Lucius

Aid Succor and 0 END Okay, this didn't sound right so I looked it up. As far as I can see, Succor has the same cap to it as Aid. In fact, it may be harder to hit that max - I could see interpreting the rules as saying you can re-roll, but not ADD to the previous roll. Certainly, the max would be the max you can roll on the dice. That doesn't mean you should allow it at 0 end, but it sounded like you all were saying it could just build up and up with no top - am I misunderstanding something? In what is being said here, or in the rules? Lucius Alexander The palindromedary is equally confused.

Not Quite another Killing Attack Thread If your only problem is with the "Stun Lotto" why not simply change killing attacks to the normal mechanic - roll 1d6 for stun, and BOD equals number of dice, +1 for each 6, -1 for each 1 rolled. Just apply it as killing damage, with killing attack's limited AVLD, if you really think that's no big deal. If you want more body, buy more dice. If you want more body but few stun, buy more dice and apply a limitation to reduce the amount of Stun. "Does no Stun" is a -3/4 limitation - perhaps define a killing attack as one where half the dice are bought with that limitation. Or create a lesser limitation to halve the Stun total. I don't think (and here we're back in dealing with opinions, although I'm trying to get a grip on the facts) that costing a power appropriately will make it "useless." You say making Killing an advantage, even a +1/2 advantage (and I'm more inclined to think it should be +1), will mean no one uses it "unless the concept requires it." How is the opposite situation any better? When I ask why, under the current dispensation or the proposed alternatives where Killing is allowed to have a free advantage, anyone would bother taking a normal attack, the only answers I get boil down to "concept!" Pardon me, but I don't think characters should be penalized for staying in concept by making their attack power weaker PER POINT than the next guy's. If the power is weaker, they should get to pay fewer points for it. Or I get the argument "Superheroes aren't supposed to kill" - and if that meant they weren't supposed to have powers capable of killing, they wouldn't have normal attacks of 10d6 or more, either, so that argument makes even less sense. Lucius Alexander The palindromedary reminds me I have to get to work. Bye!

Not Quite another Killing Attack Thread I've been trying without success to find out who first said "You're entitled to your own opinions; you're not entitled to your own facts." It's a fact the Hero System, as written, has two powers that do essentially the same thing, do damage; and that one does so more effectively, having, among other things, a limited form of the AVLD advantage; but that both cost the same per damage class. Now, it's my opinion that's a bad thing, an error that ought to be corrected; it may be your opinion it's a good thing somehow; but I don't see how the facts can be disputed. Can you elaborate on the "other reasons" you had in mind? I'm interested. Thank you. Lucius Alexander Feeding scrabbled eggs to the palindromedary

Fixin' what's broken - switching from d20 to HERO There are a FEW things Hero does not do that well. The "Magic Missile" is an infamous one. It's hard to make a power in Hero that ALWAYS hits. But mostly, you will find that you can do anything - it just may cost a lot of points. Lucius Alexander The palindromedary promises we'll be back later with more advice.

Re: Mass Combats: Interesting Units which fantasy hero?

Munchkin Build Contest You know...after a recent post in the rules question forum, I think a really munchkinny thing to do would be to take almost all your boosted characteristics and superpowers "Only in Hero ID" or even with a powersuit focus or something...obviously all linked by special effect... Then buy an enormous AID with the +2 advantage, "All Powers/Characteristics of a given special effect....." Lucius Alexander And the ubiquitous palindromedary

Three characters "chip in" to buy a base. They give the base a 60 pt variabel power pool. Each CHARACTER then takes a 10 pt control cost and the requisite power skill. Now, assuming this is legal at all, I think it's obvious those points are only available in the base. Also, that only those three characters can use the points. (which might be why they want to do it that way....) But what if one member spends XP to up the control cost? Or another member joins and wants to spend the points to have a control cost? There are only so many points to go around...if there is a disagreement about division of VPP points is there a way to resolve that? Or is it just like any other conflict for more "conventional" base or vehicle powers...squabbles over lab space or compute time or whether or not to fire the ship's guns...it comes down to roleplaying, dramatic sense, what makes sense for the special effects? (Or who is closest to the weapons control panel....) Do they get the 1/5 base cost break on the pool cost? If they qualify for it, and CHOOSE to pay the full 60 instead, do they then have a VPP they now CAN use outside the base? Thank you! Lucius Alexander The palindromedary suspects these players are just trying to make life difficult....

When Aid Cost Went Up..... Okay, apparently I have to start a new thread to start a poll. I was hoping it could be attached to this one. Lucius Alexander No one ever asks the palindromedary for an opinion....not that that stops it from giving one.

The Munchkin Build Contest Well one of my favorite munchkinisms is to take Extra Limbs and then take a limitation on STR and DEX - not with Extra Limbs. And that's perfectly book legal and has Steve Long's seal of approval, last I heard. Hm....Extra Limbs doesn't cost endurance....does it HAVE to have visible special effects? Lucius Alexander What palindromedary?

Re: Mass Combats: Interesting Units Where are the mass combat rules anyway? Lucius Alexander Imagine a unit of palindromedary cavalry.....

Re: Simple Killing It is underpriced. Lucius Alexander The palindromedary asks "Isn't that what we've been talking about all week?"

Growing Up Polytheistic I just had to import this. Lucius Alexander Do I need a license to import a palindromedary?

Could Aid be used to improve the powers of equipment? Say, more damage for a sword, more DEF from armor, make a car move faster? Does it make a difference if the eqipment is paid for with points, or is "free" equipment at the heroic level costing no character points? Lucius Alexander Palindromedary Enterprises

WWYCD: Benevolent Overlords For most of my characters, the answer would be: Retire. Lucius Alexander And go take up herding palindromedaries or something.

Sci-fi wear swords?

