Greywind Posted June 5, 2015 Report Share Posted June 5, 2015 Or get a hex map with larger hexes and you can keep the figures intact in case you might actually play HeroClix some time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigdamnhero Posted June 7, 2015 Report Share Posted June 7, 2015 One thing that I've done is to write out the combat order chart, instead of calling out SPD and DEX. It's a lot easier to remember that your character goes between Carver and Bulletman then to listen for, "Phase 6, DEX 23." IMO this is the one indispensable HERO aid. I have it up on my laptop in an Excel spreadsheet, which makes it easy to move people around if they get a DEX boost or whatever. If someone Holds their action, I highlight that cell to remind me; if they Abort their next Phase, strikeout. If Bob has 15 DEX and +5 Lightning Reflexes with some actions, I list "Bob+" at 20 DEX and "Bob-" at 15 DEX. I even color-code it: Blue for PCs, Red for villains, Black for bystanders/neutrals. Only downside is at this point I'm so dependent on it, I'd probably be unable to GM without my laptop. For large battles, I like using minis; typically paper, tho my players usually wind up getting real figures for their PCs. Occasionally I'll print out a paper map with hexes superimposed on it, but usually we use a battlemat. I prefer the 1.5" hexes, as it makes it easier to fit 2 minis in the same hex. I love terrain, but I don't really have the skills or patience for building models, so it's usually it's just pen drawings. That said, we often don't bother setting up the mat/minis for small/quick battles. Oh: Alea disks! They're meant to be used as status markers to put under minis to show who's stunned, who's entangled, etc. But in a pinch, write the NPC's name or Mook # on them and use them in lieu of minis. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigdamnhero Posted June 7, 2015 Report Share Posted June 7, 2015 Here's an example of the character record sheets I use for my games. The first is for "unique" NPCs; exactly what gets listed will vary slightly from game to game, and sometimes from scenario to scenario. I have a similar sheet for the PCs too, in case a player's having trouble finding something on their sheet or whatever. (Especially useful during convention games!) The second sheet is for mooks; fewer details, more room for tracking damage. Note that it's two pages, but the intent is to print both pages on the same side of a piece of paper. (I make them in Excel, and since the column widths are completely different, it's easier to just make two separate pages and run the paper through twice.) Downside: prep time required, obviously, since there's not a Hero Designer Export template for this. (Hint hint, if anyone's so inclined?) But most of it is cut-and-pasting. And it really speeds up combat and takes out a lot of the guesswork and "Lemme look that up real quick...") NPC record.pdf Mook record.pdf Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Altair Posted June 7, 2015 Author Report Share Posted June 7, 2015 Yeah, for minis I have this giant pile of unpainted minis. They're probably going to stay that way So! Despite having shelled out a pile of money on Reaper Minis, I made a hex grid in Photoshop, and filled it with various bits of character art. Print that out, glue-stick it to a sheet of foamcore, and then cut out little hex minis. Pretty pleased with how that went Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bluesguy Posted June 8, 2015 Report Share Posted June 8, 2015 Oh: Alea disks! They're meant to be used as status markers to put under minis to show who's stunned, who's entangled, etc. But in a pinch, write the NPC's name or Mook # on them and use them in lieu of minis. One of our players saves the 'rings' from bottled sodas. Usually those rings - the ones that stay on the bottle after you take the lid off - come in different colors. He has a bunch of them which we use as a visual marker. Also the little 'table' that often comes in the middle of a delivered pizza to keep the lid from smashing down on the pizza can be cleaned and use to indicate a character who is flying. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bluesguy Posted June 8, 2015 Report Share Posted June 8, 2015 I love terrain, but I don't really have the skills or patience for building models, so it's usually it's just pen drawings. Honestly I wasn't sure either but it isn't that hard with the paper terrain. There is some time involved which is why I pick which models I am going to build to be ones I will use over and over again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Christopher R Taylor Posted June 8, 2015 Report Share Posted June 8, 2015 I could see building foam layers that you stack when you want to use terrain (with a hex pattern glued on top) but that's more work and time than I have to spare. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Altair Posted June 8, 2015 Author Report Share Posted June 8, 2015 Also the little 'table' that often comes in the middle of a delivered pizza to keep the lid from smashing down on the pizza can be cleaned and use to indicate a character who is flying. I've usually used the little clear plastic boxes that dice sets come in. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Christopher R Taylor Posted June 8, 2015 Report Share Posted June 8, 2015 Ah the barbie bistro table from pizza boxes. We usually put flying characters on a d20 indicating meters of height. 