I'm building my own referee screen for LotFP because I've finally given up on ever seeing the one from the kickstarter. It's been three years and not so much as a peep. Sometimes, you just gotta move on with your life.
So I purchased the blank screen from Pinnacle in order to make my own! Ha HA! Suck on that, Raggi! Oh shit, you already got my money. Rats.
The problem I have with making a screen is what to put on it. I have a 2 inch binder full of tables and notes that I use in game. I would need a massively tall and wide screen to contain less than half of it. A lot of it is stuff I've used once and never again, but other things have been surprisingly useful (like a table of hats and headgear I found on the interweb. My players LOVE that shit).
So I'm thinking of putting the following on my screen. Btw: I've never, in 20+ years of gaming, used a screen. A few years ago, I suddenly thought that it was a pretty good idea. Still do. Back to the task at hand;
* loot the body table
* player missed a session table
* death and dismemberment table
* encounter table for wherever the PCs are at the moment
* NPC generator: name, disposition, something interesting
* Business name generator: Prancing Pony Pub, Yodeling Orc Hot Springs, etc
* Class tables of saving throws
* Short PC sheets so I have important info without having to ask
On the outside facing the players, I'm considering putting equipment lists (with a note that prices are subject to change), weapon and armor values, and important campaign notes/reminders (sometimes we go for a month or two between sessions and notes can get lost over time)
What else would you (yes, YOU) put on a referee screen? What are useful things you've seen on other screens? Like, I've looked at screens from older editions of AD&D and my eyes glazed over from how much useless crap filled the things up. Lots of information, but much of it seemed unnecessary.
random weather table
It really varies from game to game. In my current Hell on Earth Reloaded game, I made sure to include stuff for scavenging, vehicle fatigue, and item scarcity when purchasing gear to go along with the usual injury and fright tables that I use when running Savage Worlds. When I ran Hellfrost, I had weather effects (particularly stuff regarding cold) and the table for temperatures based on location and time of year.
I rarely use weather effects, unless I write them specifically into an adventure. However, having them on the screen and in my face would remind me to use them more often. Thanks for the suggestion!
I've never used a screen -- I hate the idea of a barrier between my players and myself. What I do have is a 3-ring binder at my elbow, which has the following contents (for GURPS), all in double-sided clear plastic sleeves:
* Combat action chart. Not often used; my players tend to vanilla attack options;
* Reaction table.
* Critical hit chart, critical miss chart, unarmed critical miss chart, critical spell failure chart, missile spell critical success chart
* Fright check chart
* Structural damage chart
* Four pages worth of the BSII GURPS GM's screen
* A cash on hand/stuff chart I've been using for decades for NPCs
* The next several pages is a 144-entry "Random Urban Shit" table, which I use in place of wandering encounters -- they're more local color that the PCs can poke their noses into if they want. I've two pages more each of "seacoast" and "mountain" rural versions of the same.
* Whimsy list, two pages, of weird stuff to find if I want people to find weird stuff.
* Random book table
* Random weather table.
Speaking of having something between the GM and players, I always preferred landscape screens because they were lower but even those were usually too big for my tastes. I finally switched to the mini-sized version of The World's Greatest Screen by Hammerdog Games, which is only six inches tall. I've found it to be the perfect size for my needs since it stays out of the way while still allowing for privacy and plenty of panels. I've noticed that in the last year or so Pinnacle has started making the screens for their Savage Worlds games to be a similar size, and they've gotten pretty good responses on their forums so far.
So for any GMs who don't like using screens because of their size, there are other options out there. Not many, but they do exist.
Not to hijack the thread, but are screens commonly used? Until recently, the bulk of my gaming experience was in cities across the UK and I'd never encountered anyone using a GM screen. However, since moving to HK I've seen multiple groups who use screens and I find that they take me out of the game a bit (not to mention the fact that the GM of my long term group plays in a pub, so it draws attention).
Everloss is talking about some really useful reference materials, so I can see the value. Is it better (for your tastes) than having books or reference cards? I'm genuinely interested in learning about the other perspective: my experience is that I only GM light or medium systems; I roll my dice in the open; and if I have any materials or maps, I just tell my players not to look.
