Pathfinder 2, Release 18, and Excitement Going Forward

[ShadeRaven]

I didn't want to clog up Trenloe's Release 18 Testing post with non-essential comments, but I have to admit, it's pretty inspiring seeing what is coming down the pipe.

Today, I tossed out a blog post about Unity and the Line-of-Sight fun it adds to our online experience (you can find the post here, if interested). As I was doing that, it really did get me thinking about how awesome playing RPGs are now with the evolution of Fantasy Grounds as a VTT. In fact, I enjoy some things so much, I am trying to figure out how to incorporate it into live, face-to-face games (there's a community center locally that I am looking to host a D&D/Pathfinder 2 night at). It really is fantastic.

Tren's work on the ruleset is amazing and in under 2 years we've seen it get exponentially better. Release 18 is just another example of how many improvements we have in store for us (not to mention the hard work he puts into it)!

For my side, I am hoping to get the Bestiary 3 out as close to the release date of the product by Paizo and am happy to say I have closed the gap on the APs such that their release for FG should also be close to their physical versions going forward. We also see the Pathfinder Society items coming out steadily as well, along with some of the other, similar, individual adventures.

I am looking forward to the day when we see the store filled with options for Pathfinder Second Edition players, including 3rd party products from the creative minds that contribute to the industry. PF2 is a terrific RPG and its use on the best VTT is improving every week - and that's exciting to me.

[Willot]

I am looking forward to the day when we see the store filled with options for Pathfinder Second Edition players

Never fear my brother, our numbers grow daily and soon these 5e dogs will know their place!

/emote raises clinched fist skyward! "GLORY TO THE STARSTONE!"

[MaxAstro]

My feelings exactly, ShadeRaven. All the stuff in release 18 has raised my hype to maximum. This kind of automation is exactly why I have stuck with Fantasy Grounds over other VTT options so far. Dynamic lighting is the only thing I've really missed going from MapTool to Fantasy Grounds, and seeing it not just implemented but implemented even better than it was in MapTool is incredible.

[Dark Mullisha]

agree with Max, the Lighting effects are going to be game-changing.

[MaxAstro]

After having tested it in a session today, I can say that the vision ranges and player-specific vision are absolutely amazing and a great source of hilarity. During a party split my players managed to get lost, and then come within about ten feet of finding each other, miss completely, and then when one group got in trouble the other group ended up taking completely the long way around to find them.

After the combat they discovered that they had been on opposite sides of the same door and not realized it.

Absolutely beautiful.

[lostsanityreturned]

I have some niggles and gripes, things that can be improved on. BUT it is so far ahead of the competion with PF2e, people praise foundry and while some of it is deserved, if someone is playing 5e or PF2e they are really better off with FG if they can afford it.

I really look forward Smiteworks to fix their slowdown of the action tab for spellcasters though, it is pretty awful at mid levels and above and is a constant point of complaint for some of my players. (Not a PF2e ruleset issue though)

I am very close to finishing a form shifting solution which will make shapeshifting less hellish automation wise.

[Surge]

FG is by far the most feature heavy VTT, which is a great thing. I think it's biggest downside is the performance. While in my experience Roll20 is no better, Foundry does seem to be winning in that space, which is a shame. With FGU still being new, hoping for some drastic performance improvements in the future isn't unrealistic.

[ShadeRaven]

I had the rare pleasure of being a player this past weekend, and we conducted our journey on the Test server with the lighting effects. It looks amazing!

Interestingly, like Max, in one of my GM run campaigns, the Line of Sight feature has lead to quite a few humorous and interesting events where LOS was broken amongst party members and great difficulties ensued trying to reunite, especially when someone closed the door behind them as they left a room that a couple of the PCs was still within (before moving on).

Without a doubt, there is some bugs out there to clean up and some efficiency of resource use needed, but .. man .. it's great stuff we see unfolding.

[Brysun]

I can't wait for R18 release, it is just so chock full of goodness. Like you I'm starting to wonder if I can stop using FGU when I go back to in-person gaming it just THAT good.