The Pros and Cons of Using Minis in Your Dungeons and Dragons Games

You look down from the walls of the Keep. This castle was constructed as an outpost of the kingdom. No one travels this far north, certainly not invading armies. The people of this land were more accustomed to marauders rather than martial campaigns. Your eyes took in the scene. You can see a numberless horde of nightmarish creatures. You recognize creatures here and there, but most seem literally drawn from some sort of nightmare realm. They seem unintelligent monsters, though they stand arrayed as if in battle formation. Among the throng, you spot dozens of larger monsters that could bite a man in half with little effort expended. Horns issue haunting moans echoing across the landscape of twisted monsters. You’ve never seen an army this large in all your years of fighting in the army.

Trappers and explorers started bringing back reports of these large numbers of monsters coming from the north. You weren’t aware of any settlements north of here. All that was left was ice, tundra, and frozen waste that made up the Crown of the World. Where had all these beasts come from? Maybe more importantly, why were they here. As if to answer your question, a final horn blared its mournful tone. The sound lasted for seconds before it abruptly cut off and the monsters charged as one. It seems the battle of the Grey North had begun.

What would you like to do?

Welcome back to the 9th episode of How to Be a Better DM. We’re going to learn how to tell better, more engaging stories while you dungeon master a session of D&D 5e.

I’m excited to give you today’s show, but before we do, let me give a quick shoutout to Couchy Audio. They do the audio work for this show and if you need any help with audio work, they are the ones to talk to. Reach out to them on Instagram by sending a message to @kahootaz

Now let’s talk about the Pros and Cons of Using Minis During your Dungeons and Dragons Sessions.

Pros:

Easier to imagine Combat

When you DM you can either use minis to represent the relative distances of characters and adversaries or you can use the Theatre of the Mind. With the Theatre of the mind, things are a lot more loosey goosey. I always seems to struggle with questions like, “how far away am I?” And stuff like that. With minis, it’s all on the board or table and it’s a lot easier to manage. Often when I listen to you tubers live playing DND, I lose track of combat positions during encounters of the mind. Having it on the board is much easier.

More Immersive

There’s no denying it. When you see the combat happening, it’s easier to immerse yourself in the encounter. It’s much easier to relax and just have fun because you’re not having to keep track distance and position. Plus when the DM adds in cool effects or scenery, it really feels like you’re there.

You can create that WOW factor!

I’ve seen it on my players. When you make that scene you’ve described and present it to the players, even in a shoddy way, there’s a definite WOW factor. It’s like the icing on the cake of playing DND.

Builds Authority in your players’ eyes

In a way, you as the DM are the group’s true leader. As such, they will look to you to lead them. This happens naturally because you are the main storyteller, but your players also want to know that you are the best DM in the world. Like the placebo effect, it makes the game more interesting, even if it’s not.

Having links adds to your authority as the best DM in the world, even if you’re new. I know it’s kind of a shortcut for them, because having minis doesn’t mean squat, but it gives the perception of preparation, especially if your minis are matched to the encounter.

Cons

Costs extra

Having minis costs extra. Even if you use a banana and you draw a face on it, you have to put in extra time and extra money to have them and have enough of them. That’s why in my episode where I talked about all you really need to play DND, minus we’re not a necessity. You can play without them, and you can have lots of fun. Being able to play without minis means that, in this digital age, you can play anywhere with barely a moment’s notice. Not having to worry about minis can save a lot of time and money. Not to mention the fact that a lot of players might not want to buy their own mini, so you’ll probably have to provide one for them.

More things to manage

As the DM, you are the one lugging all the things to wherever you and your group plays. If you’re fortunate enough to play at your own house, then you still have to find the right minis and set them up and then put them away after the session. It’s a lot to manage. Even during the session you have to make sure the minis are in the right spots whereas your players only have to manage their one mini.

Gateway Drug

Minis can get out of hand really fast. There are so many minis. If you now you have low self control when it comes to buying $4-$10 then stay away from them. There’s always a cooler mini. There’s even custom minis. You know why? Thanks here are thousands of different monsters to fight. You will probsbly never have all the minis, not to mention perfect battle scenes or scenery items. You can spend a lot of money on this hobby if you’re not careful.

You Don’t Practice your Narrative Skills

Using a mini is a crutch. Plain and simple. By using minis you rely more on visuals than on your skills of narration. That means you aren’t flexing a very important skill that will enhance your sessions and make your stories come alive. If you can’t get people to feel you are there with just your words, then you’ve got a long way to go to benign a master Dungeon Master.

There you have it guys. The pros and cons of using minis in your DND sessions. Do you agree? Disagree? Have other suggestions? Send your thoughts to me on Instagram in a private message to @geronimolevis.

Also, I am looking for a new piece of cover art for the podcast. If you have any ideas, send them to @geronimolevis on Instagram.

Thanks for listening guys. Make sure to give us a rating and review but until next time, let’s roll initiative.

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Listen to Our New Podcast

As a listener of this show, you obviously love story. Now that you’ve learned how to craft your own story on this show, wouldn’t it be nice to have some inspiration? Or maybe just a moment of immersion and escape? Then come join us in our new Actual Play D&D 5e show, Pact and Boon. Enter the World of Calignos where our characters, Jolly, Wolfgang and Alon will meet each other in Hell. Enjoy our troublemaking and near-death experiences wherever great podcasts are heard. Just go to session0studios.com/pactnboon and start listening today.

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