Reduce your prep time and run amazing 5e and PF2e games with Lair Magazine and our Foundry modules! www.patreon.com/thedmlair Grab them on the DM Lair Store, too: thedmlair.com/
Due to time constraints and not being overly creative when it comes to political intrigue, published adventures are a god-send to me. I tweak them as I see fit and it works very well for me.
I kinda do both. I like to run modules, but I will change up whatever I need to tailor for whoever my players are. Plus I like to create a couple of homebrew quests with rewards that I feel my players will need. Newer players I run those starting modules and do some off book things. When I find a group that can successfully play through a campaign. Then I create a homebrew just for them.
I always need a deck of standard playing cards while running my rpg games! I use them for wilderness travel, placing a bunch of face down cards in front of the players and letting them choose their path. My players love the drama of flipping the chosen card over. Spades will be monster encounters, clubs obstacles, etc.. with the rank of the card indicating the difficulty. Similarly, during rest periods the sentry must draw a card while on watch to see if anything of note happens. I will also use the cards if they enter an area I haven’t prepped. I have general archetypes for all 52 cards so can draw random cards to generate townsfolk such as a street urchin (2 of diamonds) or a barbarian (jack of clubs) etc.. Indispensable for me!
@@flintm6345Search online for One Page Solo Engine, which was the original toolkit I based it on. Although it is meant for solo play without a GM, it can be used by GM’s to assist with story design during prep as well as the points I listed earlier at the table.
I promise, get a magnetic whiteboard Make named magnets of your players Number the board down one side I have just fixed initiative for you. Move the magnets where they should be, write the enemies in after. The speed at which you will jump into combat is dependent then upon your monsters initiative - which you can preroll (within reason)
The dry erase boards blew my mind. Such a simple idea that never crossed my mind to use to track hit points during combat. I've always used a small note pad but I waste a lot of paper. I saw those boards and suddenly felt like an idiot for not thinking of it on my own.
I always use a cheap drawing tablet for children. (just 10 bucks or something). You can just use it to write the encounters down and the Hitpoints. There is even a cool little lock option on the backside so you don't accidently erase the whole thing. (the front button is for erasure). But still after locking it, you can write, so it's a nice tool to have. Of the more permanent stuff I do write down in a paper notebook.
Those condition rings are great I like how you can use a dry erase marker to make custom conditions on the blank side. I like the little tour around the game and filming area.
Unfortunately the solution is often new players(sort of sarcasm). I'd fall apart if my players went digital and preferred it. I need the social part. And the no distractions, as a DM
Last weekend I made a dice tower out of a Mallomars box. Complete with an exit tray and cardboard ramps inside for tumbling. Learning to dm on a budget!
I was worried this video would be one that just says "you don't need anything, it's a free imagination game" like so many other videos do, but i found that you provided some great pieces of advice for new dms in this. Thank you for that
I am not an artist and don't have the time, desire, or money to paint or buy minis. I use dollar store army men and animals. I added some colored paint to make it easier to distinguish. Then I made an initiative screen with magnetic strip down it. Players have a Popsicle stick with their names and monsters get one with red dot monster. Made a dice tower out of Popsicle sticks as well. Not that I use much of it as the moment as all my games are online.
Great video. Me? I use a version of UDT. Minis, DM screens with the magic failure rules we use. NPCs on note cards or character sheets if I'm expecting them to be combat characters. campaign notes. Dice trays. and there's a glass white board behind me if I need to draw a quick map. lots of dice, of course. And we game in the same room where I paint and display minis and terrain. Even though I do it from time to time--I consider it a failure when I have to look something up in a book.
For condition markers we use a rainbow of those plastic "safety assurance seals" from various beverages. Gatorade has a lot of colors. We use red for bleeding, blue is often visible auras, and the other colors get assigned as needed. We just write what each color means on the battle mat. - We have decades of accumulated minis, but when we started it was random board game pieces with names taped on them. These days, it is easy to find and print free 'standee' minis on your own paper or card stock, if you don't want to pour hundreds or thousands into miniatures.
DM screens with transparent pockets. These are much like notebook binders. Especially, for papers to put upright for the players to see on the other side.
I don't have as much gear as you do. The tackle box I deal is awesome. I will have to use that for a travel box. I usually just have a computer bag with notepads, writing utensils, a hex roll, and a pencil box of minis/chess pieces.
