The Main Man

Re: HAP: How to use them

I think effort should count at least as much as ability. A poor roleplayer deserves credit for at least trying. Besides, I'm sure we all sucked at it when we first got into the hobby. Reward effort; make the quality be its own reward.

Just my thoughts on the matter. That said though, it's up to the GM what constitutes effort.

I think it can be done. I think there is a baby in that bathwater. To me, from the pulp stories I have read, the racism had two sides to it. One part is the easily discarded xenophobia and white supremacy. The other part though, in which races are often given lush descriptions that emphasize their exotic differences from the Western world (sometimes even within the West) is worth keeping in my opinion if one approaches it intelligently and sensitively.

I've read stories in which other races feel as different from our heroes as elves, dwarves, and orcs do from humans. On the one hand, this implied a certain level of inhumanity - especially for African blacks. On the other hand, playing explicitly different races is commonplace in Fantasy gaming. That is, players often like to play that which is different from them.

We can all agree that a good Pulp campaign would at least respect different races for all being human. I think that they can be made interesting not by emphasizing their physical differences but by emphasizing their cultural differences in positive, engaging ways. That a tribe of Africans is black skinned is incidental; that they use spears for combat, revere lions for their ferocity, and find a bowl of spicy, fried grubs tasty is interesting. The important thing is to treat it all with wonder rather than fear.

This brings me to something of a challenge: how far can one make templates of a culture without being overly stereotyped? Are (respectful) stereotypes okay in gaming? Fantasy HERO presents Cultural Templates, and in many ways they might cover many bases, but what about the GM who desires more difference from culture to culture? Is that kosher?

That said, I think that players can be an important part of this if they play up elements of their character's culture. I think it would help highlight differences between cultures if the players are more aware of their characters' own cultural preferences.

What say you all? Am I mad or am I onto something? Maybe both?

Re: HAP: How to use them

Well, MainMan, this is ENTIRELY my opinion on the matter and should not be in any way construed as an attack against you or your playstyle, but it would seem your system to me is really overcomplicated and would likely create a whole new metagame based around scoring HAPs for your character. This would also have the result of making skill roll bonuses much less useful (as if its REALLY important that you make it you will always have a few HAPs sitting around to burn.) Also, having lots of ways to "loose" HAP's is probably a bad idea in my opinion. That encourages players to spend them up (since if they don't have any they can't loose any).

 

My preferred method (STRICTLY my opinion of course) is that everyone gets a relatively equal pool at the start (dice roll with reroll or modifiers or such.) I will also award them occasionally for good roleplaying. As a guideline I would reward something like this:

+1 HAP for great roleplaying which enhances the game and makes it more fun for everyone

+2 if you are roleplaying a "negative" applied to your character well (Ever see a character with "Cowardly" who runs right into fray right off the bat every time? Ugh.) This one is situational and likely to only be awarded at most once per session (possibly even post session for next time if it becomes an issue "Im cowardly this time to get my bonus HAP, but now Ill act normal since I have them."

+1 for truly Heroic actions that lead to success

 

And the only way to loose them is to forget that these are "HEROIC Action Points." If you are trying to game the system, thats not heroic. If your killing off people in a game where that's not appropriate, thats not heroic. If you are shooting a teammate in the back because you had a fight in RL and want to get even in game, that's not heroic. Heroic Action Points are for Heroic Characters only. And frankly if I take them away from you that should be a warning that next step is asking you to leave (IE I would only do it under extreme circumstances). Of course, many of these may not apply in certain tones/genres of games, but you get the drift.

 

Also, they are wiped out at the end of every adventure. The idea is that they are precious, using them early should be a major consideration. Until you get to the final boss fight. Then its time to "HERO UP!" and kick some ass.

