Hi everyone!
My name is Jor (she/her), I'm in my 30s, and I'm Canadian though I have lived in Finland permanently since 2021.
I have been INCREDIBLY fortunate with the tables I have had the honour of being a part of:
- I'm currently over 1.5 years in to running my third campaign weekly online and have an absolute dream group of players;
- I play a local biweekly game here in Helsinki that is over 3 years in, and we've become friends outside the game too;
- I have been part of a local weekly online campaign that will hit 4 years next month, but we have only a handful of sessions left before we're done - I've played a wizard from level 1 to 17
Besides those games, I've also done plenty of shorter campaigns and one shots - I've managed to fit a lot of experience into my 5 years of playing and DMing.
With that last game on the list coming to an end, I am on the search for something new (my schedule will be changing going forward so I can't commit to another long-term campaign with that group, as incredible as they are). I'm looking for a free game sometime either on Wednesday or Friday on European evenings (so NA mid-late mornings could also work), or on Sundays anytime (Saturday late west-coast-NA nights could potentially work). I prefer if the group plays with webcam but it isn't an absolute requirement. I've only played 5e 2014 so far and it's my preference, but have read 2024 rules and am very open to trying them. I'm more concerned about finding the right group of people than the rules we use. I'm also open to what platform/VTT we play on, though I really hate the character sheets on roll20. For the right table, I'd adapt.
Non-negotiables for me are:
- First-person RP most of the time, without frequently breaking character mid-conversation
- Players who don't hog the spotlight, care about each other's characters and the DM's story, and care more about setting others up for success than seeking glory for themselves
- A consistently weekly schedule with few cancellations from the DM or players
- Somewhat strict adherence to RAW (or at least house rules), for consistency and so we're all playing on the same field. I change plenty of rules for logic's sake in my own games, so I'm all for that - I'm just not for the way the "Rule of Cool" and unpredictable calls that disregard rules and logic create inconsistent narratives about how mechanics work, and might make players feel they've been treated unfairly
- A fairly traditional D&D heroic or adventurous medieval-adjacent setting with magic - nothing futuristic, nothing western, nothing modern-day or fully set in an actual real-world era, etc.
- Maps for combat - I can't do theater of the mind (though it's fine for the occasional thing that pops up - I'm a DM, I know it happens sometimes)
- A collaborative group of both players and PCs whose goal is to work together and get along - small moments of interparty conflict are natural if they come up organically, but the goal should always be resolution and not forcing drama for the sake of it
- Good quality microphones with minimal background noise, and players that are focused on and dedicated to the game in general
- A game of consequences, and a DM who sticks to their guns - don't go easy on us in combat because you're afraid of killing us. Play NPCs truthfully. Don't make bringing the dead back to life so easy that we don't fear death. Don't just give us the answer if we're struggling. With all that being said, the DM still shouldn't overextend their power and totally screw us over without warning and without any chance of helping it. Consequences, not torture.
- I'm not at all into super traditional puzzles or riddles - the type of "puzzles" I like in my games are ones that aren't blatantly obvious to be puzzles, and actually make sense in the context of the world. No dude standing on a bridge asking you "what flies though it has no wings?" and only letting you pass when you say "time". Absolutely kills my immersion.
- No murder hobo groups - take humanoid/intelligent NPCs seriously, consider the trauma that killing someone would cause (realism), and consider alternative solutions so that murder isn't our go-to every time (with that being said, too many combats trying to avoid killing gets boring fast - we still need opportunities for the juicy "How do you want to do this?" moments, even against humanoids sometimes)
- People who view poor dice rolls as an opportunity for storytelling rather than as a failure - little irritates me more than someone signing up to play a game of dice and then getting upset when they keep rolling poorly. It happens to all of us. Laugh it off and don't kill the vibe. If you don't want to be honest about your rolls even when they're bad, there are other game systems for you.
- A group of kind and respectful people. No hate speech, no slurs, no exclusion of certain groups, people who will listen to criticism and do their best to take it on board. If we're going to play together long-term, we need to get along, and we need to be able to listen to and respect each other.
- I have to be able to roll my own physical dice. I don't have over 500 of them to not use them. Hopefully with everything I've said, I can be trusted to not lie about rolls :) A story is boring without failure - what's the point of playing then!?
Those things should already tell you a lot about what I'm like as a player. My vibe is overall very RP-focused, and I love a serious or even dark narrative, but I also love having moments where we laugh both in character and above board - I am a firm believer that it can't be all jokes or all serious all the time, you need a balance. I absolute love to be as in-character as possible, separating my own thoughts and feelings from my PCs' and getting to know them inside and out in a way that makes making decisions as them come naturally to me. This might sometimes mean sub-optimal or even hindering choices made during the game, but it will never get to the point of team sabotage - my goal is always character growth and making choices that put an honest story first, but not in a way that ruins the experience for others. With all that being said, though my backstory will be quite in-depth, I'm not going to bombard my DM with pages and pages of prose I expect them to commit to memory, and I love leaving plenty of loose threads for the DM to have fun with. I always enjoy a collaborative approach not only to gameplay, but also character building before the campaign begins. And don't get me wrong - despite being primarily into story and RP, I absolutely LOVE combat - I just like it to be thoughtful and not forced (though of course random encounters are great when they make sense). I also really prefer a group that considers what spellcasting looks like to those around us - if I'm trying to convince a shopkeeper to sell me something cheaper, I don't want a party member to walk up to me and visibly cast Guidance mid-conversation in front of the shopkeeper. (Actually, I kinda hate guidance spam on every check and think it's wildly overused, but I can get past that.)
I think that's a pretty good starting point to describe what I'm like and what I'm looking for. Yeah, my asks are specific, but I've been spoiled with incredible tables, so I know it's possible. I'm not looking for any table ASAP, I'm looking for the right table when it comes along. I'm sure I'll be scouring the forums frequently, but if you happen to see this and think I'd be a good fit for either an upcoming new game or an in-progress one, please reach out to me. I'm more than happy to chat first, have a call, and do some "guest" sessions in your game to see if we're a good fit for each other before committing.
Thanks for your time, and happy rolling!
Jor