> How does the HW system allow for someone like one of the Gloranthan
> Superheroes, like Harrak to carve through a company(or more) of enemy
troops?
> My limited exposure to the idea of the Superhero in Combat has led me to
> believe that such Meat-grinding Combat Feats are part-n-parcel of the
> Hero-thing.
> Would such a Hero be able to gnaw through a mass of troops with a
single
> grotesquely high Mastery-level skill of some sort, or would the mechanics
> have him take them 1 at a time?
You can do it a couple ways, depending on how you want the combat to run
(are you the narrator or Harrek's player?)
- Harrek has an obscenely high Kill you Dead ability (*mumble*w4). 1-1 with
a grunt he'll kill him without thinking (he auto-crits against 1-mastery
opponents due to bumps). Taking them on 1-1 can be done, but will just tire
out your dice hand...
- The narrator can group the grunts together into a single unit and have
that attack Harrek. While it still has the same attack ability, it now has
the AP to last a few rounds. Will it be able to kill Harrek? Probably not,
but then is it supposed to? No standard combat unit *should* be able to kill
Harrek - he has the ability rating of a demigod, plus magical goodies (like
a major spirit strapped to his back...).
Then remember that Harrek usually has his buddies along for the fun of
carving through units. The "Harrek" counter in the DP boardgame represents
Harrek and fifty or a hundred of his closest friends, who are all xw2-xw3
types. (Gunda is xw3, with xw-xw2 friends). A standard combat unit is a mix
of no-mastery to xw, with a couple xw2's for officers. Harrek & friends are
going to chew through that pretty easily.
Roderick