The Best Virtual Tabletop!? - Dungeon Newbs' Guide

Go watch my much more comprehensive and up to date VTT Rundown: • Best Virtual Tabletops...
It covers a lot more systems, and hey, Tabletop Simulator folks, I'm even a little nicer and more fair to your beloved TTS.
Virtual Tabletops (VTTs) are becoming a necessity for tabletop RPGers, but which one is the best?
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0:00 Intro
1:50 Owlbear Rodeo
4:10 Role
7:12 Tabletop Simulator
10:28 Roll20
13:28 Foundry VTT
17:40 Fantasy Grounds Unity
19:55 Conclusion
Music in this video provided by:
www.bensound.com/

[@yarion4774]

Regarding roll20 I always remember on my DMs words: Roll20: "Pay for premium now!" DM: "Sure, once you become a premium product."

[@voidtalongaming4637]

So as someone who uses R20 Premium now, the lighting and tools/space are good for myself buuut I now have a different problem. I make Roll20 cry, my players have no lag but I as the DM have 10-14 seconds of lag when I try to Edit HP values because it's super slow. That being said I am asking R20 to do a lot more than I feel it was developed for.

[@FernandoTomeh]

If we should pay to play, better play for Foundry

[@facelessvoicesvo]

@@voidtalongaming4637 make sure everyone has their hardware acceleration on. Roll20 needs it on if you're using dynamic lighting or it slows the browsers to a crawl

[@voidtalongaming4637]

@@facelessvoicesvo I actually discovered it's because my campaign got too large. R20 doesn't actually cache very well so effectively all my old pages were 'loaded' and this measured in the hundreds of tokens/assets and dozens of pages. Making a new campaign for the new arc helped a ton.

[@facelessvoicesvo]

@@voidtalongaming4637 actually suffering from success

[@icouldntthinkofagoodname.9296]

Owlbear is just so simple. The 80-20 rule basically means that you’ll never use 80% of a website, but I’m a firm believer that you use 100% of Owlbear, and you’ll always understand it. Just find a free map maker, and you will have everything you need.

[@TheDungeonNewbsGuide]

Dear Everyone, I'm incredibly aware that the background music is too loud in this particular video. Not a mistake I am proud of, being that I literally work in audio, but my excuse is I work almost strictly in voice work. Music hard. Also, I am just honestly baffled at how I didn't notice it. But I promise, it is not an issue in the rest of my videos. You can stop commenting. PSST, also, I have an updated video called Best VTTs of 2022 that covers WAY MORE VTTS!

[@Tsequiri]

Fix it and we stop

[@TheDungeonNewbsGuide]

@@Tsequiri Well, on one hand, I don't want to, on account of the external hdd the original files were on crashing and burning, so it would be quite the effort. And in that same hand, comments are great for that dumb KZbin algorithm stuff, so if you keep commenting I guess that's good? Not really anything in the other hand. Shucks.

[@TheDungeonNewbsGuide]

@@TallTaleGael I probably could, yes.

[@kelleren4840]

I honestly didn't even notice it. Fine by me.

[@joeruder]

LOL.... Great comment TBH....got a chuckle out of me. So many other things to get worked up over. But yeah, it is a bit loud, just in case you did not know by now....

[@bendunaway8296]

Dude, this was a truly premium and educational video. You actually made exploring VTT options entertaining. Bet you a hell of a DM.

[@allenqueen]

The content is such high quality. All useful information, some nice jokes here and there, awesome audio and on point visuals. You send other creators' first videos to school.

[@sumdude4281]

Owlbear, hands down. Learn in five mins and play.

[@PVS3]

Agree. I don't understand the obsession with having a VTT replace everything. Players can still have character sheets, dice, etc. You need a shared map... Like you put out on a tabletop... Simple.

[@archaicrome5280]

I'm about to be a first-time DM for friends who are playing for the first time who live thousands of miles away. I agree. My takeaway is the same. Share the map, add the minis. Fog of war is a nice little bonus. And the dice simulator is great. This is the simplest, lowest cost barrier to entry. All I have to do is send them character sheets over email or in a letter and then we're golden.

[@dthaysjr]

Too laggy for me, hard to move tokens.

[@DarkBunnyLord]

@@PVS3 I’d rather have the option to replace whatever I want and decide not to use it than not have the option at all.

[@manofhonor1685]

Does it have dynamic lighting like line of sight?

[@doctorklockwork]

You’re quickly becoming my favorite TTRPG KZbinr. Keep up the good work! Your content is excellent.

[@TheDungeonNewbsGuide]

Thank you! It is much appreciated

[@jemantor1873]

I understand the comments on tabletop simulator it’s very hard to learn at first but I absolutely love it and don’t know of anything that comes close in terms of actually being able to convey the ideas in your campaign to the players effectively and have them actually experience what you want them to experience. It takes a lot of effort from the DM but I think the potential for an amazing, immersive and fun experience is at least 10 fold of anything else out there but everyone is different and wants different things out of a game of D&D and that’s okay 😁

[@hippopilot6750]

This is a really well made video. Good audio, transitions and presentation. Subscribed!

[@ryanschenk2946]

I have probably watched hundreds of hours of DnD content on YT and I can honestly say this is the most helpful and entertaining channel out there! Love the videos, see you at 1M subs! :)

[@daisnowsn2369]

this has excellent production value, and the content is very useful. I can see you becoming big one day.

