Questions and Answers about Honor+Intrigue

Bren · February 23, 2015, 05:07:03 PM

Quote from: Ladybird;817275That's a really nifty mook system. I like it.

Honor+Intrigue has a lot of nice features for swashbuckling action and some good guidelines for resolving the crazy stuff that the PCs attempt.

The rules leave it up to the GM to decide what taken out means for the Pawns. In this situation they are probably physically more or less unharmed, but are unable to continue fighting effectively. In another situation, say a fight on the roof of a 90' high tower, the slippery [strike]floor[/strike] roof tiles stunt would probably kill all the Pawns due to the long fall.

The players have seen two NPC assassins fall to their death in game. The first was an assassin who was working for the Spanish trying to kill Alvise Contarini, the Venetian ambassador. The Spaniards were trying to sabotage diplomatic talks to form a coalition to halt Spanish control of the Valtelline pass. Due to a calamitous failure by the assassin while trying to climb down. He fell off a 2-3 story roof. The damage from the fall was increased when the glass vial of acid he carried on his belt broke and burned him terribly. One of the PCs, Guy de Bourges was nearby.

QuoteGuy quickly ran over to question the fallen assassin, "Who hired you," he asked. All the dying man had time to say was the Left Hand of God. An examination of the dead body showed that the assassin had several extra poisoned crossbow bolts and a glass flask, now broken, that seemed to contain some acid or chemical that had burned him horribly. No doubt it broke in his fall – well not his fall exactly, more the landing really. Perhaps the same acid was used to melt the lock at Philippe Lefevre's shop?

Guy collected the crossbow bolt in the carriage as well as the remaining bolts on the fallen assassin and gave them to his trusty servant Fabre to provide a sample of the poison for the alchemist to analyze and, if fortune is with him, to devise an antidote to the poison before it can claim another victim.

Working on the antidote later became crucial as it allowed the PCs to save the Grey League ambassador when he was shot with a bolt dipped in the same poison.

RPGPundit · February 25, 2015, 02:37:02 AM

I don't recall, but I thought I had heard someone talking about translating Alatriste... not sure if anything came of that.

Bren · February 26, 2015, 08:54:42 AM

Quote from: RPGPundit;817573I don't recall, but I thought I had heard someone talking about translating Alatriste... not sure if anything came of that.

As far as I can tell...

There were plans back in 2005 or 2006 for a translation, but an official translation never materialized. (According to this Dark Dungeons article and this poster.)

Now it looks like the company website has moved or is dead. The link in both the Dark Dungeons article and the RPGnet review of the game no longer connect to an activev website.

There may be a fan made translation out on the internet. I'm sad the game seems no longer to be in production and sad that there was no official translation, as I was actually hoping to buy an official translation.

I'm curious what happened to the company and the official game line. Is anyone on this forum linked into the Spanish gaming scene?

Bren · February 26, 2015, 08:35:04 PM

The thread on Sports that have featured in your campaigns inspired me to include this.

in Adventure 22.9: Missed Target
The Brussels Shooting Tournament of Isabella Clara Eugenie Habsburg Archduchess of the Netherlands

The Rules

The Tournament consists of at least three rounds.
In each round a contestant can shoot up to three times. To pass a round and continue to the next round the contestant must score at least two hits.
A misfire counts as a missed shot.
There is no bonus for hitting 3 times in a round, so typically contestants who have scored on their first two shots skip their third shot – though a flamboyant contestant may shoot a third time for the honor or to intimidate his competitors if he hits three times in three.
The distance for the first round is 75 feet and each subsequent round the distance is increased by 50’.
The targets in the first three rounds are 3-foot disks (-1 to chance to hit for size).
If more than one contestant is left after three rounds, each will shoot at clay jugs. Each contestant will have 5 jugs and 5 shots at the same distance of 175’. Highest total wins.
If there is still a tie after the fourth Jug Round, the range will increase to 225’ and 5 more jugs will be set up. All remaining contestants will continue to shoot at groups of 5 jugs at extreme range until there is a round with a clear winner.
Scores in the Jug Rounds do not carry over from round to round. The winner of a Jug Round wins the Tournament.

