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Talen
October 15th, 2011, 12:23
Here is a video tutorial on how to take your Herolabs character and import it into Fantasy Grounds. It's very easy and probably didnt need a video, but I like playng with new toys ;)

Herolabs to FG Character Import:

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ddavison
October 16th, 2011, 03:11
Thanks Talen. I've stickied this thread.

Talen
October 23rd, 2011, 18:22
Looks like with the recent character importer update Ill need to update the video. You no longer need to change the .hlfg extension to .xml...in fact it will no longer work if you try it. In essence that step is now removed and you can go straight to import without having to rename the file.

lachancery
January 7th, 2012, 06:45
Hey. I'm using Hero Lab & import for the first time tonight, and watched your video. I have an issue that didn't show up in the video: all my skill ranks are empty - they don't get imported. Anyone else has this issues?

In the video, I also noticed the same few issues that I was having as well, so I'll post them here to see if someone has figured it out:

- Armor imported twice: your studded leather was imported twice; I have the same issue.

- Sneak Attack: you mentioned it in the video, but it's not imported.

- Links to weapons are empty; doesn't matter much.

*Edit: The video also shows that the AC value for the armor was not imported (confirmed on my character too) and that the skills were not linked the modules (confirmed on my character too).

Trenloe
January 7th, 2012, 08:29
Hey. I'm using Hero Lab & import for the first time tonight, and watched your video. I have an issue that didn't show up in the video: all my skill ranks are empty - they don't get imported. Anyone else has this issues?
Works fine for me. What version of Hero Lab are you using? Open the .hlfg file exported from HeroLab and check the <version> tags, mine is showing:

<version version="3.9" primary="3" secondary="9" tertiary="" build="277"></version>
In answer to your other questions:

- Armor imported twice: your studded leather was imported twice; I have the same issue.
This occurs if you haven't selected the armour to be worn in HeroLab. There is a white check box to the left of your armour on the "Armor" screen - select this before exporting.

- Sneak Attack: you mentioned it in the video, but it's not imported.
I see this too - it appears in the <attack> section of the .hlfg output file and doesn't seem to get read as an ability, as a work around you can copy the whole <special name="sneak attack +1d6"...> to </special> section from <attack> to <otherspecials>.

- Links to weapons are empty; doesn't matter much.
In mine I can see basic information on the inventory tab about the weapon, but not on the actions tab. For example, a Longsword shows it's cost, weight and the "Other" tab has a brief descripion. But, as you say, it does not link to the weapon entry in the Fantasy Grounds library file.

*Edit: The video also shows that the AC value for the armor was not imported (confirmed on my character too)
This is the same as for the double-entry mentioned above - make sure you wear the armour before exporting from HeroLabs.

and that the skills were not linked the modules (confirmed on my character too).
I've never managed to get the skills or weapons linked to the modules - not sure why...

amanwing
March 16th, 2012, 13:33
Is it possible to add the HL Creatures as NPC? It just seems to import everything as a character. I made some Monsters in HL and would like to import them somehow to FG2

Trenloe
March 16th, 2012, 14:28
Is it possible to add the HL Creatures as NPC? It just seems to import everything as a character. I made some Monsters in HL and would like to import them somehow to FG2
Use the creature parser (https://www.fantasygrounds.com/forums/showthread.php?t=15475), make sure you read the readme.txt file in the zip file. There is minor editing of the creature statblock text exported from HeroLab required.

amanwing
March 16th, 2012, 14:39
thanks for the Info. i will try to use the parser!

amanwing
March 17th, 2012, 11:32
I tried to use the parser on this txt file. There are many errors and i have no idea where to start. is there a tutorial how to use the parser? Sorry but i am not very good at this stuff.

Trenloe
March 17th, 2012, 18:48
I tried to use the parser on this txt file. There are many errors and i have no idea where to start. is there a tutorial how to use the parser? Sorry but i am not very good at this stuff.
I've answered you in post #72 in the Creature Parser thread (https://www.fantasygrounds.com/forums/showthread.php?t=15475) to keep questions on the parser in the same thread and to not highjack this one.

JohnD
March 25th, 2012, 02:12
Thanks for this. I asked this question in chat and got some dude trying to be funny telling me to delete my System32 folder in Windows to get it to work.

I guess there's one in every community.

