HQ2 Keyword House Rules

[Phil Nicholls]

Hi Heroquesters,

I have just begun running a new campaign and the character generation process reminded me of the variant keywords I use in my game.

The central change is to limit the number of breakout abilities to five. We have found this enough to ensure variety between the characters, but without an opportunity for power-gaming.

Further details on my Tales of a GM blog:

Building Heroes: HeroQuest 2 Keyword Variants

Of course, I have not played with the unlimited keyword option. I am sure some of my Players would have pushed the envelope. How have your Players coped? Can it be broken, or am I just being cynical?

All the best
Phil

[Jeff Richard]

I’ve not experienced any problems with characters “breaking the game” with too many breakout abilities. Given that the ability is already something “within” the keyword it simply gives them a more colorful and interesting ability to try to overcome obstacles with. My experience is that tends to be self-limiting; there’s little point in developing more breakout abilities than you can use (especially since you are limited to one augment).

[Harald Smith]

I’ve not had issues to date, though most characters I’ve seen have tended to be in the 5-8 breakout range. As Jeff notes, breakouts are self-limiting in several ways:
1) they define a much narrower capability than a keyword. When the situation fits, they get used. When it doesn’t, they are a best stretches, and likely unusable.
2) the augment limit restricts what you can use at any point in time.
3) the more you have, the less you can focus on any one thing. When you have Hero Points to spend, you have to decide whether to spread broadly across many different abilities or concentrate on one or a few.
I don’t mind having characters that are generalists with many abilities – they are as interesting in their way as the specialist with just a few, high-value breakout abilities.

[Alistair Jones]

I think that a great deal depends on your players. These days I am fortunate in playing with a small cadre who understand the concepts behind HQ thoroughly. In the past I have had to deal with those who suffered from an ‘I can’t believe I’m not Superman’ mindset or, indeed, ‘Whatchermean I can’t be a Gloranthan half-elf Fighter-Cleric-Illusionist-Assassin?’ outlook.
Rules are there for the restriction of the dangerous and the guidance of the wise.

[Robin Mitra]

I understand your concern about allowing a character, who uses only a single keyword with 20 breakout abilities. However, I think HQ2 already deals with it easily, for example by the rule that a player cannot augment a breakout ability with another breakout ability of the same keyword.

If you think that the internal logic and credibility of your series allows the sixth breakout ability, you should give the permission. If you think the sixth ability does not fit the character’s job description or cultural background you should not allow it.

[Phil Nicholls]

Hi Heroquesters,

I am glad to read that your experiences with the rules as written have not resulted in rampant powergaming. I know there is always one Player who will try their luck, but it is pleasing to know the consensus is that the rules work.

Perhaps the five breakout limit was also my first attempt at making sense of a narrative rules system after so long playing f20-style games.

How about the more structured Homeland Keyword? What were your thoughts on that?

All the best
Phil

[Robin Mitra]

It is my belief that a backstory, no matter how compelling, is of no relevance to the Hero unless it is expressed in the mechanics.

1. I have a different approach on this. For me the most important paragraph of the HQ2 book is the very first “Tools, Not Rules”. So when I have to make a decision as a narrator I ask myself: “Which way is more fun?” If the player wrote a brilliant background story for her character that provides an interesting story hook, NPC, flaw or even ability I am going to use it, whether it is on the character sheet or not.

Of course I would not do that if I had the impression that the player was just writing a 100 pages essay to get more power gaming abilities.

2. Generally I would not set homeland categories. First of all the cultural keyword described in HQ2 can be very wide or very specific, depending on your setting, the genre and so on. It could range from a group of billions like “Federation of Planets” to just a handful like “Benedreth’s Bloodline”. Consequently not all your suggested categories would necessarily matter to all players, even within the same group. Hence one character’s backstory might explain in detail how the character was raised and educated, how she was treated by her parents and how she made important decisions as a child that would change her life forever. While another player might begin the backstory at the age of 25, on the day the character was enlisted into the Lunar Army. Accordingly both characters may have very different cultural keywords, but still be siblings who serve in the same platoon.

