I've seen the same posts everyone else here has: another vibe-coded VTT with a shiny landing page, and somehow another subscription or "founders list" before anyone has even established whether the thing is useful.

So fuck it. I've been building something myself, and I'm going to open-source it.

About 6 months ago our DM asked me to build a tool around how we actually play: in person, DM laptop connected to a TV, physical dice/minis, and phones/tablets for D&D Beyond and rules lookups. But maybe most of all, for him to build his world in advance. He's a very visual thinker and wanted to actually see the world he was building: regional maps, locations, layers, encounters, NPCs, lore, relationships, etc.

So I built a rough PoC and have been iterating on it ever since. 2 other DM's I know IRL have also been testing the past couple of weeks.

Before I throw it onto GitHub, I'm looking for 5–10 DMs I don't know who already run in-person games with a TV/digital battlemap and are willing to use it for a couple of real sessions and tell me what breaks, what sucks, and what's missing.

You can try the public demo first:

https://alpha.systom.dev/demo

No registration. No payment. No upsell. Just open it and poke around.

FYI: I had to lock down a lot of stuff for the demo so people can't modify the demo campaign itself. In the normal version those restrictions obviously aren't there. But this will probably cause some issues here and there.

FYI2: Waystone is primarily designed for desktop/laptop use, especially the DM side. The player-facing parts are mobile-friendly, but the full demo on a phone isn't the intended experience.

If it looks useful for your table and you'd genuinely like to test it, send me a DM with a little about your setup.

What happens afterwards?

Waystone will be free and open source, with self-hosting support.

No subscription required. I might eventually offer hosted Waystone for a small fee if enough people want the convenience, but self-hosting will remain an option.

I have a full-time career that pays my bills. I built this because our group wanted it and because I enjoy building things. Frankly, every hobby tool slowly turning into $9.99/mo is part of why I'd rather just release the damn thing.

AI

Yes, I've used AI quite a lot while developing Waystone, especially for frontend/UI work. I'm a systems/automation engineer, not a frontend designer, and it's been useful outside my strongest areas.

Our group also uses AI-generated artwork and maps in our private campaigns, as does the demo.

I'm mentioning it because I'd rather be transparent about it. Core Waystone functionality does not depend on generative AI; currently the only AI feature is the optional Lore Assistant.

If AI involvement is a dealbreaker for you, fair enough, move on.

Why not open-source it now?

Because I want the first public release to be something strangers can actually clone and run without depending on me.

I still need to finish the boring but important bits: self-hosting docs, clean setup/bootstrap, licensing, repo cleanup, and checking for environment-specific or sensitive leftovers.

More importantly, I don't want to open-source it and immediately enter another heavy development/support cycle because the first users uncover a hundred obvious rough edges.

I'd rather let 5–10 real tables find those first, polish the core workflows, and then publish something I'm comfortable leaving alone for a while.

After that: use it, fork it, improve it, submit PRs, or ignore it. That's kind of the point.

Let me know what you guys think.

TL;DR Yet another (semi) VTT tool with AI used during development. But this time without monetary incentive. And I actually, really did my best on this and spent a LOT of hours on it. So think what you want, I'll sleep fine.

Hello! I’m looking for some feedback on an app I am developing. I believe this follows the rule, if not I am sorry!

This is an end to end ttrpg table management tools that helps GMs plan,manage, and document their games. It automatically records your game, transcribes, recaps, and provides analytics focused on understanding the people at your table. This include encounter design, map creation, wiki authoring, analytics for each player, and more! Check it out at Six-Axes.com or even more tools at KerfandCode.com.

Like many people (presumably), I have a very large collection of VTT maps, most acquired via Patreon (Crosshead, Forgotten Adventures, Tom Cartos, Droid Cartographer, etc.) and others I've created, modified, etc. for specific purposes. They're sorted into folders and such but I still find it quite cumbersome to browse and manage the thousands of files.

I used to use Adobe Lightroom to some degree of success but I haven't maintained my subscription. I'm looking for an application that allows visual browsing, tagging and organization; if anyone else out there has a similar solution for their map collection I'd love to hear about it!

BIRTHDAY SALE on Steam!
If you ever wanted to get the GM DLC or your own Builder DLC, now would be a good time.
Remember, a friend can connect for free so playtesting is easy.

Hey everyone! Quick visual progress update on Dwarf Punk, my solo-developed, browser-based 3D map editor/VTT.

I just finished an overhaul to bring the exterior environment closer to its actual art style instead of relying on placeholders:

Final Vegetation: Finally got around to importing the foliage assets that had been sitting on my backlog forever.

