I am a long-time DM (dating back to the 70s and Chain Mail) that has played theater of the mind exclusively. I was not playing D and D when 4E was around so really never used miniatures or grids either. When I started online DMing just a few months ago, I tried out both Roll20 and Fantasy Ground and found them both to be far more trouble than they are worth. They simply added tons to my DM work load and had very poor UIs that were cumbersome at best. As a result, I settled on D and D Beyond for character sheet and content management and used Discord for the rest. Basically, theater of the mind brought into this decade.
D and D Beyond is not without it's flaws and missing features. Even in a theater of the mind, I did use a grid occasionally to better illustrate a situation. The encounter builder and combat tracker are both far from mature and lack key features that would save me time and energy. Therefore, I was pleased to discover Foundry VTT, a new and quite exciting virtual tabletop you can find at https://foundryvtt.com/.
The tool itself is not as feature rich as it's competitors yet, but the UI is clean and the features that are there are easy to discover and use. There is also rich integration with D and D Beyond character sheets that works well. Of course, the folks at D and D Beyond have not prioritized a public API to facilitate integration so it may be fragile and subject to breakage.
I am also a big fan of the Chrome plugin that does some screen scraping tricks to offer even more integration including ways to use monsters and adventures from D and D Beyond. For example, I was able to use the plugin to import all the maps from one of the chapters in Dragon Heist with a single click. It automatically sizes the image to match the VTT grid and keys locations to the content from the adventure, allowing me a single-click to popup every area description. The only thing it does not do yet is allow for a single click to create encounters though the plugin does allow you to easily roll attacks and other things from the monster details page on D and D Beyond. My guess is that feature will come along soon.
In many ways, Foundry VTT appears to be positioning itself as a great complement to D and D Beyond. Unlike Roll20 and Fantasy Grounds, you cannot currently license books there. Instead, the developer seems to be focusing on integrating with D and D Beyond for licensed content and character creation and building the virtual tabletop that D and D Beyond lacks. Of course, Foundry also supports other rule sets, and, as best as I can tell on this short look, is following a similar strategy with them.
VTT Foundry is currently priced at $50 and the full integration with D and D Beyond using the Chrome plugin requires you to become a Paetron supporter at the $5 per month level. I fully intend to start using it in at least one of my campaigns in the near future and will write a comprehensive review based on my experience. Until then, I definitely would recommend keeping an eye on this product. I also would not be surprised if the folks at Fandom are doing the same.
I like Foundry too, but let's not mislead people. The integration between Foundry and DDB is not officially supported by either entity. It is a mod written by a (very good) 3rd party developer and that developer has no control over anything either Foundry or DDB do. Which means that (as you pointed out) the integration is fragile and subject to becoming obsolete.
This is not to say that one shouldn't use Foundry...but one should not depend on the seamless integration, because there is no guarantee that will continue.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
WOTC lies. We know that WOTC lies. WOTC knows that we know that WOTC lies. We know that WOTC knows that we know that WOTC lies. And still they lie.
Because of the above (a paraphrase from Orwell) I no longer post to the forums -- PM me if you need help or anything.
If DDB ever made or bought out a VTT to integrate, you can bet the Foundry integration modules will get a cease and desist even before the DDB option is functional.
If DDB ever made or bought out a VTT to integrate, you can bet the Foundry integration modules will get a cease and desist even before the DDB option is functional.
That or they'll just insert a line of code or two that breaks the integration.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
WOTC lies. We know that WOTC lies. WOTC knows that we know that WOTC lies. We know that WOTC knows that we know that WOTC lies. And still they lie.
Because of the above (a paraphrase from Orwell) I no longer post to the forums -- PM me if you need help or anything.
with the development speed on DDB and their focus on other features a DDB VTT is years down the line I would imagine.
Just look at the time that went into the new backend of the site and the many features still in alpha or beta and a lot of features like campaign management that or rudimentary at best.
I am a big fan of DDB and own the legendary bundle but this will take a lot of time. Maybe they will acquire one of the newer VTTs and build from there?
I also bought Foundry VTT and really love it. Compared to other solutions I have tried in the past it is way more powerful and at the same time quite easy to get into.
Just look at the time that went into the new backend of the site and the many features still in alpha or beta and a lot of features like campaign management that or rudimentary at best.
And yet I bet when the time comes to "break" the integration with 3rd party VTTs, they will somehow find a way to do THAT super fast...
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
WOTC lies. We know that WOTC lies. WOTC knows that we know that WOTC lies. We know that WOTC knows that we know that WOTC lies. And still they lie.
