Module Activation

[Trentos]

Hello all! I just started using FG and I am working on my first campaign for three players who all have the lite version. I have read up on the program and pretty much everything is running smoothly but I did have several questions.

1) Is there a way for the GM to run a NPC that appears in a player bubble at the top of the screen? This would make it easy to add into the combat initative box and drag wounds and intiatives etc.

2) Module Activation - What is it? I have this nifty little button and I am not sure what I am suppose to do with it? /blush

3) When a campaign/scenarion is complete, how does one transfer the characters into a new campaign for them to being to play? Does dragging the .xml file of the character from that campaign into the new one work?

Thanks all and may I say I am loving the possibilities of this software. The players and I are using ventrilo in conjunction with it. So it's great.

[Griogre]

1) Is there a way for the GM to run a NPC that appears in a player bubble at the top of the screen? This would make it easy to add into the combat initative box and drag wounds and intiatives etc.
There is currently no easy way of doing this. I have read someone has done a mod that allows this.
1.06 is suppose to allow this and I am looking forward to it because my players have a permanent NPC in the party who I would like to give a portrate to, and I am one of those DM's who NPC's pcs if the player can't make the session.

2) Module Activation - What is it? I have this nifty little button and I am not sure what I am suppose to do with it? /blush
Why module activation allows you to activate modules of course. ;) Modules are similar to the commercial modules you might buy in a store. When you activate a module it adds the activated module's data into your current campaign. It's important to note you can't change a module's data permanently. You may add more than one module. As you didn't know about modules before, when you push the button nothing is going to show up because you wouldn't probably don't have anything in your module folder.

To make a module create a new campaign and then when you have put everything in it you want - use the /export command to turn it into a module that you can import into any other campaign. To change something in the module, reload the campaign you created the module in and make the changes and /export again. I've only hit the high points there has been a good deal of discussion on the forums about the usefulness of them and there is a section in the manual about them. I think they are useful but not everyone agrees.


3) When a campaign/scenarion is complete, how does one transfer the characters into a new campaign for them to being to play? Does dragging the .xml file of the character from that campaign into the new one work?
The short answer is yes. You can cut and paste the characters xml into a different campaign. In my online campaign I personally keep the characters in the "Valon Campaign" along with any party NPCs and other "floating" NPCs. I keep most of the site based information in different modules (exported campaigns) which I load and update as needed. I find this convient to me because I am running several partys both on and offline in the same region.


Thanks all and may I say I am loving the possibilities of this software. The players and I are using ventrilo in conjunction with it. So it's great. Like you I use voice and I think it is the way to go. I use Teamspeak because I have 5 players, one on dialup and I heard ventrilo doesn't like dialup or more than 4 people connected. Maybe that has changed?

[Jozie]

1) Is there a way for the GM to run a NPC that appears in a player bubble at the top of the screen? This would make it easy to add into the combat initative box and drag wounds and intiatives etc.

Instead of the player bubble for your NPC, create a personality with your DM tools. You can drag the NPC to your initative box just like a monster. Should accomplish the same thing you seem to be trying to do.

[Trentos]

Thanks for the detailed answers guys. I appreciate it. I did indeed discover using the personality boxes for the GM run NPC. I do hope they implement the possibility of running it through the potraits at the top in 1.06.

And thank your for the explanation on the modules. I think I get the gist of it now. I would use the /export command while in game correct?

Edit: Oh and ventrilo works absolutely wonderful. None of my players has dial up so I am not sure how that would effect them, but the ventrilo servers can be quite huge. In an on-line game I play, we have had sixty people on the server at one time. The lowest server you can rent is a 15 man I believe which is more than enough. You can even specify the voice quality of the server. IE. You have a couple of options that effect the price of course.

[Griogre]

The /export is used from inside of FG while running. Normally you would export a module to make it available while preparing for a game. You can see a list of all / commands by just typing the slash in the chat window.

You can use the /id command to assume any NPC personality you want. Sometimes I don't like using the bubble on a personallity because it would tell the players too much so I'll use a more generic description. IE Ghast and Ghouls look the same. If the characters have never run into a ghast before, I might /id Ghoul so Ghast doesn't show up or if the players can't see an opponent I might /id Unknown.

[gurney9999]

... I might /id Unknown.
I like that... simple, yet I hadn't thought of it (mainly because I'm simpler than simple... darn).

[Talthos]

I don't have anything to add about FG, as I'm still exploring the demo version. As for Ventrillo, my ex has a server she uses for her MMORPGs, and one of the people on it is on dial-up. It works great for him. Vent also tells you who comes on or goes off rather than "User left", though I've heard the names sound funny sometimes.

Loved this post though. I'm sure I'd have ended up with some of these questions, and I love the idea of "/id unknown", especially since I'm looking to run an Eberron campaign where there's lots of unknowns.

[Griogre]

Well, gurney and Talthos glad I was able to help. :) I've found that it oftens adds a great deal of tension to encounters when the characters and/or players aren't really sure what they are dealing with. And later, at the higher levels there are a great deal of creatures that can easily mask or change their real forms.

Right now I'm happy with teamspeak, but I have heard some good things about Ventrillo.