In the years since Mythic Greece:
The Age of Heroes was released (in 1988), a
lot of errors in the supplement have come to light. This file addresses
the errors we have detected.
Additionally,
since Mythic Greece was written for 1st Edition
Fantasy Hero and is not fully compatible with 4th Edition
Champions, we provide advice here to update Mythic Greece
campaigns to the new edition of the game. (Since Mythic Greece
is a fantasy milieu very different from those in 2nd Edition Fantasy
Hero, I've gone to no extra trouble to coordinate the update
material with the new Fantasy Hero. It's not incompatible with
Fantasy Hero; it just doesn't follow the generic European
fantasy tradition presented in Fantasy Hero and other FRP
games.)
In some future time, this file will
probably be replaced by one that updates Mythic Greece to the
5th Edition of the Hero System, but that time is not yet upon
us.
In the following text, references to
Champions refer to 4th Edition Champions, aka the Big
Blue Book, and usually refer to the 4th Edition of The Hero System
Rulesbook, too — especially the references that point to specific
Champions page numbers and rules.
This
errata file is broken down into four parts:
PART ONE: NECESSARY CORRECTIONS
In
this section, we provide corrections to the most significant errors in
the supplement — the errors that involve facts about the setting,
point-cost imbalances, changes to the game-rules, names of and facts
about characters, etc.
PART TWO: CLARIFICATIONS
This
section clarifies certain sections of the Mythic Greece text which
I felt were inadequately detailed.
PART THREE: UPDATING MYTHIC GREECE TO 4TH
EDITION CHAMPIONS
Here
we include advice on updating Mythic Greece to 4th Edition
Champions. We're not including 4th Edition updates of characters,
spells, and treasures, but are including (1) revised rules for creating
Special Powers and magical spells, and (2) revised Package Deals and
weapon statistics.
PART FOUR: COST-ACCOUNTING
This
section includes the point-cost breakdowns of the revised weapons in Part
Three. It's a nonessential section which is included for the
number-crunchers out there.
The
supplement I proposed to Hero Games in 1985 bore the working title Age
of Heroes. In 1987 or 1988, as the project neared completion and
publication, Iron Crown Enterprises decided to retitle it Mythic
Greece, based on marketing feedback indicating that retailers needed
high-concept game titles that conveyed the products' contents more
directly; The Age of Heroes was retained as a subhead.
After
Mythic Greece went out of publication, TSR Inc. published its own
2nd edition AD&D game supplement titled Age of Heroes, part
of their historical reference campaign sourcebook series. Their Age of
Heroes seems to concentrate more on the Greece of the classical era
than that of the mythic Bronze Age. Their Age of Heroes has no
connection with Mythic Greece: The Age of Heroes, but is certainly
worth looking at in its own right.
Column 2, the line reading 10.0 Fantasy Hero Character Creation should instead read 10.0 Hellas.
Throughout this page, wherever the word Disadvantage is given, substitute the word Limitation.
Column 1, in the "Telepathy" paragraph, the first sentence should actually end: " — that is, only to communicate with someone who doesn't speak your language, or with animals or monsters." The communication is two-way, not one-way as the text unintentionally suggests.
Column 2, under the "Sorcerers and Their Spells" headline, fourth paragraph, first sentence — Delete the entire phrase ", and the male sorcerers' require (sic) limitation of motif, as described below under Package Deals". That sentence should now end, "... (other than the restrictions on Effects, listed above)." (In an earlier draft, sorcerers had to have more serious restrictions on their types of magic than sorceresses, a restriction which was removed in later drafts... but associated text was never entirely corrected.)
The map has no bar indicating distance and scale. (The original plan was to have the map overlaid with 25-mile hexes, so a scale bar was unnecessary. At some point the hex-grid was deleted, either by accident or because it cluttered the page too much, and the scale-bar was not added back in.) On this map, 100 miles is approximately equal to 1 11/16". The island of Euboea, on its long axis, is a little over 100 miles long.
A really strange error crept into the "Turning Chariot Diagram" at the bottom. Of course, the horses-and-chariot rig should be much longer than one Champions hex; it should, in fact, be more like three hexes long.
This map is a mess. A long list of corrections follows:
MAP KEY ERRORS
MAP ERRORS
This map has its own share of errors:
On the map, the name "Gaditus" should actually be "Gadirus."
Column 1, Year 278, the name of Medea's son should be Medeus (the suffix "-is" normally indicates a daughter).
Column 2, under the "Equipment" paragraph, Theseus should carry a Bronze-Headed Club instead of a Great Club.
I failed to describe one important use for the Pelasgian language in a campaign. In the Mythic Greece setting, Pelasgian is the very first language spoken by humans, and the ancestors of all men spoke it. Therefore, no matter where in the world the player-characters go, in any culture there will be scholars and linguists who speak some variant of Pelasgian. This means that Pelasgian-speaking PCs can eventually find someone to talk to, no matter where in the world they find themselves.
Some Package Deal racial powers can be improved by the player spending Experience Points, and only with GM permission; others cannot be improved. Here's how these fall out:
============================================================
POWERS THAT CAN BE IMPROVED POWERS THAT CAN'T BE IMPROVED
Greater Hero Luck Centaur Size Increase
Centaur Running * Centaur STR Max
Satyr Running * Water-Nymph Water-Breathing
Satyr Panic Shout ** Wood-Nymph Merge with Trees
Water-Nymph Swimming *
Wood-Nymph Running *
============================================================
* Still subject to game limitations — cost doubles after
10" Running, 5" Swimming, etc.
** Can be improved only to limits set by GM.
============================================================
I should never have referred to the Wood-Nymph's Special Power as "Merge With Trees." I never meant to imply that the nymphs were physically melding into the trees — that particular ability is ascribed to them in a very few places, including one well-known role-playing game, but I was not trying to duplicate it here. Instead, this power is the nymphs' incredible, perhaps magical stealthiness in a woodland setting. Check out the revised Wood-Nymph package deal below; there, the power has been redefined as a limited Invisibility. (The wood-nymphs' propensity for living within trees can be explained as their finding and shaping hollow trees to live within.) However, if your own vision of nymphs involves them mystically blending with the trees, then change the Mythic Greece rules to suit your campaign.
After
a lot of GMing in this setting, I've come to the conclusion that my
limitations on Special Powers were simply too restrictive. (In review, the
old rules said: A character should only have one Special Power, and
could have only two; if he had two, one had to be a Characteristic
Maxima Power, the other a Magical Effect Power or Sorcery.) You
might wish to implement the following set of changes:
Column
1, the third paragraph under the Wood-Nymph package deal ends with
"However, Nymphs may take one other Special Power if they wish, and are
not restricted as Humans are to having it be the Strength package." That
sentence should be deleted.
Column
2, replace the second paragraph with "Most Special Powers are
Champions powers.
Column
2, replace the fourth paragraph with "A character may have more than one
Special Power if the GM approves. We don't recommend that a character
spend more than one-third his starting points (including Disadvantage
points) on Special Powers, and it's more appropriate for him to spend
much less than that. The players and GM must remember that this isn't
a superhero campaign, and that Special Powers should not dominate the
story."
"Spellcasting"
— with the GM's permission, characters should be able to create spells
which make permanent changes (particularly improvements) in other beings.
But such spells must all take the 5x END cost limitation, and run off an
END Reserve; the END Reserve may not have a REC score. This means that
such spells permanently cost Character Points of the caster every time
they're used.
Spells
of this type would include: Spells which permanently grant improved
characteristics, spells which restore youth, spells which eliminate
physical Disadvantages, and so forth.
As
a rule of thumb, the spellcaster should permanently lose a number of
Character Points (spent on the END Reserve) equal to or slightly more
than the number of Character Points the other character will be receiving.
For instance, if the spell is designed to restore youth, the caster should
permanently burn at least 10 points if he's eliminating an "Age 60+"
disadvantage or 5 points if he's eliminating an "Age 40+" disadvantage.
Column
2, under the "Important Note" headline... This optional rule was not
introduced to affect any campaigns except Mythic Greece campaigns.
A GM is under no obligation to use these armor types and this
overlapping-armor option in any other campaign; in fact, if he doesn't
want it even in his Mythic Greece campaign, he doesn't have to
allow it.
As
a matter of fact, Part Three, further in this file, provides alternate
statistics for armor for campaigns where the GM would prefer not to use
that optional rule.
Page
31: Just below the chapter headline, you'll see this subhead: "For
Players." This is a result of a miscommunication between me and Iron
Crown. Every chapter in the book was supposed to have either the words
"For Players and GM" or "For GM Only" below the chapter headline,
indicating who should read the chapter. But in the editing process,
signals got crossed, and "For Players" and "For the GM Only" ended up
as irrelevant, puzzling subheads scattered through the supplement.
The
other pages where this occured include:
Page
37: "For Players" headline
Page
50: "For Players" headline
Page
54: "For The GM Only" headline
Page
61: "For The GM Only" headline
Page
63: "For The GM Only" headline
Page
71: "For The GM Only" headline
Page
72: "For The GM Only" headline
Much of Mythic Greece's Hero System character creation rules were invalidated by the release of 4th Edition Champions; the following text has been written to make it easier for you to update characters. I haven't provided revised game statistics for spells, Special Powers, NPCs or monsters, however.
