You know, there’s something surreal & magical about the changing of seasons. The threshold between 2 vastly different environments, where the past meets the present and makes a deal with the future - a liminal state, to my mind not too unlike a crossroads.
Oh, the Enchanted World series! The year was 1984. I had already "inherited" my brother's D&D Basic Moldvay/Otus box set. He had enlisted in the Army and was preparing to leave. The Dungeons and Dragons animated series had kicked off. While there was much talk about the "Satanic Panic", our little pocket of Up North was pretty quiet. The parent's of my friend group understood what D&D was and knew that "there was worse things we could be doing". As kids our parent's homes were often the meeting place.
The Enchanted World books weren't my gateway into the worlds of fantasy, but it was the nexus point. The advertising packet I got in the mail offered Ghosts as the initial book AND a free copy of the Wizard’s Quest game by Avalon Hill. This branched out into my love of games like HeroQuest and Warhammer, old fantasy books (because the old books are the most true), and the use of miniatures in all kinds of games. Sadly, Ghosts was were my collection stopped for many years. I became a used book store frequenter and hunted these books at every opportunity. Online hunting was discouraging because shipping costs were astronomical.
Years passed, my collection didn't grow. Were these books so rare or were people not willing to part with them? I was able to find a copy of Faries and Elves about 10 years ago. About 6 years ago well used copies of Wizards and Witches along with Water Spirits were found in a store near Duluth. Last year, as I was scanning Marketplace, a guy was selling the entire set +1 duplicate. The price was right and he was within an hour drive time! Within a week the entire set was at my house.
It's funny how much of a weight is lifted by finally completing a 40 year side quest. Oh, speaking of quests, my copy of Wizard’s Quest has almost all of the cardboard chits replaced with miniatures. Really brings new life to the game.
You have been deemed worthy, Oh Eric Erickson. Your Enchanted World quest is even now being sung about by bards throughout the realms. May these treasures provide comfort and wealth to you and yours for generations! 🧙♂️ (thank you for sharing your story. I love to hear about this kind of stuff!)
I was lucky! I found a bunch of them in amazing condition in a bin at a thrift outlet.
I was in London Ontario for training and decided to do some book hunting. It was the first time I had bought books by weight! I was able to pick up all but six in one purchase, for less than $40!
Even better luck, these were from the original run!
I continue to search for the last six, but so far the only ones I’ve found are the same as what I have!
Oh, the Enchanted World series! The year was 1984. I had already "inherited" my brother's D&D Basic Moldvay/Otus box set. He had enlisted in the Army and was preparing to leave. The Dungeons and Dragons animated series had kicked off. While there was much talk about the "Satanic Panic", our little pocket of Up North was pretty quiet. The parent's of my friend group understood what D&D was and knew that "there was worse things we could be doing". As kids our parent's homes were often the meeting place.
The Enchanted World books weren't my gateway into the worlds of fantasy, but it was the nexus point. The advertising packet I got in the mail offered Ghosts as the initial book AND a free copy of the Wizard’s Quest game by Avalon Hill. This branched out into my love of games like HeroQuest and Warhammer, old fantasy books (because the old books are the most true), and the use of miniatures in all kinds of games. Sadly, Ghosts was were my collection stopped for many years. I became a used book store frequenter and hunted these books at every opportunity. Online hunting was discouraging because shipping costs were astronomical.
Years passed, my collection didn't grow. Were these books so rare or were people not willing to part with them? I was able to find a copy of Faries and Elves about 10 years ago. About 6 years ago well used copies of Wizards and Witches along with Water Spirits were found in a store near Duluth. Last year, as I was scanning Marketplace, a guy was selling the entire set +1 duplicate. The price was right and he was within an hour drive time! Within a week the entire set was at my house.
It's funny how much of a weight is lifted by finally completing a 40 year side quest. Oh, speaking of quests, my copy of Wizard’s Quest has almost all of the cardboard chits replaced with miniatures. Really brings new life to the game.
You have been deemed worthy, Oh Eric Erickson. Your Enchanted World quest is even now being sung about by bards throughout the realms. May these treasures provide comfort and wealth to you and yours for generations! 🧙♂️ (thank you for sharing your story. I love to hear about this kind of stuff!)
I was lucky! I found a bunch of them in amazing condition in a bin at a thrift outlet.
I was in London Ontario for training and decided to do some book hunting. It was the first time I had bought books by weight! I was able to pick up all but six in one purchase, for less than $40!
Even better luck, these were from the original run!
I continue to search for the last six, but so far the only ones I’ve found are the same as what I have!