TIMES OF TROUBLE
CLIENT INTERVIEW
I came to my clients suggesting the idea of creating a handout of some sorts while we play our biweekly D&D sessions. Since we were all friends, the interview was more like a casual conversation on the possibilities of what would be most beneficial to the group's overall play during our D&D sessions.
What attracted the idea the most for my clients was the addition of a calendar, to have a better scope of when our sessions are, and where they fall in relation to other life events. Mention of a possible page dedicated to the characters being played was also an interesting concept we wanted to explore more, since we tended to forget the specific details of our characters' motivations and goals. A map was also a must; it was going to help visualize the journey the party is taking up north to Shadowdale.
INSPIRATION
After speaking with my clients, I had a general idea of what I wanted the product to look like. We each have our own tastes, but we are all united under the enjoyment of playing D&D, so I wanted to mirror a fantastical aesthetic for my project. That meant looking at official D&D documents designed by Wizards of the Coast, and other techniques other creatives such as myself take upon to simulate the design. As you can see with the jamboard, I played around the idea of DM screens, and extracted which parts of it were most useful for DMs and players alike. That included character illustrations, dice diagrams, maps, etc. Serif fonts were chosen to evoke an old-fashioned mood which is fitting for a fantasy setting supposedly influenced by the Medieval Ages.
IDEATIONS
With a few design elements in mind, I went straight into developing rough sketches of how I wanted each page and spread to look like. I toyed with some ideas regarding the placement of type and visuals, especially on the cover page, and I ended up relying on a grid-like format to align elements up.
INITIAL DRAFT
FEEDBACK
Happy to report that the clients initial response to the first draft was of satisfaction. They loved the idea that I was going for, and found the calendar to be a great addition at the end. Minor details were asked to be adjusted, such as editing some of the plot synopsis to be more accurate. Other feedback included improving the unity of the overall design; the decorative font used was tweaked so it was present throughout all pages. Rectangular images were adjusted to be circular in form to promote a consistent unity as well. Same with the parchment texture.
THE FINAL DESIGN
final thoughts
Revealing the final product to my clients, they were pleased with the changes I've made, especially changing the cover page so it had the parchment texture as well. Though, I honestly was met with slight pushback on the decorative font for the cover, but otherwise it was fine for the other pages. They enjoyed the spread specific to the characters, and also the blank lined pages of where they could take notes. Overall, the clients were well satisfied, and appreciate how easily editable the plot and months can be, so the document can be updated regularly according to the most recent date.