I started Dungeon Crate after a trip to GenCon 2015. I
was enamored with the vendor floor and all the fun items to purchase that can
be used for gaming. I wanted more. Since I couldn’t find a sub-box service that
offered me all these cool items, I made one. Now I have access to more RPG
accessories that I ever imagined.
As a Dungeon Crate
subscriber, you also now should have a collection of gaming accessories like
dice, coins, miniatures, adventures, dice trays, and other interesting
treasures. In many cases, gamers have a set way of playing and I’ve found that
many are now looking for ways to use all these items in their games.
Role Playing
Styles
With so many playing styles out there, many have set ways
of running the game table. Some use terrain and buildings, dungeon tiles, and
handcrafted furnishings. Others use a standard battle map with wet erase pens
and miniatures. Some don’t use anything but their character sheets and
conversation (personally I shiver at this concept). So without cluttering up
the table with a mass of cards, tokens, coins, terrain, dice trays, dice
dungeons, and dungeon tiles, what’s the best way to use all the items you get
in a Dungeon Crate?
Planning Game
Accessories is Key
Every game session takes a lot of planning by the Dungeon
Master. In my experience in running multiple gaming groups, I have found that
each group has a different way of playing, which means they require different
types of accessories that will complement their game.
For instance, my one group, we will call them the “Alpha”
group tends to be more thoughtful and tactic oriented. In this case, while they
like a full table set up with tiles and terrain, they tend to blow through the
dungeons. I spent hours working on a full wizard tower for them to traverse
with stacking levels and furnishings. It took a while to set up as well and the
adventurers quickly fought their way through. The lesson learned was that this
group is better suited for easy maps on an erasable battle map with little
furnishings or embellishments. Small terrain items, tokens and light
furnishings go a long way and make changing from one encounter to another fast
and easy.
Then there’s my “Beta” group, which is a small group of
close friends. We are very casual in our play as it’s also a time to catch up
with some hilarious conversation, but we do manage to get some epic adventuring
in. With this group, I’ve been able to incorporate more items as we kind of
test out the use of some of the table top accessories to see how they play.
They’re also much slower in traversing a dungeon than my other group. In this
group we’ve used full size map printouts, dice towers, tokens, terrain, and
whatever else I bring for test play.
Picking and
Choosing Your Tabletop Accessories
I’ve found that even though I have more gaming
accessories than I ever imagined I’d have, picking and choosing the items each
game session is key to a more fun adventure. Using items that make sense for
that particular encounter and not cluttering up the table makes for a smooth
and entertaining game.
Some items we offer like the leather dice trays, tokens,
coasters, minis, dice, etc. seem to be a constant at every game, but while the
other items are fun, they can distract from the flow of the game if set up
takes too long. So the best bet is to pick and choose, leaving the rest of your
awesome accessories on display until they are needed. The concept seems like
common sense, but sometimes the fun-bug hits and it’s hard not to use
everything every time. Below are some ideas and guidelines for using all these
accessories.
Coins:
While you may be a collector of coins, money doesn’t come
up in every game. You can use coins and gem tokens as actual money in game if
players are excited about real metal coins and the ability to carry their
personal wealth. Players then can use the coins like they do in a Monopoly game
and pay the Dungeon Master when they make purchases at the town or tavern. At
the end of the session, when party treasure is divided up, it’s always fun to
actually receive your share of the treasure in weighty, metal coins and gems.
Terrain:
Unless you are setting up a diorama where your players
will spend most of the game session, setting up terrain can be an arduous
process. Make it easy by selecting the terrain that best fits the encounter. You
want enough to give an impressive scene, but not so much as to waste valuable
game time tearing it down or setting up the next encounter terrain.
Many use simple battle mats for the dungeon crawl, then
break out the terrain and dungeon tiles for a specific encounter, especially if
the terrain offers options for tactics like cover and lines of sight.
Tokens:
There are tokens for just about anything. From character
condition to inspiration, tokens can enhance gameplay if used with discretion.
Figure out what you really need tokens for and only bring tokens that may be
used in game and leave the others home.
Spells, poison, blood spatters, or markers for multiple
enemies can be used in most every game. Others can be organized and kept in the
box until needed. Players can also keep a collection of tokens for their
characters as well, using tokens to show invisibility or spell effects. The
trick is to have them organized and readily available when needed as sifting
through a bin of random tokens can slow gameplay with little payoff when found.
Card Decks:
We’ve offered quite a few decks in Dungeon Crate. Dungeon
decks, critical hit, critical fail, DM critical hit, and will have a couple
more in the upcoming months. I’ve found that it takes a little effort to use
decks and that since roleplaying isn’t really a tabletop game, cards have to be
used with discretion. Some use spell cards and if there are multiple decks on a
table, it can get confusing.
Use decks you find fun and shelve the others for later.
Critical hits and fumbles are always fun to experience with decks and some
Dungeon Masters let you choose between the deck and standard rules. Dungeon
building decks or decks used by the DM are great if used when needed. This
could be for one-off games, or when characters need a little side quest and
nothing is prepared.
Other Accessories:
Even though I don’t use all the accessories in every
game, it’s nice to have them available. Keeping everything organized is the key
to being able to find and use them when needed, especially if you have to pack
a lot of gear up to go play outside of your home base.
Sometimes I will write or download adventures based on
the accessories I have. For example, a tavern encounter where players get to
use their coins in gambling games. Maybe there is a trap-centric adventure
where you would find condition markers extremely helpful.
As far as everything else, you’ve got a great start on a
gaming collection. Trade them, display them, or offer them to players. Dungeon
Crate accessories can bring fun and excitement to many game nights and give you
a collection of items that might just inspire some epic adventures.
For Dungeon Crate subscribers, you can hit up our Dungeon Crate Trading Post to trade or buy items from other subscribers so you maximize your subscription.
Check out all the items we’ve offered HERE.