Stats for PCs and NPCs

Guy+4; Range Inc: 70’=50’+10’(Crack Shot)+10’(Aim Shot)
Gaston Bonus+2; Range Inc: 60’=50’+10’(Aim Shot)
Gaétan+2; Range Inc: 70’=60’+10’(Aim Shot) Signoret has a rifled musket: base range 60’.
Toiras+6; Range Inc: 80’=60’+10’(Crack Shot)+10’(Aim Shot) Toiras uses a finely made arquebus that gives him +1 to hit. His first shot will misfire due to sabotage – Can Claude help?
Don Alvaro+2; Range Inc: 70’=60’+10’(Aim Shot) Don Alvaro uses an arquebus. See Character sheet.
Curro Garrote the Malagüeño Bonus+3; Range Inc: 70’=50’+10’(Crack)+10(Aim); Garrote uses a military musket.
Count Hendrik+3; Range Inc: 70’=60’+10’(Aim Shot) The Count uses a finely made and ornate Arquebus giving him +1 to hit.
Barón van Aaldenberg+3; Range Inc: 70’=60’+10’(Aim Shot). Barón Albert Aaldenberg (SR 10) uses a fancy Arquebus. He will try to sabotage Toiras’ chances.
Vizconde de Cazador+3; Range Inc: 70’=60’+10’(Aim Shot). Vizconde Jerónimo de Cazador (SR 11) uses a finely crafted ornate Arquebus.

Wagers and Betting

Betting is expected.
Both audience and competitors can bet.
If PCs are betting, the odds and payoff for choosing the winner is listed below.
If their chosen marksman comes in second, they gain ½ the listed return.
If their chosen marksman comes in third, they break even.
Bets of up to 100 livres are quite easy to place. Larger bets may require finding a gambler, bookie, or someone like a noble who is willing to play for such high stakes.
The Gambler Career can improve either the odds or the chance of winning the bet (insider tips, etc.)
The PCs noticed during their trip from Bevay to Brussels that Giuliano della Torre (SR ; the Neapolitan officer of cuirassiers commanding your escort is an avid and proficient Gambler. Della Torre is not shooting in the Tournament.

Competitor and Odds

Curro Garrote the Malagüeño (3-2)
Toiras (3-2)
Don Alvaro ‘Iron Hand’ (1-1)
Count Hendrik (1-1)
Barón van Aaldenberg (1-1)
Vizconde de Cazador (1-1)
Others including the PCs (2-1)

In addition to any PCs competing, there are 25 contestants.

The Vizconde de Cazador was permanently scarred by his malfunctioning gun.
Guy de Bourges won the contest.

Bren · February 27, 2015, 10:56:31 AM

Time to answer another question.

What do you think of the rules for the fantastical elements?
By fantastical I assume you mean magic and the supernatural. We haven't used either of those yet, so I can only go by reading, not play testing.

One thing to keep in mind is that the system is designed for powerful magic users to be (a) evil and (b) NPCs. There are some suggestions for how to adapt if the group wants powerful PC mages, but that is not the focus, which makes sense since swashbuckling stories have the powerful mages as the adversaries not the heroes.

The magic system and the magical orders are sufficient for a campaign that is not focused on the fantastical or supernatural or as a starting point for a campaign that is focused on the supernatural.

The occult organizations, spell system and example spells, combined with the alchemy and apothecary sections, and the list of supernatural creatures makes an excellent framework and inspiration for a campaign that does focus on the supernatural.

It is worth mentioning that the system includes levels of difficulty and examples for making uncommon weapons, fantastical inventions, herbal poultices, and alchemical extracts and derivations. This can be left at the level of real history for things like fine Damascus steel blades, acids, invisible ink, sleeping powders, poisons and antidotes, and healing poultices (tree bark for malaria, cobwebs and certain mosses for wounds, etc.). These are all things characters have faced or created in our campaign.

A more fantastical campaign could include improved variations like functioning Da Vinci devices, the Philosopher's Stone, Universal Solvents, potions of Invisibility or Immortality, etc.

The third set of adventures used a real Da Vinci codex which contained diagrams for a type of difference engine as the McGuffin that the players and their opponents all wanted.

The fantastical creatures are solid though not exceptionally atmospheric. I don't find that a big negative, because I'm tolerably familiar with earth legends which would be easy to adapt or add and the system is intended to provide examples and a framework and expects the GM will tailor the details of the supernatural creatures for the group.

Since the system is based on Barbarians of Lemuria (BoL) it would be easy to grab creatures or magic from BoL if you wanted a heavily supernatural campaign.

Matt · March 01, 2015, 10:17:27 AM

How does it compare to Flashing Blades?

Bren · March 01, 2015, 11:08:05 AM

Quote from: Matt;818426How does it compare to Flashing Blades?

I haven't played FB so my comparison is somwhat conjectural, but here are the main differences that occur to me off the top of my head.

