Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Mr. Farlops 07-26-05, 09:25 AM	So I know there are a few third party and shareware tools out there of varying quality but I'm looking for a WOTC approved software tool to do all my combat and physics bookkeeping for me. Actually--what I really want may not exist yet. If it does, someone please point me to where I should find it. If it doesn't, feel free to write and build one and count me as a customer. What I want is all the magic/combat rules of D&D 3.5 folded into a turn-based physics engine that I can load into a laptop. This laptop would plugged into a large (Around .5 to .6 square meters in area.) LCD panel lying flat on my table, perhaps covered with a sheet of plastic to write on and place figures on. On to this panel the software would project the current combat map. The software would have all the character, NPC and monster stats and would generate maps and terrain with current positions of all players and monsters. Each player would have a light pen or mouse to input what their character's planned movement, spell and combat action. I, as GM, would input the NPC/monster responses and then advance the through the initiative ranks until the combat round is resolved. And here is the key thing--the GM would be free to roll back events and reset numbers in any arbitrary way she see's fit before advancing to the next initiative rank or combat round, thus preserving the flexibility and freedom of table-top play. In other words the software does all the crunchy, rules lawyer work and physics, leaving the GM free to concentrate on the story and description. And the software can be overruled by the GM at any point to fudge the numbers. As I said at the beginning, I know there are tools out there to do some of the tedious bookkeeping for GMs but is there anything close to what I just described and that is as close to d20 rules as possible?
Carn Vandoril 07-26-05, 09:31 AM	ánd the map ánd the maths ánd the rules ánd the timetable ánd combat/hp all in one? Now that would be something awardwinning! I would consider buying that, maybe along with the 4th edition. :D Greetings.
xlawedjeanne 07-26-05, 10:44 AM	i can program that =/ it will take months though... i need to know the laws for doing such though, like copyright wise
Carn Vandoril 07-26-05, 11:03 AM	I'm sure I saw something like a 'display' of stuff and gaming with a pc in a photograph. I think it was a thread about 'automating your game'. But it was basic, not with all of the above. It was somewhere on the officialsite, don't remember where. For copyright issues, you could follow the links of the WotC. I think the opengame license is pretty easy, you just can't make money yourself with the product you make.
rbrt_Spade 07-26-05, 01:33 PM	its a good idea, but most gaming groups i know dont like the dm using them- it ruinens the roleplaying ive heard xlawedjeanne-that would be very easy to program-you could make that in about 3-4 hours-all you need is a number genrator, D&D rules pluged, and image files-thats easy to make in about any language-
xlawedjeanne 07-26-05, 03:31 PM	ill try with ruby but i dont know the rules very well >< thats the only problem
gamefiend 07-26-05, 04:15 PM	I'm sorry, but that seems rather...stupid. Go pick up Neverwinter Nights and make your games in it.
gleep 07-26-05, 07:33 PM	You know, a pad of paper and a pencil works quite well and is a heck of a lot cheaper.
Mr. Farlops 07-26-05, 10:07 PM	Gleep wrote, "You know, a pad of paper and a pencil works quite well and is a heck of a lot cheaper." Quite so, but that misses the point. If I wanted to memorize, manage and crunch the numbers for the minutia of a complicated ruleset, I would be playing GURPS or Hero system (The unices of paper-based RPGs.) which at least give me more flexibility and elegance than d20 (The Win95 of game systems.). The point is that although there are folks who are drawn to crunchiness of game systems, and while I certainly respect for the higher realism and flexibility allowed by complex rules, I've got better things to do with my time. The scut work should be left to computers. Which leads me to the other facet of my proposal: Gamefiend wrote, "Go pick up Neverwinter Nights and make your games in it." Sorry, but this doesn't meet my needs. NWN, which I own a copy of by the way, is not turn based. In the GM client, I can stop the server and change some things but not in a way that meshes nicely with paper-based games. I can use the editor to create various types of terrain, which is pretty to look at but, aren't abstract enough for the flexibility I need. NWN does depart in several key ways from d20 D&D so I can't use it. Being realtime, it can't mesh with tabletop play. It's just too different for my needs. What I want is a bookkeeper, physics engine and map rending tool that accepts input in a way that's fully compatible with paper-based games. This means it must be turn based and hew as closely as possible to d20 D&D. The only tricky hardware part is making the big flat panel that lies on the table. Get a big flat panel TV, lay it on the table and put a sheet of lexan over it? I've seen some third party stuff out there can any here recommend some good tools? (I should add that if NWN were turn-based and allowed for temporal rollbacks and weren't so graphically intensive--I just want the platonic abstracts here--then it might be adequate.)