Quote from: Majus;875840Not to hijack the thread, but are screens commonly used? Until recently, the bulk of my gaming experience was in cities across the UK and I'd never encountered anyone using a GM screen. However, since moving to HK I've seen multiple groups who use screens and I find that they take me out of the game a bit (not to mention the fact that the GM of my long term group plays in a pub, so it draws attention).
I think it depends by region. There are, I find, regional traditions (but keep in mind the USA and other big countries, or even countries with strong geographic divisions, wouldn't count as one region).
After that, it depends on who influenced your GM - so it might be contrary to the trend in the region...
Overall? I'm sure people would say GM screens are highly used. I'd say I haven't seen one in use for years - neither me, nor GMs I trained, use one;).
Fun fact, once a group of RPG newbies watched a Youtube video and asked me why I'm not using a GM screen. I gave them the short version - I have the reference materials at hand, and I don't need to hide my dice, as I don't fudge (I can hide perception and fast-talk rolls just fine with a cupped hand).
Then I reached and pulled out a cat statuette, about as big as my thumb, put it in front of me, and announced it is from now on my GM screen.
Everybody laughed, and we kept on gaming.
QuoteEverloss is talking about some really useful reference materials, so I can see the value. Is it better (for your tastes) than having books or reference cards? I'm genuinely interested in learning about the other perspective: my experience is that I only GM light or medium systems; I roll my dice in the open; and if I have any materials or maps, I just tell my players not to look.
That's my approach as well, though I also GM heavy systems at times. No, I don't find GM screens handier than my tablet.
Speaking of tablets, I guess that might be my GM screen:D!
I don't use a GM screen.
This is the only GM screen you will ever need; 4 panel horizontal with vinyl inserts. You can put cheat sheets on your side of the screen, and sheets on the outside of the screen for players as well.
The rest is up to you to customize.
http://hammerdog.com/twgs/
I sometimes use a GM screen, but usually it's for reference only, so I put it flat on the table in front of me, not as a barrier between me and my players. I am aware that some printed cheat sheets would perfectly serve the same purpose, and I often use those in stead, but I'm a sucker for nice-looking screens.
My impression is that here in the Netherlands - a small country with a small, disconnected RPG "scene" - about 50% of all GMs use a screen and the other half doesn't.
I already mentioned that I don't use a screen, but I have a box in which I roll dice for rolls which need to be secret -- reaction rolls, rolls where the PC might be deceived by a bad result, that sort of thing. Most combat rolls I don't bother.
Quote from: Majus;875840Not to hijack the thread, but are screens commonly used?
Go ahead and hijack the thread. :)
Sometimes I use 'em. Sometimes I don't. I had one for Star Wars I made that was 5" or 5.5" tall (13-14 cm for the metric fans). I used that a fair bit, especially before I memorized a lot of the tables. Occasionally I used the one that came with one of the GM aids for the 2RE version. That was about 11' tall. A screen was useful for having the scale charts and some other tables ready to hand. Other times, I didn't bother finding the screen.
Gaming in person, I'm apt to get up from my seat so it's not like the screen is supposed to be a barrier between me and the player. It's supposed to be a barrier between the player and my notes or the occasional secret die roll.
Quote...not to mention the fact that the GM of my long term group plays in a pub, so it draws attention
I would think people throwing dice on the table and talking about killing people and stealing their stuff would tend to attract attention in public whether or not anyone had a GM screen set up.
It's been... geez... forever since I last used a folding cardboard GM screen. I do, however, run my games from a laptop, which has all of my maps, notes, rulebooks, etc. on it, so you could say that it functions somewhat like a GM screen, although that's not the intended purpose.
I never liked the portrait-oriented screens. They do feel like a giant wall erected between you and your players, cutting off the natural expression of body language.
Landscape-oriented screens, on the other hand, don't have that problem. As the GM, I can see everything that's happening on the table and the players can see my body language. And I find that there are two key advantages to using the landscape screen:
(1) The obstruction of sight lines to my notes and maps. I think this is just polite to my players: If I'm inviting people over to watch a movie, I don't hang a poster with spoilers for the movie next to the TV screen and ask them not to look at it. Same principle applies here.
