Michael Hopcroft

In some medieval worlds, there is a ruling noble class and a massive peasant underclass who are little more than slaves. This has enormous potential for social abuse, as the American experience with slavery demonstrates. If the local lord begins to abuse his priveleges by doing things like killing peasantry at random, claiming the first night with the new bride of every single marriage in his manor, or making serfs fight to the death for his sport, what can the peasantry do to bring him back in line? Historically, peasant revolts always failed (but occurred frequently) because the rebels had much poorer training and equipment than their opponents. But if some peasants knew a little "hedge magic" and craft skills to make good weapons (and disguise them as something else), maybe this could give them enough of an advantage that they stand a figthing chance. Of course, the best policy after defeating a manorial lord is to flee to another kingdom ahead of the royal army that is certain to be headed your way....

It's a matter of balance at times. A few good martial maneuvers can help a swordsman hold his own in a world with monsters, magic and amrored knights. Swashbucklers who attended fencing schools definitely are martial artists. Knights who have trained for battle from child hood are martial artists. The best mercenaries (not the rabble) are martial artists. And peasant classes might well develop unarmed martial styles, not just to settle disputes violently among each other but in case the armed nobility gets WAY out of line.

If I wanted to build a sword that would be worth building an entire campaign around acquiring and weilding, just how powerful wuld that sword have to be? And what sort of power? I believe earlier on these boards I mentioned a sword that could eb only weilded by the high king. What if ownership of the sword meant that, int eh eyes of the peop,e you WERE the High King? The sword was lost three hundred years ago in a quest and thet land has been in chaos since then. The only way to save the realm from self-destruction is to find a worthy weilder for the sword -- but first the sword itself must be found. What is more the sword chooses who can use it to full effect -- not based on royal blood or anything liek that, but on its own standards of worthiness to lead and rule. Like Excalibur not letting just anyone draw it out of the stone, maybe this sword won;t let just anyone unsheathe it. And what is the person it chooses is from common stock? Imagine the intiruge that would ensue if the sword were found by the PCs. Maybe the fighter in the party -- or the wizard! -- is the one the sword chooses. Since few advebturers are the distant kin of royalty, everybody -- na di mean EVERYBODy -- will be trying to take that sword away from them before they can claim the throne of the High King -- if they even WANT the throne!

Is it pracxtical to base a superhero entirely around Skills? His characteristics would be normal, and he would have no usperpowers other than minor eqipment 9like weapons eh absolutely has to pay for) but the bulk of his CP are spent on skills -- combat skils, scientific skills, social skills, medical skills, etc. what would this character need to be able to fucntion alongside other superheroes?

I should also point out that this style, while common, is not universal. Many anime/manga artists prefer a more realistic style. An example of such a manga would be the high school drama Great Teacher Onizkua. There is also a rather extreme drawing style called "super-deformed" that is mainly used in comedic cut-scenes, although there was an entire seried of SD Gundam. This style is characterized by very small bodies and very large heads. CLAMP is notorious for their SD versions of themselves that appear in the afternotes of many of their manga.

On the other hand, there is nothing preventing a craft the size of a jet fighter from carrying a weapon that can vaporize planets. You might not want to do it that way, but it's entirely possible.

No focus might be the way to go. That way the attack is always there when you need it. You could put a Misellaneous Limitation that restricts when the sword or other weapon is available. Only When enraged is a nasty one,or (in the case of Highlander) Only When facing Another Immortal in Mortal Combat (in neitherthe movie or the TV series did the hero use his sword against normals). On the other hand, the various macLeaods were always wearing coats long enough to hide those whopping great swords is they were slungbehind the back and drawn under the shoulder. This would be Concelament coupled with Distinctive features (always wears trenchoat-length coats no matter what the weather).

How would you guys try to recreate the Final fantasy VII style of tehcnofantasy game (where the character start out somewhat above average and, as they adventure, become world-shakingly powerful). besides, I'm wondering how you can possibly carry around that whopping great sword without attracting all kinds of unwelcome attention....