 

As for how to spend them: (all apply to YOUR rolls only)

1 point to modify any one dice roll by +/-1 (max 3) (effect roll, success roll, whatever) done AFTER the roll (so you know your going to get your money's worth)

3 points to reroll any one dice roll (the entire roll, not part of it. If you want to reroll your 18d6 Move Through you gotta reroll all 18 dice, no keeping the good ones)

1 point to increase your defense vs a single attack by one point (usually to turn Stuns into "almost stuns" but the only way for a HERO to affect the other guys rolls. Note I would not normally allow this to be used for DCV/DMCV)

2 points to use a "signature attack" (something I am toying with, i need to playtest it some. Basically an attack that gets around normal limits of the game)

1 point to use a power skill to use a power in a "SFX only" related way (IE it bears no resemblance to the power you have with that SFX) i.e. I have a EB defined as Electrical Blast, and I want to move through power lines (transforming your body to electricity has nothing to do with shooting lightning bolts out of your hands, they are just the same SFX). All other normal "Power Tricks" rules apply (ie only once, no repeats, etc.) Also generally not useable for attacks.

 

 

All Points: And possibly "all points" to not "die" due to a lucky dice roll on a villains part. If used for this may take a portion of points out of the next session as well (so everyone doesn't just horde that last point "just in case".)

 

 

Any of the random stuff happens sort of thing I personally feel is way to far into LUCK's bailiwick and so I really don't like allowing using them for that.

Yeah, that's what I'm realizing, and that's why I turn to HG for my latest wacky ideas before unleashing then on my group. I plan to look into your simpler, more subjective approach to rewards.

As far as "Signature Moves," I'll send you a PM to address it. I run a Dragonball HERO campaign which deals with a similar concept, but that topic is not appropriate to this thread IMO.

Re: HAP: How to use them

As someone who identifies as almost entirely Simulationist' date=' I would argue that these sorts of meta-game result modification tools are most likely to be embraced by Narritivists (who can use them to steer the story the way they want it to go), Gamists will likely appreciate them for different reasons (notably second chances when they're "losing"), and Simulationists will find them artificial and jarring (for the reasons I listed in my first reply). But again, just my GNS-based two cents.[/quote']

 

I can see that, though the more I think about it, the more I can see any side of it liking or disliking the mechanic for a variety of different reasons.

 

As someone who primarily identifies as Narrativist, I will say that I don't hate dice; I'm just "that guy" who can come up with good plans/strategies and then gets screwed by the dice with frightening regularity. A shame too, as I have a friend who is nearly the opposite; not particularly good planner or strategist, but the dice - any dice - like him more often than not. So, basically, I use HAPs primarily to nudge past BS, and also because failure is rarely made interesting in my group; a GMing skill I think I strive for, but have much room for improvement. Hm, sounds like another thread...

Re: HAP: How to use them

I don't use them, and would not under most any circumstance use them, in my games. But then I also dislike Fate points, Bennies, and Hero Points in every other game I've encountered them in. For me, the dice, and the luck that they produce, is what makes the game. I want to roll with that roll, and let the story happen as it does, even if (and sometimes especially if) it's bad news. I would rather take a bullet to the throat on a lucky roll from a villain and die a horrifying death, forcing me to create a new character, if it means that the other characters will all get a visceral experience out of the event.

 

Basically, any mechanic that I see as "meta" - that is, outside of a decision made by my character - is directly counter to my immersion in my character. So no, I wouldn't use them in my games, and were I in a game where they were in use, I would probably not ever use them for that very reason, and if the GM was worried about my "saving them up" and didn't take me at my word that I wasn't ever going to use them, I'd burn them all on a ridiculous roll, like a perception check, in the first act.

Just a thought, but I wonder now if the Drama/Fate/Bennie/etc point appeals to Narrativist players more than it does to Gamist players. I have a player who has a similar outlook as you in that he almost always just accepts his rolls. I, on the other hand, look at dice as these dumb objects that you can always count on to let you down. I would definitely classify him primarily as a Gamist (followed closely by Simulationist) while I am more of a Narrativist.

