Korgoth

For me, the period between 1180 and 1200 A.D. middle England, Richard the Lionheart, John Lackland and Robin Hood. The sets write themselves, you can do almost anything you want and it will work. can 

I've always been intrigued by the Byzantine Empire, so I'm inclined to consider using the reign of the Emperor, Manuel I Komnenos (1143-1180). Manuel had particularly good relations with Western European realms, including the Crusaders who held territories in the Middle East. He formed military alliances with those nations and with the Pope, and even adopted some of their cultural traditions such as jousting tournaments. The Empire thus presents an interesting "East meets West" flavor. Manuel's conflicts with Hungary in the Balkans, and the Seljuk Turks in Anatolia, leave plenty of opportunities for scenarios of battle and intrigue. And of course, there's no better location for big-city adventures than Constantinople.
 
The Byzantine Emperor's elite personal force, the Varangian Guard, were recruited from foreign countries with a Norse-Germanic tradition of personal loyalty to the lord they swore to serve. Originally these were from Rus, later Scandinavia, and by Manuel's reign, primarily Anglo-Saxons unhappy with Norman rulership of England. So there's plenty of rationale to have PCs from other lands emigrate to the Empire and experience its unique culture for the first time.

I don't have a Form Fillable PDF, but here's a fillable 5th Edition Character Template in Microsoft Word where you type in the data and print out.
CharacterTemplate5E.docx

Yeah, I'd say you've got it inverted...Gun totin vigilantes, then it got toned down to street level heroes for marketing reasons.

Okay, 
 
your promised disambiguation:
 
 
The book listed in the store as the Sourcebook is what "Book 1" should have been-- and honestly, probably was.
 
If you have the CD collection from FFE, then you have _almost_ all of it.  While the paper copies (Thanks again, Shadowcat! ) are amazing, I was always bugged by the lack of certain "core Traveller" bits: the career path skill-building (yeah; harder to do with HERO fans, but not impossible), world generation, starship generation, and psionics.  In the final cut, psionics was touched on oh-so-lightly, but the rest just kind of "fell out of the book."
 
If you have the FFE CD collection, then you have no doubt been just as befuddled as I have been by those three mysterious "chunks of books" that don't match any of the other PDFs (or the paper copies, if you're also lucky enough to have those-- and again:  Bless you, Shadowcat!  I will _never_ forget the guy who got me the paper books that combine my two favorite RPGs!     ).    They are finished pages, numbered even, but higher than the 163 page count of either Book 1 or Book 2.
 
 
The Sourcebook available in the HERO store is the book those excerpts came from:  It is Book 1, complete with Shipbuilding, psionics, and world building (which-- I can't remember if that's included int he FFE collection or not, but I'm not recalling it off the top of my head.
 
And no; it's not a 6e book.  6e does not own the word "templates;" it simply uses it so excessively as dilute the meaning.  The "templates" are essentially packages or pre-encouraged build types.  "Six e did away with Packages!  We use templates now, which is a totally new, revolutionary, unlike-packages kind of thing that provides chunks of good and bad things together....."   Eliminating a bonus doesn't really mean it's not a package, no matter which hot and trendy buzzword you want to stick on it.
 
 
At any rate, if you're _serious_ about Traveller, then this is really a must-have book.  It was the first book I really wanted to pony up for to have printed, as it really is a "more complete" version of one of the books I already own in print.
 
 
Why was all this great material cut?
 
I don't know.  Shadowcat _might_ know, but doesn't visit regularly.  I've quit the bulk of the board (and once I'm done with the store, will quit the rest of it, at least for what I hope is an extended period), and I'm here more regularly than Shadowcat.       If I were to take a SWAG at it, I'd go back to a comment Shadwocat made a very long time back, that the licensing agreement meant you couldn't include lore / world building stuff in your conversion product, making it necessary to buy at least one "true traveller" sourcebook to get the actual setting.  This stuff may have been cut for fear of getting too close to some perceived line.  Again, I _don't_ know; I'm just WAGging.
 
Still, there is stuff in there that relates to all kind of of pieces of the Traveller universe, and it is nice to see this stuff in HERO form.  _However_, as I said, there isn't much in _any_ of this stuff that will allow a new Traveller player to really glean the published universe of any era: you _will_ need some actual Traveller material for that if you don't actually know it already; totally unnecessary if you're just completely uninterested in someone else's sandbox, of course.
 
