> 1) Each heroquest I've read seems to involve static values as
> challenge numbers. Can heroes augment their abilities with
> magic or other mundane skills before facing these challenges?
Yes. On a tough heroquest, they will need to do so heavily, *and* spend hero points, to have a chance of getting through. Set the static values with this in mind.
(My own personal belief is that the static numbers are a *bad* representation of the personal and subjective nature of heroquesting, but that's just me. I suspect this is why published heroquests will tend to be "made-up" myths like Hervald's Helm, rather than key events in Gloranthan mythology).
> 2) How long do the bonuses from ritual magic, time, and location last
> in relation to a heroquest?
The example HQ (Narrator's Book p.43) has the adventurers apply their bonus from crossing to the Other World "for the duration of the quest" (at no extra cost, with no estimate of duration required), and this is how we've played it in our game. Carryover, too, doesn't seem to expire if you travel for "forty days and forty nights" between stations of a quest, nor can I see why it should. Time's funny on the other side, anyway (except for those filthy sorcerers), and the extra bookkeeping that might be involved doesn't seem to be worth it. Again, except for those filthy foreign sorcerers, who *deserve* the extra overhead! :-)
> 3) Do the mechanics for extended contests apply to all types of tests
> in a heroquest.
No, only to those extended contests where the narrator thinks it's appropriate. HW:RiG p.245 does suggest that it's "likely" to be used, but that's the narrator's call (of course, as always).
> These are questions that didn't seem clearly covered in any of the books.
Yep. You have to read the rules closely to work out what's going on. Splitting the heroquest chapter between two books doesn't help, either.
Cheers, Nick
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