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Peregrine

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  5. WWII Dark Reich Hero

    in Dark Champions

    Posted

    Re: WWII Dark Reich Hero

     

    If you'rte looking for good ideas' date=' GURPS has written an Alternate Earths supplement that includes a detailed timeline in which the Axis won WWII.[/quote']

     

    They also have an entire supplement for WWII weirdness called, appropriately enough, Weird War II.

  6. The Known Universe (animation)

    in Star Hero

    Posted

    Re: The Known Universe (animation)

     

    Wasn't meant as a Hitchhicker's Guide quote... that truly put things into proportion for me.

     

    Actually, it gave me more of a sense of time. Most of what was depicted is only known to us as it existed thousands to millions of years ago. We have no clue what those things look like today; only educated guesses based on the most commonly accepted assumptions.

  12. Supervillains Who Know Their Limitations

    in Champions

    Posted

    Re: Supervillains Who Know Their Limitations

     

    An interesting villain would be one who seeks to rule only himself - i.e. claims to be sovereign in and of himself without necessarily claiming any sovereign territory.

     

    A corrollary, of course, is that he views himself as above any law but his own.

     

    Lucius Alexander

     

    I rule over palindromedaries

     

    You mean like Menton, in some interpretations.

  19. Classical Greek-Roman Campaign

    in Fantasy Hero

    Posted

    Re: Classical Greek-Roman Campaign

     

    With regard to having Rome around' date=' there is no reason you cannot define an alternate history in which Greece and Sparta, and Carthage for that matter, never declined. Indeed, keep much of the ancient world intact at their peak. India is an empire, Egypt is planning even greater pyramids, China is united and filled with early Wuxia, the Druids who built Stonehenge weild awesome power. Rome flexes their legions' might, Persia with a million man army marches on Greece, and three hundred Spartans, bolstered by a half dozen other heroes, stand ready to hold a pass against them.[/quote']

     

    That sounds a lot like my last game of CivIV... :)

  21. Opens Book At Random (2 page review)

    in HERO System Discussion

    Posted

    Re: Opens Book At Random (2 page review)

     

    I realize this is quite a popular interpretation of the 4e Characteristic Maxima rules; however' date=' I can find nothing in the 4e rulebook that explicitly supports this interpretation. Do you have a page reference?[/quote']

     

    Sure.

     

    NORMAL CHARACTERISTIC MAXIMA

    This represents a character who is a “normal” in a world of superheroes or other super-powerful beings. This Disadvantage can only be purchased by characters in a campaign where there are normally no restriction on Characteristics (a superheroic campaign).

     

    I only discovered it on researching my position for another thread on these boards.

  22. Game Master Lament

    in HERO System Discussion

    Posted

    Re: Game Master Lament

     

    I think it depends on how many people are willing to run. The gamemaster needs to be inspired by the underlying game concept because of the amount of work that goes into running a game. On the other hand' date=' the players need to dig the idea, too. I think the GM should float proposals of the things he's willing to run and see which ones fly. I do not think it should be a pure democracy, though. Just as the players should not be steamrollered, neither should the GM be steamrollered. Since he's the one doing most of the heavy lifting he at least needs a veto, and really should be the one providing the options of what will and won't be run. I say this as someone who was the GM for a group of players who refused to run games themselves. And who refused to host the game. Always my house. Always me running the game. I'm not their indentured game-master. Its got to be something that resonates with me.[/quote']

     

     

    Oh yeah; it's gotta be a whole-group cooperative effort.

     

    IME, I've seen the "tyranny of the GM" a lot more than I've seen "tyranny of the players"; I reject both.

  23. Opens Book At Random (2 page review)

    in HERO System Discussion

    Posted

    Re: Opens Book At Random (2 page review)

     

    Not random... *dons flame-resistant suit*

     

    6E1 50-51 Characteristic Maxima

     

    The rules section actually continues on to p. 52, which I will include in the review.

     

    Acceptable, though unrelated, artwork; basically filler for layout purposes.

     

    This rules section is an expansion of the relevant bits from 5eR, containing several key changes from 5eR.

     

    First, the name of the rule has been changed; in 5eR it was called Normal Characteristic Maxima. This was a holdover from 4e, wherein the Maxima was explicitly stated to be the "dividing line" between a "Normal" and a "Super" in a Superheroic setting. 5eR contained no such statement, but many 4e veterans did not change their perception or use of the rule.

     

    Second, the use of Characteristic Maxima is explicitly optional for all settings/campaigns, both Superheroic and Heroic. Previously, the corresponding rule was not in place for Superheroic settings except as a per-character Disadvantage and was automatically in place for Heroic settings with no exceptions.

     

    Third, Characteristic Maxima is "...simply a campaign 'ground rule' that affects everyone in the setting equally." (6E1 50) Thus, in a Superheroic setting, it is explicitly not the "dividing line" that 4e veterans are familiar with.

     

    Fourth, corresponding to the third, is the explicit absence of a Complication that would place Characteristic Maxima on specific characters in a setting where it was not in general use. Thus, it is "everyone or no one".

     

    Fifth, "[t]he listings in the Characteristic Maxima Table are suggestions, not hard and fast rules." (ibid) Those listings have no official status beyond serving as recommended break points for Characteristic costs in specific settings at the option of the local gaming group.

     

    New content includes official discussion of other options: higher or lower breakpoints than those given on the Characteristic Maxima Table, Skill Maxima, and Damage Maxima. The latter in particular is noted as a way to allow characters to exceed a campaign's GM-determined maximum on damage, such as for a "Nova Blast" power (among many other possible examples).

     

    Overall, this rule has gotten what I call the Steve Long Treatment: a few sentences have been expanded tremendously, and variations and examples thereof have been provided. This rule is substantially changed from its previous incarnations, and veteran Hero gamers should read it carefully and fully digest the changes, even if they ultimately decide to grandfather in previous versions' usage of the rule.

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