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Spence

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  1. Like
    Spence got a reaction from Ndreare in The HERO system syndrome   
    You are definitely not alone. 
     
    The build system is the best out there.  I just wish there was a good intro/demo to draw people into the game so they would invest the time to learn the build side.
  2. Thanks
    Spence got a reaction from Duke Bushido in 5th Edition Renaissance?   
    Why thank you. 
    As they say, even the blind pig eventually finds an acorn. 😇
     
    For myself I prefer Hollywood Medieval because it is easiest to visualize for me.  
    I know, I know, many people think that Hollywood Medieval and Tolkien'verse are the same, but they are not. 
    The Tolkien'verse, like many of the settings out there revolve around vast cites and equally vast armies.  I prefer settings where the towns are small and 100 is considered an army.  It is perfect for allowing PC's have a significant impact without the need for Galactus level power.
     
     
    It is one of the reasons I think Narosia didn't do better.  480 pages of stuff, 8 cultures, 8 races, a buttload of vocations and so on.  All of it wrapped around jaw-breaker names specifically designed to NOT resemble anything.  If they had selected one SMALL slice (region/area) and started there with a functional small town and a mini-campaign it would have been more accessible.  Start in a region that can be described using a real world analog, and then put out additional parts before unleashing the 480 page tome. 
    We were actually BIG Traveller fans when is started.  It was actually the way they began tying everything to their specific game world setting that caused us to quit.  None setting specific adventures like Annic Nova and  the Judges Guild ones were great as fillers for when work limited our build time.  But once it basically became their campaign or nothing we moved on. 
    I
    I was never a fan of the dandelion eaters either. But then I always preferred to run a game where the party was all human.  Gasp I can just feel the outrage from some of the readers.  But I was never a big fan if all the people playing humans with pointed ears, short humans with beards and so on. 
    It was always more fun to run a game where the Elf or the Dwarf was actually an encounter of its own. That is why D&D 5th has slid so far down my acceptable as an RPG list.  They have doubled down on "races" as just ways to add cool buffs with nothing else.  The Dragonkin and Tiefling was the last straw for me, pure unabashed murderhobo. 
     
    Runequest is just as bad these days and their forums are horrid.  They actually expect new players to not only read the existing rules tome, but also the 30+ years of notes and journals that are floating around.  And god forbid you ask for a simple short synopsis on something.  
     
    Champions could use an actual campaign setting.  It has all the ingredients, well actually it has FAR TOO MANY ingredients.  But it doesn't have a campaign setting.  It has a massive number of disjointed books and a few timeline books.  But nothing that Bob the gamer can pick up and actually run a campaign. 
  3. Thanks
    Spence got a reaction from Cancer in General Sports Thread   
    Not completely correct.   Yes Apple+TV is the system that is hosting the MLS matches, but you do not need to actually get Apple+TV. 
    You can get just the MLS part.  
    If you do NOT want the full AppleTV the cost is $14.99/month or $99/season. 
    If you already have AppleTV or get a subscription to AppleTV you can add MLS for $12.99/month or $79/season.
     
    I have it (the MLS only part) and it is actually pretty good.  Real commentary and good pre and post game shows plus a back catalog.
     
    AND no blackouts.  You can watch the local games live. 
  4. Like
    Spence reacted to Cygnia in General Sports Thread   
  5. Thanks
    Spence got a reaction from Duke Bushido in Is Hero still your "go-to" rpg system?   
    OK, 2d20 in a nutshell
    First is that the game runs on a Momentum/Threat.  Threat can also be called Doom depending on Genre of game.  In Conan it is Doom, In Start Trek Adventures it is Threat.  The Momentum/Threat economy is the core of what makes drama and action flow in 2d20, whether it is a Cimmerian Barbarian battling a horde of Picts or a Star Fleet Engineer racing against time to stabilize the warp core.  
     
    But before we get into those details let’s look at the resolution system.
     
    The system uses d20’s and modified d6’s.  
    The d20’s are straight up but the d6’s have the following:
    1, 2, blank, blank, 1+effect, 1+effect
     
    Success and failure is determined by rolling a d20 dice pool to achieve enough “successes” to equal or exceed the “test difficulty”.  
     
