Portable DM Kit With Magnetic Screen

"Our story begins...."

This is the tale of a thrift store box and how it became a portable Dungeon Master kit. On its journey, it acquired two folding panels, magnetic surfaces, velvet liner, brass hinges, and various paper accessories. Should you desire to complete a similar quest (and find yourself without the aid of a CNC router or laser cutter), read on!

Materials

• Wood or mdf box with hinges, latch, and handle
• Three 3mm balsa wood sheets or thin plywood
• Cereal boxes or other thin cardboard
• Small hinges
• Galvanized steel sheet (found in the ductwork section of the hardware store)
• Electrical tape
• Painter's tape
• Felt Fabric
• Super glue or epoxy glue
• Spray glue
• Matte Modge Podge
• Cardstock
• Printer paper
• Black acrylic paint
• Hangars from picture hanging kit
• Chain
• Lobster clasps
• Magnets
• Pencil
• Permanent marker

Optional Materials

• Black foam board
• Chalkboard paint
• Beads
• Watercolors
• Mini chalkboards
• Chalkboard pens

Tools

• Ruler
• Measuring tape
• Saw
• Metal shears
• Metal file
• Drill
• Screwdriver for small screws
• Sanding paper or sanding block
• Box cutter or exacto knife
• Chisel
• Scissors
• Needle nose pliers
• Wire cutters
• Tweezers

Optional Tools

• Dremel (drill bit for hinge screws + grinder)
• Guillotine cutter
• Printer

Every Game Master is different, so every GM's screen and kit will be different. Before you embark on the quest for supplies, make a list of things you will need in game and features that you like in other DM screens.

Peruse Instructables, Youtube, and Etsy for inspiration. There are many, many excellent guides on how to build a DM screen and what kinds of things are helpful to have on hand while running a session. When evaluating models, ask what kinds of features you like (portability, flexibility, aesthetic, quick build, minimal tools).

Identify features that you need and things that you like. Because I am a relatively new DM, I wanted to create a DM screen that could grow with me. Fully magnetic panels gives me flexibility to change out notes. I also needed something portable, so I began to think about how to incorporate a DM screen into a box that could hold dice, minis, condition rings, an initiative tracker, and other accoutrement. I also wanted something that looked like it was part of the in-game world. (My current campaign takes place in magical 1892. Think League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, but with Egyptologists.) Wood, metal, brass, and velvet would make the kit feel more Victorian, and I liked the look of alchemical symbols, sacred geometry, and old fashion compass roses.

Take stock of your equipment, supplies, and time constraints. CNC machines and laser cutters are amazing tools...if you have access to them. Right now, all I have is a dremel and a lot of time. While this particular project is more time-intensive than other DM screen builds, it can be done without the aid of power tools.

Some general tips to keep in mind as you complete your own build.

Follow safety precautions when using sharp implements and power tools. This Instructable includes lots of sharp objects, so please be safe.

Keep your materials together. As with any mixed media project, this build has a lot of moving parts. Having a designated "maker bucket" or "crafting bin" saves time by keeping all your supplies close at hand. Plus, it keeps you from accidentally sitting on a pair of scissors.

Protect your work surfaces. Putting a towel under the box will keep the top of the box from getting scratched. A bit of butcher paper from Dollar Tree keeps glue off of the table. Be kind to your space.

Clean as you go. Your roommates, partner, pets, children will thank you.

Measure thrice, cut once, and test fit, test fit, test fit. In some of the photos, you'll notice that I've written the wrong measurements... I lost a couple pieces of balsa wood due to silly mistakes...may they rest in pieces...

The measurements of your box determines what's possible. Be sure to take note of the interior dimensions because this will limit how much you can store in your box and how big your screen will be.

My box was 14.5 inches wide by 9.25 inches long and 2.25 inches deep (37 x 23.2 x 5.5 cm). I wish that I had gotten a box made of wood that was a little deeper, but I found this one made from MDF at Goodwill for $2. It had some hot glue stuck to the inside which I removed with a chisel. Before doing anything else to the box, make sure you wipe off any dust or grime with a damp paper towel.

Measure the inside of your box. Twice. The numbers that you see written on the piece of wood are incorrect. Ideally, you want a millimeter or two of a gap between your screen panels and the inside walls of your box.

Cut out the wood pieces. Clamping a metal ruler to the wood helped keep the edge straight. I was also toying with the idea of a bottom compartment, so I cut this piece as well.

Cut out the metal pieces. Wear thick work gloves to protect your hands. The metal edges will be sharp. I used tin shears to cut the sheet of galvanized steel. I used a dremel to file down the edges, but a metal file will do the same thing.

Cut out cardboard backing for the fabric panels. I traced the wooden panels onto cereal box cardboard, then used a guillotine cutter to trim them to size. Because the fabric will roll over the edges of the cardboard, I made them a little smaller than the wooden panels.

Use electrical tape to cover the edges of the metal. I now know why most of the screens that include sheet metal have a wooden frame-- to protect you from the sharp metal edge. The electrical tape creates a protective barrier while also hiding any waviness of the edge. I taped both long edges, trimmed the edges, then taped the short edges, trimmed the excess.

Paint the edges of the wooden panels black. The black paint helps hide mistakes.

This was by far the trickiest step of this build.

Mark where your hinges will go on the inside of the box and on the top of the lid. I measured a hinge's width from the edge on each side.

Carve a recess for the hinge. In this build, the hinge will be sandwiched between the wood and the fabric, which means that there will be some material between the player-side edge of the panel and the lip of the box. Recessing the hinges means that the panels will open further out. For this step, I used a combination of dremel, chisel, and exacto knife, testing the fit as I went. MDF creates a lot of dust, so vacuum then wipe down the box with a damp towel before proceeding.

