Preparing sessions consumes too much time

[Pau_wolf]

It's one year that i have fantasygrounds, and I used it just once. I have 7 hours of play on steam

My opinion is this: preparing all the tables, the NPC stats, the encounter tables etc. Is time consuming

I already have them on my manuals. Adding the treasure tables would make me spare some time during the game, but only if I spend hours inserting the parameters.

I can add some NPC warriors stats for example, to make them guard the city, but why should I waste my time if I already have their stats in the book?

Preparing this software to play is very time consuming, it doesn't worth the pain to spare a few seconds of play

Is there a way to spare time? Maybe taking the NPC files, the treasure tables, the weather tables, the encounter tables from other sources who already prepared them? There should be something similar on the site. Or this software is much less useful than a paper handbook and a sheet of wordpad?

I talk Like that because I use fantasygrounds to play face to face... I'm not interested in playing online. I thought that this software could help me

[Valyar]

Hello Pau_wolf and welcome to the forums.

Depending on the game system you are using, you might or might not have already prepared modules from the store. If you play D&D 5e, almost all is in FG and you have close to none preparation time when it comes to data entry.

If you play different game with ruleset that is empty of content (such as 40k Multiruleset, MoreCore, Core), then you will have to spend some time if you want to have some form of automation and extras. Nothing prevents you from playing without those things and just use FG to roll dice as you would on normal table, but it is significantly better experience.

[Zacchaeus]

Hello Pau-wolf welcome to FG.

You don't say what ruleset you are using and that is important as to what you will have available.

Fantasy Grounds is a VTT or Virtual Table Top specifically designed for on line play but it can be used successfully for face to face games. See here for more details (https://www.fantasygrounds.com/forums/showthread.php?30464-Using-Fantasy-Grounds-at-the-physical-table-top).

If you want to have Fantasy Grounds do some or a lot of the automation for you then you will have to have the player characters and the monsters in your campaign in Fantasy Grounds. Obviously Fantasy Grounds isn't going to be able to read your physical books for you. So, once you let us know what ruleset you are using we can maybe guide you a little more.

[damned]

being that it is a computer program it needs data in the application to work with.
You will need to enter or buy the data so that you have data to work with.

5e includes several SRD volumes and Maasq makes an excellent NPC Engineer.
3.5e and Pathfinder have many monsters included and/or available.

[JohnD]

Well waiting "one year" to ask a question is probably not ideal.

What are you using the program for if you're playing face-to-face with all of your data in books etc...?

Edit: As a DM, you presumably are aware that preparing for any game "takes time".

[Pau_wolf]

thank you for your answers... I understand that I have been a few rude yesterday, but I was a few angry. I play D&D 3.5, and making a table just for treasures consumes a lot of time (minor items, art items, gems, and then weapon tables, armor tables etc. and repeat again the process for every CR of treasure). Even weather is treated in a complicated manner, by that rule system


Well waiting "one year" to ask a question is probably not ideal.

What are you using the program for if you're playing face-to-face with all of your data in books etc...?

Edit: As a DM, you presumably are aware that preparing for any game "takes time".

I didn't have time before, nor the chance to play again D&D. Next week I will play again, so I downloaded again fantasygrounds, hoping that somebody would add those missing tables, or hoping to have time and patience to do it myself. I have datas about items and NPCs in books, and I write my adventures usually in Word, and keep it open while playing for a quick plot reference. I hoped to speed up the game by having at least the SRD and all of its tables already in the software.

As DM, I already have to write a lot in order to have the adventure ready for the following week. And also, I have some other things to do, like working, playing tennis, playing the piano and other stuff during my week. I don't have time nor desire to stay in front of a computer writing one by one all the lines for all the tables. You want me to have a burnout?

[damned]

Hi pau_wolf have you activated the modules that come with FG?
Click Library -> Modules and activate the 3.5E SRD modules that are included.
Have a browse thru that data as a starting point.

[Pau_wolf]

Done. It' s a good starting point to have all the magic items, the monsters etc., but I still need to use books to spare time

If you would add a DLC with all the missing tables I would buy it, for example

[Valyar]

Unfortunately we don't live in perfect world where publishers make available the content for all possible platforms and in all possible forms. Heck, they don't even allow a single character sometimes unless it is controlled and royalties paid. I am not putting any irony here... only bitter sadness as I play game systems that have no ruleset or modules. :)

I know the pain - I spent several days copying data from Realm Works to Fantasy Grounds and weeks to copy data from .PDFs to Realm Works...
In the end the effort is justified only for games you will host and play for long time.