Fortune Points (FPs)
H+I uses Fortune Points as an in game benny with a FP currency somewhat like what one might see in games like Fate. Characters may gain FPs in play due to certain Flaws occurring or for attempting swashbuckling actions. Spending 1 FP can be used to increase the chance of success before rolling (by adding a bonus die), by adding 1 to the adjusted die roll after the roll, to reduce damage incurred, to activate certain Boons, to remove certain penalty effects (like loss of Composure). Also FPs can be used to grant the player some limited narrative control e.g. to include something in a scene like a wagon full of hay or an awning beneath a window to reduce the effects of attempted defenestration, autodeclare that the character has successfully hidden, to avoid damage from a trap that the character didn't detect, to turn a hit by a black powder weapon into a near miss, and by expending multiple FPs - to be the lone survivor of a shipwreck or to survive a killing blow.

The Supernatural
]Unlike FB, H+I includes rules for supernatural monsters, magic, anachronistic or beyond real world science inventions, healing potions, and wonderous alchemical creations.

Social Rank (SR)
SR is an integral part of FB and of character advancement and reward in the game. In H+I any form of social rank is either a function of free choice of careers (the players chooses to have their PC have the Noble or Aristocrat career) or a function of the Boon system: Membership of an Order can be used to have your PC knighted and Family Legacy or Friends in High Places simulate family connections to the powerful.

I like the Social Rank system so I added system from FB to my game.

Wealth
Tracking income, expenditures, tithes, and taxes in actual money of account like livres is an integral part of FB. H+I uses an abstract wealth level system and does not even include prices for equipment. Abstract wealth systems don't really click for me so I added in the income rules and price list from FB. I modified the equipment lists to add additional items from other games in the period like At Rapier's Point and then tinkered with the prices based on some real world original source material for prices in the English Civil War and such. This is more a personal preference as my players are less concerned with tracking wealth exactly and we haven't actually used the year end tax and tithing rules from H+I.

Summary
Obviously one can tinker with either system to emphasize or alter the game. I am dealing with what is in or not in the main rules of each system. In summary here's what I think drives the main differences.

Overall H+I is product of the last 15-20 years of game design. It includes in game bennies and is designed to emulate the feel of swashbuckling films of Errol Flynn and even the 2011 Musketeers movie where one hero can perform feats of derring do like routinely defeating 4 Cardinal's Guards. Ordinary Guards in H+I are Pawns and they operate using a type of mook rules.

FB is clearly the product of the first 10 years of game design with a grittier, more historical feel. It is designed to emulate the feel of swashbuckling novels like Dumas where 5 Cardinal's Guards are a credible threat to 3 Heroes to the point that the intervention of one brave Gascon youth to even the odds to 4 to 5 is significant.

Bren · March 02, 2015, 01:17:59 PM

Here's the answer to another couple of questions.

How is H+I related to BASH?
H+I is based on Barbarians of Lemuria. Chris Rutowsky is the designer of both BASH and H+I.

What keeps players engaged in with the system, or is it about the setting?
I've been running H+I weekly since July of 2012 which is well over 100 sessions.

When we started play, H+I was a significant change for the players from what we had been playing (WEG Star Wars D6 and Call of Cthulhu). One of the players gets particularly anxious about new systems. To help get people used to the system I did several things.

I ran some practice duels so players could get used to the system.

Initial opponents were mostly Pawns and one retainer which gave the PCs a big edge.

If there was a duel that didn't involve a player, I had the player run the NPC. This gave the player extra practice and allowed the player to understand the limitations of Pawns and Retainers so they could get a more robust intuition about relative threat levels.

We openly calculated the modifiers for both attackers and defenders so players had knowledge of relative chances to succeed.

One thing that came out of this was a realization that the players enjoy occasionally running NPCs. It allows them to experience different capabilities and try new maneuvers. Usually they ran NPCs in combat. Sometimes they ran NPCs in non-combat situations. I had one player run Cardinal Richelieu in an important scene. He really enjoyed that, as did everyone else at the table, and he did a great job as Richelieu.

We've had six players in the game. I'll use their character names.

Guy –Enjoys history and the Ancien Regime of France campaign setting and Dumas style of play are one of this players favorite time periods and settings. This player likes the fact that system allows Guy's style of combat to fit his personality and to be different than that of the skilled duelist characters. Guy is extremely adept at and enjoys playing different characters. Part of the appeal is playing a character from a different setting from that of other RPGs.

