Daedalus wrote:You have a solid selection of skills. My feeling is Hero Quest could benefit with some tactical detail, though I wonder about the pacing drag of added referencing--problably no big deal if Morcar/Zargon knows the lot.
I can't recall the cost of skills or the meaning of active and passive uses. Regardless, here are my impressions and opinions:
I'd change cases of "This skill teaches a Hero..." to "This skill allows a Hero..." or "This skill grants a Hero...."
Alertness: Me likey. Arcana: Also likey. Archery: I prefer the cost of an extra die in a bigger bow, but this works, too. Careful Aim: Stacks with Archery, right? That's a lot. Maybe limit to no move. Charisma: I'd rather see the Mercenary hired with an extra Body Point. Cleave: I'd tone it down to 1 extra monster or use excess skulls for the attacks. Perhaps limit with no move.
Concentration: Seems okay, but I fear brainy Barbarians. Dodge and Trip: Missing for 2 turns is a lot--I'd split it into two skills or make it a two-action manuever. Endurance: Unlimited Body Points leaves me trembly and scared. How many skills can be taken over time by a Hero? Feint: Like if the gained Defend Die good against all attacks that turn. Fencing: A 4 Attack Die broadsword is equal to a battle axe, but it can go with a shield and 3 Attack Dice. This should cost a lot, as 200 gold is already saved in weapon cost. Great Defense: Like. This is the Mercenary Swordsman's skill.
Heroic Cry: Like, as it has a use limit. I don't think the 1-in-6 Defend Die penalty is necessary. Keen Hearing: Cool, but I'd limit uses. Opening doors onto an unknown threat is part of the fun. Leadership: I don't know why Charisma would be taken over or with this. Active/passive? Marksman: Can a Wizard take this? Hmm--it seems okay. Phalanx: Remain adjacent--for the 1 turn, right? I'd put in no move to keep it clear and less flexible. Polearm Stance: Better name and seems okay.
Power Attack: I'd put in no move or the penalty can be avoided. Rallying Cry: Change Defense Die to Defend Die. It grants a lot of bonus dice, so I'd limit uses to one or cost Mind Points or something. Sacrifice: Works for me. Maybe the wording should include the monster position to exclude opposite attacks. Or maybe swap positions with the ally. Skirmishing: At best, I'd allow a choice of 1 Attack or Defend Die each turn. Still better than Fencing, though. Sneak: Not sure what to think. Could be a game changer if not limited in some fasion. Sprint: Seems okay.
Take 'em or leave 'em. I imagine some suggestions won't mean much, while some may help.
Thank you for your detailed feedback, Daedalus. It is much appreciated, and once I get back home and have some free time, I will dig deeper into the suggestions and see if they make enough sense for me to change a couple things.
Out of curiosity, have you read my rules yet? (linked below) Since I see you're referencing "Wizard" and "Barbarian" I think you have not. Give it a look through and you will see that it answers a couple of the questions that came up for you, especially regarding "unlimited" Body Points as well as the number of skills that can be learned. Specifically, heroes can only learn one skill or spell per advancement tier. There are 5 tiers total, so a character can only learn a maximum of 4 skills (3 if they choose a hybrid class). The cost of them is dependent upon tier. The first tier above a basic Hero (Champion) can learn a skill for 400g. By the very highest tier, a Fighter or Caster character class will have spent 2,300gp to learn 4 skills or spells*. Hybrid character classes will have spent 1,800g by the highest tier but only will have learned 3 skills or spells.
So by this structure, a Fighter class can only gain a maximum of +4 Body Points if they chose Endurance at each advancement tier. Granted, this is not an insignificant boost at all, since a min-maxing player can end up with 12 Body Points, but this comes at the expense of having no tactical utility, versatility, or special attacks.
In addition, the number of times a character can use a skill marked Active is limited per quest to the number of maximum Mind Points they have. Since Fighter and Hybrid classes are the most likely folks to choose to learn a skill (And Casters are most likely to learn new spells instead of skills), then that means they generally have lower Mind Points, which also means they use their active skills less often in a quest. I think the majority of these two class types have about 4 or 5 MP, so it seems like a pretty fair balance to me.
Of course, this could be completely negated in actual play, but on paper so far I think it's okay.
(Link deleted because HQP is now Broadsword, check out the link in the signature)
*There is also a list of many Spells that can be purchased in lieu of gaining skills, for interested players.