Greetings and Salutations. So as some of you know, I made the Palladium Fantasy® Interactive Character Sheet a while back. When I made that, I also made a NPC Sheet. Palladium hasn't really shown much interest in it, but there was at least some request for some magic and psionics to be included. Psionics are (relatively) easy. I started on a Spell List back in April, but because I don't know if Palladium will do anything with it my dedication to it has been lacking (I don't play or run enough these days to warrant the work for my own purposes). I've recently done a major overhaul to how I handled Attributes (now providing options to select, with Average as the default) and this has gotten me back into it. This is what I have so far, but I'm wondering if there are some better methods.
* Full list of Second Edition main book spells, which can be separated by spell type (Invocation, as well as each of the four Elemental spells). While some Elemental spells overlap with Invocations, they often have a few differences (such as cost, duration, or saving throw).
* Spell level
* Duration
* Range
* P.P.E. Cost
* Saving Throw indicates Standard, None, Horror Factor or Dodge (along with target number), etc.
* Damage/Area Effect/Other, a field that has various information depending on the spell. This usually helps to give critical snippets of information without needing to look up the spell.
* Book Location (book and page number for easy reference)
Now, Palladium isn't the best for consistency, so I had to make some judgment calls and alterations as I've moved forward. I used this poll (for example) to help come up with answers I wasn't sure on. I've finished 235 of 383 spells (finished Air Warlock, but still have Earth, Fire, and Water to go) and started having some second thoughts about the way I've been doing things. So I thought I'd come here and see some other people's opinions. I will, of course, need to have a similar breakdown of how each category is broken down in the sheet itself (this way a user doesn't have to guess what I mean).
Range: I've put this into a few categories.
* Self: Works on the spell caster only.
* Touch: Works on the spell caster, or others by Touch. Also for "Immediate Area" spells and spells where the spell caster seems to be the focal point of the spell. But should I put Immediate Area (usually will have Area Effect attached to it) as a separate category, or does Touch convey this well enough?
* xx ft/miles/etc.: Anything with a range. If something says "Touch or 3 ft", I just put 3 ft. 3 ft will include Touch and Self (unless specified otherwise).
Damage/Area Effect/Other: The heading will change depending on type, but this includes how much damage an attack spell inflicts, the amount of protection from armor or wall spells, the Area Effect (often Range) of other spells, Limits (such as 100 words or some such), Heal for how much the spell heals, and other aspects. When spells have more than one, I tried to pick the one that best fits the spirit of the spell. The heading is also designed to help someone quickly figure out the main purpose of the spell (Damage, Heal, Protection, Area Effect, etc.).
* Area of Effect: I've tried to put this into Radius, whenever possible. Anything that lists "diameter" has the area cut in half to make it the radius (so, for example, 60 ft diameter becomes 30 ft). This is to help keep things consistent. When a spell simply lists "area" (without detail) I've left it as is (so, 30 ft area remains 30 ft). I'm starting to think maybe I should have gone with "area" being diameter, and halving the range, but I'm not sure on this and it would also mean going back through 235 spells. I can't say I'd look forward to that, but accuracy and consistency is important to me (to make it as easy as possible on the end user). Of course, I could also go back through everything and make them all diameter (instead of radius). Note: If none of the headings fit well, Area Effect "N/A" is the default listing.
Duration: The duration listed is for the duration of the spell (not necessarily its effects). So a spell that has permanent duration will likely read "Instant" instead (typical with Healing/Mending type spells). All spells have had their durations converted into seconds/minutes/hours/etc (ergo, there will be no "melee rounds" listed).
In addition, I eventually want to add a 2 line (or less) summary of each spell. These should contain all the necessary information to use the spell without the need to look it up (unless you want specific wording for more unorthodox usage). However, that takes a long time. I did this for the first 3 levels of Invocations, and then stopped for the remainder. I want a usable frame first, before I start worrying about the finer details. Note: I'm also not sure if the 2 line summary will work for some of the more complicated/detailed spells.
Any opinions are welcome. Thanks for your time. Farewell and safe journeys.
* Full list of Second Edition main book spells, which can be separated by spell type (Invocation, as well as each of the four Elemental spells). While some Elemental spells overlap with Invocations, they often have a few differences (such as cost, duration, or saving throw).
* Spell level
* Duration
* Range
* P.P.E. Cost
* Saving Throw indicates Standard, None, Horror Factor or Dodge (along with target number), etc.
* Damage/Area Effect/Other, a field that has various information depending on the spell. This usually helps to give critical snippets of information without needing to look up the spell.
* Book Location (book and page number for easy reference)
Now, Palladium isn't the best for consistency, so I had to make some judgment calls and alterations as I've moved forward. I used this poll (for example) to help come up with answers I wasn't sure on. I've finished 235 of 383 spells (finished Air Warlock, but still have Earth, Fire, and Water to go) and started having some second thoughts about the way I've been doing things. So I thought I'd come here and see some other people's opinions. I will, of course, need to have a similar breakdown of how each category is broken down in the sheet itself (this way a user doesn't have to guess what I mean).
Range: I've put this into a few categories.
* Self: Works on the spell caster only.
* Touch: Works on the spell caster, or others by Touch. Also for "Immediate Area" spells and spells where the spell caster seems to be the focal point of the spell. But should I put Immediate Area (usually will have Area Effect attached to it) as a separate category, or does Touch convey this well enough?
* xx ft/miles/etc.: Anything with a range. If something says "Touch or 3 ft", I just put 3 ft. 3 ft will include Touch and Self (unless specified otherwise).
Damage/Area Effect/Other: The heading will change depending on type, but this includes how much damage an attack spell inflicts, the amount of protection from armor or wall spells, the Area Effect (often Range) of other spells, Limits (such as 100 words or some such), Heal for how much the spell heals, and other aspects. When spells have more than one, I tried to pick the one that best fits the spirit of the spell. The heading is also designed to help someone quickly figure out the main purpose of the spell (Damage, Heal, Protection, Area Effect, etc.).
* Area of Effect: I've tried to put this into Radius, whenever possible. Anything that lists "diameter" has the area cut in half to make it the radius (so, for example, 60 ft diameter becomes 30 ft). This is to help keep things consistent. When a spell simply lists "area" (without detail) I've left it as is (so, 30 ft area remains 30 ft). I'm starting to think maybe I should have gone with "area" being diameter, and halving the range, but I'm not sure on this and it would also mean going back through 235 spells. I can't say I'd look forward to that, but accuracy and consistency is important to me (to make it as easy as possible on the end user). Of course, I could also go back through everything and make them all diameter (instead of radius). Note: If none of the headings fit well, Area Effect "N/A" is the default listing.
Duration: The duration listed is for the duration of the spell (not necessarily its effects). So a spell that has permanent duration will likely read "Instant" instead (typical with Healing/Mending type spells). All spells have had their durations converted into seconds/minutes/hours/etc (ergo, there will be no "melee rounds" listed).
In addition, I eventually want to add a 2 line (or less) summary of each spell. These should contain all the necessary information to use the spell without the need to look it up (unless you want specific wording for more unorthodox usage). However, that takes a long time. I did this for the first 3 levels of Invocations, and then stopped for the remainder. I want a usable frame first, before I start worrying about the finer details. Note: I'm also not sure if the 2 line summary will work for some of the more complicated/detailed spells.
Any opinions are welcome. Thanks for your time. Farewell and safe journeys.
