One of my players does the streaming, that way the players can't see a "hidden" token or part of the map, the other thing we have is one player who grabs a screen shot every round so those playing over mobile can then see an update of the map on their turn. That is also handy for me when I am typing up the combat in the Journal, I get a round by round snapshot of where people were I can add into the journal to help tell the story of the fight. I do like using Discord, I make notes direct into our Ingame dice rolling channel (where DnD beyond is linked) so I can note what every dice roll was for, again it helps with typing up the journal.
What would be nice if they could work out a deal to partner with Roll20 so people didn’t have to buy modules twice. I tried importing maps on roll20 but could not get some grid alignments to work right even with the alignment tool found out they had the module pack for the module I was running Gand bought it there too. Just feels like I’m having to double pay for content :(. I know they are two different companies. Just seems like DnDbeyond, Roll20, and WoTC could all work out a deal to work with each other.
What would be nice if they could work out a deal to partner with Roll20 so people didn’t have to buy modules twice. I tried importing maps on roll20 but could not get some grid alignments to work right even with the alignment tool found out they had the module pack for the module I was running Gand bought it there too. Just feels like I’m having to double pay for content :(. I know they are two different companies. Just seems like DnDbeyond, Roll20, and WoTC could all work out a deal to work with each other.
Roll 20 doesn't just cover DnD, so it's unlikely to go that route.
I've started using abovevtt, it's fantastic for a free product and integrates with dndbeyond.
Why should 3 distinct companies lose out on cash when they all put in effort for different things. DnD beyond and Roll 20 do the heavy lifting to incorporate the Written modules into the digital format.
I'm not buy anything until there's a VTT. Then I'm a whale. (marketing speak for a customer who is a big spender).
It's unclear whether DDB has a serious plan to develop an in house VTT or not. Keep in mind, as has been discussed in this thread, that the DDB was developed to assist non Virtual Table Tops. Now Covid changed the VTT marketspace, and some regular tabletop groups are increasingly incorporating VTT enhancements to their tabletop game, but these weren't directions DDB was initally planning to get in, and they sorta entered the marathon with a lot of competitiors already at the halfway point and its unclear whether DDB has the resources to realistically catch up without sacrificing quality to all other features of the toolset.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Jander Sunstar is the thinking person's Drizzt, fight me.
I know some folks on this forum really like Talespire, or at least misread the FAQ at Talespire and thought there were secret talks between DDB and Talespire (doesnt' seem that was ever the case) you should be able to find some threads here evangelizing it if you want to spark them up again.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Jander Sunstar is the thinking person's Drizzt, fight me.
Hasbro bought WotC to further drive the 2 strong IPs and make huge piles of cash: MTG & D&D
WotC already tried and failed to create a digital environment for their games - the failure of project GLEEMAX is deeply engraved in their company DNA
WotC have partners for the digital distribution of their material, from which only D&D Beyond is a one trick pony fully concentrating solely on D&D - Roll20 for example also distibutes other game systems and provides VTT solution for them
IF Hasbro/WotC would try to create their own new digital platform, which was rumored when they created the trademark "Atomic Arcade" in late 2021, they would therefore totally canibalize the business model of a long lasting partner - D&D Beyond. You don't want to be known as a business that the partners can't rely on...
D&D Beyond on the other hand doesn't seem to have the funds to hire enough developers to create not only a working website, but also a proper VTT environment (which is weird when you look at what the AboveVTT community achieved in the last year with about a dozen of contributors coding in their spare time!)
last but not least: D&D Beyond doesn't really 'fit' in the FANDOM business - my guess is that FANDOM would love to see Hasbro contact them and ask for D&D Beyond to join Hasbro/WotC - in exchange for $$$
What i want to say is: D&D Beyond as part of WotC would be a perfect start for a revamp of their digital tools and D&D Beyond would be able to get the funding to actually hire the devs needed to make that not only work, but with Hasbro behind them it would also have enough marketing power to make it a success. And no other partner would be cannibalized by this move - if you're a Roll20 or FantasyGrounds user you can still buy there and use their service and these providers would still have other systems to sell and provide.
If Hasbro/WotC would just create their own digital solution without buying D&D Beyond, it would outright kill the D&D Beyond business model. And piss off a LOT of customers. So for Hasbro/WotC to not just launch a good digital platform but to also have lots of users on it they should just open their pockets and buy D&D Beyond off of FANDOM. WIN-WIN scenario for everyone involved, even us users.
And if someone from Hasbro/WotC/D&D Beyond is reading this: just hire the main dev(s) from AboveVTT and you'd have a f*cking awesome VTT in no time!
