Tales of Urth - Introduction

Tales of Urth is a serialized novel. This means that it will be posted in segments, and will make up a longer running narrative. This book is a departure from the usual stuff I write and illustrate, but should make for an enjoyable break from those things.
'Tales' is not purely my own creation. I cannot take soul credit for the creation of this world, nor its inhabitants. In fact, the characters of the stories you are about to read, are not my creation at all, but are the work of my friends. Every week, I run a game group known as GNU (gaming nerds united). We play everything from card games to month long role playing games. A few months ago, we took on a new role playing game system, that simplified many rules that tend to bog down typical games. As I learned the system and prepared for my role as game master, I began to create a world for our adventures to take place. We wanted something simple to jump into, as quick to pick up as the rules of our new system. We knew we wanted a generic fantasy setting, something anyone familiar with other rpg's or even just Lord of the Rings would be able to grasp. We had hundreds of minis to use and a group with a firm grasp of the fantasy genre. But our world needed a hook. Why come back for more if everything is so simple and generic.
Thus Urth was born. A world very much like our own, whose events have lead to a strange fantastic world of magic far into our future. This gave us the opportunity to choose from a long timeline of settings, all the took place in our own world, on our own continent. We could play the dark scifi setting of the alien invasion only decades from now, as humans fight to survive with what little technology remains. We could take on the political intrigue of the height of a new age of man, as a human/dwarf empire ruled over the land. But to start, we dove in, five-thousand three hundred years from now, in a place of warring baronies, and rampaging monsters.
As my friends made their characters, and played their best, exciting stories and adventures were revealed. We all quickly fell in love with this world. And when we took time off, so I could get married, we all felt the withdrawl of our weekly trek through an exciting new frontier.
I decided to begin adapting the adventures of my friends into stories that I could then illustrate and share with the world. For us, it is a fun chance to look back. For me, it is opportunity to write and illustrate new things. For you, hopefully, it is an enjoyable collection of stories.

Tales of Urth could not be possible without the creative input and permission of Chris Stapleton, Timm Miller, and Chris Hopp. We couldn't have had this much fun, or been able to create such a fantastic world to explore without the help of Heroes Against Darkness, by Justin Halliday. And of course, none of my writing would be possible without the love and support of my wife, Megan.