Theater of the Mind vs Tactical Minis & Maps

[Juneberry]

I'm more accustomed to theater of the mind, as my primary DM for live games uses that almost exclusively. The only time she really uses maps and minis is during combat- otherwise, it's kinda just free reign and described. Part of that is because we're doing it on discord, and it'd be a pain for her to constantly set up the webcam to show us the map on her table (since that's how her family does things for DnD) so... I get it.

Only other way I've really played with maps and minis were things like TaleSpire (which I used for over a year in a module, and maybe one or two other ones) and Roll20's virtual tabletop... But that was eons ago it feels like.

All in all, I think both have their uses. I prefer the method of mostly using theater of the mind with just a hint of maps and such when it really needs more structure to the situation.

 

[Ravenfreak]

I like to do a bit of both! When I was first getting into tabletop RPGs, it was easier to start with minis and maps to help me understand what was going on. I think it's fun using your imagination though too, so when I did have gaming sessions we used both.