Creating A New Character Tutorial

Video Tutorials

The following video tutorials were created to compliment the Creating A New Character Tutorial page below.

Creating a New Character Tutorial

First, make sure that you have opened all the modules you expect to use to create your character. Then, open the character window by clicking on the CHARACTERS button on the Sidebar to the right. Now, click on the Add Item (green ‘+’ button at the bottom-right) of the Character Selection window. This will open a new, blank character sheet.

Open

To demonstrate many of the features of Fantasy Grounds VTT, as well as outlining a suggested method of creating a character that automates as much as possible and gives a highly functional character sheet, let's create a Dwarven Cleric. Along the way, we'll also find out what all the buttons, boxes and crosses you find scattered about do.

Add Ability Scores

Open

Unlike the method detailed in the Player's Handbook (PHB), we're going to start with the character's ability scores. To edit an ability score, click in the box of the ability you want to edit and type in the new number.

Go ahead and edit the numbers to give the character the following abilities in the ABILITIES column from top to bottom; 14,12,13,10,15,8. We are using the standard array here, but obviously you can use whatever method you want to determine your character's abilities. Once you have finished, you will notice that Fantasy Grounds VTT has taken those scores and adjusted various aspects of the sheet such as saving throws, initiative and perception.

If you look at the Skills tab, you'll find some numbers in the 'Total' column as well. Any time that you alter your abilities, Fantasy Grounds VTT will recalculate such dependent scores; so, for example, if your Wisdom increased to 16, giving you a +3 instead of a +2 bonus any saving throw or skill which relies on Wisdom will increase by one point, as would your passive perception.

Add Race ( Legacy)

Next up, we'll add our Race (as they are known in Legacy products) into the sheet. Click on the SPECIES button on the Sidebar menu. This will open a list of Species (Races) that are available to you from any module that you have open.

Find Dwarf in that list, then click on and drag the link icon to the left of ‘Dwarf’ onto the ‘SPECIES’ section of the Character Sheet. The Select Ancestry (Subclass) windows will then pop up prompting you to select one of the available types of Dwarf. Select Hill Dwarf and then click on the checkmark icon at the bottom of the window. Finally, the Select Proficiencies window will open prompting you to choose one of the listed proficiencies. Here, we have chosen Mason’s Tools in the example below.

Once you have done this, you'll notice that several things have happened; The chat window on the left of the tabletop shows that a whole host of information has been entered into the character sheet automatically. Your character's CON has increased by 2 points to 15, WIS has gone up to 16, and Darkvision 60 has appeared under Senses.

Hill Dwarf has appeared in the SPECIES section of the Character Sheet along with two icons; one of which opens a page containing information about the Dwarf species (race) and the other opens a page of information about the Hill Dwarf ancestry (subrace).

If you check the Abilities tab, a number of Traits have been added, along with some Languages, and the Proficiency you chose (Tool: Mason’s Tools). To the right of each trait, you can click the round icon to bring up information about the trait.

Add Species ( 2024)

Open the Species list by clicking on the SPECIES button on the Sidebar to the right. This will open the available Species from any module you have open.

Find Dwarf in that list, then click on and drag the link icon to the left of ‘Dwarf’ onto the ‘SPECIES’ section of the Character Sheet.

The Select Languages window pops up and you can select up to two languages. Here, we’ll select Dwarvish and Giant. Once selected, checkmark icon in the bottom-right corner.

Dwarf has appeared in the SPECIES section of the Character Sheet along with an icon which opens a page containing information about the Dwarf species. This page contains two tabs; the Main tab with general information and much of the other information that was propagated into the Character Sheet, and an Other tab, which provides information such as Creature Type, Size, Speed, and Traits.

When you’re done, you’ll notice that the chat window will show a list of things that have been added to the character, such as the character’s SPEED (30) and Senses (Darkvision 120) on the Main tab, several TRAITS in the Abilities tab (Dwarven Resilience, Dwarven Toughness, and Stonecutting), and some actions in the Actions tab.