[@djtigon]

Your audio quality is absolutely PHENOMENAL! Great job!

[@Raistlin7il7nero]

On point. The most comprehensive video for VTT with fog of war functionalities. Foundry was in my top list for some weeks. Time to jump on it.

[@That_Scotsman]

Really high quality video. It's CRIMINAL that you only have 180 subscribers!

[@riverdragon757]

This was INCREDIBLY helpful! Thank you!

[@blueicer101]

Yes, doing like 2 sessions of dnd on tabletop simulator was fun and also took like 5 hours just to get correct tiling to fit in the auto placement. It helped me visualise and stuff and basically is like doing it in real life but cheaper and slower. Things fall over and you know what, the maps can be really good. You just have to learn to use it by using it a lot. I also don't recommend it.

[@losckiplay3846]

I play with table top, and yes, its horrible try to do a dungeon with 3d objects. But if you forget this idea and you only import a floor with tile texture, you could paint the dungeon like in real life. And you could import 3D figurines for heroes and enemies. 3D dices with scripts and a lot of auxiliar tables for help. For me it is the closest experience to playing dungeons and dragons in real life. You can combine it with character managers and campaigns like nivel 20 or an other manager.

[@brotkorb3322]

Nice vid, thanks. Just found your channel and was pretty surprised that you don't have 20k+ subs regarding the quality of the video.

[@Kalarandir]

When I had to make the decision a few years ago on what VTT to use, there really only were 2 to choose from, R20 and FGs. If Foundry had been in the game at the time I may have gone with it, but I went with FGs. This is a decision that I am very glad I made, because although FGs was good, FGU is fantastic and keeps getting better. I like to check out Foundry to see how it is looking, and I hope it does well as a little competition helps push FGU. FGU does not have everything, integrated sound would be nice, but when it introduced the effects and lighting system, which it really needed, I think it became the best. However, it is not cheap, which for me is fine as when I pay more for something, I expect more from it.

[@mtsmeags3583]

Very helpful video!

[@richardpeters3974]

The Shard is a new one that is coming out of beta. It's pretty good for running campaigns. Only 5e Dnd right now.

[@polbulanosalto7403]

great video thank you

[@ZukunftBilden]

0:00 Intro Discusses the growing popularity of tabletop RPGs and the shift to virtual tabletops as a response to the inability to gather in person. 1:50 Owlbear Rodeo Praises Owl Bear Rodeo for its simplicity and ease of use, highlighting its straightforward setup process and basic functionality suitable for beginners. 4:10 Role Commends Role for its focus on video chat, enhancing personal interaction in games. Acknowledges its useful RPG tools like character sheets and maps, albeit with some limitations. 7:12 Tabletop Simulator Notes Tabletop Simulator's impressive 3D models and immersive experience but critiques the complexity of its setup and navigation, which can be overwhelming for both players and DMs. 10:28 Roll20 Highlights Roll20's extensive features and popularity, emphasizing its versatility and free-to-use model. However, mentions issues with video chat reliability, especially with larger groups. 13:28 Foundry VTT Appreciates Foundry VTT for its comprehensive features and modding capabilities, but mentions challenges related to balancing updates with mod compatibility. 17:40 Fantasy Grounds Unity Points out Fantasy Grounds Unity's robust built-in features and stability, but criticizes its pricing model and the additional costs for accessing full functionality. 19:55 Conclusion Concludes by emphasizing the importance of choosing a VTT based on specific game needs and preferences, acknowledging that each platform has its unique strengths and limitations.

[@redd_Jack]

This is great

[@nnt7311]

This channel is so cool, im surprised you don't promote this more on your other channels, also looking sharp sir.

[@8NLD8]

you're not giving tabletop sim justice, at the moment there's a lot of mods that make the experience really smooth and easy, some features: 3d maps and models, scripted sheets, dice roll towers that works wonderfully and add automatically proficencies, auto iniciative rolling and tracking, music and the list goes on and on, I know its been two years since this upload, but for anyone watching, tabletop is one of the best options at the moment O_o

[@VonBriest]

Why is noone reviewing Astral TableTop? It's so underrated and a solid contender! Would love to see it get some recognition.

[@TheDungeonNewbsGuide]

It is definitely on my list and something I plan to look into! I've heard a lot of good things.

[@darkcammo]

Excellent video! A little harsh on TTS, but you're right it has a huge learning curve for the DM. I'm actually using it to run STK right now.

[@TheDungeonNewbsGuide]

Yeah, I did want to make it clear that I still think TTS is fun, but it can be...rough in the beginning. I would love to see some much more complete packs released with it to help it function even better as a vtt for RPGs, especially when it comes to customizing your games and setting things up quickly. Though I suppose with the right combination of workshop stuff and some dedication you can make something pretty darn good.

[@caio56]

@@TheDungeonNewbsGuide there's this Brazilian youtuber called Cellbit who runs multiple campaigns on tts, and it is done masterfully, I mean, he even sets up dynamic lighting, hands down, tts is the best vtt if you have the patience to learn it, and I mean, a LOT of patience

[@amoney1421]

Theres an Arma mod where you can become a "game master" and make scripted events and what not and the players actually control their characters while you as the "GM" fly around using a noclip style cam and you can take control of npc's at will. spawn npcs/enemies in. I would pay top dollar for a fantasy rpg version of a software like that so that you can play through a campaign you came up with with your friends.

