A little advise and opinion please

[Talislan]

Hi,

I have recently returned to the world of RPG gaming after a VERY long absence (like from back in the 1980's). The world has moved on it seems while I have been hiding under my rock and there are a plethora of changes going on as we speak.

This all being well and good for the industry but it poses me with something of a problem.

I am looking to build worlds you see. Not just planets, but cities, countries, people places the 'whole shebang'. I am looking at using the wonderful programs that have/are being created by the likes of ProFantasy, Twin Rose and the RPGexplorer guys though and there in lies the problem. What to use?

I would appreciate some advice on this from any and all who would like to give their opinion. Specifically I need a system (or group of compatible systems) that can do the following:
1. Generate Characters for 3.5 D&D, d20 Modern, Past, Future, Arcana
2. I need Mapping fascilities THAT LOOK GOOD as well as being functional and reasonably intuitive
3. I need campaign building, monitoring, recording
4. I need City,Town,Building Generation from Deepest Dungeon to modern corporate tower and maybe even space travelling structures
5. I would like (and in this modern day and age it aught to already be in place) for the things to look good. (not like stick drawings on a BBC Acorn)

I've looked at plenty of the things out there, just would like peoples opinions and advice on where to start what is best etc.

Many Thanks

T.

 

[Redrobes]

I am looking to build worlds you see...

2. I need Mapping fascilities THAT LOOK GOOD as well as being functional and reasonably intuitive

Hi Talisman, I write ViewingDale and I would think that it would cover some of what you are looking for. It is a virtual table top based around variable scale mapping which includes large scales. The interface is a pan and zoom type and it does this very fast by using graphics card acceleration. The purpose of the program is to organize lots of maps at high res and various scales so that you can create one large expanse of mapping terrain. It also works just as well for buildings, dungeon, galactic and modern scenarios though the icon set that is shipped with it is based on fantasy. You can import any image as an icon for it however. You can also export any part of the map to an image too.

There is a free demo that covers a small area but I can set you up with a live demo of a larger area if you are interested and have broadband internet. If you have any problems running the demo then do get in contact.

 

[Talislan]

Thanks Redrobes, will have a look at this at the weekend and get back to you. Certainly looks to have potential at first glance.


Anyone else? as Good 'ole Redrobes has noted the solution doesn't have to be complete. I am well aware that I may have to cobble together a number of toolsets to get what I want.

Also I know a lot of you are probably thinking about blasted 4e and what the future holds, but feel free to take a break, and join me in the 'here and now' with your suggestions of what I can use 'today'.

Tomorrow is another day, I'll worry about it when it arrives.

 

[Blackrat]

Well for #1 try this: http://pcgen.sourceforge.net/01_overview.php . It is free and can make character for at least D&D3.5 and D20 Modern and Future. It takes some time to learn to use and you need quite new java RTE for it to run, but there's a link where you can download one of those too in their site.

 

[Blackrat]

For #2 you could also try this: http://dungeoncrafter3.com/legacy/ . The version 1.41 is pretty decent and the custom tilesets you can download for it are quite conclusive. Personally I don't like version 2.
Then they are (hopefully still) developing version 3: http://dungeoncrafter3.com which seems to be quite good once they get the full version done.

 

[Talislan]

Thanks Blackrat. Much obliged to you.

T.

Any more for any more?

 

[azhrei_fje]

I've been holding off on posting because you've got quite a list there. But...

For #3 (campaign management) you could consider DM Genie, since it has a comprehensive Campaign Manager screen. It can run combats, too, but you didn't mention that in your list. It has the ability to import a JPEG and place "hotspots" on the JPEG so that you can jump from area to area within the adventure (such as from building to building in a city locale or planet to planet in a galaxy).

I would recommend it for character management as well, except that it only ships with OGL sources already entered and users must rely on their own skills for entering additional races, equipment, and so forth. There are Yahoo! groups that might be able to help, though. PM me if you're interested. Also, they have a forum that is sporadic in terms of volume, but the users are pretty helpful.

I would love to recommend MapTool, but it is growing by leaps and bounds right now and there are issues such as incompatible changes in the external file format to contend with. Once it settles down (in the next few months), it will be a great resource for mapping on an on-going basis. (I use the release version right now for my face-to-face game, but I'm just itchin' to try the new features in the bleeding edge version!)

Oh, and MapTool is free (as in beer and freedom) so you can't beat the price.

 

[Talislan]

Cheers Azrhei,

I've had a lot of stuff back from various places now but no one seems to have come up with any full combination of products that are interchangeable... still every little helps so thankyou

...I will find a way!

T.