Add Background ( Legacy)

Next thing we want to do is add a Background to our character. Click on the ‘Backgrounds’ button on the right-hand menu to bring up a list of available backgrounds.

The one we want is Acolyte so go ahead and drag the icon beside the name into the Background section of the Character Sheet. Once again, you'll notice that the chat box shows that Fantasy Grounds VTT has added more information into the Character Sheet.

Click on the Skills tab and you will see that the little stars beside the Skills Insight and Religion have turned yellow. This indicates that your character is proficient in those Skills and you will note that the bonus in the Total column reflects this.

Add Background ( 2024)

Open the Backgrounds list by clicking on the Backgrounds button on the right-hand menu. Drag and drop the Acolyte background from that list and drop it into the Background section of the Character Sheet.

You will now get a pop up asking if you wish to add 2 points to one Ability score and one point to another different score: or to add a +1 to three scores (in this case Intelligence, Wisdom, and Charisma).

Click on the box beside the +2/+1 option (Increase one ability by +2, then another ability by +1), and then on the checkmark icon at the bottom of the window. You will now get another pop up asking you to choose which of the three options you want to add 2 points to. Select Intelligence and click the checkmark. In the next screen select Wisdom and then click on the checkmark icon.

A further pop up may then ask you to select which Ability score you wish to use as your Spellcasting ability. This choice is related to the Magic Initiate feat which the Acolyte background automatically gives you. Select Wisdom and click on the check box. Now you must choose two Cantrips from the pop-up list; choose Guidance and Toll the Dead. Finally, another pop-up wants you to select a 1^st level spell. Choose Bless and then click on the check box.

Looking through the Character Sheet, more information has been added to the character sheet in the Main, Skills, Abilities, and Actions tabs. Two Skills, Insight and Religion show yellow stars next to their name indicating that you are proficient in these Skills and the figure in the Total column shows that your proficiency bonus has been added.

Add Class ( Legacy)

We are now ready to get our Class into the Character Sheet.

Open the Classes list by clicking on the Classes button in the right-hand menu and drag Cleric into the Class & Level section on the Main tab of the Caracter Sheet. You will get a pop up asking you to select two Skills. We already got Insight and Religion from our Background so let's select History and Medicine.

Click on the checkmark and another selection box will appear asking you to select a Domain. This time select Life Domain and click the checkmark to finish.

As before, many changes have automatically been made. We now have Hit Points, more Class features, some Proficiencies and Languages. Also note that on the Main tab, the stars next to WIS and CHA Saving Throws have lit up showing that we have proficiency with Saving Throws involving those abilities.

Add Class ( 2024)

Open the Classes list by clicking on the Classes button on the right-hand menu.

Drag Cleric from that list and drop it onto the Class & Level section of the Main tab on the Character Sheet. You will get a pop-up inviting you to select two Skill Proficiencies. Select History and Medicine. Next, you will get a pop-up with a selection for the Divine Order trait. Select Protector. You may also be asked to select related Cantrips, Prepared Spells, and an Equipment Pack.

You can now browse through the Character Sheet and note that many more sections that have been filled in, including Hit Points, Skills, and in the Abilities tab, you have more Features and Proficiencies. Finally, in the Notes tab, you’ll see that there is now an entry for your size.

Get Equipment

It’s time to give our character some equipment. Click on the Inventory tab down the right of the character sheet and note that Fantasy Grounds has filled in the boxes for maximum weight and Lift, Push, Pull based on our character's strength ability. Click on the Items button on the right hand menu to open the items window. At the top of this window are buttons for Armor, Weapons, and Gear (ignore the templates button - we won’t be using that). Click on the Armor button and this will open a list of available armor. Our Cleric is proficient with Heavy Armor and shields so let's give them some Chain Mail and a shield. Find Chain Mail under the Heavy Armor heading and drag the icon to the left of the name and drop it into the inventory. Then do the same with Shield.

