Duke Bushido

Careful! Do you want C'thulu? 'Cause that's how you get C'thulu. Duke

Not a problem at all. The only noteworthy change between 4e and 5e was the nitpick minutiae of detail that 5 and subsequent books went into about how every possible thing works with every possible variant of every possible other thing, and as sings advantages, limitations, Adders, and other costs to a great deal of what 4e either took for granted or gave you free foreign over. In the end, the difference is that it costs more to build pretty much anything in 5e, simply because the examples and the overall tone of the rules suggest that if a modifier _can_ be applied, then it _must_ be applied. Don't get me wrong: it doesn't actually _say_ that, but it leans on it damned hard. It's also really easy to completely ignore. Ignore that, and it's pretty much 4e with more in-depth discussion, shaded art, and those irritating margin notes. Pulp HERO is a genre book: the bulk of it is background info, notes for inspirational material, the kinds of people, place--- Nouns. Motes on the kinds of nouns that define the genre. there really isn't a lot mechanically to fuss over, and you shouldn't have any problems If it helps, I picked it up for use with 2e, and the differences are a real non-issue. You see, unlike a lot of (but not all) games out there, HERO has left the basics of the game (except for how long an inch is) completely unchanged since 3e anyway (yeah, 3: the one right after the one I love the most), so compatibility backwards _or_ forwards is assured, and _almost_ guaranteed. So pick up Pulp HERO, and have fun with it! Duke

An excellent question! I don't know. But I'm with you, Sir. My own elf analogue-- on this particular world-- is also reptilian (and arrogant, but they can't help that, what with being superior to everyone and all), as are the majority of the player races (but not all), which is why a warm world is rather important. The teacher and the rest of the class in the little Lore bit I put up are all Amphii, which is the elf-analogue race. Taller, lithe, educated, big emphasis on social interactions, master craftsman of fine and delicate items (and lightweight armor and weapons, in some cities), faster (briefly), stronger (briefly), more agile, better eyesight (they had worse hearing originally, just to keep the template balanced, but I don't think I'll revisit that this time), etc. But I like the tempering of all this superiority with "reptilian:" lower END, lower REC, penalties in the cold (tempered by not taking normal penalties to LTE when it's really hot), and a preference for sunshine that keeps the the hell out of hidden tree cities. I've got a human-analogue reptile: very similar in all respects, with very minor tweaks to the template-- for those who just don't want to be human, but don't much cotton to being anything out of the comfort zone (the human analogue is, objectively, better suited to close combat, but as a people they are terrible with magic, as it requires rigors for which they are generally far too laid back. Individuals can, of course, be exceptions). There's a dwarf analogue (partly because I never minded the dwarves: interesting and well-detailed culture by the tropes of fantasy, and partly because I had a player who just _had_ to be a dwarf. As there are already a predominance of reptilian races (the giants are reptiles, and there are a couple of amphibian races, one playable) the dwarves are insectoid, and the only player race with six limbs (as is common in such, two dedicated legs, two dedicated arms, and a pair of "swing" appendages. Two varieties: subterranean (uncommon) and cliff-dwellers. And I'm wasting lots and lots of time and space better used for staying on topic, and the only way out of that is to end it abruptly.

I like the swimming idea myself, if only because it seems more appropriate: it doesn't inherently let you move above the water. I'd also apply a small limitation: only to float, since swimming also let's you play about under the water normally. A modifier of only to float; I don't know if I'd use the - 2 Steve suggested for Flight, but I'd consider it if you can't actually direct your movement and are truly bobbing on the water, at the mercy of tide and wind. Persistent, as suggested above, and usable by others / usable by nearby _maybe_, depending on your SFX. If you Inflate to the size of a raft, then I wouldn't require it, but definitely some STR (only for holding floating others) to demonstrate how much mass you can keep afloat. At the end of the day, I expect it would cost very much the same as the Flight build Steve suggested, and I admit that Flight has a built-in "flight strength" that I don't recall swimming having, but.... Well, swimming just - feels- better.

