G22 | Level 20 | Isle of Mnemos | Forgotten Realms

It's very obvious that he either has too many campaigns, is aggressively multitasking during campaigns, has lost the love for DMing, or all of the above. During the first session, it was abundantly clear that this DM had no direction and had no intention of doing anything to guide the party or tell a story. We all began with the standard "you meet in a tavern". However, there was no extension of that. Literally just: "You are all new to the town and are in the tavern." After a long pause, he mentions an NPC talking about dragons in the area. Picking up on the hook, I have my character interact with the man, but the conversation is very one-sided with only basic responses that show no character and don't appear to build up towards anything. When the conversation peters out (since I have nothing to draw on), silence fills the virtual room again. The DM does nothing to prompt our characters to so much as meet and form the party that will be the basis of the campaign. And no: There was no campaign hook to bring us together. One of us decides to address the entire tavern, saying they want to do some work for the city and are happy to work with others. Clearly, they are put on the spot, but we all want a reason to work together, so the party agrees to work together for no real reason aside from the above table desire to play the campaign. Although we had pre-decided which of the postings we were going to pursue at the conclusion of our previous session, the DM still has us walk to the board and asks us which of the listings we would like to do. We remind him of our decision, and then there is a significant pause which I can only attribute to him hastily prepping the story for that quest. His descriptions of the location are painfully barebones and detrimental to the experience, as we are investigating a murder/kidnapping. Finding clues and uncovering the truth is very difficult when all of the details you get are "the place is abandoned, and seems to be picked clean." We specifically asked to investigate if there are any hidden rooms or trap doors. After we roll our investigation, he tells us nothing of what we were specifically looking for, but instead draws our attention to what I assume to be a planned clue which was in a separate room and, again, completely unrelated to what the roll actually was for. Later in the session, we are in combat and he noticed that not the entire party was in initiative. He then asks the other person to roll. The other person had not joined the session that night. Animancy admitted that he didn't even realize we were missing someone. Shortly afterwards, we decide to go to a specific location and call it out by name. The DM then takes us to a completely different location, which I assume to be the next big place in this mystery we're solving. Myself and another player have to stop him and tell him that we just said we were going somewhere else. After a moment of confusion, he takes us to where we originally wanted to go and then gives us a barebones, apathetic encounter with a priestess who we were hoping to get information from. It was at this point that I felt pretty confident that the DM was not listening to us, had done zero preparation, didn't care, or was simply going through the motions on autopilot. I didn't want to spend my night on that, so I left prior to the scheduled session end.

Animancy is not only an excellent DM but is also an awesome content creator. He has made his own spells, feats and even some races and backgrounds that are really cool. Definitely recommend you give AP's games a try!!

He is very good with knowledge and has his rules down. If you're looking for a challenge, then he is a good pick with a vast amount of options from the content that he has created!

Animancy Press is one of the best Dungeon Masters I’ve played with. He’s got the creativity, the organization, and the ability to balance different player styles that really make a campaign come to life. Whether you’re into combat, deep role-playing, puzzles, or just spending half a session shopping, he makes sure everyone gets what they’re looking for. I first joined one of his homebrew campaigns, Isle of Mnenos, and it was one of the most unique and engaging D&D experiences I’ve had. You start off shipwrecked, dealing with memory loss while trying to figure out what’s going on, all while hostile goblins and strange creatures make survival a challenge. The mystery and the way everything unfolded kept me completely hooked. Later, I had to switch to his Curse of Strahd campaign due to a change in my work schedule, and despite the shift in setting, the quality of his DMing stayed top-notch. He really captures the dark, oppressive feel of Barovia while still making sure players have agency and ways to interact with the world in meaningful ways. Beyond just running great games, he’s also incredibly reliable. He’s never late to a session, always prepared, and I’ve never seen any sign of favoritism or conflicts with players. He keeps things fair, fun, and engaging from start to finish. Outside of running games, Animancy Press is also a best-selling author on Dungeon Masters Guild and Roll20 Marketplace. He’s put out some really cool content, including unique magic items, magewright backgrounds, and spells. His Forgotten on the Isle of Mnemos mini-campaign, in particular, is worth checking out if you like mystery-driven adventures. He’s also active on social media, posting on X (formerly Twitter) and sharing his work on YouTube, where he gives a behind-the-scenes look at his content creation process. If you’re looking for a professional Dungeon Master who knows how to run a fun, balanced, and immersive game, I can’t recommend Animancy Press enough. Whether you’re a new player or a seasoned veteran, he’ll make sure you have an incredible experience.

Animancy runs great D&D campaigns. The storytelling was immersive, and I felt like I was part of an epic adventure. Animancy has a thorough understanding of 5e D&D game mechanics, so sessions ran smoothly. Highly recommended!

I've had the opportunity to play in multiple campaigns with Animancy, and each experience has been extraordinary! Animancy crafted unique and engaging narratives that really allowed me to explore my interests and playstyle as a newer player to D&D. He is great at making each session fun, exciting, and absolutely unforgettable. Whether the party is navigating intricate plot twists or role-playing with deep character interactions, Animancy has consistently provided a great experience for the diverse group I play with. He is responsive and adaptive; always ready to incorporate our suggestions, ideas, and preferences into the game with a unique spin to keep things a surprise. I highly recommend playing with Animancy. Their talent and dedication to their craft make for top-notch gaming experiences! Additionally, Animancy is prompt and reliable. In the year my group has been playing they’ve only had one cancellation! He's consistent, and it’s so wonderful to know that every week our party will have a new chapter of our adventure to explore, along with characters to meet and new enemies to defeat.