1. Due to issues with external spam filters, QQ is currently unable to send any mail to Microsoft E-mail addresses. This includes any account at live.com, hotmail.com or msn.com. Signing up to the forum with one of these addresses will result in your verification E-mail never arriving. For best results, please use a different E-mail provider for your QQ address.
    Dismiss Notice
  2. For prospective new members, a word of warning: don't use common names like Dennis, Simon, or Kenny if you decide to create an account. Spammers have used them all before you and gotten those names flagged in the anti-spam databases. Your account registration will be rejected because of it.
    Dismiss Notice
  3. Since it has happened MULTIPLE times now, I want to be very clear about this. You do not get to abandon an account and create a new one. You do not get to pass an account to someone else and create a new one. If you do so anyway, you will be banned for creating sockpuppets.
    Dismiss Notice
  4. If you wish to change your username, please ask via conversation to tehelgee instead of asking via my profile. I'd like to not clutter it up with such requests.
    Dismiss Notice
  5. Due to the actions of particularly persistent spammers and trolls, we will be banning disposable email addresses from today onward.
    Dismiss Notice
  6. A note about the current Ukraine situation: Discussion of it is still prohibited as per Rule 8
    Dismiss Notice
  7. The rules regarding NSFW links have been updated. See here for details.
    Dismiss Notice
  8. The testbed for the QQ XF2 transition is now publicly available. Please see more information here.
    Dismiss Notice

Helpful Free Tools for QMs/DMs

Discussion in 'Questing' started by ultima333, Jan 14, 2015.

  1. ultima333

    ultima333 Happy Sunflower Time Administrator

    Joined:
    Apr 3, 2014
    Messages:
    3,420
    Likes Received:
    17,390
    I figured I'd post some helpful tools that I've found for DMing/QMing, including mapmakers, relationship chart makers, character sheet generators, and the like.

    General Free Tools
    These include general tools like mapmakers, chart makers, and the like.

    Labyrinth - edit: tool has basically disappeared.
    This tool is for making relationship charts. Useful for intrigue-based games, or for making shipping charts.
    [​IMG]


    Hexographer (Free version)
    This tool is for creating maps, typically hex-based overland maps. The free version is what is linked. It lacks some of the features, but still works pretty well.
    [​IMG][​IMG]


    Dungeon Painter Online
    This tool allows you to create dungeons and acts like a virtual table top, allowing you to create and move creature/character tokens on it as well as make maps for them.
    a2znut uses it in his Evil Pathfinder campaign.
    [​IMG]
    [​IMG]


    Token Tool
    This allows you to create custom tokens for your maps easily.
    [​IMG]


    Game/RPG Tools
    These are tools for specific game systems, like character sheet generators.

    Pathfinder and 3.5 D&D Character Sheet Maker
    This handy tool will make a customizatable character sheet for you to download and fill out.
    [​IMG]
    [​IMG]


    So. Any other programs that you use, that we can add to the list?
     
    Last edited: Dec 20, 2018
  2. a2znut

    a2znut Needs more handholding. [Forever DM]

    Joined:
    Nov 12, 2013
    Messages:
    5,211
    Likes Received:
    11,547
  3. Anondylar

    Anondylar Lazy Turtle

    Joined:
    Feb 19, 2013
    Messages:
    1,646
    Likes Received:
    13,594
    I'm fairly sure that most know about anydice. It's a powerful dice probability calculator that's fairly easy to use, provided you know a bit about coding. I'm just going to list down some things that probably aren't that apparent from reading the documentation-

    Custom Dice

    These are probably what you should try to use first when modelling strange dice. For instance, Exalted dice can be written like this:

    Code:
    output [count {7, 8, 9, 10, 10} in 1d10]
    replacing how many d10s for different number of dice you want to check the probabilities of. You could, however, also write this:

    Code:
    E: d{0:6, 1:3, 2}
    output 1dE
    
    for the same result and probably easier rechecking. They're not that different for this case, but stranger dice systems should look into using Custom Dice.

    On a side note, and this doesn't seem to be listed anywhere in the documentation, you can use ".." and ":" to help create sequences. ".." is basically range, so if you input {1..10} it'll be {1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10}. ":" repeats the number on the left a number of times equal to the number on the right. {2:2} is {2, 2}.

    Looping is also fairly easy, but if you're going to use it remember to variably name the output so that things don't get confusing.

    This is pretty much everything that isn't explicitly stated in the documentation, so ignore the subtitle for the sole part of this post.
     
  4. RedStarMini

    RedStarMini God's weakest ADHD Author

    Joined:
    May 26, 2015
    Messages:
    7,628
    Likes Received:
    30,967
    I don't mean to necro but the Labyrinth link leads to spam
     
    Ddmkm122, ultima333 and Sheaman3773 like this.
  5. RedStarMini

    RedStarMini God's weakest ADHD Author

    Joined:
    May 26, 2015
    Messages:
    7,628
    Likes Received:
    30,967
    Ddmkm122 likes this.
  6. cosoco

    cosoco Not too sore, are you?

    Joined:
    Feb 21, 2014
    Messages:
    284
    Likes Received:
    1,572
    I found a copy of Labyrinth 3.6 by asking someone on Reddit, in case anyone wants it.

    https://www.dropbox.com/s/ykwsal2ci9rjmzg/Labyrinth.zip?dl=0

    I ran it through VirusTotal, and none of them detected it as a virus, but the standard advice about downloading software from untrusted sources applies.
     
    RedStarMini, Ddmkm122 and Sheaman3773 like this.
  7. Sir Plusse

    Sir Plusse I wish I knew what I was doing...

    Joined:
    Nov 20, 2018
    Messages:
    1,646
    Likes Received:
    4,178
    Why am I being quoted over here?
     
    Ddmkm122 likes this.
  8. OneArmedYeti

    OneArmedYeti Versed in the lewd.

    Joined:
    Nov 13, 2017
    Messages:
    1,568
    Likes Received:
    8,286
    I was driving while posting.
     
    Ddmkm122 likes this.
  9. Hidden One

    Hidden One Not the Boss. Possibly a Playa.

    Joined:
    Jun 21, 2019
    Messages:
    2,091
    Likes Received:
    7,044
    Huh, didn't even know this thread was a thing.
    Surprised the most usefull ressource I know isn't on this already to be honest.
    Let me give you random generators. For everything from names, loot, spells, towns, dungeons, campaigns to world maps and star systems.

    https://donjon.bin.sh/ <- Yes, this is that usefull.
     
    Celer, Ddmkm122 and Nexusflamehart like this.