by Seth Kenlon
When I was looking for a virtual tabletop either for local play or for playing on a network with family and friends around the world, I wanted a platform I could use offline while I prepped a campaign, and that didn't come along with the burden of being a social network. I wanted the equivalent of a **Sword Coast Campaign Setting** boxed set that I could put on my digital "shelf" and use when I wanted, how I wanted.
I look at it this way: I purchased AD&D 2nd edition as hardcovers, so even though there have been many great releases since, I can still play AD&D 2nd edition today. The same goes for my digital life. When I want to use my digital maps and tokens or go back to an old campaign, I want access to it regardless of circumstance.
MapTool [IMG]
Virtual tabletop
MapTool is the flagship product of the RPTools software suite. It's a Java application, so it runs on any OS that can run Java, which is basically every computer. It's also open source, and costs nothing to use, although they accept
donations
if you're so inclined.
Download MapTool from
rptools.net
.
It's likely that you already have Java installed, but if not then download and install it from
java.net
. If you're not sure whether you have it installed or not, you can download MapTool first, try to run it, and just install Java if it fails to run.
If you've a game master, MapTool is a great way to provide strategic maps for battles and exploration without investing in physical maps, tokens, or miniatures.
MapTool is a full-featured virtual tabletop. You can load maps into it, import custom tokens, track initiative order and health, and save campaigns. You can use it locally at your game table, or you can share your session with remote gamers so they can follow along. There are other virtual tabletops out there, but MapTool is the only one that you own, part and parcel.
To load a map into MapTool, all you need is a PNG or JPEG version of a map.
1. Launch MapTool, and then go to the **Map** menu and select **New Map**.
2. In the **Map Properties** window that appears, click the **Map** button.
3. Click the **Filesystem** button in the bottom left corner to locate your map graphic on your hard drive.
If you have no digital maps yet, there are dozens of map packs available from
opengamingstore.com
, so you're sure to find a map regardless of where your adventure path may take you.
MapTool, like most virtual tabletops, expects a PNG or JPEG. I maintain a simple
Image Magick
script to convert maps delivered as PDF to PNG. It's a simple script that runs on Linux, BSD, or Mac, and is probably also easily adapted to PowerShell.
#!/usr/bin/env bash
#GNU All-Permissive http://www.gnu.org/licenses
CMD=`which convert` || echo "Image Magick not found in PATH."
ARG=("${@}")
ARRAYSIZE=${#ARG[*]}
while [ True ]; do
for item in "${ARG[@]}"; do
$CMD "${item}" `basename "${item}" .pdf`.jpg || \
$CMD "${item}" `basename "${item}" .PDF`.jpg
done
done
exit
If running code like that scares you, there are plenty of PDF to image converters, like
GIMP
, for manually converting a PDF to PNG or JPEG on an as-needed basis.
Adding tokens
Now that you have a map loaded, it's time to add player and non-player characters. MapTool ships with a modest selection of token graphics, but you can always create and use your own or download more from the Internet. In fact, the RPTools website recently linked to
ImmortalNights
, a website by artist Devin Night, with over 100 tokens for free and purchase.
1. Click the **Tokens** folder icon in the MapTool **Resource Library** panel.
2. In the panel just beneath the **Resource Library** panel, the default tokens appear. In the future, you can add your own tokens using the **Add resources to library** option in the **File** menu.
3. In the **New token** pop-up dialogue box, give the token a name and PC or NPC designation.
Adding a token to the map [IMG]
4. Once the token is on the map, it should align perfectly with the map grid. If it doesn't, you can adjust the grid.
5. Right-click on the token to adjust its rotation, size, and other attributes.
Adjusting the grid
By default, MapTool provides an invisible 50x50 square grid over any map. If your map graphic already has a grid on it, you can adjust MapTool's grid to match your graphic:
1. Select **Adjust grid** in the **Map** menu. A grid overlay appears over your map.
2. Click and drag the overlay grid so that one overlay square sits inside of one of your map graphic's grid squares.
3. Adjust the **Grid Size** pixel value in the property box in the top right corner of the MapTool window.
4. When finished, click the **Close** button of the property box.
You can set the default grid size using the **Preferences** selection in the **Edit** menu. For instance, Paizo maps on my 96dpi screens
It's assumed that each grid block is a 5-foot square, but you can also adjust that if you're using a wide area representing long-distance travel, or if you're drawn a custom map to your own scale.