Lucien – Enjoys Musketeer movies. This player liked that the H+I system allowed their King's Musketeer to take on multiple Pawns in combat and win. I think the moral grittiness of the historical setting was a turnoff for this player who would have preferred that all the King's Musketeers (PC and NPC) would be white hats with their foes clearly black hats. Whereas I ran the King's Musketeers like those in Dumas which means some of them are really not that nice of a person from a 21st Century US standpoint. This was a factor in Lucien mostly dropping out after the playing the first year. Lucien has only played 3 sessions in the past 21 months.

Gaston – Enjoys the setting and the system, especially the dueling aspects and the historical setting in all the myriad details. Both are equally engaging for Gaston.

Signoret – Enjoys the system and some aspects of the setting – particularly the ability to play a combative Jesuit, but is not deeply immersed in the period in general and finds the French names hard to remember or pronounce.

Norbert – Is new to roleplaying and the spouse of a long time player. Norbert is not interested in system and has a difficult time recalling the details of combat and character attributes, but likes the foreign language names and such (which are mostly French, but also Dutch, Spanish, and German). Norbert seems to enjoy exploring the period. Probably the biggest draws for Norbert are socializing with spouse and friends and the playing of the character. Norbert is the player most likely to come up with an unusual idea. Some of the ideas are good, some are WFT wacky. A few are both. Norbert also likes including humor in the game and is most likely to invent humorous behavior for their character.

Cecile - Was a house guest who was staying with us for 2-3 weeks. She played a few sessions but there was no expectation that this would be a long term commitment.

In summary, most of my players are not system wonks. Mostly they want the system to stay out of the way of their imagination. Some of the players do enjoy the options of the dueling system in H+I. I think it is particularly well thought out to provide variety and a certain rock-paper-scissors set of choices so there is never one or two moves that a player can just use over and over. Depending on the opponent there will be different optimal moves.

Most of my players like history in general or the period in particular so the setting is a plus. The one player who had an expectation clash with the setting found the setting detracted from enjoyment. Which is sad, but pretty much what I would expect to occur whenever a good, strong setting is featured.

Bren · March 03, 2015, 03:42:02 PM

Previously I described the creation of a new character based on a random NPC generation system.

I posted the resulting character here and said that I would complete the aunt (now a great-aunt) later.

If you are playing in my Honor+Intrigue campaign don't look beneath the spoiler.

Spoiler

Angéle de la Babin Comtesse de Ceyroux
I found a picture over at photo bucket that should do for the Comtesse.

Very Old Noble & Witch (SR 12)
Motivation: Recall the old pagan gods
Location: Paris, France
Faction: Sisters of Hecate
Personality: A cantankerous old crone, she is a quintessential bossy and opinionated great-aunt, beneath that unpleasant exterior she is a power mad, insane, cruel, evil, witch. She likes to pinch ears and cheecks.

From the NPC random generation: 57 94 defile animals, 35-75 construct atrocities, 03-98 affiliateion old religions – she is a pagan witch who uses animal sacrifice and atrocities to power her magic and to strengthen the Old Gods and the Old Ways.

Background: Angéle de la Babin Comtesse de Ceyroux is the leader of the Sisters of Hecate, a pagan sisterhood who worhips the Triple Godess, whose three aspects are maiden, mother, and crone or Kore, Persephone, and Hecate. She is the chief priestess of Hecate and by virtue of that she is the senior witch and leader of the Cult of the Triple Goddess. Through the female line, the Comtesse de Ceyroux traces her bloodline back to the ancient Celtic tribe of the Parisi. As the chief priestess of Hecate she may be manipulating the actions of the Cult of the Horned God.

She is the great aunt, on his mother's side, of Victor de Vannier Comte de Laudancourt (b. 1598). She controls the family lands and funds and her great-nephew is a remittance man and court hanger on. He is entirely dependent on his aunt Angéle. She is an elderly and cantankerous crone of an aunt and is literally an evil witch.

Might -1, Savvy 2, Flair 2
Melee 1, Defense 3
Noble 1, Apothecary 3, Witch 4, Arcane Power 14
Lifeblood 9, Composure 3, Advantage 3, Fortune 5

Languages: French (N), Ancient Parisii (F), Latin (F)
Boons: Black Magic, Great Wealth, Head of a Cult
Flaws: Delusions of Grandeur (chosen by Hecate), Zealot (Triple Goddess)
Dagger: 1d3 Dmg; +1 Called shot
Cloak: No Dmg; +1 Bind, Feint
Maneuvers: Bladework+1, Dirty Fighting+2, Quick Cut+3; Feint+3, Footwork+3; Dodge, Parry+3, Riposte+3; Ranged Attack+2
Equipment: Noble clothing, fancy jewelry, consecrated silver athame

GM Note: the name Angéle de la Babin comes from a woman ca. 1230–1275 who was found guilty of sexual relations with the devil and burned to death.

