David David Katzman (he/him)
5.0
(16)
1 year on StartPlaying
40 games hosted
Highly rated for: World Builder, Storytelling, Visual Aid
About me
Greetings! As a Gamemaster, above all I want players to have fun and become friends. I developed most of my best friends through playing D&D. I first played the original Dungeons & Dragons when I was 11 years old and played and DM'd Advanced D&D all the way through the end of high school. About 6 years ago I started playing D&D 5e and DMing about 4 years ago. I encourage roleplaying, creativity, strategic thinking and collaboration. Player vs. Player aggression is not acceptable. I'm a published author of two fantasy novels, and my second award-winning novel, A Greater Monster, is a psychedelic fairytale praised by Jeff VanderMeer. I'm also an artist with a gallery on Etsy and my own website DavidDavid.net, and I've been featured in multiple gallery shows. I have also been an actor and improviser, having spent many years performing on stage in Chicago, and my acting skills help bring NPCs to life in my games. I'm also open to one-off games by request! My schedule is fairly open right now, and there's a good chance I can make myself available to run a session or multiple sessions at a time that works for you. Reach out and let's see what we can work out!
GM Style
I encourage variety in game play--a balance of roleplaying, strategic combat, social encounters, exploration and above all fun! I will be crafting our games as much as possible personalized around your characters, their backstories and their personalities. I've built a unique original world for 5e called Heroes of Yggdrasil, the One Tree, that I would like to invite more players to live in and to shape adventures around your characters. You will experience unique detailed environments as I use several mapping programs and invest significant time to build beautiful encounter maps. As an actor and improviser, I bring voices and personalities to NPCs and like to have fun roleplaying with my players. I welcome beginners to experienced players and want everyone to feel collaborative. Player vs. Player aggression will not be tolerated, and I will use safety tools and Session Zero discussions to ensure this. The tone of my games runs from wacky to weird and sometimes surreal with elements of horror. I use a combination of Foundry VTT for maps and tokens, Discord for voice & video, and D&D Beyond for character sheets and dice rolling. I own all the rule books on D&D Beyond and will be able to share that content with my players to help you build your characters and for you to read at any time on your own! I'll help everyone get set up properly. Above all, I want everyone to have fun and hopefully make some new friends!
Games played
Game platforms used
Game Master Reviews (16)
Proficiencies
Players say this GM is great at:
World Builder
Storytelling
Visual Aid
Encounters crafted by David are challenging yet fair, pushing adventurers to their limits while rewarding clever thinking and teamwork. His homebrew setting is incredibly unique. David takes time to get to know his players and their characters and he ensures that everyone feels seen, heard and integral to the unfolding story. I look forward to every Sunday and cannot wait to play.
This campaign setting with David was my first home-brew experience. I have enjoyed every game of this campaign and each member of the party. David clearly put a lot of love into this setting, and it’s evident in each and every game. He does well at balancing tactics, gameplay, and role-play. I look forward to each Sunday where I get to step back into this world and continue the journey with the friends I have made in this group. David is a great DM, and I am glad I chose this game.
David has been an absolute joy to have as a DM. His homebrewed world is absolutely amazing and you can see all the love and work he put into creating it. His unique and interesting npcs with fun character voices are one of my favorite touches. He is always super patient with new players and willing to help out with some ideas whenever we get stuck without giving to much away. He's always encouraging player creativity and even rewards us for creative, cool, or funny decisions we make. He works with each player to create fun, intricate characters with full backgrounds that can work into the story, giving each player a chance to take center stage for a moment in the campaign. I can't say enough how much I have enjoyed being apart of David's campaign and I can't wait to see where he takes us in the story!
JUST BOOK NOW!!! David is a phenominal steward to the D&D for beginners. He really put in the effort to make sure that, as a new play, I had everything needed and all my questions answered. He was very attentive and super helpful in crafting the story to tie my character into his world. Which by the way is a very cool world. I dont want to give anything away but its a awesome concept that sets it self apart from many of the cookie cutter concepts out there. Its elaborate but very well thought our and detailed. His sessions are fun, engaging, and fluid. He has a great easy going nature that just puts new people at ease and he is great at guiding without handholding. The elements of humor he throws in just add icing to the cake of an overall great experience. Thanks to David for sucking me into the D&D world for good!!!!!
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