projecktzero

Re: Things I'd like to see more of in fantasy gaming That sounds like a great idea. It really adds mystery to magic. Much better than "oh, Gendulf casts a fireball". As long as the other players don't suspect the GM bending the rules for the magic users, it'd probably work out well.

Re: Five magics

Re: Norse Rune Stone Magic ? I'll put in another vote for GURPS Vikings. It is a really good book. There really isn't that much GURPS specific stuff.

Re: Info wanted on mythic kingdoms? I think it's out of print, but GURPS Atlantis might be a good sourcebook.

Re: Ambrethel Map in Free Stuff I went to 3 hobby shops in my area looking for TA. At the 3rd shop, there was quite a bit of Hero stuff, but I didn't see TA. Just as I was about to leave, I saw TA on a display of new books. Anyway, I downloaded the map. Very nice! Question: At first glance, the map kinda looked like a distorted/morphed Europe . Without any prompting from me, when I showed the map to my wife, she commented that it kinda looked like Europe. Is this map intentionally made to look like Europe?

Re: Star Wars Hero : Ready for Comment Looking forward to seeing more of this great stuff. Although I probably won't be running a Star Wars campaign, there seems to be some good stuff to mine for any star hero campaign. I appreciate the effort you put into this.

Re: Need help with magic system Thanks to all who replied. Lots of ideas to think about. I kind of like the idea of LTE. What are your experiences with it? Is it a book keeping nightmare?

oh wise Hero Gamers, I'm slowing working on a Fantasy Hero campaign. Actually, it's an old Rolemaster campaign that I managed to lose most of the info save a couple of maps and a brief history. Anyway, I'm struggling with the magic system. I want a magic system that allows the mages to be like many of the fantasy novels I've read. What does that mean? Well, it's very dynamic in that they can usually cast what they want when they want yet it is exhausting to cast spells. None of this spell memorization DnD stuff. Here's some of the things I'm thinking about... The exhausting part might be an End Reserve that recharges slowly or maybe 2X End Cost or more or both. All spells must cost End. All spells must have at least two of the following limitations: Concentration Gestures Incantations Focus(Not material components but an item such as a staff or holy symbol) Extra Time I'm thinking of only two types of spells, magic and divine. The character must have "The gift", most likely a talent the PC must purchase. One talent for Magic and one for Divine. For 1 point, the PC can buy a Latent Talent at character creation..i.e. kind of a place holder if the player envisions the character to eventually to be able to cast spells. "The Gift" in FH comes the closest to what I'm thinking of but without the multiple schools of magic and without keeping track of every spell the character can cast. Since there isn't multiple schools of magic, I was thinking of doubling or more the inital cost of the VPP as well as increasing the cost of increasing the VPP. i.e. For every 2 or 3 points put into the VPP, the pool is increased by 5 points. The GM will have to approve of any spell to make sure it fits in the campaign. I will have Hero Designer on hand during play as well as FHG, so whipping up spells shouldn't chew up too much time. Also, the player and I can whip up a list of spells that the Wizard or Priest usually casts. I'm planning a Heroic campaign.(75+75 disadvantages). It's been a real long time since I played Hero(Anyone remember 1st Ed Champions?), so I'm a little concerned about getting bogged down in the rules. I'm also concerned about using a VPP since so many seem to have issues with it. I hope to recruit a group of players that are more concerned about roleplaying than min/maxing. Any ideas on this subject? Will this magic system be unbalancing? Time consuming? Difficult for the players to wrap their minds around?

Re: How do i start my story? Yawn..you are all in a pub/tavern when an old wizard hires you... Have a couple of the PC's already know each other. It is possible to introduce the other players as the story progresses.(Hopefully earlier than later.) A god summons all the PCs and give them a quest. um...actually your idea of them forming a group isn't bad. One team in Fantasy Hero is presented that way. Perhaps all the PCs have the same Hunted or Patron or Contact.

Intersting way to create a game. I'm alway putting ideas into my Palm like character names, locations, adventure ideas, ... Sometimes it takes me awhile to gather all the elements of an adventure. I'll mull it over while driving to/from work...

or Diablo II. Thanks for taking the time to read my long post. I'll add a direct statement. Just wanted to know if I was on the right track.

