Doc Democracy

Sentinels of the Multiverse is a cooperative card game. It is a pretty good game, I enjoy it and I am intrigued by how they might go in an RPG. From my reading they are launching a comic to go with the game. still would prefer HERO to get a win! :-)

In real life there are differences to everything, in a story there is no actual difference. In a game? Well that is a design decision....:-)

Darren currently one vote ahead, 108 to 107....

I posted this in Hero System forum, reckon there might be a few here that don’t venture there, anything to get some recognition for Golden Age. This is a poll of the best superhero supplement this year. Currently it is between Golden Age and the Sentinels RPG starter kit. go here if you want to vote... https://polldaddy.com/poll/9920823/

Do we need to advertise in NGD too? Maybe start a poll for who has voted for GAC to be the winner?

Wouldn’t it make more sense for that to be drain END? I would have it as a damage shield to indicate that the more you try to hit him, the more tired you get... :-)

Here? http://bamfsies.blogspot.co.uk/2018/01/2017-bamfsies-gamers-choice-poll-for.html

There is a poll open for the best superhero RPG book in 2017. It might not be a huge thing but every award is worth it. Currently sitting second behind Sentinel Comics: the RPG starter kit. http://bamfsies.blogspot.co.uk/2017/11/its-time-open-call-for-2017-bamfsies.html?_sm_au_=iVVfsD08Z4L4TWsH Doc

My friend used to criticise Space Opera (Fantasy Games Unlimted) for its detail. Player: I kick in the door GM: OK, first let’s calculate the friction coefficient between your boot and the door....

If you want something that more clearly works along the structure of the description you might want a couple of things to happen. 1 - you use clairsentience when you see a victim. You fix the perception point on the potential victim (so you should buy the mobile perception point). This is slightly stretching the rules but I would allow it along with a 0 limitation (only to shadow a victim). It is essentially keeping an eye on the victim. 2 - you have a detect (those with whom I have an eye on that have gone to sleep) 3 - triggered attack - when a watched victim goes to sleep, automatic re-set of power. There are a number of different ways you can advantage or limit these powers to make them more effective or save you points... Doc

Don't you see that looking at armour potentially expands options rather than closing them down. You are concerned that by treating all weapons using a similar type of damage as being the same seems to make the situation worse. Yet you are not concerned that treating all armour using a similar type of defence might not also make the situation worse?? If you are saying that this makes things more complex and bureaucratic, then you have a clear point for Brian to consider. If you are saying that there is a need to ensure players are on the same page as you are changing the base assumptions of purchasing familiarities, then you have a clear point for Brian to consider. What you appear to be saying is that this is wrong and should not be considered because it is impossible to make it add to a fun experience (for anyone!). :-) Given that Brian is keen to see more diversity in the choices his players make, do you have any thoughts for doing that beyond the classic tinkering with damage types that we have already seen in Fantasy HERO. Or some tinkering that we might never have seen before?? Doc

Yeah. My friend and I ran a multiverse scenario when we went away as a group for a gaming weekend. We had six heroes, two from each of the core teams presented in Champions, Silver Age Sentinels and Mutants and Masterminds. Rather than convert the characters we re-imagined each one for each system. It was less a process of taking an M&M character and working it through a conversion process than looking at the power descriptions and looking to get the right power levels and the right kind of powerset using the ruleset for the world in question. The idea was that, for example, one friend would run Defender under HERO, as re-imagined for M&M and as re-imagined for SAS. It was supposed to be like the DC multiverse, so while Defender was ostensibly the same character the relative power level compared with other characters and actual powers might vary, we also varied the names we used for characters from different worlds. So Defender would be Defender playing in the HERO world, The Shield in SAS world and Guardian in M&M world. It was an interesting exercise. Doc

Lonewolf, I see where you are coming from but you are suggesting that people that want this kind of detail in their gaming are having BadWrongFun and they should be using your judgement as to what is the right way to play their game. Brian is exploring options here, looking for different ways of playing the game and seeing whether he (and his group) might enjoy trying something different. I guess you have never played Chivalry and Sorcery or Bushido - the level of detail in there far exceeds anything suggested here and both games have their fans... I would contest your claim that breaking things down prevents anything at all. I would say that you are assuming a lot from the very few words I have expounded here. So, your player bought WF with common melee weapons. I would ask, at that point to think about the base style of those weapons and apply that (lots of bureaucracy, not my style but one of my friends would LOVE this). When you then spend points on a martial art, you are (by default) indicating that someone has trained you in that and you would be able to apply whatever style to the familiarity that you wanted. I think I was at pains to say that I did not want to increase the costs on familiarities but to give them more traction in-game. Spending points gives the player control of aspects. I would also contest whether I am placing artifical limitations on your character's background. Every GM is going to have thought about their campaign and how they want it to work. some limit everyman skills, some change them, some add to them. This is no different. If your concept is that you have trained under a master swordsman for a decade, then I am sure you would have that conversation with the GM. I do not understand why you want to paint this idea in the wort possible context...and drag up false dichotomies to support the context. If I had, as GM, led you to a local drunk teacher to train you with the sword then I would have done so because I was hoping to use him in some current or future plot arch. Again, it looks as though I need to apologise for my BadWrongFun. :-) Really, the fun of HERO is that there are many ways to similar positions, there is no need to use that list from Fantasy HERO if I dont want to. i might be making work for myself, but I might enjoy that and it might make my next Fantasy HERO game significantly different from my last one... Think about it, change can be fun! :-) Doc

