Build a Daggerheart Fear Tracker!

I share how to build two variations on an abacus-style Fear tracker for the Daggerheart RPG! This project is very easy, low cost, and fun!

Tracking Fear in Daggerheart

The Daggerheart RPG provides the GM with a special Fear currency. As play begins, and as players roll dice and either fail or generate fear, the GM gains fear (up to a maximum of twelve). This can be spent to empower monsters, introduce events, and more. It’s an important and excellent part of the RPG, similar to the Malice gained in Draw Steel and similar currencies in older RPGs.

When tracking fear, it is ideal for the GM and players to know how much fear is in play. As GM we want players to see the stakes. As players, we want to adjust our strategy based on the risk of generating more fear.

Fear can be tracked as suggested in the RPG, with a bowl of colored stones or similar approaches. However, this hides the exact number from both player and GM. Solution: an abacus style fear tracker, which provides a highly visual tracking method. I noted various such trackers and decided to make my own.  

In addition to this blog, you can see a video here walking through this process.

Two Variations

My main goal was to make one for my GM, as I’m currently a player in a Daggerheart campaign. My GM sometimes uses a hard cardboard-style screen, so I wanted it to work with such a screen. But I also wanted to have the option of a stand, in case they don’t want to use a screen.

And, if you saw my Draw Steel initiative system, I have a thick wooden DM screen with a magnetic strip. This would require a slightly different approach, so that I have the option of attaching magnets to the fear tracker. Again, I also wanted the option of using a base in case I wasn’t using the DM screen. Here are the two finished versions, followed by how I made them.

Just 3-4 Parts

This is a fairly simple projects. I’m not a big fan of getting frustrated on creative projects, and I’m happy to say this was really easy and rewarding to create. Here’s what you need.

First, we need something to track the fear. I did some web searches and shared with my GM pictures of small human skulls, tombstones, bats, ravens, keys, and raven skulls. We both agreed we liked the imitation raven skulls! An advantage of these raven skulls is that they already have a hole through the side. If you use something else, you will need to drill through the side of each of the twelve currency items (you need 12, because that is the maximum fear a GM can have). Make the hole larger than the bar’s diameter, so they slide easily.

Second, based on another video I watched, I picked up some wooden doll-style clothespins. These have a deep channel along the bottom half, which fits most DM screens perfectly. These would need to be painted. (And, for my variant where it sits on top of my wooden DM screen, the clothespin will be cut to make it shorter.)

Third, a steel bar to run between the clothespins and hold the fear currency. I went with a 1/8″ diameter, which is a nice thickness that won’t bend under the weight of the plastic skulls. This small diameter also let’s me drill smaller holes in the clothespins, which is easier to get right. I got a long enough bar (48″) to make two trackers, based on measurements I took of my DM screens. I also thought I might need a second steel bar of the same length if the fear items leaned too far backward or forward after I hung them on the bar. Fortunately for me, the raven skulls hang really nicely and no second bar was needed. (My video explains this, should this not be clear.)

We need to measure the steel bar, easily done by setting the clothespins on the DM screen, sliding 12 of the fear items onto the bar, and making sure everything fits. Try three fear on one side and nine on the other and see if that gap feels large enough to visually make it clear where the dividing line is between the two groups. Increase your length to account for the amount the bar will dig into the wooden clothespin, probably 1/6^th of an inch or so on either side. Once you feel good about the length, use a pencil to mark off the spot where you should cut.

If you want your tracker to simply use the clothespins and sit on a cardboard-style DM screen, then that’s all you need. If you want to also have a base, so no DM screen is needed, then you will need a rectangular block of wood about 3” larger than your bar (but, ideally, measure it after you built the rest of your tracker). The base of the block should be at least ¼” and be wide enough to not tip over when you have the tracker inserted. Use my images further below as a guide.

Drill, Cut, Paint

We want to turn the clothespin on its side, so we can see the groove. Hold that down with a clamp and drill a 1/8” shallow hole into the head of the clothespin, lined up with the groove and just deep enough to hold the bar within the hole. We do it again for the other clothespin.

For the bar, we want to clamp it down and use a metal hacksaw to cut the bar at the spot we measured. The bar should cut easily.

(For the variant where it will sit on top of a wooden DM screen, we use the hacksaw to cut the two clothespins just above where the groove ends, so that we have a nice flat wooden bottom and the clothespin will sit level.)

Then we want to paint our clothespins. Depending on our creative impulses, we might use a wood stain to show the natural texture of the wood, or a paint if we want a more uniform color. You will probably need several coats, especially for a stain. I recommend water-soluble stains and paints as these are less toxic and clean up without needing toxic mineral spirits. Below you can see what both variants looked like after painting.

Once the paint has fully dried, we want to apply a varnish or sealant. You don’t need sealant in the hole, as it will make that diameter too small. Applying two coats to each clothespin is likely best – you want to protect this from use and give it a nice sealed look. For the painting and sealant steps you may need to prop or clamp these and paint one half, let it dry, and do the other half.  

The next step, once the sealant is dried, is to put a drop of wood or super glue inside the clothespin hole and work that bar in there. It can be helpful to work the bar in once before glue is added, then remove the bar and add the glue. This verifies the bar will actually fit after your painting steps.

Important! Once the first side is in and the glue has dried, slide your 12 fear tracking items onto the bar, then glue the other side in! (It could be easy to forget and glue both sides without the fear items on the bar.) When everything is dry, you can test it out on the screen, as shown below.

Addicted to Base

It was an afterthought for me to add a base, but I am sure glad I did! The trackers look really good on a base. I wanted this to be convertible. We can place the tracker into the base or pull it out and put it on the DM screen. Here’s the process (and a link to the video).

First, we take our wooden block and make sure that it will be long enough and stable enough to hold our fear tracker. Then hold it over the block and use a tape measure to center it and a pencil to draw around the base of the clothespins.

For my variant, this had a flat clothespin bottom and I ended up drilling with a large wide drill bit partially into the wood. But, honestly, I think it works better and is also easier to just drill right through the wood, top to bottom. The short clothespin should fit in there just fine and the fear items will likely have some part resting on the wood, which is okay.

For the normal version made for a cardboard DM screen, I drilled through the wood and then used a file to both remove any burs and also to make it a tiny bit wider. This allows for everything to fit well once the base is painted and varnished.

Once the base is drilled for the clothespins, you can paint/stain it and seal it. When it is fully dry, verify that it fits snugly and admire your finished work!

The final step for me, which I may not do because I like the base so much, is to attach magnets to the bottom of the variant version and have the option of placing it on top of my wooden DM screen.

I’m really happy with this project. The result looks great and really functions well, improving gameplay and providing a nice tactile feel for the GM. As projects go, it was low cost and really easy. While I am comfortable with tools, I am by no means skilled at this kind of project. You can do it if I can!