I have a little bag of wooden discs with numbers on them to represent enemies. Then when the DM is tracking HP they can just use a different number for each mob.
so instead of the index cards for initiative trackers, I found some cheap chalkboard signs that do the same thing, much cheaper than the specially designed initiative trackers
Why tabletop elevatored? Most would like the overhead view (dungeon maps, city maps, etc. etc.). If tabletop is elevated, you can see the minis directly in front of you but cannot see the other side of the elevatored plane. If you want to move your minis you have to stand up. Constantly standing up?
Honestly, group initiative is so much easier, simpler, and time-saving without sacrificing anything in the game. But yeah, you don't need much. I switched to C&C and to run games I mostly got their PDFs so I could create a couple of large binders to store game information needed instead of having a stack of different books to flip through when stuff comes up. I have their CK (GM) screen, a small whiteboard behind it to track monster HP, conditions, who is attacking who, turns, days, etc., where the players cannot see it. A large dice tray to the right of my screen to roll out in the open. My laptop with a bluetooth speaker to play ambient sound effects based on the area they're in. To clarify, not music but sound effects because music makes it feel fake to me. Like a film or show instead of an immersive game. I also have a whiteboard behind me to draw out the dungeon area they're in as their PCs see it because everything is run in TOTM besides that.
What a wild ride through your gear! Have you ever thought of getting into 3d printed terrain? I was a BIG fan of it (like ashamedly hiding my boxes of tiles) prior to going digital through Covid.
Two fundamental and necessary items you missed. 1) Where is you pan to fry the bacon?! and 2) A four or six pack of players is always helpful. I know, as regards number two don't be an a**hole Marcus. ; P
You do realise you need to do a separate video and show off your miniature collection properly, don't you? 😃😃😃😃 Cool video showing us your gaming gear. 😎😎😎😎
Luke, i *just* bought a 10 pack of those speed paints, im very much a beginner but i tried these and i feel like it just didnt work. do you use these as more the wash over a base color? or as the bas itself
I use speed paints as my primary paint. They work best on primed minis. I prime with black then do a highlight with light gray and white on the brightest highlight areas. I've gotten what I think are good results and I am a true novice.
Speedpaints don't paint like regular paints. Lots of RUclips how-to's might be beneficial, as well as more practice. They can't do as much as a regular paint can do, and vice versa.
Reduce your prep time and run amazing 5e and PF2e games with Lair Magazine and our Foundry modules! www.patreon.com/thedmlair
Grab them on the DM Lair Store, too: thedmlair.com/
This video game out 1 days ago how is this 5 days old??
The most superfluous thing I came to love as a GM is a dice tower to prevent players from throwing dice out of the table
I cannot imagine running a module. Crazy that it's the baseline. I started off homebrewing and I personally love it so much.
Due to time constraints and not being overly creative when it comes to political intrigue, published adventures are a god-send to me. I tweak them as I see fit and it works very well for me.
I kinda do both. I like to run modules, but I will change up whatever I need to tailor for whoever my players are. Plus I like to create a couple of homebrew quests with rewards that I feel my players will need. Newer players I run those starting modules and do some off book things. When I find a group that can successfully play through a campaign. Then I create a homebrew just for them.
Little doggie is definitely a need
I always need a deck of standard playing cards while running my rpg games! I use them for wilderness travel, placing a bunch of face down cards in front of the players and letting them choose their path. My players love the drama of flipping the chosen card over. Spades will be monster encounters, clubs obstacles, etc.. with the rank of the card indicating the difficulty. Similarly, during rest periods the sentry must draw a card while on watch to see if anything of note happens. I will also use the cards if they enter an area I haven’t prepped. I have general archetypes for all 52 cards so can draw random cards to generate townsfolk such as a street urchin (2 of diamonds) or a barbarian (jack of clubs) etc.. Indispensable for me!
Dude I LOVE this idea! Do you have notes on it or anything you'd be willing to share?
@@flintm6345Search online for One Page Solo Engine, which was the original toolkit I based it on. Although it is meant for solo play without a GM, it can be used by GM’s to assist with story design during prep as well as the points I listed earlier at the table.
Sweet. Now the real question. What path did the barbarian take?
I promise,
get a magnetic whiteboard
Make named magnets of your players
Number the board down one side
I have just fixed initiative for you.
