new to hero, looking for some guidance

[Dspin0212]

Im a new GM to the hero system. my players and I are psyched about the system and all the options, but also a little daunted. there is so much to get in my head, and without having played i dont know what makes good characters and how to advise my players on how to make what they are envisioning. we arent familiar with classless systems but are excited, we just have no idea what we are doing.

 

 

i posted this in the Hero system forums and they said i should come here and humbly ask you fine people to give me some feedback on possible builds for the PCS.

 

i want to run a Iron age, nitty gritty, dystopian kinda deal. (300 CP)

 

one player wants to be a sword wielding agent, with a gambit of skills geared towards modern espionage with supernatural senses and reflexes

 

one player wants to be a gravity manipulator who can deflect missiles , teleport, move objects, damage (implode) objects.

 

a shapeshifter who can replicate any animal including other animals, with skills and equipment to make them survivable

 

an oldschool super strongman who is tough, strong, and can jump high

 

thanks for any help, looking forward to a new system

[redwulfe]

Re: new to hero, looking for some guidance

 

First off, welcome to the forums, you've come to the right place. As for help I would first ask which books you have? Are you running 5th or 6th? Do you have character creator?

 

Red

[Panpiper]

Re: new to hero, looking for some guidance

 

A shapeshifter that can turn into any animal including other humans.

 

15 Str 5

13 Dex 6

18 Con 8

13 Body 3

13 Int 3

10 Ego

15 Pre 5

7 Ocv 20

7 Dcv 20

3 Omcv

3 Omdv

8 PD 6

8 ED 6

4 Spd 20

10 Rec 6

40 End 4

40 Stun 10

Total Stats: 102

 

41 Full 'Mystique" Shapeshift (see description below). Can replicate a maximum of 60 active points of a power.

87 60 Active Point Variable Power Pool - Any animal touched up to 300 points. (Create Animal Character Sheet.)

18 9 PD/9 ED Combat Luck

 

Martial Arts

4 Martial Block

4 Martial Dodge

4 Martial Strike

1 Weapon Element: Traditional Martial Arts Striking Weapons

1 Weapon Element: Improvised Weapons

12 +4 levels with Martial Arts

Total Power: 172

 

3 +1 Striking Appearance

5 Eidetic Memory

6 Speed Reading (Reads a Book in Two Minutes)

3 Conversation

3 Persuasion

3 Streetwise

3 Bureaucratics

Total Skills 26

 

Grand Total: 300

 

Shapeshift Base - All Sense Groups, Any Shape 28ap, Imitation 10ap, Makeover 5ap, Cellular 10ap.

Advantages: 0 Endurance +1/2, Persistent +1/4, 93 AP active

Limitations: +1 segment to change -1/2. Must have touched the one to be changed into -1/4, DCV 0 Concentration to change -1/2, 41 Real Points

 

Variable Power Pool - Only for Animal multiform and replicating powers from those whose shape character is in.

60ap Base, 30ap Control Cost, No Skill Roll Required +1

Limitations: +1 segment to change -1/2. Must have touched the creature to be changed into -1/4, DCV 0 Concentration to change -1/2 Control Cost Real Points: 27

 

Note: The variable power pool can either be used to emulate the powers of whomever the character has turned into up to 60 active points OR it can be used to turn into any animal built on up to 300 active points (pretty much covers all real animals). It cannot be used for both at the same time. When the character is an animal, they really are an animal, they can't be a lion that flies (unless maybe the character actually touches such a lion).

[Matt Holck]

Re: new to hero, looking for some guidance

 

what is makeover and imitation?

[Panpiper]

Re: new to hero, looking for some guidance

 

what is makeover and imitation?

6th Edition, volume one.

 

Page 279

Imitation: This +10 Character Points Adder allows

a character to shift shape to resemble specific

persons.

 

Page 280

Makeover: For this +5 Character Points Adder,

a character with Shape Shift (Sight Group and/

or Touch Group) can alter his Striking Appearance

within the range of standards the GM defines

for the campaign...

