DUNGEON's NEW STAT BLOCK FORMAT

[Zenodotus of Ephesus]

Good point. Fixed.

Thanks, Whisperdeedee-Footeleedoo!

 

[dagger]

Is there any NPC design software that has an option for the new statblock yet?

 

[Raging Epistaxis]

Is there any NPC design software that has an option for the new statblock yet?

If you use a Mac, CrystalBall will within the next few weeks.

A re-write is in progress, and a PC version should be available before too long.

R E

 

[jmucchiello]

Orc (MM 203) CR1/2
HD 1(5hp) AC 13/13 spd 30' Init +0 Ml: +4 falchion 2d4+4/18- Ms:- F+3 R+0 W-2
STR+3 INT-1 WIS-1 CHA-3 Listen+1 Spot+1

Orcs are too simple an example. I'd go with:
Orc (CR 1/2) CE Medium Humanoid (Orc)
(Init) (spd) (space/reach)
HD 1 hp 5 AC 13/13 (concealment) F+3 R+0 W-2 (SR DR ER)
M: +4 falchion 2d4+4/18- R:- (add special attacks here)
STR+3 INT-1 WIS-1 CHA-3 Listen+1 Spot+1
(Important Feats and other abilities)

Note I dropped Init, spd and space/reach because they are all default (+0, 30 ft, 5 ft/5 ft).
M for melee and R for ranged is easier to discern than Ml and Ms.

I realise that there might be "legal" reasons as to why this isn't always possible, but surely if the monster is in the SRD it could be done.......

D20 logo explicitly prevents referring to page numbers in WotC books. That's why I dropped the MM 203.

 

[Lonely Tylenol]

Well, speaking just for myself...

Nobody has yet made such a program available that fits my two required parameters:

1) 100% accurate and error-free.

2) Easy to use.

The first thing I do when I download, borrow, or otherwise try out some kind of "generation program" is I try to break it. Usually this involves giving class levels to a monster. Then, I reverse-engineer the statblock it spits out to see where it went wrong. For example, Etools keeps forgetting to give a troll cleric its natural armour bonus.

I keep track of how long it takes me to find an error, and use that as a kind of rating system. Again, for Etools, it was about 20 seconds. If I can find a problem in 20 seconds, how many errors should I expect to find in several hours of use? How much will this affect my game in the long run?

 

[greywulf]

jmucchiello, thanks for the input on the mini-statblock. Your changes work for me.

Ideally, the mini blocks shouldn't go over three or four lines so they don't detract from the text. I don't think that would be too difficult for the type of critters these mini blocks would be used for; anything more and the creature deserves a full entry anyway, by my thinking.

 

[Argonel]

Overall I like the new stat block and for published adventures it seems to work very nicely. however I would really like to see the armor class and hitpoints broken out the same way they were in the old stat block. That would make it a lot easier to make adjustments or advance the NPC/monster to make it a more appropriate challenge for my group. It alos makes it a lot easier to roll my own HP instead of going with the average hitpoints. I think it would also make the proofreading easier which will reduce the number of people complaining.

 

[Vascant]

Is there any NPC design software that has an option for the new statblock yet?

NPC Designer at www.rpgattitude.com, 6 days after the format was shown in Dungeon we had it finished

 

[Lonely Tylenol]

Yup -it's nice to have the flatfooted & (especially) touch ACs, but you don't need to know how those were arrived at. Even in the Monster Manual it seems like for most creatures everything gets rolled into an abstract "Natural Armour Bonus" that in many cases can't bear much relation to the creature's actual natural armour.

I'd like a standardized superscript entry block for armour classes. So if your armour class consists of an armour bonus, a shield bonus, a natural armour bonus and a deflection bonus, you'll see a little superscript [ASND] after the AC listing. Now, it won't break down the values, but it will indicate at a glance whether a new bonus from a spell or effect will have stacking issues. So if someone casts Shield of Faith on this particular character, you instantly know that you should check to see where the existing deflection bonus is coming from, and figure out its value (likely in the possessions section) to see if Shield of Faith will overlap. If the character doesn't have a [D] in the armour class line, you know you don't have to sift through the statblock to see whether there's a deflection bonus already present.

The same could be done for attack bonuses. It would add a lot of useful information without taking up much space at all.

[edit]
Oh, also, I just want to add that I think that sorcerers and other spontaneous metamagic users should get their metamagic feats put into "Combat Options", along with a little tag that says how many levels you increase the spell slot. Eg: Still Spell (+1), Maximize Spell (+3), since these things will be relevent during battles, not during the preparation of the statblock, the way it is with casters who prepare their spells.