JohnD
September 1st, 2012, 20:25
What is the most up to date version of the importer?

I have 2.8.1 and am getting an error when I try to import a 1st level Monk from Hero Lab.


Could not convert TBDJoelW: StartIndex cannot be less than zero.
Parameter name: startIndex

Moon Wizard
September 4th, 2012, 19:24
The latest version of the importer should be downloaded automatically to the FG data folder under the "utilities" subfolder. It is v2.9.0C.

The new web installer automatically configures a Start Menu link for new installs, but not for previous installs.

Cheers,
JPG

JohnD
September 6th, 2012, 14:50
The latest version of the importer should be downloaded automatically to the FG data folder under the "utilities" subfolder. It is v2.9.0C.

The new web installer automatically configures a Start Menu link for new installs, but not for previous installs.

Cheers,
JPG
Hmm... I must be using the old version from my directory then because it says v2.8.1 in the Importer Utility, but I do have FG v2.9.1.

I'll check this out when I get home tonight if I can avoid Imperial Entanglements (i.e. the wife) and post back with the outcome.

Thanks.

JohnD
September 8th, 2012, 04:38
The latest version of the importer should be downloaded automatically to the FG data folder under the "utilities" subfolder. It is v2.9.0C.

The new web installer automatically configures a Start Menu link for new installs, but not for previous installs.

Cheers,
JPG
Thanks JPG. I tested this and the newer version is there - I was using the old version it seems.

In the new version no error is kicked back.

RyanRMC
December 24th, 2012, 19:51
Question / Note - It seems that if, when doing a campaign import, you have FG2 open with that campaign loaded when you do your character converter / import, it WILL NOT load the character into the campaign. Apologies if this was mentioned somewhere and I missed it, but I figured for anyone else trying to load a PC into the campaign as a DM, who was having the same issue as me, it was worth noting this.

JohnD
December 25th, 2012, 00:51
Question / Note - It seems that if, when doing a campaign import, you have FG2 open with that campaign loaded when you do your character converter / import, it WILL NOT load the character into the campaign. Apologies if this was mentioned somewhere and I missed it, but I figured for anyone else trying to load a PC into the campaign as a DM, who was having the same issue as me, it was worth noting this.
Can't say as I've experienced this in either my 3.5e campaign or the Pathfinder campaign... unless something has changed with the latest v2.9.2.

Trenloe
December 25th, 2012, 00:58
Can't say as I've experienced this in either my 3.5e campaign or the Pathfinder campaign... unless something has changed with the latest v2.9.2.
No, nothing has changed. The campaign you are targeting as the output of the character converter must not be loaded in Fantasy Grounds at that time - otherwise the converter will not be able to add the character into the campaign database as it is being used. This would more than likely be the same for local import if you are in manage characters. So, best to make sure FG is not running if you're doing a campaign or local import.

It's fine using the XML output option while running FG as this doesn't access FG local character cache or campaign files.

hangarflying
January 27th, 2014, 22:41
I assume that 2.9.3.A is the current version of the character converter?

Trenloe
January 27th, 2014, 22:58
I assume that 2.9.3.A is the current version of the character converter?
Nope, it is 3.0.1.A. This would have been downloaded when you update to FG 3.0+

hangarflying
January 27th, 2014, 23:05
Nope, it is 3.0.1.A. This would have been downloaded when you update to FG 3.0+

Hmmm...my current FG version is 3.0.2. I found the 2.9.3.A version in my start menu under the Fantasy Grounds II folder. Did this link not update?

Trenloe
January 27th, 2014, 23:18
On the first screen of Fantasy Grounds press the folder icon in the top right for the data folder. When this opens go to the utilities directory and run characterconverter.exe - what version is this one?

hangarflying
January 27th, 2014, 23:22
Yup...it's current. I just didn't know how to get to it. Thanks!

PS - I did change the location of my Data folder, is this why the start menu link didn't update?

Moon Wizard
January 28th, 2014, 00:40
Yes, the Start Menu links are only set up when you first install FG.

JPG

PhilFischer
August 20th, 2014, 04:18
I'm importing an 8th level Cleric and he comes in with no spells.
The Sorcerer is working fine.
Any ideas?