[LordEntrails]

Done. It' s a good starting point to have all the magic items, the monsters etc., but I still need to use books to spare time

If you would add a DLC with all the missing tables I would buy it, for example
Unfortunately, WotC does not allow 3.5 products to be distributed (even for sale) in FG format. So, all the official 3.5 books can't be converted and distributes. Only the SRD, which is released under the OGL can be distributed.

If you were playing 5E, you could purchase all the WotC books (and many 3rd party products) in FG format. If you were playing Pathfinder, you could buy the books, or many other game systems (see the store). But, since WotC won't give a license for 3.5, if you want to play that edition, you will have to enter the books all yourself :(

If you are just getting back into playing now, you might consider a system that has all the source books available in FG format. I think you'll enjoy what FG brings to your table if you do.

[Valarian]

I have run games in Fantasy Grounds where I've prepared each adventure as if in a published module. I've also run games where the preparation was a couple of sheets of A4 paper, and a few NPC stats entered into Fantasy Grounds for encounters. Both have been equally enjoyable for players and GM. The point being is that you don't have to prepare to the Nth degree to run a good game. Sometimes, having only a starting point and general direction, then allowing the game to go where the players take you, can be far more enjoyable than a game where every encounter is prepared weeks in advance.

[epithet]

Have you taken a look at Pathfinder? There's not much difference between D&D 3.5 and Pathfinder in terms of the game's rules, and Pathfinder on Fantasy Grounds enjoys a level of support from Paiso that WotC will never give to any version of D&D, ever.

[damned]

Have you taken a look at Pathfinder? There's not much difference between D&D 3.5 and Pathfinder in terms of the game's rules, and Pathfinder on Fantasy Grounds enjoys a level of support from Paiso that WotC will never give to any version of D&D, ever.

The first is a statement that could be fact and the second is a statement of opinion only.
The Wizards licensed 5E to FG years before Paizo agreed to a license.

[damned]

Done. It' s a good starting point to have all the magic items, the monsters etc., but I still need to use books to spare time

If you would add a DLC with all the missing tables I would buy it, for example

Hi Pau_wolf this is an observation and a guess...
If you were unaware of how to activate modules then you are probably unaware of how to use the tool effectively in many ways.
You will need to spend time learning the tool to get value from it.

[Trenloe]

Preparing this software to play is very time consuming, it doesn't worth the pain to spare a few seconds of play

Is there a way to spare time? Maybe taking the NPC files, the treasure tables, the weather tables, the encounter tables from other sources who already prepared them? There should be something similar on the site. Or this software is much less useful than a paper handbook and a sheet of wordpad?

I talk Like that because I use fantasygrounds to play face to face... I'm not interested in playing online. I thought that this software could help me
I appreciate your frustration, but it does seem that your expectation of how Fantasy Grounds could help you has not been researched in enough detail.
1) The level of support of D&D 3.5E - which others have mentioned. There is only the 3.5E SRD data in FG as WotC has not licensed 3.5E for Fantasy Grounds.
2) Fantasy Grounds is a VTT - i.e. primarily designed to run as a virtual table top. So, it's not specifically designed for face-to-face games. However, lots of people do use it for face-to-face games, with the understanding of what it can and can't do. In your case you're looking to use a small subset of FG functionality. And if all of the tables and automation that you're looking to save you a few seconds in play aren't available for you, and entering them takes too much time, then you're not saving time at all.
3) This is linked to item 1 - how will FG save you time? If you already have tables, stats, etc. in your books and you need to enter them into FG to get them in FG, yes - how is this going to save you time? Data entry is never easy! But, have a look at the two extension at the end of this post - these might assist you with some data entry.

So, with this in mind, how can things be made better?

Look at what is available for other, better supported systems. There are lots of modules available for Pathfinder. Find the community made OGL modules here: https://www.fantasygrounds.com/forums/showthread.php?16074-List-of-Modules Or look at the official Paizo products and other publisher 3.5E/Pathfinder products in the store. These can all be activated in the D&D 3.5E ruleset - just be aware of the slight differences between Pathfinder and D&D 3.5E. A free guide is available here: https://paizo.com/products/btpy89m6?Pathfinder-Roleplaying-Game-Conversion-Guide

D&D 5E has a lot of products for it. the DMs Guild has many useful additions that may be of interest to you - look here: https://www.dmsguild.com/browse.php?filters=0_0_0_0_0_0_45545_0 For some example tables, just do a search on Virtual Tabletop and Tables: https://www.dmsguild.com/browse.php?keywords=tables&filters=0_0_0_0_0_0_45545_0&x=0&y=0&author=&artist=&pfrom=&pto=

Some of these are specific to 5E that you may be able to use, others are pretty generic and may be what you're looking for. You'll need to load the Universal Module extension to allow you to load 5E FG modules in a 3.5E campaign: https://www.fantasygrounds.com/forums/showthread.php?41034-Universal-Module-Extension

Some of Dulux Oz's extensions might be of interest to you. For example the Weather extension that generates and tracks weather: https://www.fantasygrounds.com/forums/showthread.php?22142-DOE-Weather-Extension

So... It's good that you came to the community with your issue. If your goal is to have tools within Fantasy Grounds that speed up play, then you're going to have to spend some time look for those tools. But, you'll probably have to look for alternative, similar tools, to the ones you have in your 3.5E books - unless you want to enter them yourself! (Which you don't want to.)