Because of the above (a paraphrase from Orwell) I no longer post to the forums -- PM me if you need help or anything.
My group is switching to the forge VTT, which I /think/ is the same thing. I'm a bit confused. However, what I have seen so far is much much better than roll20.
Any time an unfathomably powerful entity sweeps in and offers godlike rewards in return for just a few teensy favors, it’s a scam. Unless it’s me. I’d never lie to you, reader dearest.
I've looked at the Foundry, but don't understand the hosting. How does setting up an online (not just local) game work? Do I have to know how to set up and pay for a server myself?
I've looked at the Foundry, but don't understand the hosting. How does setting up an online (not just local) game work? Do I have to know how to set up and pay for a server myself?
You either host it yourself on your computer (you need public ip address to do that) or host it on a server.
It's simple to host as all you need to do is launch the software.
I've looked at the Foundry, but don't understand the hosting. How does setting up an online (not just local) game work? Do I have to know how to set up and pay for a server myself?
You either host it yourself on your computer (you need public ip address to do that) or host it on a server.
It's simple to host as all you need to do is launch the software.
There's also services like forge and molten hosting where you pay for them to do the hosting... the main difference to Roll20 etc. is you don't have to pay if you can host it yourself.
Self-hosting has not been an issue for me. If you have a low-end PC it might. Heck even my high end PC, when the liquid cooler started to go, used to grumble at me with Foundry hosting.
The other thing you have to be able to do is open up ports on your router to let people in... and make sure to only open them during sessions and then close them immediately after.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
WOTC lies. We know that WOTC lies. WOTC knows that we know that WOTC lies. We know that WOTC knows that we know that WOTC lies. And still they lie.
Because of the above (a paraphrase from Orwell) I no longer post to the forums -- PM me if you need help or anything.
Self-hosting has not been an issue for me. If you have a low-end PC it might. Heck even my high end PC, when the liquid cooler started to go, used to grumble at me with Foundry hosting.
The other thing you have to be able to do is open up ports on your router to let people in... and make sure to only open them during sessions and then close them immediately after.
This is an issue. Both my DM and I /could/ spin up VMs specifically to host games, but I really dislike opening my firewall to let people in.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Any time an unfathomably powerful entity sweeps in and offers godlike rewards in return for just a few teensy favors, it’s a scam. Unless it’s me. I’d never lie to you, reader dearest.
The issue with Hosting is why I don't use Foundry. I think they would be well served to offer people an option to use it as a hosted service for a monthly fee. I know there's options like Forge that handle the hosting for you, but then you have to pay the 50$ for Foundry + the monthly fee. Which I think is too much.
You open it on one port, for the # of hours for the session, and then close it down.
The chances someone is going to hit you on THAT port for THOSE few hours are practically 0.
I'm a sys admin, I'm aware of how it works. I said I dislike doing it. If I wanted to be lazy, I could set up a DMZ for it, but...that's too much like work.
Any time an unfathomably powerful entity sweeps in and offers godlike rewards in return for just a few teensy favors, it’s a scam. Unless it’s me. I’d never lie to you, reader dearest.
The issue with Hosting is why I don't use Foundry. I think they would be well served to offer people an option to use it as a hosted service for a monthly fee. I know there's options like Forge that handle the hosting for you, but then you have to pay the 50$ for Foundry + the monthly fee. Which I think is too much.
The 50€ is for the software and future updates. To be clear: we're talking about hundreds of hours of work from Atropos here, so I don't think 50€ one-time fee is too much.
The issue with Hosting is why I don't use Foundry. I think they would be well served to offer people an option to use it as a hosted service for a monthly fee. I know there's options like Forge that handle the hosting for you, but then you have to pay the 50$ for Foundry + the monthly fee. Which I think is too much.
The 50€ is for the software and future updates. To be clear: we're talking about hundreds of hours of work from Atropos here, so I don't think 50€ one-time fee is too much.
Or you decide that you'd like someone else to do the work for you and use a service like forge, which is still cheaper than Roll20 Pro.
Servers cost money, developing software costs time and by extension money. Get over it, not everything can be available for a coffee 2 go per month.
Unless you reach an audience of several thousand people you can't offer such cheap prices and maintain the required infrastructure.
This exactly. 50 dollars is the same as most good video games. Hosting takes time and effort I'd simply rather throw money at. IMO, it's a good value, and if you /don't/ want to pay the monthly fee you can always host it yourself.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Any time an unfathomably powerful entity sweeps in and offers godlike rewards in return for just a few teensy favors, it’s a scam. Unless it’s me. I’d never lie to you, reader dearest.