Let’s now give our Cleric some weapons. Click on the weapons button at the top of the items window and scroll down until you find Warhammer. Drag the icon next to it and drop that into the inventory. Do the same with Light Crossbow. Scroll down until you find 'Warhammer' under the Martial Weapons category and drag the icon beside it into the inventory tab. While we are here give the character a light crossbow (under Simple Ranged Weapons); drag it across just like you did the Warhammer.

Now click on the Gear button at the top of the Items window and drag and drop into the inventory Crossbow Bolts (20); an Amulet (under Holy Symbol); and an Explorer’s Pack (under equipment Packs).

Whilst you were doing all this you may have noticed that the weight of all this gear has been accumulated for you in the box marked 'current' in the encumbrance section. To the right of the 'WT' column you'll see a line of symbols. If you click on these symbols it will cycle through three options 'equipped', 'carried' and 'not carried'. If an item is 'not carried' then it will not be added to the character's encumbrance. You can also click any of the icons to the extreme right of any item in the list to get more information about them. If you now check the Main tab on the character sheet you can see that your Armor Class (AC) has gone up to 18 due to the character now wearing Chain Mail and carrying a shield; and finally if you flip over to the 'Actions' tab you'll find that Fantasy Grounds has added the selected weapons to the weapons list along with their attack and damage rolls.

Domain Spells

Our Cleric is a spellcaster, so our next step is to add some spells to the Actions tab of our character sheet. Clerics have two sources of spells; the first comes from their Domain and the rest come from the plain fact that they are a Cleric. Domain spells are always prepared and don't count towards the number that the cleric can prepare in any one day. For this and other reasons we want to separate out the Domain Spells on the Actions tab. First thing is to open the 'Abilities' tab and then click the icon next to 'Life Domain' under 'Features'. This page has a list of Spells and Features which the Cleric receives because they chose the Life Domain. Leave this page open and switch over to the 'Actions' tab.

Down at the bottom right of the Actions page click on the star button which will create a new power group headed ‘Powers’. Underneath it two boxes have appeared; click on the right hand box and type in ‘Domain Spells’ and press TAB. The title of the power group changes to 'Domain Spells' and we can now drag the two first level Domain spells Bless and Cure Wounds from the Life Domain page. It is important that you drag the two spells onto the bar which says 'Domain Spells'. You will see as you drag the spells that each of them creates a new line with the name of the spell on the left and the name of the power on the right. We don't need the line with <<New Spell>> in it any longer so click on the small red icon at the bottom of the actions tab to bring up edit mode and then click the little red circle with the white line through it next to that line twice to delete it.

Next we want to organize our 'Domain Spells' power so that Fantasy Grounds can automate the casting of these spells using the correct attack rolls and saving throws. To do this click on the magnifying glass at the end of the 'Domain Spells' heading. In the dialog which opens up you will see a little sword (action) icon next to 'Group type'. Click the sword and it will change into a book (spell) icon. Below that click the box next to 'Ability' until it reads 'Wis'. The 'Attack' and 'Save DC' boxes should read 'Base' - leave them as they are. Now close the dialog.

Get more spells

We can now sort out the rest of our Cleric's spells. We need to give her 3 cantrips and she can prepare 4 1st level spells. Click on the classes in the right hand menu and then click on the spell lists button at the top of the window that opens. This opens the class spell lists; we want Cleric so click on that to open the Cleric spell list. You can now drag the links for the following spells into the action tab.
Cantrips:  Guidance, Sacred Flame and Spare the Dying.
1st level Command, Detect Magic, Healing Word and Shield of Faith.

(Note that technically a Cleric has access to all of the 1st level spells so you could just drag all of them in; however this can make the character sheet rather unwieldy and most characters don’t use all of the spells anyway. You can, however, if you wish drag in all of the spells that your Cleric could potentially cast).

