Foundry Virtual Tabletop - 2021 Overview

Summary

Foundry Virtual Tabletop, a self-hosted software for tabletop RPGs, has seen significant growth with 20 updates, expanded game systems, and community development. It offers immersive features like dynamic lighting, audio, and combat mechanics, along with robust world-building tools and a supportive developer community.

Takeaways

• 🚀 Foundry Virtual Tabletop (VTT) has seen significant growth since its initial release, with 20 software updates and hundreds of new features.
• 🌐 The community has expanded dramatically, with nearly ten times the number of available game systems and modules.
• 💻 Foundry VTT is a self-hosted software, available as a one-time purchase without subscription tiers or feature gating.
• 🎲 The software provides a powerful, system-agnostic framework designed for customization, extensibility, and developer friendliness.
• 🌟 Gameplay in Foundry VTT starts with a Scene, which can be a theater of the mind, augmented by images or videos, or tactical combat using battle-maps.
• 🏰 Walls in the Scene can be configured to block or allow movement, vision, or sound, enhancing the immersive experience.
• 💡 Foundry VTT's advanced lighting system allows for a range of immersive environmental lighting effects, interacting with walls and tokens.
• 🎵 The software features a redesigned audio engine for creating playlists or soundboards, enhancing the roleplaying experience with ambient audio.
• 🌧️ Weather effects and a darkness level model day/night transitions, adding to the authenticity and flexibility of the game world.
• 🔍 Foundry VTT offers robust world-building and campaign management tools, including journal entries, rollable tables, and compendium packs.
• 🔗 The software's modern JavaScript API is developer-friendly, enabling the creation of game systems, modules, and macros for automated tasks.

Q & A

What is Foundry Virtual Tabletop?

Foundry Virtual Tabletop is a self-hosted software that allows users to host, create, and enjoy tabletop roleplaying games. It is built using modern web technologies and available as a one-time purchase without subscription tiers or feature gating.

How many game systems and modules did Foundry VTT support at launch?

At launch, Foundry VTT supported 15 game systems and around 120 modules.

What has been achieved in the past year since the release of Foundry VTT?

In the past year, Foundry VTT released 20 software updates with hundreds of new features, nearly 10 times the number of available game systems and modules, expanded their team, and launched partnerships with premier publishers.

What are the core principles of Foundry Virtual Tabletop?

The core principles of Foundry Virtual Tabletop include being self-hosted, using modern web technologies, and offering a powerful, system-agnostic framework that is customizable, extensible, and developer-friendly.

How do players interact with scenes in Foundry VTT?

Players interact with scenes by controlling a token on the map, representing their character. They experience the scene from the perspective of that token with features like fog-of-war exploration, dynamic line-of-sight, environmental lighting, ambient audio, and movement collision.

What are some of the advanced features related to walls in Foundry VTT?

Advanced features related to walls in Foundry VTT include the ability to block or allow movement, vision, or sound individually. Pre-configured wall types include basic walls, invisible walls, doors, terrain walls, ethereal walls, and one-way walls.

How does the lighting system in Foundry VTT enhance gameplay?

The lighting system allows users to place various light sources, such as flickering torches or ghostly mist, which interact with walls and tokens. Lights can be customized in color and angle of emission, transforming static map images into dynamic scenes.

What role does audio play in Foundry VTT?

Audio enhances roleplaying moments with playlists or soundboards from audio files streamed to players. Environmental audio can be placed within scenes, dynamically interacting with token positions, creating immersive effects that grow louder as players move closer to the source.

What new feature has been recently added to Foundry VTT?

The recently added feature is 'Overhead Tiles,' which allows for creating roofs, tree canopies, bridges, or environmental effects that tokens can pass beneath. These tiles can fade away to reveal underlying areas, enhancing scene interactivity.

How does Foundry VTT handle combat mechanics?

Foundry VTT provides a framework for tracking combat, including rounds and turns, attribute tracking, resource management, area-of-effect templates, dice mechanics, and more. Players can see each other's movements in real time, apply damage or healing directly to tokens, and use system-specific options for rolling.

What tools does Foundry VTT offer for campaign management?

Foundry VTT offers robust world-building and campaign management tools, including journal entries, rollable tables, and compendium packs. These tools help detail worlds, track player plans, and manage various game documents efficiently.

How does Foundry VTT support pre-written adventures?

Foundry VTT has partnered with official publishing partners to offer premium content for various systems like Pathfinder, Savage Worlds, and more. They also collaborate with content creators to provide game-ready maps, token packs, and musical scores.

What is the role of the developer community in Foundry VTT?

The developer community has created over 900 modules that add functionality like 3D dice rolling, map importers, integrations with world-building services, and perspective overhauls. This community extends the software's capabilities significantly.

What is the cost of Foundry Virtual Tabletop, and what does it include?

Foundry Virtual Tabletop is available for a one-time purchase of $50, which includes the software needed to host a game server. Only one member of the game group needs a license, while other players can connect for free using a modern web browser.