Oh _yeah_! That d be perfect! Now I've got to find the time to do the write-up....

Well, I spent the bulk of the afternoon running to the grocer, chopping onions and bell peppers, un-casing sausage, peeling and stewing tomatoes, crushing garlic, and grinding numerous herbs. You know: because the kids wanted to cook spaghetti for me..... ugh....

Needs antlers.

"Sorry. You cannot add any more reactions today." So then, we'll do it old school:

Anyone at all? I guess it's possible to buy temporary rights to a piece of art. Who knew?

I'm glad someone mentioned that. Yes, one of the big appeals of Champions (and later HERO), at least to me, was that you could be a skilled combatant (if you wished) without having to also be a mass-murderer or serial killer. In other words, traveling the countryside thwarting villains and monsters did not automatically turn your party into yet another pack of murder-hobos, which greatly enhanced the odds of finding players who wanted to be-- well, something _more_ than just murderous hobos.

Thanks, Hugh. And yes; that's precisely what I have in mind for this re-do version of the world. As my daughter has never run anything before (and as yet, doesn't have recall enough of the rules themselves to play without having to stop and ask questions here and there), I want to make this version of this setting sandboxed as best I can-- racial templates, pre-built magic system(s) and spells, pre-made Bestiary, maps, cities, cultures, ruins, lore-- but without limiting the world itself: nothing to _have_ to build, but with room to build when you're ready to do so. It's my hope that by presenting racial templates / packages, she can get off to a firmer start. I'm going to have to revisit dragons, though. Dragons are what drew her to Fantasy, and in the original version of this world, dragons are insectoid as opposed to reptilian. In fact, the entire world was inspired by a single piece of art on the cover of an old Dragon Magazine my first GM had. I don't remember which one; Dragon was still in double-digit issue numbers; I remember that. At any rate, there was a dragon on the cover with butterfly wings, and I thought "Hey, what if...." That's just how these things happen, I suppose.

Happy Father's Day to any and all fathers out there, and to any and all mothers who were called upon to fill that role themselves. And for those "Baby Daddy" types who made children and ran, never taking the responsibility for what they had done, only to turn around and do it again and again, go die in a dumpster fire. Wow. Apparently I _can_ run out of love for my fellow man. Hunh. At any rate, for all you fathers and father-figures, remember the point of this day: To exhaust yourselves doing things you really don't want to to humor those who love you, and think that you really do want to. Bear it with dignity, with grace, and with the knowledge that it comes from a good place in their hearts. As for me, I will be sequestering myself from humanity for the next couple of days, as the kids have decided to cook for me. That makes more sense when you realize that all they know how to cook is eggs, spam, beans-and-onions, and cabbage, and corn dogs. And of course, there is this strange assumption every Father's Day that I start my day with eggs, corn dogs, and a breakfast beer.... (if it matters, I start every day the same way: a cup of coffee before a shower, two more cups on the porch watching the sky and the breeze (or the sun rise, if it's summer), and another cup on the way to work. I just can't wake up and eat, and have never really understood how it is that most folks can.) At any rate, if you see walking around town, just know that there is something I'm... uh... "trying to work out," and don't get too close.

Folks, I am trying to toss a Thank You trophy to everyone with something to add, but I've run out for the day. I'll hit you as soon as I can, but I promise: it's all appreciated.

You're certainly welcome to! I love having company, and was starting to think I was the only one who did that. This I don't mind. In fact, I find it to be something of a staple of both Fantasy and Sci-Fi. I will take that as fact, since, as you know, I quit with D&D decades ago and haven't looked back. Agreed; which is why everything I've ever run since '81 ends up on Champions / HERO running gear pretty quickly, though sometimes tailored for a particular feel. Thanks for pointing that out. Y'all bear with my addled mind: I've been down in the spine for three days, and it tends to prevent sleeping save fifteen minutes here and there, in a chair, so my thinking is not at it's best. Thank you, Hugh. Yes: liquid water is very important to the setting I'm working on-- not just for feel or for swamps, but also for various religions, for political borders, and for trade. I'm going to have to have liquid water, even if I have to evoke "magic sunshine" to do it. It's also important for this: To be fair, in this world, the thing that humans "are better at" is coping with the cold. While there are warm-blooded critters, humans are the only mammals, period. Accordingly, humans are able to cope better with the cold, typically have higher recoveries, and much higher fatigue thresholds / LTE. And, as you noted, too big a departure, etc. I felt they'd have a good handle on "the seasons are shuffled up a bit," as it adds color without really making the place too alien. Thank you, Hugh. Always a pleasure. Duke

