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Message: <blockquote data-quote="kenada" data-source="post: 8623816" data-attributes="member: 70468">I’ve tried a few things over the years (RPG-specific sites like <a href="https://www.obsidianportal.com" target="_blank">Obsidian Portal</a>, Scrivener, paper notes, VTT notes, etc). What I use for my current campaign and have settled as my preferred style are paper notes. Even when I run online, I have my notes spread out in front of me on my desk. I find the spatial organization (being able to put something in a particular spot and have it be there) much more useful than trying to organize a bunch of random windows in a VTT or trying to navigate around a document or site.I use two major organizational artifacts for my notes: an accordion file and a binder. For free-standing stuff (maps, blank sheets, character sheets, etc), I use the accordion file. For player-oriented notes in particular, I keep them in folders that I can hand to the players, so they can organize their things how they want. The other types of notes are put in pockets for that type of notes. I used to have more of my own notes in there, but I’ve moved them over to the binder. The non-player stuff is now mostly blank sheets (exploration trackers, character sheets, etc).My binder is the main part of my notes. It opens with a page reminding me of my agenda and principles (PbtA-style) and is then broken down into sections by function. There are sections for factions, my hex key, monsters, NPCs, and settlements. I keep past notes in the front pocket. My current session notes go in a blank space at the bottom of the <a href="https://www.dropbox.com/s/cxui4ssujxor71r/Exploration%20Tracker.pdf" target="_blank">exploration tracker</a>. After the session, I update my reference documents and print out new versions as necessary. These are laid out in Affinity Publisher. If I need to brainstorm ideas, I use Scrivener and Scapple, but the final product is always something physical.When we first went online, I tried using the VTTs’ functionality, but it just ended up splitting up my notes into different locations, and it was clumsy to use. Once I get my homebrew system into a state where I can have it printed out, I generally don’t like having a computer or digital device at the table because I find them clumsy and cumbersome to use. They’re just not good enough for multitasking unless you have multiple displays, preferably large; and there’s just no space for that at the table. That’s why (as mentioned above), I use physical notes when running online.Note that as a player, I use a moleskin (or similar) notebook for my notes. I segment it by date and use the bookmarks to mark the end of the last session. I tried maintaining a table of contents for topics when I first started doing that in a Call of Cthulhu campaign, but I lost that habit pretty quickly.</blockquote>

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