The internet has made it so that we can play online games from the comfort of our home. You can jump on a zoom meeting, discord call, google hangout, or any number of online video callers into a group call to play your online games and TTRPGs. But the one thing that has become nearly as valuable as the online video call is the online Virtual Table Top, or VTT. A Virtual Table Top is just that: A way for online players to use maps with character and monster tokens, area effects, digital dice rolling and character sheets and more.

Many players and Game Masters would say that you don’t necessarily need a VTT to play any game. Theater of the Mind works just as well for the games of fantasy and sci-fi that we play, but a good VTT can make that game a little easier to visualize. A great VTT can take that game to a whole other level. 

There are dozens of VTTs on the market, but in this article we are specifically looking at ones that can run Thirsty Sword Lesbians, an Evil Hat Productions game that delves into Queer stories and what it truly means to be thirsty. Can these VTTs elevate your online group’s game of queer representation and fighting against societal norms? Keep reading to learn more! 

Role

The Role App is a website that lets you build custom game sheets for whatever system you are playing, as well as find ones for the games currently written into the website. The website has a beautiful purple, green, and blue aesthetic that would fit perfectly with any Thirsty Sword Lesbian look. It’s customizable with colors and has a vast store for both free items and modules and systems for purchase.

For a free account you can create one game room to share with your online gaming table, get access to the 9 core Thirsty Sword Lesbian Playbooks, and can add images up to 256 mb in size. The Playbooks on Role only have the Core ability, stats, conditions, and string advancements on the sheet. You will have to manually add the moves you take from your playbook to your VTT Playbook sheet on Role.

You can join Role’s patron subscription at $7 a month, where you get unlimited game rooms you can create, video and audio so you can use Role as both your VTT and your group chat room, and 10 kb of image uploading size. You also get access to the audio library and Owlbear radio with a patron subscription.

In my personal opinion, while the aesthetics of Role are enjoyable and it has the core playbook sheets available for free, you still need to write in your moves as you get them for whichever Playbook you are playing. it does not offer high image download sizes for tokens or maps, nor can it be used for video and audio calling nor music without paying a subscription.

Foundry

Foundry is a robust VTT that allows total customization for your table top, with a wide variety of systems to build for your table, as well as automation that can make large battles seamless and quick. There are also helpful videos online about how to get started on Foundry, for example: FoundryVTT - A Quick(ish) Beginner’s Guide. It also has video and audio for group calls as well as the Game Master can upload music that plays whenever they need. 

Foundry has the ability to build a server to host your Thirsty Sword Lesbians games. You do have to plug in either Sassy Sword Saphics or The Powered by the Apocalypse modules for the licenses to build your Thirsty Sword Lesbians’ server. 

The downside of Foundry is not only is it a large undertaking to learn how to properly port worlds and build them for your games, the one time payment of the licensing software used on Foundry is $50. While that may not be much for a one time purchase for just the Game Master, it may be a lot for anyone taking their first steps into VTTs. 

In my opinion, if you want full control of how you build your maps and servers for your games, there is no better VTT than Foundry for as much control as one would like for their Virtual Tabletop. But if you do not want to spend $50 one time to build whole servers and want something a little simpler, but with more to offer for free, then our final VTT may be what you are looking for.

Roll20

Roll20 has an easy to learn user interface for first time Game Masters and players alike, a vast library for both game systems, books, and extra content like maps and tokens for free or to purchase. The free tier gives you unlimited game rooms you can make, customization, video and audio, with access to all your marketplace purchases for one table of players in the game to use.

All 9 core Thirsty Sword Lesbians Playbooks as well as their Advanced Lovers and Lesbians Playbooks are all available for free for use by Game Master and player. Everything needed to build a character from stats, core moves, basic moves, advances, strings, everything you need to run your table is already there and ready to go.

Upgrading to a Plus or a Pro tier offers more from the site like access to extra free rewards, more compendium sharing between tables, no loading ads, special map construction for your table top, and more.

The only downside is that with so many features it can be confusing how to build everything for your game. There are helpful Youtube videos like Roll20 Beginner Overview: Learn the Basics! Roll20 Tutorial that can aid those new to Roll20 on how to take their first steps in building a beautiful virtual world for their players.

In my opinion, Roll20 is the best of easy access for free users as well as enough customization for those looking to elevate their Thirsty Sword Lesbians tables. 

In conclusion, no matter if your queer stories are set in a fantasy coffee shop or in a high tech cityscape, if you are playing online, using a VTT will elevate your group’s enjoyment of the game.  

‍

Nikki The Goblin GM is a biracial bisexual mother of two who loves fairies and pirates and has been running games on StartPlaying since 2022.