Doc Democracy

Re: Campaign idea

I came up with an idea similiar to that about ...Man has it really been fourteen years. At any rate the thing to keep in mind is that you will be asking peole to design characters with behavioral traits and not true backgrounds. For some players this is not a problem' date=' the less background the better. For others, they will hate it. As an alternative try having them remember their life up to a certain time. These could be real memories or implanted all depending on your take. But after that certain time they draw a blank. I have used the flashback in a few of my games and it has worked pretty well. The hardest part is figuring the right time during the storytelling to segue into the flashback. You have to be able to do it in such a way that everyone is on the same page as you are without you having to say "okay, here comes the flashback." Your idea sounds pretty good. Good luck with that.[/quote']

 

 

Good practical advice there. Hero does help in this as many of the disads are based on personal traits but if you bring characters into the game with no known background you are in effect barring them from using any of the background disadvantages. I would suggest that you give them a campaign disadvantage (based on who is watching them, interfering, hunting etc without them knowing) that will balance the lack of access to disads like Hunted etc.

 

 

Doc

Re: Campaign idea

What are the PC's background, and where do they come from?

Who are they?

How did they lose their memory?

You could use the core idea from Great Sky River et al from Gregory Benford where the heroes are all one family whose DNA holds the code to defeating a long term enemy. The backdrop as far as I remember was that the code was hidden in the familial DNA while the architect of the destruction hid in the event horizon of a black hole working out the details of how to use the code.

It was all very complicated at the end I can't remember the details but the idea that the people have been brought to a place because the Nemesis knows they are important to his defeat but doesn't know why. The Nemesis could be ersponsible for the memory wipe - hoping that the people will inadvertantly reveal the secret of its demise.

The weird things that happen could be set-ups by the Nemesis to uncover any hidden talents or knowledge while it studies them. It could even be helping them - making sure they survive until it can find the secret...

Doc

Re: Inspirational Writing and Meme Creation

When it comes to massive social changes I tend to leave Game Terms and Mechanics way way behind.

 

if you just want the Zombie Cult effect then Transform (Mind) to add a Psych Lim of "Obeys New God" or some such works.

 

Otherwise this is really part of the story and game.

For some things it is nice to watch things appear on the characters' sheets and demand that they play them until they are able to find the answer (and cure).

Otherwise there is stuff that I prefer to sweep across the campaign world with a hand of god....

Re: Inspirational Writing and Meme Creation

Transform (add some Psych Lim of some kind), continuous, uncontrollable, 0 END, sticky, cumulative, based on ECV...

I would have to have some kind of defence to any particular meme and some way to break it (like transform requires) but this would seem to have the desired effect.

I think possibly enhanced (extra dice) by presence of appropriate foci (books, video, etc).

Doc

Re: Can this Detect even work?

So far what I'm getting is a fixed location. I can see how a fixed location works with GPS - you know where the original location was and you know where you are now.

What about the floating location, for example the team bus? Obviously the bus could be broadcasting its location (the detect becomes metagamish but then so are affects desolid and armour piercing). What about teleporting to two feet behind a particular person - I presume that you'd disallow that for the powersuit character (a disadvantage) but then not allow for the detect to work versus the floating locations that is used by powersuit (an advantage) - it balances out.

I'm fine with people not allowing the detect in their game - I understand and even agree with the arguments against it. I just think that for superhero rubber science I'd be inclined to allow it.

Doc

Re: Can this Detect even work?

What?

 

This is only a GAME?

I keep forgetting.

Sean, Santa Claus is real and will be visiting you in less than 50 days if you are a good boy....

Re: Can this Detect even work?

I have not been following the other thread that Sean mentioned but because I have another character who is a teleporter I would take exception to this idea specifically because of the SFX I have written for the teleport. Specifically, my floating locations are local offsets stored in a suit of power armor. There is *clearly* nothing linking me to any of my destinations unless you can jack in and hack my suit or read my mind.

What do you mean by 'local offset'?

The problem here is we are talking about something that is currently impossible and so we have absolutely no reference for how it works beyond the game mechanics!

Good job we're only talking about playing a game!!

Re: Timechart Advantages

I was thinking that this might aid in reflecting how one character might attack with one weapon once a round and using another twice or three times a round.

I could say that using a rapier allowed my SPD 4 fighter one or two extra attacks a turn but using a claymore he'd be restricted to 3 or 4 attacks a turn.

Doc

Re: Can this Detect even work?

I like the "psi print" concept ... cool genre reasoning for this.

I prefer the limited retro-cognition. So there

One way or another McCoy deserves some credit!