Has anyone tried TaleSpire? That one looks really good, but I was hoping someone who uses DDB could offer their opinion before I took the plunge.
I personally really like talespire. Our group goes between that and Foundry depending on what we feel like using/need. There is a good library of pre built maps/pieces you can import into your own maps for talespire now on https://talestavern.com and https://talesbazaar.com
If you're a fan of creative modes I find talespire just fun to build stuff in outside of maps made for a specific purpose.
It doesn't have a lot of dndbeyond integration but "beyond the spire" is roughly the equivalent of beyond20 for rolling dice. If you have any specific questions about it feel free to send me a PM.
Once the hero forge integration is complete it will open up a lot more "mini" options. There's a good chunk of mini's already and the dev(s) are pretty good about posting to their blog about their progress and update regularly.
MY main concern with Talespire is that it transforms D&D to a video game - it's less of a virtual table but a game representation of the campaign. It caters to a completely different audience than regular VTTs like Foundry/Roll20/AboveVTT/Fantasyground. If you're old and grumpy (like me) and declare that 'using a big piece of paper was enough to play D&D back when i was young' (which was more or less true) then you're probably rejecting the style of Talespire because it leaves few to imagine yourself.
If you're younger with a strong gamer background Talespire might actually be the lever to get you into RPGs in the first place... which is also a win for the hobby!
MY main concern with Talespire is that it transforms D&D to a video game - it's less of a virtual table but a game representation of the campaign. It caters to a completely different audience than regular VTTs like Foundry/Roll20/AboveVTT/Fantasyground. If you're old and grumpy (like me) and declare that 'using a big piece of paper was enough to play D&D back when i was young' (which was more or less true) then you're probably rejecting the style of Talespire because it leaves few to imagine yourself.
If you're younger with a strong gamer background Talespire might actually be the lever to get you into RPGs in the first place... which is also a win for the hobby!
chacun a son gout ;)
This is very true if you're playing through a full world/map that's got lots of detail.
If I'm just using it for battles maps it feels more like pulling out a digital prebuilt dwarven forge map to me. Preferences/how you use it are definitely going to determine if it's a tool worth it to anyone considering it.
MY main concern with Talespire is that it transforms D&D to a video game - it's less of a virtual table but a game representation of the campaign. It caters to a completely different audience than regular VTTs like Foundry/Roll20/AboveVTT/Fantasyground. If you're old and grumpy (like me) and declare that 'using a big piece of paper was enough to play D&D back when i was young' (which was more or less true) then you're probably rejecting the style of Talespire because it leaves few to imagine yourself.
If you're younger with a strong gamer background Talespire might actually be the lever to get you into RPGs in the first place... which is also a win for the hobby!
chacun a son gout ;)
This is very true if you're playing through a full world/map that's got lots of detail.
If I'm just using it for battles maps it feels more like pulling out a digital prebuilt dwarven forge map to me. Preferences/how you use it are definitely going to determine if it's a tool worth it to anyone considering it.
It also depends on how automated you want your VTT to be, personally as a player and a DM even in a remote game I prefer rolling real dice and working out the maths all myself. I know some people who just want to click a button on an enemy and be told if it hit or not and how much damage it did. I wouldn't be surprised if we get to a point where a VTT can auto stealth, perceive, investigate and do saving throws for everything turning the experiance more and more into a videogame.
Hasbro bought WotC to further drive the 2 strong IPs and make huge piles of cash: MTG & D&D
WotC already tried and failed to create a digital environment for their games - the failure of project GLEEMAX is deeply engraved in their company DNA
WotC have partners for the digital distribution of their material, from which only D&D Beyond is a one trick pony fully concentrating solely on D&D - Roll20 for example also distibutes other game systems and provides VTT solution for them
IF Hasbro/WotC would try to create their own new digital platform, which was rumored when they created the trademark "Atomic Arcade" in late 2021, they would therefore totally canibalize the business model of a long lasting partner - D&D Beyond. You don't want to be known as a business that the partners can't rely on...
D&D Beyond on the other hand doesn't seem to have the funds to hire enough developers to create not only a working website, but also a proper VTT environment (which is weird when you look at what the AboveVTT community achieved in the last year with about a dozen of contributors coding in their spare time!)
last but not least: D&D Beyond doesn't really 'fit' in the FANDOM business - my guess is that FANDOM would love to see Hasbro contact them and ask for D&D Beyond to join Hasbro/WotC - in exchange for $$$
What i want to say is: D&D Beyond as part of WotC would be a perfect start for a revamp of their digital tools and D&D Beyond would be able to get the funding to actually hire the devs needed to make that not only work, but with Hasbro behind them it would also have enough marketing power to make it a success. And no other partner would be cannibalized by this move - if you're a Roll20 or FantasyGrounds user you can still buy there and use their service and these providers would still have other systems to sell and provide.