The
maximum number of points from Disadvantages a character can receive
is also equal to the number of points he starts with. Thus a Lesser
Hero (a Champions Competent Normal) gets 50 base points and can
have up to 50 points in Disadvantages, a Greater Hero (a
Champions Hero) starts with 75 base points and can have up to
75 in Disadvantages, and a Demigod (who falls somewhere between the
Champions Hero and Standard Superhero) gets 100 base points and
can have up to 100 points in Disadvantages.
When
converting characters to 4th Edition Champions, I recommend you
take the following approach:
(1)
Convert all Skills, Perks, Talents, and Powers from 1st Edition Fantasy
Hero to 4th Edition Champions. Many of them (particularly
Characteristic Maxima powers) will end up costing more; some will cost
less.
(2)
Convert all Disadvantages to the new rules. Most of them will be worth
more points.
(3)
If the extra points from Disadvantages exceed the extra cost of the
Skills and Powers (etc.), the player should be able to spend the
excess; the GM may want to have approval on the way those points are
spent. If the extra cost of Skills and Powers exceeds the extra points
from Disadvantages, then the GM should give the character a
"grandfather bonus." A grandfather bonus is an award of extra
Character Points provided so that the character will not be diminished
by translation into the new rules. The grandfather bonus should never
make the character more powerful under the new rules than he was under
the old rules.
BOXING AND WRESTLING
Replace
Mythic Greece's Wrestling with the Wrestling from
Champions 4th Edition. If you have Ninja Hero or The
Ultimate Martial Artist, you should replace Mythic Greece's
Boxing with Ancient Boxing from Ninja Hero or UMA.
(Pankration is also available to Mythic Greece characters.) If
you don't have Ninja Hero or UMA, then you can allow Mythic
Greece characters to learn the Martial Block and Defensive Strike
maneuvers to represent the Boxing skill.
You
can also add Weapons Combat to the list of martial arts available
to Mythic Greece characters. This martial arts style was
originally introduced in Adventurers Club magazine #18; it was
not picked up for inclusion in The Ultimate Martial Artist, so I
am free to reproduce it here and elsewhere.
WEAPONS COMBAT
Weapons
Combat is a Hero System martial art that simulates European-style melee
weapons combat — European weapon fighting styles from antiquity to the
Renaissance. It's the art of the armored warrior, whether he be an
11th-century knight, a 3rd-century Roman centurion, a hoplite from
Classical-era Greece, an Achaean juggernaut from the time of the Trojan
War, or some fighter Gilgamesh murdered.
Not
all fighting characters will have this martial art. This is the art of
very well-trained and experienced warriors, not common troops or
inexperienced fighters.
When
buying Weapons Combat, the character chooses one weapon type (from the
list of Weapons elements) with which he can use the maneuvers. That
choice is free. (The character must still buy a Weapon Familiarity with
the weapon type.) Further Weapon Elements, as usual, cost 1 pt each.
============================================================
MANEUVER PTS OCV DCV DAMAGE/EFFECT
All-Out 5 +1 -2 Strike +4 DC (+2 DC/K)
Attack 4 +0 +2 Strike +2 DC (+1 DC/K)
Charge 4 +0 -2 Strike +2 DC (+1 DC/K) +v/5,
FMove
Defend 4 +2 +2 Block, Abort
Probe 5 +1 +3 Strike
Resist 4 +0 +0 +15 STR to Resist Shove; Block,
Abort
Shove 4 +0 +0 +15 STR to Shove
============================================================
SKILLS
WF: Common Melee Weapons (it is mandatory that the
character know how to use any weapons for which he's
taken the Weapon Element, below)
WF: Staves
============================================================
ELEMENTS
Weapon +1 Use Art With Axes, Maces, Picks
Weapon +1 Use Art With Blades (Swords & Daggers)
Weapon +1 Use Art With Clubs
Weapon +1 Use Art With Pole Arms
Weapon +1 Use Art With Shields
Weapon +1 Use Art With Staves
============================================================
STYLE DISADVANTAGE -10
============================================================
Optional Rules: When the character is using Short weapons, attacks take a 2d6+1 location. When the character is using Medium or Long weapons, attacks take a 3d6 location.
Description of Maneuvers
All-Out:
This is an all-offense attack which sacrifices some of the character's
DCV to get an attack in. It does significantly more damage than a more
routine attack.
Attack:
This is a straightforward weapons attack. It is simply an improvement on
a character's normal, non-martial attack maneuver.
Charge:
This maneuver allows the character to make an attack at the end of a full
move; it's especially apt for spearmen.
Defend:
This is the standard Martial Block maneuver.
Probe:
This it the maneuver used by a character who's still feeling out his
opponent's strengths and weaknesses. It doesn't allow the character to
do as much damage as other maneuvers, but gives him some additional DCV,
appropriate to a cautious fighting approach.
Resist:
With this maneuver, the character can block incoming attacks; the maneuver
has a standard Abort function. The maneuver also allows the character to
root himself in place and resist Shove attacks; he gets a +15 STR bonus
to resist Shoves. This maneuver is especially appropriate to heroes who
play at being one-man shield-walls.
Shove:
With this maneuver, the character places his weapon up against his opponent
and heaves his opponent backwards; the maneuver gives him +15 STR with
which to do it. Important Note: This maneuver cannot be performed with
a Short weapon, only with Medium and Long weapons.
Notes
You
won't find Bind, Disarm, or Dodge maneuvers in this art. This is a
deliberate choice. These maneuvers just don't seem to belong to the
heavy-weapons feel of this art. (Besides, anyone can perform
a Disarm or Dodge; everyone automatically has these maneuvers already.
The art simply doesn't have martial art versions of them.)
Fighters
cannot use flail weapons with the Weapon Elements. The martial art is
suited more for rigid weapons of all sorts.
It's
very appropriate for the GM to disallow the use of the All-Out and Charge
maneuvers in campaigns which steer away from high damage values (characters
can still push their strength and use Move-Throughs, after all).
OTHER SKILLS
Prophecy:
Build this with the Clairsentience power.
Weapon
Familiarities: In this setting, Common Melee Weapons include unarmed
combat, clubs, axes (one-handed and two-handed), pole arms (javelins,
spears, and tridents), staves, and swords; Common Missile Weapons include
bows, javelins, slings, spears, thrown axes, and thrown knives.
Following are replacements for Mythic Greece's obsolete Package Deals. You'll note that in many of them, points from Disadvantages exceed points spent on Skills & Powers. This is allowable because these aren't technically Package Deals: They don't provide any Package Bonus.
POWER LIMIT PACKAGE DEALS (2.5.1)
============================================================
DEMIGOD BASE 100 PTS — ONLY BY SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT WITH GM
============================================================
REQUIRED SKILLS/POWERS PTS
Luck 15
Special Power(s) of choice 10*
REQUIRED DISADVANTAGES PTS
Unluck, 3d6 -15
Hunted by Minions of Enemy God (11-, More Powerful,
or As Powerful with NCI) -20
Watched by Friendly God (11-, More Powerful, NCI,
x1/2) -10
Distinctive Features (Choice; Not Concealable) -15
NOTES
* This marks the minimum number of points the character
must spend on the ability; he may spend more.
============================================================
============================================================
GREATER HERO BASE 75 PTS
============================================================
REQUIRED SKILLS/POWERS PTS
Luck 10*
Special Power of choice 10*
REQUIRED DISADVANTAGES PTS
Unluck, 2d6 -10
Hunted by Minions of Enemy God (8-, More Powerful,
or As Powerful with NCI) -15
Watched by Friendly God (11-, More Powerful, NCI,
x1/2) -10
Distinctive Features (Choice; Concealable) -10
NOTES
* This marks the minimum number of points the character
must spend on the ability; he may spend more.
============================================================
============================================================
HERO BASE 75 PTS
============================================================
REQUIRED SKILLS/POWERS PTS
Special Power * 30
REQUIRED DISADVANTAGES PTS
Distinctive Features (Choice; Concealable) -10
NOTES
* May have only one power; may only choose a
Characteristic Maxima Power
============================================================
Long
experience with the original Age of Heroes campaign suggests that the
Demigod/Greater Hero/Lesser Hero structure for character point values
is simply too restrictive. Introduction of a Hero, equivalent to the
75-point Hero common in other Hero System supplements, level corrects
this problem.
The
Hero in a Mythic Greece campaign has the following traits:
Like
Greater Heroes, he has the blood or the blessing of a god, and so has to
take Distinctive Features as a limitation.
He
may take a Special Power, but it must be of the Characteristic Maxima
variety.
He
isn't required to be hunted by a godly enemy, and so is not always at the
center of storylines and enemy plots the way Greater Heroes and Demigods
are.
