yukonhorror

Re: Shoule NASA be nixed? skipped ahead. With respect to space exploration, maybe. However, NASA is involved in a lot of fundamental research regarding areas like materials and aerospace (planes, not spaceships). That research is still applicable to non-space stuff, and important.

Re: Setting books for Fantasy Hero 6E? off topic, but when will inceptum terminus arrive. I have been biting my nails over that one.

Re: Setting books for Fantasy Hero 6E? there is a 3rd party one from d-3 games called kamarathin. It is pretty good I am told.

Re: need more than plot hooks! Haven't had a chance to peruse all you said, but THANKS! As per the Sci-Fi, I am all about adaptation, but didn't think realize the nice parallelism between sci-fi and superheroic. As per pizza man, again, perused. Didn't read. But will. That is the kind of thing I was thinking as an alternative. A how-to for building an adventure. My main issue is scale regarding super-heroes versus fantasy. I can whip up a bring down the evil cult of the undead god kind of dungeon crawl with no issues. But it seems like that scales only so far, and super-heroes can just whip through that no problem.

I have ALWAYS wanted to play in a super-heroic game, but I can never find one to play in. So that resorts me to running one, but I am fairly inept at plot cohesion. I have good ideas and can get some from sourcebooks, but filling out the details is the problem. I am not talking about statting out villains or security systems or whatever. I am talking about maps and how to make the adventure in-depth and involved rather than railroaded and boring. As such, I have been looking for print/online modules/adventures in the genre (any system, as I'll convert the material over to HERO), but coming up kind of short. I was hoping someone could point me in the right direction. I can run a fantasy game no problem, but I have experience with fantasy games. As I have never played in a super-heroic game, and I am not an avid comic book collector, I am at a loss on how to formulate good missions for the players. I want to avoid the "super-villain takes bridge hostage. Save civilians and defeat villain." I know that kind of adventure could be fun, but I'd probably run it as the players going in, going full-out combat, defeat villain, and it is done. So in short, any suggestions on good print/online modules/adventures in the genre would be appreciated.

I thought I'd put this out there. I think I have my toolkit based on the fan-made tabletop final fantasy RPG from http://www.returnergames.com where it needs to be. If anyone WANTS it, PM me and I'll send you what I have. What is in my blog is a bit outdated (many updates since)

Re: Dragon humanoid shape shift I did mine (I don't have those books) as a multiform but use the actual character as the base to work from (skill and statwise).

Re: What would you do as GM when our intrepid . . . . . . I say survival is survival against many things. Specifically for food, I'd say he either picked some bad mushrooms or served up an obviously sickly creature and any who eat it get food poisoning. How to define food poisoning, maybe damage over time and some SERIOUS drain (that has a seriously slow recovery rate).

Re: How to balance equipment users vs. spell casters It gets mentioned in 6e2, but I'd also like advice on this. Seems as though my warriors are exceptionally more powerful than my spellcasters.

Re: Is there a semi-plausible way for battlesuits/powered armor to do HVAC? dry suits for SCUBA use ambient body heat to keep you warm in EXTREME colds, but you'd be screwed if it was a hot environment. If you had a cooling unit on the gas tanks, then MAYBE. With respect to NASA suits, I could see them working in water (analogous to how a dry suit works), but the mechanical/electrical components probably wouldn't survive. However, that's an issue of design. They weren't designed to go underwater, they are designed to go into space. I am sure if that was a consideration, you could encase electrical components so water couldn't interfere with them.

