D&D Accessories: Effect Gauges And Markers To Make Game Night Easier
Need to keep track of how much of a room is on fire or your character’s multiple conditions? There is a gauge or tracker for it.
There are a lot of things that can happen to your character while you’re playing Dungeons and Dragons. Whether a spell leaves them cursed in some way, or the area around them is suddenly difficult to stand on or becomes engulfed in flame, encounters are bound to be full of moving parts for players and DMs alike to remember and keep organized. Luckily, there are tools to make your D&D experience a little easier.
As always, links to shops are in the item titles.
DM Printable Condition Tracker
Arguably, it’s most important that the Dungeon Master is best acquainted with what’s going on on the game map at all times. Sure, your player-characters will want to keep track of when they’re charmed or poisoned or exhausted or whatever else has been going on in your session, but the DM has all of the characters and NPCs and monsters to keep track of. This printable PDF condition tracker kit is the perfect low-cost and high-yield solution for a DM. They can print as many as they need, either write characters next to condition or cut them out to use as condition markers.
Spell Gauge Templates
Playing your sessions at a grid map is great, but it means that you don’t have an excuse to not be specific and precise when it comes to the area your character’s spells are affecting. This ten-piece set lets your party stay keenly aware of spell sizes and which characters, foes, and NPCs are going to be touched by that fireball. This is good because the wizard isn’t ever going to ask how big the room is or who is nearby before casting that spell.
Blank Condition Rings
Lots of condition rings have to come with a lot of little parts to make sure you have enough conditions and rings for every situation. These blank rings take a completely opposite approach where you’ll only ever need one per character and can reuse it as many times as you want. Clear rings are effectively invisible on your game map and can be written on and wiped away as needed, and since they’re blank you can use them for anything at all, not just condition markers. Does your character have inspiration or especially good armor that they’re borrowing? Jot it down on the marker that goes everywhere with your mini and you’ll never forget.
Area of Effect Marker
One of my personal favorite moves is covering the floor with grease and hoping the monster will slip it in a truly cartoonish way. It doesn’t always work, and instead, it’s sometimes a hazard to my character’s own companions and my character themself. With a large marker reminding the DM how large the area of effect of my spell is, they’ll never forget who is slipping in grease and how embarrassing it will be, and maybe my party-mates will remember to stay out of the slip area.
Magnetic Condition Rings
When you’re buying condition rings for your party you’ll need to buy a giant sack with multiples because if one character is paralyzed, there’s a good chance at least one other is in danger of the same condition. This set gets rid of your need for multiple rings with magnetized conditions you can pop on and off blank rings. And if you’re unlucky enough to have multiple conditions, you can have up to four per ring.
What are your favorite trackers and gauges for tabletop games? How does your group keep track of conditions and effects now? Will any of our favorite picks make it onto your wish list? Let us know in the comments!
Happy Adventuring!
