Matt Ryan
Matt Ryan lives in Ithaca, New York, at the southern end of Cayuga Lake, the longest of the Finger Lakes, where it is green, hot, and humid in the summer and gray, cold, and barren in the winter. Despite several absences, he's lived there most of his life.
Matt started playing Ars Magica in 1991, in a barn with his younger brother. The two of them wove an imaginative tapestry of medieval France, necromancers, wild beavers, and estranged Vikings that influenced him (perhaps) more than it should. Interest in the game led to the discovery of medieval literature, which in turn bolstered his fondness for Ars Magica. Saracens and "paynims" replaced the Vikings, and the necromancers became educated priests.
Matt had never written a thing professionally (still a weird word to use for his contributions) until Living Lore, which included three or four submissions. He playtested the fifth edition, and then was lucky enough to be included in several projects:
- House Bonisagus was his first major contribution, and is the end result of a very poor start, the kind guidance of David Chart, and a complete re-write.
- He added a small section to Realms of Power: The Divine: saints and Ars Notoria.
- House Verditius was a joy to write, re-defining the second stereotypical "lab rat" House. He apologizes to those who hate Hubris and think automata are under-rated. Feel free to pelt him with bread rolls at dinner.
- City and Guild was an off-shoot of the research done for House Verditius. Matt wrote the guilds and craft sections.
- Matt's largest contribution to date is coming, in a soon-to-be-released book, of which he wrote half.
- Currently, Matt is working on two smaller, but no less exciting projects.
Besides playing Ars Magica, Matt likes to read medieval Irish history and historical fiction. He and his son August like to ride bicycles, play video games, and draw pictures of monsters.