Steve Long

Re: BOOK OF THE EMPRESS Kickstarter Oh yeah, baby -- Malvaworld. MWAH hah hah hah hah!!!

Re: Combat Skill Levels and DCV First -- TUS 199 refers to the Gambling Skill, so I'm not entirely sure what text you're referring to. If after reading my answer you think it might affect things, please feel free to post a follow-up. In the situation you describe, using the advanced rules in TUS a character could increase his DCV in (a) but not in (. The rule on 6E1 69 follows this by pointing out that Randall Irons would have to be using his knife to use his Knife CSLs for DCV. But of course, as pointed out in TUS, the GM can certainly change these rules if he wants to.

Re: Possible HERO System Supplement Kickstarters From Steve -- What Interests You? You're correct; the Federation of Star Trek is very much my main influence on the Galactic Federation setting. I have no interest in doing that as a Kickstarter, though, unless there's an enormous hue and cry for it. That's an intriguing idea, though probably one that would have to be left to Hero itself, or some sort of Hero-me collaboration, since I haven't retained the rights to the vehicle write-ups or the like. I will keep it in mind, though. Personally I have no interest in doing books of NPC superheroes, but perhaps that's something Darren would enjoy tackling once he gets big projects of other sorts out of the way.

Re: BOOK OF THE EMPRESS Kickstarter The extra money, like all the other money, goes to the project creator (Hero Games, in this case), who can decide to do whatever he wants with it. It's not uncommon for creators to use extra money to improve the product, often by using the improvements as an enticement to meet secondary goals (as in, "Now that we've reached our goal of $X, if we reach our new goal of $X+2,500 we'll make the book a hardcover" or "we'll add a new chapter covering Y topic" or "we'll change the art to full color"). Another possibility, if the creator wants to do future Kickstarters, is to bank the money and in effect use it to reduce his desired goal for the next project. But it's his money, and if he wants to blow it all on a trip to Aruba, he can do that too. I don't know for certain what Jason et al. are considering doing with the BotE revenue beyond $10,000. However, I feel safe in saying that it will be something responsible and useful, and not a trip to Aruba.

Re: Penetrating "Force Wall" like Barrier The correct answer is that first you roll the robot's Killing Attack die. If the die roll is 1, there's no Penetrating effect and the Barrier stops the attack altogether (since it can't do enough BODY to get past the defenses). If the die comes up 2 or higher, there's 1 point of Penetrating effect. The attack therefore would normally create a 2m x 2m x 2m hole in the Barrier. However, since the attack has the Beam Limitation, the GM may prefer to rule that it simply creates a laser beam-sized hole instead (or in any event, something smaller than the rules-standard hole). In either event, the GM has to decide if the laser continues onward with the possibility of hitting and damaging a target on the other side of the Barrier. This is discussed on the bottom left of 6E1 171. Normally this would occur, but of course the GM's well within his rights to say it doesn't if he feels that the full Penetrating "force" of the attack is taken up in just affecting the Barrier (since otherwise it couldn't affect the Barrier at all, since the Barrier's defenses exceed the maximum BODY roll for the Killing Attack). Once the Barrier's damaged, the character creating it can "repair" it using the rules on 6E1 171. He cannot "repair" it using Configurable, as discussed on 6E1 173. As a last and semi-related point, the "Extra Thin" Limitation you added to the Barrier isn't legal. As noted on 6E1 169, a Barrier can be defined as being less than the default starting dimensions. This is simply a choice a character makes; he's not entitled to any Limitation value for it.

Re: BOOK OF THE EMPRESS Kickstarter We did it! Thanx to everyone who's pledged their support so far. There's still 21 days to go so hopefully the hits will just keep on comin'. We're already discussing some potential freebies and bennies we can offer all the backers as we strive to meet new secondary goals -- we'll have more information on that soon hopefully.

Re: BOOK OF THE EMPRESS Kickstarter Thank you Chris! And thanx to everyone who's pledged their support so far! The Book Of The Empress is now funded. We started talking amongst ourselves today about possible freebies and benefits we could offer as we strive to reach greater secondary goals. Now I guess we'd better start thinking about that more seriously!

Re: BOOK OF THE EMPRESS Kickstarter Yup, it's been an excellent past couple of days! We really appreciate the tremendous support the Hero community's given us. In optimistic anticipation, we've begun thinking about what we might announce in terms of secondary goals (as in, "If we reach $X, we'll also give all backers This Cool Thing" or "improve the book This Cool Way").

Re: Move Through and Desolidification 1. First, consider whether the character's allowed to add his HA damage to a Move Through, as discussed on 6E2 71. Assuming you allow it, the whole thing would count as Energy (in this case Electricity) damage, per the note on the top right of 6E1 231. 2. The damage the character takes should have the same special effect as the damage he does to the target, unless you as GM feel that common sense, dramatic sense, or game balance dictate otherwise. Ruling that it’s Physical damage from the impact makes perfectly good sense if that’s the answer you prefer. 3. If the target of a Move Through is Desolidified and the attacker can hit Desolidified targets, the standard rules for what happens if the attacker doesn’t do Knockback apply — if he can affect the target with a Move Through, he can himself be affected by a failed Move Through. 4. A Desolidified character who’s attacked by a character with a power that can affect him (either because it’s built with Affects Desolidified or for some other reason) can Block that attack using the standard rules for Blocking. Remember that despite its name Block doesn’t necessarily involve physical contact between the combatants. It’s usually thought of that way, but nothing in the rules requires that.

