What is AD&D Toolkit?
AD&D Toolkit is a variety of Dungeon Master tools that integrate with digital Character Sheets. It greatly enhances in-person and online play by speeding up and automating the more interesting, yet cumbersome mechanics of AD&D. AD&D Toolkit supports First Edition(1e), Unearthed Arcana(1e), Second Edition(2e), and some Homebrew elements that can be toggled on or off by the DM.
It is not a Virtual Table-Top and not meant to replace a VTT or the traditional table-top venue. It is not a searchable compendium of AD&D lore and rulesets either. Likewise, it is not a digital map/character-token tool. It is an enhancement that works alongside the table-top environment. AD&D Toolkit does not look to replace the pencil-and-paper or physical dice rolling so wonderfully entwined within the AD&D culture. It embraces and supports these elements.
Why Use AD&D Toolkit?
I like to think of it as a digital assistant with access to and deep knowledge of the AD&D core manuals(and optionally, a couple other tomes). It knows many of the tables, charts, matrices, guidelines, and systems innately. As with any good assistant, the purpose is to save the boss(DM) oodles of time otherwise swallowed up by managing minutiae. Having similar access to the Adventure Party’s character data, it is able to do a lot of page-flipping, table/rule-referencing, and calculating for both Player and DM so you don’t have to. You still roll the physical dice (unless you don’t want to) and it does the math.
Thus, it speeds up and standardizes gameplay. It also allows you to use a lot of systems that most DMs otherwise greatly bastardize or abandon altogether for the sake of practicality. They are conceptually very cool systems that can offer a lot of richness to gameplay, but the trade-off in time and effort required to manage are not worth it. Some examples would be Encumbrance and subsequent Movement rate, monthly/weekly Character Disease & Infection contraction checks, and toHit Matrices/THAC0 calculations along with (optional) Weapon vs. Armor adjustments. AD&D Toolkit mitigates the negatives, thus allowing everyone to appreciate the positives of these systems.
System Customization
The application adheres to the AD&D 1e core manuals in its default state. This means once your character is created, it will render in the 1e ruleset. Once your character joins a Campaign, the Campaign Settings will dictate what System the character now renders in. It offers alternative system rules and content (UA, 2e), even some homebrew elements, as options that the DM can select per campaign. This allows AD&D Toolkit to be flexible enough to handle many of the innumerable variations DMs employ in their sessions.
Key Features
- characters can manage their inventory, equipped gear, spellbooks and failed spells, spells-for-the-day, XP and level(s), age, weapon proficiencies, languages, personal history, all on their Character Sheet;
- automatic calculation of Encumbrance and consequent Movement rates;
- storing and automated selling of loot with Buyback rates established by the DM;
- calculating Surprise in each encounter;
- calculating Pursuit Evasion;
- time tracking across a Campaign;
- automating impactful but tedious systems like character disease contraction and monthly expense calculations;
- generalizing and calculating protocols for esoteric systems like custom spell research;
- DM image sharing feature to provide visual enhancements to gameplay;
- randomized weather that factors in terrain, climate, and season;
- a custom, built-in Sound Effects board for spells and combat!
How to Use AD&D Toolkit
We are putting out lots of instructionals on how to use the web application. Some are short, 5-minute snippets and others are comprehensive. In our discord, we also provide a ticket support system along with Q&A channels that offer live help.