
Maria (she/her)
5.0
(34)
4 years on StartPlaying
256 games hosted
Highly rated for: World Builder, Teacher, Storytelling
Average response time: 3 hours
Response rate: 100%
About me
As a DM I strive to make atmospheric and evocative adventures that reward players who think outside of the box. I work as a freelance illustrator, and as a highly visual person imagery and tone play a big part in my games. I create my own art, maps, and custom player character art for my campaigns. Eight years of acting experience combined with a lifelong passion for fantasy writing makes me quick with improv and eager to dive into absurd, creative directions I didn't expect players to go in. I make it my mission as a DM to reward the player's choices and tailor the game to actions they take instead of pushing them along a preordained path. There are set plot points and long-term objectives to my campaigns, but they are always subject to change based on the players goals and decisions. My worlds are heavily homebrewed, and I love tailoring the adventure to the characters' backstories. I am the perfect choice for a player who loves RP! I run an inclusive LGBTQ+ friendly table. Please only apply to play in one of my games if you are willing to respect the pronouns and identities of others.
GM Style
I'm a lore nerd who loves world building, but I love riffing with my players to make things up and add onto the story as things happen in game - I'm great at filling in specific details on the fly, and my campaigns are full of mood. I LOVE rewarding roleplaying. I tend to lean towards a 70-30 role-play and story to combat interaction, with a lot of the RP involving exploration and puzzles/ encounters that aren't necessarily combat-based, and always the option to avoid combat with creative thinking. I do not run murderhobo or evil campaigns. My tables are always LGBTQ+ friendly and should feel like a safe space. Please only apply to play in one of my games if you are willing to respect the pronouns and identities of others. I love building things into the story that come up during role play, and reward heartfelt role play and out-of-the-box thinking with inspiration. The rule of cool doesn't always hold trump in my games as I do adhere to RAW (Rules as Written) to ground my campaigns, but if the mood is right and it makes sense with the characters' arc, I'm happy to let it prevail. Because of the heavy role-play emphasis on my games, audio and video are both important for my sessions. Please make sure you have a working microphone and camera - I find that leaving your camera off makes PC interaction much more difficult, and I want to make sure that everyone feels they can get a read on their fellow players. I run games exclusively on Roll20 for visuals and combat maps, and use Discord for audio and video. I'm happy to work with both brand new and experienced players alike. I work as a freelance illustrator and have a degree in illustration, and for my longer campaigns I usually do custom character art for my PCs.
Games played
Maria's Games
Game Master Reviews (34)
Proficiencies
Players say this GM is great at:
World Builder
Teacher
Storytelling
Maria is super knowledgeable and oh so very helpful! I highly recommend signing up for one of her "DMing D&D 5e" sessions, even if you're already an experienced DM. She's got tons of tips and helpful advice on DMing and being a Pro DM, including everything that goes into prep, session 0's, etc. And while I haven't played in one of her actual campaigns yet, they sound really fun and full of juicy lore!
Maria is an amazing DM. I had taken her Learn to play dungeons and dragons one shot and had the best time. She was extremely patient and helpful with me getting set up not only on D&D Beyond, Roll20 but also with Discord since I have never used any of them before today. Maria is excellent at guiding new players through the virtual tabletop while keeping yourself enticed in the story making you feel like you are really there. There is so much more great things I can say but it would be even better to experience yourself.
Maria is an incredible GM - she is charismatic, creative, flexible, and just a lovely person, to boot. Each week, I look forward to our collaborative journey in the world she's built. You cannot go wrong with her as a GM - I give her the highest of recommendations!
Maria is an absolutely incredible GM. This campaign is intensively RP driven and relies heavily on the lore, world, NPCs and story that Maria has created to maximize the experience. Maria is incredibly versed in the game systems and very responsive to player inquiries about the world or the game of D&D 5e. This campaign in the most immersive and deeply involved campaign that I have ever been apart of and the experience is fantastic (pun intended). Maria has cultivated a truly vested party of players and her game is something I would plan my entire week around ensuring I can attend as much as possible. If you see her post a campaign here I highly recommend joining whether it is new or midway through, especially if you want to fully dive into the world and your character. You will not regret the experience.
Absolute gem of a DM and person. I would absolutely recommend joining any campaign Maria runs and I put my money where my mouth is. I literally have joined all of her campaigns. She is that good of a DM. Absolutely sweet, fair, and accommodating. I could not sing her praises enough.
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