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Well it all depends on what program you are using to play online with or whether you are doing Play By post. There are a lot of variables.
Personally for the games I run I use D20Pro
What is D20Pro?
But there are literally many choices. This link has some good info, If you scroll down the page a bit there is a list of commercial and free VTT's with website links.
D20Pro My personal favorite of course. Very versatile and easy to use while still looking good.Though not free it is very affordable.Myself and my two groups I currently run for love D20pro and I am sure I will use it for a long time as it is just starting out and only getting better. the guys at the D20Pro forums are great and incorporate a lot of the users ideas and suggestions into new versions of the program.
Fantasy grounds II I've used it a few times and its easily the most professionally done of the VTT's it looks really nice, has a lot of great features and supports quite a few game systems but with all of that comes a fairly steep price as VTT's go.
MaptoolsNow I'll admit i do not have very much if any experience at all with Maptools mainly because I think the program is utterly ugly, very unappealing for me to look at. Now with that said it is probably the most supported and most used VTT out there. It supports pretty much everything and is free. But supposedly has a very steep learning curve that once you master it becomes great.
Openrpg Have never tried but it seems pretty popular as well and is free.
Gametable I have used it a few times as a player and it seems a reasonable program, like a Maptools lite IMO, pretty easy to use as a player and it looks reasonably good.
Just my 2 cents.
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<disclaimer>
I'm a happy user of MapTool. I started out contributing code to MapTool, then became the webmaster and site admin. I'm now one of the lead developers on the project in addition to the forum admin, web site admin, and mailing list admin. :)
</disclaimer>
Maptools Now I'll admit i do not have very much if any experience at all with Maptools mainly because I think the program is utterly ugly, very unappealing for me to look at. Now with that said it is probably the most supported and most used VTT out there. It supports pretty much everything and is free. But supposedly has a very steep learning curve that once you master it becomes great.
Thanks, BK. We try to make MT generic enough that you can use it for D&D, PF, GURPS, nWOD, SR, SW, Hero, and any other game system you can think of. In fact, we have a few users on our forums who have designed their own game system and then implemented it using the macro functions of MT. (My wife and I used it to play backgammon on a transatlantic flight last year.)
And you're absolutely right on the first part -- MT is the not-so-cute brunette who you'd pick first for help with a science project but would be your third or fourth choice for a prom date. (Well, unless you're the type who couldn't get *anyone* to go to the prom with you in which case the brunette would be at the top of the list. :))
We realize that MT isn't the prettiest thing out there, but we believe that "form follows function". If you prefer substance instead of eye candy then MapTool is definitely worth a look. Having said that we have a goal of making MT 1.4 a much cleaner UI with a lot of extra user features. Right now we're finishing up 1.3 so that it's as bullet-proof as possible because we have BIG PLANS for 1.4 and we want 1.3 to be something our community can use for the next 4-6 months while we rework 1.4 from the ground up.
And our community... We have the best group of guys and gals out there when it comes to users willing to help users. Because MapTool is programmable a lot of people aren't content to just use it as a virtual battlemat -- they want their game automated beyond that! And some of our users have created entire frameworks to implement game systems.
If you're interested in a free cross-platform tool (written in Java and runs on Windows/OSX/Linux), check out the screencast tutorials available from our main site. Visit www.rptools.net and click on Tutorials in the toolbar; the first link on that page is the best one. :)
People with an iPhone or iPad also have access to an app that works as a client to MapTool. It's from the same guy that wrote the Diceonimicon (is that the right app name?). I think the MapTool app is MapTastic or MapTonic or something like that. He posts on our forums occasionally to announce new versions...
Openrpg Have never tried but it seems pretty popular as well and is free.
I've only attempted to use OpenRPG a few times and that was quite awhile ago. (I'm a cheap bastard and don't like paying for software.) I was never successful in getting it to work reliably. And that's what we hear the most on the RPTools.net forums from MT users who have left ORPG behind.
We also hear that ORPG had a great "Lobby" feature, something they miss in MT. So once we get a stable version of 1.4 out the door, we're going to work on "CommunityTool".