If Hasbro/WotC would just create their own digital solution without buying D&D Beyond, it would outright kill the D&D Beyond business model. And piss off a LOT of customers. So for Hasbro/WotC to not just launch a good digital platform but to also have lots of users on it they should just open their pockets and buy D&D Beyond off of FANDOM. WIN-WIN scenario for everyone involved, even us users.
And if someone from Hasbro/WotC/D&D Beyond is reading this: just hire the main dev(s) from AboveVTT and you'd have a f*cking awesome VTT in no time!
Hasbro bought WotC to further drive the 2 strong IPs and make huge piles of cash: MTG & D&D
WotC already tried and failed to create a digital environment for their games - the failure of project GLEEMAX is deeply engraved in their company DNA
WotC have partners for the digital distribution of their material, from which only D&D Beyond is a one trick pony fully concentrating solely on D&D - Roll20 for example also distibutes other game systems and provides VTT solution for them
IF Hasbro/WotC would try to create their own new digital platform, which was rumored when they created the trademark "Atomic Arcade" in late 2021, they would therefore totally canibalize the business model of a long lasting partner - D&D Beyond. You don't want to be known as a business that the partners can't rely on...
D&D Beyond on the other hand doesn't seem to have the funds to hire enough developers to create not only a working website, but also a proper VTT environment (which is weird when you look at what the AboveVTT community achieved in the last year with about a dozen of contributors coding in their spare time!)
last but not least: D&D Beyond doesn't really 'fit' in the FANDOM business - my guess is that FANDOM would love to see Hasbro contact them and ask for D&D Beyond to join Hasbro/WotC - in exchange for $$$
What i want to say is: D&D Beyond as part of WotC would be a perfect start for a revamp of their digital tools and D&D Beyond would be able to get the funding to actually hire the devs needed to make that not only work, but with Hasbro behind them it would also have enough marketing power to make it a success. And no other partner would be cannibalized by this move - if you're a Roll20 or FantasyGrounds user you can still buy there and use their service and these providers would still have other systems to sell and provide.
If Hasbro/WotC would just create their own digital solution without buying D&D Beyond, it would outright kill the D&D Beyond business model. And piss off a LOT of customers. So for Hasbro/WotC to not just launch a good digital platform but to also have lots of users on it they should just open their pockets and buy D&D Beyond off of FANDOM. WIN-WIN scenario for everyone involved, even us users.
And if someone from Hasbro/WotC/D&D Beyond is reading this: just hire the main dev(s) from AboveVTT and you'd have a f*cking awesome VTT in no time!
/discuss
This...
And I second this. Good analysis and the suggestion to WotC at the end is spot on. AboveVTT and it's dev team heroes are filled to the brim with awesome!
An alternative DnD Beyond buy Above VTT and hire the devs, however, as this is a passion project we have no idea how much those devs actually make (they are obv very good lol).
DnD beyond has a ton of cash behind it through being owned by Fandom Inc which is itself owned by TPG/Jon Miller. TPG are worth about 79 billion so I don't see DnD beyond being sold anytime soon unless it is for a hefty chunk of cash.
DnD beyond has a ton of cash behind it through being owned by Fandom Inc which is itself owned by TPG/Jon Miller. TPG are worth about 79 billion so I don't see DnD beyond being sold anytime soon unless it is for a hefty chunk of cash.
As always, it is not a good idea to assume the financial situation of any entity without cold, hard evidence. For all we know, Beyond could be anywhere from being broke as hell with all profits being sucked up by Fandom, to sitting on a big fat budget allocated by Fandom.
While Fandom might own Beyond and Fandom probably does have the capital to do what we want Beyond to do, Beyond seems like it is still its own operation for the most part, but it does not control its own finances like an independent company would. It is up to Fandom to decide how Beyond's finances and resources are distributed and handled. Just because Bill Gates is made of money does not mean his daughters are made of money, and if Bill Gates does not want to give his daughters money, then that is well within Bill Gates' right.
Beyond can scream all they want about having more development teams to work on more projects simultaneously, and we can join in on the screaming too, but if Fandom thinks the current amount of resources dedicated to Beyond is enough, then there is no amount of screaming any of us could do to change that.
TPG Capital does not give a **** about you and me. It is like asking Bill Gates to care about his daughter's friend's ex-boyfriend's cousin's gold fish.
