The Stat Block Bank is growing beyond its original design of being "just" a stat block bank for NPCs. The new website dmtools.org, will be a place for everybody to gather and find the tools they need.
Stat Block Bank? Check.
Safe place for your PC? Check.
Generators? Check.
Another handy place for consolidated lists? Check.
Need storage space for homecreated maps that you want to share? Check.
Adventure & article indices? Check.
Collaborative project area (worldbuilding)? Yep.
'Cause I love you guys. :D
Lilith. The love is just a small part of it! The main reason is because you want to expand your portfolio! You figure that being the Demon Queen of Victuals is not enough. Now you want to be a Godess?!? You are just asking too much out of us if you expect us to worship you! Your boyfriend should be able to do the job all by his lonesome!!! ~GRINS~
BTW, Lilith! Thanks ahead of time for the goodies!
Eek! I don't think you're live right now...but you're probably figuring this out and fixing stuff instead of reading this.
Yeah, I just got the domain name today, so expect some delay before you actually see anything. It's something I've been plotting for a while (mwah-hah-hah), so that's why a lot of other things with the site have been put on hold.
Sharoth, a Demon Queen is never sated! I must have more means and methods in which to enslave my minions and acquire more of them!
Of course, it has also gotten to a point where I can't be the sole moderator anymore. Several people have offered their services in this fashion, and I'll be taking them up on it. :)
Lilith...I hope you're going to charge some fees or something, otherwise I'll just have to keep ordering PC portraits from you.....if I ever get a chance to come to the Pacific NW area, I will bring you a case or two of Shiner.
Maybe I'm dumb or something and i really think this is really cool so i tried to check it out and i just got sent to a blank screen........ so im kinda confused but i want to check it out soooo ummmm is that whats suppost to happen?
Maybe I'm dumb or something and i really think this is really cool so i tried to check it out and i just got sent to a blank screen........ so im kinda confused but i want to check it out soooo ummmm is that whats suppost to happen?
Basically the Stat Block Bank, but better. :)
Eventually. I didn't expect the DNS records to update so fast, so I'll get something up there pronto. At the very least a "wait, don't look yet!"
Lilith...I hope you're going to charge some fees or something, otherwise I'll just have to keep ordering PC portraits from you.....if I ever get a chance to come to the Pacific NW area, I will bring you a case or two of Shiner.
No fees. Support is nice - commission away! My webhost is awesome, so he's pretty much giving me free reign. *rubs hands together*
I'll definitely take the Shiner, though. :D
Lilith, how much will it be to become your minion? I figure that farewell2kings is right. ~sighs~ If money were not so tight right now, I would be ordering artwork from you and Ashenvale. Oh, well. Expect some orders for artwork sometime next year around summertime, you vicious, evil, cruel, enslaving Demon Queen of Victuals! ~smells the deligtful odors of your cooking~ yeessss Mistress! I obey!
ok
and your art works tight but
I dont have a card to pay you or anything
or money lol so like the guy above expect
some art-work-doing in awhile but your good i like your stuff
and yeah cool stat block
ok
and your art works tight but
I dont have a card to pay you or anything
or money lol so like the guy above expect
some art-work-doing in awhile but your good i like your stuff
and yeah cool stat block
Don't worry 'bout it - if you can, you can. If you can't, you can't. Spread the word about the site, though! Keep it alive, brothers and sisters!
DM Tools is up & running - enjoy! Up & running as far as the SBB is concerned - more stuff will show up later. :D
This. Is. Awesome.
I bow to you, milady. This is great. Are you spoken for?
Are you spoken for?
Yep. :)
Thank you for all your work, Lilith! We all can not praise you enough.
One idea/request I have, though: Would it be possible to make the monster list sortable according to terrain? That would make a DM´s work that much easier if looking for monsters to harass their PCs with :-)
Stefan
Thank you for all your work, Lilith! We all can not praise you enough.
One idea/request I have, though: Would it be possible to make the monster list sortable according to terrain? That would make a DM´s work that much easier if looking for monsters to harass their PCs with :-)Stefan
Should be no problem at all. Finding the time to do so is another matter entirely. :P I will put it on my to-do list, though!
