Signal & Reception

The signal system lets the GM decide whether phones work normally, struggle, or stop working in a scene or region. It affects the Messages app and the Phone app.

Where to Open Signal Settings

Use one of these entry points depending on what you want to control.

What you want to set	Where to go
Whole scene signal	Scenes sidebar > right-click the Scene > Smartphone Widget Settings
A smaller no-signal or weak-signal area	Region Controls > select or draw a Region > Behaviors tab > Add Behavior > Signal Dead Zone
A phone that ignores signal limits	Smartphone Widget > Settings app > GM Only > Device Management > phone more menu > Satellite mode

Use scene-wide signal when the whole map should have the same reception. Use a Region dead zone when only part of the map should block or weaken phones, such as a basement, tunnel, shielded room, or underground area.

Signal Levels

Level	What players see	What happens
Full Signal	Normal signal icon	Messages and calls work normally.
Weak Signal	Yellow blinking signal icon	Messages can wait a few seconds before sending, may fail, and calls may disconnect.
No Signal	Red slashed signal icon	New messages wait on the phone, outgoing calls are blocked, and incoming calls are missed.

What Players See

If you write a message with no signal, it stays in the conversation with a clock icon. It sends automatically after signal comes back.
If someone sends you messages while your phone has no signal, you do not see them until signal comes back. When reception returns, the app refreshes and can show toast alerts for up to the five most recent missed messages.
In weak signal, messages show a sending state first. If one fails, it gets a red failed icon and a Retry button.
The Messages and Phone apps show a warning banner at the top when signal is weak or unavailable.
If you try to call from a no-signal phone, the call does not start. If your phone receives a call with no signal, it is rejected after a short delay and saved as a missed call.

GM Setup

Scene-wide signal: Open the Scenes sidebar, right-click the Scene, and choose Smartphone Widget Settings. In that dialog, set Signal Level to Full Signal, Weak Signal, or No Signal, then save.
Weak signal settings: Choose Weak Signal in the scene dialog to show extra fields. Message delay controls how long messages wait before sending, message failure rate controls failed sends, call drop rate controls the chance of an active call ending, and call drop check interval controls how often that call-drop check runs.
Region dead zones: In Foundry VTT V13, open Region Controls, draw or select a Region, open the Behaviors tab, add Signal Dead Zone, then choose No Signal or Weak Signal. This affects phones owned by actors whose tokens enter that region.
Region weak signal settings: If a phone is inside a Weak Signal region, that region's delay, failure, and call-drop settings are used for that phone while it remains in the region.
Satellite phones: Open the Smartphone Widget as GM, go to Settings app > GM Only > Device Management, open the phone's more menu, and toggle Satellite mode. A satellite phone ignores both scene-wide signal limits and Region dead zones.