    A d20 dice pool that maxes out at 5d20.
    Normal everyday NPC’s and creatures (minions) start with 1d20.
    PC’s and non-minor NPC’s and creatures start with 2d20 (hence the name of the system)
    Additional d20’s can be purchased by spending availed Momentum or buying them by giving the GM Threat.  
    This applies to any resolution regardless of being combat, social conflict, skills or attribute tests.
     
    Getting a “success” is achieved by rolling under your target number with a d20.  Each incarnation of the 2d20 games has a slightly different take on how you determine that target number.
    A small detour to explain two versions of Attributes & Skills
     
    In Conan:
    You have 7 Attributes (Such as Agility, Awareness, Braun, etc.) and skills that are linked to attributes.  Each Skill has an Expertise (skill level) and may have a Focus.  A PC’s attributes are usually in the teens and expertise starts at 0 and slowly works up a point or two at a time. I have rarely seem a Focus exceed 3, with 1 being the norm.
     
    For example:
    The Attribute Agility has three linked skills.  The agility score is the Target Number for a basic agility roll and is also the base number for each skill below it.  If Agility was 10, then all skills under it would be at a TN of 10.  Skills can be improved and make have focuses which are a then of specializing within a skill.
    Agility:  10
    Acrobatics: +0 = TN 10
    Melee: +4 = TN 14  Long Sword (focus 2)
    Stealth: +1 = TN 11
     
    In Star Trek:
    They take a simpler approach since all Star Fleet Officers are supposed to be inherently competent and it is a space opera where you do not want to stifle the technobabble.  Star Trek Adventures (STA) has Six Attributes and six Disciplines that replace Skills.  They are: Attributes = Control, Fitness, Presence, Daring, Insight and Reason & Disciplines = Command, Security, Science, Conn, Engineering and Medicine. Like Conan, attribute tend to be in the teens but Disciplines can be anywhere from 1 to 5 or 6.  There is nothing that says they cannot go higher, but I have not seen any in game.  A discipline can have a focus.  
     
    For example TOS Captain Kirk has:
    Control 09    Fitness 09    Presence 10
    Daring 11    Insight 09    Reason 08
     
    Command 05    Security 03     Science 02
    Conn 02    Engineering 03    Medicine 01
     
    With focuses in:
    Hand-to-Hand Combat
    History
    Leadership
    Persuasion
    Phasers
    Starship Tactics
     
    Now back to how to get a success.

    In Conan it is pretty straight forward.  If the PC is in combat and wants to hit the enemy they look at their skill Melee.  In our example Melee has a TN of 14, so any d20 that rolls 14 or lower is a success! But wait!!  If our intrepid hero in the example is using a Long Sword (Focus of 2) that any d20 that rolls 2 or 1 counts as TWO successes.  So if the PC rolls 2d20 (the base number available) they have the ability to get from 0 to 4 successes.
     
    For STA it is slightly different.  The TN is generated by selecting an Attribute and adding a Discipline.  
    The landing party is locked in a brawl with a group of Orion Smuggles on Cestus 3.  Kirk wants to knock out his opponent as soon as possible.  Which combo is used?  Daring and Security?  Or maybe Fitness and Security?  It all depends on how the player describes their intent and actions.  It is flexible.  Lets go with Daring and Security, it is Kirk after all. So the TN is 14.  If the player takes the time to use it in their narrative, the Hand-to-Hand Combat could apply.  In STA a if a focus applies than any roll that is under the Discipline counts as two successes.  So in this case with Security being 3, every d20 that gets a 1, 2 or 3 is two successes.   
     
    As I mentioned before every PC starts with 2d20, but how do you get more?  The two primary method are either to spend available Momentum or give the GM Threat/Doom.  If available you get one additional d20 for each Momentum spent or alternatively you can give the GM one additional Threat/Doom for each additional d20. Up to a maximum of 5d20’s.
     
    In the example, it is the beginning of the brawl so there is no Momentum yet, so he gives the GM 3 Threat and rolls a full 5d20.  So we now know how many dice, but how many successes to be able to hit?
     
    Task Difficulty (TD). The GM sets a number of 0 to 5 (in STA, can be higher, 0-6 in Conan).   If the number of successes equals or exceeds the TD you succeeded.  The exact TD depends on how Dramatic the scene is.  The brawl is taking place in a dark alley so we will set the TD at 2 rather than the normal 1 for unarmed combat.
     
