The History of Lore Gaming Company

1985	1994	1999
1988	1996	2000
1991	1997	2001
2002		2003

1985

1985 marked the very first design attempt by Troye Gerard. The game was called DRAGON MASTER, and was a level and class-based system running on a percentage style rule system.

"It was clunky, messy, did not work well and pretty much was awful." - Troye Gerard on the Dragon Master system

1988

The second, and equally unsuccessful, design attempt by Troye Gerard occurred in 1988. The system was called TUNNELS AND TRAPS. It worked on a messy system involving over 35 character classes and a combat system that required calculators.

"T & T made Dragon Master look like a solid system." - Troye Gerard on Tunnels and Traps

1991

1991 brought the second attempt at the Dragon Master concept. An entirely new system was designed in one night and only consisted of one page of handwritten notes. The system still worked on a character class system, but levels were omitted this time around.
This system was able to inspire Jeremy Huffman and Daniel Beatty to begin helping with design. Dan suggested a name change to LORE, and the name stuck with the game, and later with the company.

"Looking back, I am very proud of that system. That basic system set with us for nearly six years, and many of the basic ideas still exist in Vengeance [now Uprising]. The numerical alignment system is planned to be used in the upcoming Origins system, and that idea is unchanged from those original notes still!" - Troye Gerard on the second version of Dragon Master

1994

In 1994, LORE was drastically changed -- the classes were officially dropped and the story line went through changes that would forever impact the designers' lives. The story was taken from a pure fantasy root into the genre of science fiction. The whole concept was based on the question, "What if a typical fantasy society reached the space age?" The idea soared off the ground. The original designers often called this concept "Elves in Space" as was dubbed by Troye. Furthermore, due to comments from informal playtesters of the current rule set, the trio decided that the idea was marketable and formed an unofficial business called BGH Games (Beatty, Gerard, Huffman).

"I had the idea of a fantasy-based science fiction game a long time ago, but was totally convinced that no one but me would like the idea. I was surprised when everyone actually bit!" - Troye Gerard on the "Elves in Space" concept for LORE

1996

Lore went through two name changes in 1996, and tragedy struck BGH. The first name change was to Lore: 2000, but this name was most vehemently opposed by Troye's then-wife, and the new name for the game became Lore: The Birth. Dan based the new name on a story concept, and the story concept is still being held pretty tightly for future use. Also this year, Jeremy left BGH to join the United States Army, leaving Troye and Dan to work on the game.
After Jeremy left for the Army, Dan introduced BGH to Bryan Donihue as a potential artist, and Bryan was sucked into the whirlwind of design. Though his role as an artist has never played out fully, Bryan's organizational skills turned the company into a new, positive direction. Everything was quickly computerized and finally the first version of the rules manual was written with a name other than BGH gracing the cover. The company, owned by Troye, was now being called Lore Roleplaying.

"This was a frustrating time. Here we had a decent system which still had a LONG way to go, and we were short a designer." - Troye Gerard

"When I was introduced to the game in a playtest setting, I absolutely fell in love with the concept. When I was finally introduced to Troye, I asked for the rules and equipment lists. He handed me one piece of paper with some handwritten notes. When we next met the following week, I handed him 12 type-written, single-spaced sheets of weapons and equipment. I sort of overwhelmed him, and it's been something to live up to (or live down) ever since." - Bryan Donihue on his introduction to the game

1997

      The first copyrights and trademarks ran in 1997 and Lore Roleplaying became an officially registered business, with Bryan taking Jeremy's place in the design/partner role.
          Also brought into the company this year was Dawn Mendoza, who would take the then-poorly designed magic system and turn it upside down. Her deep story concepts began to mold the rules around her stories, and the game showed maturation. In 1997 alone, five drafts of the manual were written and revised. The entire basis of the system was redrafted this year by Dan to run smoother than ever.
      Also this year saw yet another name change to the game - Lore: Origins. Though this name no longer applies to the game that it was assigned to, the name has been reserved for another game in the series. Unfortunately the closing of this year also saw Troye reduce his involvement in the active workings of the company and join the United States Navy.

