Julia LaFond

she/her

5.0

(24)

Timezone

America/new York

Language

English

Identity

Published Writer

About Julia LaFond

Greetings, adventurers! Like most DMs, I got started as a player and then experimented with one-shots. As someone who writes plenty of horror, I'm happy to run creepy, thrilling, or terrifying adventures, especially around Halloween. I'm equally excited to run low-stakes shenanigans and puzzle-based gameplay. Sometimes I homebrew, and sometimes I draw on premade settings or adventures. But no matter what, I'll make sure everyone at the table is included and having a good time (no matter what mishaps are befalling your characters)

At a glance

2 years on StartPlaying

233 games hosted

Highly rated for: Creativity, Storytelling, Inclusive

Average response time: 1 hour

Response rate: 100%

Featured Prompts

My favorite books are

Sorcery of Thorns + Vespertine by Margaret Rogerson, Delicious Monsters by Liselle Sambury, Lord of the Rings by JRR Tolkien, The Murderbot Diaries by Martha Wells, Little Thieves by Margaret Owen, Spinning Silver by Naomi Novik, The Troubled Girls of Dragomir Academy by Anne Ursu (and more)

My favorite shows/movies are

Stargate SG1 / Atlantis, Julie and the Phantoms, Lost Song (the anime), Kaiju No. 8, Megamind, Rise of the Guardians, Scooby Doo: Mystery Incorporated, Kubo and the Two Strings, Next Gen, Transformers Prime, The Incredibles, Batman: the Brave and the Bold, Abbot and Costello Meet Frankenstein...

People are always surprised when I tell them

I have scars from a laser-wielding robot

How Julia LaFond runs games

Gaming is a collaborative experience, so the specifics of a campaign will depend on the players' interests and preferences. That said, I tend to create open-ended challenges for my players, and I always appreciate it when they think of solutions I didn't. While I have a soft spot for social interaction and puzzles, I'm more than willing to provide worthy opponents in combat. Players are welcome at my table regardless of experience level -- I'm just as happy to guide newcomers through gameplay as I am to swap stories of campaigns past. In fact, everyone is welcome as long as they treat me and their fellow players with respect. And to be clear, bigotry is inherently disrespectful.

Featured Prompts

I deal with rules issues by...

quickly checking the rules. However, if I can't find the relevant section (or if it's ambiguous), I'll make an on-the-spot ruling to make sure we can keep playing. Further research and corrections happen between sessions or at the beginning of the next session as appropriate

I once ran a session...

in which the players needed to get second place in a spelling bee, because they needed to get the second-place prize without arousing suspicion. It remains the most nerve-wracking session I've run (above TPKs, even), and we learned fun words like "wootz", "octonocular", and "adscititious"!

Rules are...

the basis of the game, but not the end-all, be-all. I use them to construct fun scenarios, and do my best to help the players translate what they want to do into in-game actions as needed. That said, if a particular rule is causing trouble, I'm willing to work with the group to find solutions.

Julia LaFond's ideal table

I tend to run games that balance dark, serious, or dramatic moments with jokes and lighthearted shenanigans. In terms of playstyle, I tend to favor roleplaying, investigating, and exploring over combat-based gameplay. Players who are good fits tend to be welcoming and willing to collaborate

Featured Prompts

I love it when a player

is proactive about solving problems. Whether they succeed or fail, it's an opportunity to show off more of the world, explore ripple effects on various factions, and cooperate with them by tying things into their story arc

I think min/maxing...

is fine as long as it adheres to rules as written, and is done to support the party rather than to compete with fellow players. Also, my games tend to include roleplay + intrigue, and no matter how great your stats are, that's not something any one person can "solve" single-handedly

My table is not the place for...

bigots, characters who refuse to work with their teammates, people looking for grimdark games, anyone who thinks heroes engage in torture, anyone who doesn't respect boundaries