Laurian Ciborski
he/him
5.0
(7)
Timezone
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About Laurian Ciborski
Welcome traveler, Come and sit for a while whilst I share my tale. Since I learned to read I have consumed stories like my life depended on it. Now, so many years later, I find no greater joy than the creation of stories, whether that be through my own personal writing or around the table with friends. Long before I discovered Dungeons and Dragons I was inventing role-playing games that I would force my friends and family to play with me. Discovering the ttrpg community in my later middle-school into high-school years changed my life. To this day, more than eight years after I started running games, I find no greater joy than the anticipation and ambition of that first session 0, sitting down with a new table of players and getting to meet their characters, to hear their hopes and inspirations for the campaign, and then to weave those inspirations into a world, a story, and most importantly a fun time. While this is my first step into the shoes of a professional Game Master, I have experience in leading many a long-term campaign and a multitude of one-shots for a combination of friends and strangers, new players and old, casual get togethers and events. My goal with any game is to tell a story that is fun without feeling superfluous, that feels structured and cohesive without rail-roading, and challenging to the point of reward rather than frustration. I love teaching the game to new players, as well as relishing in the experience of experienced players and the opportunities for exploration that experience provides. Most of all my goal is to take this wonderfully imaginative game and wring as many adventures from it as I can for I am, if nothing more, a lover of stories.
At a glance
1 year on StartPlaying
Highly rated for: Storytelling, World Builder, Creativity
Featured Prompts
I got started GMing...
Running a game for my family of five plus both my grandmas, taught me how to manage tense player dynamics, introduce new players of various ages, and somehow build a world and story to keep the investment of a table that spanned three generations in age and vast differences in interests.
My favorite books are
Fifth Season (really the whole Broken Earth trilogy) by N.K. Jemisin, Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss, and The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien
When I'm not running games I'm...
Wandering with friends, reading, writing, or building things (sometimes worlds, sometimes houses, sometimes community).
How Laurian Ciborski runs games
As a gm my specialties lie in world-building and storytelling with a focus on roleplay, using rules and combat to enhance and guide those elements of the game. While I enjoy a good old dungeon crawl and am well-versed in the rules, I prefer a more open style of play with a focus on story. I love to customize my games to my players, taking their ideas for characters and themes and weaving them together into a cohesive engaging adventure. I love to mix elements of homebrew with established rules and content, making each game unique and as best suited to its theme and narrative as it can be. Whether virtual or in person I try to make my sessions as immersive as possible through the use of music, maps, props, voices and art. The Story Belongs to the Players This is a no brainer for me. While I may build the world, the players create the story. In order to make this story as engaging as possible, I work closely with my players to weave their backstory into the world, and thus into the story of the campaign. Rules in Service of Story(tellers) For me, as a game master, the rules are always in service of the story. They guide and shape, but do not dictate. And they adapt. In my games I love to mix elements of homebrew with established rules and content, making each game unique and as best suited to its theme and narrative as it can be. Similarly, where my games fall on the rules as written vs rule of cool debate tends to fluctuate depending on situation and table/group. I find there are campaigns, and moments within campaigns, that require a more close to the word understanding of the rulebooks, but more often than not I tend for a looser approach that favors story and character over dice rolling and number crunching. Immersive Table I love making things, and have spent much of life exploring a wide variety of art forms. Now I use that artistic experience to build as immersive an atmosphere as possible. Audio Sound is the building block of atmosphere, and I use a broad range of ambience and music to bring my tables to life. Maps Mapmaking is a personal passion of mine, and I put much time and joy into the creation of backdrops that bring the imaginary to life. My goal with using maps is to simplify the complexities of combat to allow for a story driven experience, while not letting the framework that maps provide interfere with or limit the creativity and autonomy of my players. Props Where possible I like to use props, for example letters, journal entries, forged documents etc., to bring the world closer to the players and create a more engaging game for all.
Laurian Ciborski's Preferences
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