Quality of life question from a GM

[Kungsarme]

Am I missing a way to do this? Combat tracker, or more importantly, image associated combat trackers.

While in the combat tracker, I can click on a character and it will bring up the last image they were on, which is very nice. However, is there a way to have multiple combat trackers preset so I as a GM can have the ability to preplan say 4 or 5 maps, stocked with different encounters, ready to go, set up in advance of the session instead of needing to repopulate the tracker inbetween each encounter? I recognize that they would need to be linked in some fashion so as to retain character status. Is there a way to do that already that I don't see, or is that even possible within the confines of the program?

[Zacchaeus]

No, there's only one Combat Tracker. Generally once a PC is on the Combat Tracker they never leave it - unless they get replaced or some such. NPCs are populated when they are needed for an encounter and are deleted as they get disposed of.

I'm assuming you know that you can create encounters and have them pre populated onto any map? See the wiki here https://fantasygroundsunity.atlassia...c+-+Encounters

[Kungsarme]

Yeah, I get the encounters tab and how that works. It's only a minor incovenience, but was hoping there was a way to have the combat tracker auto populated per map. I know its probably trivial in the grand scheme. If I populate the map with an encounter from the combat tracker and close it out, those creatures are then removed from the combat tracker, and another map is set up with new creatures and a new encounter, that I'm moving tokens from the tracker to the image, close it out again. I go back to load the first map and reload the encounter into the tracker, are the icons from the first map then associated to the encounter I just loaded? Or would I need to manually enter them again onto the image?

[Zacchaeus]

I'm not getting the workflow here. If you add NPCs from the combat tracker to the map (by dragging them from the CT to the map); and then close the Combat Tracker - nothing happens. The NPCs don't get moved from the combat tracker; they don't get removed from the map. When you re-open the Combat Tracker the NPCs are all still there where they were.

On the other hand when you create an encounter by first populating the encounter with NPC and then place those NPCs onto the map (they don't go onto the CT at this point - they are only in the encounter window); and then close that encounter the NPC tokens are removed from the map. However when you oprn that encounter again and then click on the add encounter button the tokens will get placed onto the CT and also get placed onto the map where you put them. Is this what you are talking about?

Also I should say that I don't know this ruleset so things might work a little differently; but what I describe above happens in all of the ruleset that I do know.

[SilentRuin]

Research extensions. Combat Groups for one does what your talking about but I'd REALLY recommend doing the research for yourself and watch videos etc. of all extensions that may do this sort of thing. I'm only aware of my own as I like to have full control of what I run with (with very few exceptions not my own stuff - BCEG, AURA EFFECTS, EFFECTIVE INITIATIVE, NATURAL SELECTION, SOUNDS VLC, and TURBO currently being the "not me" ones - but I trust them to keep things updated). Personally - do your own - or look for free ones) - only look for paid as a last ditch resort and only after you have thouroughly read/watched/understood EVERYTHING about it. IMHO.

[Kungsarme]

I'm not getting the workflow here. If you add NPCs from the combat tracker to the map (by dragging them from the CT to the map); and then close the Combat Tracker - nothing happens. The NPCs don't get moved from the combat tracker; they don't get removed from the map. When you re-open the Combat Tracker the NPCs are all still there where they were.

On the other hand when you create an encounter by first populating the encounter with NPC and then place those NPCs onto the map (they don't go onto the CT at this point - they are only in the encounter window); and then close that encounter the NPC tokens are removed from the map. However when you oprn that encounter again and then click on the add encounter button the tokens will get placed onto the CT and also get placed onto the map where you put them. Is this what you are talking about?

Yes, this is it. It's more about preplanning for me. I don't think this is system specific. So the workflow....

For our hypothetical session, Our intrepid adventurers are going to come across an encounter I have built and called roadside ambush. I have populated that encounter, and can use it to drop them in the tracker and then place them on the image I have built for that encounter. I place the tokens from the tracker to where these wily miscreants will be hiding for my preparation. That will be encounter #1.

I also have planned another encounter involving some murderous trolls who are going hungry on a different image. I build an encounter for that and can drop that encounter into the CT and place the tokens onto this different image. That would be encounter #2.

repeat ad nauseum.

When I go back to image and encounter #1, my placements are gone if I removed them from the tracker.

So in typing this out I've come to the realiziation that my combat tracker would need to contain all encounters for that session, and I would just have to keep some hidden from the players, leaving me with potentially multiple encounters on the combat tracker. Which probably wouldn't save me as much time as I'd been hoping to from preplanning and setting the images and encounters separately.

Does that sort of explain the workflow better?

[seycyrus]

I'm not getting the problem here. When I put my baddies down from the encounter #1, I can remove them and populate the CT and the map with the baddies from encounter #2. I can make them go away with 2 clicks of a button, and then repopulate the Ct and map 1 with baddies #1 with a single click. I can go back and forth, to encounter 1,2,3,4 ... with 3 clicks.

[Zacchaeus]

Yes, I get what you mean and what you are looking for, but it isn’t possible. The combat tracker is the Heart of FG and it is a very complex beast. To have multiple combat trackers would require a lot of complex infrastructure. You also have the problem of retaining the players info when you move them from one encounter to the next (you would only have one copy of each PC so you’d need to move them from the first CT onto the second whilst keeping their hit points, effects etc intact).

However as noted above you have the encounter system where you can prepare multiple (limitless) encounters and add those to your map and the CT with a single click as needed.

In summery I think having multiple combat trackers would be really complex and create a lot more work to maintain.

[Kungsarme]

First off, cheers for the useage of whilst. To the previous post before yours, my goal was to be able to pull up prepopulated maps over 4 to 6 instances without having to delete creatures from a previous encounter, drop in a new encounter, then maneuver the tokens onto the map. I'm all about having everything I can be seamlessly done so my players don't have to hear the words, "Hold on a minute...."

Our encounters can get complex and I consider lines of sight, weapons used and ranges involved, potential for initiative outcomes, as well as overall lighting when preparing an encounter. Anything I can do before the session to make opening that map and having everything ready to go during the session is gold to me. Hence the question.

[Kungsarme]

I suppose I could use pins to mark locations for token placement on a map beforehand to lessen the time needed.