Bingo. Using chemical propulsion, you'd hit diminishing returns long before you got to where you actually needed to be in terms of fuel storage.

Okay, I promised a villain next, but I put a small something together today for my daughter-- a Hook, if you will, for the Fantasy world I was going to revive, detail, and give to her when she is comfortable enough (and finds a group) to run her own. And because of that: HERMIT: I don't know if you come this way or not, but given that this is quite likely to drift well out of the scope of super heroes, would it be possible to move this thread to General Roleplaying? I should have thought of that sooner, I suppose, but I'm thick like that sometimes.... Moving right along. This really was just sort of a lengthy stinger. It doesn't go anywhere, really, but gives a small taste of what at least two of the races are, and how the world of Ta' La-Kreth came to be. Enjoy (or hate. The first group I unleashed this one certainly did. ) Ta’ La-Kreth (Of Sun and Sky) First there was the Goddess, and She walked the Heavens of Night, and where Her footsteps fell, they were illuminated by the joy of the Sky itself, so great was the honor of Her attention. She wandered the Heavens of Night for a thousand-thousand years, searching forever for Her equal, with whom She might conceive children. Alas, She found no equal, and the lights of Her passing paled from brilliant fire to the remorseful blue we know them to be today, so great was the sadness of the Sky at the loneliness of the Goddess. The Goddess was as wise in these Times Before as She is today, and also as powerful then as we know Her to be, and in Her wisdom, She understood that She had not failed in Her search, but had instead proven that She had no equal, as we know that She does not even today. Her power, vast as it shall always be, allowed Her to create a new place in the Heavens of Night, an endless nest of forests and rivers, hills and oceans. A place of soils and rains, for Her own t’lkreth-- the nest for Her glorious children-- would be the great and perfect Ta’ La-Kreth, the place She wove from the Heavens of Night, and the place She still watches today. The place She created of Sun and Sky. It was here, in the fertile and warm soils, that She laid Her first clutch, the Holy Eight who would grow to become the lesser Gods: Lai’ka; Wind and Rain-- She who would be the God of Change, was hatched first, for it was Her power to cause Change that would open the eggs of Her seven brothers. She first opened the egg of her Azhum, He who would become the God of the moving waters, and then that of Kallath, He who would assume rule over the forests, mountains, and the far-travellers to distant lands. Oh, when the Amphii learned the skills to craft boats…. One of the many and perhaps the greatest gifts of Lai’ka is new knowledge, for She so loves the Change new knowledge wrings-- and when she changed the Amphii’s knowledge to understand the crafting of vessels that would carry them far into the deep waters and far up the rivers, then did the Eldest Brothers have their first quarrel, for Kallath believed us to be travellers, even though we may cross vast lands with ne’er a foot on land, and Azhum held that all things on the moving waters were as much His domain as the waters themselves, and the things within them. Kallath picked His battle unwisely, for even an Amphi child can drag a furrow upon dry land, but Azhum’s might is such that He may dig holes in the waters. In the end, Kallath was left with a jagged scar so deep and so profound that His very Nest bears the same mark to this day. It was on that day, too, that the First Clutch knew that They were in fact Gods, for who else had the power to inflict such pain on the First Clutch of the Goddess? As the Godlings grew and travelled the world, They found those things in which They each took delight, and the seven brothers of Lai’ka divided the Ta’La-Kreth of the Goddess into seven Aspects, and placed rule of these Aspects amongst themselves, and presumed to rule Ta’La-Kreth for a time. Their mother-- the Great Mother that is the Goddess-- returned to survey Her children, and was displeased at their presumption. Still, as She is always the Great Mother, She loved Them, and She could not bear to see Them destroyed, so She instead ordered Her sons that They would each build t’lkreth of Their own, outside her Great Nest, but as She loved Them and could not bear to lose Them to Her