Gregory

he/they

Timezone

America/new York

Language

English

Identity

Published Writer

Artist

Cosplayer

Voice Actor

Game Designer

About Gregory

"GM Greg: Level 21 Game Master" I started as a Dungeon Master for AD&D in 1979; I have nearly 45 years of experience creating & presenting worlds; I've run thousands of hours of gameplay across dozens of campaigns, from in person tabletop, through play-per-post in the early days of digital, to now pushing virtual table-top systems to the limits of their capabilities. I've awarded hundreds of levels for PCs over the decades of creating worlds & running campaigns from start to end: the longest of which logged nearly 4700 hours of gameplay over 5 years! Whether it's describing the dusty environs of a remote underground temple in great detail, or portraying all 222 inhabitants of the village of Hommlet from the classic AD&D T1 with many voice impersonations, or running battles with dozens or even hundreds* of combatants, I can bring it to the table. Let's go on an adventure through a classic dungeon crawl, or explore a vast sandbox, or go back in time to a converted AD&D adventure module, or find out just how many levels of megadungeon are sandwiched between the Underdark & your home settlement. (*Ask me about the 99 goblinoids in a single initiative dungeon that took 3 sessions of 3 hours & 99 rounds of combat, averaging 1 goblin kill per round for the party, with much fire, mayhem, & rejoicing.)

At a glance

Less than a year on StartPlaying

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I got started GMing...

in 1979; the AD&D Players Handbook & Monster Manual had been published, but the Dungeon Master's Guide hadn't been, yet! We learned how to DM from the very first guide of its kind. It turned out that I had more fun as a DM than as a player, creating in-depth adventures & seeing if PCs could survive

My 3 systems I'd bring to a desert island would be

Pathfinder first edition: it's the crunchiest! Nothing's crunchier! It'll crunch ya! D&D 3.5: need those on-brand monsters to convert to Pathfinder! AD&D: The first system I ever played.

The three words my players would use to describe me are...

"Prepared. Meticulous. Experienced." - Tordan the Slayer "Detailed. Confident. Knowledgeable." - Zippo the pyro gobbo

How Gregory runs games

Get ready for the unique portrayal of hundreds of NPCs, immersive role-playing, & the handling of the crunchiest of rulesets with the ease of experience. I run a variety of games: tactical wargaming experiences (from a few creatures in a small dungeon area, to a crowded battle on a massive 2/10 scale mile diameter wilderness hex map,) complex dungeon crawling with constant exploration, tricks, traps, puzzles, NPCs of the friendly, neutral, & hostile variants, & of course frequent combat encounters with a variety of creatures. If you like Classic Cavern & Catacomb Crawls through the Crypts & Corridors, or Big Bad Battle-Board Brawls, when it's time to bring something to the table, I bring the whole world. Five game styles that can be made available are: Style 1: A "dungeon level of the week," old school classic dungeon crawl, using a base Settlement. Style 2: A "battle for the realms," a large scale combat, approaching 40 tokens on the battle-board at start of combat. A wargaming style series, CR 5 - 25 Style 3: A megadungeon crawl with a metaopolis settlement for downtime. Style 4: Return to the past, with a Pathfinder converted classic AD&D adventure module. Have you ever wished to play T1, and then decide to move on to either G1 or T2, or make your own expedition to the barrier peaks or explore the ghost tower? Style 5: An alternate way to play, with only one adventuring encounter per in-game month, focusing instead on settlement building, downtime, N/PC social conflicts, investigations, exhibition combat, gambling, heists, duels, pursuits/chases, character organizations, cohorts & followers, exploration, mass combat, sieges, & easing into kingdom building.

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I prep by

getting started in 1979 & not stopping: adopt, adapt & master new game versions & virtual tabletop systems, always stay worlds ahead of any party of adventurers who are up for the challenge of all the wilderness, dungeon maze, combat, rumor, puzzle, trick, trap, riddle, NPC, & more that lie in wait.

My games focus on...

immersion in fun fantasy through staying within the rules system. The game system has the incredible potential for great story telling full of joy & fun, coming directly from the character's actions & following results. I made the world; it's yours to play in! Your choices will write the fun story.

When it comes to voices

question my character, & find instead that I am the entire cast! An individual NPC or creature is voiced uniquely! As a trained stage & film actor, my goal is to make each encounter recognizable through expressive impressions. Welcome the voice of the allied mage; dread the growl of the deadly foe!

Gregory's ideal table

What an amazing table it would be, for players to either be in character role playing, or calling their actions on or off their turn, and otherwise only immersed in the moment, vividly imagining & feeling as though they are living the experiences of their characters, even as their very actions write a story that has as much fun, humor, & tense drama as it does combat conflicts with creatures. If you want to create a detailed character & play through 20 levels of a fantastic focused adventure, this is the table for you.

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If you're into ___, you're going to love my table

__immersion, role playing, tactical combat, fantastic environments, crunchy/complete RAW for fair play, wilderness exploration, detailed world full of interesting NPCs, dungeon crawling, variety of challenges, a story that started before the players arrived but is now theirs to tell with their PCs__

I think it's a red flag when players...

let the real world intrude into our fantasy play time, which is very valuable, & even rare when the level of fun ramps up to this game's potential. "Thank you all for being here right on time - let's play!" is the most joyous sound to a gamer who is immersed in the story the PCs are weaving.

My perfect party mix is

Old school, best school for whole parties. A combo of front line melee, a ranged... ranger, a sneaky stealthy skilled rogue, a divine caster, an arcane caster, & a force enhancer like a bard make for the most effective group, & if the party size is typical (4 or 5) then specializing is crucial.