MacGillith is my IDOL!
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The Stat Block Bank is growing beyond its original design of being "just" a stat block bank for NPCs. The new website dmtools.org, will be a place for everybody to gather and find the tools they need.
Stat Block Bank? Check.
Safe place for your PC? Check.
Generators? Check.
Another handy place for consolidated lists? Check.
Need storage space for homecreated maps that you want to share? Check.
Adventure & article indices? Check.
Collaborative project area (worldbuilding)? Yep.'Cause I love you guys. :D
I think that all you have done is outstanding. If you need assistance with "Assistant Moderator" or anything else, you know where to find me. :)
First, thank you, thank you, and thank you again! Any form of DM tool like this is mana from heaven for all of us.
Second- I have to leave for classes soon, so I don't have time to check all the other Stat Block Bank threads, but is there a consolodated, standard random encounter chart yet? This would be awesome. I've been wanting one for a very long time.
What I'm thinking is rather extensive, but would possibly be the best random encounter chart ever (shine through, ego, shine through!).
Lists for all the climtate/terrain combos (i.e., one for cold mountains, temperate mountains, warm mountains, etc.), and then subdivide each list into low, medium, and high levels (something along the lines of charts suitable for levels 1-3, 4-6, and 7-9, with anything bigger than that never being on a standard random encounter chart). Then, say, if you had a heavily settled plains, you would use the low level plains encounter, to reflect that there really aren't that many dangerous things running around.
If you had a cold swamp that was known to be a dangerous location, it would use the mid-level cold swamp standard table. If you had a range of volcanic mountains known to be a deathtrap for anything but the most legendary of heroes, use the high-level warm mountains chart.
Lists should be populated only by creatures from the Monster Manual, and only the first one. That way, you avoid throwing world-specific creatures into a general list. Also, the orignal MM is what I consider the type of creatures that can be found anywhere. Krenshars can be found in most temperate forests. Trolls in most cold environments, etc. Anything from another book is more specific and should be up to the DM to add in certain locations.
Thus, you would get very "normal" lists comprised mainly of things like humanoids and animals, making sure to give the feel of a more "real" world where wolves and bears are still common, and everything isn't stirges and mephits and dragons and other fantastic creatures.
Also, say there's a region that is known for a specific creature. Take the Wyvern Hills from my homebrew (bet you can't guess what lives there...). You could use a chart something like "80% chance of using standard temperate hills, 20% chance of 1d4-1 wyverns."
Please, someone with the time and inclination to tackle this challenge, head my call!
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Please, someone with the time and inclination to tackle this challenge, head my call!
You are talking about some very specific things that are very difficult to include. Random generators for encounters should be fairly custom to the location, environment, situations, among other things.
First of all, there are 15 templates and 553 different creatures in the Monster Manual. Would you want to include them all? What about constructs? How about templates? Outsiders? Undead? Advanced creatures? Humanoids with class levels? Multiple creatures? Suddenly this list of 553 creatures can quickly expand to astronomical proportions.
I also feel that one "Warm Swamp" should not necessarily be the same as another one. Regardless of the EL.
I think that Lilith's site does a really good job with a "quick and dirty" with regards to encounter tables. If you are looking for things that are more specific, check out the creature list that I created --> here. You can get a quick list of all creatures that are normally found in warm swamps (or whatever) at any or every CR available and quickly create an encounter table to suit your own needs.
While I am not opposed to doing a project like this, I am not sure how realistically possible it might be.
Lilith, yet again you've taken this ball and run out of the stadium with it.
Just like Forrest Gump, you've gone all the way out past the county line with this particular ball.
Bravo!
M
Well, I didn't really consider it that way. The list I was thinking of using already exists in the DMG, where it lists creatures by climate/terrain and their CR. Really all I'm looking for is breaking each of those lists down into three encounter charts, separated by general CR/EL. Since that's in the DMG already, I don't think it's overly specific. Those creatures are also the ones that actually have terrain listings; things with "Any land or underground," (or whatever the term is in 3.5) are not included typically, and are left to the DM to incorporate.
