Fedifensor

I answered Retro Bronze Age, because I think the best thing the company could put out right now is a revamp of the Viper's Nest scenarios. It's a good starting campaign, initially pitting the heroes against agents and gradually adding supervillains to the mix.

Regarding the cultural / sensitivity issues - the product released in 1989 shouldn't be less problematic than the flagship product of 2012. Likewise, the rules of 2012 should be more streamlined and efficient than the rules of 1989. Every ruleset appeals to different demographics. My argument is that Champions Complete, while being a huge improvement from the 6E corebooks in terms of presentation, does not achieve the goal listed on the back of the book. It is not "an excellent purchase for first time players". The example villains are worse than the 4E versions. Two of the villains that show the designers haven't learned anything about cultural issues in 30+ years. The mechanics for the villains are problematic and not something a new GM can pick up and use quickly. Even the archetype choices for those villains are odd - a mentalist (one of the rarest character types) is included, but no brick? Cheshire Cat, despite a poor portrayal of mental illness, is a better villain choice than Green Dragon, who has even worse cultural issues and confusing mechanics. Armadillo would be a better choice than Arrowhead, as he covers the Brick and Energy Projector rolls without overwhelming a new GM with choices. There should also be more than 5 examples - there's always Pulsar, the supremely overconfident villain that most groups enjoy taking down a peg. Now, for a person who has experience with HERO, Champions Complete is a decent book. The character creation section is much better than the one in the original 6E book, and aside from one puzzling design choice involving Growth (why refer the person to a completely different section of the book for that power, but not for Density Increase or Shrinking?), it has no big issues. However, if the goal is to get someone to play Hero who hasn't played before, it's got problems. It also doesn't have enough material to run a game. In contrast, the BBB had an entire Campaign Book built into it with multiple adventures. I could quibble about the quality of the adventures included - VIPER's Nest is a much better starting campaign - but it at least gave a framework for a new GM to use. I think 4E struck the best balance between playability and complexity. That said, I've played all the versions since 3E, and my system of choice for Hero is 5E. If I had the time and money to redesign things, I'd look at making something along the lines of a 4.5E - either 4E taking mechanical improvements from 5E, or 5E ruthlessly edited down to be more like 4E in presentation without a bloated word count. I don't think figured characteristics are a problem other than the fact that the primary characteristic costs don't properly take them into account. Of course, there are things we have learned over the decades that could be changed in the system if it received a revamp. Ditch the complicated Language chart (which remains in Champions Complete), add in a workable metacurrency that is an improvement over Heroic Action Points, etc.

It's a concern for both players and gamemasters. You can't assume every Hero gamemaster knows the system backwards and forwards. If you require that for people to buy into the system, it's going to eventually wither and die. Shrinker isn't just a villain provided by Champions Complete. Her writeup is listed in the chapter that is literally titled Examples, and it's a horrible example. The Champions are much better, even if I would have removed Witchcraft's VPP and mentioned in her writeup that it's something she would buy with experience. The example villains, however, are a pretty bad selection. I've already tackled Shrinker, but here are the others: Arrowhead - OCV 12, DCV 8, with 3 Ranged Combat Levels is just going to frustrate new heroes relying on DCV to avoid being hit. The Throwing Master pool is completely unnecessary, and there are too many specialty arrows that are unlikely to ever see use. It's not horrible, but Champions has much better villains available that fill a similar niche and aren't a cheap ripoff of Green Arrow. Black Harlequin - WAY too many complicated powers. For example, a new GM will have to stop the game and reference at least three different areas of the rulebook to figure out what Attack Toys or Jacks does. That's without including the VPP which has an NND that Does BODY as one of its example powers. Killing off your new players with an attack that does BODY and bypasses normal defenses is not a good way to recruit people to the system... Esper - It's ironic that the mentalist is the most streamlined design of the entire group. About the only thing I'd drop would be the duplicate, since it has different stats without a separate character sheet. I lament the fact that she has no personality - despite being a 6E character, she has less skills than most 4E characters (only 8 points worth), and one of them is, no kidding, "Radical Feminism". That's just awful on multiple levels. Green Dragon - A 3-point multipower that really doesn't offer much variety and could have just been bought as individual powers for the exact same price. Two different "target falls" martial maneuvers. 7 points of weapon elements and 7 points of weapon familiarities without telling the GM how they will come in play in a superhero game where all the equipment are bought powers. That's without getting into the horribly bad Asian villain stereotype...

