D&D 5E What technology do you own that you are willing to bring to the table?

[Jester David]

I have a TV (my grandma-in-law's, which was no longer needed) behind my DMing chair, connected to my Windows laptop. I use the laptop for background music (streaming music from my desktop elsewhere in the house) and for displaying maps and pictures.
The laptop has a desktop streaming program on it, so I often control it from my iPad.

So, in other words, I use my iPad to control a laptop which controls a TV, which I use to display monsters.

 

[KarinsDad]

I played with a 4E player who had a ton of modifiers to his PC's damage. It literally took him about 45 seconds or more to add up his damage dice on his phone (after rolling them, often 6 to 12 dice individually rolled). It was so agonizingly slow that I suggested that he just average most of it, put it on the character sheet and just roll a few dice. Hopefully, 5E never gets that way.

The DM got to the point that if the damage would kill the monster, he'd just state that it was killed. If the damage probably would not kill the monster, the DM would move on to the next player and let the first player let him know once the damage was calculated.


I have used laptops for the Compendium or to print out a character sheet or something as a DM, but it was extremely few and far between. The game should be simple enough that electronic devices shouldn't typically be needed (shy of for music).

 

[delericho]

What technology do you own that you are willing to bring to the table?

A pencil. However, that's due to the 'own' criterion rather than the 'willing' one: I'd be quite happy to see smartphones or tablets at the table.

 

[BlueBlackRed]

I dislike anything that has a fan.
Even the quietest ones can still cause disruptions.
Plus everyone has to be super concerned about drinks accidentally ruining an expensive piece of electronics.

That being said, there is an iPhone/iPad app called DMDJ that I love. It is great for adding background sounds to your adventures and doesn't require much attention; just a few taps.

Any other apps I've seen used at the table do not seem to add to a game.

 

[Bugleyman]

I have an iPhone, iPad and Windows laptop. I'd be willing to take any of them to the table, but the iPad comes before the Windows laptop.

Alas, when I come to a 5E table neither one does me any good...'cause no PDFs.

 

[Asatru009]

Well, I use my Linux machine for doing all my roleplaying work as a DM or player. When the group needs an answer quickly, I am usually the one they ask.

 

[The Grand User]

The vast majority of my gaming is online, so I pretty much have to use my desktop for that. Though there are now getting to be friends and family (or rather friends of my brother) who are interested in gaming such that playing face-to-face will be more likely, in which case I'd be in favor of using tech to assist running the game. I've got a surface and a windows phone in addition to a windows laptop (which incidentally is running the Windows 10 Tech Preview).

 

[Skyscraper]

I voted "none of the above", because I actually bring a laptop, but only to control musical background. The screen is hidden even from me, and one in a while I turn around towards the screen to change/remove/add music.

I dislike screens on the table, whether they be directed towards the DM or players.

 

[BlueBlackRed]

Alas, when I come to a 5E table neither one does me any good...'cause no PDFs.

You can view PDFs on an iPad and iPhone, but a few hoops have to be jumped through.
First install the Adobe acrobat app, then sync your iPhone/iPad to your pc, then you find and transfer the pdf to the app via iTunes.
Yeah it's bleh to start, but it works well once done.

 

[Umbran]

You can view PDFs on an iPad and iPhone, but a few hoops have to be jumped through.

I think he means that the products are not available as pdfs to be viewed....