Need help picking an online tabletop

[FATDRAGONGAMES]

Hey all-

My group recently dispersed due to several people having to take out-of-state jobs. We're looking for an online tabletop we can use that runs on both PC & Mac. Any advice? TIA.

 

[Treebore]

Maptools with SKYPE, Tom. Maptools with SKYPE.

As easy as you want it to be, or it can be so complex as to practically run the game itself. Best of all, it is free. Both SKYPE and Maptools.

Now if you want to spend about $100.00 you can buy a group Fantasy Grounds II license, and it is pretty nice too.

 

[Naszir]

I'll put a vote down for FGII. They have done some really great things with their 4e ruleset.

 

[Aberzanzorax]

I've used maptools, and apparently need to research fantasy grounds more. Though, if I recall correctly, there were some nice features in the free maptools that fantasy grounds did not have.

Maptools was a bit more of a "creation" program, fantasy grounds was a bit more of a "play" program from what I remember. By that I mean, maptools was great for making maps, and had neat features such as vision blocking...so cool! Fantasy grounds had more fun die rolling and easier online character sheets.


I'll say, when I asked in a similar thread, that my experience was pretty common across all respondees.


I had a HECK of a time with connections with my players. Expect quite a few initial challenges and troubleshooting whatever program you decide upon...the program I used (maptools) worked great...but issues of portfowarding/server/etc were enough of a challenge that we left it behind.



Good luck to you!


(Oh, and maptools is free to use and I think FG has a free demo level download...so check em out personally and see what works for you and your group.)

 

[FATDRAGONGAMES]

I know this is a noob question, but do any of these allow voice and/or video chat during play?

 

[Aberzanzorax]

No worries.

I believe both allow "tabletop" shared vision during play.

Neither, as far as I know allow vocal or visual contact.


HOWEVER, as someone mentioned, SKYPE, a free program does allow conference calling during play. It also allows video contact, but I don't know if it does video conferencing (more than 2 parties).


So my advice is to use one of these two programs and also use skype. Skype worked very, very smoothly for my group.

 

[Gilladian]

I only have experience with Maptools, but I use a mac, my brother who runs the game and controls the server uses linux, and the other players are on PCs.

We have one player (on PC, I think, tho he also uses a mac at times) who regularly has loads of trouble connecting; he often can connect and can see us but we can't see him. He has to login multiple times to get a proper connection.

Otherwise, I used to have tons of "drop outs" but in recent iterations the problem has almost completely disappeared (we play for about 3 hours a week, and I get dropped about every other week). We have a server crash about that often, as well. Some of that we attribute to my brother's AWFUL internet service (semi-rural VT) and some to the software.

We don't use Skype because we have one player who plays on a laptop and her setup makes Skype nearly impossible. We hope to add it back in in the future when her position allows her to get her desktop set back up. Skype makes everything easier.

Maptool does NOT have voice or video capability - that's why Skype is such a nice addition to the setup. What I do like about maptool is the ability to save the game transcript and thus create a record of the whole game. It's very useful when trying to remember what happened a week or two back.

 

[Treebore]

Yeah, SKYPE is awesome. I use it as a second phone line too since I can call my gaming buddies in Canada or the US, and other places, for free. I even pay the $25 a year to be able to call any phone, SKYPE, Cell, home phone, etc...

Its nice to be sitting here at my computer, realizing I need to call someone, and I don't need to go get my cell or home phone, I just open up SKYPE and call.

I think I even talked to you while on SKYPE one time Tom.

If you think back to when they were covering the Haiti earthquake, you may remember the news mentioning how they were using SKYPE to even get hold of whoever they were interviewing.

So SKYPE is pretty dang cool.

Maptools is too. Especially since about version ending in .60. So when you start you will be starting with the newest version, .71 or so, and should have very little problems with disconnecting or freezing up. I think in all the game I play via Maptools and SKYPE, which is 6 games per week, so about 15 hours plus, I think Maptools disconnected or crashed twice last week. But that is no big deal, you just restart and everyone re connects.

But then again everyone I game with, except one, has computers less than 5 years old, with 2 or more Gigs of RAM, and DSL or Cable. Now the guy that has the 9 year old computer, yes, he has problems. Another who uses a platform like Linux, yeah he has problems too. They don't keep up well with the changing coding. I use WIN 7 and a Laptop with speakers, mic, and built in camera (never use video though). The 2 MAC users I game with have very few problems, if any. At least lately.

So if your friends have relatively new computers, the last version or two of Windows, or Mac, and DSL or Cable connections, after the first 2 or 3 weeks you should start to really like using them. For those first couple of weeks you may really want to give up on it.

But hey! You can always SKYPE me! I am treebore.therubylord

Don't forget the period in there.

Be happy to indoctrinate you!

 

[FATDRAGONGAMES]

Thanks all! Treebore- I'll probably take you up on that sometime next week.

 

[Hussar]

Maptools is probably a pretty good bet. The nice thing is, a lot of the heavy lifting making whatever game you play automated has probably already been done. The Frameworks (look at the Maptools forums) work in such a way that your minis (tokens) will have die roller built into them and most of the crunchy rules stuff is likely done.

There's a learning curve to be sure, but, it's not too bad.

As an alternative to Skype, there is Voxli, which is browser based. No video chat, but it works pretty well for voice. It is, however, still in beta and therefore a bit... buggy.