Continuing my posts about my Dungeon Master binder, I'll start with the first section: "Combat." The section could just as easily be labeled "Rules," but, for me, it's the combat stuff I need to have at the ready.
Next, I have my critical hit and miss tables, namely “Great Hits & Terrible Misses” from Crusader Journal #7by Jeffrey P. Talanian (who now has his own excellent RPG, Hyperborea). While made for C&C, they would work fine with any D&D-style system.
Then I have my cheat sheets. This includeshomemade sheets that I made using Marq (Canva would also work well). Obviously, good ol' Word or Google Docs would probably be fine, but Marq made it easier to rearrange tables, etc.
I also have the official Castles & Crusades table sheets that came with the Reforged Kickstarter.
It's been a while. Time to come back out of the shadows for a it.
Let's chat about a quintessential part of the DM's toolbox - the Dungeon Master binder. For other DM kit stuff, see my other posts about my Dungeon Tool Kit. I said that Part 6 was the final... but I lied.
If you don't get this reference, we can't be friends.
Now, if you're one of my eight fans out there, you might be saying, "Wait, Double D, didn't you already write about a DM notebook (Rocketbook)?" And I would say, "Nay, my dear plebeian. That notebook serves a different function: namely prep notes and in-game notes." A DM binder is a storehouse of useful materials meant for use at the table.
I can't believe I found an image that explains that there are different types of tables.
After a lot of trial and error, I've whittled my binder's contents down to four key sections.
Combat: Handy rule reference sheets, mainly for combat.
NPCs: NPC resources, such as summaries of frequently encountered NPCs and tables for working up NPCs on the fly.
Encounters: Random encounter tables, short encounter write-ups, and ready to go monster stats.
Treasure - Treasure tables for cool loot and such. These are things you don't find in your Game Master guide of choice.
I will detail what I have in each of these sections in upcoming posts. To start, I'm going to focus on the actual physical binder that I use.
So let's get into it.
My current binder of choice is this expandable binder. I'm assuming that a lot of my fellow gamers are office supply nerds like me (and if I'm wrong, don't shatter my dreams). As such, you'll appreciate this.
Here is the pre-nerdified Amazon photo.
Here is the post nerdified version in action.
Quick note: I found the cool "Hack n' Slash" graphic from Reddit and it was made by CastleGrief. This dude needs to start making shirts and stickers.
Okay. So why this binder? Well, because it's expandable. I apparently have a thing for things that grow in size. It isn't overly bulky like a traditional hardback binder, but isn't limp like a soft binder (insert joke about DD liking it hard here).
Well, here we are - the final post in my Dungeon Master Kit series! (Other posts: part 1, part 2, part 3, part 4, and part 5.) This will one will focus on how I cart around my materials. Obviously, there is the good ol' backpack, but, again, I'm a Grade A Nerd and need MORE.
There are lot of cool deluxe bags these days, but they're are pricey. "Cases" in point (get it?): example 1, example 2, example 3, and example 4.
Since I couldn't find a bag my speed and in my price range, I went with something else: the Quik Cart. Sure, it's a "seen on Shark Tank" product, but it is handy. Plenty of room for my loot.
Here it is in action. As you can see, I can fit a good big of materials.
I bought both the Regular and the Sport model, and kept the Sport one. The other one was too big. Here's a comparison, with a voiceover by my lovely wife.
All righty, a quick and dirty post (just how your mom likes it) for my Dungeon Master Kit series (part 1, part 2, part 3, and part 4). Warning: copious phallic jokes within.
I'm running a Castles & Crusades sandbox game in the Haunted Highlands. I love having a big physical map for the players and me to gaze at. There is something frickin' cool about a good fantasy map.
It's aHaunted Highlands hex map made by Darlene, who did the original Greyhawk map. I bought the PDF from the Troll Lords site and had it printed at Staples. (It doesn't seem they have it available at their updated storefront.) Since I can reprint it, I have no problem with us writing on it and making it our own.
What I present.
What my players see.
Well, it's kind of a pain to cart around without getting mangled, so being the top-grade nerd that I am, I bought a map case for it from Amazon. It was cheap and has been indeed handy. It's expandable too, which is nice.
Finally, the Dungeoneering Dad has come back to his Dungeon Master Kit series (part 1, part 2, and part 3).
Why PDFs?
As much as I love the usefulness, lack of eye strain, and, dare I say it, the beauty of hard copy books, I've found myself using PDF copies of RPGs more and more. They take up less space (duh), support smaller publishers, and are typically cheaper. As of now, I have an online library of 693 items at DriveThruRPG (...not gonna lie, that's a bit embarrassing).
An actual gamer using a tablet in sheer ecstasy.
Why a Tablet?
less to cart around
access to a large library of PDFs
can search books electronically
feel like you're from the future
Why a Fire Tablet?
Rich Corinthian leather case.