It’s a feedback thread, so just about everything here is opinion. That said, I know what HERO’s presence was at my local game stores in the 90s (when 4E came out) versus 2009 (when 6E came out) and 2012 (when Champions Complete came out). Lack of money indicates problems with the product and/or the business model. D&D 5E just had its best year ever, and Hasbro is expanding the line, so it’s not a general RPG problem. Cortex Prime seems to be doing well, and clinched a licensing deal for The Dragon Prince, so it’s not a problem with toolbox RPGs. The market problems of Hero are something the company is going to have to figure out, and I don’t think an MMO is going to sweep in this time to give a financial boost.

This is why Hero is in its current position in the market. Champions Complete is more approachable than the original 6E rules, but does not fulfill the claim on the back cover saying it is an “excellent purchase for first time players”. What Hero needs is the streamlined simplicity of the 4E BBB, with several fleshed-out but uncomplicated heroes and villains for gamemasters to use as a model. No, I don’t want to go back to the days when you bought a 5d6 Flash only to find out that the villain with IR vision is immune (because Flash defaulted to a single sense instead of a Sense Group). However, I also want simple, easy to use powers that don’t stop play when the villain uses them for the first time. Imagine a brand new Champions GM using Black Harlequin’s Jacks power against the group...

I don’t agree with some of the design decisions for the rules in 6E. However, I think the bigger problem with 6E in general (and Champions Complete in particular) is not the rules, but the way those rules are used for the source material provided to gamemasters. It wouldn’t be hard to write up Shrinker in 6E with the functionality of her 4E character sheet, and that would have been a much better example character for Champions Complete to use. I just don’t see how any GM uses the 6E Shrinker in an adventure for players new to the system.

Interestingly, there's a discussion on RPGnet right now about this same topic. So, I'm going to copy over my summary of why I feel 4E is actually better than 6E. I also gave a followup, saying that you can writeup 6E Shrinker in 4E, and even make it simpler while preserving playability...

My group uses Discord and a basic map-drawing site called Shmeppy.

Arrow's previous season finale showed the Monitor meeting Felicity several years in the future, and taking her to Oliver. It implied that she would die in the process, as she wouldn't be able to come back. In the comic version of Crisis, the Monitor dies. My prediction: That wasn't the Monitor meeting Felicity. My guess is that the Monitor dies during Crisis and Oliver takes his place, keeping it secret so his family and friends wouldn't be targeted. It would be the only way Oliver can get a happy ending. We can all come back to this thread in a few months and laugh about how I got this wrong...

It appears to be a combination of factors, as others have mentioned: There is nothing in the core book where you can print out pregens and run through a starter adventure, like many other RPGs do. The most complex part of Hero is character generation, making the above issue worse. Hero is an old-school system that likes to codify everything, while the current trend is for 'looser' systems. Hero doesn't really have a good meta-currency on par with Fate points, Inspiration, and the like. I've found every attempt at Hero Points to be clunky and not as intuitive as similar meta-currencies in other systems. There is a lack of promotion due to the company's current state, making it less visible than D&D, Fate, Shadowrun, etc. I'm sure that only scratches the surface, but it's what comes to mind when I think of the reasons Hero isn't more popular these days.

Glad to see someone else is doing this. I’m still planning to spring this on my face to face gaming group at some point, but our current game needs to finish first, and I need to lay the groundwork. Half of the group has never played Hero before.

More specifically, launching a new edition allows the company the opportunity to spend the next year or more after the core book is released tweaking and rereleasing material they already published in the previous edition. HERO got to republish Champions, Fantasy HERO, and tons of other sourcebooks. Yes, they revised mechanics and added new content, but they aren’t starting from scratch. It’s pretty obvious that reselling Champions for 6E brings in more cash than trying to find some original content that may or may not resonate with customers. The problem HERO ran into is that many customers said, “Hey, this is new enough that I have to redo things, but not different enough to justify the purchase of hundreds of dollars of books.” Time is also an issue. There was a 12-year gap between 4E and 5E (1990 to 2002), a 2 year gap between 5E and 5E revised (2004), and 5 years between 5E revised and 6E (2009).

