RPG Evolution: Gift Ideas for the Game Master Who Has Everything

From the useful to the less useful but hopefully still enjoyable, this is an eclectic list of gifts valued at forty bucks or under.

Please Note: I'm a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to http://amazon.com. Amazon regularly posts and delists items so these may not all be in stock, and if you plan to purchase these for the holidays check delivery times as some may be shipped from overseas. Listings are in price order from lowest to highest.

Condition Cards ($13)​

Condition cards are a popular choice because players and game masters often forget what a condition means in Fifth Edition Dungeons & Dragons. These cards have an easy-to-interpret graphic on one side and text on the reverse. Just hand them out to the player or keep them handy for the DM when a monster is under multiple effects.

Fidget Wheel ($14)​

Sometimes you want randomness in your responses. This fidget wheel is an easy way to come up with random answers to spells like augury or divination spells. The players may not be happy about it though.

Catnip Monsters ($15)​

Does your game master have a cat? Are you playing D&D? Does that cat hate monsters as much as you do? Now you can enlist felines to your side with these plush toys, or at least keep them away from your miniatures for a little while.

Foldable Battle Mat ($18)​

I was skeptical of this mat. I've had a few, and they're all pretty much the same, but this mat features one simple innovation: dots instead of lines. This makes it so much easier to draw terrain that isn't boxy.

Drinking Horn ($30)​

Does your DM like to drink? Do you? Drink like a hero from this drinking horn, crated from real horn.

D&D Travel Bag ($40)​

There's been an explosion of gamer luggage in the past few years, but this is one of the more economical and effective. As you can see from the graphic, it can easily hold most of what you need, and it comes with a loop for battlemaps too!

 

[Aldarc]

For the Man Who Has Everything:

Spoiler

 

[aco175]

The travel bag was $56.00 when I just clicked on it. Still cheaper than some of the others I have seen or the one I bought for my kid a couple years ago.

 

[talien]

The travel bag was $56.00 when I just clicked on it. Still cheaper than some of the others I have seen or the one I bought for my kid a couple years ago.

Bleah, prices going up already. Amazon does some very interesting math with products based on supply/demand. I was trying to buy a laptop before Cyber Monday and the price went up $100 over the span of two days, then sold out completely. Fortunately there were other choices on Cyber Monday that were better alternatives, but it's become impossible to pin down a price on Amazon because some algorithm is constantly reassessing each product's value and what customers are willing to pay for it.

 

[Dioltach]

No Game Master has everything. If you have enough players, you need more time. If you have enough time, you need more players.

 

[Marandahir]

Look at this stuff
Isn't it neat?
Wouldn't ya think their collection's complete?
Wouldn't ya think this GM's…
a GM who's got everything?

Look at this trove, treasures untold
How many wonders can one Dungeon hold?
Lookin' around here you'd think
Our GM's got everything

They've got sourcebooks and dice bags aplenty
They've got d20s and Tilesets galore
You want Miniatures?
They've got twenty (thousand)
But who cares?
No big deal
They want more