Chris Goodwin

So... why not try allowing Transform to transform the self? I mean, you still need to exceed twice your own BODY score to Transform (and no buying BODY with the "Not Vs. Own Transform" Limitation... or maybe that Limitation is -0, so you can't cheese it). Cosmetic Transform, 1d6 (Standard Effect: 3 BODY), Self Only, would cost 2 points, and for a character with 10 BODY it would take 7 Phases of this for them to cosmetically Transform themselves. 7d6 of that would hit 21 BODY, in one use, for 21 Active, or 14 Real Points (or 10 if you allow No Range as well) at 2 END per use. 14 (or 10) points for the ability to cosmetically Transform oneself in a single Phase? That sounds pretty good to me. Not too much, not too little. If we want, we can require that to be against one Sense Group, and increase the cost per die by +1 base point per additional Sense Group, maxing it at 5 points per d6 which is Minor Transform, which brings it to 35 Base Points for 7d6, or 23 Real Points with Self Only (18 with Self Only and No Range). 3 END per use. If you want to change everything about yourself, we're up to Severe Transform, for 15 points per d6. 7d6 of that is 105 Base Points. 70 Real Points for Self Only (52 for Self Only and No Range). Note that those 70 points spent on Multiform will get you a 350 point form, so I'm not seeing much of a problem. And it's 10 END per use. Here I'd feel comfortable requiring the character to buy more dice, to increase the Transformation BODY requirement, in order to Transform to a form with more points than their base form, or require them to buy enough dice to double their BODY in one use. You'd still have to define the condition for turning back. I'd require it to be something like: the base condition for turning back is either re-Transformation (possibly requiring the alternate form to buy its own Transform to turn back), or the passage of time (max of 1 Day), or unconsciousness/sleep. Something that's either not entirely under the character's control, or something that someone could use against them. I'll note that the END cost is Instant, because Transform is an Instant Power with continuing effect. I'm okay with that as well. This also does away with Multiform, which -- I think -- I'm also okay with. Again, requiring other forms to spend some of their points on Transform to turn back seems fair here as well. Further, as of at least 6th edition (I can't remember if 5th does this as well?), Transformations are required to be against Body, Mind, and Spirit, if those are to be part of the self-Transform. At the very least, this increases the cost and required dice, or the amount of Phases, or this could even be handled with an Advantage. Comments are appreciated.

Hero Games' community content program, Hall of Champions, is open to product for any edition and version of the rules. As well, the owner of Hero Games, @Jason S.Walters, is a reasonable guy and easy to talk to, so if you wanted to publish something for an earlier edition I'm sure he'd be willing to discuss it with you. I'm also not going to post my own Surefire Formula For Saving Hero, because like Lord Liaden above, I too am tired of the topic. Welcome!

*ahem* I thought we should have gone to Seattle. I think that was partly because we had our characters already made. Let us help! Heck, one of us can play the villains, their tactics and such, while you handle the overall flow. Co-GMs!

Might I suggest a "session zero" where we can work out our backstory, connections, and so forth, before we put pen to paper (or fingers to Hero Designer)? I think that in our group we all, or at least I, have a tendency to work things out with the GM informally through email, but not letting everyone else be part of it. With a session zero we can further get buy in from the GM on how the character will fit in with the game world and the other characters. And here's something I got from @Duke Bushido: the GM can take notes during that session zero on what the players bounce off of each other, things that really seem to grab them, the things that make them go "Ooo! What about if...." I think it's harder to get that kind of thing when it's a bunch of players making their characters by themselves, even if they're emailing with the GM.

As for me... I'm working from home today for the first time ever. My workplace (a very large company that makes CPUs whose name begins with I) has not shut down yet, but has been encouraging its employees to work from home as much as possible over the past week. I'm close enough that I can be there in ten minutes if my presence is needed for on-site support, but until and unless that happens I'm good where I am.

I prefer...

My town (Hillsboro) had the first cases in Oregon. I'm not aware of the current numbers for Hillsboro, Washington County, or Oregon. Oregon's governor has halted gatherings of 250 or more people, and has closed schools starting on Monday, to reopen April 6th. Pursuant to this, GameStorm (my local convention) has been at the very least postponed, if not canceled entirely for this year. They're still trying to figure out if and when it will happen. This was not unexpected. My son is on an extended spring break; my wife had shoulder surgery on Feb. 21, with a four week recovery period off work, so she's been at home most of the time. The university she works at is halting on-site classes starting Monday, and will be moving to online classes for at least the near future. My family and I are good right now; no symptoms so far.