7312

Trenloe
August 20th, 2014, 04:22
I'm importing an 8th level Cleric and he comes in with no spells.
The Sorcerer is working fine.
Any ideas?
I've seen this occasionally happen with specific class names (e.g. diviner instead of wizard) - what is the full class name of the PC?

PhilFischer
August 20th, 2014, 04:44
One is "Tyriel 8" and the other is "Nilesh".
Do they have to be a perfect character in HL?
One of them is, and the other isn't but both don't have spells.
I may have moved my 3.5 spell mod, let me check.

PhilFischer
August 20th, 2014, 04:55
I made sure all 3.5 modules were back in the module directory, but that didn't help. :(
hmm..... ??

How about I post it here:

guess I don't know how to do that.

PhilFischer
August 20th, 2014, 05:07
Having been set to PFRPG it seems it wasn't using those but the PF mods so it didn't matter.
Guess that is why it didn't fix it.
Anyone have a PF HL cleric I can have to import as a test.

I tried creating a new 3rd lvl cleric and it doesn't import into FGII with spells either. Humph.

Moon Wizard
August 20th, 2014, 07:07
The import only brings in prepared spells, not the entire cleric spell lists.

Regards,
JPG

PhilFischer
August 21st, 2014, 06:22
I thought I was, but thanks.

JHolt287
September 21st, 2014, 03:02
I recently tried to import a new druid character for a player from Hero Labs and for some reason, despite spells being prepared, there was no spell information for her druid. The wizard I imported at the same time had all of his spells. The correct modules are there and functional but I am at a loss after deleting and re-importing what I am missing. Anyone have an idea? Thanks!

Trenloe
May 14th, 2015, 23:01
A bit of thread necro here - but I may have finally found why some spells don't come through to FG from the HeroLab -> Character Converter process.

It appears that for divine casters, the converter is looking for spells within the .HLFG export in the <spellsknown> section, but HeroLab exports them in the <spellsmemorized> section. If the <spell> entry for each spell is copy/pasted from the <spellsmemorized> section of the .HLFG file and pasted into the <spellsknown> section, then the .HLFG file saved and ran through the FG character converter this has, in my limited testing, resulted in the divine spells appearing in Fantasy Grounds for the PC.

JHolt287
May 16th, 2015, 19:34
A bit of thread necro here - but I may have finally found why some spells don't come through to FG from the HeroLab -> Character Converter process.

It appears that for divine casters, the converter is looking for spells within the .HLFG export in the <spellsknown> section, but HeroLab exports them in the <spellsmemorized> section. If the <spell> entry for each spell is copy/pasted from the <spellsmemorized> section of the .HLFG file and pasted into the <spellsknown> section, then the .HLFG file saved and ran through the FG character converter this has, in my limited testing, resulted in the divine spells appearing in Fantasy Grounds for the PC.

Awesome, thanks for the info!

poppy_thompson
July 3rd, 2015, 22:59
I am have a similar problem with importing my wizard. None of my spells are showing up in the actions of character sheet. I tried coping them into the <spellsknown> section of the .HLFG file with no success.

drlaurson
April 30th, 2016, 22:22
I am importing an arcanist and no spells are imported, same as poppy_thompson. I checked that there are spells under <spellsknown> and nothing shows up. It has been a long time since anyone posted on this thready, but I thought I would try. Any ideas?

Moon Wizard
May 1st, 2016, 00:30
I'm not familiar with arcanist, but make sure the spells are memorized.

Spellsknown is a HL tag, not FG tag.

Regards,
JPG

Freenis
May 26th, 2016, 18:37
Need full version of hero lab?

JohnD
May 26th, 2016, 19:17
I am have a similar problem with importing my wizard. None of my spells are showing up in the actions of character sheet. I tried coping them into the <spellsknown> section of the .HLFG file with no success.

It's been a while but IIRC what you need to do is make sure you have all your spells memorized in HL and they will import. So, if your 1st level Cleric list has 50 spells in it, memorize each of them once. Of course, I've already said it's been a while... but I remember importing a Wizard and only having the Sleep spell I memorized in HL come across until I memorized his whole list.

Nylanfs
May 26th, 2016, 19:59
Need full version of hero lab?