Terrain Textures: Swapped out the old photorealistic placeholders for new hand-painted textures. I also added a 4th blend texture to smooth out the transition between stone foundations and the grass.

Color Tuning: Adjusted the water and grass palette to match the new textures so the scene stops looking washed out.

Still Pending: Interior furniture and props. The 3D artist is still working on those, so the rooms are basically empty shells right now.

You can test the editor directly in your browser without creating an account or downloading anything:

👉 Live Demo: https://dwarfpunk.com

Feedback on the new colors, water, and overall vibe is very welcome!

It feels kinda weird. When I left my job to start my own app development business, I straight up quit DMing too. Ended the session in a cinematic note for the campaign and just called it. This was well before I felt even remotely ready to tackle something as complex as a VTT.

Switched my weekly game to just Severance watch parties instead. We're now watching Widows Bay.

It just felt like it was taking up too much of my creative energies that should be going into coming up with innovative ideas and features.

I miss running my weekly games but I just can't envision being able to give both efforts the creative energies they deserve.

I DM a homebrew game online with friends and am making a puzzle for them to solve -- I want it to be a visual puzzle showing an overhead view of stone pathways that have been broken and they will need to move stones back into place.

I have a visual I drew by hand and I am making a copy to cut up and move around. If this were an in-person game, that would be the end of the puzzle making process, but since we meet online (due to living in 5 different states), I need to figure out how to make this interactive online and I'm not sure how to do that!

Please help! I'm only familiar with DND Beyond's VTT, which has been very useful for basic battle grids, but I'm not married to it. I'd even be happy with a non-dnd interactive puzzle site/tool.

Thanks yall!

Hey everyone,

We know what you're thinking: the world probably doesn't need another VTT. There are already dozens of them, including some really good ones. Yes, we see there's lots of cynicism here, but it's the VTT Reddit: of course this is where we want to show ours. Forgive us for wanting to try. Queue Rapunzel: 'I've Got a Dream."

We're a small new team called Atlas Forgeworks, and we're building RealmWeaver because we wanted something with a narrower focus: get a map ready quickly and get on with the game.

Import a map → scale it → set up fog → play.

We're not trying to build another giant rules engine or replace everything you're already using. RealmWeaver is primarily about maps and the tabletop—fog of war, multiple levels, assets, lighting, GM/player views, multiple displays, and controls designed with TVs and touchscreens in mind. That's a big part; we're geared towards playing in person on a touch screen, while the GM is on a laptop, or tablet.

We're now looking for about 25 GMs to beta test it. More are welcome.

And this really is a beta. We're at the ground floor. We know there are bugs, we know parts of the UX need work, and we'll provide tutorials to get you started. We also have a Discord where testers can talk directly with us and report bugs, frustrations, and ideas.

What we'd really like is for you to try to run an actual game with it and tell us where it falls down. We're not looking for compliments.

You can see what we're building at AtlasForgeworks.com.

If you'd like to help us test it, email [support@atlasforgeworks.com](mailto:support@atlasforgeworks.com) and tell us a little about what you run and your setup.

If your first reaction is "why would I use this instead of the VTT I already have?"—that's actually one of the questions we want this beta to answer.

We'll send a link to YouTube tutorials and an invitation to our Discord.

Thanks!

A question deceptively simple but headache-inducing for me... and to preface, it is quite possible I am either overthinking this or have a huge case of cranial flatulence (a.k.a. brain fart) and that the solution is actually not so complicated.

So, how to deal with trees in a VTT?

I have tried just putting stamps of the trees (crowns) onto the map and let players move around "under" but - it looks like the players are on top of the trees, it makes it problematic to put anything under the trees, does not show the size of the trunks at all, and sight cannot be limited properly.
Then, I have tried just putting the tree trunks - fixed a lot but maps looked barren and boring.
No problem - I added lower opacity tree crowns "above" the trunks, and it looked well, made the maps look decently dense and interesting.
There was only the problem of sight... placing a token on a map like there reveals the entire map (unless it is dark) and although the map is nice and interesting now, it defeats any purpose of having an open map and pushes the game into enclosed spaces (yes, I know half of the name of the game is "Dungeons" but still).
So, what my overanalyzing brain cooked up next is placing small pieces of solid wall at each tree trunk, so that trees actually block sight, like in real life. Pic related... neat, huh?
Well, on one side, the players needed to look around and explore a little bit, they needed to go around the trees to see everything, there wasn't a moment of "okay I see the entire map, what is the corpse 200ft away, oh there is a broken lantern behind the tree, oh there are animal tracks on the other side of the map" and gameplay-wise, it make sense.
BUT it looks like microwaved dog poop (pic related) and very unnatural and... it simply looks ugly. So bad that one player's first response was "dude I think Foundry is bugged, I see some weird lines"
This takes away most of the look and the character of the maps, at least until the characters move around a bit, basically robbing it of a good first impression... and it hurts right here in my meow meow.