That's of course if one subscribes to GNS theory at all...

Re: HAP: How to use them

OK' date=' I'm going to play "spot the negatives" so bear with me...[/quote']

It's basically what I asked for, so without further ado...

 

This means my HAP rise faster if my Complications are more frequent, since a 15 - 20 point complication that rarely arises but is very severe will carry the same 2 HAP bonus as one which arises all the time with minor consequences. Gaming the system means trying to bring your complications into play in situations where their down sides are limited, and arguing your complications should apply more often. "Hey, we haven't seen my Hunted for a while." "My character is late because he had to call his DNPC girlfriend - how many HAP do I get?"

 

What about complications in excess of the point-based limits? Do I get HAP's when these additional complications come into play?

The key here is that the PC will accept that they are going to bear some burden as a result of the Complication. Calling their DNPC girlfriend would not give them any HAPs - the DNPC must be in danger and thus pose a problem/dilemma for the PC. Bumping into a Hunted is not good enough - Doctor Destroyer stopping by for a milkshake while belittling the PC wouldn't net any points. Doctor Destroyer showing up to punch the PC in the mouth, however, would give them points.

 

You do bring up a good point about frequency versus severity being lopsided. Perhaps it should be strictly based on severity - how much it actually affects the PC. Its frequency just helps it pop up more or less. If a PC wants a very frequent and very severe complication then they need to get ready for their character to suffer greatly for it and very often. That said, I'd have to consider what constitutes a minor, moderate, or major severity in the first place; some are more obvious than others.

 

This seems like a pretty reasonable use of HAP to me. However, coming back to the issues above, does this effectively create a structure where complications are only relevant when their consequences are negligible, building up some HAP to avoid their impact when they would be more significant, with the result that complications become minor quirks, easily avoided when they would significantly complicate the character but appearing again when they have less impact?

 

I would say that could be a result if a player so chooses, which thus results in a net zero effect - they let some Complications affect them, they negate others. It's their choice, but they'd hardly get the best use of them that way. I think the fact they could temporarily buy off Complications one instance at a time can serve to curb the frequency problem you observed above. On the other hand, perhaps this usage of HAPs could be based on frequency just as the other is based on severity. The more frequent the complication, the fewer HAPs it takes to negate it - after all, it will happen again sooner than the others.

 

I'm thinking of lots of PER and Skill uses that don't require a roll now "needing" that roll to give Our Hero a shot at building up some HAP with limited or no down side. "I try to Persuade my DNPC Girlfriend to let me go bowling with the guys next Friday - oh a 3 - I'll downgrade it/argh an 18 - I'll accept that I also have to do the laundry this weekend." And don't forget the bonus for my complication!

I generally place myself in the "roll if it's actually important" school of rolling dice. That is subjective, yes, but I think the liberal use of skills for rather mundane things like that wouldn't be rewarded. They're Heroic Action Points, not Normal, Everyday BS Points. It's ultimately GM discretion here.

 

 

Does a brave, heroic action which invokes the genre/style/tone of the game to succeed in a challenge start at a base +1 for the action - 1 for the tropes working to your advantage, so nothing?

Good point. It seems to me that each works fine on their own, but they have a lot of potential to easily achieve zero effect.

 

Do these rewards replace or supplement role playing xp awards? There's a move in many game systems to avoid variant xp which results in PC's diverging in power levels. Replacing those awards with HAP would seem more palatable, as the characters will gain temporary benefits rather than permanent power increases. As well, an extra HAP or 2 is much easier to hand out on a fairly regular basis than extra xp.

That's the general idea, yes. My intention to to remove the CP incentive from role playing - CP becomes a flat reward in the name of player balance; I've found balancing PCs based on their total CP and reconciling effort and ability with that is more trouble than it's worth. The CP incentive therefore becomes a HAP incentive. The incentive remains but it's become a more immediate and more short-term reward thus theoretically encouraging more desired role playing styles.