Welcome to FG and the community!
I think you can do it with the demo, although I'd recommend PCGen if you are short on cash. :)

Freenis
May 26th, 2016, 23:47
Welcome to FG and the community!
I think you can do it with the demo, although I'd recommend PCGen if you are short on cash. :)

Ty :) try PCgen

Gariot
March 5th, 2017, 00:56
Is the import from Herolab better than from PCGEN? I cant test it because the demo dont let you export. Do you have to check and adjust a lot of stuff when you import - like PCGEN? Because "Prep Less. Play More." is a slogan i really like ;D

I know its a bit offtopic, but i think its a good place here :) I hope someone can answer my question.

DrJonesDk
March 7th, 2017, 07:21
Just bought Hero Lab and imported a character into my campaign in Fantasy Grounds. Only had a minor issue with Fantasy Grounds Character Converter utility using an old .NET Framework. I haven't tried PCGen, so I can't help you on that one.

Sasmira
March 9th, 2017, 12:56
Import from HL is better than PCGEN ? yes but you need to buy Hero Lab if you want exploit all functions ... after Hero Lab is up to date because they work directly with Paizo and PCGEN use SRD books only.

I'm using HL all time on VTT for import or create PC/NPC/ Encounters etc ... or RPG with my friends bcz u can use HL directly on an Ipad :)

Nylanfs
March 9th, 2017, 14:18
This is somewhat incorrect, PCGen is using the Community Use Policy (https://paizo.com/paizo/about/communityuse) which lets us use everything they produce, including IP names etc. We have essentially the same thing as HL, but since it's all volunteer driven the project the books made are kind of haphazard as to what gets put out.

Sasmira
April 14th, 2017, 22:02
Hello,

With the new version of FG (3.3.0) :

New characters imported from Hero Lab missing feats, class abilities, proficiencies, skill descriptions, etc...

Inventory still seems to populate correctly with item descriptions.

Can you fix this problem plz ?

Trenloe
April 14th, 2017, 22:10
Hello,

With the new version of FG (3.3.0) :

New characters imported from Hero Lab missing feats, class abilities, proficiencies, skill descriptions, etc...

Inventory still seems to populate correctly with item descriptions.

Can you fix this problem plz ?
Already reported and MW has replied in the v3.3 issues thread here: https://www.fantasygrounds.com/forums/showthread.php?37790-v3-3-0-Issues&p=332459&viewfull=1#post332459

Please try to keep reports regarding issues in v3.3 to that thread. Posting in many different places won't get you a faster resolution and just creates noise on the forums. Thanks.

Sasmira
April 14th, 2017, 22:19
Already reported and MW has replied in the v3.3 issues thread here: https://www.fantasygrounds.com/forums/showthread.php?37790-v3-3-0-Issues&p=332459&viewfull=1#post332459

Please try to keep reports regarding issues in v3.3 to that thread. Posting in many different places won't get you a faster resolution and just creates noise on the forums. Thanks.

Ok sorry I don't see the answer (Lol stop to follow me ! :D)

Moon Wizard
April 14th, 2017, 22:29
No worries. The Character Converter utility has not been updated to use the new data fields yet. I'll need to look at the utility and update it.

Regards,
JGP

dB88
May 23rd, 2017, 21:44
Do we have an approximate date on when we can see an updated The Character Converter?

I haven't had much luck with the old converter... maybe I should run through the tutorial again.
Any tips or tricks?

Trenloe
May 23rd, 2017, 21:48
Do we have an approximate date on when we can see an updated The Character Converter?

I haven't had much luck with the old converter... maybe I should run through the tutorial again.
Welcome to the forums dB88

What issues are you having?

dB88
May 23rd, 2017, 22:47
I haven't been able to find my converted characters within the Character Import function of FG.
I've tried both importing characters from within & outside of a campaign.
Maybe it's a lack of understanding the fundamentals of where FG pulls the files it uses.

If the tutorial posted by FGTalen on youtube in 2011 is still viable then I'll run through that again.

EDIT: Thanks for the welcome, I'm excited to dive deeper into the world of FG!

Trenloe
May 23rd, 2017, 22:56
What options are you selecting for the import? If you select "Campaign" and then check one (or more) of your GM campaigns on that computer, then load up that campaign (Load Campaign) and the PC will be available in the Character Selection screen - no additional importing to do.

Please provide a screenshot of the character converter immediately after doing a conversion.

