Best D&D accessory I haven't thought of?

[MarkVIIIMarc]

Really I don't own much besides some player sheets, a set of dice and some mini's. Oh, a PDF copy of the handbook on a Windows tablet comes in handy during games.

What do you all own which has really come in handy?

[Occasional Sage]

A dry-erase auxiliary tabletop. Stores behind the couch when not in use.

[Ninja_Prawn]

I mostly do play-by-post, so most of my suggestions are digital resources...

Spellbook cards app on phone.
Excel spreadsheets of spells, holy days.
'Magic Items by Rarity' and 'Monsters by CR' pdfs.
Bookmarks for random generators, AnyDice.
Random weather generator spreadsheet.
Folder of saved character portraits.

[Coffee_Dragon]

A dry-erase auxiliary tabletop. Stores behind the couch when not in use.

And for people who use grid combat: a frameless picture frame with a grid printout under the glass, draw on the glass with dry erase pens, add cubes/tokens/dice/minis to taste.

[Occasional Sage]

And for people who use grid combat: a frameless picture frame with a grid printout under the glass, draw on the glass with dry erase pens, add cubes/tokens/dice/minis to taste.

Oh, yeah. I don't use a grid. I have a variety of strings cut to movement rates, which we lay out to show paths.

[Grod_The_Giant]

A list of names or a random name generator.

[gfishfunk]

Roll 20 for everything. A second monitor.

[CircuitEngie]

A lot of my DM tools come from playing AL, where everything needs to be portable and clean friendly.

2" clear acrylic disc (cheap on Amazon)
- Draw an X on it in dry erase. Now you have a handy party marker for cities and dungeons. Print a map/layout of the city and move the marker to indicate where the party travels (also works when exploring a dungeon with a minimap).

Unscented baby wipes
- Clean up wet erase boards/maps quickly.

Medium chip board and full page packing labels
- print images of boxes, bushes, trees, rocks, etc on the packing labels. Apply to chip board and cut. You now have pieces of terrain that can be thrown on to a grid to create instant environment. (Also works well for carts/wagons and other movable objects.)

1/8" colored foam
- At your local craft store, there are paper sized sheets of colored foam. Grab a few basic colors, cut into 1x1" and 4x4" squares. Use them to mark long duration spell effects on the map. This is especially handy for create bonfire, where a single yellow 1" square piece of foam marks where it was cast.

[DivisibleByZero]

My best accessory that no one ever seems to mention would be friends.

[JellyPooga]

It's not for everyone, but I've had some really good experiences with props.

It's something I've always had a mind for, if not the resources and was first brought to my attention by Advanced Fighting Fantasy. Having physical props like full potion bottles that the players drink when their character does, replica maps, puzzle locks you've reproduced with print-outs or a puzzle box or an "amulet" you actually own really does a lot to help engage players and it's something fun that everyone can enjoy; whether handing it out or receiving.

On a lesser scale, any pre-prepared work you can produce, from images of characters or landscapes to maps, even if it's just on a laptop or computer, is always appreciated by your players.

[SethoMarkus]

My best accessory that no one ever seems to mention would be friends.

Fry-End? What is that? Sounds terrible.

Edit: To actually contribute something, I second the idea of using a cheap picture frame with dry erase markers. We used a similar idra in college, using the clear page protectors for binders in place of a frame. Works wonders!

[Maxilian]

Well i got printed a copy of all the spells (divided by class and lvl) for my players (And whenever we want to check up on a spell), also i printed all the differents creatures that the Druid can Wildshape into and also those that can be summoned by any of the summoning spells

[Ninja_Prawn]

It's not for everyone, but I've had some really good experiences with props.

It's something I've always had a mind for, if not the resources and was first brought to my attention by Advanced Fighting Fantasy. Having physical props like full potion bottles that the players drink when their character does, replica maps, puzzle locks you've reproduced with print-outs or a puzzle box or an "amulet" you actually own really does a lot to help engage players and it's something fun that everyone can enjoy; whether handing it out or receiving.

On a lesser scale, any pre-prepared work you can produce, from images of characters or landscapes to maps, even if it's just on a laptop or computer, is always appreciated by your players.

I like the idea of props. If I ever played face-to-face, I'm sure I'd use them. I mean, forcing your players to down these (http://www.thinkgeek.com/product/a273/) is probably... not wise... but hand-written copies of the letters in the villain's desk or a real Deck of Many Things (http://paizo.com/products/btpy990o?Deck-of-Many-Things) would be really cool.


My best accessory that no one ever seems to mention would be friends.

Nah, friends are overrated. What you really want is four chatbots, trained to play D&D.

[Laserlight]

My best accessory that no one ever seems to mention would be friends.

There's not supposed to be an R in that word.

