Something I'm using for my new campaign, I build models of some locations with Legos. Not sized for Lego people, but much smaller, just buildings, streets, etc. Players think it's totally awesome!
we keep our character sheets in plastic sheet protectors. the main benefit is that you can use dry erase markers on them. for stats that are constantly in flux, like hp, it is a life saver.
I do the same with paper maps. I have a folder that has five clear pages in it and I use it for that. Give each player their own color marker and tell them to place themselves on the map and handle combat from there.
That actually IS a really good idea. I'm creating a game of my own and finally managed to find a good program (that was free, as I don't have a ton of money to spend on fancy programs) that lets me do a PDF fillable character sheet which is great. Of course now that I got it I'm thinking about just printing the out with the character picture on it and let the players fill the rest out by hand in pencil so they can erase and change things but this idea actually sounds better. :)
One thing that I always do to help in my games is that I make folders for each player, and in it I include the following. Character Sheet, Blank Graph Paper, Blank Ruled Paper, Blank sketch paper, Printouts of there class/race descriptions/abilities, copies of any handouts that I have already given out(notes from NPC's, Maps, etc), a full list of there magic items, with a brief description and book/page reference, and for spell casters a spell book with a brief description and book/page reference. I usually will work on creating this at the time of character creation with the player and it helps them not only remember everything that has previously happened, but offers a very quick lookup of there characters abilities without interrupting the game.
I have only DM'd a few times but one of my biggest praises is use of props. I had a dungeon with multiple levers that would activate traps if used in the wrong way, so I had a cardboard box with 3 dowels stuck into it with some wiggle room to act as levers. The players liked the interaction and all wanted to use it as people fell prey to sleeping gas when they failed.
These are awesome tips. I'm going to send this video to my DM. Our whole group of players and our DM were all first timers to DnD. He did a great job for having zero experience. However, I think he could benefit a lot from your videos to make his life a little easier and ultimately allow him to have more fun. Also, we were playing 4e and my god that was some seriously clunky battle sequences so hopefully we can transition over to 5e very soon.
Post-it notes for treasure items, magic jewels, weapons, and other special items, it gives the player a description and who ever has the post-it has the item.
another good set of tools to use is a bunch of color coded rings to put around peoples miniatures to keep track of their conditions. got that from matt mercer lol
I've been having kind of a GM low, and I had lost a bit of the hype, and starting to get it back, I decided to rewatch your videos, and watch some of the new ones, and I want to really thank you Matt. Your vids get me hyped and inspired to snap out of it, and once more be the GM I used to be. So thanks man, I appreciate you doing these videos.
I also use Spotify playlists for atmospheric music for D&D. There is some great classical/medieval music that is appropriate, as well as using film soundtracks.
I'm a big fan of Syrinscape for my in game sound needs. I only just started using index cards, and they are amazing. I also use Pathfinder pawns, no more carrying a massive backpack to the game, I can keep everything in a A4 sized thick plastic box/folder/etc;
I'm very old school. I play first edition D&D and AD&D. What I did was photocopy every single chart and table that's actually used in game from the DM Guide and Player's Handbook, as well as the charts that would be used directly during play from the Metzer Basic rulebook, the Expert Rulebook, the Companion Rulebook, the Master Rulebook, and the Immortals rulebook. I then cut all these charts up, arranged them together logically where they would fit together with each other for actual play and easy look up and taped them to pages, organizing them. I then photocopied those pages and stuck them in plastic page holders. So now I have two binders. One with the AD&D charts and one with the charts from the Basic rules line charts, all organized in page holders, tabbed for easy look up, that I stick on the table and use as my DM screen. It's the best DM screen I've ever had and is WAY more useful than anything TSR ever produced. I rarely have to refer to the books to find information when I run a game. Most information for accomplishing tasks is somewhere in that DM screen. If not, there's an index in there that tells me specifically what page or in the Basic Rules binder, what book and what page, to find the information. These two binder/GM screens took some work to make, but they're the most useful thing that I own when it comes to running a game.
As a first time GM of a Rise of the Runelords campaign, something that I found to work really well was running it all on my laptop, with the map (roll20) extended onto a TV via a HDMI cable. I have sticky notes on my desktop for any notes that need to be made for possible later misadventures. (One of the PCs managed to knock up an NPC, so that should be interesting) The PCs can choose to bring a laptop which will let them move their characters in roll20 as well as do their rolls, or they can simply use the pen+paper+dice they bring. It helps them stay comfortable with playing, and it really doesn't disrupt things too much. I try my hand as acting out the voices and getting into the roleplay of all the NPCs (unfortunately, the only voice I can do at the moment is a 47 year old chain smoking male, which makes things rather humorous at times) which tends to help the roleplay of the group (when they're not laughing at me) As far as tricks are concerned, I tend to physically split the party OOC when they split IC. (So if Shaggy and Scooby go down to the basement and Fred, Velma and Daphne go upstairs, I'll put Shaggy and Scooby in another room and talk to each group individually) I also introduced on our first session a little "briefing/debriefing session" where we discussed the reasons why the PCs started where they were before the session, and then discussed why the characters made certain choices after the session. This way it helps the PCs get into character better, and hopefully makes them more attached to their characters. There's probably some stuff I've missed, but that's about the gist of it
Hey Matt. I just wanted to say you have helped me tons with learning about how to use what I have to create a generally amazing gaming experience. And as a brand new player (were talking weeks here) I probably couldn't have made my campaigns as epic without your videos. Keep it up man, and thanks for doing this for everyone as it is a pretty steep learning curve for a new guy especially someone who's teaching themselves. I rolled a 20 when I found your channel
Thanks so much. I really do appreciate the kind words and encouragement. It does my heart good to know that my videos are helping new players delve into the hobby.
I'm a huge fan of physical in character props. Things like paper painted like parchment for notes (I also burned a corner to give them a clue) gems or idols they acquire, or puzzles they have to complete etc. It makes it a ton of fun to watch the players have something to do or hold at the table. Also a much more interactive style.
I like to be self customized. By drawing and making almost everything like the map and dungeon master's note board. The only thing i didn't make would be the dice and figures.
I've never ran a tabletop game in real life, all my sessions have been online. We use Fantasy Grounds 2 as our virtual tabletop, it's quite good, easier to manage than roll20 in my opinion. Keeping well organized is insanely useful, I use a local wiki style document with interlinking for my notes, keeping pages for items, races, characters, locations etc that link to eachother like a regular wiki, so if I'm on my "Village XIV" page, read the notes, remember that there's a blacksmith, I can click the Blacksmith link and see who the shop keeper is there, if I wrote down any other details about the Blacksmith like what he offers or any rumors etc.
About the music playing, I prefer to use the "Sonos" speaker system. Because it's a high-quality speaker that hooks up to a smart-phone. You can stream spotify, and local files on your phone through a Sonos speaker wirelessly. It's quite good, really.
I make custom Minecraft Maps for every dungeon. During the session, we use a combination of paper-maps, Minecraft maps (for simulation) displayed on either a TV or a laptop, and the classic dice system of DnD 3.5 with a ton of house rules. I've added using my phone to store story details, which another players helps me write, and my friends laptop to add custom music.
Man, it really is enough that your videos on D&D are insightful and genuinely helpful, but it doesn't hurt that I always see something Dream Theater-related in the background. I applaud your good taste, sir.
For sounds I use music taken from youtube (movie soundtracks mostly) for background and specific sounds from www.sounddogs.com/ for sound effects - creaking door, crowd noises, crashes and monster screams - etc. For organizing and playing them I use a program (softrope.net/). For pictures (each NPC has a picture as well as locations), I find that interesting pictures help me come up with special characters. To display them I use powerpoint and an external monitor to display them. We use a battlemat and miniatures - and I craft special items like ballista's, weird magic items, etc (look at dmscraft here on youtube). It takes more time than buying, but I find it quite fun.
I also have a folder several hundred megs large of maps at this point, having generic maps I can just throw up in an instant (since it's online, that's so much easier) for any type of situation that might arise is great.
I personally like to utilize sticky notes to be able to keep track of health and little things on the character sheets w/o tons of smudge marks. I like to also use my whiteboard to draw out maps but i love the index card idea.
DM screen that is made using the metal plates out of $2 magnetic dry erase boards. that allows you to put up whatever tables/notes you want fr the current adventure on DM side and whatever art you have appropriate to the current adventure on the outside. Cheap home laminating machine and laminate 6 per page stat block sheets. Keep a couple whole an use then for tracking the party. Info can be written in using dry erase or wet erase markers. Cut to individual cards for NPCs and creatures that will be in the current adventure. (pre-fill-in for an expected recurring NPC then laminate) Print and laminate anything you will use a lot. Stick it up with magnets when its needed. I 3D printed a castle themed dice tower and DM screen frame set and inserted the magnetic whiteboards glued to thin card stock, (the frames have slots for appx 1/16 thick panels) but you can stick the whiteboards to foam-board or wood... hinge a foam-board DM screen using duct tape. Cheap, fast, easy.
