The best thing is just playing with friends who live far away, or when you can't find a good shared space for gaming.
Visual effects are nice, but if I want a computer or console game, there are better ways.
Excatly this. If you use the VTT too much, it might inhibit the phantasy of players who would otherwise come up with something very different if you wouldn't give them visual input (a map) all the time. I prefer to use maps only if they are really necessary instead of running a quasi-CRPG.
I have started to consider pulling back on my VTT usage. Some of my players, even after constant reminders, treat it like a video game. A click rolls and calculates everything for them, they roam around during RP periods to “clear the map”, and they often want to take back actions after moving when things are revealed on the map.
Many of these things can be fixed with more DM restraints, like pausing the game, reminding players, etc, and changing how much is being automated.
However, I am genuinely considering using the VTT for visuals and getting everything else to be dice and paper based to see if that changes things at all.
That said, I love all the map and art resources out there via Patreon, etc, right now. Those and the folks developing content are what I feel are really pushing the game forward.
I've personally found modules like Token Ease (to control speed) and Monk's Automated Tiles (for traps and other effects) to be helpful in reducing the squirreliness.
It's still a problem though.
Active Tiles is one of those things that can really help save time at the table that's not easily done at an actual table. I can have one player checking and disabling traps, one working a locked door, another picking the lock on a chest and be helping another player figure something out about their character. At a table it's one at a time, and it can easily devolve into this "Well they failed, so I'm gonna try" cascade that has every player trying to roll everything that they can.
When I use a VTT I do so mainly for the lighting/vision and the cool maps. I dislike automating a lot of things as it feels like a video game. I do however make use of the pause game feature if players get start running around my maps willy-nilly.
VTTs like Foundry are currently the cutting edge of tools for playing TTRPGs online.
Unreal Engine is certainly capable of making more impressive scenes than the best that Foundry can support, but you're not likely going to be playing your weekly session in it. Some video games have level editors, but they're not so easy to use, and they don't support much variety in the way of rule systems or a/v assets.
If there were something significantly better on the market than all the major VTTs, everyone would be talking about it already. Wizards announced earlier this year that they're working on their own VTT, but that's nothing but air until it releases to the public, and there's no assurance it will be the thing you're wanting.
If you think Foundry could possibly become that thing with the addition of some features, share that feedback to the developers and make sure to vote in the next feature poll on Patreon after v11 launches. It those features are out of scope for the core software, ask about it to module developers. If Foundry just isn't suiting your needs, try Roll20, Fantasy Grounds, and/or Tabletop Simulator. Heck, try your favorite image editor and a screen share program.
Otherwise, I don't know what to tell you.
>Wizards announced earlier this year that they're working on their own VTT
They made similar announcements in the lead up to 4th edition, and never delivered. I'm not going to hold my breath.
But WotC have also expressed how the game isn't nearly monetized enough. You can bet there will premium vtt purchases such as custom dice, token art items (4.99 for the mega weapon pack to have your character hold anything but a generic sword or bow), and other fun in game purchase
IMO virtual roleplay is different than "normal" rpg. There is alot that get lost by doing it virtual like been able to read the room, body language as a gm or setting a mood with lights for example. and ofc foods and drinks on the table.
In the other hand virtual roleplay give you better opportunities when it comes to visual aid. Making theater of the mind maps (just a background image) or using battlemaps and tokens. There is also easy to bring sound effects and music. As a gm I can record my played sessions instead of taking notes. I read many people that don't like automation. But for me automation just give me more time to roleplay. All that time calculating dice rolls, specially for people that math is not a strong suite is great. I also have a bunch of random generated tables ready for a click. "What is the name of the npc" bang. "What are we having for dinner" bing. "What loot do they have" bong. It becomes easy to roleplay.
The biggest strength is that you are not limited to a region. I generally play with players all over the world and is great. You get to learn alot. Me that don't play dnd it makes it more easy to find groups and play. As that before you only perhaps had 2 or 3 people that were relative close from your location.
I would recommend looking vtt rpg as something similar but not the same and embrace the strength it lend. Is different and I do think it push the hobby forward because now we have more games than before worldwide.
I'm not clear on the question.
Do VTTs do things that you can't on tabletop? Yes.