Creating Effects

If you click on the magnifying glass at the end of any of the lines at the end of spells, or some of the other things in the actions tab, you will open up details of the effects that can be applied when the spell is cast or the action is made. Effects are one of the most powerful features of Fantasy Grounds, but a detailed review is beyond the scope of this tutorial. Refer to this article for a full rundown of what effects are and how to use them:

Our Cleric has a warhammer, which is a versatile weapon, meaning it can be used either one-or two-handed.  Whilst using her weapon two-handed she won’t be able to also use her shield and so we want to be able to temporarily remove the shield benefit from her armor class. One way to do this is to create a simple effect.

Create a new power group by clicking on the star icon at the bottom of the actions tab; and type No shield into both the left and right boxes. Right click over the box and select ‘Add Action’ from the radial menu and then click on ‘Add Effect’. A new line will appear with a magnifying glass at the end of it; click on the magnifying glass to bring up the effects dialog. Type in No Shield; AC:-2 into the box. Then click on the ‘Targets’ word next to the box that says targeting and this will change ‘Targets’ to ‘Self’. Leave everything else as it is and close the dialog.

Now when our Cleric is wielding her warhammer two-handed she can apply this effect to herself and Fantasy Grounds will then take into account her lower armor class value when resolving attacks against her.

Finish off Abilities

Let's go to the Abilities tab now and finish off anything we need to do here. Under traits we can see that we have Dwarven Combat Training which gives us proficiency with certain weapons; and the feature ‘Bonus Proficiency (Life}’ gives us proficiency with heavy armor. We can just leave these as they are but if you want to you can edit the proficiencies on the Abilities tab to reflect this. Click on the 'Armor' line and edit out 'Light Armor, medium armor, shields' and replace it with 'All, shields'. Below on the Weapons line, add in 'battleaxe, handaxe, light hammer and warhammer'. These are purely cosmetic changes.

Down at the bottom you can see that we have to choose a couple of languages. Edit out 'Two of your choice' and add in two more languages each on a separate line; let's say Orcish and Giant.

Next up, let's look at tool proficiency. Our Cleric can choose to be proficient in any of the tools mentioned, so let's go ahead and assume we pick 'Smith's tools'. Go ahead and add 'Smith's Tools' at the end of 'Tool proficiency'. The text tells us we can add our proficiency to any checks made whilst using these tools. If you open the skills tab you'll note that there isn't a skill for Smith's Tools (or indeed any tool). This is largely because tools aren't tied to a particular ability. However for the sake of this tutorial let's create one. Click the green + button at the top right of the page and in the line which appears type ‘Smith’s Tools’ and press TAB.  Let's say we will use DEX as the ability so click the 'STAT' box until DEX appears, then click the star to the left of the skill to make our Cleric proficient in the skill.

Notes

Open the notes sheet and you will find a number of editable fields. I'll leave you to fill in Gender, Age, Height, Weight, Alignment and Faction. All of these can be edited by clicking on the line and typing in whatever you want. Note that your size was automatically entered when you dragged in your race.

For personality Traits, Ideals, Bonds and Flaws you can just type in whatever you want here too but you can also use the information in your 'background'. Click on the main page and then click on the little icon next to 'Acolyte' to open your background sheet. If you scroll down you'll see several tables linked at the bottom of the sheet. Click on 'Acolyte Personality Trait' and a table will pop up. Click the dice icon at the top of the table and look in the chat window for the result. Now drag the little icon against the number you rolled into the personality trait part of the notes. You can go ahead and do the same for the Ideal, Bonds and Flaws.

Finishing Touches

Go back to the main tab now and click on the line below 'NAME' and give your character a name. Now click on the box on the top left of the page. This will open up the portraits folder and what you have in here will depend very much on what products you have. Click any of the brown bags  to open up its contents and then click on the portrait you want. Note that by default the portrait also adds a token into the right hand top box. Your DM can change this token to another if you or the DM so choose.