I am just looking for ideas on gift ideas that are fun and could be useful to a DM. My brother's birthday is coming up and I am hoping to find something that either makes DMing more fun or easier for him. Right now, he is running a campaign using Discord and Roll20. He already has all of the main books and supplements.
Here are some ideas I had so far
A good microphone. He actually got me a Yeti mic for my birthday and it has been a fantastic tool for when I run my games. The only reason I am apprehensive about getting him one is I don't want to just copy the gift he got me
A subscription to the Pro service for Roll20. I have never subscribed to this service, so I have no idea how helpful it is
A flashdrive with several DMsGuild products on it (would appreciate suggestions here).
Is there anything that you have either bought for yourself or received as a gift that you felt improved your ability to DM or the fun you have while doing so?
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If your brother doesn't already have a good microphone, then that is a perfectly good gift. If you are thoughtful about the choice, then it's not "copying", but rather "matching". You would be sharing something together that you both value.
If he is an online-only DM, then you could look up youtube/twitch streamer set-ups. Proper lighting and backdrops are nice, though won't necessarily make DMing any easier.
A second monitor, if not already owned, is a great option, but could get pricey.
If you expect to be returning to in-person gaming, then you could look into mini mystery boxes, or terrain tiles, and the such.
Sometimes surprises are overrated. You could always ask your brother to put together a wishlist to guarantee that you buy something that they will be excited about.
Does he intend to keep playing digitally in post-covid times? If not, I can never have too many minis as DM myself. I usually get mine via various kickstarters, though that's not very convenient in terms of gifting. With some looking around you can probably find a nice bulk lot, or you could pick one or two really impressive ones (there's tons of sculptors selling minis now thanks to 3D printing at home).
A subscription box could be fun, but by their very nature you never know what you're actually going to get until it arrives.
I wouldn't recommend them all, but Hitpoint Press has a number of card decks including a deck of many things, a deck of many npcs and a bunch of spell and monster decks. If you google it, there's a lot of other alternatives for a deck of many things too.
I'd be pretty happy with Strongholds & Followers from MCDM or the Tome of Beasts or Creature Collection from Kobold Press as well.
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Want to start playing but don't have anyone to play with? You can try these options: [link].
I dunno how Roll20 works... I use Foundry and the Forge. But the Forge has a way to buy gifts for your DM. You can buy them sub time or give them store credits to buy maps or token packs or whatever other features they might like. That would be a useful gift for a DM. I would guess that Forge did not invent this idea and Roll20 probably has something similar.
Does he already have a Pro sub? If so then it would be nice to extend that sub for him. I would appreciate something like that. More years of DMing at no cost to me. If he does NOT have the pro sub, does he want one but not want to spend the $$? Has he expressed "gee I wish I had the pro version of this but I don't have the cash?" If so then a Pro sub would probably be a nice surprise. Or maybe just a Roll20 gift card and he can use it on whatever he wants. He has all the books there NOW, but what about future books? Gift cards usually don't expire so the next sourcebook that comes out, he can buy with the gift card.
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WOTC lies. We know that WOTC lies. WOTC knows that we know that WOTC lies. We know that WOTC knows that we know that WOTC lies. And still they lie.
Because of the above (a paraphrase from Orwell) I no longer post to the forums -- PM me if you need help or anything.
I second being direct and just ask what he wants too. I personally do not care for surprises, and I think most people prefer to have some input on the gift to lessen the chance of getting a gift that they do not need or already have. If it is just beer, flowers, or food, I think surprises are fine, but if you are getting something more permanent like a book or mic, then I think getting some input from the recipient would be better in my opinion. There are some people that genuinely prefer surprises though, but that is really rare from my experience.
For additional ideas, outside of strictly D&D stuff, if he likes books, comics, games, movies, newspapers (Some of us do take inspiration from real life and current events!), etc., those make great gifts for GMs too. We get a lot of inspiration from the media we consume, and it is great to explore other worlds and peoples. And after we are done, it is cool to bring back bits and pieces and souvenirs into the campaign, and share some of that magic and wonder that we experienced with the players.
We got my DM the Tiamat mini. We’ve also gotten him some dwarven forge. If you play in person and don’t do theater of the mind, minis or terrain are always a good choice. Of course, then you may need to end up fighting the monsters, so tread wisely.
I am just looking for ideas on gift ideas that are fun and could be useful to a DM. My brother's birthday is coming up and I am hoping to find something that either makes DMing more fun or easier for him. Right now, he is running a campaign using Discord and Roll20. He already has all of the main books and supplements.
Here are some ideas I had so far
A good microphone. He actually got me a Yeti mic for my birthday and it has been a fantastic tool for when I run my games. The only reason I am apprehensive about getting him one is I don't want to just copy the gift he got me
A subscription to the Pro service for Roll20. I have never subscribed to this service, so I have no idea how helpful it is
A flashdrive with several DMsGuild products on it (would appreciate suggestions here).
