Using Mythic Russia Chained Contests in HQ 2, and Good Extended Contests

[Archivist]

1. HQ 2 has a Death Spiral alternate rule on p. 76, which is a bit like the Mythic Russia Chained Contest. Has anyone used the MR Chained Contest in their Heroquest 2e games? How did you adapt it? How did it work?
2. What do you do to run great extended contests? The thread below on RPG net shows there's lots of different opinions on what the rules actually allow and how people run them. How do you set up good ones? What rulings do you use?

https://forum.rpg.net/showthread.php?583487-HeroQuest-Switching-Tactics-in-Extended-Contests/page3

Edited December 21, 2017 by Archivist

[David Scott]

I don't use either of the first option. I run plenty of extended contests am interested in reading the thread on RPGnet, however the link appears to be missing. The rules are just a framework, so GM style will certainly affect how the contest is played out. Personally I never set them up, they are always an outcome from the heroes actions and interaction with the storyline. What can start off as an auto success can easily escalate to a simple contest then to an extended contest and back again. It's the players buy in that's important with regard to the story presented.

[Archivist]

Fixed.

[David Scott]

18 hours ago, Archivist said:

What do you do to run great extended contests? The thread below on RPG net shows there's lots of different opinions on what the rules actually allow and how people run them. How do you set up good ones? What rulings do you use?

The thread on RPGnet is pretty much nitpicking for me. For example

Quote

If two guys are sword fighting, and I say, "I'm going to try to disarm him," and I use my Swordfight against his Swordfight and I succeed... then he's disarmed, right? 
And now I've got one armed guy and one unarmed guy. And it's the next round. And at that moment, no matter what the Resistance value, depending on what the two characters declare, the armed Character is probably going to get a +3 or +6 Situational Modifier* if he tries to run the unarmed Character through. Right? I mean, the first die roll alters the fiction, and now the fiction is altering the probability of Success. So, this absolutely blows by the concerns posted so far in this thread? Or am I missing something?

In other words, the effect of the tactic (success or failure) determines the value for the next round.

The emphasis in the above quote is mine. The next round would be the a parting shot (page 38). It says that abilities don't have to be the same, but in this example I'd let them use the same skills. The attacker will use his sword fight to run the other guy through, the other guy although disarmed can use his sword fighting skill to predict what the other is going to do. No situational bonus in this case - specific skill versus specific skill. if the defender changes ability, I'd hope he'd pick a specific skill, not a general keyword, so no situational modifier. Remember that if the attack fails, the defender could be back in the contest (has happened many times in my games).

If you believe that the attacker should have a situational modifier then go ahead and add it, but my feeling would be that it's all part of the same fight and I wouldn't do it. I want the drama of the other guy attempting to pick his sword up (unless you prefer the drama of the defenders last monologue).

On another point. If the defender is an NPC, the Player may already have a situational modifier over him unless the GM has specifically said he is an accomplished sword fighter.

[Ian Cooper]

I would do one of the following in the subsequent exchange, depending on the stated intent of the contestants:

• Force an unrelated action: If the person who lost their weapon decides to recover it it is an unrelated action for that exchange.
• New conditions, new resistance: If the person who lost their weapon decides on a new tactic I would figure their numbers anew. 

What I would not do is use a situational modifier for an exchange to reflect temporary swings in the battle 'I have the high ground Anakin'. Your RP exchage already represents that ebb-and-flow and unless you explicitly want to use the death spiral option, I would avoid applying something like a situational modfier

 

Edited January 3, 2018 by Ian Cooper
Error on bullet points