Zeb Cook
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

David "Zeb" Cook is an American
game designer Game design is the art of applying design and aesthetics to create a game for entertainment or for educational, exercise, or experimental purposes. Increasingly, elements and principles of game design are also applied to other interactions, in ...
, best known for his work at
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 ...
, where he was employed for over fifteen years. Cook designed several games, wrote the '' Expert Set'' for ''
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 TSR (company)#Tactical Studies Rules ...
'', worked as lead designer of the second edition of ''Advanced Dungeons & Dragons'', and invented the
Planescape ''Planescape'' is a campaign setting for the ''Dungeons & Dragons'' fantasy role-playing game, designed by Zeb Cook, and published in 1994. It crosses numerous planes of existence, encompassing an entire cosmology called the Great Wheel, as dev ...
setting for ''AD&D''. He is a member of the
Origins Origin(s) or The Origin may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Comics and manga * ''Origin'' (comics), a Wolverine comic book mini-series published by Marvel Comics in 2002 * ''The Origin'' (Buffy comic), a 1999 ''Buffy the Vampire Sl ...
Hall of Fame.


Early life

Cook was born in
East Lansing, Michigan East Lansing is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan. Most of the city lies within Ingham County, Michigan, Ingham County with a smaller portion extending north into Clinton County, Michigan, Clinton County. At the 2020 United States Census, 2020 ...
, and grew up on a farm in
Iowa Iowa () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States, bordered by the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west. It is bordered by six states: Wisconsin to the northeast, Illinois to the ...
. His father was a farmer and college professor. In junior high school, Cook played wargames such as
Avalon Hill Avalon Hill Games Inc. is a game company that publishes wargames and strategic board games. It has also published miniature wargaming rules, role-playing games and sports simulations. It is a subsidiary of Hasbro, and operates under the company' ...
's ''
Blitzkrieg Blitzkrieg ( , ; from 'lightning' + 'war') is a word used to describe a surprise attack using a rapid, overwhelming force concentration that may consist of armored and motorized or mechanized infantry formations, together with close air su ...
'' and ''
Afrika Korps The Afrika Korps or German Africa Corps (, }; DAK) was the German expeditionary force in Africa during the North African Campaign of World War II. First sent as a holding force to shore up the Italian defense of its African colonies, the ...
'': "I was primarily a wargamer, but there wasn't any role-playing available then." In college, he was introduced to the ''
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 TSR (company)#Tactical Studies Rules ...
'' role-playing game through the
University of Iowa The University of Iowa (UI, U of I, UIowa, or simply Iowa) is a public university, public research university in Iowa City, Iowa, United States. Founded in 1847, it is the oldest and largest university in the state. The University of Iowa is org ...
gaming club. Cook earned his B.A. in English (with a Theater minor) in 1977. He married his high school sweetheart, Helen, with whom he had one son, Ian. Cook became a high school teacher in
Milligan, Nebraska Milligan is a village in Fillmore County, Nebraska, United States. The population was 241 at the 2020 census. History Milligan was laid out in 1887 when the railroad was extended to that point. It was named for a railroad official. 1925 editioni ...
, where his students gave him his nickname of "Zeb". The name derives from his signature, which is dominated by a stroke resembling a 'Z,' as well as from his resemblance to the
James Arness James Arness (born James King Aurness; May 26, 1923 – June 3, 2011) was an American actor, best known for portraying Marshal Matt Dillon for 20 years in the CBS television series '' Gunsmoke''. Arness has the distinction of having played the ...
character Zeb Macahan in the TV series '' How the West Was Won.''


