• Please note: In an effort to ensure that all of our users feel welcome on our forums, we’ve updated our forum rules. You can review the updated rules here: http://forums.wolflair.com/showthread.php?t=5528.

    If a fellow Community member is not following the forum rules, please report the post by clicking the Report button (the red yield sign on the left) located on every post. This will notify the moderators directly. If you have any questions about these new rules, please contact support@wolflair.com.

    - The Lone Wolf Development Team

Unique Group ID

S

Sevisin

Well-known member
Hello,

I hope I'm in the right forum. I'm looking to create a custom feat that requires a drop down list (like Weapon Focus) of a list of custom abilities. Maybe it's because it's almost 2am, but I can't figure out how to make a unique/custom Group ID. When I put "Abcd" in "Group ID" in the Tags menu, it gives me the error "File....... - Thing 'cDK_03' (dynamic tag) - Group 'Abcd' not defined."

Maybe a good night's rest will help, but any thoughts or ideas will help. Thanks.
 
Is this for one of the existing game systems? If so, which one?

If this is about a game system you're creating, you'll need to formally define any tag groups you want to use before using them. If you need identity tags (which seems to be the case), you'll need to define them on the appropriate component (which is most likely in traits.str or equipment.str).
 
If you are adding new content to an existing game system, you cannot create new tag groups.

Please tell us what you're trying to accomplish, so we can help you figure out how best to handle that.
 
Are these custom abilities you created or ones that already exist? Either way, add a custom ability to a portfolio and check out the tags. You will see the following on all custom abilities:

component.BaseCustSp

Start with that in your custom expression. Then, depending on what the group is, you can use other tags such as "SpecSource.cHelpRgr" for all custom abilities available to rangers. There's also a tag for secondary abilities. If this is a group that doesn't share a tag, but that you created, you can create a User tag, give them the tag then do something like this as your custom expression:

component.BaseCustSp & User.???

Hope that helps.
 
@Sendric
Thank you for the reply.

I'm building a Desert Kobold rogue build located at The Rouge Handbook at the bottom of the Builds section just for S&G's. Kind of a learning course for me since there are a number of abilities not yet implemented in Hero Lab (like Dragonwrought from Races of the Dragon. That feat requires the selection of a dragon type for various reasons (like +2 on a specific skill). The method I was going was like Weapon Focus where after you pick the feat, there would be a drop down list box that the user could select the dragon type they wanted. If I can finish the rogue handbook (with the missing feats and class substitutes), I'll post for the community so every rogue can be a BA rogue.
 
Not sure if it would help, but there are custom dragon type selection items in the Custom - Core Book Mods.user file. They are xPickAcid, xPickBlack, xPickBlue, etc.
 
@Sendric
Thanks for the reply. Sorry it's been a few days. Work and school keep me busy.
I'm looking in the Custom - Core Book Mods.user file now and the tag under the xPick<Dragon> is still User.
I have decided to go a different route since this seemingly simple task has proven to be overly difficult. Custom Feat has a section called Item Selection and a subsection called Select From... with a drop down list box with a number of selections (-None-, All Weapons, Attributes, ect...). How would I go about adding something in there? Maybe I can do a selection nest...?
 
Okay, I think I have a solution...

In the test file, I have a custom Feat names TestFeat and two Custom Abilities and gave them a new tag via User Tags > - New Tag- and named it _Test. In TestFeat under Item Selection, instead of figuring out how to create a new item in the initial drop down list box, I decided to think simple and put User._Test in the Custom Expression textfield. When I tested it, the two custom abilities popped up. Here's hoping!
 
Okay, everything is working so far. However, I now have a nub question...

I pick the feat. The feat gives a drop down box with my custom abilities. I click on the custom ability and the field is changed. Now, how do I make the custom field perform its script? In this case, it's just a +2<skill>. For this example, I have a single Eval Script...
Post-Levels, 100, 1
#skillbonus[kHide] += 2

I'm looking into perform, but I'm just finding it difficult to sift through the links that have little to nothing to do with my question. : /
 
Well, that's the trick. When you have a drop-down menu for a feat, selecting something doesn't necessarily do anything unless there's a script on the feat itself that does something based on the selection. For example, take a look at Weapon Focus. When you select a weapon with that feat, the feat itself has a script that looks at what you chose and assigns a Weapon Focus tag to that weapon(s) in your portfolio. This is fairly simple. If you have something more complicated, this is what I've done.

