Top 10 Accessories for DMs | Nerd Immersion 

I made a dial that keeps track of time on a 24 hour scale. It clips to my DM screen and the side facing me has the actual time while the one facing my players has a picture of the sky (blue for day and black with stars for night.) It beats the old days when players would ask me what time of day it is and we'd have to deliberate over how much time had passed since they last asked. Say it's 3 pm. Tick 2 hours for traveling to town, 20 minutes for buying a few sundries at the market, an hour for dinner at the inn, 40 minutes playing cards with that mysterious hooded figure in the corner, and 8 hours for a long rest. They can look at their side they see the night sky display and know roughly what time it is. If someone pulls out their pocket watch (or has the Keen Mind feat) and asks me what time it is, I know at a glance that it's 6 am. Easy peasy!

My DM was big into weight and arrow counting, so I found toothpicks a handy visual aid to know how many arrows I had used.

1:00 Game mats 4:22 "Minis" 8:10 GM Screen 11:35 Spell Templates 14:15 Hourglass 17:40 Condition Trackers 22:45 Whiteboard 24:05 Initiative Tracker 29:35 Good Notebook 35:30 Good Pen

That wrapping paper idea at 2:30 is a big brain move!

My first DM was an electrician, and he used various sizes of plastic wire connectors to represent monsters. He also had little numbers taped onto them to keep track of which was which. They come in many sizes, colors, and shapes, and are the perfect scale for D&D minis. And they're quite durable.

Kudos on mentioning the wrapping paper hack. I've been doing that for many, many years. This last Christmas, I actually found done that had a hex pattern as the artwork (looks like chicken wire), so hex one side and square on the other. I now have hundreds of yards of disposable battle mat -- all bought uber cheap on clearance!

Pipe cleaners have been the mvp in my pathfinder game. They’re so good for marking spells/areas of effect. I knew that my group was really into our game of pathfinder on the day that I noticed that every single player had a special notebook just for that game, and that everyone was taking notes. For that game I play an inquisitor, so I have a small notebook that looks like a pocket prayer book. I also specifically have a fountain pen I use for that game with ink that matches my character’s color scheme. Now they also sell notebooks designed for tracking campaigns. I’ve used several of them and they’re great. Some of them are even customizable.

Ted out here teaching us how to be DMs without spending more than $50

For our minis we use LEGO figures. They are customizable so new equipment can be added or taken off and they can be cheap or expensive. Custom parts aren’t that expensive either.

We use multi-colored elastic hairbands (ponytail holders) for condition markers. I give each player a bag with an assortment of hairbands and a little notecard with a legend for the different colors. They're cheap--pack of 70 runs maybe $5 at your favorite discount store. If they break or get lost or my cat decides to grab one to play with, they're cheap to replace. They're also stretchy, lightweight, and fit easily around minis.

My addition to the notebook idea: some people like me make notoriously bad "first drafts" or order stuff incorrectly/don't leave enough pages for some parts. Get a binder-style notebook/journal, or one of those ringed ones, so you can remove, add, and reorder pages without trouble.

Definitely going to use some of these. One thing i do is i have a little palm clicker. Like... For training pets? And when the players trigger a trap i click it, then describe what happens. After a couple of traps that way, when that click happens all cross talk ends, all eyes turn to you, and you have full undivided attention.

An ERASABLE pen, preferably in lots of different colours. I can keep my notebook neat AND change my mind AND/OR add things in later (especially if I've modified an NPC after it's met the players). Also scrabble tiles are great for monsters - match the letters to the monster, especially in mixed combat, flip them when they die (thus the corpse is marked), and can be stacked if the foes are tiny.

Tealights for Concentration is a great idea. I'm going to have to give that a shot in my next session, because I'm always forgetting to have my casters roll, even with the little milk-cap rings around the miniatures.

I was a fiction writer for 14 years before I was a DM and honestly the notebook and pen thing is SO important to me. Those Pilot G-2’s are my absolute favorite too. The thinner the better. (But if you still wanna be a pretentious stereotype, I like taping feathers to my pen during sessions because my players stare at me like I’m crazy)

I was hoping that the video would be more "out there" or unorthidox, but that could be just becasue I've consumed so much dnd content that I've heard all of these before. Except the pen thing. That threw me for a loop but I totally get it. Makes me want to get some good pens. 1. Lighting. If you have a low-hanging light fixture in the room you play in or a spare lamp, cover it with a coloured plastic bag or some other coloured transparent material to adjust the mood at key moments. 2. Music. Using a soundboard like syrinscape or just a Bluetooth speaker and a good playlist. I'm on my DM about this a lot whenever there's no ambient music or sound playing. Personally, a good battle song or thematic music for a settlement or dungeon really goes a long way to set the mood. 3. Props and handouts. Nothing gets players more giddy and invested than having something physical to hold as a representation of a map, clue, or even a magic item card/prop to remind them that they have it. Added to this are inspiration tokens- having that little something to remind them they have it goes a long way.