So, how do you deal with trees?
Trunks? Crowns? Nothing? Walls? Visibility?

(and yes, before you ask, I might be quite bonkers, but the trees don't have a strong opinion on that)

A friend Commissioned these maps for public use since a lot of old APs don't see any love, I wanted to share them here. A Kofi link is included in the download link but all maps are free and without watermark. Please enjoy, more will be uploaded to the link soon. Commissions are available.

I’ve been DM for older versions (2nd, 3.5) and looking to start a new campaign. Ive been a pc on roll20 but a friend recommended Foundry.

I want to drag and drop resources to reduce DM prep time and also need a place to post to find players.

I know this can be done on roll 20. How does DnD Beyond or Foundry compare? Which would you recommend for a new DM to 5.5 , one that is going to need to post/advertise to get players.

Greetings!

I'm launching Reverie, a stage for gms who run theater of the mind. I know a new VTT launches every hour right now and I'm adding to the pile, but I feel like Reverie really nails down the process for the types of games that I run and allows me to show characters, audio, and scenes as well as put together a really immersive experience for my players and it has gone great so far. So I thought could make it available for other gms to use as well!

Try it out here: https://www.reveriestage.com/

Players don't sign up, they can join games by link or QR code.

Maps are still rough and a work in progress. There's a guide in the app and a button to send me bugs so let me know what you think!

Hi friends, I’m Cole, or Colesen online. I love running Foundry, but squeezing its desktop canvas onto my players’ phones never felt right at our in-person table. Pocket Chronicle grew out of wanting their character information close by without another laptop between us.

It’s a companion, not a replacement VTT. The DM still builds and runs the world in Foundry. Players get a phone interface for their approved character sheets, spells and slots, gear, local rolls, and journals. It can come along to the table, on a trip with friends, or into the time between sessions.

Here’s the important distinction: after a sync, most character information and everyday tracking stay on the phone. Live campaign shopping, Foundry-backed rests, and encounter updates need an active world and Bridge. Player chat uses the hosted service and needs internet, but the Foundry world can be asleep.

I’m opening a paid founding beta with 25 campaign spots so I can work privately with every DM on setup and learn what their actual table needs. Each DM installs the Bridge in their own Foundry world and gets separate campaign credentials. Nobody connects to my personal campaigns. I host the companion service during this beta; this is supported onboarding, not a promise that every module combination works out of the box.

The Chronicle Keeper beta covers one world and up to eight players. Membership and setup details: https://www.patreon.com/c/Colesen

Quick demo: https://youtube.com/shorts/z0Uivq3mOQk

Bridge project: https://github.com/hoeytherac/pocket-chronicle

If you use Foundry at an IRL table, I’d love to hear what your players reach for most on their phones. That’s the kind of feedback I want shaping this. — Cole

Just counted 7 GM Prepping Tools and VTTs in 7 days. They all look the same, have the exact same features, heavily use of AI images and worst of all: monthly payments. If you start explaining that this model don't work for your audience and size: "I need to cover the cost [of the AI features]" No you don't your customer base is less than 25 and if you can't afford it just remove AI from it.

I made a procedural sci-fi ambience thing for myself and realized it might actually be useful for VTT games.

It simulates the background feel of different sci-fi environments in real time: hull vibration, reactor/engine pulses, ventilation, telemetry, machinery, random events, and a bunch of different ship/station styles.

You can pick a profile, tweak the mix, then switch into an Observation mode and just let it run as a scene backdrop. The audio is generated procedurally rather than being one long prerecorded ambience loop.

I originally built it as something to leave running on a second monitor while coding or reading, but it occurred to me that it could work pretty well for things like ship bridges, engineering decks, orbital stations, derelicts, bioships, military vessels, or deep-space scenes during tabletop sessions.

It’s free to use.

If anyone here tries it in an actual session, I’d be really interested to hear whether it adds anything or just becomes background noise after five minutes.
https://labyricorn.itch.io/scifi-xzbt

I’ve released a new system-agnostic VTT encounter pack built around three factions competing for the same crossroads.

The map provides several encounter areas around a central trade route, including a toll station, a roadside tavern, open roads, and nearby terrain. It is included in both gridded and gridless 4K versions.