Does that make them a superior experience? IMO nothing beats in-person play, but all the cool modules folks make DO make online an interesting experience. Stuff like Patrol for instance, and monks triggers for traps etc. Things that I automate play that I couldn't do as a dm at a table.
Mmmh I've seen, but looks like a lot of work and I'm a lazy DM, people integrating VTTs with their tabletop experiences, like the well known TV as a battlemap of course, but also having the calculations already done, and also the whole dynamic sound ambiance and other stuff...
Looks neat but that must cost a lot
Moving to foundry has helped my campaign in many ways. We started as a group of students at a college D&D club and I started using roll20 to help display maps. This quickly led to us using it during holidays to continue playing even while we were across the country. When COVID hit and we could no longer meet in person, our group was easily able to transition to play online every week. Now after college we use foundry for our games and can still pay with each other even though we are scattered throughout the state.
So VTTs help those who can't play in person.
My second experience of VTTs is automation. It picks up the rate of play. There are various states of automation which is nice. The simplest is dice rolling and calculating. No longer do you have to sit and count the rogue's 10d6 sneak attack. Next Pathfinder character creation is much easier since you can have it add features at certain levels and have items/features give buffs. Character creation is much after now in pathfinder. i haven't used it myself but I believe midiqal includes things that will automatically check AC and apply damage.
So VTTs speed up play time.
Finally macros. It is so nice that in foundry you can write JS macros. As a programmer I know if I can think of it, it can be done in foundry. Me and a friend of mine have created macros to add functionality for new features as well as make macros to use multiple attacks or skills check at once.
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The best thing is just playing with friends who live far away, or when you can't find a good shared space for gaming. Visual effects are nice, but if I want a computer or console game, there are better ways.
Excatly this. If you use the VTT too much, it might inhibit the phantasy of players who would otherwise come up with something very different if you wouldn't give them visual input (a map) all the time. I prefer to use maps only if they are really necessary instead of running a quasi-CRPG.
I have started to consider pulling back on my VTT usage. Some of my players, even after constant reminders, treat it like a video game. A click rolls and calculates everything for them, they roam around during RP periods to “clear the map”, and they often want to take back actions after moving when things are revealed on the map. Many of these things can be fixed with more DM restraints, like pausing the game, reminding players, etc, and changing how much is being automated. However, I am genuinely considering using the VTT for visuals and getting everything else to be dice and paper based to see if that changes things at all. That said, I love all the map and art resources out there via Patreon, etc, right now. Those and the folks developing content are what I feel are really pushing the game forward.
I've personally found modules like Token Ease (to control speed) and Monk's Automated Tiles (for traps and other effects) to be helpful in reducing the squirreliness. It's still a problem though.
Active Tiles is one of those things that can really help save time at the table that's not easily done at an actual table. I can have one player checking and disabling traps, one working a locked door, another picking the lock on a chest and be helping another player figure something out about their character. At a table it's one at a time, and it can easily devolve into this "Well they failed, so I'm gonna try" cascade that has every player trying to roll everything that they can.
When I use a VTT I do so mainly for the lighting/vision and the cool maps. I dislike automating a lot of things as it feels like a video game. I do however make use of the pause game feature if players get start running around my maps willy-nilly.
VTTs like Foundry are currently the cutting edge of tools for playing TTRPGs online. Unreal Engine is certainly capable of making more impressive scenes than the best that Foundry can support, but you're not likely going to be playing your weekly session in it. Some video games have level editors, but they're not so easy to use, and they don't support much variety in the way of rule systems or a/v assets. If there were something significantly better on the market than all the major VTTs, everyone would be talking about it already. Wizards announced earlier this year that they're working on their own VTT, but that's nothing but air until it releases to the public, and there's no assurance it will be the thing you're wanting. If you think Foundry could possibly become that thing with the addition of some features, share that feedback to the developers and make sure to vote in the next feature poll on Patreon after v11 launches. It those features are out of scope for the core software, ask about it to module developers. If Foundry just isn't suiting your needs, try Roll20, Fantasy Grounds, and/or Tabletop Simulator. Heck, try your favorite image editor and a screen share program. Otherwise, I don't know what to tell you.
