Riley
they/them
5.0
(3)
Timezone
Language
Identity
About Riley
I've been a passionate storyteller for as long as I can remember. With my background in theatre and games, discovering D&D and tabletop games felt incredibly fortuitous. Over the last 5 years, GMing has been my lifeblood. What initially started as me taking up the mantle for my friends at home because nobody else wanted to has evolved into a deep love of mine. I can't imagine not GMing most of the time. Getting to use my theatre experience to develop engaging NPCs and enemies and my game design degree to craft epic battles and fascinating, exploration-worthy environments with enough lore to keep the notetaker happy is all I could have hoped for. So join me, adventurer, for both pre-written and homebrew journeys alike!
At a glance
Less than a year on StartPlaying
Highly rated for: Storytelling, Inclusive, Creativity
Featured Prompts
My 3 systems I'd bring to a desert island would be
D&D 5e (or 2024), Monster of the Week, and Vampire the Masquerade (so I can finally learn how to run it)
When I'm not running games I'm...
thinking about running games... (this is mostly a joke.) I'm often thinking about worldbuilding, characters, what would make for a good story opener. When I'm not asleep, I'm usually thinking about story concepts.
How Riley runs games
I am most comfortable GMing for a group interested in character driven storytelling. I find I get most fired up to tell stories when players are deeply invested in the story. If I find myself with a group that are more excited to move from quest to quest, I feel very comfortable doing so, ensuring that the quest itself is rewarding enough for the session to feel satisfying. My game design degree has definitely helped me craft well balanced, engaging combat as well as environments that spark curiosity and (hopefully) delight. I lean towards sensory and visceral descriptions to capture a game environment, rather than describing every detail and feature of an NPC's face or a tavern, or enemy, I focus on trying to evoke a feeling in my players by describing how it affects their senses. If a tavern is old and busy, I tell players how the space smells, the lighting, the type of buzz in the tavern rather so they can decide for themselves how it makes them feel to be in that space. If they meet an NPC, I'll give basic visual descriptions but then describe the energy with which they carry themself, their posture, the cadence of their voice, and so on. I really enjoy running heists and setting up games for players to solve mysteries that can domino into some kind of terrible plot. If players are comfortable with it, I love running something horror or terror adjacent, too. Anything that lists towards evoking emotions in players is my happy place!
Riley's ideal table
If you're excited about genuinely collaborative storytelling, this is the place. Character driven, lore rich games are what I'm about. If you put all the effort into your backstory, I will do my best to make sure it gets showcased in some way. Curiosity and adventure are always rewarded (somehow) - if you want to push the big red button, be my guest! If you're here, don't be afraid to get a little silly. This is a space to get weird and embody characters you wish to tell stories with - embrace it and each other. The vibes are kindness, collaboration and engagement first. TTRPGs are a high-commitment hobby, so if you're here you're expected to be present. Communication is important, too, not just before and after the game, but during. And finally, rules are great, they're there for a reason, but if they get in the way of the fun, we bend them.
Featured Prompts
I am for a vibe that's...
Curious, adventureous, playful and kind. If you're open to collaborating with a group, willing to listen and to "yes, and" with people, this is the place for you.
I love it when a player
gets really creative! I love a good, whacky idea - if it's fun and a clever way to navigate a situation, I'm into it! So long as it doesn't negatively impact anyone at the table, go for it!
I think metagaming...
is too nuanced to discuss in 300 chars. I think it's an easy thing to circumvent with creative roleplay. If you really need to know something, find a clever way to ask without breaking the immersion.
Riley's Preferences
Systems