HQ2 For Long Term Campaign?

[jnelson871]

So I just finished my second read through of HQ2 and it seems great. My question is does it hold up well for long term play or is it better suited to short term games? My current group just played through Dungeon World and enjoyed it but we are now looking for a system that can handle a long term game.

Also does anyone have any advice on creating magic systems for use in HQ2?

Thanks,

Justin

[Richard S.]

I find that HQ2 doesn't work for a very long term campaign as character sheets are cluttered up from more abilities and heroes begin to get a bit ridiculous in power level, though I think it was far worse with HQ1.

On the topic of a magic system, you could adapt the Gloranthan ones, possibly, or, IMO, a better option would be to just have magic powers as parts of keywords or abilities. I know that there are some guidelines and suggestions in the rulebook, so you should probably check those out as well.

[soltakss]

We found that HQ1 worked really well for long campaigns. We didn't mind increasing power levels as we like the Zero to hero trope.

I haven't really played HQ2 that much so couldn't comment on how it works in long campaigns.

[JonL]

If the fictional magic system in the game world is very well understood by the group at a practical level, you can just give somebody an appropriate ability and wing it. Like, you know what someone can do with a "Gymnast" ability, so you don't need detailed gymnastics rules, you just follow the fiction. 

Supernatural things though by their very nature have few if any real-world points of reference from which we can gain common knowledge, so it can thus be helpful to define such things mechanically, as we see in the magic systems in HQ:G or like I did when translating some old D&D stuff to run Keep on the Borderlands with Heroquest.

The third approach is the way Nameless Streets handles it, which is to not use any new mechanics, but rather to spell out the fictional parameters of the magic system in some detail, such that you can reasonably gauge what is easy, difficult, or impossible with them much like you a player who is not personally a gymnast would with "Gymnast." 

[jnelson871]

Having a hard time locating Nameless Streets. Anyone have a link to somewhere that sells a pdf? JonL have you found HQ to lend it self to longer term play or are you in agreement with Richard S.?

[JonL]

Alphetar seems to sell Nameless Streets as book+PDF, though if there's a PDF only option I don't see it on their site:

http://www.alephtargames.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=article&id=57&lang=en

As far as a long-running campaign goes, I haven't done it yet myself. HQ has thusfar been a game I run at cons or as a fill-in when my regular group is short-handed. If I were planning a long campaign with it, I would probably not use Hero Points  as XP, give out a single XP per session (or use one of the RQ-style check methods suggested in Nameless Streets), and tick-up base difficulty more slowly than suggested in the rules.

Jajagappa has run years-spanning campaigns with it, so clearly it can be done.

[jnelson871]

Thanks JonL. My google-fu had failed me.

[Ian Cooper]

I've run a number of long term games, hell The Coming Storm and The Eleven Lights are one of those long term campaigns (the other was in In Wintertop's Shadow). Two of the playtest groups for the campaign have been running long term games with it.

I tend to run the game using TV logic, in seasons. A season lasts 12 sessions usually. We often break in between seasons.

In terms of character growth, bear in mind two things. Focus players on keeping the characters to a small number of keywords with breakouts. Think of this as strong character conception, you don't want to add too many ideas, or the character becomes diluted. Players want to focus on increasing a smaller range of abilities. In a TV show, a character rarely gains whole new skills, but they often increase in competence.

Consider tracking number of session separately for each player. This helps with absences but it also allows folks to drop a character and bring in a new one, without needing you to up their abilities. One beauty of the relative resistances of pass/fail is that a contest can be Hard for everyone, but have numbers appropriate to each participant. It also allows some of the continuing characters to 'strutt their stuff' by wading into help their friends, helping to highlight their relative power.

 

[jnelson871]

Thanks Ian that helps a lot. 

[jajagappa]

I run play-by-post, so a bit different in time-scale, but I've been running my HQG Colymar campaign for 2.5 years and my HQG Nochet campaign for just over a year.

Both are community-based campaigns, much as Ian's Coming Storm campaign, which I find works well for long-term.

[jajagappa]

On 3/15/2017 at 4:18 PM, JonL said:

I would probably not use Hero Points  as XP, give out a single XP per session

I provide 3 HP at the start of each session.  There's always some point where you're going to need them, but it's a trade-off as to when you do.  Sessions inevitably have extended contests in the central climax and the final resolution, and those are meant to be memorable, so if you use too much too soon ...

If you do have any leftover, you can use those as XP (and there is no carryover).  I do keep track of complete/major victories, and critical rolls, which may result in XP-type options related to those abilities or keywords (a new breakout ability based on interesting use of a keyword is common such as when Harrik the sage successfully used his Air rune to create a Dust Devil and blinded the Lunar heroquester in the midst of a major ritual).  Cementing relationships is another use either during the session or after (though sometimes the in-game play indicates they will get that relationship ability for 'free' based on their actions).

[soltakss]

Using HPs as XPs works well and we wouldn't change that, not would we stop HPs being carried over or hoarded. Neither caused any problems in our HeroQuest campaign.