NORMAL PACKAGE DEALS (2.5.2)
============================================================
AMAZON FEMALE CHARACTERS ONLY
============================================================
REQUIRED SKILLS/POWERS PTS
KS: Home Territory 11- 2
Riding (Horse) 3
WF: Common Melee & Missile Weapons 4
REQUIRED DISADVANTAGES PTS
Paranoid About Men (Common) -10
Distinctive Looks: Barbarian (Concealable) -10
============================================================
============================================================
CENTAUR MALE CHARACTERS ONLY
============================================================
REQUIRED SKILLS/POWERS PTS
KS: Home Territory 11- 2
Kick (Offensive Strike, -2 OCV +1 DCV +4d6) 5
Growth, 3 levels, Persistent 0 END, Always On (+15
STR, +3 BODY, +3 STUN, x8 Mass, -3" Knockback,
-2 DCV, +2 bonus to others' PER rolls, x2
Reach) 20
Running +4" (10" Total) 8
STR Max is 30, Running Max is 15" 20
REQUIRED DISADVANTAGES PTS
Quick-Drunk (Infrequent, Fully) -15
Reputation: Dangerous, Brutish (14-, Bad) -20
Distinctive Features: Centaur (Not Concealable,
Major Reaction: Fear or Belligerence) -20
============================================================
OPTIONAL DISADVANTAGES PTS
Uncultured (Common, Moderate) -10
============================================================
============================================================
MYRMIDON MALE CHARACTERS ONLY
============================================================
REQUIRED SKILLS/POWERS PTS
Familiar: Common Melee and Missile Weapons 4
KS: Phthia or Aegina 11- 2
Tactics 3
REQUIRED DISADVANTAGES PTS
Distinctive Features: Myrmidon (Easily Concealable) -5
============================================================
============================================================
NYMPH, WATER FEMALE CHARACTERS ONLY
============================================================
REQUIRED SKILLS/POWERS PTS
Familiarity with Swimming 1
KS: Home Waters, 11- 2
Life Support: Water-Breathing 5
Swimming +3" (5" Total) 6
Talk to Sea-Life (one creature type, player choice):
Telepathy 4d6, invisible (+1/2), 0 END (+1/2),
One Animal Type Only (-2), Surface Thoughts
Only (-1) 10
Characteristic Maximum: COM 30 5
REQUIRED DISADVANTAGES PTS
Distinctive Looks: Nymph (Lithe Build, Pointed
Ears, Odd Hair Color; Concealable, Causes
Lust) -15
============================================================
OPTIONAL DISADVANTAGES PTS
Watched, Patron God (8-, More Powerful, NCI, x1/2) -10
Paranoia About Humans (Common) -10
============================================================
============================================================
NYMPH, WOOD FEMALE CHARACTERS ONLY
============================================================
REQUIRED SKILLS/POWERS PTS
KS: Home Woods 11- 2
Stealth 3
Invisible to Sight Group, 0 END Persistent, Only
When Adjacent to or within Trees (-2) 20
Running +4" (10" Total) 8
Characteristic Maximum: COM 30 5
REQUIRED DISADVANTAGES PTS
Distinctive Looks: Nymph (Lithe Build, Pointed
Ears, Odd Hair Color; Concealable, Causes
Lust) -15
============================================================
OPTIONAL DISADVANTAGES PTS
Hamadryad: Susceptible, Being Away From Personal
Tree (Very Common, 3d6, Day) -5
Watched, Patron God (8-, More Powerful, NCI, x1/2) -10
Paranoia About Humans (Common) -10
============================================================
============================================================
SATYR/SILENUS MALE CHARACTERS ONLY
============================================================
REQUIRED SKILLS/POWERS PTS
KS: Home Territory 11- 2
Stealth 3
Aid +10d6 PRE; Self Only (-1), For PRE Attacks Only
(-1/2) 20
Running +2" (8" Total) 4
REQUIRED DISADVANTAGES PTS
Distinctive Features: Satyr (Concealable,
Prejudice) -15
Reputation: Randy and Wild (14-, Bad) -20
============================================================
============================================================
SORCEROR/SORCERESS
============================================================
REQUIRED SKILLS/POWERS PTS
Magic Skill 3
Literacy 1
PS: Priest(ess) (of specific deity) 11- 2
REQUIRED DISADVANTAGES PTS
Watched, Patron God (More Powerful, NCI, 8-, x1/2) -10
============================================================
NOTE: Though all sorcerors and sorceresses are
priests and priestesses of specific gods, the vast
majority of priests and priestesses are NOT sorcerors or
sorceresses.
============================================================
The magic system of 1st Edition Fantasy Hero was completely scrapped for 4th Edition Champions, so Section 2.6 of Mythic Greece has to undergo substantial revision.
SPECIAL POWERS (2.6.1)
As mentioned earlier in this file, there is no reason to place strict limits on the numbers of Special Powers a character can have. No character should spend more than one-third his points on Special Powers, and it's better if characters spend far less than that. Powers possessed by a Mythic Greece hero should normally belong to the same power conception; remember that we are not building comic-book superheroes for these campaigns.
CHARACTERISTIC MAXIMA POWERS (2.6.2)
Unfortunately for Mythic Greece, the 4th edition of Champions radically altered the way Increasted Characteristic Maxima were handled in Package Deals. They're now far more expensive. Here's how the Mythic Greece Characteristic Maxima Powers (page 25) cost out in the 4th Edition:
============================================================ POWER: CHARACTERISTIC MAXIMA: COST: Great Beauty PRE Max 40, COM Max 40 30 pts Great Cunning EGO Max 30, INT Max 30 30 pts Great Dexterity DEX Max 27, SPD Max 5 31 pts Great Prowess STR Max 30, DEX Max 24, SPD Max 5 32 pts Great Strength STR Max 40, PD Max 17 29 pts Great Vitality STR Max 30, CON Max 25, BODY Max 25 30 pts ============================================================
Simple mathematics shows that the 4th Edition
Hero System guidelines for revised stat maxima are not cost-effective.
They cost the character points unless the character buys all the
package's stats at exactly the increased values indicated, at which time
the character merely breaks even.
Because
the system now punishes characters who have higher- than-human-norm
characteristic maxima, characters are better off if they simply buy
their stats at above the normal maxima level, paying the doubled cost,
without taking an Increased Char Maxima function in their package deals.
For
using Characteristic Maxima special powers in Mythic Greece, I
recommend the following approach. Instead of having Characteristic Maxima
powers in your campaign, instead have a perk called "Can Exceed Human
Maxima" costing one Character Point (1 pt); only allow characters with
the Demigod, Greater Hero, or Hero package deals to buy that perk; and
only allow characters who have bought that perk to buy characteristics
above the human maxima.
SPELLCASTING (2.6.4)
Spellcasters
in Mythic Greece still need to have the Sorcerer/Sorceress Package
Deal. Other limitations on individual and collective spells are described
below.
All
spells must be bought with the following requirements on advantages and
limitations:
Advantage:
Reduced END cannot be taken at the 0 END level, only at the 1/2 END
level.
Limitations:
Requires a Skill Roll (-1/2). END Spent on Spells Recovers at REC/5
Hours (-1). Spells based on powers which cost no END must be bought
with the "Costs END" limitation (-1/2).
Alternatively,
spells can be built with END Reserves if (a) those spells
take an "Increased END Cost x5 (-2)" limitation and (b) those END
Reserves have no REC scores — in other words, to buy more END for the
Reserve, the character must lost more character points permanently.
This approach is most appropriate for certain spells of unusual effect:
Spells to raise the dead, to grant youth, to make the barren fertile,
etc. For more on this, see also the correction earlier in this
document, under PART TWO:
CLARIFICATIONS, for Page 27.
NOTES ON FANTASY HERO EFFECTS (2.6.5)
Following
is the list of powers from 4th Edition Champions as they pertain to
Mythic Greece. Each is described in terms of:
Special
Power? That is, may it be taken as a Special Power?
Magic
Spell? May it be taken as a Magic Spell?
Requirements:
If it can be taken as a power or as a spell, what additional requirements are placed
upon it?
The
list comes very close to simulating the guidelines in Mythic
Greece, but is not a point-for-point translation. The last
several years of playing the campaign have shown me areas where
further limitations should be imposed, and others where old limitations
should be lifted. (Though the supplement was published in 1988, the
first draft was written in 1985, the year the original Mythic
Greece campaign began.)
FRAMEWORKS
In the Age of Heroes setting, characters cannot buy magic spells or special powers within frameworks (Multipowers, Elemental Controls or Variable Power Pools). Frameworks make spells and powers too cost-efficient, which is inappropriate to the setting of mythological Greece.
EXCEPTIONS
Shapeshifters
can sometimes violate the restrictions on Special Powers; if a
shapeshifter's form naturally has a power which is forbidden by the
rules above, the shapeshifter will probably still be able to buy the
power in his shifted form. Each such case is subject to GM approval,
of course.
Certain
package deals may allow characters to buy Special Powers which violate
listed restrictions on Special Powers.
Gods
do not have all the same limitations on spells which mortals do.
They can also use many powers which player-characters cannot — for
instance, Darkness, Flash, Growth, KA (only with Damage Shield), Mental
Illusions (only to affect a mortal's dreams), Skills (Disguise as a
power), and Teleportation; possibly Extra-Dimensional Movement. There
are still powers which even the gods cannot use — for instance, Armor,
Damage Resistance, Desolidification, Dispel, Duplication, EGO Attack,
FTL Travel, Force Wall, Images, Mind Scan, Regeneration, Suppress, and
Telekinesis.
LAST NOTE
These are, by the way, only recommendations, my effort to make the magic work like it does in the Greek myths (and the movies based on them). In your own campaign, you can restructure the list any way you please.
Several Disadvantages are available in 4th Edition Champions which were not available to 1st Edition Fantasy Hero characters. Some are appropriate for Mythic Greece characters; others are not. Some notes:
Accidental
Change: Not appropriate.
Age: Appropriate but not common. Aged
characters were usually NPCs, but could still be heroes; think of Nestor
in The Iliad.
Berserk:
This is appropriate to certain bestial fighters, such as the Telamonian
Aias... but most characters should not have this Disadvantage. If
more than one PC in five has this Disadvantage, the GM should take steps
to prune the excess numbers of berserker characters from his campaign.
However, Enraged limitations are common;
the Achaean heroes tended to be a pretty passionate bunch.
Dependence:
Not appropriate.
