10 Best Sites for D&D Players and DMs

Although playing Dungeons and Dragons It’s one of the most fun things a group of friends can have, but it can also be a lot of work, especially for Dungeon Masters looking to run the best sessions possible. For players, there can often be notes to keep, plots to track, and a wealth of NPCs to remember as they try to survive the rigors their DM is doomed to put them through. Taking notes can end up being an important part of any campaign, in addition to the math required when doing calculations every time a die is rolled.

All this tracking comes to a head when playing a completely analog game, with the table quickly filling up with stacks of paper, especially behind the DM screen, and DMs can often get caught digging through folders trying to find the only piece of information about a random goblin trapped in a pit.. This goes doubly so for online gambling, which is notorious for being difficult to execute compared to in-person gambling, despite its popularity growing during Covid and lockdown.

10

Rasterbator is perfect for preparing maps for printing

It’s technically for posters

While it’s probably not a tool most would think of when preparing for a session, Rasterbator It’s perfect for printing battle maps for an in-person session. It allows players to place an image of the battle map and then choose how many A4 sheets it would have in size. Rasterbator can then separate the image onto these A4 sheets as PDFs so they can be printed individually, which is perfect for many home printers and is a good way to print huge maps without hiring outside services.

Rasterbator can use JPEG or PNG files smaller than 20MB in size, and it states on its website that any image larger than 8,192 pixels wide or tall will be scaled down. To D&D battle maps, or any TTRPG battle map, this should be more than enoughespecially since most maps will be no larger than A2 or A1 if the group is using official maps D&D minis or similar minis in the same scale. Ultimately, it’s a great way to get maps without paying for 3D assets.

The free version is great in a pinch

For those who don’t have the time, confidence, or artistic inclination to draw their own maps from scratch, Incarnate it’s maybe the best world map creation tool on the internet. It offers more freedom than a world map generator, although it still requires time to create something worthwhile, with users able to determine the location of cities, country borders, roads, mountains, and all sorts of other options. The free version is somewhat restrictive, but there is enough to get started.

Inkarnate is probably a better tool for homebrew campaigns rather than modules defined in Forgotten Realms, since they already have world maps, but there are other uses for the tool as well. While world maps are the focus, users can focus on creating country maps or maps for specific regions. There are also options to change the aesthetics of the map to match the campaign being run, and the results are something that DMs can show off to their players with pride.

8

Dungeon Scrawl is useful for making battle maps

Even the free version has many tools

Any DM who has tried to run an online campaign probably knows the pain of searching the internet for the perfect battle map for that specific scenario. Dungeon Scribble provides the perfect answer to this, as long as DMs have the time to sit down and create their own maps. As with almost any website, there is a free and a paid version, and Although there are restrictions in the free version, there are many tools that a user has without paying a penny.

Users can not only create maps as large and detailed as they want, but they can also choose the map aesthetic to suit whatever scenario players find themselves in. DMs can add small accessories to their maps, choose the roughness of a room’s outline, and easily export an image to print or save for use on a digital tablet. If combined with Rasterbator, Dungeon Scrawl can be the perfect tool for online and in-person sessions.

7

Fantasy name generator does what it says on the tin

Great for NPCs and locations

fantasy name generator It’s exactly what it sounds like. Generates names that fit into a fantasy environmentwhether for characters, stores, cities or anything else. It’s perfect for DMs trying to populate their worlds with named NPCs and place names, but it’s also perfect for players trying to come up with character names. Not only can it be used for player characters, but also for backstory character names, and even if the generated names are not used, they can still inspire more personal names later.

Although it is the perfect tool for Dungeons and Dragons, Fantasy Name Generator is also perfect for different types of campaigns. There are dozens of universes that the generator can create names for, and it is equally useful for creating names for RPGs like Precipitation and Dragon Age. The names from this generator will suit any campaign a Game Master wants to run, from more gothic horror scenarios to even science fiction universes.

6

DnD5e Wikidot has all the 5e information players and DMs need

A database with almost everything

Although the official D&D the books have amazing art and are always good to have, prices can increase quickly if players want to use material outside of the main books such as Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything. DnD5e.Wikidot is perfect as a free alternative, acting as a database for everything D&D 5e from a player’s perspective. It doesn’t have the art or presentation of the official books, but it contains all the information a player needs.