I'm a big fan of herolab. It's a character creation program for various RPGs including 3.5, pathfinder, and 4th ed. It's for PC and Mac as well as iPad. It organizes character sheets where I feel they are easier to read. Many of times one of my players has forgotten their character sheet and I can just print them off a copy, so it's a good way to back up character sheets. Also between sessions I can review everyone's stats and sneak in any items they may have acquired between games. The only downfall is that it costs money, around 20-30$ but I feel it was well worth the investment.
So heres something that I'm going to use; pop up props! A friend of mine got really burned out from making paper mache props even before he got to do his campaign; your traditional starter GM pitfall. Because of that, I'm going to have to take over. So, I got to thinking, how do I replicate that what he was looking to create as efficiently as possible? And after watching a video of pop up art (link: Handmade 3D Cardboard Pop-Up Ornaments), I discovered, hot damn, this is efficiency in it's peak. If I make my 3D terrain and my gargantuan monsters and my spell effects into pop up card, they are easily transportable, easy to create, affordable, easy to set up and it has the added bonus that until I open up it up, leaving it a huge surprise for the people around the table. So, it's ideal. Simple structures take less than half an hour to cut, fold and glue out of carton and complexer structure, like, say, a scaled down city take a day to complete, with an incredibly high rate of satisfaction.
I use a whiteboard like you said, but I put flat business card size magnets with sticky labels on them, and write the PCs info on that, then use the labels for initiative tracking, just move the magnets around when initiative changes.
Pathfinder Face cards for npc's I control. Magic the gathering cards that seam appropriate like a special weapon or grimoire. Rory's story cubes for coming up with things on the fly and completely random. Props! I have tarot decks, runes, crystals, letter opener swords, a scrying ball, hanayama 3d metal puzzles, handouts. Going to be adding the music for ambiance now too. Thanks for that, I'm off to look for soundtracks and scores now.
Personally myself I like use index cards with the players names written on them to show turn order. The folded cards keep track of players, monsters, and NPCs. It also helps everyone remember the characters names.
I use index cards for initiative. Each character and each monster type has a card and then I can flip through them one at a time. I keep basic notes like hp, ac, saves, and abilities on the cards and use them to help track things like consumable resources (potions, spellslots, ammo, etc...) as well as spell durations and status effects. I pull out which ever monster cards I think they are likely to encounter that session and have them set aside and ready. I've been using this method long enough now that I almost always already have a card made for the monsters and rarely have to fill out a new one. I've been using the 4x6 cards, which I keep in a nice little plastic carrying case although my players are getting high enough level that I'm contemplating moving up to 5x8 cards to better fit all the info I want to track.
+Jonathan Schmid I am trying the initiative cards on my next game but I am only putting the AC on them so I can just tell them if the monster hit them or not. Has the saves and abilities be useful for you?
I built a living spread sheet in excel that allows me to keep track of rp and monster experience. The spread sheet keeps track of all damage done to monsters, which makes it easy to go back and change numbers if mistakes happen. When the monster dies, depending on the input CR of the monster, when its HP reaches 0, the experience shows up and is distributed among the players based on how many people are currently playing. I also use it to keep track of magic shops and homebrew artifacts.
Smash Custom Music allows you to play many video game songs for as long as needed. Hint: Ctrl+f whichever game from which you want to play a song, click, then ctrl+f the song.
My brother is my DM and he uses Microsoft Excel on his laptop to keep track of our game. Very useful when it comes to having Monster stats on the fly and keeping track of their health.
This is something that I've been tackling as it's what I do. I'm a PC sorc summon spec. I have printed lists of base stats and skills of all my summons for me and the Druid to use. The dm loves it as we're not flipping through the monster guide over and over to keep track of the attack damage and whatnot.
Thank you so much without you i basically would have run of the mill boring unsympathetic npcs and boring dungeon crawls i only get to game once a year so your vids have helped me make it the best campaign it can be. Once again thank you.
So far, i'm really new to gaming (player 3 years) but I'm just now running my first campaign. My tools: iPad with Microsoft onenote. It's awesome. books, tabs, tables, pictures and clickable links to webpages. makes my encounter notes jump off the page and on to the table. Its great...and searchable. FireTV or AppleTV. While I GM (hate the term DM...cause I we aren't always in a Dungeon hell might be in a system where there is no such thing) we run it at one of my players house. Being able to stream music or soundeffects to a decent sound system is super emmersive for everyone. Hell I get excited when I change the music to something dramatic, and I know whats coming next! Dry erase battle mat. Why have pre drawn maps? 9 time out of 10 players don't know the next turn in a dungeon, why let them see the whole thing? Draw and they explorer and the players get to "see" what the charaters see. Also my players take most of their notes on the mat as well so they aren't wearing holes in their character sheets with the eraser.
I took a 36" by 24" whiteboard. Using an Xacto Knife I cut a 1" square grid pattern into it. The whiteboard is metal and allows the use of magnets to keep minis on the board if we have to move it at any given time. I also keep files detailing everyone's characters and backstories with sticky notes of how the world is interacting with those characters (such as they've made this person mad, or this person owes them a favor, or this organization has placed a bounty on them for destruction of property), this is so I can create scenarios that these NPC feelings aren't forgotten, and the PCs feel more involved while moving the story forward. My Campaigns tend to be more open and allow characters to choose their own paths, so this is important to keeping the world flowing around them. I keep NPCs and character contacts on notecards with details like personality, quirks, appearance, and any miscellaneous information regarding habits or livelihood. It makes it easy to whip out the cards and get into character without having to come up with a new NPC on the fly. I also use character generators if the situation calls for a new NPC that i don't have prepared, then i'll write down the NPC on his/her own card after the session. I've never gotten into the whole music thing, but i do set a certain mood by describing certain things in the environment in more detail, such as a rotting corpse or lush foliage or describing the streets of this bustling city. Anyway i hope some of these things i do help other GMs run their games!
I think having a note card with the items of treasure and stuff on them is a great idea so you could just give the players the card and whoever ends up carrying that passes it back to the DM after they copy the information down. Reminds me of Sly Flourish way of the Lazy DM.
I've quickly grown to love having Story Dice at my side, thanks to Mike Shea's The Lazy DM video. I use them all too often to create NPCs on the fly while the PCs are in a town, stumble upon a caravan or whatever else. Just toss a couple dice, and whatever bit description you come up with becomes a bit of your NPCs personality.
I will draw out the dungeon map on poster board and cut it where visability ends per room and when they go into the adjacent hallway, I bring that out and set it next to it so they can place their miniatures on it.
A tablet, I use it for a spreadsheet based DM screen and die roller that I have embedded into the sheet for random encounters. Being a DM over discord, I keep 2 music bots on hand for different reasons. I have designed a map maker so I have two separate documents for the different group and one master for myself where I track my notes that are map relavent. For the rules, I have all of the PDF on my PC so that I always have it available. If a player is not paying attention to the game because of a PC or phone, I have the PC roll for perception of nessesery. This reminds them to pay attention and is a great opportunity to create a random encounter or an opportunity to create a great RP slot. Back to the tools. A physical notebook and a space pen, 5⭐ because it has yet to fail me. The DM screen is equipped with most of what I need for improv. I have a stat and battle tracker written into the screen
Totally agree with index cards, I use them for everything. I even make players write mini versions of their characters on them for use as initiative cards. Each card gets their player name, character name, initiative number, AC and HP. I then take their cards and insert the monsters depending on initiatve and cycle through the cards in order and call out their name. If they hold their action till a monster acts then I can reorder on the fly. When they take damage I don't tell them how much, just what their wound state is; either bruised, bloodied, battered or unconcious. It stops them from being too gung-ho or calculating how many hits they can take and they never know if the next hit will kill them or not.
I do HDMI output from my laptop to my TV (the tv stand is adjacent to my game table). I have a spreadsheet with max/current health, status effects, AC, etc. I can also show videos and push audio through my HT speakers. My buddies loved it last game!!
White boards are great, I've used them for years. If you can get the ones that are for use with magnets they are even better. You can get cheap blank flat magnets for creating your own tiles on using icon art (and adhesive labels/sheets) from some websites like drivethrurpg (rather than use miniatures) and use a white board for a battle board if you don't want to worry about scale details in your game. I find a vertical battle map easier for many folks to work with and it clears up table space for players or let you play in a space without a table.if you have a basic art easel to stand it on. (I've done a lot of living room gaming with couches etc rather than actual tables because of having had a slightly oversized gaming group for a few years, too many for the table, but this gave everyone more space to deal with).
My tools to run Mutants and Masterminds...... 1. My Laptop with Hero Lab. Hero Lab by Lone Wolf Development is great for pulling out the stats I have for players and NPCs. It can be used for about 20 different games. You can even print out character sheets for them. 2. The revised 3rd Edition GM screen. The new reference sheets are great, and they have an initiative sheet you can write on with wet/dry erase markers. 3. A combat map. I use a dry/wet erase map due to using Heroclix figures for combat. Hard to find superhero minis these days. 4. My books.
