D&D Insider Character Builder Open Beta live

[Rel]

I am glad at least that the source of each feat/power, etc. is noted to the right of the entry so that you can skip over sources that you don't want to use. But it's rather a pain during character creation to have to do that when the number of such things from outside sources is fairly large. And presumably it will only grow larger.

 

[silentounce]

It also needs a way to turn splat books off. I mean if you don't own MotP then maybe you don't want that set of data to load to be in the way and only want the books you own to load. It will still be "official" even if you choose not to use MotP....

It's been over a week since I've used the program, but I'm almost 100% positive that you can do this. I don't have the program installed on this computer right now or I'd check.

I believe this option is in one of the very last "tabs" of the generator. I remember seeing it and thinking it was cool to have that.

Anyway, it doesn't appear that you've delved too deeply into the software. How long did you actually spend experimenting with it? And did you complete a character? I like how you can drag/drop and customize the layout of the character sheet.

 

[avin]

... you so can't customize your appearance

I lost you... changing hair / colors / horns / etc isn't customize...?

 

[Phaezen]

On the Finish Tab there is a button called Restrictions (on the lefthand side, next to the character portrait). The features seem to be disabled for the Beta release, but it includes houserules and such. You can also choose to allow sections from certain books,for example rituals or races.

Phaezen

 

[Holy Bovine]

It's been over a week since I've used the program, but I'm almost 100% positive that you can do this. I don't have the program installed on this computer right now or I'd check.

I believe this option is in one of the very last "tabs" of the generator. I remember seeing it and thinking it was cool to have that.

Anyway, it doesn't appear that you've delved too deeply into the software. How long did you actually spend experimenting with it? And did you complete a character? I like how you can drag/drop and customize the layout of the character sheet.

Yup - you can indeed turn off any books you want from the CB. Go to the Finish tab (last tab) and click the 'Restrictions' button (bottom button on the left). You then get a list of every source currently being used. Uncheck the boxes for stuff you don't want and voila! Also I am really excited to see a space to import houserules! It isn't enabled in the Beta version yet


When does this go gold btw?! I am subscribing this week (on payday) for a full year just on the strength and versatility of this builder. Way to go WotC!

 

[Rel]

On the Finish Tab there is a button called Restrictions (on the lefthand side, next to the character portrait). The features seem to be disabled for the Beta release, but it includes houserules and such. You can also choose to allow sections from certain books,for example rituals or races.

Phaezen

I see the section that you are talking about. Glad to see that it's in the works.

I also note that Retraining is included in that section and the interface looks quite simple.

Look forward to this stuff being implemented.

 

[justanobody]

Oh goody it is on the last tabs rather than the first tab so you have to go back and forth still.

Then you have to select the _SOURCE section and turn it off even in the PHB tre to remove everything even if you have already done so like Draconomicon 2, and other books that are there but not even out yet.....

 

[Kishin]

If you look at such a narrow view of the CB and what it is versus what it is a part of and meant to be only a part of then you cannot see the connection to starting a character in an MMO.. When you look at the larger picture then you see that it is the same step for creating a character in an MMO as the next step will take into account what items you have that you will be able to pick from the CG modeler to "suit up" your graphics to comply with your character stats.

How many MMos have anyone here played that first go into making the visual look pretty before any stat work is done?

Sometimes people just cannot see the forest for the trees though.

Like so many other of your posts, you twist your own perspectives and statements so completely and so rapidly with each successive post that it becomes effectively impossible to argue anything with you, as your logic manifests in an increasingly incongruent fashion. Not only that, your condescension continues to mount.

Building a character in Character Buildr != Playing an MMO and dynamically advancing through level/gear upgrades.

You cannot add your own items or anything else, just like you cannot do so in video games. You are bound by only what exists in the system.

Copies of Daggerfall, Morrowind, Oblivion and a huge host of other games disagree with your sentiment here.

 

[Holy Bovine]

Oh goody it is on the last tabs rather than the first tab so you have to go back and forth still.

Then you have to select the _SOURCE section and turn it off even in the PHB tre to remove everything even if you have already done so like Draconomicon 2, and other books that are there but not even out yet.....

Wow - you really are a whiner aren't you?

 

[justanobody]

Wow - you really are a whiner aren't you?

No, I just can't stand stupid software designs for the looks of it rather than the function.

A computer isn't a toy made by Fisher Price, it is a tool, and all tools should be made for their function first. If CB was made to look pretty, then they did a good job, but for any other purpose it fails as software because it is unintuitive and has a pitiful user interface. It, like Vista, is made for stupid people that don't know how to use computers and need it to remind you of everything and in the process removes your options to "tweak" things to work for you as an individual because all the defaults are set for people that barely know how to turn on a computer this day and age.

I get so sick and tired of software for dummies.

They completely threw out the rules for good software design to make it look fancy and work poorly.

Its job is not to be hung on a wall like a piece of artwork, but is productivity software, and needed to be made for its purpose. Maybe the reason it is designed so poorly is because it relies so heavily on Windows and Microcrap Framework. So the same design stupidity was built into it.

It isn't that hard to set out and write software for the right purpose. Figure out what it needs to do and the proper way and order to do that.

This is why there hasn't been a decent chargen since they became official and taken out of fan abilities to create and share en-mass.

This problem is found most often in places where the software writers don't know the subject material they are writing software for like tax software where the users are accountants, but the coders are not. I find it funny that a closed system done in house the people don't know D&D well enough to know what order to do things in.

Break out the old wingdings and start using flowcharts for software design again. Outline the steps needed first to allow the user to make their selection. That would include first allowing the decision to enable or disable any features found in the software, THEN they start using the software.

It is very stupid to have people have to sort through all the added crap on first use because they hid the options on the last tab.

Hey I got an idea for a beta test. Include TFM so people can RTFM. But in designing something like this if you need a manual because all the hidden option selections then you have designed a poor piece of software and placed the options in the wrong place.

The make use of the menu bar for a few things, why not follow the standard and place other options right there!

Options -> Edit Preferences -> Hide MotP

Repopulating the menu at runtime isn't that hard, and doing so during a patch is even less bothersome as you just overwrite the program anyway with the patch and include the new menu options for the newly added data.

Always there and always waiting, not having to jump around tabs to figure out where someone hid some option to enable or disable something.

But the beta doesn't allow for UI bug reports as that is finished, it is only for other bugs where the devs didn't test for various platforms properly and can't figure out why things aren't working on anything but the machine it was written on. Just like the problems with Compendium and DDI website in general because they are writing for Microsoft proprietary software.

If you like bad software, then so be it. I have a copy of Atari 2600 ET game if you are interested.