I try not to think about that setting. It rmeinds me of an roleplayer having a temper tantrum.

Wizards in fantasy fiction are able to extend their lifespans 9without becoming liches) by hundreds of years. Elves never die unless killed, or unless they wil themselves to die out of ennui. And so forth. What are the practical effects of immortaloity on a campaign world? Can the same person rule a kingdom for hundreds of years as King Eternal? And how does that change the politics of that kingdom? If the Court Wizard has been serving the royal fmaility for hundreds of years, does he effectively become the government? How powerful can one get in a thousand years?

Or you could be the mages who called up the typhoon.... For a japanese Mythos game, you have to take Shinto into account. What are the typical powerrs of a Shinto priest or shrine maiden? And do Buddhist monks in a fantasy setting learn anything approaching divine magic? Of course you can;t have a Japan fanatasy game with masterless samurai trying to perfect their swordsmanship skills until they can perform quasimytsical feats of swordplay.

I think you may have a point here. Conan the Barbarian wsn't just strong as an ox -- he had trained in all forms of combat to the point that he was a virtual killing machine. How many points is Conan worth, anyway?

What would it be like ot build a game around the standard fantasry tropes, but with superhuman power levels for PCs? Superpowers would be magic. Characters with extreme Characteristics would have dragons blood, giants blood or be related to gods. If you wnated a magic sword you'd buy it with your character points as a focus -- but that sword could chop through boulders. Only wizards and clerics would be able to cast spells, but they could weave powerful dweamors indeed. The PCs would be the greatest adventurers in the world -- and thus face the greatest challenges. They might indeed be a match for a dragon -- but what if they had to face an ARMY of dragons? And there are many types of power that cannot be represented by character points. Even if a knight is strong enough to win a kingdom by his sword arm, it will take more than his sword arm to keep it.... What would fantasy characters built within genre, but at the same point and disadvantage level of Champions beginning superheroes, be like? Even if you give them Normal Characteristic Maxima (and don't give them the points for it), there's a lot you can buy for 300+150 points.

King of jesters, jester of Kings You probably remember that the character Danny Kaye played in The Court Jester was not the real Jacomo. The real one used his jestering as a cover for his true business -- assassination. Giving much cause for comedic misunderstanding in what has to be one of the two or three funniest fantasy films ever made. Remember -- the chalice from the palace has the pellet that is poison, the vessel with the pestle holds the brew that is true!

I can;t help but ask.... But is there a spell for turning princes into frogs?

I saw the ad in the bvack for Fantasy HERO Grimoire and i was wondering just what sort of book it was going to be and what kind of spells would be in it. Will it be just a book of spells, or would there be more to it? Finally, will there be a Hero Designer package for Fantasy HERO including the Grimorie, and will it be just as expensive as the UNTIL Superpowers Database kit? (I;'m sure there has been a thread on this subject, but I can;t find it. If someone could point me to it, I'd like to read and contribute to it.)

If characters go on a quest to learn skills that cost points (like Martial Arts), hoe do they earn the points to buy the skills as they train in them? Does the GM award the points by fiat if he feels they have spent the proper amount of time out of play training?

Social Disadvatnage: Prejudice against Dragons (could face serious social conequences if discoeverd he was raised by a dragon, and since most humans hate dragons no mater what their alignment anyone who defends dragons is quickly going to be ostracised by humans). Psych lim: More comfrotable around dragons than around people. Phsyical limitation: Unfamiliar with human culture (and raised by a mother who scorned humans with the exception of himself). If Literacy is the norm in your campaign, you might consider him being able to read only the dragon tounge and, whoile able to speak Common, unable to read or write it.

I haven;t read my Star HERO book in a while (in fact, I recenttly had to replace my copy after losing it) but I seem to recall there being a lot of character package deals in it. I don;t have tE any more, but there may have been even more in that. What i was wondering is if there package deals for character types like dissolute nobles (useful NPCs who can get a trading ship PC party in a lot of trouble). I also wonder, on a related note, if it is possible to buld a bio-mechanical race like Alternity's Mechalus. They were a really cool race and would make interesting PCs, and I'd like to see one in a Star HERO game.

