Whether you play online or in-person, virtual tabletops are indispensable tools to immerse your group in gameplay and streamline combat and exploration. D&D Beyond has two VTTs to help you prep less so you can play more: Maps, a 2D VTT that seamlessly syncs to your D&D Beyond library, and Sigil, an immersive 3D VTT with deep integration to D&D Beyond and world-building and mini-making tools.
In this article, we'll break down how both of these tools can supplement your games so you can focus on the adventure at hand!
Maps: The 2D Virtual Tabletop (VTT)
The Maps 2D VTT is designed to make it easy to bring you and your friends together for tactical adventures, whether you're playing in-person or online.
Play Today with a Master Tier Subscription
Master Tier subscribers get access to the Maps 2D VTT in addition to the other benefits of their subscription, including book content sharing with party members, unlimited character slots, perks, and early access to book releases.
Seamlessly Sync to Your D&D Beyond Library
You can seamlessly add maps and monster tokens from the books in your D&D Beyond library to your Maps digital playspace. The Token Browser lets you filter monsters by creature type, size, Challenge Rating, and source, making it easy to find the perfect foe for your encounter.
Your Maps session is linked to your campaign, so players can join effortlessly without a subscription. You can add player tokens with ease, and every roll from their D&D Beyond character sheet automatically appears in the Game Log, alongside rolls from monster stat blocks in Maps. This keeps everything in one place, so you can track every Dexterity (Stealth) check, saving throw, and Critical Hit together!
You can also make Maps work for you, no matter how you run your sessions! You can upload custom maps to bring each unique session to life, whether using maps from official sources, ones you've found online, or hand-drawn creations.
Streamline Your Games with Handy Tools
Maps is packed with features to make running encounters smoother than ever. With these tools at your fingertips, you can focus less on logistics and more on the adventure!
- Fog of War: This feature lets you control what your players can see, allowing you to reveal new areas as they explore and keep the unknown shrouded in mystery.
- Ruler and Pointer: These tools help you and your players measure distances, plan movement, and strategize your next move.
- Overlays: These add extra layers of detail to your maps, letting you track environmental effects, hazards, or area-of-effect spells at a glance.
Prep and Run Encounters with Ease
Maps gives you the tools to build and run your encounters, whether you're planning ahead or improvising on the fly. The Maps combat encounter tool uses the XP budget method from the new Dungeon Master's Guide to craft balanced battles that will challenge your party.
Then, you can easily start combat with all the tokens on the map with a single click, making sure your session doesn't lose steam when you dramatically declare, “Roll for Initiative!”
You can also track Hit Points and roll directly from monster stat blocks, keeping turns action-packed and running smoothly.
Sigil: The Immersive 3D Virtual Tabletop (VTT)
With the Sigil 3D VTT, you can experience D&D in an epic immersive environment. Powered by Unreal Engine 5, Sigil provides intuitive tools to run your game, build your world, and create miniatures.
This VTT features deep integration with D&D Beyond and can allow you to connect to your whole party for a multiplayer experience!
Play Today with a Free D&D Beyond Account
You can dive into Sigil with a free D&D Beyond account* and experience its immersive VTT, world-building, and token-making tools. You can gain the ability to host multiplayer games and unlock additional bonus content, builder kits, and mini customization options with a Master Tier subscription.
* If your D&D Beyond account was created using Apple, Google, or Twitch, you will be prompted to create a Wizards account when launching Sigil.
Immerse Your Table in Epic Dungeons & Dragons Adventures
The Sigil 3D VTT allows you to craft breathtaking digital environments for your campaign. From deadly dungeons and creepy crypts to whimsical fey forests, build immersive locations using an extensive library of assets, textures, and lighting effects.
For those just starting or looking for a quick adventure, Sigil comes with the introductory adventure Danger at Dunbarrow. This premade adventure is perfect for groups new to the Sigil VTT to run an immersive session with minimal preparation.
When you start hosting a game with your Master Tier subscription, everyone in your group can join in the fun. Each player can connect through their free D&D Beyond account, making it easy to integrate characters and stats. Players can view and interact with the maps you create in real-time, so you can share in the fun together!
