NPC With Special Effect

[ronlugge]

So as a player, it's fairly easy to write abilities / spells that apply a custom effect to a target.

How do I do this to an NPC?

I've used Patricia C. Wrede's Enchanted Forest chronicles as an inspiration, and my players shall shortly be encountering invisible dusk-blooming chokevines. Instead of grappled and restrained (standard, parser-recognized effect that produces grappled; restrained;) I want a custom effect that reads (grappled; choking;) -- the purpose of which is less to apply mechanical effects and much more to remind us of what effects are on who from who.

I'm just... not sure where to even start.

[Zacchaeus]

If you want non standard conditions then you’ll need to add them into the ruleset via an extension, otherwise FG isn’t going to recognise it. You’ll also need to include in the extension the code for FG to pick up on the keyword and of course program in any effects pertaining to that keyword if you want FG to automate whatever it is the condition does.

There are of course rules already in the PHB and DMG for suffocating so you could just use those. There isn’t a way to automate the effects of suffocating since it isn’t an effect but rather a saving throw to avoid it.

What you probably want is something like; the target is grappled and the plant begins to choke the victim. If the target fails to escape the grapple they need to succeed on a DC x Constitution saving throw or begin to suffocate.

Of course if all you want is a reminder just create an effect ‘Choking’. FG will not know what that is and so will ignore it.

[LordEntrails]

In your campaign effects list, just create your custom reminder Effects, then you can re-use them as needed. I don't think their is a way to make a custom effect appear as an NPC action.