From Stranger Things to Critical Role, Dungeons & Dragons seems to be more popular than ever. It’s never been easier to get into D&D, which means that it’s currently easier than ever to convince someone to start playing D&D. However, some people, even people who have played D&D all their lives, might be faced with a problem: their friends are too spread out to get together for traditional roleplaying sessions. While the best way to play D&D will always be around a physical table with your friends, there are plenty of great technological solutions that let you play D&D online. This is how my friends and I get it done.
Discord
The first thing you’ll need is a way to communicate. If you and your friends are gamers, you probably all have Discord on your computers and you’ve probably added each other as friends on Discord already. For this reason, Discord is a no-brainer. Another nice thing is that you can make a specific channel for D&D in Discord, where you can do things like send character sheets (which you can get straight from the source, at this link in particular) to your DM while you’re getting your game prepared. I suggest making a discord channel just for D&D, adding everyone who will be playing to the channel, and then strategizing from there.
5etools
Speaking of character sheets, 5etools is a lifesaver for when you’re not there in person to explain everything to someone who’s just starting out. 5etools has the answer to pretty much anything a new player could ask, from what the difference is between certain classes and races to what a certain spell does and the level at which they can acquire it. With just a little guidance, 5etools can help a new D&D player with the vast majority of their questions so that the DM doesn’t have to walk them through everything to begin.
Roll20
Now that you have your group together and you’ve all made your characters, Roll20 is where you can go to actually start playing. Roll20 is a free site that lets you bring your D&D adventures to life with character avatars and battles maps. On top of that, you can roll dice right inside the Roll20 app, so no one needs their own set of dice (and the DM never has to wonder if someone’s getting a little too lucky with their self-reported rolls). Roll20 isn’t the most intuitive site out there, but considering the fact that it’s free, it’s worth it when you can’t physically get together with your friends for weekly D&D sessions.
That’s it! You’re now ready to start playing virtual D&D with your friends online, and you don’t have to spend a dime. While physical D&D sessions are always the best, those just aren’t an option for certain groups of friends. With Discord, 5etools, and Roll20, you can make the distance between you and your D&D friends feel shorter than ever. Happy adventuring!