Your mileage and opinions may vary or differ, but to me, even if you have the FFE collection, it's totally worth having if you're serious about doing Traveller HERO-style.  It's worth it even if you have the FFE collection (which is great, but also a disjointed mess of things you really don't need or want, but still....), since there is at least one section (I think it was world building, but I don't recall specifically) that wasn't in that collection either.  
 
Please note that in Traveller terms, "world building" isn't a campaign-related or setting-related term; it's the systems with which you create new planets, ecosystems, star systems, etc-- actually populating the stars with places to find or to adventure.
 
 
The one thing that never did come to pass-- probably because of the almost-total incompatibility between the two systems-- that I would _love_ to have seen was a HERO-ized version of FFS (even though that was for TNE).
 
But to get back to the original question:
 
Sourcebook is a meatier, more in-depth and feature-filled version of Book 1; it is the Book 1 that Book 1 should have been.  If you have to choose between the two versions, Sourcebook is the Book 1 that you will kick yourself for not getting.  If you're like me, you'll get them both, just because-- because _Traveller HERO_, Dude!  I _can't_ not support that!  
 
 
 
Duke
 

Woo-hoo!
 
Another Space Opera player!
 
Howdy, Neighbor!
 

 
as for the questions regarding timeline:  sometime after Mythic HERO, I expect.
 
(for what it's worth, Mythic HERO is the local version of Duke Nukem Forever, save that when the fateful does come, and my grandson buys himself a copy to share with his kids, I expect it will actually be _good_  )
 
the following is not intended to be insulting or detrimental in any way:
 
HERO Games is all but functionally dead.  There was talk a few months back about using Kickstarter to get bigger projects sone every once in a while, but I don't know id the overall fanbase is much larger than the membership roster for these forums. 
 
the bulk of the meager output of late has been primarily fan-based works using HERO's version of OGL (which is not OGL, but allows you to write stuff for them, so long as you follow a not-too-terribly-long list of rules.
 
all that being said, I woyldnt expect to see any Ultimates books updated to 6e, at least not for a very long time.  Considerinf the only significant changes from 5 to 6 were the loss of "freebie" figured characteristics and splitting the hex down to 1m per, pretty much everything in the Ultimates books is still perfectly valid from one to the other (movement might be a bit wonky in Ultimate Vehicle, but that is just a guess).  The ninja stuff will still be fine, as martial arts and there rules didn't change.
 
(having read the 5e Ultimate Skill in 5e ans HERO System Skills in 6e, I am one-hundred percent they are the exact same book)
 
 

John Byrne did two (well read one) issue of Alpha Flight that took place in 1880s Alberta (have to relook) that would make a good weird west campaign - and the idea of his Great Beasts as well as Shaman and Talisman would ALMOST fit.

Skullface - The Phantom Pain from Metal Gear Solid. Would make an interesting character (at least the look) for a Weird Western or even Pulp game.

I'm liking what I've seen skimming through it, although I think some of the reference info is a little suspect.  The floorplan for a farmhouse includes a kitchen island and two interior bathrooms, which I'm not sure is 100% period

The granularity of Hero is unfortunately too great to really allow us to get into gun minutiae in game terms.  You can add an OCV or not, or a damage class, or cut the STR Min by a couple of points, or give a Concealment bonus.  I suppose having the basic stats for each could still be useful though.

It is possible that GURPS handles low end campaigns better than Hero, I don't have enough experience with GURPS to decide one way or another on that.  I just know that Hero works really well for low end in my experience.

150 STR can lift 25M tons...which, according to 1 site (searching for world's heaviest objects) is about 1/2 the weight of the Great Wall of China.  All 13,000 miles of it.   So, not quite Pluto, but still essentially a practical infinity.
 
There's aspects that don't.  That's a big one;  lifting STR is exponential, whereas damage is linear.  What I do is say, ok, the high STR is enough to justify more damage, in and of itself...so you can get a 12d6 punch without Class 100 STR, which is VERY high end.  For me, it's 1d6 per 5 points of STR over 20, is built in.  Your choice of HTH MA additional damage, or HA/HKA, or a mix.  So, a 35 STR gives a base 7d6.  35 is 15 over, so, let's say, +3 DCs HTH with martial arts.  Your +2 DC strikes include Basic, Fast, and Martial...so you're at 12 DCs.  And 14 DCs with some penalties, if the GM's cool with that.  
 
