More Thoughts on Tom's Passing

This is from a poster at the Wizards Of The Coast Site:

WotC Mearls Member

Tom Moldvay is the most underrated contributor to D&D in the
game's history. Many older gamers, and a big percentage of all
D&D designers, can cite X1 The Isle of Dread and B4 The Lost
City as important parts of turning D&D from a simple game into
an obsession/hobby.

Both modules are genius examples of what makes D&D uniquely
interesting. I can still vividly remember looking over the map
of the Lost City, reading the few cool scraps of info on it,
and then feeling D&D click into place for me. The city was mine
- it was up to me, the DM, to bring it to life. I could decide
who lived where, what foul evils hid in the city, and what
strange plots waited for the PCs.

The fundamental essence of the game was finally clear to me,
and I knew that I'd never give it up.

I've been in a bit of a funk since I heard about Tom's passing.
I know everyone has pegged the news about Dragon and Dungeon as
the story of the week, but I will always remember last Thursday
as the day I learned Tom Moldvay had passed away. Whether D&D
is a magazine, a hardcover book, a web site, a stack of stone
tablets, or whatever, it doesn't matter. It's the people who
create, play, and enjoy the game who really make D&D what it
is. Moldvay played a major role in making that a reality.

Tom might now rest in peace, but his legacy will last forever.