I guess that’s my fault. I tried to use an example to show mechanical differences and how they affect speed and efficiency, and got dragged way off-topic by people using edge cases and nitpicking instead of addressing the overall issue. So, I’ll just make a few general comments based on my own experience, then go back to lurking: * 4th Edition felt the most ‘fun’. 5th started the trend of big rulebooks and a mind-numbing level of rules in the quest for perfectly balanced characters. * Despite the above, 5th did a lot to enable character builds for common situations that were prohibitably expensive in previous editions, such as high-speed movement (thanks to Megascale). * 6th continued the trend of fixing issues that were unviable in previous editions (such as Damage Shield), at the cost of being even more unfriendly to the new player. * 6th edition created a situation where the player base is significantly fragmented, as it was different enough to turn off some players while not being different enough to entice new ones. I believe one poll on this site shows less than half the respondents playing the current version of the ruleset, which is contributing to the drop in popularity. Heck, we even have another version coming out to further fragment the player base (Champions Now).

I was wondering if anyone has tried running a Gamma World HERO game since the original thread was archived.

Using corner case situations and assuming the player has no assistance in character creation such as recommended values for stats, examples in the character creation section, or a GM that can assist is simply disingenuous. If the slow Brick needs to get to a 9 OCV and 5 SPD, then the GM allows the character to be rebuilt, as any competent GM would allow if there’s an error made because the new player didn’t understand the rules. And in a heroic campaign, the fantasy cleric more likely to need a 6 OCV and a 3 SPD.

Hugh, the HERO system is more than just supers. As I stated in my earlier post, in heroic level games, I usually leave the figured characteristics at the default levels. Regarding selling back OCV and DCV...you’re choosing a corner case to build an entire argument. Very, VERY few people with high DEX characters are trying to reduce their calculated OCV and DCV. Since I’m not a designer for 7e, I don’t have to worry about that situation....but I’m confident I could come up with something simple to handle it if I needed to. Your sleight of hand magician and other examples may not have a high DEX...they just have skill levels with DEX rolls. DEX is primarily a combat stat - if you want a noncombat character with good DEX rolls, use Skill Levels. If you want a character who acts first in the phase but is inept at hitting people and/or dodging, use Lightning Reflexes. Every stat you mention except BODY is a figured characteristic in 5E and earlier. They don’t need to do extra things, and all of them are needed unless you want to completely redesign HERO. If I were designing a new edition that included figured characteristics, I’d be tempted to include additional figured characteristics for BODY...but I’d also make the No Figured Characteristics limitation vary by stat instead of being a flat -1/2. There’s a difference between optional complexity and mandatory complexity. A heroic-level character in 5E can choose to raise their figured stats, or leave them alone, and be okay either way, with the one exception of buying up a partial value for DEX (and yes, I have had a 20 DEX character with a 3 SPD). A heroic-level character in 6E must raise those same stats (and new ones like OCV and DCV) or they are stuck at “guy on the street” level. Even in superhero games, I often leave figured stats alone. SPD gets bought up because the default for the games I’ve played or run is almost always 5, and REC usually needs to be bought up (save for bricks). If you buy up CON (which is often justified by mutants and similar origins being more resilient than the average man), you can often leave END and STUN at their calculated values. PD and ED are frequently bought up, but I have several characters that just took Armor, Force Field, or similar powers while leaving base PD and ED alone (particularly common for powersuit characters).

Not really. You have DEX, figured CV, and skill levels...which you have had in every previous edition. The CV value is related to DEX instead of being a generic starting value that is the same for the speedster and the slow brick, giving more guidance to the new player. Those default values are for the generic starting human. Especially in superhero games, few characters will leave those stats at the default value. How many HERO characters have a SPD of 2, or a REC of 4? It’s quite feasible for a heroic 5E character to leave all of their figured stats at the default values, or at worst buy up to the next number (as when a 14 DEX gives you a 2.4 SPD).

