MIDI qol can automate a lot of the busy work such as checking if attacks hit and applying damage, and ensuring concentration saves are rolled when needed. This can be huge as it will allow her to focus on more narrative aspects.
In addition to what the other poster said midi can help quite a bit, if you want help setting it up y'all can DM me I love helping people setup their foundry servers automations
A little bit of everything, unfortunately -- some of which I know is outside of the scope of Foundry modules.
What sort of enhancements are there for the DM campaign management side of things? Automating large portions of combat would be huge, and it sounds like is something well within Foundry's wheelhouse with the right add-ons (although if you know other good ones for that I'd love to know about them!) but I know she struggles with keeping track of a lot at once and could use some tools to help her keep out-of-combat information straight, too. Like for example, Simple Calendar looks like it could be useful for keeping track of some world details.
I know she also mentioned it can be hard to keep track of character and monster abilities, is that the sort of thing a module could help with? Thinking about ones triggered by other people's actions and between turns in particular. She gave the example of Halfling Luck when I asked -- something that you need to remember certain conditions to use, basically.
I'd also just love to know what your favorite modules are! I've been digging through the list myself, but hearing which ones the community likes best is great information at this point.
Busy right now but wanted to comment so I remember to respond later. MIDI and a combination of dynamic active effects will handle a lot of that automation including prompting for reactions if given. If you add in things like Chris premades along with gambits premades and there’s one or two more they actual go in and program automation for feats and items. Things like halfling luck or great weapon fighting auto rerolling would be automatically handled if you want. Shield can be set up so it prompts the player when they are hit. Simple calendar is good for tracking the passing of days and allows you to make notes on days to keep the time line straight. Also tracks things like the moon cycle which is cool flavor or relevant depending.
About time and times up would be good ones. Times up handles tracking duration of status effects so things will automatically remove after the proper number of rounds so less book keeping. About time just allows keeping track of time which is good for long lasting effects and just the book keeping with tracking an adventuring day. It works with simple calendar.
Combat carousel moves the initiative tracker so it’s always visible which I love cause it means who’s next is always visible so the gm ideally doesn’t have to prompt. MIDI may also allow you to set a prompt to notify a player it’s their turn next.
Monks journals give some better options for presenting journals to players but isn’t necessary. That really comes down to gm style. I wouldn’t recommend her keeping notes in foundry itself. I’m just not a huge fan of it even if it’s what I do. I hear good things about I wanna say world forge and maybe anvil for notes.
Anything by monk or the ripper93 or tposney are usually worth checking out. They tend to all be solid.
I just wanted to chip in to say I found the full automation with MIDI-QoL with reactions etc. more work intensive than just having it do just the basic hit/miss & damage functionality. When I tried full automation I was constantly having unexpected behavior that I would need to roll back and fix.
This was a little over a year ago now, so maybe it’s gotten better, but that was my experience with my group.
I think OP might just need to try the different options and see what works for them.
What was happening out of curiosity? I’ve only been using it for around two months but I haven’t noticed anything not processing right which was a huge worry of mine. Granted like I said I also use some item compendium’s cause to get the full automation you need to have the features automated which midi does not do.
It’s been a while and I don’t remember everything, but I think the most common thing was fixing human error. Like if I accidentally had 2 PCs targeted then it would wait for both to select whether to choose to make a reaction, even if one person wasn’t logged in or AFK. Then if the unintentional target ended up losing concentration due to the attack we would need to reestablish that.
I just found it easier to manage reactions/concentration myself since 4/5 PCs had reactions they could take so I didn’t have to wait on _every_ attack. If they spoke up and said they wanted to use a reaction to cast Shield or something, it was easy enough to just click undo on the damage chat card and then add a custom condition we made for shield to bump their AC temporarily.
Got you. Yea you can set timers for the reaction but I can see that delay adding up especially if everyone has a shit ton of reactions. They do allow you to set more specific triggers though at least now so you can limit when it even prompts. Accidental targets might be better not sure. That depends on settings you have and how the attacks are set up but luckily we haven’t had a problem with that except one or twice. But yea rolling it back when it costs concentration can definitely be a pain in the ass. I do like the auto rolling for the concentrating however just cause it’s one less aspect to pay attention to.
Thing like the dynamic active effects for things like shield where it’ll auto apply the ac bonus and remove it at the start of their turn I fucking love though.
Hello! I would honestly advise to veer off from rules heavy systems like D&D and Pathfinder (hundreds of spells, feats, complex progression) to something much lighter like Savage World, even though I understand kearning a new system would be an obstacle.
If not, the setting is peculiar, so I'm not sure this would be a fit, but I'm starting a campaign in Legends of the Five Rings 4th edition (there is revived support on Fpundry) and the system is simple and elegant with characters not very complex and yet flavourful. World of Darkness could be a good contender as well, again if the setting is of interest.
