DDI Monster Builder

[Zaran]

Is that true? I was under the impression that the VTT was usable, just still in beta.

There is no beta for the VT going on right now. We were all kicked out when it was announced that it would be open to all DDI subscribers. It was supposed to be opened up to us last week but that was pushed back because of some bug found on the sunday beforehand.

The VT being open beta is the true reason why the Monster Builder was put out in the state it is right now. They don't want deal with customized monsters while they make the MB work with the VT. But I really don't think that should earn them any slack. They had a good thing going last year and decided to change it because they were losing revenue to pirates. Now they are losing revenue because their product is inferior to other stuff that is out there. Nature abhors a vaccuum.

 

[malraux]

As far as I know, yes. It's in a limited access beta. But also as far as I know, the beta VTT works, which is all I mean by usable.

I pulled up the online "monster builder" at home on my lunch break, and I was unimpressed. It isn't a builder, and they ought to be ashamed of it.

Not to be overly pedantic, but its hard to call something usable if most people can't actually use it.

 

[Stoat]

Not to be overly pedantic, but its hard to call something usable if most people can't actually use it.

I see your point. Anyway, according to Zaran, nobody can use it now.

I play almost exclusively online using d20 Pro. Most of my players got into the WotC VTT beta when it started, I got in about a month later. I asked my friends what they thought of it, and they said "meh". Nobody had any interest in moving from the VTT we are using to the WotC VTT. I don't have time to fool around with a program I'm not going to use, so I've never tried it.

Which I think is WotC's real problem. There a pile of very good VTT's available at prices ranging from cheap to free. I kinda hope I'm wrong, but I don't WotC will really be able to compete with what's already in the market.

 

[Falstaff]

Jeez as an ex-subscriber I got the email, still can't find a way to unsubscribe (need to klog in to unsubscribe, but I no longer have an account so cannot log in... pretty indicative of WotCs online skills) so was interested to see a review but "Users at this time are not able to add, edit, or remove powers, traits, stat blocks, saving throws, action points, skills, languages, alignment, equipment, or perception." That is not a monster builder. And in no way did the email say anything that this is a BETA. So it is either a PR/release cock up of huge proportions or just a reactive BETA tag cos it is so poor


Glad to be an ex-subscriber. Call me in a few years when (if) they have this sorted out!

I'm glad to have never subscribed in the first place.

 

[Dannager]

I see your point. Anyway, according to Zaran, nobody can use it now.

I play almost exclusively online using d20 Pro. Most of my players got into the WotC VTT beta when it started, I got in about a month later. I asked my friends what they thought of it, and they said "meh". Nobody had any interest in moving from the VTT we are using to the WotC VTT. I don't have time to fool around with a program I'm not going to use, so I've never tried it.

Which I think is WotC's real problem. There a pile of very good VTT's available at prices ranging from cheap to free. I kinda hope I'm wrong, but I don't WotC will really be able to compete with what's already in the market.

If you are already comfortable and contented with a VTT program you're already making active use of, chances are that you're not part of the target audience for WotC's new VTT.

Of course, none of your friends tried it out with cross-app integration turned on. So it's entirely possible that they'll end up signing on anyway once it's more feature-complete.

 

[Stoat]

If you are already comfortable and contented with a VTT program you're already making active use of, chances are that you're not part of the target audience for WotC's new VTT.

Yes and No. There are features that a WotC VTT could offer that I'm not getting with d20 Pro, in particular the integrated MB and CB. One of the hassles of using a VTT is data entry, especially inputting monster stats. This process is very fast with d20 Pro -- I can create a monster in less than 10 minutes. WotC could make it as quick as pushing a button. Likewise, my group lost almost an hour of game time last week because everybody had leveled and needed to upload their new characters to the VTT. Again, in theory, WotC could have greatly simplify that process. Moreover, WotC could offer pre-packed adventures ready to just drop into the VTT. That might be cool.

On the other hand, I'm not excited about a VTT that limits the maps I can make to WotC's library of adventure tiles. If I can't import CC3 maps into a VTT, I'm not very interested in it.

I'm a DDI subscriber, and I'll stay a DDI subscriber as long as the Compendium keeps working. I'd give WotC's VTT a shot if it looked like a step up from what I'm using. And it could be a step up from what I'm using. I just don't have a lot of faith that WotC will make it so.

 

[Holy Bovine]

Turning DnD into a subscription service has been a goal for most of 4th Edition. This model isn't a good or bad thing, it's just a thing.

No paying for a (barely) beta version of program is where I draw the line. I mean with the old MB, while it always said it was a 'beta' version I could, in theory, have unsubscribed and kept access to the MB (but no more updates). Now you have to pay and keep paying for as long as you want access. Not for me. So bad thing.


As for whoever said access to the Compendium, Dragon and Dungeon should be worth it - it ain't. The CB and MB were the only to things I wanted out of my D&DI account. Now they are both gone (well not gone...good thing EULAs don't really have any legal backing in my country )

 

[Alaxk Knight of Galt]

No paying for a (barely) beta version of program is where I draw the line. I mean with the old MB, while it always said it was a 'beta' version I could, in theory, have unsubscribed and kept access to the MB (but no more updates). Now you have to pay and keep paying for as long as you want access. Not for me. So bad thing.

Your speaking of quality. I think the majority of the community (myself included) think the quality of DDi is pretty low and has clearly decreased since the initial offering. This is an odd thing as today, DDi offers more services then when it launched.

The mistake was allowing all content for a one month subscription to the service. If you purchased a single month in July 2010, you got a completely updated character builder and monster builder with all material released to that point and the entire back catalog of Dungeon and Dragon magazines. That's a lot of stuff for less then $10.

Here is what I would have liked to have seen:

• No Monthly Fee: Do away with the monthly fee, you have a one time purchase of DDi.
• DDi Toolset: When you make your one time purchase, the user gets the following tools: Compendium, Character Builder, Monster Builder. These tools have only a limited amount of data - PHB1, DMG1, and MM1.
• Content Updates: Each book has a data set for the DDi Toolset (feats, classes, powers, races, themes, backgrounds, items, monsters, artwork, etc). These data sets are microtransactions that a user purchases. When you purchase the Martial Power Content Update, your DDi Toolset now has the data set from that book.
• Dungeon/Dragon: Each month, you can purchase Dungeon and Dragon on-line magizines. Doing so provides you a content update for that month's magazines for your toolset along with the various articles and artwork.

This model would have stopped the content jailbreak, provided the DDi user with ownership of purchased material, and would provide a stead source of revenue for WotC (though not as reliable as the subscription model).

 

[Zaran]

Your speaking of quality. I think the majority of the community (myself included) think the quality of DDi is pretty low and has clearly decreased since the initial offering. This is an odd thing as today, DDi offers more services then when it launched.

They are offering more services but more bad quality offerings do not make up for less good quality offerings. And really, the extra services we are getting are because they are taking away from other areas. This is why the magazines have gone down. This is why we have our digital tools replaced with unfinished online tools. And this is why when we do get something new it is half finished. If they want to add more services they need to expand their department.

 

[darjr]

What is the limit of monsters that can be imported? Is it 20 like the character builder?