6e books, 4 of them for "core" rules?

[xirr2000]

I'm a little confused. Went down to my local gamestore to see what is new in the world of Champions (Hero Systems I know but I still call it Champions). Looks like there is a 6th edition, so I thought I'd pick up the books. 5e surprised me with a generic rulebook that cost $50, so I was prepared to spend about that much. Now along with a hefty price tag it appears that there are 4 books?

Basics rulebook, seems to have everything in terms of powers, but very small so it's clearly missing a lot.

Upgraded Basic book: More stuff, discusses combat and some other stuff?

Volume #1: Not sure, it was not there at the store but clearly in existence.

Volume #2: A book that goes into semantics of how to play the game and discusses lots of variations in terms of using the rules, combat and what I would call "flavor".

Can I get by with some of these books? Do I need them all or will I be left missing something? Please help me out, I'd like to get into 6e, but I can't shake the feeling I'm paying twice for something by buying all these books. Are the first 2 books like a dumbed down version of the bigger books? Completely separate with unique info/rules? Also, not sure how new this new edition is. It looked an awful lot like 5e, thanks for any feedback from folks who have made use of the new material.

[Steve Long]

I've moved this, since it's a products question not a rules question. You can't get any feedback from anyone else in Rules Questions, since only I can reply there. In Company Questions other fans can chime in if they'd like. ;)

The 6th Edition core rulebooks are the two volumes, Volume 1 (Character Creation) and Volume 2 (Combat & Adventuring). They're full-color, hardcover books. They cost $39.99 apiece, but we (and many retailers, I believe) sell 'em as a set for just $70.

Those are the only books you need to play the HERO System for the rest of your life. No other book has any "core" rules. You don't ever have to buy another book from us if you don't want to (though we certainly hope you will).

We do have several other books in what we call "the HERO System Core Library," which all have blue-and-gold covers. One of them is The HERO System Basic Rulebook, which, as it states on its back cover, boils the full two-volume HERO System rules down to their essentials -- reducing the approximately 800-page two-volume core rulebook down to a single 138-page book that has the key rules you need to play, but (of course) leaves out a vast amount of stuff, including anything too complex to explain easily, any optional or variant rules, and so on. We like to think of the BR as the "easy learning" or "quick reference" version of the rules. It's a softcover, black and white book.

I'm not sure what you mean by "upgraded Basic book." We do have a book called The HERO System Advanced Player's Guide. If that's what you're referring to, it's a book of new rules that aren't found in the two-volume core rulebook. Some are optional and variant rules, others are new rules that simply weren't deemed important, useful, or "central" enough to deserve space in the core rulebook. A lot of fans really like it, though, and use rules from it in their campaign; in fact, in response to fan interest I just finished writing The Advanced Player's Guide II, which has even more new rules and options. ;)

[gojira]

Basics rulebook, seems to have everything in terms of powers, but very small so it's clearly missing a lot.


If you've played Champions, then the small rule book is about like the system circa 1990, when it was in third edition. It's got most of the rules, just not all the detailed options. If you are new and unsure, or if you're up-grading from a previous edition and just want to start getting your feet wet, the Basic Rulebook is the best place to start, imo.



Volume #1: Not sure, it was not there at the store but clearly in existence.

Volume #2: A book that goes into semantics of how to play the game and discusses lots of variations in terms of using the rules, combat and what I would call "flavor". These two books are the full ruleset; Hero does not make splat books. You get all the rules here, as well as a ton of options. It's basically a one time investment in the system. If you're gung-ho and the price tag isn't objectionable, start here.



Can I get by with some of these books? Do I need them all or will I be left missing something?What do you want to do? If you are playing Champions, then you'll probably want the genre book "Champions." It gives you a starter for playing the superhero genre, background on various super-villain groups, sample NPCs, etc. You don't strictly need this, but it's a big convenience to have.

There are of course more books. Villains, allies, super cities, adventure books, etc. Get those when you feel ready.



I can't shake the feeling I'm paying twice for something by buying all these books.Start with either the Basic Rulebook, or the pair of volumes, and one genre book. Imo.


Are the first 2 books like a dumbed down version of the bigger books?The Basic Rulebook is a "dumbed down" version of the two big books. Everything else is additional or an optional extra.


It looked an awful lot like 5e, thanks for any feedback from folks who have made use of the new material.The Basic Rulebook is a lot like 5th ed "Sidekick" which was simplified rules for those who didn't want the big books.

If you have 5th with a bunch of supplements, you can just get the new rules (Basic or the two volumes) and use your other existing material. The new rules are similar enough to 5th where you don't even have to necessarily convert PCs or NPCs. Just use 'em as is.

[IceTiger]

every one seems to be out of volume one, when will you be reprinting it?

[Steve Long]

As soon as possible. However, since this is going to involve moving it to a new printer (for various reasons we'd rather not use the old one, which is in China), it's not as simple a matter as just calling 'em up and asking for more. Among other things, it's significantly more expensive.

We'll be sure to mention it in the weekly announcements when we get the new print run going.