As I assemble my campaign, I'm working on a web site for it. I want to have a page that describes the Style/Type of Campaign I'll be running so potential players can review it and decide if that's the type of game they'd like to play in. Can you look it over and see if it conveys what type of game it will be? Do I need to add/remove/clarify anything? ----- The bottom line is FUN. The game must be fun for both the players and the GM. It will be an epic medieval fantasy campaign. In an attempt to get the feel and atmosphere of epic fantasy novels that I've read[1], there are a few things that will be different in this campaign compared to the stereotypical fantasy campaign. There won't be magic items for sale at your local shop. Magic items are hard to make and drain the creators. They are rarely for sale. You won't find a orc in a room with treasure chests stocked full of magic items and thousands of gold coins. Characters in fantasy novels usually don't worry about cool loot. They are too worried about saving the world, stopping evil, ... This doesn't mean there won't be magic items. It's just the way the characters come across them that will be more like fantasy novels. Think about where most characters in fantasy novels get their magic items. There won't be dungeon crawls for the sake of dungeon crawls. The characters hardly ever will need to kill every last monster, search every room, and pilfer every last item. I'm hoping to give a sense of atmosphere and mood in the game. Help me out once in a while by asking "What does it look like around here?" or "What does it feel like in here?" ROLE PLAY I'll emphasize the role play in RPG. I don't expect funny accents or acting. I'm terrible at both, so I don't expect you to be good at it either. Instead of saying "My character attacks the orc," say "I grimace, raise my shield, and swing my sword at the orc." Saying "I grimace, swing my sword while yelling FOR TROTHGARD!" would be great. Instead of "My character orders an ale," how about, "Barkeep, your best dwarven ale."? Good role playing means doing things IN CHARACTER. Ask yourself, "What makes sense for my character?" When picking skills and abilities, stick with the character concept. If your character is a scrawny elven wizard, don't give him lots of BODY or PD and ED just because it will make him harder to kill. It doesn't make sense for the character. Ask, "What would my character do?" If your character prefers stealth and trickery, he wouldn't go charging into battle screaming like a barbarian. He'd sneak up on the enemy and attack from behind or set up a trap. Sometimes the answer to "What would my character do?" means doing something that isn't best for the adventuring party. On the other hand, there's a happy middle ground on this. Sometimes you'll need to rationalize why in the world your character would be doing this. We need to keep the party together or the game falls apart, so don't take it too far where it becomes nearly impossible to justify your character's actions to stay in the adventure. A character who's a loner and hates working with people isn't going to work out in this game where a group of adventurers is essential. You could throw in some personality traits, habits, or phobias to make the character more interesting. Maybe your dwarven fighter is afraid of water. Maybe he fell in a lake and nearly drowned as a child. Maybe he's never been on the water, so he's just afraid of sailing on it. Maybe your character collects weapons-all kinds as long as they're different. Maybe your character is a drunk and rarely sobers up. He might drink on adventures not just at the local pubs. These can also be great Disadvantages for your character. Check out Uncle Figgy's Guides to learn more. Yeah, the name Uncle Figgy sounds corny and funny, but these guides are pretty good. Uncle Figgy has been playing RPGs for over 17+ years, so there's something to learn from him. FEEDBACK After a gaming session, let me know what you like and don't like about the game. I won't learn how to make my game better unless I get some feedback. If you're not having fun in the game, let me know and tell me why after the game session. Try one more session. If you're still not having fun, maybe our gaming styles don't match. [1] J.R.R Tolkien, Terry Brooks, Terry Goodkind, Mary Stewart, Raymond Feist, Ursula K. Le Guin, David Eddings

If you're interested in the Hero Stats for a Lich, they are in Monsters, Minions, and Marauders which I just picked up.

I've read many who like the Conan soundtrack, so I picked it up. It just doesn't do it for me. The LOTR soundtracks are good. I do remember Bakshi version of LotR, and the soundtrack was pretty good. David Arkenstone's Celtic Book of Days Jethro Tull I'll probably think of more after I click the submit reply button.

Very amusing. I watch the show when I can. I'd lower his str and body. Frasier's a wimp.