We’ve all played D&D as a normal tabletop game, but in recent years, the popularity of virtual tabletops for D&D, as well as other similar tabletop games, has risen drastically.
Virtual Tabletops have opened up possibilities that allow players to meet up wherever they are, continuing their campaign over Discord or any other voice communication.
It’s unrealistic to expect players to always meet, so if you know your party might have difficulties meeting physically, you could always play a campaign virtually!
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Best Virtual Tabletops
8. Talespire
Price – $24,99 (everyone needs a copy)
Perspective and Dimensions – 3D world with free camera movement
Talespire is a beautiful Virtual Tabletop that enables players to play pen-and-paper RPGs online. You can bring your stories to life as you embark on adventures with your friends, no matter where they might be!
If normal 2D Virtual Tabletops don’t pique your interest, Talespire should be an obvious choice. While it can get a bit pricey at startup, you can always have your DM stream your session without all the other members having a copy.
The customization and beauty of this Virtual Tabletop are unlike most out there but just know that it’s still a work in progress and might not have everything you’re looking for just yet.
Website – https://talespire.com/
Steam – https://store.steampowered.com/app/720620/TaleSpire/
7. Owlbear Rodeo
Price – Free (the upcoming 2.0 might introduce monthly subscriptions or a one-time fee)
Perspective and Dimensions – 2D, top-down perspective
Owlbear Rodeo is a lightweight, easy-to-learn, and accessible Virtual Tabletop that currently doesn’t cost you anything and is perfect for shorter Campaigns or Adventures.
Unfortunately, it doesn’t have a built-in character sheet, but it does have a canvas that allows you to place a variety of different tokens, upload battle maps, determine fog of war, create labels, and measure target distances.
Website – https://www.owlbear.rodeo/
6. Above VTT
Price – Free (no sign, only requiring a D&D Beyond account)
Perspective and Dimensions – 2D, top-down perspective
Above VTT is a simple Chrome browser extension that works by connecting your D&D Beyond account to it.
It lets you use hundreds of free maps from D&D Beyond, as well as animated maps from other sites and even YouTube!
Above VTT also incorporates any modules you’ve bought on D&D Beyond, letting you integrate your character sheet and making it easy for all players to connect to a session.
Chrome Extension – https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/abovevtt/ipcjcbhpofedihcloggaichibomadlei
5. Tabletop Simulator
Price – $19.99 (one-time purchase for all players)
Perspective and Dimensions – 3D world with free camera movement
Tabletop Simulator is a unique Virtual Tabletop designed to host much more than only D&D games. However, its D&D games are very immersive and extremely diverse.
Tabletop Simulator is one of the most customizable Virtual Tabletops out there, letting you create custom games, import assets (fan-made and official), and much more.
It even features built-in voice and text chats for seamless communication without needing to use external applications like Discord or Teamspeak.
Steam – https://store.steampowered.com/app/286160/Tabletop_Simulator/
4. Shard
Price – Free (premium subscription is available)
Perspective and Dimensions – 2D, top-down perspective
Shard is an easy-to-use Virtual Tabletop especially made for the 5th edition of D&D.
It features support for homebrew tools, high-quality content, and multiple devices. Unlike some Virtual Tabletops, it also has a built-in character sheet with leveling and content searches available at any time.
Website – https://www.shardtabletop.com/
3. Fantasy Grounds
Price
- Standard version $39,99 (one-time purchase) or $3,99 (monthly)
- Ultimate version $149,99 (one-time purchase) or $9,99 (monthly)
Perspective and Dimensions – 2D, top-down perspective
Fantasy Grounds is a very popular Virtual Tabletop used for all kinds of tabletop games and supports the D&D system effortlessly.
It features tools like character sheets, dice rollers, dynamic lighting, immersive maps, manageable characters, inventories, and seamless combat.
Fantasy Grounds even goes above and beyond to provide the DM with as many tools and Campaign management as humanly possible.
Note: Be warned, all these different features give Fantasy Grounds quite the learning curve and will make it more difficult to get used to.
Website – https://www.fantasygrounds.com/
2. Roll20
Price – Free (premium subscription is available)
Perspective and Dimensions – 2D, top-down perspective
Roll20 is probably among the most popular, if not the most popular, Virtual Tabletop out there, especially for D&D.
It has great accessibility and streamlined design, including everything Fantasy Grounds has and more.
Roll20 also supports an intuitive map design, and the token tool allows the DM to create some truly immersive interactions.
Website – https://roll20.net/welcome
1. Foundry Virtual Tabletop
Price – $50 (one-time purchase allowing you to run a game server with an unlimited number of players)
Perspective and Dimensions – 2D, top-down perspective
Foundry might not be as popular as Roll20 or Tabletop Simulator, but it has very impressive visuals (enhanced dynamic lighting, fog of war, and audio) for a 2D Virtual Tabletop and features a user-friendly interface.
Like Roll20, it incorporates both DMs and players, but one thing it has that many other Virtual Tabletops don’t have (except Tabletop Simulator) is a dedicated community that is creating additional content as we speak.
It also has customizable maps, tokens, character sheets, and much more, giving players the utmost control when playing through their Campaign or Adventure.
Website – https://foundryvtt.com/
Final Thoughts
All of us have responsibilities, and sometimes it’s difficult to play D&D with our party members next to us, but that’s where Virtual Tabletops come in.
If you’re looking for a reliable Virtual Tabletop, those listed above are those you should look at trying first.
I was so impressed with these Virtual Tabletops that I even requested a meeting with my players in order to discuss our next Campaign using a Virtual Tabletop!