[UPDATED!] D&D Beyond: An Official D&D Digital Toolset & Character Builder

Remathilis · Mar 13, 2017

dropbear8mybaby said:
And what's really required for ongoing development for something like this? Get it right the first time and aside from some tweaks to fix things that were missed or improve based on feedback, the only work required is in the data sets which are extra money on top of the client anyway. Hero Lab hasn't really been changed for however long it's been out... a decade? And they just increased their prices to do basically nothing to their product other than keep selling it and adding packages which they charge for.

The issue will be both a.) storage and b.) new rules that don't conform to the previous mold. For example, psionics doesn't use the current spell-slot system, so adding psionics/The Mystic later might require changes to the code to allow a new type of power selection. Especially in a PnP game, you can't assume for rules that have yet to be written 5 years down the road.* That's also not including ideas like the initiative/encounter tracker or whatever other interesting ideas come along.

* Its harder than you think. I saw it during 2e with the Core Rules Expansion disc, which had a robust class generator and still couldn't mimic all the classes in 2e, or similarly the 4e Char generator, which required heavy re-writing to accommodate the Essentials classes.

Dragonblade · Mar 13, 2017

If there is a subscription option that includes all content, including periodic updates with new content as WotC releases books, then that's fine. I'm on board with that, even if its $15/month, which is more than Netflix charges and more than 4e DDI charged.

But a base subscription plus additional micro-transactions for content packs? Hmm, thats a tough sell for me, unless you create a storefront where you sell me the physical book AND the digital version at once. If I'm already paying for a subscription it should be priced to automatically include new material, not just to keep the servers running.

Jester David · Mar 13, 2017

dropbear8mybaby said:
And what's really required for ongoing development for something like this?

With new rules content every six months? That means at least one full time developer at $50,000 per year.
Just covering her salary would be 1000 people each month at $5/ month. Plus office space, servers, bandwidth, computers, benefits, etc. You'll probably want at least a few thousand subscribers.

That's just for upkeep. You also need to recoup the initial six to twelve months of development costs.

Curmudjinn · Mar 13, 2017

Jester David said:
With new rules content every six months? That means at least one full time developer at $50,000 per year.
Just covering her salary would be 1000 people each month at $5/ month. Plus office space, servers, bandwidth, computers, benefits, etc. You'll probably want at least a few thousand subscribers.

That's just for upkeep. You also need to recoup the initial six to twelve months of development costs.

How dare you bring real math into this, Jester! You're making it hard to make excuses and point fingers, and we don't appreciate that.

pming · Mar 13, 2017

Hiya!

Looks cool and I was on board up until the "...will require a monthly subscription..." part. I already have more than enough monthly expenses. I can't "save up" for a monthly subscription...I can save up for a one-time fee of $100. I pay $10/mo for MODO Indie, another $20/mo for Substance Live, another $40/mo for Digital Tutors, and another $10/mo for something I can't remember at this second (...game related I think...EDIT: Obsidian Portal; I have a $50'ish/year payment to them). So that's $80/month for subscriptions. I would have to add another $25+/mo if I was using Photoshop, which would be over $100/mo for "subscriptions". Every few months I add in Netflix for a month to binge-watch certain series or movies.

So, unless the monthly sub is RIDICULOUSLY low (like, no more than $5/mo...tops), I'm out. Now, if they give an option to buy a "full year of total access for $75"...then I'll look into it. As I said, I can save up for that. But if it's each and every month, with no bulk-time purchase...then I'm out.

Oh, yeah, I have to be able to save EVERYTHING/ANYTHING I want to PDF, RTF or some open-file format that I have full control over. If I can only view online or Print...again, I'm out.

But, yearly-cost and full access to print/save/modify in various non-proprietary format and...I'm in!

^_^

Paul L. Ming

dropbear8mybaby · Mar 13, 2017

pming said:
Obsidian Portal; I have a $50'ish/year payment to them[/I]).

There's money you could save. Never saw the value in that site even after I had a yearly sub and made a huge effort to design a nice campaign portal. I still didn't renew and ended up having 2 months left on my sub before deleting the site and using other, much better stuff, for free.

Ristamar · Mar 13, 2017

BrockBallingdark said:
If you have a one time Life-time Subscription cost, like Fantasy Grounds does with their Ultimate license, I'll do that. Pay once and not worry about it. I know I would still have to pay for books I may want to add in the future, I just HATE monthly subscriptions, especially for RPG gaming.

I concur. My gaming (video, tabletop, or otherwise) often is not consistent enough to justify an ongoing monthly subscription, so a one-time lump some is far more palatable.

Guest 6801328 · Mar 13, 2017

I love character generators, but there's no way I'm paying a monthly sub for this. No $%#&ing way.

Jester David · Mar 13, 2017

pming said:
Hiya!

Looks cool and I was on board up until the "...will require a monthly subscription..." part. I already have more than enough monthly expenses. I can't "save up" for a monthly subscription...I can save up for a one-time fee of $100. I pay $10/mo for MODO Indie, another $20/mo for Substance Live, another $40/mo for Digital Tutors, and another $10/mo for something I can't remember at this second (...game related I think...EDIT: Obsidian Portal; I have a $50'ish/year payment to them). So that's $80/month for subscriptions. I would have to add another $25+/mo if I was using Photoshop, which would be over $100/mo for "subscriptions". Every few months I add in Netflix for a month to binge-watch certain series or movies.

So, unless the monthly sub is RIDICULOUSLY low (like, no more than $5/mo...tops), I'm out. Now, if they give an option to buy a "full year of total access for $75"...then I'll look into it. As I said, I can save up for that. But if it's each and every month, with no bulk-time purchase...then I'm out.

Oh, yeah, I have to be able to save EVERYTHING/ANYTHING I want to PDF, RTF or some open-file format that I have full control over. If I can only view online or Print...again, I'm out.

But, yearly-cost and full access to print/save/modify in various non-proprietary format and...I'm in!

^_^

Paul L. Ming

Reread.
Currently, it sounds like the plan is single paymnets for content and subscriptions for more characters and being able to integrate homebrew content and "advanced" features. Sounds like basic stuff is just available for free, and you can get a class or two for a one time fee.

Jester David · Mar 13, 2017

pming said:
Hiya!

Looks cool and I was on board up until the "...will require a monthly subscription..." part. I already have more than enough monthly expenses. I can't "save up" for a monthly subscription...I can save up for a one-time fee of $100. I pay $10/mo for MODO Indie, another $20/mo for Substance Live, another $40/mo for Digital Tutors, and another $10/mo for something I can't remember at this second (...game related I think...EDIT: Obsidian Portal; I have a $50'ish/year payment to them). So that's $80/month for subscriptions. I would have to add another $25+/mo if I was using Photoshop, which would be over $100/mo for "subscriptions". Every few months I add in Netflix for a month to binge-watch certain series or movies.

So, unless the monthly sub is RIDICULOUSLY low (like, no more than $5/mo...tops), I'm out. Now, if they give an option to buy a "full year of total access for $75"...then I'll look into it. As I said, I can save up for that. But if it's each and every month, with no bulk-time purchase...then I'm out.

Oh, yeah, I have to be able to save EVERYTHING/ANYTHING I want to PDF, RTF or some open-file format that I have full control over. If I can only view online or Print...again, I'm out.

But, yearly-cost and full access to print/save/modify in various non-proprietary format and...I'm in!

^_^

Paul L. Ming

Oh, and look into EpicWord.com instead of Obsidian Portal. Much cheaper (but your players can only have a couple characters at a time).