Well. I might not allow someone to pick up blades (slashing) as a 1pt familiarity. If I am going to run a game where detail is important then that will be reflected in how points are spent. I would allow swords (slashing). If the person having that familiarity then picked up a rapier, he would be able to use it, though be unfamiliar (thought I might allow him to use his levels etc to reflect that he has limited familiarity, it is a sword, just not one that works like he is used to). It would be an in-game matter for him to go and find someone able to teach him the fine details of using a point over using an edge. No points spent, just a little bit of a hindrance until he gets the training in. Hasn't cost character points and should be a good excuse to expand contacts or keep in touch with them. As for getting what you pay for, you would, you would get the same for 1pt in this game than in other games but you would have to think about how the character acquired the various aspects of that skill. There is nothing in what I proposed that would stop you also providing advantages to weapons...but so many people do things on a weapon by weapon basis, just thought I would suggest that some variety might be achieved by varying what armour can do against varieties of weapons. Doc

I am quite big on weapon familiarities. If you decide your weapons can be used in the three classic ways, slash, pierce and bludgeon then I think that there should be something there to reflect what the hero knows. When you learn a weapon then you should note how you learned it. WF: Sword (slash) If you try to use it to bludgeon someone then you use it as if it were unfamiliar. You should then, in game, seek out someone that can train you in the art of using your sword that way and can write on the sheet WF: Sword (slash, bludgeon). I would not charge any additional character points but I would tell players when they purchase a weapon familiarity that they get one for free but the others are acquired in game. I don't have a great knowledge of how things might match up - my reference to begin with might be Harnmaster because they did go into a lot of detail on these points. Doc

You know, when I read this my thoughts very quickly went to the fact that players are very result oriented. I think that the way to get variety in the weapons that players choose is not to give different weapons different abilities (such as armour piercing) but instead to give armour different limited abilities. So, padding provides defence against smashing weapons but only half that against slashing and a quarter against piercing ones, plate provides 50% BODY damage reduction versus slashing weapons and 75% against piercing ones. If you get all detailed about the armour layered on people then PCs will spread their weapon abilities or will match up with opponents based on how they think the armour weapon match-ups will play out. Doc

Oh! You could have a leader/flagsuit type called The Marquis (of Queensbury obvs!)... :-)

Yup. It is something I should have known to try before asking. However, I bet there will be a few folks find the tip useful. :-) Thank you.

I like Split Decision - possibly the ability to duplicate or something??

Dan I just noticed something browser dependent and am not sure which of my browser settings I might have to change. When I am using Edge and mark a forum as read, it all just happens. When I use Chrome, a pop up appears which I presume is asking me whether I am sure I want to. I say presume because none of the text is present (see attached image). I am noticing all of the system messages when I am in Chrome are similarly lacking in text etc. Given the disparity between my own browsers, I realise that this must be the relationship between my browser and the system, I just do not have the nous to know where to begin. I was hoping you might know where I should begin.... Doc Picture1.bmp

You can do it the complicated way or you can do something like, physical complication - falls unconscious when BODY reduced to 5 or below, remains unconscious until BODY raised/healed above 5. I might have a triggered simulate death talent (No conscious control) to go along with that. That means you dont have to worry about resurrection etc. or the conditions on the Regeneration. Simply taking the BODY down the requisite amount leaves them inert and looking as if they are dead. Overwhelming attacks leave them trashed beyond repair. Doc

You can search the player finder forum for places. I could only see one thread for Boston but it was over ten years ago. have a look at Search the convention forum, I think there are one or two cons in your area that games may still be run at. Doc

Hi Christopher, welcome to HERO. This is a pretty friendly place and more than willing to help you learn the system. There is a forum for finding a game which this kind of post might get some traction but it is not easy - too many players, not enough games. You do, however, miss out a vital bit of information, where is your location?? If someone is close by, they might be quite happy for you to join a one-off, or indicate a local convention where a game is being run. Doc

For the concerns about becoming more powerful than you have paid points for, I deal with those in two ways. The first is that the item will be lost, break, stop working etc in a short period of time. I am willing to allow short term bonuses and gains, even if they resource is jealously husbanded against need. This is implicit in my contract with the players, these things are not permanent and not in their control. The second is that this kind of power increase draws attention. That peasant with a magic sword? There are plenty of people who would pay good money for it, and those that would take it from the peasant to use it or sell it on. It also draws narrative attention. A tank driving round zombie infested San Diego? A mega-zombie appears that needs more than baseballs, it will tear down normal barriers and is threatening several of the local human hold-outs. Ramp down the abilities or, temporarily, ramp up the storyline. :-) Doc

It would not have to be paid for any more than the everyman skills have to be paid for... I can see the value of this in formalising the contract between GM and player about found stuff. My group know that anything they find, they can keep but they have to understand that I will use that prop as much as they might. They could pick up the walkie-talkies but they might not be able to guarantee that they are broadcasting privately etc. They also know that stuff paid for by points may come and go but there will be process around this and, if something disappears, it will come back. If it is not paid for, I may take it, or rule that it stops working arbitrarily. Being explicit about this means that you do not have to faff around with pools and things. Of course, you might indicate that anything picked up, that is covered by the pool is subject to the rules regarding paid for stuff...giving a third category of stuff.