BattleTech - The Board Game of Armored Combat
BattleTech Game Systems => A Time of War => Topic started by: gigobyte on 31 October 2014, 09:20:28
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I have recently jumped back into battletech and in finding things have changed with the roleplaying side picked up the books. Boy, I was in for a surprise. Character creation was very complicated and they only creators that I was able to find were "Monbvol's". It was pretty good, but lacked things that I wanted in a creator. So since I fancy myself pretty good at Excel...I made one.
I hope you find it as of much use. it is only version 1, and I will be working on inputting equipment and the such when I get an opportunity. I just got a new job and will be busy. If there are any that could help with the data entry...that would be a godsend. I would have attached it but it is 2mb. Below is a link to my onedrive.
Updated to be version 7. (November 7th 2016)
ATOW Character Creator (https://1drv.ms/u/s!AmZIEVk3v6mwoN8HYVO8ksc0MNed1Q)
Thank you for looking it over.
It is a Zip file now! :)
I should add, that it has a great working Module system built in as well as the standard point built system.
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I guess I should have asked for feedback and for you guys to push it to its max...
I have discovered that there was an error with the Rank "Trait" when going from enlisted to officer and not registering correctly. however it has been fixed and will upload the new one when I have Equipment completed or if there is an overwhelming need to fix multiple errors that have been found.
Thanks
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Definitely sounds interesting, the number of times I've seen people complain about character generation...
I don't play A Time of War myself, but I'll pass this along to people that do.
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When I have a chance to play around with it, I'll let you know how it goes.
edit
If I can get it to let me do anything :)
/edit
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It was never the character writing that I had a problem with, a medium-complexity spreadsheet will do that (and allow for GM intervention to prevent machine-stamped characters) ... it's always been rules expediting, using the final sheet's data more efficiently. Gameplay aids, if you will. That's where I spent all my time :)
I'm actually about to create copypaste-able fully automated tactical/vehicle sheets that are spreadsheet-compliant, to replace paper/jpg+paint/pdf mech record sheets!
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I was just wondering if there is anyone out there that has some time and desire to help out with data entry.
What I need is the equipment lists in excel format.
If you are interested in helping PM, or email me and I will email you the format and data sheet.
here's hoping...
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I attempted to use your workbook today, but could not see dropdowns, or interact at all, really, with the Life Module Selection worksheet, either online or locally in excel.
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That is strange... What version of excel are you using? Did you allow macro's...i don't think I have any in the sheet but sometimes excel likes to be to secure. Also did you allow it to be edited up at the top. I will look into this when I get home from work. Is anyone else having this issue?
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Ok you were right. But there is a fix, there is a selection up at the top right that says edit, select edit in excel and then save to your hard drive. I don't know why it did that but that is how I got it to work. also just an update I am currently almost done with equipment formulas and whatnot so it shouldn't be too long until an update is out.
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I do not have the "Edit in Excel" menu option when I go to your link. I also had no dropdowns when I downloaded the sheet and opened it in Excel 2010 locally.
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Guess I need a new place to host this sheet? Is anyone else having this problem?
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Guess I need a new place to host this sheet? Is anyone else having this problem?
Just tested it and it works fine for me.
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I tried and it says links disabled and no drop downs for me.
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issues I ran into:
I have excel 2003 so it doesn't support a number of features
when I try to open the "worksheet" using "excel online I get 2 yellow errors at the top of the page (in both IE and chrome)
links disabled: links to external workbooks are not supported and have been disabled
unsupported features: there are some features in your workbook that we cannot show in the browser..
I also tried saving it to my onedrive and then saving a local copy and importing to excel but there were "issues" in the conversion
additionally it mentions that all the sheets are locked without passwords, but for some reason will not allow me to unlock
with all that said... it does look good.
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I updated it with equipment. You can get the zip above or in my signature.
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You sir are a saint. I love this game but I HATE character creation. I can't emphasis HATE enough. I have tried several excel sheets and the program that never was finish and its all crap compared to this.
Also a bug report using the current version of the excel for mac the weapons area returns errors in the calculations.
Keep up the amazing work!
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Also a bug report using the current version of the excel for mac the weapons area returns errors in the calculations.
I am sorry about this. I do not have access to a mac at the moment, but I will try to locate one to see what the issue is. You made me nervous so I went back and checked the whole sheet, however like I said I don't have a mac so I could only check on a PC. All seems well on the PC though. I know that doesn't help you however.
Does every thing else work?
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Yes everything else works amazingly!
If I get time I can try and find were the errors are coming from.
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I updated the sheet again, sorry...found some issues when creating characters
mostly Mixed traits not becoming visable on the character sheet and also I wanted to put on the character sheet a place for your actual age.
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Added a link to a word document describing the steps for character creation in detail.
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The only issue is that it seems it dose not work for thoughs who do not have Excel... :(
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I have to get some more information on different things for mechwarriors.
Didn't do much with them before.
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Wow, this thread certainly has alot of views. So I hope that means alot of downloads too. Well? Has anyone run into issues or have suggestions for future updates?
Thank you.