[Dspin0212]

Re: new to hero, looking for some guidance

 

Im using the 6th Ed character guide and combat and storytelling guide

[Panpiper]

Re: new to hero, looking for some guidance

 

Super strongman who is tough, strong, and can jump high

 

50 Str 70

13 Dex 3

23 Con 16

20 Body 10

10 Int

10 Ego

20 Pre 10

6 Ocv 15

6 Dcv 15

3 Omcv

3 Omdv

8 PD 6 - 25 PD with "Tough Skin", "Hard-bitten", and "Heroic Toughness"

8 ED 6 - 25 ED with "Tough Skin", "Hard-bitten", and "Heroic Toughness"

4 Spd 20

10 Rec 6

50 End 6

50 Stun 15

Total Stats: 198

 

7 +7 Meters Running (Total 19 Meters)

3 Leaping +6 Meters to characteristic Maxima

20 +20 meters Brings Leap to 30 meters, 15 Meters Vertical (5 Stories)

 

3 "Tough Skin" 1PD/1ED Resistant

16 "Hard-bitten" 8PD/8ED Resistant, Active Points: 24 Does Not Protect Vs. The First Point Of Body From Each Separate Increment Of Damage Taken -1/2

16 "Heroic Toughness" 8PD/8ED resistant (Only stops half the body of an attack, up to 8 body. -1/2),

 

Martial Arts

3 Martial Grab

3 Martial Throw

5 Offensive Strike

20 +4 Levels with Hand to Hand Combat

 

3 Persuasion

3 Interrogation

Total Powers & Skill: 102

 

Grand Total: 300

 

Note: The "Tough Skin", "Hard-bitten", and "Heroic Toughness" on this character means that he can't quite 'bounce' bullets off his chest, but they do 'far' less damage to him than they would to virtually anyone else on the planet. A little one body nick that would leave you or I bleeding does absolutely nothing to him, his "Tough Skin" would stop that. A bullet that would leave you or I dying, will instead leave him bleeding as if he were nicked. Any killing attack between two and ten body will inflict a single body of damage on him. Beyond that, if a single killing attack did more than ten body, half of that would be stopped by the "Heroic Toughness", up to 8 more body. Any body done in excess of that would simply go through normally, but that would be one insanely huge killing attack, like being shot by a tank or something.

[Panpiper]

Re: new to hero, looking for some guidance

 

Note: I am assuming that Characteristic Maxima are in place, which is the norm in low powered Dark Champions campaigns. It means that this 'Strongman' above is probably the strongest man on the planet with a strength 30 points above the normal human maximum.

[BoloOfEarth]

Re: new to hero, looking for some guidance

 

First, echoing what redwulfe asked, are you running 5th or 6th edition?

 

Second, as a GM you might want to check out Surbrook's Stuff. He has a quite extensive character archive. AFAIK, they're 5th edition writeups, but they should give you plenty of stuff to work with.

 

Third, don't get too daunted. You'll find there's a great community on these boards -- if you don't know how to create something in the Hero System, just ask here and I'm sure you'll get a half-dozen different ways to write it up. As I'm sure you've seen already, as Panpiper has already provided an entire character.

 

And if you do see a half-dozen (or more) ways to write something up, don't worry about which one is the "right" way. Chances are, most of them will be equally valid.

 

Best of luck, and we hope to see more of you here.

[HawksmoorSD]

Re: new to hero, looking for some guidance

 

Seems like you've already got some help going with your requests so I'll just echo the "Welcome to the boards!" It's a good place to be.

[gojira]

Re: new to hero, looking for some guidance

 

i want to run a Iron age' date=' nitty gritty, dystopian kinda deal. (300 CP)[/quote']

 

Note: I am assuming that Characteristic Maxima are in place' date=' which is the norm in low powered Dark Champions campaigns. [/quote']

 

 

Dystopian doesn't mean "Dark Champions" to me. It just means super heroes with a dark tone. I think Dspin said something about an early X-Men tone in his first post (different forum). Dspin might have to adjust the point totals to remove the characteristic maxima, which should be easy.

 

Other than that your ideas are great. I'd help out but I don't have 6e yet.

 

Oh yeah:

 

Welcome Dspin!

[Matt Holck]

Re: new to hero, looking for some guidance

 

Variable Power Pool - Only for Animal multiform and replicating powers from those whose shape character is in.

