I’m trying to set up my first adventure with some friends. I already own the physical Lost Mine of Phandelver starter kit, then found out I had to purchase the digital copy again. So I did because that’s all I’ve invested so far.
I happened to discover the subscription page, which says unless I have a higher paid tier I can’t share the content. So I’ve subscribed to the Master Tier.
I set up a new campaign and called it Lost Mine of Phandelver, and enabled shared content, but there’s just a link to a blank campaign and space for notes. I don’t see any digital table top, or a way of assigning LMoP content to the campaign. I set up a test character and assigned it to the campaign, but it’s just a blank page of private and public notes.
So now what?
I downloaded the app, logged in, and can see my account and LMoP content, but no character sheets, no campaign, no table top, and no examples of any games in play.
What is D&D Beyond? Just an expensive PDF shop? Where’s the digital table top, the interactive DM tools, the campaign elements, the dice for God’s sake? Do people walk around with dice in their pockets? What did I just pay full retail dollars for?
I had some faith in the brand and the ratings. Is that ok with you? But there’s currently nothing visually mechanical or functional, aside from the character builder...
It’s been a great start so far. No actual gameplay and one smart arse.
D&D Beyond has the books and character sheets needed to play the game.
Technically you don't need a tabletop, virtual or otherwise, but most people (myself included) prefer one. DDB does not provide one (yet, it is planned, but dont hold your breath). You can either play at a physical table with your friends, or you can use a secondary virtual tabletop.
The DM tool are also a little lacking, basically only letting you edit your players' characters, and make public and private notes for the campaign.
The main draw of the site is the digital character sheets with easy to learn character builder, the one stop shop for rule books, and the homebrew tools which work on the aforementioned character sheets.
The forums are also (mostly) filled with helpful people (only a few ********, I swear. Better than most corners of the internet even).
Character builder allowing full integration of all character options you have purchased from the marketplace or have access to via content sharing, plus any homebrew content you have added to your collection or in the collection of people you are in a campaign with
Quick search through all purchased content and quick reference to rules (only the basic rules if you have not purchased anything from the marketplace)
Extensive and growing homebrew system, allowing you to create subclasses, races, monsters, magic items, feats, backgrounds, spells; this can also allow (if one has the time) to re-create for private use any official content you might have access to through other means
What DDB is not and has was never claimed to be:
A Virtual Tabletop
What DDB has planned in their roadmap (main features, the extensive list can be found elsewhere):
Encounter builder (currently in beta for subscribers, so you should have access)
Dice roller
Virtual DM screen
Homebrew full classes
Granular sharing
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Born in Italy, moved a bunch, living in Spain, my heart always belonged to Roleplaying Games
Both LeK and DxJxC have given a good introduction to what our site offers. Now that you have a subscription and some content, your friends can sign up for free and join your campaign with new characters and you can help keep track of what they have and are doing. I find it especially useful to check their passive scores and keep an eye on magic items. Also our Encounter Builder is in Alpha, and that can help you plan out some of the battles that might come up in your game!
From there it's time to play! Lost Mine of Phandelver is an excellent adventure, especially for new players, so I think you'll have a lot of fun. Let us know if you have any other questions, and have a great game!
I've been here for awhile and I think Dnd Beyond does a poor job of touring the product but the core part that I like are the books and tool tips. The search could be improved, but at the same time it doesn't need to be. With more use, Dnd Beyond can only get better. The app doesn't do much but make the books available offline (android at least),. The web site is highly responsive in a mobile web browser and content sharing is pretty awesome, especially for new players.
Its a great way to keep track of character sheets too. There's a lot to want from the character sheets and it will take time for it to improve, but the biggest benefit for me is that I can now scale my players' levels up and down if I wanted to without the mundane task of filling out a new character sheet.
Both LeK and DxJxC have given a good introduction to what our site offers. Now that you have a subscription and some content, your friends can sign up for free and join your campaign with new characters and you can help keep track of what they have and are doing. I find it especially useful to check their passive scores and keep an eye on magic items. Also our Encounter Builder is in Alpha, and that can help you plan out some of the battles that might come up in your game!
