I have played pen and paper D&D as a player and DM for several years. I enjoy games played with the story in mind, not the rules. Most importantly though, I very much enjoy a thinking persons game that requires strategy and teamwork.

As a player, I usually play rogues or fighters, but all character classes intrigue me. I enjoy playing complicated characters, who must struggle with motivations and the greyer areas of morality. For this reason, I also enjoy playing clerics, though the hands on, real-time fight engine of NWN is a bit fiddly for my taste, and demands a bit more than I would prefer from spell casters. I'm used to PnP where you get a moment to think about your actions :) I far prefer DM'd games, though a good group of players can do an excellent job or rp'ing a multiplayer game without a DM, when necessary.

As a DM, I enjoy letting the characters be part of the story, using NPC's and encounters to introduce a proposed story line, allowing the story to be molded by the characters as much as the DM. This usually requires some thinking on your feet and prodding and nudging to get players on the right track, but it's more fun than simply presenting a story line while the players listen, hoping they go for the bait. I enjoy pitting players against seemingly impossible odds. I like to provide players with the tools to succeed in a campaign, but only with careful planning and cautious engagements.

As a DM in NWN, I tend to be very hands-on for story/ npc interaction, and mostly hands-off for existing monsters and encounters, etc. I normally only spawn encounters if they are part of the story or the players take an unexpected turn that requires something to get them back on track, or players are having difficulty staying together (a good bit of fear usually helps), but I prefer using npc`s for most of the interaction. For combat, I usually will only possess monsters if the combat is going very poorly for the players or the AI is acting REALLY stupid. I also like to have the last few enemies flee or surrender (a bit more realistic I think, plus it gives you an opportunity to further the story - and try to come up with monster accents...).

I enjoy games where the players develop over time and become integral to the stories. Although a one-shot game can be fun (especially mods by LazyBones), usually campaign style play allows more room for character and plot development.

Most of all, I like to have fun. If it stops being fun, I lose interest. My all time favorite commercial modules are Tomb of Horrors, Hall of the Dwarven Kings (Integrated Games) and the Phantastical Phantasmagorical Monte Haul Dungeon (a very toung-in-cheek approach to D&D by ???).

Thanks for reading!

In God we trust. Everyone else, keep your hands where I can see 'em.

Your Affectionate Uncle, ScrewTape

MSN:john.screwtape@gmail.com_nospam (leave out the _nospam)

Awards received: I know it doesn't say it, but I did DM 101 spring of 04, hehe