...continued...
Anyways, I learned virtual tabletop (VTT) on Kloogewerks and playing those "less than satisfying" chat + dicebot games over on the WotC chatrooms, but I am too cheap to buy a license, so freesoftiware Maptools was the way to go.
When I prep for my regular tabletop game, I usually maptool a scenario too. (recap)_That means I scan or create the maps for the encounters and create the tokens for the NPC/monsters. All put together, they form a scenario just like regular D&D tabletop.
It seems to work very well with 4e, which has very mapped/structured combat encounters. I've done a couple of the DUNGEON adventures that way since the digital maps are easy to upload to maptools.
There's also quite a lot of Living Forgotten Realms gaming going on there too and the virtual conventions are growing by leaps and bounds because of these programs.
For players or DM's who live outside of civilization, this is the way to go if you still want to play "tabletop" with other players.
MMO's of course are different, in that some company runs the scenarios. With VTT, you're still playing with your friends..with whatever game system you want to play.
Anyone else care to share their experiences with VTT, such as Maptool, Fantasy Grounds, Battlegrounds, Kloogewerks, etc?
jh