Re: Throwing something to hit harder

Couldn't you just advantage your strength to be usable at range (objects of opportunity -1/4) with the special effect that the objects you throw are strengthened to deliver the full force of your strength - even if they are completely destroyed on impact?

It avoids all of the detail that Hero normally falls over when it comes up...

Doc

Re: Can this Detect even work?

The problem as I see it is that 'Detect Teleport Tag' is a metagame construct - you might be able to detect a specific person's teleport tags in game' date=' if they are of the shining silver thread sort and you can detect whatever that shining silver thread is made from, but unless every teleporter has the same sfx then you'd need a different detect for each one. Of course if they are all the same you still have problems - there are probably thousands of the things around from different teleporters and you might have difficulty telling them apart - like trying to find a specific car in the city, it is going to be a bit difficult.[/quote']

 

No-one said it was going to be easy!

 

If you want to take the lazy GM road then that's up to you...

 

I take your point though. Personally I would rule that there is a generic teleport shining thread thingy that can be detected and that you might have a mind scan type roll to determine whether it is a particular teleporter's trail that you are following - perhaps a specialist tracking skill or something?

 

No-one said it should be easy for the players either!

Re: Can this Detect even work?

I'd be inclined to allow it. To me there has to be a connection between the location and the teleporter to allow the teleport without error - some shining thread that the teleporter follows regardless of location.

I think I'd only allow active locations though (those that the teleporter could actually use) but that would provide some information about the teleporter (i.e. - he was within a particular radius). I think I'd also allow shielded locations for an extra point.

Doc

Re: The limits of regeneration

I'll make sure that my next electricity based character gets the benefit of his lungs continually breaking water down to oxygen and getting some life support benefits from that... (+0 lim - must be able to spend END)

Re: Changing HERO - What are the limits?

And a little notebook. You don't know about the little notebook

Get back to work man - if you don't have time to lunch until next Friday you definitely dont have time to be on these boards!

Re: Changing HERO - What are the limits?

Got a web site for that campaign Phil?

Right now its hot air and a spreadsheet!

He's frantically trying to put the campaign together before we want him to run a game for us...

Looks interesting though - we're all itching to play in early Middle Earth.

Doc

Re: Killing Attacks - Eureka!

I've decided (and please don't think in any way that this means that I feel anyone else ought to use the method) to use average damage based on the to hit roll.

I've done this for quite a few of my games and I am very taken with it. The biggest drawback as far as I'm concerned is that I don't get teh rush of throwing huge amounts of dice.

I always loved watching the faces of the players when I used all of my D6 and then asked for a few more!

I am considering altering the number of damage dice based on the to hit roll (which does nothing for speeding up combat but provides that thrill of actually rolling the dice). The better you hit the more dice you add to your initial damage dice and vice versa but imposing a maximum damage based on the bought power.

So I might roll a fantastic to hit roll providing me with an extra 8D6 but as I had bought a 12D6 EB, regardless of the roll, I could nver do more than 72 STUN and 24 BODY.

Doc

Re: The limits of regeneration

I think it is dangerous to start quoting real science in a game situation as the rules can only approximate anything and often break things into usable chunks rather than what might best approximate real life science.

The problem with saying that regeneration is healing dead cells is that you are referencing SFX. Regneration is returning lost BODY to the character - we apply SFX to that to simulate our form of reality.

What we have to be careful of, expecially in a system like Hero, is that we do not allow arguments based on SFX subvert whatever balance we strive for in the game mechanics simply because it seems to make sense.

Hero GMs need to be more careful because things are bought - when a power is bought with particular SFX then the GM needs to make sure that all the facets of that SFX have been bought as game mechanics. If they have not then you get a disconnect during play when things don't work as the player expected.

It is our duty as GMs to make sure that happens as rarely as possible by ensuring the design is as rigorous as possible - not by stretching powers beyond their intended game effects because the SFX make sense.

Doc

Re: "And I'll form... the head!"

That's the best summary of those three rules/powers I've ever read. If I could Rep you I would' date=' but I've got to spread it around some first.[/quote']

 

I got him.

 

I need more people to rep - there is a queue in my sig...

Re: The limits of regeneration

In recent sourece material' date=' lack of oxygen has actully been one of the ways of putting down Wolvie or Sabertooth permanently, though obviously they didn't go to the lengths necessary to actully prove it [/quote']

 

And that's the problem with trying to use source material for detailed gaming decisions. You have various authors with a writer's eye for the story not a gamers eye for fairness.

 

If you have a healing factor and want to be able to breathe under water then buy the appropriate power and declare the SFX as part of the healing factor. If you want to limit the breathe under water to 'survive under water i.e. take STUN but no BODY' then limit it to that.