I can get behind the use what you got for minis. When i first got into d&d we used lego men as our minis

My top 10 would Go something like: 10: good notes and picture references. Don't mind if it comes in a phone, in a laptop or in a note book or DM screen, it helps players visualize and you keep track of everything. 9: a good map. Not like a battle map but a orientative map of the city they are and the world. I usually make the world map with Photoshop, but I use real Google Maps maps for towns and cities. 8: a battle map. With a grid. I usually use hexagon grids but yea, just that. 7: minis or something to replace them. I usually use chess or chess-like games pieces 6: also traquers. U usually use color coded elastic rings (I mean, it's not called a elastic ring but I don't know the word in English XD. ) 5: snacks and a beer. Yea, don't look at me like that. I play d&d with my friends because we like it and we can see each other at least once a week. I think having fun and sharing a beer is important 4: some audio device and a f**king good tracklist. Music, ambiental, animal sounds... Whatever you need to set your game's mood. 3: a panic button. When you are playing with people that you don't fully know and running a harsh game with a cruel reality where bad guys are really bad and they torture, kill villagers without looking their age, or worse, you need something to make sure everybody can stop a description that makes them feel bad or sick. We usually use a red fluffy ball in the center of the table but whatever you can use. 2: sticky colored notes. To mark pages, to track temporal buffs or debuffs in a players sheet without changing it, for anotations on both sides of the master screen... My thoughts are chaos so my notes to, I guess. 1: a bowl of something to roll the dice without going to the floor. Please, it really grind my gears, don't let the poor dices go to the floor, roll them with love.

A pen and good notebooks are absolutely key for me too. If I'm sitting down writing out NPCs, lore, world-building, and session planning I absolutely need a good notebook and pen/pencil while I'm doing that. So you definitely aren't alone. My current favorite pens are Pilot Frixion because it's erasable, and the Pilot precise V5 because it writes soooo smooth. I also think a great accessory is music. I make Spotify playlists for exploration, combat, suspense, scary moments, etc. It really helps set the mood at the table.

As far as notebooks go, I have found the best luck with a three ring binder and a three hole punch. I also use some dividers to keep things sorted. It's dirt cheap to refill, you can clear out old stuff easily, but best of all, printing out notes or references is great to just punch a place in where it applies. I do this as a player and a DM, and it makes it so easy to keep all the relevant information right where I need it. The only real trouble is that is not the most portable, but it's no worse than having a bunch of notebooks and rule books anyway.

I LOVE the candy bad-guy mini idea. I think I'd actually prefer that over the all out expensive painted minis.

Before the internet, I used a book called "Scenic Wonders of the World" to show terrain & natural features.

A clock. Not a cell phone (because that can be a distraction), but a timepiece of some form in order to keep track of "the real time" so you can actually remember to take breaks and pace your game session better. my wife got me a pocketw atch when we got married, and it is perfect for knowing what time it is while we play.

The hourglass substitute we had at my table was for either the DM to roll die behind the screen or ask a random player to make a check. There wasn't even something that was going to happen most of the time, but it kept the players moving and on their toes.

Index cards - I mainly use them for creature stats or my random encounters table. Doing this made the creatures I planned on using more accessible, which is especially great because I could literally just hand the card to my co-dm and take a minute break to recollect myself. I’m considering to make some npc follower cards this way too. Now if only binder sheet index card holders were common materials I could find in my local Target. 😅

Microsoft OneNote Treasure/loot cards for when the party finds stuff Hot tea w/ honey DM inspiration cards Markers for battle map Post it notes

Thoroughly enjoyed this video. Not gonna narrow down a top 10, but a couple of things I really like having as a DM: A side table: where I keep my notes, books I need handy, my monster tokens, DM screen, etc. Until recently, I rolled my dice on it, but have since invested in a dice tray with somewhat high walls. Not having the barrier between me and my battlemaps/players makes for a much smoother, more connected gameplay experience. Condition trackers: Like for concentration, but for all of the conditions as well. Makes life a bit easier. Personally, I ordered a couple packs of rings on Etsy (I think?), and concentration was included in the set.

