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d20Pro Unlimited Software Roadmap

Discussion in 'Announcements' started by thraxxis, Apr 5, 2014.

  1. thraxxis

    thraxxis Member

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    Hail and well met,

    As many of you know, there will soon be a Kickstarter campaign to reforge d20Pro with the Unlimited Rules Engine so it's a solution for all game systems, not just d20. Our virtual tabletop is being renamed to d20Pro Unlimited to properly represent our dedication to being a universal solution for the VTT space. If any of this is news to you, please scan the latest blog entry. http://blog.d20pro.com/2014-renaissance/

    More so now than ever, d20Pro is a "for gamers, by gamers" enterprise. We've been listening to your feedback for 10 years and when the Kickstarter succeeds, finally there will be the resources to act. We want what you want: an affordable VTT with features that enhance your gameplay while staying the heck out of your way so you can game!

    Without further ado, here is the Software Roadmap that plots out where we intend to take d20Pro into the future. I've released this information several weeks ahead of the actual Kickstarter so there's adequate time for the d20Pro Community to debate and fine tune the deliverables.

    d20Pro Unlimited 2014.0

    Map with Float and Hex
    All Maps will be upgraded to support free floating Assets. Presently Markers could float but everything else is forced to snap to a square or a vertex. Now all Assets will be floatable:
    Creatures
    Items
    Tiles
    Markers

    In addition to free floating, two snapping options will provided:
    Square
    Hex

    Easy Fog of War
    The Easy FoW allows quick & easy showing and hiding of individual spots on the Map grid. The Easy system works in conjunction with the existing polygonal Region FoW. The User may use just the Easy, just the Regions, or both on a per Map basis.

    Improved Memory Management
    Presently changing the amount of memory available to d20Pro requires hacking text files or the Windows' registry. Now memory will be managed within the d20Pro application to easily tune memory settings according to campaign requirements.

    Installer w/ Bundled Java
    Install Anywhere, an industry standard for cross-platform installers will be purchased and used to deliver a refined install experience that is unified across Windows, Mac, and Linux.

    An extensively tested version of Java will be bundled with the install. This will put an end to the myriad Java environment issues that have plagued d20Pro installations in the past.

    d20Pro Unlimited 2014.1

    Unlimited Rules Engine
    Build any game system, house rule, or special tool. Up until now, d20Pro was focused mainly on d20 games similar to 3.5 D&D. Plugins will allow for arbitrary game rules, character sheets, and tools to adjudicate complex game mechanics like a snap.

    Revamped Game Log
    The Game Log will be rewritten using new technology to accomplish:
    New Look and Feel on top of customizable skin
    Full copy & paste, drag & drop support to quickly extract in game events to 3rd party reporting tools
    New easier to use Player-to-Player and Player-to-GM chatting

    Multi-touch, Multi-User Support
    Use many fingers to control your minis and manipulate the virtual world. Menus and Windows may be rotated for multiple players arranged around a horizontal screen.

    Revamped Dice
    Send customizable dice rolling across the screen with realistic physics and sound. Full support for:
    single dice rolls
    multiple dice rolls
    "macro" dice rolls, where additional calculations can be part of the result
    exploding dice
    dice with images instead of numbers

    Revamped Libraries
    The various disparate Libraries will be completely revamped to unify the look and feel and make the overall behavior of the Libraries more efficient.
    Improved Searching
    Improved Sorting
    Favorites

    Shadowcasting
    Dynamic lighting with true line of sight. Torches and darkvision will eat away at the darkness as Players explore. Adversaries will suddenly appear once the Players establish line of sight.

    This system will work in concert with the occlusion Regions in the existing FoW system for best of both worlds: dynamic reveal with certain areas the GM must consciously choose to uncover.

    Revamped image support
    The workflow for introducing new images to your d20Pro Campaign will be unified and streamlined. Introduce new images by choosing a file, copy & pasting, or for the first time simply drag and drop an image. Rescaling, cropping, and positioning tools will be available during image import or at any time afterwards.

    When choosing Creature, Item, or Tile images, the image browser will be recreated to be faster and easier to find your images.

    Image management will be reworked for improved startup times.