20 is usually enough Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Greywind Posted June 8, 2015 Report Share Posted June 8, 2015 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Altair Posted June 10, 2015 Author Report Share Posted June 10, 2015 So, I built some papercraft terrain. http://www.herogames.com/forums/files/file/269-%7B%3F%7D/ Somebody, somebody is going to rip that giant steel "M" out of the ground and whack somebody with it. It will be the zenith of human achievement, the crowning moment of civilization, the day where everything changed. ... Maybe not. But I do think it'll be wicked rad. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spence Posted June 14, 2015 Report Share Posted June 14, 2015 I uploaded several of the tools I've used over the years, mostly from old Champions books. Campaign Sheet for informing players about the ground rules of your campaign The old "Hit List" for characters by DEX and Speed, with basic notes A post-session debriefing Adventure Log for keeping track of what you did and are doing with characters and the story The GM's PC Reference Sheet for what you as a GM know and are planning for a character And a Combat Management Sheet I whipped up to put in a plastic sheet and keep track of NPCs, including guys that just take x "hits" to drop I've used these too, and I admit to downloading your versions as soon as I noticed them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spence Posted June 14, 2015 Report Share Posted June 14, 2015 I have a dry erase hex map, but we tend to play using maps as references rather than the full on tactical wargame route. I also like the players "stated intention" before we actually measure any distances. Nothing more comic book like than a PC falling short Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
megaplayboy Posted June 14, 2015 Report Share Posted June 14, 2015 Music. Used sparingly, it can have a nice mood-setting/enhancing effect. Art. Having a sketch or pic of a villain or NPC is always a nice touch. If you have an artist in your group, or can commission something or even just "shop" something from the Net, it's a nice touch. Helps to get the players engaged. I have occasionally contemplated recording a news report or doing a power point as though it's an agency briefing, but generally too time consuming. YMMV. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Altair Posted June 15, 2015 Author Report Share Posted June 15, 2015 Music. Used sparingly, it can have a nice mood-setting/enhancing effect. Art. Having a sketch or pic of a villain or NPC is always a nice touch. If you have an artist in your group, or can commission something or even just "shop" something from the Net, it's a nice touch. Helps to get the players engaged. I have occasionally contemplated recording a news report or doing a power point as though it's an agency briefing, but generally too time consuming. YMMV. Very this. I flat-out don't run games without a soundtrack anymore - I tend to have carefully curated playlists by mood & genre, often specific game. Hundreds of freakin' hours of music. It's so integral to the experience for me that I honestly forgot to mention. Haven't really hit on a solid playlist for Champions, though - most Superhero film scores are a bit too busy for my purposes, and I haven't hit on any artists or genres that really make me go "There, that's music for a Champions game." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Greywind Posted June 15, 2015 Report Share Posted June 15, 2015 Have you tried Christopher Franke's Babylon 5 soundtracks?Personally, after 16 years working in factories, I can't handle music playing during a game. Can't much handle the jibber-jabber of players talking about anything not game related. Pretty much why the extent of my RPGing lately has been writing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigdamnhero Posted June 15, 2015 Report Share Posted June 15, 2015 Music - definitely! We use almost exclusively instrumental stuff, mainly soundtracks - lyrics are harder for some people to tune out and there are few things more annoying than everyone dropping out of character to sing along. I don't create specific soundracks for specific games tho; I have two playlists, one for "mood music" and another for "background music." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Altair Posted June 15, 2015 Author Report Share Posted June 15, 2015 Have you tried Christopher Franke's Babylon 5 soundtracks? I have not - but I will! Thanks! Personally, after 16 years working in factories, I can't handle music playing during a game. Can't much handle the jibber-jabber of players talking about anything not game related. Pretty much why the extent of my RPGing lately has been writing. Yeah, I can see how the wrong type of music could be very distracting - if ever there's something with lyrics, it's because that's happening in the game world, like a Shadowrun at a goblin rock concert. (Though in that case, it's not like my players could understand the lyrics anyway ) I am curious - is your experience w/music during games something that's explicitly not game-related? Because I agree with that wholeheartedly, and would (and have) reacted pretty negatively to that happening at a game. For a little while, I was planning on going into theatrical sound design, and did a fair amount of that in college. So I tend to think more in terms of something that helps set the mood, ambiance and "feel" of a setting, genre, type of scene, etc., than anything else. Regardless of preference, I certainly agree with the sentiment that music shouldn't be detracting from the game experience. I simply have found it useful for increasing immersion, YMMV. Music - definitely! We use almost exclusively instrumental stuff, mainly soundtracks - lyrics are harder for some people to tune out and there are few things more annoying than everyone dropping out of character to sing along. I don't create specific soundracks for specific games tho; I have two playlists, one for "mood music" and another for "background music." Yep, 100% agree on the lyrics thing. The closest I'll get is some Two Steps From Hell, or Audiomachine - which has vocals, though no lyrics. And really, those groups are too much if they're playing constantly - but for big, epic scenes? They deliver. