jtelson

Re: Explosive Duplicates

I think I might go with Summon instead

Re: Post-Apocalyptic Song Inspiration

That would work well for a con game, it could even be Pony Express'd up for a good PA campaign (1 Part Battlestar Galactica, 1 Part DS9, a dash of The Gauntlet shake well with the old west and pour over a world gonne mad).

Might work well for one of James Ernest's Cheapass games (Players compete to get the beer through) - though it would probably end up named Beer Run

Re: Genre-crossover nightmares

It's not easy being green' date=' starring Shrek, the incredible Hulk, and Kermit the frog.[/quote']

 

Now that's a LoEG campaign!

Re: I'm curious, why is Dex still more expensive than other characteristics?

Superman finds this completely unrealistic

My understanding is he's gearing up to play Mutants and Masterminds these days.

Re: I'm curious, why is Dex still more expensive than other characteristics?

I've seen calls for tactics, paramedics, gadgeteering and analyze style during combat not to mention perception.

I've also seen calls oratory, acting and persuasion.

I would make climbing strength based.

Again Combat and Action but even if it was just combat (again which it's not) I've seen calls for City Knowledges, Survival, Lipreading and Systems Ops - If I lumped all of your random list and all of my random list together and multiplied by 10 it would still be less than the number of times I've seen Breakfall called for in combat so I'm not certain I understand your point.

Re: I'm curious, why is Dex still more expensive than other characteristics?

Otherwise' date=' what you're really saying is "The highest importance is on Agility Skills and Combat Order" not "On Combat."..[/quote']

 

I think the systemic emphasis is on Action and Combat. So a characteristic that determines Acrobatics, Breakfall, Climbing, Driving, Stealth, etc and has an arguably significant influence in combat, having a being more expensive supports that thoguht without necessitating a higher cost for other stats.

 

Just my two cents - I'm unhappy that the Universal Toolkit has already decided for me what has greater emphasis in my game - even if it does 3 out of 5 games that's my choice on play. Not the Toolkit's.

 

I used to complain the movies based on books weren't true to the source material until I saw the first Harry Potter movie. The movie was as true to the book as any I've seen and I walked away utterly dissatisfied. Granted, I'm not really a fan but that's a different conversation.

 

Anyway, and I can only speak for myself on this one, I'm not sure I'd want a system that was truely an unbiased toolkit (FUDGE, I suppose is more of one - Set your own stats even). I can understand being unhappy about systemic presumptions (Lord knows I've complained about them in the past) but I think I want a little more flavour even in my generic systems.

Re: I'm curious, why is Dex still more expensive than other characteristics?

I have said it before' date=' but to me "going first" is worth the price of admission. Being able to hold a phase then dodge if needs be suite me well. This is definitly a YMMV type of thing. (I'm not saying your wrong, I just have a different view on the matter.)[/quote']

 

Hmmm, have I been doing it wrong? I thought you could abort to a Dodge or Block in any segment that you have not acted giving up your next action, even if that was coming later in the segment - So going first doesn't have an effect on defenisve actions. There are advantages to going first - I just didn't think that was one of them.

Re: Hero System Good Idea/Bad Idea...

natalie portman plaing sif in THORgood idea

natalie portman playing rocky balboa in a rocky reboot bad idea

I don't know after getting a look at Portman's abs in the Star Wars flick I could bare watching a boxing movie centered around her.

Re: Hero System Good Idea/Bad Idea...

Tsar Hero I could absolutely make work - early 1900's' date=' Characters in the employee of Nicholas II dealing with the events leading up to the 1905 revolution. You get Rasputin and Balmont A game with a lot of moral decisions on the part of the players, it would be interesting to see how it went.[/quote']

 

Tsar Hero could als be a really nifty Mythic Russia/Ultimate Base game.

Re: Hero System Good Idea/Bad Idea...

Good Idea: Star Hero

Bad Idea: Tsar Hero

Even Worse Idea: Star Jones Hero

Tsar Hero I could absolutely make work - early 1900's, Characters in the employee of Nicholas II dealing with the events leading up to the 1905 revolution. You get Rasputin and Balmont A game with a lot of moral decisions on the part of the players, it would be interesting to see how it went.

For Star Jones Hero - there's a Harrison Ford joke in there somewhere but damned if I can find it.

Re: Those Meddling Kids...

What may happen if you let your Scooby Doo game get a little too serious...

This is probably where my Scooby Doo campaign would start - then it would begin to get serious...

Re: Those Meddling Kids...

would a campain based on the new show UNNATURAL HISTORY fit here the show is about a teen whits skils in martial arts ' date='free running and track and field gained while traveliing the world,returns to the states to attend school at of all places the smithsoniam museum[/quote']

 

Sounds like a higher level of competence than most of the HB shows, these shows tend to be about avoiding the villian until someone figures out what's going on then captures the big bad. Players running Martial Artist Parkour Masters are likely to be a bit more confrontational - again Player buy in would be key.

 

I could see some interesting sidekick options from the Smithsonian - Ghost, Caveman, animate bit of whatnot etc.

Re: I'm curious, why is Dex still more expensive than other characteristics?

Indeed

which is why con and body should be one statt called health that cost 1:1

since neither con nor body provide skills or rolls they are rather under rated compared to strength

At first read through I felt that way as well and said so - most of the responses I got were Granularity, Granularity, blah, blah, blah. After giving it a lot more thought I've changed my mind - Not being Stunned and Not being Dead have considerable utility in Combat. So looking back at Enforcer's apt tag to my clunky description The Bias towards Action combining them might well make the pair the equivilent of a single 2 point stat; So though splitting them does give Con a slight edge in utility (More Con Rolls than Body Rolls), it is slight and counterbalanced by the systemic advantage of granularity (blah blah blah)

Re: I'm curious, why is Dex still more expensive than other characteristics?