DnD5e Wikidot is well laid out, and although all the information can be overwhelming for newcomers looking at the front page for the first time, everything is relatively easy to find. Players have all the information they need to create charactersincluding popular homebrew content like the Bloodhunter class or the Gunslinger subclass. It’s also a great place to look for character inspiration, as the Unearthed Arcana section will likely have classes most have never heard of.

Amazing if paying for it is not a problem

There probably isn’t D&D living player who has never heard of D&D beyond now. Its popularity has made it an official tool in recent years, and has the display and ease of use to be a good representation of what a D&D tool should be like. It’s beautiful, it tracks everything a player needs to track, and the UI is customizable to make character sheets more personal to that specific player character.

There are some downsides to D&D Beyond, however. Although it has all official content, They are often behind paywalls and it can be expensive to use the service. On the other hand, because it is an official tool with extensive funding, it is probably the best for tracking characters and can act as a database for everything a player and DM need, as long as the content has been purchased.

4

Tabletopaudio has music and ambiance to set the mood

Perfect for engaging players during a session

Immersion is often one of the main goals of many DMs, besides fun, of course. One of the most underrated tools a DM can use to increase immersion is the environment and music to set the mood.and one of the best places to find the right kind of sound is Desktop audio. Tabletopaudio has a huge collection of music and moods that suit any type of setting, whether it’s the more traditional fantasy genre or thrilling horror.

The best part about Tabletopaudio is that it is free and links can be used to share the playlist with a DM group. Users have the option to donate if they wish, and alternative versions of tracks are available to Patreon subscribers, but so much is free that payment will likely be unnecessary for both. The site is also advertising-free, which makes browsing and using it a much more pleasant experience compared to many other sites.

And it’s great for taking notes as a player

Worldbuilding is often a thankless and arduous task, but necessary for anyone who wants to create the most immersive world possible. With the amount that typically needs to be written, it can be difficult for some DMs to keep track of all their notes and knowledge, especially if a campaign goes on for months at a time. That’s where global construction services come inand World anvil is perhaps one of the best for D&D campaigns in particular.

While it’s probably most useful for homebrew campaigns, it’s also great for tracking NPCs in module campaigns. It helps immensely with organizationalthough it should be noted that the free version only allows two hundred articles. Still, it’s a service worth using, even for gamers, as Worldanvil offers a character creation service for campaigns, including character sheets, a place to write the backstory, and an area to take notes.

2

Alchemy is a great digital table for immersion

But a lot of content is blocked behind paywalls

For those who want to keep online gaming as immersive and seamless as possible, Alchemy is an online table that should be considered. It’s one of the most beautiful online tables on the market, with an emphasis on immersionand DMs are able to integrate audio and moving visual elements. It’s also elegant and often less distracting than other online tables on the market, including dice rolling and camera integration.

One problem with Alchemy is that much of it is behind a paywall. If a DM wants to run more than three campaigns, they will need to pay a premium, but D&D 5e comes with a free account, making it perfect for Dungeons and Dragons specifically. For those who have had difficulty keeping players’ attention during an online session or found that making the campaign engaging was a hindrance, Alchemy is an online table worth checking out.

1

Roll20 is a digital D&D table and database

A vital multifunctional tool for any desk

If people have played any type of online tabletop RPG before, they’ve probably heard of Roll20. That’s it the most popular option for playing TTRPGs online due to its ease of use and the amount of content available as part of the website. While there is a paid version, the free edition has everything a GM and player need to get started, including a dice roll, camera functionality, and Discord integration.

One of the most underrated aspects of Roll20 is that it also acts as a vast database for D&D happy. Players and DMs can look up any information they want D&D and a Roll20 article about it will likely be one of the top search results. Not only does Roll20 has almost all the information needed for a Dungeons and Dragons campaignalso has similar information for a variety of other TTRPGs, such as Called Cthulu, and has earned its place as the preferred online table service for most players.

Sources: Rasterbator, Incarnate, Dungeon Scribble, fantasy name generator, DnD5e.Wikidot, D&D beyond, Desktop audio, World anvil, Alchemy, Roll20