D&D General Best DM Screen
Snarf Zagyg
Notorious Liquefactionist
is this even a question?
R_J_K75
Legend
Any screen that had art on it seemed wasted space to me.
R_J_K75
Legend
Never could do it but if I did piano hinge and some plexiglass and a few screws,
Best DM screen: No screen at all! Your players are instantly aware that you will not cheat with the dice, not even in their favor
R_J_K75
Legend
Not the point. Which DM screen has the best info?Best DM screen: No screen at all! Your players are instantly aware that you will not cheat with the dice, not even in their favor
Li Shenron
Legend
Hard to pick because every official DM screen I ever saw always had unnecessary information, making it cluttered. In fact most of the information on DM screens is unnecessary.
The only good DM screens are the ones you make yourself based on what you think it's uncommon enough so that you tend to forget it, but not so uncommon as to be almost never needed, and this is a personal choice. In addition, the good DM screen doesn't only have rules material but also adventure material and possibly some PC stats (for stuff you want to roll in secret without having to ask the players), and these are group-dependent and change over time! Which leads to my final point i.e. a good DM screen for me can't be just a printed cardboard but something more complicated that can be changed every session, such as a board with pinned papers or a transparent sleeved folder.
The only good DM screens are the ones you make yourself based on what you think it's uncommon enough so that you tend to forget it, but not so uncommon as to be almost never needed, and this is a personal choice. In addition, the good DM screen doesn't only have rules material but also adventure material and possibly some PC stats (for stuff you want to roll in secret without having to ask the players), and these are group-dependent and change over time! Which leads to my final point i.e. a good DM screen for me can't be just a printed cardboard but something more complicated that can be changed every session, such as a board with pinned papers or a transparent sleeved folder.
aco175
Legend
Have not used one in a long time, but remember using binder clips to add pages that I needed and be able to add a map to face the players. At the last Convention I went to, a DM used theirs to clip PC cards to show who was playing and the initiative. It was fine, but I also have some DMs that are too behind the screen and both my father and myself need to sit on each side to hear him.
Snarf Zagyg
Notorious Liquefactionist
I think that the best screen serves two purposes-
1. The DM's side. This is obvious. The original 1e DMs screen had everything you could need. It was invaluable for a game so reliant on tables and matrices.
2. The player's side. You can't overlook this. For the most part, players aren't looking at your screen for information. But it does set a mood. And nothing has ever set the D&D mood like the original screen. Sure, there was the iconic Otus piece (spear, critter) that people still remember. But if you show either of the two panels to anyone who played at that time, it triggers something deep and primal, from the hours, days, and weeks of seeing that image and thinking about it, and having it deeply associated with D&D.
The Trampier two-panel piece may not be the best image in D&D, but it is certainly one of the most iconic images. And that's not wasted space.
