@ cptpatriot

I run a game currently and with the games I play in, syatyonig a game would detract from all those.

If there was something I could contribute to, I could that. If not running is ther some sort of HERo topic we could all discuss?

Welcome newcomers!
If we keep talking, maybe the momentum will build until it actually generates new games.

In reply to lensman (msg # 118):

I've been working on stuff for trying to create Passive Telepathy, which is more of a sustained version of telepathy that is more about just popping into a room and hearing everyone's secrets.

The assumption is that other people's surface thoughts are actually a sort of emission that the Telepath can pick up.

Why not build it as a sense?


So to read everyone's surface thoughts when you walk into a room is a 32 pt ability.

The basic rule of HERO:

If a power works like an existing power, it is that existing power.

in this case it is Telepathy, which works to read others thoughts.

A passive form of Telepathy would be something like

14 Telepathy 4d6 (standard effect: 12 points)      1 END
   Area Of Effect (1 2m Areas; +1/4)
   Reduced Endurance (1/2 END; +1/4)
   Constant (+1/2)
   No Range (Mobile not needed, if No Range AOE; -1/2)
   Receive Only (-1/2)
   Extra Time (Extra Phase, Only to Activate, -1/2)
   Limited: Surface Thoughts Only (-1/4)

I would also suggest making it a Compound power, unless character already has it, with
Rapid x10 or x100 for Mental group, that way he can sift through all in the area.

In reply to lensman (msg # 122):

I never thought to combine it with Rapid for the Mental sense group though I can see people arguing that Rapid would not affect Telepathy since Telepathy is a power.

I'll have to look for my PDFs to see for myself.

I was just envisioning a sort of Passive Telepathy that would work with a PER roll. This sense would just give the mentalist an idea of what surface thoughts were in any given direction, allowing it to bring about the trope of "I heard someone think about shooting the President, but I didn't see who was thinking it".
This is keyed on the assumption
No need to make the sense 'Rapid' if it's just about noting the emissions around you.
This message was last edited by the GM at 01:13, Mon 05 June 2017.

Should there also be considerations for the target detecting they're being scanned?  Either add Invisible Power Effects +1/2 or a separate pool of Telepathy dice strictly to achieve a +20 over EGO value?

Targets would also still be allowed a Breakout roll when first contacted, correct?

In reply to DBCowboy (msg # 125):

I suppose IPE is required for the passive nature and +20 Ego to make them not aware. Also more dice of effect to pull it off without them becoming aware.

Actually according to 6E1 p151 Perceivability of Mental Powers "The Invisible Power Effects Advantage (6E1 338) can conceal a Mental Power from Mental Awareness, or even prevent the target from realizing that he’s being attacked with one (though he still gets Breakout Rolls). A mentalist can also prevent a target from knowing he’s been attacked with a Mental Power by achieving a +20 effect on his Effect Roll."

So IPE or extra dice for +20 EGO but both aren't required.

This message was deleted by the player at 07:59, Wed 07 June 2017.

In reply to DBCowboy (msg # 127):

Ok, so IPE.

Do people use or are familiar with the Turakian Age Fantasy Hero?

I am kind of done with an all comers open universe, I do like Turakian Age, only played two campaigns in that universe and they were both short lived.

In reply to lensman (msg # 130):

Never played it at all. I know it supposed to tie in to the main Champions universe and Takophanes but that's all I know.

Don't think I ever played a fantsy hero game officially set in the Turakian Age.  I've had the worst luck with any Fantasy Hero campaigns.

Bad luck for me was mostly on Hero Central, those GMs on that site, I think I played in four different games, all of which had different flavors, but each committed a major sin of GM, if not rules incorrectly applied, then NPC shadow over PC.

Which of course leads to the great debate of Magic in Hero, as near everyone wants to have Magic. My theory is everyone just wants to use the system for more than just skills or CSLs.

Which leads to Gritty v High fantasy. I think Game of Thrones has influenced a lot in gaming, at least as a reference point.

I like gritty, however I also like high concept. As GM I am a big proponent of Package Deals, but not in the small way of most.  I don't care about racial or professional package Deals , I am talking about package deals for things the players may try to attain, not knowing the full results of attainment.

My guess at preference, veteran gamers like gritty, new players like High Fantasy, with a big influence from the campaign history/description by the GM.

Last time I ran a Hero game around a theme, it was the "System Shock" series of computer games. For the uninitiated, the first game had you exploring a space station full of mutant zombies and altered critters and cyborgs, trying to stop an AI from destroying the Earth. In the second game, you were in a spaceship dealing with people possessed by an alien hive-mind... plus taking orders from the original AI while being opposed by a second one.

The game I ran was set during the second game, using the station from the first. I had packages for weapon specialists, technical types (able to hack systems and modify gear), and psionically-capable people. Duplicated all the psi powers from the second game. Basically well-armed military types in a sci-fi horror story.

It went really well until inter-player drama broke the group up.

That must have been.. special, to have drama in that scenario.

I do have a question about character creation. I know as player I love to use my considerable knowledge of HERO to build my character, yet I have over many campaigns had many different GMs not have character creation solely in the hands of players.

The most hands off I ever experienced was where I described what I wanted to play, origin, motivation, skills experience, and basically built the narrative of the character, the GM then built the character mechanics after a series of questions about opportunity for selection of events that granted a package deal.

Can this work for a Fantasy game? The GM does know the world better than any player could.

In reply to lensman (msg # 135):

One of the best GM's I ever played with had a sort of hybrid way to create characters in his fantasy campaign. He asked them what they wanted to be, and any that spouted out some standard DND thing were handed a simple character sheet to add a name and description to. Those that were familiar with HERO were told the base points and maximums, then encouraged to create something unusual.Those familiar with RPGs but neither genre nor system savvy got one on one with the GM.
It made character creation take longer, and spawned some unusual characters (there's always that guy that wants to play a pixie), but it seemed a very even-handed beginning.

Tone, it come s down to tone.  Some people want to play characters form Ice and Fire, some want to play characters  from Xanth.  A GM can set tone but he really has to make sure the players get it.

I don't recall anything quite so guided by a GM.  Closest I can think of is when we would roll for Race and use Background/I Was Just Growing Up tables to generate random events about a character.  Battle Lords of the 23rd Century had some fairly expansive ones and one my friends made his own for his home-grown fantasy game.  But still, even with 100 entries per table, make enough characters and you begin to see some repeats.
This message was last edited by the player at 00:49, Thu 08 June 2017.

In reply to lensman (msg # 137):

I had to close down my Champions game, I was in soulsight's other game too The Sheep in Wolf's Clothing but only towards the end of it.

I'd be interested in 5E or 6E Champions game as a player, I just don't have time to run one as a GM :(.

I generally prefer D&D to Heroes for fantasy games :), but I might be willing to give it a go :). A Xanth campaign might be interesting....though it's been so long since I read the series my memory fails me about much except that the Source of Magic was a Demon :).

In reply to JRScott (msg # 139):

Try his 5E game, scott. I enjoy it almost as much as I enjoyed yours.

In reply to cptcthulhu (msg # 140):

What's the name of it?

Thanks pal, sorry I couldn't continue.

link to another game