    Images may also be URL based, so the GM will be able to host images on the web. This will be especially advantageous to GMs with many Players and/or hi resolution images.

    d20Pro Unlimited 2015.0

    Playing Card support
    Universal support for playing cards. Will support Deck of Many Things, cards for initiative (Savage Tides), or full on card games like Poker or MtG. Use of playing cards will coincide with other gameplay.

    Integrated Voice (VOIP)
    Built in support for voice chat during the game without having to launch a separate app.

    Soundboard and Music jukebox
    Maintain a Library of sound effects and music tracks and play them on demand during a game.

    GM enabled Player View Preview
    Especially when learning d20Pro, being able to see what the Players do is really convenient for the GM. This mode will also be extremely handy when the Players are using an extended display (like a HD TV). This possible now, though you have to run d20Pro twice.

    Mobile App character sheet (read-only)
    Most likely delivered as a mobile HTML5 app, Players may browse from their mobile device to view their character sheets live. This is a power feature for round-the-table games so those with personal devices can maintain their PCs without having to take up screen real estate on the main display.

    d20Pro Unlimited 2015.1

    Mobile App interactive char sheet (read/write)
    An extension to the Mobile App that will allow modifications and taking actions. Think of this as a remote control for your PC.

    Tabletop Reboot
    The game map engine will be completely reforged as a Natural User Interface tabletop. d20Pro's current map engine running on Swing/Java2D is long overdue for an overhaul. We've already begun proof of concept work on this marvel. Look for sneak previews of the mapping technology built on the bleeding-edge JavaFX.

    d20Pro Unlimited 2016

    Full App Reboot
    This is a massive undertaking that we do not take lightly. We are looking far into the gaming future, where we leave Java behind for more current tech such as Unity3D. This means full featured support for Android, iOS, XBox, etc.



    So that's what we have cooking here and now. Let us know what you think. Although we can't promise to use every idea, all constructive solutions will be considered and influence the final outcome. :ugeek:

    P.S. Happy Tabletop Day everyone!
     
  2. ncassella

    ncassella Member

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    Love the plans and very excited about the future of the program.

    Got a few questions/suggestions.

    1. Are there any plans to revamp the character management, such as copy attacks, equip items? It would be great if I could build an item in the library (giving it effects, atk, or whatnot) and then equip it.
    2. Is the magic system going to be revamped in anyway shape or form? I know this have been up in the air for a while, and was just hoping for some more info on it? I think it might be helpful to have an import feature for effects based off of level, in like a .csv or something. I have a mock up attached. I'm not sure about spell resistance.

    Keep up the great work, and I look forward to backing the project.

    Nate
     

    Attached Files:

  3. djc664

    djc664 Member

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    All of the topics really hit the nail on the head for me in general. Here are the comments I have:

    The primary driver of my choosing d20 pro, and therefore driving my entire gaming group to invest in it as they became GMs at the table (we now rotate, which is nice), was the export from Hero Lab to d20 Pro. Hero Lab does all the heavy lifting for character creation and monster management for me. What is the plan for the existing output option (for Pathfinder and 3.x D&D)? With a young child and more planned, the time-savings this affords long term cannot be understated and is easily the most critical thing for me. The Pit of Prep-time is simply too real as I am running level 12+ fairly regularly.

    Assuming the plan was to continue as is, I would like to propose the following: adding a unique ID generator in the library which generates some kind of code / string of characters. This would allow a particular character / monster to be identified between imports. A field would need to be included in Hero Lab portfolios. That could be looked at as a generic field for any program to use as well like this. The import from d20's side would have to look for that value in the XML to determine whether to make new or update existing, but then might be able to parse the character sheet fields to update deltas only. The goal being that it would leave all of the d20-specific custom made stuff such as spells, attacks and the like intact.

    What is the likelihood of it being expanded to other Hero Lab supported games in relation to the Unlimited Rules Engine? Please read this to say I'd love to be able to also export characters for Mutants & Masterminds, Fate, Spirit of the Century, Call of Cthulhu, Shadowrun, etc. :)

    Revamped image support - First let me say... Amen! In terms of storage and retrieval, will this be a folder / browse style or a dynamic tagging / filtered search style?
     
