Monday Musings #104 🤬
Musings on tools...and dads.
Good Monday, Gamer!
"If all you have is a sword, everything looks like a dragon." - Abraham Maslow,
It might sound like I give my pop a hard time.
It was the ’70s — that wild tangle of freedom and negligence…Origin story of the Gen Xers. We rode in cars with no seatbelts, while adults chain-smoked with the windows up. We ran the streets for real, until the street lamps came on. I once almost got my ass beat by two kids and pops let it unfold. But I also got Star Wars at the drive-in.
He gave me The Hobbit, followed by all three volumes of The Lord of the Rings.
Boz Scaggs. Earth, Wind & Fire. Styx.
We played board games. I learned kitchen skills, and some trucker skills.
Good, bad — a wash?
Shiiiiiiit. I don’t know.
He’s still kickin’.
So am I.
We’re just two old men now, still meeting up, talking, walking it out.
Happy Father’s Day to you, pops, for putting in the work, and to you moms showing up for the sorry asses who don’t.
🧰 Reader Question: What Tools Do I Use?
David asks what tools I use to prep and run my games.
I’m a believer in trying a lot of tools and keeping what sticks. Most of the time, it’s not about finding “the best” tool — it’s about finding your tool. Here’s what’s working for me right now:
🗃️ Obsidian + Dropbox
All my campaign notes, setting bits, and newsletters often start life in Obsidian. I love working in Markdown and using tags to organize. Tags > Folders. Dropbox does the syncing, and it’s good enough. I don’t need these notes EVERYWHERE.
🎨 Canva
I use Canva for player handouts, simple maps, and graphics — sometimes the headers images for this newsletter.
📌 Pinterest
For visual inspiration and references: characters, places, vibes, gear.
🧙♂️ Watabou Tools
Need a city, village, dungeon, or weird building interior? Watabou Tools are my go-to.
⚔️ Donjon
For names, rumors, inn menus, and a surprising number of weirdly useful generators.
✏️ Analog
Big clipboards, scratch paper, and pads.
I love mechanical pencils and jotting things on the fly.
My best analog notes eventually get transcribed into Obsidian — but even during games, paper rules.
💻 VTTs
Foundry for now.
But Mad-Dice is on the rise.
On my tables
Zombie World!! I’ve got a family reunion coming up soon, and I think I’m bringing Zombie World to run for my peoples. They’ll ask for D&D because it’s EVERYWHERE, but not all of them are ready for that. I think they’ll get more out of Zombie World. It’s an easier touchstone to get into. I’ve been running some easy one-shots to get re-acquainted with the game and to think about how to tweak it for my kinfolk who may not all be gamers. Any thoughts?
Titanfall via Mekton RPG continues as a kinda weekly lunch game at home now that school is out. I’ve got 3ish sessions recorded. I wasn’t sure the game was going to stick with my kid; it’s super trad and crunchy! I figured he’d punch out early, but he’s hanging in there. We haven’t introduced the “Mecha” yet; he wanted to construct his own. In-game, his pilot is accumulating resources to repair his Titan (mecha in Titanfall) after a small factional skirmish where he got left behind.
What About You?
What are your essential TTRPG tools — digital or analog?
What have you stuck with through the years, and what did you ditch?
Drop a comment. I’m always curious how other GMs prep their tables and minds.
Great article! Really good tips that I need to check out too.