Hello Brave Legacy Subscribers,
Here's just a little information about how I (Tom) got involved with board game design generally and with Brave Legacy Games specifically.
I started developing my first board game in 1989 while working for a paper company in Texas. Actually, I should back up a little. After college while living back home, I started my own business called Sports Minded: a business aimed at teaching high school and middle school athletes the power of sports psychology to improve performance. It was actually doing pretty well when a college buddy called and asked me if I would be interested in interviewing for a job at a paper company in Texas. He had moved down from Indiana after college to work for this company and thought of me when a job there became available. I’m not sure why (perhaps just to start my own life in a new place away from home or perhaps for a safer, more secure income), but I said yes, I’d take the interview. To my surprise, I got the job. I wrapped up the loose ends of my business and headed to Texas shortly after. Looking back, I think I regret that decision. I had (and have) an entrepreneurial spirit and that decision meant setting my personal adventure aside.
Nonetheless, down to Texas I went to start working for a paper converting company. As I worked, I watched and learned about how this business operated and came to the conclusion I shouldn’t have given up on the dream that was my own business. I thought of starting something else, but ultimately the ideas I had would cost a lot of startup money. In the end, all my ideas were just too expensive.
Then one night it hit me. Maybe I could scratch my entrepreneurial itch by creating a board game to play where players compete to start and build their own business. The player with the most successful business would be the winner. By making it a game, I could start and build a business with no actual financial risk at all. And that’s what I did. The perfect solution.
Before long, I was inviting others to play my new business game. The more we played, the more defined the rules became and the more fun it was to play. We were loving it. It was the perfect solution for me entrepreneurially because it was (and is) exceedingly satisfying for me to play. However, things were about to change. The company I was working for wasn’t doing well. The writing was on the wall. I decided to jump ship and move back to Indiana. That company closed its doors shortly after.
My wife and I packed everything up (including my game) and moved back to Indiana. Once we got settled, I actually played the game a few times with friends and family, but then I decided to go back to school, so the game got packed up yet again. This time for 30 years. It stayed packed for each of the next 5 moves we made over those 30 years. It wasn’t until 2022 that I got it back out to play again, due in large measure to meeting board game creator, enthusiast, and Brave Legacy Games founder, Colin Hanna.
I met Colin in about 2002. He was (and still is) quite a bit younger than me, but by the time he had completed college, received his Masters degree, and got started in life on his own, he had created three remarkable board games. He shared those games with me and I told him about mine. His games were, and are, excellent. We soon found ourselves collaborating on games and being energized by the prospect of creating future games together. For my part, I was thrilled someone had the same passion for board games as me. For his part, Colin had already founded Brave Legacy Games, LLC, and let me join him. Together, we have continued to work on our craft.
We now boast six games that are near completion. That game I created thirty years ago is among them. Who knew after all those years I would meet someone with the same passion as me? Who knew we’d have six games near completion so quickly? Who knew a game I invented so I could safely start a pretend business of my own would be the catalyst for being a part of an actual business? Who knew?
It’s crazy to think about really. All those years ago the seed was planted and now has grown into a wonderful adventure. Be on the lookout for your chance to help us launch our first official tabletop game called Uncantations. Of all the games we’ve created, we believe this game to be the best to release first. I look forward to the day we offer all our games for sale to the public through our website bravelegacy-games.com. First, however, we need to raise the funds through crowdfunding to have our first 2000 units of Uncantations made. We hope you’ll be willing to help us out.
In the meantime, we’ll keep updating you on our progress and doing our best to get word out about Brave Legacy Games in general and Uncantations specifically. Keep following our adventure and be sure to tell friends and family about us too.
Until next time,
Tom