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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Diremede" data-source="post: 2642919" data-attributes="member: 7964">I never used a battlemat until about 3 years ago.  Before that we simply drew on a piece of paper where everyone was and as the DM and players we decided where so and so was, how long it would take to reach someone, how far a character could go etc.  I think 3E really changed how we worked with D&D, AoO's on paper where much more difficult to balance out, at least as far as movement goes, and certain game elements such as the radius on a fireball and similar area of effect spells weren't all that exact.  I think on the whole 3E is much more of a tactical game as far as character position, movement, and attacks are concerned more so than previous editions of the game where flanking, AoO's, and area of effect spells.  I think when 3E came out I switched to graph paper drawings and maps for representation for these reasons, and actually the game worked out quite well.  In 2002 I switched to a battlemat simply because the new group of folks I was gaming with were using mini' and whatnot to represent their characters and monsters.  Does it matter?  No.  I think the game can work just as easily on graph paper with pencil or markers, for even the most tactical of gaming groups, and that plain paper and pencil works just fine for those who just want simple representations of the layout of a building or whatnot, and don't really care about precise movement and tactics.</blockquote>

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