Building a Gaming Table

The premise of a gaming table is the same no matter what the game you are playing. Whether you are playing a game of Chess, Checkers, or Dungeons & Dragon's the ideas is to have something that will hold all the equipment and pieces that you will need to be able to play.

Typically, for a role playing game you will need to do a little planning ahead. Role playing games usually require that you have a rectangular table where you can fit everyone and everything together. The ideal type of gaming table would be to have one that opens up, and the pieces to the game are stored inside the table. Usually, these kinds of tables have the tops open up to about 90 degrees (or straight up), and then unfold. This would allow the top to be about twice the size of the regular table top, when it is stored or closed. The top will need to be gig enough for you to use your playing map, while also allowing the players themselves plenty of elbow room.

A great basic design for a game table is to have a hollow space in the table to store things like cards, books, dice, and other gaming implements. When closed, the top will measure about 30 inches wide, by about 40 inches long. When the table is unfolded, it will then measure 60 inches by 40 inches. The concealed "inner" compartment (which is built into the table) will be about 20 inches square by 4 inches deep. If you are building the table yourself though, feel free to customize it to your own needs.

An ordinary table is roughly 29 inches high, so these gaming tables are usually a little higher at about 30 inches high. This will allow for the hidden cavity in the table. In addition, there is a small shelf at the base of the table, which is recessed on all sides. This shelf is going to be about 8 inches off of the ground, and allows for game boxes, additional maps, or other items to be stored when not in use.

While you can purchase this kind of table at many different furniture and gaming, and billiard stores, you may want to build your own. There are many reasons for this. For example you may wish to have some bragging rights among your friends, you may be interested in saving a little bit of money by making your own, or you may even wish to customize it to your particular game. Whatever the reason, you can make your own, and it is dependant only on your gaming skills. Here is a rough sketch (See Figure 1.) of what a gaming table can look like. Feel free to customize it to fit your particular needs.

Figure 1. One possible type of gaming table.