Jack Emmert is a longtime gamer and comic book aficionado. His first foray into gaming was, of course, Dungeons & Dragons®. His professional career in the hobby game industry started at a comic book store in the outskirts of Philadelphia, Showcase Comics. He earned his first Master's degree (ancient history) from the University of Chicago, and his second Master's degree from Ohio State University. During this period Jack also wrote supplements for a variety of gaming lines, including Deadlands, Hell on Earth, DC Universe, and Marvel Superheroes. He left academia in July 2000 to co-found Cryptic Studios, and design the hit MMP games City of Heroes and City of Villains.