[@clo3874]

Sounds like Divinity: Original Sin 2 with Game Master Mode.

[@greyraingames]

I am considering getting a virtual tabletop for a completely custom game system. So I dont need any of the official rules licenses, but I do need something that will allow for a custom rule set. Any recommendations for which would be the best for this? If it helps any, my game is a cooperative dungeon crawler with no GM, and uses a dice pool mechanic rather than a d20. Its something of a cross between the D&D adventure system board games and descent.

[@reddragon7622]

I use Tabletop Simulator and making maps is actually pretty easy. I use Dungeon Painter Studio to make the map and import it onto a 'game board' and boom your done. I got a little chest that where I have like 20 maps for random encounters and I'll make custom ones for the main encounters. I do agree Tabletop has some room for improvement and the flicking mechanic makes it easy to distract players. I think if they made a game that was like Tabletop but optimized it for DnD (and other RPGs) that would be better though.

[@jesse0317]

It's now 2024 and all these VTTs having improved significant. I still use Fantasy Grounds as my main VTT, I took the plunge and am now very versed in using it. For my in person games I use Owl bear rodeo to put maps on the table. Hope everyone rolls 20s and Happy Gaming.

[@lucyl697]

very super duper useful

[@doctorzeek2370]

Would love to see an updated video showing foundry now, is it better, and one comparing tailspire maybe? This is my first video, this comment may be redundant

[@RobertCharlesW]

Please check out Astral tabletop because it has a free service has all the things that you're recommending and it has a paid service also for things that are largely cosmetic. I wish Astral tabletop got more recognition.

[@TheDungeonNewbsGuide]

Astral is definitely on my radar and something I want to include in a future video. Right now I'm just juggling so many other projects and video ideas that I've been putting it off. But I do promise, I will be giving it some attention, especially with how many great recommendations folk have been giving!

[@st34ll]

for me, let's role and Owlbear rodeo

[@jharrell23867]

My first experience with playing virtually was in VRChat on Oculus rift. Later I found a thing on steam that had VR support called tabletop simulator that allowed me to import custom assets and I already had a program called dungeon map maker from steam with a shit ton of assets and I was able to create and import my maps and we started playing that way & it worked beautifully for a while. Our game ended because of OOC drama that was brought to the table between a couple.

[@doctorklockwork]

Quick question: I know someone that’s GMing a PbtA session for a bunch of live streamers. They want some sort of basic visual representation of the world, so there’s something happening on-screen for their viewers to connect with. What would be the best virtual tabletop for this? They’d essentially just need tokens and maps, as PbtA isn’t exactly crunchy. Tabletop Simulator?

[@TheDungeonNewbsGuide]

Tabletop Sim will definitely have a fun visual flair, but can be a little distracting for players (at least that's been my experience). I would say if they are doing a session for live streamers and have facecams and all, Role might be a good way to go. Nice clean webcam interface, simple map sharing with tokens, and the ability to share assets quickly. Or Owlbear if they don't want to use Role's webcam feature. Super easy map and token integration

[@CrimsonScarab]

Hello, I'm new to pathfinder and a few other tabletop/PC originated games. Only played mobiles games of them. I want to get into the game but I don't have anyone in my area to play it with. Is there a discord or something I can join and get beginners tips, guides and atleast some sort of pen and paper game going?

[@UnbeltedSundew]

I would always be flipping the table at the slightest excuse.

[@wakjagner]

Do any of these automate roll/damage? My group were always trying to get that in Roll20 but the inability for APIs to pass back made that always a bit janky.

[@TheDungeonNewbsGuide]

In Foundry I've found and used a mod where, the moment you click on the weapon you want to attack with, it automatically rolls attack and damage, though the DM will still have to manually apply that damage to the token (which is as easy as having that token selected, then right clicking the damage value in the chat, and hitting Apply Damage). That is about as automated as I've seen thus far, but the modders are always finding more and more elaborate ways to make Foundry better. Honestly, even without modding, Foundry makes that stuff a lot easier, as most weapons, spells, and abilities, when clicked, put a prompt in the chat with a button to click for attack roll, damage roll, and save rolls for others to click when required. I believe Fantasy Grounds also does a lot of that, but my familiarity with it is a little lacking. Honestly, my including it in this video was probably a mistake. Hope that helps!

[@RobMakowski]

FGU automates basically everything. Target a creature with an attack roll, it automatically calculates if the strike hits or not. Damage, same thing. Adds in any modifiers, e.g. Crit, sneak attack, and any resistances that the attacked creature might have. I've been running a 5e campaign out of FGU for a few months now, having played for years on Roll20, and it's just better.

