About SmiteWorks USA, LLC.

Owned by Derek Batting
Last updated: Apr 15, 2022 by Doug Davison
6 min read

SmiteWorks is the small Indie team responsible for the Fantasy Grounds virtual tabletop. Fantasy Grounds allows gamers to play traditional pen-and-paper style roleplaying games. With the aid of over 150 community developers and partnerships with key RPG publishers, gamers' online experience is tailored to a host of different game systems.

History

Early History

SmiteWorks Ltd. was formed in 2004 and based out of Espoo, Finland. The original owners had a great vision of what online tabletop gaming could be. Each of the current owners and developers were individually drawn to this platform and saw it as a way to allow gaming online for any game system.

New Official Licenses

  1. 2004-06-01: Savage Worlds Ruleset released

  2. 2008-05-17: Monte Cook’s Arcana Evolved Ruleset released

  3. 2008-08-25: Iron Heroes Ruleset released

  4. 2008-12-31: DLC Library for Fantasy Grounds grows to 40 products

2009 - 2013

Doug Davison had used the Fantasy Grounds software since 2008 and instantly fell in love with how flexible and powerful it was. After quickly creating custom rulesets to handle his personal Star Wars Saga campaign needs, he reached out to the original owners and negotiated to purchase the company outright. John Gregory was another end-user and community developer and he joined Doug in January 2010. John Gregory brings along his fan-made rulesets for unofficial support of Dungeons & Dragons 3.5 and 4E. Together, they have helped bring a large collection of game systems and additional enhancements to Fantasy Grounds and they hope to see it grow further as time goes on.

Important Dates

  • 2009-10-01: Doug Davison forms SmiteWorks USA, LLC to acquire SmiteWorks Ltd.

  • 2010-01-01: John Gregory joins SmiteWorks USA, LLC as co-owner and Lead Developer

  • 2009-12-31: DLC Library for Fantasy Grounds grows to 61 products

  • 2010-12-31: DLC Library for Fantasy Grounds grows to 141 products

  • 2011-12-31: DLC Library for Fantasy Grounds grows to 197 products

  • 2012-12-31: DLC Library for Fantasy Grounds grows to 215 products

  • 2013-12-31: DLC Library for Fantasy Grounds grows to 244 products

New Official Licenses

  1. 2009-08-29: Call of Cthulhu 6E Ruleset released

  2. 2010-04-08: Basic Roleplaying (BRP) Ruleset released

  3. 2010-11-07: Castles & Crusades Ruleset released

  4. 2011-05-30: Savage Suzerain released for Savage Worlds

  5. 2011-12-17: Hellfrost released for Savage Worlds

  6. 2011-12-17: Deadlands Reloaded released for Savage Worlds

  7. 2012-10-20: 50 Fathoms released for Savage Worlds

  8. 2012-06-24: Mutants & Masterminds Ruleset released

  9. 2013-04-21: Rolemaster Classic (RMC) Ruleset released

2014

In April, 2014, Fantasy Grounds secured an official license with Wizards of the Coast to carry fully licensed Dungeons & Dragons modules. Over the course of the year, we released numerous products for the D&D fifth edition game system. Zeph Ponos joined the development team in an official capacity after several years of community development. His work has been inspiring and has earned him immense respect within the Fantasy Grounds community. With Zeph joining the team, SmiteWorks tackled even bigger projects, such as porting the code engine over to Unity. The port to Unity allows for better deployment across multiple platforms, such as Mac, Linux, PC, web and tablet. It also allows for numerous enhancements with 3D, animation, dynamic lighting and more.

