Chris
he/him
5.0
(1)
Timezone
Language
Identity
About Chris
Hi! My name is Chris and I love stories. I love stories that force the reader to question themselves and their world (Is this what we could/should be? What would I do in a similar situation? How would I respond if pressed like this?) and gather people together as they do so. The type of stories that force us to listen, to question, to tarry with things small and large. This love, and a need to put off writing another grad paper, led me to D&D about ten years ago. Few things bring me as much joy as sitting around a table wrestling with decision, finding/failing at redemption, rolling, challenging and being challenged, or simply sharing an evening with others excited by the same thing. I began DMing almost immediately. I enjoy crafting, richly textured, immersive/lived-in worlds wherein the NPCs are worth caring about, the scenery is beautiful, and player discernment of their own chosen place in it is vital. I have run multiple WOTC games as well as games in Exandria, but also spent 5+ years running a game in my own version of the Feywild. My heart for games lies in hospitality. I love welcoming new players and teaching the game (I taught at university for 7ish years). I also love offering others the wide-open welcome I received when I started playing. Regardless of who you are, I will offer the same space and protect it. Meh - I just love DND (and books, and history, and literature, and philosophy...and...ok, I am a nerd). I also paint ttrpg minis and sketch.
At a glance
4 years on StartPlaying
3 games hosted
Highly rated for: Creativity, Knows the Rules, Storytelling
Average response time: 24+ hours
Response rate: 100%
Featured Prompts
My favorite books are
The Crow LOTR/Hobbit Kingkiller Chronicles Pride & Prejudice Dresden Files Philosophical Investigations The Fire Next Time American Gods (book >writer) The Idiot Frankenstein Coldfire books An Essay Concerning Technology The Wounded Animal Disowning Knowledge (philosophy and Shakespeare)
People are always surprised when I tell them
I have been dead twice.
How Chris runs games
Honestly, I love every facet of the game. If multiple sessions require high-intrigue and committed RP, that is awesome - as long as the table is engaged. If combat is high-pitched, that is awesome - as long as the table is engaged. I love darker, character-exploration driven games wherein the line between hero/anti-hero/villain takes discernment to trace. I love noir-vibes and complex NPCs. I nerd out on tracing philosophical underpinnings of things (but can keep that at bay). That said, I also regularly run more traditional heroes journey type high-fantasy. I aim at immersive, mature games, that offer, even with all the darkness that may be encountered therein, still better worlds than we often face in our everyday lives and ones that we can directly impact in legitimate ways.
Featured Prompts
My favorite trope is...
an intentional subversion of the heroes journey. Both the supernatural force being changed and guided by the character rather than vice-versa or the character rejects the call to transformation but still impacts the world (typically an anti-hero) are amazing.
My games focus on...
Creating a immersive, living, shared world, setting the stage for the players and fleshed-out NPCs engage each other and the forces of good and bad and make their own mark. I have found that player and GM alike tend to be most fulfilled when we all share in it and player choice is honored.
Rules are...
there to keep the game fun, balanced, and challenging for everyone. If those goals are easier to reach by bending and stretching the rules - awesome. Done Rules are like notes and progressions in jazz. Learn them. Master them and you learn how to improvise well. Don't and 'improv' becomes a mess.
Chris's ideal table
Honestly, unless this is one of those "What famous people" would you like to play DND with questions (in which case, Florence Welch, Keanu Reeves, Ta-Nehisi Coats, Deborah Ann Woll, Kendrick Lamar, and Gerard Way), then the answer would be any group that want to lean into a story and make it there own. You don't have to be great at RP (we all learn together) but you have to want to lean in. You don't have to be great in combat but you have to want to lean in. Lean into your concept, the world, and to supporting each other. Reciprocity, support, and creativity make for a fun and engaging game.
Chris's Preferences
Systems