Re: Move Through and Turning Angles Technically under the rules, Running has no Turn Mode, so characters can turn on a dime and so on if they want to (though as 6E2 28 notes, the GM can require a Turn Mode to represent treacherous footing and the like). The only restrictions imposed on when a character can turn as he runs are those established by the GM based on the situation, common sense, dramatic sense, and considerations of game balance. If you as GM think that a super-speed maneuver doesn't fall within those guidelines, you should forbid it or require the player to change it so it makes more sense within the context of your campaign.

Re: BOOK OF THE EMPRESS Kickstarter Hey folx! Earlier this week I had a great time talking to the guys at the BAMF! podcast about The Book Of The Empress and related coolness. Stop on by and give it a listen: BAMF Podcast

Re: BOOK OF THE EMPRESS Kickstarter Hey folx! Earlier this week I had a great time talking to the guys at the BAMF! podcast about The Book Of The Empress and related coolness. Stop on by and give it a listen: BAMF Podcast

Re: BOOK OF THE EMPRESS Kickstarter Not specifically, no. However: 1. There's no guarantee a Kickstarter will succeed. If it fails, the book in question may never get created. If you don't back the Kickstarter on the assumption that "I can buy the book later," you may end up contributing to a project failure that means you'll never get the book. If you want to maximize your chances of getting a book that Hero is Kickstartering, your best bet by far is to back the project. 2. Even if a project succeeds, you don't necessarily know how many copies of the book the Kickstarter creator (Hero Games in this case) plans to print with the money. The plan may simply be to print enough to satisfy the backers and no more (thus avoiding inventory costs). Again, your best bet for making sure you get a copy of a book you want is to back the project. Now of course, the BotE Kickstarter is a little different, since you know the book's already been created -- it's not like Hero's saying, "If we get the money we'll start writing the book." At the very least it's safe to assume that a PDF of BotE will eventually go on sale regardless of how the Kickstarter does. But you shouldn't assume that for any future projects, where that won't be the case. Going forward the failure of a Kickstarter for a new book means "no book at all, in any form." So your best bet overall is to back Kickstarters and keep that from happening.

Re: BOOK OF THE EMPRESS Kickstarter That's not information Hero Games can release publicly. If he wants to reveal it himself we certainly won't stop him, but otherwise we'll respect his privacy.

Re: Character Size and Autofire The Autofire rules don't specifically take the size of targets into account. Instead, the rules address size in the Size Powers and Target Size modifiers, providing bonuses to hit large targets and penalties to hit small targets. Nor does the size of a target vary the "size" of the area that Autofire affects/fires into. However, in a campaign where this issue arises frequently, I could certainly see the GM coming up with a new, customized-for-his-campaign Autofire Skill that would allow a character to use Autofire to cover smaller and(/or) larger "areas" as it's sprayed around the room.

Re: MYTHIC HERO: What Do *You* Want To See? Well, it's possible, certainly, if I think I have anything useful to say along those lines. It's a question not just of that, but of time, the size of the book, and other factors as well. Still, one benefit of not only this thread, but trying to fund MH via a Kickstarter, is that it provides the opportunity for fans and backers to make suggestions about what they'd like to see in the book. If enough people are interested in this sort of thing, and willing to express that interest with pledges, I will certainly listen carefully. And there's always the possibility of some sort of companion volume. If MH itself reaches a size where adding more material like this (or "how to design your own pantheon," or what have you) isn't feasible, maybe I could Kickstarter another small, inexpensive book to cover this. Or if the MH Kickstarter exceeds its initial goal early, maybe I could offer to do a mini-companion volume as a bonus for all backers if a larger secondary goal is reached!

Re: MYTHIC HERO: What Do *You* Want To See? That's better than "HERO System Gods," certainly. But I still think I prefer Mythic Hero.

Re: MYTHIC HERO: What Do *You* Want To See? Think of it more along the lines of "HERO System Grimoire" or "HERO System Bestiary." It's just that "HERO System Gods" sounds awful. Mythic Hero is a much better title even if it breaks the pattern a bit. P.S.: If there was a book called "HERO System Gods," it would basically be a book of one-page profiles of a lot of you guys, showcasing your HERO System design skills.

Re: Evil Twin Follow Up Not if you use Summon. If the character has to touch the target, Requires A DEX Roll (or An Attack Roll) would certainly be a logical Limitation.

Hey folx! The BotE Kickstarter isn't the only one out there of interest to HERO gamers. I figured I'd call your attention to some you might like, starting with this one: Crossover Miniatures Crossover wants to produce a new line of superhero minis, and I figure that's right up Champions gamers' alley. You can get in on the fun and score yourself some minis for a very reasonable price, and help out a deserving creative project in the process!

Re: BOOK OF THE EMPRESS Kickstarter Well, we've passed the 50% mark! Thanx to everyone who's pledged their support so far, and we hope the rest of you will consider kicking in a pledge at some point in the next 24 days. We're halfway there, but that still gives us a long way to go. In a few minutes I'm going to post another update to the project with some interior art. Stay tuned!

Re: VPP: Sensor Pool w/ Megascale Sensor Pool: Pool cost = 40. Control Cost cost = 20/3.5 = 6 points. 40 + 6 = 46 points. MegaScaling: The Control Cost = 20 points. 20 x 5.25 = 105. Since it's a naked Advantage, 105-20 = 85 points. Now, it's certainly possible that some GMs would prefer to use the actual "Active Point" cost of 40 points, meaning the MegaScaling should cost 170 points. Nothing wrong with that approach at all. But given the nature of what's being simulated here I don't think it's that big a deal either way.

Re: Evil Twin By the book, sure. Whether the GM allows it is another issue altogether.

Re: The Mapparium Another link, with a small photo gallery: The Mapparium

Check this out: The Mapparium A giant, walk-inside "globe" of the world as it was in 1935? Sign me up! I'd love to see this thing. Heck, I'm tempted to buy a plane ticket to Boston right now.