Patrick Conaway

About Patrick Conaway

Hi, my name is Patrick! I'm a professional Game Master specializing in Dungeons & Dragons 5.5e (2024 rules). I have an extensive background in theatre, performing arts, improv, writing, and teaching. I am in my final year of film school, focused on writing and directing, and hope to own my own production company one day! I have been a camp counselor at performing arts camps for 8 years, working with students ages 6-14; worked as an assistant director for various middle and high school theatre programs; taught guest lectures on storytelling and video production; and most recently worked with a local Youth and Family Services Program to teach Dungeons & Dragons to teens. It brings me so much joy to practice my skills and draw from my experiences in the arts while running TTRPGs, and I'm looking forward to teaching the next generation the games that I love! I wish a program like this was available when I was growing up, so I'm so happy to be a part of it now! I have been a dungeon master for six years, and my specialty is getting the players involved in the world-building and making their choices matter. I think D&D and other TTRPGs have amazing social and emotional development opportunities built in, and my focus is to create a safe environment for kids and teens to tap into that potential within the games. Thanks for taking the time to learn about me, and I look forward to many more adventures!

My game style

My games have a balance of all three "pillars of play" (roleplay, combat, exploration/puzzles), but I encourage involving roleplay and character-based decision-making in all facets of the game. I love involving player character backstories in the main plot of adventures, and I find the most fun is had when everyone has a personal investment in the story. All of my games exist in a homebrew world of my creation called "The Realm of Kylmaya". Each new campaign or one-shot adds to the lore of the world and can affect the other games I run. This helps the world feel more alive and gives me endless experiences and characters to draw on. As I get to know the play styles of my players and they gain more experience, I like to invite more opportunities for the collaborative storytelling that makes D&D so fun! This can be by asking a player to describe what their character is thinking or feeling in a particular moment, or opening the floor for them to vividly describe some action. Out-of-the-box thinking is always rewarded, and as long as players are making choices that fit the agreed-upon themes and table expectations, I have no problem improvising when someone outsmarts me! My biggest asset as a DM is my adaptability, so if a player wants to focus on something more or less, or has a question of any kind, all they need to do is speak up.