    Using his famous two handed hammer blow, Kirk attempts to strike the Orion thug.  Rolling 5d20 he gets 14, 11, 10, 5 and 2.  All are successes but with the focus the roll generates 6 successes easily landing the blow.  Unarmed Melee is rated at 1d6 plus Knockdown effect with +d6 equal to Security so Kirk’s blow does 4d6+Knockdown.  But wait!  We have 6 success and only need 2! What happens to the “unused” 4 successes.  While there can be several options based on exact game, the basic option are spend each success to add an additional d6 or let them go into the Momentum pool.  Kirks player knows that one of the PC’s is a science type with very little ability in a physical fight, so they opt to buy one more d6 and put 3 points into momentum.  
     
    Kirk rolls 5d6 getting: 2, blank, 1+effect, 1+e, 1=e.  For a total of  5 plus 2 effect.  Since the only effect available is knockdown, Kirk does 5 stress (damage) and knocks the thug to the deck.
     
    Effects with a Disruptor can get nasty, while an effect in an extended task to stabilize the reactor can be pretty beneficial.  
     
    The next PC can use those three Momentum to buy dice or even trigger effects if their d6’s rolled bad.  The Momentum pool maxes out at 6 and losses one for each complete turn (all characters have acted).  I use big 2” d6’s to track momentum since everyone can see them.  The die gets passed to the acting player.  
     
    Threat/Doom is pool that is used by the GM for practically everything.  Instead of initiative in Conan the players always act first in whatever order they wish.  The GM spends Doom to “interrupt” and allow an NPC/Creature to act.  Want to roll more that 1d20 for a mob, spend Doom.  Cast a spell, Doom.  Trigger an effect, Doom.  STA uses Threat the same way.  PC’s tracking a group of Romulans through the coastal hills and need sudden rain squall, Threat.  
    Pretty much everything a GM wants to do runs on Threat/Doom.
     
    Each specific game has its differences.  Take the brawl above.  In the example Kirk was just rolling against a TD.  If the opponent had been a Notable or Major NPC, the roll would have been an opposed roll where you compare successes.  
     
    While Conan has the same sword swinging vibe as many games.  STA can actually make non-combat activities feel as dramatic as combat.  I ran a STA game for a con that feel on Halloween.  It was a Star Trek meets Eldritch Horror cross over where there were three simultaneous momentum pools running.  One team of PC’s trying to stabilize the outposts reactors long enough for the crew to escape, one team trying to repair the damaged archer class starship so it could be used to escape and the last team trying to hold off the swarming spider horrors long enough to let the other teams get done.   It was a non-stop roller coaster with as many groans for a missed engineering roll that generated a setback as for a Redshirt Extra getting swarmed.  Once everyone understood that their action narrative directly affected things and that Momentum and Threat were meant to be spent with wild abandon the game really took off.  Everyone had a great time and the rest of my games that con were filled with me squeezing in extras.  
     
    All in all, it is a great system.  But it does rely on the players being able to let loose and realize it is not D&D or PF where your PC’s are limited to specific and rigidly defined abilities.  In STA and John Carter especially where skills have been replaced by broad categories that are open to interpretation limited only by the players imagination.    
  6. Thanks
    Spence got a reaction from Joe Walsh in Is Hero still your "go-to" rpg system?   
    I don't really know.  The people I know that have seen it aren't giving glowing reviews though.  I haven't seen it myself, but they say two things. 
     
    1) It only resembles Trek when compared to STD and STP deep dark grimness. 
    2) It is basically old TOS scripts given a slight rewrite and shot as "something new". 
     
    I don't know personally because as I mentioned, I haven’t seen it.
  7. Like
    Spence reacted to wiseblood_13 in Would you allow your player to change their character mid-campaign   
    I was going to suggest Spence's method - our first concepts for play were passionate, heat of the moment builds so we could get playing, but after learning the game and it's dynamics better, we had new concepts banging around in oUr heads and wanted to maybe switch them out.  The GM already had plot strings laid out involving some characters, but just like in the comics, sometimes a plot gets put on the back burner for an issue of two, which allowed us to write up 'new recruits' and get them in the flow of things and even begin to tie them to the previous plots.  We allowed for three members of the burgeoning supergroup apiece per player - so I could run  my old-soldier acrobatic martial artist Brigand, or my flashy teenage blaster Radar Rider, or my blind alien butterfly woman Firethorn, who used mental and light powers to explore her new world and help her new friends fight bad guys.  Kept it mixed up enough to keep the game fresh for us and the GM.
  8. Like
    Spence got a reaction from Ninja-Bear in Is Hero still your "go-to" rpg system?   
    Sorry for the super late reply.
     