Feat X has two drop down menu items that are special abilities Y and Z. Special abilities have a value field called "Value". Set Y's Value = 1, and Z's Value = 2. Use a script in Feat X to set its field hTotal = the value of the chosen item. This will need to be set early because you are going to use this value as your condition on the bootstrap. Here's what I did recently with this exact scenario:

Script on Feat X run at First/9500:
Code: 
doneif (field[fChosen].ischosen = 0)

~set hTotal field for bootstrapping purposes
var tribe as number
tribe = field[fChosen].chosen.field[Value].value
field[hTotal].value = tribe

Bootstrap Specials Y and Z with the following conditionals running at First/10000:
Code: 
Y: fieldval:hTotal = 1
Z: fieldval:hTotal = 2

Of course, you can't use the Value and hTotal fields for anything else (hTotal is usually used for charges, so if your feat has charges, this would not work). Your specials can then have any script they want, as long as they run after First/10000, it will work.

There are other ways, but this might give you some ideas of some of the things you can do.

BTW, you can use thingid for your custom expression. For the feat above, I used this as my custom expression:

Code: 
thingid.xRvnHVCanj | thingid.xRvnHVCorv | thingid.xRvnHVEqua | thingid.xRvnHVKami | thingid.xRvnHVNaia | thingid.xRvnHVVatm | thingid.xRvnHVZaro
 
@Sendric
You said,
Special abilities have a value field called "Value". Set Y's Value = 1, and Z's Value = 2.
Click to expand...
. When I looked into the field, I tried to set Field ID as value, but that came up with an error. Tried names I thought would work, but got more errors. Where can I add a new ID or where can I get a list of IDs I can work with?

Sorry for the delays in replies. Very busy.
 
Sevisin said:
@Sendric
You said, . When I looked into the field, I tried to set Field ID as value, but that came up with an error. Tried names I thought would work, but got more errors. Where can I add a new ID or where can I get a list of IDs I can work with?

Sorry for the delays in replies. Very busy.
Click to expand...

The field is "Value" with a capital "V". It's cap-sensitive. You can see what fields any one thing has in HL using two ways. Either way, you'll need to make sure Enable Data File Debugging is checked in the Develop menu.

The first way is easier. Some things you can get to by right-clicking on them in your portfolio. For example, if you have your character loaded up, and the special appears in the special tab or class tab, you can right-click on it and select "Show Debug Fields". This will bring up a window that shows every field your special has. The field "Value" is found at the bottom. Most fields, like Value, are number-based. Some fields, though, are text-based or are arrays. You may also see some that are matrix-based. These are a bit tricky to deal with, so I recommend avoiding them.

The other way takes longer but gives you access to everything on your character:

Let's say you want to see what fields your class has. To do this, do the following:

First, select a class. I'll use Fighter as an example.

Second, go to Develop --> Floating Info Windows --> Show Selection Fields

This brings up a list of options. You can select more than one, but for this exercise, simply select "Fighter (cHelpFtr)" and hit ok.

You will get a window that shows all of the fields for your Fighter class. Every class has the same fields, but of course the values of these fields change.
 
Okay, here is what I have so far... Feat X and two special abilities A and B.

Feat X has the following...
Eval Script Pre-levels @9500
Code: 
~ If we're disabled, do nothing
  doneif (tagis[Helper.FtDisable] <> 0)

~ If we haven't chosen anything, get out now
  doneif (field[fChosen].ischosen = 0)

~ If something has been chosen
~ "Dragon Bloodline" has to do with the name of the feat for Dragonwrought
if (field[fChosen].ischosen <> 0) then
  field[fShortName].text = "Dragon Bloodline: " & field[fChosen].chosen.field[name].text
endif
This block works.

Eval Script First @9500
Code: 
doneif (field[fChosen].ischosen = 0)

var tribe as number
tribe = field[fChosen].chosen.field[Value].value
field[hTotal].value = tribe
On testing, I get an error...
Code: 
Attempt to access field 'Value' that does not exist for thing 'cDK_01'
Location: 'eval' script for Thing 'fDrgWrgt' (Eval Script '#2') near line 4
cDK_01 is the dragon bloodline for the feat and will be numbered sequentially (cDK_02, cDK_03, ect). This line comes up no matter which I pick with the cDK properly incriminating.

