Gamelords was an American game company that produced
tabletop role-playing games
A tabletop role-playing game (TTRPG or TRPG), also known as a pen-and-paper role-playing game, is a kind of role-playing game (RPG) in which the participants describe their characters' actions through speech and sometimes movements. Participants d ...
and game supplements.
History
Kerry Lloyd founded the company, with three friends -
Richard Meyer,
Janet Trautvetter, and
Michael Watkins Michael, Mike Watkins or Watkin may refer to:
* Michael D. Watkins, American author
* Michael M. Watkins, American engineer and scientist
* Michael W. Watkins, American television producer
* Michael Watkins (zoologist)
Michael Watkins is a Brit ...
in 1980.
Gamelords was centered in
Gaithersburg, Maryland
Gaithersburg ( ) is a city in Montgomery County, Maryland, United States. At the time of the 2020 United States census, Gaithersburg had a population of 69,657, making it the third-largest incorporated city and the ninth-most populous communit ...
.
Gamelords published the role-playing game ''
Thieves' Guild'' in 1980.
Looking to produce more group-oriented products for ''
The Fantasy Trip
''The Fantasy Trip'' (''TFT'') is a fantasy tabletop role-playing game designed by Steve Jackson and published in segments by Metagaming Concepts starting in 1977 and culminating in 1980. In 2019, Steve Jackson Games republished it as ''The Fan ...
'',
Howard M. Thompson of
Metagaming Concepts
Metagaming Concepts, later known simply as Metagaming, was a company that published board games from 1974 to 1983. It was founded and owned by Howard Thompson, who designed the company's first game, '' Stellar Conquest''. The company also inven ...
signed an agreement in 1982 with Gamelords to create a campaign world for the game, but he terminated the agreement after only two campaign books were published.
When
FASA
FASA Corporation was an American publisher of role-playing games, wargaming, wargames and board games between 1980 and 2001, after which they closed publishing operations for several years, becoming an IP holding company under the name FASA In ...
ended its support of ''
Traveller'',
William H. Keith Jr.
William H. Keith (born August 8, 1950) is an American author mainly contributing to military science fiction and military fiction and related game design, who writes also under several pen names, such as Ian Douglas, Robert Cain and H. Jay R ...
and
J. Andrew Keith moved their ''Traveller'' writing to Gamelords.
The Keith brothers wrote seven ''Traveller'' supplements for Gamelords, including ''
The Mountain Environment'' (1983), ''
The Undersea Environment'' (1983), and ''
The Desert Environment'' (1984).
Gamelords was sold to
Tadashi Ehara in 1986.
Publications
* ''
Duel Arcane'' (1980)
* ''
The Compleat Tavern'' (1981)
* ''
The Phantastical Phantasmagorical Montie Haul Dungeon'' (1982)
Thieves Guild
see ''
Thieves Guild Publications''
Traveller
* ''
Lee's Guide to Interstellar Adventure'' (1983)
* ''
The Mountain Environment'' (1983)
* ''
The Drenslaar Quest'' (1983)
* ''
The Undersea Environment'' (1983)
* ''
Ascent To Anekthor'' (1984)
* ''
Startown Liberty'' (1984)
* ''
The Desert Environment'' (1984)
* ''
Duneraiders'' (1984)
* ''
A Pilot's Guide to the Drexilthar Subsector'' (1984)
* ''
Wanted: Adventurers'' (1984)
References
Role-playing game publishing companies
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