I enjoy D&D Beyond for character creation and the quick lookup of reference guides etc and I've been using it to start introducing my kids to the game.
However, I haven't had a lot of luck finding a tabletop simulator that works well when the whole party is physically in the same location.
Really I'd want something that lets me have my laptop or whatever behind my DM screen and simultaneously display the player's view on another monitor, computer, browser window, whatever.
Like how PowerPoint has the presenter's notes mode and the projector display for the audience.
Are there any VTT tools that work that way?
I don't want each player having to bury their nose in a laptop or phone, we want to maintain the "everyone around the table" aspect but also leverage some of the benefits of a VTT.
Foundry VTT would let you do that. Run as a DM on your own screen, and have a browser window open as a player-view account on the second screen (or second computer).
Above VTT will let you do this, you can log in as the DM on your screen, and then as DM you can log into the player view in a 2nd browser screen to display to your players, the great thing here is that all players and the DM can move all tokens, so you can have 1 player logged in and everyone can be moved.
You can have the game hosted on your laptop and then the second computer screen, maybe hooked up to a TV, connect as the client. Then, you can either have the players roll on a table in meatspace or you can take their actions and do them for them in Fantasy Grounds.This way, the only person directly interacting with a computer is you.
No subscription cost, but you do need to buy the software.
https://owlbear.rodeo/ can do this as well - no purchase necessary, just run it in a browser. I've done this before, just ran it on two devices. One was hooked up to a projector, which was pretty cool.
I use Fantasy Grounds. I launch two instances of it. One for me to DM, and one that goes on the TV embedded in our table. Most PC's, NPC's and monsters we use real minis, but the maps and handouts are in FG.
I manage initiative, combat and monster actions through the combat tracker.
https://owlbear.rodeo/ can do this as well - no purchase necessary, just run it in a browser. I've done this before, just ran it on two devices. One was hooked up to a projector, which was pretty cool.
I use Owlbear for my streaming too though I just let the audience see "the DM" side of it because I can't manage all the windows otherwise. And since I usually have a copy of the map separate from Owlbear I can easily "show hidden/ delete fog/ hide hidden" pretty fast. For the price I 100% recommend.
Running two separate browser windows seems tedious, especially if you only have a single screen like I do. Does anyone know if Foundry can do an overlay like Roll20 or simply show both maps side by side?
I enjoy D&D Beyond for character creation and the quick lookup of reference guides etc and I've been using it to start introducing my kids to the game.
However, I haven't had a lot of luck finding a tabletop simulator that works well when the whole party is physically in the same location.
Really I'd want something that lets me have my laptop or whatever behind my DM screen and simultaneously display the player's view on another monitor, computer, browser window, whatever.
Like how PowerPoint has the presenter's notes mode and the projector display for the audience.
Are there any VTT tools that work that way?
I don't want each player having to bury their nose in a laptop or phone, we want to maintain the "everyone around the table" aspect but also leverage some of the benefits of a VTT.
Owlbear.rodeo has a cast function to allow you to cast the VTT to a separate screen as the player view. You can do this a couple of ways - you're either casting as in chromecast or similar tech, or you are casting to a separate monitor or connected TV. This is how I do it when running an in person game. I'll connect up the monitor or TV by HDMI then cast the map or image to that separate monitor. I tend also to have my little chromebook tablet that I can pass around if people want a closer view. You could of course also add more funcationality by doing the other method I have...open a private/incognito/inprivate tab or separate browser as the player browser, paid this with a wireless mouse which gets passed between players. It's a slightly more clunky set up to do that last option though.
Given the extensions available for Owlbear, the stupidly cheap cost, lack of security concerns that Foundry has, and extremely intuitive interface (compared with Roll20)...it really is the best of all the solutions I and my players have tried over the last three years. And for the record me and the forty or something people I've played with in different game systems and campaigns have tried pretty much every solution out there. There isn't a better tactical VTT that Owlbear. Now, it does lack the encyclopedic aspect of Roll20 or Foundry, but in D&D, those platforms fall short compared with D&D Beyond, so a mix of Owlbear a DDB is really the best solution I've found.