60ap Base, 30ap Control Cost, No Skill Roll Required +1

Limitations: +1 segment to change -1/2. Must have touched the creature to be changed into -1/4, DCV 0 Concentration to change -1/2 Control Cost Real Points: 27

I had thought that the base value of a variable power pool couldn't be discounted by limitations

 

further more

I was going to recommend that limitation not be used in basic builds

 

I also don't think that a new player should be required to write up multiple characters to play

 

can senses and water breathing be bought on a multi-power?

[TheQuestionMan]

Re: new to hero, looking for some guidance

 

1. Martial Artist & Weapons Specialist (Swordsman) - Espionage Agent

 

 

2. Energy Projector (Gravity Powers) -

 

 

3. Metamorph (Shapeshifter) - Beastman

Multipower; 30pt Reserve

1) Growth 20 (Active Points), O END (+1/2)

2) Shrinking 20 (Active Points), O END (+1/2)

 

50pt Variable Power Pool; Beast Skills & Powers Only

15pt

 

4. Brick

50 STR

23 DEX

30 CON

20 BODY

25 PD

25 ED

5 SPD

16 REC

60 END

60 STUN

10 RUN

20 LEAP

5 SWIM

25r DEF, Hardened

[Panpiper]

Re: new to hero, looking for some guidance

 

I had thought that the base value of a variable power pool couldn't be discounted by limitations

Variable Power Pool - Only for Animal multiform and replicating powers from those whose shape character is in.

60ap Base, 30ap Control Cost, No Skill Roll Required +1

Limitations: +1 segment to change -1/2. Must have touched the creature to be changed into -1/4, DCV 0 Concentration to change -1/2 Control Cost Real Points: 27

 

What I did there was to add a +1 advantage to the control cost of 30 points, bringing it to 60 points. Then a limitation of -1 1/4 gets applied to the control cost bringing it to 27 real points. I added that to the pool cost of 60 (which likely was the source of the confusion, I should probably have itemized the two separately) for a total of 87 points spent.

 

I was going to recommend that limitation not be used in basic builds

I would tend to agree with you. Unfortunately a character who can do the things this player wants to be able to do cannot be realistically designed with 300 points without using limitations. Note as well that the limitations are quite consistent and reasonable given the power, and not really that hard to understand. The character does not have instant change, and there is extra time involved in changing which makes the character vulnerable. The character has to have had physical contact which whomever or whatever they wish to change into.

 

Besides, they want to learn the system, and having a few limitations to understand will help.

 

I also don't think that a new player should be required to write up multiple characters to play.

True, that is a hassle. But they want to be able to turn into animals. I think if he's got a 300 point tiger written up, he's not likely to need anything more than that for combat. Anything else he touches is likely to be used out of combat, and therefor doesn't really need a writeup. If 300 points is enough for a tiger, it's likely enough for anything else, so the GM can just wing it, and say, Ok, you're an elephant and can push the truck over. Now you are a bird and can see the whole city... Etc..

 

Can senses and water breathing be bought on a multi-power?

Yes.

 

3. Metamorph (Shapeshifter) - Beastman

Multipower; 30pt Reserve

1) Growth 20 (Active Points), O END (+1/2)

2) Shrinking 20 (Active Points), O END (+1/2)

 

50pt Variable Power Pool; Beast Skills & Powers Only

15pt

You have omitted entirely the fact that this character wants to be able to shapeshift to look like any human they wish. That is not accounted for in the slightest by a skills and powers power pool. And even if one used the powerpool to as the basis for a shapeshifting (which would be legal) they would then have no pool with which to mimic powers and special abilities.

