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General Tabletop Discussion
*Pathfinder & Starfinder
Wooden Table vs Virtual Table
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<blockquote data-quote="Saagael" data-source="post: 5857783" data-attributes="member: 84839"><p>I'm in the same group as OnlineDM. I've used maptools to run my campaign for over 3 years, and there some flaws, but mostly its great. A short list of the pros and cons.</p><p></p><p>Pros</p><p></p><p>* Immersion is generally better. I can draw up detailed maps with photo-realistic graphics, create NPC tokens with whatever image I want, and talk through those NPCs. I don't say "the npc says...", I just say it!</p><p></p><p>* Similarly, players are more apt to roleplaying a character, rather than telling me what they say or do. They just do it. I have frequent roleplay only sessions simply because its easier and more natural.</p><p></p><p>* Combat tracking is simple. There are copious visual cues for tracking conditions and powers, and using them is as simple as clicking a button to roll some dice.</p><p></p><p>Cons</p><p></p><p>* Combats take longer unless every player is paying attention and willing to put in effort to making things go quicker. Time lost to lag tends to accumulate, and when you add in players not paying attention to the screen, it can get really slow, really quick.</p><p></p><p>* You can't smack players for doing stupid things (not paying attention, doing stupid things).'</p><p></p><p>* It takes a little longer to converse normally, unless you're using a program like Ventrillo or Teamspeak, since everyone is typing.</p><p></p><p>* Subject to random technical errors like loss of internet and lag spikes.</p><p></p><p>* Takes some time to build maps and tokens for combat. Hard to run truly improvised.</p><p></p><p>So on the whole, I'd say that the game parts of the game run smoother, but the group dynamics are a challenge. I've had problems with people not showing up, or consistently showing up 20 minutes late, and there's little accountability for them. Maybe that's just me though.</p><p></p><p>I can't speak for the virtual tabletop, but I have no desire to try it; it is trying half of what maptools does, and it does it poorly.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Saagael, post: 5857783, member: 84839"] I'm in the same group as OnlineDM. I've used maptools to run my campaign for over 3 years, and there some flaws, but mostly its great. A short list of the pros and cons. Pros * Immersion is generally better. I can draw up detailed maps with photo-realistic graphics, create NPC tokens with whatever image I want, and talk through those NPCs. I don't say "the npc says...", I just say it! * Similarly, players are more apt to roleplaying a character, rather than telling me what they say or do. They just do it. I have frequent roleplay only sessions simply because its easier and more natural. * Combat tracking is simple. There are copious visual cues for tracking conditions and powers, and using them is as simple as clicking a button to roll some dice. Cons * Combats take longer unless every player is paying attention and willing to put in effort to making things go quicker. Time lost to lag tends to accumulate, and when you add in players not paying attention to the screen, it can get really slow, really quick. * You can't smack players for doing stupid things (not paying attention, doing stupid things).' * It takes a little longer to converse normally, unless you're using a program like Ventrillo or Teamspeak, since everyone is typing. * Subject to random technical errors like loss of internet and lag spikes. * Takes some time to build maps and tokens for combat. Hard to run truly improvised. So on the whole, I'd say that the game parts of the game run smoother, but the group dynamics are a challenge. I've had problems with people not showing up, or consistently showing up 20 minutes late, and there's little accountability for them. Maybe that's just me though. I can't speak for the virtual tabletop, but I have no desire to try it; it is trying half of what maptools does, and it does it poorly. [/QUOTE]
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