sight,, and as They had taken great care during Their rule of Her Nest, She allowed to Them that Their own Nests should stay forever in the near skies of Her own, and there they remain to this day, visible to all who will turn an eye to Her skies, and at night, when any number of them are in the Heavens of Night overhead, their brilliance lends enough light that even the eldest of the Amphii may safely find his path on open land. Only Lai’ka was allowed to keep her feet in the Ta’ La-Kreth of Her mother, for only Lai’Ka did not seek governance over that which was Her mother’s. Further, the loving Great Mother, as Her sons had truly cared for Her world even as they squabbled amongst themselves, allowed Them to continue to reign over the various Aspects of Her world, on any day or night that Their own Nest was visible in the sky. This is how great is the Forgiveness of the loving Mother. In time, with Her Children now grown and Her sons partly banished, the Goddess grew lonely, as mothers who have known children are want to do, and grew again heavy with eggs, so great was Her desire for more children to raise. She again took to Her Ta’La-Kreth-- Her nest made by Her hand of the Sun and the Sky itself, and deposited a great clutch-- unknown thousands of eggs, and, so that they might not also become Gods and also become arrogant in their powers, scattered them about the corners of Her Ta’La-Kreth and bade that they be not shapers of the world, but dependant upon it, and this Great Clutch was hatched, and was the Amphii, who will, by Her design, forever be tied to her Ta’La-kreth, and forever her Children. There are those, even among the eldest Amphii, who say that we are weaker, for we cannot rise above our need for grains from the land and meat from the forests and the sea, but the oldest Skins tell a different story to those who can read them. They remind us of the Wisdom of the Goddess. They tell us that we are different, and have been given no divine power. They tell us that we are weaker, for we must toil and eat to grow and to live. But also we are many-- more, far more, than the seven of the First Clutch, and that our needs have taught us to rely on each other, to cooperate and share burdens in ways that that the First Clutch in the arrogance of Their great power could never do. Our perceived weakness has molded us into a complex society that thrives and grows and bears for the Great Mother Goddess more children and grandchildren besides, which is something that the arrogance of the First Clutch could never allow Them to do. And we know the Love of the Goddess, as not only does She allow us children of our own and all the bounty of Her vast t’lkreth, but She allows us to beseech Her and Her First Children for intervention, as She has not only allowed Them to retain vestiges of Their rule of the Aspects, but has obligated Them to always be vigilant. Her Wisdom, tempered by Her great Love, has found for Her First Children punishments that They cherish. That is why She watches us so closely, and always. We, the Ahmphii, are Her children, and every place that we have ever set foot is Ta’ La-Kreth, the t’lkreth of the Goddess Herself. Alway are Her eyes upon us, staring down Her gaze of Warmth and Light from the endless blue of the daytime sky. She watches us again through the eyes of Her First Clutch, who are charged with keeping us safe when both of Her eyes are closed. She watches us because She loves us, because She knows that we are weak and will often need Her intervention, and most of all, She watches us to ensure that we will not develop the arrogance of the First Clutch when we discover the true potential of our strength. Praise the Goddess for Her Wisdom. Praise the Goddess for Her Love. Praise the Goddess for Her watchful gaze, and for that of Her eldest Children. Especially, we praise the Goddess for our lives here, in Her blessed Ta’La-Kreth. The teacher beamed softly out onto her class. Tellings from the Great Tale always held the children so rapt. Usually, with Soft Summer approaching, there were wandering minds and eyes that drifted toward the windows, beyond which soft breezes played with the grasses in the warm sun. Today, though, every eye in the round clay room was on her. And why shouldn’t they be? She had chosen her spot well, standing in the pool of light that filtered through the open vent in the top of the cone-shaped structure. It was a good place to stand: it cast her in light