Melek's Simple 5e Framework - Updated 8/6/20 - Version 2.2.1

Framework(s) for D&D 5e.

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digiacom
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Re: Melek's Simple 5e Framework - Updated 8/28/19

Post by digiacom »

That's so great to hear - have them post on here if they like it!

You're spot on, you can import one of bobifle's monster tokens and hack away - the only major properties those tokens use that my macros can stumble on are `Speed` and `Perception`. As mentioned by bobifle, out of the box you can't easily edit the tokens directly.

To fix that and a few other issues (proficiency is being calculated wrong), I'm uploading a new version of my framework that includes a 'Convert 5e Monster Token' macro, which along with some other changes to the framework do the following (check the OP for the new version):
  • Includes most of the 5e Monster Token properties, so they can mostly be edited directly when you edit a token's properties. These compatibility properties are at the bottom of the property window. Great for quickly tweaking monsters!
  • Uses CR in place of Level for proficiency calculation and protects that calculation to let you use my token macros (including 'Configure Token') on a monster token no problem. Useful for making more flexible NPCs out of monsters!
  • Stores Speed and Perception in new properties (mSpeed and mPerception) so you can always refer to the original value of the monster token while being able to use virtually all of the macros from either the monster token or the framework.
I hope this helps; if you find any bugs let me know, and also holler if you need help updating your campaign :)
a.k.a. Melek on Discord.
Check out my Simple 5e Framework!

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Re: Melek's Simple 5e Framework - Updated 9/23/19 - Version 1.2

Post by venger »

Hey Digiacom,
I have no complaint to lodge, just an observation. Due to my current situation, I'm working from a laptop and adjusted the buttons to take up less screen real estate. I don't know of gui mass gui control, I can only do them individually.
But thats ok! Thing is I can do them.

The Swiftside Shifter Race macro, I do not understand what it does. Please elaborate

Ilooking at your tokens. You have the main <Standard Macro> guy, and then two "class" related tokens, with class related ability macros.
You wouldn't happen to have a folder full of class/race/other related macro goodies you'd want to share?
So far, we have one character. Other players are working on theirs still.
We have A barbarian totem warrior named TikTik, level 1.
I did some simple macros for him, mostly reminders to spit out to chat, but if you have a template for this, Id really like to check it out.

We have a 5e campaign coming up and I'm trying to take my maptool ability to the next level because frankly, we are all getting older, and want to simplify, make game day run smoother, which sometimes means doing the work, being the man behind the curtain in code to make the imaginary Oz look good.
I don't mean to beg for macros, even the man behind the curtains needed help :)

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digiacom
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Re: Melek's Simple 5e Framework - Updated 9/23/19 - Version 1.2

Post by digiacom »

Ha! I get it. You want people to have a good time without too much work. I designed this framework to make the 'Selection' panel basically a clear menu of important actions for my players so we could easily play with minimal training.

Class-specific stuff, spellcasting, and other fancy features are where those Library tokens really come in handy. The most popular 5e framework uses them and has ALL the goodies! My framework is more of a starter kit you can tinker with and grow to fit your needs.

I did add a very few additional macros in my campaign file taken from my players to use as a preview of how to do a few things. The extras include:
  • Monk: Keep track of ki usage as part of a variety of Monk ability macros. These make use of the special MaxKi and Ki token properties.
  • Fighter: Keep track of Action Surges, making use of the MaxActionSurge and ActionSurge token properties.
  • Fighter: A simple Second Wind macro which heals the player but doesn't track usage - it would be a good project to make it behave like the Action Surge macro, maybe by adding MaxSecondWind and SecondWind as token properties under the ____FIGHTER____ section of the properties and updating the macro logic to use them.
  • Fighter: Some sample special attack macros from the fighters in my game related to their sub-classes.
  • Swiftstride Shifter: Toggle Shift macro that toggles a particular state on the token, adds tempHP if appropriate, and toggles a bonus to the token's speed. This is an Eberron race and subrace that one of my players uses.
The key feature to the Shifter macro is States - Editable in the Edit menu -> Campaign properties -> States tab. It is built the same as the Conditions macro on the Campaign macros panel. The way it edits Speed is the same as HP or any other property - it just adds 5 to Speed when toggled on, and subtracts 5 from Speed when it is toggled off (this macro is actually why I express speed as a number in my framework, instead of '30 ft' like some others do).

