So, you want to run an in-personDungeons & Dragonscampaign. But after that, you might ask yourself, how do you achieve an immersive game when you’re in a very modern setting? Or how can you run an immersive game on a budget?
Well, one way you can do that is to have physical aids and props for yourself and for your party of adventurers. These can make your job as a Dungeon Master (DM) easier, make things easier on the players, or bring them into the moment their characters are facing. This list will give some ideas for what to use and how to use them.
8Minis And Maps
Okay, let’s get this out of the way. The most common, but also most helpful, to aid in your in-person sessions are minis and maps. The reason these are included on this list is that you absolutely don’t need either. You can do all of your combat and sessions using theater of the mind.
However,having a map, even if it’s Sharpie on cardboard, can help players visualize what’s going on. Having minis, even if they are paperclips, Monopoly pieces, or dice, helps you and the players know where they are in the setting, so everyone is on the same page.
you may go a step further by having your world map as a physical map that the players can pull out and look over at any time.
7Rulers And Guides
Having rulers to check distances for movement, spells, and so on will ensure things stay nice and tidy. As a DM, you don’t have to do as much mental math because you can see what they want to do is within range. As a player, they can answer some of their own questions if they have access to these rulers.
Same thing with guides that show spell radius or areas of effect. This can let players plan out their moves and know who all is going to be impacted by a spell. Letting your players use them between turns to plan things can help speed things up, too. So, is it a “prop”? Maybe not, but it’s a helpful way to keep everyone engaged.
6Status Condition Markers
This is the last of the tools that aren’t required but can help everyone at the table. When the party is facing down ten goblins, you can start to forget who’s blinded. And, “which one is stunned again?“Using condition markersis a way to make sure everyone knows what’s happening on the field at all times.
This doesn’t have to be the kind that you buy to place around standard minis. You can use what you have on hand or what is cheapest. Some examples are:
5Potions
During your campaign, characters will most likely end up with a handful of healthpotions and other fun buffs-in-a-bottle. You can recreate this by making physical potions. And you can go about doing this in several ways.
Some DMs have bottles with dice inside them that characters would roll to heal, like two d4s.Others make potionsthat are filled with fun, sparkling liquids that aren’t meant to be opened but simply held onto and returned to the DM once the character uses it. You can do this for as many or as few potions as you want.
You can make drinkable potions. However, you will have to be mindful that they are either used quickly or that you can easily open and replace what’s inside to ensure the liquid you include is safe for consumption.
4Dice Jails Or Character Jails
Look, we all roll badly from time to time. So, players like to have dice jails to place these poorly behaved dice inside. However, having a communal dice jail for everyone to use can be a fun way to engage players. Plus, as a DM, you could always use it to one day challenge your players. Every dice in the jail is rolled as part of a bad guy’s attack. Everyone must choose and place a die in jail they can’t use for the rest of the session. Something along those lines.
Another way to utilize something like this is to have it double as a character jail. Did a character fail their death saves? Keep them in jail while the players figure out what to do, serving as a reminder that their soul is trapped in another plane. Is a character missing? While your players search for them, keep them in the jail, waiting to be found and freed.
3Group Dice Tower Or Dice Tray
If you’vewatched Dimension 20, you may know where this tip is going. While each individual can have their own tray (it’s preferred, honestly), have one that you use for important rolls. Do you have to roll a save to keep from being petrified? Roll it in the group tray.
This also doubles as a way for you to ensure players are being honest about rolls or to help everyone around the table if the players don’t have their own dice trays. They can pass it around from turn to turn. It also makes it so the players know when it’s their turn because they hold the tray and, thus are currently the ones in the driver’s seat.
2Scrolls As Information
If your players are investigating the disappearance of a wizard and find a strange scroll, instead of telling the players what it says, hand them that scroll. you’re able to do this for so many different scenarios:
Many DMs also hand out physical sheets of paper when the party has come across or identified magical items. If your players are invited to an event, you can hand them a real invitation to read and pass around. All of these things make the game incredibly hands-on and immersive because now they can see what their characters are interacting with.
1Gaming Sets
In D&D, characters can partake in many downtime activities. This includes some good, old-fashioned gambling. Now, you can, of course, just roll dice or follow some other instructions for running these small games within your game, but if you want it to be really immersive, have props that match the gaming sets they need.
Is your character playing chess with someone? Have a chessboard that gets brought out and used. Are they playing Black Jack? Have a deck of playing cards. And the same can stretch beyond just gambling. Tarot cards when they want to visit a fortune-teller, paper prompts for a friendly game of charades. Anything you play in-game, have them play it in person.
If players want to use magic or trickery to help their party members win at these games, you may still mimic that with the real-world materials. Pull an ace from the deck and let the player hide it in their sleeve. Let them move the chess pieces when an NPC gets distracted. So on and so forth.