Is there anything that you have either bought for yourself or received as a gift that you felt improved your ability to DM or the fun you have while doing so?
Are they a fan of Crit Role? Possibly try and find one of the now-super rare Tal'dorei campaign books
Hey all,
I am just looking for ideas on gift ideas that are fun and could be useful to a DM. My brother's birthday is coming up and I am hoping to find something that either makes DMing more fun or easier for him. Right now, he is running a campaign using Discord and Roll20. He already has all of the main books and supplements.
Here are some ideas I had so far
Is there anything that you have either bought for yourself or received as a gift that you felt improved your ability to DM or the fun you have while doing so?
Four-time Judge of the Competition of the Finest Brews! Come join us in making fun, unique homebrew and voting for your favorite entries!
What price range are you looking to stay within?
If your brother doesn't already have a good microphone, then that is a perfectly good gift. If you are thoughtful about the choice, then it's not "copying", but rather "matching". You would be sharing something together that you both value.
If he is an online-only DM, then you could look up youtube/twitch streamer set-ups. Proper lighting and backdrops are nice, though won't necessarily make DMing any easier.
A second monitor, if not already owned, is a great option, but could get pricey.
If you expect to be returning to in-person gaming, then you could look into mini mystery boxes, or terrain tiles, and the such.
Sometimes surprises are overrated. You could always ask your brother to put together a wishlist to guarantee that you buy something that they will be excited about.
Honestly I still get really happy when a player brings me weed or beer as a DM gift
Does he intend to keep playing digitally in post-covid times? If not, I can never have too many minis as DM myself. I usually get mine via various kickstarters, though that's not very convenient in terms of gifting. With some looking around you can probably find a nice bulk lot, or you could pick one or two really impressive ones (there's tons of sculptors selling minis now thanks to 3D printing at home).
If he likes making maps, Wonderdraft or Dungeondraft might make for a very welcome gift.
A subscription box could be fun, but by their very nature you never know what you're actually going to get until it arrives.
I wouldn't recommend them all, but Hitpoint Press has a number of card decks including a deck of many things, a deck of many npcs and a bunch of spell and monster decks. If you google it, there's a lot of other alternatives for a deck of many things too.
I'd be pretty happy with Strongholds & Followers from MCDM or the Tome of Beasts or Creature Collection from Kobold Press as well.
Want to start playing but don't have anyone to play with? You can try these options: [link].
I dunno how Roll20 works... I use Foundry and the Forge. But the Forge has a way to buy gifts for your DM. You can buy them sub time or give them store credits to buy maps or token packs or whatever other features they might like. That would be a useful gift for a DM. I would guess that Forge did not invent this idea and Roll20 probably has something similar.
Does he already have a Pro sub? If so then it would be nice to extend that sub for him. I would appreciate something like that. More years of DMing at no cost to me. If he does NOT have the pro sub, does he want one but not want to spend the $$? Has he expressed "gee I wish I had the pro version of this but I don't have the cash?" If so then a Pro sub would probably be a nice surprise. Or maybe just a Roll20 gift card and he can use it on whatever he wants. He has all the books there NOW, but what about future books? Gift cards usually don't expire so the next sourcebook that comes out, he can buy with the gift card.
WOTC lies. We know that WOTC lies. WOTC knows that we know that WOTC lies. We know that WOTC knows that we know that WOTC lies. And still they lie.
Because of the above (a paraphrase from Orwell) I no longer post to the forums -- PM me if you need help or anything.
I second being direct and just ask what he wants too. I personally do not care for surprises, and I think most people prefer to have some input on the gift to lessen the chance of getting a gift that they do not need or already have. If it is just beer, flowers, or food, I think surprises are fine, but if you are getting something more permanent like a book or mic, then I think getting some input from the recipient would be better in my opinion. There are some people that genuinely prefer surprises though, but that is really rare from my experience.
For additional ideas, outside of strictly D&D stuff, if he likes books, comics, games, movies, newspapers (Some of us do take inspiration from real life and current events!), etc., those make great gifts for GMs too. We get a lot of inspiration from the media we consume, and it is great to explore other worlds and peoples. And after we are done, it is cool to bring back bits and pieces and souvenirs into the campaign, and share some of that magic and wonder that we experienced with the players.
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A fantasy movie. Any D&D movie. The Cartoon Collection. Dinner at a five star restaurant. Dice. Hand craft shirt, hat, etc.
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We got my DM the Tiamat mini. We’ve also gotten him some dwarven forge. If you play in person and don’t do theater of the mind, minis or terrain are always a good choice. Of course, then you may need to end up fighting the monsters, so tread wisely.
Are they a fan of Crit Role? Possibly try and find one of the now-super rare Tal'dorei campaign books
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