Bring Your Game to Life
Sigil's mini builder tool lets you create and customize 3D representations of your characters by adjusting your miniatures' poses, armor, weapons, and accessories to bring out their unique personality!
When it comes time to harness the forces of magic, Sigil brings spells to life with dynamic animations. Watch as your Sorcerer blankets the battlefield in fire or Cleric channels divine energy to bolster your allies' strength.
Sigil also includes digital dice that roll across the 3D environment, allowing your party to celebrate every successful hit and rally around every near miss.
Start Playing Today
Whether you're looking for a simple, streamlined way to run tactical encounters or an immersive 3D environment to bring your world to life, D&D Beyond has you covered.
Maps provides a fast and easy way to integrate battle maps, track Initiative, and manage encounters, making it perfect for both in-person and online sessions. Sigil, on the other hand, offers a full digital sandbox with world-building tools, animated spell effects, and customizable miniatures, bringing the magic of the tabletop to a shared virtual space.
Try them both and see how they can help you prep less so you can play more today!
Mike Bernier is the founder of Arcane Eye, a site focused on providing useful tips and tricks to all those involved in the world of D&D. Outside of writing for Arcane Eye, Mike spends most of his time playing games, hiking with his partner, and tending the veritable jungle of houseplants that have invaded his house.
-
View User Profile
-
Send Message
Posted Feb 28, 2025Yeah I figured that out. What I mean is, if you launch a product, and you say on the product launch page that "anyone can download and play," it's annoying to try downloading it, have it not work, then Google it and learn that it doesn't work on a Mac.
-
View User Profile
-
Send Message
Posted Feb 28, 2025Or anything not a windows PC
-
View User Profile
-
Send Message
Posted Feb 28, 2025Probably not. They already said they're not updating it for 2024 because the capability exists in Maps (see the bottom of the Maps FAQ page).
What is happening to the Encounters tool?
At this time, the Encounters (Beta) tool will remain available and continue to use the encounter rules outlined in the 2014 Dungeon Masters Guide. No changes to this tool are currently planned.
Edit: I can't spell
-
View User Profile
-
Send Message
Posted Feb 28, 2025Maps is 2d sigil is 3d on maps you can load maps directly from a lot of the pre-made adventures. You could always play around with them they're both under the tools section at the top.
-
View User Profile
-
Send Message
Posted Feb 28, 2025‘Whether you play online or in-person, virtual tabletops are indispensable tools…’
No, they’re not.
-
View User Profile
-
Send Message
Posted Feb 28, 2025Sigil is garbage for anything larger than a single session or one-shot.
-
View User Profile
-
Send Message
Posted Feb 28, 2025Are they planing to dring it out for Mac ?
-
View User Profile
-
Send Message
Posted Feb 28, 202523% of personal computers are Mac’s. so if you have a game with 5 people chances are one of them is using a Mac. if one player has a Mac that whole group can’t uses this tool and that’s not even accounting for people who have older PC’s
unless everybody can use its DOA. We need a web based option, even if it’s missing some of the fancier, lighting and texture features, I just don’t think the tool will take off unless it’s usable by everyone.
-
View User Profile
-
Send Message
Posted Feb 28, 2025I can't imagine who would ask about this product (Sigil). Too complex and takes away even more from the core idea of the game (use your imagination)... please do not shred resources away from Maps for this... A 2d VTT that works and is integrated with the rules is all that's needed..
-
View User Profile
-
Send Message
Posted Feb 28, 2025I think it works for people who have very visual play styles. Also not everybody can use 2d vtt due to it being a paid feature.
-
View User Profile
-
Send Message
Posted Feb 28, 2025Sigil is really cool. But where do I put bug reports? Something really annoying happened recently.
-
View User Profile
-
Send Message
Posted Mar 1, 2025This is what Sigil is for. They've already made mention that there will be additional third party 3d miniatures. Whether HeroForge is part of that probably depends on how they craft agreements.
Except Maps is currently broken in it's calculation of Difficulty, so it's not exactly useful. I'm using the Encounter tool to plan 2024 encounters because it shows me the XP total.
