Doc

Re: Hypothetically and unofficially, what would you like to see in a Mecha Hero book? I think it has been said already, but there are indeed a lot of cross-genre campaigns that could be described in such a book (or chapter). What about steam-punk and mecha? Nerver read anything about this in a Hero book. Do mecha have particuliar rules or do they offer different gaming opportunities in a cyber-punk setting? And what about fantasy mecha? How are they affected by the magic system you chose to apply in your campaign? Etc. Etc. Etc.

Re: Hypothetically and unofficially, what would you like to see in a Mecha Hero book? That's it. And all those specificities come from the anthropomorphic design of such vehicules (I know there are other forms, but I wont consider them here). Humans usually build tools that are a specialization of one of their abilities (pliers are better hands, computers are better brains, cameras are better eyes, etc, etc, etc). An anthropomorphic mech, on the contrary, can basically do anything a person can physically do (more if it can fly), because it has legs and arms, generally with prehensible hands. Legged movement confers advantages and inconvenients compared to wheeled movement. Legged movement uses more energy and is far less stable, but an anthropomorphic mech can go where a tank cannot, like in mountains, jungles, urban rubbles, marshes or shallow waters. What appens to a mech wich has been damaged to a leg? Can it still move? Can it still stand? What are its options if it is immobilized? More importantly, a mech's arms are it's main specificity compared to a tank or a jet fighter. An anthropomorphic mech can grab objects, throw them. It can engage in hand-to-hand combat. It can change weapons easily, but also lose them more easily, if the hand or arm is damaged. When does a mech lose a weapon? When is its hand to damaged to carry one? We also often forget about the non military, or even non combat uses of mecha. In Mobile Police Patlabor, mecha are used as heavy machinery and emergency vehicules on ground, under water and in space. Police mecha are used for traffic and crowd control. Are there specific rules we have to think of in those situations for a mech, say, compared to a crane? All these can be simulated quite easily with the actual system, but I think a set of more specific, optional rules would enhance gameplay for us, mecha fans. If we can't get an Ultimate Mecha Book, I'd still hope the chapter on mecha in the new TUV would go beyond just the design of mecha and include such rules and gaming hints and ideas. After all, the mech concept goes through a lot of genres, and ideas about the gaming possibilities it opens would be welcomed, as in any other Hero book about any other subject. P.S.: Gosh! My english writing has rusted!Sorry guys, I don't come so much anymore, but that thread is really important to me! See you!

Re: how tall is life Happy it wasn't a trap, though...

Re: Another weird science post: Laser Recoil! No, not in his universe...

Re: Another weird science post: Laser Recoil! Try to play in a game where the GM has this attitude... When you'd try to explain to him that photons are actually light, it would always end like this: "Well, not in my universe!" *sigh*

Re: Cool Futuristic Projects I really like the Green Float. Mega-City Pyramid is a little scarry. Reminds me of some manga I can't identify precisely. Not a good ending one.

Re: Spell System

Re: Spell System Hey, that's really good! I think it's pretty completed; at least, I woundn't know what to add or change about it.

Re: If I had 500 slaves... Well, that's the most point efficient economical maximization I've seen on this site ever...

Re: Dark Sun profanating spell effect Simple and effective. Sold. Thanks!

Re: Dark Sun profanating spell effect

Re: Dark Sun profanating spell effect Humm... On second thought, I thnik I'll go with the D&D option for the pain effect. The reason is that defilers are more than often lone vilains; they usually don't have minions, unless they can create undead (wich is not necessarily the case). The D&D pain effect )penalty to OCV, DCV, OMCV, DMCV, Characteristic Rolls and Skill Rolls for one Phase, and I'll had the BDOY damage reduction too) grants them an advantage when fighting groups of opponents alone. I'm also considering imposing an small extra time limitation on preserver casting, even though that wasn't included in the original D&D rules. As I often stated here, preserving should be a hard path to go. What do you think about it, people?

Re: Dark Sun profanating spell effect It sure is interesting; thanks for the input. Wow! You came with it so easily! I'm definitely adopting this method. As for the choice between the D&D and Hero options of the pain effect, I'll go with the second, the Hero option. I'm trying to reproduce the Dark Sun campaign setting feeling but not the (horribly) flawed D&D rules...

Re: Dark Sun profanating spell effect Indeed, this was the way it was in AD&D 2nd ed, but things changed a lot in the 3.5 ed (you can find it there: http://www.athas.org ). In that version, as every classes had the same progression pace, defilers could for instance use their defiling as attacks against their opponents or enhance their spell capabilites by augmenting their defiling radius. I found that more interesting and I'd like to find a way to reproduce this in Hero.

Re: Dark Sun profanating spell effect Thanks for your input, Tasha, but, in addition to what Old Man already said, cannibilizing one's own life force to fuel spell has always been a defiler's trait in the original Dark Sun setting. Well, to me, this is sort of a limit...