Regarding macro sizing, you can actually edit the size of macros on a token in a campaign macro using a loop. I only use a few standard sizes for all my macros, so it is easy to search for the specific size and resize it automatically down. Maybe I'll see if I can dig those up again and include them in the OP.

I do have other macros from my game, but they are a mish mash of what my players need. Do you use discord? I'm nearly always available on the Maptool discord channel and I'd be happy to chat with you to walk through how I add class specific features for your players!
a.k.a. Melek on Discord.
Check out my Simple 5e Framework!

bobifle
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Re: Melek's Simple 5e Framework - Updated 8/28/19

Post by bobifle »

Phergus wrote:
Mon Sep 23, 2019 7:10 pm
@bobifle - You do know that you can have multiple property sets in a campaign and switch between them in the Edit Token dialog to edit the active set?
I know but that does not solve my issue.
My tokens are campaign agnostic, hence the drop in feature. They work at their full potential on an empty campaign without any framwork.

So I cannot assume anything about campaign properties settings.

rpt-steve
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Re: Melek's Simple 5e Framework - Updated 9/23/19 - Version 1.2

Post by rpt-steve »

digiacom wrote:
Tue Aug 27, 2019 8:55 pm
My desire providing this framework is to offer a lot of the basic functionality needed to play 5e without every class and race option configured into the game. The result is a lightweight, mostly token-based system that is pretty easy to tinker with as you play. I'm hoping this framework is understandable to newer Maptool users.
Holy cow man, this is an amazing framework! Thank you so much for sharing!
I'm pretty new to maptool as a VTT and I've been puzzling out how I want to use it for a D&D 5e game. I found paulstrait's framework and bobifle's (amazing) monster tokens already. I was trying to figure out how to make new tokens for monsters that aren't included in the token zip and my head was spinning a bit.

But your framework makes it so easy! Within 5 minutes I had a roughed out new monster token!

I also really like all your selection macros and the new artwork for states. Pretty sweet all around. It does just enough stuff to keep me happy without overwhelming me with automation I need to sit down and figure out.

One thing I couldn't figure out (and maybe I just didn't spend enough time on it) but how do you "unready" a token after it readies an action? I had one readied, but I couldn't figure out how to reset that.

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Re: Melek's Simple 5e Framework - Updated 9/23/19 - Version 1.2

Post by digiacom »

Thanks rpt-steve, that means a lot to me!!

Quick answer: The 'Ready Action' macro only works on the token if it is in the initiative panel tracker. If it is the token's turn, it lets you set a readied action. If it is not the token's turn, it either broadcasts the readied action and clears it, or does nothing if no readied action is set.

Detailed answer: Here is a quick rundown of the initiative functions. Before diving in, know that the initiative macros (including the 'Ready Action' macro) assume you are using the initiative panel (Window -> Initiative) to track both the initiative order and the current token's turn. Clicking 'Next' on the top of the panel advances the turn. Right clicking on a token in the initiative panel reveals a 'Toggle Hold' option which moves a token to the right hand side of the initiative panel and back again. I use the hold feature to indicate a token has a readied action.
  • Roll Initiative: This macro sets 1d20 + Initiative as the selected token's initiative roll, adds the token to the initiative panel, and sorts the tokens on the panel.
  • End Turn: If it is the selected token's turn in the initiative panel, this macro broadcasts 'Token-name ends their turn' and advances the initiative to the next token on the initiative panel. If it is not the selected token's turn, it does nothing except issue a message that it isn't the token's turn to the player and GM.
  • Ready Action: This macro has three possible functions depending on the selected token's status in the initiative panel.
    • It IS the Token's Turn, Token IS NOT HELD in the initiative panel: Give the player a dialog box to create a Trigger and an Action (I often do this for the player after they describe their readied action to me since I can type quickly). Place the resulting string in the 'ReadyAction' token property and broadcast the readied action in chat (This does NOT advance the initiative, as you can still use your movement after readying an action).
    • It IS NOT the Token's Turn, Token IS HELD in the initiative panel: Broadcasts the readied action as triggered in the chat. Clears the readied action and removes the hold.
    • Any other circumstance: Resets the ReadyAction property, resets the hold status, and issues a message about clearing the readied action.
If you are choosing to ignore the initiative panel, you can simplify the 'Ready Action' and other macros to work without it (though I recommend using the panel's features - it can make DMing combat pretty efficient). To do so, you can simplify the macro to only check whether the 'ReadyAction' property exists or not instead of checking the current turn and hold status. If you are interested in that and want help, just post here and I/others can help.
a.k.a. Melek on Discord.
Check out my Simple 5e Framework!

rpt-steve
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Re: Melek's Simple 5e Framework - Updated 9/23/19 - Version 1.2

Post by rpt-steve »

digiacom wrote:
Mon Oct 14, 2019 2:16 am
If you are choosing to ignore the initiative panel, you can simplify the 'Ready Action' and other macros to work without it (though I recommend using the panel's features - it can make DMing combat pretty efficient).
Thanks for the run down on readying!