  4. thraxxis

    thraxxis Member

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    Hail and well met ncassella, djc664,

    I have great answers to your questions coming soon. The introduction of the Unlimited Rules Engine will be replacing the old character sheets entirely. We'll be providing some out-of-the-box plugins to get started. Among many other improvements - Players will finally be able to modify their character sheets themselves!
    All of the rules management is being retooled as well.

    I'm preparing/traveling to Boston for PAX East this weekend, so please give me until early next week to respond in full.

    And if you are at PAX, please drop by booth #183!
     
  5. ChrisRevocateur

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    Will any of these changes invalidate creatures/characters we've created before? Will there be an easy transfer tool to the new character sheet format? What does this mean for the creatures I've bought from the marketplace?
     
  6. thraxxis

    thraxxis Member

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    Hail ChrisRevocateur,

    As you might expect, there is no way we would let all your existing d20Pro content, Marketplace or Homegrown, be unusable in d20Pro Unlimited.

    All "legacy" content will get automatically converted to be compatible with the Unlimited Rules Engine. More details to follow; in the meantime please rest assured we got you covered. :ugeek:

    For Gamers. By Gamers.
     
  7. thraxxis

    thraxxis Member

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    Hail and well met all,

    I'm finally back at home base after an awesome PAX East. I still owe some answers to questions posed on this thread - those will be coming soon!
     
  8. ChrisRevocateur

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    A few questions about shadowcasting: Will multiple lighting sources be possible? Is the view to players gonna be granular (as in each player, when looking at their screen, will only see what their character can see, even if the rest of the party is in another room or something)?
     
  9. Wesley Gorby

    Wesley Gorby Production/Community Manager
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    Please tell us there will be an option to have a single image source structure.. So we do not have to maintain the same image library across multiple campaigns... or even the option to have a "Global Image Library" along side of per campaign ones...

    IE;

    D20pro/res/<globalimagelibrary>
    &
    D20pro/judge/campaign/<somecampaign>/res/<imagelibrary>

    This would make things amazingly easier on those of us who run several games at once...
     
  10. thraxxis

    thraxxis Member

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    The Shadowcasting will handle multiple light sources. I'll post a video soon demonstrating how this will work.
    The plan for multiple Player Clients is going to be individualized. Each player will receive the reveal information based on the union of all Creatures they currently own. If all the gamers are sharing one display, everyone will see everything the party can. But if everyone was connected from their own Player Client, each would only see what their PC(s) can see.

    The Shadowcasting will work in conjunction with the existing Occlusion Region system. The GM will always be able to turn certain areas to always hide/show. This should allow just the right amount of reveal for GMs to run their particular games.
     
  11. thraxxis

    thraxxis Member

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    Yes, that is certainly within scope for the Revamped image support deliverable. It's likely d20Pro will take more of an "iTunes" library approach, where what you see are just links to wherever you happen to store it on disk/cloud. Instead of copying stuff into RES, you'd use the App to browse your file system and add folders to include.

    Also URL based assets will be supported, so you can post large image file (like a map) to your favorite image host and then reference it by URL. So your Players will stream that map from the WWW, not your GM. This should really speed up initial map loads especially for large groups where the GM doesn't have access to fast broadband.

    As always, we will be forward compatible so all your existing campaigns will get upgraded to work with the new system.
     
  12. Wesley Gorby

    Wesley Gorby Production/Community Manager
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    You Sir are a GOD!! <chuckle>

    :D
     
  13. thraxxis

    thraxxis Member

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    Hail and well met,

    A quick update on the schedule of d20Pro Unlimited: all the moving pieces are still aligning so we'll be 100% prepared to begin development at full bore. Right now the middle of May looks most likely to launch the Kickstarter campaign. As for the shape of Unlimited, there has been some good discussion so far on this thread. The extra weeks gives everyone more time to contemplate their d20Pro games and communicate where the software could improve the most.

    You will continue to see my continually escalating involvement to where in a couple of months I'll be in position to lead d20Pro development boldly into the future. As things ramp up please excuse the periods of radio silence and keep the good ideas coming.
     