[TripleD]

Spellbook cards app on phone.

These. Especially when playing face to face. Spell cards (physical ones, although I suppose digital would work as well) have sped up spellcasting immensely in every game I have seen them used in.

[agnos]

Tablet/IPad. I love not needing a billion pages of stuff.
Facebook. Our local D&D groups used closed facebook groups to organize sessions, journal gaming sessions, track party loot, etc. Yahoo, Google and forums can do the same thing; just do whatever's good for you.
HeroLab. I much rather not need to keep track of a billion pages for a character.
Plexiglass. Never ruin a map again or have to buy a map again.
Magnet board. Best initiative tracker I've found.
Laser cut wooden pieces. I bought a bunch 10+ years ago at Origins and haven't used anything else for monsters since; they keep and travel well, it's easy to identify and track what each enemy is. Second to this are the 4e creature/player pogs which give the added benefit of showing low hp enemies.
Matching dice sets. For $50 you can get 8-10 sets of matching dice so you always know what dice are yours; even better if every player gets a color of their own.
Spellcards. They don't 100% match book wording, but having players easily be able to scan what they're spells do speeds up combat a bunch; these aren't necessary if everyone uses HeroLab.
Scribd. I have a copy of each book, but having easy access to pdfs means I don't have to keep copies of each book on hand. Plus, you can more easily find what you're looking for.
Poker chips or some palm sized tokens. Something obvious to give players as a show of inspiration.
Excel/Google spreadsheet. Some easy reminder of PC's names, races, backgrounds, ideals, etc. Even for long campaigns it's easy to forget when players are playing to their character and when they aren't.

[Falcon X]

Photoshop over google hangouts or hooked up to a projector.
- I take a map, then create layers of blackness over each room. Then I reveal the layers as the party progresses through the rooms.

For big parties, such as in Out of the Abyss:
- A cork board and pictures of all PCs and creatures attached to tacks.
- Are able to very quickly arrange the pictures on the board based on who are close to each other if there are party splits, can be arranged to show marching order, and just generally gives a reminder that all those NPCs exist if they know about them.

[WrittenInBlood]

Tokens are great. I use them for almost everything. Players basically "pay" with them for using spells or class features, so nobody needs to bother with tracking them. I also recommend anything that lets you record things without scratching and rewriting them again and again.

Here's pic of my own DM toolbox, behold and inspire yourself :smallcool:
https://scontent.fwaw3-1.fna.fbcdn.net/t31.0-8/15271971_1805690236319671_2678748593464279500_o.jp g

1. Spell cards - common.
2. Color clips, to mark spells as at-will, ritual, prepared ritual, prepared, 1/long rest.
3. 30-sec hourglass, to scare indecisive players, and another one - if they happen to be decisive. (No need to wait for first to run out.)
4. Tokens for class resources. Every. Single. One. (Except Pally lay on hands, guess why.)
5. Small tile spacers as temporary HP.
6. Big tile spacers as Hit Dice.
7. Concentration markers.
8. Spell slot chips.
9. Wooden cubes to track (homebrew) overland movement. An doubling as d2!
10. Initiative clock and round tracker.
11. Tokens of general use - mostly tactical movement.
12. Crystalized Inspiration!
13. Little boxes, for players to hold all this stuff.

Everything goes to a toolbox, and is packed tight enough to not mix inside.
https://scontent.fwaw3-1.fna.fbcdn.net/t31.0-8/15194597_1805690232986338_1761450882006171731_o.jp g

[CaptainCharisma]

I use an android app on my phone called Spellbook Burned. Its free and you can save individual characters, each with what spells they know, have prepared, how many slots you have left and a complete searchable index of all the spells. It includes spells from SCAG, EE, and UA if your game is using it. The only thing it doesn't do is alternate spellcasting resources such as sorcery points. And make nachos. It doesn't make nachos...

[PancakeUniverse]

As a new and pretty lazy DM, I have tried to make it so I have the least amount of stuff to worry about as possible.

I am also very stingy, so I don't like to buy stuff that something I already have can do the same/better.


Tablet/IPad. I love not needing a billion pages of stuff.

↑↑↑↑↑↑ This. This also applies to any electronic that you can navigate quickly. Using multiple devices/monitors is even better. It saves so much time and paper. I use an Ipad, my phone, and a laptop to make gaming sessions a breeze.

and speaking of paper..

-Never underestimate the power of paper, a ruler and a decent paper cutter. 80% of D&D stuff can be replicated by cutting paper. Use small, numbered squares of paper as player minis (I let my players draw designs/symbols on theirs), and you can make them any size you want for large creatures. Setting up a huge battle and realize you need a ton more markers? tokens? Spell cards? You can get a ton of cheap ones by cutting a few of those few sheets of printer paper most people barely ever use ('cause who prints stuff anymore?). They are flimsy and degrade easily, and they don't give as much of that RPG feel, but they are super cheap and replaceable. If you are really stingy, you could try cutting out and folding templates to make 3D stuff (origami dice, maybe?).

