Joe Dever and Lone Wolf

This is not related to Warhammer 40K, but I thought I should put this out as Joe Dever has been one of my favorite authors - his Lone Wolf gamebooks have particularly played a huge role in my childhood. I've devoured most of his Lone Wolf gamebooks, read them over and over again, increased my combat skill and endurance points, dragged around the legendary Sommerswerd and screaming, "For Sommerlund and the Kai!"

Recently I even came across a Lone Wolf website that has all his books in ebook form, from the first book Flight from the Dark all the way to The Hunger of Sejanoz which isn't the last book. And I've probably read the Kai, MagnaKai and Grand Master series a few dozen times. The books are just that good. I can't say I'm a fan of the New Order, but the first three series especially captured my attention as a child, and I still vividly remember fighting against the Deathlord of Ixia, resisting Shamath, confronting the dark god Naar, and the Darklord Gnaag at the end of MagnaKai - I enjoyed kicking his ass with the Sommerswerd. The Masters of Darkness, Fire on the Water, Deathlord of Ixia, all these were my favorite books and I would read them over and over again. All right, I cheated a bit with the combat skill system by inflating my stats with Sommerswerd and the weapon mastery and psi-surge, but who wouldn't? I was a kid back then, and I read it for fun, not to have a challenge, ha ha. The lore for me was more important than winning combat. In any case, I love all these books and as a kid I spent countless hours poring over them and imagining myself as the titular Lone Wolf with his legendary Sommerswerd, having adventures and running about slaying Darklords and resisting dark gods. Those days never seem to end.

Alas, last week, his official Facebook page made the announcement that Joe Dever has passed away. It came as a blow to me - first was David Gemmell about 10 years ago. I started reading David Gemmell's heroic fantasy novels in 2006, and he quickly became one of my favorite authors...only for me to find out that he passed away earlier that year. And now, when I recently returned to Lone Wolf, I find out that he's...gone. As the guy in Project Anon said, the Grand Master has passed away after a brave and private ten-year battle with illness.

Fantasy will never be the same without him.

Why put it here? I guess it's because Lone Wolf is a gamebook series, so it's sort of related to Warhammer 40K? Warhammer 40K is close to Dungeon and Dragons, which is in turn what largely shaped and influenced Joe Dever in writing Lone Wolf. Wargaming, or gaming, will never be the same without him.

Kind of sad...as life moves on, more tragedies happen, and I often look back on the simpler days of my childhood with a heavy tinge of nostalgia, wishing that I could often return to those days and indulge myself once again in Lone Wolf. That said, I think a lot of good things have happened, and nostalgia is just that: nostalgia. It doesn't mean the past is much better than the present, and while we miss a lot of things in our childhood, I think I've also gained a lot during my times as an adult. I wouldn't have been able to afford my Warhammer 40K hobby if I remained a kid forever. In the same way, I think we should continue to look forward and march on, undertaking new adventures. I'm sure Joe Dever would approve.

For Sommerlund and the Kai!