Dependent
NPC: This simply replaces the old "Friends" Disadvantage.
Distinctive Features: Very appropriate.
Hunted and Watched: Very appropriate.
However, that's no excuse to load the campaign down with Hunteds. All
Greater Heroes and Demigods will have Hunteds, so Hunteds which are not
associated with those Package Deals should be comparatively rare.
Normal Characteristic Maxima: Not
appropriate. A heroic-level fantasy campaign assumes this Disadvantage
already; all characters already have it, worth 0 points.
Physical Limitation: Not very
appropriate; the Achaean heroes tended to be excellent physical specimens.
This is a Disadvantage more appropriate for NPCs, though it's not
inappropriate for a character with the Age disadvantage.
Psychological Limitation: Very
appropriate.
Public Identity: Not appropriate.
Reputation: Appropriate.
Rivalry: Appropriate.
Secret Identity: Not appropriate.
Susceptibility: Not appropriate.
Unluck: Appropriate; it should normally
indicate the displeasure of some god who constantly meddles in a minor
way with the hero.
Vulnerability: Not appropriate.
Below
are the Mythic Greece weapon stats translated into 4th Edition
Champions terms. I followed the Ninja Hero guidelines when
assembling them. In many cases, their statistics will vary from the
statistics for similar weapons in 2nd Edition Fantasy Hero.
I've
added some weapons to the list, based on introduction of these weapons
into the original Age of Heroes campaign, and tinkered with the
values of other weapons.
WEAPONS (2.8.1)
| WEAPON | OCV | DAMAGE | STUN | STR | NOTES |
| NAME | X | MIN | |||
| Stick | +0 | (2d6) | - | 3 | |
| Baton | +0 | (3d6) | - | 4 | |
| Club | +0 | (4d6) | - | 9 | 1.5H |
| Large Club | +0 | (5d6) | - | 12 | 1.5H |
| Great Club | +0 | (6d6) | - | 14 | 1.5H |
| Bronze-Headed Club | -1 | 2d6K | +0 | 12 | 1.5H |
| Javelin | +0 | 1d6K | +0 | 6 | 1.5H; Throw |
| Short Spear | -1 | 1 1/2d6K | +0 | 11 | 1.5H; Throw |
| Long Spear | -1 | 2d6K | +0 | 15 | 1.5H; Throw; +1" Reach |
| Great Spear | -1 | 2d6+1K | +0 | 15 | 2H; +2" Reach |
| Ship's Pike | -1 | 2 1/2d6K | +0 | 17 | 2H; +3" Reach |
| Short Trident | -1 | 1 1/2d6K | +0 | 14 | 1.5H; Throw; +2 OCV with Bind, Block, Disarm, Takeaway |
| Long Trident | -1 | 2d6K | +0 | 18 | 1.5H; Throw; +1" Reach; +2 OCV with Bind, Block, Disarm, Takeaway |
| Knife | +0 | 1/2d6K | +0 | 2 | Throw |
| Dagger | +1 | 1d6-1K | +0 | 5 | Throw |
| Shortsword | +1 | 1d6K | +0 | 10 | |
| Sickle | +0 | 1d6K | +0 | 7 | |
| Longsword, Cretan | +1 | 1d6+1K | +0 | 12 | Burnout Roll Each Attack: On 16+, Sword Breaks |
| Axe, Amazon | +0 | 1d6+1K | +0 | 10 | Throw |
| Axe, Cretan | -1 | 2d6K | +0 | 12 | 2H |
| Rock, Huge | -2 | 2d6K | +0 | 22 | 2H; Throw |
| Boxing Glove/Spiked | +0 | +1 Pip K | +0 | 2 | +3 Armor, Hands; Damage On Top Of Punching Damage |
| Bow, Light | +0 | 1d6K | +0 | 7 | 2H; Range 75" |
| Bow, Medium | +0 | 1d6+1K | +0 | 10 | 2H; Range 100" |
| Bow, Heavy | +0 | 1 1/2d6K | +0 | 12 | 2H; Range 125" |
| Bow, Very Heavy | +0 | 2d6K | +0 | 15 | 2H; Range 150" |
| Sling | +0 | 1d6K | +1 | 10 | 2H; Range 75"; -1 to Range Mod |
| Shield, Small | +1* | (2d6)** | - | 8 | +1 to DCV; 2 kg |
| Shield, Medium | +2* | (3d6)** | - | 13 | +2 to DCV; 4 kg |
| Shield, Large | +3* | (4d6)** | - | 18 | +3 to DCV; 7 kg |
| * | This OCV bonus is only for shield punch and shield rush maneuvers, explained later in this file. |
| ** | In the case of shield rush maneuvers only, it might be best to suspend the rule about not more than doubling the basic weapon damage; treat this damage precisely as if it were from the Hand-to-Hand Attack Power. In other words, a STR 20 shield-man running at 9" with a Large Shield for a shield-rush would do 11d6 normal damage: 4d6 for STR, 3d6 for velocity, and 4d6 for the shield. But this would ONLY be the case with the shield rush maneuvers; other attacks using the shield could never more than double the shield's damage. |
ARMOR (2.8.2)
Champions
4th Edition had incomplete rules for the weight of sectional armor, so in
Ninja Hero I introduced a simple system for making that
calculation.
Then
2nd Edition Fantasy Hero came along, and it had its own values for
sectional armor (see the charts on pages 99 and 100 of Fantasy
Hero).
The
two systems aren't so different from one another as to have grossly
different weight results... but their results are somewhat
different.
So,
I'm presenting the armor chart below with BOTH sets of weights; use
whichever column corresponds to the method you're currently using in
your campaign. NH stands for Ninja Hero, and FH
stands for Fantasy Hero. All figures have been rounded to the
nearest 1/10 kg.
| ACHAEAN ARMOR | ||||
| ARMOR | LOCATIONS | DEFENSE | WEIGHT | WEIGHT |
| TYPE | (NH) | (FH) | ||
| Helm | 4-5 | 4 | .5 kg | .4 kg |
| Skullcap | 5 | 2 | .1 kg | .1 kg |
| Byrnie | 9-15 | 7 | 19.6 kg | 19.4 kg |
| Coat of Mail | 9-14 | 3 | 4.6 kg | 4.5 kg |
| Breastplate | 9-11 | 4 | 3.2 kg | 3.7 kg |
| Mitre | 12 | 3 | 1.2 kg | .8 kg |
| Codpiece | 13 | 3 | .5 kg | .7 kg |
| Bronze Greaves | 16-17 | 4 | .8 kg | .4 kg |
| Linen Greaves | 16-17 | 2 | .4 kg | .2 kg |
| Boxing Glove | 6 | 3 | .5 kg | .3 kg |
| Bracers | 7 | 2 | .1 kg | .4 kg |
| AMAZON ARMOR | ||||
| ARMOR | LOCATIONS | DEFENSE | WEIGHT | WEIGHT |
| TYPE | (NH) | (FH) | ||
| Helmet | 4-5 | 3 | .4 kg | .3 kg |
| Body Armor | 7-14 | 3 | 4.9 kg | 5.7 kg |
| Girdle | 12-13 | 3 | 1.8 kg | 1.5 kg |
| FOREIGN ARMOR | ||||
| ARMOR | LOCATIONS | DEFENSE | WEIGHT | WEIGHT |
| TYPE | (NH) | (FH) | ||
| Helm | 4-5 | 4 | .5 kg | .4 kg |
| Body Armor | 9-13 | 4 | 5.8 kg | 5.8 kg |
THE ARMOR-WEIGHT CHEAT, AND HOW TO GET LEGAL
In
the original Mythic Greece, I described an optional rule where
characters in that setting could wear specific pieces of armor on top
of one another and get the full armor value for both pieces. This was
to simulate the fact that characters in the setting did wear multiple
layers of armor.
But
several GMs didn't care for the optional rule because it encouraged abuse.
So here's an alternate way to do things.
The
pieces of armor in Mythic Greece which are worn together are the
Achaean breastplate, coat of mail, mitre, and codpiece as one unit, and
the Amazon body armor and girdle as one unit.
What
we can do is build sets of armor which are fully legal within the Hero
System in terms of weight, but which are functionally the same pieces
of armor from Mythic Greece.
Now,
you're aware that as you increase Def value, Hero System armor becomes
disproportionately heavier. If you take a Def 3 item covering locations
9-11 and a Def 4 item covering those same locations, they together will
not weigh as much as a Def 7 item covering those same locations. So a
legal suit of armor which has the same locations and Def values as the
Mythic Greece armor will simply weigh more than the armor in the
supplement.
But
that's okay: You simply say that the extra weight comes from extra,
necessary padding between the pieces of armor. If the padding is
removed, you can reduced the armor value of the armor.
Achaean Layered Armor:
Add
the Achaean breastplate (Loc 9-11, Def 4), Achaean coat of mail (Loc 9-14,
Def 3), Achaean Mitre (Loc 12, Def 3), and Achaean Codpiece (Loc 13, Def
3) together, and you get a suit of armor that is: Loc 9-11, Def 7; Loc
12-13, Def 6; Loc 14, Def 3. Total (Legal) Weight: 14.6 kg (Ninja
Hero) or 15 kg (Fantasy Hero).
The
difference between this weight and the weight of the four individual
pieces of armor added together represents additional padding between
the pieces of armor, padding which is necessary to let these four
pieces of armor work together.
