Sell me on D&D Beyond

[fjw70]

DDB has got to the point for me that when I contemplate playing another system the fact that I can’t use DDB for that system is a big negative.

 

[Greenstone.Walker]

How are the homebrew/customization options at this point? Does it allow you to modify existing feats, spells, class features, backgrounds, etc?

I can't say how good they are (I've never used them) but I can say they are better than the options you'd get with a paper book.

Personally, I like DNDBeyond because of the convenience of not having four or five heavy books on the desk in front of me. I can look at all the monsters in one list (including monsters from adventures, where I've paid money for just the monsters), all the feats in another list, all in different browser tabs.

I can use Ctrl+F instead of the horrible excuse for an index at the back of the books.

I can copy and paste text into handouts for players (I print handouts using nice textured paper).

As for the "paying for it twice" issue, well, you don't get to say to Amazon "give me the Bluray cheap because I've already paid to see it at the movies" or 'Give me the Bluray cheap because I've already bought the DVD at Barnes and Noble".

 

[flametitan]

I can set my web browser so that if I begin a search with dnd it'll automatically search D&D Beyond's database instead of google searching it. So far I cannot do the same for Fantasy Grounds or roll20.

This makes searching for specific rules or features *super* easy.

 

[guachi]

As for the "paying for it twice" issue, well, you don't get to say to Amazon "give me the Bluray cheap because I've already paid to see it at the movies" or 'Give me the Bluray cheap because I've already bought the DVD at Barnes and Noble".

I say "give me a 4k disc, a blu-ray disc, and a digital code (preferably in 4k) all-in-one package"

And they do. They do.

But wait! There's more! I can watch a Disney movie (for example) in the theater at Regal Cinemas and I get points from Disney for Disney stuff, like movies.

So I do basically "get to say" to Disney, "give me the Bluray cheap because I've already paid to see it at the movies". Each point Disney gives you is roughly worth 1 cent. So Disney gives me $1.00 for watching a movie in the theater, $1.50 for every Blu-ray, and $2.00 for every 4k disc.

 

[Reynard]

I say "give me a 4k disc, a blu-ray disc, and a digital code (preferably in 4k) all-in-one package"

And they do. They do.

But wait! There's more! I can watch a Disney movie (for example) in the theater at Regal Cinemas and I get points from Disney for Disney stuff, like movies.

So I do basically "get to say" to Disney, "give me the Bluray cheap because I've already paid to see it at the movies". Each point Disney gives you is roughly worth 1 cent. So Disney gives me $1.00 for watching a movie in the theater, $1.50 for every Blu-ray, and $2.00 for every 4k disc.

I'd love to see packaging in the future. I don't expect it to be free or a VTT file or Beyond access. i know real work by real people goes into converting that content. but it would be nice if I could pay, say, 50% extra to have the content in all possible formats with one purchase. As it stands, I basically have to choose between supporting my FLGS and buying the book from Amazon so i can get the Fantasy grounds version, too.

 

[ArwensDaughter]

Used it to make up a druid for a game. Not really needing it for much other than a PC generator. You can't just buy all the stuff for an individual class outside of digging though and selecting all the individual elements or am I missing something? I've got the books and PDF copies for my tablet but this looks like a good PC tool. We will see how it works.

You have to "dig through" the purchase options for what you need, yes. But if you buy a class in the PHB, you get all the PHB subclasses for that class; if your character is a caster you can either buy individual spells or all the spells from a given "book."

 

[ArwensDaughter]

Note: Not knocking your decision. Whether it's worth it really depends on your particular situation and preferences. Just thought it was worth pointing out that the pricing is more flexible than everyone having to 're-buy' all their books digitally. There's a nice thread on their forum which breaks it down.

At the risk of tooting my own horn, I believe the thread lkj is referring to is this one.

In terms of the OP, I don't think I can add much more than what's been said. Whether or not DDB is worth it depends on what tools/features one is looking for, the state of one's pocketbook, and the value you ascribe to their services.

The flexibility in purchasing is one of DDB's great strengths in my opinion. That's particularly true for those who are mostly players. At the same time, as a budget conscious DM, it means I can buy just the spell or two from Xanathar's that my players like to use in order to have it for reference, without having to buy the entire book.

Personally, I love DDB for a lot of the reasons listed here. But I've been very sparing in my purchases, due to budgetary constraints. I don't use VTTs, so that's not a factor for me. If I did, I would likely limit my electronic purchases of WOTC's "books" to one platform, and manage without on the other.

 

[Satyrn]

I still tend to use paper and pencil at the table when I DM so I don’t have to jump from window to window on my ipad

You just need more iPads.


And I'm not joking. I use 3 tablets when I'm DMing.

 

[Flexor the Mighty!]

You have to "dig through" the purchase options for what you need, yes. But if you buy a class in the PHB, you get all the PHB subclasses for that class; if your character is a caster you can either buy individual spells or all the spells from a given "book."

Thank you kindly!

 

[Mistwell]

I can set my web browser so that if I begin a search with dnd it'll automatically search D&D Beyond's database instead of google searching it. So far I cannot do the same for Fantasy Grounds or roll20.

This makes searching for specific rules or features *super* easy.

Oooo how do you do that?