Defenses also are an issue, because you've got to manage that LARGE amount of STUN now.  For 20d6, 77+ STUN happens 20% of the time, and 80+ STUN happens 10%.  If you go with a 28 CON, you need to reduce at least 50 STUN, and that's hard to do.  Along similar lines, the risk related to any defensive hole grows.  No or low Power Def?  10d6 Drains will HAMMER you.  20d6 Mind Control will turn you into a complete puppet.  
 
Essentially, at lower power levels, a substantial amount of the cost of a special attack can be countered by the built-in baselines, or with minor purchases...this is analogous to the first several dice of a Blast are about overcoming defenses.  But once you've done that...it's all smacking down the poor schmuck on the receiving end.  And, sure, the GM can recognize it, and not use Mental Illusions very often, if at all, but this only goes so far, in my book, before it starts feeling contrived...the GM just handing you things you can handle.
 
All point-buy game systems have their sweet spots...areas where the mechanics work well.  Hero's not great at the lower end;  the fact that Heroic rules let you use equipment at no point cost, is a strong indicator.  And too high, and...you can do it, but just recognize that when building an 800 point character, you should *not* expect "twice the power" of a 400 point character.
 
 

It isn't your phone, Ndreare.  Not quite sure what happened, but OP's post formatting got *mangled* somehow.
 
GURPS doesn't scale well to a high-power game.  For example, to get even moderate super strength in GURPS is incredibly expensive, IIRC.  GURPS Basic Lift is (STR * STR / 5) pounds.  Hero's max lift is pretty much GURPS' 2-handed lift, which is 8 * BL.  A 30 STR in Hero can lift 1600 kilos...3500 pounds.  3500 / 8 = 440.  x5 = 2200  SQRT(2200) is 47...which is 370 points.
 
And that's just 1.6 tons...really not that exceptional.  But GURPS' STR scale means a fourfold increase in lifting STR requires doubling your STR score.  
 
Similarly, defenses in GURPS are actually fairly expensive.  If you want to blow off a .30 caliber light machine gun, t'll cost you.  Make it a .50 cal...LOTS more.
 
I do think GURPS is much better for lower-power games because its skill system is far better.  That said, setting up a GURPS character is also FAR more complex...even in just the base rules, the knobs and tweaks are far more complicated.  I have a copy of the GURPS 4E PDF...somewhere, I can't find it at the moment, could be on a different computer.  And a copy of the character builder tool...but even with the tool, it was like...whoa.....this is work!  I was building one of my favorite character types...the 'heavy' martial artist.  Good STR, fairly good defenses.  It was kinda tricky...and got expensive fast, I thought!  
 
To be sure, some of that is far less experience...I vaguely remember a game that was gonna get run in GURPS, but basically, yeah, I've only read the rules.  There's tricks, I'm sure...but OTOH, most melee-only characters are a piece of cake to set up in Hero.  An issue with 6E in particular is trying to be everything at once...GURPS does too, by definition, but it's about 2 levels MORE complicated.
 
 

Wrong!  The other best setting is 5th century Europe:
 
Arthurian myth Attila the Hun Fall of the Roman Empire Continued Existence of the Byzantine Empire Conquests by the Merovingian kings leading to the founding of France Founding of the Kingdom of Italy Vandals and Visigoths Anglo-Saxon migration into England Celts in Ireland and Scotland (and Christianization thereof) Still no Vikings although there was plenty of raiding going on in and around Scandinavia  
This Europe is quite a bit darker, even postapoc from a Roman perspective.  It lends itself to a more sword-and-sorcery type of campaign as various barbarian tribes fight over the scraps of the Roman Empire while its knowledge and secrets are lost to the ages.
 

12th century Europe is the way:
 
Byzantine Empire Castile, Aragon, and Moorish Spain Knights Templar Second and Third Crusades Genghis Khan Silk Road Merchant Republics of Italy English civil wars and wars with France Holy Roman Empire Teutonic Knights Decline of Kievan Rus Seljuq Empire  
About the only thing 12th century Europe doesn't have is Vikings, but you could probably squeeze them in and no one would know any better.
 

The way the group I game with handles stats is that any characteristic gained from a racial template increases both the stat and the maximum.  Basically, we treat them as a power rather than a characteristic.  If you use Hero Designer and put the added the racial adjustments under powers instead of characteristics, you are not charged double when you go over the normal maximum.  This allows a little more variance in characteristics.  With this each race has the same spread for characteristics, but still has some differences.   A strong Orc is going to be stronger than a strong human.  
 