 

Several of these are negatives. Can the character drop into the negatives, or can he only take these on if he has positive HAP? I'm out of HAP, so I can no longer cite genre tropes that benefit me? The GM will no longer allow me to do something Cowardly, Idiotic, Impulsive, Unheroic or Play in Genre/Style/Tone if it's advantageous? How do these mesh with the rewards for complications (like a character who has psychs like Cowardly or Impulsive)? Often, it is in genre/style/tone to be impulsive - pretty stupid for that Horror PC to walk down into the dark basement, but very much in keeping with the genre tropes.

Good points; This seems to be the flimsiest of my ideas - I think they still all have individual merit, but they fall apart upon meshing together. Maybe the penalties ought to be removed and there is either reward or no reward but no penalties.

 

Of course, we have the usual issues with the GM judging the players' role playing of their characters. We've had lots of discussions of those issues in other threads.

True. I admit that this one is a very "gut feeling" thing.

 

I plan to redraft a lot of the "Role Playing" HAP rewards and then post them when I think I have a better working model.

 

Stunts seems reasonable, whether in isolation or using HAP in conjunction with the Power Skill.

Lotsa fun, I can assure you. That and they give incentive to use any HAPs gained. Takes a few sessions for players to "get it" though, game-play-wise.

As for the Power Skill, there is a similar system for Superheroes I've been working on and even started a thread on it: Everyman VPPs. It's basically the Superhero equivalent to "Stunts."

 

 

hmmmmm...so it's in my best interests to encourage absences, let my teammates get KO'd or killed, etc. Hey, the new ones get bonus HAP's, so it's a win/win!

1-2 points is a small condolence and only really adds up if your group is regularly large and (counterintuitively) regularly absent. In my group of 8 people, if it came down to 1 GM and 1 Player, that player would get +12 HAPs for that game. That's six absent players; I dunno about that being a good long-term plan.

 

Second, if my teammates regularly get killed/knocked out, then they most likely will catch on to my benefitting from it and thus make tougher characters. It's no fun being knocked out/dead. It's self-regulating if you ask me.

 

Seems like a character with minimal defenses and lots of regeneration could be an HAP machine - keep dipping into negative BOD for fun and profit! If I slap Resurrection on there, can my character share the bonus HAP for a PC dying? "Guys, this looks like it could be a tough adventure. Better beat Mr. Immortal to death a few dozen times so we have lots of HAP - make sure you KO him first so he gets some HAP as well. We'll call it a Team Training Session - that's a genre trope, right? OK, who's got relevant Complications to bring in?

That is an interesting abuse of the system that I have yet to encounter. I'll have to think about that one. That said, as usual, it needs to be relevant; meaningful; substantial. Just because one has Healing or Regeneration doesn't mean they can soak up HAPs because of BODY damage from friendly fire. One of those "I see through your tricks" kind of things any good GM is on the look out for anyway.

 

Do we keep the "HAP reset at the start of each session" model? As I watch the clock tick forward, it becomes more practical to use them all up since they'll just disappear otherwise. Seems pretty painful to do some great role playing, suffer for my complications, be disadvantages by genre tropes, get smashed up by critical failures, ignore my own critical successes, get KO'd and knocked to negative BOD, sitting out an extensive combat scene, then finally recover and have the game end, so all my HAP reset at the start of the next game. On the other hand, one can see the Horder (especially one with some bad combat luck over a session or three) accumulate a huge HAP pool and be able to accomplish the impossible for a session.

I use it as a baseline. A player regains up to that amount every game within the same story arc. If they have more, then they start with what they had at the end of the last game.

 

I have thought about ways to translate excess HAPs into bonus CP at the end of story arcs in a way similar to Karma from Marvel Super Heroes, but I have nothing substantial that I think even begins to work right. Besides, there's that whole "remove CP incentive" motive I listed above.

