Al_Beddow

Re: What's the best method of introducing HERO System to newbies One of the things I do when starting out a new group is run them through a little "danger room" excercise. Basically you break the players into two squads, explain they are duking it out with "training weapons" with the squads going after each other, throw some terrain down on the table and let them go to it... The squad that elimitates the other side wins.

Re: Starship design - How much space does THAT take up? Thanks to everyone who's willing to move this discussion over to arrooo's site. Once we have hit a good point everything will be posted here for more general comment and consumption.

Re: Starship design - How much space does THAT take up? I'd like to sort of have it as a discussion area for two reasons: 1) sort of control the flow of inputs (too many cooks...) 2) so we can have seperat threads for seperate issues. I just HATE trying to follow 4 different conversations all going on in the same thread. I've done something like this for KenzerCo and, this is how I ran it.. .Worked great! Thanks

Re: Star System Generators Thank you!... this is so neat... Is there any way you could script it in say... javascript so I can us it in my local browser while at a game.

Re: Too many stats in Hero Ok, I've only skimmed through all these posts but I feel the need to chime in here... If you want less stats, then why don't you play GURPS or Silver Age Sentinals (Tri-Stat system), etc. I think for what Hero is designed for it's got a great balance of stats... Yea it could have fewer, it could have more... but I don't think there is a system out there that makes everyone happy as written. In fact, I think the only person who would never change a system is the dude who CREATED IT. So, why complain and try to change an existing system? Just find one that does what you want it to.

Re: Starship design - How much space does THAT take up? Not to take this away from the main hero site, but arooo could we set aside a forum for this at starherofandom.com? thanks

Re: Star System Generators Looks like a good program. Now I just have to figure out about figuring distances between systems (I guess it's setting up a "Route" between the two)

Re: Starship design - How much space does THAT take up? Man I really love this.. .So many good ideas and such. GURPS:Traveller has been mentioned. I did enjoy the "G:Space" and G:T method for creating a starship (at least as to how much can fit into a specific displacement hull, etc.) Of course, HERO is a truly universal system where you can build everything for a setting without having the end result be "standardized" to one setting. This allows say a "hyberdrive" in "Al's no-name scifi game" to be very diff in size and space from a Terran Empire Hyberdrive. Since I am running a TE campaign, I would like to maybe work with some folks on some guidelines for "how much system X takes up", the way the one system is in the TE setting book (I think it's for drives). Anyone interested in this idea?

Re: Star System Generators That generator is pretty cool, but I wish I could do something to customize the output formatting. I'm also trying to work out how to map out where each star system is, the distance between two stars, etc. Three-Dimensional geometry is a BITCH!

Re: New Star Hero Site Thanks and you're welcome Aroooo... Let me know if you need any other good ideas (Ideas I've got plenty of, it's the getting them built I have trouble executing).

Re: Starship design - How much space does THAT take up? Thanks... thats a great idea. I appreciate everyone's input on this. Lots of good ideas here. I remember all the neat stuff in GURPS: Space and Traveller. I figured SH was too broad to cover it. I saw in TE how for the drive it's volume went down 1d6% for every 10 years since it was introduced etc. and thought there might be more about other systems that I just didn't see. Anyone willing to either post or e-mail me info, their home rules, etc. please feel free to do so. I welcome all help.

I'm trying to draw up some basic floor plans for various starships from TE and the Spacers Toolkit. One problem I'm having is figuring out how much space/volume things like bridges, fuel, sheild generators, engines, etc. take up. I've searched through Star Hero, TE, the Toolkit and haven't found anything. This is kind of important because the players in my TE game want to run a merc/merchant/smuggling campaign and so I need some idea of how the ship is laid out. Thanks

I read most of this... For both my original HERO Traveller campaign AND my new TE campaign, I showed the players the stuff in FREd about power levels, focus on skills vs powers, campaign style etc. For both campaigns I've chosen to go midway between the lowest and middle level of HEROIC campaign, 100 + 75. So far everyone in both games are quite happy with the level I've started them at. They've been able to build great characters, not overdoing it with the primary/secondary stats etc. All this talk about "low powered" and "high powered" reminds me of that munchkin game "Dungeons & Dragons 3e". From early on all I heard people talking about was their "half dragon-half lizardman" characters, and how "nothing under 15th level is worth the time to play".

EXACTLY! I mean even Superman, when he lost his vulnerability to Kryptonite, he was still vulnerable to MAGIC. {fondly remembers Zatana and her fishnet stockings w/high heels} as has been said... if a character (PC or NPC) has true and absolute invulnerability, then what is the point? They can't be hurt, can't be beat, etc.