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Altair Posted June 15, 2015 Author Report Share Posted June 15, 2015 Also, update. A player did whack someone else with that giant Steel "M" from earlier in the thread. Then somebody else did. Again and again and again. Everybody used it, that Sign did more damage than any single character, hands down. 3D scenery just changes up so much - I find it a very fulfilling expression of the "tactical representation" mode of gaming in a way that hex maps (also present!) by themselves haven't given me. It's pretty amazing. I'm still not sold on doing anything that requires that much preparation for an ongoing RPG - I strongly favor flexibility and improvisation, to the point where sketching anything more detailed than a Fate-style "zone" map doesn't usually pass my cost-benefit analysis - but for the casual, wargamey stuff we've been doing to learn the system? Massive, massive benefit. Cannot recommend highly enough. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lucius Posted June 20, 2015 Report Share Posted June 20, 2015 EVerybody MUST - GET - STUNNED (to the tune of Dylan's Everybody Must Get Stoned.) They'll stun you when the damage rolled is more Than Defense plus your Constitution score. They'll stun you even though you are a hero, Your Defensive Combat Value drops to zero But you need not feel alone, undone; Everybody must get stunned! They'll stun your superhero, that's not all They'll stun you and they'll knock you through a wall. They'll stun you with this power, spared no expense; It's Area Effect and No Normal Defense. Who has Life Support? No one? Everybody just got stunned! They'll stun you with some comic book vilain trick They'll stun you when they hit you with a brick. They'll stun you, you keep coming back for more. They'll stun you with a move-through at mach 4. Sonic boom? Yes, it's a big one! Everybody just got stunned! They'll stun your knight in armor with such force They'll stun you and they'll knock you off your horse. They'll stun your wizard, gargoyle, and your troll They'll stun you when you miss your magick roll. The dragon sneezed on everyone! Everybody just got stunned! They'll stun detectives, spies and other such They'll stun you if they think you know too much. They'll stun you, now you've solved the case at last If you can get untied before the blast. I don't care how fast your guy can run - Everybody just got stunned! They'll stun your black belt, lock up all his joints They'll stun you with their secret pressure points. They'll stun you with their martial arts so strange. They'll stun you with a shotgun at close range. Hey! Where'd that ninja get a gun? Everybody just got stunned! They'll stun you any time or any place They'll stun you when you venture into space. They'll stun your crew and take your ship in traction If you don't take some fast evasive action. But you can't fly a spacecraft through a sun! Everybody just got stunned! Lucius Alexander Copyright 2000 Palindromedary Enterprises (Note the date - above lyrics in some places obsolete for later editions.) edit: I really ought to update this.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Altair Posted June 20, 2015 Author Report Share Posted June 20, 2015 This is the zenith of human achievement. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rravenwood Posted June 21, 2015 Report Share Posted June 21, 2015 EVerybody MUST - GET - STUNNED (to the tune of Dylan's Everybody Must Get Stoned.) This should be one of many installments of Schoolhouse Rock for Hero System! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lucius Posted June 21, 2015 Report Share Posted June 21, 2015 Now if only I could track down "Morris the Dryder" Lucius Alexander I think the palindromedary ate it long ago Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lucius Posted June 21, 2015 Report Share Posted June 21, 2015 They'll stun you when the damage rolled is more Than Defense plus your Constitution score. They'll stun you even though you are a hero, Your Defensive Combat Value drops to zero But you need not feel alone, undone; Everybody must get stunned! Correcting the above to They'll stun you when the damage rolled is more Than Defense plus your Constitution score. You lose a phase, and even worse to see You have to cut in half your DCV But you need not feel alone, undone; Everybody must get stunned! Lucius Alexander The palindromedary wonders if we should drag out Jack the Rhyming Bugbear's explanation of characteristics Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IndianaJoe3 Posted June 21, 2015 Report Share Posted June 21, 2015 EVerybody MUST - GET - STUNNED (to the tune of Dylan's Everybody Must Get Stoned.) Shouldn't this be properly titled, "Rainy Day Palindromedaries #10 & 25?" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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