DungeonmasterCal's page

About DungeonmasterCal

My first Dungeons and Dragons game happened on September 18th, 1985. I was hanging out with my best friend from college in his dorm room when I was asked to take over the character belonging to someone who had dropped out of the campaign. I was hooked instantly. That was 1st Edition AD&D and I very quickly found my niche in the art/science/task/madness of DMing (GMing where Pathfinder and other systems might be concerned), and that's been my primary role ever since, at least with D&D and now Pathfinder. Regrettably, I had to retire from GMing in May of 2023 for health reasons on top of being burned out from being the Perma-GM/DM for so many years. There were of course a few times over the years when I got to be a player but if you try to find that time vs the time I was the GM on a pie chart you'd have to get up close and squint. I've only gotten to dabble in other RPG's (not because I didn't like them, it's just that I rarely had time for anything else) but have enjoyed Call of Cthulhu, Torg, Star Wars d20, various Star Trek incarnations, the original Boot Hill and Gamma World games, and a twelve year-long DC Heroes campaign that to this day remains at the top of my player experience. Sadly though, that game's GM no longer plays and it's a shame. I'd pay hard money to get him to run a new DCH game again.

We only run homebrew campaigns in a world that we built together as we adventured, though I've never been above cherry-picking from published settings. And though I've retired, out of habit I still pick up ideas from nature, music, documentaries, and various mythologies. The foundations of our setting were built through various AD&D 2e campaigns running from 1990 to 2000 and were fleshed out during the 3.x and Pathfinder campaigns we've played since then. Today our campaign world has a rich and varied history that has been shaped by the deeds of everyone who ever rolled a die in it, whether they were only present for a session or two or have been here since the beginning.

We have always tried to run our games close to the rules but have never been above folding, spindling, and mutilating them, sometimes on the fly, for the sake of (gasp!) Common Sense or the Rule of Cool. We love a balance between cinematic action and dramatic (or comedic) roleplaying in our game sessions, though at times we've had whole game nights where nary a single die was rolled. We've also had sessions that I started with "Roll Initiative!" and filled in everything as the chaos of a surprise attack unfolded. Like so many other groups consisting of long-time friends we joke around and carry on a lot "outside" the game framework, but that's what works for us and we enjoy it. Our game nights are our "poker nights", and we're more about the fellowship and good times now than hardcore "no foolin' around this is a game so let's be serious" kinda play. I've had the privilege and good fortune to have shared adventures with many of my players going back over three decades. Of course, we've lost some people over the years, through work, distance, leaving the hobby, and sadly, death.

Since retiring I've run a couple of one-shots for my (now adult) son and his friends, but those are completely standalone adventures with no impact on the lore of our campaign setting. I'm working on one for later this month (July 2024) that I hope shocks their socks off with the horrific twist I have in mind. It's not easy for them to get together often as they have busy lives and one no longer lives in the state. In addition to his "day job", my son is the bassist for a rock band that racks up thousands of miles every year traveling around the US doing shows (and now here's an absolutely shameless plug for his band - deFrance).

I guess that's about it. We'll take a break now. There are punch and cookies in the break room if you'd like some.

*Author's note: If you wish to reach me in person, email me at calvin.roach@gmail.com. I love to hear from other players. Also, INT score varies depending on whether or not I actually open my mouth to speak.