Career

Cook responded to an ad in ''
Dragon A dragon is a reptilian legendary creature that appears in the folklore of many cultures worldwide. Beliefs about dragons vary considerably through regions, but dragons in western cultures since the High Middle Ages have often been depicted as ...
'' magazine for a game designer position at TSR. After writing a sample module section and completing the designer test that the company then used, Cook became the third full-time game designer hired by TSR.
Lawrence Schick Lawrence Schick is a game designer and writer associated with role-playing games. Early life and education Schick attended Kent State University Kent State University (KSU) is a public research university in Kent, Ohio. The university al ...
was head of design and development at the time and brought Cook on board during a time of substantial growth at TSR. Cook later became Senior Designer. "Game designing is hard work ..but everything worth doing is hard work. The important thing is to do it well, and to have fun while you're doing it." Cook created role-playing games, modules, family board games, card games, rulebooks, and party mystery games. He created the ''Partyzone'' mystery game line and ''The Spy Ring'' scenario. The first ''Partyzone'' game was named one of the Top 100 Games of 1985 by ''
Games A game is a structured form of play, usually undertaken for entertainment or fun, and sometimes used as an educational tool. Many games are also considered to be work (such as professional players of spectator sports or games) or art (such ...
'' Magazine. Other notable works for TSR include the role-playing games ''
Conan the Barbarian Conan the Barbarian (also known as Conan the Cimmerian) is a fictional sword and sorcery hero who originated in pulp magazines and has since been adapted to books, comics, films (including '' Conan the Barbarian'' and '' Conan the Destroyer'') ...
,'' ''
Crimefighters ''Crimefighters'' is a 1981 TSR pulp-themed tabletop role-playing game created by game designer David Cook. ''Crimefighters'' was originally released in issue 47 of the March 1981 edition of ''Dragon'' magazine. This issue of ''Dragon'' magazine ...
'', '' The Adventures of Indiana Jones,'' ''
Star Frontiers ''Star Frontiers'' is a science fiction role-playing game produced by TSR, Inc., TSR from 1982 to 1985. The game offered a space opera action-adventure setting. Fictional setting ''Star Frontiers'' takes place near the center of a spiral galax ...
,'' ''Sirocco,'' and ''
Escape from New York ''Escape from New York'' is a 1981 American science fiction action film co-written, co-scored and directed by John Carpenter. It stars Kurt Russell, Lee Van Cleef, Ernest Borgnine, Donald Pleasence, Isaac Hayes, Adrienne Barbeau, and Harry Dea ...
''. Cook also wrote several influential early adventure modules for D&D and AD&D, such as '' A1: Slave Pits of the Undercity,'' '' I1: Dwellers of the Forbidden City,'' '' X1: The Isle of Dread,'' '' X4: Master of the Desert Nomads,'' and '' X5: Temple of Death'' (the 'Desert Nomads' series). Other module work included '' CM4: Earthshaker!,'' '' AC5: Dragon Tiles II,'' '' AC2: D&D Game Combat Shield,'' '' B6: The Veiled Society,'' '' CB1: Conan Unchained!,'' and '' M1: Blizzard Pass'' for ''D&D'' and ''AD&D'', and ''
Top Secret Classified information is material that a government body deems to be sensitive information that must be protected. Access is restricted by law or regulation to particular groups of people with the necessary security clearance and need to know, ...
'' module '' TS005: Orient Express'' and ''
Boot Hill Boot Hill, or Boothill, is the given name of many cemeteries, chiefly in the Western United States. During the 19th and early 20th century it was a common name for the burial grounds of gunfighters, or those who " died with their boots on" (i.e ...
'' module '' BH2: Lost Conquistador Mine''. After
Tom Moldvay Thomas Steven Moldvay (Nov. 5, 1948 – March 9, 2007) was an American game designer and author, best known for his work on early materials for the fantasy role-playing game ''Dungeons & Dragons'' (D&D). Career During the 1970s while a stude ...
wrote the second edition of the ''D&D'' '' Basic Set'', published in 1980, Cook developed the '' Expert Set'' to take characters beyond third level. Cook was the primary author of the original ''
Oriental Adventures ''Oriental Adventures'' (abbreviated OA) is the title shared by two hardback rulebooks published for different versions of the ''Dungeons & Dragons'' (''D&D'') fantasy roleplaying game. Each version of ''Oriental Adventures'' provides rules for ...
'', ostensibly under the guidance and direction of
Gary Gygax Ernest Gary Gygax ( ; July 27, 1938 – March 4, 2008) was an American game designer and author best known for co-creating the pioneering role-playing game ''Dungeons & Dragons'' (''D&D'') with Dave Arneson. In the 1960s, Gygax created an ...
, which among other things introduced the concept of non-weapon proficiencies into AD&D,* David Cook, "Oriental opens new vistas", ''Dragon'' 104:20-21, Dec 1985. and he designed the far eastern setting, Kara-Tur. Cook, with Jim Ward,
Steve Winter Steve Winter (born December 8, 1957) is an American game designer who worked on numerous products for the ''Dungeons & Dragons'' fantasy role-playing game, which was originally published by TSR and later Wizards of the Coast. Early life Winter ...
, and
Mike Breault Michael Breault (born May 28, 1958 in Central Falls, Rhode Island) is a game designer and editor, and an author of multiple products for the ''Dungeons & Dragons'' fantasy role-playing game from TSR. Early life and education Mike Breault was bor ...
, co-wrote the adventure scenario that was adapted into the game ''
Pool of Radiance ''Pool of Radiance'' is a role-playing video game developed and published by Strategic Simulations, Inc (SSI) in 1988. It was the first adaptation of TSR's ''Advanced Dungeons & Dragons'' (''AD&D'') fantasy role-playing game for home computer ...
''. Cook was the lead designer on the 2nd edition of ''
Advanced Dungeons & Dragons Several different editions of the ''Dungeons & Dragons'' (''D&D'') fantasy role-playing game have been produced since 1974. The current publisher of ''D&D'', Wizards of the Coast, produces new materials only for the most current edition of the ga ...
''
role-playing game A role-playing game (sometimes spelled roleplaying game, RPG) is a game in which players assume the roles of player character, characters in a fictional Setting (narrative), setting. Players take responsibility for acting out these roles within ...
. In ''Dragon'' #118 (February 1987), Cook wrote a column titled "Who Dies?" in which he discussed which character classes may be thrown out in the revision, with the intention of provoking a response from readers. Cook was also the lead designer on the ''
Planescape ''Planescape'' is a campaign setting for the ''Dungeons & Dragons'' fantasy role-playing game, designed by Zeb Cook, and published in 1994. It crosses numerous planes of existence, encompassing an entire cosmology called the Great Wheel, as dev ...
''
campaign setting A campaign setting is usually a fictional world which serves as a setting for a role-playing game or wargame campaign. A ''campaign'' is a series of individual adventures, and a ''campaign setting'' is the world in which such adventures and ca ...
. When TSR was looking to replace
Spelljammer ''Spelljammer'' is a campaign setting originally published for the ''Advanced Dungeons & Dragons'' (2nd edition) role-playing game, which features a fantastic (as opposed to scientific) outer space environment. Subsequent editions have included ' ...
after the setting ended, Slade Henson suggested a new campaign setting could be built on the first-edition ''
Manual of the Planes The ''Manual of the Planes'' (abbreviated MoP) is a manual for the ''Dungeons and Dragons'' role-playing game. This text addresses the planar cosmology of the game universe. The original book (for use with ''Advanced Dungeons & Dragons'' 1st Ed ...
''; after the idea sat dormant for a year, Cook picked it up and invented Planescape as a result. One reviewer described ''Planescape'' as "the finest game world ever produced for ''Advanced Dungeons & Dragons''". Cook left TSR in 1994 to work in the field of electronic media. He worked on the game ''
Fallout 2 ''Fallout 2: A Post Nuclear Role Playing Game'' is a 1998 role-playing video game developed by Black Isle Studios and published by Interplay Productions. It is a sequel to ''Fallout (video game), Fallout'' (1997), featuring similar graphics and ...
''. He was the lead designer on the 2005 ''
City of Villains ''City of Heroes'' (''CoH'') was a massively multiplayer online role-playing game which was developed by Cryptic Studios and published by NCSOFT. The game was launched in North America on April 28, 2004, and in Europe by NCsoft Europe on Febru ...
''
computer game Video games, also known as computer games, are electronic games that involves interaction with a user interface or input device such as a joystick, game controller, controller, computer keyboard, keyboard, or motion sensing device to gener ...
for
Cryptic Studios Cryptic Studios is an American video game developer specializing in MMORPG, massively multiplayer online role-playing games. It is headquartered in Los Gatos, California and was a wholly owned Perfect World (company), Perfect World subsidiary, a ...
. After he left Cryptic, he joined Cheyenne Mountain Entertainment as the lead systems designer for the video game ''
Stargate Worlds ''Stargate Worlds'' (abbreviated as ''SGW'') was to be a massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) video game, but it was put on hold and never released. It was developed by Cheyenne Mountain Entertainment (CME) in association with ...
''. In 2001 he was inducted into the
Origins Origin(s) or The Origin may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Comics and manga * ''Origin'' (comics), a Wolverine comic book mini-series published by Marvel Comics in 2002 * ''The Origin'' (Buffy comic), a 1999 ''Buffy the Vampire Sl ...
Hall of Fame. In 2013, Cook worked as Content Designer at
ZeniMax Online Studios ZeniMax Online Studios LLC is an American video game developer and a subsidiary of ZeniMax Media, specializing in massively multiplayer online games. The company developed ''The Elder Scrolls Online'' and its downloadable content. ZeniMax Onli ...
on ''
The Elder Scrolls Online ''The Elder Scrolls Online'', abbreviated ''ESO'', is a massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) developed by ZeniMax Online Studios and published by Bethesda Softworks. It was released for Microsoft Windows, Windows and OS X in Ap ...
''. With the release of the Elsweyr expansion for the game in June 2019, Cook was credited as a Senior Product Owner for Bethesda.Net.


