D&D 4E 4eMetro

[insaneferret]

I bought your app with the premium and CBLoader upgrades for my asus win8 tablet and I'm loving it, I'll be using it tonight for game, but so far it seems perfect, I used to use OneNote for keeping track of stuff.

Enchancement requests:

The journal is currently a simple series of text boxes, It would be great if in addition to text input we could draw stuff in the text box or if there was a whiteboard, simple black line stuff.

Notes on individual powers - give us the ability to add a note to a power, great for quick and dirty houserules, i'd love if it was whiteboard style notes, so i could scrawl a quick +2 on a power with my stylus, but plaintext would work fine.

Conditions needs to be fleshed out, currently you just type in the conditions, keep that feature for misc conditions, but put a series of buttons with the common conditions (dazed, slowed etc) and quick blurbs about effects, like Dazed - 1 Action Only - (eont) do it in an expansion tree fashion - ie click dazed, then a duration tree pops up with end of next turn/save ends/1/2/3/4/5 rounds.

Dice Rolling as a general feature but also on activation of powers, add a casting option where it will do the math for the power and then deactivate it.

Currently the best D&D app i've seen on any platform, well done sir.

 

[scpredmage]

I bought your app with the premium and CBLoader upgrades for my asus win8 tablet and I'm loving it, I'll be using it tonight for game, but so far it seems perfect, I used to use OneNote for keeping track of stuff.

Glad you like it! Truth be told, I wrote the thing because I kinda fell in love with the idea of being able to use an app like this on the same devices I could use the Character Builder on; I've been using it at my weekly game for the past month.

Enchancement requests:

The journal is currently a simple series of text boxes, It would be great if in addition to text input we could draw stuff in the text box or if there was a whiteboard, simple black line stuff.

That... may be problematic. Currently, I have everything saved as part of the Character Builder's save file, which is just an XML document. Slipping in new text data is simple, but graphical data... isn't exactly something I could put in there. I could rig something up to refer to external files, but the Journal was designed to be an implementation of the same Journal that the original offline Character Builder had; doing this would break compatibility with that.

Notes on individual powers - give us the ability to add a note to a power, great for quick and dirty houserules, i'd love if it was whiteboard style notes, so i could scrawl a quick +2 on a power with my stylus, but plaintext would work fine.

REALLY good idea. The plain text input would be dirt simple to figure out, but I'd definitely want this to be a toggle-able setting. Definitely added to my to-do list.

Conditions needs to be fleshed out, currently you just type in the conditions, keep that feature for misc conditions, but put a series of buttons with the common conditions (dazed, slowed etc) and quick blurbs about effects, like Dazed - 1 Action Only - (eont) do it in an expansion tree fashion - ie click dazed, then a duration tree pops up with end of next turn/save ends/1/2/3/4/5 rounds.

Originally, I intended for the Effects dialog to use editable drop-lists, prepopulated with all the different defined 4e status conditions, as well as the most common durations (save ends, start/end of your/source's next turn, etc), with players having the ability to type in custom stuff. However, Microsoft seems to have removed the IsEditable property from ComboBoxes, which made this WAY more complicated to implement than it needed to be.

But yeah, still looking to implement that...

Dice Rolling as a general feature but also on activation of powers, add a casting option where it will do the math for the power and then deactivate it.

Totally been on the to-do list since I started this app. I couldn't imagine putting together an RPG character sheet app without eventually adding this kind of functionality; I just wanted to get everything else in place before I started throw in the wrath of the the Random Number Gods.

Currently the best D&D app i've seen on any platform, well done sir.

Thank ye kindly, both for the praise, as well as the feedback!

I should also probably mention, I submitted an update to the Store Thursday night (actually, I think it was Friday morning at that point, technically... ) that fixes a few bugs, as well as adds a new feature: tracking multiple-use powers.

If you look at the screenshot I posted earlier in the thread, you might notice that the Elemental Escalation power has its header partly blacked out, which is a result of this feature. Basically, I set it up to try parsing out the "Special" entries on powers to try to determine if you get multiple uses of it per encounter/day.

This works well with powers like the basic leader healing powers, but for other powers... well, for powers that start off single-use, but gain multiple uses later (like Power Strike, or Elemental Escalation), the online Character Builder doesn't seem to store any easily accessed data on that. The community updates for the offline CB tend to add/update the "Special" entry to reflect additional uses, so this works pretty well with that version.

