Meat for the Grinder  

People have asked me how I had time to play games while in the military. The answer is that, though I didn't have a lot of time to play, I made it happen when I could. Like most military personnel who find the time to do things when they're not on the battlefield, I was no exception. I served nine years in the U.S. Army, three on active duty, six in the National Guard. In that time I found time to game, more so in the National Guard than on active though for obvious reasons. But when I was not on deployments, both combat tours and training exercises, I found that playing games helped relieve stress. So when approached by Zam Network to do a column about gaming for military gamers I jumped at the opportunity. I felt that though the majority of the players of MMOs are civilians there are a quite a few military gamers, like myself, who enjoy relieving stress by cracking virtual orc skulls with the best of them. This column will focus on how the military gamer can make the time to enjoy their time off better by participating in the group oriented activities as well as the solo content. I'll take you into the trenches with recommendations of what to look for in guilds, zones, quests and more. So get ready trooper to drive on and go behind enemy lines.

I grew up in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, where I fell in love with role playing games like Dungeons and Dragons, Shadowrun, and Middle Earth. This was well back in the days when computers hadn't even fathomed the thought of the Worldwide Web or even gaming online. Sure there were MUDs out there on the BBS servers but nothing like what's available now. The best games for the PC at the time were Bard's Tale and Forgotten Realms: The Pools of Radiance. I was eight when I got into gaming, having developed a taste for adventure games with The Legend of Zelda and other near-RPG titles on the console systems. But when I had my first taste of D&D with a group of friends gathered around a table, I was hooked. Fast forward ten years and you have a hardened gamer who had played titles online from Diablo and Warcraft to Ultima Online.

After joining the service in 1999 I found a lot of gamers in various units that I served in. I was a member of a signal company at Fort Huachuca, Arizona and I found fellow gamers all over the post. Military intelligence, now there's an oxymoron for you, maintenance units, cooks, and dare I say it, infantry. Surprising the best wizard I ever grouped with was a hardcore, built like a brick outhouse, grunt from North Carolina. I found a young soldier who was addicted to an online game, Everquest, and between game sessions with pen and paper games would spill stories about his online gaming groups. At the time I had no clue what he was talking about, but as I listened I became fascinated by the stats that came from his weapons and armor and it made me envious. Then 9/11 happened while I was on deployment in Egypt, a training exercise that became "real world" as we often call missions that have real life consequences to them. Things changed radically as I was going from one place to another but I often kept my laptop and D&D rulebooks nearby as a means of release from the weighted tensions of the time. I found a few hours here and there to game with squad mates. We even had a pretty good mini-campaign going for a time. But then I was off to war, Afghanistan, and it was nearly impossible to find time to game with the unit I was with. Later I was reassigned to be a network administrator for a new piece of equipment and had access to the internet on a regular basis. This was a godsend for it allowed me to play my games and talk with family back in the rear. I found the tricks of the trade regarding what could and couldn't be used on the networks, and what I could get away with "under the radar" regarding playing Xbox Live. We had a pretty good Ghost Recon group in Afghanistan. Players from Bagram to Berlin joined us online to best each other in virtual war games. It's amazing what you can pass for Sergeant's Time Training if you put your mind to it. Task: Squad based tactical training; Conditions: Given a controlled environment conduct battle maneuvers that will give a tactical advantage over enemy units; Standards: Participants will learn basic maneuvers necessary to achieve success on the battlefield during small skirmishes. And yes that actually got the OK of the Commander and First Sergeant. I was good at painting a pretty picture with cow manure. These are the types of experiences that will be put into every column, the good, the bad, and down right dirty side of gaming behind enemy lines.

I've been divorced, had children, and been to Hell and back again more times than I can count, but the fact remains that I'm still a gamer at heart. I started playing MMOs exclusively about two years ago, after my divorce, in order to rebuild my confidence in what I liked and what drove me. At the core I had always loved to game and it seemed a good place to start. My buddy from the military, who is my son's Godfather, offered to room with him as means of having some support after such a turbulent time. I accepted it. No matter who you are, when you're military, you're family. That's how it is in the military. Thankfully I had that when I needed it most. He showed me Everquest II, and I fell in love with it. I started out playing a swashbuckler, a scout class, and learned the ins and outs of that class. Later I started a brigand, another scout, and am learning that class. Eventually, I started trying my hand at other classes. Currently, I have four scouts, a mage, a healer, and a fighter that I play regularly. I'm becoming and alt-a-holic I guess. Maybe I should start going to meetings. "Hi, my name is Sarge, and I'm an alt-a-holic." The group in turn can say, "Hi Sarge!" I wonder if Veterans Affairs covers that on TRI-CARE insurance. I play Everquest II primarily, but I also enjoy Star Wars Galaxies, Matrix Online, and Vanguard. I have been looking at giving World of Warcraft another try, as well as Dungeons and Dragons: Stormreach. I enjoyed Lord of the Rings Online but I have to agree with my friend that the journal system leaves something to be desired. I enjoy tradeskilling, and creating player-made items for guild mates. I have organized and lead three guilds in EQ2, Fallen Blades (Crushbone), Bloodsworn and Shadowbane (Lucan D'Lere). Currently, Shadowbane is my home and I don't intend to leave any time soon.

But like the military, there is strength in numbers and with MMOs it is no different. The games are designed with grouping in mind. Guilds are made to allow players to pull from a familiar player pool for grouping and raiding. Heroic instances are designed with groups in mind and Epic quests are long and drawn out, group oriented quests. So take a tip from the ol' Drill Sergeant and rely on your battle buddies and you'll make back alive.

Next article: "Which is better for the time pressed soldier, solo or groups?" Also in the next edition, "What should I look for when choosing a guild?" See you next time and remember: Lean forward in the foxhole and blue fire is never friendly.