Me and my uncle have started using an extra monitor and Adobe Flash to run our stuff. He has a little knowledge in A.S. so he was able to whip up some very basic control functions.(Digital Maps scaled to 1" for minis that can be slide around with the mouse) Currently we are using it for the Pathfinders Kingmaker Campaign(I GM for him) and he is Running Rise of the Runelords(Him GMing me) We really hated tearing through so much paper that we decided to go slightly digital, So we use the laptop or my Desktop to run out of the digital books, We still keep to the traditional dice rolling though. My uncle says he doesn't so much like digital because it is like playing a video game but we came to a compromise. One thing I have noticed is that it really takes us forever to thumb through our stuff because we are mostly using the books as the reference for running the sessions. IDK it is fun, I mean we are limited to just us two(mostly because we're quite shy and a bit of shut ins... lol) but it has it's fun time,
Instead of the note cards, I use a colour coded note book, it means I can write a lot more about NPCs, locations, etc but still have the organisation of note cards.
If you are willing, could you possibly make a not on your favorite additions to your DM's Binder? Mine is definitely lacking. :) PS: I totally agree that white boards make the game run so much smoother. We play a PF game at our college in a conference room so we have access to a giant white board. Nice for rough sketching rooms without combat and tracking initiative and such. :)
You talked about the adventure binder. I think thats a great idea and im looking to start incorporating the use of random tables for prep and for during-game improv, and having a binder with the tables sorted out and organized just seems great! ould you please offer some bigger insight as to whats inside your binder and what should i be looking to include? as well as where can i get good tables because i dont have much atm. I would really appreciate it!
+Antonio Pomposini ... i totally recommend the tables at Raging Swan Press. they put out new free tables every week, and have been doing it for at least a couple years now. just cut and paste into notepad and then print them out. for myself i went ahead and bought a couple of their books -- the Dungeon Dressing one alone is basically 300+ pages of tables, plus a 10-pg section on dungeon design that i found useful. there's also a free (shorter) version of this in PDF format that you can pick up from places like DriveThruRPG.com.
Hey, not sure if you've ever seen it but DMDJ is a great app that I know is on apple devices. It's essentially a decked out ambiance/background music generator on your phone. It can't run in the background, but if you never use your phone for anything else during games it great. Happy gaming, love the videos :)
Really good video. I was thinking of making a video similar to yours on the same subject. Glad to see such a well made presentation. For my game I also use a game folder and binder for tables and other info. I also use the 3x5 index card. I use the path finder flip mat basic as it will take and erase clean wet/dry and even permanent marker. I use highlighter markers (at least 4 different colors) for marking my index cards. I use a mini speaker that is wi fi that I play music on. I select 3-6 tracks per session. I recently discovered a downloadable program/tracks called Syrinscape that has really good sound effects, music and their loops for gaming
i was about to ask if you could do a break down of your book and looked over and saw the video you already made, thanks man your videos have been super helpful.
Great video! The one thing I do differently is I use one large white fry erase board for my maps. I've painted a grid on the entire thing so I can just draw the terrain directly as the PCs enter it. :)
I use Squire and/or 5th Edition Character Sheet to track my players stats, and DM5E to handle encounters (though mostly just to keep tabs on monster HP and abilities, all die rolls still done at the table of course!) since those work on my Android tablet. Sometimes I'll use my laptop (DM5E has a windows version) with the Andy Android emulator to run Squire/5ECS
My method of using music is pretty similar to yours, but in case I just use only one speaker. I'm not a big fan of using binders and index cards, I often discard paper things, prefer keeping notes, locations, NPCs, the session planned on my Ipad on one note. For me one note is the best preparation keeper of all time, is very easy to access any note or information on the fly just by clicking on the abs. I would recomend using one note for everyone for this and another reason. The notes kept there are dtored on the cloud, so if you have one note on your computer, you can write down things on your computer and its automaticaly altered on Ipad at the same time, so you don't need to bring your heavy and space filling notebook to your table. But it's just me, i know there are some people who prefer the old school pen and paper for DMing
Well I run owlbear Rodeo, maps on 2 TVs so each side of the table can see, Plus they can log into it on Mobile device, Move the icons, I can use Fog of war, add notes or draw on the map, like where if they camp out, etc
I`m bazilian and now I`m in Canada so one of my tools is Roll20, works perfectly! And I have loots of books on my Pc but the adventure binder is for sure a good idea!! And nice to see you back man!!!
There is an error on that Fistful of Dollars poster. Lee Van Cleef was not in that film. He appeared in For a Few Dollars More and The Good The Bad and The Ugly, but not A Fistful of Dollars.
I usually take a laptop and sit at the head of the table because my group does a lot of resource books like warhammer fantasy and stuff so I need to pull the book up. Im also very lazy so I have a name generator, background generator, and other cheaty lazy DM stuff. but it really helps my campaign move along smoothly so I dont need to spend five minutes thinking up the bartenders life story. I hand draw all my maps so I usually have a sketch book with me and a decent pen. I bring a couple pages of tea stained paper so I can quickly make a scroll or something that my players can actually hold.
I have used the colored index cards (and similar post its) in all my prep. I also use MS Word / Excel to build the encounters/plot lines. I have recently begun using my laptop for video displays and music. I enjoy toying with graphics even if it isn't my strong suit. Spotify is new to me...but I learn fast. I use pre-made maps (even a tile or two) if I need them. I use a "crarft board" for standard grass/dungeon terrain with my table. I can add walls/doors/tokens/misc items to enhance the visual in my live game. I'll try the whiteboard aspect for quick reference in lieu of my smallish dry-erase tabs. I also use binders...but I have migrated to using my laptop. Could you reiterated the APPS you use.
Besides the laptop and the android tablet, I like to use cheap homemade tiles that I can customize for the particular setting or session. There are two guys out there, DMScotty and DMG that have great video tutorials on how to quickly crank them out. I use hexes, instead of squares. I find they give a bit more flexibility to play. I also use two white boards. One thing I've done that DRAMATICLY speeds up game play so you can get more encounters a game session, is to switch to group initiative. Regardless of the game system used, group initiative greatly speeds up game play. I don't use music. I tried it many times, but it just ends up being distracting and annoying. Though, it is handy when you have a magic item that communicates via song. Then you can have fun with it. You talk alot about rolling stuff up... I almost Never roll up random stuff. I just make it up. I used to roll stuff up on tables, but found myself just picking something off the table anyway when what I rolled up sounded boreing to me. I also like to mess with "standards". My Kobold Paladin army totally freaked out my players once. And the order of Goblin healers was another disconnect that we had fun with. Here is the like to DMGs playlist th-cam.com/play/PLw-XImXo4zfOKxI_NWJpESKHiX71yyLXU.html
I love this video. I have a little speaker that I have linked to the bluetooth of my phone, I think I will be using this a lot more. Also the Adventure Binder is a fantastic idea.
Hey, for those who have an Android Tablet I highly recommand Song & Dragons, a kicking ass app for playing music and sounds quickly with different layers, loops and all !
I use a lot of the same materials. I use pandora on an instrumental channel for face to face groups. I am a big proponent of index cards. Not much that I can add to this video.
MAPS!!! I never met a map I couldn't use. I've even used cross-genre maps, so using a medieval style tavern in a modern game or a modern pawn shop in a sci-fi setting.
aFistfulofDice I have a question, my cousins and I play dnd together and what happens is I dm and I play but I don't know if thats fair or not is it or is it not?
millionth hobbit I know it was targeted at aFistfulofDice but I wanted to chime in, I don't feel like the DM should be running a character. I feel as DM you are the window that players look through to see the world and you can't really be a window and look through one at the same time. It is somewhat difficult to keep your character from benefiting due to your knowledge of the adventures. ( For example knowing where traps are and when to search for them.) you also rob yourself of an experience, to me running the game is the most enjoyable part but if you want to play you should ask one of your cousins to try DMing, that way you can really get into character instead of facilitating their play and trying to tag along with them. If you made a character just to roleplay, I'd suggest using your creative juices to make memorable npc's throughout your world, If you just want to play I would again suggest to take turns DMing.
Zathrian There's nothing wrong with a GM running a character as well, as long as they don't give special preference to their character when they're GMing. My first group used to rotate GMing, and when it was our turn, our PC would become an NPC for that adventure. Even now I have NPCs in my campaign world that I consider to be my characters. (See Captain Gothnog). ;)
That makes sense, I just meant playing the PC the session that you're filling the role of GM. To each their own though as I don't feel there is actually a wrong way to play.
I've seen you mention notecards a few times with NPC characters on them. I was wondering what kind of essential information you place on the notecards to individualize those characters.