Also, the idea I had was that these charts would be the bare bones, the stuff that you can find in most temperate swamps, cold hills, warm plains, etc., etc. If the DM has another region that fits that descriptor but doesn't conform to the chart, that's something campaign specific and he should make the encounter himself. However, if one is dealing with just a generic temperate plains or forest with nothing special in the way of local creatures, it's nice to have something you can just plug in, rather than creating a whole new chart, even a simple one.
Also, as I mentioned, the DM's flexibility and creativity isn't compromised, since if there ARE two or three unusual creatures found in an area, he can create a subtable, and simply list as a percent chance whether he will roll on the "standard" table or the custom one.
As I remember someone else posting some time ago on a long forgotten thread, random encounters should be very simple and typically generic. I agree. However, deciding which humanoids to throw into the mix in what proportions (what percent chance is there for golbins? Orcs? Hubgoblins? Do I want bugbears, too? Should gnolls be left out?), and then to take into consideration things like animals (are there bears in this area? Wolves?), and then deciding on magical beasts, etc., etc.... Making a random chart every time can raise these questions, but if you have a standardized, consolodated list, you don't worry about it too much. At least, that's the way my mind works. Maybe I just worry about these things too much, but if it turns out that's typical for most DMs, then this standardized encounter system would be a major time saver.
If you're looking for a good website that makes randomization easy, Abulafia allows you to custom create tables. You could link your entries to Stat Block entries, if that's what you're interested in.
Otherwise, if you want just MM monsters by terrain, the work's been done for you. Just visit d20srd's Monster Filter, and filter by terrain (or climate, or plane) and Max/Min CR. Personally, I'd use Lilith's awesome site to leverage her NPC bank, not just as a stock monster random encounter table.
Of course, it has also gotten to a point where I can't be the sole moderator anymore. Several people have offered their services in this fashion, and I'll be taking them up on it. :)
Consider one of them to be me!
TK
Stat Block Bank Enthusiast
If you're looking for a good website that makes randomization easy, Abulafia allows you to custom create tables. You could link your entries to Stat Block entries, if that's what you're interested in.
Otherwise, if you want just MM monsters by terrain, the work's been done for you. Just visit d20srd's Monster Filter, and filter by terrain (or climate, or plane) and Max/Min CR. Personally, I'd use Lilith's awesome site to leverage her NPC bank, not just as a stock monster random encounter table.
That's a pretty good link there, Delveg, although it's not quite what I'm thinking of. The time-consuming part comes from cross-referencing the MM for the "organization" entry of the creatures, then checking the EL (which I wouldn't use to determine placement on the various tables for a single climate/terrain, only CR). However, considering the new site is a place for DM tools in general, as I understand it, not just a stat block bank anymore, I think placing such a "stock" generator there to certainly be at least as useful as a treasure generator. If it's not for this new purpose, I can't fathom why it's called "dmtools.org", or why the effort was even expended to make a new site, since the NPC Stat Block Bank worked great in that function.
I'm also not trying to slough off responsibility completely to other people. I just don't have the time to do it all. It could be accomplished quickly by a group working in conjunction. I've nowhere near the technical no-how to understand how this would then be synthesized back together, but I'm assuming it woulnd't be too hard. Quality control and consistency would be under Lilith's supervision, and/or that of her assistants on the sight.
Oh, and Bill (Moff, I should say), i unfortunately not only have virtually no 2e stuff available to me, I live in an area with extremely few places that I could obtain any. Curses! I have seen some of the old encounter charts at a glance, however, and from what I saw, it looked like they compiled every monster released up to the point of that particular chart's publication and put them in one table, which is much larger than what I'm looking for here.
And for further clarification, what I had in mind most was a sheet that I could look at on a screen or just print off and use to roll the encounters on, not necessarily a program that would do the rolling itself. I've no clue how much harder this would be to write a script for (or if it's a walk in the park for that matter, I just don't know).
