Re: re: Defaults and who has em

From: Roderick and Ellen Robertson <rjremr_at_...>
Date: Thu, 22 Jul 2004 09:18:00 -0700


> > I might date the 'muddle' ever so slightly earlier
> > than you place it.
> > ;-) Trouble is, this isn't a 'rating', it's a
> > 'notation'. If it's to
> > simply mean 'automatic success', then fine, but why
> > not just say
> > 'automatic success'? OTOH, if it's supposed to work
> > like an actual
> > rating, then how does it fill that role? Can we
> > roll it? Can we modify it?

It's an "HeroQuest Imaginary Number". It's something to take penalties on. Of *course* it's never rolled "plain" - it is the "Never fail" threshold; There's no downside to using the ability, so there no drama involved in rolling it. So I assigned it a "0" rating to remind people that it's not a real rating.

Actually, 0W would work almost as well - one bump will turn all failures into successes, so there'se a 19-in-20 chance of "not failing". Not quite the same thing as *Never* fail, but possibly close enough for folk music.

> Yes, that was the entire point of the original
> question refered to. When your PC is very badly
> injured, at -10 to all actions or even worse, can they
> still do normal actions like standing up and walking
> without a roll? Probably not. So what's the skill that
> you're subtracting 10 from?

(Note that the more serious injury penalties are expressed as percentages, not straight numbers, so it's "-10%", not "-10": a big difference!)

Can a person stand & walk even if he's at -10? Sure. If he had "Run 20" and a -10 penalty from, say, hostile magic, you'd still let him roll at 10 wouldn't you? So why not if that was -50% from an injury? Obviously the injury isn't enough to totally incapacitate him, or it would be -100%.

> The number is a "usually an automatic success", which
> isn't quite the same.

Okay, so if you take a -10% penalty on 0w, it turns into 18, a -50% penalty turns it into 10. Better numbers for you?

RR
It is by my order and for the good of the state that the bearer of this has done what he has done.
- Richelieu

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