Duncan

About Duncan

I've been playing & GMing TTRPGs since the late 90s with D&D 3.5. There's something incredibly special to me about a group of 4-6 people coming together at a table to tell a story with ups and downs, party members discussing combat strategy amongst each other, and figuring out the right path to go forward. As a Game Master I believe my gamemastering style could best be described as a "beer and pretzels" kind of game; A casual environment with a strong emphasis on player fun. I take two different approaches to make sure that you have the best experience possible at the table: 1) Full Transparency. Whenever I make a ruling, I will give my reasoning along with the ruling. Any hidden dice rolls that are made during the session will be made available to view after the session (via dice stats). Additionally, I try to give out DCs before rolls are made to ensure that the stakes are properly set. I want to foster a safe play environment of trust and I believe that trust is something that should be earned. 2) I like to take a "Fun First" approach when it comes to rules. If the game's rules would require you to spend a ridiculous amount of time to do a simple action (i.e. drink a potion), I'll do some research into what the game has that mitigates it, or come up with houserules to mitigate any "feel bad" moments that these rules incorporate. Obviously there's enjoyment to be found in working within any rules constraints, so this is usually on a case-by-case basis on items that are persistent pain points. Overall, I strongly believe that my role is as a facilitator for the group to tell the story they want to tell. If the group wants to get up to whacky antics it's my job to hold a straight face and introduce respective consequences, and if the group wants to tell a serious story about overcoming difficulties it's my job to introduce road blocks along the way.