My main problem with 6E being the best mechanical system is that my measures of “best” include how easy it is to create a character. By removing figured characteristics, particularly OCV, DCV, and the mental versions, the game introduced more fiddly bits with less guidance on how to use them. Figured characteristics weren’t the problem - the costs and calculations were the issue. For example, what if instead of removing OCV, DCV, and SPD as figured characteristics of DEX, we increase the cost of DEX to 5 character points per point, and adjust skill levels so you can buy straight +1 OCV or +1 DCV for 5 points? Now, you can have the 8 DEX character who still has a competitive OCV and DCV (via skill levels), but there’s less things to keep track of. You buy DEX and SPD, then add levels if you need more OCV or DCV. In 6E, you buy DEX, you buy SPD, you buy OCV, you buy DCV...and you still may want to buy levels. With figured characteristics, new players can see the relationship of DEX to being quick to act, being accurate, and being able to dodge attacks, instead of having to figure out four disconnected stats. One of my big pet peeves about 6E is CON. You’re basically paying points for one thing - not being stunned. CON rolls are relatively rare, especially in superhero games, and it’s more efficient to buy higher defenses than to buy up CON. CON was the stat to showcase figured characteristics - it gave you a good starting point for END, REC, and STUN. In heroic-level games, I’d usually leave those figured characteristics at the default values, which speeded up character creation. Even in superhero games, having the figured characteristics gave me a good baseline to work from before increasing to meet the character’s needs for power use and durability. In 6E, I have to make three additional decisions that were handled by the figured characteristics in 5E. I don’t want more dials to turn...or at least, I want those dials preset to numbers that will work, instead of having to look at each one and make an additional decision. 6E isn’t all bad, though. When it tried to fix problems through simple adjustments instead of designing entirely new subsystems, it did well (case in point - damage shield). That’s about all I can offer to discussion this late in the evening. I could add something about opportunity costs, but I already did that in another thread earlier tonight.

Late to the party, but one thing that hasn’t been fully addressed is opportunity cost. This most often comes up with attacks, but can also apply to other things, like skills. The simple example is attacks. Having a 9d6 Energy Blast for 45 points is one thing, paying an additional 45 points to get a 6d6 Armor Piercing Energy Blast is generally not worth the expenditure. It certainly helps more than not having the power, but those 45 points could have been used for things far more important for your character. Heck, if you don’t have to worry about campaign limits, you could have just bought another 9d6 of EB to make an 18d6 EB. That’s why multipower exist, so a character can have diversity in attacks and other powers without that diversity being prohibitive in cost. Now, let’s look at Package Deals. Let’s say you have a campaign where everyone is a member of the Thieves’ Guild, and you create a package deal that includes (among other things) Stealth and Forgery. Is there an opportunity cost? Well, for most campaigns, particularly one focused on thievery, everyone having Stealth is a good thing. Points used to purchase Stealth are not wasted. Now, how about Forgery? As long as the characters work together, there is an opportunity cost for everyone taking Forgery. Typically, you only need one character to roll Forgery (the one with the highest skill). For the most part, having 5 characters with Forgery means that 4 of them have spent 3 points on a skill they will hardly ever use, and could have used those points to buy something more relevant to the character. Giving a discount for taking a Package Deal is an incentive for people to take skills they otherwise wouldn’t take, because it is thematic to the characters and the game. Sometimes an opportunity cost comes from inefficient game mechanics. Most skills cost 3 pts, and are +1 for an additional two points. However, unless it is a skill that you use all the time, it’s more efficient to buy skill levels, particularly Overall Skill Levels (perhaps the best value in the game). It is true that the guy with Forgery 18- will have a significant advantage over the person with Forgery 12- and one Overall Level...though the Overall Level has many other uses. However, what about the guy with 7 skills at 15-, versus the guy with 7 skills at 12- and 3 Overall Levels. Save for the very, very rare situation where you are trying to use two or more skills simultaneously, the guy with the Overall Levels is equal to the high skill character...but also can put those skill levels in any other skill, or combat stats such as OCV, DCV, and/or damage. Package Deals saving points isn’t a perfect system...but it’s not necessarily unbalanced, either. It all depends on what method works best for the campaign and the players.