Got word a little while ago that GameStorm won't be happening. They're in talks to see if they can have it later in the year or whether it's cancelled completely.

Speaking as the guy what made the character, I'm going to say this one was pretty far out into left field. A cartoon character from a city called Inkdropolis in the Toon-i-verse. Complete with cartoon character powers.

The 6th edition Grimoire includes a spell of Locking and Opening (p. 357), also called Charm of Release (p. 326). The blurb says it's built with Telekinesis and Lockpicking, but the actual build is a Multipower with Lockpicking 20- for the opening part and Change Environment: -20 to Lockpicking rolls for the locking part. (Lockpicking should let you lock a lock as well as unlock it, IMO, but we'll let that slide.) If I were using that as the "official" build for my unbinding spell in my magic system, I'd just build in a Limitation to binding spells, locks, ropes, handcuffs, and so on, to the effect that they're removed by this spell.

Lately, as a player when I'm creating a new PC for a game, I'm usually working on it the night before the game, sometimes not submitting it to the GM until a couple of hours before the game. It's not just GMing. And that's even using HD, Champions Powers, and the Champions Character Creation Cards.

In some cases, and depending on genre, the handcuffs might have a -1/4 Real Equipment Limitation, akin to Real Weapon and Real Armor. That Limitation would certainly allow it to be picked. Entangle, Barrier, and Transform specifically are Instant Powers with an effect that lasts beyond the use of the Power, in much the same way as damage does. You couldn't Dispel damage, so can you Dispel a created Entangle, Barrier, or Wall? It also depends on the magic system; I've designed magic systems in which those Powers, and a few others (Mental Powers mainly) can be Dispelled after they're created. You could either build it into the Power as a Limitation, or state it as one of the default conditions of your magic system. I think Suppress is what you'd want to use rather than Dispel. In 5e it's its own Power; in 6e it's a build based on Drain. Dispel against armor is definitely against a Power (Resistant Protection), while there's some... thought... about whether you can use Dispel on a sword's HKA. My view is that there's some definitional stuff going on so that no, you can't ordinarily, but I imagine I'm in the minority; for instance, HKA is an Instant Power, so when you attack someone with your sword, technically you're activating the Killing Attack, Hand-to-hand Power (0 Phase action) then attacking with it (Half-Phase combat action). You can't really Dispel a Power that is not currently activated, so the only time you could Dispel the HKA is when they're actually attacking with it. I'll admit that my view is getting pretty deep into the weeds, though, and that it would be easier just to allow it. Alternatively... seems like a reasonably good option. Transform is one of the usual kludge Powers, but in this case I think it's an elegant use of it to represent the unbinding spell. With Transform, there are a couple of competing system level imperatives; typically, creating food, chain, or lock, are the results of using other Powers (Life Support and Entangle respectively) and would be used instead of Transform. As a GM you can decide to handwave these. Assuming you (or the GM, if that's not you) have done so... with Transform, you'd ordinarily roll the dice, and need to achieve twice the target's BODY in order to Transform it. An easy rule of thumb is that when creating objects or substances out of thin air, you can create half the BODY roll worth of the substance. So for example, if you're creating ice using Transform: Thin Air to Ice, and you roll 10 BODY on your Transform dice, you're creating (10 / 2) 5 BODY worth of ice. On the Object BODY table in the Breaking Things section (6e2 p. 172, but it's in 5ER, 5E, and the BBB as well, towards the back) 5 BODY worth of unliving is 25kg, so that 5 BODY comes out to 25kg of ice. (The Breaking Things section can be generally helpful when figuring out how much BODY, X kilograms of something has, or the DEF and BODY of a wall of material Y, at Z millimeters thick.) Assuming you don't want to use Transform for some reason, Entangle creates an object with 1 rPD, 1 rED, and 1d6 Normal dice of BODY (average of 1) for 10 points; Barrier uses +1 point for +1 BODY, +3 points for +2 rPD or rED. The Advanced Player's Guide 2 includes a new Power: Object Creation, based on these costs: 20 points for an object up to 2 rPD, 2 rED, 2 BODY, +3 points for +2rPD, +2 rED, or +3 BODY. Create Object specifically disallows using Create Object to create an object that another Power reasonably would, including chains (Entangle) and swords (HKA) as examples, but also warns the GM and players not to strain the definition of "reasonably" too hard, meaning that if it makes sense and isn't abused, then yes, you can let Object Creation create swords. I recommend buying the APGs if you don't have them, even if you don't use 6th edition, because they're pretty applicable to 5th as well.

