Forgotten Realms HeroQuest conversions

[Patroclus]

If you want to play a forgotten realms campaign in HQ system you don’t need extra rules. You just need to make the quests.

For example, don’t try to add 100 spells for the wizard, this will take too long and it has no meaning.

What I suggest you to do is to add the roleplaying element of ad&d to HQ. For example in ad&d there are “encounters”, this is what we called in HQ “the special rooms”. In an ad&d encounter the GM describes what the player see, smell, or hear, and what the players will do will have some effect. This exists in HQ, but if you want to turn the wheel to the rpg element it’s the best addition you can make. Add more texts and triggers. Don’t add any rules, just make special rules for each encounter.

[Patroclus]

1st example (A Combat Encounter):
“The sleeping orge”: The room is dark and smells, etc etc… An ogre is sleeping next to a closed door. Etc etc. His club is left in the far corner…
If the players try to open the door, the ogre will awake. If the players take his club the ogre will have -1 to attack. If the players try to surprise him in any way the ogre will have 0 defence for the first hit.

2nd example (NPC dialog):
“the group of dwarfs”: A group of 6 dwarven warriors appear in the area. They are in hurry for something. They look like they are hunting orcs, or other monsters. The leader is holding a great warhammer with a magic aura. Etc etc
If the players talk to them, they won’t tell too much. They are not so friendly but if you are nice they will tell you that they are searching for a magic item.
If you are offering your help, they will deny. But if you ask for directions they will tell you where is the boss room.

3rd example (a scene):
You see a red dragon flying above your heads, before him there are three wyverns with one rider on each. “He is Patroclus”, says the wizard. “I can recognize him with closed eyes”. “Oh my God! They are heading to the village.”

[Patroclus]

The difference with the previews examples and the HQ system, is that the “encounters” or the “special rooms” are adding more suspense. In HQ, when you are opening a door and you see an ogre, this is enough to make you nervous. But if you make it a special room, as above, puts your players to role playing it.

With the group of dwarves, they may feel that they miss something, which could be true. But finally, who cares? The players will have fun just trying to find what is happening.

With the red dragon they can’t do anything. You can make a quest of burned village without this scene. But this scene will make them wondering what they could face in that village. A lot of suspense.

I usually put scenes in every start and ending of each quest. Tasoe could tell.

[Gold Bearer]

For example, don’t try to add 100 spells for the wizard, this will take too long and it has no meaning.

Why? New spells recreated for HQ that could be split into levels like in D&D with the wizard and elf choosing a set number from each level. How is that meaningless?

[cynthialee]

There are so many player created optional spell schools and some with rules for advancement here on the Inn, that I think there are perhaps plenty of spells in the heroquest tradition available.
Now for some of the storyline stuff in the Forgotten Realms plot arch would require some new spells but most of that can be covered with NPC 'high level wizards' and background.

[Patroclus]

For example, don’t try to add 100 spells for the wizard, this will take too long and it has no meaning.

Why? New spells recreated for HQ that could be split into levels like in D&D with the wizard and elf choosing a set number from each level. How is that meaningless?

What I want to say is that, it is always good to add spells, artifacts, skills, etc, but if you want an ad&d version of HQ it is better to focused on “encounters”, quests and storyline than anything else.

If you add 3 types of elves, 5 types of dwarves, etc etc, it is always good, but it is not enough for having an ad&d feeling.

In the other hand if you keep exactly the same stats, spells, rules and you add one “encounter” on each room, then you will have at least a 70% feeling of ad&d.

[torilen]

I certainly would not be adding a whole mess of spells. I already have my own expanded spell sets, and that
gives me plenty. I would maybe try to transfer a few specialty spells from FR to HQ, but not many.

My main focus was going to be figuring out how to convert some of the main characters from FR into
a HQ format, and/or maybe converting HQ characters into something that would be a little more
FR themed. Maybe some of the FR monsters, as well, and some of the specialty magic weapons/armors/
items.

[QorDaq]

Do you still have those conversions? I'd love to have those to use.

Well, if I do they are hand written on graph-paper in a box "Somewhere" chuckle... We are after all talking ca. 1990-91. But most likely they are gone at this point. (All of my HQ stuff got spread about across multiple boxes and the like over several moves)... I still have the books, dice and furniture... Possibly the board, again somewhere, and I think the box is in a box of boxes... "Somewhere"... Getting married was awesome at the time, but not being a gamer, my Ex chucked a lot of gaming stuff over the years (easier to apologize than get permission is her mantra)...

So, if I come across them I'll definitely convert to a document and post, but I would not hold my breath. Probably easier to start from scratch frankly. You can pick up a PDF of B2 (KotBL), from D&D Classics. Currently 4 bucks or so, but I think I have seen them go on sale from time to time.

Drive through RPG etc. also offers freebies from various systems occasionally as well.

Conversion like that are not really too difficult... But sometimes it's easier and faster to just come up with your own adventures.

All of that said; I tend to agree with those that emphasize focusing on Story line and Quest ideas over worrying about rules.

maj!

[cynthialee]

oh, my Goddess if my spouse threw away any of my game stuff I would loose it in a fit of epic proportions!

[Gold Bearer]

Don't use them then. There's some really nice spells in there and it would be an interesting change for the wizard and elf to pick spells in a different way. I might not ever get around to it anyway.