 

[insaneferret]

I can appreciate keeping it simple and compatible, and half these features would probably be toggle-able, RNG-rolling for example you'd want to turn off for people who use dice, this was all just idle musings and wishlists, I hope you make a killing with this thing.

I did notice a wierd problem when I was trying to buy the upgrades on the first night, I had to click upgrade like 5 times for it to take and pop up the windows store dialog, not sure if that was just the store being overloaded initially or what.

Re: the whiteboard - thats not entirely without precedent - the character portrait is just a simple file path reference if memory serves me, you could do a simple [ img ] tag in the journal for images and create jpg files in the character folder with the notes, no idea how hard implementing a rudimentary image editor would be, i'm just spoiled on the concept of scrawling notes all over character sheets and I certainly wouldnt mind additional files or folders with imagery and character metadata being created if it improves the program feature set while maintainoing compatibility, that way you can just swap out the character file and retain everything else.

Re: Conditions, couldnt you have the conditions table be simple delimited plaintext table and create two input methods for updating it, one non-editable dropdown set and one custom input? I dunno how complicated that gets, i'm not a programmer.

 

[scpredmage]

I can appreciate keeping it simple and compatible, and half these features would probably be toggle-able, RNG-rolling for example you'd want to turn off for people who use dice, this was all just idle musings and wishlists, I hope you make a killing with this thing.

Heh, "a killing" isn't likely, at least not any time soon; this is a fairly "niche" app, and seeing as Windows 8/RT only just got released, I probably won't see any large number of purchases for a while. First week only saw two people purchase it, after all.

I did notice a wierd problem when I was trying to buy the upgrades on the first night, I had to click upgrade like 5 times for it to take and pop up the windows store dialog, not sure if that was just the store being overloaded initially or what.

Well, that stuff is all extremely straight-forward API calls, so that's probably more an issue with Windows and/or the Store.

Re: the whiteboard - thats not entirely without precedent - the character portrait is just a simple file path reference if memory serves me, you could do a simple [ img ] tag in the journal for images and create jpg files in the character folder with the notes, no idea how hard implementing a rudimentary image editor would be, i'm just spoiled on the concept of scrawling notes all over character sheets and I certainly wouldnt mind additional files or folders with imagery and character metadata being created if it improves the program feature set while maintainoing compatibility, that way you can just swap out the character file and retain everything else.

To be completely honest, the whole "whiteboard" thing sounds like more trouble than it's worth.

If it helps any, one of the available virtual keyboard modes Windows has is a handwriting recognition mode.

Re: Conditions, couldnt you have the conditions table be simple delimited plaintext table and create two input methods for updating it, one non-editable dropdown set and one custom input? I dunno how complicated that gets, i'm not a programmer.

The problem wasn't a matter of how to do the list, but rather how to represent it to the UI.

Also, it's been implemented. It'll be in the next update I submit.

Also in the next update: notes on powers, for those with 4eMetro Pro. The feature is toggle-able, but if a power has notes, they'll show up (non-editable) even when it's turned off.

 

[scpredmage]

I should probably mention that the first update passed certification yesterday (and I submitted the NEXT update), so that whole multi-use power thing is live...

 

[Krayt1x]

Where abouts do i get the pro version

 

[scpredmage]

Where abouts do i get the pro version

Based on your username, I'm pretty sure I just replied to your e-mail, but this is particular question should probably be answered publicly, so others don't have to wait on a response.

4eMetro Pro can be purchased through the Settings charm, while the app is running; as the name would indicate, this is also where you can change settings for apps.

You can access the charms by:
* Swiping in from the right side of the screen on touch enabled systems
* Hovering your mouse cursor on the right edge of your monitor
* Holding the Windows key and pressing 'C'

This will cause a bar to appear on the right side of screen, with several buttons on it; the Settings charm will be the one on the bottom.

Alternatively, you can access the Settings charm directly by holding the Windows key and pressing the letter 'I'.

 

[Krayt1x]

Yeah that was me, thanks.

 

[scpredmage]

Welp, looks like I finally got the DDI login process working, and am able to pull data from it. The rest is downhill from here, so to speak.

So, yeah, next update should include the ability to download your characters directly from your DDI account, assuming you purchased the Pro version.

The last update just hit the Windows Store today; new features include an updated "Add Effects" dialog that includes pre-populated lists of common effects and durations, death save tracking, and notes on individual powers (Pro only, toggled from the Settings charm).