I'm definitely planning to use the initiative panel. That and attack roll macros were pretty much the extent of any automation I was planning to use initially, although your framework and bobifle's tokens well exceed that - saving me time and functioning as a tutorial for any future ambitions I might develop. :)

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Re: Melek's Simple 5e Framework - Updated 9/23/19 - Version 1.2

Post by digiacom »

Oops! There is an error. The Charisma-based skills are using dex modifiers. An instructive difference between using copies of whole macros on each token instead of using pointers to a library token with 'master' versions of each macro. Each instance of these macros have to be fixed, rather than being able to fix it in one place.

To make this an easy fix, I have made the following global macro a GM can use to fix selected tokens without having to manually edit the 4 Charisma based 5e skills:

Code: Select all

<!-- Change 'DexMod' to 'ChaMod' in the following macros on selected token(s). -->
[h: vMacrosToFix = "Deception, Intimidation, Performance, Persuasion"]
[h: vToken = getName()]
[h: vMacroLabelList = getMacros()]
[h: vMacroIndexes = ""]

<b>Locating Charisma based skill macros on [r:vToken]:</b><br>
[r, foreach(vMacroLabel, vMacroLabelList, ""), code: {
	[r, if(listfind(vMacrosToFix, vMacroLabel) >= 0), code: {
		[r: "Found " + vMacroLabel + "...<br>"]
		[h: vMacroIndexes = vMacroIndexes + getMacroIndexes(vMacroLabel) + ","]
	};{}]
}]
[h: vMacrosFound = length(vMacroIndexes)]
[h: assert(vMacrosFound, "No matching macros found... aborting.")]
The list of indexes is: [r: vMacroIndexes = substring(vMacroIndexes, 0, length(vMacroIndexes) -1)]<br><br>

<b>Fixing Charisma based skill macros on [r:vToken]:</b><br>
[r, foreach(vIndex, vMacroIndexes, ""), code: {
	[vIndex + ": "]
	[h: vOldMacroProps = getMacroProps(vIndex, "json")]
	[h: vOldMacroCmd = json.get(vOldMacroProps, "command")]
	[h: vNewMacroCmd = replace(vOldMacroCmd, "DexMod", "ChaMod")]
	[r, if(vNewMacroCmd != vOldMacroCmd): "Found error, corrected...";"No error found, moving on..."]
	[h: vNewMacroProps = json.set(vOldMacroProps, "command", vNewMacroCmd)] 
	[h: setMacroProps(vIndex, vNewMacroProps, "json")]
	["<br>"]
}]
Done!
To use, paste the above code into a new global macro and make sure 'Apply to selected tokens' is selected. You can name it 'Fix Cha-based Skills' or whatever you'd like.

This macro is a good model for how to use a macro to update other macros, which is very helpful when updating a simple framework like this.

Special thanks to user Smash the Cookies on Discord for finding this bug :)
a.k.a. Melek on Discord.
Check out my Simple 5e Framework!

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Re: Melek's Simple 5e Framework - Updated 11/2/19 - Version 1.3

Post by digiacom »

Bumping this thread to announce that a new version is up :) If you were using 1.2 before, please consider updating. There is a new tool included that should make fixing some of the bugs from the old version.

You can also check the reply above this one for how to fix your campaign if you don't want to do a big update. :)

Check the OP for the new goodies! I also updated it to be a bit more welcoming for newer MapTool users.
a.k.a. Melek on Discord.
Check out my Simple 5e Framework!

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Re: Melek's Simple 5e Framework - Updated 11/2/19 - Version 1.3

Post by BearFather »

So was checking out this framework yesterday, and great job. Lots of info packed into it.

But had 2 questions. First is there some sort of character sheet frame I'm missing? Cause I don't do popups when you hover over a token and that was the only way I can find to pull a player's info.