Next I went through the list of example spells in H+I and selected ones that seemed interesting and appropriate then decided the casting requirements and calculated the resulting Arcane Point cost. The last two spells are cataclysmic, but I'd only expect to see those spells appear as the end result or dramatic climax of a series of prior adventures.

Cantrips and Spells
Cantrips: [0th 1AP] These are very basic spells allowing the caster to conjure a brief pool of light, the distant sound of laughter, or a spark to light a fire. Cantrips can be used to repair a common object, sour a jug of ale, or make the brief illusion of a common object. Other examples might include making a coin vanish, causing a rope to slither up a castle wall, or distracting a guard with an imagined sound. Such spells rarely cost more than 1 Arcane Power and only require a Task Roll when directly affecting a sentient target or perhaps if the Sorcerer has been deprived of his focus (when the Arcane Power cost would be higher too).

Compel: [1st 4AP] ( Requirements: LOS. Sorcerer can bend the target of this spell to his will. The victim will be compelled to do the Sorcerer's bidding; provided the Sorcerer's instructions are within the bounds of what the target would be likely to do if not under control (i.e. he is unlikely to attack his friends). The target's Savvy is always used to modify the difficulty.

Consort with Demons: [1st 2AP] Requirements: Casting Time: 1d6 x 30 minutes; may only be cast at night when the moon is up; caster must gesture, chant, and dance. The Sorcerer may seek guidance from the very forces of Hell. If the spell is successful, a demon will speak to the caster, giving advice and directions to help the caster achieve his goals, perhaps even revealing visions of the future, or making revelations that the caster could not otherwise discover. This spell is usually automatic when used by NPC villains because it serves as a plot device, allowing the villain to become aware of certain Maguffins or characters, and thus put the plot into motion. It makes it also possible for the villain to know things the PCs thought were secret.

Conjure Item: [1st 3AP] Requirements: Casting Time: 1d6 x 30 minutes; Obvious Technique chanting and gestures. This spell enables the Sorcerer to conjure a small ordinary item—length of rope, a tool or a weapon, clothing, or a flask of wine or water.

Evil Eye: [1st 3AP] Requirements: LOS; Special Focus: Consecrated Athame. The Sorcerer can cause the target to suffer a curse that affects his ability to perform any normal actions. It effectively gives the target a Penalty Die on all actions whilst affected by the curse. The target's Flair is always used to modify the difficulty.

Summon Beast: [1st 2AP] Requirements: Obvious chanting and gestures; Special Focus: Consecrated Athame, Wound 1d3 Lifeblood. The Sorcerer can summon a monster, which will have a slightly demonic appearance. The beast will be one of up to very large size, such as a Night-Mare. Once it appears, it will normally do the summoner's bidding until it has completed the task required of it.
• This spell usually has the casting time requirement

Beguile: [2nd 6AP] Requirements: Casting Time: 2d6 hours; Rare Ingredients including personal item of victim, 1d6 weeks; Wound 1d6+1 Lifeblood; proper Phase of the Moon. This spell is used by the Sorcerer to put the victim completely and utterly in the power of the caster. The victim will obey the caster's every command without question and is helpless to do anything else, unless they can break free.
• The target's Savvy is always used to modify the difficulty. The target can spend a Fortune Point to attempt to break free of the power, rolling Savvy +2d6 modified by the caster's rank in Sorcerer

Summon Mighty Beast: [2nd 7AP] Requirements: Casting Time: 2d6 hours; Pentagram; Ritual Sacrifice of an intact male beast like a bull, stallion, or ram. The Sorcerer can summon a hideous demonic monster. The beast will be one of up to colossal size and, once it appears, will normally do the summoner's bidding until it has completed the task required of it.

Death Plague: [3rd 12AP] Requirements: Destroy Special Focus (magic item); Pentagram; ritual maiming and scarification of caster costing 2d6+1 Lifeblood; may only be cast during the dark of the moon. This spell brings a plague to a named city that kills about 25% of the inhabitants in a week and affects up to about 50% of the city, making them weak and violently ill during that period.