Running two separate browser windows seems tedious, especially if you only have a single screen like I do. Does anyone know if Foundry can do an overlay like Roll20 or simply show both maps side by side?
Have one of your players cast the player view to the TV. Let them manage their own view; you've got enough to do.
I enjoy D&D Beyond for character creation and the quick lookup of reference guides etc and I've been using it to start introducing my kids to the game.
However, I haven't had a lot of luck finding a tabletop simulator that works well when the whole party is physically in the same location.
Really I'd want something that lets me have my laptop or whatever behind my DM screen and simultaneously display the player's view on another monitor, computer, browser window, whatever.
Like how PowerPoint has the presenter's notes mode and the projector display for the audience.
Are there any VTT tools that work that way?
I don't want each player having to bury their nose in a laptop or phone, we want to maintain the "everyone around the table" aspect but also leverage some of the benefits of a VTT.
Create a PC viewpoint character and log into the game twice (once as DM, once as the viewpoint character) on different screens.
Foundry VTT would let you do that. Run as a DM on your own screen, and have a browser window open as a player-view account on the second screen (or second computer).
Above VTT will let you do this, you can log in as the DM on your screen, and then as DM you can log into the player view in a 2nd browser screen to display to your players, the great thing here is that all players and the DM can move all tokens, so you can have 1 player logged in and everyone can be moved.
Any VTT that has the concept of a player account can do it, it's just a question of how much annoyance it is to set up.
Try Dungeonfog.com. The price is reasonable, about $60 a year and you get easy map creation, fog of war and a VTT.
Fantasy Grounds can do this.
You can have the game hosted on your laptop and then the second computer screen, maybe hooked up to a TV, connect as the client. Then, you can either have the players roll on a table in meatspace or you can take their actions and do them for them in Fantasy Grounds.This way, the only person directly interacting with a computer is you.
No subscription cost, but you do need to buy the software.
https://owlbear.rodeo/ can do this as well - no purchase necessary, just run it in a browser. I've done this before, just ran it on two devices. One was hooked up to a projector, which was pretty cool.
I use Fantasy Grounds. I launch two instances of it. One for me to DM, and one that goes on the TV embedded in our table. Most PC's, NPC's and monsters we use real minis, but the maps and handouts are in FG.
I manage initiative, combat and monster actions through the combat tracker.
I use Owlbear for my streaming too though I just let the audience see "the DM" side of it because I can't manage all the windows otherwise. And since I usually have a copy of the map separate from Owlbear I can easily "show hidden/ delete fog/ hide hidden" pretty fast. For the price I 100% recommend.
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Running two separate browser windows seems tedious, especially if you only have a single screen like I do. Does anyone know if Foundry can do an overlay like Roll20 or simply show both maps side by side?
Owlbear.rodeo has a cast function to allow you to cast the VTT to a separate screen as the player view. You can do this a couple of ways - you're either casting as in chromecast or similar tech, or you are casting to a separate monitor or connected TV. This is how I do it when running an in person game. I'll connect up the monitor or TV by HDMI then cast the map or image to that separate monitor. I tend also to have my little chromebook tablet that I can pass around if people want a closer view. You could of course also add more funcationality by doing the other method I have...open a private/incognito/inprivate tab or separate browser as the player browser, paid this with a wireless mouse which gets passed between players. It's a slightly more clunky set up to do that last option though.
Given the extensions available for Owlbear, the stupidly cheap cost, lack of security concerns that Foundry has, and extremely intuitive interface (compared with Roll20)...it really is the best of all the solutions I and my players have tried over the last three years. And for the record me and the forty or something people I've played with in different game systems and campaigns have tried pretty much every solution out there. There isn't a better tactical VTT that Owlbear. Now, it does lack the encyclopedic aspect of Roll20 or Foundry, but in D&D, those platforms fall short compared with D&D Beyond, so a mix of Owlbear a DDB is really the best solution I've found.
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Have one of your players cast the player view to the TV. Let them manage their own view; you've got enough to do.
Dynamic Dungeon editor.
Take your own Maps ,Soundeffects a.s.o.