My DM's Notebook
Character Sheets
5E PHB
5E DMG
Xanathar's Guide to Everything
5E MM
5E DM Screen Reincarnated
Dice & Miniatures
Sometimes, Dungeon Tiles or Maps

I realized I wasn't using Volo's Guide very much, so I removed it from my gaming bag.  My bag was too dang heavy.  I guess I need a hireling?

Quote from: Razor 007;1070943My DM's Notebook
5E PHB
5E DMG
Xanathar's Guide to Everything
5E MM
5E DM Screen Reincarnated
Dice & Miniatures
Sometimes, Dungeon Tiles or Maps

I realized I wasn't using Volo's Guide very much, so I removed it from my gaming bag.  My bag was too dang heavy.  I guess I need a hireling?

Laptop, front and center (my gaming is either play by post or Roll20)
Bowl with dice, pencils, and erasers handy on the desk
PDFs for game being played handy
For RuneQuest, I have RQ1, RQ2, Cults of Prax, Apple Lane, and other references handy behind me
For OD&D, I have some Wilderlands stuff behind me, folders with the dungeon and record keeping, also Holmes and AD&D books for reference
For Traveller, I have some references behind me (but mostly use the PDFs) and folders with maps and record keeping
Gygax's Extraordinary Book of Names
A few other random things
Book case with RQ, D&D, and Traveller stuff within a few steps

Frank

I could run a standalone session with just my:

DM's Notebook
5E DM Screen Reincarnated
Character Sheets
Dice & Miniatures

But it would limit the Monsters I'd use, and the Roll Charts I'd have available.  I'd probably stick to Evil NPCs, Monstrous Humanoids, Wolves, Giant Snakes, Giant Spiders, etc.

Campaign notes/scenario
dice
minis box
Battlemats
Scrap paper
PHB
MM
magic items section from the SRD

I don't normally bring the DMG or Xanathar's; I would prob bring Xanathar's between the two, for the times players use the options and maybe for the encounter tables. Rarely use Volo's at all (there is a tabaxi PC in one game) and I don't have Mordenkainen's.

Last night I photocopied the Common magic items section from Xanathar's for an upcoming Princes of the Apocalypse campaign.

Quote from: Razor 007;1070943I realized I wasn't using Volo's Guide very much, so I removed it from my gaming bag.  My bag was too dang heavy.  I guess I need a hireling?

I like it when my son comes with me to the session; at 11 he has a broad strong back & can carry a heavy load.

The last time I ran D&D, I used the base Labyrinth Lord book, a single set of dice, and a notepad/pencil. It was very liberating. Contrast to a GURPS campaign with roughly 30 books, reams of maps, box of dice, backpack full of graph paper, notepads, etc., and a ton of minis. We played at a gaming store, and hauling all that crap around was a serious pain in the ass. For the typical AD&D game, per the original question:

Players Handbook (four or five copies usually)
Dungeonmasters Guide
Monster Manual
Monster Manual II
Fiend Folio
Unearthed Arcana (yeah, I know)
Manual of the Planes
Oriental Adventures
Deities and Demigods
Giant notebook full of notes and maps
Dry-erase board w/hexes and grid - totally worth it
Box of minis
Gary Gygax's Extraordinary  Book of Names because my fatal flaw as a DM is naming crap on the fly
2nd Edition Players Handbook for a few things
Central Casting
Rules Cyclopedia
A couple adventures, usually B2 and Temple of Elemental Evil

I like to have as many resources as possible, but honestly I'd say I only use 1/10th of that stuff during the average game, hence my trial run with Labyrinth Lord. It was arguably better with LESS resources, as I had to actually use my brain like back in the old days when I was in junior high school with no money and could barely scrape up enough funds to buy the Mentzer Red Box. I still like having lots of books around, though.

Current two campaigns:

- Three D&D 5E core books
- Tome of Beasts
- Xanathar's Guide to Everything
- Main campaign binder
- note pad
- A few thin folders with things I keep separate from the binder
- Plastic container from a fishing tackle box with dice, pencils, and other miscellaneous doodads I've found useful, such as the egg timer.

That's it.  All fits inside a medium travel file container.  I'm seriously thinking about typing up the handful of things we use from Xanathar's, so that I can stop bringing it.  Also, it's times like these that I wish the three core books were four core books, with the DMG having the magic items split off, and the real DMG being purely a thing you use in prep.

Quote from: Razor 007;1070943I realized I wasn't using Volo's Guide very much, so I removed it from my gaming bag.  My bag was too dang heavy.  I guess I need a hireling?

Last time I GMed was 2nd ed Dark Sun so-
2nd Ed PHB
2nd Ed DMG
Psionicist's Handbook
Dark Sun boxed set. (Original)
I need a 2nd ed GM screen. Haven't decided if I want to make my own or ebay an old one.
Dice, of course.
My binder full of GM stuff.

I don't use minis with 2nd edition, but when I was GMing 5th, I did bring minis, terrain and mats.

5e PHB
Dice + a dice tower a player made for me.
DMG, MM, Volo & Mord for quick reffrence if needed. Which is rare. Usually only reffed between sessions.
Lots of notes on index cards. I jot down monsters and other things as needed so dont have to leaf through the book as much, or at all.

Xanithars guide I use for between session stuff. Lots of great downtime activities.

Dice. Jack Daniels and/or Maker's Mark. Pencil. Laptop. Glass. Icecubes if I'm feeling sensitive that night.

With Pathfinder, it started out as a game you only needed 2 books to run games with; the Core Rulebook, and the Bestiary.

But then; it's great to add the Gamemastery Guide for all of the roll charts, etc.

And the NPC Codex is a DM's best friend.

And everyone thinks the Advanced Player's Guide has to be allowed.

And Ultimate Magic for the Magus; an official Fighter/ Magic User class.

And it never ends....

DM Log (those old TSR sheets)
DM Screen
DM binder (various tables and stock maps, etc.)
Adventure notes
Core 1E books
Dice

Tablet
Paper backup (Campaign Maps and Character Sheets)
Dice
Pens
Faux-Pringles
Custard Creams

Clipboard with legal pad
Ipad with Core Books of GURPs on it
Gm screen
Map/mapping notes
Shitload of D6's
Pencils
Waaaaay more miniatures than I need
Huge grid map I can write on with wet erase markers.
A stack of folders with papers I never need, and likely never will, I have the crew carry them out of habit.

- Amazon Fire 10 for reference book PDFs and all the digital artwork I make for my/the group's PCs.

- iPhone for dice-roller and tracking app (I use Dice Ex - which has a lovely "dice sets" page where you can set up lines for tracking hit points, spell slots and specific action checks/damage rolls including advantage/disadvantage... I've got a separate one for each game I'm playing in or running with all the rolls I'll need and extra lines for tracking monster hit points when I'm running).

- Custom-made character sheet (typically landscape layout in 9-10 pt font to minimize table space).

- Printer paper and pen for notes / notes from previous sessions that are still relevant.

- The leather binder with pockets I keep my note paper, character sheet and Amazon Fire in (though it usually ends up off to the side somewhere during the game itself.

- A half-gallon bottle of home-brewed unsweet tea.

- Mini if needed (or if I'm running and a battlemap is needed then minis/pogs, dry erase markers and one to four 18"x24" white-board grids I made with my laser engraver... I can get a 4'x8' sheet and have it cut down into 10 panels for about $14 and it takes about 5 minutes to etch a 1" grid on a panel; best game investment ever).