From there it's time to play! Lost Mine of Phandelver is an excellent adventure, especially for new players, so I think you'll have a lot of fun. Let us know if you have any other questions, and have a great game!
Thanks everyone for providing an insight to what DDB is.
So as I understand it, DDB is something you take to a D&D game, not for sharing a D&D game online? Unless people are willing to use a third-party messaging service if they aren't playing in person... which is what I was aiming to achieve without having two completely different programs open.
I had subscribed to DDB because the digital adventures and character sheets, campaign, and content sharing gave me the idea DDB was an online platform for playing D&D. There's no real narrative structure to the service though. I've had to come through here.
Also FYI, the physical Dungeon Masters and Players Handbooks are $AUD58 each in Australia, when not on sale. DDB is $AUD67 for a digital copy tied to a website and app. And DDB character builder is free, so I'm not seeing why I would buy all the books a second time, at a higher cost, when they don't appear to plug into a campaign or have DM tools for releasing narrative, NPCs, and map details during an adventure, after an additional subscription as well. Unless I'm misunderstanding what D&D gameplay is currently interactive through DDB, aside from viewing free character sheets...
Sorry you got the wrong impression of the service. As far price goes, there are frequent 25% off coupons and bundles.
If you are not satisfied with your purchases, you can contact support (bottom of page) and they may be able to refund you (I make no guarantees there).
Regardless, you can still post any questions you have on the forums, and use the other free features. DDB will get a VTT someday (probably), and you can buy in then.
Sorry you got the wrong impression of the service. As far price goes, there are frequent 25% off coupons and bundles.
If you are not satisfied with your purchases, you can contact support (bottom of page) and they may be able to refund you (I make no guarantees there).
Regardless, you can still post any questions you have on the forums, and use the other free features. DDB will get a VTT someday (probably), and you can buy in then.
Oh, it's not your fault. It was inconceivable to me the paid content of DDB would be of no use to my D&D games, except for the character sheets, which are free anyway.
I really hate throwing money away. Having Curse Inc. in my bank statement is apt.
Digital compendium - you can buy the books here and have access to them anyway. They're searchable and usable in the character builder. There's also the a la carte purchasing option, unique to DDB, where you can buy just the options you need
Interactive character builder - It's not just a character sheet (like the free one), it's an interactive character management tool including levelling, spell information, and exporting
Content sharing - This is what the master tier sub is for; if you're in a campaign with other people, everyone's books are shared, meaning you as the DM don't have to own everything.
Homebrew tools - They provide the tools to make your own races, subclasses, spells, magic items and feats that not only plug into the character builder, but can be shared with the community. You can also make your own monsters and likewise share them and it's all interactive and searchable
Encounter builder - this new tool (in active development) will allow you to construct encounters using the algorithm wotc uses in house (rather than the simplified version presented in DMG and XGTE)
It's unfortunate you subscribed before being fully aware of what the service was, I was under the impression the information was readily available, but I've been subbed for a long time so it may be that I'm just misremembering.
You can use DDB with other free VTTs such as roll20 (which is what I do), especially with the help of tools such as Beyond 20, a chrome plugin that connects the two quite nicely.
Digital compendium - you can buy the books here and have access to them anyway. They're searchable and usable in the character builder. There's also the a la carte purchasing option, unique to DDB, where you can buy just the options you need
Interactive character builder - It's not just a character sheet (like the free one), it's an interactive character management tool including levelling, spell information, and exporting
Content sharing - This is what the master tier sub is for; if you're in a campaign with other people, everyone's books are shared, meaning you as the DM don't have to own everything.
Homebrew tools - They provide the tools to make your own races, subclasses, spells, magic items and feats that not only plug into the character builder, but can be shared with the community. You can also make your own monsters and likewise share them and it's all interactive and searchable
Encounter builder - this new tool (in active development) will allow you to construct encounters using the algorithm wotc uses in house (rather than the simplified version presented in DMG and XGTE)
It's unfortunate you subscribed before being fully aware of what the service was, I was under the impression the information was readily available, but I've been subbed for a long time so it may be that I'm just misremembering.