 

[The Little Raven]

Okay, I've had some time to put it through its paces, and here's some feedback mixed with some feature requests.

Also note that this list was going to be twice as long, but your last two updates fixed and upgraded a lot of stuff.

CONDITIONS/EFFECTS
I think the place you put this makes it really easy to overlook. It gets put in between the basic combat stats and the ability scores, and it could be easily missed. I'd recommend moving it up to just below the name/race/class/level section and making it pop up with a color highlight or something to make it stand out (maybe like a yellow highlight or user-determined highlighting for each effect/condition; I use Alea Tools and it'd be nice to match these colors to the ones I assign conditions).

It would be nice to be able to tap/click on the condition section while you have a condition to be able to remove it/edit it/see details.

Some powers provide conditions/effects and add to this section, but some don't. For instance, Second Wind adds the +2 bonus to all defenses, but clicking a stance like Battle Wrath doesn't. I know there would be some logic work to make stances replace eachother and such, but this would be awesome to have.

Also, would it be possible to tie the default durations into the rest system you have? So, if I have a condition that is EOMNT or EoEncounter, if I hit Short Rest, it will remove it?

SUMMARY
It doesn't list Paragon Path or Epic Destiny for any of my characters. Maybe clicking/tapping on the Race/Class/Level would do a pop-up that gives you any particulars like Subrace, Theme, PP, and ED. Maybe add them to the headers of "Theme Features" and the like so it says "Alchemist Theme Features" instead?

Death Saves - When you click all three, maybe give a popup that says "You're dead" or something?

I have this strange issue where some characters list their languages twice (only confirmed with CBLoader characters), but it comes and goes.

POWERS
Would it to be possible to customize the way powers are displayed a bit more? Right now, you click one and the header turns black, and that's your indication you used it. Some ideas to let someone tweak it:

• Check box instead of turning header black. Multiple check boxes for powers like Power Strike instead of a percentage of the header turning black.
• The text of the power gets greyed out.
• A diagonal text overlay that says EXPENDED.

With the small secondary power list, would it be possible to make them sized and shaped ala the normal Live Tiles? They are some tiny little tabs at present, and it'd be nice to have something a bit bigger. That screen feels really empty with a lot of wasted space in it. Another option would be to put a little power display section below the power tiles, so you click/tap one and it pops up the details and then you click/tap the power description to use it.

The ability to hide powers in the main power screen. If I'm not using Grab or Bull Rush very often, I won't want them on there. The ability to tap-and-hold or right-click and choose to hide it (but it still appears on the smaller power list screen) would be nice.

BOTTOM/TOP BAR
Could you break out some of the features on the bottom bar that are merged? Surges and Action Points are a prime example, and separating temp HP gain from normal damage/healing would be good. Also, just for consistency, I'd change the "Healing" to say "Heal Damage" to be consistent with "Take Damage." Maybe even put a + next to Heal Damage and a - next to Take Damage.

The Gear button feels really weird being on the bottom bar. It feels like it should be part of the left-hand-side character sheet summary (like the last page). It would just feel more consistent if it was like the Feat page, with the pop up for description and details. And since its part of the Pro purchase, it could just be blank or greyed out or covered with a "BUY ME!" note.

One consideration is to use the top-bar and bottom-bar, but one for combat tracking stuff (take/heal damage, surges, action points, rest) and the other for other character tracking (journal, etc).

OTHER FEATURES
Ability to change the visual theme. Some people might want a light theme, some might want a dark one. It'd be nice to be able to choose, and possibly even set a custom background (I could see setting a parchment-style background with a light theme, so that the text is dark on it).

On the character loading screen, instead of having to bring up the bottom bar to open a file and add them to the list, it might just be better to have an "Open File" selection before any characters listed. Just strikes me as a waste of motion to have to bring up a bottom bar with a single choice.

Or, if you are going to keep that bottom bar, add some options for sorting characters by Name, Level, Class, and Race?

Also, maybe make those tiles for the characters like normal like tiles (with small and large versions). Small just lists basic info (Name, Race, Class, Level), while the Large tile includes portrait.

Maybe instead of moving the most recently viewed character to the top of the list, have a Recent Characters section separate from the main character list?

COMPANIONS

I made a Beastmaster Ranger and there's no place to check out his companion.