blumberg@ihuxw.UUCP (Marc R Blumberg) (07/05/85)
Well, I just arrived home from ORIGINS'85, here is the "convention report." I spent most of the 4 days running the two official Hero Games RPG tournaments (Champions and Justice Inc.) with my associates in the Hero Games Tournament division, Keith Hannigan and Mike Malony. Having never before been to Origins, I must say I was quite impressed with the quality of role-players (it is a predominantly wargamer convention). Both the tournaments were well-received (an understatement), as attested to by the number of spectators for the preliminaries and final rounds. The Justice Inc. final round took place at 9:00 on Sunday morning, and when the 3 sleepy GMs arrived, there were more spectators than players. The final rounds, of course, are designed to be as much a show as a role-playing experience. These people were not disappointed. The tournaments will be run once more at GENCON in August, and then they go into the file of scenarios we hope to have published. To those who have requested copies, let me confer with my associates. Releases: This convention saw the long-awaited release of two Hero Games products, FANTASY HERO and LANDS OF MYSTERY. The former is their fantasy game, based on the now-famous Hero Games System, and fully compatible with Justice Inc., Danger International, and Champions. The latter is a full-length campaign supplement for Justice Inc., also usable with the other games. To all those people who have been wondering about Fantasy Hero, stop wondering and buy it! It is wonderful. Many of the inconsistencies/ complications found in playtest copies have been corrected, and there is a special "GMs kit" sections for developing campaign material. In AD&D(tm), we are given a finite list of monsters and spells, and God help us if we have the imagination to stray from it. The real problem with AD&D is that a beginning DM has no concept of balance. Countless articles in the Dragon and RPGA newsletter talk about what a balanced monster is/isn't, but never do they talk about how to actually CONSTRUCT a new, balanced monster. This feel for spell and monster balance comes with years of experience, and by then, munchkinism has set in. The "GMs kit" section in FH gives numerous examples of monsters (Demons, Dragons, Undead, Trolls, Orcs, etc.) Magic Items, and many spells. More important, there are guidelines for developing NEW material. There is even a section for creating new Package Deals! The Magic rules have been simplified (still not simple enough if you ask me, but oh well) and the combat section has been expanded to included special weapons maneuvers. These maneuvers can be performed only if a character has paid a few points to learn them. These include things like Double Sling Fire and Prepared Arrow Fire (allows TWO missiles per phase). The Combat Maneuvers chart has been expanded to include things like Charge (basically a Move Through which does 2x Horse's STR + movement damage) and Lance Pin (STR is considered Armor Piercing, and the Lance is dropped after the first charge). There is a section on money, equipment, and armor (including SECTIONAL ARMOR rules! Now more than ever, placed shots are important!) as well as some beginning scenarios. It's $15, and available by the time you read this (ships ~July 5). Almost forgot. There is also a section on how to convert RUNEQUEST and MERP to FH. In addition, membership to the Hero Games Adventurer's Club will get you a copy of their newsletter, the latest issue containing an article on how to convert AD&D to FH!. All that money you invested in other systems will not go to waste. Unfortunately, I haven't had a chance to really pore over Lands of Mystery in detail, but what little I've seen is great. Aaron Allston has once more painstakingly researched a genre for us, and the results look good. This is valuable source material for any Justice Inc. campaign (it also includes conversions for Daredevils, Chill, and Call of Cthulhu). Other Companies: Lest you think I'm actually an employee of Hero Games, I should mention these releases. Mayfair Games has come out with the official DC Heroes RPG (actually, this was available about a month before ORIGINS, but who's counting?). I received my copy two days before the convention, and unfortunately didn't get to really study it until last night. It was definitely worth the wait. I think this game has mucho potential on several levels. It succeeds in the kiddie market, where Marvel failed. It also works for experienced gamers. The game is fun, easy, and not too condescending. It includes pre-fab character cards and counters for about 30 DC Heroes, including the Superman, Bats, WW, the Titans, Terminator, Darkseid(!), and Flash. The package includes an intro module featuring the Titans, a Player's book, a GM's book, a power/skills book, and (get this) a Gamemaster's Screen! The real strong point is that it encourages original characters, something Marvel tries to totally avoid. For kids that want to play their favorite DC characters, this game is the way to go. For experienced ShRPGers (that's SuperHero Role-Playing Gamers) who want a change of pace, as well as some new ideas (and some downright ingenious game mechanics) pick this up. I actually had some time to talk to the Mayfair folks about the future, and found that they have some very interesting plans for modules/supplements. Some of these plans may include me, so more on this later. FGU released a new V&V module called Terror in the Night, which contains a very good treatment on Vampires in Superhero games. The author has done some good research on the subject, and has noted several options for the GM who wants to REALLY scare his players (Ex. sunlight is not necessarily lethal to vampires, it just weakens them. "Well, Solar Boy, Vlad screams in pain as your fireball hits, but he is still standing. Now what do you do about the horde of rats gnawing at your leg?) They also released the fourth Daredevils adventure pack, complete with conversions for Justice Inc! This issue deals with Lost Worlds adventures. Hmmm. Seems to be the sub-genre of the season. The other big news from FGU, is that in about three months (in time for GENCON, I hope?) they will release the long-awaited sequel to their FORCE module, tentatively entitled ASSASSIN. This as well as all future V&V modules will contain complete conversions for Champions! Also, future Hero Games products will contain conversions for both V&V and DC Heroes! Talk about cooperation. (Don't worry, I'll still post MY V&V to Champions conversion system early next week) Future Hero releases: The Beastiary (animals/monsters for Fantasy Hero and Champions) and the third Organizations Book (The BLOOD and Dr. McQuark) for the fall (GENCON?) and DANGER INTERNATIONAL for Christmas. Also scheduled for Christmas is another Champions adventure entitled THE CORIOLIS EFFECT (space station adventure, I believe). I met several great role-players, too bad they're mostly from the East Coast. Two people I should mention, are the winners of the Hero tournaments, Tom Filmoor - Champions Brett Brylawski - Justice Inc. both from the Washington DC area. They both did a marvelous job. If you're from around the DC area, and can get into a game with these two, I can guarantee a good time will be had. That's about all for ORIGINS. If GENCON goes even HALF as well, my summer has been made. Next Week, I'll do some V&V conversions, and some whatnot. BTW, glad to see the resurgence of Superhero talk on this net. Marc Blumberg AT&T Bell Laboratories Naperville, IL ihnp4!ihuxw!blumberg