You can use DDB with other free VTTs such as roll20 (which is what I do), especially with the help of tools such as Beyond 20, a chrome plugin that connects the two quite nicely.
Thanks for the time you've taken to go further into detail. Obviously DDB suits you and your methods.
The only reason I signed up is because the subscription sounds like purchasing the adventures a second time gives me some digital advantage, some interactive features the physical copies didn't have, making the whole difficulty of arranging first time players online, and smoothing the meta game into adventure progress and milestones. But there's actually no real ground level DM tools for telling the story of an adventure.
My guys have agreed to meeting up in person with pencils and paper, though one of them is overseas and won't be able to join us, still not having a free or paid service to host a complete game in one place. 2019. Go figure. I'd pay money for a complete service, but I'm not going to pay for duplicate content and half an experience.
sounds like purchasing the adventures a second time gives me some digital advantage, some interactive features the physical copies didn't have
Well they're searchable, crosslinked, sharable with your group and automatically errata'd without you needing to buy a new copy. Plus the fact they plug in to the character builder automatically so character creation and management is a breeze.
But no, DDB isn't yet a VTT and may never be. It's a rules toolset, not a game platform.
You're unlikely to get a complete service anywhere; roll20 and fantasy grounds may offer some (but not all) compendium content and a VTT, but they don't offer offline compendium access or homebrew tools.
I’m trying to set up my first adventure with some friends. I already own the physical Lost Mine of Phandelver starter kit, then found out I had to purchase the digital copy again. So I did because that’s all I’ve invested so far.
I happened to discover the subscription page, which says unless I have a higher paid tier I can’t share the content. So I’ve subscribed to the Master Tier.
I set up a new campaign and called it Lost Mine of Phandelver, and enabled shared content, but there’s just a link to a blank campaign and space for notes. I don’t see any digital table top, or a way of assigning LMoP content to the campaign. I set up a test character and assigned it to the campaign, but it’s just a blank page of private and public notes.
So now what?
I downloaded the app, logged in, and can see my account and LMoP content, but no character sheets, no campaign, no table top, and no examples of any games in play.
What is D&D Beyond? Just an expensive PDF shop? Where’s the digital table top, the interactive DM tools, the campaign elements, the dice for God’s sake? Do people walk around with dice in their pockets? What did I just pay full retail dollars for?
Can you just answer the question?
I had some faith in the brand and the ratings. Is that ok with you? But there’s currently nothing visually mechanical or functional, aside from the character builder...
It’s been a great start so far. No actual gameplay and one smart arse.
D&D Beyond has the books and character sheets needed to play the game.
Technically you don't need a tabletop, virtual or otherwise, but most people (myself included) prefer one. DDB does not provide one (yet, it is planned, but dont hold your breath). You can either play at a physical table with your friends, or you can use a secondary virtual tabletop.
The DM tool are also a little lacking, basically only letting you edit your players' characters, and make public and private notes for the campaign.
The main draw of the site is the digital character sheets with easy to learn character builder, the one stop shop for rule books, and the homebrew tools which work on the aforementioned character sheets.
The forums are also (mostly) filled with helpful people (only a few ********, I swear. Better than most corners of the internet even).
The CURRENT main functionalities of DDB are:
What DDB is not and has was never claimed to be:
What DDB has planned in their roadmap (main features, the extensive list can be found elsewhere):
Born in Italy, moved a bunch, living in Spain, my heart always belonged to Roleplaying Games
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InsiderHi RonnyG, welcome to D&D Beyond!
Both LeK and DxJxC have given a good introduction to what our site offers. Now that you have a subscription and some content, your friends can sign up for free and join your campaign with new characters and you can help keep track of what they have and are doing. I find it especially useful to check their passive scores and keep an eye on magic items. Also our Encounter Builder is in Alpha, and that can help you plan out some of the battles that might come up in your game!