Each one has the potential to be more useful in specific settings, but none of them are of no value iin any setting. And for them to be stressed in a setting to the point of requiring an increased cost scheme seems rarer than others might give it credit for.

 

La Rose.

I agree about the rarity -I've been playing games for over 30 years now and I can point to maybe 2 settings that I've run or played in where I would consider recosting the Hero characteristics as they are now, and that's just consider not a lock by any stretch. There are probably half a dozen more rettling around in my head where I'd look at characteristic costs but the ideas are odd and unlikely to ever be run, they probably won't end up written down (Unless I try to do another Savage Summer, in which case Hero Characteristics won't be a priority)

Re: I'm curious, why is Dex still more expensive than other characteristics?

Ah. That could be it. A bias towards action! Not just a crappy business motto anymore.

A Bias towards Action, I like it.

Well' date=' in fairness, his answer is right there in that sentence. "So they are all [of?'] comparable value."

Then it should probably be - The old primary characteristics should provide comparable value so they can all be costed at 1:1. If Dex provides more advantage than the others then it shoould either cost more or provide less and I think in most settings Dex, as written, has a higher utility than its siblings.

Re: The Hero System is bland and over complicated

Overly complex as a criticism I can understand but I can also understand the counter point that the system is as complex as it needs to be to be what it wants to be: That one really is a matter of opinion but bland - No. The Hero System has a unique flavor, even in the naked rules you can almost taste it - I would describe it as delightfully and just a bit mercilessly action movie like.

Re: I'm curious, why is Dex still more expensive than other characteristics?

I think the systemic presumption is that Action/Combat Scenes and Situations will significantly outweigh Social, Investigative and Other Scenes and Situations thus the characteristic most beneficial in those scenes would have a higher value. This is probably an accurate presumption, certainly in my experience it's true.

If your group's play style or a specific campaign's setting downplays Dexocentric scenes (Court intrigue/Chess Masters - genreally setting that might benefit from Social/Alternate Combat Systems) then reducing the cost of Dex (and possibly increasing the cost of an alternate characterisitic) would make sense - In that case I would recommend changing the costing on lightning Reflexes to 1/2 or 2/3.

Re: Genre-crossover nightmares

With the help of HG Wells' date=' inventor?[/quote']

 

I could kiss you for that

Re: Those Meddling Kids...

The trick for this is definately Player Buy-In - To emulate the genre the characters need to react to situations as if they are in danger even though the players know that they probably aren't - A 'straight' Scooby Doo campaign wouldn't go very well if Shaggy got killed every other episode (Setting too dangerous) or if Fred just tackled the Monster and Ripped his Mask off in Scene 1 every other episode (Player realizing system not too dangerous and saying screw the genre)

If the players buy-in this could be awesome - if not it's a train wreck.

I do tend to drift towards the dark so I'd be far more likely to run it as a Hanna Barbara/Hannibal Lector type game - 'Zoinks' The real story of Scuba Doo and Those who Meddle. A bit like Grimms Fairy Tales before Disney

Re: Genre-crossover nightmares

Escape From Neverland (especially if we're talking Hook)

I could run this -

Part 1

Peter, Wendy, John and Michael have disappeared and a darkness has fallen over Neverland. Dark creatures have broken out of Faerie and are over running the island, devouring magic...magic and well people. The Lost Boys, Indians and Fairies (Their magic weakened by the creature's presence) must find a way to gather survuvors and find a way off the island. A bit like Battlestar Gallactica (The original - Fleeing the Dark Sidhe Tyranny...)

Part 2

Having fled the island the survivors reach London and attempt to find Peter, Wendy etc. only to be pursued by the darkness. Defending the innocent people of London whle hunting for their Lost Heroes the Survivors begin to come into their own.

Part 3

Having found the Darling Children grown up and Peter grown old the Survivors must take the fight back to Neverland - Driving the things back into their ancient prison once and for all.

Yeah - that would work.

Re: Make Your Own Motivational Poster

How do you layer a liquid, anyway? Wouldn't they blend instead?

 

That said, there is a notorious drink calle a "pousee cafe" (sp) that is referred to as "a rainbow that will knock you on your ***". being a non-drinker even before my conversion, I can't understand why anyone would consume such a thing.

Pour additional layers in over the back of a spoon so that they don't break the surface tension of the lower layers.

Re: More Complications, Please

If I have too many disads, now complications, (Flaws in some other systems, etc) the first thing I would do was ditch anything personality based - if I was planning on playing an honorable character anyway getting points for honorable was icing on the cake (maybe sauce for the goose).

Another option is a conversation with the GM - 'Hey, I've got too many complications but this (hunted/watched/rivalry/whatever) that's important to the character at the start has some really interesting story possibilities for resolution further into the campaign - I'd like to bank this other complication, act as if it's in effect while maybe accepting lesser associated penalties, for when we can resolve this one, so I don't need to buy it off with points when that happens.'

Finally, there isn't much reason not to accept complicatons at 0 points if they're important to the character.

Re: World's Fair

"Science Finds, Industry Applies, Man Conforms"

The possibilites are endless

Re: Quote of the Week from my gaming group...

From The Chi Dossiers: Biological Crimes Unit

Dr Fellworth "I type Mutugen X and Baby into Google

GM (joking) "There's a Knock on the Door"

Tanner (OOC) "Wait Shouldn't that be us?"

Tanner "I have a feeling 'Practicing Medicine without a License' is going to be our equivilant of using tax evasion to get Capone."

Re: Points and Parameters for a "Sunday Drivers"-like scenario

There's also Autoduel Champions... if you can find it.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/B000B7PWBY/ref=dp_olp_0?ie=UTF8&qid=1266679043&sr=8-1&condition=all