Do I need minis and a map to run 5e? Never DMed before

Attack of Opportunity.

I don't remember what term 5e is actually using to describe them, but it's the reaction attack you get if somebody moves away from you without using the Disengage action.

Thanks.

Not at all. It can all be completely "theater of the mind" if you want (meaning that you actually just play pretend instead of trying to make it more gamey).

That being said, the core mechanics of the game have sort of been designed with some kind of tokens/play surface in mind. It is a game, after all. The entire idea behind DnD was about turning your daydream fantasies and pretend playing into something you could play with friends under a codified set of rules.

That's kind of the strongest argument against people who argue that these kinds of games should be less about roll- and more about role-playing. The role is important, but without the roll you're just playing pretend and not a game.

Different strokes for different folks, though. If you want to play pretend using DnD's narrative fluff and flavor, have at it.

That's ultimately the thing to take away. Do whatever you and your group have fun doing, and anyone who says it's wrong can go fuck themselves.

I fully agree. But I do use miniatures/maps.

What I do is theatre of the mind for nearly everything. But I try to prepare the main battle of the session (if there is one) and use miniatures for that.

To be honest this is mostly because I have a ridiculous collection of miniatures and I just gotta use them or I will be forced to recognize that I threw away XXX money.

But honestly, if the session goes in a different direction and the map/miniatures don't get used it is not a big deal and I don't bother for the secondary battles at all (if there are any).

I actually find that this technique gives some variety of to the session as it isn't 'always' X or Y.

You responded, which means he got you

Piggybacking this to ask a question im sure has been asked before many times.

Need cost effective mini solution that arent paper based. Lots on ebay are somewhere around $1/mini for mage night and higher for other solutions and im really not trying to spend too much. Not to mention several lots dont have much variety, which has benefits and drawbacks. Looked at some of those buckets of skeletons and monsters and whatnot but not sure if theyre too big for battlemat.

Any suggestions or have i pretty much considered my options?

Piece of paper/white board and narrow wooden pawns. I would also recommend 'papercraft' minis.

The best, most immersive game of D&D I've ever been in was in voice chat with a few friends. We didn't have Roll20 or anything set up by this point but we still went through two combat scenes. Now I love the crunch of maneuvering and positioning and basically playing a tactics game. But having to describe my actions in non-mechanical terms, trusting the DM to lay things out fairly, and painting the picture of the whole scene in my mind was just great. The group kinda fell apart a bit later and I disagreed somewhat with the DM's style and decisions but really if I could play a long campaign like that it would be pretty fun I think.

This. I bought a blank folding board and tape a grid onto it. I use numbered dice for players and monopoly houses for bad guys. Works beautifully.

Buy a 3d printer.