Ok, I've been enjoying this thread and carefully paying attention to what is being said. First one needs to remember one of Newtons laws "every action produces an equal and opposite reaction". Unless you are firing something like an energy only weapon, there is going to be force exerted to move the projectile out of the weapon. That same force will be excerted back against the weapon and henceforth against whatever (or whoever) was holding the weapon. Normally, like on a planet with a reasonable amount of gravity, this isn't too much of a problem. The person holding the weapon (since that is what we're talking about) can "brace themselves" on the ground thanks to gravity. Unfortunately in space there is no gravity. Even if you were standing on the hull of a ship, if you didn't have something holding you to the hull of the ship, then when you fired a projectile weapon there would be nothing to hold you in place. The force may not move you much, but it would get you moving. The ideas of a compensation system (to counter the force of the weapon being discharged) is a great idea. In fact a system that just uses the stars to keep you stable would work (system notes the stars in relationship to your current position and unless you used the suits controls to chang your position, it re-establishes you back to your position relative to the stars). The biggest problem for such a system is the depth of the programming needed to make it work effectively.

To paraphrase a rule: "If a limitation isn't a limitation then it is a -0"

I have to speak up and agree the sci-fi channel has sucked since they were bought by the USA network. First, I wish they would just create a horror/paranormal channel and call it good. The potty humor (Tripping the Rift) has got to end. I've seen the first two and won't be watching another. It's pure stupidity. Unfortunately shows like the Simpsons, Beavis & Butthead, etc. have helped to show that lowering the bar sells. Quality in new shows... Remember that Showtime started Stargate SG-1 and the scifi channel bought it for season 5. Except for Farscape, I've yet to see a GOOD original series show up on the network. (anyone remember "Black Scorpion"? trashy T&A in latex). rant over

After reading this excellent discussions it brought to mind the various rules & techniques I've instituted over the years to speed combat up. First... pay attention to what is going on. Occasionaly asking a clarifying question is ok, but if you do it every time you get to act... I start skipping you when you ask. Second... Have a clue what you are going to do so you are ready when it's your turn. I had a player who insisted on re-calculating the entire situation. His AC/DEF, Hit Points, what he had in his hands, etc. The guy was a math major (he did statistical analysis of various types of die rolls for FUN). He finally got a clue when I began skipping over him because he was taking time to do math during battle. Three... Know what your stats, spells, weapons, etc. do (damage, etc). Having to constantly ask for this basic information (or look for the right dice) just slows everything down. Four... I keep a copy of everyone's charactersheet with me behind the screen (oh thank you HeroDesigner) and when combat starts I quickly write down who goes on what phase, and their dex... I just keep moving along and skip the phases where nothing is going on. Five... rewards for good roleplaying (and penalties for poor RPing and/'or excessive metagaming). Stay in character, act (or react) only on what your character knows, and keep the game going.

I think Javed stated it well... The idea is to look at the goals and intent of the setting, the RELATIVE "power levels" within the system etc. Once you understand this then you can re-create everything in the new system. I recently did a conversion from the TSR's original Top Secret to AEG's "Spycraft d20" system. I had to go through the rules for Top Secret and look at what the relative stats gave the characters, how the system worked etc. once that was done I came up with basic "equivelent" levels in Spycraft terms. This worked quite well and now I have a series of great old TS adventures to run using Spycraft.

Hey Aroooo, great site very cool... Al B.

No problem folks... Just looking to help out fellow GM's!

I would like to make an offer to ANYONE who is doing a conversion/setting for HERO 5th and doesn't wish to pay for a site that is free from banners/popups I am willing to host you for free. You will be totally responsible for your own layout etc and I will upload them for you. I'll even give you a free POP3 e-mail address at My domain. it is a ".org" domain because people have voluntarily donated to help pay the bills. anyone so inclined to do so I suggest $12 USD for "a year". I do NOT turn away those who don't have the funds. To see some of the stuff on the site go to http://www.hackwurld.org

I would like to expand this to... ANYONE who is doing a conversion/setting for HERO 5th and doesn't wish to pay for a site that is free from banners/popups I am willing to host you for free. You will be totally responsible for your own layout etc and I will upload them for you. I'll even give you a free POP3 e-mail address at My domain. it is a ".org" domain because people have voluntarily donated to help pay the bills. anyone so inclined to do so I suggest $12 USD for "a year". I do NOT turn away those who don't have the funds. To see some of the stuff on the site go to http://www.hackwurld.org

One thing I noticed missing in all this is... the endurance expendature for running around in such heavy armor. I mean plate mail was HEAVY! It should be soaking up a characters endurance quite quickly and thus wearing them out. Chain mail wasn't exactly light either (epecially if you had the longsleeved shirt with hood and leggings...

I have been converting all my classic Traveller material over to FREd (and loving it). The TE stuff gives me a guideline for weapons and stuff. In fact, If the weapon exists in the TE book I just use those stats instead. So far it's worked well.