What I do for DM screens is a pair of large 3-ring binders (2 inch or bigger stand up on their own best) with artwork in the outside plastic sleeves, that I can change depending on the campaign. Then inside I have more clear sleeves holding all the tables, encounter info, handouts, etc that I need, so I can easily flip through, and also swap out the contents as needed. Works like a charm and has since I was a broke college student back in the 2e days.

For Initiative Tracker i really like having cards with each characters name on it in a card sleeve. My players keep the cards on them and when a fight breaks out i tell them to roll they roll and write it on the card then pass them to be and i have cards with my mobs on them. When i get all the cards i sort them and just flip the top card and that's whos turn it is.

Im the same with the pens and notebooks! =) I do use fountainpens (there are those that doesnt scratch =)), I have many of them but can recomend Pilot Metropolitan (low price but still good) or the TWSBI GO, also a good beginner pen that holds much ink. I also love my Rotring pens (ballpoints and mechanical pencils) but a nice cheap workhorse like a Pilot G2 works just fine. My favourite notebooks is Moleskin, Rhodia and Leuchtturm. And I also always have a Field Notebook in my back pocket for writing down ideas on the run. There is few things that gets me writing rpg material as when opening a new notebook, writing with a nice pen and with some inspirational music in the background.

I use small poker chips as enemy tokens when I don't have the exact mini I want, and I write initiative on a dry erase board inside the lid of my dice box. I've also got index cards with the character stats (ac, hp, passive perception etc) as well as their ideals, bonds and flaws.

Instead of using minis a much cheaper alternative is to get the NPC Codex Pawns from Paizo. It will set you back like 30-40$ and you have all the "minis" you could want for NPCs and PCs, which, let's face it, is all you really need. I use the actual pawns for important npcs or for the PCs (super important to be able to tell them apart) and the pawn bases (little black plastic things) for general monsters. You can also find bases that are different colors so you can represent different types of monsters. DONE, save thousands on minis xD.

Use a spiral notebook for session notes, and then you can rewrite them or type them. The basic stuff gets digitized, and the meaningful stuff gets written down in a nice notebook, or vice versa.

We have saved about 5 or 6 of those small triangular plastic pieces that prop up the inside of the pizzabox. They work great for a large enemy, or object. Plus you can mark one corner of the triangle to keep track of their orientation. Also ended up using 3 to show a player 30 feet in the air in a goblin net trap

For initiative and conditions, I've found the magnetic dry/wet erase tracker as a really useful thing for it. Lets me keep up with a lot of things at the same time with minimum clutter. For notebooks and pens, I've been using one of the portfolios to hold just pads of paper with a couple pockets for papers. It also has a slot for storing a pen or pencil. I also tend to prefer mechanical pencils over pens.

Pathfinder Pawns are nice. They are relatively cheap and easy to store.

I ran accord this video thinking I wanted to get back into D&D. I learned it in 1978 when it first came out. It’s the boomer in me but the non-computer version of D&D is called pen and a paper version for a reason. I think you’re spot on that the pen and paper you use are the most important decision you’ll make. Back in the day we didn’t have mats and used graph paper. I had access to the really fine graphing paper that was in 5 squares to an inch or more. I also picked up the hobby of calligraphy from my mom, and am left handed. Left handed people tend to be picky about their writing ✍️ implements. I use fountain pens, gels, low viscosity roller balls, and mechanical pencils. I will point out that Japanese writing paper, some of which is gridded, is an entire step above. IMO it’s better than Moleskine. The impetus to get back into D&D was due to resent health issues I’ve had. Almost two years ago I had a staph infection and this past October I was diagnosed with lupus. So I’ll go on disability. I am presently training myself to write again. Thanks for the motivation.

I use a projector mounted to a piece of electrical conduit which is in turn mounted to a 2x4. It's a short throw projector so it only has to sit about 3 feet above the table to give me a 24x36 inch map. It makes it easy to switch maps or scroll around a very large map. We don't use an initiative tracker because we roll initiative each round. Every one keeps track of their own initiative and we count down. If you missed your initiative then it's on you. So if you missed your turn then you can go once the current player/creatures turn is over.

