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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Lonely Tylenol" data-source="post: 3275708" data-attributes="member: 18549">You know, I tried eTools once or twice when I ran across installs.  When I did, it took me about two minutes of playing around to break it.  This is without any of the extra packages.  I remember the last time I tried it, I attempted to put class levels on a troll, and it failed to acknowledge a crucial feature (like a bonus feat or something similar...I can't remember exactly).  My perception of the software is: if I can locate an error in under five minutes, I guess I can expect about twelve errors per hour of use.  That's a pretty high rate, and certainly not worth paying for.I can't really complain about PCGen, since it's free, but I also can't bring myself to use it.  Often because the datasets do not include material I want to use.  I could wait four months and see whether an update includes that material, or I could do it by hand like I always do.As a consumer, what I see from D&D assistance software is a whole lot of fail.  The developers can get as petulant and defensive as they want about it, but that's not going to change the fact that there's little value out there for the user...no matter how many hours were spent in front of a monitor trying to code this stuff.If I could get a professional package, updated regularly and reliably with patches to correct inevitable errors in datasets, and based around at least the WotC books, updated with the new rules within a week or so of the book's release, I'd be happy.  If it also functioned as a DM assistant, I'd be overjoyed.  I think only WotC is in a position to do this, and since they seem to be unwilling to cough up the effort to support a project of such questionable profit, I think we're up a creek on this one.Well, maybe Winter Fantasy (or whatever the hell they're calling it now) will prove me wrong, but as I'm fond of saying, if you're a pessimist, all your surprises are pleasant.</blockquote>

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