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I did the upgrade path way back when FGU was first announced. Have never used it for a Game - neither as a player or DM. I'm wanting to get back into playing but curious as to what 'add-ons' are available that are most popular. I had many for my FG system but it's been awhile so I don't know what's out there now.
Any help would be greatly appreciated.
I'm planning on going ahead and going D&D 5.5 and getting the new Ravenloft. I've run many League games and looking to play DM/Again.
There have been a whole host of changes to FG since Unity and many extensions that used to be around are no longer needed. However it's very difficult to say what extensions you would want or need. There's no point in loading a bunch of extensions just because they exist. Generally I'd advise that you play a few sessions without extensions to find out where your group's pain points are and then maybe have a look to see whether an extension might ease that.
Most extensions can now be found here https://forge.fantasygrounds.com/ You can use the filters to narrow down a list of what's available for the ruleset that you want to use.
Okie dokie. I'll play around first.
There have been a huge amount of enhancements and incorporating extensions into FG. So just running out of the box is, imo, the best place to start. Then as always, when you find something that you want to change the behavior to or add a feature, check out the Forge. Also, and though the forums here still remain healthy and active, the official Discord channel may often get you quicker responses if you are in need of a quick answer :) (I only use it when I'm going to stick around and wait for an answer, otherwise things easily get lost in the threads.)
The biggest changes from FG Classic to the current version is around maps and stories. The Story window can still be used in the old-fashioned way, but there are now advanced story entries and these can be arranged within a reference manual (book) where you mix images and text inline as opposed to only being able to link to images.
Images now support layers. You can have a GM and a player view of the same image open at the same time and have the GM layer only visible to the GM. You can reveal additional layers as they are discovered. For instance, in the new Ravenloft module, there are a bunch of locations where each location tag can be revealed as it is discovered by the players -- or all at once if you prefer. Those are stored in folders with each of the layers underneath. Not every module since FG classic does this, but it is our new standard (at least for D&D) and will be used on newer modules whenever the publisher provides us with enough source information to do so.
You can also use maps just like you did in FG Classic by using the mask layer and cutting away the mask as you reveal things. Most GMs now prefer to use the dynamic line of sight system instead. It has polygonal lines drawn along all the wall edges so it blocks line of sight of players as they move through the dungeon or map. If you buy the art pack subscription or purchase any tile based packs, these have the LOS definitions on the tiles and you can just snap them together on a map, rotate them, or even scale them, and the LOS adjusts with the base images. Some of our art packs include "brush" images that allow you paint pathways, roads, rivers, fences, etc. along a free-form path or along straight lines. The wiki has a bunch of details about each of those.
Lots of other quality of life updates are included as well, such as not having to open ports in your firewall when you host a game.
You all forgot the new dice, because we all need more dice...
Good point. The dice are yet another new addition. Damage and text effects also.
And the enhanced effects that are now available with the recent update!