@aFistfulofDice, I enjoy a lot of your videos, much helpful information on your channel. I'd like to say though as far as "DM tools of the Trade" goes- I'd like to share the most useful tool I found by playing with another group some time ago. Ever since I found out about it, I have used it EVERY single game I have ran since. and its consistently tremendously useful. So what is it you may ask? (I know this is a lot to read, but I highly recommend you take the time to check it out) A very large sheet of plexiglass. and a tiny bit of DIY work- so this is what you do: Get a big sheet of plexi glass. The exact size you should get depends on your preference, and your table space. You DONT want it to be bigger then the table your playing on. I prefer to have it take up like 80% of the table, giving a 3 inch or more space from the edge of the table. so that it is easy to write on no matter where your sitting. Mine is about 45 in. x 30 in. or so. (dont remember exactly. ) and i think its 1/8 inch thickness. (the thinner the sheet the cheaper but you want something with a bit of fortitude). Once you have your plexi glass, use a carpenters square or something similar to mark a 1 inch squared grid. This is where you have to choose, you can mark it with some permanent ink, and be done, OR what i found is MUCH more awesome but takes more time and work- mark out your grid with dry/wet erase marker, once youve got your grid, use a good straight edge and good razor blade, and very carefully cut all of the grid lines. bearing down with reasonable pressure so that you cut the plexi glass deep but you arent cutting all the way through it. Once all of your grid lines are cut, you erase all of the wet/dry erase ink. Next step, (a bit of a repeat I know but your almost done!) Mark back over your cut grid lines with a DRY ERASE marker. (NOT wet erase, it doesnt work well for this step.) You need to do this preferably with a brand new black dry erase marker. Bear down with some pressure and mark your lines slowly. We do it this way because we want the ink to settle into and fill the fine cut lines we have made. Finally, with a towel or cloth, VERY LIGHTLY and carefully wipe off all of the excess dry erase ink along your cut lines. When its all gone, your left with razor thin black lines where the ink is still in the cuts youve made. Let your plexi glass sheet set for an hour or two to make sure all of that ink in the cuts dries completely. Once its been a while and the inks all settled. flip the sheet over and your done. USES: 1. As a rule: you keep the cut side face down always so that you dont get any other ink in your cut lines. and so you have a very smooth surface upside that you can write on with erasable markers. 2. put your maps underneath the plexiglass. line up the gridlines with your map if it has them. You and players can then make annotations, notes or whatever with erasable marker straight onto the map or the table. 3. Use it to draw maps on the fly straight onto the table. You can also get a set of different colored construction paper to slip under the glass for a preferred background color to quickly sketched on-the-fly maps. 4. Protects artwork, maps and documents which you want to keep on the table from being written directly on and from being ruined by spilled drinks or liquids. 5. FOR THE ARTISTIC DMS If you like hand drawing combat encounter maps. This plexiglass grid has an awesome use, that eliminates having to draw a grid, or buying expensive gridded paper. You can use the plexiglass as a light table to project a grid onto your paper while your drawing very cheaply and easily! Here is how: First, you will need a good and bright portable light. Any portable light or lights will work as long as they are pretty bright and you can position them to shine light directly upwards. I use a Fluorescent Mechanics Worklight, which produces a bright white light, (white light is better to work with) and throws it in a wide arc. Second, you will need something to use as your table in which you can put your plexiglass onto and have your light underneath shinning up through it. If you have a glass coffee table or something of the sort you could use that. But if your like me and dont have a glass table to use, you can instead use a large tub-a-ware storage bin. Now, Place your light(s) inside the bin, secure them in a position so that they are projecting light upwards, and secure your plexiglass on the top of the bin. boom, you now have a light table which projects a 1 inch squared grid. Then simply place your paper on the top, (its a good idea to tape the paper in place) and the grid from your plexiglass will be casting a shadow through your paper. simply draw your map using the shadowed grid. When your ready to use your map, when your playing a game, simply slide it under your plexi glass and position it appropriately and your map now has a grid. (EDIT) AS A NOTE The thicker the sheet of plexiglass the heavier, and the heavier the sheet the less likely it is to be accidentally moved. If your plexiglass is getting bumped or moved a lot during a game, get some sticky-tack to put under the corners and it will stay secure until you want to lift it or move it.
Yeah I like to put music on and just let it play. That way I don't have to break my concentration or game flow to queue up music. The LotR (film score) channel on pandora is great. It goes back and forth between epic and serene often enough to suit any mood at any time and even contrast a scene beautifully at times. like during an epic battle (especially if a character is taken down) and the music sounds soft and sad it can be amazing. Think like when Boromir gets shot up in The Fellowship. That station pulls music from LotR, The Hobbit, Pirates of the Caribbean, Braveheart, and (my favorite from the channel) The last of the Mohicans. Also for Call of Cthulu music there's a few videos on TH-cam called like "HP Lovecraft Cthulu music 1920s" that are so fucking eerie and scary they're perfect for CoC.
Question about the speakers and music. I am planning on using some music or ambient sounds in my game and I feel like I will lose more in the way of immersion than I will gain because I'm switching the music to fit the situation or to denote a change of scenery or whatever. Do you have any advice on how this could work more smoothly without breaking the immersion to change stuff all the time?
I use the 3x5 index cards to, but still have no idea were to store them after I used them. Were do you store them? In all the video's I have seen, (almost) everybody shows that they are using the indexcards, but never were and how they store them.
we use apps for lots of things like character sheets and for having quick reference guides to the players handbook. also dice as i have found that my wife cheats alot (shes a rogue though so i dont hold it against her) so we use apps to roll dice and its a cheap and effective way of keeping things going quickly and it helps us broke nerds run games that dont cost like 120 bucks to start. another thing i like is having people look up on google or whereever what their character looks like. for example my wife plays her half elf bounty hunter apolymi and she basically took a screenshot of her skyrim character. i do the same thing for loot and and items bought at shops of something. i just download the pic and text it to them. before hand to prep ill put these things in an album on my phone for easy reference and they already know to do the same after the session so they can quickly refer to the item on the fly. when i send them the pic i also send them descriptions of the items stats. because i have the copy in my phone that i sent to them i always know each player characters inventory and the capabilities of said items. it keeps things fun while opening up more possibilities than say buying a mini figure and painting it. some might like this but for players new to d&d who came into role playing from games like final fantasy or skyrim it can be a nice bridge to make the transition from console to table top less jarring.
For my games I like tu use a plastify grid. It's easy to make if you don't have the money to by a real one and whit some eraseble marker you can sketch the map for the battle. The music is important and the notes cards is the most usefull tool. i have this game called Hero scape its like a war hammer portable feild and unit game and it's really nice for miniature and the dice in this game have skeletton and sheild side so I use them as enemies and allies token.
I was wondering where to buy miniatures that are more money friendly? I am not looking for painted works of art but rather for quick use. Also in your video I did not see that you used a battlemat for battles?
Pathfinder Pawns for miniatures. Cheap and versatile. For battles, I use the maps I showed in this video. I have lots of different maps, and I also have a few vinyl erasable mats. Look into a Chessex wet-erase mat if you want something versatile and easy to re-use.
Sundered Throne is sort of on hold indefinitely at the moment. We had a number of players drop out, and the way I organized things, it'd be tough to continue on without them. However, I would really like to finish the story at some point -- I'll come up with something to make it happen.
That's too bad, Matt - the first sessions were great, and your setting and story definitely had me wondering what would happen next. The characters were interesting as well.
Nice vid. Great primer for new GMs looking to be more prepared :) I have so much random stuff from years and years of gaming and I'm always finding old stuff to repurpose to new games. We've moved our gaming online these days mostly so much of that stuff just sits idle anymore. But great advice video :)
Note cards + hole punch + loose binder rings = Customizable spellbooks. Learn a new spell? Fill out a note card with all the info you need for the spell, add it to your "spellbook". You'll never need a PHB at the table to look up spell effects again. I keep loose rings and stacks f note cards for my players.
Matthew Richards I use Magic the gathering card sleeves and then put in a cheap card such as a basic land or tip card in order for it not to feel flimsy, then put in the spell I want written down on paper and put it in the sleeve. Then I use different colored sleeves to indicate what's an at-will, encounter, daily etc ability. Then once the card is used up, it goes to a "graveyard" pile just like in MTG. But your way is definitely cool as well.
It sounds like the tables you run are treated to great game experiences. I'm just getting into RPGs but some day I'll take a turn as DM and refer to folks like you for advise.
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Something I'm using for my new campaign, I build models of some locations with Legos. Not sized for Lego people, but much smaller, just buildings, streets, etc.
Players think it's totally awesome!
we keep our character sheets in plastic sheet protectors. the main benefit is that you can use dry erase markers on them. for stats that are constantly in flux, like hp, it is a life saver.
I do the same with paper maps. I have a folder that has five clear pages in it and I use it for that. Give each player their own color marker and tell them to place themselves on the map and handle combat from there.
***** I would assume you don't touch those parts.
***** Maybe a little wet ink sign or something. :)
steve mobs That's very smart of you! When ever I play I always have to erase so my sheet always mess up!
That actually IS a really good idea. I'm creating a game of my own and finally managed to find a good program (that was free, as I don't have a ton of money to spend on fancy programs) that lets me do a PDF fillable character sheet which is great.
Of course now that I got it I'm thinking about just printing the out with the character picture on it and let the players fill the rest out by hand in pencil so they can erase and change things but this idea actually sounds better. :)
One thing that I always do to help in my games is that I make folders for each player, and in it I include the following. Character Sheet, Blank Graph Paper, Blank Ruled Paper, Blank sketch paper, Printouts of there class/race descriptions/abilities, copies of any handouts that I have already given out(notes from NPC's, Maps, etc), a full list of there magic items, with a brief description and book/page reference, and for spell casters a spell book with a brief description and book/page reference. I usually will work on creating this at the time of character creation with the player and it helps them not only remember everything that has previously happened, but offers a very quick lookup of there characters abilities without interrupting the game.