AboveVTT has great features (a seamless Beyond integration) but Im really concerned about its quality assurance... it's a small team effort release being at alpha for some while
AboveVTT has great features (a seamless Beyond integration) but Im really concerned about its quality assurance... it's a small team effort release being at alpha for some while
join their patreon, help support it and that will mitigate that risk. There are a few developers now supporting it and generating updates, the quality seems to be improving IMHO.
AboveVTT has great features (a seamless Beyond integration) but Im really concerned about its quality assurance... it's a small team effort release being at alpha for some while
I have not yet had any issues, I am a QA by trade so I tend to play with things in a way to try and break them if they are new and I can say so far have come across very few bugs.
In many ways a small team makes QA far easier, you have alot less overlap when it comes to working on the code base, and you develop features at a slower rate meaning you give the person doing testing more time. Where I work we assign 1 QA for every 5/6 devs. Also being in "alpha" is not a bad thing wither. in Agile terminology Alpha is MVP, or minimum viable product, I would say that MVP has been delivered and is in progress and working. We have a map system that works, integration with DnD beyond and from what I can see no critical or major bugs that prevent users from using the system. The developers depend on us the customers raising issues we find, that is a perfectly valid approach now days the product my own company make is far too customisable and can be integrated with many other systems we are not involved with so we in part use intergration testing by our customers to identify and iron out any issues, they test for us as part of there implementation.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
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One of my players does the streaming, that way the players can't see a "hidden" token or part of the map, the other thing we have is one player who grabs a screen shot every round so those playing over mobile can then see an update of the map on their turn. That is also handy for me when I am typing up the combat in the Journal, I get a round by round snapshot of where people were I can add into the journal to help tell the story of the fight. I do like using Discord, I make notes direct into our Ingame dice rolling channel (where DnD beyond is linked) so I can note what every dice roll was for, again it helps with typing up the journal.
What would be nice if they could work out a deal to partner with Roll20 so people didn’t have to buy modules twice. I tried importing maps on roll20 but could not get some grid alignments to work right even with the alignment tool found out they had the module pack for the module I was running Gand bought it there too. Just feels like I’m having to double pay for content :(. I know they are two different companies. Just seems like DnDbeyond, Roll20, and WoTC could all work out a deal to work with each other.
Roll 20 doesn't just cover DnD, so it's unlikely to go that route.
I've started using abovevtt, it's fantastic for a free product and integrates with dndbeyond.
Why should 3 distinct companies lose out on cash when they all put in effort for different things. DnD beyond and Roll 20 do the heavy lifting to incorporate the Written modules into the digital format.
The first post sums it up: Take my money!
I'm not buy anything until there's a VTT. Then I'm a whale. (marketing speak for a customer who is a big spender).
Read Medieval Poetry: here
Listen to Medieval Song: here
Use above vtt.
It's unclear whether DDB has a serious plan to develop an in house VTT or not. Keep in mind, as has been discussed in this thread, that the DDB was developed to assist non Virtual Table Tops. Now Covid changed the VTT marketspace, and some regular tabletop groups are increasingly incorporating VTT enhancements to their tabletop game, but these weren't directions DDB was initally planning to get in, and they sorta entered the marathon with a lot of competitiors already at the halfway point and its unclear whether DDB has the resources to realistically catch up without sacrificing quality to all other features of the toolset.
Jander Sunstar is the thinking person's Drizzt, fight me.
I know some folks on this forum really like Talespire, or at least misread the FAQ at Talespire and thought there were secret talks between DDB and Talespire (doesnt' seem that was ever the case) you should be able to find some threads here evangelizing it if you want to spark them up again.
Jander Sunstar is the thinking person's Drizzt, fight me.
adding my 2 cents to this:
What i want to say is: D&D Beyond as part of WotC would be a perfect start for a revamp of their digital tools and D&D Beyond would be able to get the funding to actually hire the devs needed to make that not only work, but with Hasbro behind them it would also have enough marketing power to make it a success. And no other partner would be cannibalized by this move - if you're a Roll20 or FantasyGrounds user you can still buy there and use their service and these providers would still have other systems to sell and provide.
If Hasbro/WotC would just create their own digital solution without buying D&D Beyond, it would outright kill the D&D Beyond business model. And piss off a LOT of customers. So for Hasbro/WotC to not just launch a good digital platform but to also have lots of users on it they should just open their pockets and buy D&D Beyond off of FANDOM. WIN-WIN scenario for everyone involved, even us users.
And if someone from Hasbro/WotC/D&D Beyond is reading this: just hire the main dev(s) from AboveVTT and you'd have a f*cking awesome VTT in no time!