[@Caleb_Plehn]

Fantasy Grounds calculates saves, resistances and vulnerabilities, crits, advantage, and so on, all through minimum clicks, based on the game system you're playing. You can target creatures on the map, itll show who you're targeting, and then it will individually check each affected creature's stats to determine how the attack hits them, including IF the attack hits them (I.e. when casting fireball on a group of enemies, you select all enemies that will be caught in the blast, and it will automatically roll all the enemies' dexterity saves, then adjust their taken damage based on if they made the save or not, without any input from the players or dm) The DM determines in the settings if that automation works for monsters too, or if players get to manually make their saves. If you consider this option, know that you don't need to buy the source books. You could manually input all the stuff you plan to use. Systems that have a free version (such as the 5e SRD) allow you to access the basic system free of charge. You just wont have all the monster art and statblocks automatically available.

[@willm59]

At 0:52 seconds in, we see a screen with a video of the actual game board along with the video of the players. That plus a built in dice roller is what I want. What system does that? I didn't see that on any of the systems on this video?

[@Caleb_Plehn]

That is a stream of Matthew Colville's 5e game (the Chain of Acheron) from last year. They spent a bunch of money on cameras and equipment to stream the game on Twitch. The players are still all in person. That said, you could achieve this if you have a second computer, and just use discord to run a video chat, pointing your extra computer's camera at the game board. Quality will vary. There are bots you can install for discord that let you roll dice using commands. That said, the reason so many people use the VTTs instead of the above mentioned option is because it is very challenging to get the video stream of the table to look good, and because it is a static video feed, players can't interact with it. VTTs, meanwhile, allow players to really zoom in on their own, and get a clear picture of what's going on. They can then move their tokens, instead of asking you to do it as the GM. I tried the physical board for awhile, but we ended up switching to VTTs for our online games. Hope this helps.

[@zdron07]

So funny enough table topbsim is great for old fashion mega dungeon games due to turning on the snap to grid function and the base games floor and wall dungeon tiles snaping easy together like working with legos.

[@beason13]

What's you opinion of Astral Tabletop compared to roll20 and foundry?

[@TheDungeonNewbsGuide]

Literally just heard about this one a few days ago and have been looking into it a little. From what I can tell, I think there are a LOT of quality of life things that Astral does that Roll20/Foundry don't, like with tracking npcs, bringing in quick enemies, stuff like that. It doesn't appear to have video chat yet, which I would really miss, but honestly, I can use discord if I need to. I would want to spend some real time with it, seeing how smoothly it all works, but I feel pretty safe in saying that it would definitely give Roll20 a run for its money. Compared to the very basic version of foundry, it is hard to say, but the mods for Foundry give it a leg up...you know, when they are actually working. Overall, I really like the look of it. This is absolutely one I would recommend.

[@beason13]

@@TheDungeonNewbsGuide I only just found out about Astral and Owlbear a few days ago as well and trying to decide which I want to learn to utilize more. Probably will be Owlbear for simple things and Astral if I decide to learn it's depths.

[@igromad]

Foundry really seems to be the best one, but Astral is free, so...

[@beason13]

@@igromad yeah, cost is a factor for me. I don't mind paying into a VTT once I find one I like, cause I want to support the program so I can use it. But I want to test it first, right now Astral is most tempting to me because I could easily switch systems since they already have character sheet support (never really liked the roll20 sheets). I would prefer if they had a one time payment option if I do decide to support vs a subscription

[@bradeinarsen]

How does no one know about MapTool? I feel like I'm in an alternate universe where only I (and maybe the devs) know about this awesome VTT.

[@TheDungeonNewbsGuide]

I'll be honest, I had completely forgotten about MapTool! I remember trying to get some fiends to use it yeeeaaars ago...criminy, no joke I wanna say 2014 or 2015 because of where I was living. Unfortunately, at least at the time, friends weren't interested in learning it, and we ended up sticking with Skype and theater of the mind. I am shocked to hear it is still around after all this time. I'd be interested to see just what they've improved and how it looks after all this time. Thanks for the reminder!

[@bradeinarsen]

@@TheDungeonNewbsGuide Definitely check it out. If the GM knows how to control it then the users don't really have to learn much and its had line of sight forever!

[@bradeinarsen]

@@TheDungeonNewbsGuide I'd happily set up a 30-minute zoom to show how I use it (i'm not a power user by any stretch). It's pretty good.

[@nightdew4934]

Agreed. It's insane that you're the only one mentioning it. It might not be the most pretty or user friendly, but it's been around for a long time, lets you do pretty much anything and is completely free.

[@genkibob]

Came here to say this. It has a lot of excellent features including fog of war. But it has a bit of a learning curve if you plan to run it online using port forwarding and such. I just use MT for in person VTT connecting my laptop to our flat screen gaming table.

[@ZealZaddy]

I’d love to see Shard Tabletop looked at too.

[@theeight-roadwanderer6286]

Foundry has gotta be the best. It's a one time purchase and has everything you could possibly want. Got can use as many or as little of the features as you want

[@BarneyWobba]

I think Menyr is looking to be amazing.

[@Houndouur]

heyyy, tabletop sims not that bad. lol. ig for my use case it's a lot better since i only really ever draw/use static pngs for my maps, and there's pretty much no additional setup that other VTTs have for that. (also being able to play jenga when the party splits is priceless)

[@CasparFalkenstein]

Foundry is really great to play at.

[@IanPanth]

Have you looked at Above VTT? I’d be interested in your opinion.

[@TheDungeonNewbsGuide]

I have! I even have a video that focuses specifically on it! Though it's a little outdated with all of the updates they've released. Still, probably my favorite way to play D&D these days!