That's a pretty good link there, Delveg, although it's not quite what I'm thinking of. The time-consuming part comes from cross-referencing the MM for the "organization" entry of the creatures, then checking the EL (which I wouldn't use to determine placement on the various tables for a single climate/terrain, only CR). However, considering the new site is a place for DM tools in general, as I understand it, not just a stat block bank anymore, I think placing such a "stock" generator there to certainly be at least as useful as a treasure generator. If it's not for this new purpose, I can't fathom why it's called "dmtools.org", or why the effort was even expended to make a new site, since the NPC Stat Block Bank worked great in that function.
Anything that has a place in a DM's Toolbox (or a player's toolbox) will have a home on the new site. That being said, any resources that you have that you want to share, let me know!
Here's the plan, so far, for the new site:
Stat Block Bank: The one we all know and love. :)
The World Project: A collaborative world-building project area. I'm still working some of the details with Kyravahne. :P
Treasure Generator: Self explanatory - Moff Rimmer's Excel spreadsheets have been invaluable in assisting the thought process behind the generator (the scroll generator is already up). There is still a lot of thing that need to be done though, so this is being thrashed out on my home webserver.
Encounter Generator: Right now, it's just a list of single creatures, though I'm also working on doing multiple creatures. Getting a list of creatures for "X" environment is fairly straightforward, as that information is already existing in the database. It's a matter of displaying the information in a readable, usable format.
The Atlas: A collection of maps, tagged by keyword. Example: Need a forest map? You'd enter "forest" into the search box and get your results.
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Here's the plan, so far, for the new site:
Stat Block Bank: The one we all know and love. :)
The World Project: A collaborative world-building project area. I'm still working some of the details with Kyravahne. :P
Treasure Generator: Self explanatory - Moff Rimmer's Excel spreadsheets have been invaluable in assisting the thought process behind the generator (the scroll generator is already up). There is still a lot of thing that need to be done though, so this is being thrashed out on my home webserver.
Encounter Generator: Right now, it's just a list of single creatures, though I'm also working on doing multiple creatures. Getting a list of creatures for "X" environment is fairly straightforward, as that information is already existing in the database. It's a matter of displaying the information in a readable, usable format.
The Atlas: A collection of maps, tagged by keyword. Example: Need a forest map? You'd enter "forest" into the search box and get your results.
Just 2 ideas:
1- The Atlas, maybe tell people that only certain types of files are accepted (GIF, JPEG, ETC.) and I have some to contribute when it comes time (I do a lot of stuff in Dundjinni and convert them to jpegs)2- A section for sheets. Character sheets, initiative tracking sheets, combat sheets, maybe some others like a spell tracking sheet, Blank handouts (empty scroll you fill in words, bits of a map) and maybe some thing that resembles items that would be a handout like a sheet with a picture of a door, pillar, chest, etc. that can be drawn on or altered in a graphics program to match a DMs description. Example: You see this pillar (hands players a sheet) that has 3 slots of varying shapes lined up one above the other (you provide the pillar, the DM would have to alter the image in some graphics program to have the slots, sockets, buttons or whatever.).
just some random thoughts,
FH
I'm intrigued by The World Project. What data can you share about that, or is it super-secret and I would have to die if you told me? I might still ask, I'd just want to know what I was getting into first. :)
I'm intrigued by The World Project. What data can you share about that, or is it super-secret and I would have to die if you told me? I might still ask, I'd just want to know what I was getting into first. :)
It's super-secret until Kyravahne & I get things sorted out and organized. The basic premise is to create a homebrewed world, with multiple collaborators taking control of a particular aspect of the world.
I have prettied up the site a bit and re-organized the menu. There's a "Coming Soon" section that has a list of things that are upcoming.
It's super-secret until Kyravahne & I get things sorted out and organized.
WOW I just wanted be part of a project, now I am part of a "Secret Project" - Im very excited.