    Modiphious is the company and they have several games sporting the 2d20 system beside Conan and John Carter.  Achtung! Cthulhu, Dune, Fallout, Dishonored, Homeworld, Infinity and Star Trek Adventures. Cohors Cthulhu is in development. 
     
    I really enjoy the Star Trek game. 
     
    I am running short on time and have to get on the road or I'll be late.  I will give rundown on the mechanics tonight. 
     
  9. Thanks
    Spence got a reaction from Khymeria in Top Secret [TSR]   
    Well it has been a long while. 
    It was basically a % roll under system for skills, but held onto poly die  for damage and stuff.
    My TS rulebook is 1980 and TSsi is 87. 
    IIRC the differences between editions wasn't as much change as it was cleaning up presentation and rules.  If you plan to play Top Secret skip to the SI version
     
    I was pretty stoked when I heard of Top Secret New World Order, and then I got a copy.  They went to a "die step" system like savage worlds with an Action Point system that reminded me of Feng Shui 2.  I never got past the first read through.
     
    We found that the James Bond 007 RPG was too clunky for us in play, but the adventures they put out were fantastic, espectially for the 80's.  Maps, handouts and pictures for most everything.  They had a module for several of the movies plus more, their Locations source book included color pictures of the various places (casinos, restaurants, hotels, trains etc.) to augment the maps and illustrations which I still use to today. 
     
    To be honest though, I'd mine the setting and story info and use another rule system.  Both games are 80's games and you can tell the heavy wargame influence. 
     
  10. Like
    Spence got a reaction from Pariah in What Fantasy/Sci-Fi book have you just finished? Please rate it...   
    I am actually in the process of re-reading/listening to Zelazny's Amber Chronicles.
     
    I have always wished to see this one make it as an Epic TV Series such as Game of Thrones.  With modern effects it is very doable and the story has always been a good one.
  11. Like
    Spence got a reaction from Christopher R Taylor in Wizards of the Coast Announces One D&D   
    Given the names of the people that have taken over key positions in Hasbro/WotC, my personal belief is that they are going to be moving D&D to be a 100% online game. 
    There will no longer be dead tree products in a few years. 
     
    The game will resemble a CRPG with an online tool-kit that will allow a DM to create and populate maps/locations/campaigns in the D&D server and the players will create their PC's on line.  And then you will all dial into the D&D virtual world and play the game with the DM controlling the creatures/monsters/NPCs with the system automatically resolving the mechanics. 
     
    For a fee of course.  The $30 they mentioned for basic access.  The more to "buy" the virtual books. and even more for a "DM's" account. And so on.
     
    Sure they will lose a lot of traditional D&D gamers.  But they will be replacing a lot of people that only buy a single book with people on a monthly subscription. 
    At $30 a month they will get $360 a year from a player.  How many of the players, not including DM's, at your table hand WotC $360 a year?  The DM's will also need to pay extra for DM content such as monsters and setting books.  And any mappers and campaign tools that are stored and accessed through the program will of course have its own subscription. 
     
    And don't forget all the cool in system micro-transactions you can purchase in game to make your characters virtual miniature look cool.  
     
    Nope, I think TTRPG D&D is going away. 
     
  12. Haha
    Spence got a reaction from Steve in Is there any point to Halflings?   
    Ah yes, the classic Halfling-Thief-on-a-rope trap detector.
  13. Haha
    Spence got a reaction from Beast in Is there any point to Halflings?   
    Ah yes, the classic Halfling-Thief-on-a-rope trap detector.
  14. Like
    Spence got a reaction from Khymeria in Victorian Champions   
    Western Hero is a resource that can be useful. 
  15. Like
    Spence got a reaction from Duke Bushido in HERO System Resource Kit (Book+PDF)   
    I picked up many of them from the store after 6th hit.  The Character Creation Handbook is fantastic for chargen, especially now.  It is basically the entire Chapter One Character Creation from the core rulebook plus additional chargen info from the supplements like Fantasy Hero.  
     