  14. thraxxis

    thraxxis Member

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    We are getting requests for d20Pro translated into other languages. As we have gamers all around the world, this seems like a great idea. Now of course a plugin could show whatever language - but building localization support into the Unlimited Rules Engine seems like it would be worth the investment.
     
  15. KennethJordan

    KennethJordan New Member

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    I'm not sure if this will be part of the new rules or not in the upcoming version. Maybe there's a way to do this already that I haven't found?

    would love to be able to program ability damage into an attack/ability/spell such as some undead creatures ability to drain 1d6 Strength (for example).

    Would work great for programming poisons as well.

    The game I'm running currently has heavily involved ability damage causing opponents so that's where this request is coming from.
     
  16. thraxxis

    thraxxis Member

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    Hail and well met KennethJordan ,

    You are correct - the current effect system only allows fixed amounts for ability damage. And the Unlimited Rules Engine will definitely support this, thanks for bringing it to the forefront.

    I'd like to point out that within reason, d20Pro Unlimited should be able to do basically anything. Your plugins can provide menus and any arbitrary JavaFX GUIs on top of that. So whatever you want to show character sheet and rules wise is fair game. And creature attributes will be highly abstracted, so game rules will be able to discover what the creature(s) have and then able to modify values as part of a flow. Expect further resolution on how the Plugins will work soon. :geek:

    As part of the Kickstarter, we'll be including some rule sets that developed in-house. All of d20Pro v3.3's functionality will be replicated as plugins, and enhanced to handle key things like associating a dice roll with effect damage. This will set the stage for existing d20 players and then depending on how many stretch goals are hit, we'll build support for other game systems. We're dedicated to open sourcing the core d20 plugin (and other systems with an open gaming license), so it will be a springboard for the developer community.

    More information coming steadily. Please continue asking questions about d20Pro as there's time now before we solidify things and launch the KS.
     
  17. djc664

    djc664 Member

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    Any thoughts on my original questions?
     
  18. thraxxis

    thraxxis Member

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    Hail djc664,

    The creature importers will be rebuilt as well to work with the Unlimited Rules Engine. We will move from the original d20Pro format that Hero Lab started with to their new universal XML format. So this opens the door to import other awesome systems you mention like M&M, Fate, Shadowrun, etc.

    Also we will definitely design in "merge" capability beforehand. So if you previously imported a creature from Hero Lab, d20Pro Unlimited will recognize that and give you the familiar options to replace, merge, or create a new copy.

    As for the revamped image support, it's too early to say exactly which design. It may be possible to offer both a folder/browse and a dynamic tagging/search style. I'm personally leaning towards the latter, where you can quickly search for an asset by keyword or add some filters to cut down the search space. Like everything on the roadmap, the final design won't coalesce until we sit down and really hammer on it. These conversations though are excellent for loading up the drawing board with key thoughts and considerations.
     
  19. thraxxis

    thraxxis Member

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    Hail and well met ncassella,

    So the Unlimited Rules Engine will give us a completely green field to build from. The deep integration with rules mechanics is one reason d20Pro is a hit - and it will indeed take a good deal of work to port over the existing functionality as plugins. That's why I'm running the Kickstarter so I can quit my daytime programming job and work on this full time.

    Now is the time to tie everything together that in d20Pro was released in layers over time. Items will be first class objects - so they can have attacks and special abilities of their own. Creatures will be able to equip items and gain those attacks and abilities automatically.

    As for importing spells from a CSV, the beauty of the Unlimited Rules Engine is the game plugin can decide to support any import format desired. As for establishing a standard, similar to your CSV example, is certainly worth discussing. It's extremely likely the defacto OGL plugin we will be developing will support something very much like this. One key difference I'd like to point out is that there should only be 1 entry for a spell, like Cure Light Wounds. We will support variables, like Caster Level and also a column to allow a max value (like how Fireball caps at 10th level). Then the Rules Plugin during the game can fill in the variables.

    There will be extensive discussion over time how this will work and how things will inter-operate. This question goes right to the heart of how the Unlimited Rules Engine will be designed. :ugeek:
     
  20. djc664

    djc664 Member

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    [​IMG]
     

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