Nyk Cialini
he/they
5.0
(5)
Timezone
Language
Identity
About Nyk Cialini
I am a PhD candidate working on my dissertation about the ways marginalized folks use the science fiction as a force of liberation. I love that TTRPGs give us a chance to explore our imaginations and invent worlds together where our actions and choices make a meaningful difference. I have presented and written in academic contexts about the benefits of role-playing in education. I build campaigns and stories around three core tenets: 1. Community 2. Hope 3. Imagination I have been a creative writer and a lover of fantasy and SF for long as I can remember. “We are what we pretend to be, so we must be careful about what we pretend to be.” ― Kurt Vonnegut, Mother Night
At a glance
3 years on StartPlaying
Highly rated for: Storytelling, Inclusive, Creativity
Featured Prompts
When I'm not running games I'm...
teaching, cooking, reading, playing TCGs, & writing
How Nyk Cialini runs games
I generally prefer theater of the mind. Most of my GM experience has been virtual. So, I really enjoy the "radio theater" style of storytelling. I make handouts and images of locations, NPCs, and clues more often than I combat maps. I enjoy the way mechanics and story work together in RPGs. That said, I tend to be a more narratively focused GM. I am always up for homebrewing and enjoy off-the-wall ideas and concepts. I like to think of myself as a "rule of cool story" GM. Meaning, if what you want to do is suitably cool and adding something meaningful to our story, I'm usually game. I am an educator by trade, and that influences the way I craft my game spaces. I look to make the "table" a fun and safe environment for everyone, and I care about facilitating a table that is crafted together. Humor and playfulness are at the core of who I am. While I occasionally enjoy the disturbing and the gritty, I always will go out of my way for a humor-filled game environment. Sarcasm is my mother tongue.
Nyk Cialini's Preferences
Systems