Robert J. Kuntz
| Robert J. Kuntz | |
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Robert J. Kuntz at Lucca Comics & Games 2015
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| Born | Robert J. Kuntz September 23, 1955 Wisconsin, United States |
| Occupation | Author, game designer |
| Nationality | United States |
| Period | 1973-present |
| Genre | Role-playing games |
| Website | |
| threelinestudio |
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Robert J. Kuntz (born September 23, 1955) is a game designer and author of role-playing game publications. He is best known for his contributions to various Dungeons & Dragons-related materials.
Rob Kuntz was born September 23, 1955 in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin. His older brother is Terry Kuntz. Kuntz learned about miniature wargames at age 13 while skimming through an issue of Playboy; he saw a game called Dogfight listed in a section describing party gifts for Christmas. Kuntz began playing boardgames, miniatures and play-by-mail games. Kuntz met Gary Gygax in 1968. In 1972, at age 17 Kuntz lived just a few blocks away from Gygax, and got to play in the second-ever game of Dungeons & Dragons set in the World of Greyhawk, taking on the role of a fighter named Robilar. In 1973, Kuntz began running his own "Castle El Raja Key" campaign for Gygax. His campaign world was known as Kalibruhn. By 1974, the group of D&D players sometimes included over 20 people, so Kuntz became the co-dungeon-master, allowing each dungeon master to referee groups of only a dozen players. Kuntz brought in some elements of his campaign into Greyhawk, and some levels of El Raja Key were incorporated directly into Castle Greyhawk.
After Gygax formed TSR in 1973 and was hired as the company's first full-time employee in mid-1975, he was soon followed by Rob Kuntz, Terry Kuntz, Tim Kask, and Dave Megarry. Kuntz was TSR's sixth employee and was initially hired to do shipping; because of the small size of the company, everyone got to do some design work, including the Greyhawk supplement (1975). Kuntz also co-authored Gods, Demi-Gods & Heroes (1976) with James M. Ward.Fritz Leiber and Harry Fischer designed the wargame Lankhmar for TSR, although Gygax, Kuntz, and Brad Stock redeveloped it for publication in 1976. His short fiction story "The Quest for the Vermillion Volume" appeared in The Strategic Review Vol. II #1 (February, 1976), and was the first fiction published by TSR. Gygax credits Kuntz with "substantial ideas" in Expedition to the Barrier Peaks (1980), which was originally run at Origins II in 1976. Kuntz served in the company in many positions, as designer, editor, Director of Shipping, columnist for the Dragon Magazine, Convention Chairman (Gen Con VIII & IX and Winter Fantasy 1) and oversaw the AD&D line's licensing to Judges Guild for a short time period.
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