Several years ago on these forums (January 1, 2010 according to my notes), I pitched a game for HERO Central called Starfall - Rise of the Gamma HERO. Here's the original pitch: Starfall Rise of the Gamma HERO The preacher read from the ancient book. "And power was given unto them over the fourth part of the earth, to kill with sword, and with hunger, and with death, and with the beasts of the earth." He then turned to the crowd to explain the passage. "First came the sword, as men turned upon each other with weapons unimaginable." "Second came the hunger, and all who lived suffered the changes wrought by the tech." "Third came death, as men simply fell over, their souls rent from their bodies." "Fourth, the beasts of the earth rose up as men huddled in the shattered ruins, for Man had broken the sacred covenant that gave dominion over them." The preacher skims ahead a few lines, then continues. "And the stars of heaven fell unto the earth, even as a fig tree casteth her untimely figs, when she is shaken of a mighty wind." "And the heaven departed as a scroll when it is rolled together; and every mountain and island were moved out of their places." "And the kings of the earth, and the great men, and the rich men, and the chief captains, and the mighty men, and every bondman, and every free man, hid themselves in the dens and in the rocks of the mountains" "And said to the mountains and rocks, Fall on us, and hide us from the face of him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb" "For the great day of his wrath is come; and who shall be able to stand?" The book is closed, and the preacher turns toward the crowd once more. "The Day of Wrath has come and gone. The Lord has judged the guilty, and brought the virtuous into his embrace. We know this because His word is spread far and wide, contained in every Inn of the Holiday." "But what of those who remain, those who neither reached the heights of virtue nor the depths of depravity? We have been given a second chance, to work our way back into the graces of the Lord. And we must avoid the hubris that led to the Day of Wrath, when men worshiped the tech and lost sight of Him." "This is not belief. This is fact. The town of Cassrock rebuilt much of its ancient tech, only to be smote barely a season ago by a Star of Heaven. Their fate is warning to us all..." Campaign Background Starfall is a post-Apocalyptic setting for the HERO System (5th edition) – though it can be easily adapted to 6th edition HERO. The campaign takes place many decades after civilization has fallen, and the world has changed. The Great War unleashed many terrors, from nuclear fire to deadly transform viruses, and those who survived have been forever altered. Many people were mutated and became known as Muts, with some gaining exceptional physical or mental abilities. Animals were transformed, with a few even gaining sentience and taking the nickname of Beasts. The few humans that have survived unchanged are resistant to the many dangers of the Wastes, and are called the Pure. The campaign begins in the village of Fedrex, located in a hidden valley in the mountains. The heart of the village is host to a massive building of ancient tech, next to a bridge over a waterfall. Fedrex has survived because of the Rule of Cargo. Those who reach adulthood must prove their worth to remain in the village by securing Cargo - resources that the town can use for the benefit of its citizens. The more resources a citizen can secure, the higher their position in the village hierarchy. Those who bring small amounts of Cargo may only be given temporary citizenship, and be forced to quest for Cargo again after the turning of the seasons. The current leader of the town is Daryne, a middle-aged Pure who returned to the village with ancient tech that makes the water safe to drink. His position as leader appears to be guaranteed for life, as he not only is responsible for acquiring the tech, but jealously guards the knowledge of how to repair it when it breaks down. The current members of the village council were part of the same expedition that recovered the device. While limited amounts of tech are accepted by the village, particularly if it is needed to survive, many in Fedrex are fearful of acquiring too much technology. Last season, a great bolt of light lanced down from the Star of Heaven. Weeks later, a woman arrived as a refugee from Cassrock. The town had recently activated a device that awoke previously unusable tech. Unnatural lighting kept the town visible from miles away in the dark of night, strange vehicles began traveling the pathways laid down by the Ancients, and there were whispered rumors that a war party attacking Cassrock was felled from afar by metal wands that unleashed death on all who approached. These ancient wonders availed them not, as the Star of Heaven destroyed the device and killed nearly half the population of Cassrock in an instant. Many say that to depend on the tech is a form of worship, and the Star of Heaven will