CaptainDynomite
October 7th, 2018, 10:00
New user here. After tooling around with the game interface, I had a couple questions or at least observations.
1. Is there a way to create/organize character folders? For example, if I have the party PCs, but also I had NPC hirelings and followers/cohorts. Would those need to just be NPCs/monsters that need to be pulled up and added every game? It seems adding them as Characters makes the Characters folder cluttered and less intuitive to navigate. Having a way to create sub-folders in the Characters tab, like you can with the other tab seems like it would be highly beneficial.
1.5 NPC Class HP. In D&D 3.5, Pathfinder, and other games, NPC classes are treated differently than heroes. For instance, they do not get full HP on first level, yet when creating custom classes and selecting NPC as the class Type in the "Other" tab, and then adding the class to a character, the max HP is given as though the character were a PC rather than an NPC. As well there doesn't seem to be an option to distinguish between Elite/Non-Elite/Standard monsters.
2. Item special properties. There only seem to be the special item types from the core rules. E.g. Adamantine Battleaxe, or Silver Dagger, but not options to select if an item is made of Adamantine or Alchemical Silver. Further, there is no option to designate if an item is of Masterwork quality or simple, etc. These can be added under notes, however, it seems that it would make the quality of life for the game far better if these selections could be made when selecting/distributing the items. There is the option of including a magical enhancement bonus, but this is only for magic items, it does not function as well for Mwk. (You must go in after and lower the damage of the item, as there seems to be no way to increase the attack bonus without subsequently increasing the damage bonus.) Also, item hardness and hit points are not included. This seems to be a sorely missed opportunity to increase engagement with the system. I also do really like the addition of Non-Identified Item IDs, that is a great ability for the DM.
3. Specialties/abilities carried over. This is a bit of a hard one to explain, so in simple terms, adjustments don't seem to be automatic. E.g. in 3.5 if the Alertness Feat is selected, you must still go in and add +2 Misc bonus to the Spot and Listen skill checks. If a race is selected, say, Dwarf, you must still go in and increase Constitution and decrease Charisma. Even racial traits from the base races must be added under the Abilities tab. As well as class abilities, such as spells for casters, or even weapon proficiency do not carry over from the options when added. They must all be customized in the Race/Class tab, and even then, most must be added in afterwards. And, inputting size in the description tab does not seem to have an affect on attack, grapple, AC or skills (Hide/intimidate) etc.
Overall, this is an excellent application, and I am extremely impressed with the cohesion and use so far. The above should not be taken as criticism, more observations to improve quality of life and ease of use for the end user. (If the above already have quick fixes or options that must be turned on after installation/running of the application, information and possible links or 'how-to' would be invaluable and greatly appreciated.)
I am happy to say myself and all my friends look forward to the use of Fantasy Grounds for our future gaming.
Thank you. :)
1. Is there a way to create/organize character folders? For example, if I have the party PCs, but also I had NPC hirelings and followers/cohorts. Would those need to just be NPCs/monsters that need to be pulled up and added every game? It seems adding them as Characters makes the Characters folder cluttered and less intuitive to navigate. Having a way to create sub-folders in the Characters tab, like you can with the other tab seems like it would be highly beneficial.
1.5 NPC Class HP. In D&D 3.5, Pathfinder, and other games, NPC classes are treated differently than heroes. For instance, they do not get full HP on first level, yet when creating custom classes and selecting NPC as the class Type in the "Other" tab, and then adding the class to a character, the max HP is given as though the character were a PC rather than an NPC. As well there doesn't seem to be an option to distinguish between Elite/Non-Elite/Standard monsters.
2. Item special properties. There only seem to be the special item types from the core rules. E.g. Adamantine Battleaxe, or Silver Dagger, but not options to select if an item is made of Adamantine or Alchemical Silver. Further, there is no option to designate if an item is of Masterwork quality or simple, etc. These can be added under notes, however, it seems that it would make the quality of life for the game far better if these selections could be made when selecting/distributing the items. There is the option of including a magical enhancement bonus, but this is only for magic items, it does not function as well for Mwk. (You must go in after and lower the damage of the item, as there seems to be no way to increase the attack bonus without subsequently increasing the damage bonus.) Also, item hardness and hit points are not included. This seems to be a sorely missed opportunity to increase engagement with the system. I also do really like the addition of Non-Identified Item IDs, that is a great ability for the DM.
3. Specialties/abilities carried over. This is a bit of a hard one to explain, so in simple terms, adjustments don't seem to be automatic. E.g. in 3.5 if the Alertness Feat is selected, you must still go in and add +2 Misc bonus to the Spot and Listen skill checks. If a race is selected, say, Dwarf, you must still go in and increase Constitution and decrease Charisma. Even racial traits from the base races must be added under the Abilities tab. As well as class abilities, such as spells for casters, or even weapon proficiency do not carry over from the options when added. They must all be customized in the Race/Class tab, and even then, most must be added in afterwards. And, inputting size in the description tab does not seem to have an affect on attack, grapple, AC or skills (Hide/intimidate) etc.
Overall, this is an excellent application, and I am extremely impressed with the cohesion and use so far. The above should not be taken as criticism, more observations to improve quality of life and ease of use for the end user. (If the above already have quick fixes or options that must be turned on after installation/running of the application, information and possible links or 'how-to' would be invaluable and greatly appreciated.)
I am happy to say myself and all my friends look forward to the use of Fantasy Grounds for our future gaming.
Thank you. :)