Thinking Maps: Fill & Download for Free

No, that’s incorrect. 2,000 years ago almost everybody was of the opinion that slavery was natural, but by the late 19th C almost nobody in the world thought that slavery was natural, apart from a few Americans and the hill tribes in north Burma.

Oh not at all!Firstly, you can use tokens. Mine are home-made.But beyond that, you can run an entire session in what’s called “Theater of the Mind” or TotM. That is, it’s all in your mind’s eye with no maps or figures at all.I’ve been running a Star Trek parody game I devised as pure Theater of the Mind and it’s working out fine. Of course, the sessions I’m devising and the dangers they’re in are not structured to require precise knowledge of where everyone is, only relative position.For example, in the last session I ran my brother wanted to assault a prison guard. How far the guard was from the gate didn’t matter, it only mattered when he was within arms-reach. You don’t need a map for that.Honestly I think maps are counter-productive half the time. If your players aren’t particularly tactically minded, maps may just bog things down. Even then, good tactical players can get the same results with TotM.“Is there a position from which I can maintain cover from frontal fire while enfilading anyone trying to assault Carter’s position? Yes? Okay, that’s what I’m doing.”With a map you might be able to spot that position yourself, but you don’t absolutely need a map if you know how to ask the right question.That said, for major boss or set-piece battles maps can be fun. Properly used, they can provide a level of visceral understanding that may be difficult to achieve if you’re not great at narrating and describing a scene. And some people just enjoy the tactile sensation of moving minis around, the same way many of us enjoy actually rolling dice (Roll20 just really doesn’t cut it for dice rolling).But the biggest advantage of maps and minis is making sure that everyone has the same “picture” of the environment and where everyone is.You can run a whole campaign as pure TotM, or you can break out maps for every brawl and meeting engagement, but generally the best solution is to find a middle ground that works for you.Further ReadingHow do minis change Dungeons & Dragons? What are the pros and cons of using them in your D&D game? in The Dungeon DeepHow do minis change Dungeons & Dragons? What are the pros and cons of using them in your D&D game? in The Dungeon DeepOriginal question-Do you have to have figures when playing Dungeons & Dragons?

Yiddish "kosher", from Hebrew "kashrut", in its literal sense, means lawful or pure. It has, however, evolved in American slang to mean "just right", cool or positively normal.There is an English word that I think maps pretty well, and it's a favourite of mine:copacetic adj. very satisfactory; fineI think it might be used in a similar context to "lagom".