Talon

Thanks for the kudos, Storn.

 

I think it's critical that the next Fantasy Hero addresses all of the aspects of a fantasy game, even those that Hero tends to overlook or downplay. It should be a book that non-Hero players will want to buy for its insightful treatment of the genre--and I don't mean theoretical stuff like "what are the sub-genres of fantasy", I mean game-applicable material.

 

In particular, I think there's a lot of room to establish the framework for describing magic systems. Based on old FH, the standard right now is pretty much "here's how you build a mage character, that's it". But a magic system is so much more than that: how do mages learn their spells, how do they gain in power, what types of spells exist, etc. If you take D&D as an example, you have a huge range of spell-technology issues: scrying vs. anti-scrying, teleportation effectiveness, etc. Those issues should be identified and spelled out in any magic system description. Something like the Star Hero tech levels could be used to describe how powerful a given system is in different areas of magic -- and FH could define and describe what those areas are, so that GMs would know where to start when designing their own campaigns.

 

I would also invite Steve (and anyone else) to look at my page, http://www.shalott.com/hero, for some house rules for fantasy campaigns that have worked well. This includes a set of long-distance travel and exhaustion rules that do a very good job and fit nicely within existing Hero rules.

You asked for it.

 

Fantasy Hero Design Goals

 

Most important: focus on the overall user experience. Make this a fantasy book before it's a Hero book.

 

Provide GMs with all the rules-related material needed to design their own fantasy campaigns.

Provide this material in a manner which allows it to be used “as is†for GMs who do not wish to design their own fantasy campaigns. This is NOT "Create a default world/magic system"; but more like what Star Hero did (provide a lot of equipment and other stuff that could be lifted).

Rules-related material specifics:

Races:

How to handle characteristic maxima changes: rather than rules to increase/decrease maxima, GM permission should be changed based on racial tendencies

Several examples of how to create “race templates†(just all the different things a race might have; these races can be used by GMs who do not wish to design their own.)

Minimize generic D&D/Tolkien/etc. ripoffs and other cliches (i.e., "cat people"). Better to create something specific than generic.

Dealing with races with Extra Limbs: can a four-armed race use three shields?

Characteristics:

Discussion of stats which can become problematic in fantasy games

Importance of STR

DEX vs. Skill Levels (how to deal with the fact that more DEX is usually the better bargain)

INT vs. Skill Levels (+5 INT costs the same as +1 to all INT skills).

High PD and ED can make the character very effective in unarmed combat

SPD is critically important, especially because the average is so low. Also, SPD can be a better way to increase running speed than Running.

Skills:

Details on tailoring specific skills to the fantasy era (Weaponsmith, Security Systems, etc.).

Talents:

Create some fantasy specific talents.

Magic Sense: ability to sense auras

Magic Resistance: Defense that works against all spells

Beastlord: ability to speak to animals

Powers:

List of powers that are appropriate for normals to buy. (Running, Swimming, etc.)

Frameworks:

Discussion of why frameworks can be good/bad in fantasy campaigns (possibly under magic system creation).

Equipment:

For every item:

Text description of each item (free of game mechanics).

Cost of each item

Weight of each item

Concealment modifiers: how hard is it to hide this item (include wearing armor under clothing, etc.)

Game effect (OCV, DCV, DMG, DEF, movement, etc.)

Rules/skills/time/equipment required to create item

Skills required to use item

Armor specific properties:

Include realistic rules for weights of partial armor (based on more than the 3d6 bell curve)

Include realistic pieces of armor (i.e., most people don’t buy sectional armor based on the Hit Location chart, but on what pieces logically were built together).

Weapon specific properties:

Suggestions for emphasizing slight variations in weapons (less than +1 OCV or DC): these can be ways to simulate well-crafted items or minor magic items without unbalancing the game

Re-roll all 1s on damage

Re-roll if missed by one

Include blowguns

Poison specific properties:

Method of application

Skill required to apply poison (if any)

Chance of detecting poison

Type (for LS:Immunity)

Method of creation

Include effects of alcohol (it’s a poison!)