In
order to remain legal within actual Champions rules, we'd say
that if the padding is not worn with the armor, only the Def value of
the highest-Def piece of armor over a single location is used. (Thus
if there's a 3-Def armor and a 4-Def armor over one location, only
the 4-Def armor counts.)
Amazon Layered Armor:
Add
the Amazon body armor (Loc 7-14, Def 3) and Amazon girdle (Loc 12-13, Def
3) together, and you get a suit of armor that is: Loc 7-11, Def 3; Loc
12-13, Def 6; Loc 14, Def 3. Total (Legal) Weight: 8.2 kg (Ninja
Hero) or 8.5 kg (Fantasy Hero).
Here,
too, the difference between this weight and the weight of the two
individual pieces of armor added together represents additional
padding between the pieces of armor, padding which is necessary to
let these two pieces of armor work together, as described above.
SHIELD PUNCH/SHIELD RUSH (NEW RECOMMENDATIONS)
I
don't much care for the way 2nd Edition Fantasy Hero deals with
shields. The text has entirely dismissed damage bonuses from shields
and severely limits their offensive utility in combat. I can only base
my dissatisfaction on my own (simulated) experience: In my SCA days, I
could hit people harder with a shield than I could with my arm, and a
heavier, bigger shield would tend to hit harder than a smaller, lighter
one. It also helped me hit the enemy line harder in a charge attack.
For
these reasons, I find the 2nd Edition Fantasy Hero rules for
attacking with shields (page 100) woefully inadequate. They say, "If
a character attacks with his shield (a shield rush), he does his normal
STR damage and he adds the shield's DCV Bonus to his OCV for his attack."
In
a Mythic Greece campaign, the attack described is fine, but is
only one of several attacks possible with the shield. The attack
they're describing merely involves standing where you are and smacking
the opponent with the edge or front of the shield; but there are
other ways to attack with a shield.
Shield
Punch: Strike maneuver, OCV bonus equal to shield's DCV bonus, attack
does STR damage of attacker plus the damage bonus of the shield. This is
the maneuver which is described in 2nd Edition Fantasy Hero page
100, except I've built the shields above to have a damage bonus; that's
why they're included in the list of weapons.
Shield
Rush (Head-On): Move-Through maneuver, OCV minus for
movement rate (-V/5, as normal for Move-Throughs), OCV bonus equal
to shield's DCV bonus, attack does STR damage of attacker plus damage
bonus of the shield plus 1d6/3" of attacker's movement rate (also
normal for Move-Throughs). For purposes of the shield rush only,
I recommend that you treat the shield's damage bonus as a simple
addition to the damage done by the Move-Through, not limiting the
attack's damage to twice the shield's damage. Thus, a STR 15
character moving 6" and doing a Shield Rush (Head-On) with a Medium
Shield (2d6N) would do 7d6N, not 4d6N. Again, that recommendation is
for Shield Rushes only, not for Shield Punches.
Shield
Rush (Clip): Move-By maneuver, OCV minus for Move-By
maneuver (-2), OCV bonus equal to shield's DCV bonus, attack does
one-half normal damage (STR damage of attacker plus damage bonus of the
shield) plus 1d6/5" of attacker's movement rate (normal for Move-Bys).
for purposes of the shield rush only, I recommend that you treat
the shield's damage bonus as a simple addition to the damage done by
the Move-By, not limiting the attack's damage to twice the shield's
damage. Thus, a STR 10 character moving 10" and doing a Shield Rush
(Clip) with a Small Shield (1d6N) would do 4d6N, not 2d6N. Again, that
recommendation is for Shield Rushes only, not for Shield Punches.
This entire section is new since the last errata release.
FANTASY HERO "BASIC GOD" (15.1.1)
CHARACTERISTICS
STR: 25* DEX: 20 CON: 30 BODY: 20 INT: 15
EGO: 20 PRE: 30 COM: 20 PD: 15* ED: 15*
SPD: 4 REC: 15 END: 60 STUN: 57 Cost: 200
*: Modifiers for Density Increase Already Applied
PTS SKILLS
3 Disguise, 15-
2 KS: The Gods, 11-
27 Magic Skill, 20- (for VPP)
PTS PERKS
10 Fringe Benefit: God
PTS POWERS END
191 CLAIRSENTIENCE: Sight, Hearing, Smell Groups; Increased
Range x8192 (13 levels; 11,755,520", ca. 14K miles);
Fully Invisible (+1), 0 END (+1/2); Not While Trapped
or Wounded (-1/2) 0
13 DENSITY INCREASE: 2 lvls, Persistent, 0 END, Always On
(x4 mass, +10 STR, -2" knockback, +2 PD, +2 ED) 0
667 DUPLICATION: One 1500-pt Form, One 1200-pt Form, One
800-pt Form; Delayed Effect (+1/4), Time Delay (+1/4),
Trigger (+1/2, Can Be Changed); Next Form Only Appears
After Previous Form Killed (-2) 0
23 LIFE SUPPORT: Breathing Self-Contained (Cannot Take
BODY From Breathed Poisons, But Can Take STUN, -1/4);
Immune to Vacuum/High Pressure, High Radiation,
Heat/Cold, Disease, Aging 0
20 POWER DEFENSE, 30 pts, Half Value vs. Powers of the
Gods (-1/2) 0
7 REGENERATION: 1 BODY/5 Minutes (-1/2) 0
PTS SPELLS END
84 Guide the Hands of Friends: AID 20d6 CP to DEX; Ranged
(+1/2), Fully Invisible (+1); Only for OCV (-1 1/2),
Not When Wounded (-1/2) 25
84 Deflect the Hands of Enemies: AID, Same as "Guide"
above, except Only for DCV) 25
67 Ignite Emotions: MIND CONTROL, 20d6; Telepathic Contact
(+1/4), Invisible to Mental Awareness (+1/2), Half END
(+1/4); Affects Emotions Only (No Specific Commands
Possible) (-1/2), Extra Time 1 Turn (-1), Not When
Wounded (-1/2) 10
150 Step From Place to Place: TELEPORT 15", x16,384
Distance (14 levels, 245,760", ca. 300 miles), 6400 kg,
20 Memorized Locations; Ranged (+1/2), Usable Against
Others (+1); Extra Time 1 Turn (-1), Not When Wounded
(-1/2) 30
25 Heal at a Distance: 8d6 AID (Heal); Invisible to Sight
(+1/2), Ranged 400" (+1/2); 1d6 Applied Every 5 Minutes
(-1 3/4); Not When Wounded (-1/2) 8
133 Conceal Things in Darkness: DARKNESS, Full Sight Group,
19" Diameter (1,000" Range); Not When Wounded (-1/2);
(Does Not Affect Clairvoyance) 20
24 Take the Forms of Others: SHAPE SHIFT, Any Other Shape;
0 END (+1/2), Persistent (+1/2); Extra Time 1 Turn
(-1), Not When Wounded (-1/2) 0
138 Create Creatures and Plants: SUMMON 1000-Point
Creatures, Variable Special Effects (Any, +1/2); Extra
Time 1 Turn (-1), Not When Wounded (-1/2) 34
150 Change the Forms of Others: TRANSFORM, 10d6 Major;
Cumulative (+1/2), Changes Target Into Anything (+1);
Extra Time 1 Turn (-1), Not When Wounded (-1/2) 37
2 Endow Immortality: TRANSFORM, 1d6 Minor, Mortal to
Immortal; Cumulative (+1/2); Costs 10x END (-4) From
END Reserve, Extra Time 1 Day (-3 1/2), Not When
Wounded (-1/2) 15
0 Endow Immortality END Reserve: 0 END 0
PTS FRAMEWORKS END
100 Variable Power Pool: 100 Active Points var
25 VPP Control Cost: Only For Growth, Shrinking, Or To
Simulate Natural Abilities of Forms Taken With Shape
Shift Power & Cannot More Than Double Power of Natural
Animal Abilities (-1/2), Not When Wounded (-1/2) var
PTS DISADVANTAGES
20 Distinctive Features: Godly Mien (concealable with Shape
Shift, extreme awe reaction)
25 Psych: Jealous of Prerogatives (vc, total)
2100 STARTING POINTS
CHA 200 + Powers 1945 = 2145 = Disads 45 + Base 2100
OCV: 7; DCV: 7; ECV: 7; Phases: 3,6,9,12
DESCRIPTION OF FANTASY HERO POWERS (15.1.2)
The
gods have a variety of powers available to them. Interestingly, these
powers do not make them more powerful warriors than the great human
heroes; human heroes such as Heracles and Diomedes have defeated gods
in single combat on a number of occasions. These powers do mean, however,
that in an overall sense the gods are far more powerful than mortals.
Godly powers include:
Clairsentience.
Gods can perceive events anywhere on the world; they have full senses of
sight, hearing, and smell wherever they choose to direct those senses.
This power, like many of the spells to be described later, does not
function when the god is injured, nor does it function when the god is
somehow imprisoned.
Density
Increase. This is actually an optional power; don't use it if you
don't wish. At one point in Homer, Athena is described as being of
great, godly weight even when in the form of a mortal; this power
simulates that. If you don't care for it, eliminate the power and buy
up the god's characteristics to replace those lost.
Duplication.
This has already been described, under "Low-Powered Gods." As shown
here, a standard god killed once would be reduced to a 1500-point god
upon awakening; killed again before he earned experienced and improved
his Duplication, he'd be reduced to 1200 points; and so on. But you
can assign different values to the Duplicates.
