What's the best NPC generating software outthere?

[Olive]

I'm a busy person with limited time and I have no desire to be sitting around in the evenings stating up NPCs by hand if I can possibly avoid it. What's good that could help me with that?

 

[Aus_Snow]

For just plain D&D 3.5 - no splatbooks etc. - I've found Redblade to be particularly pleasant (i.e., quick and easy) to use.

Though it looks like the new beta is not much like the one I am familiar with. Not sure how its' different, precisely. But anyway, Redblade's the first program that springs to mind.

 

[kingpaul]

PCGen, but I'm biased.

A random NPC generator has also been added recently.

 

[Vascant]

NPC Designer hands down, it is still one of the only applications created from the start to generate NPCs.

Most generators that create an NPC based from a click of a button are based off just random generation. NPC Designer produces usable NPCs that make sense and designed with some logic behind them. The output comes in many different formats; from the new stat to formats for Fantasy Ground and DM Genie for easy importing.

 

[rom90125]

NPC Designer hands down, it is still one of the only applications created from the start to generate NPCs.

Most generators that create an NPC based from a click of a button are based off just random generation. NPC Designer produces usable NPCs that make sense and designed with some logic behind them. The output comes in many different formats; from the new stat to formats for Fantasy Ground and DM Genie for easy importing.

I concur with Vascant. NPC Designer blows all the others away. Other apps, PCGen comes to mind, lack in functionality (some of the auto choices made by the PCGen software don't make sense, especially in regards to skill and feat selection) and presentation (again, I mention PCGen because it gets a lot of play on these boards. The PCGen GUI is laid out poorly, imho).

While some of the NPC generation utilities are free, I have found that adage of "You get what you pay for" is most definitely true.

NPC Designer is worth every dollar.

 

[schporto]

I will also vote for NPC Designer. Its great for quickly generating a stat blocks.

But I have not tried the PCGen random npc generation. How/where is this feature?
-cpd

 

[kingpaul]

But I have not tried the PCGen random npc generation. How/where is this feature?

I don't have PCGen with me right now, but, from memory, its File->New NPC. Its definitely under the File menu.

 

[Joshua Randall]

I'll yet again plug DM Genie.

It doesn't do random NPCs (that I know of), but it does a great job of helping you make all sorts of NPCs -- standard-race character with class levels, monsters with class levels, monsters with templates, advanced (HD) monsters, whatever.

I'm not affiliated with DM Genie, although I darn well ought to be considering how often I plug them.

 

[green slime]

My vote goes to PCgen.

 

[acon360]

I vote NPC Designer when used in conjunction with DM Genie. But can the latest version of DMG stat block import feature work NPCD's stat blocks? Not sure.