How to add a custom class?

[coastiemike]

I bought a copy of the Hero Lab at Gencon this weekend. I have it installed and am trying to tweak it by creating a custom character class.

I have a player who has a Beguiler in my Pathfinder campaign. Beguiler is not a class in the Pathfinder system so I would like to "build" or copy the beguiler class from 3.5 rules set and make some changes to reflect the Pathfinder rules, such as skills and what have you.

How do I get to the create custom class screen? Is there a way to import my created custom beguiler class to my Pathfinder licensed Hero Lab?

[JimGroves]

Originally Posted by coastiemike

I bought a copy of the Hero Lab at Gencon this weekend. I have it installed and am trying to tweak it by creating a custom character class.

I have a player who has a Beguiler in my Pathfinder campaign. Beguiler is not a class in the Pathfinder system so I would like to "build" or copy the beguiler class from 3.5 rules set and make some changes to reflect the Pathfinder rules, such as skills and what have you.

How do I get to the create custom class screen? Is there a way to import my created custom beguiler class to my Pathfinder licensed Hero Lab?

We need the Editor to be up and running.. and that won't be at least until they update the datafiles.

Below is a post from Rob explaining the situation.

Thanks to a lot of very hard work by Colen and Mathias, the Pathfinder RPG data files *will* be making their debug on the 13th of this month. This coincides with the official release of the game itself at GenCon. The data files will be available online, so you do *not* need to attend GenCon to get ahold of the Pathfinder files.

Due to the short time we had to develop these files (6-7 weeks), and the lack of an electronic version of the rules, there are a few known limitations regarding these initial files. Once we have an electronic version of the game and a couple extra weeks to refine the files, an update will be released that addresses these limitations.

1. The description text for just about everything will be terse or non-existent. Without access to an electronic version of the rules, we either had to re-type everything or wait until we could copy and paste it. We opted for the latter.

2. The ability to add custom content via the Editor is not yet accessible. This is always the final step with any set of data files for Hero Lab, so this hasn't been completed yet. It will work just like it does for every other game system.

3. The prestige classes are currently d20 SRD only. They have not yet been converted over to reflect the appropriate changes for Pathfinder.

4. While the vast majority of class special abilities are fully implemented, there are some that require a bit more work.

5. Animal companions and paladin mounts are not being handled properly yet.

6. Tracking of charges for in-play support has not been revised yet for Pathfinder.

That's the short list of known limitations in the initial release of the Pathfinder data files. Everything else should be in place and ready to roll on Thursday. For those of you going to GenCon, feel free to stop by our booth (#1810) and take a look at what Hero Lab can do for Pathfinder.


If you notice a lack of descriptive text, that will be added as well. They didn't have a PDF to work off, and had to most of this by hand-typing from the book.

[Theocrat]

Hi all -
Glad I saw this as I was asking something similiar as to what functions HL has in general.
Do you have to buy the 3.5 version as well as the Pathfinder version to be able to do this - bringing in a beguiler? Isn't a beguiler not an SRD class - thus that means that fans have created this dataset. If this is the case, and you can combine the 3.5 and Pathfinder datasets that certainly would answer my questions in a previous post.
Be Well. Be Well Dataset'd.
Theocrat Issak

[rob]

You do *not* need to buy the d20 data files separately. However, there won't be a direct port option for d20 custom content to Pathfinder content. The old d20 data files have been substantially overhauled and tailored for use with Pathfinder, rendering them incompatible. The reason for this was to ensure that we can readily evolve the Pathfinder data files over time as the game system itself evolves, without having to worry about all the baggage from the old d20 files.

As a result, custom content created for d20 will need to be re-created for Pathfinder. Of course, once it's done for d20, redoing it for Pathfinder should be pretty quick and painless. :-)

[Theocrat]

Thank you for this answer Rob.
I've asked in several forums - here, ENWorld and Paizo about that issue.
So because anything by WotC that isn't in the SRD, like the beguiler would be part of a d20 data set but that doesn't work with Pathfinder Data set - can it be copied and edited?
Thus if the beguiler has a d4 (I don't recall off hand) we can easily edit it to d6, as well as removing and adding skills.
How do we find out if non-SRD or OGL aspects from other game companies have been done in the basic d20 data set? Like AEG's Warlords Summoner?
Will the OGL/Pathfinder Compatibility License works from Tome of Secrets be added to the Pathfinder data set? Or is this something that fans have to add?

I ask these because of what my players are playing, but also because as a DM I want to be able to add or edit Major NPC's. Additionally, how is Psionics set to work with Pathfinder? I am currently running Second Darkness and with a Psionics PC, I'd like to have a couple of the Drow Wizards be Psionicists? I'm OK with having to run a standard 3.5 Drow Psionicist, but modifying it to fit the d6 and skills would be preferred.

