Re: HW vs Champions

From: Roderick and Ellen Robertson <rjremr_at_...>
Date: Thu, 6 Apr 2000 12:33:01 -0700


> The group I game with most regularly is very much into Champions and the
> Hero System. One thing that will probably not go well with them is the
idea
> that you don't get "points" back for taking Flaws. Can anybody explain to
> me why the designers decided to do it this way? I'd like to be able to
> anticipate my group's inevitable objections.

As the designer in question....

We don't do "points" in HW (yes, you could give someone extra words for taking a flaw, or another choice in the list method I suppose). HW characters are not "balanced" by any stretch of the imagination - I can take 100 words and produce a pathetic stickpicker, or a heroic near-hero (as long as my narrator allows me to do it, of course...). So flaws don't have the balancing effect or purpose that they do in most other games. (Example of HW balancing: A narrator described allowing a player to take "Company of Char-un cossacks as followers". This character is so far out of balance compared toKallai, the example character, that it's not funny.)

Not all flaws are flaws all the time - how many people have taken "Berserk when attacked" as a flaw for your Brick loner? Come on, be honest... A mini-maxer will take any flaw for it's maximum points and then downplay it as much as possible. There's no real way to stop this, and the more rules you pile on top of it, the more loopholes are created for minimaxers to exploit. So don't have rules!

Flaws in HW are meant as a focus or hook for your narrator. If I take a flaw of "Hunted by Trolls", I can be reasonably sure that I'm less likley to be hunted by Elves or Dwarves or Lunars - I've freely given my narrator permission to have trolls come after me time after time. (then, as a minimaxing munchkin, I make sure that I have lots of Solar powers :-) ). Flaws can give the narrator ideas for episodes, a suggestion of a story arc, etc. Anyrhing that lets the narrator set up a game session is a plus (having been a GM/Narrator for most of my life, I know this to be true!)

Flaws are voluntary. Don't like it that you don't get bennies for taking Flaws? Don't take em. There is no mechanism in the rules that says "you must take flaws", or "you get stuff for taking flaws", so there is no reason to take any if you don't want to roleplay it.

Why did I include a method for buying off flaws if you don't get points for them? 1) If I didn't have a way of getting rid of them, I'd be pestered for one. 2) You can get flaws during the play of the game ("Okay, you've rescued the kings daughter, now the prince hates you with a strength of 12..."). 3) people get tired of being attacked by Trolls every game session, and would like to "make peace" with them. Since HP get you good stuff, it follows that they also get rid of bad stuff.

Roderick

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