When you said a good pen is your number one I *immediately* subscribed.

Geezer here.... Spent a while away from the hobby... I realize things change..... But it is really great to hear as then, now to... Good writing gear is worth a hoard indeed. Game on

The best part about 1 and 2 is that they represent his each DM needs their own thing to “get into the groove” or stay organized on game night

I totally agree with your No. 1 and 2 - although it is the other way around for me. (But then again I am a stationery addict and I enjoy bookbinding...) As a still rather unexperienced DM (startet a campaign in March 2020) I'm currently experimenting with what I really need on and around my DM Screen. Two ideas I'm quite happy with that might be interesting for others as well: The bookmark for my notebook is a piece of plastic covered cardboard that I covered in many strips of Washitape with names for different species on it. That way I have them nearby and can easily peel a name off and add it to the right spot in my notebook where they encountered the NPC. It is also refillable this way :D I use index cards for initiative tracking and add coloured paperclips on there for tracking conditions and concentration. I also have the most important info on them for my PCs, like AC, HP and the rage rules that I (and the barberian) tend to forget parts of.

A company called blueline has a fantastic line of journals/notebooks called miraclebind that you can probably find at Staples or Walmart. Great product for D&D. If you can find some on sale, I recommend them. Nice hardcover notebooks, easily indexed, with movable pages! (including grid pages) This is the kicker for me. Finish a page of notes on tavern encounters, grab the page and insert it into the village/town section of my notes. Keeps everything linear & logical.

For concentration, I highly recoomend a coin (preferably one with stamping visible from decent distance), or another double sided token (playing card, double-sided poker chip, etc.) One side is default, and the other means you succeeded on a check already, it makes catching errors way easier. Also, on a somewhat related note - separate Bane/Bless/Bardic Inspiration dice, that are laid before the player who has them, make for excellent reminder :P

This actually helped a lot, I never even thought of using a dry erase board

Another one for me is a pack of decent pencils, preferably ones with the eraser on the other end. These are more for the players to use on their character sheets. Personally I don't like pens used on character sheets as things change on them all the time, it's easier to just rub out the old info and pencil in the new stuff. Unless you're using some sort of online sheet (D&DBeyond for example). Also some scrap paper so the players can jot down notes during the game.

I LOVE the tea lights for Concentration idea. I’ve recently become an “Initiative Tree” convert, where you have a vertical stand with plastic clips that can spin around, then you use tiny flash cards to write the character names and turn them around at the end of their turns.

I use those flat glass marbles for groups of creatures. I've got several colors. Also agree that you have to have a good pen and notebook.

As a new DM who has been running my game for 4 months now. I have to agree with your list. Albeit notebook is my #1 and writing tools #2. Never know when something IRL grabs your attention you want to add it in to your story or even names coming at randomness.

My daughter and I love using minis. I don't have lots of time to paint actual minis, so we like to use LEGO minifgures as they have armor and weapons (Ninjao, Starwars, etc.). I also like to use Sculpy clay minis my daughter makes. It just adds some visual fun to the game.

I know this video is like over a year old but I'm going to throw my recommendations in for notebooks, pens, and pencils since I come from the bullet journalling/planner community Walmart has the EXCEED notebooks, which are all under $15 each, have great paper(designed with a notebook nut to be fountain pen friendly) and comes in pocket, 8x5, and 8x11 size. I have a bunch of them because you can get lined or dot grid and they're great for basically everything. They should be pretty easy to get ahold of just about anywhere if you're in the United states. For pens I really like japanese fine tips, like the Uni-ball Signo RT is great, I got a bundle of those in 0.38, there's also Muji pens, which come in 0.5 and 0.38 tips. One of the common ones you can find in a fine tip are Pilot G-2 pens, I also really like the Pentel Energel pen, and I have a pack of 0.5 needle tip refills to put in metal bodies. For pencils-- I really love drafting pencils, they're great mechanical pencils and you can get different hardnesses of leads--so I have a couple of the Pentel p205's in just like, standard black and green, and a Pentel Kerry that holds 0.5 leads. with B or 2B lead they make a nice, dark line and you're likely already carrying erasers for character sheets and players to use. For wood-cased pencils--which I carry in my purse daily--I actually have a brass pencil sharpener keychain off ebay or amazon, I forget which, it was like $5 and I'll just have to replace the blade when it's time for a new one--but wood cased pencils, you can get bundles of Apsara Platinums or Nataraj 621's off ebay, Musgrave Pencils is also a company that does american-made pencils that I absolutely love, and I use pentel pencil cap erasers on most of my pencils just so I have extra eraser, always. Dixon Ticonderogas or USA Gold pencils are decent in a pinch, and then if you're looking for spare sharpeners the Apsara Long Points are cheap to get off ebay in packs of like 20. I like the tactile response of wood-cased pencils and they're so cheap I don't mind giving them away to people to keep, especially if they're not stationery people like me and don't have a ton of pencils(mechanical or otherwise) kicking around the house.

