So you want to run some Call of Cthulhu online and you’re looking for the best virtual tabletop to use? Or are you looking for a Call of Cthulhu game and want to prepare by looking at the programs you might be using to play? Excellent. Let’s list out some pros and cons of some of the popular ones to help you choose!

Foundry VTT

Foundry VTT is pretty modern, and has way more functionality than is really needed for a mostly theatre of the mind game like Call of Cthulhu. That being said, it’s an excellent VTT that has just started getting official support from Chaosium!

Pros:

• Foundry just launched its official marketplace and already has the excellent Call of Cthulhu Starter Set available! I highly recommend it for anyone looking to try Call of Cthulhu, it’s a great value.
• There’s a free starter system! If you’re okay with doing all the data input yourself, it’s technically all you need to play Call of Cthulhu using Foundry, but also a great way to try before you buy.
• The Call of Cthulhu system in Foundry is clean and easy to use, being mostly drag and drop on the users side.
• Built in character creation that, while maybe not the prettiest, is very efficient and lets you make up an investigator quickly and easily.
• If the Keeper desires there’s a lot of flexibility in presenting interactive scenes, animated images, and Foundry excels with its tactical combat canvas.

Cons

• Since the marketplace just launched, so far the only official content for Foundry is the Starter Set. That means all the data from the Investigators Handbook, Keeper Rulebook, and supplements like Arkham aren’t available yet.
• For new Keepers the learning curve with Foundry can be high.

Roll20

Roll20 has been modernizing a lot lately! This is one of the two big VTTs that have really been around for a long while, and it’s incredibly popular.

Pros

• A robust marketplace with tons of official content is available, more than any other VTT at the moment.
• A free system to get started, including the solo adventure designed to help new players and Keepers learn the game! It’s normally included as part of the Starter Set.
• The Charactermancer makes character creation quick and easy, and lets you know if you missed anything. This is also available to try before you buy as well!
• There’s lots of options for the Keeper if they want to use Roll20’s capabilities for tactical combat.

Cons

• Character sheets in Roll20 are a pretty manual affair, there isn’t a ton of automation compared to some newer VTTs, although I have to say the Call of Cthulhu implementation is quite well done.
• It is a VTT built around the tactical combat canvas and having maps down, with somewhat less support for showing scenes and setting the mood.

Fantasy Grounds

Fantasy Grounds is the other VTT I think of when I think of VTTs that have been around a long time that are still going strong!

Pros

• There are a number of books available to purchase for Call of Cthulhu on Fantasy Grounds’ marketplace.
• The character sheet has some auto calculation for you.
• The way Fantasy Grounds handles journals and windows will have your desktop feeling like a conspiracy board in no time, perfect for Call of Cthulhu.

Cons

• Character creation is pretty manual compared to other VTTs, although you can find much of the information you’ll need right inside Fantasy Grounds.
• There’s no free starter set, until you purchase the core rules there’s no way to try Call of Cthulhu in Fantasy Grounds.
• It seems like some of Chaosium’s newer releases haven’t come to Fantasy Grounds yet.

Alchemy

Alchemy is a very new VTT, still under development, but it’s focused on theatre of the mind, which is perfect for Call of Cthulhu. It has its own built in video and voice chat and is designed specifically to set the mood during a game.

Pros

• The marketplace, while relatively new, has a few books available already, although it’s a bit short on adventures so far.
• The basic rules are free, so you can get started right away and give it a try before you buy!
• It’s really pretty. Just, really pretty. Keepers will have tons of options for setting the scene with animations, background images, etc.
• It has a simple VTT for tactical combat if that’s ever desired.

Cons

• Character creation is almost completely manual, besides a built in macro to roll your characteristics. There’s no aids built in, although you can access the books you’ve bought for help. It does at least do the 1/2 and 1/5th math for you for characteristics and skills.
• Maybe I’m missing something, but I was unable to find a way to roll for Hard(1/2) and Extreme(1/5th). Every time you roll a characteristic or skill, it tells you if you succeeded or failed against your base number, which won’t be accurate if your Keeper is calling for a Hard or Extreme roll.

Dhole's House

Not a VTT per se, Dhole’s House is the official online toolset for Call of Cthulhu. If you plan on running the game purely over a video chat, this is a great place to keep track of your character sheet!

Which is Best?

While there are other VTTs out there, those are the big ones that support Call of Cthulhu. It can be hard to pick, and a lot of it comes down to preference, but for me if you’re just getting into running Call of Cthulhu online, the two to really check out are Foundry and Alchemy, as they are both promising a lot of growth and improvement in the near future. That being said, I don’t think you can truly go wrong with any of these choices!

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StenBjorn - I’ve been playing RPGs for over 30 years and they’re only getting better with time!