JJR

Re: He's a WHIMP !!! (My Gripe)

Re: He's a WHIMP !!! (My Gripe) There is a lot less stat inflation in 5th than there was in 4th. You stated a perfect example of that yourself. Most of the mentalists in 5th have 20 or less dexterity stats. From what I see most of the villains in conquers, killers & crooks have less than 23 dexterity stats. With Dr. D you can always just use Holocaust, who is very much like the 4th Dr. D. I do not think Dr. D is a good example to use for a stat inflation argument though. Dr. D is designed to be cosmic in scope in 5th.

Re: He's a WHIMP !!! (My Gripe) It seems you are jumping between 2 different extremes. There is a lot of room between and 8d6 eb and a 20d6 rka. 250 point characters are ok but many people get bored always starting a game as a new mutant and working up. Sometimes you want to start as an x-man, or even an avenger. Going beyond a 250 point start allows that. I would also say if your game is made up of 4 speed, 15 defense, 8d6 eb heroes and villains then you have already created an internal power balance, it is just not the balance of the current champions world.

Re: Power Skill...How Do You Use It? We should keep in mind that the rule for power skill is it effect at a rate of 30% of the power it is based on, with possibly some additional % if the GM allows for each +1 the roll is made by. So a 60 point power is only going to allow for 18-20 point power stunts. That is not enough to make ground shaking problems for the GM but plenty to allow a player to save victims from falling with his heated air column or other creative ways.

Re: Limitation for Spell Casting with Armor and Helms I do not impose magic skill penalties for wearing armor, other than any encumbrance penalites from fred, because it is too simple for wizards to have shield spells. If you are going to allow them to have 8/8 force fields without problems then you should not make them have a problem for wearing plate mail.

Re: How would you define...? Change enviroment: -3 to Magic Skill Roll is the purchased effect.

Re: Some suggestions for FRED revised. I would like to see a table added to fred for the transformation power. The table would give some clear cut examples of what is considered a cosmetic, minor, and major transformation for the mind, body, and soul groups. Right now I have a hard time really understanding the differences of when to use cosmetic, minor or major. Fred has too few examples for a power whose description takes up 3 pages.

Re: A troubling Ambrethel issue. Not having a common tongue offers more role-playing possibilities. It also gives players something to spend experience on as the game progresses. Having several 1 point languages is very Conanesque. I also believe it adds a reason to use npcs in the game. It was very common in the real world for adventurers and explorers to hire interpreters. Having the characters hire interpreters gives them someone else to interact with, as well as someone else they might need to protect.

Re: Ambrethel and the FHG I think it is because Mr. Long wanted spellcasters to be able to cast and have active more than one spell at a time. Because of some of the active point costs of many of the spells it would not be possible to have 300 point multipower reserves for most 75+75 characters, even with all the limitations.

Re: What the heck is a Migdalar? If I had just used four-armed he might have got the idea that they were more human looking like a catavalan. By using Grond-shaped he gets the idea that it's a powerful, muscular looking creature with a somewhat bestial appearance. But yes, basically I figured we would all know what Grond-shaped meant.

Re: Ambrethel and the FHG I believe the grimoire was written for The Turakian Age but is generic enough that it can be used for any fantasy world. The spells in the grimoire are just power constructs which you can then plug in to the Turakian magic system, which I believe uses cost break multipliers.

Re: What the heck is a Migdalar? Imagine a Grond-shaped creature with no head, only a stump of a neck, with eyes under his chest and a fanged mouth where his stomach would be.

Re: Here There Be Tigers It was published by Firebird, Ltd., who also published the original Golden Age of Champions and The Armory. I have not seen one for years. eBay or some of the other online auction houses might be your best bet. You might also want to try the links page. It lists a few online companies which deal in out-of-date material.