Neram
June 7th, 2017, 01:16
I've got some weirdness going on when converting from Hero Lab to Fantasy Grounds.

One of my players has a (Pathfinder) Cleric (Fiendish Vessel Archetype). When she exports the HLFG file, I can see that she has an ability called "Hell's Corrpution" and she has spells prepared. However, when the character is imported into FG, it's missing all of those things. I exported it to an XML file in the Converter, and it does indeed get stripped out.

Is this a bug, or are we doing something wrong?

I've uploaded both the HLFG and the XML conversion, in case it's helpful. https://1drv.ms/f/s!Arf8jnutz6i-iZVUs7xwXFEPRWHiZw

Thank you.

Nylanfs
June 7th, 2017, 02:35
Welcome to the FG forums and Community!

Spells don't import well from Herolab or PCGen AFAIK.

Moon Wizard
June 7th, 2017, 04:18
There's a new version in the beta channel that checks for memorized spells, not just spell book or spells known. Hero Lab changed the way the spells are added in the last year or so.

To use the beta version, you can switch to Test mode in your Settings, and then Update again.

Regards,
JPG

Neram
June 12th, 2017, 13:04
Hi, and thank you. I did change to test mode, and it downloaded a new EXE (however inside the application the version number is still 3.3.0A), but it still does not import spells. Is there another way I should be grabbing this?

Montassiner
August 29th, 2017, 13:06
What options are you selecting for the import? If you select "Campaign" and then check one (or more) of your GM campaigns on that computer, then load up that campaign (Load Campaign) and the PC will be available in the Character Selection screen - no additional importing to do.

Please provide a screenshot of the character converter immediately after doing a conversion.

Hi Trenloe,

this is an error I keep getting:

20272

this file was made in Herolab, saved as a fantasy grounds file, and then when I try to convert it with the utility, it keeps giving me this parsing error. Is there anything you can see that I'm doing wrong?

Moon Wizard
August 29th, 2017, 15:16
Can you please post your HLFG file that you got when you exported from Hero Lab for that character?

Regards,
JPG

Montassiner
August 29th, 2017, 15:52
Hi Moon Wizard,

I have changed the extension to xsl, as the forum here doesn't allow attaching *.hlfg files. You may need to change the extension back, I'm not sure.

Thanks for helping!

Michael.

Moon Wizard
August 30th, 2017, 04:37
It's the ampersand in the description text for the tricorne hat. I'm queueing up a patch for v3.3.2, which will be in beta testing shortly.

In the mean time, you can replace the "&amp;" text in the tricorne description with "and" as a workaround.

Also, I added HLFG as a valid file extension for the forums.

Regards,
JPG

Montassiner
August 30th, 2017, 11:32
Thankyou kindly, that solved the problem. What a simple solution!

Eretas313
August 31st, 2017, 16:56
I just try the demo and I don't find the import HL video in the FG game. It may be obvious, but i'm lost. The initial video is no longer there.

Trenloe
August 31st, 2017, 17:00
I just try the demo and I don't find the import HL video in the FG game. It may be obvious, but i'm lost. The initial video is no longer there.
Welcome to the forums!

There are two Hero Lab videos in the Video section of the Wiki: https://www.fantasygrounds.com/wiki/index.php/Videos Search (CTRL+F) for "Hero Lab" on that page.

lacker
September 18th, 2017, 16:53
Hi all. Just purchased the PF Core Rule Book and RotRL on an old Lite License key (updated to v3.3.1 Player).

I am trying to import an HL (v. 8.2a latest) character .

Following the instructions from here: Preparing your PC for Fantasy Grounds
https://www.fg-con.com/information/pathfinder-society-organized-play/preparing-your-pc-for-fantasy-grounds/

When I get to step under "Using the Fantasy Grounds Character Converter" that says "...open the “utilities” folder and run the CharacterConverter application." my character converter does not open upon mouse click or quick menu "open."

- Why is the character converter not working?

- Does it have anything to do with my old Lite license?

- Is there another way to import HL characters to FG?

Can anyone help me?

Thanks

Moon Wizard
September 18th, 2017, 21:00
There's no other mechanism to import from HL, since both programs use a different XML format to store character information and the converter changes one to the other.

If it's not starting, you may want to check your security software to make sure it's not blocking the converter from running.

Also, are you running on Windows?