It's a spell of unbinding. "Binding" can have a metaphysical meaning in terms of the magic system, and the spell of unbinding does exactly what it says. Tywyll, is this a reasonably accurate description? If it unbinds binding spells, not just physical bonds, then you might want to add a Dispel component against spells using Entangle, Barrier, and Telekinesis. More generally, usually DEF, BODY, and/or dice of damage are the way environmental effects interact, and those are easy enough to oppose with Powers including Dispel.

Contortionist explicitly lets you escape from Entangles and Grabs. Also, SFX. I'm going to combine my suggestions. Telekinesis with Fine Work, plus Contortionist, plus Lockpicking. Buy all of them with Area of Effect if that's the intent. If your GM, or you as GM, require Enhanced Senses with it, I'd say they should be able to take a Limitation if they're only used by the spell to target the abilities. There needs to be something for a Dispel to Dispel. Drain can affect an object's PD, ED, and BODY, but Dispel explicitly can't (they're Characteristics). There's no game mechanic that I'm aware of that a lock is or has that is a Power that can be Dispelled, and I'm not sure there should be. (Or, at least, I'm not sure there should reasonably be. This reminds of me of when it was in vogue to try to design things such as a towel or a cereal bowl using HERO System Powers. As an exercise, maybe, but that way lies "You can't have a cereal bowl because you didn't pay points for it.") I am actually in agreement with you here. The special effect is good; the mechanics are the hard part.

A lock isn't really a Power, nor is it even an effect that is typically statted out using Powers. Typically, the Powers that are used on a physical lock are Transform (locked to unlocked), Drain (DEF/BODY of the lock), Blast/Killing Blast, Tunneling, or Lockpicking built as a Skill-as-Power. For things like fire, ice, lightning, etc., you can look in the "Living In A Dangerous World" section to figure out about how much damage an effect will do, then use that as a guesstimate for how many Active Points worth. Dispel is intended more for active effects (usually attacks) or Powers as they are being activated, rather than continuing effects. I'd allow it to work on environmental effects like fire, ice, lightning, etc., but not passive effects like rock, water, gravity, air. At the very least, you want Dispel to target a Power of some kind; in the event of damaging effects, there are a lot of those that fall out as Blast, Killing Blast, Drain, Transform, etc. What Power does a lock have? (I know, that's more or less the question you asked.) As a GM, I would probably look at a different Power. Namely, what Power could someone use to escape Entangles, untie ropes, open locks and bindings, etc.? I'd go with Telekinesis with Fine Work. For the lock opening aspect I'd throw in Lockpicking as a Skill-as-Power. As an alternative, Contortionist helps you escape Entangles, which suggests an alternative. Lockpicking (Skill-as-Power) plus Contortionist (Skill-as-Power). In one of the 6e supplements (either Champions Powers or HERO System Grimoire) there is an example of a lock opening power (I'm pretty sure it's a spell, and I'm pretty sure it's in Grimoire) that's built using Lockpicking. I'd look at that for an example of something in a published product.

I keep harping on the D&D 5e starter set, but that's about how much setting it has. That's about how much setting FH 1e came with. I'd be happy to have setting, if it eliminates the need for the GM to have to create everything -- primarily a magic system. That in itself can be a barrier to entry for GMs. That's probably what I would want most from a Fantasy Hero setting, to be honest.

Here's our point of disagreement, it looks like. To me, there is no game without something for the characters to do. There can be an implied setting -- every edition of D&D's mechanics go a long way towards implying a larger setting, and making a few changes can go a long way to defining the setting. A setting can be -- and in D&D, often is -- not much more than a sheet of paper with a few towns, roads, forests, rivers, mountains, etc., and a dungeon to go crawl with a flimsy rationale for crawling it. There's at least one Adventurer's Club issue from back in the day that included a Fantasy Hero adventure. If you have pretty much any edition's core rulebook you could probably play it with nothing else. Having that edition's Fantasy Hero book would definitely help, and if you have a setting to drop it into that's probably helpful for a campaign. But you could run it with probably not much more than the sheet of paper with geographical features. For the most part, even without an explicit full description of a magic system, you could get away with using spells, monsters, magic items, and so forth, provided in the adventure. The Grimoire, Bestiary, Equipment Guide, and so on would certainly be helpful in this regard.

I'm reminded about the joke about the optimist who fell off the top of the Empire State Building. "Going great so far!"