Life
Support. It's not that the gods don't breathe; it's that they can
safely breathe any atmosphere. The sole exception is an atmosphere,
gas or chemical meant to be an attack. The god is immune to
vacuum (if there is any in an Age of Heroes setting!), pressure (so
they can function at great ocean depths), radiation (if, again, there
is any), great heat or cold, disease, or age.
Power
Defense: This makes the gods more resistant to the many Transform
powers found in the setting. It is more effective against human spells
than godly attacks, however.
Regeneration:
This power is straightforward: Gods heal quickly owing to the ichor
that serves them for blood.
DESCRIPTION OF FANTASY HERO SPELLS (15.1.3)
A
god's spells differ from his natural powers in two significant ways: No
spells will function if the god is currently injured (i.e., he has taken
any BODY damage which is not yet healed), and most spells require END
expenditure — many are so powerful that they cost a lost of
END.
Guide
the Hands of Friends: With this spell, normally used from an unseen
vantage point, the god improves the aim of a favored mortal for awhile.
An average roll on 20d6 is 70, meaning that the average mortal gains
about 23 points of OCV-only DEX, for a gain of about +8 to OCV. The
spell wears off at normal rates for the Aid power.
Deflect
the Hands of Enemies: This is identical to the "Guide" spell,
except the favored mortal gains an average of +8 to DCV.
Ignite
Emotions: Gods can affect the emotions of mortals, filling
them with anger, lust, jealousy, calmness, disdain, etc. But this power
doesn't let them issue specific commands, and use of the spell often
went awry. A god might infect a nymph with desire, only to see a comely
satyr wander across her field of vision before the god can approach
her; or, the god might hit a king with rage just before he's to meet
someone the god wants him to attack, only to have someone else walk in
on the king first; such events can lead to unwanted and inexplicable
wars and disasters, so the gods tend to be careful when using this
spell.
Step
From Place to Place: The gods can move effortlessly between places,
but usually have to do so in steps of several hundred miles at a time.
The special effects of this spell often involve whirlwinds whisking the
gods away, or the gods growing great and misty, then stepping from land
to land.
Heal
At a Distance: Gods use this power to help critically-injured mortals,
and also to heal one another (yes, they have regenerative powers, but
regeneration plus a healing spell means they feel better faster).
This spell is invisible to the eye, so mortals often don't notice that
they are healing until the healing process is well along.
Conceal
Things In Darkness: Gods use this power to make getaways,
or to enable their favorite mortals to make getaways, or to conceal
their activities. The standard special effect is a field of fog
suddenly descending over the area. Note that a god's Clairvoyance can
see right through the fog, so it is of limited utility against the
gods... but a quick-moving god can cast the spell and have a
subordinate whisk a wounded favorite off to safety before a god can get
his Clairvoyance working. This is useful when one god wants to save a
mortal from the deadly intent of another god.
Take
the Forms of Others: Gods can shape shift into any sort of
animal, monster or (if they use their Disguise skill) specific person.
Associated with the Shape Shift power is a Variable Power Pool allowing
the god to emulate the natural abilities of the shape being assumed; a
god turning into a bird will acquire wings and the ability to talk to
birds, for instance. Gods, being gods, can improve on nature, and take
on abilities up to twice as powerful as the normal creature's
abilities, up to the limits on the Variable Power Pool.
That
VPP is also for growth and shrinking; gods can become much larger or
smaller if they please. They usually take on these powers with Persistent,
0 END, so they can maintain the height they wish.
I've
interpreted the combination of the "Persistent" advantage and the "Not
While Wounded" limitation to mean that an injured god cannot shape
shift, but a god who has changed his shape and is then wounded will
stay in his current shape. Other GMs may choose to look at it
differently.
Create
Creatures and Plants: Gods can summon up monsters as they
choose, and can create all-new species of animals and monsters. This is
best represented with a Summon power. Though their Summon is rated at
1,000-point creatures, the gods often create creatures much less
powerful; they design a creature to a specific task and don't overload
it with powers and abilities. Note that the gods don't have any control
mechanism for the monsters they create, except the ability to affect
their emotions, which is why they often just create a monster, make it
enraged, and deposit it near the city they wish it to destroy.
Change
the Forms of Others: Gods are notorious for turning offending humans
into inanimate objects, into insects, etc. This isn't a combat-efficient
power, as it takes a full turn to cast, but is quite effective for
punishing transgressors.
Endow
Immortality: With this power, the gods turn mortals into immortals.
The power costs permanent END from an END reserve; this helps regulate
the number of immortals a god might wish to create. To regulate it
further, you might decide that each full use of this spell only grants
one godly power to a mortal, so the god has to cast the spell
many times and burn a lot of his own character points to grant full
godly status to a mortal.
Before I actually break down the cost-accounting of the weapons and armor you saw in Part Three, I wanted to discuss several of the factors that went into costing out those items.
When
the power Hand-to-Hand Attack was introduced in 4th Edition
Champions, the word came down that all normal-damage melee
weapons were to be built with the power. Unfortunately, this screws
up the whole Strength Minimum structure in the game.
Normally,
the STR Min for a melee weapon is Active Pts/2. For instance, a 1d6+1
sword is 20 active points; thus, the STR Min is 10. Very simple.
However, in the case of normal-damage weapons, you can follow this
formula and get a lot of Damage Classes for very little Strength
required.
There's
a discrepancy here.
So
in the Mythic Greece Normal-Damage Clubs, I fiddled with the STR
Mins, using some of the alternate (legal) STR Min figures (Active Pts/3,
or Active Pts/2 +5 STR Min, for example). This is just to keep the
heavier clubs from having ridiculously low STR Mins and to stretch
the range of STR Mins out over a more reasonable distance.
STR
Min for heroic-level campaign weapons tends to be a sore point among
many Hero Games cost-accounters. Basically, during the 4th Edition
Champions revision process, word came down from on high that
STR Min would be based on the active point value of the weapon damage
and OCV bonuses. The designers were to take weapon damage,
multiply by advantages, add values for OCV Bonuses, and take a fraction
of that number as the STR Min.
Well,
I followed the rules as stated when converting Mythic Greece
weapons to 4th Edition. However, I did take certain basic assumptions
which may not be intuitively obvious.
First,
since OCV bonuses (i.e., Combat Skill Levels) are added to active point
totals of the weapon powers, I decided that for the Mythic Greece
weapons, OCV minuses would be subtracted from those active point totals.
Fair is fair, after all. (This isn't exactly a move of bold defiance.
After I converted all these weapons, I checked the 2nd Edition
Fantasy Hero weapons list, concentrating on the polearms,
and discovered that they, too, followed this convention.)
Second,
I followed a convention I introduced in Ninja Hero. Most
muscle-powered melee weapons are supposed to take "Pts/2" as the basis
for their STR Min calculation. If a weapon has 30 active points, it has
a STR Min of 15. That's simple enough. But with weapons which can be
thrown, the +1/2 "Thrown" advantage makes the active point cost higher,
meaning that throwing weapons are heavier to wield than their
non-throwing counterparts. Since this makes no sense to me, I almost
universally applied a "-5 STR Min" advantage to weapons which can be
thrown.
Third,
for players who just can't stomach the STR Min modifiers from OCV
bonuses/penalties, in the cost breakdowns I've included optional STR
Min stats which don't factor in the OCV modifiers. These optional STR
Min stats are buried in the breakdowns, so read them carefully.
I've
changed the Knife to make it a less effective weapon than the Dagger. I
did this because I was annoyed with the way the two weapons had been
structured so far in Hero System games.
In
1st-Edition Fantasy Hero, the weapons had identical damage
(1/2d6 is functionally identical to 1d6-1; they're both 2 DC) and
other stats except for STR Min (Knife 3, Dagger 5), but the Knife could
be thrown and the Dagger couldn't be. With Mythic Greece, I
blindly copied all the stats but didn't realize that 1st Edition
Fantasy Hero had espoused the preposterous notion that daggers
couldn't be thrown; daggers in Mythic Greece could be thrown,
so the distinction between the weapons amounted only to the STR Min
scores. In 2nd Edition Fantasy Hero, it became explicit that
both weapons can be thrown, so again the only differences are
the bogus damage distinction and the STR Min difference (Knife 6,
Dagger 8).
For
Mythic Greece in this errata, the difference between the weapons
is that we're presuming that the Knife is a blade which is not really
built for combat: It's shorter, has no hand-guard, etc. I'm simply
removing the +1 OCV bonus to account for this, and that change will
also affect the weapon's STR Min.
The body armor point breakdowns below follows the Ninja Hero conventions for limitation and weight values for limited location coverage. You can calculate Fantasy Hero weights for individual pieces of armor very simply: See the chart on page 99 of Fantasy Hero. Both Ninja Hero and Fantasy Hero weights were listed for the armor pieces in Part Three.
There's always the possibility that I've goofed in some of the following number breakdowns. If you notice an error in the listings below, please drop me a note at one of the e-mail addresses listed at the top of this file.
Stick:
H-t-H Attack 2d6 (6). (6 pts active.) OAF (-1), Ind (-2), STR Min Pts/2
(-1). Active pts 6 @ -4 = 1 pt; STR Min 3.
Baton:
H-t-H Attack 3d6 (9). (9 pts active.) OAF (-1), Ind (-2), STR Min Pts/2
(-1). Active pts 9 @ -4 = 2 pts; STR Min 4.
Club:
H-t-H Attack 4d6 (12). (12 pts active.) OAF (-1), Ind (-2), STR Min Pts/3+5
(-1 1/4), 1.5H (-1/4). Active pts 12 @ -4 1/2 = 2 pts; STR Min 9.