Bootstrap
cDK_01 with the condition first 10000
Code: 
fieldval:hTotal=1
and cDK_02 with the condition First 10000
Code: 
fieldval:hTotal=2

The two custom abilities, A (with the unique ID cDK_01) and B (with the unique ID cDK_02) have the following...
Field
Field Id: hTotal ~ got an error if left blank or named it something else
Value: 1 ~ or 2 respectively for cDK_02

A majority of the code was either translated and written from the Weapon Focus feat or the blocks of code given from above. I put the priority from 9500 to 11000 and still got the same error. What am I missing?
 
Special abilities use the field "Value". Of that, I am certain. Custom abilities do not, though, I don't think. Can you attach the .user file? It might be easier if I take a look at it rather than trying to go back and forth so I can get a better understanding of what exactly is going on.
 
@Sendric
Sure. Prepare to me "amazed" at my awesome skillz (< notice the z?).

Code: 
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="ISO-8859-1"?>
<document signature="Hero Lab Data">
  <thing id="rDsrtKbld" name="_Desert Kobold" description="Desert kobolds live like scaly, intelligent rats, hiding in forgotten corners of settlements, living just over the dunes from trading posts, and always reappearing right after the residents think they&apos;ve finally been killed off.\n\nDesert kobolds claim they were among the first to settle the deserts, and that gnomes threw them out into the wilderness. Though their survival relies on goods available at oasis settlements and trading posts, desert kobolds hate the gnomes who often build and run such settlements.\n\nThe life of a desert kobold is one of constant fear, which motivates them to build traps and fortifications and to ambush intruders. Some few kobolds, however, seek peace of mind through personal power and boon companions. These rare individuals become adventurers.\n\nRacial Traits: Desert kobolds have the following racial traits.\n\n+2 Dexterity, -4 Strength, -2 Wisdom: Desert kobolds are hardier than other kobolds, but are weak-willed.\n\nNo light sensitivity unlike other Kobolds.\n\nHumanoid (Reptilian).\n\nSmall size: +1 bonus to Armor Class, +1 bonus on attack rolls, +4 bonus on Hide checks, -4 penalty on grapple checks, lifting and carrying limits 3/4 of those of Medium characters.\n\nA desert kobold&apos;s base land speed is 30 feet.\n\nDarkvision out to 60 feet.\n\n+1 natural armor bonus.\n\nHeat Endurance: Desert kobolds gain a +4 racial bonus on Fortitude saves made to resist the effects of hot weather.\n\n+2 racial bonus on Craft (trapmaking), Search, and Survival checks.\n\nAutomatic Language: Draconic. Bonus Languages: Common, Undercommon.\n\nFavored Class: Rogue. A multiclass desert kobold&apos;s rogue class does not count when determining whether he takes an experience point penalty for multiclassing.\n\nLevel Adjustment: +0." compset="Race" summary="Desert Kobold">
    <fieldval field="rSTR" value="-4"/>
    <fieldval field="rDEX" value="2"/>
    <fieldval field="rInfFavor" value="Rogue"/>
    <fieldval field="rInfAutoLn" value="Draconic"/>
    <fieldval field="rCR" value="1/4"/>
    <fieldval field="rWIS" value="-2"/>
    <fieldval field="rHeightMnF" value="20"/>
    <fieldval field="rHeightMnM" value="20"/>
    <fieldval field="rWeightMnF" value="20"/>
    <fieldval field="rWeightMnM" value="25"/>
    <fieldval field="rAgeMin" value="30"/>
    <tag group="Language" tag="lDraconic" name="Draconic" abbrev="Draconic"/>
    <tag group="Language" tag="lUndercomm" name="Undercommon" abbrev="Undercommon"/>
    <tag group="RaceSize" tag="Small11" name="Small" abbrev="Small"/>
    <tag group="RaceType" tag="Normal"/>
    <tag group="Language" tag="lCommonND" name="Common" abbrev="Common"/>
    <tag group="HeightDice" tag="1"/>
    <tag group="HeightSize" tag="6"/>
    <tag group="WeightDice" tag="1"/>
    <tag group="WeightSize" tag="6"/>
    <tag group="Hero" tag="NoDefComm"/>
    <tag group="Race" tag="typHumanoi"/>
    <tag group="Race" tag="Kobold"/>
    <bootstrap thing="xDkVsnKbld"></bootstrap>
    <bootstrap thing="lDraconic"></bootstrap>
    <eval phase="PreLevel">~ +2 to Craft (Trapmaking), Profession (Miner), and Search
      #skillbonus[kCrafTrap] += 2
      #skillbonus[kSearch] += 2
      #skillbonus[kSurvival] += 2</eval>
    <eval phase="First" index="2"><![CDATA[      var result as number

