Hi!
Well, I realize that there are others on this list who are more
experienced with the game than I am, but isn't a system where you have
to improvise the armor penalty/bonus for each fight more time
consuming than a system of "fixed" numbers? My experience has been
that players always use the same bonus except in exceptional
circumstances (e.g., they always have +10 for sword + shield + armor
except when they're caught bathing by the stream), and each encounter
has a fixed bonus because it's part of what you wrote up for the
opponent (e.g., the Praxian has +6 for bone weapon/armor/shield), so
adding bonuses for equipment is generally less time consuming than any
other type of augment. Hero Wars used the assumption that the edges
would generally cancel out, but they generally didn't.
Also, maybe I don't understand, but I was under the impression that
"sword fighting 5w" represented skill with a sword, regardless of
whether the character was caught bathing by the stream or was wearing
magical iron plate, and that there was no particular assumption
concerning armor built into the skill. If the skill already includes
the equipment bonus, then why (for example) would a praxian player
want to "upgrade" to metal armor and weapons since his skill would
stay the same and the new equipment wouldn't affect his likelihood of
winning the fight? Or if the hypothetical praxian got some cool new
metal armor, should the procedure be to raise his skill at sword
fighting to reflect this?
Just my two cents.
Thanks,
David.
- In HeroQuest-rules_at_yahoogroups.com, "Robin Laws Mail List Only"
<tjaderoo_at_...> wrote:
>
> On 7/23/07, ttrotsky2 <TTrotsky_at_...> wrote:
> > > Actually, I am suggesting that most groups are better off
ignoring the
> > > armor rules.
> >
> > Well, I'm definitely not in one of those groups, so I hope the rules
> > aren't ditched altogether! This is one of those things that breaks my
> > suspension of disbelief, and makes it more difficult for me to enjoy
> > the game.
>
> Help me understand why this is so.
>
> Current method: Armor matters in the world. We reflect this by adding
> an extra step to the process-- a bonus to the character's target
> number each time he goes into combat. Or not, if he's fighting
> somebody with equivalent armor, in which case it cancels out.
>
> Robin's suggested method: Armor matters in the world. However, rather
> than introducing the extra calculation we have to perform each time,
> we assume that the value of the character's armor has already been
> factored into his base combat rating.
>
> Why is A more believable than B?
>
> >Sorry, forgot to add: under what circumstances would it *not* matter?
>
> The character's armor is already part of his base rating. If it
> becomes a point in the story that his armor is either neutralized or
> increased in effect, you reflect this with a modifier. If he's caught
> by the riverbed while bathing and has to fight heavily armored
> opponents, it's a penalty. Or if his armor is cursed by an Uz
> priestess, or whatever. If his armor is enhanced by a spell, or he's
> fighting an opponent who has never seen that type of gear and quails
> in terror at the sight of it, it's a bonus.
>
> > Not, I realise, that you are under any obligation to listen
> > to me in particular, but I find this very disappointing news indeed.
>
> My present feeling is that HQ should be a set of tools for each group
> to customize as they require, not a single set of rules that everyone
> ought to feel obliged to follow. My impulse on special case armor
> rules is to explain why they're more trouble than they're worth--and
> then provide them in an optional sidebar, for the benefit of groups
> who can't get their heads around the idea that they're not needed.
>
> Take care >>> Robin
>