So, back to your first sentence: "Preparing this software to play is very time consuming, it doesn't worth the pain to spare a few seconds of play" There will always be some level of preparation - whether it is searching for, installing and trying the many modules that are out there, or entering data. It is up to you if this time spent in finding the FG products you want is worth it.

Additionally - there are some tools that may help you in entering data:
- The table importer extension: https://www.fantasygrounds.com/forums/showthread.php?40812-5E-Table-Importer A great way to import single column rollable tables if you have the data in electronic format.
- Imports columnar tables from CSV data (not rollable) https://www.fantasygrounds.com/forums/showthread.php?40821-CSV-Table-Paster-Community-Extension-Early-Access-release

[Trenloe]

Additionally (sorry I forgot to link these in the previous post), there are some cool 5E community modules, some of which contain tables here: https://www.fantasygrounds.com/forums/showthread.php?23721-5E-Community-Modules

You might also want to look at the Incarnate System: https://www.fantasygrounds.com/forums/showthread.php?42088-Aiding-Players-and-Equipping-GMs-Incarnate-System

As mentioned above, modules specifically for 5E only (i.e. they don't say you can use them in CoreRPG or other systems) will need the Universal Module extension (https://www.fantasygrounds.com/forums/showthread.php?41034-Universal-Module-Extension) to allow you to load them in a D&D 3.5E FG campaign. Just be aware that modules with material that is specific for 5E (NPCs, for example), may raise errors when data is accessed in a 3.5E campaign - the campaign won't crash, and you may be able to use some of the data usefully.

[epithet]

The first is a statement that could be fact and the second is a statement of opinion only.
The Wizards licensed 5E to FG years before Paizo agreed to a license.
True enough, but now you are able to link your Paizo account to your Fantasy Grounds account so that you don't have to pay full cover price for each version of the same book. WotC, on the other hand, wants to charge you full MSRP for the hardcover, the digital version on D&D Beyond, the digital version for Fantasy Grounds, and now the "collector's edition" hardcover. Before the licensed content modules were available from either Paizo or WotC, it was still very easy to play Pathfinder on Fantasy Grounds because all of their material is available in pdf and most of it is in the online PFSRD, so you could just copy/paste onto your character sheet. Not as good as drag-and-drop, but Paizo has never gone out of its way to make it difficult for people to access Pathfinder material.
Don't get me wrong, I absolutely play and support D&D 5e, and I have bought the whole enchilada here on FG as well as all the core rulebooks and a few of the APs in hardcover. While I don't regret any of those purchases, I do feel as though Hasbro is squeezing every last dollar they can get out of me in a way that Paizo never did. That's why I'll be buying the new edition books for Pathfinder 2 regardless of whether we ever go back to that system.

[Segin]

Nevermind- probably too off the original topic
XXXXSpeaking of Pathfinder 2.0, I am assuming an agreement is in place for that iteration of PF on FG? And what would the lag time be on getting it off the ground after the books are out?XXXXX

[Trenloe]

Nevermind- probably too off the original topic
XXXXSpeaking of Pathfinder 2.0, I am assuming an agreement is in place for that iteration of PF on FG? And what would the lag time be on getting it off the ground after the books are out?XXXXX
Discussed here: https://www.fantasygrounds.com/forums/showthread.php?42768-Pathfinder-2nd-edition!!!

See the comments from ddavison for the official line as we know it.

[Erin Righ]

I agree with The Gutsy One. If you are just coming back to RPGs, you might want to look into Pathfinder or 5E. Both are HIGHLY supported on FG, and while Pathfinder is closer to 3.5, 5E has the D&D name behind it. PFRPG is basically D&D 3.75. It has all the bells and whistles of 3.5 with a few tweaks and a BUNCH of new options. And though I've never played it, proponents of 5E say it corrected all the idiotic problems of 4E and brought back an old 1st Ed AD&D feel. With PF, you'll have to do without Illithid and Beholders, or enter them yourself because WotC kept a tight grip on them.