The Role Playing Public Radio Forums
General Category => RPGs => : Mckma June 27, 2010, 10:24:04 AM
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I was just thinking about this because I saw the 4E GM screen on Amazon and was reminded how much I like it. I don't know if this is just because the only one I had used previously was for 3rd Edition Forgotten Realms and it didn't really have anything, but the 4E one is pretty helpful, especially for improvising as I'm not too familiar with random skill checks and what not. Of other things I've looked at, All Flesh Must be Eaten and Call of Cthulhu seem to have good ones as well. So while I don't always use the screens to conceal rolls (we don't care too much about that in my group), I do like having it to use as a reference and sometimes to conceal notes.
What do you all think? Or do you not use them?
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I use them for quick references on game rules, and it is helpful sometimes to hide my game notes if I have a handout, or a monster that I want to surprise my players with. If I didn't have a GM screen, my players would see I had a custom character sheet out in the open and not in my binder and that only means one thing....major NPC villain.
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I personally do not use a GM screen, as I like to have as little obstructions between my players and myself as possible. I tend to get distracted really easily. Of course, I cannot fudge die rolls without a screen, but I think my players appreciate my being transparent and are good at avoiding metagame thinking. Having to flip through the rulebooks to reference obscure rules or arbitrate disputes is a problem, of course. I really appreciate the games (CoC/Delta Green in particular) that provide "cheat sheets" in the indecies of their books.
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I seldom use GM screens. I have one for CoC and AFMBE. I'll use them to look up rules but that's it.
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I've been running a lot of games off of my laptop recently, rather than printing out the pages (and pages and pages) of notes that I usually generate on the relevant people / locations / plot points of any given story, which eliminates the need for a screen to keep the players from peeking. I do have a pretty awesome homemade Mage 2nd Ed. screen, and the homebrew CoC screen that I posted about last year is still in the works (delayed due to chronic laziness). I, too, like to have the reference charts handy, since it can be a major pain in the ass to look things up in the middle of a session if a situation demands a by-the-rules arbitration on something. I'm not really the kind of GM who feels the need to roll behind a screen because I don't like to fudge my rolls. If I'm rolling like shit, then the deranged killer in the giant battle mech just isn't going to hit the players with his chain guns.
Still, I usually like having a screen to hide my notes and to reference charts/rules. It's helpful like that.
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There's only one GM Screen that you'll ever need.
Savage Worlds Customizable GM Screen
http://www.google.com/products/catalog?hl=en&q=Savage+Worlds+GM+screen&um=1&ie=UTF-8&cid=39446342903080176&ei=qNwoTNzIM9HenAeNuMSoAQ&sa=X&oi=product_catalog_result&ct=result&resnum=1&ved=0CBoQ8wIwAA# (http://www.google.com/products/catalog?hl=en&q=Savage+Worlds+GM+screen&um=1&ie=UTF-8&cid=39446342903080176&ei=qNwoTNzIM9HenAeNuMSoAQ&sa=X&oi=product_catalog_result&ct=result&resnum=1&ved=0CBoQ8wIwAA#):
Given that it's a generic screen it can be used for any game.
The only negatives that I can say about the screen are that it's pricey for a GM screen and that it's in landscape rather than portrait because the GM inserts for Savage Worlds are all in landscape >:(
Other than that it's great.
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I use an old binder and set it a little off to the side, that way I can see my players, and do hidden rolls if needed. Also with the binder, I can put as many reference pages in as a I want (I use tab markers for each category) and can open it to any page I want. Running combat? Open up to the spot rules for combat, since nearly every page has a tab, it's easy to find what I need.
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I use a GM screen for Star Wars all the time. It's alot like the one from DnD 4e because it has all the skills on it, plus it helps with force powers.
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I found an even better way to make a GM screen. Just buy a six or eight sided transparent menu cover and put whatever inserts you want on the inside and whatever art you want on the outside.
As a warning you want to make sure that the one that you buy is 8 1/2 by eleven or 8 1/2 by 14.
Six-Sided Menu Cover
http://cgi.ebay.com/NEW-8-x-11-Triple-Sewn-menu-Covers-New-88-In-Stock-NEW-/350120059784?cmd=ViewItem&pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item5184c82388 (http://cgi.ebay.com/NEW-8-x-11-Triple-Sewn-menu-Covers-New-88-In-Stock-NEW-/350120059784?cmd=ViewItem&pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item5184c82388)
This way you can have a GM screen for even the most obscure game. I find that the art on the GM screen actually adds a lot to the game. The players expressions change a bit when they sit down at a table and see a cthulhu staring back at them.
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I find playing without one makes it easier to lie to the players about your roles. It makes people feel as though you're being more honest than if you were using a screen. The times where I have used them, I used castle walls made out of lego, like the onr from the dope PoP lego set (http://shop.lego.com/ByTheme/Product.aspx?p=7573&cn=632&d=70).
Some people have put up some pretty cool ideas though, like the menu covers.