"The Navy was great in some ways. I learned a lot that could be applied to the game, but leaving my 'baby' in the hands of the other three members was hard and took a lot of trust. I stayed as active as I could, but it was hard being cut off. All I have to say is thank God for the Internet." - Troye Gerard

1999

Once again, Lore: Origins was renamed - this time to Lore: Vengeance. The system grew more in 1999 than it ever had, while renewed vigor graced the design team. Most of the credit for this year's design work goes to Dan and Dawn, who worked long hours to mold the system. Though he did give regular input, Troye's part in the design was minimal this year because of requirements of the Navy. Bryan was the full-fledged business manager at this point, and began laying groundwork to bring the business side of the project to fruition.

"In 1999, I was simply burnt out. I had gotten to the point where I could not see the light at the end of the tunnel anymore, and had it not been for Dan, Dawn and Bryan I don't think I would have kept going. Thank God they kept the flame alive!" - Troye Gerard

2000

2000 was an exciting year for Lore Roleplaying. The only low point of this year was Dan's departure from the company to pursue dreams of his own. Troye's time away from active involvement gave him the rest he needed, and now he was back in full swing. Four new designers briefly joined the team this year and left almost as quickly: Will King, Shawn Carroll, Brandon Courtney and Frank Pacheo. The primary game moved with leaps and bounds this year, as well as getting another name change. Shedding the Vengeance name, the game became Lore: Uprising, which provided a perfect fit to the background story. Lore Gaming finally feels close enough to set a semi-firm release date for its first offering - Lore: Uprising: Third Quarter 2001! The Internet reference site also added Uprising to their listings this year.

"With the changes in the business structure, and Dan leaving the company, Troye and I were forced to reconsider almost every aspect of the business. With hard work and long deliberations, we decided to form a partnership called Lore Gaming Company. We started doing business under this name towards the end of 2000, and formally signed the paperwork in early 2001." - Bryan Donihue

2001

      This year brought some of the most exciting advancements to Lore yet:
      January 6, 2001 - Lore Gaming Company became a partnership of Troye Gerard and Bryan Donihue. The company also bought all the rights to Lore Roleplaying from its founder/owner - Troye Gerard. With this step, Troye's dream of publishing his own roleplaying game advanced farther than it ever had been.
       May 12, 2001 4PM EST- The Lore Gaming Web Portal opens for business, allowing gamers a portal that offers free email, community and chats, all based around the roleplaying/ gaming community.
      September 11, 2001 - America suffers a blow at the hands of terrorists. After this, our company president, Troye, spent the next seven months at sea, serving our country in the US Navy. Unfortunately, this did place our release plans on hold while we waited for his return to finish our first game.

"Originally, we had high hopes of publishing by the end of 2001, however, like all Americans, even our small company was affected by the terrorist attacks. We are thankful now that Troye is back home, and hope that we will be publishing Lore: Uprising in late 2002." - Bryan Donihue

2002

     This year has been a long series of setbacks, with a swing upward at the end:
      May 11, 2002 - After a short down time, our redesigned web portal reopens. With a new host, on a new server, we are now better able to offer what we want to our visitors and customers!
     December 2002 - Open beta testing is announced in the Grand Rapids, MI, area at one of the area's finest RPG and comic stores - White Cap Comics in Comstock Park, MI.

2003

     We are looking forward to a great year in 2003:
     January 2003 - Open Beta Testing begins at White Cap Comics in Comstock Park, MI. Five gamers of all ages and experiences begin testing Lore: Uprising in ernest. Their responses and suggestions become invaluable to the game.
     March 2003 - Game Testing begins in Norfolk, VA. Again, these game testers quickly become invaluable for their suggestions.
     July 3, 2003 - LoreGaming.com reopens after being redesigned with a new look and new goodies. Work progresses rapidly on Lore: Uprising, and the target release date of April, 2004 is established for Lore: Uprsing.