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Dungeons & Dragons just released Sigil to the general public, finally bringing an official map-maker and VTT to D&D Beyond. Sadly, its reception has been a less-than-brilliant one. As a D&D map maker, Sigil is currently caught up in a market saturated with fantastic 3D design software, and there are VTTs out there far more intuitive and less buggy at present. Since there are loads of other options to pick from, I thought I'd see what the competition had to say about D&D's official new official 3D map maker and virtual tabletop.
Sigil has a lot to contend with, particularly when it comes to the dungeon design front for one of the best tabletop RPGs. One of the biggest and most comprehensive contenders when it comes to map making is the more system-agnostic Dungeon Alchemist software. It's like the Sims for Dungeon Masters, only you can generate rooms that make sense in two clicks, and ACTUALLY make proper rounded rooms with windows, unlike the actual Sims (I'm not sour). You may not be able to use it for actual virtual tabletop play, but it's great for visualizing dungeons, whether you're streaming your design or jamming it up on the big screen as you play in person – even if you do have to move everyone's tokens yourself.
Speaking to Dungeon Alchemist's community manager, Mac, he told us "Honestly if I had to compare us to Sigil, that's the one thing they have us on – is play. We're not really intended for that." That said, he reckons Dungeon Alchemist is "a much stronger map maker." In Sigil's current state, I have to agree.
"I also think it's a lot easier to use Dungeon Alchemist right out the gate," he says. "I don't mean to slam on them, they're brand new!" As for his 30 minute out-the-box Sigil comparison, Mac makes it clear the team doesn't see Sigil as competition but more "complementary to Dungeon Alchemist". "It's an interesting tool," he says. "I wish that there was support between the two, but I think they've enclosed their environment."
"I am a little concerned how it's behind a paywall to run games," says Mac. A fair assessment considering you need to be signed up to D&D Beyond's $5.99 per month Dungeon Master tier just to host a session, whereas Dungeon Alchemist operates on a one-time $45 purchase model with continual updates. "I'm also concerned for the future of assets" Mac says, noting the 8,000 free community assets in the Dungeon Alchemist workshop. "Are they gonna charge per asset? Like how is that gonna work? As a consumer that's a big concern for me."
There's a lot more to come soon from Dungeon Alchemist's small indie crew in 2025, with their upcoming project Fun With Objects set to bring decal stickers, upper floor switching and actual underground dungeons, as well as the ability to turn any asset into a brush – and that's just scratching the surface. The gifs I've popped in here are previews of the update, which have given us a little insight as to what we can expect from Fun With Objects.
Mac has also confirmed that, while it's unlikely Dungeon Alchemist will ever work in its own built-in VTT, there may well be standalone Dungeon Alchemist VTT software on the horizon. That's a way off for now though.
I'll be doing a proper comparison soon of some of the popular free and paid dungeon design and VTT softwares, so keep an eye out on the D&D feed if you want to have a better idea of each one's value-proposition before you dive in and spend a bunch of cash.
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