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Jerol
April 5th, 2005, 06:59
I just bought FG and have a number of questions.

I DM for a group that doesn't get together much because we live far apart (which is why I decided to try FG...). They all have characters already that have played in an ongoing campaign (actually, the game world is nearly 30 years old).

My question is this: if they are going to play using FG, then I will have to make it as easy for them as possible (they aren't into doing anything except playing and rolling dice... hehe). What this means is that I want to enter all their character data for them and keep the up-to-date character info on my host machine. Do I simply make their characters while logged in as the GM? How do I associate a Character Portrait from that interface? Can they "take a copy with them" after the gaming session is over?

Another question relates to entering numeric text. I tried to create a character sheet for a friend's Bard character and could not enter numbers over 1 digit in length unless I used the scroll wheel on my mouse. I am using a laptop and do not have a numeric keypad -- I just use the number keys above the letters... but I cannot enter a number larger than 9... It's quite a pain trying to enter and experience number of 10000 when you have to use the scroll wheel!

On the critical side, I'd like to see a MUCH more extensive manual and tutorial detailing software mechanics, token manipulation and file import mechanics. It's not intuitively obvious to me how to do a lot of the basic tasks the software is capable of (and I'm fairly intuitive...). I have discovered a lot by trial and error, but more attention to documentation would be nice.

Sorry for the lengthy post. FG really does appear to be the answer to my dream of playing with all my old friends and recapturing the "face to face" feel of D&D...

Many thanks!

Jerol Troglan

Cantstanzya
April 5th, 2005, 07:34
The only question I can help you out with is the entering of the numbers. You have to use the numbers on the keyboard and not a keypad. The trick is that you have to type the numbers quick. If you don't type quick enough it will think you are re-entering the data and start over.
Just out of curiosity, what ruleset are you using, first edition or 3rd edition?

Jerol
April 5th, 2005, 07:45
We started playing with the 1e rules in 1977... we're talking the little white box here (we were all around 14 years old and no one could completely figure out the rules as written).

Recently, I decided to restart the old campaign, set some 150 years after the fall of our world's Dark Lord. I was intrigued by the 3.5 ruleset (we never played the "d20" rules... back then the LOWER your AC, the better). The d20 system made a lot more sense to me, so I gave it a try and the guys loved it. Only problem was, that we all live fairly far apart and can only get together for FTF gaming once or twice a year. Fantasy Grounds is the first piece of software that I could see us using -- though it may be a tough sell if they have to put a lot into it to use the program.

I don't mind creating the content -- I've already been using CC2 and Dundjinni for maps -- but they are definitely more of the "show up and roll dice" crowd, so ease of use and minimal prep time will be critical if they are going to play. That's why I wanted to know about the Character Creation process. I can create characters just fine, but I want them to be useable by my players (basically, I want to enter the character data for already established characters so my players can just log on and play) and I don't want to waste my time by meticulously creating their characters only to find out that they can't use them...

Wow... long answer to short question...

(v3.5 ;))

Jerol Troglan

Goblin-King
April 5th, 2005, 11:11
Do I simply make their characters while logged in as the GM? How do I associate a Character Portrait from that interface? Can they "take a copy with them" after the gaming session is over?

Yes, you create them on the GM side. They will see them as server characters when they connect and will be able to select them from the list. For now, the only place to set up portraits is through the player interface though.

Every time a player quits a session, a local copy is made of the character they can browse in local mode. They can't edit the copy.


Another question relates to entering numeric text. I tried to create a character sheet for a friend's Bard character and could not enter numbers over 1 digit in length unless I used the scroll wheel on my mouse. I am using a laptop and do not have a numeric keypad -- I just use the number keys above the letters... but I cannot enter a number larger than 9... It's quite a pain trying to enter and experience number of 10000 when you have to use the scroll wheel!

Like Cantstanzya mentioned, long numbers need to be typed with less than a second between number presses. If you find this inconvenient, you can also type the following on the chat line (substituting your favorite number for 10000):

/die 10000

After this you can drag the number from the chat window to e.g. the experience field.


On the critical side, I'd like to see a MUCH more extensive manual and tutorial detailing software mechanics, token manipulation and file import mechanics. It's not intuitively obvious to me how to do a lot of the basic tasks the software is capable of (and I'm fairly intuitive...). I have discovered a lot by trial and error, but more attention to documentation would be nice.

Consider your feedback heard. However, it is unlikely we will add much to the manual itself, since it is already quite long at about 20 pages. Some people like to read manuals, but others consider having to read long bits quite painful. The most likely way could deliver extra documentation would probably be through an online reference of some kind. We'll see what we can do about that.

richvalle
April 6th, 2005, 02:15
Jerol,

You can pick the character portraits for the players if you like.

Two ways... first create a character and then start up another session of FG and connect to your self (ip 127.0.0.1) and pick that chracter and then select the portrait.

A bit of an easier way: inside of the campaign directory is a directory called Portraits. If it is not there yet (which it will not be untill at least one character portrait is selected for a character) you can create it on your own. Inside put the picture and name it the same as the characters name without any extention. So Bob the character's portrait would be 'Bob'. When the players login their portraits will show up.

Note: It is very nice to then take that picture and shrink it down and then use it as the character's token as well.

rv

Jerol
April 9th, 2005, 22:15
Tero,

I respect what you are saying about lengthy manuals, but I would just point out a few things:

First, the manual is a very "soft" 20 pages. It took me about 10 minutes to read it.

Second, you don't have to read all of the manual. You could keep the "basics" section as is and just add an additional section for more detailed instructions that was completely optional. The software is capable of so much, it really is a shame to keep it a secret. Truthfully, I have discovered more about using it on these message boards than I did by reading the manual.

I really like how easy it is to import maps and use them as a DM. I made most of my maps using CC2 (and more recently with Dundjinni) and importing them is a snap. The mask feature is also tremendous.

Keep up the good work ... looking forward to 1.04!

Jerol Troglan

Feanor_Finwed
May 23rd, 2005, 19:10
Consider your feedback heard. ... The most likely way could deliver extra documentation would probably be through an online reference of some kind. We'll see what we can do about that.

Any word on the status of providing this information? I (for one) completely agree with Jerol. FG is fantastic, I am just having real issues with porting content to the FG framework.

Thanks, SmiteWorks, for your efforts.

Feanor