brighter than that which filtered in through the low open windows spaced around the room, and the sunlight felt delightful upon her skin. She smiled inside herself that with the breezes through the window being drawn to her on their way out through the vent as they warmed that she was privately enjoying the very pleasures the children were dreaming of as they sat on the floor near the low benches around the perimeter of the room. Again her inner mind chuckled: it was amusing how, as the weather warmed, those low benches inched closer every day to the edges of the round room, nearest the windows. Adding to the distractions of the children, this was a particularly delightful Soft Summer day: the breeze was light and constant, but swirled playfully with the thin drape of her wrap, and the scents of Soft Summer blooms so permeated the air that she could taste them upon her skin, even where it was covered by her wrap. She beamed again at the children around her. It wasn’t as if she was old enough that she did not appreciate their desire to play in the sunlight or roll in the fresh blooms of the fields-- “Mother.” called a sharp voice. It wasn’t that there was sharpness in the tone; it was simply the nature of the voice: quick and blunt, with more force and volume than should be used. Language was gift of Lai’ka, after all, and should be treated as an art. This was the voice of someone more inclined to use it as a tool, hammering thoughts into the air. The tone was respectful, inquisitive, and innocent-- a respectful child. But her people…. Goddess love and protect them all, but her people… So hurried. So forceful. So unconsciously self-important and accidentally impetulant. So…. Ha’arii. She looked at the Ha’ari child-- there were four this season. The Amphii had done so well with them since the beginning, and the Ha’ari settlement beyond the hill had begun to blossom. She could not remember a season when she had ever had more than two of their kind at her lessons. Fortunately, like many of the Amphii here and in other places, she had become accustomed to their look: their strange, narrow mouths and their faces made long by an abundance of skull above their eyes, and that odd special structure that thrust their nostrils from a face otherwise flattened by an extremely short jaw. Hardest to get used to was their skin. Not only was it not the warm yellow-green or vivid blues of the Amphii, whose bronze and golden highlights could tell tales of generations of lineage, but it was almost completely one color, lighter where their heavier clothing hid them from the gaze of the Goddess’s Eyes, but it was so… It wasn’t dry. It wasn’t wet, as was often found on the Amphii who made their livings in the water trades, but it wasn’t precisely dry, either. It was…. Oily. Not disturbing to any great degree, no more than the light film the Amphii developed when wet repeatedly and for long durations, but disconcerting at times, particularly since it appeared dry when looked at. Their skin was grained, too. It was soft, to be certain, but it wasn’t the perfect smoothness of the Ma’risu; it wasn’t even slicked to smoothness like those in the water trades. In fact, when a Ha’ri was wet for long periods, positively _horrible_ things happened to its skin! The feathers, though--- the feathers of the Ha’arii… So fine. Long, flowing feathers, so fine and so delicate as to be finer than the finest threads, softer than even the softest of downy barbs on a newly-hatched shathir, yet longer than the rachis of the longest-known feathers of the greatest sky swimmers. Too soft to stand erect, they flowed and tumbled downward, sometimes straight, sometimes in waves, occasionally in wavy circlets, a captured living river that flowed from their heads, the crest feathers of the Ha’ri defied anything known in the world, yet the thickness with which the crest grew, and the length to which the Ha’ri were capable of growing them…. They were beautiful when preened properly, as they carried a shiny depth and inviting softness unlike anything else in the world. The Amphii had named them “Ha’arii,” meaning “finely-feathered. The feathers, though, like the skin, were all similar in color. And like the skin, there were a variety of colors expressed amongst the Ha’ri: silver, white, assorted yellows, orange, red, black, and shades of brown too numerous to name, yet any given Ha’ri, regardless of the color of his feathers, would have feathers of only that