Our current game master is running Dungeons & Dragons 4th Edition. He has always built some pretty good maps for us to play on, but this campaign he has stepped it up a notch. He’s been crafting some more 3D maps and props for us to play with. Honestly, it is pretty huge for us as players and really helps you visualize what is going on.

Here are a few pictures of the gaming props our game master has created for us in the last couple months.

This first one was his master creation.  It actually was a three level dungeon area.  Our group started at the bottom.  As we looked up, we saw all types of undead who were hurling items down at us as we fought our way up.  The culmination of the fight found us at the top, where the Paladin actually knocked one of the zombies off the third tier down to the lower level.  It was a lot of fun actually watching him push the figurine off and watch it plunge to the ground.

This next one was a little more modest.  We were at the base of a very large cave that went almost vertically straight up.  Water dripped down into the cave forming a small pool at the bottom.  We were just trying to get out of the dungeon and climb to safety.  Lo’ and behold, we ran into our first baby dragon who had claimed the bottom of the pit as its home.

No medusa’s lair is complete without toilet paper roll pillars.  This was another more modest setup that he made for us.  When we walked in, we saw a bunch of statues and a strange woman faced away from us.  Our poor Halfling NPC buddy decided to get stoned while we fought the lovely medusa.

The next one is one I have shown before.  This was half of a setup castle that you can purchase and put together.  It was pretty neat because this was the largest battle we ever got into.  We went into the prison below it to rescue a specific person, but once we got out there were about 25-30 NPCs waiting for us.

This final one below is also one I have shown before.  This was our game master’s first creation for us in this campaign.  It was a simple two level warehouse, where the second level overlooked the first level.  It was our first experience with how 3D maps really help with line of sight issues when you’re gaming.

Obviously our game master is pretty handy with arts of crafts.  The maps really add a lot to the player experience.  I can honestly say that this is one of the best campaigns I’ve ever played in.  And all of the players in it will agree that gaming props really help with the flow of combat.  I highly encourage you to try one in your campaign if you never have.  It does take a little extra work, but it is worth the effort.

UPDATE: READER SUBMISSION

Here is a submission from one of our reader’s, Andy Venn.  He writes, “Sometime ago our group had a short-lived Firefly campaign. One of the players in our group can build just about anything out of cardboard. He made this model of our Mid-Bulk Transport Ship “Calypso.” He took the floor plans form “Future Armada; Deluxe Starship Designs” by Ryan Wolfe. This is a set of 2D floor plans for a variety of starships. He took the floor plans from the Jo Lyn Starship to make then the interior decks. He then used the artwork to print the sides of the ship. He did this all freehand! Among his other creations was a to-scale pirate ship for our “Pirates of the Spanish Main” campaign.”

Other related posts:

(1) Basic Props – Picture Post

(2) Miniature Madness – Super Picture Post