      ~ We don't know Common by default!
      result = hero.assign[Hero.NoDefComm]]]></eval>
    </thing>
  <thing id="fDrgwrgt" name="_Dragonwrought" description="You were born a Dragonwrought Kobold, proof of your race&apos;s innate connection to dragons.\n\nPrerequisites: Kobold, 1st level only.\n\nBenefit: You are a Dragonwrought Kobold. Your type is dragon rather than humanoid, and you lose the dragonblood subtype. You retain all your other subtypes and your kobold racial traits. Your scales become tinted with a color that matches that of your draconic heritage. As a dragon, you are immune to magic sleep and paralysis effects. You have darkvision out to 60 feet and low-light vision. You gain a +2 racial bonus on the skill indicated for your draconic heritage on the table on page 103 in Races of the Dragon. \n\nSpecial: Unlike most feats, this feat must be taken at 1st level, during character creation. Having this feat allows you to take the Dragon Wings feat at 3rd level." compset="Feat" summary="Kobold Dragon ancestry">
    <fieldval field="ftCandExpr" value="User.DragonKind"/>
    <usesource source="RoD"/>
    <tag group="fCategory" tag="Racial"/>
    <bootstrap thing="xImmParaly"></bootstrap>
    <bootstrap thing="rLowLight"></bootstrap>
    <bootstrap thing="cDK_01">
      <containerreq phase="First" priority="10000">fieldval:hTotal = 1</containerreq>
      </bootstrap>
    <bootstrap thing="cDK_02">
      <containerreq phase="First" priority="10000">fieldval:hTotal = 2</containerreq>
      </bootstrap>
    <bootstrap thing="xImmSleep"></bootstrap>
    <eval phase="PreLevel" priority="5000"><![CDATA[doneif (tagis[Helper.FtDisable] <> 0)
doneif (field[fChosen].ischosen = 0)

~ If something has been chosen
if (field[fChosen].ischosen <> 0) then
  field[fShortName].text = "Dragon Bloodline: " & field[fChosen].chosen.field[name].text
endif]]></eval>
    <eval phase="First" priority="9500" index="2">doneif (field[fChosen].ischosen = 0)

var tribe as number
~tribe = field[fChosen].chosen.field[abValue].value
~field[hTotal].value = tribe</eval>
    <eval phase="First" priority="20000" index="3">perform hero.delete[Race.typHumanoi]
perform hero.assign[Race.typDragon]</eval>
    <exprreq message=""><![CDATA[hero.tagis[Race.Kobold] <> 0]]></exprreq>
    </thing>
  <thing id="cDK_01" name="Amethyst" description="Used for the feat Dragonwrought\nAmethyst Dragon Blood (MM2)\n\nDescriptor or Subschool:\nForce\n\nClass Skill:\nDiplomacy\n\nSpells Known:\nDelay Poison, Invisibility, Suggestion" compset="CustomSpec">
    <fieldval field="hTotal" value="1"/>
    <tag group="User" tag="DragonKind"/>
    <eval phase="PostLevel">~ +2 to Diplomacy
      #skillbonus[kDiplomacy] += 2</eval>
    </thing>
  <thing id="xDkVsnKbld" name="Darkvision" description="You can see in the dark (black and white vision only)." compset="Special" summary="Darkvision 60&apos;" uniqueness="unique">
    <fieldval field="Value" value="60"/>
    <tag group="SpecType" tag="Sense" name="Sense" abbrev="Sense"/>
    <tag group="Helper" tag="ShowSpec" name="ShowSpec" abbrev="ShowSpec"/>
    <tag group="SpecSource" tag="rKobold2"/>
    <eval phase="Final" priority="10000"><![CDATA[
      call CalcValue