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The only issue is that it seems it dose not work for thoughs who do not have Excel... :(
Open office?
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I don't know open office. I would assume that it is similar to Excel, but not close enough that it works. However, I don't think $70 a year is that much for all of the office suite.
I am sorry for those of you that don't have excel. I am still working on keeping this up to date with fixes for me to take time out to learn why it isn't working.
I do give permission for anyone that wants to take on the task of converting it to work on open office though.
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Give LibreOffice a try so you let that 10 year old Excel die ;) No need to necessarily purchase a new version if you do not use it often which is why I am always turning people on to LibreOffice.
issues I ran into:
I have excel 2003 so it doesn't support a number of features
when I try to open the "worksheet" using "excel online I get 2 yellow errors at the top of the page (in both IE and chrome)
links disabled: links to external workbooks are not supported and have been disabled
unsupported features: there are some features in your workbook that we cannot show in the browser..
I also tried saving it to my onedrive and then saving a local copy and importing to excel but there were "issues" in the conversion
additionally it mentions that all the sheets are locked without passwords, but for some reason will not allow me to unlock
with all that said... it does look good.
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Updated the character creator version 6
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Had not caught this before. I'll tag the thread to keep track. Well done.
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What does "tag" do?
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Neat templates. Will definitely use.
Noticed that most don't have any relevant traits beyond rank and such... I guess this are thug level?
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What does "tag" do?
Replying in-thread means it shows up on one's "show new replies" list. Calling it a tag is colloquial. It's usually bad form to simply "tag", so nicer to give some encouragement or feedback.
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Give LibreOffice a try so you let that 10 year old Excel die ;) No need to necessarily purchase a new version if you do not use it often which is why I am always turning people on to LibreOffice.
LibreOffice dose not work as well (open office also dose not work)
In both cases it loads and has partial functionality but a lot of stuff dose not work for example in LibreOffice the starting XP drop down tab on the character selection tab has is completely blank, theirs something their but nothing shows up or functions.
Life module selection has items showing up as N/A or also blank
The other pages are full of #N/A entrys
Open office takes forever to load and has the same issues.
I don't know open office. I would assume that it is similar to Excel, but not close enough that it works. However, I don't think $70 a year is that much for all of the office suite.
I am sorry for those of you that don't have excel. I am still working on keeping this up to date with fixes for me to take time out to learn why it isn't working.
I do give permission for anyone that wants to take on the task of converting it to work on open office though.
Thats way to expensive for something I do not use enough to justify the cost of 70$ per year, which is fairly cheap though.
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Besides the "I can't use it because I do not have Office" does any one have feedback?
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It's very pretty, but I think I'm going to continue fixing my spreadsheet. When I'm working on a large number of NPCs, it's easier for me to have all the calculations on a single worksheet. A couple of quick things I noticed:
The starting XP block should have an option for entering any number. The JumpShip captain I'm using as a stress test of my spreadsheet uses 9,000 XP to start.
The "Optional Creation" selection should be labeled more specifically. The words "Alternate Starting Allotment" don't exist on page 49, so anyone doing a word search may not catch the reference right away.
I'll try to open it with OpenOffice (or LibreOffice, I forget which one is on my laptop) later today when I'm on the train.
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Thanks, I appreciate the feedback. I will start looking into this this weekend.
I created an NPC sheet as well, check it out in my signature :) It is real simple.
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LibreOffice 3.5 doesn't like some of the drop down menus (they have the right number of selections, but they're all blank). It appears to be random whether a menu will work or not, and I have no idea why. Sorry!
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I just discovered a hole in the higher education implementation in trying to help freakacid with his questions. It appears to be impossible to select a second "Advanced" field, which is explicitly permitted on page 70 (the third bullet under "Master Schools List"):
The player may not choose more than three Fields in total for a school. (Choosing a second Advanced Field is a viable option for a third Field, as is selecting a Special Training Field.)
Also, on the Attribute Selection sheet there's a spelling error: "Flexible" is incorrectly spelled "Flexable" in both the "Choice/Flexible XP" block and the footnote for that block. I also see it's misspelled on the Attribute sheets. I recommend doing a global find and replace throughout the workbook.
Working through this, I see one critical difference between our spreadsheets. I tried to program mine to do optimization automatically where yours is manual. Granted, I'm assuming all the Flex requirements are simply met during optimization (my rationale being that with all those points sloshing around, they're bound to be met), where yours explicitly lists them as reminders for the user the to meet.
If you PM me your e-mail address, I'll send you my current version (which I'll eventually post if I get it fully functioning). I'm not an interface guy, so it's pretty ugly. Calan (another poster several years back) gave me some more elegant formulas to use, but I haven't quite wrapped my head around them, so they're only where he put them in.
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one short question:
On my character sheet it says +X to some skills (Solaris night life, Comm. HPG),
Is there a mistake in my char, or what does that mean?
thank you!
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It means you have points in it, but not the minimum of 20 to make it a +0.
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This is great work Gigobyte! Keep it up!