As a self described pen nerd, I fully agree with your #1. I gotta have my bold pilot g-2 or a nice uniball for handwriting and a few assorted art pens for sketches and charts.

Starburst works great you can put numbers on the wrapper to help track the mook and the colors for different monsters on the board. Bonus you Eat what you Kill as you said

For both PCs and DMs: Bookmarks - I prefer metal - to mark relevant pages in books (monsters, spells, etc) for quick reference Rolling Tray - there's nothing worse than dice flying off the table at a critical moment to break the ambiance PC: Spellcards to arrange and keep track of spells known - great for all casting classes but especially too all classes that have access to an entire spell list and can choose a select few every day Also agree with your stationary and writing utensil for players also A good rubber eraser that will erase easily and not make a hole in your character sheet (esp the hp area :P) DM: Treasure Cards as previously mentioned - fold and seal an index card with scotch tape and toss it to the players when they get it. Outside has the description of what the item looks like, inside has the details and function of the item once IDed. GF9 ones work great too! Condition Cards - Deck of Many makes them, and they are also included in the Essentials Kit or make your own. Quick to toss out and easy to reference.

I too share your note book and pen fetish. Note books with grid lines and pilot pricise v5 pen.

At my table we bought a ton of different coloured hair scrunchies from the dollar store. you can get a bag of 100 multicoloured ones for $1. I use the to mark which enemies/players have which debuffs (was more useful in 4th ed) for example white for stunned, yellow for confused, green for poisoned, black for unconscious, etc.... and you just slide the scrunchie over the miniature or dice or whatever you are using to represent the enemies and characters. They can also be laid down on the grid squares of the map to represent areas that contain spell effects like entangle or web. I also like to make my own monster and npc cards for adventures i run with a summary of their stats. I have used both the Deck of Many Monster Cards and Galeforce9 Monster cards but sometimes there are monsters you use that aren't included in these products so i made some of my own and i like to use them especially for NPCs that join the party. I can hand the card to my players and have them run the npcs in combat.

your top two are definitely funny to me as someone who takes my notes on a computer

I completely agree with this list. Numbers 1&2 are a must.

Get the gaming tiles from gaming paper. They can be used for drawing maps, used for white boards, used for tracking initiative as they are all wet wipe away. They lock into place with each other so that you can create huge maps. Just a brilliant tool to have.

We use several white boards, a large one for the map, smaller boards for individuals to track spell durations or other notes, but I have to recommend Crayola dry erase crayons instead of markers. Markers rub off too easily so it's easy to accidentally lose what you have written down. The dry erase crayons take just a little more pressure to wipe clean, so you aren't as likely to accidentally wipe away what you've written.

I've been loving the D&D Beyond Combat Tracker

Part of the DM screen can also have an encounter sleeve attached to one of the panels. So you can slide a piece of paper into that details the shorthand of the enemies and their abilities. Maybe use the same sheet slot for town rules, etc.

Let's time I was this early, they were revising the ranger kkkk Btw, great content lately with the news coverage and items for each class list Cheers from Brazil!

Legos are so underrated as minis. I’ve been supplying my personal legos as minis at sessions for the other players to use, I’m not a DM in the campaign I’m in but if I was legos would be super convenient because I’d be prepared. They’re also the right size and can be customized and changed in case a character gets new armor or a new weapon. You can take things out of their hands and add new ones! They’re so convenient and have been working great for me and my party.

