Hermann

he/him

4.9

(17)

TOP GM

Timezone

Europe/berlin

Language

English

German

Identity

LGBTQ+

Neurodivergent

Game Designer

Multi-lingual

About Hermann

One of my favorite things in the world is to experience stories. After over two decades of playing, running, and designing for TTRPGs, I finally decided to quit my software engineering career and do this full-time!

At a glance

Less than a year on StartPlaying

32 games hosted

Highly rated for: Creativity, Teacher, Inclusive

$48 per session

Average response time: Under 1 hour

Response rate: 100%

Top Game Master

One of StartPlaying's top-rated GMs, a player favorite and highly recommended.

Featured Prompts

I became a GM because

Collaborative storytelling never gets old. The fun lives in the mix of clear stakes, player agency, and a little chaos from the dice.

When I'm not running games I'm...

Probably worldbuilding.

How Hermann runs games

I’m player‑forward, and I love every facet of the game. I'm quite good at tailoring campaigns to what my players will enjoy most. Whether it's dynamic, tactical battles with stakes beyond just "who kills whom," or a cozy spa session, I do my best to make sure that every character can shine and have a meaningful role in the narrative. My homebrew world of Narthanor is full of wonders, dangers, and political intrigue. Whatever type of adventure you want to have, the world has a spot just for you! I am narrative-first, mechanics-second in my approach. This doesn't mean that I ignore the rules "for the narrative." It's quite the opposite, really. I create mechanics, feats, spells, and everything else so that the rules support the story and enhance the player experience. A recent example: At the end of a session, I described a wizard preparing to cast a spell. The wizard had fire in one hand and ice in the other. Since there is no spell that would allow the wizard to do that, and other mechanics would not make sense for that NPC, I created a new spell: Chromatic Helix (which can be found on D&D Beyond).

Featured Prompts

I prep by

familiarizing myself with the player characters. Their strengths, weaknesses, and motivations guide my session prep, in order to shine a spotlight on them.

My games focus on...

fun for the whole table. Giving my players a Sandbox to play in, is the greatest joy, since their characters can drive the narrative while they force me to expand on the world.

Rules are...

what makes or breaks a game. But with great understanding of the rules, comes the ability to know when to adjust them in the moment, without breaking anything vital.

Hermann's ideal table

It's a collaborative, character-driven game. I expect players to have at least a basic sense of who their character is, but I leave plenty of room to develop the character's backstory over time. I regularly send my players prompts to help them with their backstory, and their answers give me the strings to pull in future sessions. I take my players comfort and safety seriously, so that everyone has a great time even if some story beats get on the heavier side.

Featured Prompts

I love it when a player

thinks outside of the box. It's the players job to think of what they want to do. It's my job as a GM to figure out how it fits into the game mechanics and how to make it a reality.

I think min/maxing...

is totally fine, if it fits the table's tone. Optimized builds can reduce analysis paralysis and clarify what your character does best. It's my job to make sure that the spotlight is shared, and the challenges stay varied.

My table is not the place for...

disrespect, adversarial play, or chasing "gotcha" moments. No bullying, and no ignoring safety tools. Everyone is welcome, unless you're racist, sexist, or some other kind of asshole, in which case you're doing everyone a favor by staying away from my table. I have zero tolerance for intolerance.