Cody

he/him

5.0

(3)

Timezone

America/los Angeles

Language

English

About Cody

I've been enjoying role-playing games for over 30 years. I started my love of RPGs with the red box basic D&D set that was released in the 80's; I still have the dice. I played a fighter hired by royalty to explore and cleanse a dungeon. This whole scenario was created by my brother. I became hooked however I didn't get to play D&D again until several years later. A friend invited me to join his Ravenloft campaign, I leaped at the opportunity. Over the years that gaming group lost and gained people. We have played different systems as well, from AD&D 2nd. to Rifts, to World of Darkness and D&D 3rd/3.5 and a few indie games as well. I've played D&D from that Basic Red Box set then AD&D 2nd ed. all the way through to 2014 5th ed. Yes, I even played 4th. My first experience truly Dming was when I ran a homebrew campaign set in the Forgotten Realms under the 3.5 rules. Currently I play 2014 5th edition D&D, Pathfinder 1e, and Starfinder 1e. I have run campaigns for all three systems. These three d20 based games are the ones that I have the most familiarity with and feel very comfortable teaching to others. The games/campaigns I have DMed are exclusively online using Roll20 with players across the country in every US time zone. The best part about DMing is creating stories and memories with others. A little bit more about me is that I am a proud father and husband. I love spending time with my family. I have recently gotten into board gaming. My preference of board games coincides with my RPG hobby as most of the board games I own are big box story driven role-playing games such as ISS Vanguard, Harakiri: Blades of Honor, and Nova Aetas to name a few. I enjoy spending time with my family. Occasionally I play a video game or two, mostly RPGs, shocker! In my free time, when I have it, I enjoy painting miniatures for my board games. But mostly I love playing D&D. I really enjoy creating a story with others and seeing where it goes. I love it when a player has an "out-of-the-box" idea and I tend to bend the rules a little to make it work. Grab your dice, have a seat at the table and let's have some fun!

At a glance

Less than a year on StartPlaying

Highly rated for: Creativity, World Builder, Teacher

Average response time: Under 1 hour

Response rate: 100%

Featured Prompts

I got started GMing...

in high school using AD&D 2nd. ed. rules. Yes, I know what THAC0 means. I mostly ran encounter filled dungeons when I started but eventually started hashing out homebrew campaigns. I really enjoyed the Forgotten Realms and did most campaigns in that setting. But Dark Sun is far and away my favorite.

My favorite system of all Time is

actually it is a tie between D&D 3.5 and Pathfinder 1e. I used to know 3.5 really well. Pathfinder 1e was a continuation/improvement of 3.5 so I really enjoyed it once I discovered their Core book. It improved on so much. What I love most about both systems is the numerous options for characters.

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

spending time with my family. They enjoy playing Pokemon Go so I've recently created an account so that I can participate with them in Raids and events. It brings my family a lot of joy and excitement to play and I'm happy to be a part of it.

How Cody runs games

I prefer to run published campaigns of whichever game system I'm GMing. Being a parent can make it difficult to dedicate the appropriate time and energy to craft your own campaign. As far as RP vs. Combat: I enjoy a good mixture of both. I prepare my combat scenarios in line with what the party can handle, plus a little more every so often. I find it makes my players wary and more patient after initiative is determined. Some of my sessions have more role-play than combat and vice versa. It depends on the module I'm running and what would be appropriate for the session. Do I follow the module word for word? No. For the most part I tend to go by what it says but will change things, by either adding or removing, as necessary. It is easier to stick to the story/adventure when running modules but I offer my players options of what their characters choose to do. I tend to go by rule of cool unless it is inappropriate or downright ridiculous. "No you can't make the enemy drown with a control water spell." If a player has a great "out-of-the-box" idea I tend to go with it even if it doesn't fit within the rules. I make judgement calls on what roll would be appropriate to make to pull off the next to impossible. These moments can often times lead to great memories within the story. When GMing you have to be able to adapt to your players choices and ideas and pivot when necessary. This is what makes the game so enjoyable. I do poor impressions, decent impressions and some sound effects. I am working on bringing more ambient sound effects and music to my table. At my core I really enjoy creating stories with others. It is just one of the things that makes RPGs unique and so delightful. Let me be your GM and I'll guide you on your story.

Featured Prompts

I deal with rules issues by...

that depends. Sometimes I'll simply make a ruling and we'll move on and discuss it later. Sometimes I'll ask the table group for a vote as to how it should be interpreted, keeping in mind that your enemies can do it too. Sometimes I'll go with the player's interpretation because it is just awesome.

My games focus on...

player interaction. I often ask, "What do you all want to do?" and let my players decide. I try to set up choices that coincide with the story and my players often choose to go that route but not always. Being a DM is about flexibility where you have to pivot in the story in order to keep it going.

Rules are...

meant to be bent not broken. Just because a player has a radical idea that isn't within RAW doesn't mean it can't happen. A DM's job is to use the rules in order to make radical ideas happen. It might be a series of skill or ability checks with varying degrees of difficulty. But I say go for it.

Cody's ideal table

My table is easygoing and serious at the same time. I'm very passionate about RPGs. It has been a hobby of mine for most of my life. We're all at the table to have fun, tell a story and roll some dice. Players that fit best at my table are also passionate and easygoing. I enjoy players that come to the table prepared to play. They don't need to be rules experts, I'm not, I can't memorize every single rule. What I mean by prepared is they have their "game face" on, if that makes sense. I enjoy players that interact with one another, bouncing ideas off each other to come up with solutions. The general vibe at my table is: It's your game you make the decisions, you tell me what you are doing. I'm there to give you choices and details. Basically, I just want to play and have fun and I want my players to do the same.

Featured Prompts

I love it when a player

thinks outside the box and has a really great idea. I will probably laugh with excitement. It can be anything from using a spell a little differently, making a series of skill checks to pull off something absurd or discovering that Occam's Razor solution that perfectly solves the puzzle.

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

hog the spotlight and make the gaming session about themselves and their character. They have to be the leader calling the shots, they make the decisions, they plan out the combat strategy. It makes other players shut down and not want to contribute to the game. Players like this take away the fun.

My perfect party mix is

the standard four: Spellcaster, Healer, Stealth and Tank. Having a good party mix covers all your bases. Now the four basics have changed since basic D&D and there is a lot more variety to choose from as to who shall fill what role. But you can't go wrong with the classics.