As discussed on the blog and laid out in our Acknowledgements page, The SyncRPG VTT is based on the powerful open source MapTool Virtual Tabletop. In addition to the various ready-to-use assets and original RPG content available on SyncRPG, the VTT itself is capable of supporting any piece of map or token art out there.

Even though we’re not allowed to host and share it on our website, you are always free to use whatever art you want in your own games. When it’s just you and your friends around a table, you can drag whatever image or map you like into the VTT. With a little bit of prep, it’ll work just like the maps on SyncRPG.

Here’s a video where I quickly go over how to take a map from the internet (a free map Kristian Richards graciously allowed us to share on SyncRPG) and set it up with vision blocking and fog of war. It only takes a few minutes, and it’s easy!

General Tips

Left click, and then just keep tapping right click as you trace around the inside of the walls.

We want to show a decent amount of the wall itself, so make sure you’re leaving enough space. Remember, the map underneath is beautiful, and the players should get to see it too!

I’ve spent a lot of time trying to get some lines pixel-perfect on maps, and I can say with authority that it’s really not worth the effort. Good enough is good enough!

You can zoom in and out using your mouse wheel even while drawing lines or a polygon. This is useful if you need to get in and do some finer detail in a tight area.

Don’t stress over about minor mistakes while drawing, you can always touch things up later.

Don’t be greedy! If you find you’ve been clicking for a long time and don’t want to risk the lines you’ve already drawn, loop back to the start and close the polygon.

The process will work for the myriad of free maps you find on popular cartography websites or with a simple image search, art you might have bought on other RPG marketplaces, as well as on images you cut out of other RPG content. SyncRPG can even be used to play other publishers adventures online, and will still help to greatly reduce prep time for your sessions. We have at least three SyncRPG users running Paizo adventure paths right now: mistamichael and anjgenki are running Rise of the Runelords, and Hargert is running Giantslayer.

If you are an artist and you have created all the art for your map yourself, and have the interest and legal rights to share it on SyncRPG and grow our library, contact me on the SyncRPG forums, the G+ community, or shoot me an email. We’d love to hear from you!

Discuss 'Using Maps From Anywhere with SyncRPG' on the SyncRPG forums