Second how do you assign spells to a player? Playing around I ended up dragging & dropping from the spellbook token to the players token...wasn't smooth but worked.

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Re: Melek's Simple 5e Framework - Updated 11/2/19 - Version 1.3

Post by digiacom »

Hello BearFather,

Character Sheets: I only use the hover stat sheet for glancing at a token's stats. In game, I rely on my players having their character sheet handy - either a paper copy, or a digital sheet ala DnD Beyond. If you click on the 'Configure Token' macro, you can see a lot more information like stats, saves, and skills, but it isn't meant to be a 'sheet' so its cumbersome for that.

It would not be hard to bring in a campaign macro that creates a Character Sheet panel from a selected token and displays it, and then linking to that from the character sheets - but since I've never needed that, and it is a bit advanced, I have never learned how to do it.

I've thought briefly about replacing the 'Tweak Token' macro (which is the '...' macro on the tokens) with an editable character sheet panel. Maybe someday if I can find a way to keep it simple and easy to edit and understand, it'll get done :)

In the meantime, I encourage you to either roll your own or see if you can edit another framework's sheet to meet your needs!

Assigning Spells: As you could see, I have virtually zero spells in the framework. I have a few spell effects that are commonly used in my game in the 'Other States' campaign macros so I can assign them to tokens quickly, but all other spells in my game are either created as custom macros on my players' tokens (using the Create ATK/DMG or Wide Action macros as a base), or are present on the 5e monster tokens that I drop in for fights.

When making a new spell, I often copy the text from DND beyond and paste it into a wide macro button. Then I macro-tize any rolls in the spell. If we end up using the spell a lot, I might incorporate the spell into the framework further by creating a better macro for the player's token (as you can see the Arcane Archer macros on one of the extra tokens) or making a campaign macro for me to manage the effect (such as with Aid).

Like I said, this is a roll-your-own, basic framework. That said, if you want any help making a certain macro, ask away or hit me up in Discord! :)
a.k.a. Melek on Discord.
Check out my Simple 5e Framework!

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Re: Melek's Simple 5e Framework - Updated 11/2/19 - Version 1.3

Post by BearFather »

If I end up using it I might just build a character sheet, right now my players are not a Yes for such a deep dive to using maptools for everything yet. We do play in person so it more of a map on the tv for battle. But I have been looking to add more to make my life easier as a dm.

Thanks for the reply, and if I do end up making a character sheet will pass it back to see if you want to add it.

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Melek's with Hero Lab

Post by Dracarius »

How hard would it be to have your framework adapt to imported Hero Lab files?

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Re: Melek's Simple 5e Framework - Updated 11/2/19 - Version 1.3

Post by Merudo »

I created a Spell Library addon for Melek's 5e framework. You can check it out here.

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Re: Melek's Simple 5e Framework - Updated 5/4/20 - Version 2.0

Post by digiacom »

Bumping with a version update.

In version 2.0, I've added many quality of life improvements, compromising some of the original framework's simplicity to add convenience for players and GMs. I really hope people enjoy all the new features; it isn't so 'simple' anymore in all respects, but I hope it is user friendly and helps people have more fun, more quickly with MapTool and 5e.

Highlights:
  • I've added a 5e Character Sheet with some basic options.
  • I've added an optional Custom Counters system to track things like spells, ability use, or ammunition.
  • I've included one new optional Help System library token which loads a help screen and has tutorials for new users. You can delete this if you don't need it.
  • I've spruced up how you configure and tweak Character and NPC tokens. These options for players are now accessible either through the new character sheet, or directly on the Campaign panel.
    Improved compatibility with bobifle's drop-in 5e monster tokens, and updated the included library token his newest version.
  • I've fixed loads of bugs and many small features at the requests of community members. See the changelog below for more details.
Many of the macros have become more complex, but I've also added many comments and included a few more complex macros to showcase some possibilities, and added some comments and tooltips for newer users to help with understanding some of the more confusing pieces. If it ever seems like feature-creep is making it too difficult to understand, let me know!

For those not interested in the new features and want to stick to a truly simple framework, I've left the 1.3 version of the framework available on this post . It is still very approachable for beginners, and the properties are shared between the two versions - I only removed 4 class specific properties from the new version, and tokens from the old version should work as-is or easily updated.
a.k.a. Melek on Discord.
Check out my Simple 5e Framework!

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