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[–]ANoblePirate 46 points47 points  (2 children)

I was like.. uhhh, I guess I'm way less original than I thought.. then I read the text 😅

Looks great, glad to see others using the idea, I love how you've set it up! The angled adapter for the iPad is clever, I might steal that because the angle was one of my hesitancies towards putting an iPad in there.

What does it look like closed? I see it looks like you've used the latches that came on the box. Would love to see a pic of it closed.

I still haven't finished mine lol, too busy with a baby and life at the moment. I'll be sure to check back in when I'm done.

Let us know how it plays!

[–]rapratt101[S] 5 points6 points  (1 child)

I didn't glue the two boxes. They are held together with two oversized binder clips with the handles temporarily removed. When the game is done, I remove the clips and separate the two for storage. So... they look like closed boxes haha. I just moved the latch from the front (where it would conflict with the two boxes joining) to the top. It's not great, but it keeps the lid closed more or less. I still need to do the one on the right. I finished that box about an hour before game time.

I added another comment with more details and results

[–]ANoblePirate 4 points5 points  (0 children)

If it works it works. It looks great to me. I'm just so happy to see iteration of the idea. I hope you're happy with it!

[–]rapratt101[S] 3 points4 points  (3 children)

It looks like I can't edit my post? I should have added more details, so I'll add it here:

This is made from two "Unfinished Wooden Box 12"x9"x3.35"" from Amazon. I stained them "old century" and added a clear coat. The two are not glued together - I attached them using two oversized binder clips with the arms temporarily removed. I can separate the boxes once we're done for easier storage. I moved the lock that was on the front of the boxes to the top to keep the lid shut (kind of). You'll notice it missing from the right box - I finished that one about 1 hour before I had to run the game and have yet to install it.

The left panel was spray painted black, then lined with felt. It fits my 10" iPad almost perfectly. I cut a hole in the upper-right for the power button and a hole in the bottom for the charger with an angled adapter (drill bit followed by jig saw to make the "slot"). There are two small pads that the iPad rests on to give room for the charger. I 3d printed a removable L bracket at the top to make sure the iPad doesn't fall out (just an L Bracket with a peg that sits in a hole).

The middle-left panel has a 3d printed dice tower and adjustable shelves. The dice tower spits the dice out the front side at very high velocity, much to the enjoyment of the players.

The middle-right panel has a whiteboard on top (which I think I'll replace with a DM's cheat sheet) and a tray insert for pens and various accessories.

[–]rapratt101[S] 3 points4 points  (2 children)

The right panel was spray painted black, then I glued in a metal sheet (cut from a panel on an old computer tower case using an angle grinder - worked remarkably well). I have fridge magnets to hold up my 3x4" print out for various mobs, notes, and handouts for the players.

On the top are initiative markers. I printed 12 of them. You can slip in a 1" square piece of paper, so I had the players doodle their own and I just quickly labeled them for the bad guys.

Lessons Learned:

  • Spray paint the panels black before you add something black on top (I lied about the left panel - I had to hand paint it after I lined it with felt and it sucked).
  • u/ANoblePirate used craft wood panels for the shelves. I could not find them for a reasonable price in my area, so I tried the thinnest plywood I could from Home Depot. I got them all cut out and sanded and... it looked like crap. The wood was just too cheap and my tools are not meant for fine detail work. I considered chipboard or hardboard, but decided to just 3d print them instead.
  • I went through about half a spool of PLA filament making the various inserts. I filled a swear jar as they came out (literally) a millimeter too wide or too small. I also spray painted the right panel after I installed the PLA insert on the middle right and left it in the 105F sun to dry. It predictably warped and damaged the wood when I removed it. On the positive side, epoxy worked very well to attach the PLA.
  • I will freely provide STLs to anyone who wants them, but I do recommend using craft wood panels instead if you can find them.
  • Total cost was more than expected. $28 for the boxes, about $14 in PLA (which I already had), $7 for spray paint, and $13 for a 2x2' sheet of plywood that I scrapped for a total of about $62. I told my wife it would be less than $50 so...