Re: How to introduce group to the Hero System? I know the pain you are going through (players and even myself are new to HERO). I have read the books, and designed stuff, but they don't even have that. This is what I did (and shouldn't have done): KISS Keep it simple stupid. Seriously. I think the BEST thing I did was toolkit the game a bit. Create some general class concepts, races, etc... Use that as a catalyst for their character design (with respect to concept not numbers). With their concept in hand (hopefully they provide a good detailed background), you can crunch the numbers for them. E.g. The guy wanted a circus performer who was a bit of a showoff and a total ladies man. I gave him complications like overconfident and negative reputation (chauvinist pig), and even gave him distinct features (an awful cologne he douses himself with). I gave him a skill set that would be fitting for a circus performer (concealment, acrobatics, breakfall, oratory, etc...). Gave him Combat Luck (to reflect his seed for his overconfidence), and striking appearance (can't get the ladies being an ugo). After that, he said he wanted to be a dual sword guy, so filled him out with respect CSL's and stats to reflect what he wanted. With a solid framework on paper, and the table with numbers, he was able to tweak things to his liking. I.e. I want to be more charming, but I don't want to be that intelligent. He is pretty buff to show off his muscles, but doesn't focus on defense (higher STR, lower DCV). And so on and so forth. By asking questions, and making the numbers in the ballpark of where you want them for combat and such, it was relatively painless. BEFORE that guy, I just gave the first person interested the tables, explained them quick, and let him loose. BAD IDEA. To this day he still is kind of lost. So ease them into the mechanics. Don't spring on a bunch of things on them at once. Hold their hand at first, and slowly indulge the behind the scenes with respect to numbers and such. Good luck.

Re: How does flash work. AKA I am an idiot. I guess 5 CP / 1d6 seems expensive if the SPD of the characters/enemies is low. If the SPD is 4, a 3d6 may only put them out for 2 segments having no effect at all. Also, it seems 1 CP / flash defense is cheap in that same regard. Anyhoo, thanks

Re: PC creation question I'd do it with multiple form and either the no control limitation or the accidental change complication. Each form is "physically" the same (same STR, DEX, CON, SPD, REC, END, STUN, BODY, PD, ED, OCV, DCV) but mentally completely different. You may be able to argue DEX, OCV, DCV have to do with hand eye coordination (a mental concept not physical), but you get the idea. The other things (skills, mental attributes, maybe even some talents/powers) completely different. Each one has their own set of complications and such too.

Usually the book has GREAT examples, but this time it doesn't and I think I am at a loss. I have always read flash as you roll to attack, if hit, roll xd6 and that is how many segments the target is affected. I read it TODAY, and it says normal BODY dam. So, if I have a 5d6 flash attack (blinding attack) and I hit and roll 1,3,3,5,6 they are blinded for 5 segments or 18 (assuming no defense)? This also begs the question of flash defense. Let's Assume I have 4 pts of flash defense, it would reduce the timelength to 1 (if 5 originally) or 14 (if 18 originally), correct? Then what's the point of resistant flash defense? It seems as though flash defense reduces the "BODY" dam of a flash attack. That's what resistant defenses do, so I am sort of confused as to the point. Is there a way to augment flash attacks to penetrate flash defense, but NOT resistant flash defense?? Maybe I am missing something, but would love to hear from the audience.

Re: Need help with New Campaign Maybe it isn't an issue of "being born" but more exposure to a substance. Maybe excalibur in the stone concept. Adventurers visit the X every day in hopes they will be the uber mage. A group of friends decide to do it as a lark, but actually succeed (possibly without knowing it). Maybe they visit it as part of a merchant company and they are just making deliveries. They don't even know what X does or what it is. They are just hanging near it while they wait for the mage to sign the paperwork of the deliveries. Stemming from this, I think it would be kind of nifty to have some sort of "link" between them all. Like a VPP they all pull powers from (as defined by the GM), but they are also linked in terms of life. So they all share a pool of BODY/STUN/END (possibly other stats too and skills). They always have the same CP total, but the distribution of specific CP can be pulled and shared in different ways (the party always has 20 pts to spend on STR, so if one character decides to take 20 pts of STR, everyone else is stuck at 10 STR). In a story sense, the group is the "uber-mage" Maybe they can even go captain planet (or voltron or power rangers) and "combine themselves" to form the uber-mage (with a combined total of all the members). I think this could be fun with the right players.