People ask me, "Have you really been working on this for 30 years"? Yes, I've been working on this for over 30 years. Way back in the 80's and early 90's, some friends and I were heavily into Dungeons & Dragons with me usually being Dungeon Master. We also became somewhat obsessed with a game called "Talisman". Between the two, I started making a variation of that type of game. Since then, To Be King has grown through several variations and revisions, mutating and growing and taking on a life of its own becoming a beast that would not be appeased.

Besides creating physical board game versions, I began creating files on the computer for it back in the mid-90's, first as just graphics that I would print and later, beginning in 2007, I started making computer versions using the Vassal Engine (free, open source, multi-platform engine for making board and card games). Over time, this has produced a phenomenal amount of files ...the current computer I'm using has 19 gigs of files and it's only 1 of 4 computers that has TBK game files.

I've had a fully operational version of it for the last few years and my buddies and I have had some grand campaigns lasting 3 to 5 games sessions. So, why haven't I distributed it publicly? Well, I'm not an artist. The game has 2000+ graphics and, since I've always intended to distribute the game freely once it was complete, I didn't see the point in spending thousands of dollars hiring a bunch of artist to make game graphics ...especially considering that, over time, I've already spent about $2000 on it. Because of this, all the graphics are downloaded from the web. This is fine for private use but without the rights to any of this artwork, I don't want to be passing around copies without permission.

So, what's changed? A.I. art generators! I've been using them to make completely original graphics for the game and they are stunning ...usually. Sometimes, they get odd like creating a 5-legged unicorn. But, for the most part, they're wonderful and I'm delighted that I'll eventually be able to have a copy that I can share with everyone with completely original graphics and royalty free clip art.

The purpose of the To Be King web site is to basically publish my progress so you can see how it's coming along.... a To Be King blog, if you will. If you're interested in playing or have any questions, comments, drop me a note and I'll be glad to answers your questions and/or put you on a list as one of an initial group of players.