Question for purpose of note.

[ConnorElzaim]

Ok, I've known about the program fantasy grounds for a while, recently though I've had the urge to buy. Only problem is, I'm 17 and don't currently have a job so most money concerns go through my mother. Yes that does sound rather lame.

Her concerns before spending money on this are things like, "How recent is it?", "Do people still play on it", "Does it cost money to play even after buying it?", "How many people use it currently?"'

While I've answered the third question, I don't know how recent it is, if that matters. I'm aware people still play on it, but...how many if anyone could possibly ball park it.

[tdwyer11b]

Only problem is, I'm 17 and don't currently have a job so most money concerns go through my mother. Yes that does sound rather lame.

Don't feel bad, I'm sure most of us had the same issue when we were your age. I know I was.

How recent is it? FG2 is very recent, just a few months. FG1 was around a couple years before that.

Do ppl still play on it? Check out the Guild House, new games are popping up every day as well as established and continuing campaigns.

How many ppl use it currently? Hard to say, I'd be willing to guess it's several hundred if not more (a conservative estimate), with many jumping aboard every day. I'm really not privy to SmiteWorks records regarding purchases. :p

[Sigurd]

I describe it to people as a tool for playing D&D or other Role Playing Games. If RPG games were conversations (Face to face & personal) FG would be the phone that lets people talk naturally, not according to the plans of a company or third party. As a tool it can never go out of style so long as people want to use it. The games update but the tool stays the same.


If your mother plays any game at all tell her its not unlike a simulator to let people play those games over the internet without changing the rules.

Make sure you tell her you will be playing with real people who generally care about your spelling, and self expression. There are a lot of players for the game spread all over the world, and more joining.

I would strongly recommend the Server Version that allows you to be DM. Its a great option to have, the difference isn't that much and there is no upgrade from the cheaper version later.


So To answer her questions:

1) Very Recent - It is still in development. There have been 12 bug fixes to it in the last 6 months that were all free. Besides the original developers there are other people making expansions for it. Its potentially a great place to start to program.

2) People play on it from all over the world. Its sometimes tricky to find a regular group at a convenient time but it gets easier as you meet people. Most players are in North America and it is easier to find games convenient to those time zones.

3) You pay nothing to the writers after you purchase the software. You use your internet bandwidth but it is no more expensive than surfing the web.


It is not a computer game that you can get tired of quickly because every person you meet is potentially a new reason to play. I don't know how many people play the game in total (I dont think anyone does) but it has the highest popularity rating at RPGnow. Because Smyteworks doesn't make people pay per game, or have any control of your games, I don't think anyone has a popularity figure.


I like it.

Its much much cheaper than gas to get to other peoples houses to play face to face.


Sigurd

Try the demo if you have any questions.

[ConnorElzaim]

Thank you both. This answers my question and should help me convince her to buy it.

My only other question is, by buying it am I actually purchasing Fantasy grounds II? or am I purchasing the original program which I upgrade by downloading fantasy grounds II?

[Oberoten]

As of the release of FG 2.0 the license is for FGII only which means that the download will be the installfiles for that one.

[Berova]

Perhaps another way you can convince her is to download the demo and try it out. That way you can see for yourself, how it works (post on this Board your situation, that you're new to FGII and trying out the demo, and I'm sure someone could host a session for you to try it out). That might convince her more than anything and also give you a feel for the type of play you can expect.

Another consideration is, are you planning to be a player only or will you eventually want to DM and play? I ask because you may or may not be aware there are two versions, the "Lite" version which is just what players need, and the "full" version and what you need to DM. The player's version is cheaper than the DM's version of course.

[ConnorElzaim]

No worries, I was just allowed to buy it. I'm currently trying to get the hang of the character generation process in a new medium other then pencil and paper. I spent like fifteen minutes in the character generation window figuring out how to roll sets of 4d6 and then maybe another 10 or so figuring out how to move to the process of actually making the character now that I had the numbers rolled for ability scores.

[Oberoten]

Is it very rude if we ask which version you got? Lite or Full? ;) We need more GMs out there. :)

[ConnorElzaim]

Not at all, it's ok....though I have zero experience as a DM I got the full version just for that option. You see I've actually only been playing DnD on a frequent basis for about a year. I started at the tail end of last summer.

[richvalle]

Thats ok... my first DMing Exp has been though FG as well.

My suggestion is to get some modules and DM those. You can even do them as 'One Shots' where you run the module outside of a normal campaign.

Or you can go my route and make your whole campaign one big module... The Worlds Largest Dungeon in my case. There are others out there.

Good luck and have fun!

rv

[ConnorElzaim]

Hmmm... it's worth thinking about. Though currently I'm just feeling more like a player character. Heh.

[scytale2]

FG2 has quite a few foibles, which are quite fun to figure out yourself, or trawl the boards for the answers.
DMing might seem tough, but it is really well done in FG and is quite simple to use, so this shouldn't dissuade. DMing is still hard work, mind you...

[ConnorElzaim]

True, it would be interesting... but currently rather more interested in the player character scene. I've found I favor the druid class, but I wouldn't mind trying out the Geomancer prestige sometime.