Does your group use a DM Screen?

[Lord Ben]

I leave it up during the exploring phase, and occasionally during battle. But with a large dangerous battle I almost always put it down. The players can then see the rolls that nail them and I can see the battlemat without standing up.

 

[mearls]

For combat, rolling the dice in front of the players just seems to add more tension to the melee.

I've witnessed this myself, too. The players really zero in on the dice, and you can feel the tension in the room.

As for the poll, I guess I have to answer "sort of." In my ideal set up, I have a smaller table next to my chair where I keep maps, notes, and miniatures set up behind a screen, but on the main table I usually keep my dice, a few spare minis, and a notebook to keep track of what's going on. If I have the screen on the main table, I'm always knocking it over when I try to reach over to the battlemat.

 

[MarauderX]

I don't, but I am a player in another group that uses one. Then again, I keep my important plot notes and such on a side table that I keep covered, does that count?

 

[Fenes 2]

As a DM I use a screen, mainly to hide my notes and to roll the dice. If I want to roll open, nothing prevents me from doing it, but I made the experioence as a player that I really hate it when I can see the DM's notes - I don't want to involuntarily get a peek of the NPCs etc., so I really prefer the DM to have a screen.

 

[Shadoe's Lady]

Well, one of them does, anyway...it's called a laptop

 

[ZSutherland]

Nope,

I tried it once and just felt really crowded. I also kept spilling my drink feeling around for it on the other side of the screen.

My group (all 7 of us) play at the dining room table which gets crowded to begin with. I'll have my MM open on the floor, the PHB & DMG closed but near at hand, my dice on the table, and my notebook open in my lap so they can't see it.

It's cumbersome, but at least it doesn't make me claustrophobic, like the screen did.

Z

 

[orbitalfreak]

I use one when I DM. I use it for the cheesy "DM is mysterious...OOOohhhhh" purpose, but mostly to organize notes, stats, tables, etc. (would use a laptop if I could afford it). I usually roll behind the screen, but that's so that I don't have to reach around the screen to roll, rathar than to keep them secret. I also don't hide maps, since my players are good at ignoring non-character knowledge. In fact, we usually play on a fully-mapped battle-mat (several sheets of paper, a printed 1" grid, and then trace the dungeon/cave/tower with a pen) or smaller battle-mats that we link together as play moves from room to room.

 

[Nifft]

I too use my laptop as my "DM's Screen" -- does that count?

-- Nifft

 

[Tabarnak Smokeblower]

We use it to hide notes, maps and die rolls from the other players (When I say we, I mean all the DM's that I play with)

TS

 

[Davelozzi]

I actually use 3 screens most of the time. Two wide (D&D 3e and Scarred Lands) to cover my DM table and one (Birthright) in front of the the 3e screen because it has far superior artwork, IMO.

But during battles I generally walk around my DM table and up to the coffee table that we use for battles so no screen then.

So I guess it's more of a hide the notes thing than for secret rolls, although I will roll Spot checks and the like behind it.