Steven

I have played quite a few games with Catherine as the GM. One that really stands out was a nearly two year long D&D 5e game that started at level 3 and went on past level 20. It was set in a completely original cyberpunk/space fantasy universe with lots of unique planets to explore. It was a blast from start to finish, with Catherine always finding new ways to keep the game engaging, incorporate player goals into their characters' stories, and keep combat fresh. Her game definitely had some of the most interesting and satisfying high level fights I've been in where the objective was never as simple as "this guys has 1 million health, go on and hit him a bunch". Catherine also introduced a modular weapons upgrade system which really made the treasure we found feel unique and introduced a lot of neat stuff to experiment with, especially for my fighter. Outside of combat, Catherine is wonderful at making the world feel alive and having meaningful and fun interactions with NPCs and villains. She would work closely with players between sessions to make sure planned characters arcs were going well and to tie character backstories into the plot and world. I played two different characters during this game, both of which had meaningful, emotional arcs that also advanced the overall plot. In general, I really appreciate Catherine's shared approach to GMing. There was a lot of 'I think it would be cool if this happened, but what do you all think?" moments from her that really made the game feel like our story, even if she was helming it, and led to much more satisfying role play and plot developments. She also encouraged player collaboration with each other and was happy to just let us have player-player interactions for most of the session if we wanted to. I never felt uncomfortable sharing an idea or saying I didn't like something during play; Catherine handled hard lines and player comfort admirably. In short, Catherine is a virtuoso of world and setting, an adherent of fun and interesting new designs, and a lover of player-GM collaboration. She does it all while carefully balancing player needs and comfort; a true mistress of gaming.