Hosting concerns for FVTT? Solved: https://www.foundryserver.com/signup.php The fella (Brad) who created and runs this top-notch service is quick to assist his clients and is very professional and friend. His rates are very reasonable. Foundry VTT is a huge step forward in the VTT market, and now with solid server services to access such as Brad's you are all set. Throw in the functionality of integrating DDB and you are crazy not to give it a go.
I am a long-time DM (dating back to the 70s and Chain Mail) that has played theater of the mind exclusively. I was not playing D and D when 4E was around so really never used miniatures or grids either. When I started online DMing just a few months ago, I tried out both Roll20 and Fantasy Ground and found them both to be far more trouble than they are worth. They simply added tons to my DM work load and had very poor UIs that were cumbersome at best. As a result, I settled on D and D Beyond for character sheet and content management and used Discord for the rest. Basically, theater of the mind brought into this decade.
D and D Beyond is not without it's flaws and missing features. Even in a theater of the mind, I did use a grid occasionally to better illustrate a situation. The encounter builder and combat tracker are both far from mature and lack key features that would save me time and energy. Therefore, I was pleased to discover Foundry VTT, a new and quite exciting virtual tabletop you can find at https://foundryvtt.com/.
The tool itself is not as feature rich as it's competitors yet, but the UI is clean and the features that are there are easy to discover and use. There is also rich integration with D and D Beyond character sheets that works well. Of course, the folks at D and D Beyond have not prioritized a public API to facilitate integration so it may be fragile and subject to breakage.
I am also a big fan of the Chrome plugin that does some screen scraping tricks to offer even more integration including ways to use monsters and adventures from D and D Beyond. For example, I was able to use the plugin to import all the maps from one of the chapters in Dragon Heist with a single click. It automatically sizes the image to match the VTT grid and keys locations to the content from the adventure, allowing me a single-click to popup every area description. The only thing it does not do yet is allow for a single click to create encounters though the plugin does allow you to easily roll attacks and other things from the monster details page on D and D Beyond. My guess is that feature will come along soon.
In many ways, Foundry VTT appears to be positioning itself as a great complement to D and D Beyond. Unlike Roll20 and Fantasy Grounds, you cannot currently license books there. Instead, the developer seems to be focusing on integrating with D and D Beyond for licensed content and character creation and building the virtual tabletop that D and D Beyond lacks. Of course, Foundry also supports other rule sets, and, as best as I can tell on this short look, is following a similar strategy with them.
VTT Foundry is currently priced at $50 and the full integration with D and D Beyond using the Chrome plugin requires you to become a Paetron supporter at the $5 per month level. I fully intend to start using it in at least one of my campaigns in the near future and will write a comprehensive review based on my experience. Until then, I definitely would recommend keeping an eye on this product. I also would not be surprised if the folks at Fandom are doing the same.
I like Foundry too, but let's not mislead people. The integration between Foundry and DDB is not officially supported by either entity. It is a mod written by a (very good) 3rd party developer and that developer has no control over anything either Foundry or DDB do. Which means that (as you pointed out) the integration is fragile and subject to becoming obsolete.
This is not to say that one shouldn't use Foundry...but one should not depend on the seamless integration, because there is no guarantee that will continue.
WOTC lies. We know that WOTC lies. WOTC knows that we know that WOTC lies. We know that WOTC knows that we know that WOTC lies. And still they lie.
Because of the above (a paraphrase from Orwell) I no longer post to the forums -- PM me if you need help or anything.
If DDB ever made or bought out a VTT to integrate, you can bet the Foundry integration modules will get a cease and desist even before the DDB option is functional.
That or they'll just insert a line of code or two that breaks the integration.
WOTC lies. We know that WOTC lies. WOTC knows that we know that WOTC lies. We know that WOTC knows that we know that WOTC lies. And still they lie.
Because of the above (a paraphrase from Orwell) I no longer post to the forums -- PM me if you need help or anything.
with the development speed on DDB and their focus on other features a DDB VTT is years down the line I would imagine.
Just look at the time that went into the new backend of the site and the many features still in alpha or beta and a lot of features like campaign management that or rudimentary at best.
I am a big fan of DDB and own the legendary bundle but this will take a lot of time. Maybe they will acquire one of the newer VTTs and build from there?
I also bought Foundry VTT and really love it. Compared to other solutions I have tried in the past it is way more powerful and at the same time quite easy to get into.
And yet I bet when the time comes to "break" the integration with 3rd party VTTs, they will somehow find a way to do THAT super fast...
