As Geek Native’s local Stylophile (Pen Snob) I was recently asked for some suggestions for pens to gift to a Dungeon Master, and once I’d been told that anything in a material called Primary Manipulation was for the other type of DM I thought I’d share my thoughts here.
Option 1: Uni Kuru Toga
Starting as I mean to go on by completely ignoring the question, my first choice is not a pen at all, but a pretty handy mechanical pencil with a wee twist (literally).
This Uni Kuru Toga pencil takes standard 0.5mm leads with the USP of a clutch mechanism which rotates the lead by 15 degrees each time it’s lifted from the page.
This action prevents the lead from blunting and always providing a clean line for your hastily sketched maps and for recording the name of that NPC you really wish the party would stop trying to adopt.
Option 2: Erasable ball pens
One of the reasons so many DMs stick to pencil is that they know mistakes are made and stats will change; the obvious solution to this is erasable ink.
Now the most reliable models like this are the Pilot Frixion range, but they’re not particularly attractive – so instead, why not try these animal themed ones?
These RIANCY aberrations are a bit too cute to grace the cover of the Monster Manual any time soon, but perhaps you don’t want to be giving your DM any ideas.
Option 3: Lamy ST TRI PEN
Moving up in the price range, we get to the grown up version of those four colour pens everyone had in school. This tri pen features a mechanical pencil, black and red rollerball modes.
This has most of the advantages of the previous options for taking quickly editable notes or longer lasting records of who the party has upset this session. My previous DM found the red ink especially helpful for excising the group name following a TPK.
Option 4: Majohn A1
On to my favourite topic, fountain pens! Fountain pens have a bit of a reputation for being old fashioned, messy and difficult to use and in all honesty for quite a few those opinions are not undeserved, that said it’s probably the closest most DMs will ever get to using a quill.
I chose this Majohn pen as, unlike the vast majority of fountain pens, this has retractable nib so operates like any clicky ballpoint for quickly taking notes.
This particular model also takes readily available ink cartridges so no worrying about filling up from bottles using syringes or other weird tools, though if you ask me that’s half the fun.
Option 5: Benu Talisman in Dragon’s Blood
For my fifth choice I swithered between this Benu pen or the Dragon Pen by Jinhao, both are a bit on the nose for naming and theme, so I decided to go with the better writer.
This pen is made with a custom glitter filled resin and is pretty blingy in the flesh. It’s definitely not for the shy and retiring type, but with a little care should last a lifetime and you may even be able to pick up some dice to match.
BONUS OPTION: Montegrappa Bruce Lee Dragon Fountain Pen Gold
Okay, I know it’s a Chinese dragon, rather than the European version more common in RPGs and also beyond my five picks, but I had to include the Montegrappa Bruce Lee Dragon fountain pen in gold for when budget consideration (and taste) has truly left the building.
Featuring solid gold dragons on the cap and body, paired with an 18k gold nib, this monstrosity is a snip at only £30,500.
In summary…
There we have it! If you’ve made it to the end of this post, you may have learned a thing or two about pens, and hopefully you’ve come away with some great gift ideas for your own Dungeon Master.
Author bio:
Murdo Borland has been hoarding pens for around 20 years now and has opinions on nib sizes and ink viscosity. He’s based in Edinburgh and is a self-described ‘dodgy old goth’.
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