D&D 5e - Which macros are better to use?

As I've finally been able to buy all the D&D 5e books, I've been reading about the D&D 5e macros. I can see that there are generic macros using @{selected|} in the settings tab and also you can create character specific macros that only work when they are created as an ability on a specific character's journal sheet. I'm not clear on which type of macro is better to use, the ones you create in the settings tab or the ones created as an ability? I'd appreciate some guidance. Cheers!

What character sheet are you using Graham? :)

You can also specify a character name in a macro. Replace @{selected| with @{Hugo|    to pull the stat from the characer sheet named "Hugo" for example.

Personally I prefer the character ability ones for most things. Inevitably your players' characters will gain abilities that differentiate them, and then they will most likely need custom macros anyways. In addition when you eventually need to do some fancy macro work, the character abilities won't unescape your html entities. The exception to this for me as a gm is truly generic NPC macros/macros that do not reference a character. If you are a player, there's really no reason to use the global macros as you can do everything in either macro type, but character abilities don't have to specify selected or a character name for attribute calls within the same cbaracter. On top of all this you can drag and drop any of the sheet macros to your quick bar in the OGL and the shaped sheet (haven't used the community contributed so unsure about that one). With this you shouldn't need to make too many totally custom macros anyways. Happy rolling and sorry for the ramble. *As a note, after the latest update, the global macros are under the newly named collections tab with decks and rollable tables.

I'm just wondering what is the best macros to use as a GM for a new game, so haven't selected any particular character sheet (although I understand OGL is good to use!). From reading what Scott said it may be best for generic macros while players are better off using character specific macros, that makes sense! However, I can't say I understand Scott when he says that "the character abilities won't unescape your html entities"...? Thank for your guidance.

Graham T. said: However, I can't say I understand Scott when he says that "the character abilities won't unescape your html entities"...? Scott's referring to one of the aspects of creating complex and advanced macros, such as Advanced Usage for Roll Queries .

Thanks Silvyre.

I prefer the 5E Shaped Sheet. It is incredibly powerful and well maintained. Here is my personal collection of macros. All of which require a few prerequisites for their use and I have attached underlined script to them so that you can get them set up if you are interested. SHAPED SHEET These require the Shaped Sheet and the Shaped Sheet API companion script. Simply target a new token after its been linked with a character sheet. If its a PC you type #PC and if its an NPC then #NPC. This will give them a series of abilities based upon which type of character they are. In addition if you configure the token defaults by typing "!shaped-config" it will apply these as well. This allows you to quickly add and configure new characters for your game. Every little bit of convenience during game prep helps and I'd say these provide more than a bit. #PC !shaped-abilities --attacks !shaped-abilities --initiative !shaped-abilities --spells !shaped-abilities --rests !shaped-apply-defaults #NPC !shaped-abilities --statblock !shaped-apply-defaults Player FX These macros give your players the abilities to throw around special effects normally only available to pro users. Using these gives 1-2 prompts which help you define exactly what special effect you want to use. "Nova+Holy" for fireball for example. #FX-Beam-Breath /fx ?{Effect|beam|breath}-?{Color|acid|blood|charm|death|fire|frost|holy|magic|slime|smoke|water} @{selected|token_id} @{target|Foe|token_id} #FX-Bomb-Nova /fx ?{Effect|bomb|nova}-?{Color|acid|blood|charm|death|fire|frost|holy|magic|slime|smoke|water} @{target|Foe|token_id} Torch These allow you to quickly configure light and sight for any particular token. Very helpful when you get the inevitable "I can't see" from one of your players while using dynamic lighting. They require the "Torch" API script. #Sight-Grant !torch ?{Light|} ?{Dim Radius|} ?{Other Players Can See Light?|Yes,yes|No,no} @{selected|token_id} #Sight-Blind !snuff

I second Ian's post. Basically with the 5e shaped sheet, api access, and a little bit of finagling, you're good to go. You get single click output that looks similar to this.... Click your weapon, and your "extras" are at bottom, that are clicks to sort out all your damage. Once you sort out all the added things, and how to QUICKLY do this sort of thing, it's VERY VERY quick.

It might be helpful to clarify that most the specialized scripts Ian mentioned require you to be a PRO member for API access, but you can still use the shaped sheet as a free user with a lot of other features that will help you run 5e games.

Thanks for promoting my sheet and Lucian's script - great to hear that they have helped you run your games! :)

Kryx said: Thanks for promoting my sheet and Lucian's script - great to hear that they have helped you run your games! :) They are probably a major part that convinced me to choose Roll20 over any other online solution, and definitely one of the major factors in convincing me to go for a Pro subscription. Thanks, to both of you.