color, with perhaps a few highlights of a lighter or darker shade of that color. As they matured, most of the Ha’rii would slowly molt and some of-- and eventualy all-- of their crest feathers would be replaced with silver or white or gray, and for the years during which this molting was taking place, the results were spectacular. Sadly, about half of the males would lose their head crest entirely, or in large part, during this molting. No one, not even the Ha’ari, could say why this was. The crest was not their only feathering, of course, but the rest of the feathering on their body, while seemingly similar in delicacy of structure and the fine-beyond-even-the-finest-of-threads design, was much more sparse. Not patchy, but unexplainably short and widely-spaced, as if to show off the color of their skin, which ran from almost-whte through to sand-hued yellows and as wide a range of browns as did their feathers. For some reason, the feathering of the body was much more pronounced upon the males, and oftentimes all-but-absent on the females. Perhaps the females lost their body plumage early as the males lost their crests with age. Likely she would never know, for the Haa’ri had never been able to explain it. The child before her was respectful, she saw, and had risen to her knees and leaned forward (she had supported herself upon her hands-- making her pitiful Ha’ri claws visible as she splayed her unsettling Ha’ari one-thumbed hands on the clay floor-- before calling for attention. The teacher graciously overlooked this unmannerly lack of hands opened and spread outward from the elbows, as the Ha’rii had no tails with which to balance themselves in a proper bow and they made do demonstrating their emptiness by spreading their fingers across the floor and pressing their palms flat. This child had long black feathers that were wrapped neatly in a leather thong, keeping them from spilling to the floor in a beautiful light-catching silky cascade. Still, manners were important, and such a brilliant display of plumage could have hidden her hands. Whoever was raising this child was taking the job quite seriously. “Inquisitive One. What may I offer you?” she replied warmly, in the oldest tradition of teaching. As the child leaned back to her knees, the teacher noticed the eyes. The eyes of this child-- the length of the crest suggested that this child was female, but it was so difficult to tell at this age-- were a lovely gold color, and bright against the soft smooth inviting brown of her skin. “What of the Eyumohn, Mother? When did the Goddess decide the Amphii needed companions? From where do the Eyumohn come?” Her question asked, the child settled back to a comfortable position on the floor, leaning against the low bench she share with two Amphi children. “Eyumohn,” the child had said. Typical of the Ha’arii: while the Amphii have come to realize that they do not do it intentionally, the self-important nature that the Ha’arii hide only from themselves no doubt demanded such as this. The name borne to them by the Amphii-- the liberators of their kind-- the name borne by them for a thousand years!-- had not been good enough when they had decided to live independently of their liberators and teachers. No, that bedevilling and no doubt Esh-Kahn (the youngest and most self-centered of the First Clutch)-inspired need to do every tiny thing for themselves (and then boast about it for a hundred years or more) certainly would have driven the Ha’rii to rename their entire kind on nothing more than a whim. And in their typical short-sightedness, they hadn’t even given themselves a name that meant anything. Except ‘Ha'arii,’ of course. It would always mean Ha’arii. “That, Inquisitive One, is another, later part of the Great Tale. For you see, Inquisitive One (she prayed briefly to Ampylis, God of Discernment, Judgement, and Knowledge, to know for certain the gender of this one so that she could simply say “child” without insult), the Ha’arii, so far as we understand it, were not the get of the Goddess, but instead a gift to the Amphii-- perhaps a reward; perhaps a test-- from Lai’ka, who brings Change to all things, and new things to Change and be Changed. Should all the class desire it, I will tell this Tale as well, for I have well-read the Skins upon which it is written, and knowledge of the past is something to be carried forward always, for in this way and this way only, will we know when we should not pray for Change.”

