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D&D grid maps, props and such bog down the play? How do you feel?

about to sit down and play D&D with my partner. Been busy with art and house work and such so he wanted to take a day off and have me join him and his friends for D&D on roll20. haven't played in years. Nice to see the re interest of the game due to the twitch stream shows, apps, art , and models. However Ive noticed now days people are really big into visual apps and props to the point where they are a MUST HAVE. statues, maps that must be followed to the "T" and other things. I mean its cool and all, but i feel like they bog down play when over reliant on them.

To me the fun of D&D is the imagination of it all. if you need a map its usually more for like "how far away from the enemy are we?" or "where are we?" then the DM (if they're good) would just give a awesome explanation or if visuals are needed, it more of a reff image or "oh here let me scribble this.... the tree is that big"

Again its cool to see all these props, apps and other visual aids for those who need it, but i feel like relying on them and making it the only way to play kinda ruins the point of playing D&D.

Whats yalls thoughts, I would love to know :)

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Added:	4 years, 10 months ago 25 Jun 2019 03:15 CEST

17 Comments on this Journal

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Kaheiyattsu

4 years, 10 months ago

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I've only gotten into D&D recently and I gotta say my favorite part of them is the actual Role Play part of it and less so the combat, i mean the combat is fun but I just LOOOOOOVE getting in character and getting invested in the story and the other characters

DiegoandFriends

4 years, 10 months ago

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@ Kaheiyattsu

ii love the roleplay part. was talking with the guys getting together make my sheet and they were saying you can apply points now as you please and build a character the way you want. but im more of a "roll my stats strengths and weakness and ill make a story around it." that way i really get into my character. have them grow and become a part of me instead of just goign in with a pre-made idea of who they are.

KitsuneLoverForever

4 years, 10 months ago

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thing bout D&D is everyone has different play styles, and indeed some arn't as imaginative to begin with.

or you got someone that enjoys having a visual to base things on.

DiegoandFriends

4 years, 10 months ago

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@ KitsuneLoverForever

true, everyone has they're own style of play. which i understand. and its nice to see all these new apps, models and such for those that need it. guess I'm so use to not having them.

PlaneshifterLair

4 years, 10 months ago

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For us, the map is only for big fights, where tactics are needed.
Small fights can fully be described, and normal situations need no map XD

DiegoandFriends

4 years, 10 months ago

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@ PlaneshifterLair

i can get that.

PlaneshifterLair

4 years, 10 months ago

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@ DiegoandFriends

Also, even in those cases, we mostly want/get the player minatures... to know which is which.
We use a simple grid, is just the distances... no over-done map with walls and all XD

And if we have no miniatures at hand, a piece of paper with the name works wonders! XD is secondary to the game itself~

MamaFio

4 years, 10 months ago

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Unfortunately D&D has a strong issue with combat streamlining, unless it is a small encounter it tends to be a slogfest. Two of my players were planning on leaving my group because they just didn't have much care for the game outside of the roleplay aspects, which having been both a player and DM I entirely understand.

I love D&D, but have gotten rather sick of combat almost as a whole now a days, thankfully one of my longest time players brought another game to our table called Fate: Core, and while I've been having a bit of a time trying to understand the rules off of being a DM for 3.5 and 5e, I have to say, I honestly like it quite a bit from the last few sessions we've had with it.

DiegoandFriends

4 years, 10 months ago

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@ MamaFio

makes sense. I haven't played D&D in a LONG time. I use to play weekly back when i was in school, but in adulthood i haven't. so this is all a but new to me. Didn't know battle had gotten so bogged down. :(

mommavicky

4 years, 10 months ago

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I agree with you fully, The maps and mini's can tank the game's experiance if it becomes the focus. Combat kinda lends itself to having maps and stuff. but I personaly rarely use them more then just a referance for the current melee. It's one of the reasons ive been liking the story teller games and shadowrun more and more.

DiegoandFriends

4 years, 10 months ago

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@ mommavicky

never played shadowrun, ill have to check it out.

XxSkyxX

4 years, 10 months ago

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I do use a grid and minis with every map, but mainly for the "distance to enemy" aspect. If something is a bit impromptu and goes by quick then I won't use it, but for the most part, I like to have it for planned battles cause it really helps keep track of things.

I try to have dedicated minis for the party cause theyr'e cool to have. But usually for enemies I just have coins with tape that I have marked with the alphabet. Then it's me standing up there describing things as they happen, making creature noises and asking players how they want to do the finishing blow.

Guess I should have mentioned I have the privilege of being able to play at a table.

NB

4 years, 10 months ago

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i like the visual aspect but with Roll20 and Tabletop I try to keep it simple-ish. Roll20 simply because I don't have a lot of assets to use and Tabletop cause overly elaborate maps take forever to load and sometimes items have over sized hit boxes which leads to things like characters hovering in air when they're supposed to be hiding in a bush or standing under a tree.

Some people just like to create really detailed designs because the players can actually see it as they do instead of having to interpret the description in any way. It's something I feel isn't all that necessary but if you have the time and eye for it then go for it. Personally I'd prolly be the same way if I had the means but then again most of my players are very "oh my god will you stop talking so we can play" when it comes to describing things, even though I try to keep it to just the important details.

DireKyre

4 years, 10 months ago

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Depends on my mood and on the players. It's a necessary evil in most cases because a lot of people can't comprehend distances without some kind of representation, but honestly when I can I go entirely without because they're a pain in the ass to set up. And usually, for the most part, whenever I run into problem players they tend to be the ones who insist on there being 100% perfectly accurate battle maps, so they can perfectly place their AoEs or try and argue about line of sight or the like.

Ishkaa

4 years, 10 months ago

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I find that Roll20 is a great way to augment the imagination honestly. The maps are really helpful for battles obviously, but it also allows the DM to generate a vision of what they are wanting the players to experience. Also, to be fair, with the characters in the games I play, I've drawn all of the player tokens and such, so there is no shortage of my imagination being put to use there, and not just mine, since the other players have to describe what they want their characters to look like to me.

Chobin

4 years, 10 months ago

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It's true that having the maps and whatnot do, despite their usefulness, curb the use of imagination a bit. With proper pen and paper, you could 'get away' with things as long as it followed the Rule of Cool and contributed to an overall good experience. Any good GM would consider going along a little with a player's ideas, even if they weren't necessarily 'there' in the first place, to give them a chance at doing something amazing. Not 'pulled out of their ass, desperate hair-brained scheme' levels, but something that could reasonably be there, but may not have been in the first place.

To get back on topic, I think the perfect balance with maps is having a grid map, or a 'general' map. Ones that show the rough layout of the area, but not any specific details.

But regardless, the ultimate goal of D&D is always to have fun. So as long as everyone's striving for that, hopefully the map isn't too much of a mood kill for you!

kuroganekaze

4 years, 10 months ago

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I feel like the maps and grids help for positioning and such, but me and my friends play with a bit of a mix between griding and theater of the mind. We use the maps to position ourselves and to figure out the ranges when needed but for the most part we use theater of the mind to just imagine it.

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