Date file sources...
 

I am just now getting around to really checking out HL. This is pretty pathetic since I've owned it since GenCon last year. I checked it out and started putting Spell Compendium spells into the program a couple of weeks after getting back from GenCon, but then I had problems with my computer. I ended up having erase everything on my PC. Luckily I had backed up pretty much everything of importance on it. Unfortunately, I didn't have my HL date sets backed up; not that I had that much done anyway.

Well, I had other things happen that prevented me from really getting into working with HL and now I'm looking to get back into getting things added to it so that it is up to speed with my campaign(s).

I currently run and Forgotten Realms campaign and will be starting an Iron Kingdoms campaign at the end of this year. I have a couple of questions about HL first.

If I understand what I've read from the manual, I should be able to just copy the "core" d20 file and make it into an Iron Kingdoms file? Not sure of any of this quite yet, but that is what I think I understood. And then I can just add other stuff not covered by the "core" stuff already in HL.
If this is not the case could someone point me in the right direction for creating two different date sets. I think that's the right term. I need one for FR and one for IK. The both are d20, just IK has many different things going on that FR.

Another question I have. Is there somewhere I can get other data files for download. I'm talking stuff like spell compendium, the complete books, stuff like that. I'm not against adding this stuff myself, but if someone else has already done it and is willing to share I would appreciate it. I'm not sure how long it takes to add all that stuff, but I'm sure it's time consuming.

If someone is will to share date files/sets, that would be cool. If not I understand.

Thanks.

For alternate campaign worlds, what I do is make a copy of the d20 folder and call it d20_MyWorld. Then I go into that folder and open up config.cfg in notepad., and modify a few settings:
As for sharing data files, correct me if I'm wrong but sharing any WotC data sets (such as the complete books, etc) is illegal, but people are free to share data files for their own feats, classes, spells, etc.

Thanks for the info.

That kind of stinks, I just bought this at Gencon in the hopes that someone might have already done the PHB 2 book for me. Is there a chance these are posted on newgroups somewhere?

Sorry.

Well it depends I would suppose. You get into grey area's a lot.

Well, I seem to be in over my head with creating a new class. Is there a place where I can get some direction, maybe like an "authoring data files for dummies" doc?

Once you open the editor (tools menu, launch editor), go to the help menu - that page has 6 tutorials and all the basic information you'll need for a while.

I would not be illegal for a group of friends to trade their own data sets with one another. So, for example, if a group of friends, say ten people, were to each enter one of ten classes, i.e. split up the work of each entering a single class, then they could share each of the data sets with one another. As long as no one posted them on a web site or tried to sell them, it would go unnoticed.