Move the magnets where they should be, write the enemies in after.
The speed at which you will jump into combat is dependent then upon your monsters initiative - which you can preroll (within reason)
As soon as he said “big forest” I thought about burying the players.
“You meant the characters, right?”
The dry erase boards blew my mind. Such a simple idea that never crossed my mind to use to track hit points during combat. I've always used a small note pad but I waste a lot of paper. I saw those boards and suddenly felt like an idiot for not thinking of it on my own.
I always use a cheap drawing tablet for children. (just 10 bucks or something). You can just use it to write the encounters down and the Hitpoints. There is even a cool little lock option on the backside so you don't accidently erase the whole thing. (the front button is for erasure). But still after locking it, you can write, so it's a nice tool to have. Of the more permanent stuff I do write down in a paper notebook.
not expecting a video righ now, but i enjoy the surprise!
Luke, thanks for the info. This was one of the best GM "accessory" videos I've ever seen.
Those condition rings are great I like how you can use a dry erase marker to make custom conditions on the blank side. I like the little tour around the game and filming area.
always wanted to see a full vlog of your Tabletop collection. Nice :D
I'm drooling !!! Twists the knife a bit because my players won't play in person now that they tasted roll20 games :(
Unfortunately the solution is often new players(sort of sarcasm). I'd fall apart if my players went digital and preferred it. I need the social part. And the no distractions, as a DM
"Unfortunately", they're my friends and we've been playing together for 30 years and more :)
My Setup
-Session Notes/Modules
-Modules
-Music (Phone & Speaker)
-DM Screen
-Dice Tray & Dice
-Books (PHD, MM, XGE, TCE)
-Paper
-Extra Dice/Tokens (Normal Encounter Minis)
-Painted Minis (Boss Battles Only)
-Condition Rings
-Battle Mats or Battle Mat Book
-Sticky Notes. Lots of Sticky Notes
Last weekend I made a dice tower out of a Mallomars box. Complete with an exit tray and cardboard ramps inside for tumbling. Learning to dm on a budget!
I was worried this video would be one that just says "you don't need anything, it's a free imagination game" like so many other videos do, but i found that you provided some great pieces of advice for new dms in this. Thank you for that
1:07 *Strongly* disagree. Definitely need little doggies.
10:05 Do not use anything edible for map markers, unless for enemies that you will let your players eat when they defeat them.
I am not an artist and don't have the time, desire, or money to paint or buy minis. I use dollar store army men and animals. I added some colored paint to make it easier to distinguish. Then I made an initiative screen with magnetic strip down it. Players have a Popsicle stick with their names and monsters get one with red dot monster. Made a dice tower out of Popsicle sticks as well. Not that I use much of it as the moment as all my games are online.
Great video. Me? I use a version of UDT. Minis, DM screens with the magic failure rules we use. NPCs on note cards or character sheets if I'm expecting them to be combat characters. campaign notes. Dice trays. and there's a glass white board behind me if I need to draw a quick map. lots of dice, of course. And we game in the same room where I paint and display minis and terrain. Even though I do it from time to time--I consider it a failure when I have to look something up in a book.
For condition markers we use a rainbow of those plastic "safety assurance seals" from various beverages. Gatorade has a lot of colors.
We use red for bleeding, blue is often visible auras, and the other colors get assigned as needed. We just write what each color means on the battle mat.
-
We have decades of accumulated minis, but when we started it was random board game pieces with names taped on them.
These days, it is easy to find and print free 'standee' minis on your own paper or card stock, if you don't want to pour hundreds or thousands into miniatures.
I thought I was the only DM that used hourglasses - might even be the same set. Love the symphony of "oh no" that comes with their use lol
DM screens with transparent pockets. These are much like notebook binders. Especially, for papers to put upright for the players to see on the other side.
I don't have as much gear as you do. The tackle box I deal is awesome. I will have to use that for a travel box. I usually just have a computer bag with notepads, writing utensils, a hex roll, and a pencil box of minis/chess pieces.
I have a little bag of wooden discs with numbers on them to represent enemies. Then when the DM is tracking HP they can just use a different number for each mob.
