DMs: What books make your life easier?

[Crothian]

What books do you use that make your life easier as a DM? Which books have the ideas for you that fit perfectly with what you are doing?

 

[Liolel]

A Book that makes my life easier. Simple its the Seafarers handbook, as my campaign is set in an archepiligo and its a lot easier to take prewritten rules for ship to ship combat then to make it up yourself.

 

[SpiderMonkey]

Currently? I know it's cheesy, but GRR Martin's "Song of Ice and Fire" series. It's saved me a ton of research for a heavily medieval and political setting, as well as just generating a bunch of plot hooks for me to shamelessly steal.

Gamebooks? When I feel like deviating from the generally low-fantasy feel of our current campaign, I like a lot of the elements in the Scarred Lands setting. For mechanics, as a DM you just can't beat the Traps & Treachery books for spicing up your trap menu.

 

[MerakSpielman]

I like the pdf publication "Everybody Else" with stat blocks for the ordinary people of the world that characters frequently interact with. I haven't gotten a chance to use it during a game though, since I bought it after my group starting breaking apart, but I fully intend to use it in the future.

 

[drakhe]

The novels about x

Since I play in Forgotten Realms and DM in Greyhawk, the novel series connected with these settings have been extremely helpfull in understanding the setting and the people and monsters who populate these.

I also read the Legend of the 5 rings novels and can only recomend them to anybody playing L5R.

Then again, I guess any decent fantasy novel or medieval setting novel will give you a taste and insight in fantasy/medieval life

 

[Psion]

What books do you use that make your life easier as a DM?

Toolbox.

Which books have the ideas for you that fit perfectly with what you are doing?

Requiem for a God
Planes and Portals
Masters at Arms

 

[Thorin Stoutfoot]

Dungeon Magazine!

Ok, so it's not a book, but it's saved me countless hours of prep time, and is the best value of money I've spent on D&D yet.

 

[der_kluge]

That's a tough one. Artificer's Handbook. Ignoring the fact that I wrote the majority of it, I wrote it, because I needed it. To hell with the rest of you folks. It's *my* book. Just kidding, of course, but it does help me figure out magic item costs, etc.

I've gotten a lot of use out of the Book of Templates, but I'm not sure it has my life easier, per se. Made my games better yes, easier, not so sure.

I'm still waiting for Creative Mountain's randomly generated spell lists by class, level, and archetype pdf. That will make my life easier.

Traps and Treachery 2 ( I don't have 1) has great traps that I can plug into a dungeon. That has made life easier.

I intend to use Philip J Reed's book of unusual treasures for a treasure vault. So, that will make my life easier.

 

[TheAuldGrump]

Hmmm, Bards Production's Common Grounds 1 & 2 have saved copius amounts of time I would have otherwise spent doing up generic locations.

Campaign Planner by Phillip J. Reed is handy when creating the campaign.

The old 1st edition Adventure Design Kit by TSR. I have updated some of the forms, and the chases sheet actually works better with 3.x than it did for 1e.

The Auld Grump