Kirby
he/him
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Identity
About Kirby
I am a specialist of Japanese literature and games, which means I know how to make a good narrative and how to play a good game! I have 6 years experience with TTRPGs (5 as a GM) and have run one-shots, WestMarch campaigns, and even a personal weekly campaign for a group of my cousins. I did a lot of theater as a kid, which means for me, TTRPGs are a place for me to flex my acting muscles by bouncing things off the community around me. I've run classics from "Grammy's Apple Pie" to fully original one shots like my "The Thrill of Victory." I look forward to running a fun game for you and your tablemates.
At a glance
Less than a year on StartPlaying
$20 per session
Featured Prompts
I started running games because...
The GM who started me on TTRPGs suddenly got busy with graduate school, and I was at a place where I had time to step up. I created a mini Westmarch campaign for a group of five players so that we could play every week even if some people couldn't make it.
The three words my players would use to describe me are...
memorable, fair, cooperative.
When I'm not running games I'm...
Teaching and researching games and literature. In my free time, my hobbies include baking, video games, calligraphy, and jogging.
How Kirby runs games
My job as GM is to know everything about the world and system and to then adjudicate how best to fit the players actions into that system. So, for example, I much prefer players to describe what they're doing like "I'm trying to determine if they're lying" rather than "I make an insight check." However, my reward for that behavior is that sometimes I will find ways to stretch the system to give them a choice on how to do that. If a D&D player says "I want to carefully remove the exploding seed pod," I may give them a choice of rolling a DEX (nature) or INT (nature) roll. A player trying to blend into a crowd at a party may be asked for a CHA (stealth) roll, etc. So, beyond that generality, I prefer to run games that are not simply hack and slash, but have a healthy amount of role play - especially between players. When there is combat, I do like to keep players on their toes, so rules-lawyers may get a bit bent out of shape at times. But everything I do is in service of making a good story, and I believe the combat should be in service of that goal, too.
Featured Prompts
I deal with rules issues by...
Explaining the rationale behind my interpretation and sticking with it. Textual analysis is basically what I do for a living, so my interpretations are always at the very least sensible. However, I am fine for more debate outside of a session.
I once ran a session...
completely over text on discord. It was in a westmarch server, and a single player needed to escape from prison, so he had a personal text session to do so. His success was not guaranteed, but he made it out alive.
When it comes to voices
I love to get into it. I don't think every NPC needs to have a unique and memorable voice, but there needs to be a way to distinguish them, and I've had a lot of vocal training to make it not sound forced and corny.
Kirby's ideal table
Generally, if people come to my table looking to make a good story, they'll have a good time. I try to allow for a flexible bit of role play (and will just shut up and sit back if the characters have something good building between them) and try to mix session encounters between social and combat encounters. There will often (not always) be a non-combat way to get through a challenge, but it may take some creative thinking to get to it. Players that are rules-lawyers probably would get annoyed that I am sometimes loose with the rules, and I will definitely stretch a monster's stat block on the fly if it makes the story better. So if you're looking to just roll dice and post numbers, there may be a better table for you elsewhere.
Featured Prompts
I love it when a player
naturally builds their character's relationship with another one. When the young fighter finds a mentor in the elderly monk, or the sorcerer catches feelings after the cleric revives them. Interpersonal relationships make good stories!
Kirby's Preferences
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