape from the stubbornness of people that treat her differently due to her disability.

Chapter 13:

Jill- A college junior who came to Dragon*Con. She was Ethan’s potential love interest but they didn’t work out.

Chapter 14:

Rendall Jack- Ethan’s guide on his tour of Rivendell, the home of the elves.

By Thomas Muzzonigro