Nicholas Potter/Xortberg (he/him)
5.0
(4)
3 years on StartPlaying
1 game hosted
Highly rated for: Creativity, Teacher, Inclusive
About me
I'm a TTRPG content creator who recently discovered my love of running games after years of dissatisfaction with GMing. I offer games run in Foundry, a strong understanding of the rules (not perfect, naturally, but strong enough to make inferences based on context and keep games running in the moment), and a focus on collaboration with my players.
GM Style
I'm a strong believer that the unique strength of TTRPGs lies in how the mechanics we all agree to play by interact with and, ultimately, create the narrative we experience. As such, I tend to stick as closely to the rules as I can in the moment, and will hold my players to the rules as well, all in service of creating a story that can only be told in a medium that's equal parts a creative endeavor and a guided, rule-bound experience. I bring as much energy as I can to my scenarios, trying to feed you narrative prompts as well as obstacles and encounters that require some application of the game's rules to overcome. I expect a reasonable amount of game knowledge—for my beginner adventures, I don't expect much more than for you to know fairly well how your own character operates on the understanding that you'll try to learn more as we go, while for adventures not specifically for beginners I'll expect at least a basic understanding of what all of your teammates can do as well. I also don't enforce arbitrary limits on what "your character can know." If I'm using pre-existing monster statblocks, I operate on the assumption that at least one player probably knows something about them, and so I design encounters that don't hinge entirely on some piece of the creature's statblock that's meant to be hidden. Instead, I try to design interesting encounters with alternate victory/defeat conditions, hazards that the monsters use to shore up their weaknesses, or—when the occasion calls for it—a simple encounter where the players are expected to steamroll the enemies, for a nice change of pace. That isn't to say I play *against* the players, though the enemies you face do want to win and survive and I'll generally play them as such. It just means that I try to create obstacles that are interesting and unique, even if I am just using building blocks that everyone's already familiar with.
Games played
Game platforms used
Game Master Reviews (4)
Proficiencies
Players say this GM is great at:
Creativity
Teacher
Inclusive
Xort was very good about understanding the rules as written and working with players to create the type of environment they really wanted out of the game. He was generally willing to alter rules as needed if it's something the whole party wanted. In my experience, he was also willing to go out of his way to include character side stories and overarching characters to make the worlds feel more personal as well. Xort was very good at making players with all levels of experience with a system feel welcome and included. As far as combat is concerned, generally balanced and fair, playing enemy characters in a way that makes sense and is generally fair to the players. Absolutely a fantastic GM to have!
My favorite thing is that they are always willing to help new and old players that may be struggling. Takes the time to build up the world to connect all party members. Attempts to make all players feel included whether that be combat or roleplaying. Always looking for feedback from all players.
Nick has been running our weekly Pathfinder 2e game for over a year now, and I couldn't be happier with it. Though he uses pre-written campaigns, he makes sure to add characters and storylines specific to each of our characters, which makes the whole experience super immersive. He's really easy to talk to and will answer any and all questions you have and would never make you feel bad for not knowing all the rules. As the only female player in the game, I always felt safe, respected, and included. Nick always makes sure everyone in the group is heard and not talked over, which may be a small thing to some but was very noteworthy to me since it's so easy for things to get chaotic when you're playing online.
Always adapting to his party, Nick does a great job balancing the varying needs of all his players. Experienced at telling stories, he is able to navigate a party with multiple ideas along a narrative that never looses sight of its goal. I love remembering all the times our party got distracted in self made drama, only for it to tie back into what we were doing somehow. The freedom he allows his players is indicative of the freedom of choice In his worlds. Module or not, his game was the first I was really open about my sexual preferences, at a table I was then accepted by. Nick is good people, play his games!!
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