Natural Disaster: [3rd 12AP] Requirements: Can only be cast in a Place of Power; Pentagram; Ritual Sacrifice of an innocent human; Demonic Transformation: Casting the spell will permanently transform the caster into some horrible demonic form with an even more clichéd maniacal laugh. (This effect is not known to the caster.) This spell causes nature to become incredibly violent, summoning earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, deadly blizzards, hurricanes, tidal waves, or even fire from the sky. The disaster will be severe enough to cause tremendous casualties (25-50%) and destroy most of the property in a major city. It can also be used to sink a fleet of ships or bury an army in snow (in the middle of summer).

Author: Bren; NPC in: L'Honneur et les Intrigues (FIC)

Molotov · March 17, 2015, 09:50:16 PM

This thread was responsible for my ordering a copy of H+I (via Noble Knight), which was just delivered a handful of minutes ago.

The detailed posts, and passion, definitely were responsible. I'm looking forward to digging into it.

Bren · March 19, 2015, 05:19:24 PM

Quote from: Molotov;820739This thread was responsible for my ordering a copy of H+I (via Noble Knight), which was just delivered a handful of minutes ago.

The detailed posts, and passion, definitely were responsible. I'm looking forward to digging into it.

:cool:

I've been enjoying the heck out of the game.

I've found the rules contain quite a bit of thought and depth. And the dueling system is quite good. The only downside to the way the rules are written is that they could use more examples. But that's true of most RPGs. One other nit pick is that the rules should make it more clear what to do with fractions, i.e. which should apply: normal rounding, always round up, or always round down?

Bren · April 29, 2015, 07:21:37 AM

Recently Shipyard Locked asked me a couple of questions about H+I. I thought others might also be interested so I asked if I could post the answer and Shipyard Locked graciously said yes. For ease of reference, I'll put each question as a separate post. So here are the Qs and the As.

Quote from: Shipyard LockedYour writing on H+I has piqued my interest. I'm always looking for a way to fix 7th Sea. Is H+I still working out for you? How well do you think it could handle 7th Sea?

Hi Shipyard Locked,

I haven't played 7th Sea, but from various threads and things I've read, I think H+I would work pretty well for 7th Sea. I looked at the dueling styles in both 7th Sea and in H+I and I greatly prefer the way H+I does dueling and combat. In addition, some of the conversion work is already done.

This is a link to a guy's page who did conversions from 7th Sea to Honor+Intrigue.

Also here is what the rules say about playing sorcerers.

Quote from: "I Want to Play a Sorcerer"Sorcerers as described here are not meant to be played by heroic player characters. They are meant to be among the most heinous of NPC villains. Sorcery is "Black Magic" whereas the heroes should be expected to use "White Magic" from the Magician or Alchemist Careers, which were designed to emulate 17th Century scholarly magical traditions. However if the GM wants to make "non-evil" sorcery available in the game, it's certainly possible, but requires some modification.

First, the back-story of where these powers come from will need to be altered. Heroic characters will not be the sort that gain their powers from demonic forces. Maybe it is a hereditary ability passed down through the bloodline, or gained by the possession of some special artifact. The GM may also limit the sorcery in other ways, such as having all the characters' spells follow some theme (such as light, earth, fire, wind, water, nature, etc).

Second, Healing with Arcane Power should be impossible for heroic Sorcerers—their type of magic simply doesn't lend itself to that ability. The ability to "play God" and reverse mortal injuries is unnatural, and would be a tell-tale sign that a Sorcerer is of the demonic variety. Repairing objects may be possible, however.

Next, the player should be warned to be extremely careful in using sorcery. 17th Century people are unlikely to distinguish between varieties of sorcery. If a hero is seen blasting a rampaging monster with a bolt of lightning from his hand, the crowd would not be grateful to the hero... they'd be terrified, and likely turn him into the witch hunters! In addition, if "good" Sorcerers exist, they will of course be targeted by practitioners of the Dark Arts for corruption or death.

Korgul · April 29, 2015, 08:59:17 AM

Quote from: Bren;815962I don't know Spanish. Is there a version of Capitan Alatriste in English?

From my reading of the novels (I've read all but the last one which isn't translated yet), numbers make a big difference in the world of Alatriste. And Alatriste behaves as if any swordfight could be fatal. All of which makes it feel more gritty/realistic than heroic/swashbuckling. H+I is designed to emulate the sort of heroic swashbuckling antics you see from Errol Flynn in Robin Hood or Captain Blood.

It's not that you can't do gritty with H+I, just that I don't think it is designed with that in mind. One thing would be to eliminate Pawns from H+I. That would make all the NPCs closer to the equal of the PCs and would make the odds matter a lot more and would better emulate a gritty feel.

