How I Organize My Entire D&D Campaign in Obsidian

Why Obsidian?

If you're running a D&D campaign and your notes live in Google Docs, OneNote, or a pile of Discord messages — I've been there. It works until it doesn't. You're six sessions deep, a player asks "what was the name of that blacksmith in Thornwall?" and you're scrolling through a 40-page document like it's a lost scroll of ancient wisdom.

Obsidian changed everything for me. It's a local-first markdown editor with bidirectional linking, which means every NPC, location, and plot thread can reference every other one. Your campaign becomes a living wiki that you actually want to use.

No subscription. No cloud lock-in. Just markdown files on your machine, organized however your brain works.

Vault Structure

Here's the folder layout I've settled on after running multiple campaigns:

Campaign/
├── Sessions/          # Session notes and recaps
├── NPCs/              # One file per NPC
├── Locations/         # Cities, dungeons, taverns
├── Lore/              # Worldbuilding, history, factions
├── Players/           # PC sheets, backstory notes
├── Encounters/        # Combat setups, stat blocks
├── Items/             # Magic items, loot tables
└── Templates/         # Templater templates for all of the above

The magic isn't the folders — it's the links between them. Every NPC file links to their location. Every location links to the NPCs who live there. Every session note links to the encounters, NPCs, and locations that came up. After a few sessions, you can click through your world like a choose-your-own-adventure book.

An NPC file might look like this:

# Vex Ironhollow
**Race:** Dwarf | **Role:** Blacksmith | **Location:** [[Thornwall]]
**Disposition:** Gruff but fair. Owes a debt to [[Miraya Sunshadow]].
 
## Notes
- Sells weapons at standard PHB prices
- Knows about the [[Undercrypt]] entrance behind the forge
- Last appeared in [[Session 12 - The Thornwall Job]]

Every [[double bracket]] is a link. Click it and you're there. No searching, no scrolling.

The DM Workflow

Here's my session prep cycle. It takes about 30-45 minutes once the vault is set up:

Before the Session

1. •Create a session note from a template — date, expected scenes, loose outline
2. •Write encounter notes — not full stat blocks, just the setup. "3 bandits + 1 mage, ambush on the bridge, mage flees at half HP"
3. •Prep NPC quick-refs — any NPC the party might meet gets a bullet list: name, voice note, motivation, what they know
4. •Review last session's log — remind yourself what threads are dangling

During the Session

I keep Obsidian open on a second monitor. I jot quick notes in the session file as things happen. Player names a random tavern? I create a new location file on the spot and link it. Takes five seconds.

After the Session

5. •Clean up session notes — turn messy bullet points into a readable recap
6. •Update NPC files — new relationships, new info revealed
7. •Log any new locations or items the party discovered
8. •Add "next session" hooks at the bottom of the session note

This loop gets faster every session because the vault accumulates context. By session ten, half your prep is just clicking through existing notes.

Essential Plugins

Obsidian's plugin ecosystem is what takes it from "nice markdown editor" to "DM command center."

Dataview — Query your vault like a database. Want a table of all NPCs in Thornwall sorted by faction? Done. A list of every magic item the party has found? One query. This alone is worth the switch.

Templater — Create templates for session notes, NPCs, locations, encounters. Hit a hotkey, pick a template, and you've got a pre-structured file with dates, metadata, and placeholder sections. Consistency without the effort.

Dice Roller — Roll dice inline in your notes. Write `dice: 2d6+3` and click it. Great for random encounter tables and loot generation during prep.

Initiative Tracker — Run combat encounters directly in Obsidian. Track HP, initiative order, conditions. Pairs well with encounter notes files.

Fantasy Calendar — Track in-game dates, festivals, travel time, and moon phases. Link calendar events to session notes. Your players will think you're an organizational wizard. (You are. You're also a literal wizard because you're the DM.)

Tips for Getting Started

1. •Start small. Don't try to build an entire world wiki before session one. Create files as you need them. The vault grows organically.
2. •Link aggressively. Every time you mention an NPC, location, or item, make it a [[link]]. Even if the file doesn't exist yet — Obsidian creates it when you click it.
3. •Template everything. Spend 20 minutes building templates for your most common note types. Future you will be grateful.
4. •Don't over-organize. If you're spending more time organizing notes than prepping sessions, you've gone too far. The search and linking features mean you don't need perfect folder hierarchies.
5. •Use tags for status. Tag NPCs as #alive, #dead, or #missing. Tag quests as #active, #completed, or #failed. Dataview can filter on these.
6. •Keep a "DM scratchpad" file. One file for random ideas, names you liked, plot twists you want to introduce. Review it during prep.

Roll for Initiative (On Your Notes)

If you're a DM who's tired of losing track of NPCs, forgetting plot threads, or scrambling through messy docs mid-session — give Obsidian a shot. The initial setup takes an afternoon, and after that, it just gets better with every session.

Your campaign deserves better than a Google Doc. Build it a vault.

Got a DM workflow tip or a favorite Obsidian plugin for tabletop? Hit me up on Twitter — always looking for ways to optimize the screen behind the screen.