Last February, my unit was deployed to Iraq. The first few months here were very busy and stressful, and I was always looking for a way to connect with guys I lived with. Then one day I visited a friend’s room and saw him playing World of Warcraft, and he started to explain the entire game to me.

After a few days of watching him play I got to the point of wanting to try for myself to see what kind of damage I could do in this game. Almost as soon as I got my first toon online, I started to run into other guys that lived in the next building who I had no idea even played this game.

After a few months of playing with the guys and getting into instances together, we started to grow a small group, and every time we are together we talk about the next thing we want to do in game.

Now we are ending our deployment and soon will be back in the states where we don’t have to worry about much anymore. Most of us are getting sent to other bases and other units to continue our time in the Army, and some are getting out altogether. But because of this game we now have a way that we plan to get together at least once a week to support each other in getting used to being safe again, with no bullet proof vests or bombs going off.

No matter where in the world we are, we are just a few short clicks away from old friends and good times.

I have been playing World of Warcraft since March of 2007, when I was in A-school for the U.S. Marines. I started to keep in touch with many of my good friends from my childhood whom I had known for 10-plus years, and we grouped up together on the same realm. I left A-school and moved to San Diego, but I still play with them to this day online.

When my turn to deploy to Iraq came about, I was trying to think of a way to easily keep in touch with my family. We used to play Baldur's Gate with each other back in the day so I thought World of Warcraft would be a great idea. I had a hard time convincing my father to step away from the game he had been playing, but he did it and loved World of Warcraft. Then after a bit my two sisters, my nephew, and my two nieces all decided that they wanted to play with my dad and me. We all rolled up Alliance characters to play together on the same realm, and now, due to my work shift in Iraq, we are able to play for a few hours four nights a week with each other. It has been a great way for us to stay in touch. Thank you for enabling this, Blizz--you've made my first deployment a lot easier.