“Kit†specific properties:

Include a list of items which raise skill rolls

Thieves’ tools

Disguise kit

Climbing gear

Mage’s library

Instrument specific properties:

How music/performances can be used in game.

Food: Tie in to starvation rules in FREd.

Mounts/vehicles: Stats and text for horses, wagons, ships, chariots, camels, elephants, etc.

Siege weaponry: how to make it effective against large targets but not small mobile ones

Other:

Adventuring equipment

Trade goods

Caltrops

Other gear

Vehicle rules:

Mounted combat

Medieval chase scenes (wagon fights, etc.)

Ship to ship (naval) combat

Sailing rules (wind direction, skills required to crew a ship, etc.), based on TUV rules.

Magic:

Importance of special effects

A spell’s point construction is only the beginning; only through imaginative application of special effects is the fantasy genre sustained

This requires the active cooperation of the players

To emphasize this, there should be NO writeups of spells, items, etc. that just supply points. In order to drive this point home, all examples and writeups should have detailed and interesting descriptions which go beyond the point costs to provide a proper fantasy “feelâ€.

All the cool "how to build a magic system" concept stuff from 4th Ed. FH -- or something similar

Different magic system philosophies

Spells cost character points

Spells don’t cost character points (work like equipment)

Hybrid (one KS per spell or spell theme, etc.)

Describing a magic system is more than just "how to build spells". All magic systems (and the text for describing how to create one) should include more:

"Tech levels": how powerful can different types of spells (healing, defense, teleportation, scrying, etc.) get in this magic system?

How are items made?

How do mages evolve -- what is the highest power level possible?

How are innate abilities handled?

“Superheroes with Skill Rolls†syndrome: what it is, how to avoid it

“Vancian†syndrome: what it is, how to choose alternatives if you don’t want it.

How to sustain limits on what magic can do without alienating players

Proper and improper uses of the Independent Limitation

Sample magic items

Curses

The Defense Issue: how to deal with 15/15 Force Fields in a 6 DC game. Should defense powers cost more?

Different roles for deities

Healing magic and its implications

How to do “portable holesâ€

How to do spirits: use the Incomplete Character rules!

Movement

Facing and acceleration: humans running really do have a turn modifier, this should be simulated

When does the "from behind" bonus apply?

Doesn't human swimming cost more END (more tiring to swim than to run...)

Combat:

How to differentiate TWF from Sweeps

A careful analysis (more than “do what works for youâ€!) of the different fighting styles (weapon, weapon & shield, two weapon, unarmed) and how GMs can differentiate between them

Include at least one “suggested set of optional rules†to serve as a starting point for GMs who are new to the system.

What weapons can and can’t Sweep / Rapid Fire

Simulate blocking with a weapon being easier/better than blocking unarmed

How does one Block with a shield?

Shouldn’t thrown weapons like daggers have less range than bows?

Guide to GMs: How to retain balance when creating new weapons

Exhaustion rules (http://www.shalott.com/hero/fred/5th_exhaustion.asp)

Discussion of which optional rules to use

Address statistical problems with Bleeding rule (as written FREd, it's more likely for a heavily bleeding character to stop bleeding)

The World:

Traveling cross country: how fast can characters move? (http://www.shalott.com/hero/fred/5th_longdistance.asp)

Handling scales larger than 1†= 2m

How to generate weather and adjudicate effects of weather (including while sailing!)

How to handle random encounters

How to start combat (spotting people at distance, etc.: specific examples based on the rules in FREd)

The Genre:

All the good genre analysis type stuff from 4th Edition FH, or something similar

Standard Fantasy Scenarios: discussion of common scenes/tasks in fantasy and how to handle them in Hero. Include specific examples, skill modifiers, etc.

Pickpocketing (include distraction, bump, switch, etc.)

Stealth (sneaking up on enemy camp, sleeping guard, etc.)

Camping out (PER rolls while asleep, waking up)

Disguise (posing as random guard, different race, etc.)

