Roleplaying Utilities

OpenDocTo

zipped executable (1,467 KB)

OpenDocTo is an applet that supports the opening of local or remote documents via a "hotspot" located within a map drawn with ProFantasy Software's Campaign Cartographer 2 [1]. Without OpenDocTo, the opening of a locally available PDF document to a particular page from within a CC2 drawing, for example, would not be possible. To use OpenDocTo, you must have either CC2 or ProFantasy's free printer/viewer application installed on your Windows system.

Admittedly, this application does not make the average roleplayer's blood boil with excitement. The flexibility it offers, however, may be of use to any beleaguered GM. Consider, for example, a situation in which you have created a CC2 map of a town for your game, and have written an HTML file describing the various locations within the town. If you add a unique link target to your HTML code before each location description, you can use OpenDocTo in your town map's hotspots to open the HTML file to the appropriate place.

ManorGenerator

zipped executable (830 KB)
 

sample HTML output (25 KB)

ManorGenerator, unsurprisingly, allows the user to generate a Hârnic manor using the process explained in the HârnManor supplement, available from Columbia Games [2]. You must have access to HârnManor in order to use this generator effectively; the parameters you specify and the resulting output will make little sense otherwise. Additionally, you must run the software on a Windows machine. ManorGenerator's user interface is text-based, but it is capable of producing a nicely formatted HTML file as output that looks very similar to the originals found in HârnManor.

I won't pretend that ManorGenerator is incredibly easy to use. The text interface is not exactly state of the art in the age of point and click. However, if you follow the instructions in the file, it shouldn't be that difficult to get the hang of it. At worst, it may end up being tedious, but that will only be the case if you insist on micromanaging the manor generation process. For example, if you feel a need to specify each and every villager's occupation, instead of letting the software do it for you, the process will require a lot more typing on your part.

However, the program has its strengths as well. First, it follows the HârnManor rules to the letter, at least as far as I can tell. I went to great efforts to ensure that it would not deviate from canon. Second, it is relatively intelligent about allocating the tenant labor pool to the tending of arable, pasture, woodland, and upkeep in a manner that will not result in a shortage of labor days. This means that it should not generate any manors that are technically illegal. And third, it produces output that isn't an eyesore. To see what I mean, take a look at the sample output here. This file came straight from the manor generator, with only the fief name, the holder, and the year added using an HTML editor following the file's generation. The HTML file prints nicely, too, at least on my system; if I set the proportional font size to 10 in Netscape 4.7x prior to printing, it comes out as two pages.