[@IanPanth]

@@TheDungeonNewbsGuide Thanks for the response. I found your video later that day when I subscribed to your channel. My only issue with Above VTT is not an issue with Above VTT but with Chrome. For some reason, digital dice rolls on Chrome are slow like 30s to a minute to complete a roll. This is not the case on any other engine ie Safari, bing, Firefox.

[@Einrich]

My use case is this. Players are all physically together. We have paper, dices, belgium beers, chips, books and pens. What I am missing is a D&D map assistant for me as a DM that started in 1982. My young players are not keen on drawing maps based on descriptions. I don´t want them on their laptops or phones because the purpose of D&D is to get them OFF the virtual digitalized world... Hence I want a tool which I DM manage to deliver the map and eventually give me access to rules and stats. Not something that 4 or 5 players need to log into. Any advice? For now I am using a printer...

[@xeroe21]

i f'in love tabletop simulator. yes yo basically need a phd in it as a dm but i know of no other vtt to date that is able to catch the "sitting at a table with friends playing a game" even close to the level that it provides. also must have mod is the oneworld addon which takes over a loot of the map building for you.

[@andreasell1830]

How work foundry on Tablet ? What are the best for tablet ?

[@TheDungeonNewbsGuide]

That is such a good question, and something I am putting on my list for my next VTT roundup! Didn't even think of including that info, but dang is it important. Foundry works on a tablet...sort of. You can access it, open character sheets, click on rolls and stuff, but some functionality (moving the map and token) doesn't seem to work on all devices. Not great. Role works surprisingly well on a tablet for rolls and video chat, buuut last I tried, you couldn't move anything around on the map. (a running theme, it would appear) Owlbear.rodeo is actually the most function, because you can totally use the map on a tablet, roll the dice, everything.

[@andreasell1830]

@@TheDungeonNewbsGuide thanks and yes, i used One old telephone with 4g line and yes owlbear rodeo work very, very well :) thanks for this help. The only problem with owlbear is for the charachter sheet. Do you now another site/app for the charachter sheet ? The only motivation most people use roll20, for manage sheet free(payment is still better foundry)

[@MatRuizH]

For us players in latino america, FGU is in steam and that means regional prices, leaving foundry at the equivalent of 20 dolars (yeah the ultimate license) but i really dont like how FGU takes agency from the DM and still increases prep time in comparison to others such as roll20

[@BryonAutry]

Only thing keeping me from using Foundry instead of Roll20 is lack of support/character sheet for the Storypath games Scion (2nd Edition) and Trinity Continuum. Otherwise, it looks nice. Roll20 just has more games compatible at this point. Looking forward to a hopeful future where that is no longer a barrier.

[@TheDungeonNewbsGuide]

Yeah, a lot of that is so dependent on user created mods, many of which don't even seem to get listed in the Foundry search. I know for Chronicles of Darkness I had to go searching the internet to find the system for Foundry, and it isn't even complete. So I would like to imagine one day user generated content will fill all those gaps, but who is to say, sadly.

[@BryonAutry]

@@TheDungeonNewbsGuide Yeah, the only WoD/CoD sheet I found readily available was Vampire The Masquerade 5th Edition, which I like, but sometimes I just wanna play Chronicles Of Darkness instead. I hope more systems become compatible in the future, cause it looks great!

[@jamouradian]

Great content! Suggest you turn the background tracks down significantly, or off all together.

[@TheDungeonNewbsGuide]

Yeah, I edited this video just using some garbage speakers instead of my studio headphones (for what reason, I couldn't begin to tell you). Once I released it I realized how loud the music was. Thankfully I feel like I got the balance gets better with each video I've released.

[@jamouradian]

@@TheDungeonNewbsGuide watched more vids. keep up the good work man!

[@theshadowcult]

I know this vid is old now, but would have been nice to see shard, table spire and tarrasque in there. Is a great video though.

[@TheDungeonNewbsGuide]

I do actually have a video on talespire, and the other two are on my list to check out. I love showing off VTTs for folks, they just take time to get familiar enough with

[@theshadowcult]

@@TheDungeonNewbsGuide I've watched your tale spire one now, looking forward to the other two! Also learned about Fari too, so thanks for that!

[@slikshot6]

yea now im curious about foundry

[@TheDungeonNewbsGuide]

It's pretty wonderful, despite the growing pains. I'm actually planning on doing a "How to use Foundry" video soon!

[@pandoraeeris7860]

I'm looking at using Foundry + Dungeon Alchemist.

[@TheDungeonNewbsGuide]

O_O I had no idea that Dungeon Alchemist was out for early access purchase until reading this comment. How the hell did I sleep on that!? You may have just made my day. Thank you!

[@DarrenMalin]

I have fantasy ground Ultimate. I use it to run advanced fighting fantasy with my sons, a great buy :)

[@HoRiOnS]

Foundry VTT is just the best, and I run my Foundry server on a 50$ credit card size mini computer (Raspberry PI 4).

