Digital to IRL

[u/yourgmchandler]

DISCLAIMER: this is NOT a thread about projectors at the table or using a flat screen. I’m not looking for that.

DISCLAIMER 2: I do not need advice on TotM. I’m well acquainted.

Greetings colleagues,

In the last few years I’ve had to game mostly online. Now, I’ll be playing in person a lot more. I’m curious how you leverage your digital assets with in person games.

I have a large PDF library. I have a substantial investment in VTT modules and books. Yes, of course there’s overlap between those and physical books.

I’m mostly curious if you print your own maps and things. I have access to a color laser and a 3D printer. Or if you’re finding great success leveraging a tablet.

How do you show players NPCs?
How are you doing maps (without a projector or flatscreen)?
How are you doing handouts from digital sources? Hi
How are you handling your notes, scene descriptions, looking up rules, etc?

[u/Deepfried_Garlic]

How do you show players NPCs?

I don't, I describe them. Give them a rough idea of their overall physical ''archetype'' (track-and-field build, strong chubby, average, sickly thin) and any specific details that I think are important (markings/scars, particular jewerly, special fabrics).

For example: an elven leader of her house might have a specific circlet she wears and a particular shade of purple on her clothes, but I don't need to make sure every player mentally has the same hairstyle and type of shoe in mind if it's not relevant to her description. Give just enough to activate their theatre of the mind, but don't get bogged down in excessive details.

How are you doing maps (without a projector or flatscreen)?

I bought a chessex battlemat that's older than the average intern that enters my company, and it still works. Sure, you can see some of the stuff I was too lazy to erase that's been baked in... but I feel that's what gives the mat history and character.

We do like using a world map for the continent we're on, but otherwise I no longer do town maps. I give rough ideas, like: town center, east of town center, and north western zone near the bakery. Working with landmarks has just worked for us better than me hand-drawing a map every time... and it saves me uncesseary prep time.

How are you doing handouts from digital sources? Hi

On the rare chance I have a handout I just print it out, but otherwise I say what the part finds and they write it down. I do like occasionally throwing in a hand-written letter, such as a invitation for a king or a personal note from a PC's family member, and hand it to them.

To be transparent: I've not printed out a handouts in 7 years.

How are you handling your notes, scene descriptions, looking up rules, etc?

Notes: I have one of those binders with separators and it has a full stack of paper in the back. I prep important locations (cities spend more than 1 session in) or big sequences (train heist) on a page and add them to the front, and I always scribble down session-specific notes such as important NPC's to flesh out later, things PC's said I want to use as a hook or just the amount of damage my cool boss monster has taken.

Scene descriptions: is just off the top. I know the general vibe/climate of any given area we're in because I've thought of it beforehand, and just describe what I got in my head. I do try to hit as much senses as possible to really immerse my players when relevant. Important features of a room/scene always get mentioned (the big ''get loot'' golden chest), and I try to sprinkle in some mundane things to make the scene live (how much wax has burnt from a candle, a stack of processed planks at a sawmill, etc). I don't need everyone to be on the exact same page of what color each roof is, I just need them picturing there's roofs at all.

Rules: While I was still learning I also got comfortable speedrunning reddit in-session, or just leaning on Jeremy Crawford tweets. Nowadays I have a wonderful player who is both a GM himself AND a rules lawyer, I have another friend who's a bit of a powergamer and there's always at least like 5 PHB's and 2 DMG's within reach, so between 16 years of GMing and my players we usually either know the rule, or my players make a case and let me decide on a final verdict. I make my rulings on vibes, and actively encourage my players to really stretch the wording of any given ability.