Tracking weather in D&D is something not many DMs do. It opens a new world of possibilities and helps creativity flow, it also helps with roleplaying and realism in our campaigns.

Pssst…  This article is not sponsored in any way; however, it contains Amazon Affiliate Links in order to help support the blog. All the images used in this post have permisson from Litko. Let’s go!

The equipment a gamer has can make him more or less effective, and that might make the difference between victory and defeat.

We all LOVE accessories. Especially when they are not expensive and look cool. Litko offers some great game accessories every DM must have to spice up your campaign!

If you’re into Wargames, you’ve definitively heard of Litko.

BUT.

Did you know they make RPG accessories? And they are awesome!

Here. Take a look.

What is Litko?

Litko Game Accessories is a company that designs and manufactures hobby gaming products, for both hobbyists as well as tabletop gaming publishers/manufacturers worldwide.

All their products are made in the USA (Indiana), so if you live there, be happy because of lower prices!

Litko is officially partnered with Paizo (the creators of Pathfinder) which uses a system very similar to D&D (some call it D&D 3.75), that means their products are highly compatible.

You can visit their Website or Facebook Page by clicking the links.

Products

Some of the products they sell are:

• Tokens & Markers
• Dice Towers
• Bases & Movement Trays
• Measuring Devices, Gauges, & Templates
• Board Game Accessories
• Specialty Advertising & Promotional Products for Business
• Custom Made Products

All their products (at least, the many tokens I’ve tried before) have a high-quality design and are very sturdy (sorry, I always drop stuff to the ground)

Importance

Game accessories are a nice addition to have as they spice up your game and give more “weight” to other things that are usually forgotten.

Let me explain.

There are many types of accessories, some are more useful than others duh!

For RPG games like D&D or Pathfinder, there are many things we have to constantly track and sometimes forget (it’s ok! we are human!)

What was the weather like? I forgot what the DM said…

How many arrows did I have? (Does someone actually track this? For real?)

How many rations I have left? None?! WHAT?!

Where did the Wizard cast Wall of Fire? Um…

Where’s my horse?! I don’t know bro.

And much more. Accessories are here to HELP US and MAKE OUR LIFE EASY.

Weather Effect Marker Set

Sometimes weather can play an important role in an adventure.

In this article, I’m going to talk about Litko’s Weather Effect Marker Set

Or “Weather Trackers” …as I like to call them.

This set contains 5 weather trackers made of semi-transparent plastic, which allows you to represent different weather conditions.

Each marker stands about 30mm high and has its own base so it can stand still on your table.

Here are some pictures:

Foggy Weather

“Baby it’s cold outside” – Rainy Weather

Wizard getting interrupted while casting – Snowy Weather

Gandalf, Frodo and Sam, chilling – Sunny/Clear Weather

Air Elemental and his son – Windy Weather

They’re very useful since you just have to put them on your table and instantly everybody notices (and remembers) what the weather is like.

Uses in D&D

Even though they were originally designed to be used on Wargames, but I use them for Dungeons & Dragons! (and you should too)

In Dungeon & Dragons (5e) we have many abilities and spells that work, generate or manipulate the weather.

Some examples are:

• A Druid casting Control Weather might have its duration or effect increased.
• A Sorcerer casting Warding Wind might have an increased radius.
• A Ranger casts Fog Cloud and the foggy weather increases the duration.

And many spells more (even more if you’re using Elemental Evil Spells).

Also, remember that Wood Elves (~75% of the Players I’ve had tend to use Elves!) have a passive ability called Mask of the Wild which lets you attempt to hide (stealth) even when you are only lightly obscured by heavy rain, falling snow, mist and other natural phenomena.

How can weather affect a campaign?

Bad weather frequently slows or halts travel and makes it virtually impossible to navigate from one spot to another.

Torrential downpours and blizzards obscure vision as effectively as a dense fog.

• Rain: Reduces visibility ranges and might reduce fire damage or extinguish flames (bye bye torches! and disadvantage on perception checks maybe?)
• Snow: has the same effects on visibility, ranged weapon attacks, and skill checks as rain, and it counts as difficult terrain.
• Fog: Whether in the form of a low-lying cloud or a mist rising from the ground, it obscures all sight, including darkvision
• Wind: If powerful enough, it can even knock characters down, interfere with ranged attacks, or impose penalties on some skill checks.

If you want more information and free tables on weather effects, you can check out this Homebrew: Weather Percentile Chart

I purchased this set on MiniatureMarket (since I live in Peru and MM’s international shipping costs are kinda low) after reading it’s 5-stars reviews on the official website and I TOTALLY RECOMMEND IT.

Bad weather also means that players must be prepared to resist it. Buy or craft winter clothes, get some magic Snow Boots, have firemaking tools at their disposal to survive cold nights and much more.

Note: I think it’s out of stock on MiniatureMarket, I found it on Amazon.

Conclusion

I love tactical combats, using every element at your disposal is something invaluable. Weather can have serious effects on the Players and sometimes can elevate the difficulty of a combat or make your PCs think new and creative solutions to deal more damage or create smart strategies.

Many times I’ve been surprised by a smart player trying to do something that I would have never imagined and failing because he rolled a 1.

Smart decisions can help you award your players with Initiative and make up for great stories to remember.

Once you start using these tokens at your tables, your PCs will scream at you whenever you forget to use them.

After all, Litko offers accessories (as the name implies, they are OPTIONAL and by any means not necessary) that are very useful if you already have the basics and love playing with miniatures.

As they state on their website… LITKO lets you UPGRADE YOUR GAME!

P.S. If you’d like to check out more accessories for D&D-lovers, check out our gift guide!