Graeme Davis (born 1958, in Isleworth,

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

) is a game designer,

writer A writer is a person who uses written words in different writing styles and techniques to communicate ideas. Writers produce different forms of literary art and creative writing such as novels, short stories, books, poetry, travelogues, p ...

and editor who has worked extensively in the roleplaying game industry.

Biography

Davis started playing ''

Dungeons & Dragons ''Dungeons & Dragons'' (commonly abbreviated as ''D&D'' or ''DnD'') is a fantasy tabletop role-playing game (RPG) originally designed by Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson. The game was first published in 1974 by Tactical Studies Rules, Inc. (TS ...

'' in the mid-1970s, shortly after it was first imported into the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

. After leaving school he worked in the

bank A bank is a financial institution that accepts deposits from the public and creates a demand deposit while simultaneously making loans. Lending activities can be directly performed by the bank or indirectly through capital markets. Because ...

ing industry before studying for a

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four year ...

degree in

archaeology Archaeology or archeology is the scientific study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of artifacts, architecture, biofacts or ecofacts, sites, and cultural landsca ...

at the

University of Durham Durham University (legally the University of Durham) is a collegiate university, collegiate public university, public research university in Durham, England, Durham, England, founded by an Act of Parliament in 1832 and incorporated by royal charte ...

in 1979. He graduated in 1982, and started work towards a

Doctor of Philosophy A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, Ph.D., or DPhil; Latin: or ') is the most common degree at the highest academic level awarded following a course of study. PhDs are awarded for programs across the whole breadth of academic fields. Because it is ...

degree. Games Workshop's ''

White Dwarf A white dwarf is a stellar core remnant composed mostly of electron-degenerate matter. A white dwarf is very dense: its mass is comparable to the Sun's, while its volume is comparable to the Earth's. A white dwarf's faint luminosity comes ...

'' magazine in 1982 gave Davis his first paid opportunity to write an article about ''Dungeons & Dragons''. Other opportunities followed, including ''White Dwarf'' and other magazines such as

TSR, Inc. TSR, Inc. was an American game publishing company, best known as the original publisher of ''Dungeons & Dragons'' (''D&D''). Its earliest incarnation, Tactical Studies Rules, was founded in October 1973 by Gary Gygax and Don Kaye. Gygax had bee ...

's ''

Imagine Imagine may refer to: * Imagination Music Albums * ''Imagine'' (Armin van Buuren album), 2008 * ''Imagine'' (Eva Cassidy album), 2002 * ''Imagine'' (Janice Vidal album), 2012 * ''Imagine'' (John Lennon album), 1971 ** ''Imagine: John Lennon' ...

''. A job offer from Games Workshop in 1986 prompted Davis to leave university with his Ph.D. unfinished. However, his historical and archaeological knowledge and research skills have been put into use throughout his career with several firms and as a freelancer. He was one of the original designers of ''

Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay ''Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay'' or ''Warhammer Fantasy Role-Play'' (abbreviated to ''WFRP'' or ''WHFRP'') is a role-playing game set in the '' Warhammer Fantasy'' setting, published by Games Workshop or its licensees. The first edition of '' ...

''. Games Workshop spun ''Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay'' into its new subsidiary Flame Publications in 1989, and Davis remained on staff at Flame. Davis wrote the '' Fighting Fantasy''

Gamebook A gamebook is a work of printed fiction that allows the reader to participate in the story by making choices. The narrative branches along various paths, typically through the use of numbered paragraphs or pages. Each narrative typically does not ...

, '' Midnight Rogue'', in 1987. Davis published his first novel, '' Blood and Honor'', book four in the

Eberron Eberron is a campaign setting for the ''Dungeons & Dragons'' (''D&D'') role-playing game. The game is set primarily on the continent of Khorvaire following a vast destructive war. Eberron is designed to accommodate traditional ''D&D'' elements a ...

The War-Torn series, in 2006. Since 2009 Davis has been the line editor for Rogue Games' historical horror RPG ''

Colonial Gothic Colonial or The Colonial may refer to: * Colonial, of, relating to, or characteristic of a colony or colony (biology) Architecture * American colonial architecture * French Colonial * Spanish Colonial architecture Automobiles * Colonial (1920 au ...

'', contributing to several titles in the line.

Published works (as primary or contributing writer)

*''

'' 1st edition (1986) and 2nd edition (2005) *"Rough Night in the Three Feathers", classic WFRP 1e module published in ''White Dwarf'' 94 (1987), updated for WFRP 2e in ''Plundered Vaults'' (2005) *''Midnight Rogue'', '' Fighting Fantasy'',

Puffin Books Puffin Books is a longstanding children's imprint of the British publishers Penguin Books. Since the 1960s, it has been among the largest publishers of children's books in the UK and much of the English-speaking world. The imprint now belongs t ...

, 1987. *''

GURPS Vikings ''GURPS Vikings'' is a supplement published by Steve Jackson Games in 1991 for ''GURPS'' (''Generic Universal Role-playing System''). Contents ''GURPS Vikings'' is a supplement that details the Scandinavian people from the historical periods know ...

'' ( Steve Jackson Games; 2nd ed. 2002) (+ other GURPS titles) *''Creatures of Freeport'' (

Green Ronin Green Ronin Publishing is an American company based in Seattle, Washington. Founded in 2000 by Chris Pramas and Nicole Lindroos, they have published several role-playing game–related products. They won several awards for their games includi ...

; 2004) *''Ashes of Middenheim'' (WFRP 2nd edition scenario), 2005. *'' Blood and Honor'' (Eberron novel, September 2006) *''The Edge of Night'' (adventure for ''

'', 3rd edition;

Fantasy Flight Games Fantasy Flight Games (FFG) is a game company based in Roseville, Minnesota, United States, that creates and publishes role-playing, board, card, and dice games. As of 2014, it is a subsidiary of Asmodée Éditions. History Fantasy Flight Publish ...

; 2010)

References

External links

Graeme Davis's homepage

David's RPG credits
* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Davis, Graeme 1958 births 20th-century English novelists 21st-century English novelists Alumni of Collingwood College, Durham British video game designers English fantasy writers English male novelists GURPS writers Live-action role-playing game designers Living people People from Isleworth Role-playing game designers Role-playing game writers Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay game designers