Ah, yes, The Scribe returns again. A pen scrapes across parchment and leaves words in its wake. Read them if you dare. This time, The Scribe delves into the life of one Bridget N. Bondurant – Lady Blackrose.
Vitals:
Name: Bridget N. Bondurant
Age: 27
City of residence: Dublin, VA (originally from Lynchburg, VA)
Occupation: Student/Intern Social Worker
Family status: Engaged
Kingdoms played: Khoraja (671), Zamora(HWE006)
Games won: None
The Scribe knows you are about to start your first HW game. What do you think so far?
I have been really nervous, despite my bluster. I feel like a little insect under everyone’s scope! "Is she as good as us? Can she do as good as she brags about?" Things like that. I am good at war games, but this one is REALLY detailed. I enjoy the bickering back and forth though, so I am
looking forward to that part of the experience as much, if not more, than the actual game.
What got you started with HW?
My fiancée, Tony Edwards, has been playing off and on since in the mid-80s. He got me into AD 'n D and then Hyborian War. He wanted someone he knew to get in on a friends game with him, and since I like war games (I know, weird girl), I told him I would try it out. He got called away to reserve duty before we could start a game together. Since he had given his word that he would finish the organized games he had signed up for, he asked me if I would fill in for him while he was gone. Already intrigued, I said yes.
What other wargames do you like?
Mostly board games like Shogun, Axis and Allies, and Conquest of the Empire. I also play The Gorgon's Alliance for the Birthright world, and Age of Empires. In playing AD 'n D in the Birthright world, I have a really nice kingdom that belongs to Brygite "Blackrose" Blackmourne (my Elven warrior/sorceress). I have to say that I think Hyborian War is MUCH more fun than anything I have
played to date. Pretty high praise since I haven't even played a whole game yet.
Why do you think its weird for girls to like wargames?
I don't know. I have just met very few other girls who like them. Some like games like AD 'n D or the White Wolf system; but very few (and honestly only one that I have met) seem to like war games, not even chess!
What's it like being one of the few women in a gaming universe filled with men?
I manage to hold my own. It is nothing new to me. I was an R.O.T.C. cadet at VA Tech before going into the military, and I come from a family of mostly men who are VERY competitive. Not to mention the fact that I live with the world's biggest advocate of male superiority! Over all, the guys seem to just want to treat me as another player. There have been some sore points, but for the most part the people I am playing with don't let my being a woman get in the way of trying to bash me. Silly men, they should know better than trying to out-talk a woman!
When The Scribe thinks of females and games like HW or AD 'n D he gets a vision of a woman standing tall with 100 drooling geeks all fighting over who gets to lick her boots first... Is this true?
(Blush) I think everyone is just trying to be nice. Nobody has tried to ask me out or anything (and couldn't since not only am I engaged, but this IS the Internet) so I don't think the idea is true. Besides, most of the people I have talked with seem to be married and happy. Christy Parks has been
playing for a while and she didn't mention a bunch of guys fawning over her. I think everyone is just happy to have someone new to talk with. Since I like to talk anyway....
Where are you studying?
I am studying at Radford University. It is a medium-sized school of about 18-20+ thousand students about 25 minutes from VA Tech, located in southwest Virginia, in the City of Radford. It is a good school now; known mostly for its Art and Theatre. It used to be an all-girl university, but that changed years and years ago. At one time it was rated in Playboy Magazine as one of the top ten party colleges on the East Coast, but it is nothing like that now.
The Scribe wants to know what is up with that "GRASP THE BLACK ROSE @}-----" thing your fiancée puts on his posts. There seems to be some really twisted phallic thing going on there...
AHEM! That is just a reference to an old saying Tony found somewhere. It means to take to heart the glory, honor, and death that is war. As beautiful as a rose is, it can still make you bleed.
Sniff. Sniff. That was beautiful. Really. How about two lines on your military career?
To be honest, I really didn't like the military a great deal. It was a good experience for me, but I did it mostly because of the traditions of my family. I enjoyed the things I learned, and would have liked it a great deal more if I hadn't been stationed in D.C. the whole time.
If you were a pizza, what kind of pizza would you be?
Definitely just plain ol' pepperoni and cheese...with LOTS of cheese. Tony says I am a mouse in a woman suit. I don't like all the fancy stuff.
If you would like to chat with the Scribe, contact me at dnairne@freepress.mb.ca