D&D General Favorite Accessories to play D&D and RPGs from the past 52 years

[mearls]

The first wave of sets were pretty much indestructible too. Until they switched to wizz kids.

LOL - I learned the hard way that the wizkids plastics were not anywhere near as durable as the WotC ones. I loved that I could dump the minis I need in a dice bag. Can't do that with the modern ones (unless you like broken swords and limbs).

 

[TheSword]

LOL - I learned the hard way that the wizkids plastics were not anywhere near as durable as the WotC ones. I loved that I could dump the minis I need in a dice bag. Can't do that with the modern ones (unless you like broken swords and limbs).

Yeah, I later bought a lot of the pathfinder sets and have about two dozen bases with just a clear plastic nub sticking up off them. The flying/swimming minis were a great idea but lasted weeks.

 

[Thierry-Advent]

First, Steve Jackson’s Cardboard Heroes standees sets. Then Chessex hex and square maps.
Soon after, the Grenadier orc box set. They were stand ins for countless humanoids.

 

[abazaba]

This one is for the old timers...

What are some of your favorite first- or third-party accessories that you bought, or saw for sale, to help people play D&D and other RPGs? What were some of the weirdest you remember seeing? What parts of the game did they shore up? Do you have any stories about the companies who made them?

I'm not quite sure if I count as an 'old timer': I'm in my fifties, but I only started playing D&D 5e (my first and only TTRPG) just a few years ago. Although all of the other people in our group are in their late 20's to early 30's, we still play with printed paper character sheets, and fill out the specifics with pencil and eraser. Since (as far as I know) I'm the only one in our group that owns a printer, I'm the one that prints the character sheets. Our current DM has some physical mini's, and owns (blank) plastic dungeon tiles on which he draws the dungeons with dry erase markers. Between us, we have enough dice to throw fireball multiple times over simultaneously, and some of the dice are fancier than others. Yes, our current DM does use his laptop in addition to his separate DM screen (on which he keeps his DM notes and campaign digitally). But in this day and age, I still count that as mostly 'old-school'. And we all like it that way. So, does any of this still qualify ?

 

[SlyFlourish]

First, Steve Jackson’s Cardboard Heroes standees sets. Then Chessex hex and square maps.
Soon after, the Grenadier orc box set. They were stand ins for countless humanoids.

View attachment 440786

I used the hell out of that lower left knight standee.

 

[SlyFlourish]

LOL - I learned the hard way that the wizkids plastics were not anywhere near as durable as the WotC ones. I loved that I could dump the minis I need in a dice bag. Can't do that with the modern ones (unless you like broken swords and limbs).

I collected a ton of the old miniatures for years and I feel like a king. I had to have a conversation with our nieces about how valuable they potentially were "one of these Drizzt minis is worth like six dollars. The other is worth like $200. I can't tell you which is which".

I pulled out a miniature a couple of days ago and realized it's about 23 years old.

 

[Byrd]

I cast my first minis in 7th grade shop class. (Got a lead safety lecture too!)
LotR characters. They got used for when playing Monopoly. Top hat? Pfft. Orc for me.

Later, I was introduced to AD&D.

I have some molds...somewhere in storage...haven't cast any minis in years though.

Polyhedral DICE!

 

[darjr]

First, Steve Jackson’s Cardboard Heroes standees sets. Then Chessex hex and square maps.
Soon after, the Grenadier orc box set. They were stand ins for countless humanoids.

View attachment 440786

Oh yea, when I liked them they were great. A whole campaign of figures in a small plastic box.

 

[Thierry-Advent]

A selection of our 90s Ral Partha minis painted with Polly Paints by my wife. Each orc had a shield of different colour to help me track HPs! The black and blue magic-user was my character, when I wasn’t the DM.

 

[Thierry-Advent]

I use these when I play BX solo, reminds me of the early 80s. Pure nostalgia. (reprints, not the originals.)