Using Avrae in Discord for TTRPG Campaigns

I’m not going to go over everything Avrae does because there are entire help files for that. I am going to talk about the happy path to get ready for a campaign.

DnDBeyond Character import

If you have your character stored within DNDBeyond, you need to be aware of 4 DDB commands:

!ddb, !import !update and !character

!ddb Displays information about your D&D Beyond Account link

!import allows you to import the character sheet from DNDBeyond with all current settings/ equipment

!update allows you to update the active character. this pulls in new spells, equipment, statistics, etc. (Great after a long session or a level up. )

!character is the last one. it does a couple of things.

![character|char] [name] Switches the active character.

Subcommands

!character delete <name>: Deletes a character. (not from DNDB, just from Avrae)
!character list Lists your characters.

If you type in a character and the bot doesnt know which one, it gives you a pick list. (which is great if you have multiple or are forgetful)

Simple right? now you have your character in the discord bot, and can keep it synced and use it for dice rolls:

!check perception

Initiative

I’ve seen initiative done lots of ways, from roll20, Foundry, DNDBeyond, Manual in Discord, etc.

But here’s how we’ll use it in the TTRPG Discord games:

DM types !init begin (notice that avrae pins and unpins the message for ease of use. )

All linked characters type !init join:

Tabaxi Monk was distracted by a ball of yarn

Non linked characters type: !init add (initiative mod) (character name):

Once every monster/player has been added, the dm types !init next and that kicks off the combat :

!init next:

Notice it shows the Discord username NEXT to the character name for ease of tracking

and this continues through initiative order until the situation is resolved, and then the DM ends initiative order with !init end. The server asks for confirmation, ends combat, and sends the statistics as a Message to the DM:

Note: during combat, you can always type: !init list to show initiative order AND whos turn it is:

Final note: you can add monsters and characters AFTER combat has started and it will drop them in the right order.

Combat Rolls and Damage

For connected accounts, Avrae will pick it up automatically:

!attack quarterstaff

It’s a little verbose, but there is no doubt what has happened.

If you want to roll for a non connected account in a similar fashion, you can type this:
!attack the ghoul with my quarterstaff [[1d20 + 7]] for a total of [[1d6 + 4]] bludgeoning damage.

This is handy to give flavor (and maybe experience points) for staying in character. It also helps understand what dice roll does what (especially if there are a LOT of dice happening across players).

you can also drop in specials for ease of reference: !Attack stunning strike, or spells etc.

On a NAT 20, it doesn’t automatically double damage or dice because that’s a house rule, but since we double everything, it’s pretty easy to remember.