Is to me. I have a regular in-person game with the combat maps projected on the 65" TV. Players can bring them up on their devices, and move their own characters, but we're still playing in person. Indispensable? You can get around it sure. But it's a massive boost for interesting maps, complex terrain etc. Its a big step up from drawing with a whiteboard marker etc. My first big purchase when I get a place that can fit it, is a table with an embedded large flat screen under a glass panel, where I can use real miniatures on a colourful map. Printing those at the scales needed is wasteful and expensive at the print shop etc. Digital maps are an indispensable tool for many in-person games.
-
View User Profile
-
Send Message
Posted Mar 1, 2025I'm definitely going to be sticking with maps for now. Simply due to Sigil making my computer attempt to set itself on fire.
-
View User Profile
-
Send Message
Posted Mar 1, 2025Employees if you're watching reduce the amount of monetization slapped in our face
-
View User Profile
-
Send Message
Posted Mar 1, 2025Please let's not put any ideas in anyone's heads. There are people who will find value in a streamlined VTT, and people who will find value in a higher production value. Pitting it against other VTTs won't result in anything getting better, but rather, people thinking they need to shut down other options to succeed.
-
View User Profile
-
Send Message
Posted Mar 1, 2025Sigil looks great and it is a good thing to have two VTTs to choose from.
-
View User Profile
-
Send Message
Posted Mar 1, 2025Have been playing around with the Sigil character import. They are not supporting much of the DnD Beyond items that are readily available on the character. Such as a Defender Longsword. I believe it is currently not added to this port of the VTT because it is not entered as of yet. This is not the end all be all of this because it is so limited in its abilities. This is a "Hey, look what I can do!" Moment. It is not actually the finished product. Or it better not be. Why? Because no one will be using it as their characters on DnD Beyond would have to be basic 1 or second level characters to use it. So far...yeah, not thinking this is a finished thing. I tried a legacy character sheet as well as a 2024 model. Both were not supported when it came to the magic items. Most likely because I do not yet have the digital 2024 rule book which it maybe working off of. Which, if it is totally negates the backwards compatibility they were talking about before the books came out. That is only a guess, reality maybe that they are just not finished with entering the magic items and converting it to the VTT. We will see.
-
View User Profile
-
Send Message
Posted Mar 1, 2025When I initially was looking into it, the main download page did not have ANYTHING on system requirements. Which, I had assumed (make an ass out of u and me) that if there was none, it most have been vetted to download on my most OS style machines. Looking to get the most bang out of their buck, I just jumped in thinking it would work. I received the error message and had to work out that small issue (big one if you are not computer savvy like my friend is) and updated my graphics driver. It loaded up fine then. I had to look around to uncover the requirements of the program later, which I did find. Yet, not having that up front and clear is just a thorn in the side of people looking to easily bash this feature.
It is not hard to make things easy. It seems that there is little comprehensive understanding of player inter actions with video systems with this release. Follow the K.I.S.S. idea, Keep it simple stupid. Hopefully they are taking notes on this and working to update this later. If this is their finished product, it will not do good. Seeing how much seems unfinished in it, I believe it is still its beta. Letting people see what can be and then steer from there. No, the sarcasm was not lost on me either. LOL.
-
View User Profile
-
Send Message
Posted Mar 1, 2025You need to be invited by a game master if you do not has an account on DnD Beyond. So far it is not a paid service. That may change when the actual release happens. If you wanted to use the pre made characters to play you can. It does have issues with DnD Beyond items as well. So far it is just basic stuff. Magic items and things may not be supported yet. So...take it as a preview so far.
-
View User Profile
-
Send Message
Posted Mar 1, 2025This is true to a point. I use Talespire for most of my games. I used to use Roll20 due to the ability to quickly import my made maps from Inkscape and the like. So, if you are looking for an easy way to run a quick game, or limited on funds as well...maps is an alternative. Plus, it is more fully intergrated with the rules to make the game play easier. It does end up saving a lot of money in the way of not having to buy tokens and the like. Linking it to character sheets for their abilities and all. Plus cutting into the competitions hold on the market. So...there are those.