I have had a lot of fun with B-grade fantasy movies over the years. I don't know if it's been mentioned yet, but Roger Corman's "The Raven", withVincent price and Boris Karloff, has a lot of funny stuff in it and also has a great climactic wizard's duel -- for the effects he had at his disposal in 1963 with no budget, Corman did a materful job. Someone mentioned "Sword of the Valiant". I wish I could see that again -- I really enjoyed it when I first saw it on TV (the only time I've ever seen it). Slayers: the Motion Picutre is a Japanese animation with two powerful sorceresses wreaking havoc on a resort island. Clearly inspired by someone's AD&D campaign, the characters are a hoot. The TV series is even better, and the OVAs (original Video Animation) are hilarious. "Wait a minute -- your mirror-oppoosites are shy, demure pacifists! That means the orignals must be -- oh bleep!" Record of Lodoss Wars is a classic D&D campaign brought to life -- literally. Pirotess the Dark Elf is a great character. And Shakespeare is a great source for fantasy campaigns. Franco Zeferelli's Hamlet with Mel Gibson is extremely inspirational, as is just about any version of "that Scottish play".

How would one go about desiging a FH world based on Japanese, Chinese or indian mythology? Would Samurai and Ninjas get their own package Deals seperate than theyr UMA/NH versions? What kind of magic would be used and who would use it (no self-respecting Samurai would sully his hand with magic!)? What about the Chinese mythos? It's quite colorful in its own right. And india has very rarely been done in RPGs, but an India=style setting would be quite interesting. The Gods might actually be walking the Earth making michief, or might have contradictory natures (to Western eyes -- a Hindu sees no contradiction in Kali being the goddess of both birth and murder, for example). learning how to use other mythos seems to be the next step towards developing a truly unique and alien fantasy world for your campaign....

Unit-level MA It makes sense that a unit of archers would have trained long enough to have Archery martial manuvers, making them even more deadly on the battlefield. Until musketeers start showing up, then they become obsolete.

I have Ultimate Martial Artist, and need to get a new copy of Ninja Hero, but now that I have Fantasy hero I was wondering if FH adventurers who knew UMA martial artist practices were viable in fantasy worlds. I can see fantasy worlds in which there are 'exotic" reigons where these arts are pracitsed, and it may even be a quest in itself to learn them. A very experienced Elf adventurer who has gone to the Oriental lands and studied both Kenjutsu AND Kyuujutsu and brought it back to his home woods could train a cadre of deadly Elf warriors. And especially if he knew battle magic he would be an extremely formidable warrior himself.

Gods There are some fantasy worlds, though, where Gods, while they are theoretically immortal and immensely powers, are beings like any other and can be killed by sufficient force. Especially when they venture outside their natural planes. In one particular fantasy series, Gods of Light and Gods of Darkenss fought a war that lasted for a thousand years and slew nearly all of them, leaving the world in the hands of mortals. As a result of this massive casualty rate, Gods becamse reluctant to interfere in human affairs beyond granting spells to priests and priestesses. (I believe it was part of the backstory of Record of Lodoss Wars, but don't quote me on that.)

Is there anythign special you need to do to design a magic item so that it can only be used by ONE person? Examples include a wizard's staff that only the wizard who made it can use (for everyone else it's just a stick) or a sword that grants its bonuses only to the regining King of All the Lands (to everyone else it's just an ordinary sword, perhaps even duller than usualy, but for the King it can cut through anything). This is the opposite of Independent, and almost certainly makes the item more expensive. It also makes the items useless if found as treasure. (But if the Sword of the Kings is found in a dungeon where a King died a hundred years ago, and the finder takes it back to the capital and somehow becomes King of All the Lands, will the sword work for him?)