    A physical copy for just $15. 
     
    If you have enough 5th ed rulebooks for everyone it might not be something you want.  But with the extinction of the main rulebook, the CCH is a great way to get everyone a copy they can take home and read as well as read at the table without needing to pass them around at only $15.
     
     
  16. Like
    Spence got a reaction from Christopher R Taylor in What Fantasy/Sci-Fi book have you just finished? Please rate it...   
    I am actually in the process of re-reading/listening to Zelazny's Amber Chronicles.
     
    I have always wished to see this one make it as an Epic TV Series such as Game of Thrones.  With modern effects it is very doable and the story has always been a good one.
  17. Thanks
    Spence got a reaction from Duke Bushido in Just some random Traveller Hero thoughts   
    I do follow your points, but I think the big thing I miss which was the corner stone of all our Traveller (or Space Opera or etc.) was the lack of an "all Vargr" or any aliens in the core game.  The players characters were the one "discovering" the aliens and making first contact. 
     
    The settings removed all the excitement and wonder by filling in all the blanks.  Boring.
  18. Like
    Spence got a reaction from Christopher R Taylor in Favorite games you have run at a convention   
    I think that is why the Star Trek and the FoDG games seem to go so well.  Even if they are not fans of the shows most players know enough about Star Trek and super spies along the line of Jason Bourne to be able to get into the game.  SuperHero games are hard when there has been so little superHero and some much People/Killers with powers in the last decade or so.  I'm sure you're not shocked when you ask someone what their favorite superHERO is and they reply with something like Venom or Deadpool and then look puzzled when you tell them they are not heroes.
     
     
  19. Like
    Spence reacted to Christopher R Taylor in Favorite games you have run at a convention   
    I ran three different con games over the years, with varying success.  I did a Days of Future Past X-men game, a Vietnam vets meet vampires game, and a Stronghold game that I hope to convert over to the Escape from Stronghold rewrite.  Cons are tough because you have no relationship or knowledge of the players so you never know what's going to click and what won't.
  20. Like
    Spence reacted to mattingly in Favorite games you have run at a convention   
    The whole table was running on all cylinders that night.
    It really came together perfectly. 
  21. Like
    Spence got a reaction from Ndreare in Building a Better Hero Block   
    what he said x2
  22. Thanks
    Spence reacted to HeroGM in Western Hero 6th edition   
    https://t.co/4uhweGo6Mv
     
    I've seen cheaper as well. Even Walmart and Amazon.
     
  23. Like
    Spence got a reaction from Christopher R Taylor in DC Movies- if at first you don't succeed...   
    I've never been a fan of the grim dark Casual-Killer Man movies that replaced Superman under Snyder.  But the Snyder cut was 100%....no 1000% better than the theatrical version.  
     
     
    Everything I read or listened to indicated that Batgirl was brutally bad and provoked a very very negative reaction from test audiences.  Initial statements announcing it being canned mentioned that. 
    Then suddenly it was it was all about tax write-offs and "it was a good movie but..." statements.  I think they are just saying that so they can try to avoid any possible legal repercussions.  After all modern movies have a lot of stake holders.
     
     
  24. Like
    Spence got a reaction from Iuz the Evil in DC Movies- if at first you don't succeed...   
    I've never been a fan of the grim dark Casual-Killer Man movies that replaced Superman under Snyder.  But the Snyder cut was 100%....no 1000% better than the theatrical version.  
     
     
    Everything I read or listened to indicated that Batgirl was brutally bad and provoked a very very negative reaction from test audiences.  Initial statements announcing it being canned mentioned that. 
    Then suddenly it was it was all about tax write-offs and "it was a good movie but..." statements.  I think they are just saying that so they can try to avoid any possible legal repercussions.  After all modern movies have a lot of stake holders.
     
     
  25. Like
    Spence reacted to Cancer in General Sports Thread   
    It's maximum monetization, that's all.  I have lived as a cheap bass tarred and I will die a cheap bass tarred, so it'll be sayonara for me.
     
    AFAICT there's no such deal for Liga MX yet, so hopefully there'll still be Mexican soccer most weekends on TUDN via rabbit ears.
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