>
> Here are the rules from page 79 of the Heroquest rulebook:
>
> "You can augment with any number of mundane or magical abilities, if
> they are appropriate and the narrator agrees. You may only use a
> particular ability to augment another once during a single round. Thus,
> you cannot use Strong twice to augment Sword Fighting, and magical
> abilities often have limitations on stacking. The narrator may decide
> that it takes a certain amount of time to apply multiple augments, even
> with mundane abilities."
>
> And 3 paragraphs later the book contradicts itself:
>
> "Some abilities are inherent characteristics, such as Strong, Clever or
> Large. It usually takes no time to augment with them, so even
> augmenting with multiple abilities does not take an unrelated action in
> an extended contest. Thus, during each round of combat a giant
> automatically gets +6 each for its Large 18w2 and Strong 18w2, and
> another +3 for its Tough 10w."
I don't see any contradiction here.
> 3 Problems
>
> #1 Does the giant use Strong once per round of an Extended Contest or
> only once during the entire duration of an Extended Contest? The rules
> take two diametrically opposed stances on this point.
No, they clearly state once per round. Nowhere does it state that an ability can be used only once per *contest*.
> #2 In Simple Contests, everything is over in one round anyway. Players
> have to decide how many augments are applicable. This is, in turn,
> affected by the duration of a contest.
How is it affected by the duration of the contest? Augments can be used *EVERY* round, not matter how many there are in a contest.
> A second's decision might not
> allow 10 augments. Or it might. How many augments can be loaded on at
> the begining of a Simple Contest?
For inherent abilities, like Strong or Tough, the number is, essentially, unlimited. For magical abilities, it's more nebulous - it depends on how long the magic takes. For example, Armor of Wode would, one would think, require taking out the pot of wode and slathering it on. Sunblade might require a brief prayer or invocation of the power of Elmal. But you don't have to "turn on" your Strong, etc.
> #3 What is the process for deciding what is a "reasonable" amount of
> augmentation?
It goes like this, the player says "I want to augment with Strong, Tough, Armor of Wode and Sunblade," to which the narrator responds "OK" or "Sorry... they're on you too quickly for both magical augments. Pick one," or something like that.
> What is the process for deciding how long a contest lasts
Uh, a Simple Contest lasts one round and Extended Contest lasts until one side has driven the other to 0 APs or lower, or both sides agree to withdraw.
> and what, therefore, are "reasonable" augmentations in that period?
It's not the duration of the contest that determines what are reasonable augments, it's the amount of time to "use" them. The narrator determines how long each side has to prepare before a contest begins, and once the contest has started, anything that isn't an inherent ability probably takes an Unrelated Action before you can add it's augment in.
> * A Simple Contest is, then, not a simple task. Such a contest could
> last for a whole day, or a whole battle. Simple Contests are simple
> means for resolving conflicts, not a quick way to resolve quick tasks.
Where did you get the idea that a Simple Contest is for simple tasks. A Simple Contest is for use when you want to resolve something quickly in terms of real time (i.e. when the specifics of the ebb and flow of the contest aren't important or interesting). A simple contest can represent an entire battle, a single "spot" check, or a whole season's worth of effort at farming.
> * Extended Contests are not necessarily long contests: they are contests
> whose every detail is of interest to the players. They are closeups or
> set pieces.
Again, you seem to have a fundamental misunderstanding of the reason for using Simple Contests vs. the reasons for using Extended Contests.
> Solution to #3
> * I have no general statement on the mode of decision making in
> Heroquest. I can only offer the practical solutions that I will apply
> in my games.
Well you should certainly use whatever works for you, but the 'problems' you have certainly seem to stem from a lack of understanding of the rules as presented and false assumptions based on that lack of understanding.
You see a conflict in how augments are used because you claim a contradiction exists where there isn't one. The rules clearly state that each ability can be used only once per *ROUND* but you then ask if it means once per round or once per *CONTEST*. What does it say? It says once per round. Can you provide a reference for a place where it says once per contest?
And inherent abilities take no time to provide their augment, magic takes a variable amount of time based on what exactly it is (is it an item, a quick spell, or a complex ritual).
The rest of your post presents "solutions" to problems that, with sufficient comprehension of the rules, don't exist. If you don't *like* the way the rules work, that's a valid opinion, but the rules work. They just don't work to your satisfaction.
Brian Curley
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