I appreciate the answers and understanding in helping me decide on whether HL will work for my needs.
Theocrat Issak

[rob]

Originally Posted by Theocrat

So because anything by WotC that isn't in the SRD, like the beguiler would be part of a d20 data set but that doesn't work with Pathfinder Data set - can it be copied and edited?

Directly copying content between the two sets of data files isn't possible due to some important differences between the two data file packages. However, it should be possible to copy the content and manually make the necessary adjustments. It would probably be easier to just re-create the d20 content for Pathfinder, since all the pieces would be right there for you.

Originally Posted by Theocrat

Thus if the beguiler has a d4 (I don't recall off hand) we can easily edit it to d6, as well as removing and adding skills.

This is achieved via the "Replace" mechanism in the Editor. In a nutshell, you would copy the Beguiler to a new class, wherein you make your desired changes. Then you mark your new version as replacing the existing one. Thereafter, the existing version disappears and all references to the existing one will instead access your new replacement. This is how you can fundamentally change the damage for *all* longswords just by replacing the built-in longsword.

Originally Posted by Theocrat

How do we find out if non-SRD or OGL aspects from other game companies have been done in the basic d20 data set? Like AEG's Warlords Summoner?

You can look in the Editor to see what content is present. If you don't see it, then it hasn't been added yet. I know that ChiefWeasel is coordinating a central repository of user-added content, so please check with him about how that content will be accessed.

Originally Posted by Theocrat

Will the OGL/Pathfinder Compatibility License works from Tome of Secrets be added to the Pathfinder data set? Or is this something that fans have to add?

We're still figuring all this stuff out ourselves. We should have more info on this stuff in the next few weeks, after we've got the core Pathfinder stuff complete and solid.

Originally Posted by Theocrat

I ask these because of what my players are playing, but also because as a DM I want to be able to add or edit Major NPC's. Additionally, how is Psionics set to work with Pathfinder? I am currently running Second Darkness and with a Psionics PC, I'd like to have a couple of the Drow Wizards be Psionicists? I'm OK with having to run a standard 3.5 Drow Psionicist, but modifying it to fit the d6 and skills would be preferred.

I'm not knowledgeable enough about Pathfinder to answer that question. So we'll have to get back to you on this detail.

[Mathias]

Originally Posted by Theocrat

I ask these because of what my players are playing, but also because as a DM I want to be able to add or edit Major NPC's. Additionally, how is Psionics set to work with Pathfinder? I am currently running Second Darkness and with a Psionics PC, I'd like to have a couple of the Drow Wizards be Psionicists? I'm OK with having to run a standard 3.5 Drow Psionicist, but modifying it to fit the d6 and skills would be preferred.

The Psionics things from our d20 package will be ported over to the Pathfinder data set, but this may not happen for a month or two.

[Colen]

From what I've read on the Paizo forums, they're still unsure exactly how to introduce psionics into the Pathfinder universe - some players really like the "power points" mechanic, some players hate it, and some just don't like the idea of psionics altogether. Until they decide, we'll be supporting the standard d20 psionics stuff.

[Theocrat]

Hi all -
Thanks for the answers.
If the data sets are separate between d20/OGL and Pathfinder, I should be able to build a drow psionicist just using the XPH SRD.
Even with Pathfinder not using psionics just yet, we should assume usability with existing psionics. Plus, Dreamscarred Press will likely make a Pathfinderized Psionics aspect. That and I use Psionics Unbound (more like an errata'd psionics handbook, but the classes have been Arcanis-ized) with Hyperconscious.
Remember in eTools, you could flip between data sets - a 3.0 data set and a 3.5 data set. You might not have been able to switch on the fly or use a 3.0 aspect in the 3.5 game, but you were able to use both. Some of this came from the editor that was fan made.
Also, I don't see it on the site, but is the Pathfinder a separate purchase? Or do I get both 3.5 and Pathfinder aspects with the main purchase? For my $30, I choose d20/3.5 system. Then another $20 for Pathfinder? Or do I pay $30 for Pathfinder and then another $20 for d20/3.5?
Thanks,
Theocrat Issak

[Mathias]

The Pathfinder and d20 systems are separate purchases. In terms of which system to activate with HeroLab and which to activate later, you won't be able to tell the difference once both are licensed.

The existing d20 files will have no trouble building a drow psionist. You'll need to make any modifications needed to swap the SRD version of the Psionic classes to the versions in your books. If you want to do so, once you've gotten the d20 files and had a chance to read through the editor documentation and play around with the editor a bit, I'll be happy to answer any specific questions you run into over on the d20 forums.