SFR, Inc.

[Majiken]

I told this little tale at last night's meeting. Everyone agreed it was a great story and that it should be posted to the forum for all to share. This isn't a story of Esfah, but it is Dragon Dice™ related, and it is completely true. Ready?

I've played DD for ten years now, and 3 out of 5 of my kids also play (not so much with the 18 year old daughter now, but once...), so DD is a big part of our household. My oldest son Jake (Magic2Slay here), is 15 and has been playing since he was nine. Youngest son Joey picked up his first army at age 7, and has been a Firewalker fanatic ever since. Now 9, he has a pretty impressive collection (rivaling big brother's), and would rather toss the dice than play X-box. What other game can do that? We average several games during the week, but only after homework is done and his room is clean.

Very early on we realized that Joey had a rather unusual condition known as "Selective Mutism." I'd never heard of it until he was diagnosed. Basically, he just wouldn't talk. Don't get me wrong though. At home he would yap our ears off, but take him anywhere where there were people he didn't know that well, and he would clam up. He wouldn't even talk out loud to us to make sure they wouldn't hear him speak. It was like he thought that as long as he remained quiet, he was safe.

Now, unless you knew the kid for many years (essentially from birth), and were around regularly, he wouldn't talk to you. Stan (Firewalker), and Wes (Trollmaster), can both confirm this. Stan has known the boy since the age of 3, played DD at my place twice a week for years, but we couldn't get Joey to say a word to him. Wes has been a regular visitor for the last two years, helps out in my little shop, and Joey still wouldn't say a word to him. Heck, we despaired of the boy ever uttering a word in public.

This summer, as the Colorado Springs Dragon Dice™ Guild really took off and started growing into a 30+ member organization, I was surprised when Joey told me one Saturday afternoon that he wanted to come and play. I was skeptical.

"Kiddo, you can't come to a meeting and not speak. You can't play this game by pointing at your dice and hoping the other guy can guess what you want to do."

"I'll talk."

"Sure you will."

"I will. I promise." Okay, I gave him a shot.

His first meeting was tough on the kid, but he knew I was watching. At first he spoke softly, so he was asked to repeat things, but soon he became more confident, and by the end of the night you would never have guessed that he had an aversion to speaking.

Six months later, the kid has developed a new problem. He won't shut up! Joey will talk to anyone now, even if he just met them. There's still a hesitation at first, but the overall fear is gone. He is as gregarious as his father, and lives for Saturday nights when he can go to the meetings.

Sure, he might have grown out of it eventually. Even the doctors said that. But I choose to believe it was the game that did it. The love of play, the desire to build an army and see it win, and the great members of our group, all had an effect. Dragon Dice™ brought my son out of his shell and into the wonderful world of gaming.

For this reason more than anything, DD has my unending loyalty.

Okay, put the tissue down and go play with your dice. I'm done here.


_________________
The Maj

Most people are like Slinkies ...
Not really good for anything,
but they still bring a smile to your face when you push them down a flight of stairs.

[chuckpint]

I thought this story was important enough to get a new forum. So here it is.
_________________
You can never have too many dice.
First Place at the first ever Daemon Dice™ sealed starter tournament.
Battlefest tied for first GenCon 2012
Single Race Champion GenCon 2008-2009, Sealed Box Champion GenCon 2007,2009,
My collection is 21,500 Dragon Dice™, 20,000 Daemon Dice™, and others (too many to count).

[Deeghter]

What a great story, Joe!!

I'm so happy for your boy that he overcame his aversion. Great to hear that he becomes more open in conversations now, 'cause conversation is very important in life!
This story really touched me!

And now he won't shut up again! *LOL*

To speak with Steve's voice (I think? ):
There's nothing duct tape can't fix, ha, ha, ha.

I think he just has to catch up on what he has missed for a long time. It'll level out some day.


ANOTHER Dragon Dice™ VICTORY!!!
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Mr. Green Fan Club President

Forum Games Record: W 5 / L 10

www.dragondicer.com
SFR's German electro-punk-bluegrass artist Deeghter @@ My S&JW Memorial Space! Tanx, Steve!

[ddicerc]

My son Robert too is very shy around people he doesn't know, yet he'll be helping me demo the game at Dreamation in January. So maybe there's some redeeming social value to the game after all, even though it also spawned S&JW...
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Steve "DDice" Braun
The Diceman's Gaming Pages: http://ddicerc.weebly.com
2014-2015 U.S. National Champion
(Just when you thought it couldn't get any worse...)

[willpell]

This is a great story. It's a pity there isn't more traffic in this subforum; I'll have to try and engineer some tales of educational DD someday. Maybe I'll teach someone to comprehend 3-dimensional shapes by having them sort an Acolytes collection by color, icon, and race? "That would be nice...and it would take a good goddamn long time!"
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Designer of Hybrid Dragon Breaths, the Enchant Element spell, new colored Dragonkin Breaths, and various homebrew races and dragons. If you want to know where to find them...good luck, I don't remember anymore.

[dutchjohn]

wow I have been here on and off for a couple of years but actually it's the first time I have read this post. And now I have a kid of my own I am glad I didn't get rid of the dice under pressure of "grow up, you have akid now time to get mature." from family (from here on the opposition ) I never had this condition but I was really shy when I was young I'd rather hide from attention then drawing it on to me.

I never had that playing games the best contacts I had\have are from the gaming world actually (ranging from Go to Dragon Dice™)

Great to see that the desire to play (maybe winning as well ) brings out the best in us. And as with this story the best can become the worst if not dosed correctly
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tumble tumble little dice, look at that I'll strike you twice