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Hey Gigobyte: 1st off: Awesome char gen sheet / prog, Just frakkin' awesome !!!! One thing I noticed is that the user can't build a Republic of The Sphere character ?? Did I miss something ??
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I only inputted the data from the main rule book, not any of the splat or era books. Sorry. it is not locked so if you would like to take that task up, feel free. Again sorry, but I am not into putting any more data into the sheet just corrections.
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hi!
thank you for the great work. One of my players had a problem: "hww to show weapons in character sheet?",
he selected the weaopn in the sheet, but it did not show up? Any Idea what might be wrong? I dont have the file here, but will be able to get it.
all the best,
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What weapon, so I can see if I can replicate it...? Thanks.
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he has two axes, a shotgun and a autopistol
i assume now he just needs to put in the data manually, which he did not realize
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issue sovled/figured out, post can be deleted or left
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I have been using your spreadsheet v6 and v7 to make a variety of advanced NPCs for regular usage with specific pasts so lifepaths matter a lot.
As other have stated in the past, melee as well as small and large ranged weapons do not display on the character sheet. It seems they are not pointing to the correct information thus not displaying correctly on the character sheet.
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I have been using your spreadsheet v6 and v7 to make a variety of advanced NPCs for regular usage with specific pasts so lifepaths matter a lot.
As other have stated in the past, melee as well as small and large ranged weapons do not display on the character sheet. It seems they are not pointing to the correct information thus not displaying correctly on the character sheet.
Where can I find V7? has there been further revision since the last post?
Also .... why does the spreadsheet start out deducting 850 XP before I select anything at all?
Thanks!
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Where can I find V7? has there been further revision since the last post?
Also .... why does the spreadsheet start out deducting 850 XP before I select anything at all?
Thanks!
the 850 xp is the "hidden" cost for being alive, called Universal Fixed Experience Points its on page 52 of atow as the last part of stage 0 (affiliation)
its 100 xp for each attribute, language affiliation primary or secondary, language English 20 xp, and perception 10 xp
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the 850 xp is the "hidden" cost for being alive, called Universal Fixed Experience Points its on page 52 of atow as the last part of stage 0 (affiliation)
its 100 xp for each attribute, language affiliation primary or secondary, language English 20 xp, and perception 10 xp
Doh! Thank you!
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Actually the character sheet is doing exactly fine on my end now. The problems I was having must have been on a macro or something it needs disabled system. I think it might be doing a few things incorrectly, but otherwise for the majority it is a top notch free fan product.
I got V7 from the creator through an email. I can share, but only if he allows it.
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I'm using V6.
I have a few concerns so far that all center around aging the character:
Changing the date of birth on the "Character Selection" page does not seem to affect the "In Game" years or XP on the "Journal" page. Nor does it seem to affect the Attributes on the "Attributes Selection" page.
Changing the "In Game" years on the "Journal" page does affect the Attributes on the "Attributes Selection" page, but not the XP on the "Journal" page.
In order to have the character's age accurately reflected on the "Character Sheet" page however, only the date of birth on the "Character Selection" page, because if the "In Game" years field is also modified to accurately effect the Attributes on the "Attributes Selection" page, the characters age on the "Character Sheet" page is effectively modified twice.
Additionally, switching to (or from) "Standard Character Creation" and "Alternate Starting Allotment (p. 49 ATOW)" on the "Character Selection" page seems to have no bearing on this either way.
How do I either fix or work around these issues?
Thank you in advance for your help!
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I'm using V6.
I have a few concerns so far that all center around aging the character:Changing the date of birth on the "Character Selection" page does not seem to affect the "In Game" years or XP on the "Journal" page. Nor does it seem to affect the Attributes on the "Attributes Selection" page.
I just did a checkup, I have it working on my end. I created a character selected several life paths, all and all...they added up to 19 years old, looked at attributes, then changed the birth year to make the test character 30 years old and significant changed were added. I also added 11 years to the journal to years played and the same changes were present, showing that the total age on both tests were 30 years old.
Changing the "In Game" years on the "Journal" page does affect the Attributes on the "Attributes Selection" page, but not the XP on the "Journal" page.
It wouldn't as I have spoke to several GM's and some like to give out exp for playing some like to give out 100 per year no matter what...all preference.
In order to have the character's age accurately reflected on the "Character Sheet" page however, only the date of birth on the "Character Selection" page, because if the "In Game" years field is also modified to accurately effect the Attributes on the "Attributes Selection" page, the characters age on the "Character Sheet" page is effectively modified twice.
Could you clarify this more...not understanding.
Additionally, switching to (or from) "Standard Character Creation" and "Alternate Starting Allotment (p. 49 ATOW)" on the "Character Selection" page seems to have no bearing on this either way. How do I either fix or work around these issues?
The alternate is extra exp is awarded for character older then "X" amount of years as per the book, and I have it working.
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Hi, Excelent work with this, could use a bit more explaining, but I understand it is a work in progress.
Anyway, for some reason I am having an issue selecting Small Arms (both small and larger ones), no mater what I choose in the drop down I get nothing but junk in the data fields
EDIT: fixed a bit the text to make the situation more clear.