Excel CR calculator

[juliaromero]

I made a crude first version of an excel spread sheet to calculate monster challenge ratings based on Upper Krust's (I think it was his) PDF file about it. I'm attaching it here in case anyone wants to try it out and play test it a bit anc come back with corrections, comments, and suggestions.

It's not pretty, but it should at least be easy to use (though a bit long).

 

[Upper_Krust]

Hi there juliaromero!

Just saw this. Good work. However, I'm going over it now and it seems the Creature Type row adds nothing regardless of which type I pick...?

You may also need a row whereby people can add modifiers for new abilities, its impossible to list every single ability.

 

[juliaromero]

I had the creature type adding the bonus at first, but then when I looked over your pdf more closely it seemed that all the bonsuses just from creature type were only a sum of all the smaller bonuses that that type gets. This meant adding a bonus for creature type would give you double bonuses, so I took it out. For example, giants get .2 for being a giant, but that .2 is from Darkvision, so if you later set Darkvision to True then they would be getting .4 for darkvision.

See the problem? If there are types that have some special bonus that isn't listed as some other ability I can fix that, but I didn't notice any. That is the same reason I didn't add Templates at all, they were just a sum of other abilities as far as I could tell.

I was thinking, if I got more ambitious, to figure out how to make a macro so that if you chose giant type it would automatically set Darkvision to True for you, but that didn't really seem worth it yet.

I can always add a generic row later ... you mean a row for "new unnamed ability" where the user adds their own cr estimate from it? That would be easy enough to do.

 

[Kerrick]

Sweet! I just played around with it for a few minutes, but I noticed the gaze attack/breath attack ranges don't seem to do anything - I put a number in (40) but no modifier popped out.

I was thinking, if I got more ambitious, to figure out how to make a macro so that if you chose giant type it would automatically set Darkvision to True for you, but that didn't really seem worth it yet.

I think it'd be a huge help - that way you don't have to keep looking up all the stuff the creature gets for that type. The purpose is to save you time by not having to look things up, right?

Also, I'd like to make another suggestion - we need a Silver Rule box. SImple enough - multiply the Golden Rule by .85 - but it'd be good for those of us who want "the most accurate CR".

 

[Knight Otu]

I actually did that as well, with macros. Unfortunately, for some reason the newer Excel version seems to accept the macros only on one page - if another is added, they don't work there. That may of course have to do with the fact that it was converted from an earlier Excel version.

 

[RuminDange]

I actually did that as well, with macros. Unfortunately, for some reason the newer Excel version seems to accept the macros only on one page - if another is added, they don't work there. That may of course have to do with the fact that it was converted from an earlier Excel version.

Actually this problem has more to do with the macro code referencing a worksheet or object by name not by which one is active or current, with just a cursory view of the code so far.
Change the macro to use Workbook.ActiveSheet instead of things like Sheets("sheet1") and the macro should work for any number of sheets that you using. Also keep in mind that a drawing object, button etc gets a new name when the sheet is copied. So if you have some object on one sheet called btnRunMe, and you copy the sheet, that button is copied but is renamed to something like CommandButton1 or whatever the next number in order is for command buttons. You could write the macro to move through the various objects on the sheet, check its type and what it has as text or other identifiable properties and reference it that way.



BTW, looks good so far, going to have to look a little more and play around with both when I get the time.

RD


P.S. Macro wouldn't run on my version of excel, it cannot find the drop down 1 object. This may be fact it was written in an older version of excel and moved to a newer one.

 

[Knight Otu]

Also keep in mind that a drawing object, button etc gets a new name when the sheet is copied. So if you have some object on one sheet called btnRunMe, and you copy the sheet, that button is copied but is renamed to something like CommandButton1 or whatever the next number in order is for command buttons.

That's part of the problem, in a way (I was already using ActiveSheet, so that wasn't it). But apparently, my Excel version only renames objects that are numbered, not those without a number (don't ask me why I numbered them instead of properly naming them; I've propably gone rusty). I'm renaming things now, maybe that helps your problem as well.

 

[RuminDange]

That's part of the problem, in a way (I was already using ActiveSheet, so that wasn't it). But apparently, my Excel version only renames objects that are numbered, not those without a number (don't ask me why I numbered them instead of properly naming them; I've propably gone rusty). I'm renaming things now, maybe that helps your problem as well.

Yeah that is weird, but not suprising since excel tends to do some strange things at times no matter what you tell it.
It might help mine run the macro as well. Which version was this origninally written in? I figured due to the notice I get opening it about the way macros are editted in, that was around Excel 95 era, which was also based on VB4 or 5. Now VBA is based on VB6, that too could have something to do with it. Run into that kind of compatiblity problem all the time.

RD

 

[Knight Otu]

The original version was on Excel 5.0 before converting it, actually (don't tell me it's Stone Age technology I know that).

Anyway, try it now, and try copying a new page. Does it work now?

 

[RuminDange]

The original version was on Excel 5.0 before converting it, actually (don't tell me it's Stone Age technology I know that).

Anyway, try it now, and try copying a new page. Does it work now?

Works like a charm! Even copying pages.
Nice fix.
Have to play with it a little more.

Now what sort of deadly..I mean..interesting creature shall I make to ki...scare the wits out of the players.

...Stone Age...nah, wouldn't tell you that...Excel 5 is more like Bronze age Did you ever try the versions 1 through 4? now we're harking back to the stone age with them. Besides if it works for what you need why give M$ more money than you have too.

RD