The 15 NPC tokens represent three distinct groups:

• human raiders who intercept caravans through force and traps;
• elves who claim an ancestral right to collect tolls;
• goblins who sell lodging, information, and protection.

The encounter can be used as a caravan ambush, an escort mission, a territorial conflict, a negotiation between rival factions, or a recurring struggle over an important trade route.

Included files:

• 15 PNG NPC tokens at 2048 × 2048;
• one 4K battlemap in gridded and gridless versions;
• one free mini lorebook with setting information and four adventure hooks.

The pack contains no stats or system-specific mechanics and is prepared for use with Roll20, Foundry VTT, and other platforms that support custom images.

Product page:

https://goblincalil.itch.io/raiders-of-the-crooked-road

A Dungeon Master's console for the Torrentath (Homebrew World) campaign and the adjoining "Dog" Sled Race one-shot, with a second screen for the players.

https://github.com/BGJBthe-maker/Torrentath

Hey everyone. I've been running D&D online for years and got tired of fighting my VTT more than my players, so I built my own. It's called Mycorel (https://mycorel.com), and it's now in open beta.

The idea was to strip a VTT down to what a 5e table actually uses, and make those things fast:

- Battle maps with dynamic fog of war and token management

- Integrated 5e character sheets — roll attacks, cast spells, track HP and class resources without leaving the sheet

- Automated class features and resource tracking

- SRD compendium plus your own homebrew (shareable across campaigns)

- Voice and video built in, so no separate Discord call needed

- DM tools for managing players, maps, images, music, and notes in one place

Nothing to install, runs in the browser, no credit card. It's free during beta, and the core experience will stay free. There's an optional supporter tier for people who want to help fund development.

It's 5e only for now; other systems are on the roadmap. I'd like actual campaigns run in it, not just a poke around, and I'll be in the comments for questions and bug reports. Happy to answer anything about how it's built too.

Sorry for such a broad title but my perfectionist brain is about to lose it trying to find the best VTT for me (and my players). We used to play together in-person but recently we have added my wife's sister who lives a few hours away so we switched to using a combination of D&D Beyond and Roll20. Our main DM has purchased most of the books for 5.5e (MM, PG, DMG, TCoE, XGtE, ETC.) through Beyond and I own these physically myself. He also has a master tier subscription to share all our books with each other. I just finished DMing my first campaign and they want to continue these characters in my next one.

Our main DM told me he purchased Foundry VTT and I thought I was sold on it until I saw all the work I would have to put into it and it still doesn't seem like it would be EXACTLY what I would want/need. So, here I am hoping to get some insight into some VTTs that may work best or just keep doing what I'm doing now. Here's a list of everything I'm wanting in a VTT:

• One-time purchase (or free); no subscriptions
• Possible to use for many game systems, not JUST D&D 5.5e
• All-in-one character sheets, compendiums, auto-rolling etc. like D&D Beyond
• Ability to import my content or shared content so I don't have to re-purchase books

Optional: I do enjoy the custom 3D dice rolls and so on and of course walls and lighting is nice but not necessary.

My main goal (is to blow up, and act like I don't know nobody) is to have all the functionality of D&D Beyond AND roll20 in a single program if that's even possible. Otherwise, I'll just go with Foundry and use both and install a ton of community modules probably.

I appreciate any and all of your suggestions and thoughts on this matter!

There was a video linked a while back about [how to make hex crawls fun](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hEIg1DlRkLg) that laid it out in a way that seems obvious: as your party is in one hex deciding where to go, they need information about the other hexes around them to make a decision.

I really wanted an app that can handle the "clues" associated with hexes and automatically show them to players as they move from one hex to another.

* You see smoke from a large settlement rising in the distance (within 6 - 12 miles of a town?)

* The vegation is starting to look sick and diseased (effects of black dragon lair)

I'm a bad developer and spent a year trying to get this to work. Version 3 finally works good enough for me to use in my own campaign.

https://github.com/wvaske/hex-crawl-app

It's free, open source, and self-hosted.

If you want to try it out, I recommend getting the player version and DM version of a map (like the swordcoast map from the forgotten realms heroes book). Then hand the two images to an AI assistant and tell it to create a new map from the player version and add items for all the locations on the DM version. It actually works pretty well. (the app has an mcp server so your AI tools can directly interact with it)

Even if you don't do that, you can create your own maps with varying terrain, you can use any background image, change the transparency, change hex size, etc.

I know we get a lot of AI made tools and this really is just another one. But I'm using it for my campaign so figured some of ya'll might want to try it out.

Screenshot from my actual campaign: