Cpt.Storm

Re: Christopher Reeves

This was very sad news. He's done so much for stem cell research and he was coming so far with his own therapy. It's a shame that a bedsore took his life the way it did. The world is a little less bright today...

Re: Firearm Muzzle Energy

I remember reading something similar several years ago, because of this some recommend using #4 buck or smaller shot, and some even suggest large bird shot for use in the home for defense.

 

If you compare ballistics 00 buck is similar to getting shot with a whole magazine from a .32ACP and 000 a .380 ACP.

Any way you slice it, it's gonna be messy at short range.

Re: Firearm Muzzle Energy

I went to Uni with a bloke that when he was younger stood with his back to a tree when firing a shotgun. Broke his collar bone and dislocated his shoulder. Still gives him problems to this day any time the weather changes.

 

As I said, OUCH!! But at least he has a good, built-in barometer.

Re: Champions Universe Complete?

Oh, I didn't know the Dark Champions board was newer than the rest. It is still a ghost town in there.

 

I like stats.

Maybe we Dark Champions lovers are just secretive lurkers that don't have much to say?!

Re: Firearm Muzzle Energy

This isn't assuming balance and bracing against recoil' date=' correct? I mean, I can throw a punch that takes someone off their feet, but my stance and momentum makes up for the fact that there is equal reaction, and I don't go flying in the other direction. Same for shooting, correct? [/quote']

Absolutely, though if you brace too well and have a very powerful weapon that is meant to recoil you will shatter your shoulder. OUCH!

Re: Firearm Muzzle Energy

Maybe this will help as well... I'm a college instructor and I teach physics and this question comes up all the time...

Newton's Third Law states, 'for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction.' Taking this into account, if the energy of a bullet were enough to knock over a person then firing the gun would also knock over the shooter.

Coupled with this, of course, is the mass of bullet compared to the mass of the target. Inertia, as understood by Newton's 2nd law is the tendency for an object that is stationary to stay stationary and one that is motion to continue in motion. Now, when two bodies collide their mass is taken into account. I think it's safe to say that a bullet is much less massive than a human body, hence no flying 10 feet backwards.

Finally, there is kinectic and potential energy. While the bullet is travelling it has kinetic energy. When it hits the body that kinetic energy is at its highest amount. If a bullet goes through and through, very little damage is done because the time of impulse (the amount of time the bullet is in contact with the body) is very short. This is why they make bullets that flatten upon impact. This causes the impulse time to go exponentially and also slows the bullet down so that it will bounce off bones rather than go through them. The longer the bullet is moving through the body, the more damage it does. Gruesome, yes, but effective.

I hope this helps.

Re: Anybody ever play Fantasy Superheroes?

I've never tried this but I'd love to hear how it turns out! I've always been curious but not curious enough to give it a whirl.

Re: Playing 3.5 after Fantasy Hero

I am playing both in Hero and in D&D 3.0 and I just had to create a new character in D&D. Wow! I had been away from Hero for a few years but recently got back into it. After playing Hero for about six months and then having to create a D&D character I felt so limited!

I found that I really missed the flexibility of Hero and it felt so canned. Oh well, I will still have a good time playing D&D (I've been playing since 1979) but it won't be the same after playing Hero.

Re: Anyone have Tomb of Horrors?

Btw' date=' is anyone going to be interested in my hero conversion of this, if so I will make it more than just scribbled notes.[/quote']

I would most definitely be interested. I own both the old and the new Tomb and your conversion would be most helpful!

 

Thanks,

Re: FH Racial Balance question for the GM's

I hear you about the STR mod but try to counterbalance it with the reaction to the PC in towns. At least in my version of the Turakian Age most townsfolk will not want a troll in their midst. Because of their reputation as brutes the innkeeps will only think of broken furniture and lost customers if they allow a troll in. The guards will only see trouble when he/she comes through the gates.

So, depending on how much roleplaying you have in your campaign, you can limit the PC's effectiveness just by using his surroundings against him so to speak.

Just my two copper...

Re: Dark Champions Campaigns

Just started playing in a 'Wierd Conspiracy' type campaign where we all have some sort of either criminal, police, or military background but have been hand picked by the U.S. Marshall service to head up a group called S.O.G. 13 (Special Operations Group). Our mission is to investigate and eventually (or is it hopefully?) debunk cases that look supernatural or alien in origin.

For instance, our first mission was to investigate a motorcycle gang that had a leader that 'appeared' to be able to start hellacious fires with his mind. This adventure, unfortunately, got my character horribly killed but the rest of the group managed to find out that this mastermind actually had a sharp-shooter with incendiary bullets and a silencer. He was shooting the targets causing them to explode and this was coordinated with the leader raising his arms as if summoning fire. This was discovered after one of those cartridges separated my skull in half and made it appear as if the back of my head was lit on fire. Most disgusting...

I can't wait to find out what's next for us.

Re: Sell me on DC

Thanks, KA, that's what I wanted to know about the Forensics chapter - how long it was, really. I know that it'll go fairly in depth, because that's what Steve does.

 

I don't remember saying that it would be the only chapter I'd use, but it's the one that would be the selling point for me - I tend to like forensic stuff.

 

So long as it's got enough covered that I can "fake it" - have it cinematically appropriate - then it's all good.

 

But you're right - based on what they were saying, I was getting a bit of a wrong impression; I figured that it would be more like 40-50 pages.

 

I'll take a look at it, but I'm heavily weighed in favour of it now.

 

Laz

Sorry Laz, I didn't mean to mislead. Twenty pages seemed like a lot of content for that subject. As I said, I haven't read it all but what I did read was well done and very detailed. Though I wouldn't want to take an exam in Forensic Science based on the book it seems plenty for gaming.

Again, sorry if I mislead.

Cpt. Storm

Re: Dark Champions Character Pack now in Online Store

Maybe you could put it on the 2006 schedule' date=' or make it one of your "spare time" projects. (Or farm out at least the researching new material part. )[/quote']

2006?!!! ACK!! I can't wait that long. hehe Was hoping maybe it could sneak in on the 2005 schedule. Ah well...

 

Cpt. Storm

Re: Sell me on DC

Yikes!! Well, like I said, just like CSI but more... hehe

Cpt. Storm

Re: Sell me on DC

I have read Arcady's review. And in terms of the book, I know the scope. Really, all I want to know is how well done is the forensics section - how well researched, what it covers, etc.

 

I'm sure a whole review could be done on that chapter, as it's probably longer than some books

 

Laz

Though I haven't read the entire chapter, it looks like it covers most of the the stuff I see on CSI or CSI:Miami. Does that help?

Cpt. Storm

Re: Sell me on DC

an okay cover?

 

That's it. Thats all I have to offer to the discussion, because i haven't seen it yet. I'll be getting my comp copies soon, I'm sure... but the only thing I know is the cover and a few interior illos.

 

Okay, maybe that ain't a good selling point. Next?

Storn,

You undersell yourself! That cover kicks major booty! I have always loved Harbinger and you personified the character perfectly if you ask me. Thanks for the great picture!

Cpt. Storm

Re: Sell me on DC

The Forensics chapter is extremely well done! But the rest of the book is fantastic as well. The Super Skills are cool and the equipment section is superb. If you like street-level hero games this book is a must-have.

In my opinion, Steve has outdone himself with this book. The writing is tight and interesting and the layout is great as well. If it sounds like I'm gushing I'm sorry. I just really like this book!

Cpt. Storm

Re: Dark Champions Character Pack now in Online Store

Hmmm. That's certainly worth considering' date=' though at this stage it would mostly be reprinted material from other books, and I'm not sure how attractive that sort of product would be to the average potential consumer. But I'll give it some thought. [/quote']

Steve,

 

Please do consider this. Even though it may be a rehash of previously published material, I think it would be awesome to have one source to turn to for equipment choices.

 

Just my opinion but I suspect I'm not alone.

 

Thanks,

 

Cpt. Storm

Re: Cursed Items

You can also hide the curse in an "always affects the recipient" Side Effect on an otherwise beneficial item.

Taking this one step further, how would you write out the ability to dispel or break the curse?

Thanks,

Cpt. Storm

Re: Thanks to Keith Curtis...

I don't think the industry was ever really "driven" by adventure sales. Early on there were a lot of adventures on sale' date=' but that doesn't mean they drove the industry. Many of them sold well, but [i']all[/i] D&D products sold really well. For example, one of the best modules, White Plume Mountain, sold 236,000 (!) copies when it was released. Today, a product of any sort that sells 1% of that amount is regarded as a strong seller.

 

The problem is that adventures generally sell to only 15-25% of your market -- the GMs -- and that market's not very large to begin with. We've tried to increase the sales of our adventures by structuring them around things you can use repeatedly -- maps, villain groups -- but even that's not enough to make them as successful as many other types of books.

Once again I am humbled by your incredible grasp on the business aspect of my favorite hobby. Besides being very educational, it has clearly shown me I should never dabble in the business because it's clear I'd lose my shorts!

I see how I was mistaken to take the quantity of the adventures published in the 80's as an indicator that they were driving the industry. I also failed to consider that you would further reduce your audience by catering only to the GMs and not the players with adventures. Having been a GM almost immediately after discovering RPGs I have never thought from the player point-of-view.

Anyway, thanks for replying and have no doubt that though there may not be enough of us to be lucrative, there are still those of us that would love to see some more adventure material, even if it's in the form of PDFs (which I would hope would reduce costs to produce).

Highest regards,

Cpt. Storm

Re: Thanks to Keith Curtis...

Well, we'll have to see how FHB sells before we can decide whether to do more FH adventures -- scenario products are often pretty dicey. I'd love to do some -- in fact, I have a series of four adventures in mind, sort of a "Steve's tribute to the 1st Ed. AD&D modules he has known and loved" -- but I'm not going to take the time and resources to publish 'em if they won't sell.

For instance, Fantasy Flight Games - makers of the Midnight d20 Campaign setting - produced an adventure (a huge adventure) to accompany the campaign book. According to their leader/CEO/whatever he calls himself, the module did not sell well at all and consequently all adventure projects were killed and instead they concentrated on more source material which he claimed sold a thousandfold better.

Does anyone have any insight on this major shift in the hobby? Why is it that no one wants adventures anymore?

Cpt. Storm

Re: Thanks to Keith Curtis...

...For making Fantasy HERO Battlegrounds such a good-looking book' date=' both externally (the cover) and internally (the awesome maps). I think these are actually the best looking floor plans I have ever seen in any gaming book. Well done, and may DOJ have the good sense and taste to employ your services in many future projects. [/quote']

I couldn't agree more! Fantasy Hero Battlegrounds is simply an astounding product! If there's any way possible I'd love to see more adventures published for Fantasy Hero, especially in Ambrethel (the Turakian Age). Between these two books I'm in GM heaven.

 

Thanks to everyone involved!

 

Cpt. Storm