smite any who worship false gods. The characters in Starfall are seeking to become full members of their village, either from reaching adulthood or as travelers seeking to settle in Fedrex. As no one may stay more than a season in Fedrax without having offered Cargo to the village council, groups often band together to seek out tech. While the impact of the Cargo is diminished by sharing it among a group, this is more than outweighed by the safety of traveling in numbers. The world outside Fedrex is very dangerous, as bands of mindless Beasts or savage Muts prey on solitary travelers. Character Creation Character Types: Most characters will be one of three types - Pures, Muts, or Beasts. There is a fourth type, Weeds, that should only be used if the gamemaster and players are comfortable with including them in the campaign. Pure Descendants of the survivors of the Final War, Pures have remained unchanged despite the perils of disease, poison, glow spots, and countless other dangers. Some say the Pures were gifted with ancient tech that was woven into their bodies and passed along to their descendants. Others believe it to be a natural adaptation to the harsh environment - given the trillions that existed before the Final War, some small percentage would have the necessary traits to thrive despite the hazards. Several religions claim that Pures are the Blessed - not virtuous enough to have been taken into the Heavens, but still favored by the divine. Regardless of the reasons for their purity, the Pure share several traits that protect them. Pure characters are required to purchase the following: Bloodline of Purity (3 points Power Defense, Hardened, Resistant) - 6 points. In the Starfall campaign, this is the only way for a character to gain Power Defense without restrictions (Radiation only, Poisons only, etc) at character creation. This applies to all types of Drains, Transfers, Transforms, and related attacks. At the GM's discretion, it may even provide some resistance against NND attacks based on radiation, biological attacks, nanoviruses, or poisons. Accelerated Healing (Regeneration, 1 BODY per Day, increased food intake) - 5 points. Pures who survive injuries will eventually return to full health. While they cannot heal back lost limbs or destroyed organs, the Pure can recover as long as they survive the initial injury and bloodloss. Pures healing from such injuries gain a vastly increased appetite. A lack of food can hinder their healing, possibly resulting in the injuries becoming permanent. Stat Minimums (special) - Pures are the best of humanity, the ones who have survived and prospered in a harsh world. Barring illness, injury, or age, they are in excellent condition both physically and mentally. Pures may not buy down any of their stats unless there is an associated injury (reduced Running for having one leg, etc) and should have above average stats in most areas. Tech Access (special) - Several devices of the ancients, particularly death-dealing weapons, will only function in the hands of a Pure. The few guardians of ancient tech that survived the Final War will recognize a Pure on sight. While this doesn't necessarily protect the Pure from harm, it will usually give the Pure a chance to negotiate or depart the area before being attacked. This is represented by the character not taking one of the Distinctive Features required by the other character types. In addition, Pures may choose to buy a single signature item of tech with points (maximum of 30 Active Points) at character creation, and are the only characters who have the option of acquiring tech via character points. Sample tech item: Solar-Powered Civilian Laser Pistol - 1d6+1 AP RKA, OAF, 8 charges. 30 Active Points, 12 Real Points. This weapon has been passed down through the generations to the eldest child. Each new wielder receives the weapon in an elaborate ceremony, that ends with the current wielder placing the weapon in the recipient's hand and intoning the ancient incantation, "Transfer authorization to new user". The weapon runs out of power after 8 shots, but recharges after sitting in sunlight for a full day. [Note that weapons bought with points do not take limitations like Real Weapon.] Muts (can be pronounced as either 'Mutts' or 'Mutes') Muts are humans that have been changed in the aftermath of the Final War. Most muts show some physical sign of their mutations, and some have suffered massive alterations. Mut characters must take the following: Distinctive Feature: Mutated Human - 5 points. All muts must take this disadvantage, even if they have no physical signs of mutation. Many devices of the ancients can see past appearance to the true nature of a being. Distinctive Feature: Mut - 5+ points. Muts with physical signs of their mutation may take this disadvantage. This may also be the basis for taking certain hunteds, as there are groups in the wasteland who hunt down muts. Mutant Powers - Varies. The changes wrought by the Final War have given some (but not all) muts special abilities. Examples of such abilities can be found in the Post-Apocalyptic HERO book, pages 112-128. Powers have a limit of 30 Active Points, and all proposed powers will be carefully scrutinized for balance. Sample mutant power: Kinetic Fist - +2d6 hand-to-hand attack, Double Knockback (up to 4d6 Double Knockback with STR). Note: This changes the default of the attack from Knockdown to Knockback. 