Important Dates

  1. 2014-05-09: Fantasy Grounds is launched on Steam

  2. 2014-08-28: Fantasy Grounds begins allowing monthly subscriptions along with lifetime purchases

  3. 2014-12-31: DLC Library for Fantasy Grounds grows to 318 products

2015

In the Fall of 2015, SmiteWorks acquired Tabletop Connect and hired it's creator, Carl Pinder, as a Sr. Software Developer. Tabletop Connect (TTC) included some highly advanced 3D mapping capabilities and improved ease of use for non-official game systems. Because TTC was also developed in Unity, the merger of the Fantasy Grounds code with that of TTC was something that was possible and work has continued on the Unity port and bringing the best features from both platforms forward, for the benefit of all online gamers.

Important Dates

  • 2015-10-16: Carl Pinder joins SmiteWorks as Senior Developer

New Official Licenses

  1. 2015-01-26: Weird Wars II released for Savage Worlds

  2. 2015-02-24: Officially licensed Dungeons & Dragons 5th edition content released

  3. 2015-12-31: DLC Library for Fantasy Grounds grows to 408 products

2016

In December 2016, SmiteWorks signed a contract with Paizo Inc. to provide officially licensed Pathfinder Roleplaying Game content for Fantasy Grounds. James Holloway joins the company as the Production Coordinator in May.

Important Dates

  • 2016-05-02: James Holloway joins SmiteWorks as the Production Coordinator

New Official Licenses

  1. 2016-04-14: Fifth Edition Foes from Frog God Games is released

  2. 2016-05-12: Rippers Resurrected released for Savage Worlds

  3. 2016-07-14: Primeval Thule licensed and released from Sasquatch Games

  4. 2016-12-22: Call of Cthulhu 7E Ruleset released from Chaosium

  5. 2016-12-31: DLC Library for Fantasy Grounds grows to 579 products

2017

SmiteWorks released the first batch of officially licensed Pathfinder Roleplaying Game content for Fantasy Grounds on May 2nd, 2017. David Middleton joins the company as our first dedicated Customer Support representative.

Important Dates

  • 2017-12-11: David Middleton joins SmiteWorks as the Customer Service Representative

New Official Licenses

  1. 2017-05-02: Pathfinder 1E RPG official content licensed and released

  2. 2017-07-07: The Sixth Gun Roleplaying Game released for Savage Worlds

  3. 2017-12-31: DLC Library for Fantasy Grounds grows to 880 products

2018

Fantasy Grounds breaks 100,000 licensed users and subscribers. Available DLC exceeds 1200 add-ons with products from more than 80 licensed publishers and Indie artists. SmiteWorks coordinates with 94 community developers to deliver new products weekly for Fantasy Grounds. Ryan Nohr joined the team in July as a Unity Developer. He worked on the updater engine, installer and Mac native builds. Jen Page joined us in November as our Marketing Specialist and Graphic Designer.

Important Dates

  • 2018-07-24: Ryan Nohr joins SmiteWorks as a developer (until 2020)

  • 2018-11-01: Jen Page joins SmiteWorks as a Marketing Specialist (until 2020)

New Official Licenses

  1. 2018-02-09: Starfinder ruleset and content released

  2. 2018-05-29: 13th Age Ruleset released

  3. 2018-05-09: Traveller 1E Ruleset released

  4. 2018-12-31: DLC Library for Fantasy Grounds grows to 1,246 products

2019

Fantasy Grounds launched a Kickstarter for Fantasy Grounds Unity and raised over half a million dollars from 8,520 backers to help bring it forward to completion. After funding, we expanded our team to include Joshua Watmough as an artist, along with Dominic Morta and Hollis Gray as ruleset developers. Fantasy Grounds Unity launched an Alpha in October 2019 and a Closed Beta in November 2019.

