Gaming Props - What do you use and how do you make them?

Props in your game... DO IT!

I have a different prop for almost every big NPC in the game, and my players LOVE it. It makes for VERY simple recognition...

Let me start at the beginning... I own a small theatre group. Over 15 years, I've gathered quite a few props, or have learned how to make them.

So sure, I have a leg up on most GMs, but a little effort can go a long way.

For example, I took some foamboard (<$5 for a HUGE sheet at hobby shops) and pasted a printed out symbol of Kord, then put it on a piece of string; when the symbol goes on, the party knows it is the hated Zachic, selfish priest.

Cheap props can be purchased at costume/party stores. The sheriff in town has a cigar that when you blow through it, it glows. Don't know how, but it does. Combined with a horned prop helmet I had and a gruff voice... well, the group pays attention. The cigar was only $1.50.

A cheap mustache is for one PC's father, and I bend in the sides for the grandmother. Then I wiggle it around and crack up the group. But the important thing is, they KNOW who they are talking to.

A little more expensively - a few years ago we did an "Annie" spoof, so I have two red curly wigs. I sprayed one grey for the priest. An NPC woodcutter in town, who happens to not know who his father is has the red curly wig. The group hasn't figured it out yet, but *I* get a good chuckle everytime I switch between the wigs and give some subtle clues.

Granted, between prop making and years of on stage experience, I'm not shy about introducing things to make the NPCs colorful and memorable. But any DM worth their salt should have no problems using some imagination and simple supplies around the house. In fact, having some props to nudge (or hide behind) make it even EASIER to create characterization, and give your players an even better game!

So go for it! Trust me, your players will REALLY appreciate it.

Props! Now your in my territory

ok for parchemnt you can do the Tea staining bit, it works but it does smell a little. Another way is to take a brown paper bag, cut it the size of the paper in your printer, print or draw your map.
next crumple it up over and over again, it will get softer the more your crumple it, once you get the desired texture, almost a silky feel stop.
now brown the edges with a candle, careful not to burn it up too much.
once its all done youll have an aged and well worn looking map.
Theres a lot of ways to do props, I have a headstart on most because I have been building a haunted house every halloween for the past 10 years, so Ive learned a lot of cool tricks that i carry over into the gaming sessions. Ive attached a pic of my graveyard built from scratch with a few zombies props coming out of the fog. Its a large pic sorry about the size, ill try and cut the others down some when I post.
Wait till they see what i build this year!

This is what I have done:

Draw out my map. Scan it and bring it into Adobe photoshop for editing. Download the map template from the Wizards "Map a week" feature. Here is the link (it's under "3/01" bonus map):

http://www.wizards.com/dnd/article.asp?x=dnd/mw/mw20020725x2001

When I'm finished with the map, it will look something like this:

http://www.lamegamer.com/maps/stonelands_map.htm

Then, I print off my map at Kinko's. They have a brown paper stock, similiar to a brown paper grocery bag.

Once it is printed off, I burn the edges (up to the map edges). Then, I purchase beads of red wax. I place the wax beads on the map, put tin foil on top of it, and use an iron to melt the wax onto the map.

The end product looks GREAT.

I've done the following:
hand drawn maps (based on the DM's map, but redrawn with player only info)
telegrams (the wizards run a message sending service)
newspapers (an extension of the message sending service)
a wizard's spellbook (real book like)
certificate of promotion (for a military officer PC)

For a lot of my hand-outs I use my old printer paper (the fan-fold kind for dot matrix printers). That stuff is at least 10 years old and is yellowing from age.

In the mini's realm:
a campfire
a log pile for the campfire
stairs to go with my MK Dungeons 3d set
wooden sailing ships for a naval battle (bought from Michael's hobby store)



Janx

I have done lots of things. Letters, broadsheets (newspapers), letters of marquis, letters of introduction, heraldry, maps and probably more. I have used wax to seal them and that works well. I have also tied them in a roll with some string that has beads worked into it.

When I do PCs, I try and change via attitude, voice, inflection, posture, instead of props but the props sound cool! Thanks for the ideas!

I use a laptop computer when gaming, so I use the FR Atlas and the computer in general, when we game.

As for aging, my wife, who stamps, has a way to "age" the paper that involves crumpling it and then adding ink to it. It works quite well and gives it that feel and can be done in about five minutes. I also do the crumple, put under books, crumple, put under books, way of doing it as well. I do use CCPro, and so there is a certain "modern" feel to the maps but they work.

Good topic! Thanks!

Have a good one! Take care!

edg

There is a prachment template/format layout that is floating around on the net somewhere. It seems to work quite well.

I use it all.

I use maps printed out on dundjinni when the dungeon is unique or special or outside.

I sometimes use my heroscape terain sets to set up outdoor encounter.

For the everyday mansion or dungeon I use Worldwerks dungeons in which I own all the sets (havn't been able to afford printing them all out yet but working on it)

I always use the worldwerks props in rooms as it makes the rooms come to life and really shows where cover is and where it isn't.

I use a ton of handouts and using my laptop at hte table allows me to print notes and dreams out on the fly. If i have time before game I'll put it on printed parachment and ball it up some.

I've printed maps out and put shorthand notes and such on it to implicate battleplans.

I try to show every monster or important item on the tv hooked up to the laptop.

i use the magnetic counters to show hieight and damage taken.

All of it helps emerse the players in the game.

I have done the old letter thing with good parchment and a candle.
Hand-drawn maps have seen use in my game. I have used rocks, lincoln logs, tarot cards, boxes as chests, scrolls.
I used to have a bunch of small bracelet tokens I have used as per the magic item.
I like using visuals but I am not very good at making them.

A friend of mine who GMs a lot of different campaigns has quite a collection of props. For a Star Trek campaign he had toy phasers and tricorders for all the players. He also frequently wore a captain's uniform shirt while GMing, since the captain was an NPC. And we used lots of little plastic Micromachines spaceships from the Star Wars and Babylon 5 sets to represent alien vessels.

He has worn fake eyeglasses on several occasions for modern setting games. He has a huge collection of Hot Wheels toy cars for use with those types of games, and an assortment of plastic toy guns and knives. He has some plastic swords and axes for fantasy games. He's also printed out brochures and ID cards for our superhero campaigns.

As I mentioned in another thread, we use the little plastic discs used to keep delivery pizzas from sticking to the box as regular tabletop props, to represent flying/levitating characters or just someone who's up higher than everyone else. I've heard of others who also use them to show when someone is invisible. We employ plastic caps from 35mm film containers to signify light sources or someone who's affected by a spell. The containers themselves stand in for barrels and pillars. Other types of containers get used for spell areas or to represent things like force fields.

You definitely don't need to buy anything special to make props for your games.

JamesL85 said:

Thanks for the link MonkeyDragon.....

I'd also heard (but never tried) paper sacks work well. Print them out with your printer (or by hand) and wad them up to give them a wrinkled look, then burn the edges as needed.....

James

Click to expand...

That's a great idea; I'll have to try that! If would be much thicker than regular paper....

There's a lot of good info about props at Propping up the Mythos. It's centered on "Call of Cthulhu" but a lot it you could use for any game.

Another trick I read some (not sure where) is to make a book for a prop and then bury it. A few weeks underground, particularly in moist earth, really makes an impression on the players!