Despite being owned by TSR, the Dungeon Hobby Shop in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin sold RPGs, boardgames, and gaming accessories by a number of companies.
Their 1982 mail order catalog is a snapshot in time of the state of the hobby. For gamers who did not live near a metro area blessed with a hobby shop, mail order was their only source for RPGs.
TSR Hobbies, Inc. The Dungeon Hobby Shop Dept. 501 PO Box 756 Lake Geneva, WI 53147The catalog kicks off with RPGA Member gear, including…A Lizardman TSR belt buckle! (pic from somebody’s 2013 eBay auction), and…The Advanced Dungeons & Dragons Fighting Wheel! Quite rare today. Sold this one back in 2018 for $190. More on this here.The Dungeon Hobby Shop sold D&D and AD&D stuff, no surprise there. (Look at those prices!)And TSR’s other game lines of the time, including Gamma World, Top Secret, Gangbusters, Star Frontiers, and Boot Hill.Also releases from other game companies like Avalon HillTraveller (GDW)Back issues of Dragon Magazine and White Dwarf were availablePromotional poster still stapled in the centerfoldThe poster art is by Larry Elmore. A Paladin facing off against 3 orcs. I remember this picture from back in the day… it’s also the cover art of Dragon Magazine issue 62. It formed my mental image of orcs forever after that.Best of Dragon ad. The fighter with the battleax was my character art for one of my PCs back then.Several pages of order blanksCouponsBack cover (mailing side)
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