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GARY GYGAX, who died on Tuesday aged 69, invented Dungeons & Dragons (D&D), among the first, and certainly the most influential, of the role-playing games which had their roots in fantasy literature and which, though they often used no more than pencils, paper and dice, had an immense impact on computer gaming.
Indeed, in one poll Gygax tied with JRR Tolkein (in 13th place) for his influence on gaming in general; perhaps less flatteringly, Sync magazine placed him at No 1 on its list of 50 Greatest Nerds of All Time.
D&D sprang from Chainmail, a miniatures wargame which Gygax had devised with Jeff Perren in 1971. By this stage, Gygax's devotion to gaming had led him to organise a convention (there were around a score at the first meeting) in his basement. But from this start in 1967, he met David Arneson, with whom he was to create D&D, and the meetings developed into GenCon, which now attracts tens of thousands of gamers each year.