Sharing the screen locally
While you can use MapTool as just a GM tool to help yourself keep track of character positions, you can also share it with your players.
If you're using MapTool as a digital replacement for physical maps at your game table, you can just plug your computer into your TV. That's the simplest way to share the map with everyone at your table.
Another alternative is to use MapTool's inbuilt server. If your players are all physically sitting in the same room and are, therefore, on the same network, select **Start server** from the **File** menu.
The only required field is a name for the GM. The default port is 51234. If you don't know what that means, that's OK; a port is just a flag identifying where a service like MapTool is running.
Once your MapTool server is started, players can connect by selecting **Connect to server** in the **File** menu.
Connecting to a Maptools server [IMG]
A name is required, but a password is only required if the GM has set a password when starting the server.
The IP address is your *local* IP address, so it starts with either 192.168 or 10. If you don't know your local IP address, you can check it from the networking control panel of your computer. On Linux, you can also find by typing:
And on BSD or Mac:
On Windows, open PowerShell from your **Start** menu and type:
Finding your local IP on Windows [IMG]
If your players have trouble connecting, there are two likely causes:
- You forgot to start the server. Start it and have your players try again.
- You have a firewall running on your computer. If you're on your home network, it's safe to deactivate your firewall or to tell your firewall to permit traffic on port 51234. If you're in a public gaming space, then you should not lower your firewall, but it's safe to permit traffic on port 51234 as long as you have set a password for your MapTool server.
Connecting to MapTool on the same network [IMG]
Sharing the screen worldwide
If you're playing remotely with people spread all over the world, then letting them into your private MapTool server is a little more complex to set up, but you only have to do it once and then you're set.
The first device that needs to be adjusted is your home router. This is the box you got from your Internet Service Provider. You might also call it your modem.
All of these devices are different, so there's no way for me to definitively tell you what you need to click on in order to adjust your settings, but generally you access your home router through a web browser. The address of your router is often printed on the bottom of the router, and begins with either 192.168 or 10.
Navigate to the router address and log in with the credentials provided to you when you first got your Internet service. It's often as simple as 'admin' and then some numeric password (sometimes this password is printed on the router, too). If you don't know the login, call your Internet provider and ask them for details.
Different routers use different terms for the same thing; keywords to look for are **Port fowarding**, **Virtual server**, and **Firewall**. Whetever your router calls it, you want to accept traffic coming to port 51234 of your router, and forward that traffic to the same port of your personal computer's IP address.
Port forwarding [IMG]
If you're confused, search the Internet for the term "port forwarding" and the brand of your router. This isn't an uncommon task for PC gamers, so instructions are out there.
- *Finding your external IP address**
Now you're allowing traffic through the MapTool port, so you need to tell your players where to go.
1. Get your worldwide IP address at
icanhazip.com
.
2. Start the MapTool server from the **File** menu. Set a password for safety.
3. Players select **Connect to server** from the **File** menu.
4. In the **Connect to server** window, your players click the **Direct** tab and enter a username, password, and your IP address.
Connecting to MapTool over the Internet [IMG]
Features-a-plenty
This has been but a brief overview of all the things you can do with MapTool. MapTool has many more features, including an initiative tracker, adjustable tokens visibility (hide treasure and monsters from your players!), impersonation, line-of-sight (conceal hidden doors behind statues or other structures!), and fog of war.
It can serve as "just" a digital battle map, or it can be the centerpiece of your tabletop game.
Fog of war [IMG]
Before you comment about them: yes, there are a few virtual tabletop services online, and some of them are very good. They provide a good supply of games looking for players and players looking for games. If you can't find your fellow gamers locally, online tabletops are a great solution.
By contrast, some people are not fans of social networking, so we shy away from sites that excitedly "bring people together". I've got friends to game with, and we're happy to build and set up an infrastructure for ourselves. We don't need to sign up for yet another site, we don't need to throw our hats into a great big online bucket and register when and how we game.
But ultimately, I like MapTool because I have it with me whether or not I'm online. I can plan a campaign, populate it with graphics, and set up all my maps in advance, without depending on whether I've got Internet access at the time. It's almost like doing the front-end programming for a video game, knowing that the back-end "technology" will all happen in the player's minds on game night.
If you're looking for a robust and flexible virtual tabletop, try MapTool!