Large Club: H-t-H Attack 5d6 (15). (15 pts active.) OAF (-1), Ind (-2), STR Min Pts/2 +5 STR (-1 1/2), 1.5H (-1/4). Active pts 15 @ -4 3/4 = 3 pts; STR Min 12.
Great Club: H-t-H Attack 6d6 (18). (18 pts active.) OAF (-1), Ind (-2), STR Min Pts/2 +5 STR (-1 1/2), 1.5H (-1/4). Active pts 18 @ -4 3/4 = 3 pts; STR Min 14.
Bronze-Headed Club: -1 Combat Skill Level (-5). HKA 2d6 (30). (25 pts active.) OAF (-1), Ind (-2), STR Min Pts/2 (-1), 1.5H (-1/4). Active pts 25 @ -4 1/4 = 5 pts; STR Min 12. STR Min Not Counting -1 OCV: 15.
Javelin: HKA 1d6 (15); Throw (+1/2). (22 pts active.) OAF (-1), Ind (-2), STR Min Pts/2 -5 STR (-1/2), 1.5H (-1/4). Active pts 22 @ -3 3/4= 5 pts; STR Min 6.
Short Spear: -1 Combat Skill Level (-5). HKA 1 1/2d6K (25); Throw (+1/2). (32 pts active.) OAF (-1), Ind (-2), STR Min Pts/2 -5 STR (-1/2), 1.5H (-1/4). Active pts 32 @ -3 3/4 = 7 pts; STR Min 11. STR Min Not Counting -1 OCV: 13.
Long Spear: -1 Combat Skill Level (-5). HKA 2d6 (30); Throw
(+1/2). (40 pts active.) OAF (-1), Ind (-2), STR Min Pts/2 -5 STR
(-1/2), 1.5H (-1/4). Active pts 40 @ -3 3/4 = 8 pts. Add Stretching
1" (5), 0 END (+1/2), No Noncombat Stretch (-1/4), OAF (-1), Ind (-2).
Active pts 7 @ -3 1/4 = 2 pts. Total Cost = 10 pts; STR Min 15. STR Min
Not Counting -1 OCV: 17. Note that this Long Spear, unlike the one in
the new Fantasy Hero, can be thrown. This is because
throwing long spears is a regular event in The Iliad; we need to
be able to simulate it in Mythic Greece.
Great Spear: -1 Combat Skill Level (-5). HKA 2d6+1 (35). (30 pts
active.) OAF (-1), Ind (-2), STR Min Pts/2 (-1), 2H (-1/2). Active pts
30 @ -4 1/2 = 5 pts. Add Stretching 2" (10), 0 END (+1/2), No Noncombat
Stretch (-1/4), OAF (-1), Ind (-2). Active pts 15 @ -3 1/4 = 4 pts. Total
Cost = 9 pts; STR Min 15. STR Min Not Counting -1 OCV: 17. This spear
spear is similar to the Long Spear but is longer (about 16') and unfit
for throwing. I upped its damage from the original Mythic Greece
by one damage class.
Ship's Pike: -1 Combat Skill Level (-5). HKA 2 1/2d6 (40). (35 pts active.) OAF (-1), Ind (-2), STR Min Pts/2 (-1), 2H (-1/2). Active pts 35 @ -4 1/2 = 6 pts. Add Stretching 3" (15), 0 END (+1/2), No Noncombat Stretch (-1/4), OAF (-1), Ind (-2). Active pts 22 @ -3 1/4 = 5 pts. Total Cost = 11 pts; STR Min 17. STR Min Not Counting -1 OCV: 20.
Short Trident: -1 Combat Skill Level (-5). +2 Combat Skill Levels with Bind, Block, Disarm, Takeaway (6). HKA 1 1/2d6 (25); Throw (+1/2). (38 pts active.) OAF (-1), Ind (-2), STR Min Pts/2 -5 STR (-1/2), 1.5H (-1/4). Active pts 38 @ -3 3/4 = 8 pts; STR Min 14. STR Min Not Counting OCV Mods: 13.
Long Trident: -1 Combat Skill Level (-5). +2 Combat Skill Levels with Bind, Block, Disarm, Takeaway (6). HKA 2d6 (30); Throw (+1/2). (46 pts active.) OAF (-1), Ind (-2), STR Min Pts/2 -5 STR (-1/2), 1.5H (-1/4). Active pts 46 @ -3 3/4 = 10 pts. Add Stretching 1" (5), 0 END (+1/2), No Noncombat Stretch (-1/4), OAF (-1), Ind (-2). Active pts 7 @ -3 1/4 = 2 pts. Total Cost 12; STR Min 18. STR Min Not Counting OCV Mods: 17.
Knife: HKA 1/2d6 (10); Throw (+1/2). (15 pts active.) OAF (-1), Ind (-2), STR Min Pts/2 -5 STR (-1/2). Active pts 15 @ -3 1/2 = 3 pts; STR Min 2.
Dagger: +1 Combat Skill Level (5). HKA 1/2d6 (10); Throw (+1/2). (20 pts active.) OAF (-1), Ind (-2), STR Min Pts/2 -5 STR (-1/2). Active pts 20 @ -3 1/2 = 4 pts; STR Min 5. STR Min Not Counting +1 OCV: 2.
Shortsword: +1 Combat Skill Level (5). HKA 1d6 (15). (20 pts active.) OAF (-1), Ind (-2), STR Min Pts/2 (-1). Active pts 20 @ -4 = 4 pts; STR Min 10. STR Min Not Counting +1 OCV: 7.
Sickle: HKA 1d6 (15). (15 pts active.) OAF (-1), Ind (-2), STR Min Pts/2 (-1). Active pts 15 @ -4 = 3 pts; STR Min 7. I've removed the OCV +1 from this weapon; shortswords should be better than sickles.
Longsword, Cretan: +1 Combat Skill Level (5). HKA 1d6+1 (20). (25 pts active.) OAF (-1), Ind (-2), STR Min Pts/2 (-1), 15- Burnout (-0). Active pts 25 @ -4 = 5 pts; STR Min 12. STR Min Not Counting +1 OCV: 10. The 15- Burnout means that the wielder rolls 3d6 every time he strikes; on a 16 or higher, the weapon breaks.
Axe, Amazon: HKA 1d6+1 (20); Throw (+1/2). (30 pts active.) OAF (-1), Ind (-2), STR Min Pts/2 -5 STR (-1/2). Active pts 30 @ -3 1/2 = 7 pts; STR Min 10.
Axe, Cretan: -1 Combat Skill Level (-5). HKA 2d6 (30). (25 pts active.) OAF (-1), Ind (-2), STR Min Pts/2 (-1), 2H (-1/2). Active pts 25 @ -4 1/2 = 5 pts; STR Min 12. STR Min Not Counting -1 OCV: 15.
Rock, Huge: -2 OCV (-10). HKA 2d6 (30); Throw (+1/2). (35 pts active.) OAF (-1), Ind (-2), STR Min Pts/2 +5 STR (-1 1/2), 2H (-1/2). Active pts 35 @ -5 = 6 pts; STR Min 22. STR Min Not Counting -2 OCV (Would Be Built Without +5 STR Min): 22.
Boxing Glove, Spiked: HKA 1 pip (5). OIF (-1/2), Ind (-2), STR Min Pts/2 (-1), Linked to Punching Damage (-1/4). Active pts 5 @ -3 3/4 = 1 pt. Add Armor 3 Def (9), Loc 6 (1 location, -2), OIF (-1/2), Ind (-2), Real Armor (-1/4), Mass (-1); Active pts 9 @ -5 3/4 = 1 pt. Total Cost 2 pts; STR Min 2.
Bow, Light: RKA 1d6 (15). (15 active pts.) OAF (-1), Ind (-2), 2H (-1/2), 1 Recoverable Charge (-1 1/4), Concentrate 1/2 DCV (-1/2), STR Min Pts/2 (-1), Can't Add Damage With STR Min (-1/2). Active pts 15 @ -6 3/4 = 2 pts; STR Min 7. Active pts 15 x 5 = Range 75".
Bow, Medium: RKA 1d6+1 (20). (20 active pts.) OAF (-1), Ind (-2), 2H (-1/2), 1 Recoverable Charge (-1 1/4), Concentrate 1/2 DCV (-1/2), STR Min Pts/2 (-1), Can't Add Damage With STR Min (-1/2). Active pts 20 @ -6 3/4 = 3 pts; STR Min 10. Active pts 20 x 5 = Range 100".
Bow, Heavy: RKA 1 1/2d6 (25). (25 active pts.) OAF (-1), Ind (-2), 2H (-1/2), 1 Recoverable Charge (-1 1/4), Concentrate 1/2 DCV (-1/2), STR Min Pts/2 (-1), Can't Add Damage With STR Min (-1/2). Active pts 25 @ -6 3/4 = 3 pts; STR Min 12. Active pts 25 x 5 = Range 125".
Bow, Very Heavy: RKA 2d6 (30). (30 active pts.) OAF (-1), Ind (-2), 2H (-1/2), 1 Recoverable Charge (-1 1/4), Concentrate 1/2 DCV (-1/2), STR Min Pts/2 (-1), Can't Add Damage With STR Min (-1/2). Active pts 30 @ -6 3/4 = 4 pts; STR Min 15. Active pts 30 x 5 = Range 150".
