Tabletop Simulator for Commander? There's a better way.

Playgroup Live is a free, browser-based virtual tabletop for MTG Commander that replaces Tabletop Simulator's mod-dependent setup with native Commander rules, built-in voice chat, and reliable deck imports.

No Steam purchase. No Workshop mods. No separate Discord call. Open a link on desktop and play Commander with 2 to 6 players.

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TTS served the community well

For years, Tabletop Simulator was the only real option for playing Commander online. The community built something impressive on top of a generic physics sandbox. That deserves respect.

But it was never built for Magic

TTS is a general-purpose physics engine. Every Magic-specific feature is a mod, a workaround, or a manual process. When Scryfall blocks an importer or a Workshop mod gets removed, the whole setup breaks.

Commander deserves its own tool

Playgroup Live handles Commander rules, deck imports, voice chat, and game tracking natively. No mods to install, no workarounds to learn.

How they compare

An honest side-by-side. TTS does some things well. Playgroup Live was built to solve the specific pain points Commander players hit.

Feature

Tabletop Simulator

Playgroup Live

Cost

$20 on Steam, each player needs a copy

Free

Setup

Buy on Steam, find Workshop mods, learn controls, import deck via external tool

Open a link in your browser

Deck import

Workshop mods that frequently break (Scryfall API blocks, 403 errors, blank cards)

Paste a decklist, or import from Archidekt/Moxfield

Rules enforcement

None. Everything is manual

Commander damage, life, poison, stack, priority, counters, mulligans

Voice chat

Not included. Requires Discord

Built in

Counters

Manual placement on a physics grid. Painful with token-heavy boards

Click to add/remove. Keyword counters, P/T overrides

Board readability

Gets crowded at 4 players. Constant camera manipulation

Purpose-built layout. Zones stay organized as the board grows

Performance

4-10 second lag picking up a 100-card deck. FPS drops from auto-save

Lightweight browser client. No physics engine overhead

Hidden information

Honor system. No enforcement

Server-authoritative. Hidden zones enforced by the server

Card pool

Full card pool via mods (when they work)

Full card pool via Scryfall

Game tracking

None

ELO, per-deck stats, achievements, Playscore leagues

Player count

2-8

2-6

Platform

Steam (Windows, Mac, Linux)

Any modern desktop browser

Solo playtesting

Possible but clunky

Dedicated solo mode with full game engine

Cost

TTS $20 on Steam, each player needs a copy

Live Free

Setup

TTS Buy on Steam, find Workshop mods, learn controls, import deck via external tool

Live Open a link in your browser

Deck import

TTS Workshop mods that frequently break

Live Paste a decklist, or import from Archidekt/Moxfield

Rules enforcement

TTS None. Everything is manual

Live Commander damage, life, poison, stack, priority, counters, mulligans

Voice chat

TTS Not included. Requires Discord

Live Built in

Counters

TTS Manual placement on a physics grid

Live Click to add/remove. Keyword counters, P/T overrides

Board readability

TTS Gets crowded at 4 players

Live Purpose-built layout. Zones stay organized

Performance

TTS 4-10 second lag picking up a 100-card deck

Live Lightweight browser client

Hidden information

TTS Honor system. No enforcement

Live Server-authoritative. Hidden zones enforced

Game tracking

TTS None

Live ELO, per-deck stats, achievements, Playscore leagues

Player count

TTS 2-8

Live 2-6

Solo playtesting

TTS Possible but clunky

Live Dedicated solo mode with full game engine

Deck imports that actually work

TTS deck imports break regularly. Scryfall has blocked TTS mod requests for making too many individual API calls. Workshop mods get removed. Cards load as blank images or wrong printings. Playgroup Live handles this natively.

Paste any text decklist No external tools needed. Copy your list, paste it in, done.
Import from Archidekt or Moxfield Paste a URL from Archidekt or Moxfield and Playgroup Live pulls your full list, commander included.
Card data always current Card images and data come from Scryfall updated server-side. No mod dependency.
Deck primers visible to the table Your deck's primer expands inline on the lobby card so everyone can read what you are bringing.

Commander rules the server enforces

TTS has zero understanding of Magic rules. No triggers, no stack management, no priority, no alerts when damage thresholds are reached. Everything is manual negotiation. Playgroup Live tracks the rules that matter most in Commander.