Poison in the lord’s drink

Jousting (a la Knight’s Tale)

Mage duels (varies by magic system)

Drinking competitions

Bases:

Castles:

Example castles

How to handle sieges: not mass-combat rules, but how battering rams, scaling ladders, siege towers, ballista, work within a small-scale combat. (If the PCs want to batter down a door or catapult a wall, what are the balanced rules for doing it?)

How to stop characters from chopping down stone walls with greatswords.

Dungeons

Etc.

Traps:

How to create traps (skills required, power writeups, etc.)

Example traps listed (chance to detect, disarm, effect, etc.)

NPCs:

Samples of commonly encountered types: Farmer, guard, craftsman, etc. (for quick reference/improvisation during the game)

General:

How to deal with Champions players encountering FH for first time

SPD vs. Running: how to address high SPD characters getting more Running than low SPD sprinters.

The importance of limiting what players can do/create, to maintain the campaign’s atmosphere without smothering the players.

Swimming: how it works with encumbrance, how to reconcile lack of serious END requirement (1 END per 10 points means most swimming is at 0 END).

Also, consider adding a minor TK slot, to reflect grabbing or manipulating things with the whip.

 

I agree about the Drain: it should either be Energy Blast, NND or just a straight Drain, either of which will reduce the total cost considerably.

I think RDU Neil has it spot on. What this book really needs is a total focus on the "user experience". Forget past traditions for Hero books; this needs to be designed from the ground up so that people new to Hero can simply and easily pick a set of powers and create a character. I think if you keep that principle in mind, it will be hard to go wrong.

Originally posted by ogier300

So do you think you could buy skill levels only usable with Crammed skill?

 

That might work pretty decent to reflect a 'downloaded' skill set.

 

Cramming says pretty clearly that the roll cannot be increased in any way; moreover, the text for Familiarity says that Skill Levels can't be used to increase the roll. This is easy to house rule, but IMO makes it too easy to master any relevant skill.

Originally posted by SpydirShellX

My problem with that is that a person with 1 more SPD gets to move that distance an additonal time.

 

For Example:

 

Character A - 3 SPD 7" - 21" in 12 seconds

Character B - 4 SPD 6" - 24" in 12 seconds

 

A doesn't move as far in one turn as B does, but because his movement is less, he has less velocity.

 

If this bugs you, there are a couple things you can do:

 

1) Take SPD into account when considering movement (especially for Normal Characteristic Maxima). For example, a SPD 2 character can have 10" of Running (20" a Turn), but a SPD 4 character would hit NCM at 5".

 

2) House rule movement so that it's bought per-Turn instead of per-Phase. The quick version is to double everyone's base movement (i.e., 12" per Turn Running, 4" per Turn Swimming for starting characters), then charge half-normal for movement powers.

 

3) Deal with it. Easier to do in superheroic games, where everyone has crazy powers anyway, than in heroic games.

I have to point out that this (either a Skill VPP or "Universal Skill") is going to be abusive if the game is skills-intensive -- and it's also going to risk stepping on the toes of every other PC who invests in a Skill.

 

I have a house rule which says that for purposes of Adjustment Powers, a Skill has an Active Cost equal to the roll times 5 (11- = 55 points, etc.). If I were going to allow a Skills VPP, I would probably use the same rule, so a 14- Skills VPP would be 70 points.

As written, the sword requires someone to activate it and keep it on...if that person is knocked unconscious, the Continuous powers shut down. I would suggest Persistent to get around this.

Very few GMs will allow Independent in a superheroic game; if yours does, great -- but don't be surprised if it is not allowed.

 

Stat wise, there are a couple tweaks that would improve the character for little to no cost. Taking CON to 18 and keeping figured stats the same won't cost you any points. Taking DEX and PRE to 18 will improve skill rolls for a couple points.

If I were starting another campaign right now, it would very likely be SF using Terran Empire. Of course by the time I get to start another campaign, Fantasy Hero will probably be out.