Re: Resource Pools in Star Hero

I've been mulling over using Resource Pools for a few campaigns lately. This thread is definitely giving me stuff to think about.

For one, I am working on a Time Travel HERO campaign and I'm not sure how to address Resource Pools for what I hope are obvious reasons. I have the idea that they start with no Resource Points but I give them some little by little through minor assigned CP rewards. I can see certain arguments in favor of them having to buy such things from scratch though. You watch Doctor Who and almost no one but The Doctor brings any gear with themself, and one could argue that The Doctor uses what Resource Points he has to swap out various gadgets with a few Inventor rolls. Hm...

I have a High Fantasy campaign on the back burner though, and earlier comments have definitely inspired me to make use of them to balance Magic with Equipment.

I also have a Pulp/Dark Champions/Ninja HERO hybrid in the works that I'm not sure how to approach just yet either. I'm not sure if the PCs should buy all of their Resource Points or if they should get some for free.

Re: HAP: How to use them

Other things I do with Heroic Action Points:

I. Here's a scale I found that generally works for starting Heroic Action Points. It does depend on just how amazing you want your PCs to be though.

3 - Competent Normal

6 - Standard Heroic

9 - Powerful Heroic

12 - Very Powerful Heroic

15 - Low-Powered Superheroic

18- Standard Superheroic

21 - Powerful Superheroic

II. Something I have implemented which puts the above levels to great use is what I call "Stunts." I've done a thread on this idea before and I swear by them now too.

To me, many characters that HERO sets out to simulate do too many things to be affordable for what HERO recommends, but to give PCs as many points as needed would become equally absurd. So I cut the Gordian knot by deciding that maybe PCs can attempt certain things at the cost of Heroic Action Points.

In summary, Stunts give PCs the ability to attempt certain Super Skills (Dark Champions)/ Heroic Talents (Pulp HERO) for free, though usually at a lesser degree than the full ability. I use most of the Skill Roll-based Super Skills/etc for this purpose. The catch? It costs 1 Heroic Action Point to attempt in the first place, and those Skill Roll penalties usually mean you might need a few more to pull it off; this prevents a PC from using them willy nilly. PCs are free to buy these same abilities for the sake of improvement; they pay half the Real Cost in return.

III. Additional Little Things I Do.

-1x - Raise REC +1 for one Recovery

+1-10 - PC is in Negative BODY (up to -10)

+3/+1 - PC is Knocked Out; KO'ed PC gains +3 HAPs; Their fellow PCs gain +1 HAP each.

+3 - PC dies; Their fellow PCs gain +3 HAPs each

+2 - Absent player bonus; All present players start with +2 HAPs per absent player; this assumes that they really could use those other PCs.

+6 - Brand New PC Smell; A PC gets +6 HAPs in their first game to give them some room to really shine

+3 - Still Fresh PC Smell; A PC gets +3 HAPs in their second game to keep shining a little more and get to know that character; no additional HAPs after that though.

Re: HAP: How to use them

So, about those ideas...

I. Complications. It's done in M&M to rather decent effect, but I've yet to see a good implementation for HERO. I think that a scaled approach could work; not all Complications are created equal after all, so why should they give uniform reward? Furthermore, the Complication must actually complicate matters for the PC. A Hunted must actively make matters worse; their Code of the Hero must cause them an inconvenience; Their Secret Identity must actually put the character in a quandary. If the GM believes it is the case, then they give the PC a few HAPs for accepting the consequences of the Complication.

+1 - Accept consequences of Minor Complication (5-10pts)

+2 - Accept consequences of Moderate Complication (15-20pts)

+3 - Accept consequences of Major Complication (25+pts)

If a PC gains HAPs for accepting the consequences, what if they can also pay HAPs to deny/negate those consequences in certain situations? This one is a little murkier I'll admit, but it is ultimately up to the GM. On the one hand, Susceptibilities and Vulnerabilities tend to be cut and dry. On the other hand, many Complications are simply story elements - to deny their consequences is to essentially render them a non-factor for your character for the time being.