[@StonehillTroll]

Agree with Tabletop simulator, as a long time DM it's definitely annoying and bugging when interfacing with the 3D models and weak GUI. Fantasy Ground is too expensive for all the features and some users don't like the UI. Roll20 is our backup app, but once our group goes over 6 players, we have a habit of restarting the session every 2-3 hours to avoid surprise freezing and the app kicking people out. We found that Epictable is our mainline 2D VTT to use. We have started using Talespire (3D VTT) and we are loving it, and even with 6 players the app is very stable even past 6-8 hours of continuous use.

[@Shad0wchasers1]

I tend to run games like Torg Eternity or Savage Worlds, which require decks of cards. From what I can see, most VTTs do a pretty bad job of handling cards, particularly special decks you have to create or import yourself. I have been able to make my own decks easily enough with Tabletop Simulator, but one of my players has problems with the game constantly crashing on him, so we've moved to Roll20. Is there another VTT that handles special decks of cards better than Roll20?

[@TheDungeonNewbsGuide]

Sadly, not in my experience. There is at least 1 playing card Mod for Foundry that I grabbed once, but I would describe it as...just ok. At least a few months back when I tried it out. If you don't mind dealing with an extra window, playingcards.io is a browser-based card table, and allows for a huge amount of customization, card flipping, card angling, hiding players hands, all that jazz. It is weirdly robust for a free browser program. But of course, if you are using Roll20 or anything for maps, then you're dealing with another window, and frankly the fewer windows the better... I'll come back and comment or post a video when I find a good one, I can promise you that!

[@Shad0wchasers1]

@@TheDungeonNewbsGuide I'll check PlayingCards.io out! Honestly, the card handling is why I keep coming back to Tabletop Simulator as my go-to, because games like Torg Eternity and Savage Worlds just aren't the same without robust card-handling tools. As buggy and quirky as TTS is, it's the only tabletop I've found that actually gives me the tools I need to run the games I play.

[@MikuSoda]

Hey thank you so much, this video convinced me to start a campaign with friends through discord and we can all try it out and learn together And we are all newbies so what if we wont remember something or whatever, we are all learning together lol😅

[@Ryoshi29]

8:50 use grid + snap to grid, be happy.

[@davidgreen8504]

MapTools!

[@TheDungeonNewbsGuide]

MapTools (and the frankly even more useful TokenTools) will be getting a section in my upcoming 2022 VTT Rundown videos that I'm currently working on! Can't believe I forgot one of (if not THE) original vtt!

[@endnami]

With FG you can code the games in and you have the game nice and stable

[@chazzitz-wh4ly]

I have Foundry and I love the robustness, but that learning curve is pretty egregious and only get’s harder when you have kids and no time to prep as much.

[@TheDungeonNewbsGuide]

Yeah, it is definitely a lot of work to learn and can be a good bit of prep. It's nice if you prep the vast majority of the materials you'll need for a whole campaign, because then it's just a bunch of work beforehand, and then smoother sailing during; however that's asking a lot. Honestly, I've started to stray from it a bit recently just to make life easier on myself, though I still love it for certain games.

[@juice2090]

Very well done! You deserve more subs. Just got one more! Some (subjective) feedback: the music at the start does not connect with the subject material at all (imho). I found it annoyed me and got in the way of your narrative, which I was enjoying. Also it reminded me of old school PSX menu music :D

[@TheDungeonNewbsGuide]

Thanks much! And yeah, the music I used as the intro here (and in the episode I just did about house rules) has a tone that I've been realizing doesn't exactly go with the feel of my videos. I need to experiment with that more and find something a little more...me.

[@juice2090]

@@TheDungeonNewbsGuide considering the size of your channel I figured you’ve “just started out” so that makes perfect sense. Considering the overall production value and quality of presentation I have no doubt you’ll figure it out sooner rather than later. Edit: will you be putting up DnD sessions? I think people would enjoy watching/hearing you DM. You have a good voice for it.

[@TheDungeonNewbsGuide]

@@juice2090 I have a good deal of experience with video editing and audio production (my main job is actual voice work) but if there is one area I've always struggled with it is music. As far as putting up DnD sessions, I am certainly kicking around some ideas to put up stuff like that, and stream it as well. However, I want to make sure I do it right, and in a way that everyone will enjoy. I live streamed some DnD games a few years ago for Loot Crate on their twitch channel, back when I helped head that up. They were [relatively] popular streams, but my players were...kind of all over the place, I was too focused on keeping things on track, and overall I didn't enjoy the end product. So as much as I do want to try again, I want to make sure I do it right, and with the right people.

[@vampiregoat69]

Foundry is $50 and ONLY SRD books so if you want more you have to do it manually roll20 buy the books and you have them for life. Foundry has a STEEP learning curve

[@TheDungeonNewbsGuide]

That's totally fair. I would say that is wasn't too steep to learn. After years of Roll20 I managed to learn Foundry pretty quickly, though I suppose someone who doesn't know either might have a harder time. You are right about just SRDs, but the community support and modability really make it a winner for me personally. It was definitely a much bigger initial investment of my time though, but I like the increased functionality. Still, I think either option is great!

[@Demosthenes84]

Shine on you CRAZY diamond is a pink floyd lyric

[@whorobbedme]

you should check out Astral Tabletop its by far the best vtt out there

[@SynthGirl64]

hey man there's grid snapping for tabletop sim, and you don't have to use workshop presets, you can just import custom pieces and set it up however you desire, I think you're making things harder than they need to be

[@trousle4719]

great video just think the music is a bit loud and makes it a little hard to hear your voice

[@TheDungeonNewbsGuide]

Yeah, I cannot for the life of me figure out how I didn't notice that. Thankfully, I feel I've mostly corrected this in my later videos.