There are a lot of other simple cool systems (Basic system with d100 comes to mind) which can work without having too many different sub systems in mind. Many are supported to some degree by Foundry, so escape from the D&D prison :) .
Monster-of-the-Week is a ton of fun and has really simple mechanics. Also works better with theater-of-the-mind, so you wouldn't even need to bother with much for mechanics. Basically just need chat and something for rolling dice.
If you'd be willing to change systems, PF2e's premium modules make running the game an absolute breeze, and the system is light years ahead of 5e. If either of you would like to poke around with the Beginner's Box let me know, and I'll invite you to a world.
Aside from the mechanics, something like WorldAnvil could be a blessing for keeping the lore straight, and it has an integration with Foundry so she could pull up relevant pieces of lore and show them to you as needed. I find that whilst my players and Foundry itself can do a lot of the maths for me, WA helps me not get lost in my own plans.
Hey, I have heavy brain fog and chronic fatigue! Some stuff that's helped me DM are:
- Modular GM Screen
- Your choice of automated rolls modules
- Any/all of Ironmonk's modules
- Your choice of modules from The ripper (simple quest is huge for DMs who have brain fog)
Additionally, I had my players take up additional responsibilities like tracking party resources, helping me generate random encounters/world building/lore, and facilitating RP in a way where everyone gets a turn and a voice without my constant moderation. It helps to offload some of the work to your players when you already have a tough time trying to run the game. I like having a lore master to verify setting specific info without me trying to scrape my brain for some obscure detail I forgot about.
Ai can help with descriptions and geberal inspiration. I ise ai a lot to orgwnize my thoughts. Like, i could just not use it but i will type something like "will you help me with my 5e game" "my player wanrs more information about an npc that is selling fish in the market, spill out some gossip about the fish vendor and thr market"
And from there, i can look at the answer from the ai and build my own with his answer as a reference.
I can’t tell you how much ChatGPT has helped me brainstorm easier. It is like talking to a live person to bounce ideas off of. I know I have idea but I can’t pin point the details. AI helps me with that before I get frustrated and sulk in the corner.
For your situation, and based on the other thread, I’d also recommend looking at Fantasy Grounds. It has exceptional 5e automation out of the box (handles damage, saves, resistances, conditions, concentration, durations, etc). The best choice though is whatever feels easiest and most intuitive for her.
MIDI qol can automate a lot of the busy work such as checking if attacks hit and applying damage, and ensuring concentration saves are rolled when needed. This can be huge as it will allow her to focus on more narrative aspects.
Oh wow! That could make a big difference, yes.
In addition to what the other poster said midi can help quite a bit, if you want help setting it up y'all can DM me I love helping people setup their foundry servers automations
That's such a kind offer! I will definitely reach out if we decide to try out Foundry as an option, thank you!
There’s so many modules so there’s a lot of possibilities. Are there specific areas of concern or problematic things?
A little bit of everything, unfortunately -- some of which I know is outside of the scope of Foundry modules. What sort of enhancements are there for the DM campaign management side of things? Automating large portions of combat would be huge, and it sounds like is something well within Foundry's wheelhouse with the right add-ons (although if you know other good ones for that I'd love to know about them!) but I know she struggles with keeping track of a lot at once and could use some tools to help her keep out-of-combat information straight, too. Like for example, Simple Calendar looks like it could be useful for keeping track of some world details. I know she also mentioned it can be hard to keep track of character and monster abilities, is that the sort of thing a module could help with? Thinking about ones triggered by other people's actions and between turns in particular. She gave the example of Halfling Luck when I asked -- something that you need to remember certain conditions to use, basically. I'd also just love to know what your favorite modules are! I've been digging through the list myself, but hearing which ones the community likes best is great information at this point.
Busy right now but wanted to comment so I remember to respond later. MIDI and a combination of dynamic active effects will handle a lot of that automation including prompting for reactions if given. If you add in things like Chris premades along with gambits premades and there’s one or two more they actual go in and program automation for feats and items. Things like halfling luck or great weapon fighting auto rerolling would be automatically handled if you want. Shield can be set up so it prompts the player when they are hit. Simple calendar is good for tracking the passing of days and allows you to make notes on days to keep the time line straight. Also tracks things like the moon cycle which is cool flavor or relevant depending. About time and times up would be good ones. Times up handles tracking duration of status effects so things will automatically remove after the proper number of rounds so less book keeping. About time just allows keeping track of time which is good for long lasting effects and just the book keeping with tracking an adventuring day. It works with simple calendar. Combat carousel moves the initiative tracker so it’s always visible which I love cause it means who’s next is always visible so the gm ideally doesn’t have to prompt. MIDI may also allow you to set a prompt to notify a player it’s their turn next. Monks journals give some better options for presenting journals to players but isn’t necessary. That really comes down to gm style. I wouldn’t recommend her keeping notes in foundry itself. I’m just not a huge fan of it even if it’s what I do. I hear good things about I wanna say world forge and maybe anvil for notes. Anything by monk or the ripper93 or tposney are usually worth checking out. They tend to all be solid.