In fact, rather than inhibiting a personal connection between me and the players I often find that the landscape screen enhances it: When you don't obstruct your maps and such, players will often avert their eyes from your end of the table in order to avoid glancing at them.
(2) I'm a pretty huge advocate of being able to simultaneously display multiple pieces of information in order to facilitate rapid referencing and cross-referencing while running the game. (This is also why I don't like running games from a laptop: Being able to only look at one page of information at a time while GMing is like trying to run a marathon with your legs tied behind your back.)
Being able to position reference material in a vertical plane (so that they don't take up surface space) is, IMO, insanely useful.
My typical table arrangement when GMing is:
* GM screen with four panels of information, some of which can be flipped up to reveal additional information.
* 2-3 pieces of paper displayed behind the screen.
* 1-3 TV trays to my left side, which I use to hold my rulebooks and also display 4-6 additional sheets of information (which often includes one or more rulebooks flipped open to the appropriate page reference).
Without the GM screen, my quick reference material becomes less efficient and also begins to encroach on the space I use for other reference material. This becomes a cascading problem, as useful resources get bumped out of circulation.
Quote from: Bren;876132Go ahead and hijack the thread. :)
Haha, thank you! I promise not to do it often! :D
Quote from: Bren;876132...throwing dice on the table and talking about killing people and stealing their stuff would tend to attract attention in public...
Well, you may have a point, but there are Chinese drinking games that involve dice, so it's probably not
that strange. In my limited experience, the addition of a GM screen seems to make people think we're playing a boardgame, which is also relatively accepted. It does draw attention though and dialogue from interested (or drunk) parties, which changes the flow of a game.
Thanks to everyone for your responses, by the way. Some good advice and a nice mix of technological/traditional perspectives.
Quote(1) The obstruction of sight lines to my notes and maps. I think this is just polite to my players: If I'm inviting people over to watch a movie, I don't hang a poster with spoilers for the movie next to the TV screen and ask them not to look at it. Same principle applies here.
This is a very valid point, I think (and tallies with Ravenswing's use of a box to make secret rolls). I confess that I am a minimalist GM and so, when I run, try to leave the vast majority of the rolling to the players. But I can see how this would be useful and not disruptive.
Anyway, some good ideas. I'm going to consider whether or not I can make some improvements to my approach. Thank you!
Quote from: everloss;875775I've finally given up on ever seeing the one from the kickstarter. It's been three years and not so much as a peep.
What the heck is taking so long there?
For most of our gaming career, the GM's of our group have used screens.
Of late I've seen a lot more GMs using the screen to hang folded index cards of relevant information along the top: initiative order in combat, NPCs who are present, places of interest (and when names are hard to spell the latter two are quite helpful). You can stand the folded cards on the table instead but they stand out a little more for me on the screen (more visible above the clutter on the table, at least).
Use of a screen at all is split among the GMs I've seen lately; neither way is rare, but I wouldn't commit to an exact ratio in general. The four I usually play with include two of each.
I love, love, love GM screens...but oddly I rarely use them.
For me, its not about the tables. It's about having a hiding place for my shiznack and dice rolls.
I like to make my own screens. Often from Halloween decor.
I don't really need a screen because I have my own coffee table, a little bit apart from the players.
Quote from: Majus;875840Not to hijack the thread, but are screens commonly used?
Valid question in a thread about GM screens and their use or lack thereof and what you find useful to have on or not.
I know some DMs use them. Some dont. Really depends on the play style. For example I knew one DM who rolled everything. The players just stated their actions and then got the result. The players preferred it that way. Other DMs seem to never use them. I know some players utterly despise DM screens and not knowing every little action the DM takes.
As usual it varies wildly from one group to the next.
Personally I use a dice tower. So the players cant actually see what I am rolling not through any doing of my own. But have a policy of hands off once rolled so I can show the results if someone wants to see. Or if I want to show off some oddity of probability.
One of the funniest ones I ever saw way back was a DM using a wall as the screen. He was in another room and talked to the players via intercom. To this day I have no clue why.
The more unruly a game group is at a table, the more a GM screen is needed.