[@danielstohr6391]

YOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! THANK YOU 💖!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[@alternativezen]

I'm looking starting a solo campaign and want to possibly record for sharing. VTT might be a way to go for the visuals as opposed to having the camera solely on me. After watching this vid, I've come to the conclusion that Foundry might be the best option. Thank you for your help, sir!

[@paulinthe6194]

I played Roll20 for years but wasn’t happy with the overall experience. It took me hours to set things up. Plus if your weren’t computer savvy like me. There was so many technical issues like glitchy controls and things not working the way I wanted. I finally gave up and went to running games on Discord in conjunction with D&D Beyond. So much better as I was playing D&D they way it was meant to be played. The theater of the mind. Something VTT took away from me.

[@Bonewalker1127]

tip to D&D on TTS. keep it simple keep it fun. xD

[@hashemx1ify]

try table plop, its like owlbear rodeo turned up a notch

[@rjmckay2843]

Perhaps an update with Shard Tabletop added =)

[@TheDungeonNewbsGuide]

Actually just finished scripting my 2022 VTT Rundown video TODAY, and Shard is indeed on there...along with 20 others lol! Look for it soon (within the next week is what I'm aiming for)

[@matthewboyd8689]

I would like to play something like D&D with a story based on the Sci Fi story of Call of Duty Zombies

[@Grayald]

My group has been looking to get away from roll20 for a while. Feels and looks like it was made in 2005 or something, doesn't seem to get updated regularly in any appreciable way. Among other reasons. I've been torn between trying out Foundry, and just blowing out my wallet and going full in on FGU. There was also Astral, which looks pretty slick and felt good, kind of like a not shitty version of roll20, but unfortunately it kept crashing for me. Also I've been keeping an eye on another one called Talespire which has a lot of potential and smashed its funding goal.

[@TheDungeonNewbsGuide]

I actually have a video looking at TaleSpire, and I'll say it is visually awesome, but really lite on features right now. Still, for some stuff I really love it. Astral is one I plan on looking at soon, but couldn't say much about. Foundry is the one I've invested the most in just because I can modify it and I have mods that allow me to import my stuff from D&D Beyond, which is great because even if I stop using it (which I might for some gmaes) then I still have all my books on D&D Beyond. If I buy them on FGU, then it isn't so easy to take those resources elsewhere. Also did a recent video on AboveVTT, which is totally free and basically an overlay/integration with DNDBeyond. Doesn't do as much stuff yet, but I recommend giving it a look, as the devs are adding more at a pretty rapid pace.

[@jrg305]

I've been playing on fantasy grounds. So far neither DM knew how to fully operate it, and it felt a little clunky to me as a player with having to resize everything. But after 2 sessions I'm getting it.

[@underrated_fishy756]

2:11 what if I don't have "friends"

[@rnrgaming4579]

as for table top simulator. I know this video is very old by this point but it has evolved by leaps and bounds with ONE World. Truly phenomenal mod that imo in 2023 makes tabletop sim the best out of all the contenders

[@extremeplayer2371]

astral?

[@TheDungeonNewbsGuide]

Definitely one I'm looking into. I've constantly got about 4 or 5 plates in the air for video ideas, and taking a look at Astral is definitely one of those plates! It just keeps getting put off because I keep doing way more complicated videos that eat up all my time, but I promise it is coming

[@christophkiekhofer5734]

Kingdom Death Monsters is for free on tabletop Simulator. You save a lot of Money, If you just want to test a Game before buying it.

[@Kibbe_Surdo]

I know TTS has a big learning curve but it looks good and is mod friendly when you master it you can really get lots of fun and that's just the tip of the ice berg you can pretty much never have to buy anything thanks to mods, you will never get harassed to become premium there is no premium just free mods, I think you were a bit unfair describing it. I would totally have a long running campaign because I got used to the system and like it although your right they could have made it easier to learn and master but if you give it time it outmatches most of the others you described in the video

[@TheDungeonNewbsGuide]

Having used it a lot in the past, it definitely has its benefits. The simulated feel of the tabletop and the mods are good. Buuut compared with the detailed functionality of the others, especially when it comes to the mass of mods on Foundry, I wouldn't say they quite compare for me. I'll admit I was a bit unfair to TTS in this video, which something I'm working to correct in the 2022 VTT Rundown video I'm currently working on. However, I still personally find that it really does fall short in a number of areas, depending on the game I'm running. TTS it solid for some games (especially D&D with all the community support for that system), but for a lot of other games (Ironsworn, Sentinel Comics, various PbtA games, etc) there just isn't any comparison. The sheer volume of things I can automate and accomplish with Foundry, or even Roll 20, compared to TTS is like night and day. Again, TTS isn't bad, and I do want to show it more love in my updated VTT video for sure! The time I've spent really digging into it has shown me there is more to it than when I used it years ago. But aside from the fun-factor of feeling the most like a tabletop you're sharing with friends, it falls short, and for the simple, streamlines options like Owlbear, it is just too much of a learning curve for what those folks would want. Sorry for the text-wall response, but I really did appreciate our perspective and wanted to give it the attention it deserves!