Those are extremely valid points, and obvious enough I should have hit upon them myself. I must have left something back in the ice age.....

Hmm.... Perhaps I need to "move in" a bit with the planet; perhaps cut it two a two-year orbit, as I see it being warm, with periods of unpleasantly hot (for the humans, anyway) at the peak of Summer. I assume that would increase the light and heat it receives, or should I just sit here and keep schtum?

Completely understood. And honestly, I don't need especially accurate information, given that at this point two people more knowledgeable than myself have suggested it won't work, or at least not well. But again: it's a magic world created and set in motion by the First Deity, and magic just keeps everything from bumping into (or falling into, or away from) everything else. What I am working on the hardest is those aspect which affect campaigning in this world: how many seasons, and how long are they? How drastic is the difference between them? Do they follow a similar pattern, or is it possible to end up with "Winter, Mild Winter, Winter Again, Spring, Summer, Spring, Summer, Chilly Fall, Warm Fall, -- etc? I don't know how to phrase this (oddly enough), but essentially what effects will the players see that makes this a whole new world and not just feudal England with orcs? You know, I didn't know enough in '91 to ask myself that question, but I almost know a little bit more now. Seriously, I'm not trying to be difficult (this is why I was looking so hard online for something I could putter around with, so as to both learn something myself and to not bother people who actually know how all this works); I just really hadn't thought about it. I suppose, if I'm going to keep with the current mythos, I _should_ have them be similar in color. She is, for the dominant race in this world, a Goddess, and the suns are her eyes. I don't know how often differently-chroma'd eyes occur in reptiles, so you know-- play it safe. Same color, unless a different color would produce a more pronounced effect, mind you. Actually, it _would_, wouldn't it? During the times when the suns are aligned with the planet, it's essentially only one sun, as the bit of Big Sun being blocked by Little Sun is being blocked by something that is radiating the same heat, the same color, etc, just from a little bit (cosmically speaking) closer. Now if the smaller sun were cooler, then the eclipse effect would produce-- well, really no more effect, as it's cooler, but closer, so less radical change than same color..... If the smaller sun is hotter..... when it moves closer.... But at the same color, when _both_ are in the sky, separately.... Pardon me; I'm down in the spine today, so I've been doing a lot of writing, and now I'm thinking out loud with my fingers.... You know, let's just say that they are the same color, unless anyone can think of a really interesting effect not possible that way. As with Dean, above, I can't thank you enough for any little bit you might be able to offer. And you, too, are welcome to stuff fireworks into my casket. I just want the emphasis on "fun" at my funeral. Duke

They can't use that one on me, I'm afraid. I'm one of the guys who _hates_ watching sports on TV, particularly when there are a few that I can still actually _do_.

Be Sarek! I mean, always be yourself, unless you can be Sarek. Then be Sarek. Unless you can be Sarek or Batman, in which case, be Sarek. To be completely fair, Amorkca: all of this was many years ago. I still have a dislike for Tolkien's race of Mary Sues, but it's been tempered somewhat as I aged by the realization that the problem, game-wise, wasn't so much with the race itself as with the interpretation of the race via pretty much every fantasy game that includes them (huge props to Talislantia for, way back when, having a fantasy option completely without them). Every game that includes them seems to go well out of it's way to put them a notch above everyone else in every possible way (except raw Strength-- over the years since I've seen a couple of examples where they were physically weaker than most other player races). My people perceive better than most others. My people live longer than most others. My people are smarter than most others. My people are faster than most others. My people are innately better at magic than most others. My people are innately better at combat than most others. My people are hardier than more others. My people heal faster than most others. My people are better at law and judgement than most others. My people are more socially advanced than most others. My people are prettier than most others. My people are better craftsmen than most others. My people make better weapons and armor than most others. You don't have a player race there. You have a McGuffin: the object of fables and ancient tales that might inspire a part of adventurers to seek out the ruins of this once-great lost race of people and perhaps loot and plunder-- I mean, study and learn what they can and return with new knowledge for the world. Honestly, that's not even an exhaustive list. When it comes to a _player_ race, I'd say "pick and two" or possibly "pick and three" for a small group, and I'll see what I can come up with. But when presented with such a player race, you'd be hard pressed to stay true to a concept that _wasn't_ an elf. And on top of that, even in a group of eight players, when I was given character sheets for pre-game review, it wasn't even one Human / Dwarf / Mudskipper and seven elves. Nope. It was one wizard and seven Legolae. _Sometimes, after a long and lengthy gripe session that "You can't all be Legolas! In fact, let's just make this simple: to prevent confusion or argument, _none_ of you can be Legolas. There. That's fair." They'd make new characters, and in an hour or so I'd get one wizard (sometimes Human), one Palladin (Elven), and six Legolae. So yeah-- I went to some seriously long lengths to proactively abort ever being handed another damned Legolas. Oh yes; we're invoking magic here. Already done, what with Creation mythos, etc. Magic. Fantasy world, so Magic. Goddess, actually, and we're good here. You are correct in your assumption, Sir. Luminosity is definitely the word I couldn't think of had there been money riding on it. Yes; they orbit in the same plane. And if the difference is only going to be in hours, perhaps I should change things up a bit: say the smaller sun takes a year to orbit and the planet takes only two? Would this increase the odds of the difference being measurable in days or even a week or two? Nope; that's exactly right, actually. From the lore of the Amphii people, it's the eyes of the Goddess, watching over her creation and her people, all the time. (As reptilians, the idea of one eye being more or less open than the other at any given time just isn't that odd to them). Duke Oliver, and I can't thank you enough for anything you can offer. You can dance at my funeral, if you'd like. Oh, nope. Sorry about that; it was a standard offer for someone to whom I am greatly indebted. Unfortunately, I had forgotten that the wife has decided I am to be cremated (It makes her happy, and I don't expect that I'll care either way, so.....). New offer: you can add bottle rockets to the casket. Tell them I said it was okay. Duke