Decoder rings, passwords, secret handshakes, codes...I feel the need to encrypt something
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I'm intrigued by The World Project. What data can you share about that, or is it super-secret and I would have to die if you told me? I might still ask, I'd just want to know what I was getting into first. :)It's super-secret until Kyravahne & I get things sorted out and organized. The basic premise is to create a homebrewed world, with multiple collaborators taking control of a particular aspect of the world.
I have prettied up the site a bit and re-organized the menu. There's a "Coming Soon" section that has a list of things that are upcoming.
Ooooohhhhh. I like aspects of the world.
I'm intrigued by The World Project. What data can you share about that, or is it super-secret and I would have to die if you told me? I might still ask, I'd just want to know what I was getting into first. :)It's super-secret until Kyravahne & I get things sorted out and organized. The basic premise is to create a homebrewed world, with multiple collaborators taking control of a particular aspect of the world.
I have prettied up the site a bit and re-organized the menu. There's a "Coming Soon" section that has a list of things that are upcoming.
Ohh! I've been seaching around for EVER to find something like this! Lilith you RULE!
*insert Jaws theme*
Dum dummmm...dum DUMMMMMM!
Check out The World Project!
Here's an update on The World Project:
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Weekly Update, September 15th-21st 2006
Wow, one week and we're already going strong! If you want to keep up with the latest and greatest, you can always subscribe to the RSS feed for the Recent Changes page. Here's a summary of what's been happening in The World:
Geography
Well, we seem to have settled on a size for The World - really, really big. Fortunately, this is a good thing for a DM, as it allows them to add or subtract continents and lands at will to suit the campaign. The Floating Islands are independent islands that include such places as Nexus, Nightworld and Vitterbrud. Islands that have been created so far are Aurashad, Ceudermon, Kadesh, Phoexia, Redomvour, Tanasul. Aldrethor is becoming increasingly fleshed-out - there's even a map! Winterblight seems to be the place for all things cold and chilly, but with the addition of Vitterbrud just makes it all the more mysterious.
Flora
The plants of The World are sprouting even as we speak - elf cherries and elf vines, godroots and great sky cedars. Fairly benign stuff, but not so with warproot.
Fauna
A couple of unique creatures have already been made for The World, blackfathom eels and dune reavers. Merfolk, known as Nereies, have a home in the lands of Kadesh.
Religion
The oracle Shevath made the perilous journey to find the great beings of the cosmos and was driven mad by the experience. Aourah and Revanosh preside over the creation and destruction of the planes, but it is not known if the encounters with these two drove Shevath mad, or if it was something else entirely.
Magic
With a rallying cry of "No Archmages who don't live here," many steps have been made to flesh out the magic of The World. Artifacts, magical narcotics, locations of power...
Psionics
The psionic arts have a home in The World - Nexus.
Travel
Raghesten skyships are a relic of the Empire of Raghesten. Few of these relics are still around, but interest in them has not waned.
History
Slowly, but surely, the known history of The World is being fleshed out. Exiled illithids, a noble dwarven sacrifice, primordial giants, arcane plagues - just a few of the the things The World has seen.
Organizations
The Dark Sargassien is an undersea organization that seeks to obtain power - power that they want for some unknown purpose. Aboleth and kraken work together in a dark alliance and offer the power of the vast oceans to those that seek it.
Cosmology
The planes undergo a never-ending cycle of birth and death as they float and drift in the Divine Aether. The Prime Material Plane was created when the elemental planes collided with it and distributed bits of their planar energies throughout it. The Three Moons of The World, Torpidant, Veridias and Autall, cycle through the night sky and sometimes grant mysterious power to those that know how to access it.
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I have added three new moderators - Moff Rimmer, Thanis Kartaleon and Tequila Sunris - to help out with keeping stat blocks maintained. Luke Fleeman - please contact me! I seem to have misplaced your email and my super-SQL powers fail me in locating your alter-ego.
:)
Here's an update on The World Project:
Yowza.
Does this mean the NPC stat bank is currently closed, or..? I've been on honeymoon for three weeks, just got back, had a ... "few"... to submit, and noticed some from the end of August still waiting for review?
Big site - very pretty!
