Gerald
he/him
5.0
(6)
Timezone
Language
About Gerald
As old as Dungeons and Dragons itself, after years of running and playing games, I took a hiatus from RPG's in the 90's. I moved, got married, had a family and settled into a career as a Visual Effects artist for movies and television. 20 years and change later, I had drifted away from the people I knew and once gamed with. I still kept in touch, but it wasn't quite the same. We would catch up, talk of weather and work, etc. Then in 2018, I was standing in a Chapters Indigo when I saw a large group of people gathered around a D&D display. I waited strategically until everyone had departed to see what about the ancient game had drawn the attention of so many kids. I leafed through many books, marveling at how much the writing and illustration had improved since my day. Then I picked up Waterdeep Dragon Heist. I had run games in Waterdeep before, but I never really had a sense for what the place felt like. This book hooked me. I ended up purchasing it, and the core rule books not seriously believing I would play again. Then the pandemic hit. Total social isolation. I decided maybe this was the excuse I needed to start up a game group again. Not in person, but online. I invited all my friends from past groups to join. Now I have been running a group of 8 players for the last 6 years. Work in my field has slowed, and I figured now may be the time to try doing the thing I love.
At a glance
Less than a year on StartPlaying
1 games hosted
Highly rated for: Beginner Friendly, Inclusive, Visual Aid
$20 per session
Featured Prompts
I ran my first game...
I can't say what the exact date was, but it would have been around 1985. I was pretty young, and had the AD&D first edition books for several years before I tried to understand them. I don't think any of us really knew what we were doing, but it started a life long hobby.
My 3 systems I'd bring to a desert island would be
I know I am going to have to cheat with this question. 5E / 5.5E DND. I have all the books, that's a lot of material. It should last until we are rescued. HeroQuest. Ok, not exactly a system, but I think it almost qualifies. ... The last is hard. Rifts, Robotech, or Palladium Heroes Unlimited.
When I'm not running games I'm...
I work in the Visual Effects Industry for Movies and Television. In my spare time I like to write, play board games, and assemble model kits.
How Gerald runs games
The games I tend to run might be considered campy. The story is really what interests me. Not just the one in whatever game I am running, but the one that the players build as we go along. I try to avoid running groups with evil characters, as it's always a challenge for them not to run counter to the group and adventures intentions. That's not to say characters won't get into trouble from time to time, just that the overall balance should lean toward a net positive for whatever realm you happen to be in. I spend a lot of time preparing for adventures, reading the source material and immersing myself in the lore, but I am completely fallible and will most likely make mistakes from time to time.
Gerald's Preferences
Systems