WotBS Fantasy Grounds 2 Version of WotBS

Blurr · Jul 13, 2009

Thank you so much for this!

I own a hard-copy of the compiled 3.5e version of WotBS, and seeing as I'm planning on running it in the 4e setting, I wasn't sure if I should just convert it myself or buy the updated 4e pdfs. I figured I'd give it a go and bought module 1 anyways. I also plan to run it through FG2, so I had the arduous task of entering all this info myself as well. This module you've released has saved me a good deal of work and made me feel better about re-buying the adventure to support the site. My gaming group thanks you as well, as they'll be enjoying the adventure much sooner.

As far as the 4E_JPG ruleset, I'm pretty sure it's a free-use addon. It's developed by a group over on the Four Ugly Monsters site, which offers a free download and support. If there were any questions about whether it can be freely distributed, there should be a group board over there and I believe the creator is a guy named moon_wizard. Hope this helps!

EugeneZ · Jul 13, 2009

No problem. I am glad the module is being used.

As for the 4e_JPG ruleset: Indeed. Moon_wizard is actually JPG, the primary developer, though Tenian, the developer of the parsers, also has done some ruleset work. Tenian was also instrumental in the development of this Burning Sky module. Without his parsers, doing an adventure this size would be a ridiculous amount of work.

4e_JPG is certainly free, but because of Wizards' restrictions on how 4e rules cannot be automated, that puts it in questionable legal water. It's not a big deal for smaller sites or individuals but if Smiteworks (makers of FG2) or EnWorld started hosting the ruleset, it would make them an easy target. Better not test the water, so I felt it was safer not giving too many details about it.

EugeneZ · Oct 27, 2009

Module #3 available

Module #3 "Shelter From the Storm" for Fantasy Grounds 2 is now available

Download it from the WotBS page. I also realized that I never posted an update here when I released #2 about two months ago. I did post over at the FG forums and at FUM, so I hope everyone who is using the modules was able to locate them.

Sharp-eyed DMs might notice that player items, rituals, paragon path powers, etc are all missing from this module. It's not very useful to have this sort of stuff in the DM module, as I discovered during actual use of module #1 and #2. I will be updating all three modules as well as adding a Player's Guide and DM's Guide module sometime in the future. The updated modules 1-3 will contain TWO modules, the DM module as before (with updates, corrections, better maps for #1, etc) and a player module which you should distribute once your PCs obtain some of the goods inside. You probably don't want to distribute the player modules if it's not neccessary since the players will be able to see the contents, which could spoil upcoming items, rituals, etc.

EugeneZ · Feb 18, 2010

Module #4 "The Mad King's Banquet" for Fantasy Grounds is now available

The fourth module, "The Mad King's Banquet" has been completed and can be downloaded from the War of the Burning Sky homepage.

The password to the zip is the answer to this question: "What is the title of the encounter on page 72?" (all lower case) You can find the answer to this in the PDF.

Maps are standardized to 50px. Poisons, diseases, and rituals can all be found in the Library entry for the module. The magic items can be found in the Items box, under the module's tab.

Kneecleaver · Feb 19, 2010

Thanks for your work on this EugeneZ, I do appreciate it. I've not even gotten my game off the ground yet due to various RL things, but I do appreciate the effort you have put forth.

BTW, are you XSL/Parsing these with touch up afterwards or doing them all by hand?

Kneecleaver · Feb 19, 2010

EugeneZ said:
No problem. I am glad the module is being used.

As for the 4e_JPG ruleset: Indeed. Moon_wizard is actually JPG, the primary developer, though Tenian, the developer of the parsers, also has done some ruleset work. Tenian was also instrumental in the development of this Burning Sky module. Without his parsers, doing an adventure this size would be a ridiculous amount of work.

4e_JPG is certainly free, but because of Wizards' restrictions on how 4e rules cannot be automated, that puts it in questionable legal water. It's not a big deal for smaller sites or individuals but if Smiteworks (makers of FG2) or EnWorld started hosting the ruleset, it would make them an easy target. Better not test the water, so I felt it was safer not giving too many details about it.

I got my previous question somewhat answered by this.

We are very close to finding out about what will happen when Smiteworks hosts 4eJPG. There isn't a ton of automation in JPG though, just some extremely handy features. Truthfully, because of all of the effects that come into play, I don't think I'd ever consider running 4e outside of FG2 w/4eJPG- way too much to keep track of.

EugeneZ · Feb 19, 2010

I've run it outside of FG2 and while I agree there's a lot to keep track of, it's far easier than, say, 3e. It's manageable.

Anyway, I don't do any XSL because I don't have an XML source for any of this stuff. I've looked into "processing" the PDF file but I haven't found a solution I like yet. I use Tenian's parser, but it still requires a lot of manual work. That said, four adventures in, I feel like I've got a really good pattern and processes for the whole thing. I use a lot of regular expressions to convert the EnWorld stuff to look like the WotC stuff (only because Tenian's parser is built to handle WotC format). I use a custom-made WYSIWYM editor that generates open and close tags around highlighted text. Kind of like this forum's post editor, but configured to react to hotkeys and output custom code.

Kneecleaver · Feb 19, 2010

EugeneZ said:
I've run it outside of FG2 and while I agree there's a lot to keep track of, it's far easier than, say, 3e. It's manageable.

Anyway, I don't do any XSL because I don't have an XML source for any of this stuff. I've looked into "processing" the PDF file but I haven't found a solution I like yet. I use Tenian's parser, but it still requires a lot of manual work. That said, four adventures in, I feel like I've got a really good pattern and processes for the whole thing. I use a lot of regular expressions to convert the EnWorld stuff to look like the WotC stuff (only because Tenian's parser is built to handle WotC format). I use a custom-made WYSIWYM editor that generates open and close tags around highlighted text. Kind of like this forum's post editor, but configured to react to hotkeys and output custom code.

Nice. I know from what I've done that once you get in a rhythm it actually moves along faster than you think. But it's still a crapload of work.

I didn't have much of a problem with 3e on the tabletop. Perhaps I wouldn't with 4e either, but it's new to me now and gives me that impression. 4e is definitely structured better to import into FG though.

Helthani · Mar 11, 2010

I just wanted to say thank you to EugeneZ for all the work you put into making these. They are astoundingly good. I'm really looking forward to running it soon.