Month: June 2020

Fantasy

Why Dungeons And Dragons Is Right To Get Rid of ‘Evil’ Races

Dewi

Let me preface this by saying that I've been a fan of Warhammer forever. I spent my childhood reading books where heroes slaughtered beastmen en masse; I grew up wanting to lead my plucky plastic dwarven armies to battle against the dastardly orcs and goblins. I also want to say that I wholeheartedly enjoy those… Continue reading Why Dungeons And Dragons Is Right To Get Rid of ‘Evil’ Races

History

Oppression vs Repression: Approaching History Without Bias

Dewi

Just a quick one today because I wanted to get this idea down on paper. (Or pixels. Eh.) I was helping someone with some work on the Normans the other day. Medieval history, my specialty, and of course it was to do with castles. I wrote them a few brief notes, and one key phrase… Continue reading Oppression vs Repression: Approaching History Without Bias

History

What’s the Point of History?

Dewi

It's a question we should ask ourselves more often. Or answer, I suppose, because I see lots of people get it wrong. "To know what happened so we can't make the same mistakes again!" "To appreciate and understand the past." "To shape the future!" "To help us understand the present." Good tries. And they all… Continue reading What’s the Point of History?

Fantasy, Honourable Mentions

How to Write Fantasy Heroes

Dewi

More than any other genre, fantasy is a place where people like to build big plots. After all, the world is literally yours to make: everything from the mountains to the countries to the person living in that tiny house on that farm - it's yours, built from scratch. We all want to impress people… Continue reading How to Write Fantasy Heroes

History

How Did Medieval Civilians Become Soldiers?

Dewi

Though it's not as true today, we've traditionally looked to Medieval Europe to inspire our fantasy settings. And our fantasy settings tend to include a lot of war - because otherwise they wouldn't be very interesting, would they? However, we don't put much thought into how war and armies worked in Medieval Europe. So I'm… Continue reading How Did Medieval Civilians Become Soldiers?

Personal and Other

The College Interview

Dewi

Last year I lived in Portsmouth, a city on England's south coast. The most densely populated urban area in Western Europe, if you believe Google - more dense than Inner London. It didn't really suit a loner like me, but I still came to love the place, and it was great hearing the raucous chant… Continue reading The College Interview

History

Did England Have A Constitution 100 Years Before America?

Dewi

The US Constitution is often called the world's first 'modern' constitution. It was the first time a group of people came together and determined how they were going to be governed, rather than relying on centuries of tradition and due precedent. As Alexander Hamilton put it in the Federalist Papers: it was down to "the… Continue reading Did England Have A Constitution 100 Years Before America?