Re: Dark Sun profanating spell effect Hey, I got an idea. It's not really worked out yet, so any comment is more than welcomed. We could just invent a new advantage for an erea of effect transfer, an advantage that would cumulate the transfered points. Normally, if you transfer 10 points from a AoE containing, let's say, 5 targets, each and every of those 5 targets lose 10 points (for a total of 50), but you only get 10. This new advantage would allow you to receive the 50 points by Transfer. It would allow preservers to take a larger AoE in order to get enough points to fuel their spells, but without hurting much of the vegetation (each and every "vegetation hex" taking only a small amount of damage, while the cumulated points would be enough for the preservers). Defilers could choose not to buy this advantage to represent the fact that it is easier not to force oneself to be careful with his or her surroundings. What do you think about it, people? What would be the cost of such an advantage?

Re: Dark Sun profanating spell effect

Re: Dark Sun profanating spell effect I thought about it too, but as defilers can augment their defiling capacities in order to harm their opponents simply by being casting (a "leech" in D&D term, wich can also affect animal and intelligent life) and can augment the power of their spell (as per metamagic feats in D&D terme) by defiling... Well, you need a certain knowledge of the setting, as I didn't specify those elements in my firts description.

Re: If I had 500 slaves... Humm, indeed... Are spell costly to research and learn? Is a necromancer only a skilled laborer (like an engineer), whose higher wage is justified by the sacrifices he/she made during his/her studies? Moreover, we didn't discuss the material cost of creating a zombie. Does the spell necessitate rare material components? And yet again, does a zombie produces at least as much than a slave/proletarian? The zombie is probably slower, but doesn't require any sustenance and works all around the clock, but if it is too costly to create them, the zombification of the economy/society could indeed be avoided.

Re: If I had 500 slaves... Hey hey... I like this one! Isn't a necromancer and his zombies similar to an engineer and his manufacturing robots? Apparently, in order to maximise profits, both fantasy and realworld masters wish to minimize the salary mass of their explotation... So, in some way, Marx has already written about that! There's a difference, though, as unlike manufacturing robots, zombies are creating by killing people, wich reduces the labour supply at the same time it reduces the labour demand, maintaining labour prices while reducing the rioting capabilities of the working class). So, in a world like this, there would be a continual zombification of the economy until everybody, except necromancers and masters, are zombies! Sorry... I'm too much in political economy by now.

Hi people, I had already started a thread about this here: http://www.herogames.com/forums/showthread.php/66735-Negative-side-effects-for-spell-casting , but I'm still looking for an appropriate way to build the defiling effect of arcane spellcasting from the old the Dark Sun campaign setting. For people who might not be familiar with the setting, spellcaster use vital energy to fuel their spells. Spellcasters can basically be divided between two types: preservers and defilers. Defilers are beyond salvation; they cannot cast without the defiling effect. Preservers try not to do so, but are able to do so to boost their spells if needed (even though it has terrible moral effects on them). So, I've been working on this for two weeks now and here's what I came to: Transfer 1d6 (standard effect: 3 points) (BODY to END Reserve), Area Of Effect (5" Radius; +1), Variable Advantage (+1 Advantages; Limited Group of Advantages; Area of effect; +1 3/4) (60 Active Points); Conditional Power Power does not work in Ubiquitous Circumstances (affect vegetation only; -2), Lockout (-1/2), Linked (Magic VPP; -1/4) Cost 16 HP and 6 END to use There are two rule tweaks I use here. First, I permit this power to be linked with a power framework (the magic VPP I use for arcane magic in my Dark Sun campaign). Second, the basic defiling radius will be 2". The number of END transfered to the END reserve representing magic points will be augmented for each additionnal hex of radius. The exact amount of points drained will ultimately depend on the spell the character wants to cast. As different kind of terrain have different END value for magic use, a Preserver character might want to slow his or her transfer in order not to kill the vegetation around. A lot of options can modify this basic power. For instance, an arch defiler could buy back the "affect vegetation only" limitation, combined with a "Personal immunity". Some other feats of the D&D3.5 version can be simulated, for instance, by buying the "ranged" advantage. It's probably not perfect and I'm still not sure if this makes sens within the rule system. What do you think about this? Edit: Arggg... I made a mistake in the title of my thread and now, I cannot modify it... It sould be read "Dark Sun defiling spell effect"...

Re: Chink found in armor of perfect cloak Yeah, guards and soldiers should be equiped with bullet-proof vests that spray paint all around when they get killed, in order to indicate the enemy's position to their comrades...

Re: The next District 9 about Alien Invasion?

Re: How to cram crew members into your spacecraft

Re: December 27, 2004: The Day Earth Survived the Greatest Stellar Attack -Ever But aren't g-ray bursters belonging to the very distant universe (and so, to the very long gone one)? How could such a phenomenon happen today (approximately) in our galaxy?