D&D 5E Roll20 or Fantasy Grounds?
I have DM'ed on Roll20 and played and DM'ed on FGII and I prefer FGII
It is far superior (handles so many mechanics) but I must say that Roll20 has much better marketing. The marketing is so good that I have tested the full package twice to see if it has caught up to FGII. I suspect I will try again this Summer to see if/how things have improved.
My group started with Roll20 and we switched to FGII after ~2months. This was 4 years ago and we are still going strong.
My group started with Roll20 and we switched to FGII after ~2months. This was 4 years ago and we are still going strong.
Dax Doomslayer
Adventurer
FG's automation is such a huge trait going for it. When I was going through the process to determine which to use and trying out each version, that was a huge selling point for me. It was the best decision I made I feel. Roll20 definitely seems to have more users which I think also dovetails with the pervasive belief it is cheaper with regard to "up front costs" but I don't think that's overly accurate. That said, whatever works best for a group is the way to go. If it keeps you gaming, that's the most important thing!
I started out on roll 20 but it takes way to much work to do anything. I use fantasy grounds with a tv but into my table. I love the combat tracker and how the modules are setup. You click along the DM map to add encounters and follow the story. It keep the game following and you have less down time which gives my group way more time to have amazing RP. When your work load as a DM is reduced you can put more time into making the campaign memorable with great RP.
epithet
Explorer
My group uses and loves Fantasy Grounds, despite its quirks. There is a definite learning curve, but the forum community is one of the most helpful I've ever seen. Post a question, you're very likely to get a useful response within a few minutes.
As far as the cost goes, you can get a subscription for a a few bucks a month. You can each get the standard license for $4, or the DM can get the group license for $10. Buying the licence outright is a one-time expenditure of $40 or $150 respectively, if (like me) you don't feel like dealing with a monthly sub.
The "basic" rules module and the SRD module are included at no cost, and they have the full automation built in. While the rulebooks and adventures are available (now at a more reasonable price) you can also easily add your own class, monster, spell, whatever. Before the deal with WotC was worked out and "official" content was even available for Fantasy Grounds, my group was playing 5e with content modules we had made ourselves from the basic rules pdf and scans of the PHB--it's not hard. If you want to use a homebrew class that you find on ENWorld, for example, you can set that up in about 5 minutes without even having to RTFM.
I have become so spoiled by the Fantasy Grounds combat tracker that doing it all on paper seems like a chore now.
As far as the cost goes, you can get a subscription for a a few bucks a month. You can each get the standard license for $4, or the DM can get the group license for $10. Buying the licence outright is a one-time expenditure of $40 or $150 respectively, if (like me) you don't feel like dealing with a monthly sub.
The "basic" rules module and the SRD module are included at no cost, and they have the full automation built in. While the rulebooks and adventures are available (now at a more reasonable price) you can also easily add your own class, monster, spell, whatever. Before the deal with WotC was worked out and "official" content was even available for Fantasy Grounds, my group was playing 5e with content modules we had made ourselves from the basic rules pdf and scans of the PHB--it's not hard. If you want to use a homebrew class that you find on ENWorld, for example, you can set that up in about 5 minutes without even having to RTFM.
I have become so spoiled by the Fantasy Grounds combat tracker that doing it all on paper seems like a chore now.
