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Path: utzoo!watmath!jagardner
From: jagardner@watmath.UUCP (Jim Gardner)
Newsgroups: net.games.frp
Subject: Re: High Tech in AD&D (help).
Message-ID: <809@watmath.UUCP>
Date: Tue, 14-Jan-86 13:12:52 EST
Article-I.D.: watmath.809
Posted: Tue Jan 14 13:12:52 1986
Date-Received: Wed, 15-Jan-86 00:42:57 EST
References: <1277@hpda.UUCP> <8330@ucla-cs.ARPA>
Reply-To: jagardner@watmath.UUCP (Jim Gardner)
Organization: U of Waterloo, Ontario
Lines: 39

In article <8330@ucla-cs.ARPA> cc@ucla-cs.UUCP (Oleg Kiselev) writes:
>In article <1277@hpda.UUCP> jaxom@hpda.UUCP (Lance Saleme) writes:
>>I'm looking for comments and ideas from other DM's on how to handle
>>mixed technologies in an AD&D world.
>
>All I can say is : TRY A DIFFERENT FRPG system than TSR's ?D&D stuff!
>I've heard the HERO games series is not bad : They cover Hi-Tech, Lo-Tech,
>Magic and monster/animal environments ( or so I've heard...)

The HERO games system does cover this situation very nicely, although
you have to buy a fair amount of stuff to put it all together.  Magic
is described in "Fantasy Hero".  Super-high tech devices (e.g. killer
lasers, teleporters, force-fields) are described in "Champions" (along
with a lot of other superpower stuff).  Modern-day weaponry (from
M-15s to Phantom Jets) is described in "Danger International".  Since
the underlying system is always the same, the genres can be combined
quite successfully.

One note: to create a HERO character, you use "points" to "buy"
skills, powers, characteristics, etc.  Magic turns out to be very
expensive, while conventional weapons are free.  Essentially, magic
is part of your character, while weapons are not.  Someone who
builds a magic-using character, spends most of his points on the
magic; someone who builds a weapon-using character can buy up
strength, dexterity, speed, etc.  In any fight, this tilts the
balance strongly in favour of weapon-users (although a well-balanced
party will certainly have a magic-user or two).  This is true, even
when the weapon-users are using medieval weapons; if they have modern
weapons (e.g. sub-machine guns), the balance will be even more skewed,
at least until the ammo runs out.  This is precisely what you would
expect, of course.  However, those who are used to D&D will be surprised
at how disadvantaged magic-users are in the HERO system in comparison
to a fighter with the same number of points...at least when it comes
to combat.

				Jim Gardner, University of Waterloo

the weapon-users