D&D 5E 5E DMs: What support materials would help you the most?

[DEFCON 1]

Nothing.

I have several decades worth of previous edition material, Dragon Magazines, websites, YouTube videos, and books from Third Party producers at my fingertips that there is nothing left to need that I don't already have access to in some form or fashion and can't adapt and adopt into my game. I especially don't need anything that has to be catered to 5E specifically.

But the biggest thing about having all this stuff from years past is that I have to take a little bit of time to find it, read it, and see if I want to use it. I have to put the smallest modicum of work and effort actually into my game so they can be where I want them to be. But you know what? That's the way I think it should be. Working on my game is a requirement and an important part of the process of being a DM. And if some of the stuff WotC gives me in their 5E books is not what I like when I play D&D... then I will go through all my other game material to find stuff I do and just incorporate it in... rather than just sit on my hands miserably and complain that WotC isn't making it for me.

 

[jmartkdr2]

Another monster manual of stuff that isn't classic fantasy tropes. I miss battlebriars and other genuine oddness in monsters.

An monster manual for traps, hazards, complications and other exploration encounters.

A big Book of NPCs

Mostly I want a bunch of ready-to-play ideas for stuff to do to players. Plots and settings aren't too hard for me, but coming up with details - and especially assinging numbers to them - is more work that I'd happily pay others to do for me.

 

[Xamnam]

I would appreciate adventure design/pacing/delivery getting more support in the core books, but I don't know that I'd buy anything for that exclusively, the last one I did purchase was pretty disappointing. Generally, if I'm looking to spend money, it's going to be on the stuff that would be the most complex, time consuming, or tedious to do myself, so in that light, setting books (obvious caveat: well written ones) would be my number one priority. After that, it'd be APs/Modules (which to a degree covers maps and encounters).

A full book of optional rule sets, of things like more in-depth crafting/base building/faction play, could be pretty tempting, especially if it splits the difference between what is currently available in base 5e and something like MCDM's Strongholds and Followers.

 

[payn]

Another monster manual of stuff that isn't classic fantasy tropes. I miss battlebriars and other genuine oddness in monsters.

An monster manual for traps, hazards, complications and other exploration encounters.

A big Book of NPCs

Mostly I want a bunch of ready-to-play ideas for stuff to do to players. Plots and settings aren't too hard for me, but coming up with details - and especially assinging numbers to them - is more work that I'd happily pay others to do for me.

I like these ideas.