Zak (he/him)
4.8
(14)
2 years on StartPlaying
8 games hosted
Highly rated for: Creativity, Knows the Rules, Storytelling
About me
A forever GM with over a decade of running games under my belt. I started out with a cyclopedia and a dream, in a part of the world where being a "Geek" was considered childish, set out to teach people how to play as a way to get them out of the "nerd closet" and help them make geeky friends. for some one who has been awkward and had difficulty making friends, seeing people come together around my table, let their hair down, and make some real lasting friendships, I was hooked. I've taught friends, family and complete ever since. Code of conduct: 1. This is an all inclusive hobby, I have a Zero tolerance policy when it comes to racism, sexism or any prejudice of any kind. 2. Be on time for the game. If you can't, mention beforehand. 3. Communicate everything, including what's going on with your life (if it becomes relevant to the game). It will be kept between the player and GM. 4. If there are less than 3 players, know the session will be canceled. 5. Don't be a rules lawyer. 6. Don't come online drunk or high. 7. Please give notice if you want/need to leave the game. 8. Be nice, polite, and respectful (or at least don't be a dick), we are all here to play and have a good time. Safety tools: We start with a session zero to discuss characters, lore, house rules, to answer questions and set lines and veils. players are encouraged to discuss these openly but always have the option to let me know in private. I endeavor to maintain a safe and friendly environment and have an open door policy, if you need to leave for any reason then you may do so without fear of judgement, all I ask is that you let me know why, when/if you are able. I try to leave 15 minutes at the end of every session to look back on the on the session and discuses feedback, this is of course optional but appreciated.
GM Style
I like to keep a balance between role play, combat and exploration with a focus on story telling but I can provide a tough but fair challenge if it's what the party enjoys. I like an emphasis on choice and consequence in my games to promote player agency no matter the system and I enjoy weaving my players backstories into the plot. Nothing is set in stone, at the end of the day it's just a game we are playing to have fun, so if there is anything that is getting in the way of that then please let me know.
Games played
Game platforms used
Game Master Reviews (14)
Proficiencies
Players say this GM is great at:
Creativity
Knows the Rules
Storytelling
Sumner Moon
Had a great time despite never having played the game before. Will definitely play with him again.
Tara Hamilton
I was new to Savage Worlds: Deadlands, and the GM was incredibly patient in explaining the rules and what each player could do each turn, giving us multiple options for player choices. Really helped with learning the system. Pre-rolled characters in each class to choose from, but allowed us to add whatever flavor we liked on to them as to their identities. Provided tons of visual aids on Roll20, and helped in navigating the user interface because I was new to that as well. The session he ran was 5 1/2 hours; he gave us the option to split into multiple shorter sessions, but the group chose to run the one-shot in a single sitting with a short break at 4 hours, and he was totally cool with that. There wasn't a lot of roleplay, but we were a bit of a shy group as it was a pickup game, so the play style reflected that. Fun game overall!
Jared Gilliam
High quality settep and seems like an experienced dm. Was very informative and knew the new system we used. Very helpful.
Sean
Played 1 sessions
Always a fantastic Dm/Gm. Been playing with him for years and have very very few complaints. Grand adventures, great world building and amazing character story lines. 9/10
Dustin
Had a good time with Zak playing Alien RPG. He was helpful in explaining the rules and interface and patience as it was my first time playing.
Ahmed AK
Zak is a creative and enthusiastic GM that not only cares to make a creative and deep game but wants to share that enjoyment with his players. He runs a myriad of different role-playing games and is willing to run them given time.
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