Great video! Wish I’d seen it when I started DMing

this is a good practical list of things a DM could use. I couldnt think of any particular order but for me 1 - battle map 2 - a mix of paper and 3d minis (the paper minis like pathfinder bestiary boxes is great value and i can easily print out drawings and artwork to slot into the paper holders for my homebrew monsters) 3 - A binder! (more than just a notebook. having a multi-pocket binder that i can slot all my loose sheets into as well as an attached notepad, slots for pens/pencils, and a calculator makes organising everything into one place easy!) 4 - cloud storage (like google drive) sharing character sheets and digital content is super easy with this and people regularly upload google docs to reddit that improve organisation or the game in some way 5 - UE Boom (or other speaker) nothing sets the scene better than a handcrafted playlist made specifically for the game ahead. makes my players happy every time 6 - Laser Pointer the maps either too far for the DM or too far for the Players this helps for obvious reasons thats about all i could think of

I like your list, while I disagree slightly you are correct. I watched your video not the other way around. I would have put a portable speaker to give some background sounds to the game to create tension on the list. I also feel Pizza is a necessary accessory.

I originally took my session notes in a Five Star Notebook. When I filled it, I decided not to move onto another Five Star and instead took out all the perforated pages and moved them into a plastic softback 1-inch three-ring binder, to which I then added more paper. I prefer this method to using a notebook, so I can expand within one binder for the campaign rather than building a small library of notebooks of session notes. (I have a second, hardback three-ring binder for typed monster stat blocks and printed materials.) For my personal writing--I enjoy writing fiction--I still use sequential Five Star Notebooks. I don't have the issue with the covers bending because the covers are plastic, and their spirals are better quality than the cheaper spiral notebooks. I have noticed a decline in the product quality in the last decade though, as the new ones have thinner card-stock for their back covers than the old ones. For all my writing, whether it is my RPG campaign notes or my personal fiction writing, or anything else I do routinely, I absolutely cannot argue that a good pen is super-important. I get fatigue using ball-point pens, though much less so with gel pens as they flow better and require less pressure. I prefer to use fountain pens though, not because they're fancy but because they require zero pressure on the page. If the nib is touching the page the correct direction, ink flows. If your fountain pen is scratchy when you're writing with it, your nib size may be too small. I prefer a Medium nib, as anything smaller than that is scratchy for me. Fountain pens (and dip pens) do have an orientation as well, and if they're turned the wrong way they can also be scratchy. I can imagine taking notes with a dip pen or a quill, but that sounds awful. It would require frequent dipping and having open ink on the table is just asking to ruin your supplies (and maybe notes) by spilling ink. I tried using a Speedball crow quill dip pen once (not made of an actual crow quill or feather, that's just what they're called). I wasn't trying it at the game table, just as a general use pen when I ran out of fountain pen ink. (Fountain pens should be used only with fountain pen inks as other inks can clog their guts easily and ruin them.) The "crow quill dip pen" is a very sharp nib though, and I had to learn to apply even less pressure than was natural because it could cut the paper. (That type of dip pen is more of an artist's tool than a common writing instrument.) Anyway, my personal pen recommendation is a fountain pen with a Medium nib, but know that using a fountain pen so that it doesn't scratch has a learning curve. The smaller the nib, the more scratchy the pen. (This is also why I hate to use a rollerball pen lower than 0.7mm.) There is much less hand fatigue writing with a fountain pen than a ball point pen though. (I currently use a Lamy Al-star with a Medium Nib and a converter cartridge so I can use bottled fountain ink.) I don't use any hourglasses in my game, but I'd like to get some, either two- or three-minute timers to use to keep players' turns from running too long. For in-game events I prefer to count down by the game round rather than real-life time, so I wouldn't use the timer in that way. (Like having an event happen at the top of round 4, for instance.) I have some of the GameMastery spell templates (actually manufactured by Steel Sqwire). They were originally released as accessories for D&D 3.5e though so there's no 30 foot radius one, and that's a common effect in Pathfinder 1e as that's the size of a cleric's channel energy burst in Pathfinder 1e. They're good for most other effects I've dealt with though. I notice that they are marked down significantly on Paizo's webstore now. I've had them since 2009 and I think they've been a worthwhile investment. They still offer the cone templates packages I have, but the radius package I have was replaced with a skirmish package that has a mix of radii and cone templates. (Still no 30 foot radius.) I do want to get some electric tea-lights too. Not sure how I want to use them yet, as concentration is much less frequent in Pathfinder 1e than D&D 5e. I use condition cards that I generally hand out to players when their characters are suffering conditions. AleaTools makes a nice series of colored magnetic status indicators too, that can sit underneath miniatures. I have some of those, though I usually just use them to label multiple enemies using the same type of miniature. (So Ghoul Red, Ghoul Yellow, Ghoul Orange, etc.) I guess that's all of my comments for now.