Does this mean the NPC stat bank is currently closed, or..? I've been on honeymoon for three weeks, just got back, had a ... "few"... to submit, and noticed some from the end of August still waiting for review?
Big site - very pretty!
No no no no no - the Stat Block Bank is still very much open. I've had to get some additional help in reviewing/approving stat blocks, so that's why a lot of them are still in the queue. Hopefully, with the additional help, things will get approved much faster now.
Lilith, after October 20th I'll be able to help review stat blocks as well. If you're still back logged then let me know.
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Hello Lilith,
apparently I am meeting you on this board whereever I look. :-)
This is great news and I just had another look at the new site.
I am in a sports club which heavily relies on voluntary contributions of its members. So I am rather a friend of mutual efforts than pay for commercial projects, especially if it is about the hobby we all love.
I know that there is a mistake in my reasoning. I still didn't contribute anything to it, and I am very sorry for it. But as soon as I have more time for D&D than reading these boards and preparing the next D&D session, I will put some NPCs into it.
If you need other help just tell. F2K mentioned proof reading...
Greetings,
Günther
To get an idea of why approving is slow right now: half the blocks in the top ten to be approved are CR 18-19 (I blame Moff - they're all giants he requested) :-P
I'm waiting to hear back from some of those who submitted blocks, but once we get these out of the way, approval times should be way up.
TK
Lil you're a queen! keep on keeping on.
No no no no no - the Stat Block Bank is still very much open. I've had to get some additional help in reviewing/approving stat blocks, so that's why a lot of them are still in the queue. Hopefully, with the additional help, things will get approved much faster now.
Wow! A huge chunk of them just got approved - thanks! Quick question - should I 'un-follower' some of the followers I put together? I didn't realize that they'd not show up as searchable characters on their own... Hrm.
For a specific example - the Bathhouse Madam, which includes her bard, some first level healers, her guards, etc... But if you wanted a 1st level healer, unless you were to click the Madam, you wouldn't find one...
Hrm. Any thoughts?
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No no no no no - the Stat Block Bank is still very much open. I've had to get some additional help in reviewing/approving stat blocks, so that's why a lot of them are still in the queue. Hopefully, with the additional help, things will get approved much faster now.Wow! A huge chunk of them just got approved - thanks! Quick question - should I 'un-follower' some of the followers I put together? I didn't realize that they'd not show up as searchable characters on their own... Hrm.
For a specific example - the Bathhouse Madam, which includes her bard, some first level healers, her guards, etc... But if you wanted a 1st level healer, unless you were to click the Madam, you wouldn't find one...
Hrm. Any thoughts?
I thought about that, but figured that you wanted to keep the group together as much as possible. If you want to change it, let me know and I can modify it pretty quickly.
Also let me/us know before I approve your knights...
Moff Rimmer
Arise...arise...AAARIIIIIIIIISE!!!
W00t! Updates for DM Tools include:
* A new Adventures section.
* A treasure generator.
* You can now copy another stat block and create a new one. Particularly useful if you want to store character sheets or similar low to high progressions for stat blocks.
:)
Very cool stuff Lilith. Can I add to your list? Maybe an option for special kinds of treasure (double standard, triple standard at base, then maybe stuff like no flammables, etc.)? :-D
finally went to dmtools... its pretty cool. i would like to help with the whole worldbuilding thing... im an inveterate producer of crunch, across the board from races to feats to spells to prestige classes and more. however, i lack the focus (or ability, perhaps) to put together the fluff, and i think i have alot of great ideas i would love to share with others.
so, i guess the question is how DO i help with it, exactly? i took a look around the worldbuilding part of the site, but was somewhat intimidated by how there wasnt much (obvious) to get me headed in the right direction. and i dont really know what kind of stuff is currently being accepted, either... i would hate to bring out a couple of my personal prestige classes if the site is bogged down with a bunch already.
tog
Thank you easter bunny! *pock-pock*
YES! My all-time favorite commercial. My wife (~8-9 yrs younger than I) looks at me like I'm an idiot when I quote it.