I first gamed with Karl in 1984. As of this writing, that's 39 years ago. So I'm getting old. Karl, though, is two years younger than me, so of course he never will. Through 39 years, we've GM'ed and played and many games for and with each other. If you'll indulge me, here, I think I have a pretty fair perspective on what it's like to have him running the game. The principal thing to know about Karl is that his focus is on everyone having fun. There are more details I'll mention further down, but everything stems from that one idea: *Everyone Should Have Fun* My opinion: This is the single most important thing to look for in a GM. Even for folks who take their games very seriously [Joker: "Why so serious?"], at the end of the day, it's still a game. Why play if it won't be fun? Karl gets this, and he checks in with his players to make sure they are in fact enjoying the game. Part of maintaining everyone's enjoyment is genuine two-way communication, both before and during play. He doesn't simply communicate *to* you, he communicates *with* you. Those of you who are used to others "communicating" by telling you stuff but dismissing whatever you say... you'll find having someone actually listen incredibly refreshing. If you let him know your ideas for your character, he works with you to seek a story- and setting-suitable way within the rules structure to make that happen. He wants you to have fun. You send him a PM in game, he reads it and replies within a reasonable amount of time. He sends you one, he checks with you to make sure you've received it. He's paying attention. He wants you to have fun. He makes sure everyone gets their chance to act during a turn, to be heard, to participate. The game we're playing currently, we have a couple teens who are enjoying their first-ever human interaction RPG. One of them is a bit shy about it, still getting used to having an equal seat at the table with a group of fully grown adults. I see Karl actively making sure they get their turns, get heard, know that their actions are theirs to decide. I'm also the father of an avid RPGamer, I'm used to looking for this. Karl makes sure everyone is included and respected. He wants you to have fun. Along with inclusion, social and emotional safety is important, especially in ways and to degrees that mainstream society wasn't talking about back in the 20th century. Karl has safety flags in his virtual tabletop (VTT) that people can raise anonymously. (He can see who raised the flag. None of the players can.) He'll pause the game and figure out what needs to pivot or be altered or be outright removed to continue without causing or aggravating real-life problems. He wants you to have fun. Before the game first begins, Karl discusses with his players what everyone's expectations are, what the feel of the game is intended to be, the scope of the adventure/campaign, power levels, RL trauma triggers, RL phobias, desired elements or themes, themes to avoid, and more. A game shouldn't bring up horrible memories from Real Life. He wants you to have fun. Possibly the most unexciting part of making sure his players have fun is that he has a solid grasp of the rules of whatever system he's running, as well as the resources at hand to look up details he might not immediately remember during play. This is the pumping-out-the-bilge part of ensuring that one's players have fun, but it's part of what the GM takes on when they decide to run a game. Karl gets that this is foundational to running the game smoothly. Exciting or not, he simply does it. He wants you to have fun. The VTT Karl uses takes a lot of the drudgery out of managing your character sheet. I was a math teacher. I like math. I find it a technical kind of fun. But I don't enjoy having to re-crunch all the numbers every time one thing changes on my character sheet. Happily, the VTT ensures I don't have to, and I can focus my escapism time on the fun story & imagination elements. The VTT also includes tools for the tactical maps Karl uses during combat/action scenes. These remove much of the drudgery of calculating distances, checking line-of-sight, and adding combat bonuses/penalties for such things. Reducing drudgery, because a game should feel like fun. Here, I will take a moment to acknowledge that once I get going, I can sometimes come up with lots to say. (I'm reasonably self-aware.) I will shorten the next parts because, believe it or not, I'm not actually trying to write a novel, here. But please realize: with my habit of writing in storytelling mode (or adjacent to it), I naturally have saved the best stuff for last. My own favorite, verymostbestestfunnest (totally a real word) parts of any game are all the storytelling elements that come together to provide rich flavor to the escapism: - The story we're all inventing on the fly and telling together. - The characters, different voices, different personalities. - Descriptions and images of scenes, settings, and characters. - Sounds: Ambience, Weather, Music (theme, mood, situation, action) Karl does an outstanding job of choosing the support elements to add in, giving the NPC's and settings personality and life, and giving you descriptions and visuals. Most importantly, he participates *with* you on the story that unfolds. He'll provide bits of guidance or prompting where needed, but even running through a written module, the game doesn't feel as if it's on rails. You're not just passively hearing a story he's telling: *you* are also actively participating in writing and telling the story of your character, your comrades, and your legend. Karl wants the escapism to feel as immersive as it practically can be within the logistical setup. You may have sussed out that I've been oh-so-subtly (SUB-TLE!!!) pushing a particular theme. Karl wants you to have fun. I trust him to run some of my escapist fun. I think you will thank yourself if you do the same.

I’ve been having a lot of fun in this game! Gamemaster Karl was lots of help setting up our charters. He has been using cool music to set the mood and has been playing lots of cool non player charters for us to interact with. Playing online has also been a great way to have players from all over the country play in the same game.

I played with Gamemaster Karl in the Beginning, way back 40+ years ago and he has always had a passion for the game and an incredible imagination and knack for world building!

Karl is an experienced GM whose creativity and love for the game really shine. He is excellent at encouraging player agency and makes role playing the center of every session. His knowledge of the game is vast and he knows and understands the rules, though he also knows that the rules sometimes need to be broken for a truly enjoyable game. I would strongly recommend Karl and look forward to playing with him as GM again!

I've gamed with Karl for countless years. Most of those experiences with him in the role of a GM. Karl runs an excellent game by building engaging stories and delivering them in a manner that allows PCs to make their own decisions and set their own destinies. He is a very fair GM and excels at keeping his players motivated, on track, and in character. If you are looking for a captivating gaming experience with a very experienced, and savvy GM, look no further.