Aaron Nayd
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About Aaron Nayd
I've been playing tabletop RPGs for over 10 years and running games for most of that time. It started as weekend sessions with randoms and friends online and turned into something I take seriously as a craft. My background is in narrative and character-driven games. I've run extended campaigns in Dragon Age, Pathfinder, and systems like Blades in the Dark and Chronicles of Darkness. I've spent a lot of time with both rules-light systems that prioritize fiction over procedure and something as gritty as Imperium Maledictum. I'm also a homebrewer at heart; I've built original campaign settings from scratch, including a Ukrainian folklore-inspired world with its own calendar, magic traditions, and regional cultures. When I invest in a setting, I tend go deep. As a GM, what I care about most is the point where strong worldbuilding meets the people at the table: both the players and the characters. The world should feel real and specific, and your character should feel like they genuinely belong to it, or are genuinely at odds with it. I do my homework on lore, I take backstories seriously, and I do my best to build toward moments that are particular to the people at the table, not just the plot. I also have deep interest in both Storytelling/Writing as a theory and the TTRPG theory, which means you will not be getting the typical rehashes of Hero's Journey or just paint-by-numbers tired tropes.
At a glance
Less than a year on StartPlaying
3 games hosted
Highly rated for: Storytelling, Inclusive, Visual Aid
Featured Prompts
I got started GMing...
When I was in highschool! I wanted to tell stories that could go in new and unexpected ways and having other people's input was the best way to do so! Besides, Critical Role was getting popular, which is ultimately why I started with DnD!
My 3 systems I'd bring to a desert island would be
Chronicles of Darkness 2e (Not a fair choice - there are like 8 separate systems in this system!) Pathfinder 2e (Best rules, tons of content, just delightful crunch.) Legend in the Mist (Rules lite and so free, you could run any game with it.)
When I'm not running games I'm...
voraciously consuming media! Good writing comes from media knowledge (and I mean all of it, good and bad), so I dedicate at least a few hours every week to read or watch, or play something new. Often one can even spot where the inspiration comes from!
How Aaron Nayd runs games
My games are built around characters first. I'm most alive as a GM when the fiction is pressing on who your character actually is, and the best sessions I've run are the ones where players surprise themselves with what their character does under pressure. If you come to my table with a fully realized person and not just a stat-block, we will find every interesting edge of them. You can expect rich worldbuilding with a strong sense of place and culture. I'm drawn to settings that feel lived-in and specific; with their own folklore, history, and atmosphere, not just the boss fights. The world has weight, and NPCs have their own agendas that exist whether or not the party engages with them. I lean heavily into roleplay and narrative, and when the combat happens, it tends to feel like a consequence rather than a set-piece. I'm more interested in what the fight costs and why it happens, than in whether you win it. I put a lot of effort into my games, and therefore I hope that my with the same level of care and dedication from the players, we can elevate the experience of the game for everyone at the table!
Featured Prompts
I once ran a session...
I once ran two sessions at once. In the ye olde times, I had one group on TS and one on Discord and I had to rapidly keep switching between them to get it done. Luckily, I just chucked puzzles at them both and some roleplay time, but the experience was draining and harrowing. Never again.
My games focus on...
You! :3 For real - my main focus are character stories and moments. Sure, I may have a grand plot, but I prefer to tell stories about your characters and what they care about!
Rules are...
more like guidelines really! Rules are there to take us a step above kids on the playground, but that does not mean that they lord over us. They must help tell a story, and not dictate it! But! Certain systems are built for rigid rules and derive the challenge from them too.
Aaron Nayd's ideal table
My table is a good fit for players who show up invested. That means that I'm looking for people who are genuinely curious about the world, engaged with the other characters at the table, and interested in collaborative storytelling as much as winning encounters. Players who ask questions, who make choices that are true to their character even when it's inconvenient, and who care about what's happening to the people around them tend to thrive here. The vibe is serious but not stiff. We laugh, we go off on tangents, we have fun. But when the fiction calls for weight, I expect the table to meet it. I run games with real emotional stakes, morally complicated situations, and consequences that persist. If you want a space where your choices matter and the world pushes back, that's what I'm building. I value players who engage with each other as much as they engage with me. Some of the best moments at my tables have come entirely from character relationships, not anything I planned. I try to create the conditions for that and then get out of the way. Where you might not fit is if you're primarily there for combat optimization, if you tend to disengage when the spotlight isn't on you, or if you're not comfortable with darker or more emotionally complex content. I handle that material thoughtfully, but I don't avoid it.
Featured Prompts
I love it when a player
cares. Nothing simpler and more rewarding than someone paying attention, getting into the mood and showing respect for the setting, the NPCs, their fellow players and the GM. 10/10 every time.
I think metagaming...
is a part of TTRPG experience. Metagaming to get tactical advantage is bad, and makes no sense in fiction. Awareness of the rules of the world and system is not bad metagaming. And if you are purposefully making choice to avoid metagaming information... are you not metagaming in the end?
I think min/maxing...
is fine! There is nothing wrong with making mechanically optimal character, just as there is nothing wrong with making a roleplay optimal character. The core issue is maintaining balance between the two and having a good justification for it all.
Aaron Nayd's Preferences
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