I've been kicking around OTUs, myTUs, and every sort of TU-ish environments since 1981. I once had a pretty good server/client app (for the time, iPC, iGM) that could support scripting, had a way to make deckplans, and did visibility, included whispers to single players or multiple, and I think (long time now) it had audio support. I've always bent and modified rules, rewritten/created new careers, using varying damage mechanics over the years, etc.
My main needs from a VTT are:
- ability to share a map with players and be able to reveal it bit-by-bit to players (if that means I have to markup images to show walls, doors, etc, that's okay)
- grid and/or measuring tools
- ability to use tokens and import new ones
- ability to provide customized character sheet (I'll code it in HTML5 if that's necessary or learn a tagging system if I must)
- chat with the ability to talk to individuals, group, or all
- way to export chats (individual, group, all)
- should not require a monthly payment (I don't play very regularly, or I do for short times, then won't for six months or more, then back again... I'd not want to pay for the times I wasn't playing often and I don't want to have to re-create any work that I do every time if I had to 'enable' an account then let it die, then 'enable' a new one)
- I'm okay with hosting a server app if necessary
- I'm okay with paying a one time fee for the tool
Nice to haves:
- lock movement of tokens (GM only move)
- ability to program scripts to roll checks, etc. and other scripting would be useful too
- file transfer if it doesn't interfere with the apps (I can throw up my own Http file server)
- It wouldn't hurt to have a place I can track my NPC's states for combat
- I would love some of the really nice visuals I have seen from some of the games, but if they won't easily accomodate my homebrew rules, careers, etc. and even sometimes slight variations on the die conventions, it won't work for me... so unless there was some fairly complete scripting (that didn't require me building a massive DOM tree to define what a character sheet should look like... I tried that one one site for some minor variations from standard D&D and it was beyond horrific and I program for a living)
Don't need:
- audio - Discord, Skype, Google Meets, you name it already do that
What will not work at all:
- Very tight integration with a particular ruleset that thinks it knows how I want to build/represent characters, decides how combat works, etc.
Thoughts on candidates?
MapTool was something I used at one point which may be good enough I suppose.
Foundry and FGU looked good, but they seemed likely to be very tightly bound to rulesets in a great deal of ways....? Or not? (I don't really know just guessing)
My main needs from a VTT are:
- ability to share a map with players and be able to reveal it bit-by-bit to players (if that means I have to markup images to show walls, doors, etc, that's okay)
- grid and/or measuring tools
- ability to use tokens and import new ones
- ability to provide customized character sheet (I'll code it in HTML5 if that's necessary or learn a tagging system if I must)
- chat with the ability to talk to individuals, group, or all
- way to export chats (individual, group, all)
- should not require a monthly payment (I don't play very regularly, or I do for short times, then won't for six months or more, then back again... I'd not want to pay for the times I wasn't playing often and I don't want to have to re-create any work that I do every time if I had to 'enable' an account then let it die, then 'enable' a new one)
- I'm okay with hosting a server app if necessary
- I'm okay with paying a one time fee for the tool
Nice to haves:
- lock movement of tokens (GM only move)
- ability to program scripts to roll checks, etc. and other scripting would be useful too
- file transfer if it doesn't interfere with the apps (I can throw up my own Http file server)
- It wouldn't hurt to have a place I can track my NPC's states for combat
- I would love some of the really nice visuals I have seen from some of the games, but if they won't easily accomodate my homebrew rules, careers, etc. and even sometimes slight variations on the die conventions, it won't work for me... so unless there was some fairly complete scripting (that didn't require me building a massive DOM tree to define what a character sheet should look like... I tried that one one site for some minor variations from standard D&D and it was beyond horrific and I program for a living)
Don't need:
- audio - Discord, Skype, Google Meets, you name it already do that
What will not work at all:
- Very tight integration with a particular ruleset that thinks it knows how I want to build/represent characters, decides how combat works, etc.
Thoughts on candidates?
MapTool was something I used at one point which may be good enough I suppose.
Foundry and FGU looked good, but they seemed likely to be very tightly bound to rulesets in a great deal of ways....? Or not? (I don't really know just guessing)