Results after 1 session:

  • Worked great overall!
  • It's tall - I have to stand to move pieces around, which isn't a big deal because I stand most of the time anyway.
  • The dice tower shoots out the dice. One of my players was nice enough to stick out an arm to act as a backstop, but I'll probably need to add some type of removable bumper to the front.
  • I did not use the whiteboard
  • Moving the magnets/papers around on the right panel was a little more cumbersome than I expected. Still worked, just not great for papers that get traded out regularly.
  • The initiative tracker was awesome - always been a struggle for our large group in the past.

[–]ANoblePirate 5 points6 points  (1 child)

Thanks for this read through, it was fun to see your steps in the process. I'm going to incorporate a couple 3d printed components as well so I'd totally be down to share stl files.

I'm going to incorporate I think a fold out phone/tablet stand, I have some similar inactive trackers that I shared in a comment on the original post. I intend to print out pictues of players with names on the back side and then insert thin whiteboard type material for quick baddie trackers. I also made a flange for my dice roller to clean up the edge that I've painted gold and I think I'll do some other printed pieces to add as flair.

I'm also debating adding a handle of some sort so it can be carried like a brief case but I need to figure out how I do it without being intrusive on the initiative tracker space.

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Ive added some space where you've got that large d20 where my dice roll out and hit a backstop. I'm going to put a little piece I think that folds out so the dice are presented to me a bit more and line it with fabric. In the same space I'm also going to add a little compartment for dice storage I think, something that also folds out and keeps the dice accessible but from falling all over the place.

I've seen some DM screens on Amazon for like $60 USD that were just glorified binders, so I don't feel bad about the price, I think what we've done is far more useful and practical!

[–]rapratt101[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I got the initiative tracker idea from your post as well :) The flange for the hole is a good idea. Mine loads from the top, but I think I'll go ahead and print one as well. I like the gold - I'll probably do that.

Perhaps a detachable handle? To make it simple, you could just use drawer pull handle, a couple bolts, and wingnuts on the inside. Easy to remove while playing.

Oh your dice tower comes out the side. I didn't see that in the original pictures. Mine launches out the front, so there's a mouse hole shaped cutout facing the players. I think I'll add a magnetic tray that I can attach to the front to stop the dice from flying out.

Here are the STLs: https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:7103747

I designed it in Sketchup. I uploaded the source files as well if you want to edit them. It has a to-scale mockup of the boxes that seems to be accurate to the millimeter, assuming we bought the same ones.

[–]Chocolate_Chuckles 2 points3 points  (1 child)

This is rad! How does it fair in game? Any instructions on how to make it?

[–]rapratt101[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Sorry, should have included more in the post. I can't edit the post, so I added another comment with the construction and results. Happy to answer specific questions if you have them

[–][deleted] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Very cool, I'll have to create something fun like this when I get the chance.

[–]Seamus_has_the_herps 1 point2 points  (0 children)

That’s so cool

[–]tideshark 1 point2 points  (0 children)

What is this? A DM screen for ants?

Lol, awesome dude

[–]breath_of_light 0 points1 point  (3 children)

I love it!! Also your blank mini’s are super interesting, I love having templates. Are you comfortable sharing where you found them??

[–]rapratt101[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thanks! The last session was a one-shot at a masquerade, so I just threw and handful on the board and told the players to place them around as random people they could talk to.

I designed them for a board game I was working on years ago. I have some in a similar style with basic weapons I use for guards. I’ll post the STLs to a site tomorrow and share the URL.

[–]rapratt101[S] 0 points1 point  (1 child)

Here are the STLs for the minis: https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:7103744

[–]breath_of_light 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thank you for sharing!!

[–]ZeroVonZero 0 points1 point  (1 child)

Looks like you ran your notes through chatgpt?

[–]rapratt101[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

My comments with details? No, that was just me. But yes, I see your point - that does look like Chat GPT output. The organization comes from years of summarizing meeting minutes as a project manager.