Indeed. Going up against a 12W difficulty for the reward moment in a HQ, and spending one HP on getting a Major success, not that odd an occurance, winds up with a +8 to some ability. Given such a heroquest, it's obviously appropriate to put some of those points towards one of the neccessary virtues to get a secret.
Cementing bonuses is another good way to leverage HP for more than a +1. Directed advancement. HP dumps. Advanced Experince, using the Saga system....
It's my experience that PCs go up in ability quite a lot more quickly than dividing the rate of HP given out per session would imply. Then again, I give out lots of HP, and use all of the above methods. But in my game, it's not a question of whether or not the PCs will get secrets, but simply how long it'll be, determined by how hard they go for them.
If you're playing a conservative game, with starting characters...no, they'll never get secrets. So if you want them to get secrets, either play less conservatively, or start them out with a whole lot of advanced experience. Oh, say keywords at 7W, and 50 extra points to spend no more than 10 to any ability. That puts them only 36 HP away from their secret if they stack on their virtues. Six determined sessions.
I think that's the point of the rule. Starting characters are very far away from the sort of experience that's needed to learn a secret. They actually do need tons of time before they'll be ready. Represented either by a ton of HP, or by advanced experience.
Mike
Powered by hypermail