I think you're confusing my example with someone else's; I did not use the word 'mastery' anywhere in the description. It was inherently obvious that this would not be allowed as a way to determine "skill level".
'Cancel any magic' doesn't mean 'Cancel any magic at all',
> it means 'can try to cancel any type of magic'. A character can start with
> a magic weapon, but it makes him as good as the other characters - an
> unusual way to define your character (buying your abilities OAF in Hero
> System talk) but valid, as you get no real advantage from it.
Ok, so, a Yelm character takes the skill "Overcome Darkness magic"...the fact is, "Cancel any magic" is superior is every way, unless the GM manufactures situations where a difference is enforced. How will narrower skills ("climb mountain" instead of "great climber") measure up to wider ones?
> Cheers
>
> David
And:
> Now, Brian Tickler says
> - - ---
> Bob, a /Humakti Hero/, is as [deadly in armed and unarmed combat] as he
> is [adept in Death magic]. [Strong] and [hardy], yet [agile] and
> [cunning], he is famed for [snatching victory from certain defeat].
> Blessed with his knack for [overcoming seemingly superior foes] and [quick
> recuperation], he is [well-respected] by most. Some are surprised to find
> him [charismatic] and [knowledgable in cultures near and far].
>
> Most remarkable though is his [ability to strike down any foe who attempts a
> foolhardy, movie-like, heroic maneuver against him]. His penchant for
> [outwitting people in their own areas of expertise] is also notable.
> - - ---
> To go through this one in detail: Humakti Hero is not a keyword,
> but Huamkti Death Lord is. It includes close combat and the Humakt Magic
> Package (which is mostly Death magic) anyway, so the rest of that sentence
> is redundant. In any case, you would be exactly as good at them as someone
> who just said 'Humakt Death Lord', or possibly slightly worse.
You're right, I didn't know this; but it hardly matters...Humakti Hero will get me the Death Lord package in any case, won't it?
> Strong, hardy, agile and cunning are all valid, though a little dull.
I disagree here. "Dull" is choosing "craft mud pies" and never using it in 100s of gaming sessions until a GM takes pity on you and throws you a bone by coming up with with some contrived situation where this is useful...
> [snatching victory from defeat] I wouldn't allow, as its too abstract - I'd
> make that [famed for snatching victory from defeat] instead. Unless you
> desired it to be some sort of better defined magical ability - in which
> case you will find that it only works against people with weak magic.
I wouldn't allow this in any form, myself.
> Brians motives in this are simply to point out alleged flaws of the
> system.
There's something in particular that's sinful about this?
> He neglects to consider that GMs are not idiots, and can refuse any
> sufficiently ridiculous ability. And as for strong, hardy, etc - loading
> yourself up with generally useful abilities like this is useful, and
> probably quite a reasonable tactic, but it doesn't make your character any
> more interesting, so abilities like this rather than cool yet very specific
> abilities like 'knows secret entrance to Hell' can be less fun in play.
>
> Cheers
>
> David
Pardon me, but a lot of GMs are just that, idiots...how you can refute this is beyond me. Maybe sometime I'll tell you the story about the GM who gave my character 89 million platinum pieces and *2* of every magic item in the DM's Guide (except the artifacts, they're unique you know)...all for a single swing of a sword. I always preferred gold though, so I went to a moneychanger and exchanged it for 440 million gold pieces...guess I'm lucky there was also a "Bag of Infinite Holding" in the treasure trove... :)
Now, I hate getting my character conceptions marred by crap like this (even when he gave it all away, he's still indelibly in my mind "the guy who had 89 million platinum pieces"), but it happens a lot among munchkins...and I believe such munchkins make up a not-insignificant part of HW's target market...this has me worried, as HW does not seem munchkin-friendly at first glance...
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