Classic license confusion
 

I'm trying to find a straightforward answer, but there doesn't seem to be one.

I've got an HLO subscription with lots of PF2 content. I'm going to be gaming soon in a location with no internet access. I figured I'd just install classic and use that when I'm away from a connection, but I can't figure out how.

Is classic a completely separate purchase? And is there no way to access my characters if I'm not somewhere with a connection?

Yes, HeroLab Classic is a completely separate product, which has to be purchased separately. Currently, if you're going to be using HeroLab Online away from an Internet connection, your only option is to print (paper or PDF) copies of the character sheets in question. I don't believe that any part of either the character generator or Campaign Theater will work, even a little bit, while away from an Internet connection.

They're working on solutions for this, but they're not yet ready.

Also Classic does not have PF2.

The online aspect of the product has real time play for the user, giving various stat bonuses for class and spell adjustments during play. Something that started with the Ipad version of HLC during PF1's ongoing published run.

The major disadvantage is the need to be online to use the program (and the slight subscription cost). I had hoped that the books/licenses costs would have been lowered since there is now a service fee that offsets those costs. Thus far it is using the same baseline as the previous (and thus far superior) product.

Having some sort of offline mode is a request that has been made almost since it was available. Some sort of file system to load characters and a way to access them through a lighter version that is a reader would be nice.

With the new API access, it should be possible for character sheet apps and other tools to add automatic sync/download support, though it'll probably take a while for stuff like that to get built out.