I hope your players appreciate the extra work you put into their experience!
I have only DM'd a few times but one of my biggest praises is use of props. I had a dungeon with multiple levers that would activate traps if used in the wrong way, so I had a cardboard box with 3 dowels stuck into it with some wiggle room to act as levers. The players liked the interaction and all wanted to use it as people fell prey to sleeping gas when they failed.
These are awesome tips. I'm going to send this video to my DM. Our whole group of players and our DM were all first timers to DnD. He did a great job for having zero experience. However, I think he could benefit a lot from your videos to make his life a little easier and ultimately allow him to have more fun. Also, we were playing 4e and my god that was some seriously clunky battle sequences so hopefully we can transition over to 5e very soon.
Post-it notes for treasure items, magic jewels, weapons, and other special items, it gives the player a description and who ever has the post-it has the item.
See a Dream Theater poster, a psyduck figure, a lightsaber, and this guy is talking tabletop? Instant subscribe. I like your stuff.
another good set of tools to use is a bunch of color coded rings to put around peoples miniatures to keep track of their conditions. got that from matt mercer lol
I've been having kind of a GM low, and I had lost a bit of the hype, and starting to get it back, I decided to rewatch your videos, and watch some of the new ones, and I want to really thank you Matt. Your vids get me hyped and inspired to snap out of it, and once more be the GM I used to be. So thanks man, I appreciate you doing these videos.
Could you make an updated version of this video? Awesome content!
I also use Spotify playlists for atmospheric music for D&D. There is some great classical/medieval music that is appropriate, as well as using film soundtracks.
I'm a big fan of Syrinscape for my in game sound needs. I only just started using index cards, and they are amazing. I also use Pathfinder pawns, no more carrying a massive backpack to the game, I can keep everything in a A4 sized thick plastic box/folder/etc;
I'm very old school. I play first edition D&D and AD&D. What I did was photocopy every single chart and table that's actually used in game from the DM Guide and Player's Handbook, as well as the charts that would be used directly during play from the Metzer Basic rulebook, the Expert Rulebook, the Companion Rulebook, the Master Rulebook, and the Immortals rulebook. I then cut all these charts up, arranged them together logically where they would fit together with each other for actual play and easy look up and taped them to pages, organizing them. I then photocopied those pages and stuck them in plastic page holders. So now I have two binders. One with the AD&D charts and one with the charts from the Basic rules line charts, all organized in page holders, tabbed for easy look up, that I stick on the table and use as my DM screen. It's the best DM screen I've ever had and is WAY more useful than anything TSR ever produced. I rarely have to refer to the books to find information when I run a game. Most information for accomplishing tasks is somewhere in that DM screen. If not, there's an index in there that tells me specifically what page or in the Basic Rules binder, what book and what page, to find the information. These two binder/GM screens took some work to make, but they're the most useful thing that I own when it comes to running a game.
As a first time GM of a Rise of the Runelords campaign, something that I found to work really well was running it all on my laptop, with the map (roll20) extended onto a TV via a HDMI cable. I have sticky notes on my desktop for any notes that need to be made for possible later misadventures. (One of the PCs managed to knock up an NPC, so that should be interesting)
The PCs can choose to bring a laptop which will let them move their characters in roll20 as well as do their rolls, or they can simply use the pen+paper+dice they bring. It helps them stay comfortable with playing, and it really doesn't disrupt things too much.
I try my hand as acting out the voices and getting into the roleplay of all the NPCs (unfortunately, the only voice I can do at the moment is a 47 year old chain smoking male, which makes things rather humorous at times) which tends to help the roleplay of the group (when they're not laughing at me)
As far as tricks are concerned, I tend to physically split the party OOC when they split IC. (So if Shaggy and Scooby go down to the basement and Fred, Velma and Daphne go upstairs, I'll put Shaggy and Scooby in another room and talk to each group individually)
I also introduced on our first session a little "briefing/debriefing session" where we discussed the reasons why the PCs started where they were before the session, and then discussed why the characters made certain choices after the session. This way it helps the PCs get into character better, and hopefully makes them more attached to their characters.
There's probably some stuff I've missed, but that's about the gist of it
Hey Matt. I just wanted to say you have helped me tons with learning about how to use what I have to create a generally amazing gaming experience. And as a brand new player (were talking weeks here) I probably couldn't have made my campaigns as epic without your videos. Keep it up man, and thanks for doing this for everyone as it is a pretty steep learning curve for a new guy especially someone who's teaching themselves. I rolled a 20 when I found your channel
Thanks so much. I really do appreciate the kind words and encouragement. It does my heart good to know that my videos are helping new players delve into the hobby.
3 years later still going strong. If you see this could you make an updated video on the tools of the trade you use now? Apps or anything like that?
I'm a huge fan of physical in character props. Things like paper painted like parchment for notes (I also burned a corner to give them a clue) gems or idols they acquire, or puzzles they have to complete etc. It makes it a ton of fun to watch the players have something to do or hold at the table. Also a much more interactive style.
I've been trying to use more physical props like these in my Call of Cthulhu game.
I like to be self customized. By drawing and making almost everything like the map and dungeon master's note board. The only thing i didn't make would be the dice and figures.
I've never ran a tabletop game in real life, all my sessions have been online. We use Fantasy Grounds 2 as our virtual tabletop, it's quite good, easier to manage than roll20 in my opinion. Keeping well organized is insanely useful, I use a local wiki style document with interlinking for my notes, keeping pages for items, races, characters, locations etc that link to eachother like a regular wiki, so if I'm on my "Village XIV" page, read the notes, remember that there's a blacksmith, I can click the Blacksmith link and see who the shop keeper is there, if I wrote down any other details about the Blacksmith like what he offers or any rumors etc.
About the music playing, I prefer to use the "Sonos" speaker system. Because it's a high-quality speaker that hooks up to a smart-phone. You can stream spotify, and local files on your phone through a Sonos speaker wirelessly. It's quite good, really.
I make custom Minecraft Maps for every dungeon. During the session, we use a combination of paper-maps, Minecraft maps (for simulation) displayed on either a TV or a laptop, and the classic dice system of DnD 3.5 with a ton of house rules. I've added using my phone to store story details, which another players helps me write, and my friends laptop to add custom music.
Man, it really is enough that your videos on D&D are insightful and genuinely helpful, but it doesn't hurt that I always see something Dream Theater-related in the background. I applaud your good taste, sir.
For sounds I use music taken from youtube (movie soundtracks mostly) for background and specific sounds from www.sounddogs.com/ for sound effects - creaking door, crowd noises, crashes and monster screams - etc. For organizing and playing them I use a program (softrope.net/).
For pictures (each NPC has a picture as well as locations), I find that interesting pictures help me come up with special characters. To display them I use powerpoint and an external monitor to display them.
We use a battlemat and miniatures - and I craft special items like ballista's, weird magic items, etc (look at dmscraft here on youtube). It takes more time than buying, but I find it quite fun.
+David Stidolph ... that sounds totally cool, man. i'm definitely checking that out.
I also have a folder several hundred megs large of maps at this point, having generic maps I can just throw up in an instant (since it's online, that's so much easier) for any type of situation that might arise is great.
I personally like to utilize sticky notes to be able to keep track of health and little things on the character sheets w/o tons of smudge marks. I like to also use my whiteboard to draw out maps but i love the index card idea.
DM screen that is made using the metal plates out of $2 magnetic dry erase boards. that allows you to put up whatever tables/notes you want fr the current adventure on DM side and whatever art you have appropriate to the current adventure on the outside.
Cheap home laminating machine and laminate 6 per page stat block sheets. Keep a couple whole an use then for tracking the party. Info can be written in using dry erase or wet erase markers. Cut to individual cards for NPCs and creatures that will be in the current adventure. (pre-fill-in for an expected recurring NPC then laminate)
Print and laminate anything you will use a lot. Stick it up with magnets when its needed.
I 3D printed a castle themed dice tower and DM screen frame set and inserted the magnetic whiteboards glued to thin card stock, (the frames have slots for appx 1/16 thick panels) but you can stick the whiteboards to foam-board or wood... hinge a foam-board DM screen using duct tape. Cheap, fast, easy.
I'm a big fan of herolab. It's a character creation program for various RPGs including 3.5, pathfinder, and 4th ed. It's for PC and Mac as well as iPad. It organizes character sheets where I feel they are easier to read. Many of times one of my players has forgotten their character sheet and I can just print them off a copy, so it's a good way to back up character sheets. Also between sessions I can review everyone's stats and sneak in any items they may have acquired between games. The only downfall is that it costs money, around 20-30$ but I feel it was well worth the investment.
So heres something that I'm going to use; pop up props! A friend of mine got really burned out from making paper mache props even before he got to do his campaign; your traditional starter GM pitfall. Because of that, I'm going to have to take over.