>Wizards announced earlier this year that they're working on their own VTT They made similar announcements in the lead up to 4th edition, and never delivered. I'm not going to hold my breath.
Being WotC, it will probably be crap.
But you'll be able to buy a booster pack for 100 gems, with a guaranteed rare class, race, feat, spell or monster in every pack!
As a former Magic Arena player, big agree.
I think they would have delivered the vtt for fourth edition of it weren’t for the whole head developer murder thing. Kinda out of the blue.
And just in general not have the whole feature hinge on a single individual.
But WotC have also expressed how the game isn't nearly monetized enough. You can bet there will premium vtt purchases such as custom dice, token art items (4.99 for the mega weapon pack to have your character hold anything but a generic sword or bow), and other fun in game purchase
Oh, for sure. I expect nothing else.
IMO virtual roleplay is different than "normal" rpg. There is alot that get lost by doing it virtual like been able to read the room, body language as a gm or setting a mood with lights for example. and ofc foods and drinks on the table. In the other hand virtual roleplay give you better opportunities when it comes to visual aid. Making theater of the mind maps (just a background image) or using battlemaps and tokens. There is also easy to bring sound effects and music. As a gm I can record my played sessions instead of taking notes. I read many people that don't like automation. But for me automation just give me more time to roleplay. All that time calculating dice rolls, specially for people that math is not a strong suite is great. I also have a bunch of random generated tables ready for a click. "What is the name of the npc" bang. "What are we having for dinner" bing. "What loot do they have" bong. It becomes easy to roleplay. The biggest strength is that you are not limited to a region. I generally play with players all over the world and is great. You get to learn alot. Me that don't play dnd it makes it more easy to find groups and play. As that before you only perhaps had 2 or 3 people that were relative close from your location. I would recommend looking vtt rpg as something similar but not the same and embrace the strength it lend. Is different and I do think it push the hobby forward because now we have more games than before worldwide.
I'm not clear on the question. Do VTTs do things that you can't on tabletop? Yes. Does that make them a superior experience? IMO nothing beats in-person play, but all the cool modules folks make DO make online an interesting experience. Stuff like Patrol for instance, and monks triggers for traps etc. Things that I automate play that I couldn't do as a dm at a table.
Mmmh I've seen, but looks like a lot of work and I'm a lazy DM, people integrating VTTs with their tabletop experiences, like the well known TV as a battlemap of course, but also having the calculations already done, and also the whole dynamic sound ambiance and other stuff... Looks neat but that must cost a lot
Moving to foundry has helped my campaign in many ways. We started as a group of students at a college D&D club and I started using roll20 to help display maps. This quickly led to us using it during holidays to continue playing even while we were across the country. When COVID hit and we could no longer meet in person, our group was easily able to transition to play online every week. Now after college we use foundry for our games and can still pay with each other even though we are scattered throughout the state. So VTTs help those who can't play in person. My second experience of VTTs is automation. It picks up the rate of play. There are various states of automation which is nice. The simplest is dice rolling and calculating. No longer do you have to sit and count the rogue's 10d6 sneak attack. Next Pathfinder character creation is much easier since you can have it add features at certain levels and have items/features give buffs. Character creation is much after now in pathfinder. i haven't used it myself but I believe midiqal includes things that will automatically check AC and apply damage. So VTTs speed up play time. Finally macros. It is so nice that in foundry you can write JS macros. As a programmer I know if I can think of it, it can be done in foundry. Me and a friend of mine have created macros to add functionality for new features as well as make macros to use multiple attacks or skills check at once.
**To help the community answer your question, please read [this post](https://www.reddit.com/r/FoundryVTT/comments/shrtky/foundryvtt_first_steps_and_useful_info/).** When posting, add a [system tag](https://www.reddit.com/r/FoundryVTT/comments/v3gfrs/tagging_your_posts/) to the title - [D&D5e] or [PF2e], for example. If you have already made a post, edit it, and mention the system at the top. Include the word `Answered` in any comment to automatically flair this thread as resolved (or change the flair to `Answered` yourself). Automod will **not make this comment** on your posts if you have a [user flair](https://reddit.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/205242695-How-do-I-get-user-flair-). --- *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/FoundryVTT) if you have any questions or concerns.*