While watching Shadiversity’s new video about Fantasy Rangers: historical origin and most effective weapons, I was reminded of how much I enjoyed playing that class in games such as Dark Age of Camelot and Ultima Online. Imagine how excited I was to learn that Star Wars Galaxies would also include a Ranger class as well! Ever since I was a lad, I enjoyed tales of warriors who were self sufficient. Ninja, and Rangers were always at the top of my list.
My obsession with the Ranger class went far before my online adventures. The most famous being the Grey Company of Tolkien’s lore. The lightly equipped, rough and gruff folk appealed to an Air Force Brat like myself who had to be self sufficient for years. Moving around a lot, making new friends, fitting in at a new school was never easy. I was a great team player when I had to be, when there was a task to be done… but without any set parameters I would rather go it alone.
Once upon a time, when I was twenty years of age, I joined the U.S. Army. My goal… to become an Airborne Ranger of course. While I have many regrets of being medically discharged before I was even able to attempt my goal, in hindsight I should have joined the Air Force for the technical training that would have served me better on my current path and would have more than likely avoided any mishap in Basic. Regardless, Rangers will always have a special place in my life. Real and make-believe, the Ranger is my ideal of a lifestyle.
Northwest Passage
Spencer Tracy and a stellar supporting cast grab muskets, gun powder and knives, and head out for adventure in Northwest Passage, a lavish Technicolor(r) retelling of French and Indian War heroics. Based on Kenneth Robert’s best-seller, Tracy plays true-life explorer Major Robert Rogers, the intrepid leader of the celebrated Rogers’ Rangers fighting force that took on one of the most challenging expeditions in military history. Tracy’s portrayal brilliantly captures the American pioneering spirit, but he had to muster up his own will to carry it off. “It isn’t exactly fun to work in bitter cold and be sloshing through mud all day,” he said. For twelve grueling weeks of location shooting, he endured traipsing through swamps, crossing rapids and climbing mountains. Of this rousing epic (released shortly after Gone with the Wind), The New York Times wrote, “Now that the ‘Wind’ has stopped ruffling your hair, you can have it lifted, scalp and all, in Northwest Passage.”
Honorable mention to one of the best Sci-Fi Rangers of all time…
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1 comment
Very exciting, I had no idea there was such a complex history behind rangers. 😀