[Matt Holck]

Re: new to hero, looking for some guidance

 

Here's a power set for Metamorph (Shapeshifter) - Beastman

 

57 Shapeshift Base - All Sense Groups, Any Shape 28ap, Imitation 10ap +1/2 no end (38+1/2=57)

 

18

13 20 point Movement Multi-Power (-1/2 linked to shape shift)

1u +10" running

1u +15" swimming

1u water breathing

1u 10" flight

1u 4" Tunneling

 

24

20 30 Point Size Multi-power (-1/2 linked to shape shift)

2u 4 levels growth No End (20+1/2=30)

2u 2 levels shrinking No End (20+1/2=30)

 

7 +5 perception only one sense per shifted form -1/2 linked to shape shift -1/2

 

17 2d6 HKA 15 strength minimum to use -1/4 linked to shape shift -1/2

 

 

12 skills

3 tracking

3 shadowing

3 stealth

3 concealment

 

2

57

24

07

17

12

110

[IKerensky]

Re: new to hero, looking for some guidance

 

Just a comment :

 

Buy the Bestiary... even if the stats are in 5th edition that is definitely not so a big deal and it will come very handy to have stats of all and every animal your character can turn into without having to create them during the game.

[IKerensky]

Re: new to hero, looking for some guidance

 

Here's a power set for Metamorph (Shapeshifter) - Beastman

 

18

13 20 point Movement Multi-Power (-1/2 linked to shape shift)

1u +10" running

1u +15" swimming

1u water breathing

1u 10" flight

1u 4" Tunneling

 

 

Err, doesnt that mean the character have to choose if he want to swim fast or if he want to be able to breath underwater. It is still possible, but sound a bit weird.

[Matt Holck]

Re: new to hero, looking for some guidance

 

Ultimate slots means all the points in the multi-power slot must be allocated when using that slot.

the swimming cost 15 points so the leaves 5 points for the water breathing slot

I guess I need to show active points for each slot

 

Can I stack two powers in one multi-power slot?

 

Here's a power set for Metamorph (Shapeshifter) - Beastman

 

57 Shapeshift Base - All Sense Groups, Any Shape 28ap, Imitation 10ap +1/2 no end (38+1/2=57)

 

18

13 20 point Movement Multi-Power (-1/2 linked to shape shift)

1u +10" running (20 active points)

1u +15" swimming (15 active points)

1u water breathing (5 active points)

1u 10" flight (20 active points)

1u 4" Tunneling (20 active points)

 

24

20 30 Point Size Multi-power (-1/2 linked to shape shift)

2u 4 levels growth No End (20+1/2=30)

2u 2 levels shrinking No End (20+1/2=30)

 

9 +5 perception only one sense per shifted form -1/4 linked to shape shift -1/2

 

17 2d6 HKA 15 strength minimum to use -1/4 linked to shape shift -1/2

 

 

12 skills

3 tracking

3 shadowing

3 stealth

3 concealment

 

2

57

24

09

17

12

112

 

I change the sense limitation "only one sense per shifted form" from -1/2 to -1/4 .

I figured it cost 10 real points for +5 in a single sense group

and the power I described with a -1/2 would also be (15-1/2=10)

and I figured that being able to change that single sense should cost more.

The Dog has smelling, the bat hearing, the eagle vision, the tiger fear (I mean +3 vision +2 hearing)

 

I think that it's fair to argue that

the super perception smell would greatly assist the tracking skill

Super vision would permit a greater distance for shadowing

Stealth and concealment are both assisted by shrinking .

 

The bat and dolphin form would need active sonar

what's the limitation for those forms only?

[Dspin0212]

Re: new to hero, looking for some guidance

 

thanx for all the help guys, here are some clarifications..... I said i was looking at X-men for the type of powers people have, meaning people have one main power I am not running an X-men style game as far as world. Im running my own world which is not really like anything ive played before, so its hard to reference it.

long story short the world is a dystopian society, akin to 1984 (the book) where the government has strong control over the media, curfews enforced, one political party, and endless war against the great enemy (in this case communism). so i want to set the stage that supers are part of the arms races, if you are discovered you serve in the military, the secret police, or you dissappear. most of the population fears the supers, but not because they are different but because they are the oppressive arm of the government. there are a few rebels, and costumed heroes but they are brandished traitors and terrorists by the government. all humans have the potential for powers but some the gene is strong enough to come up with gene therapy, most others the therapy required would kill them. So the starting point here is that the players were discovered by the medical examiners to have the potential to be supers. they all got blackbagged and brought to a gov lab. they wake up with powers strapped down to tables, as the resistance breaks into the lab

and the guards leave them unattended. and i see where they take it.