17 Active Points, 11 Real Points. The mut has the power to magnify the force of a punch and distribute it along the foe's entire body, catapulting him backward. Beasts Legends say that before the Final War, the only creatures capable of thought and reasoning were humans. However, part of the changes wrought upon the land changed many of the animals. Many became larger and more aggressive than their pre-War counterparts, and several became sentient. A rare few developed mutations unrelated to their form. Altered animals, whether sentient or not, are known as beasts. Beast characters must take the following: Distinctive Feature: Mutated Animal - 10 points. All beasts must take this disadvantage, regardless of form or level of sentience. Many devices of the ancients can detect them, and beasts are more likely to suffer an adverse reaction when interacting with the ancient tech. Distinctive Feature: Beast - 10+ points. Beasts have significant physical differences from Pures and Muts, and are hard to disguise from those who hold prejudices against them. This may also be a basis for taking certain Hunteds, as several groups in the wastelands fear beasts and may attack them on sight. Altered Form - Most beasts have special powers related to their form. These are similar to the mutant powers possessed by muts, save that beasts generally have physical mutations and almost never have purely mental powers. Examples of such abilities can be found in the Post-Apocalyptic HERO book, pages 112-128. Powers have a limit of 30 Active Points, and all proposed powers will be carefully scrutinized for balance. Sample altered form power: Carapace - 6 PD, 4 ED armor plus Hardened advantage for Armor PD plus Hardened advantage on base PD (up to 8). 19 Active Points, 19 Real Points. Several beasts have developed natural protection from the rigors of the wasteland. The carapace is tough enough to blunt the force of even high-velocity piercing weapons. In addition, the beast has a limited resistance to energy-based hazards of the wasteland like fire and electricity. However, lasers have an easy time cutting through the carapace. Weeds No one is sure how some of the plants of the Wasteland gained sentience. The most common legend is that a mut with the ability to control plants pushed her powers too far, and died. At the moment of death, her consciousness fragmented and was imbued into the many plants under her control, and passed along to the seedlings. Another legend states that in the last days of the Final War, desperate men tampered with plants to create guardians for their fading civilization. Several of these plants are hostile and/or insane by human standards, and the Pures have nicknamed them 'Weeds'. Players interested in playing a Weed should work out the details with the gamemaster. Other Character Guidelines: Characters are built using the Hero System 5th Edition Revised rulebook (5ER) at the Heroic level (75+75). Power Frameworks are not allowed. Aside from the tech item allowed to a Pure, equipment is not bought with points. Starting equipment is based on character background, and should fit within the pseudo-medieval tech level. Firearms are not available at character creation, but may be bartered for if a supplier can be found. Specific notes on skills, powers, and disadvantages are listed below: Characteristics Normal Characteristics Maxima is a standard disadvantage for characters, though special permission can be given to avoid taking it (due to an excessively nonhuman form, cybernetics, or similar circumstances). Characters with NCM get 20 points for the disadvantage, as per 5ER page 329. Skills Combat Driving, Combat Piloting, and Transport Familiarity with vehicles are allowed, but most characters will not have access to a vehicle at the start of the game. It will be possible to acquire vehicles during the course of the campaign. Concealment is also used for scavenging, as per the Post-Apocalyptic HERO book (pg 36). Inventor can be used in conjunction with other skills to create primitive guns and other devices, but ancient tech requires resources far beyond what is available to the characters. The skill can also be used to figure out basic uses of ancient tech. The language of the ancients is both familiar and strange to the denizens of the wasteland. It is possible for characters to figure out some words with INT rolls. Some scholars have taken the language Pre-Apocalypse English. Starting characters may purchase this language at no higher than the 1 point level (Basic Conversation). Characters may also purchase Literacy, and those who do are literate with