Mapping D&D with Minecraft

[Colbymunro]

So mapping D&D with Minecraft isn't exactly a new idea, I know people have done virtually the same thing with legos for a long time but the toy-ness of legos kind of turns me off that idea. While minecraft is a notoriously simple game graphically, I'm fairly confident that it has an aesthetic that wouldn't contrast against the mood I cultivate at my table. I'm sure theres a few nice graphics mods that could help in that department too.

Personally, I tend to think in three dimensions when im designing maps anyway and this can be challenging to explain to players when it comes to encounters. As much as I'd love to build 3d models for every map, aint no DM got time for that

I am finding it a little bit difficult to come across any current information from DM's who have given this a try (most sources seem to be at least 3 years old). So i'd love to hear peoples thoughts, and if you guys have any good links on this particular topic I'd love to check those out as well. Does it add to immersion or does it break it? I'm a little bit cautious about having everyone at the table with a laptop. I'm thinking of simply using my account as a point of view eye in the sky sort of thing, hook it up to a TV in the game room and have the players point out where they'd want to move to with laser pointers (maybe use colored wool blocks as player tokens).

tl;dr Minecraft + d&d = good idea? what are your experiences with it?

[Lombra]

Is the idea to play on a server or to use the map just to give an idea of what's going on?

[Colbymunro]

Im thinking of using a using one account to give a birds eye view perspective of the map, maybe using blocks as "tokens" or "minis" unless i can be convinced that actually having people play the game on a server and stand still between turns would be fun for people.

With the first option i might dust off my second account, turn them invisible and have them move the tokens around the map so I don't have to constantly reposition the "cameraman" which would probably eat up a fair amount of time.

[Lombra]

Sounds tricky to be honest. You could build the maps, take screenshots, print them and use them as a guide instead. Have you ever heard of roll20? It's a virtual playtable for D20 RPG systems, you might want to check it out.

[Calen]

If you are not a fan of graphics programs you could use Minecraft to make the maps. I tried it a couple times, overhead screenshot and pasting into Roll20, and it works but I prefer creating the graphics myself.

[Wisefool]

Divinity Original Sin 2 has a Game Master mode that allows players to create maps and settings for their D&D campaign. Not sure how well it correlates to 5e, but there are plenty of videos online if you want to research it to see if it suits your needs.

[Knaight]

Minecraft Creative Mode can be used as a voxel art program, and the built in aesthetic is pretty decent for D&D. For actual assembly it's good, and can make a decent 3D model.

For display it's terrible. It works well for the first person display of actual Minecraft, but there's a reason CAD programs require explicit camera movements and don't use first person videogame controls.

Fortunately, there are a fair few tools designed to take data from minecraft, and rerender it in a more usable form. I'd look into those, along with tools like MagicaVoxel.

[Asmotherion]

Had the same idea man like a couple years ago or something. Tryed Minecraft, The Sims 3 and 4, and a lot of different simulation platforms, but turns out there is nothing in the marker yet to Simulate effectivelly a D&D session in 3d. The PCs point of view is no issue in most platforms, it's mostly the DM's point of view.

I still have hopes. If something does not exist, someone will make it eventually, right?

[Chugger]

I used to "DM" in Minecraft. I'd be in god mode and go invis and use commands - freak on the weather - leave spooky clues for players to find - books with hints - weird stuff - I'd have made evil caves/castles/towers and so on to explore. It was a blast.