Pre-drill your holes. I super-glued the hinges in place for a bit of extra security. This step is tempting to skip, especially since the hinge screws are so small, but MDF will split if you don't pre-drill your holes.

Paint the inside edges of the box black. This will hide any rough edges.

Attach the hinges with screws. These were super tiny, so it took a small screwdriver.

File down any screw tips protruding from the side of the box. I used a dremel, but a metal file will do the same thing. Since this box already had some nicks on the sides and back, I didn't worry too much about the exposed MDF. I used a gold paint pen to cover up the holes for a kintsugi look, but black or brown paint will hide the scuffs just as well.

Mark where the hinges meet the opposing edge of the box. I did this by almost closing the box and marking where the hinges touched the edge of the box.

Carve recesses for the hinges. Lots of trial and error here. Once the first two holes are deep enough, you can mark the location for the ones closer to the box's handle. You know you're taken out enough material when you can easily close the box.

Touch up black paint.

Attach panels to hinges. To get the spacing just right, I used kitchen sponges to lift the wood flush with the hinges. Painter's tape helped keep things in place while I pre-drilled the holes and added the screws.

Glue metal to the inside of the panels and to the inside of the lid with epoxy. Be sure that the glue has cured before moving on to the next step.

Replace sponges with magnets (not pictured). It took four magnets for each door to keep them flush. Because the back of the lid is magnetic as well, the magnets also keep the doors in place when you are opening and closing the box. I added some painter's tape to the edge of one of the panels to serve as a temporary handle.

I followed the instructions in this Youtube video with the following exceptions:

Make space for your hinges. To make the felt level with the hinges, I cut away material from the cardboard backing. The photos show how to create a paper template. Nota bene: I got the panel sides mixed up in the process, so the one labeled "left" became "right." Because they were essentially the same, this didn't cause too many problems, but it can affect the direction of the design on your fabric panels.

Trim the felt flush with the edge of the cardboard after the glue has dried.

Preview your pattern. To see the orientation of the pattern on the panel, I put the panel on the fabric, masked with a few sheets of paper and painter's tape, then moved the "frame" until it looked right.

Test fit before you glue. The choice to use a Lucky Charms box for the bottom of the box (which doubles as a dice tray) was on purpose.

Use lots of glue. Felt is not easy to glue, so I ended up using a combination of spray adhesive and tacky glue. To prevent warping, I sandwiched the panels between layers of brown paper (non-glue side) and parchment paper with a board on top.

To keep the box open, I needed a mechanism which would create tension between the top and bottom of the lid. Because the panels fold it, I decided to go with a detachable bit of chain. The anchors are hardware for picture frames. I added the jump ring because the lobster catch was not big enough to comfortably open and close around the anchor.

Install anchors. Test to make sure the panels close when the anchor is in place. To test this, I used a cardboard template and a bit of poster putty. After marking the hole and drilling the first side, I reversed the template for the other side.

Make two figure 8s. These piece attach the chain to the side of the box.

Test the fit before cutting the chain to its final length. I had some floral wire on hand, so I adjusted each length of chain until they were even.

Refine design. I added some of the extra chain to the anchor with a bead at the end to make it easier to grab.

If you have a vinyl cutter, creating a sticker for the top of your box will create a much cleaner design. Because I do not have one, I opted for decoupaged paper.

Find (or make) a design. I made some sketches before mocking up the design in Illustrator. This allowed me to test the overall layout and color scheme. Design and cutting templates attached!

Make "crazy paper." Swirling the paint gives it interesting texture. For decoupage, you would usually use thin paper. Since I added paint, I opted for card stock to try to minimize the warping.

Print your templates. I wished I had printed these on cardstock. Regular paper was a bit flimsy.

Find the center of your lid. (Not pictured.) Because I was going to cover up the center with paper, I marked it with a permanent marker.

Attach design and seal with matte Modge Podge. It helps to have a pair of tweezers on hand to adjust the design as you go. The layer of Modge Podge on the top helps protect the design.

I replaced the painter's tape handle with ribbon and electrical tape.

The chains for the lid catch were getting caught in between the lid and the bottom of the box (which prevented it from closing), so I added a small bit of connecting chain to keep them out of the way. Scarab for decoration and aesthetics.

For storage, I made an insert with foam board and electrical tape. I didn't want anything permanent yet because I'm not sure what I will need in the future, so this gives me maximum flexibility. Because the panels are not flush with the lid of the box, the lid has more storage space than the bottom. So I created a template to measure the depth of the lid with the panels closed, then cut strips of foam board with a box cutter. The two pieces of balsa wood helped protect the floor and keep the line straight. I painted the top of the panel with three layers of blackboard paint and used leftovers from the lid to create the design on the bottom. (Leaving it unfinished is a reminder to me that I can prepare for a session all I want, but it will always be incomplete without the players.)

I have trouble keeping track of status effects, so I made some status markers from cardstock. These can be laminated with mailing tape. I also created some tarot-sized cards with status effects for me and my players to reference. PDFs attached!

Raided Dollar Tree and Amazon for a couple other items:

• Mini chalkboards to serve as an initiative tracker
• Chalkboard pens
• Glass pebbles for NPCs
• Wooden blocks for objects

"As you reach out to touch the DM screen, you see an eye flicker open... it's actually a mimic. Roll for initiative!"

As a currently-virtual-but-looking-forward-to-in-person-gaming DM, I would greatly appreciate your recommendations for tools and cheat sheets that you find most useful when running a game. Comment below!

And may your making be mimic free!