Gnome Stew is thrilled to welcome a new author to the team: Don Mappin. We think you’ll love what he has in store for you. Welcome to the Stew, Don!

In addition to being an RPG industry veteran, Don’s a longtime friend of mine, and we game together every week. Here’s his bio, so you can get an idea of where he’s coming from:

For nearly 30 years role-playing games have been a staple of Don’s life — so that means he’s pretty old. In that time he’s seen the rise and fall of many gaming systems, companies, and characters alike. An author of a dozen RPG books, Don has worked with companies such as Iron Crown Enterprises, Last Unicorn Games, Decipher, and Alderac Entertainment Group on properties including Rolemaster, Star Trek, and Stargate, to name a few. Retiring from the jet-setting, rock star-RPG-writer-lifestyle, he now spends his time working in IT management, enjoying his family and two children, or — you guessed it — gaming.

Given the option, Don loves to run or play Star Trek RPGs but tries to be as system agnostic as possible. (Hey, I said “tries.”) Overall, his general philosophy is one of that time spent gaming should be fun. A lifelong New Orleans Saints fan, he’s milking the 2009 Championship for all it’s worth.

Don actually joined the Stew shortly after we got rolling, back in 2008, but due to scheduling issues he wasn’t able to contribute and he wound up stepping back. We’ve always said that if Gnome Stew starts hiring, we’ll let our readers know, and that’s still true. Don was hired right at the outset, and the door has always stayed open for him to start writing material here.

I’ve told him to expect a traditional hazing from our readers — hugs that last slightly too long, overly amorous monkeys, and more lard than you thought would fit in that gopher you know, the usual. Don’t let me down!