-1 - Deny/Negate consequences of Minor Complication

-2 - Deny/Negate consequences of Moderate Complication

-3 - Deny/Negate consequences of Major Complication

II. Critical Success and Failure. This is one area I have interest in implementing quite a bit; having HAPs play some part in the success of a Critical roll. Observe:

+3 - Downgrade Critical Success to simple roll of 3

+/-0 - Accept Critical Success as auto-success only

-3 - Upgrade Critical Success to additional benefits

-3 - Upgrade Critical Failure to simple roll of 18

+/-0 - Accept Critical Failure as auto-failure only

+3 - Accept Critical Failure with additional effects

Think of every Critically Succeeded PER Roll or Skill Roll that you really didn't need. Think of every Critically Failed Skill or Attack roll you really did need. These can work to play around with that a little. Bear in mind that none of these will ever change a non-Critical roll to a Critical one; they still must be naturally rolled.

III. Role Playing. These rewards and penalties are related to the playing of characters. The main points of these rewards are similar to the "Appropriate Unlikely Actions" from the Champions genre books of old. They are rewards for performing various actions that defy common sense but make perfect sense in other ways. Additionally, they must be actions that matter.

+1 - Adventurous, Bold, Clever, Heroic Actions

+1-3 - Action was Critical to adventure

-1 - Cowardly, Idiotic, Impulsive, Unheroic Actions

-1-3 - Action was Critical to adventure

+1-3 - Entertaining, Memorable, Noteworthy, etc actions

-1 - Invoke a Genre Trope to Character's Advantage

+1 - Invoke a Genre Trope to Character's/Characters' Disadvantage

-1 - Play in Genre/Style/Tone to own Advantage

+1 - Play in Genre/Style/Tone to own Disadvantage

I have yet to implement any of these Heroic Action Point rewards. They are all speculative for myself at this time. I hope people like them, and I hope I get some helpful feedback to improve them.

Re: HAP: How to use them

First, I swear by HAPs and similar mechanics in other games.

Second, HAPs are not as individually potent as other games' versions of the mechanic. Thus, a GM needs to be more cautious because too few HAPs/game will seem next to meaningless while too many will make the game a cakewalk..

That said, I look for ways to utilize them beyond simple die roll adjustment. I'll share such the first chance I get.to

Furthermore, I have been looking into ways to create a HAP economy, and this thread looks about as good a place to share such ideas. Again, first chance I get (gotta get mah notes first).

Re: [New Product] Champions Complete

Hi, my group is wanting to start a Superhero campaign, but we don't know what system to play with.

 

I've just got a few questions about Champions, sorry if these have been answered earlier in the thread, I didn't want to slog through 38 pages of forum.

 

From what I read in the first 10 pages of this chat, it says 4 books (one of which I have found out is 400 odd pages) down into 240. How did it fit that much in there? Is it in really tiny font? Did it completely skip the description of powers from Volume 1?

 

What lends Champions to be a better supers game than other systems? What does it have over, say, M&M or Heroes Unlimited?

 

Thank you for your time.

Power creation that allows you to systematically simulate almost anything. A combat system that you can really get into. You can build the character you want instead of picking cookie cutters. The system can be used for multiple genres without any changes.

M&M really is a great system if you come to it from playing D&D. It simplifies many elements of the D20 system to make it a quicker, better oiled machine. But let me be the first to tell you that it cribs its Power Creation system straight from Champions and I say accept no substitutions. Furthermore, M&M is geared towards building and simulating Superheroes only; Champions only begins with Superheroes.

Heroes Unlimited presents Superheroes in highly cookie cutter ways. It lacks consistency and isn't particularly balanced well.

