Best DnD Gifts (A Guide for 2020)
Published on November 18, 2020, Last modified on November 29th, 2020
Are you buying gifts for someone that likes Dungeons and Dragons? This guide is the place for you. We’ve got tips on the best (and worst) gifts to give anybody who loves DnD.
First, who are you buying for?
Are you looking for gifts for DnD enthusiasts? This list will be helpful whether or not you actually play DnD, however some gifts are more universal than others. We will be outlining which gifts could be specific to which type of DnD player. Some things to find out before you go shopping would be:
- Do they DM (Dungeon Master) or are they a player?
- Do they play online or in person?
- Do they use a battlemap and miniatures or are they a “theater of the mind” group?
- Do they use printed books or an online game manager like D&D Beyond?
- Do they have any favorite DnD Podcasts?
Now that you have (very sneakily) rooted out all the necessary information, let’s get into gifts.
Best DnD Gifts for DMs and Players
2020 has certainly been an interesting year. To ensure that everyone remains safe and healthy while playing D&D, we have included a number of gifts to enhance virtual sessions such as microphones, webcams, and virtual DnD assistants.
Dice
Dice are a universally awesome gift. Nobody can ever have enough dice and a really nice set of dice is something that most people don’t typically buy right off the bat.
D&D dice come in all shapes, sizes, and materials, ranging from basic acrylic to mammoth ivory. To help parse the vast array of dice-makers out there, our guide to the best DnD dice covers a number of the top suppliers, their product offering, budget ranges, and geographies.
Bag of Holding
Amazon – $29.99
The Bag of Holding is a great option as it is thematic and comes with all the dice any party could want. This comes with a nice felt bag and 140 acrylic dice that are guaranteed to form 20 full sets of d4, d6, d8, d10, d00, d12, and d20.
Antique Silver 16mm Polyhedral Dice Set
Metallic Dice Games – $5.99 – $39.99
Upgrade your giftees dice game with this solid zinc, shiny-polished nickel-plated, 16mm metal dice set. You will definitely want to include a rolling tray if you gift these dice as they can damage surfaces quite easily.
Published Core Rule Books and Supplements
Dungeons & Dragons Core Rulebooks Gift Set
Amazon – $78
DnD has a set of core rules from it’s creator Wizards of the Coast. Most groups will have (or need) the Dungeon Master’s Guide, the Monster Manual, and the Player’s Handbook. If the person you are buying for is playing in a group that already has these books but don’t own them themselves, they can still make great coffee table books.
Supplements
These books, like the core rulebooks, are published by Wizards of the Coast. However, these supplements contain ways to expand your games. In order, we recommend purchasing:
Xanathar’s Guide to Everything
Amazon – $30
A wonderful collection of additional classes, spells, magical items, and rules. If the person you are buying for is a long term DM or player that doesn’t have this book, they will LOVE it. If you’re not sold, check out our Xanathar’s Guide to Everything Review to see if this book will be right for the person you are gifting it to.
Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything
Amazon – $30
This could be considered the sequel to Xanathar’s Guide to Everything. Released on November 17, 2020, this rules expansion will be a hot commodity for experienced DnD groups. Check out our Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything Announcement for a breakdown of what is included.
Sword Coast Adventurer’s Guide
Amazon – $19.99
The Sword Coast Adventurer’s Guide is a valuable resource for any DM. It contains a plethora of new settings, subclasses, and spells.
Volo’s Guide to Monsters
Amazon – $29.99
Explore the breadth of D&D’s monsters in this immersive 224-page volume filled with beautiful illustrations and in-depth monster lore. This book is great for DMs or people that can’t get enough lore. As a whole, it contains a lot more character options and mid-range monsters than Mordenkainen’s.
Mordenkainen’s Tome of Foes
Amazon – $21.99
Another great monster supplement. This one goes more into depth on monsters already available in the Monster Manual, so it is a great resource to flesh out your world. It also contains quite a few high challenge rating monsters for those final boss fights.
Keep in mind that these supplements are recommended purchases for experienced groups only. Also, if you aren’t sure which books the person you are buying for has, it would be best to stay away from these.
Dice Rolling Trays
Dice rolling trays are a great gift idea for any DnD player. If they have never played with one before, their dice rolling is about to get a lot easier. If they already have one, there are plenty of ways to upgrade.
There are three main tiers of Dice rolling trays:
DIY / Hollowed Out Book
Etsy / Used Book Store
I like this method for a couple of reasons. First, it can be personalized a lot more easily. Maybe their character is a wizard, so you find a nice old, leather-bound book at the thrift store!
Second, these feel heavy and sturdy to roll in. You can also use a magnet to keep it closed so dice can be kept inside during transit.
You can also purchase pre-made hollowed-out books like the one above from bluishstudio.etsy.com.
Folding Dice Tray
Amazon – $8.99
The gold standard for sub $10 dice rolling trays are the felt ones with the click up corners. These are easy to transport as they can lie flat and are sturdy enough to play in.
