Does any other DM do this?

[chomskola]

I just started DMing 3.5 recently (first timer). I came up with a medium between pen and paper and grid+minatures. I use graph paper, with drawn maps, and tokens to represent PCS?NPCS which i hide behind a screen. I then interact witht he players telling them whats going on and playing it out. When an encounter begins I roll out the grid and use mini's for the PCS, and important NPCS, and tokens for the monsters. I just picked up the fiery dragon token collection, and pretty much all the WOTC tokens so im good there. I'm wondering if anyone else came up with this odd arrangement for running the two aspects of gameplay. Curiosity killed the Dire Celestial were-cat.

[Aeryr]

At our table we have a lot of d6 courtesy of a Chinese store nearby that have different colors. So our monsters are 1blue, 2blue, 1red, 2red, 1green or something like that.

For the PCs tokens we normally use warhammer minies, since some people play it. Occasionally if there is a BBEG he gets a miniature too so when we see an orc lord on the table we now that **** got serious.

Most of the time the grid is visible to the whole table so anyone can move around, the DM might have the map drawn on a separate notebook but will probably draw the rooms when someone enters them. If it's something like a long travel, without need for a real grid we normally draw in a whiteboard.

[LansXero]

I actually pick up the respective NPC mini / counter and twiddle it around when its talking... and clash minis together when they are attacking / flip them over when they trip...

I wonder how it all look to outsiders, but its a lot of fun for the players, who have begun to move their minis when they talk as well. Sometimes, it feels like playing with d... action figures!