William Landry

My Review of GM Kat I have been playing in Kats games for a while now, and I wanted to share my own experience after reading another players review. I completely understand how someone new to the group could misread certain moments. Emotions can be high when people come to a game hoping for escape and comfort. I am not upset with the other reviewer at all; he struck me as someone kind, sensitive, and probably needing a friend. I relate to that. But I want to offer my perspective, because the situations described involved me directly, and my experience of them was very different. On personal topics and real life context: Kat is going through a difficult period, including the loss of her husband and probate issues. Sometimes pieces of that understandably slip into the game, because she is human and dealing with a lot. She provided context during the first session because it was better to address it upfront instead of having the table confused or surprised later. I actually prefer this approach. It lets everyone understand what might occasionally surface and prevents misunderstandings. In fact, that context has mattered before. At one point in another game, I made a lighthearted in-character joke about PTSD without knowing her husband had suffered from it. Once she shared that information, I immediately stopped. That sort of openness prevents accidental harm. If someone ever says, hey, can we get back to the game, she respects that and moves on. It has never been a disruption for me. On the claim of uneven treatment of players (I am the player mentioned): I never felt singled out, mistreated, or targeted. Everything that was interpreted as uneven was in-character roleplay that made sense in the story. The roll where I got a 24: I rolled a 24. The GM said I barely missed, meaning I barely missed a critical success, not success itself. The DC for a critical was 25. I still succeeded normally. There was no favoritism or penalty. The grumpy purveyor NPC: This NPC was intentionally roleplayed as arrogant, insecure, and annoyed that my character knew more about herbalism than he did. Him claiming I barely passed was the character lying out of pettiness. I understood it, found it funny, and played along. It was clearly roleplay, not hostility. My rapport with the GM: Kat and I have history, so we sometimes use a bit of shorthand or subtext when we interact. From the outside I can see how someone unfamiliar with that dynamic might misread it. But nothing was unkind or adversarial. The butterfly incident: My character Ariadne wanted to catch a sacred Desnan butterfly at the Swallowtail Festival specifically to eat it. Kat simply did not want a holy symbol of Desna eaten at the festival, which is understandable. She said I could not catch one. I was mildly amused, not upset. It was not mistreatment. On family involvement: The reviewer was referring to Kat discussing her personal family situation, not actual interruptions. These moments have always been minimal, understandable, and easy to move past when someone wants to return to the game. My overall experience with Kat as a GM: Is Kat perfect? No GM is. But here is what matters to me: She tells great stories. She knows the rules. She is fair and consistent. She handles unclear situations reasonably. She does not always give players everything they want, but she always has a good in-world reason. Most importantly, she genuinely wants everyone to have fun. Sometimes there is a bit of real-life talk at the table, but if someone asks to move on, it is never an issue. Final thoughts: I respect the other reviewers feelings. I understand how someone new, conflict-averse, and looking for a peaceful escape could interpret things differently. That is valid. But from my experience, as the player directly involved in the examples he mentioned, I never felt uncomfortable or singled out. The tone, the rolls, and the interactions made sense within the story, and I always felt welcomed. Kat is a caring, knowledgeable, and dedicated GM who works hard to make the table enjoyable. I fully recommend her.

Well prepared and communicative and above all, an excellent story-teller.