all languages known to them (if those languages have a written version). Survival must be bought with adders for different environments. There is one new environment - Post-Apocalyptic Wasteland, which allows characters to survive in areas with Bad Water and Glow Spots. Weapon Familiarity may be taken with weapons the character doesn't have access to, if their background justifies the purchase. For example, a character who originally came from Lo may have used firearms in the past, even if they currently don't have a gun. Perks The Money perk is very rare in the wasteland. The few that have it generally derive their wealth from control of resources, either directly or indirectly. For example, a character who knows how to make weapons may have the Money perk, representing the bartering power of trading assembled weapons for raw materials or other supplies. Reputation generally isn't appropriate beyond the starting area of Fedrex, as there is no widespread communications to carry the tales of the character throughout the wasteland. Powers LS: High Radiation only protects against environmental effects, not radiation attacks. It has the prerequisite of at least 3 points of Power Defense that applies versus radiation. Power Defense must be bought versus a specific effect (radiation, poison, etc), with the exception of the Power Defense possessed by Pures. Power Defense bought versus radiation only applies to low-level radiation effects. Stronger radiation requires that the Power Defense be bought as resistant (via Damage Resistance), and some lethal radiation effects may require that the Power Defense be bought with the Hardened advantage. All purchase of Power Defense versus radiation requires special approval, as radiation is one of the major hazards of the wasteland. Disadvantages Dependent NPCs in the Starfall campaign are often bought as 'floating' DNPCs. Examples include the "girl in every town", the "child in trouble", etc. While the DNPC changes from adventure to adventure, the standard rules about the character being obligated to protect the DNPC applies. Most DNPCs are only bought at the 8- level. Hunteds only apply if the Hunted knows you personally. Simply being a mut or beast isn't enough to have the Order of the Pure as a Hunted - they have to have some reason to seek you out specifically. Hunteds work best as organizations, as most conflicts between a Hunter and a PC end up with one or the other dying. Hunteds are limited to an 8- roll except in exceptional circumstances. Reputation requires special permission to take as a disadvantage, since the lack of communication between areas makes it difficult for a reputation to be sufficiently widespread to be worth points. Sample Hunteds Order of the Pure (More Powerful, 8-): 15 points. A group dedicated to rebuilding the ancient tech, and the ascension of the Pure over the aberrations created by the Apocalypse. Stargazers (As Powerful, NCI, 8-): 15 points. A religious cult that believes the tech of the ancients to be responsible for the Apocalypse. Gang of 70 (More Powerful, Limited Area, 8-): 10 points. A gang that limits its active membership to 70 people (this does not include recruits seeking a spot in the gang). They are normally seen on the ancient road near the Great Var, but they have been spotted as far north as Unirad and as far south as Cassrock. Darwinists (As Powerful, 8-): 10 points. A group that believes that the fall of the ancients is the result of evolution, and that Pures have been surpassed by the new races that arose after the Apocalypse. Wasteland Gang (As powerful, Limited Area, 8-): 5 points. Any one of a number of small gangs that dwell in the Wasteland. Everyman Skills (Fedrex) Acting 8-, Climbing 8-, Concealment 8-, KS: of player's choice 11-, KS of player's choice 8-, Native Language (4 pts of Amrikana, no literacy), Paramedics 8-, PS of player's choice (job, hobby, or other area of interest) 11-, Shadowing 8-, Stealth 8-, Survival (mountains) 8-, TF: one subset of Riding Animals.

The biggest problem with the HKA situation is campaign limits. There are workarounds (1 pip HKA, multipower with HKA and extra STR), but they just feel wrong from a mechanical standpoint.

I appreciate the link. Unfortunately, these all seem to be fantasy graveyards, instead of something you could find in modern day.

I have a scene taking place at a funeral in my next adventure, and I could really use a decent, 6E friendly (squares or hexes in the proper scale) graveyard map. Anyone have a link to a resource they could share?

Is there an example of how to write up a Limitation for a proportional increase based on number of duplicates? That would help both with this villain and another one I'm working on...

Well, I can always buy a higher maximum. The power may get more expensive that way than just buying more dice, though. I'll take a closer look at the Complementary Mental Powers rules. The duplicates are supposed to be individually targetable, so the villain gets weaker as his minions drop.