Champions, as you may have heard, does involve math, but ask yourself if the following would strain your brain:

Power Creation:

Base Points x (1 + Sum of Advantages) = Active Points

Active Points / (1 + Sum of Limitations) = Real Points

That is all the math in Power Creation and it's only done when creating your character or buying new things. The following is as complex as combat calculation ever gets:

Attack Roll: (Offensive Combat Value + 11) - 3d6 = Defensive Combat Value hit

If you can handle that and Power Creation, then that is the toughest math ever gets in Champions.

Then there is the combat system, which is intricate, thorough, and highly flexible once you catch onto its internal logic of allocation. Blocking, Dodging, Grabbing, Throwing, etc. Champions does it all and it isn't so confusing that you don't bother, this creating more dynamic, more exciting combat.

So again: power creation, combat, internal logic and consistency, flexibility, and adaptability. Champions should be the first name in superhero (and multigenre) gaming if you like your gaming crunchy. If you're more of a Marvel Super Heroes guy, then Champions operates from the opposite side of that rules spectrum. So if you like hard coded, crunchy rules systems, then go with Champions.

Re: [New Product] Champions Complete

It never occurred to me until now that the sheer thoroughness of 6e might have lead to fewer new members on these boards. Interesting observation.

Re: Anyone thought about a post-apocalyptic cross genra setting - let's call it "Drif

I'm in.

Re: "Elevator Pitch" your campaign

Is Time Cube some sort of comedic game or is the name just an unfortunate coincidence?

Very conscious "wink." It began as a cross between the Doctor's TARDIS and the Monoliths from 2001. Then it clicked in my head - I have that kind of sense of humor.

Re: "Elevator Pitch" your campaign

Since my group votes on what to play next every three weeks, there are too darn many for me to name so I'll keep it to what I run or plan to run soon.

Dragonball South Galaxy - The events depicted in the popular Japanese cartoon Dragonball/Z/GT took place in the northern part of the universe; these take place in the southern parts a century or so after the source for a bit of continuity distance even though it makes use of a lot of the movie villains. I already know what anyone is gonna ask: characters currently cost in excess of 900 CP with a general DC range of 12-20 as well as 1 Charge, x2 END, 28-32 DC "Super Techniques."

Sons of the Dragon - In 1975, a group of masked martial arts crimefighters emerged to avenge the mysterious death of the man they all once trained with: Bruce Lee. It's basically The Shadow, Batman, and Bruce Lee put in a blender. Powerful Heroic for the curious.

Rifts Silvereno - It's the high powered gonzo action of Rifts out in the New West and adapted for HERO as a Standard Superheroic campaign. Actually a sequel campaign to an earlier one.

The Time Cube - An upcoming Time Travel/World Hopping campaign in which a motley group of heroes from across the known history of Earth come together in a mysterious, obsidian cube that can travel across time and space. Think Doctor Who, Farscape, and Supernatural (among others) and you've got the gist of the idea. Standard Heroic for the curious.

Re: Suppressing my rage

Suppress is not Drain that Costs Endurance; it's Drain that Costs Endurance to Maintain. Let's be accurate at least.

Re: [New Product] Champions Complete

Honestly, I buy adventures to get inspiration and any added features. Take Pathfinder for example, their APs tend to have an adventure, short story, info on an locale of some kind and a bestiary used within that particular adventure. So, that said, to apply to Champions, I would propose the following:

 

Viper's Nest (Part 1 of 4 part Snake Charmer Mini-Series)

A Champions adventure for 4-5 400 pt. Characters

The heroes must save Millennium City from the criminal plans of Ogre, Armadillo, Shrinker & Brick, only to discover their part of a larger plot to take over the world!

Includes:

• Adventure

• Rap Sheets on all the villains (total of 4)

• Info on Millennium City's Hero Force program

• A story by [insert name here] and illustrated by [another name]

• Includes stats for The Champions (@400 points)

Full Color PDF • $6.95, 28 pages

 

Then the next parts, all maintaining the same price point while in electronic format, then release a collected "Trade Paperback" of the series as a print product IF the series does well.