Regards,
JPG

lacker
September 18th, 2017, 22:12
Thx for the reply.

I should have put that I'm running the Wine wrapper on a MacBook Pro.

Zacchaeus gave me some insight on Discord (FG College) earlier today. Even though I went ahead and upgraded to a full license it appears that there is something wrong in the Wine coding so I will be unable to use the converter there nor will I be able to import images and maps.

Disappointing but not the end of the world.

Here's for hoping Unity is a welcomed addition for us Mac users! :-)

Zacchaeus
September 18th, 2017, 22:28
I should have put that I'm running the Wine wrapper on a MacBook Pro.

nor will I be able to import images and maps.

Not sure why you can't do this. To import an image or a map you simply drop the image or map into the images folder in your campaign. Or are you thinking about something else?

lacker
September 18th, 2017, 22:48
I tried opening my folder in campaign > image folder and was unable to paste/copy or link into it

Zacchaeus
September 18th, 2017, 23:20
I don't know much about macs but there's a definite problem with your install if you can't put something in your images folder. If it were windows I'd say it was a permissions issue.

lacker
September 18th, 2017, 23:24
Thx Zacchaeus. I'll take a look again later. I spent most of my day off tooling around in FG excitedly and am tired of staring at my computer screen. I hope that's the case and/or I missed something.

lachancery
August 11th, 2018, 17:22
Using the HL converter with the latest version of HeroLab and the latest version of FG. I am trying to import to Local (My Managed Characters). I have purchased the PFRPG ruleset (and still have the old free modules). Both are opened in Manage Characters.

When I import this character, the abilities tab in FG are empty - entries seem to be created, but no text is imported and the spell book is empty as well. This used to work when I used the HL converter last year. Am I doing something wrong?

24289

Here is the HL .hlfg files as well.

sarya
January 8th, 2019, 02:34
Bumping this thread! I have a similar question to Lachancery in this post.

Importing a spellcaster (Wizard) from Hero Lab - none of the prepared spells or actions are coming over, only the very basics of a Wizard. Do spells not get transferred with Hero Lab? I have all the pathfinder core material.

Moon Wizard
January 8th, 2019, 03:39
If you post your HL character file (not output file), perhaps I or someone else can take a look at it.

Regards,
JPG

Mortar
June 15th, 2019, 08:39
Not so much a HL error, but I just got this on an import. The info in that spell description is too long and the last of 4 words get wrapped around on top of the first few words.


**edit** Did some more digging on this one. When HL exports a character with spells it only exports the full description, the FG character converter uses that full description for <shortdescription> tag in the XML that gets produced.

Blahness98
September 18th, 2019, 16:22
Since there was a question in the community discord about the issues a few people were having with their spell lists not being imported properly, I have figured out the issue. From what I have noticed, the issue only comes into play when the PC has a spell casting class with an archetype. When Hero Lab exports the data into an HLFG file, Hero Lab changes the class name from Class to Class (Archetype). When the converter goes to add the spells, it uses the default spell libraries to locate the spells for whatever class Hero Lab supplied. So instead of looking for Class in the default spell modules, it is now looking for Class (Archetype). Since there are no Class (Archetype) spells located in the spell modules, it will fail to find anything and cause the spell list to be completely empty.

The fix is pretty simple, but it does require the use of a text editor to correct. There are only two lines that need to be changed in the HLFG file for the importer to correctly work. Using the example from Discord, the first line that needs to be changed is:


<class name="Cleric (Crusader)" level="13" spells="Memorized" casterlevel="13" concentrationcheck="+18" overcomespellresistance="+13" basespelldc="15" castersource="Divine"></class>

The code needs to be changed to this:


<class name="Cleric" level="13" spells="Memorized" casterlevel="13" concentrationcheck="+18" overcomespellresistance="+13" basespelldc="15" castersource="Divine"></class>

The second line which needs correcting is further down in the file. The line that needs to be changed is:


<spellclass name="Cleric (Crusader)" maxspelllevel="6" spells="Memorized">

And it needs to be change to:


<spellclass name="Cleric" maxspelllevel="6" spells="Memorized">

Just by dropping the archetypes from those two lines will allow the converter to properly convert the character's spell lists. Granted, I haven't tested this with other spell class archetypes, but I am assuming the same fix would work for them as well. Hope this information helps.