Important Dates

  • 2019-09-03: Dominic Morta joins SmiteWorks as a ruleset developer

  • 2019-09-03: Hollis Gray Morta joins SmiteWorks as a ruleset developer (until 2021)

  • 2019-06-17: Joseph Watmough becomes the exclusive artist for SmiteWorks

New Official Licenses

  1. 2019-02-26: Savage Worlds Adventure Deluxe Edition ruleset released

  2. 2019-04-02: Symbaroum Ruleset Released

  3. 2019-04-12: Deadlands Noir released for Savage Worlds

  4. 2019-04-16: Dungeon Crawl Classic Ruleset released

  5. 2019-04-16: D&D Classics: AD&D 2E content licensed and released

  6. 2019-08-01: Pathfinder 2E RPG content licensed and released

  7. 2019-09-19: Mongoose Traveller 2E Ruleset released

  8. 2019-12-31: DLC Library for Fantasy Grounds grows to 1,513 products

2020

Fantasy Grounds Unity launched in Early Access on March 15th, 2020 and crossed over 200K licensed users and subscribers. Fantasy Grounds Unity officially launched on Steam and worldwide on November 5th, 2020, thanks to the support of the many Early Access and public beta testers. SmiteWorks crossed 300K users in November 2020. Derek Batting and Joseph Belcher joined the team as Customer Support Specialists, and Steven Melton came on as a Unity Developer.

Important Dates

  • 2020-03-15: Fantasy Grounds Unity launches in Early Access on fantasygrounds.com

  • 2020-06-22: Derek Batting joins SmiteWorks as a Customer Service Representative

  • 2020-07-29: Joseph Belcher joins SmiteWorks as a Customer Service Representative

  • 2020-08-10: Steven Melton joins SmiteWorks as a Sr. Developer

  • 2020-09-05: Fantasy Grounds Unity launches on Steam

New Official Licenses

  1. 2020-03-02: Vampire the Masquerade 5th Edition Ruleset Released

  2. 2020-06-30: Starfinder Roleplaying Game Released

  3. 2020-06-11: Pathfinder 2 RPG Ruleset Released as a free built-in ruleset for game mechanics only

  4. 2020-09-29: Rifts licensed and released for Savage Worlds

  5. 2020-10-13: Alien the Roleplaying Game released

  6. 2020-12-31: DLC Library for Fantasy Grounds grows to 1,876 products

2021

Fantasy Grounds created and launched the FG Forge, a self-publishing platform that allows creators to distribute free and paid products that work with Fantasy Grounds. Creators can push new builds and customers can subscribe to receive automatic updates along with official Fantasy Grounds content.

Important Dates

  • 2021-01-04: Brad Bound joins SmiteWorks as the Marketing Specialist

  • 2021-06-01: Paulette Anderson joins SmiteWorks as the Social Media Specialist

  • 2021-07-06: Josh Utter joins SmiteWorks as a Unity Developer

  • 2021-11-19: Our good friend David Middleton passed away

  • 2021-11-22: Cameren Schwach joins SmiteWorks as a Ruleset Architect

New Official Licenses

  1. 2021-01-12: Flash Gordan RPG released for Savage Worlds

  2. 2021-01-13: Vaesen - Nordic Horror Roleplaying ruleset released

  3. 2021-07-20: Advanced Fighting Fantasy 2E Ruleset Released

  4. 2021-12-31: DLC Library for Fantasy Grounds grows to 2,255 products

2022

Important Dates

  • 2022-01-27: Bryce Mousseau joins SmiteWorks as a Streaming Specialist

For company directory, contact information and more, please see our Press Kit - SmiteWorks USA, LLC page.

About Fantasy Grounds Unity

Fantasy Grounds Unity is the latest version of Fantasy Grounds rebuilt from the ground up in Unity3D to provide enhanced functionality for sound, map making, images, FX and networking. It maintains backward compatibility with content for Fantasy Grounds. Fantasy Grounds Unity is designed to perform many of the things you can do while playing at a conventional gaming table, while automating many laborious elements. Run games as the gamemaster or take part as a player, the application provides all the necessary tools to communicate, manage campaign information and perform tasks such as rolling the dice or moving tokens around a battlemap.

For more information about Fantasy Grounds Unity, please see our Press Kit - Fantasy Grounds VTT page.