WOTC lies. We know that WOTC lies. WOTC knows that we know that WOTC lies. We know that WOTC knows that we know that WOTC lies. And still they lie.
Because of the above (a paraphrase from Orwell) I no longer post to the forums -- PM me if you need help or anything.
Glad you all found Foundry VTT. Best all around!
Roll20 and Fantasy Grounds are a waste of money!
DDB and FoundryVTT is all you need!!!
My group is switching to the forge VTT, which I /think/ is the same thing. I'm a bit confused. However, what I have seen so far is much much better than roll20.
Any time an unfathomably powerful entity sweeps in and offers godlike rewards in return for just a few teensy favors, it’s a scam. Unless it’s me. I’d never lie to you, reader dearest.
Tasha
I've looked at the Foundry, but don't understand the hosting. How does setting up an online (not just local) game work? Do I have to know how to set up and pay for a server myself?
You either host it yourself on your computer (you need public ip address to do that) or host it on a server.
It's simple to host as all you need to do is launch the software.
Thanks. I found this which gave me details of my options - https://foundryvtt.com/article/hosting/
There's also services like forge and molten hosting where you pay for them to do the hosting... the main difference to Roll20 etc. is you don't have to pay if you can host it yourself.
https://forge-vtt.com/
https://moltenhosting.com/
Self-hosting has not been an issue for me. If you have a low-end PC it might. Heck even my high end PC, when the liquid cooler started to go, used to grumble at me with Foundry hosting.
The other thing you have to be able to do is open up ports on your router to let people in... and make sure to only open them during sessions and then close them immediately after.
WOTC lies. We know that WOTC lies. WOTC knows that we know that WOTC lies. We know that WOTC knows that we know that WOTC lies. And still they lie.
Because of the above (a paraphrase from Orwell) I no longer post to the forums -- PM me if you need help or anything.
This is an issue. Both my DM and I /could/ spin up VMs specifically to host games, but I really dislike opening my firewall to let people in.
Any time an unfathomably powerful entity sweeps in and offers godlike rewards in return for just a few teensy favors, it’s a scam. Unless it’s me. I’d never lie to you, reader dearest.
Tasha
You open it on one port, for the # of hours for the session, and then close it down.
The chances someone is going to hit you on THAT port for THOSE few hours are practically 0.
WOTC lies. We know that WOTC lies. WOTC knows that we know that WOTC lies. We know that WOTC knows that we know that WOTC lies. And still they lie.
Because of the above (a paraphrase from Orwell) I no longer post to the forums -- PM me if you need help or anything.
The issue with Hosting is why I don't use Foundry. I think they would be well served to offer people an option to use it as a hosted service for a monthly fee. I know there's options like Forge that handle the hosting for you, but then you have to pay the 50$ for Foundry + the monthly fee. Which I think is too much.
I'm a sys admin, I'm aware of how it works. I said I dislike doing it. If I wanted to be lazy, I could set up a DMZ for it, but...that's too much like work.
Any time an unfathomably powerful entity sweeps in and offers godlike rewards in return for just a few teensy favors, it’s a scam. Unless it’s me. I’d never lie to you, reader dearest.
Tasha
The 50€ is for the software and future updates. To be clear: we're talking about hundreds of hours of work from Atropos here, so I don't think 50€ one-time fee is too much.
After that you can either spent a weekend and read up on AWS using tutorials like https://foundry-vtt-community.github.io/wiki/Self-Hosting-on-AWS/ and host it for a whole year free of charge on AWS and something like 2$ /month afterwards.
Or you decide that you'd like someone else to do the work for you and use a service like forge, which is still cheaper than Roll20 Pro.
Servers cost money, developing software costs time and by extension money. Get over it, not everything can be available for a coffee 2 go per month.
Unless you reach an audience of several thousand people you can't offer such cheap prices and maintain the required infrastructure.
This exactly. 50 dollars is the same as most good video games. Hosting takes time and effort I'd simply rather throw money at. IMO, it's a good value, and if you /don't/ want to pay the monthly fee you can always host it yourself.
Any time an unfathomably powerful entity sweeps in and offers godlike rewards in return for just a few teensy favors, it’s a scam. Unless it’s me. I’d never lie to you, reader dearest.
Tasha
Hosting concerns for FVTT? Solved: https://www.foundryserver.com/signup.php The fella (Brad) who created and runs this top-notch service is quick to assist his clients and is very professional and friend. His rates are very reasonable. Foundry VTT is a huge step forward in the VTT market, and now with solid server services to access such as Brad's you are all set. Throw in the functionality of integrating DDB and you are crazy not to give it a go.