What's in Blaine's GM bag
Blaine His kit, in his words
What I actually bring to the table, and how it changes. At home I go all out. At a friend's house it all fits in one bag. At a convention, I strip it down.
Home game
The full setup.
The GM screen I built
It has a display on the front. I run it from OBS to show players environment images, NPCs and initiative. More on the build below.
heyTrace battle mat, or my magnetic board
One or the other. The board is one I built, with magnets set into it, so I can cover the map and reveal rooms as players explore.
Laptop or Mac mini, with Obsidian
Behind the screen, with my notes open.
Syrinscape and a VSDinside button board
Syrinscape plays the sounds and music. I programmed the button board through Syrinscape's API, with an image on each button, so any sound is one press away.
Expo dry-erase markers
Fine tip works well. Skip the ultra fine. For walls I use the thicker chisel tip, black only. Walls stand out better.
Flying miniatures risers
Clear stands with a magnet on top and a numbered height knob, so everyone can see how high a flyer is.
Paizo's Critical Hit and Critical Fumble decks
For crits and fumbles at the Pathfinder table.
Metal coins for Hero Points
A pouch of 60 fantasy coins I hand out as Hero Points in Pathfinder.
A dice tray and tower
Behind my GM screen. One I love, and its drawers hold my trackers.
Dice, and the Stellar Ring
A bunch of dice, and now the Stellar Ring too.
If it's Daggerheart: a range ruler
Daggerheart measures movement in ranges, not squares. This one folds up and has both scales on it.
0-10 combat dials
For countdowns the players don't see, behind the screen. When I want the players to feel a countdown, it goes out where they can see it. At home the dials live in a drawer of the dice tower, and a set rides in my case for away games.
A laser pointer
To ask a player to move a token on the far side of the mat, or to point to where a sound came from.
A sheet of names
For when I need a name for an NPC I didn't plan for.
Minis or standees
On the mat for every fight.
Away game
Someone else's table. One bag.
ENHANCE DnD backpack
Nearly my whole home setup fits in it: the laptop for Obsidian, minis, the mat, dice and books. It holds books upright and has foam trays for minis.
A Game Master noisemaker
Syrinscape and the button board stay home, so this comes instead. Sixteen sounds on battery power, from tavern and street noise to doors, growls, undead moans, weapons, magic and a potion being drunk. There's no volume control and it's a little loud, but for $12 it's a great deal.
What stays home
The GM screen I built, and the magnetic board, which is about 2' by 3'. The heyTrace mat goes instead.
Convention
Far less, and nothing that breaks.
A regular backpack
Easier to get through security.
The screen and core book for the game I'm running
Just the one system.
A couple of Flip-Mats and the heyTrace mat
Generic terrain, like a forest, that fits whatever one-shot I'm running.
Markers and Pathfinder Pawns
I have a ton of Pawns, and they don't break. Minis stay home. If you're starting out, the Monster Core box is a good all-around pick for monster coverage, and the NPC Core box covers city scenes and most PCs if you need them.
Dice
That's about it.
What I built
A GM screen with a display
The middle panel has a screen built into it, facing the players. I run it from OBS on my laptop, so I can put up the room they just walked into, the NPC they're talking to, or the initiative order.
I built it from Power Word Spill's video, and he shares his instructions in the description.
A magnetic map board
It's about 2' by 3', with magnets set into the wood. The map goes on top, and magnetic sheets cover every room the players haven't reached. When they open a door, I lift the sheet.
It's too big to travel, so it's a home-game only piece.
A sound board
A VSDinside M18 macro pad, the kind streamers use, hooked into Syrinscape through its API. I program each button and give it an image: Town, Tavern, Dungeon, Sewer, Storm, Forest Day and Forest Night, an undead battle, and a stop button. Any sound is one press away during the game.
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