/discuss
I personally really like talespire. Our group goes between that and Foundry depending on what we feel like using/need. There is a good library of pre built maps/pieces you can import into your own maps for talespire now on https://talestavern.com and https://talesbazaar.com
If you're a fan of creative modes I find talespire just fun to build stuff in outside of maps made for a specific purpose.
It doesn't have a lot of dndbeyond integration but "beyond the spire" is roughly the equivalent of beyond20 for rolling dice. If you have any specific questions about it feel free to send me a PM.
Once the hero forge integration is complete it will open up a lot more "mini" options. There's a good chunk of mini's already and the dev(s) are pretty good about posting to their blog about their progress and update regularly.
MY main concern with Talespire is that it transforms D&D to a video game - it's less of a virtual table but a game representation of the campaign. It caters to a completely different audience than regular VTTs like Foundry/Roll20/AboveVTT/Fantasyground. If you're old and grumpy (like me) and declare that 'using a big piece of paper was enough to play D&D back when i was young' (which was more or less true) then you're probably rejecting the style of Talespire because it leaves few to imagine yourself.
If you're younger with a strong gamer background Talespire might actually be the lever to get you into RPGs in the first place... which is also a win for the hobby!
chacun a son gout ;)
This is very true if you're playing through a full world/map that's got lots of detail.
If I'm just using it for battles maps it feels more like pulling out a digital prebuilt dwarven forge map to me. Preferences/how you use it are definitely going to determine if it's a tool worth it to anyone considering it.
It also depends on how automated you want your VTT to be, personally as a player and a DM even in a remote game I prefer rolling real dice and working out the maths all myself. I know some people who just want to click a button on an enemy and be told if it hit or not and how much damage it did. I wouldn't be surprised if we get to a point where a VTT can auto stealth, perceive, investigate and do saving throws for everything turning the experiance more and more into a videogame.
This...
And I second this. Good analysis and the suggestion to WotC at the end is spot on. AboveVTT and it's dev team heroes are filled to the brim with awesome!
An alternative DnD Beyond buy Above VTT and hire the devs, however, as this is a passion project we have no idea how much those devs actually make (they are obv very good lol).
DnD beyond has a ton of cash behind it through being owned by Fandom Inc which is itself owned by TPG/Jon Miller. TPG are worth about 79 billion so I don't see DnD beyond being sold anytime soon unless it is for a hefty chunk of cash.
As always, it is not a good idea to assume the financial situation of any entity without cold, hard evidence. For all we know, Beyond could be anywhere from being broke as hell with all profits being sucked up by Fandom, to sitting on a big fat budget allocated by Fandom.
While Fandom might own Beyond and Fandom probably does have the capital to do what we want Beyond to do, Beyond seems like it is still its own operation for the most part, but it does not control its own finances like an independent company would. It is up to Fandom to decide how Beyond's finances and resources are distributed and handled. Just because Bill Gates is made of money does not mean his daughters are made of money, and if Bill Gates does not want to give his daughters money, then that is well within Bill Gates' right.
Beyond can scream all they want about having more development teams to work on more projects simultaneously, and we can join in on the screaming too, but if Fandom thinks the current amount of resources dedicated to Beyond is enough, then there is no amount of screaming any of us could do to change that.
TPG Capital does not give a **** about you and me. It is like asking Bill Gates to care about his daughter's friend's ex-boyfriend's cousin's gold fish.
Check Licenses and Resync Entitlements: < https://www.dndbeyond.com/account/licenses >
Running the Game by Matt Colville; Introduction: < https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e-YZvLUXcR8 >
D&D with High School Students by Bill Allen; Season 1 Episode 1: < https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=52NJTUDokyk&t >
AboveVTT has great features (a seamless Beyond integration) but Im really concerned about its quality assurance... it's a small team effort release being at alpha for some while
join their patreon, help support it and that will mitigate that risk. There are a few developers now supporting it and generating updates, the quality seems to be improving IMHO.
I have not yet had any issues, I am a QA by trade so I tend to play with things in a way to try and break them if they are new and I can say so far have come across very few bugs.
In many ways a small team makes QA far easier, you have alot less overlap when it comes to working on the code base, and you develop features at a slower rate meaning you give the person doing testing more time. Where I work we assign 1 QA for every 5/6 devs. Also being in "alpha" is not a bad thing wither. in Agile terminology Alpha is MVP, or minimum viable product, I would say that MVP has been delivered and is in progress and working. We have a map system that works, integration with DnD beyond and from what I can see no critical or major bugs that prevent users from using the system. The developers depend on us the customers raising issues we find, that is a perfectly valid approach now days the product my own company make is far too customisable and can be integrated with many other systems we are not involved with so we in part use intergration testing by our customers to identify and iron out any issues, they test for us as part of there implementation.