By go to for a grittier feel and the danger that 2-1 odds gives in Alatriste I'd use my go to system which is some version of a Runequest/BRP/CoC. Those systems seem to be better designed for that gritty, anybody could die feel. Possibly Flashing Blades would also do a good job, though that's just a guess based on a cursory reading of the rules. (I added the social rank system from Flashing Blades as well as the costs and income. But I use H+I for everything else.)

I agree that, even eliminating pawns rules (wich I used just for a couple of sessions, not really my cup of tea), the combat isn't gritty at all.

Some other casual considerations:

1) I find it handles supernatural quite well (at least of the eldritch variety). I really love the npc sorcery system, and the core engine of the game is light and flexible enough to be able to improvvise rules on the filight if things get really wierd (wich in my campaign did when my players started to use a really and incredibly powerful artifact linked with an ancient god)

2) I didn't care for the social conflict rules (at least out of combat, during a fight it's occasionaly quite funny). I found it needlessly involved and distracting.

3) I dumped the (even if it's simple end elegant) abstract wealth system when I realized my player likes to hoard and count every penny regardless of the genre or circumstances.

4) In my experience the combat feel quite fun, fast swashbuckly and even a little tactical, although the fact manouvers are linked to different attributes
made the characters often repeat the optimal patterns.

5) The rules for alchemy and invention are simple, functional.

6) I relly love the bol career system in character creation. The first character was created on the rear of two guinness coaster in a pub, whitout a manual, in 15 minutes. 15 minutes including the developping of the simple backstory that the careers (and admitedly the song "Am I evil") suggested. Said simple backstory gave me enough plot hooks to set the tones and propel almost half the campaign. I must admit that, in actual play, as a resolution system the career system was a little to fuzzy for the taste of my players.

Bren · April 29, 2015, 09:32:32 AM

Korgul,

Good post and very good points, most of which I agree with wholeheartedly.

Quote from: Korgul;8288062) I didn't care for the social conflict rules (at least out of combat, during a fight it's occasionaly quite funny). I found it needlessly involved and distracting.

Social conflict feels a little awkward sometimes. It certainly requires practice for players and GM if they aren't used to that sort of system. One of my players is really good at using the system. It part that is because she is just that good, but in large part I think it is because she likes and is used to the point-counterpoint of debate and she likes the British style of debating which I'd say the social conflict in H+I fits well with. I find I am better able to GM the conflict when she is running the PC involved.

What I find works pretty well for all of us is to have a brief OOC conversation to set up the object of the conversational conflict (if it is unclear) and maybe set some stakes (if they are unclear). One thing I find players sometimes struggle with is losing composure in a social conflict. They often don't want their character to lose and so setting a stake ahead of time by at least considering - "so if you character loses the argument and is humiliated, what would that look like?" can help.

Quote3) I dumped the (even if it's simple end elegant) abstract wealth system when I realized my player likes to hoard and count every penny regardless of the genre or circumstances.

My experience was similar. I'll say more about that in another Q&A post.

Quote4) In my experience the combat feel quite fun, fast swashbuckly and even a little tactical, although the fact manouvers are linked to different attributes made the characters often repeat the optimal patterns.

There are optimal patterns, but they aren't simply character specific they are character-and-opponent specific. The tactics that a PC may use against the agile and tricky Aramis may be very different when the PC faces the mighty Porthos...or often they should be. Players that ignore their opponent's strengths and weaknesses are often badly surprised when their favorite combination doesn't work and they get beaten by the NPC.

EDIT: What sorts of duelists have you seen in play? What move combinations have they favored?

Bren · April 29, 2015, 10:26:08 AM

Here's another question.

Quote from: Shipyard LockedOh, another question: After this much time, what key system weaknesses have you noticed and what have you house-ruled, if anything?

There are only three things I've house ruled. I suppose one could call those system weaknesses, but I think it would be fairer to call them system preferences. Here's what I've house ruled.

1) Removed Abstract Wealth
For the most part I'm not fond of abstract wealth. Abstract wealth would make more sense if the game didn't really focus on wealth in any tangible way. Settings like Star Trek, Star Wars (for some characters), and Call of Cthulhu are ones where abstract wealth makes more sense to me. Supers would be another good example.

An episodic swashbuckling or swords and sorcery campaign might use abstract wealth. In Conan stories, wealth is a McGuffin that serves as a story hook or motivator, but it typically has no long term effect on Conan. By the next adventure the pouch full of jewels has turned into a good horse, a mail shirt, and a find steel blade. The rest of his wealth has been squandered and this adventure hook is the dozen riders who are chasing Conan, not a new quest for wealth...or maybe it is a new quest for wealth . The hook is frequently pretty irrelevant to the story that unfolds.