So, I got to thinking, how do I replicate that what he was looking to create as efficiently as possible? And after watching a video of pop up art (link: Handmade 3D Cardboard Pop-Up Ornaments), I discovered, hot damn, this is efficiency in it's peak. If I make my 3D terrain and my gargantuan monsters and my spell effects into pop up card, they are easily transportable, easy to create, affordable, easy to set up and it has the added bonus that until I open up it up, leaving it a huge surprise for the people around the table.
So, it's ideal. Simple structures take less than half an hour to cut, fold and glue out of carton and complexer structure, like, say, a scaled down city take a day to complete, with an incredibly high rate of satisfaction.
I've watched this video countless times just because it always reminds me how to keep things simple.
I use a whiteboard like you said, but I put flat business card size magnets with sticky labels on them, and write the PCs info on that, then use the labels for initiative tracking, just move the magnets around when initiative changes.
Pathfinder Face cards for npc's I control.
Magic the gathering cards that seam appropriate like a special weapon or grimoire.
Rory's story cubes for coming up with things on the fly and completely random.
Props! I have tarot decks, runes, crystals, letter opener swords, a scrying ball, hanayama 3d metal puzzles, handouts.
Going to be adding the music for ambiance now too. Thanks for that, I'm off to look for soundtracks and scores now.
Cesar Perez I wasn't familiar with hanayama 3d metal puzzles. Thanks for sharing that. These things look amazing.
Personally myself I like use index cards with the players names written on them to show turn order. The folded cards keep track of players, monsters, and NPCs. It also helps everyone remember the characters names.
I use index cards for initiative. Each character and each monster type has a card and then I can flip through them one at a time. I keep basic notes like hp, ac, saves, and abilities on the cards and use them to help track things like consumable resources (potions, spellslots, ammo, etc...) as well as spell durations and status effects. I pull out which ever monster cards I think they are likely to encounter that session and have them set aside and ready. I've been using this method long enough now that I almost always already have a card made for the monsters and rarely have to fill out a new one. I've been using the 4x6 cards, which I keep in a nice little plastic carrying case although my players are getting high enough level that I'm contemplating moving up to 5x8 cards to better fit all the info I want to track.
+Jonathan Schmid I am trying the initiative cards on my next game but I am only putting the AC on them so I can just tell them if the monster hit them or not. Has the saves and abilities be useful for you?
I built a living spread sheet in excel that allows me to keep track of rp and monster experience. The spread sheet keeps track of all damage done to monsters, which makes it easy to go back and change numbers if mistakes happen. When the monster dies, depending on the input CR of the monster, when its HP reaches 0, the experience shows up and is distributed among the players based on how many people are currently playing. I also use it to keep track of magic shops and homebrew artifacts.
Smash Custom Music allows you to play many video game songs for as long as needed. Hint: Ctrl+f whichever game from which you want to play a song, click, then ctrl+f the song.
My brother is my DM and he uses Microsoft Excel on his laptop to keep track of our game. Very useful when it comes to having Monster stats on the fly and keeping track of their health.
This is something that I've been tackling as it's what I do. I'm a PC sorc summon spec. I have printed lists of base stats and skills of all my summons for me and the Druid to use. The dm loves it as we're not flipping through the monster guide over and over to keep track of the attack damage and whatnot.
Thank you so much without you i basically would have run of the mill boring unsympathetic npcs and boring dungeon crawls i only get to game once a year so your vids have helped me make it the best campaign it can be. Once again thank you.
millionth hobbit Thanks for the kind words! I'm happy to help.
So far, i'm really new to gaming (player 3 years) but I'm just now running my first campaign. My tools:
iPad with Microsoft onenote. It's awesome. books, tabs, tables, pictures and clickable links to webpages. makes my encounter notes jump off the page and on to the table. Its great...and searchable.
FireTV or AppleTV. While I GM (hate the term DM...cause I we aren't always in a Dungeon hell might be in a system where there is no such thing) we run it at one of my players house. Being able to stream music or soundeffects to a decent sound system is super emmersive for everyone. Hell I get excited when I change the music to something dramatic, and I know whats coming next!
Dry erase battle mat. Why have pre drawn maps? 9 time out of 10 players don't know the next turn in a dungeon, why let them see the whole thing? Draw and they explorer and the players get to "see" what the charaters see. Also my players take most of their notes on the mat as well so they aren't wearing holes in their character sheets with the eraser.
I took a 36" by 24" whiteboard. Using an Xacto Knife I cut a 1" square grid pattern into it. The whiteboard is metal and allows the use of magnets to keep minis on the board if we have to move it at any given time. I also keep files detailing everyone's characters and backstories with sticky notes of how the world is interacting with those characters (such as they've made this person mad, or this person owes them a favor, or this organization has placed a bounty on them for destruction of property), this is so I can create scenarios that these NPC feelings aren't forgotten, and the PCs feel more involved while moving the story forward. My Campaigns tend to be more open and allow characters to choose their own paths, so this is important to keeping the world flowing around them. I keep NPCs and character contacts on notecards with details like personality, quirks, appearance, and any miscellaneous information regarding habits or livelihood. It makes it easy to whip out the cards and get into character without having to come up with a new NPC on the fly. I also use character generators if the situation calls for a new NPC that i don't have prepared, then i'll write down the NPC on his/her own card after the session. I've never gotten into the whole music thing, but i do set a certain mood by describing certain things in the environment in more detail, such as a rotting corpse or lush foliage or describing the streets of this bustling city. Anyway i hope some of these things i do help other GMs run their games!
I think having a note card with the items of treasure and stuff on them is a great idea so you could just give the players the card and whoever ends up carrying that passes it back to the DM after they copy the information down. Reminds me of Sly Flourish way of the Lazy DM.
I've quickly grown to love having Story Dice at my side, thanks to Mike Shea's The Lazy DM video. I use them all too often to create NPCs on the fly while the PCs are in a town, stumble upon a caravan or whatever else. Just toss a couple dice, and whatever bit description you come up with becomes a bit of your NPCs personality.
I will draw out the dungeon map on poster board and cut it where visability ends per room and when they go into the adjacent hallway, I bring that out and set it next to it so they can place their miniatures on it.
DT pic on the wall...nice
A tablet, I use it for a spreadsheet based DM screen and die roller that I have embedded into the sheet for random encounters. Being a DM over discord, I keep 2 music bots on hand for different reasons. I have designed a map maker so I have two separate documents for the different group and one master for myself where I track my notes that are map relavent. For the rules, I have all of the PDF on my PC so that I always have it available. If a player is not paying attention to the game because of a PC or phone, I have the PC roll for perception of nessesery. This reminds them to pay attention and is a great opportunity to create a random encounter or an opportunity to create a great RP slot. Back to the tools. A physical notebook and a space pen, 5⭐ because it has yet to fail me. The DM screen is equipped with most of what I need for improv. I have a stat and battle tracker written into the screen
Totally agree with index cards, I use them for everything. I even make players write mini versions of their characters on them for use as initiative cards. Each card gets their player name, character name, initiative number, AC and HP. I then take their cards and insert the monsters depending on initiatve and cycle through the cards in order and call out their name. If they hold their action till a monster acts then I can reorder on the fly.
When they take damage I don't tell them how much, just what their wound state is; either bruised, bloodied, battered or unconcious. It stops them from being too gung-ho or calculating how many hits they can take and they never know if the next hit will kill them or not.
I do HDMI output from my laptop to my TV (the tv stand is adjacent to my game table). I have a spreadsheet with max/current health, status effects, AC, etc. I can also show videos and push audio through my HT speakers. My buddies loved it last game!!
White boards are great, I've used them for years. If you can get the ones that are for use with magnets they are even better.
You can get cheap blank flat magnets for creating your own tiles on using icon art (and adhesive labels/sheets) from some websites like drivethrurpg (rather than use miniatures) and use a white board for a battle board if you don't want to worry about scale details in your game. I find a vertical battle map easier for many folks to work with and it clears up table space for players or let you play in a space without a table.if you have a basic art easel to stand it on.
(I've done a lot of living room gaming with couches etc rather than actual tables because of having had a slightly oversized gaming group for a few years, too many for the table, but this gave everyone more space to deal with).
Thanks for recommending the PF Battle app. That is awesome!
Thanks for responding! I will look at getting those minis.
I'm enjoying the new videos, Matt! We have a lot of the same prep materials.
Thanks Kirk!
My tools to run Mutants and Masterminds......
1. My Laptop with Hero Lab. Hero Lab by Lone Wolf Development is great for pulling out the stats I have for players and NPCs. It can be used for about 20 different games. You can even print out character sheets for them.
2. The revised 3rd Edition GM screen. The new reference sheets are great, and they have an initiative sheet you can write on with wet/dry erase markers.
3. A combat map. I use a dry/wet erase map due to using Heroclix figures for combat. Hard to find superhero minis these days.
