Looking for the best/cheapest tools to build out a character with the most possible source material

[A Murder of Crows]

interesting. It is unfortunate that one would have to pay out $90ish to get all the options to view for character building, especially for a 1 month campaign.

i was definitely spoiled by 4e.

 

[A Murder of Crows]

On a related note, it seems obvious that i need to shell out for some decent tools to get what i want, and there isn't much of a point in not actually investing.

Roll20
D&D Beyond
Hero Lab
Fantasy Grounds

Can any of you more experienced players help me with some baseline comparisons between these tools and their benefits/drawbacks?

 

[Paul Farquhar]

You don't need to shell out anything to get the basic rules, races, and classes, and the game functions perfectly well with those.

 

[Ashrym]

Tell us what character you want and people can help you from that starting point. Right now advice is a shot in the dark because that information has not been shared.

 

[ArwensDaughter]

It really depends on what you want to do with the tools. Are you going to only be a player or also a DM? Do you plan to play via VTTs (virtual Table Tops)? Do you want primarily a character builder or do you need other tools. What kind of tools?

If you need a VTT, then you need to go with Fantasy Grounds or Roll 20, at least to a point. I've not used either (although I do have a free Roll 20 account). I've heard that the character tools on both are limited/frustrating to use. Only Roll 20 appears to have a free option that would let you try out the tools.


Hero Lab only has the SRD for 5e, and you have to pay for that, where as the SRD is free on DDB (DnD Beyond). I don't know if you have to pay for SRD on Roll20 or Fantasy Grounds.

Many of Roll 20's versions of the official 5e books are more expensive than their DDB or Fantasy Grounds counterparts.

DnD Beyond (aka DDB) has the following features:
-character builder
-ability homebrew all character options except full classes (subclasses are homebrewable)
-compendiums: online versions of the books, with built-in hyperlinks.
-filterable listings of spells, monsters, and magic items. (Want to see all the 3rd level abjuration spells for wizards, all the undead with CR between 2 and 5?, a magic weapon that deals cold damage? The listings are a great tool)
-DDB is the only service that lets you buy things piecemeal instead of forcing you to buy entire books. For example, I have the entire PHB on DDB, but then I started buying piecemeal: the Tabaxi race, the Storm sorcerer, etc.

DDB does not provide a VTT, and it's campaign management tools are very limited currently.

There are folks who use both DDB and Roll 20 or Fantasy Grounds. A Roll 20 user has created an import tool to import characters from DDB into Roll 20. Maps from DDB can be imported at into Roll 20, maybe also into Fantasy Grounds.

Obviously, I'm a DDB fan. It does what I need and does it well. But, I don't need VTT tools. Both DDB and Roll20 have options that let you work with the tools for free. I'd encourage you to do that to see if they provide the features you want. If DDB is in the running for you, you might find the buyer's guide I wrote helpful as you ponder what you need.

 

[Jester David]

interesting. It is unfortunate that one would have to pay out $90ish to get all the options to view for character building, especially for a 1 month campaign.

i was definitely spoiled by 4e.

Everyone was spoiled by 4e. Which was the problem. The publisher assumed every player would buy the books and pay $15 each month for the content. Instead, one person at the table payed $15 every 1-6 months and half as many people bought the books.

D&D Beyond will do you in a pinch. You have most of the races and all of the classes, with one subclass each. That's a LOT of content and options. More than enough for 1 month.
If you need more, you can get the feats for a couple bucks. Which, in total, is a lot less than an Insider subscription would run you. Heck, even buying the feats and a couple subclasses will be less.

If you want to poke through options and ideas, try the Optimisation boards that could tell you the best options.
Or look at the local libraries, and see if they have any D&D books to loan out.

 

[Satyrn]

interesting. It is unfortunate that one would have to pay out $90ish to get all the options to view for character building, especially for a 1 month campaign.

i was definitely spoiled by 4e.

If you're building characters, $30 on D&DBeyond gets you everything in the Players Handbook. That should be more than enough stuff for a 1 month game.

And if you haven't bought the book, this purchase means you won't ever need to because you'd have bought the digital version.

 

[Mistwell]

I personally use 5etools.com I don't think it's missing anything.

I think that's illegal. I don't think they bought a license from WOTC for most of that material.

 

[Mistwell]

On a related note, it seems obvious that i need to shell out for some decent tools to get what i want, and there isn't much of a point in not actually investing.

Roll20
D&D Beyond
Hero Lab
Fantasy Grounds

Can any of you more experienced players help me with some baseline comparisons between these tools and their benefits/drawbacks?

Nothing will beat D&D Beyond as an actual character generator. All the others assume you already know what you want, and are there just to create the character to use in an online game you're already in. It's not that they can't do what you want - it's that they're not really built with pure browsing options in mind. D&D Beyond is built to browse and build, like the 4e one was. And the best way to access it is as a group - with one person subscribing to "everything" and sharing it out (which is legal - it comes with licenses for the players to use) with all the players to use, and all of you contributing to the subscription fee to make it affordable.

 

[A Murder of Crows]

Mahalo

I played a genasi storm sorc in 4e. i'm trying to get as close to that character as possible, but also looking at other possible options such as a sorlock.