Treating wealth that way is not what I started with in gaming. In H+I, the players seemed to want to acquire wealth (or at least they picked up whatever they found of value) so as a GM I found that I needed to first figure out what something of value (say a horse or half a dozen match lock muskets) was equivalent to in Wealth Levels and then I had to tell the players that. It is easier for me to know that one match lock costs 18 livre so a half dozen will be 108 livre. And selling guns as plunder probably gets you1/4 to 1/2 of the price.

Also, I like knowing that horses come with different ratings that affect the price and quality of the mount.

Poor (½)
Average or Fair (x1)
Good (x2)
Excellent (x3)
Superb (x5)

To get away from abstract wealth levels, I started out with the price lists from Flashing Blades then modified and added to those based on some other games and pricing from original period sources.

2)Added Social Ranks, Positions, Favors and Influence.
I basically imported the systems from Flashing Blades including modifications made and posted by Black Vulmea on his site . I wanted to get some of the period feel of the early modern social hierarchy and the quest for improving social station and position that is seen in both historical and literary 17th century Paris. This also provided different axes of power and improvement for characters. So power is not simply how good one is with a blade or gun or how much wealth one controls, but also where one is in the hierarchy, who one knows, who ones master is, and who owes you favors (and to whom do you owe favors).

3) Framing Combat
This one is new. I recently moved to a more flexible system of Initiative that avoids switching from character to character each round based on initiative. Instead I stick with one character for one or more rounds until there is either a resolution or a cliff hanger where it makes sense to switch points of view.

From the first, switching between characters based on initiative as H+I describes worked well for keeping the players engaged. However it had one problem. Several players complained that their recollection of the fight was very stochastic or stroboscopic and they couldn't follow the flow of the combat. To resolve that we ended up going back after a short fight or at stages in a longer fight and describing the flow of combat. This was a bit cumbersome, but it worked.

However, as the players increased in power they mastered actions. Mastering some actions, like Parry or Riposte gives the master an additional free action. Heroes and Villains in H+I get two actions each round: one major action (often an attack) and one minor action (like a feint or a reaction like a parry). However very experienced characters who have mastered maneuvers get more actions. So a deadly duelist like our hero, Captain-Lieutenant Gaston Thibeault fighting the villainous sword master, César de Mala Cassanha, might look like this.

Round 1

Gaston gets the initiative, he attacks with Bladework (his major action).
Cassanha parries (free action), then ripostes (free action).
The riposte would have barely succeeded, but Gaston dodges (his free action), then ripostes (free action).
Cassanha parries (his minor action).
Cassanha now acts. He lunges (his major action).
Gaston parries (his minor action) which ends the round.

WHEW! Okay, now on to round 2 which might look similar.

As you can imagine if you are playing Guy de Bourges, you might forget what happened in your last combat after listening to the long exchange between Gaston and Cassanha. Now this sort of very long round only happens when the PC has mastered multiple maneuvers and the opponent is a Villain who has also mastered multiple maneuvers. Which is not the usual encounter in H+I, but such encounters have happened more than a few times over the years we have played.

So currently what I am doing is to combine several rounds to provide a clear sense of flow for each character and to hopefully run combat long enough to reach either a conclusion or a minor cliff hanger. What I get ends up being a bit more narrative and looking a bit like the way Framing works in Regime Diabolique.

4) Character Power (This is possible "weakness," but not one we have yet encountered.)
One area where system weakness can occur is if characters become too powerful. The game relies on roll 2d6+Quality+(Combat Ability or Career) – (Opposing Quality/Ability/Career) with 9+ being a success. A natural 12 on 2d6 is an automatic success and if the adjusted roll was also high enough to succeed, it is also a Mighty Success (i.e. a critical). A natural 2 on 2d6 is an automatic failure and if the adjusted roll is a failure, then it is a Calamitous Failure (i.e. a fumble). As characters increase in ability they can, especially if they narrowly focus, reach a point where their bonus is so high that they can't really fail a roll except on a 2. That makes contests a bit dull since the PC essentially always succeeds and never gets a Calamitous Failure.

The good news is the rules include an optional to use 2d10 instead of 2d6. This extends the range which would allow for characters with higher bonuses without them being automatically successful.

Even though some of our PCs have been in play for 3 years now which is over 150 sessions and over 200 advancement points we haven't yet needed that rule. So far, all the players have chosen not to narrowly specialize or have switched to alternate PCs so none of the PCs have reached a level of ability where they have automatic success no matter what.