[@silentone2451]

I use tts because it's fun. Also my party is 6 people. And not that chaotic. Except the rouge.

[@TheDungeonNewbsGuide]

I cannot deny the fun of TTS, it's true! Many a laughing fit started with friends back when we used it.

[@silentone2451]

@@TheDungeonNewbsGuide update. I switched to roll20. Also I lost the rogue

[@TheSeventhChild]

Fuckabout Land

[@cronaman3196]

ive never seen it been done effectively wich is weird but I do it on mineacraft wich sounds like a pain unless you donwload a mod called world edit wich makes building a breeze. my players and I all prefer a nice battle map over anything else we can do rolling and taking notes off screen, it doesnt bother us. we prefer good tolkens as well wich is what mineacraft lacks but you can make with what you have and use mods to fill in some of the gaps. and its super un nessisary but there are cleaver ways to incorporate red stone in boss fights or to make more literally anywhere else to make more immersive. We talk on discord and for music we use spotify's group feature wich and i have a playlist i can play for them on there.

[@schemage2210]

No wrong VTT, lol, as someone who DM'd for years in Roll20 then left because Roll20, I can attest that the grass is way greenier and happy elsewhere. Foundry in my case and I will never stop praising it. Roll20 was the first and greatest VTT, but it's like that old hotwired rusted station wagon that use to be the king of the show room floor but now just needs to be put out of its misery. Foundry is just better in every sense, and you shouldn't have any problems as long as you go easy on the mods. Less is more with mods. Remember this and you will be fine.

[@TheDungeonNewbsGuide]

Solid advice. Foundry is my go-to as well, though I could stand to listen to your "go easy on the mods" advice... I get a little...carried away...

[@hectorcornejo1468]

​@@TheDungeonNewbsGuide So did I, but nowadays it seems that some foundry mods are getting absorbed into the main system....which is a great improvement. I also bought Fantasy Grounds when it was on sale on Steam but just never liked the format. Found Foundry and frankly cant understand why people are still on Roll20 lol

[@GarredHATES]

TaleSpire is gonna shit on all of these

[@TheDungeonNewbsGuide]

I'm extremely excited for TaleSpire and really hope it lives up to expectations. My biggest concern is usability and ease of creating and running games with it, but sadly I haven't had a chance to really check out enough about it. It certainly looks like it is going to be taking things to another level, and I guarantee I'll be covering it in depth when it releases!

[@digitalspecter]

No it's not. Making stuff 3D looks great for marketing but asset creation will take much longer and most people don't even have skills for it. It also makes modding harder (ever tried scripting something like tabletop simulator?). Foundry uses Javascript with built-in developer tools which makes testing and debugging so much easier than the Lua-based system Talespire uses.. and the final nail is no cross-platform support. Talespire looks cool and some people are going to have fun with it but it's very unlikely to ever match Foundry with the breadth and depth of the systems support.

[@lyrajenkins5855]

I started dming on tts it was not functional

[@TheDungeonNewbsGuide]

I absolutely get that. When I used it I had a lot of struggled, as did my players. It is fun in a certain way, and helps replicate that tabletop feel...but it lacks a lot that others provide. So I'm with ya.

[@thefallenonelucifer6]

I like roll 20 but there is so much wrong with it and trying to make your own map that works with the parameters that d20 uses is hard on the best of times especially if you don't have some of these pay for programs I've tried a lot of free maps and if you tried doing a grid over it so that everything locks into place when you move it the grits never line up and if you want anything specifically made for it you have to spend money oh and if you already have the hardback book of it what you want the monsters that come in the book like example the monster manual you have to rebuy the book for $60 in roll20 just so that you have tokens with all the info on it or you can make your own tokens and have to sit there and do math and keep track of everything and ask somebody who went from tabletop simulator D&D (dungeon master) to roll 20 dungeon master if you're new to the program and you don't have somebody that can tell you it's a little confusing and overwhelming when you start and you have like 80 tabs of options you can do but then again every system has pros and cons

[@ganjapanda25]

if only you had AboveVTT on this list

[@TheDungeonNewbsGuide]

To be fair, I released this before Above was really all that known...aaaand do I have a video that focuses completely on Above VTT ;) Plus I'm working on my 2022 VTT rundown, which features a LOT more vtts!

[@ganjapanda25]

@@TheDungeonNewbsGuide i just watched that above VTT vid! honestly these are probably the best guides available in my opinion please keep this stuff coming

[@ZirroTerrito]

RIP Astral

[@TheDungeonNewbsGuide]

Yep, I'm in the middle of editing my 2022 VTT video and had to edit Astral out. Unfortunate news

[@weepy9622]

Is this video still accurate?

[@TheDungeonNewbsGuide]

There is a more up to date vtt rundown on my channel now

[@weepy9622]

@@TheDungeonNewbsGuide thanks yo

[@noshow]

Good video and helpful! but wow that music was too loud and pretty annoying.

[@D0Nmega666]

Fantasy grounds is the best by far. I have played in games and DMed in roll20, foundry and fantasy grounds. Nothing compares to the ease of use of fantasy grounds. It's cheaper than Foundry and you don't have to rent a server or pay for Patreon to easily make a character