GM_Zym

Greetings, fellow Adventurers, and welcome to my Table!

My name is Jon, but everybody in my TTRPG community calls me Zym – which is not a requirement, of course.

About twenty years ago, on a sunny Saturday afternoon, I awaited my Brother’s imminent return home from a trip he took to California – some kind of “teenage wilderness survival” training. He had been gone for two weeks and I remember being extremely bored in his absence, even though I had been working on my second playthrough of Final Fantasy VII. The moment my Mom’s car pulled up in our driveway, our dog Milo barked loudly, his tail wagging, happily signaling my Brother’s arrival and approach. When his tall self finally stepped through the front door and dropped his duffel bag to the ground, dirty from his trip, I saw he was in possession of three books; from afar, the covers and spines looked colorful and unique – nothing like I’d read or seen before. With a smile, he hands them to me eagerly, beaming as I read the three titles: “Dungeon Master’s Guide“, “Player’s Handbook“, and “Monster Manual“…

That very day, my passion for Tabletop Roleplaying Games was born.

Now, all these years later, my passion has only grown. I founded an open TTRPG discord community that caters to all things within the tabletop realm, such as board games, trading card games, party games, and of course – the ever-present lure of the roleplaying realm. I’m what some might consider a “Forever DM” – I prefer to run games than play in them. Because of this, I’ve had the gifted opportunity of crafting living, breathing worlds – completely homebrewed – for my players to immerse themselves in.

Now, with these tools under my belt, I’d like to offer an elevated tabletop roleplaying experience that excites the heart, exercises the mind, and stimulates the creative side we all share. In my opinion, our imagination is an incredibly powerful facet of our existence; we do not create lightly, and when we do, it’s often great…why should that not be shared?

Welcome to YOUR story. I’m Zym – your Narrator, Gamemaster and guide through this mysterious realm.

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EXPERIENCE

Most of my gameplay experience comes directly from DnD v3.0/3.5, but I recently began running 5th Edition campaigns when a large portion of my Discord server members transitioned to the new ruleset. Though Dungeons and Dragons remains at the heart of everything I do, I have also ran campaigns and one-shots using other popular rulesets, such as Call of Cthulhu, FATE, Blades in the Dark, and Vampire: The Masquerade. I love to try new rulesets, too, as there are many fun and interesting options out there!

I have run games for all kinds of personalities and people and I am a firm believer that TTRPGs belong to everybody – there are no exclusions at my table; everyone is welcome.

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MY STYLE

• I love to tell stories that are captivating, immersive, and roleplay-focused – there is nothing more important to the development of a rich and memorable story than the commitment and diversity of each player at the table, including the Gamemaster. Each character has a story to tell and we are the masters of that story’s development.
• When it comes to gameplay, I use RAW (Rules as Written) as closely as possible, with a few personal tweaks that enhance the overall gameplay experience. Over the years, I’ve developed a few custom, personal rules for running my games that helps bring a bit more randomness and vibrancy to the events that unfold, as well as consequences for a character’s actions!
• Whenever possible, I –love– to use sound effects and ambient music to help enrichen the tone and atmosphere of gameplay. Did a friend of the party die? Que the sad, emotional piano. Neck-deep in a harrowing battle? Throw on some epic orchestral inspiration. The possibilities are endless.
• I prefer to homebrew my settings and stories, allowing my players to discover whatever they wish about a particular place, person, or event – so long as their rolls are successful! You never know what you may learn about a particular subject if you dig deep enough…

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TOOLS AND EQUIPMENT

In order to successfully run my games and provide the richest possible remote experience, we will be using a number of web-based tools available to the general public:

1. A community Discord Server for Voice and Audio, with (optional) webcam use. The link to the server will be provided within my game listings found on the RPG Club website. It is imperative that you are able to use voice chat during sessions, as texting can become cumbersome to the flow of the game.
2. The tracking of important gameplay information will be handled by the almighty LegendKeeper, a formidable web-based campaign chronicler, accessible by a link within the game listing.
3. Foundry VTT will be used to display any relevant scene imagery or ambience, such as civilization maps or required battle grids for encounters.
4. DnDBeyond, located here, will be used to track all character information.

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Throughout my years of running games, I don’t recall a time where I didn’t enjoy it; there is much to be gained from experiencing a shared story with others. It becomes a journey of discovery not only for your imagined character, but for yourself as well.

I hope to see you at my table soon, but in the meantime – may the dice be ever in your favor.