3. Have you tried using the clan questionnaire? I think it could give you and your players a good tool, if you want to emphasize on background and culture.

[Phil Nicholls]

Hi Robin,

If the player wrote a brilliant background story for her character that provides an interesting story hook, NPC, flaw or even ability I am going to use it, whether it is on the character sheet or not.

But then once they use it, does it not then appear on their character sheet?

For background to have mechanical relevance to the Hero, does it not need to be expressed in a way that matters to the mechanics? I could award a skill bonus for weaving in some element of a Hero’s background, but that could prove rather subjective to assign values to events from different backstories. Having abilities linked to each hero’s past listed as part of the Homeland Keyword seems to work for us.

Of course, my Players have no other experience of HeroQuest, so are unaware of the proper way to play.

No, we have not run through the clan questionnaire, as we are not playing a Sartar-based game. I would consider using it if we were.

Thanks for your comments.

All the best
Phil

[Robin Mitra]

But then once they use it, does it not then appear on their character sheet?

For background to have mechanical relevance to the Hero, does it not need to be expressed in a way that matters to the mechanics?

Not necessarily. Sometimes it is not important to note something on the character sheet, but you have an idea relating to the backstory, so you use it even repeatedly. Sometimes players simply forget to write down a new ability that appeared during the game. And sometimes you may not even want to have an ability on the character sheet. For example I once ran a series on modern earth, where the player did not know that his character was nuts. He thought he had lots of friends and a big family, but in fact they where all long dead and only imaginary friends. I thought it would not have been fair to let the player spend heropoints on those contacts, still I used it quiet frequently to give the players hints and opinions about the series.

Having abilities linked to each hero’s past listed as part of the Homeland Keyword seems to work for us.

That is the most important issue. If it works for you – do it!

Of course, my Players have no other experience of HeroQuest, so are unaware of the proper way to play.

Your way IS the proper way. Be brave!

No, we have not run through the clan questionnaire, as we are not playing a Sartar-based game. I would consider using it if we were.

The questionnaire is a tool for HeroQuest and not only Glorantha. That’s why you find it on p. 88 and not in “Gaming in Glorantha”. You can use it for any kind of setting from fantasy to Sci-Fi. It helps you and your players to get an idea how their community works and what is important for them. Once you have done that you might find even more uses for the homeland keyword.

[Phil Nicholls]

Hi Robin,

Thank you again for your response.

Perhaps the broader issue here is that HQ is so different from the bulk of RPGs that different people need different tools to help them adjust. I like to think I am a narrative gamer, but perhaps I need a little more structure in my game than HQ offers. I am very lucky that my Players have come on this journey with me, and we have found a system which works for us.

Yet, there are still areas for improvement. I am hoping HQ:G will bring a fresh look at the rules, not least as I shall read it and thus find all those areas where I have been going wrong.

However, there is also much to learn from how other GMs are running HQ.

All the best
Phil

[Jeff Richard]

Phil – as an example for what sort of stuff we do with HQG, here’s something I recently posted to G+:

So in the Moon Design house campaign at the Festung Berlin headquarters, we got to really push the new Illumination rules for HeroQuest Glorantha (more on that soon). While aiding Argrath in finding a “pseudo-cosmic egg” they needed to follow the dissolution of the God-Soul down to the lowest level of the Stygian Basement and follow it/bring it to the Void. Dreading a confrontation with Argan Argar (since they had a piece of the Only Old One in their possession), the priestess Kassandra led them to the Cavern of Silence, where they demanded to know the Path Forbidden to the Gods – the Red Door to Beyond. They dissolved into Nothing but managed to more or less will their re-existence. With some assistance, they entered the Void and awakened their Third Eye, returning to Belintar’s basement where they have discovered the egg.

So now we have three Illuminated characters – a queen, a high priestess, and a Chalana Arroy healer. We have an Illuminated but dying Trickster (poisoned by the snake of the high priestess after he betrayed her on the quest and the now-Illuminated healer is refusing to heal the character), and a totally sane, unilluminated bodyguard/assassin who is too entangled with his need for vengeance against another queen to accept these mind-bending revelations.

