Does the Ruleset Include the Monsters/NPCs that are in the Core Rule Book?

[kronovan]

Reading the store description, it isn't clear whether or not the monsters or NPCs in the core rule book are also included in the FG ruleset?

If I buy the ruleset I plan to run the Midgard Campaign Setting with it, so I wouldn't be looking to purchase the FG 13A Bestiary accessory - at least not initially. I've gotten quick at building monsters and NPCs with other rulesets by copying & pasting from my PDFs and that's what I plan on doing with the 13A Midgard Bestiary. That won't work though if the 13A ruleset doesn't give me a template for monsters or NPCs. Not to mention that there's a number of monsters in the 13A CRB that are useful in a Midgard campaign.

[njohn858]

Everything that's in the actual Corebook is in the 13A FG ruleset, including the Monsters. You could also get the Bestiary for FG if you want more monsters to choose from.

(attaching a screenshot image as inserting it inline doesn't seem to be working)

[kronovan]

Many thanks for the reply njohn and really appreciate you linking the image. I read a post that the 13A FG ruleset doesn't contain the corebook classes.
That post was year or more old though, so are they now in the ruleset? What about the 13 Ways classes?

[njohn858]

All the core classes are there. You can use the Reference Manual for an easier way of seeing all of it (see attached screenshot for an example), or you can access the specific Powers/Feats in those sections of FG. Really, you could get this ruleset and be able to run the game without needing to also buy the physical book or the PDF. It's all there in the Reference Manual.

The 13TW classes are _not_ in that ruleset, but the community has made modules for all of them. See this thread:
https://www.fantasygrounds.com/forum...or-13-Trueways

Once you download the mod files, just move them into your "%appdata%\Fantasy Grounds\modules" folder and Load them when you're running the game. They don't have the nice Reference Manual look/feel to them, but the powers/feats/tables/NPCs/etc are there for the players to look up or drag/drop onto their character sheets.

[kronovan]

All the core classes are there. You can use the Reference Manual for an easier way of seeing all of it (see attached screenshot for an example), or you can access the specific Powers/Feats in those sections of FG. Really, you could get this ruleset and be able to run the game without needing to also buy the physical book or the PDF. It's all there in the Reference Manual.

Thanks again for replying with good info. I'm new to 13A, so I'm not sure how valid my expectations are and I'm aware it's much more narrative than similar RPGs - particularly its Backgrounds. I own the PDFs for both the Corebook and 13 Ways, so I've at least read them once - not necessarily saying that info stuck in my brain though.
By classes, I envisioned something like D&D 5e or 4e where "Classes" is an item in the top section of the Library. Such that a GM or player can click it and then see a popup window with a listing of all classes and open any 1 they desire. Or even better - drag & drop them to a Player Character sheet. I was also imagining the ability to create new classes via a button on the same window. I guess what I'm thinking is something structured like the D&D 5e or 4e rulesets. I'm certainly familiar with RPGs that take a different approach to classes, as I've done a lot of homebrewing with the FG Savage Worlds ruleset.

So I guess my follow up question would be - is there a structured Library-Classes item like other d20 based rulesets and can a class be dragged & dropped to a PC sheet?

The 13TW classes are _not_ in that ruleset, but the community has made modules for all of them. See this thread:
https://www.fantasygrounds.com/forum...or-13-Trueways

Once you download the mod files, just move them into your "%appdata%\Fantasy Grounds\modules" folder and Load them when you're running the game. They don't have the nice Reference Manual look/feel to them, but the powers/feats/tables/NPCs/etc are there for the players to look up or drag/drop onto their character sheets.

Oh yes, I'd seen that thread and somehow came away with the impression those fan-made classes were done via extensions - not an idea I like because I've twice had extensions corrupt a campaign to the point of no repair. Modules I'm familiar and comfortable with, having exported a number of them for my SW homebrews.

[njohn858]

Welcome to 13th Age! It's a fun, narrative system that is easy to play, regardless of which side of the GM screen you're sitting on. And while it's certainly not perfect, FG does do a good job bringing the key pieces together (like being able to see everyone's backgrounds and Icon Relationships on one screen or auto-including the Escalation Die, etc).

So I guess my follow up question would be - is there a structured Library-Classes item like other d20 based rulesets and can a class be dragged & dropped to a PC sheet?

There isn't a robust character-creation process in FG for 13A, where you can drag an entire class onto your sheet and select the different options. But you _can_ drag/drop specific powers and feats onto the character sheet to populate it that way.

You could always use something like this (https://www.afqa123.com/projects/13thage/) or this (https://www.toolkit13.com/) to go through a guided character creation, then reference that sheet to get it set up in FG.

Despite the lack of that drag/drop class feature though, it doesn't take very long to create a 13A character in FG. Especially if you're looking at a completed sheet and just copy/pasting it into FG.

[kronovan]

Welcome to 13th Age! It's a fun, narrative system that is easy to play, regardless of which side of the GM screen you're sitting on. And while it's certainly not perfect, FG does do a good job bringing the key pieces together (like being able to see everyone's backgrounds and Icon Relationships on one screen or auto-including the Escalation Die, etc).

Sounds terrific and those features like the escalation die are one of the reasons I'm attracted to it - that and I'm just getting real bored with 5e.

There isn't a robust character-creation process in FG for 13A, where you can drag an entire class onto your sheet and select the different options. But you _can_ drag/drop specific powers and feats onto the character sheet to populate it that way.

OK, cool. That's more or less same way you do it with the Savage Worlds ruleset; powers are powers with it too, but feats are called Edges. You also drag skills to your PC sheet in SW; being a skills-based RPG that's where it primarily differs from 13A.

You could always use something like this (https://www.afqa123.com/projects/13thage/) or this (https://www.toolkit13.com/) to go through a guided character creation, then reference that sheet to get it set up in FG.

Despite the lack of that drag/drop class feature though, it doesn't take very long to create a 13A character in FG. Especially if you're looking at a completed sheet and just copy/pasting it into FG.

Probably doable for my group, because they did something similar with referencing D&DBeyond PC sheets and then rebuilding in FG 5e, and copying & pasting from a SW form-fillable PDF to build FG SW PCs. You can't copy & paste to the PC sheet with the 5e ruleset though, so this might be a case where the approach that 13A and SW take can actually make things easier.