D&D: AD&D1, B/X, D&D 5e. Hero: Champions 3e, Danger International, Fantasy Hero, Robot Warriors, a number of off-genre games using Danger International (sci-fi, Battletech, western). Champions 4e. Champions Complete/6e. I've played a lot of DI games without powers. S. John Ross once wrote how he used DI to get back into the Hero System after the BBB and 5e, and that's partly what directly led Hero Games to come out with Sidekick under 5e. HERO System without Powers. Would it sell? Probably not. (But would adventures sell? Probably not. Yet I still assert they're necessary.) See also GURPS Lite, and the number of RPGs "powered by GURPS" that use Lite as their basis. There've been a number of them. GURPS' power build system is about as extensive as Hero's, only more so, with more special cases and instances of SFX built into the mechanical construct, but they do quite well without having to package it into every single game and genre. The full HERO System Powers rules are a barrier to entry to the game. I'll keep saying it until I'm blue in the face. Hell, put it on my tombstone, if and when that time comes.

In my own case: it was 3rd edition Champions. A friend of mine had been a Champions player for a while, and while he wasn't advocating for it hard core he definitely made it known. I'd previously picked up Autoduel Champions for the Car Wars parts, and enough of what I saw in it made enough sense that I thought there might be something worth checking out. I picked up the core rulebook and started reading. Asked my friend a few clarifying questions here and there, then made my first two characters on my own. I later played a lot with my friend, and also got hooked up with a later group who had settled on Champions and the other Hero games as their system of choice.

And they can exist anywhere and anywhen. I don't doubt for a second that there were food carts in Ancient Egypt or Mesopotamia!

Excuse me. Did you perhaps mean to say something like "...a lot of the problem is that gamers these days have jobs, and mortgages, and parents getting on in years, and kids ready to go to college?" Is "laziness" really what you're going with instead?

Currently? They don't. We have evidence that it turns people off. If people can't get through it to the elegant game system underneath... ...we end up where we are right now.

Quoted for truth. This more than anything helps me with immersion. When I read mythic fantasy or epic fantasy or high fantasy, I can enjoy the story, but I can't immerse myself in it. I can't identify with any of the characters. They're not made for me to identify with. The world and the people in it have to look real to me. It has to seem like a place where people could live. That, and there's only so many times I can reread the Hero's Journey, even if the names and faces are different. Humble farmboy with great destiny goes on a quest to save a princess from the evil Darklord? I saw Star Wars. Star Wars was a great story (while being a terrible film) but seeing it rehashed for the hundredth time... Or when it's a Mad Libs story. (adjective) (type of person) with great destiny goes on a quest to save a (noun) from the (adjective) (noun). Tell me there's a walled city, ho-hum. Seen it a million times. If you tell me there's a city ordinance that no permanent construction is allowed within fifteen feet of the wall on either side, in order that the city guard and the city watch may have free movement in case of invasion or disaster, and that's where beggars and almsmen live because they can live in tents, that is what will grab me. One of my absolutely most favorite fantasy series is Glen Cook's Garrett, PI series. It's a world with the full complement of fantasy races; the main character, Garrett, is a military veteran, of this world's equivalent to the Vietnam War; long, destructive, and traumatic. After his enlistment is over, he becomes a private investigator. Part of why I love it is that there are details galore! For instance, swords above a certain length, bows, and crossbows are considered military weapons, and possession of them is severely frowned upon in the city of TunFaire, the setting of the stories. That doesn't mean, for instance, that Garrett doesn't still have his old military issue crossbow stored under his bed just in case of emergency, but it does tell me a lot about the city. It's not a story about killing monsters. It is a series of quests; a private investigator essentially exists as someone who is hired to save a (noun) from an (adjective) (noun). But it's different! Plus, I'm also a military veteran, and I find it a lot easier to identify with someone who has been in a military with a formal military structure, rather than having those details assumed or glossed over. Here's a thing I want to use in a fantasy game. There are walled cities, sure. Everyone who enters a walled city are asked their profession and their reason for being in the city, and are charged an entry fee (residents can show a city-issued tag and skip most of this). Wizards are asked if they know any of the spells from a particular list (including suppress fire, cure disease, purify water, light, night vision), and those who do are offered a small discount on their entry fee, and a greater discount in exchange for volunteering for four-hour shifts with the city. The local guild is willing to teach these spells to any wizard who wants to learn them, in exchange for a small fee or for taking a volunteer shift. The reason for this is that the city leaders have a vested interest in having people around who can put out fires, stop disease outbreaks, prevent crime, and so on, and they've asked the wizards' guild to be part of that. I'm not necessarily looking to game out characters taking a shift lighting night-lamps or purifying the wells, for instance, but those are the kinds of details I want to see more of.

My favored style of FH play is "low heroic" (see the link in my signature below for details), primarily Skill-based characters, with pointwise-free equipment, and Powers outside of that generally limited to being used to replicate magic. In that style of play, characters don't get more powerful than superheroes.