That's pretty much what I'm suggesting. Right on the money. Have some rep.

Re: [New Product] Champions Complete

I think that's where adding sourcebook material relevant to the adventure comes in handy. It makes the product usable on two levels. I think a decently cheap price tag would hook them in all that much more - it reduces risk while having great long term value.

Re: Fantasy Race Bloat?

Does this? Or does that?

You know; it.

Re: Fantasy Race Bloat?

This.

To take it one step further, perhaps "race bloat" is whenever a newly proposed race clearly does just that by its sheer concept/inception.

Re: [New Product] Champions Complete

When I say "Beginner" I mean that the reader does have CC but they could use context. "Beginner" modules would not reprint the rules but would show how they work in actual play and GMing.

Now that I reread my post though, I forgot to mention my suggestion of $5-6 prices ($3-4 digital). The modules I envision wouldn't justify $10+ purchases as they would be far too short.

Re: [New Product] Champions Complete

I'm psyched about CC now thanks to this thread. That said, having read some of the recent discussion on supplement ideas, I picture something like this: every supplement is either a Beginner or an Advanced supplement. Beginner supplements assume that the player knows nothing about the CC rules or the CU setting. Villains, NPCs, and various setting details are introduced in Beginner supplements on a level similar to their entries in Champions Universe and Champions Villains. Furthermore, almost all information presented in a supplement is used for a full adventure which helps the reader better understand how CC plays.

Advanced supplements kick things up a notch. They assume the reader generally knows the HERO rules and that they know something about the setting. Advanced settings tend to reuse villains, NPCs, and settings from prior supplements and recommend the reader collect those supplements for more information. A villain, NPC, and/or setting(s) are likely to be reintroduced with a more advanced build and given more and deeper details than they would in a Beginner supplement; detail akinto Book of the Destroyer, VIPER: Coils of the Serpent, or Champions Beyond.

Every supplement is compatible with another and can interconnect. In essence, the GM builds their own Champions Universe.

Beginner Module Example: There could be a Basic level module that introduces Doctor Destroyer on a level akin to his CV1 entry. You get to know something about him, his basic agents, and maybe Black Talon armors or Gigaton or so. It is all easily reusable info for homebrew adventures, but this supplement uses all of that information for a complete adventure that guides the new GM in the ways of running HERO.

Advanced Module Example: A future supplement could come out that features Doctor Destroyer again. This time, he might involve some of his henchmen introduced in BotD and maybe some more or new varieties of his minions. We get to learn stuff about them now, but that sounds light on information, doesn't it? What if DD's plot is so big that UNTIL gets involved, and thus UNTIL becomes the focus of the book? The UNTIL information is basic enough, but you need to have the prior DD module to properly use him in this adventure.

That said, I don't think it would be wrong to still include all relevant character sheets no matter the level. Furthermore, I think any given supplement in that scheme could use a page or so of additional plot seeds and hooks for the villains and other characters presented.

Thoughts?

Re: Fantasy Race Bloat?

None of the above' date=' or is that what you were trying to say - that seeing only those two positions is a kind of failure of imagination?.[/quote']

More like they are two extremes along an axis and that the observation of such could lead to an agreeable medium. The deduction of such a medium could further lead to a theoretical breaking point of "race bloat." There may be other factors of course, and people still have different tastes.

Re: Fantasy Race Bloat?

I think we are on the verge of a more nuanced approach to racial presentation in RPGs. That is to say, should races be monocultural stereotypes or should they really blend with their cultural surroundings and only have small, inherent behavioral deviations?

Re: Hypothetically and unofficially, what would you like to see in a Mecha Hero book?

If such a book could even explain how to handle Gurren Lagann, it would be an instant buy for me.

Granted the main hurdle there involves massive power increases at pivotal plot points. HERO, for all its strengths, its not particularly well-suited to sudden character redesigns like that. Not RAW anyway, or at least IME.