4. My books.
Me and my uncle have started using an extra monitor and Adobe Flash to run our stuff. He has a little knowledge in A.S. so he was able to whip up some very basic control functions.(Digital Maps scaled to 1" for minis that can be slide around with the mouse) Currently we are using it for the Pathfinders Kingmaker Campaign(I GM for him) and he is Running Rise of the Runelords(Him GMing me) We really hated tearing through so much paper that we decided to go slightly digital, So we use the laptop or my Desktop to run out of the digital books, We still keep to the traditional dice rolling though. My uncle says he doesn't so much like digital because it is like playing a video game but we came to a compromise. One thing I have noticed is that it really takes us forever to thumb through our stuff because we are mostly using the books as the reference for running the sessions. IDK it is fun, I mean we are limited to just us two(mostly because we're quite shy and a bit of shut ins... lol) but it has it's fun time,
My last game of dnd we were on the go, we had a stack of A4 paper, 6 pens and a single d20. It was still a load of fun
Maps, books, note cards, note journal and note book paper, hand made props, and a folder of all my dungions
Instead of the note cards, I use a colour coded note book, it means I can write a lot more about NPCs, locations, etc but still have the organisation of note cards.
If you are willing, could you possibly make a not on your favorite additions to your DM's Binder? Mine is definitely lacking. :)
PS: I totally agree that white boards make the game run so much smoother. We play a PF game at our college in a conference room so we have access to a giant white board. Nice for rough sketching rooms without combat and tracking initiative and such. :)
You talked about the adventure binder. I think thats a great idea and im looking to start incorporating the use of random tables for prep and for during-game improv, and having a binder with the tables sorted out and organized just seems great! ould you please offer some bigger insight as to whats inside your binder and what should i be looking to include? as well as where can i get good tables because i dont have much atm. I would really appreciate it!
+Antonio Pomposini ... i totally recommend the tables at Raging Swan Press. they put out new free tables every week, and have been doing it for at least a couple years now. just cut and paste into notepad and then print them out. for myself i went ahead and bought a couple of their books -- the Dungeon Dressing one alone is basically 300+ pages of tables, plus a 10-pg section on dungeon design that i found useful. there's also a free (shorter) version of this in PDF format that you can pick up from places like DriveThruRPG.com.
thank you so much for the info, will give it a check!
Hey, not sure if you've ever seen it but DMDJ is a great app that I know is on apple devices. It's essentially a decked out ambiance/background music generator on your phone. It can't run in the background, but if you never use your phone for anything else during games it great. Happy gaming, love the videos :)
Really good video. I was thinking of making a video similar to yours on the same subject. Glad to see such a well made presentation. For my game I also use a game folder and binder for tables and other info. I also use the 3x5 index card. I use the path finder flip mat basic as it will take and erase clean wet/dry and even permanent marker. I use highlighter markers (at least 4 different colors) for marking my index cards. I use a mini speaker that is wi fi that I play music on. I select 3-6 tracks per session. I recently discovered a downloadable program/tracks called Syrinscape that has really good sound effects, music and their loops for gaming
i was about to ask if you could do a break down of your book and looked over and saw the video you already made, thanks man your videos have been super helpful.
Great video! The one thing I do differently is I use one large white fry erase board for my maps. I've painted a grid on the entire thing so I can just draw the terrain directly as the PCs enter it. :)
*dry
I use Squire and/or 5th Edition Character Sheet to track my players stats, and DM5E to handle encounters (though mostly just to keep tabs on monster HP and abilities, all die rolls still done at the table of course!) since those work on my Android tablet. Sometimes I'll use my laptop (DM5E has a windows version) with the Andy Android emulator to run Squire/5ECS
Mr. Dice, I believe it is called a "Path-binder" or a "Pathfolder".
My method of using music is pretty similar to yours, but in case I just use only one speaker. I'm not a big fan of using binders and index cards, I often discard paper things, prefer keeping notes, locations, NPCs, the session planned on my Ipad on one note. For me one note is the best preparation keeper of all time, is very easy to access any note or information on the fly just by clicking on the abs. I would recomend using one note for everyone for this and another reason. The notes kept there are dtored on the cloud, so if you have one note on your computer, you can write down things on your computer and its automaticaly altered on Ipad at the same time, so you don't need to bring your heavy and space filling notebook to your table. But it's just me, i know there are some people who prefer the old school pen and paper for DMing
Well I run owlbear Rodeo, maps on 2 TVs so each side of the table can see, Plus they can log into it on Mobile device, Move the icons, I can use Fog of war, add notes or draw on the map, like where if they camp out, etc
I`m bazilian and now I`m in Canada so one of my tools is Roll20, works perfectly! And I have loots of books on my Pc but the adventure binder is for sure a good idea!! And nice to see you back man!!!
Roll20 is great. Definitely a useful tool for online games.
There is an error on that Fistful of Dollars poster. Lee Van Cleef was not in that film. He appeared in For a Few Dollars More and The Good The Bad and The Ugly, but not A Fistful of Dollars.
Some great ideas I hadn't thought of!
I usually take a laptop and sit at the head of the table because my group does a lot of resource books like warhammer fantasy and stuff so I need to pull the book up. Im also very lazy so I have a name generator, background generator, and other cheaty lazy DM stuff. but it really helps my campaign move along smoothly so I dont need to spend five minutes thinking up the bartenders life story.
I hand draw all my maps so I usually have a sketch book with me and a decent pen.
I bring a couple pages of tea stained paper so I can quickly make a scroll or something that my players can actually hold.
I have used the colored index cards (and similar post its) in all my prep. I also use MS Word / Excel to build the encounters/plot lines. I have recently begun using my laptop for video displays and music. I enjoy toying with graphics even if it isn't my strong suit. Spotify is new to me...but I learn fast. I use pre-made maps (even a tile or two) if I need them. I use a "crarft board" for standard grass/dungeon terrain with my table. I can add walls/doors/tokens/misc items to enhance the visual in my live game. I'll try the whiteboard aspect for quick reference in lieu of my smallish dry-erase tabs. I also use binders...but I have migrated to using my laptop. Could you reiterated the APPS you use.
I chuckled. I heard you saying "character casts barfskin". New spell idea. Or monster.
Dream Theater and A Fistful of Dollars, good taste in music and movies
Besides the laptop and the android tablet, I like to use cheap homemade tiles that I can customize for the particular setting or session. There are two guys out there, DMScotty and DMG that have great video tutorials on how to quickly crank them out. I use hexes, instead of squares. I find they give a bit more flexibility to play. I also use two white boards. One thing I've done that DRAMATICLY speeds up game play so you can get more encounters a game session, is to switch to group initiative. Regardless of the game system used, group initiative greatly speeds up game play. I don't use music. I tried it many times, but it just ends up being distracting and annoying. Though, it is handy when you have a magic item that communicates via song. Then you can have fun with it. You talk alot about rolling stuff up... I almost Never roll up random stuff. I just make it up. I used to roll stuff up on tables, but found myself just picking something off the table anyway when what I rolled up sounded boreing to me. I also like to mess with "standards". My Kobold Paladin army totally freaked out my players once. And the order of Goblin healers was another disconnect that we had fun with. Here is the like to DMGs playlist th-cam.com/play/PLw-XImXo4zfOKxI_NWJpESKHiX71yyLXU.html
Yes sir, could you tell me everything you keep your DM Binder?
I love this video. I have a little speaker that I have linked to the bluetooth of my phone, I think I will be using this a lot more. Also the Adventure Binder is a fantastic idea.
Dream theater rules my friend
I'd like to know more about you "Map for a boat". Where'd you get that? I want one!
Hey, for those who have an Android Tablet I highly recommand Song & Dragons, a kicking ass app for playing music and sounds quickly with different layers, loops and all !
I like to use dry erase markers on a roll out grid map. We use lego minis lol :)
Would love to see an update on this vid. Wonder how different it would be......
I use Syrinscape to add some sounds to our games.
Excellent background posters!k
I just love your videos! Keep em coming please!
I use a lot of the same materials. I use pandora on an instrumental channel for face to face groups. I am a big proponent of index cards. Not much that I can add to this video.
MAPS!!! I never met a map I couldn't use. I've even used cross-genre maps, so using a medieval style tavern in a modern game or a modern pawn shop in a sci-fi setting.
Oh absolutely. I have a few SWRPG maps I've used in my D&D games.
aFistfulofDice I have a question, my cousins and I play dnd together and what happens is I dm and I play but I don't know if thats fair or not is it or is it not?
millionth hobbit I know it was targeted at aFistfulofDice but I wanted to chime in, I don't feel like the DM should be running a character. I feel as DM you are the window that players look through to see the world and you can't really be a window and look through one at the same time. It is somewhat difficult to keep your character from benefiting due to your knowledge of the adventures. ( For example knowing where traps are and when to search for them.) you also rob yourself of an experience, to me running the game is the most enjoyable part but if you want to play you should ask one of your cousins to try DMing, that way you can really get into character instead of facilitating their play and trying to tag along with them. If you made a character just to roleplay, I'd suggest using your creative juices to make memorable npc's throughout your world, If you just want to play I would again suggest to take turns DMing.
Zathrian
There's nothing wrong with a GM running a character as well, as long as they don't give special preference to their character when they're GMing. My first group used to rotate GMing, and when it was our turn, our PC would become an NPC for that adventure.
Even now I have NPCs in my campaign world that I consider to be my characters. (See Captain Gothnog). ;)
That makes sense, I just meant playing the PC the session that you're filling the role of GM. To each their own though as I don't feel there is actually a wrong way to play.
Where do you find your used maps?