I went online, looked for a tracker/table for Initiative, scaled it up to A4, printed it and then laminated it. Now I only need a dry or wet erase marker to write down Initiative and can reuse the table. On a similar Note, I made my own AoE templates. I took a bunch of laminater foil, took a marker that can write on foil, and then drew the areas on the inside (I don't know if all laminater foil is like that, but the ones I have at home, you open them, kinda like you would a book, place the page you want laminated inside, close it, and then run it through a laminater). Now I have transparent templates, and the marks I made on the foil can't be smudged as they're sealed on the inside. Though some of the bigger AoE templates were a bit tricky to make, because the laminater I have at home can't do stuff larger then the A4 Format.

Dude, I'm totally with you on the Pilot G2! I've sworn by it for as long as I can remember.

For Minis I bought a bag of 100 generic wood meeples and 1inch wood discs and a tube of super glue. Like $16 on Amazon? Spray painted a few groups of a dozen or show different colors, numbered them with a sharpie.

Having a nice table sit around is a big help.

I highly recommend getting some Poker Chips at the Dollar Store or Walmart. They can be used to represent a number of things. That jar of Pennies everyone has is also a good source of "chips" for Initiative or Inspiration. Beads from the craft store are a third source of cheap markers. I also make "condition indicators" from those clear plastic tubes you get Hershey's Kisses in at Christmas. They are slightly larger in diameter than most minis, so I just cut them into 1/2" long rings and write the condition on the clear plastic (stunned, charmed, paralyzed, etc...). I then just drop them over the mini during play. The cheap universal DM's screen is to take two 3-ring binders and a package of binder clips and make one. You just overlap one flap of each of the two binders and clip the flaps together with the binder clips. The binder clips also allow you to put notes on the front of the screen (held in place by the binder clip's arm). this is a very durable screen that will also allow you to clip your notes inside the screen (on the three-ring system).

Hands down I completely agree with the good notebook and good pen. Excellent list!

There's no food on this list because of "no potions, no consumables, any tomes that just give you +2 to wis or int" rule.

I love the idea for the concentration hats, will look at getting a few all the same.

I really enjoyed the part on notebooks. It's the small subtle things that really make the difference.

A benefits of a good notebook and pen can't be overstated.

I Liked this Video a Lot, shows how you DM your sessions Just by seeing the items you use

Loved it. I like ambiance. Incense, candles, lighting.

I agree on your order, especially #1 and #2. The right pen and notebook make a huge difference. My favorite pens are fountain pens. Amazon sells the MUJI aluminum pen which is terrific. The so-called medium tip is finer than most medium tips. Ink cartridges work well, but I use the Schmidt K5 converter with my choice of ink. Rather than a bound blank book I prefer to make a 3-ring binder for each campaign and fill it up with my session prep and notes plus stuff I'll always need like NPC descriptions, lists of names for new NPCs, random NPC tables, morale and reaction tables, other homebrew, town and city maps, unkeyed dungeon maps, org charts for fronts and factions, and printouts of 3rd-party PDFs I bought to use in emergencies when the players go somewhere I didn't prep. I play in person at a game store, and paper is king. The internet isn't always available, so everything needs to be in the notebook. I also make a 3-ring binder with my personal version of the monster manual, one monster per page to pull out and scribble on during fights. I have pencils and separate erasers for this use. I'd like to keep monsters on 3x5 cards but as the campaign passes level 5 most monster stat blocks are too long to fit on a 3x5 card.

I have that exact set of hourglasses from the thumbnail. They cover so many different timeframes and keep my players focused, especially when i give them 1 minute to make combat decisions.

I ended up making a DM tower, that held a small binder for notes that could be changed out. It also acted as a dice tower with a compartment to hold my dice and my initiative tracker. It also was half as wide of up only a normal dm screen so I could more easily access the battle map in the middle of the table

I love the concentration hat thing! I think, personally, the ring trick or the tea light trick would go unnoticed, by me at least. But I already have enough to lug around to games, so bringing strange hats for my players seems stupid, but then I realised something quite genius - Christmas Cracker hats. The paper crowns. They're strange enough that I'd pay attention to them and they fold up and slip easily into my folder.

"Or this... obnoxiously yellow... almost too bright to look at..." The notebook drives home the point by destroying the auto-brightness and auto-white-balance for its entire on screen appearance. That's some serious yellow, all right!

I'm a huge fan of random encounters. I like to have tables on tables of RE's for different scenes, different activities, etc.