Unfortunately, you cannot set the characteristics to negative in the power section of Hero Designer.  You can lower the characteristic under the characteristic tab and also manually adjust the Maximum on the Campaign Rules.  Since it is extremely rare for a character to exceed a lowered maximum, this is probably not a big deal.  Maybe if Simon sees this, he could add an option to lower characteristics in the powers section.  That would make it easier to create racial templates.  
 

I was looking at Green Ronin's Mutants & Masterminds Reprint Extravaganza and More! kickstarter, and it got me thinking about Hero. It seems like so many books are OOP, and it'd be nice to see them back on the shelves, and I thought this might be a great way of bringing them back. Or even looking at revising them slightly...

I'd say it's not an official HERO Games product/book but a fan website that best captures rules for a Greyhawk/Dragonlance type D&D campaign. 
 
That website is my favorite of all the HERO fan-sites, Killershrike's 'High Fantasy HERO' site (it's primarily 5th edition content to boot). I'm willing to bet his 'World of Generica' is just what your looking for,
 
He breaks down feats, classes, races and especially magic in 5E mechanics. It's got SO MUCH content it's amazing IMO. If I won the lottery I'd pay to have all that content professionally laid out and setup for Print on Demand books. 
 
I'd also recommend checking out his other HERO content, he's got Sci-Fi and Cyberpunk and Super-HERO pages just as detailed and content rich as his Fantasy HERO page. Not to mention pages for other RPG systems.

I'd say it's not an official HERO Games product/book but a fan website that best captures rules for a Greyhawk/Dragonlance type D&D campaign. 
 
That website is my favorite of all the HERO fan-sites, Killershrike's 'High Fantasy HERO' site (it's primarily 5th edition content to boot). I'm willing to bet his 'World of Generica' is just what your looking for,
 
He breaks down feats, classes, races and especially magic in 5E mechanics. It's got SO MUCH content it's amazing IMO. If I won the lottery I'd pay to have all that content professionally laid out and setup for Print on Demand books. 
 
I'd also recommend checking out his other HERO content, he's got Sci-Fi and Cyberpunk and Super-HERO pages just as detailed and content rich as his Fantasy HERO page. Not to mention pages for other RPG systems.

I'd say it's not an official HERO Games product/book but a fan website that best captures rules for a Greyhawk/Dragonlance type D&D campaign. 
 
That website is my favorite of all the HERO fan-sites, Killershrike's 'High Fantasy HERO' site (it's primarily 5th edition content to boot). I'm willing to bet his 'World of Generica' is just what your looking for,
 
He breaks down feats, classes, races and especially magic in 5E mechanics. It's got SO MUCH content it's amazing IMO. If I won the lottery I'd pay to have all that content professionally laid out and setup for Print on Demand books. 
 
I'd also recommend checking out his other HERO content, he's got Sci-Fi and Cyberpunk and Super-HERO pages just as detailed and content rich as his Fantasy HERO page. Not to mention pages for other RPG systems.

I'd say it's not an official HERO Games product/book but a fan website that best captures rules for a Greyhawk/Dragonlance type D&D campaign. 
 
That website is my favorite of all the HERO fan-sites, Killershrike's 'High Fantasy HERO' site (it's primarily 5th edition content to boot). I'm willing to bet his 'World of Generica' is just what your looking for,
 
He breaks down feats, classes, races and especially magic in 5E mechanics. It's got SO MUCH content it's amazing IMO. If I won the lottery I'd pay to have all that content professionally laid out and setup for Print on Demand books. 
 
I'd also recommend checking out his other HERO content, he's got Sci-Fi and Cyberpunk and Super-HERO pages just as detailed and content rich as his Fantasy HERO page. Not to mention pages for other RPG systems.

Although it is set just after WWII, the movie "Cast A Deadly Spell" with its PI hero named Phil Lovecraft has got a lot of Pulp fun to it.

Don't forget Tales of the Gold Monkey http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tales_of_the_Gold_Monkey

Basically the Sad Puppies came up with their own alternative slate and then used bloc voting to try to push their preferences for the Hugos. Nothing more than a desperate grab by bitter white men. Meanwhile Correia has continued to write (and win awards), undercutting his complaint.