In other words, just a regular day in our HQG campaign.

NOTE: I hesitate to even try to describe why the Ernalda high priestess (with snake) was nude for the entire session and how she used her Fertility Rune breakout ability, augmented by her Earth Rune, to overcome and extinguish the Guardian of Fire. Or how the entire party nearly drowned in blood when they slew the Guardian of Earth. Or what abilities the players chose to reconstruct their ego-self. Or how paranoid the Red Shift Servants made them, or how freaked out they were by the Troop of Innocents.

[Harald Smith]

I’ve played various aspects of background stories. Some I’ve decided needed to go on character sheets as keywords or abilities, some not.

From my PbF Orlmarthi campaign, there’s a few examples:

Aren Salt-tongue, the hardboiled nightwatchman, is widowed. His father Joram was crippled at the battle of Runegate. His wife died mysteriously while he was away participating in Starbrow’s Rebellion. They had one daughter. The Ring gave some of the land Aren tends to the Ufarholting bloodline.
Lots of good background bits and hooks for me to draw from. How and why did his wife die? Why did the Ring grant some of his land to another bloodline? Etc.
The only thing that went onto his character sheet was one Flaw: I must care for my stead, my father Joram and little Firestar 13

Dyrrkind Radusson, the missionary of Orlanth the Martyr, was born amongst the Orlmarthi, but spent many years at his mother’s home in the Howling Wolf clan in Hendrikiland. When he came of age, he had a vision of Orlanth sacrificing himself and dying in the battle with Sh’karharzeel the Dragon (i.e. the MRQ Blood of Orlanth story). He has brought the story back to the Orlmarthi and seeks to build a shrine and gain a following for Orlanth the Martyr.
Plenty of background here. But in this case, it called for more to go on the character sheet.
Dyrrkind spent many years amongst the Howling Wolf clan, and it was appropriate to give him a Community: Howling Wolf clan keyword 13
Further, I had the player do the clan questionnaire for the Howling Wolf clan to determine how that differed from the Orlmarthi clan. (Surprisingly little, it turned out – so I decided that not only were there occasional marriages between the two clans, but that the Howling Wolf was the remnant clan left in Hendrikiland when the Orlmarth moved north.)
Dyrrkind clearly has some other abilities: Myth of Orlanth the Martyr +1, a Flaw reflecting his missionary zeal Relentless 1W, and he carries the Blessed Bowl of Orlanth.

My ‘rule of thumb’ guidance is:
– if it’s central to the character’s self (an obvious community relationship, an important knowledge, an artifact, or a passion) it probably goes on the character sheet
– if it’s a story hook such as some incident or event, leave it at that

Harald

[Phil Nicholls]

Hi,

Thank you both for sharing how your run HQ. This is always interesting. Just as our Gloranthas may vary, so too our ways of running HQ.

This glorious variation strikes me as a positive, and shows the depth and flexibility of the rules. Clearly, I need to play more, and with a range of GMs, to learn more of the craft.

All the best
Phil

[Harald Smith]

Even for a single GM, campaign styles may vary further based on whether you’re running face-to-face, via hangout, via PbF, as well as number of participants. But I’ve particularly enjoyed HQ and its flexibility.

[David Cake]

The only rules balance issue I have had with Hero Wars is the opposite one – too much specialisation on a single breakout. A character who increases an ability and a breakout quickly becomes very good at that ability. I think my quite minor house rule will be that increasing a keyword and a breakout at the same time counts as increasing an ability twice (so the Hero Point cost of increasing the breakout is doubled).
Increasing both an ability, and and ability frequently used to augment it, is a smaller but still significant issue that can lead to that ability outpacing their companions – and according to Sartar:KoH, Humakti are virtually forced to do this with sword fighting and Death rune.

I don’t think multiple breakouts from a single keyword is a problem at all. It results in characters who tend to have multiple fairly good abilities that show them to be fairly good at things their culture or profession or cult says they should be good at, which improves the game in my book.

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