Community

1. Miniatures and terrain items
2. Effect/condition markers needed for the encounter. Like many groups, I track effects/conditions using either colored modeling clay (from a craft store) and/or colored hairbands (i.e. small colored bands about 1/2" in size that can often be found in the hair-care aisle... they look like small rubber bands) placed directly on the miniature.
3. Magic items: printouts can be made via Character Builder of magic items that will be found as treasure after the encounters. Items that are to be handed out at the end of the adventure are placed in the last encounter bag. Note: item card printouts can be made in Character Builder by creating a character with no stats/powers and just printing out the item card page(s). Check the ‘Show Normal Items’ checkbox to show rituals and scrolls.
4. Monster Stats: I make an an extra printout of the monster stats from the adventure and write-in notes for average damage, pre-rolled initiatives, and (next to each status-effect producing power) what color marker to use. During the game I also use the page to track HP.
5. Story Reward cards in the last encounter bag. btw: I've seen players write their XP/GP/Magic item for the adventure directly on their story reward card.
6. Prop cards: for non-combat encounters I often make a card for important NPC’s: cut/pasting the relevant text/rules (rewording it for 1st person dialogue if needed) then finding a suitable picture and pasting it above the text (upside-down, so I can fold it over and hang it from my DM screen)

Mar 8, 2010 -- 10:03PM, Alphastream1 wrote:

I have been increasingly trying to bring some sort of 3-D terrain, especially to show height. This can be pillars and boxes, or it can be showing that an altar/dais is raised, or something to use as walls. The key with walls is to do it with larger spaces so players can still easily see and move all miniatures.  A simple paperback novel under a 1" square printout can work wonders to give the encounter better feel. The new tile set is not bad. Adding some crates and pillars can break up a boring room. You just want to be careful that it doesn't change the encounter.

The really trivial way to add some 3-D texture is 1" wooden blocks -- you can get 'em at craft stores, a few bucks for 20 or so. I got this trick from the Boston Pandemonium crew. They work very well with Dungeon Tiles; you can make balconies, raised areas, use a long tile to make a ramp upwards, etc. 

Mar 9, 2010 -- 3:33AM, Thanlis wrote:

The really trivial way to add some 3-D texture is 1" wooden blocks -- you can get 'em at craft stores, a few bucks for 20 or so. I got this trick from the Boston Pandemonium crew. They work very well with Dungeon Tiles; you can make balconies, raised areas, use a long tile to make a ramp upwards, etc. 

I use those as well. They work well. You can also paint them (surprisingly easy) to look like crates. I keep a pack of the 1" blocks for height, the smaller blocks for crates (painted), and they also have some spools that work as columns (I keep meaning to paint these...). Newbie DM has a nice post and then a video on elevated areas. He has some nice ideas on other tools and approaches as well. There are places you can buy 3D terrain, if you don't mind the paper look. You might want to start with the free WotC stuff and see how it feels for you.

I also use AoE templates, which help resolve questions of what is in and out and are great for zones. I make two of each small AoE, then one of the largest two sizes. I have a tutorial here. It is very low cost. I also have a tutorial on easy basing techniques... basing can be really cool to give a snow or desert adventure a more realistic feel. You can get the basing for an adventure done while watching a TV show. (I am not a great mini painter by any means... basing is much easier).

Sly Flourish has a nice recent blog on making a glowing portal. He has some other really nice posts and his twitter feed is one of the few that is genuinely useful and thought provoking 90% of the time.

The LFR Wiki is really useful as a means to learning more about dieties. Format/size prevents most authors from including a lot of information on deities, locations, and history. A few searches on the wiki can really flesh out an adventure. If you have questions, the Realms Lore forums has some kind and smart folks.

I also tend to consult the region's page in the FRCG and FRPG if I have time. It is amazing how often a player has very little knowledge of a region, especially ones as iconically different as Akanul and East Rift. It is even more amazing that the adventures often fail to describe the region enough to register with the players. If you have the pdfs or a scanner you can print out the page before the game and have it as a handout for players. This is what led me to push for having an appendix on Elturgard for all the SPEC2-1s. (I'm also a fan of printing out my region's page for each of my PCs and having it in my folder for that PC. That way, I always know what I should know if I end up in that region). I have given away my sheets three times when a player with a PC from that region asks for it.

I'm on a roll, so I'll keep spouting off ideas. I've used costumes to good effects. I used to run the Geoff region's dwarven mods a lot and I had three fake beards. I would practically force that any dwarf at the table wear a beard, at least when speaking IC. I would then take any left over (each is a different color) and switch between them when speaking as an NPC. The result is very humorous and memorable. A tiny costume prop, even a hat or a scarf, can really draw players in and help them RP more.

Table tents for players can really help RP. You can bring some card stock and offer them to players. As a DM, I will use your PC's name if it is easily visible on a tent, but probably won't remember it otherwise.

Condition cards are great for new players. They aren't so useful for experts, as they largely know them by heart. You can have a list of the conditions on a single reference sheet and be fine with expert players. Condition cards were a DM reward, but there are many on the net (including on Newbie DM's site... including errata).

I bring extra RPGA reward cards for new H1 players. The H1 mods are pretty challenging these days, so they work fine and get new players interested in being part of the online community. You can print a pdf so that multiple pages are on one page, printing 8 or so cards to a page. I aim for barely legible, as I know the text anyway and the small size slips into my backpack easily.

I imagine this can all sound like a lot of work. As a DM, I try to find an approach that reflects the type of game I want to run and the amount of time I am willing to spend. I then take on periodic small but easy projects to improve that (such as painting up those pillars). Also, when I prep an adventure I try to think through 1-2 things I could do to make the adventure more memorable. Sometimes it is extra time on the combat tactics and making some notes. Sometimes it is fleshing out an NPC or skill challenge. Sometimes it is a terrain idea or prop.

Hats off to Matt, both for starting the thread and his techniques. He has some really cool DM prep techniques. (I need to get out to Rivals and have you as a DM...)

Mar 8, 2010 -- 4:24PM, mvincent wrote:

Reward cards (in the last encounter bag). btw: I've seen players write their XP/GP/Magic item for the adventure directly on their reward card.

It sounds like you're actually talking about the "story award" certs.  When I see "reward card", I think "Player Reward card".

To build on some of the excellent suggestions already offered in this thread:

- If I have a chance to, I'll create a separate card or sheet with the treasure summary (XP, GP, and bundles), and make several copies to hand to the players during the wrap-up, so that everyone can clearly see their options. (Stole this one shamelessly from Michael Hebert.)

- Table tents with the names of key NPCs.  I use a DM screen, and hang the tent on the screen while the PCs are speaking with that NPC. It saves me having to spell the NPC's name to those players who take notes.  (Stole this one shamelessly from Suzanne Wills, who's always asking me to spell NPC names anyway!)

Mar 9, 2010 -- 11:30AM, mvincent wrote:

Although I now prefer 2-D maps (for portability) some 3-D terrain I've previously had luck with includes:
- Worldworks

I like Worldworks stuff a lot. Also of note:

• Dave Graffam Models (a little small-feeling, more scenery than play space, mostly buildings)
• Fat Dragon Games (easier to build than the Worldworks stuff, somewhat easier on the toner)