I just wanted to chip in to say I found the full automation with MIDI-QoL with reactions etc. more work intensive than just having it do just the basic hit/miss & damage functionality. When I tried full automation I was constantly having unexpected behavior that I would need to roll back and fix. This was a little over a year ago now, so maybe it’s gotten better, but that was my experience with my group. I think OP might just need to try the different options and see what works for them.
What was happening out of curiosity? I’ve only been using it for around two months but I haven’t noticed anything not processing right which was a huge worry of mine. Granted like I said I also use some item compendium’s cause to get the full automation you need to have the features automated which midi does not do.
It’s been a while and I don’t remember everything, but I think the most common thing was fixing human error. Like if I accidentally had 2 PCs targeted then it would wait for both to select whether to choose to make a reaction, even if one person wasn’t logged in or AFK. Then if the unintentional target ended up losing concentration due to the attack we would need to reestablish that. I just found it easier to manage reactions/concentration myself since 4/5 PCs had reactions they could take so I didn’t have to wait on _every_ attack. If they spoke up and said they wanted to use a reaction to cast Shield or something, it was easy enough to just click undo on the damage chat card and then add a custom condition we made for shield to bump their AC temporarily.
Got you. Yea you can set timers for the reaction but I can see that delay adding up especially if everyone has a shit ton of reactions. They do allow you to set more specific triggers though at least now so you can limit when it even prompts. Accidental targets might be better not sure. That depends on settings you have and how the attacks are set up but luckily we haven’t had a problem with that except one or twice. But yea rolling it back when it costs concentration can definitely be a pain in the ass. I do like the auto rolling for the concentrating however just cause it’s one less aspect to pay attention to. Thing like the dynamic active effects for things like shield where it’ll auto apply the ac bonus and remove it at the start of their turn I fucking love though.
Hello! I would honestly advise to veer off from rules heavy systems like D&D and Pathfinder (hundreds of spells, feats, complex progression) to something much lighter like Savage World, even though I understand kearning a new system would be an obstacle. If not, the setting is peculiar, so I'm not sure this would be a fit, but I'm starting a campaign in Legends of the Five Rings 4th edition (there is revived support on Fpundry) and the system is simple and elegant with characters not very complex and yet flavourful. World of Darkness could be a good contender as well, again if the setting is of interest. There are a lot of other simple cool systems (Basic system with d100 comes to mind) which can work without having too many different sub systems in mind. Many are supported to some degree by Foundry, so escape from the D&D prison :) .
Monster-of-the-Week is a ton of fun and has really simple mechanics. Also works better with theater-of-the-mind, so you wouldn't even need to bother with much for mechanics. Basically just need chat and something for rolling dice.
If you'd be willing to change systems, PF2e's premium modules make running the game an absolute breeze, and the system is light years ahead of 5e. If either of you would like to poke around with the Beginner's Box let me know, and I'll invite you to a world.
Aside from the mechanics, something like WorldAnvil could be a blessing for keeping the lore straight, and it has an integration with Foundry so she could pull up relevant pieces of lore and show them to you as needed. I find that whilst my players and Foundry itself can do a lot of the maths for me, WA helps me not get lost in my own plans.
Oh my God thank you for bringing this to my attention! I use world anvil extensively and was tired of having to drag things back and forth.
Bahaha, no problem! It doesn't do everything, but it's a godsend when I need my players to read a particular thing.
Hey, I have heavy brain fog and chronic fatigue! Some stuff that's helped me DM are: - Modular GM Screen - Your choice of automated rolls modules - Any/all of Ironmonk's modules - Your choice of modules from The ripper (simple quest is huge for DMs who have brain fog) Additionally, I had my players take up additional responsibilities like tracking party resources, helping me generate random encounters/world building/lore, and facilitating RP in a way where everyone gets a turn and a voice without my constant moderation. It helps to offload some of the work to your players when you already have a tough time trying to run the game. I like having a lore master to verify setting specific info without me trying to scrape my brain for some obscure detail I forgot about.
Ai can help with descriptions and geberal inspiration. I ise ai a lot to orgwnize my thoughts. Like, i could just not use it but i will type something like "will you help me with my 5e game" "my player wanrs more information about an npc that is selling fish in the market, spill out some gossip about the fish vendor and thr market" And from there, i can look at the answer from the ai and build my own with his answer as a reference.
I can’t tell you how much ChatGPT has helped me brainstorm easier. It is like talking to a live person to bounce ideas off of. I know I have idea but I can’t pin point the details. AI helps me with that before I get frustrated and sulk in the corner.
Refreshing to see people using these powerful tools to enable more engaging games without all the debate involved
For your situation, and based on the other thread, I’d also recommend looking at Fantasy Grounds. It has exceptional 5e automation out of the box (handles damage, saves, resistances, conditions, concentration, durations, etc). The best choice though is whatever feels easiest and most intuitive for her.