I've seen you mention notecards a few times with NPC characters on them. I was wondering what kind of essential information you place on the notecards to individualize those characters.
@aFistfulofDice, I enjoy a lot of your videos, much helpful information on your channel.
I'd like to say though as far as "DM tools of the Trade" goes- I'd like to share the most useful tool I found by playing with another group some time ago.
Ever since I found out about it, I have used it EVERY single game I have ran since. and its consistently tremendously useful.
So what is it you may ask? (I know this is a lot to read, but I highly recommend you take the time to check it out)
A very large sheet of plexiglass. and a tiny bit of DIY work- so this is what you do:
Get a big sheet of plexi glass. The exact size you should get depends on your preference, and your table space.
You DONT want it to be bigger then the table your playing on. I prefer to have it take up like 80% of the table, giving a 3 inch or more space from the edge of the table. so that it is easy to write on no matter where your sitting.
Mine is about 45 in. x 30 in. or so. (dont remember exactly. ) and i think its 1/8 inch thickness. (the thinner the sheet the cheaper but you want something with a bit of fortitude).
Once you have your plexi glass, use a carpenters square or something similar to mark a 1 inch squared grid.
This is where you have to choose, you can mark it with some permanent ink, and be done,
OR what i found is MUCH more awesome but takes more time and work-
mark out your grid with dry/wet erase marker, once youve got your grid, use a good straight edge and good razor blade, and very carefully cut all of the grid lines. bearing down with reasonable pressure so that you cut the plexi glass deep but you arent cutting all the way through it.
Once all of your grid lines are cut, you erase all of the wet/dry erase ink.
Next step, (a bit of a repeat I know but your almost done!)
Mark back over your cut grid lines with a DRY ERASE marker. (NOT wet erase, it doesnt work well for this step.)
You need to do this preferably with a brand new black dry erase marker. Bear down with some pressure and mark your lines slowly. We do it this way because we want the ink to settle into and fill the fine cut lines we have made.
Finally, with a towel or cloth, VERY LIGHTLY and carefully wipe off all of the excess dry erase ink along your cut lines.
When its all gone, your left with razor thin black lines where the ink is still in the cuts youve made.
Let your plexi glass sheet set for an hour or two to make sure all of that ink in the cuts dries completely.
Once its been a while and the inks all settled. flip the sheet over and your done.
USES:
1. As a rule: you keep the cut side face down always so that you dont get any other ink in your cut lines. and so you have a very smooth surface upside that you can write on with erasable markers.
2. put your maps underneath the plexiglass. line up the gridlines with your map if it has them. You and players can then make annotations, notes or whatever with erasable marker straight onto the map or the table.
3. Use it to draw maps on the fly straight onto the table. You can also get a set of different colored construction paper to slip under the glass for a preferred background color to quickly sketched on-the-fly maps.
4. Protects artwork, maps and documents which you want to keep on the table from being written directly on and from being ruined by spilled drinks or liquids.
5. FOR THE ARTISTIC DMS
If you like hand drawing combat encounter maps. This plexiglass grid has an awesome use, that eliminates having to draw a grid, or buying expensive gridded paper.
You can use the plexiglass as a light table to project a grid onto your paper while your drawing very cheaply and easily!
Here is how:
First, you will need a good and bright portable light. Any portable light or lights will work as long as they are pretty bright and you can position them to shine light directly upwards. I use a Fluorescent Mechanics Worklight, which produces a bright white light, (white light is better to work with) and throws it in a wide arc.
Second, you will need something to use as your table in which you can put your plexiglass onto and have your light underneath shinning up through it.
If you have a glass coffee table or something of the sort you could use that.
But if your like me and dont have a glass table to use, you can instead use a large tub-a-ware storage bin.
Now, Place your light(s) inside the bin, secure them in a position so that they are projecting light upwards, and secure your plexiglass on the top of the bin. boom, you now have a light table which projects a 1 inch squared grid.
Then simply place your paper on the top, (its a good idea to tape the paper in place) and the grid from your plexiglass will be casting a shadow through your paper. simply draw your map using the shadowed grid.
When your ready to use your map, when your playing a game, simply slide it under your plexi glass and position it appropriately and your map now has a grid.
(EDIT)
AS A NOTE
The thicker the sheet of plexiglass the heavier, and the heavier the sheet the less likely it is to be accidentally moved.
If your plexiglass is getting bumped or moved a lot during a game, get some sticky-tack to put under the corners and it will stay secure until you want to lift it or move it.
Yeah I like to put music on and just let it play. That way I don't have to break my concentration or game flow to queue up music. The LotR (film score) channel on pandora is great. It goes back and forth between epic and serene often enough to suit any mood at any time and even contrast a scene beautifully at times. like during an epic battle (especially if a character is taken down) and the music sounds soft and sad it can be amazing. Think like when Boromir gets shot up in The Fellowship. That station pulls music from LotR, The Hobbit, Pirates of the Caribbean, Braveheart, and (my favorite from the channel) The last of the Mohicans. Also for Call of Cthulu music there's a few videos on TH-cam called like "HP Lovecraft Cthulu music 1920s" that are so fucking eerie and scary they're perfect for CoC.
Question about the speakers and music. I am planning on using some music or ambient sounds in my game and I feel like I will lose more in the way of immersion than I will gain because I'm switching the music to fit the situation or to denote a change of scenery or whatever. Do you have any advice on how this could work more smoothly without breaking the immersion to change stuff all the time?
I use the 3x5 index cards to, but still have no idea were to store them after I used them. Were do you store them? In all the video's I have seen, (almost) everybody shows that they are using the indexcards, but never were and how they store them.
we use apps for lots of things like character sheets and for having quick reference guides to the players handbook. also dice as i have found that my wife cheats alot (shes a rogue though so i dont hold it against her) so we use apps to roll dice and its a cheap and effective way of keeping things going quickly and it helps us broke nerds run games that dont cost like 120 bucks to start. another thing i like is having people look up on google or whereever what their character looks like. for example my wife plays her half elf bounty hunter apolymi and she basically took a screenshot of her skyrim character. i do the same thing for loot and and items bought at shops of something. i just download the pic and text it to them. before hand to prep ill put these things in an album on my phone for easy reference and they already know to do the same after the session so they can quickly refer to the item on the fly. when i send them the pic i also send them descriptions of the items stats. because i have the copy in my phone that i sent to them i always know each player characters inventory and the capabilities of said items. it keeps things fun while opening up more possibilities than say buying a mini figure and painting it. some might like this but for players new to d&d who came into role playing from games like final fantasy or skyrim it can be a nice bridge to make the transition from console to table top less jarring.
For my games I like tu use a plastify grid. It's easy to make if you don't have the money to by a real one and whit some eraseble marker you can sketch the map for the battle. The music is important and the notes cards is the most usefull tool. i have this game called Hero scape its like a war hammer portable feild and unit game and it's really nice for miniature and the dice in this game have skeletton and sheild side so I use them as enemies and allies token.
I was wondering where to buy miniatures that are more money friendly? I am not looking for painted works of art but rather for quick use. Also in your video I did not see that you used a battlemat for battles?
Pathfinder Pawns for miniatures. Cheap and versatile. For battles, I use the maps I showed in this video. I have lots of different maps, and I also have a few vinyl erasable mats. Look into a Chessex wet-erase mat if you want something versatile and easy to re-use.
What ever happened to the role-playing sessions? Are you ever going to run and record any more games? The Chronicle you created was really intriguing.
Sundered Throne is sort of on hold indefinitely at the moment. We had a number of players drop out, and the way I organized things, it'd be tough to continue on without them. However, I would really like to finish the story at some point -- I'll come up with something to make it happen.
That's too bad, Matt - the first sessions were great, and your setting and story definitely had me wondering what would happen next. The characters were interesting as well.
Scott Erickson Thanks for the kind words, Scott. Again, I'd love to finish it at some point. I'll find a way to make it happen.
Nice vid. Great primer for new GMs looking to be more prepared :) I have so much random stuff from years and years of gaming and I'm always finding old stuff to repurpose to new games. We've moved our gaming online these days mostly so much of that stuff just sits idle anymore. But great advice video :)
Note cards + hole punch + loose binder rings = Customizable spellbooks. Learn a new spell? Fill out a note card with all the info you need for the spell, add it to your "spellbook". You'll never need a PHB at the table to look up spell effects again. I keep loose rings and stacks f note cards for my players.
Matthew Richards I use Magic the gathering card sleeves and then put in a cheap card such as a basic land or tip card in order for it not to feel flimsy, then put in the spell I want written down on paper and put it in the sleeve.
Then I use different colored sleeves to indicate what's an at-will, encounter, daily etc ability. Then once the card is used up, it goes to a "graveyard" pile just like in MTG.
But your way is definitely cool as well.
There is a free and great program called Combat Manager. I use it every session.
Hey Matt, I'm a bit curious about your Pathfinder app on your tablet, can you share them with us?
I've added links to the apps in the description of this video. I believe they're also both available for Android.
It sounds like the tables you run are treated to great game experiences. I'm just getting into RPGs but some day I'll take a turn as DM and refer to folks like you for advise.