-If you use IOS, get the "5e Spell Book" app. The app has the entire list of spells, including non-core books, and gives you all the information about them. You can sort them by class, subclass, level, school, or literally just search the name of a spell. It makes finding spells 100x faster and easier. Get everyone in your group to install it so they can work out their spell lists and browse spells with ease.

-also on IOS is "Game Master 5th edition". You can plan out your entire campaign on this one app, from encounters, NPCs, treasure, and plot. It tracks Initiative, HP, turn, and automatically applies modifiers to rolls.

-and as for maps, I always go dry-erase. I have a double-sided dry-erase mat, so I can use two of anything I can draw at ones. Drawing the map, and erasing the map when it is no longer needed, allows for more customization and ease of use.

[Trum4n1208]

I like the idea of props. If I ever played face-to-face, I'm sure I'd use them. I mean, forcing your players to down these (http://www.thinkgeek.com/product/a273/) is probably... not wise... but hand-written copies of the letters in the villain's desk or a real Deck of Many Things (http://paizo.com/products/btpy990o?Deck-of-Many-Things) would be really cool. [/COLOR]

I did the physical copy of the villain's journal. It was fun, and I'd like to do it again. The player who found it seemed to appreciate it, and it really fit his character (someone strolling through the dungeon, head buried in a book and barely paying attention to her surroundings).

[JellyPooga]

I did the physical copy of the villain's journal. It was fun, and I'd like to do it again. The player who found it seemed to appreciate it, and it really fit his character (someone strolling through the dungeon, head buried in a book and barely paying attention to her surroundings).

It's not restricted to GMs either. I've still got a few pages of the Book of Shadows of a GOOlock I played once, that I knocked up for a game. The crazy ramblings of an insane mind, but my GM took some inspiration from it for character hooks. I'm sure other PC characters can do the same or similar. An heirloom amulet, a guild insignia...having a physical copy of an in-game item on hand is a powerful reminder of who you are playing and a good way to help your fellow players and GM alike know what your self image really is.

[CantigThimble]

A box of Jenga blocks and a 2' by 2' or larger piece of 1" graph paper, preferably on a piece of cork board or carbdoard. Wet erase mats are nice and all but I think they're more hassle than they're worth. Jenga blocks can build a dungeon room in a matter of seconds with no question of where the obstacles are and can be rearranged easily.

[CaptainSarathai]

Never underestimate physical resources. I used to put everything on a tablet and laptop, and was alright with players bring electronic character sheets and stuff.
It gets too easy to find yourself wrapped up in your screens and not connecting over the table.
I use a tablet, and an old school DM screen. I clip stuff to the inside of my screen, and stick post-its to the outside for the party. I also use post-its on the inside of the screen (especially for tracking initiative).

I hang the stuff that most people would use a dual-screen for, inside my DM screen. A 3-fold screen plus the tablet gives me effectively 4 screens to "have open" at once. Usually the location map, the stats of the local big-bad, and a note page.

I have a deck of monster cards that I made and use for random encounters. I pre-build the decks and write them out as I need them. After running enough games over enough time, you end up with quite a few monsters written out, it doesn't have to be an "all at once" project.

I hand out copies of maps that the party can see. I don't really do "props" though. I do second using dry-erase markers on poster-frames with grids. There are lots of free or really cheap resources for printing markers and tokens for creatures and terrain on the grid.

[Madbox]

Lots of d6s. Chessex makes these packs of 36 mini d6s, and I find them to be better than minis for combat. There's five generic orcs, three wolves, and an eye of grumsh in combat, so how do you keep track of them all for HP totals as a DM? Minis are great for creatures that there's only one of in combat, but nothing beats d6s for those faceless mooks. Nice and easy, orcs 1-5 with one set of d6s, wolves 1-3 with another, and an actual mini for the eye.

But wait, there's more! What happens if a character is minmaxed for ranged combat and is sniping from farther away than the grid you are using can show? Put a d6 by their mini to represent distance off the map! How do you keep track of aerial combatants, or vertical distance in underwater combat? Put their mini on top of a d6, the side facing up is distance above the ground.

[furby076]

Jenga: now you can make your corridors, rooms , fallen trees/pillars, etc
1 inch diameter discs: each is numbered. Now you can easily track your hoarde of kobold hp
Pizza box plastic holders (those little pieces of plastic that holds up the center of a pizza box): now everyone can see who is flying
Pebbles/beads/etc to track things like your lay on hands