Possible new idea?

[Vorvodoss]

I found this on another thread here and am posting it for reference's sake:

http://www.killershrike.com/Fantasy...t/NCMExport.asp
That's killer shrike's web utility for calculating NCM. It's a great utility. Has anyone tried an approach like this to create an entirely new template (both Extension templates and Export templates)? It took me a while to figure out how to edit the sample templates to include the things I wanted and it would be a lot faster to be able to do it more graphically.

Killer Shrike, if you don't have time for this, could I maybe pick your brain so I could start fussing with it?

[Killer Shrike]

Ive thought about it, but to be honest HD v2 is so comprehensive it covers pretty much everything else.

What kind of templates did you have in mind?

[Vorvodoss]

Well, I recently customized a template to add things like MANA and Mana recovery. It wasn't hard once I figured it out but it's still somewhat time consuming. Also, I made MANA just like END so I had something to go off. However, what if I wanted to make something like SNARF (made up char. for this example...hehe) and wanted it to be equal to (COM/3+INT*6)?

You're right, HD v2 does almost everything you would need. But making slight changes require a huge ordeal and there are a lot of ways to mess up. Also, trying to match an export template with your extension template can be a pain as well.

[Killer Shrike]

Originally posted by Vorvodoss
Well, I recently customized a template to add things like MANA and Mana recovery. It wasn't hard once I figured it out but it's still somewhat time consuming. Also, I made MANA just like END so I had something to go off. However, what if I wanted to make something like SNARF (made up char. for this example...hehe) and wanted it to be equal to (COM/3+INT*6)?

You're right, HD v2 does almost everything you would need. But making slight changes require a huge ordeal and there are a lot of ways to mess up. Also, trying to match an export template with your extension template can be a pain as well. I suppose a utility to do a Custom Characteristics extended Template might be useful. I could send you the asp page I wrote for the NCM tool; you could probably use that as a baseline example on how to do it.

As far as Export Templates go its a lot less practical. Getting the Layout to look right really needs a human touch IMO, as its more of a cosmetic criteria.

[Vorvodoss]

You've got a point when it comes to the export templates.

Go ahead and send me the asp page so I can take a look. My sig has a link for my email.

Hey, do you remember some years back there was a tool called Core Rules for ADnD? That had a feature where you could select which elements you wanted to appear in the character sheet and what order. However, it didn't allow for any customizing either. Being able to quickly and easily customize things while still IN HD would be a great feature for v3 or a later update of v2.

[Killer Shrike]

Originally posted by Vorvodoss
Hey, do you remember some years back there was a tool called Core Rules for ADnD? That had a feature where you could select which elements you wanted to appear in the character sheet and what order. However, it didn't allow for any customizing either. Being able to quickly and easily customize things while still IN HD would be a great feature for v3 or a later update of v2. Well, the whole problem with that idea is that, as far as HTML exports are concerned, the Export Templates are formatted as HTML with Tags processed all in one go on output. Trying to build the HTML dynamically is doable, but the actual placement of individual bits on the page would get really iffy if you want any kind of control over it whatsoever.....

[Killer Shrike]

You could probably do an export template that contained a place holder for every major TAG, and then build a utility allowing a user to selectively turn off bits they didnt want, writing out just the portions they left selected to generate a semi-custom Export Template, but it would likely look pretty wonky even still.....

[Vorvodoss]

Yeah, chances are it would. Honestly, I think the character sheet looks good as is. I personally will probably not want to change my template now but it would be nice for people who don't have as much time as me to change things quickly.