From there it's time to play! Lost Mine of Phandelver is an excellent adventure, especially for new players, so I think you'll have a lot of fun. Let us know if you have any other questions, and have a great game!
Find me on Twitter: @OboeLauren
I've been here for awhile and I think Dnd Beyond does a poor job of touring the product but the core part that I like are the books and tool tips. The search could be improved, but at the same time it doesn't need to be. With more use, Dnd Beyond can only get better. The app doesn't do much but make the books available offline (android at least),. The web site is highly responsive in a mobile web browser and content sharing is pretty awesome, especially for new players.
Its a great way to keep track of character sheets too. There's a lot to want from the character sheets and it will take time for it to improve, but the biggest benefit for me is that I can now scale my players' levels up and down if I wanted to without the mundane task of filling out a new character sheet.
(Bolded the part I don't like the most)
Thanks everyone for providing an insight to what DDB is.
So as I understand it, DDB is something you take to a D&D game, not for sharing a D&D game online? Unless people are willing to use a third-party messaging service if they aren't playing in person... which is what I was aiming to achieve without having two completely different programs open.
I had subscribed to DDB because the digital adventures and character sheets, campaign, and content sharing gave me the idea DDB was an online platform for playing D&D. There's no real narrative structure to the service though. I've had to come through here.
Also FYI, the physical Dungeon Masters and Players Handbooks are $AUD58 each in Australia, when not on sale. DDB is $AUD67 for a digital copy tied to a website and app. And DDB character builder is free, so I'm not seeing why I would buy all the books a second time, at a higher cost, when they don't appear to plug into a campaign or have DM tools for releasing narrative, NPCs, and map details during an adventure, after an additional subscription as well. Unless I'm misunderstanding what D&D gameplay is currently interactive through DDB, aside from viewing free character sheets...
Sorry you got the wrong impression of the service. As far price goes, there are frequent 25% off coupons and bundles.
If you are not satisfied with your purchases, you can contact support (bottom of page) and they may be able to refund you (I make no guarantees there).
Regardless, you can still post any questions you have on the forums, and use the other free features. DDB will get a VTT someday (probably), and you can buy in then.
Oh, it's not your fault. It was inconceivable to me the paid content of DDB would be of no use to my D&D games, except for the character sheets, which are free anyway.
I really hate throwing money away. Having Curse Inc. in my bank statement is apt.
The function of DDB is as follows:
It's unfortunate you subscribed before being fully aware of what the service was, I was under the impression the information was readily available, but I've been subbed for a long time so it may be that I'm just misremembering.
You can use DDB with other free VTTs such as roll20 (which is what I do), especially with the help of tools such as Beyond 20, a chrome plugin that connects the two quite nicely.
Find my D&D Beyond articles here
Thanks for the time you've taken to go further into detail. Obviously DDB suits you and your methods.
The only reason I signed up is because the subscription sounds like purchasing the adventures a second time gives me some digital advantage, some interactive features the physical copies didn't have, making the whole difficulty of arranging first time players online, and smoothing the meta game into adventure progress and milestones. But there's actually no real ground level DM tools for telling the story of an adventure.
My guys have agreed to meeting up in person with pencils and paper, though one of them is overseas and won't be able to join us, still not having a free or paid service to host a complete game in one place. 2019. Go figure. I'd pay money for a complete service, but I'm not going to pay for duplicate content and half an experience.
Well they're searchable, crosslinked, sharable with your group and automatically errata'd without you needing to buy a new copy. Plus the fact they plug in to the character builder automatically so character creation and management is a breeze.
But no, DDB isn't yet a VTT and may never be. It's a rules toolset, not a game platform.
You're unlikely to get a complete service anywhere; roll20 and fantasy grounds may offer some (but not all) compendium content and a VTT, but they don't offer offline compendium access or homebrew tools.
Find my D&D Beyond articles here