Sling: -1 Range Skill Level (-2). RKA 1d6 (15); +1 STUN (+1/2). (20 active pts.) OAF (-1), Ind (-2), 2H (-1/2), 1 Recoverable Charge (-1 1/4), Concentrate 1/2 DCV (-1/2), STR Min Pts/2 (-1), Can't Add Damage With STR Min (-1/2). Active pts 20 @ -6 3/4 = 3 pts; STR Min 10. STR Min Not Counting -1 Range Mod: 11. Active pts 20 x 5 = Range 100".
Shield, Small: Combat Skill Level +1 (for DCV bonus) (5). (5
active pts.) OAF (-1), Ind (-2), STR Min 3+5x DCV Bonus (-1). Active
pts 5 @ -4 = 1 pt; STR Min 8. Add Combat Skill Level +1 (for group of
maneuvers: shield punch, shield rush) (3). H-t-H Attack 2d6 (6). (9
active pts.) OAF (-1), Ind (-2), STR Min Pts/2 (-1). Active pts 9 @
-4 = 2 pts; STR Min 4. Total cost 3; total STR Min 8 (higher of the
two). If the shield is attacked, its own statistics are Def 3/BODY 3
(each BODY taken destroys one power).
Shield, Medium: Combat Skill Level +2 (for DCV bonus) (10). (10
active pts.) OAF (-1), Ind (-2), STR Min 3+5x DCV Bonus (-1). Active
pts 10 @ -4 = 2 pts; STR Min 13. Add Combat Skill Level +2 (for group
of maneuvers: shield punch, shield rush) (6). H-t-H Attack 3d6 (9). (15
active pts.) OAF (-1), Ind (-2), STR Min Pts/2 (-1). Active pts 15 @ -4
= 3 pts; STR Min 7. Total cost 5; total STR Min 13 (higher of the two).
If the shield is attacked, its own statistics are Def 3/BODY 3 (each
BODY taken destroys one power).
Shield, Large: Combat Skill Level +3 (for DCV bonus) (15). (15
active pts.) OAF (-1), Ind (-2), STR Min 3+5x DCV Bonus (-1). Active
pts 15 @ -4 = 3 pts; STR Min 18. Add Combat Skill Level +3 (for group
of maneuvers: shield punch, shield rush) (9). H-t-H Attack 4d6 (12).
(21 active pts.) OAF (-1), Ind (-2), STR Min Pts/2 (-1). Active pts 21
@ -4 = 4 pts; STR Min 10. Total cost 7; total STR Min 18 (higher of the
two). If the shield is attacked, its own statistics are Def 3/BODY 3
(each BODY taken destroys one power).
Achaean Helm: Armor 4 Def (12). Loc 4-5 (2 locations). OIF (-1/2), Ind (-2), Real Armor (-1/4), Mass (-1), 2 Locs (-2). Active 12 @ -6 3/4 = 2 pts. Loc 4-5 = 2/40 Mass: x4 Def = .5 kg.
Achaean Skullcap: Armor 2 Def (6). Loc 5 (1 location). OIF (-1/2), Ind (-2), Real Armor (-1/4), Mass (-1), 1 Loc (-2). Active 6 @ -6 3/4 = 1 pt. Loc 5 = 1/40 Mass: x2 Def = .125 kg.
Achaean Byrnie: Armor 7 Def (21). Loc 9-15 (7 locations). OIF (-1/2), Ind (-2), Real Armor (-1/4), Mass (-1), 7 Locs (-1). Active 21 @ -5 3/4 = 3 pts. Loc 9-15 = 28/40 Mass: x7 Def = 19.6 kg.
Achaean Coat of Mail: Armor 3 Def (9). Loc 9-14 (6 locations). OIF (-1/2), Ind (-2), Real Armor (-1/4), Mass (-1), 6 Locs (-1). Active 9 @ -4 3/4 = 2 pt. Loc 9-14 = 26/40 Mass: x3 Def = 4.55 kg.
Achaean Breastplate: Armor 4 Def (12). Loc 9-11 (3 locations). OIF (-1/2), Ind (-2), Real Armor (-1/4), Mass (-1), 3 Locs (-1 1/2). Active 12 @ -5 1/4 = 2 pts. Loc 9-11 = 13/40 Mass: x4 Def = 3.25 kg.
Achaean Mitre: Armor 3 Def (9). Loc 12 (1 location). OIF (-1/2), Ind (-2), Real Armor (-1/4), Mass (-1), 1 Loc (-2). Active 9 @ -5 3/4 = 1 pt. Loc 12 = 7/40 Mass: x3 Def = 1.225 kg.
Achaean Codpiece: Armor 3 Def (9). Loc 13 (1 location). OIF (-1/2), Ind (-2), Real Armor (-1/4), Mass (-1), 1 Loc (-2). Active 9 @ -5 3/4 = 1 pt. Loc 13 = 3/40 Mass: x3 Def = .525 kg.
Achaean Bronze Greaves: Armor 4 Def (12). Loc 16-17 (2 locations). OIF (-1/2), Ind (-2), Real Armor (-1/4), Mass (-1), 2 Locs (-2). Active 12 @ -5 3/4 = 2 pts. Loc 16-17 = 3/40 Mass: x4 Def = .75 kg.
Achaean Linen Greaves: Armor 2 Def (6). Loc 16-17 (2 locations). OIF (-1/2), Ind (-2), Real Armor (-1/4), Mass (-1), 2 Locs (-2). Active 6 @ -5 3/4 = 1 pt. Loc 16-17 = 3/40 Mass: x2 Def = .375 kg.
Achaean/Minoan Boxing Gloves: Armor 3 Def (9). Loc 6 (1 location). OIF (-1/2), Ind (-2), Real Armor (-1/4), Mass (-1), 1 Loc (-2). Active pts 9 @ -5 3/4 = 1 pt; STR Min 0. Loc 6 = 3/40 Mass: x3 Def = .525 kg.
Achaean Bracers: Armor 2 Def (6). Loc 7 (1 location). OIF (-1/2), Ind (-2), Real Armor (-1/4), Mass (-1), 1 Loc (-2). Active 6 @ -5 3/4 = 1 pt. Loc 7 = 1/40 Mass: x2 Def = .125 kg.
Amazon Helmet: Armor 3 Def (9). Loc 4-5 (2 locations). OIF (-1/2), Ind (-2), Real Armor (-1/4), Mass (-1), 2 Locs (-2). Active 9 @ -5 3/4 = 1 pt. Loc 4-5 = 2/40 Mass: x3 Def = .35 kg.
Amazon Body Armor: Armor 3 Def (9). Loc 7-14 (8 locations). OIF (-1/2), Ind (-2), Real Armor (-1/4), Mass (-1), 8 Locs (-3/4). Active 9 @ -4 1/2 = 2 pts. Loc 7-14 = 28/40 Mass: x3 Def = 4.9 kg.
Amazon Girdle: Armor 3 Def (9). Loc 12-13 (2 locations). OIF (-1/2), Ind (-2), Real Armor (-1/4), Mass (-1), 2 Locs (-2). Active 9 @ -5 3/4 = 1 pt. Loc 12-13 = 10/40 Mass: x3 Def = 1.75 kg.
Foreign Helm: Armor 4 Def (12). Loc 4-5 (2 locations). OIF (-1/2), Ind (-2), Real Armor (-1/4), Mass (-1), 2 Locs (-2). Active 12 @ -5 3/4 = 2 pts. Loc 4-5 = 2/40 Mass: x4 Def = .5 kg.
Foreign Body Armor: Armor 4 Def (12). 9-13 (5 locations). Active OIF (-1/2), Ind (-2), Real Armor (-1/4), Mass (-1), 5 Locs (-1). Active 12 @ -4 3/4 = 2 pts. Loc 9-13 = 23/40 Mass: x4 Def = 5.75 kg.
Achaean Layered Armor: Armor 7 Def (21). Loc 9-11 (3 locations).
OIF (-1/2), Ind (-2), Real Armor (-1/4), Mass (-1), 3 Locs (-1 1/2).
Active 21 @ -5 1/4 = 3 pts. Loc 9-11 = 13/40 Mass: x7 Def = 9.1
kg. Armor 6 Def (18). Loc 12-13 (2 locations). OIF (-1/2), Ind (-2),
Real Armor (-1/4), Mass (-1), 2 Locs (-2). Active 18 @ -5 3/4 = 3 pts.
Loc 12-13 = 10/40 Mass: x6 Def = 5 kg. Armor 3 Def (9). Loc 14
(1 location). OIF (-1/2), Ind (-2), Real Armor (-1/4), Mass (-1), 1 Loc
(-2). Active 9 @ -5 3/4 = 1 pt. Loc 14 = 3/40 Mass: x3 Def =
5.25 kg. Total Cost: 7 pts. Total Mass: 14.625 kg.
Amazon Layered Armor: Armor 3 Def (9). Loc 7-11, 14 (6 locations). OIF (-1/2), Ind (-2), Real Armor (-1/4), Mass (-1), 6 Locs (-1). Active 9 @ -4 3/4 = 2 pts. Loc 7-11 & 14 = 18/40 Mass: x3 Def = 3.15 kg. Armor 6 Def (18). Loc 12-13 (2 locations). OIF (-1/2), Ind (-2), Real Armor (-1/4), Mass (-1), 2 Locs (-2). Active 18 @ -5 3/4 = 3 pts. Loc 12-13 = 10/40 Mass: x6 Def = 5 kg. Total Cost: 5 pts. Total Mass: 8.15 kg.
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