I genuinely feel like pens are underrated. I personally love fountain pens since you can swap up the inks, the line thickness and how smooth they are, there's a whole fountain pen community that share your view. Have you tried regular fountain pens (instead of calligraphy pens)? The pilot Metropolitan may be something cool to try out ^^ Great video btw!

Totally agree with #1 & #2 A good pen is essential for me! Then a good notebook is another essential thing, both go together like peanut butter and jelly, cant have one without the other! P.S. I also LOVE the Pilot pens you mentioned in the video they are so smooth and like you said they have soooooo many colors to choose from!🤓🤓🤓

Something I’ve considered in my games for concentration is just having initiative count 20 being when everyone who is concentrating on a spell roll a dc 15 (spell casting ability) sav. This only applies to those who have taken dmg obviously. Helps me remember for sure

Way late to the party here but I am a new DM who is watching all the content on youtube. I totally agree with no.2 and no.1 for me it is the large size grid soft back molskine, and erasable pens (still looking for the best one but settled on papermate for now) I also picked up one of the rook and raven campaign planners, it is helpful for the notes I need during a session. The molskine is for my notes between sessions or for planning.

For me, it would be a laptop, using Scrivener as a writing software. You can have all the images, sounds, music at your disposal in your device. Your notes are so easy to manage with Scrivener, it's like a single document that you can organise with folders and subfolders (though when you have tons of information for like a detailed long-running campaign, if you don't have a nice computer it can get kinda laggy when writing). I literally cannot DM with pen and paper after using such a comfortable medium. I like checking information for consistency sake all the time and I cannot imagine doing that constantly without a search function.

For spell templates, I was thinking of using cardstock/cereal box cutouts. I could either cut out a hole with a 8 inch diameter or make a ~25 in. strip of cardstock and glue the ends together to make a circle 1 inch = 5 Feet so a 20 foot radius = 4 inch radius. 2πr= 2 x 3.14 x 4 = about 25.

Initiative: My preference for tracking Initiative is to hand out index cards at the start of each session. These cards have their names (player and character) and initiative modifier already written on them with permanent ink and plenty of open space for the actual result. When Initiative is called, the players can silently roll, fill in their results IN PENCIL, and hand the cards back to me. I shuffle their cards into high-to-low order along with any NPC cards involved in the encounter. Every time someone takes their turn, their card goes to the bottom of the stack. It also helps to include additional cards for Lair Actions, End of Round, Active Spells (spell name, duration, basic description, tick boxes for rounds, concentration), and Environment/Traps.

Ahhh! The pink coin machine ninja! I have a brown one sitting 4 feet from me, on a shelf!!

My fav accessories/the one used the most: 10. Big d6 that usually shows the players that something will change in that many rounds. 9. Grid map 8. Minis for monsters/npc 7. Minis for PC 6. List of names for NPC 5. Tokens that serve as reminder for several statuses 4. Many small d6, that I usually throw at the map and they serve as tons of weak enemies with HP equal to the roll and position, according to where the die landed. 3. Playing cards for initiative order 2. Piece of paper + pencil 1. PC names reminder 😀

I really like all of your suggestions, especially the initiatives cards with the players hp, ac, and passive perception on them. = )

We actually use a bunch of spindown die that we have from MTG. If it's a group of baddies, we turn the numbers to one through however many there are. Our players are colored coded with their rolling mat and we use D6 for those. :) Super useful. We just roll the dice to a 20 when they're dead (or remove till the battle is over then replace for looting) We also use a hard back binder for our DM screen because you can put papers in the folders on either side, remove the rings (if you want, however its easy to store all DM stuff in it via those for future encounters) and just have the papers in order of encounter and junk. After one encounter, pull the page to reveal the next!

ToTM is usually preferred by older DMs, like me ( but not me ) who have never struggled to get their Thief in position for a backstab while 6 or more players are waiting for their turn. Get a map and something to serve as monsters. Use coins if you have to.

Big believer in your stationary notions!!! My biggest thing in my home games is a TV in the middle of our table for a digital table top using Roll20. My extra thing for a top 10 item is POST-IT NOTES! Useful for tracking player AC, passive abilities, languages and tool proficiencies. Also useful to not forget important rules and important things you want to remember for a specific session.

I ran two whole campaigns with those little Ninjas. Had not thought about those in a lot of years. Great video. Got my subscribe. Can't wait for more.