Session Accessories

[Warmaster Horus]

I started using LED Tea Lights for players to use with Concentration spells (light = ON when a concentration spell is in use). This way the player can be reminded when they have a concentration spell up and not cast another one, or remind the DM to have a PC roll a Concentration check when injured. These two issues are very frequently overlooked in play and I've found a cheap little light like this has helped player situational awareness.

 

[Nevvur]

That looks like a really cool system. Are the tiles all pre-written on, or can you do that as needed so you could have matching tiles on the Init line and on a battle map? That is, goblins are Green"A" for Init, but tiles A1 --> A4 on the map, a Bugbear commander is Red "B" and B1, etc.

Where are the tiles from?

I got the tiles at Amazon.com, tub of 400 for $18. Should be the first hit on a search for "colored plastic tiles" at the site.

They're blank. I painted the A, B,C 1-10 on the red, blue and yellow tiles. I use green tiles for player initiatives, and since characters change, I use a dry erase marker on them, usually just the first two or three letters of the character name. Helps me remember PC names, and I think it keeps the players a little more immersed when their turn comes up and I refer to them as their character.

As for associating initiative tiles with monster tokens (which are just Go beads), I typically match red to the numbered tokens, blue to the lettered tokens, and yellow to "other." If I were to redo all these pieces, I would tweak the system a bit, coordinate the matching a little better, i.e. use red paint to mark 1-10 on the white go beads for one set, use blue paint to mark 1-10 for another set, and so on.

Also, the black beads replace white beads when the monster dies, so everyone knows its a corpse.

 

[Koren n'Rhys]

I got the tiles at Amazon.com, tub of 400 for $18. Should be the first hit on a search for "colored plastic tiles" at the site.

They're blank. I painted the A, B,C 1-10 on the red, blue and yellow tiles. I use green tiles for player initiatives, and since characters change, I use a dry erase marker on them, usually just the first two or three letters of the character name. Helps me remember PC names, and I think it keeps the players a little more immersed when their turn comes up and I refer to them as their character.

As for associating initiative tiles with monster tokens (which are just Go beads), I typically match red to the numbered tokens, blue to the lettered tokens, and yellow to "other." If I were to redo all these pieces, I would tweak the system a bit, coordinate the matching a little better, i.e. use red paint to mark 1-10 on the white go beads for one set, use blue paint to mark 1-10 for another set, and so on.

Also, the black beads replace white beads when the monster dies, so everyone knows its a corpse.

That's a great system - very useful, yet cost effective. Real minis or pathfinder Pawns look cool, but man do they add up quick. I might steal some of these ideas for use on the DM side of things. If players want a more representative mini for themselves they can bring their own. Thanks for sharing this!

I should add that I have a nice big chessex mat (3x4ish) that's got to be 25 years old now and still like new. Super heavy duty - much more so than the new mats are. i also have a newer small mat (2x3ish). Great with wet-erase markers, but harder to clean up. Most recently I've taken to using a Noteboard that I got a few years ago at GenCon. Dry-erase, and easy to throw in my bag. 15x35" is usually big enough.

 

[Ralif Redhammer]

What a great idea! If my next campaign has as many spell casters as it’s starting to look like, I might have to use this idea.

I started using LED Tea Lights for players to use with Concentration spells (light = ON when a concentration spell is in use).

 

[StinkyEttin]

I started using LED Tea Lights for players to use with Concentration spells (light = ON when a concentration spell is in use). This way the player can be reminded when they have a concentration spell up and not cast another one, or remind the DM to have a PC roll a Concentration check when injured. These two issues are very frequently overlooked in play and I've found a cheap little light like this has helped player situational awareness.

Brilliant!