PhilHibbs

Random armour is a different game system to fixed armour, you can't say one is "worse" because the other is "normal". So long as armour dice ratings, weapon damage, damage bonuses, and magic are all balanced against each other, then you can't say that one game system has armour that is "worse" than another just because it has a die roll. That's like saying RuneQuest armour is categorically worse than D&D armour because it doesn't have a chance of making the attacker miss completely. Sure, you shouldn't just replace RQG armour with a die roll that caps out at the vanilla RQG AP, without changing anything else, but I don't have a D5 anyway.

Done. Known issues None of the macros work, so fill in your dice rolls or characteristics, skill details, and culture/occupation/cult/personal choices manually. Check boxes do not work, so put in a 1 next to the five enhancement spells (cells AA12-AA16) in order to get the small numbers to show. Check boxes for skills and runes are just a cell border so are not very easy to see.

I don't see that as being a specifically Humakti thing, I think funerary rites are just as important to Orlanthi as to Humakti.

It's now nearly a month since the GM Screen Pack went on sale, any progress on updating the PDFs in line with the final printed version?

They aren't files as such, they are Google Sheets objects. They may be partially functional if converted to ODS spreadsheets, but the macros would almost certainly not work as I think the macro language is JavaScript with Google's spreadsheet library. Some of the formulae might be a little bit broken as well. I will have a go and see how functional it is, and I might upload a version to the forum at the week-end. I don't think there is an alternative free online spreadsheet tool out there that can compete with Google's.

If there are any differences between the last two, then there may be some ambiguity. Does anyone have an opinion on which version I should take as being authoritative? Oh, also I used a mix of the printed GM Pack and the PDF. Not sure if there are any differences there, but I know some of the GM Pack PDFs are out of date.

As of right now, all the sheets are done. The last four - Sorala, Vishi Dunn, Nathem and Vostor - have been done such that if you delete the numbers in the "Extra" column on the CharGen sheet, you get a version of the character that (as far as I can tell) is correct as per the current rules. I will update the others so that they work the same way. The CharGen sheet has tick boxes for the five enhancing spirit magic spells (Coordination, Glamour, Mobility, Strength, Vigor), for the characters that have these I have ticked them which results in small numbers appearing on the CharSheet indicating the skill levels and other numbers for when those spells are in effect. Oh, and I just fixed Harmast and Yanioth's reputations. *Edit* I've done all the sheets in the same way now, clear the Extra column and you get a version of the character that has skills by the book.

Mostly the indvidual sheets from the GM pack, but the last couple have been done from the 2nd printing rule book. I kind of expected those to be the same, and I was only aware of there being two versions...

Illumination. A state of "enlightenment" in which you realise that chaos and creation are not at odds with each other and can exist in harmony. Over-simplified, of course. Also rumoured to provide immunity to cult spirits of reprisal.

If anything, I'd suggest sneaking a paragraph in somewher that says "Some or all of these pregenerated adventurers diverge from a literal reading of the character creation sysytem. That's ok, and you are encouraged to change the numbers according to personal taste when creating your adventurers, subject to GM approval."

Beware when putting a metal rim on your shield, because you will lose teeth when you go berserk and start chewing it.

I think you're being more than a little harsh there! The pregens are fine as they are. The discrepancies are all fairly minor, a few points here and there and mostly on "skills that no-one cares about anyway". If you're going to use one of them as a long term character, like if you want to play Yanioth through to priesthood, then sure that 15% Cult Lore (Ernalda) might be a big deal, and I think everyone will spot that Vishi Dunn has a lower Track skill than base plus modifier. Mistakes happen, I'm sure that last one was just a typo, there's no need for apologies. This thread was never intended as criticism, I should have made that clear from the outset!

Yep. You're better off doing the occupational experience rolls for 50 seasons.

It has not, there is nearly two full pages of material in Rune Fixes which would have had quite a significant effect on layout.

Vasana Battle 65% should be 70% Farm 30% should be 35% Battle Axe 55% should be 35% She doesn't seem to have taken the +15% and +20% to any two cult skills All in all, she's 25% down.

I've begun linking each character to the spreadsheet version. I've never tried printing them! Let me know how you get on. These are the "vanilla" pregens, all skills should be set up to exactly match the levels printed in the rules. I might present my alternative by-the-rules variants later. I might instead rejig these slightly so that all you have to do is make your own copy and clear out the numbers in the "Extra" column on the CharGen tab, and you will then get the by-the-rules variant. Vasana Yanioth Harmast Vishi Dunn Vostor Sorala Nathem

Oh, yes I like that! I think such a crystal should be limited - tied to a rune, maybe, and only usable with spells that require that rune (or wildcard Magic Rune spells).

I wasn't deliberately suggesting that... but yes, there is a connection. Anything magical that you do is to some extent reaching out to the magical world, to the God Time, and theistic magic is all about emulating your god's victories and defeats. The more power you acquire, the less free will you have. There were some unofficial HeroQuesting rules back in the '80s and '90s that were all about WIL as a stat, I think the basic system was that you build up WIL as an adventurer, like POW, and then once you start your HeroQuesting career, it becomes fixed and you start spending it for powers. The more you spend, the more powers you get, but the less free will you have. Sandy's sorcery system works along these lines, with vows representing the loss of freedom as your power increases. Humakt and Yelmalion gifts and geases are another.

That was before the Cosmic Compromise and the birth of Time/Entropy. The Gods trapped themselves in a web that they cannot escape from other than in exceptional situations like the Sunstop or Castle Blue where the compromise breaks.

There are few gods who are as limited as Chalana Arroy. All she can do is heal, that's it. The definition of "healing" is fairly broad, extending to mending relationships, even curing death. I'm quite comfortable with the idea that there is even more diversity of crystals out there, even that there are dead crystals that can only power specific types of spell, but I'm happy to ignore that level of detail most of the time for the purposes of game simplicity.

The gods' lack of free will is clearly established, they have no choice in what they do. The God Learners proved that if you invoke the prayers correctly, you get the magic.

I think the logic is twofold: In-world, the blood of Chalana Arroy or Arroin can only be used for healing. Game balance, healing should be available but not too easy and not too quick in combat.

I'm sure that that is just an omission, yes they absolutely should be limited, and I think 1D8 is too high for such a powerful crystal. It's way more useful than Spell Strengthening, yet that only gets 1D4 POW. I suppose the 1D8 does make it slightly harder to attune, so maybe keep it at 1D8 and insert "up to half its POW rounded up". I might even add "with the resulting spell capped by the POW of the crystal being used". So a 6 POW crystal it will double Bladesharp 2 to 4, but Bladesharp 4 becomes Bladesharp 6, and it does nothing if you use it with Bladesharp 6. That would make a 1 POW crystal utterly useless though! I'm sure there are crystals out there that just double one specific variable spell, like Healing Focusing.

Sure, I'll do that tonight, maybe tomorrow, they will need a little tidying up, adding passions, spells, etc. I'll make sure the versions I share end up with the same numbers as the original pregens, and I will probably make an alternative set that follow the rules to end up as close as I can get them.