Life & cmd damage

Poison & rad

Mulligan phase

Stack & priority

Keyword counters

P/T overrides

Extra turns

Hidden zones enforced

Undo last action

No more fiddly physics

TTS uses a 3D physics engine designed for generic board games. Dropping counters on cards is painful. Cards float mid-air. Flip and transform break along the wrong axis. Playgroup Live treats cards as data, not physics objects.

Tap, flip, transform, phase One click or keyboard shortcut. No physics glitches, no wrong-axis rotations.
Counters are data, not objects Click to add or remove. Works cleanly even on counter-heavy boards like Atraxa.
Equipment attaches to a shelf Attached cards live next to the creature they enchant. No stacking or overlapping.
Marquee select for batch actions Drag-select multiple permanents and tap, move, or token them at once.

Voice chat without Discord

TTS Commander requires Discord as a second app. Managing two windows while playing is friction you do not need. Playgroup Live has voice built in.

Three modes per player: Talk, Listen, Off
Active speaker indicator and per-player mute
Pick your mic and output device in settings

Your games actually count

TTS has no game tracking at all. Win rates, deck performance, leaderboards? Manual spreadsheets or nothing. Playgroup Live records everything automatically.

ELO leaderboards update the moment a game ends
Per-deck win rates, power estimates, arch-enemies
Achievements and Playscore leagues

Know which cards are pulling their weight

A popular reason to use TTS is testing decks before buying physical cards. Playgroup Live goes further. Card Insights tracks every card you draw, cast, and win with across real games, then tells you what to cut and what to keep.

Card Insights showing per-card win rate impact, dead draws, and cast-on-curve analysis

Dead draw detection Cards you draw but rarely cast. If a card sits in your hand across multiple games, the data shows it.

Win rate impact per card See how your win rate changes when a specific card hits the battlefield versus when it does not.

Cast-on-curve analysis Measures how often your non-land cards land on the turn their mana cost suggests. A low score points to ramp or curve problems.

Best opening hand cards Win rates broken down by which cards were in your opening seven, so you know what to keep on a mulligan.

Where Tabletop Simulator still shines

Honesty matters. Here is what TTS does that Playgroup Live currently does not.

Up to 8 players TTS supports 8-player tables. Playgroup Live caps at 6.
Freeform spatial arrangement TTS lets you drag cards anywhere on an open 3D table. Playgroup Live uses structured zones for readability.
Format freedom beyond Commander TTS supports any board game, any card game, any format variant. Playgroup Live is Commander-only.

Frequently Asked

Is Playgroup Live really free?

Yes. No purchase, no subscription required to play. You need a Playgroup.gg account, which is also free.

Can I import my TTS decks into Playgroup Live?

If you have a decklist in text format, paste it directly. If your deck is on Archidekt or Moxfield, import by URL. Any standard decklist format works.

Does Playgroup Live have the full Magic card pool?

Yes. Card data comes from Scryfall and updates automatically. Every legal Commander card is available.

How many players can play at once?

2 to 6. Standard Commander pods of 4 are the most common. TTS supports up to 8; Playgroup Live caps at 6.

Do I need to install anything?

No. Playgroup Live runs in any modern desktop browser. Open the lobby link and you are in.

Can I use Playgroup Live for formats other than Commander?

Playgroup Live is built specifically for Commander. If you play other formats, TTS or another tool may still be a better fit for those.

What about the spatial freedom of TTS? I like arranging my board freely.

Playgroup Live uses structured zones: hand, battlefield, graveyard, exile, library, command zone, and the stack. You arrange cards within zones, but the layout keeps the board readable even when things get busy. The trade-off is readability over freeform placement.

Does Playgroup Live work on mobile?

Playgroup Live runs on desktop browsers. Mobile and tablet support is not available yet.

How does voice chat compare to using Discord with TTS?

Playgroup Live voice chat is built in and tuned for game tables. No second app needed. You get talk, listen, and off modes, active speaker indicators, per-player mute, and device selection. Discord has more features like screen share and text chat, but for a Commander game the built-in voice covers everything you need.

I already own TTS. Is it worth switching?

If you are happy with your TTS setup, keep using it. Playgroup Live is worth trying when you hit the pain points: broken deck imports, counter management headaches, missing rules enforcement, or wanting your games to count toward stats. It is free, so there is nothing to lose.

See all Playgroup Live features

Ready to try something built for Commander?

Playgroup Live is free and runs in your browser. Bring your regular group or find a new table. Every game counts toward your Playgroup.gg stats.