Doc Democracy

Re: Simulating decreasing damage due to exhaustion:

Re: Simulating decreasing damage due to exhaustion: To me this is a toolkitting issue and one where I would (as GM) have to change the character sheet somewhat (I'd love a programme that would allow me to design Hero character sheets easily for this kind of stuff) I would inform players of END rules. For example - normal human END is 20. Once that 20 gets to 10 then the human is tired, at 5 he's exhausted. I would then require all powers to take a limitation "reduced by exertion (-1/4)" I would tell players that when they are tired their powers will function at 3/4 power and when they are exhausted they will function at half power. Tired will be 1/2 END, exhausted will be 1/4 END. I made the limitation -1/4 because the players can largely avoid such problems during character design, or choose not to. This gives all players a reduction in power costs and two extra numbers to be aware of during combat but might mean that they think about recoveries much more during combats and be wary of tactical pushing! You might want to introduce similar stuff for reduced STUN and reduced BODY as well - would make the game far grittier - though you might want to think about the penalties imposed for each level of loss. Doc PS: Ack! Didn't realise Dust Raven had said essentgially the same stuff as me. Read the whole thread before posting Doc!!!

Re: Yet another 'how to build': Body-Swapper I will get round to buying this - I think metamorphs are probably the most interesting characters mechanically...

Re: Help with spell construction

Re: Help with spell construction I'm actually trying to come up with Glorantha Hero (which obviously requires some conversion of the magic system) which would be a game powered by Hero but hopefully feel entirely Gloranthan. I am probably half way through desiging exactly what I want the system to do and how I want the characters to look on a character sheet. I'm about a third of the way through putting the Hero mechanics together so that anyone Hero-literate could look behind the green curtain and see all the moving bits that they could tinker with if they wanted. Shem Whistler is putting it all together on a website that I'll make available when it is sorted. Doc

Re: Yet another 'how to build': Body-Swapper The two suggestions you have there are both workable. I like the idea of a limited multiform. In the multiform you are simply going to limit the multiform. If you are in one form then you cannot change unless you can access a new body either because you cannot get to your secret garage or because someone has stolen one of the robot bodies and you need time to construct a new one or recover the old one. You could also treat the multiform as focus based and use the foci damage rules to slowly degrade the function of any one form. (was there anything liek this in the Ultimate Metamorph?) Those reduce the functionality of the character but they cost less points too. Doc

Re: Help with spell construction The PRE suppress was my first thought - the negative skill levels probably round it off. Thanks Doc

Re: Wisdom Always good to be going to the player to ask exactly what they want - what they say doesn't always match with what they actually want in game terms. However, wise, is something people want to attribute to certain character types - specially in heroic fantasy settings.

Re: Help with spell construction

Re: Help with spell construction Haven't you been paying attention? 5 minutes. In RuneQuest any battle magic spell that wasn't instant had a 5 minute duration.

Re: Wisdom Surely that's a defeatist attitude - not like you at all! I wouldn't like to pigeonhole my players (beyond the broad brush accusations of lacking wisdom that is!). I would like my system to allow a player a chance of playing a wise character. If that means turning to the GM and making a roll on PS:Sage or whatever then being handed a quick precis of the choice(s) and likely concerns then so be it. I would like there to be a framework to support a character who is more intelligent, more intuitive, or more wise than the player. Doc

Re: Help with spell construction Here's what the text of the Runequest rulebook says:

Re: Help with spell construction But only for offensive actions? never thought of limiting drains like that before! However the dex drain would not engender the reluctance to act positively.

Re: Help with spell construction My only problem with the PRE attack idea would be that the spell is supposed to last for five mnutes and PRE attacks have an inbuilt decreasing effectiveness. The spell should last for 5 minutes - any ideas on longevity? Or are we back to the PRE drain/suppress to ensure the attack remains potent?

Re: Help with spell construction Ooh! I like this, it would probably work the right way as well.... Doc

Re: Wisdom

Re: Wisdom That was one of the things I was looking at - I need a few broad categories to allow them to make rolls and get some GM wisdom hints... Doc

I am trying to construct a spell but need some ideas from the boards. The spell, when successfully cast, demoralises the opponent. This is an old RuneQuest spell and the effects there were that it made the victim reluctant to act in a postive fashion. The victim could attack but at half effectiveness but could defend at full value. My head is stuck on a PRE suppress/drain etc. Any bright ideas out there? Doc

So, what is it? If a character's background involves being extremely wise, how is this modelled in the mechanics? I guess this comes from me not being entirely sure what I (or many other people) mean when they say that something is wise... How do you even begin to bring common sense and insight into the game mechanics? An exotic sense?? Doc

Re: A very strange build for critiquing.

Re: A very strange build for critiquing. If I were the GM looking at this as a submission I would have a few quibbles with it. First the character has no STUN. In the system, 0 STUN = unconcious. The takes no stun power was designed for automatons who have no conciousness to lose. You have, for 60 points, provided the character with the ability to ignore any and all attacks that would cause unconciousness and your handwave would allow them to ensure that they could easily become immune to most, if not all, killing attacks. They become invulnerable (yup, Lucius - I said it, invulnerable). I would require the character to have STUN and would limit the takes no stun power to physical attacks - then I might allow the defences handwave but probably not. This would flash all kinds of warning bells in my mind as well. Because you are a sword and get carried around you have sold back all of your movement abilities and bought a follower. That sounds reasonable. But you also use the purchase of mind control to justify reducing the cost of that follower by 60%. A creative player will get their 18 points of value from that Mind Control without it providing a discount on the follower... So there is no benefit from being able to survive without food, in hostile environments or when exposed to acids and toxins? Note the CV of 0. The killing attacks that you have bought are not usable by others and so it would be the sword doing the attacks - thus having to use its own CV. I would be careful about that CV as well. If someone was to know that this was an intelligent sword then attacks directed at the sword would be against a DCV of 0 as well. I think this is a difficult concept to model but you have to be careful that the character doesn't benefit unduly from the concept rather than abilities that any other character would have to buy to benefit from.

Re: 6th Edition thoughts I'm not arguing with your basic premise. I think I once started a thread about characteristics being contrary to HERO principles. However the way to have a high STR and CON with low PD and ED is to buy the primaries with no figured stats (-1/2). All well within the rules but not a common sense way to go about it. Doc

Re: M&M cross-over ideas? Personally I think you are trying to avoid the M&M vs HERO thread in General Roleplaying....

Re: Tactical Principals

Re: The Power of Presence