When Aid Cost Went Up..... So what happenned when you went to that price? and what prompted you to do so? LA p

Re: Economics 101: Character Building in a Point-Based System Now, that's funny. I've played (usually ran, actually) any number of heroic level games, and in my experience a SPD of 4 is rare, and so is a DEX of 18 to 20. Normally, a player character has SPD 3, 4 is unusual, and I can remember exactly one SPD 2 and one SPD 5 character. What _I_ have a problem with is all the fighter types taking a STR of 20. As cheap as STR is, it's almost inevitable. As far as characteristics go, if anything is costed wrong, I'd say it's probably STR. I have sometimes thought COM should just be eliminated. Now, if you want to get into skills and powers, we already have threads going on those topics. Lucius Alexander And the bicephalous palindromedary

Sci-fi wear swords? I see a couple of reasons. Primarily, a firearm is more likely to hit an innocent bystander. Dueling with swords is more likely to harm only the direct participants. Secondarily, if dueling is over a matter of honor, I can see a preference for using a higher-status, if less practical, weapon. In fact, in this culture "duels" (although not called that) are usually fought barehanded. Lucius Alexander And the inevitable palindromedary tagline.

Poll: When Aid Cost Went Up..... Okay, I'm going to try to do my first poll. Before I try to set it up, what should the options be? Look these over and suggest any I overlooked, or make any other comments. Since Aid cost has gone up, the effect you noticed in gameplay was: 1. No change. 2. It got less popular, but is still used when the character or power concept warranted it. 3. People just avoid it. It's too expensive to be useful now, and that's a pity. 4. It used to be common and commonly abused; now it's down to where it belongs in the game. 5. People found other ways to get the same effects. Lucius Alexander Pompous pedantic Pagan pollster on a palindromedary

When the cost of Aid doubled, what effect did you notice in your games? Did a lot of players say "it's not worth it" and just stop buying Aid powers for their characters? Did it become a seldom used power? or just used less than it was? Or did it really have no effect at all? Lucius Alexander Thanks to brianca Alexandra for the palindromedary avatar

Re: Some answers Oh, so they're going to be wearing armor and using weapons. In that case, you might want to skip the standard offensive and defensive spells and focus on things that ONLY magi can do. For standard offense and defense, they'll be using similar tools to any other warrior. What kind of threats are they going to be facing? Lucius Alexander (-: :-)

Too Simple Killing A few points. 1. We're not all superheroes. Hero is not just Champions. 2. I notice worrying about killing folks never stopped superheroes from buying 10, 12, or more dice of "normal" damage. That IS a "Killing Attack" from the point of view of the hapless normal who happens to get killed by it. 3. We're not (at the moment) discussing a distinction between a high Stun low Body attack and a low Stun high Body attack. The proposed rule would have all attacks calculated the exact same way - just applied to different defenses. If I read it right, it even eliminates the "all Defense applies to Stun if there is ANY resistant defense" that applies to "by the book" killing attacks. 4. For that matter, the numbers crunchers have already pointed out that the "by the book" killing attacks aren't "high Body, low Stun." Up and down the board, in a variety of situations, they prove more useful at doing Stun damage than normal attacks. 5. If you're trying not to kill somebody, you can always "pull your punch." Whether you're using a 12d6 energy blast or a "by the book" killing attack or the variation presented here. 6. If what you want is to create differences based on the relative amounts of Stun to Body done, remember that "does Stun Only" is a -0 limitation. If eliminating all body done is -0, then obviously so is eliminating half, or a third, or any fraction. Just make your "killing attacks" calculate damage normally, and your "kinder, gentler" attacks not meant to kill can do half Body or something. Obviously, the exact ratio has to be set at character creation! Or so I would think. But see point 3 above - what this thread was originally about is a variation that doesn't even affect relative Stun/Body ratios, but only what defense can be applied against the attack. 7. "It's not about points in the end." But when we're talking about what powers do or should cost, then it is EXACTLY about points. There's supposed to be a reason we do all this math. If I want a hero to have a 12d6 energy blast, or a 60 STR, do the last few dice, or maybe 30 pts of Str, come cheaper because it's a "disadvantage" to have all that power if I hit a normal? Lucius Alexander The palindromedary quotes a haiku: One must count points, else Pointless the game: but know that Points are not the point.

Too Simple Killing Can someone explain to me why anyone would ever buy anything but a killing attack then? "You can buy attack X that applies damage to a more expensive and relatively limited kind of defense, or attack Y that applies damage to a cheaper and very common kind of defense, and they both cost the same." "I'll take X!!!" Lucius Alexander Puzzled pedant on a palindromedary

Being Pedantic... I also love hearing about a new person exploring the system and reminding us all what we like about it. Technically, knockback is supposed to be for superheroes - but if it's working for you, by all means, keep using it! I don't see any reason fireballs and ogrish clubs can't do knockback. I sometimes add knockback to fantasy spells as an option (there's an advantage, Does Knockback, that can apply knockback to powers that wouldn't ordinarily have it.) Hero does seem a lot less abstract/more concrete than D&D, and will often make more sense - although that depends on the guy running the game. You'll run into a few odd things hard to do (tried to translate Magic Missile yet?) but for the most part it allows a lot more options in everything from character creation to combat. Lucius Alexander The palindromedary smiles at both ends.

Sleepy Time! Reductions in effective Dex, Int, and eventually Con, and all rolls associated with them, such as perception and combat value. Eventual loss of Speed as well. Loss of long-term End, an inability to recover long term End, perhaps reduced Recovery in general. Increased End costs. Gradually increasing penalties to everything - a sort of negative overall skill level. Eventually, gradually increasing dice of uncontrolled Mental Illusions. Lucius Alexander You might start seeing a palindromedary