The thought of switching VTTs is so daunting

[corporat]

I'm sort of curious about different/new virtual tabletop choices and switching it up.
If you play online, did you ever switch VTTs? Why did you switch?

How did you find the new one?

 

[CleverNickName]

My gaming group takes turns being the DM. We typically use Roll20 for our virtual games, but whenever it's my buddy's turn to be the DM, he will only use Foundry. So we've switched back and forth a few times in the past 3-4 years...always as a matter of the DM's personal preference, never because one is supposed to be "better" than the other.

 

[payn]

I started with roll20 and always felt like it had a lot to be desired. Though, its free price point was good enough. Then, I was told about Foundry from some friends. It has a one time 50 dollar fee and maybe some hosting costs if you are not tech savy or comfortable opening your firewall. Anyways, the difference was night and day. Foundry is leagues ahead of Roll20, my opinion of course.

My cost investments have been mostly time, I am guessing this is far more difficult for folks who have paid significantly more money for their VTT products,

 

[Zaukrie]

It's very daunting if you own a lot of stuff on one. It's somewhat daunting to learn most systems. I switched from roll20 to foundry, and I do think it's better, but the lack of official WotC stuff is a bummer for DnD.

I'm waiting for the 3d one from wotc

 

[UngainlyTitan]

I switched from Roll20 to FantasyGrounds, I could see myself switching to D&DBeyond and a real lightweight VTT. After I wind up the current campaign I might have another look around the market.
I am not happy with the development direction of FantasyGrounds, in that they have spent a lot of time on image/map creation which I did not need. Arguably to tool is now too complex and sophisticated for my needs and not enough on improving those elements of the application that make my life more difficult than it needs be.
But they have put in some work there now. My players are not happy about the lighting and I have found network bottlenecks if there is a lot happening on the map at once.

 

[Reynard]

For my part, I have heard from enough people I trust to know that at least for certain games, Foundry is a better choice than Fantasy Grounds Unity (which is what I use). But I have realized that I just don't have the bandwidth to learn Foundry at this point. So yes, daunting.

 

[UngainlyTitan]

For my part, I have heard from enough people I trust to know that at least for certain games, Foundry is a better choice than Fantasy Grounds Unity (which is what I use). But I have realized that I just don't have the bandwidth to learn Foundry at this point. So yes, daunting.

Yup, it is easier if some one else does the donkey work as DM and you get to see the other as a player initially.

 

[gamerprinter]

Probably because I don't need nor use VTT is my games, as I play at one of those rare live tables. I have looked at VTT though. I even picked up Fantasy Grounds once, though installed on an older PC, I don't have anymore - maybe I can prove ownership and get a new download. I've played with MapTools since it's free, though some of the more special featuers require some Python programming, which is not in my wheelhouse, or at least not in my interested box. I've looked at Roll20, just because everybody seems to use it. If I were more code-inclined, I'd probably prefer MapTools. But as stated, I don't need VTT, so it impacts me very little.

 

[kronovan]

For me it wasn't so much of a switch, but more that I started with Roll20, then bought Fantasy Grounds and eventually Foundry too. At one point I was using all 3, but eventually stopped using Roll20 due to the cost. I didn't find learning any of those 3 VTTs paticularly difficult, so switching between them was relatively easy. I'd been training clients via online hosting tools for more than a decade before I ever touched a VTT though, so I was comfortable with the concept and familiar with Internet hosting software, albeit for a different market.

I'll go with any VTT that gives me good customization capabilities. I wouldn't invest in one that won't allow me to custom create a TTRPG it doesn't support, or create a custom feature that's missing. TBH I found all 3 of the VTTs I've used to be adequate for that, but Roll20 wants to charge me a steep premium to be able to customize.

 

[kronovan]

...I even picked up Fantasy Grounds once, though installed on an older PC, I don't have anymore - maybe I can prove ownership and get a new download...

If you bought your license directly from fantasygrounds.com, you would have had to register with them and there'd be a way to prove ownership - provided you still have access to the email account you used. If it was the older Fantasy Grounds Classic you bought, there's a discount if you upgrade to the newer Fantasy Grounds Unity. Even if you bought it via the Steam store, as long as you linked your Steam account with a Smitheworks/fantasygrounds.com account, there'd be a way to prove ownership. FGC was once upon a time also offered in CD-ROM format, but I wouldn't know if those are still honored.