      ~ Use our value field as the range of our darkvision.
      field[livename].text = field[name].text & " (" & field[Value].value & " feet)"]]></eval>
    </thing>
  <thing id="cDK_02" name="Battle" description="Used for the feat Dragonwrought\nBattle Dragon Blood (Dr)\n\nDescriptor or Subschool:\nSonic\n\nClass Skill:\nPerform\n\nSpells Known:\nAid, Heroism, Protection from Evil" compset="CustomSpec">
    <fieldval field="hTotal" value="2"/>
    <tag group="User" tag="DragonKind"/>
    <eval phase="PostLevel">~ +2 to Perform 
      #skillbonus[kPerfAct] += 2
      #skillbonus[kPerfCom] += 2
      #skillbonus[kPerfDance] += 2
      #skillbonus[kPerfKey] += 2
      #skillbonus[kPerfOrat] += 2
      #skillbonus[kPerfOther] += 2
      #skillbonus[kPerfPerc] += 2
      #skillbonus[kPerfSing] += 2
      #skillbonus[kPerfStrng] += 2
      #skillbonus[kPerfWind] += 2</eval>
    </thing>
  <thing id="cDK_03" name="Black" description="Used for the feat Dragonwrought\nBlack Dragon Blood (MM)\n\nDescriptor or Subschool:\nAcid\n\nClass Skill:\nHide\n\nSpells Known:\nCharm Animal (Snakes and Lizards only), Deeper Darkness, Insect Plague" compset="CustomSpec">
    <tag group="User" tag="DragonKind"/>
    <eval phase="PostLevel">~ +2 to Hide
      #skillbonus[kHide] += 2</eval>
    </thing>
  <thing id="cDK_04" name="Blue" description="Used for the feat Dragonwrought\nBlue Dragon Blood (MM)\n\nDescriptor or Subschool:\nElectricity\n\nClass Skill:\nHide\n\nSpells Known:\nMajor Image, Mirage Arcana, Ventriliquism" compset="CustomSpec">
    <tag group="User" tag="DragonKind"/>
    <eval phase="PostLevel">~ +2 to Hide
      #skillbonus[kHide] += 2</eval>
    </thing>
  <thing id="fDrgTail" name="_Dragon Tail" description="Your draconic ancestry manifests as a muscular tail you can use in combat.\n\n{b}Prerequisites:{/b} Dragonblood subtype, 1st level only.\n\n{b}Benefit:{/b} You have a tail that you can use to make a\nsecondary natural attack in combat. This attack deals\nbludgeoning damage according to your size, as shown\non the table below. If you already have a tail slap attack\nwhen you take this feat, use the value from the table or\nyour existing damage value, whichever is greater.\n\nSize, Tail Slap Damage\nFine, 1\nDiminutive, 1d2\nTiny, 1d3\nSmall, 1d4\nMedium, 1d6\nLarge, 1d8\nHuge, 2d6\nGargantuan, 2d8\nColossal, 4d6\n\n{b}Special:{/b} Unlike most feats, this feat must be taken at\n1st level, during character creation." compset="Feat" summary="Your draconic ancestry manifests as a muscular tail you can use in combat.">
    <tag group="fCategory" tag="General"/>
    </thing>
  </document>

Please see following post for details.
 
Last edited:
I'm working on two incomplete tasks for That Damned Kobold build. One is the Dragonwrought feat but I'm stuck on the +2 skill bonus the selection of dragon gives (and other benefits, but the +2 skill bonus is a good stepping stone in my opinion). The second incomplete task is the Dragon Tail feat. I'm stuck on the changing out of the Race tag (Race.hypHumanoi to Race.DragonKind). The forum post for the Dragon Tail roadblock is found here. By the way, thank you for replying to that too. I'll look into that shortly. The checklist of all feats for The Damn Kobold build is as follows...

Dragonwrought (Races of the Dragon pg 100) - In Progress
Dragon Tail (Races of the Dragon pg 98) - In Progress
Multiattack (Monster Manual pg 304) - Already Implemented (in my version of HL)
Improved Multiattack (Savage Species pg 36) - Already Implemented (in my version of HL)
Daring Outlaw (Complete Scoundrel pg 76) - Already Implemented (in my version of HL)
Craven (Champion of Ruin pg 17) - Next Task
Rapidstrike (Dracinomicon pg 73) - Already Implemented (in my version of HL)
Improved Rapidstrike (Draconomicon pg 70) - Already Implemented (in my version of HL)

Once I'm done, I do plan on posting this into the community repository. Maybe it can be implemented into a greater file for ease of download..?

Again, thanks for looking into it. I hope I gave enough information on where I'm at with the project. Though I'm posting for help, I would like to finish it on my own so that I can learn how to do certain tasks in the Hero Lab Editor.

Update: Second task done. Apparently, was just a timing issue. Check it out here if you're interested.
 
Last edited:
Ah. Ok, now I see what's going on. The abilities "Amethyst, Battle, Black, Blue" should be put in as Specials instead of Custom Abilities. Custom Abilities do not use the Value field, which is why you are getting the error.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top