Cherry Personal Dice Tray
Wyrmwood Gaming – $70
Wyrmwood is the best in the industry for all things woodworking and nerdy. They have a collection of personal dice rolling trays and tabletop dice rolling trays. These, along with some nice metal dice, are the cuban cigars and whiskey of any DnD players repertoire.
Podcast Merch
Podcast merch, in my opinion, would always make an amazing gift for a DnD player. If you know for a fact that somebody is into a particular podcast, gifting them a piece of merch would be very meaningful. Not only is it a gift they would definitely rep, but it means that you have taken the time to familiarize yourself with their hobby.
Not sure if the person you are buying a gift for listens to podcasts? Check out our list of the best D&D podcasts to see if any sound familiar.
Here are the merch stores for the top 3 popular DnD Podcasts:
Erasable Battlemap
If your giftee is still using chart paper to map out their combat encounters, an erasable battlemap is a great gift idea!
Chessex Battlemat
Amazon – $39.99
Chessex has the most popular battlemap at around $40 which will suit the needs of most any DnD party.
Dungeon Tiles
Amazon – $19.99
If you really want to take their game up a notch, these erasable, connectable dungeon tiles look pretty sweet!
Miniatures
We have an entire guide on buying D&D minis but the below information will give you the gist of it!
Miniature Booster Pack
Amazon – $15
Miniatures are a solid option when it comes to DnD gifts. If the person you are buying for is still using metal washers or coins, a “Booster Pack” of miniatures is a great place to start. These packs from Wizards of the Coast come with a random assortment of well-painted miniatures that are fairly good quality.
Reaper Miniatures
reapermini.com – Price varies
Reaper Miniatures is another good place to look for specific, inexpensive, and high-quality miniatures. Keep in mind that these will need to be painted.
Check out our Guide to Buying D&D Minis for info on how to get a great deal on bulk minis from Reaper’s “Bones” Kickstarters.
Hero Forge
heroforge.com – Price varies
If you are buying a gift for someone who is playing in a long term campaign, a Hero Forge Custom Miniature is probably the best you can get. These guys have a legitimately insane amount of options and the miniatures are of amazing quality. If the person you’re buying for would geek out to see their character come to life, this is the gift to get. If you don’t know exactly what their character looks like, you can also buy them a gift card so they can go through the fun of making it themselves.
Check out our Hero Forge Product Spotlight for more info.
Boardgames
It is a safe bet that most DnD players are also avid board game players. We have compiled a list of board games that D&D players will love to help with your search.
Framed Map
This can be a really, really cool gift. If the campaign that your giftee is playing in has a map and is high enough quality that you can print it off and frame it, it will make for some gorgeous, personalized decor that they will certainly display with pride.
DnD Apparel
Generic DnD Apparel will always get a solid reaction as a gift. Tee Public has a huge selection of D&D focused designs that you can get on t-shirts, hoodies, stickers, mugs, and masks.
Microphone/Webcam
In this day and age, online DnD is mostly the only DnD we can play.
If you are buying for somebody who plays DnD online or at least has someone calling into the sessions, a good webcam or mic could go a long way to improving the quality of their sessions.
Yeti Snowball
Amazon – 59.99
The available options for different mics for varying setups can get quite convoluted. When in doubt, the Yeti Snowball is always a good choice. If you want to get more granular about it, you can check out our blog post about which mic to buy for DnD sessions
Logitech C920
Amazon – 109.99
In terms of a webcam, the Logitech C920 is the best in the business for the price. If you want to completely ball out, there is an absolutely wicked 360 degree conference camera for a crisp $800 USD.
Other Gimmicky Stuff
Gimmicky stuff is always hit or miss when it comes to gift-giving. Some things that will almost always hit are:
Wooden Tankard
Amazon – $40
I actually purchased a couple of my party members these wooden tankards and they love them! Very useful for setting a tavern-esque mood around your table.
Polyhedral Sugar Dice Set
SugarAndDiceCrafts – $20
Don’t like your roll? Eat your dice!
This edible DnD dice set is sold by SugarAndDiceCrafts and they are gluten-free and vegan.
What Not to Buy
Adventure Modules
I would stay away from gifting Adventure Modules. Typically, this is the DM’s realm and they will have an idea of what modules they want to run. If one of their players were to buy them an Adventure Module, they could take it the wrong way and it might seem to them that the player is looking to move away from their campaign.
House Decor
I would stay away from House Decoration (posters, doormats, etc) as they tend to be a lot more miss than hit. Generally, anything that would just be clutter/has no purpose (eg. not everyone likes funko pops). The exceptions to this rule are if it has use (ie, the Tavern style tankards) or if it has meaningful, sentimental value (a portrait of the characters of the campaign, a framed map of the campaign, etc.).
Thanks so much for this article! Got boyfriend who’s a DM and this was a great source of ideas for his b-day gift. While researching dice trays I actually ended up finding out about dice towers, which were just the perfect gift
We’re glad you found the article helpful!
Yesss! My friends and I are more casual players since it’s been really difficult to get together (stupid being adults), but my husband has his own group that meets every week… I was having a serious mental block trying to figure out what to get him this Christmas and this list was SUPER helpful! Thank you for putting this out there!
Glad you liked it Kate!