Look, straight up, if you can afford an iPad, the Fire tablet can't compete. However, if you're budget-minded, I recommend the Fire. (It was known as the "Kindle Fire," but they seem to have dropped the "Kindle" part.) As I've mentioned a few times in ages past (linky link and linky link), I use a Fire for my RPG PDFs.
How to Make Your Fire More Useful and Super-Duper Cool!
My DriveThruRPG library... behold and tremble.
Since a Fire isn't a typical Android tablet, you can't typically use it like a normal tablet. However, you can pretty easily side-load the Google Play Store and then, bingo, you can install a lot more apps including, the DriveThruRPG Library app, a variety of PDF readers, etc.
Here is a great "How to Geek" article detailing how to get the Google Play Store: link
Once you do that, you can use a variety of nice apps to organize your library, although I'm starting to use the DriveThruRPG Library appitself more and more. If you used the SD Cardmethod above, you can access the PDFs via a variety of PDF readers.
All righty... back at it here with part of 3 of my gripping Dungeon Master Kit series (part 1 and part 2).
I have a problem... I own *a lot* of Dungeon Master screens. I've been on the quest for the perfect one... never resting... never ceasing... until NOW.
It's excellent. You can get it at NTSD Gaming (amongst other cool stuff).
It's made of vegan leather (WTF is that you may ask? It's a material made of polyurethane and polyvinyl chloride). It looks great and does indeed feel a lot like actual leather.
It folds up nicely with a strap for extra sassiness.
I opted for a few customizations. I figure this will be the last DM Screen I'll ever buy (God willing). I opted for:
In addition to looking great, it has great functionality. It's magnetic, so it came with:
Cool d20 magnets to attach my own inserts. I made my screen inserts via Marq (a great free service).
Related note: While I've found lots of screens with cool art, they never seem to have exactly what I want. A custom screen is definitely the way to go.
Adorable... like your mom.
Magnetic initiative trackers that afix right to the screen.
My dice are totally not posing.
Initiative trackers... "Evil" is what I use for any opponent.
What the players see (well, this and my roguishly handsome visage).
Two magnetic white boards (one with a grid and one without).
Whiteboards aplenty.
I also splurged for other goodies.
foldable dice tower that magnetically attaches to the screen.
Works pretty well, despite what my players think. I can't help that I roll 20s, bitches.
There were some other goodies, too, like magnetic spell cards and PC ards.
Spell cards. The PC cards are, sadly, MIA at the moment.
This was an awesome purchase. I love it and highly recommend.
However, if you want a more budget friendly customizable screen, there are options here: link
Prior to finding the Kickstarter, I was on the verge of making my own screen. Here are some great ideas on how to do that. The DIYer in me still finds these options appealing.
I'm picking back up my series on my Dungeon Master Kit (part 1 being here: link). (Technically, I'm a Castle Keeper these days, but let's not trifle.)
As much as electronic tools are great, I still like using analog tools as much as I can. However, I'm not as organized with pen and paper. Notebooks, graph paper, etc... I'd grab whichever paper was closest. My notes would get scattered. This was especially the case when running one-shots that then later got resurrected into something more episodic.
My latest hotness is using a Rocketbook. I've had the original one for a few years, but never made much use of it (for gaming or otherwise). Once I splurged for the executive-sized Pro (7 inch x 9 inch), that all changed. This size is perfect. I really like that it's a hardcover. It's freaking great. Most importantly - it keeps me organized!
Player names redacted to protect the reproachable
A Rocketbook uses special paper on which you can write, clean, and rewrite. (You need to use particular Pilot Fixion pens.) At the bottom of each page is a "destination" icon. You place an "X" through that icon, and then use the Rocketbook app to scan the page.
"X" on the bell marks the spot
In the app, you associate each icon with a particular storage destination/folder (Google Drive, Dropbox, iCloud, an email address, etc.). You can get as granular as you'd like (e.g., direct to a particular subfolder in Google Drive).
Rocketbook destinations aplenty
Destinations in the app
Once you're good with the page being stored as you want it, you wipe the paper clean with a damp rag, let it dry, and bang, Bob's your uncle, you can reuse the page.
I have a separate Google Drive destination for my C&C campaign, a Through Sunken Lands episodic "campaign" (i.e., periodic, loosely connected one-shot games), a personal journal (which I really should use more), and one for general gaming notes.
The Pro model lets you swap out different insert Page Packs. For example, you can get one already set up like a planner. There is special D&D Page Pack that I did splurge for (because it was on sale). It has pre-set pages for campaign notes, PCs, NPCs, random tables that you develop, etc. I probably would not get it again (well, maybe I would at the sale price), but you really don't need it. Obviously, a lot of the pages are D&D-specific. It's not horrible, but you can also design your own permanent pages for any Rocketbook with a Sharpie. If you're really curious about the D&D Page Pack, there is good review here (and embedded below): link
Here are a few assorted shots of my Rocketbook for good measure.
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