For me all I " need "
1. Dice
2. Pencil
3. Papers
4. Tokens I painted
5. My phone sometimes
Before I got a big screen table, Loke battle maps was my favorite to ever use. I even still use them sometimes for certain areas
I use a DeWalt toolbox for our minis and it is a great way to store different sized minis 😁.
so, the real take from this vid.
all the information for DM tool's is simply an infomercial lead up to your LAIR magazine. got it. nicely done.
so instead of the index cards for initiative trackers, I found some cheap chalkboard signs that do the same thing, much cheaper than the specially designed initiative trackers
a tackle box is such a good idea for minis. i've been trying to find something other than a loose cardboard box to transport mine
Fun walk through! Thanks for sharing.
We use legos for miniatures. We have lots of them around anyway so it just made sense.
Why tabletop elevatored? Most would like the overhead view (dungeon maps, city maps, etc. etc.). If tabletop is elevated, you can see the minis directly in front of you but cannot see the other side of the elevatored plane. If you want to move your minis you have to stand up. Constantly standing up?
Luke
Although you have done many many good videos.
This was by far one of the most useful videos.
Honestly, group initiative is so much easier, simpler, and time-saving without sacrificing anything in the game. But yeah, you don't need much. I switched to C&C and to run games I mostly got their PDFs so I could create a couple of large binders to store game information needed instead of having a stack of different books to flip through when stuff comes up. I have their CK (GM) screen, a small whiteboard behind it to track monster HP, conditions, who is attacking who, turns, days, etc., where the players cannot see it. A large dice tray to the right of my screen to roll out in the open. My laptop with a bluetooth speaker to play ambient sound effects based on the area they're in. To clarify, not music but sound effects because music makes it feel fake to me. Like a film or show instead of an immersive game. I also have a whiteboard behind me to draw out the dungeon area they're in as their PCs see it because everything is run in TOTM besides that.
I got for my dm, 10 skulls each on their own pedestals and numbered. They are great monster markers.
What a wild ride through your gear! Have you ever thought of getting into 3d printed terrain? I was a BIG fan of it (like ashamedly hiding my boxes of tiles) prior to going digital through Covid.
Two fundamental and necessary items you missed. 1) Where is you pan to fry the bacon?! and 2) A four or six pack of players is always helpful. I know, as regards number two don't be an a**hole Marcus. ; P
A DW DRUMTHRONE ?! That is pro GM level gear !
Cool
Nice mini collection
Good advice as always. I travel to DM so that black and silver tackle box looks perfect. Can you tell me the brand or send a link please?
Where are the snack bowls? Essential.
Thank You.🙃
You do realise you need to do a separate video and show off your miniature collection properly, don't you?
😃😃😃😃
Cool video showing us your gaming gear.
😎😎😎😎
Speed paints are the best for dm's painting lots of minis
Beer and U.P Pasties. Hot pockets work if you are a Troll.
Every DM needs a silly hat.
Luke, i *just* bought a 10 pack of those speed paints, im very much a beginner but i tried these and i feel like it just didnt work. do you use these as more the wash over a base color? or as the bas itself
I use speed paints as my primary paint. They work best on primed minis. I prime with black then do a highlight with light gray and white on the brightest highlight areas. I've gotten what I think are good results and I am a true novice.
Speedpaints don't paint like regular paints. Lots of RUclips how-to's might be beneficial, as well as more practice. They can't do as much as a regular paint can do, and vice versa.
thanks :)@@TheMiniChest
Why use a riser for the board?
It gives more space on the table for your sheets/notebooks
New GMS: like Luke said -> take everything after 00:51 with a grain of salt.
The title was a bit misleading, otherwise cool stuff. I need to get a gm screen at some point
Maybe do this video with some focus. You may have had something awesome to see. But it was lost in the haze.
Need more dice :)
We just the swamp in our backyard for bad players.
Is Ana de Armas marketing to me
Cuz I'll fall for it
You were moving way to fast when filming the minis, couldn't see a thing!
Why is your dog leashed up in your house?
Liked seeing some non-D&D games and materials, shame the title did not reflect that, almos did not watch it.
Watched this whole video and I didn't see his examination of 2 hot women nor did I understand his they are essential to DMing😂😂😂
Yet another "DM essentials" video?
...cant help by see alot of product placement here...
I don't understand... Where do you keep your players when your not playing? No dungeon? 😂
lol i thought it was a fat cat not a dog!
oh god ive never been this early before what do i say? uh h... hi mom! no shoot
🤣
shaky cam, out of focus, barf. Comment for the tube.
Clickbait