Raymond Lillard is the Dungeons & Dragons sage of the age
Dungeon masters come in all shapes, sizes, and temperaments. Some are your best friends and some are loathsome soul grinders eager to slay parties with extreme prejudice. If you’ve been around the tabletop roleplaying scene for a while you will come to learn that a DM can make or break a good time and for good reason.
These folks create the game world; they painstakingly guide the adventurers to what will either be a triumphant delve into the imagination or sour group lesson of sadomasochistic futility.
Thankfully, in my experience, bad DMs are in the minority. They do happen, but it’s rare and that is because the makings of good DMs and great DMs hinge on basic principles that can be learned and adopted. At least that’s what my friend Raymond Lillard (a.k.a Cro) believes.
Cro is a legendary DM instructor trainer who has set up regular educational D&D sessions at Infinity Flux. Not only does he teach the fundamentals of D&D but he also trains aspiring DMs to lead their own excursions into the Gygaxian abyss.
“Being a DM is like being the director of an interactive theater. You need to get to know your players and set up the stage so that they can freely act and have a great time doing it,” he said.
Cro cut his teeth on Palladium Fantasy RPG at the tender age of eight and has been hooked ever since. At 38, this jovial hulk has made a name for himself as a nerd sage and avid coach of imagination powerlifting. He completely owns his wild boyish excitement whenever he talks about roleplaying games. But his fascination isn’t so much the great fantasy yarns he weaves, it’s more about the complex interactions with the living personalities at every session he directs.
“I spend a little time scripting and more time reading the people coming in and playing the adventure,” he said. “It’s really like mixing psychology with 20-sided dice. What I absolutely love about D&D, and roleplaying in general, is how inclusive this form of gaming really is. This game form brings people of all walks of life and personalities to collectively share an experience and it’s up to the DM to ensure it all meshes so well that the experience is worthwhile.”
Every other Sunday at Infinity Flux, Cro brings his DM kit: a bag of large lore tomes, notebooks, relevant bestiaries, blank character sheets, and fantasy miniatures. The day-to-day life of a DM can be a daunting struggle, replete with extensive record keeping and research. Maintaining continuity as a game evolves is paramount and each DM has their own technique to accomplish this.
Sure, the idea of being the lead creative authority of a fantasy epic sounds sexy, but it takes a lot of work to pull off effectively. Especially when dealing with egos—the ultimate critics of a DM’s painstakingly crafted work. Human pitfalls and errors can be numerous for any DM, regardless of experience level.
“What can kill a DM is his or her rigidity,” Cro said. “Rigidity will murder a good adventure. Sometimes all the blood, sweat, and time put into writing and working an adventure out will come at odds with the players’ ideas and how they want to interact with it. It’s best to check the ego and be flexible. At the end of the day it’s all about having fun so that people want to come back next week.”
Every two weeks Cro drives down from Sweetwater just to keep his current co-DM campaign going with a few regulars at Infinity Flux. His friendly and inclusive approach to D&D gives him credibility as a skilled storyteller and game master. To Cro there is no wrong way to play these stories. The anticipation builds up just before six o’clock when the DM screen goes up and the game is on.
“Not to take away from any other place, but I really love gaming in Chattanooga. This city has such a fun and supportive gaming culture. It’s just a joy to drive down here to do it,” he said.
Spend just a rudimentary amount of time with Chattanooga’s gamer culture and you will find that this rings true no matter if it’s throwing dice, slapping cards, or dressing up. I’m just glad there are folks like Cro who blend a passion for gaming and fantastic storytelling with an eagerness to teach so that this culture of gamers thrives for years to come.
When not vaporizing zombies or leading space marines as a mousepad Mattis, Brandon Watson is making gourmet pancakes and promoting local artists.