[Dspin0212]

Re: new to hero, looking for some guidance

 

thanks for all the help guys, you dont need to argue about the mimicry really because the player specifically doesnt want to be able to mimic superpowers, just be able to take on the stats and appearance of any animal, which is why that player wants martial arts and weapons to make up for the lack of offensive super powers

[Panpiper]

Re: new to hero, looking for some guidance

 

thanks for all the help guys' date=' you dont need to argue about the mimicry really because the player specifically doesnt want to be able to mimic superpowers, just be able to take on the stats and appearance of any animal, which is why that player wants martial arts and weapons to make up for the lack of offensive super powers[/quote']

The thing is that animals have 'powers'. A bird for instance has flight. An elephant has great strength, a fish can breathe under water, a tiger has Killing Attack, etc. So it is not enough to just buy shapeshift. Some mechanism needs to be in place to allow for those powers. My power pool/multiform approach allows the character to literally become those animals, not just 'mimic' them. But it also allows for a degree of power mimicry among humans he might copy.

 

Matt Holck's approach has the advantage of being slightly cheaper, while removing the ability to mimic any sort of power. The problem I have with Matt Holck's approach is that technically, the character in a tiger form isn't really a tiger, they are just mimicking a tiger, and they can still use their martial arts as a tiger, etc. Their stats have not really changed, other than picking a couple extra abilities from a couple of lists. That could cause unexpected side effects in play, because the power is not actually doing what the character is intended to do, which is to actually change into the animal.

 

He an I have a different philosophy when it comes to character design it would seem. He is looking for the simplest and cheapest way to get the effect. I on the other hand would prefer to find the combination of powers that most closely approximates what the character actually 'does' in their conception. Often my way is not the cheapest way. Both approaches are legitimate and each has their advantages.

[Matt Holck]

Re: new to hero, looking for some guidance

 

I was trying to avoid requiring a new player having to be familiar the power system which variable power pools demand.

 

I listed a set of powers to allow the player to quickly determine what each animal form can do.

 

Note that listed power sets for each animal in a variable power pool would also work

[BoloOfEarth]

Re: new to hero, looking for some guidance

 

Note that listed power sets for each animal in a variable power pool would also work

That's how I've done it in the past.

 

My suggestion on the animal polymorph would be to not get too worried about the minutae just now, given that you and the players are all starting out, unless you have a "rules lawyer" among you. Come up with a design that allows you to "wing it" for now; as GM, you can always allow a re-draw after you and the players are more familiar with the rules.

 

I like the Variable Power Pool approach myself for an animal polymorph, which allows you (as GM) to effectively hand-wave what the character can do. If the character changes into a bat, you don't need to worry about whether you listed Active Sonar in the Multipower. You just say, "Okay, as a bat you can fly 10" a phase, you're +6 DCV due to size, and you can use Active Sonar and a limited form of Clinging." (Note: I just made those up on the fly. Actual results likely vary.)

 

Another advantage of the VPP route is that, as GM, you can allow or disallow as you wish those weird requests and ideas that players always seem to come up with. "Okay, I've changed into a bat. Can I communicate with the bats in the cave to see if anyone came through here?" If you say "Yes", you allow him to use the power pool to temporarily use "Language: Bats".

 

Mostly, though, I'd really only worry about certain power writeups (attacks and defenses, mostly) and wing the rest during play.

[teh bunneh]

Re: new to hero, looking for some guidance

 

When I designed Beast Boy for my Teen Titans Go! game, I used Multiform, with x16 extra forms, and then just handed the player the Beastiary charsheets for the most common forms that Beast Boy assumes in the cartoon (cat, dolphin, elephant, gorilla, hawk, pterydactyl, rhino, tiger, tricerotops, t-rex, wolf, etc). It's not strictly accurate in that he can't transform into "any" animal, but it's good enough for jazz.

[Panpiper]

Re: new to hero, looking for some guidance

 

The advantage to the variable power pool approach is that you can give him the bestiary and just let him pick anything in the book, up to 300 points. Of coarse the way 'I' designed the power is that he would have to have touched the animal at least once before. With the power pool however, he could also turn into a snail, or garden snake, etc. And I am certain he would not either find them in the Bestiary or think to list them in a selection of 16. But he might want to turn into a cockroach after he get's locked in a dungeon...