See also

* ''
Amazing Engine ''Amazing Engine'' was a series of tabletop role-playing game books that was published by TSR, Inc. from 1993 until 1994. It was a generic role-playing game system - each publication employed the same minimalist generic rules, as described in th ...
'' * ''
Crimefighters ''Crimefighters'' is a 1981 TSR pulp-themed tabletop role-playing game created by game designer David Cook. ''Crimefighters'' was originally released in issue 47 of the March 1981 edition of ''Dragon'' magazine. This issue of ''Dragon'' magazine ...
'' * ''
Dwellers of the Forbidden City ''Dwellers of the Forbidden City'' is an adventure module, or pre-packaged adventure booklet, ready for use by Dungeon Masters in the ''Dungeons & Dragons'' (''D&D'') fantasy role-playing game. The adventure was first used as a module for tou ...
'' * List of ''Dungeons & Dragons'' modules * ''
Scourge of the Slave Lords ''Scourge of the Slave Lords'' (A1–4) is an Adventure (Dungeons & Dragons), adventure module for the ''Dungeons & Dragons'' fantasy role-playing game, published by TSR, Inc. in 1986. It combines the contents of four earlier modules, all set in ...
''


References


External links

* *
Interview
at Grognardia.com {{DEFAULTSORT:Cook, David Living people Year of birth missing (living people) Dungeons & Dragons game designers People from East Lansing, Michigan