 

I might allow it the first time as a power stunt but after that require the points to be spent...

 

 

Doc

Re: Changing HERO - What are the limits?

Bah! Don't pander to them! It's football' date=' man, football. A game where you kick a ball repeatedly with your foot, rather than pick it up and run around with it, which is surely Handball. Or Carryball. Or perhaps Majorimpactfollowedbyphysicaltraumaball.[/quote']

 

I understand the point Phil but I was aiming for a broad understanding rather than trying to emphasise cultural differences!

Re: The limits of regeneration

SFX should not be used to justify extra utility' date=' and if your sfx say the power can do more that the power allows, then your sfx are wrong.[/quote']

 

Well, it is quite explicit in the rules that SFX can provide extra utility in certain situations - so its not a black and white case.

 

However, I'm not sure that this falls into the same category as getting some area effect because you fire your electrical bolt under water - I can't see how the SFX of the regeneration balances between utility and problem.

 

The problem is probably the broad nature of BODY (which has been up for discussion before). If death comes only by reducing BODy then it makes no distinction between gross physical dysfunction and more subtle effects like suffocation.

 

I guess I'm sitting on the fence here but I would be inclined not to allow regeneration to subvert another power like life support.

 

 

Doc

Re: "And I'll form... the head!"

Duplication seems appropriate to me only if you're talking about some sort of protoplasmic being that throws a blob on the ground' date=' molds it into a leg and then reattaches it since the premise behind duplication is that something originates from the PC.[/quote']

 

And you were doing so well until you got here. Duplication is again simply a game effect where you have two beings when before you only had one. They can be identical or substantially different but there is no implication in the power that the duplicate has to originate from the PC.

 

Everything else you said I agree with!

 

 

Doc

Re: Changing HERO - What are the limits?

I think that Hero to be Hero' date=' needs to stay as close to what it is now. I could see changes in how things are done, calculation of everything from CV, DCV, ECV, and skills. BUT even if you do that it has to still have the basic overall feel.[/quote']

 

To me that is the problem. When I play a sci-fi game I want the feel to be the fell I want for that game - I don't want it to feel like Hero in gameplay I want it to feel like my campaign.

 

I like the Hero system because it allows me to change the feel dependent upon which campaign I decide to run for my players.

 

I am currently designing a Gloranthe Hero game for my group. When I play that with them I want a Gloranthan feel to the game, not a Hero one. When I later decide to do Star Wars, or Babylon 5 then I want those feels - I don't want a Hero carryover between those games.

 

Now. I use Hero for them all because there will be basic assumptions about gameplay that carry over between the games that should help people get up to speed in playing but that should have nothing to do with the feel of the game except that it should remove mechanics from the equation and allow people to interact with my campaign.

 

In my view it is like a good soccer referee. If he's really good then you barely realise that he's on the pitch. If he's bad then you notice the referee as much as you notice the players playing the game.

 

 

Doc

Re: Dogfighting

My comment here would be that for starfighters there is completely different three dimensional context than that for atmosphere bound vehicles.

Unless a starfighter dogfight is taking place near a gravity well then there is no difference to direction changes in any of the three dimensions - this might mean that some of the manoeuvres that prove effective in aircraft will not be as useful in space combat...

Doc

Re: "And I'll form... the head!"

Instead of mechanical cybernetic limbs' date=' the quadriplegic [b']Bunny^2[/b] has certain... pets. Pretty much Followers, in game terms. However - these are specially bioengineered "pets", and can attach to her body in much the same way that the original Bunny's limbs do; a pair of spider-like things can unfold into leg-like shapes and attach themselves to her hips, giving her Clinging; or a dolphin-like critter can glom onto her, for Swimming. And so on, and so forth. (See the other thread for the first Bunny's sets of limbs, and let your imagination run freely as to how those limbs could run freely...)

This is a classic Hero question.

The first thing to do is try and remove the colour SFX from the actual game mechanics. What exactly, in game terms is happening?

In essence the character is gaining movement powers. Those powers are only available when a pet is present.

There are some questions the the GM would ask:

Is there a chance that a pet would not be available when the character needed it?

Do the pets always do what they are told?

Does it take any time for the pet to arrive once the need is present?

When these questions are answered then it would be possible to begin to design the game effects and decide which ones best fit what the player wants.

For example, if a pet is always present when Bunny^2 wants it and always does what Bunny^2 wants then it is likely that you are looking at a multipower with foci. No followers required - the animate nature of the foci is all SFX.

It's all a matter of looking first at the game effects that the player wants before choosing which tools you will use out of the toolbox to achieve the desired game effects.

Doc