MaptoolsNow I'll admit i do not have very much if any experience at all with Maptools mainly because I think the program is utterly ugly, very unappealing for me to look at. Now with that said it is probably the most supported and most used VTT out there. It supports pretty much everything and is free. But supposedly has a very steep learning curve that once you master it becomes great.
Personally, I'm pretty utilitarian, so I've never thought of Maptool as too ugly to use. However, I love Maptool so much, I can't imagine ever playing any RPG huddled around a real battlemat with physical mini's again.
Plus, the additional functionality you can create via Maptool's macro language is incredible. It makes me wonder if we'll see a day when RPG publishers code their own frameworks whenever they create a new game.
Maptool ftw!
My suggestion to the OP is to start with a free VTT, like Maptool, and go simple. Check it out for a few sessions, then start adding stuff and customizing to your desires.
I also suggest using Skype for voice.
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We use Skype for voice and TTop RPG. It has a very simple yet effective interface. It is easy to learn and makes combat go smooth. I really like the dynamic lighting and shadows features that allow for great dungeon crawls. The site has a full tutorial that walks you through all the features.
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I've also been finding it hard to find info about finding games online.
There's Pathfinder Society Collective ..
..but to be honest, I find the site/area messy. Maybe it's because it's new to me.
Of course, there's also CHAT which is real time. To be honest, the folks that hang out there have been the best help getting involved in PFS so far.
I really enjoy Fantasy Grounds II. The interface and functions are really nice.
I've tried Maptools for one or two sessions and while the map functions are superior, I really prefer FG's way to keep track of NPCs and also the combat tracker.
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We use Skype for voice and TTop RPG. It has a very simple yet effective interface. It is easy to learn and makes combat go smooth. I really like the dynamic lighting and shadows features that allow for great dungeon crawls. The site has a full tutorial that walks you through all the features.
The other nice thing about TTop is it's made by a frequenter of the site that doesn't mind comments, requests, etc. Any questions on it you can always look for Pygon in the chat link Benign linked earlier (he's usually there most evenings).
I've recently started using Google documents spreadsheets to supplement text-based RPGing. I find it works amazingly well and offers everything I need, without the need for anyone to download or install anything. No logins needed either.
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Our group has been using MapTool (+Ventrilo) for over a year now, and it works very well for us. I haven't tried any of the others, though, so I can't offer any comparisons. Our DM tried several out before settling on MT so he might be able to offer more useful info; I've linked him to this thread so we'll have to see if he pops in to comment.
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Just to let you know the possibilities I use map tool with a projector and skype to combine people playing on line and in person. It combines the best of online and in person pen/paper. We project the map on a table to use as a battle map and people online play from their computer and talk to us with skype or skype video. It is a pretty cool set up.
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Just to let you know the possibilities I use map tool with a projector and skype to combine people playing on line and in person. It combines the best of online and in person pen/paper. We project the map on a table to use as a battle map and people online play from their computer and talk to us with skype or skype video. It is a pretty cool set up.
This is what I'm trying to set up. That way I'm not driving two hours every other weekend to play.
MapTools and a Vent Server, all the way. Every Monday night.
It meets my every need and I've almost finished one entire AP this way. In fact, I finished Sins of the Saviors just last night.
Though on an unrelated side note, I kinda wish I could "play" one of the new APG classes. I've looked at the PFS from a player's perspective(even thought about running games but my weekly game eats a lot of my time). If I were to play, I would look for a MapTools game. It's definitely what I choose to run with.
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Our group is 6 people. One of us (me!) has some issues traveling to the others' houses from time to time. One of us has visitation with his children every other weekend (we game on Fri or Sat nights). One of us lives about 80 miles away and the final player lives on Nantucket island (yeah... he's the Man From Nantucket).
We don't use a VTT. We just use Skype. The local camera is pointed at our battlemat. We're all on high speed connections and the local camera is high def. The remote players can see the map clearly (count boxes, maneuver, etc.) and a mic array and speakers ensure that the remote players can hear and are easily heard.
Preparation is nothing other than how you'd prep for a normal game. We use a Yahoo group to transfer files (character sheets, handouts, etc.) but that's about the only difference... other than remote players having to provide their own snacks... and not subjecting others nor being subjected to others' odious personal habits...
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