Honestly, I don't have an issue with invoking "magic makes this happen (Dean: total misuse of the word "Primary" on my part. Let's just say a star with a smaller star in orbit around it. Magic makes that happen.); I would just like to be reasonably accurate with the affects of such an improbable situation. Though I may cut the orbit time of the planet from four years to two years if that would result in greater seasonal impact by the smaller star. And Hugh: _I_ won't be running it for millennia, for certain. But the pre game history is long. Long enough that humans have, in a small way, come into their own from their start as slaves (an occasional food source) of the elf-analogue race (which is to say: faster, taller, smarter, nigh-immortal, lithe, and better than every way than humans.... except for being insectoid, making them blatantly unappealing to most human players. Alas, I'll have to make the reptilian for this reboot, as the insectoid thing was repellent to my daughter as well, for whom this work is being revisited.) I skewed the odds against elves early by deciding that the humans are the only known mammals in the world. All other higher life forms are reptilian or insectoid in nature, as are the vast majority of all other life, period. There are a few "reptiod" life-forms-- features that resemble those of reptiles, but with features that are not typically reptilian, such as being endothermic. The bird-analogues of this world are like that (much like actual birds, if you've studied the faces of those species with lots of exposed flesh or studied their legs at all: the look like luck lizards. Or if you've eaten reptile. No; it doesn't taste _exactly_ like chicken, but neither does turkey, quail, or pigeon dove. Texture is strikingly identical, though)-- wow. ruined that sentence. Let's try again: The bird analogues are exothermic reptilians for the most part, though there are a few straight-out reptilian (bat analogues, and condor analogues) and a very few regional breeds of insectoid analogues. Seriously, when I first did this thing, I went to a lot of trouble to create an elf-repellent atmosphere. Time well-spent, I think. Duke

I'll level with you both: when I saw it, I assumed it related to some new change in 6e that I had forgotten (remember, I've only read it once, and Hugh isn't known for bad math ), and I wasn't interested enough in 6e to bother checking. :/ Still, I am in love with the elegance of the Multipower solution.

Thanks, Dean! I've been browsing here and there on the net this morning, but haven't found much of use. If this is more likely to work with two equal stars orbiting each other, I can make that change. Thank you. Duke

It's wierd: I've used them for years to represent having X amount of a. Power reserve of some sort to split amongst powers ( think power pool with a very finite number of expressions); I've even mentioned it once or twice in other discussions. But using it to model this particular effect: losing abilities as a body-affecting power is increased--has just never occurred to me. I really, really like it. Thanks!