HDTenEightyP/NetNews huggingface dataset:
From: gm1116@albnyvms.bitnet
Subject: Re: FantasyHero and CyberHero
Reply-To: gm1116@albnyvms.bitnet
Organization: University of NY at Albany
Date: Sat, 12 Dec 92 07:24:09 GMT

	I really really really like the HERO system but one area
I find it breaks down for me is in creating equipment.  I find
it is just too cumbersom using the powers and that you don't get
enough variety(binoculars are either 10x, 100x, 1000x, etc depending
on points spent.  Not 100x, 200x, 250x, 400x, whatever) and the
only solution I have seen is to junk the creation rules for equipment
design what I want it to do and assign a cost for it.  Unfortunately,
here I have the problem that sometimes my imagination isn't too good
in some areas(especially clothing) and even when I have ideas, I'm unsure
what to charge for them.  Therefore I jjust convert stuff from other systems
to HERO(no problem for my cyberpunk campaign, I buy cyberpunk stuff just
to read it even if I'll never use it!  I even bought the GURPS basiic
set(GAG!) just so I can convert some gurps suplements over when I get
them(Illuminati, Cyberspace, High Tech, etc, etc).
	Now, to my question, does anyone have a good way to design stuff
for HERO and a good monetary system??

-Badger
GM1116@albnyvms
From: hnguyen%peruvian.cs.utah.edu@cs.utah.edu (Hung Nguyen)
Subject: Re: Palladium/Wizards of the Coast Lawsuit
Date: 18 Dec 92 12:57:20 MST
Organization: University of Utah CS Dept

In article <MAVRA.92Dec17173444@bailey.cpac.washington.edu> mavra@cpac.washington.edu (Peter D. Adkison) writes:
>In article <1992Dec17.204454.17079@unislc.uucp> stv@unislc.uucp (Steve Spencer) writes:

>Well, the other option is to settle, but that just leaves us more
>vulnerable since it would essentially involved an admission of guilt,
>thus opening the door for some other company to come after us.

Sometime this is better depending on what they want.  If they want you to
pay some fee for using their Trademark and if it not expensive, then that
a lot cheaper and easier than to fight them in court.

>>    THIRD, and this is not meant to slander PALADIUM (TM), but is it 
>>    possible that the "big boys" in the gaming industry kinda look for
>>    a way to tie up smaller gaming companies in court, and thus run them
>>    out of businness?
>
>That may be their intent.  It's possible that we'll be counter-sueing
>for unfair competition and anti-trust, claiming that they are misusing
>the legal system to unfairly drive out competition.

I don't think you can do that, since the judge did allow the lawsuit.  
I believe you stated that you already had a hearing and the judge allow
4 out of the 6 lawsuit.  If this is the case, you can't counter sue
for mis-using of the legal system.  If the judge threw out all the
lawsuit, then maybe but he didn't.

Plus Palladium might be protecting their trademark and copyright.  Since,
and someone else also stated this, if you don't protect your trademark
when someone might be violating it then you give up your trademark rights.
They might be just doing this.  I know I would, small or large.

 - Hung Nguyen -
Note: I am not a lawyer, so my facts might not be upto date.  I sure you
guys got lawyers already.


Xref: sparky rec.games.frp.misc:10180 rec.arts.anime:27519 rec.arts.manga:1939
From: tdunn@ecst.csuchico.edu (Stress Kitty)
Newsgroups: rec.games.frp.misc,rec.arts.anime,rec.arts.manga
Subject: Re: A general RPG Question
Date: 21 Dec 92 01:25:44 GMT
Followup-To: rec.games.frp.misc
Organization: California State University, Chico
NNTP-Posting-Host: laibach.ecst.csuchico.edu

Delbert Laird writes:
>This question is directed to those of you that read manga or watch
>anime AND roleplay:

[and has been forwarded to the appropriate newsgroups for more replies,
and the followup-to has been set back to the originating group...]

>Which anime (including serial) or manga would you like to see as a
>RPG?...Specifically, why that anime or manga?

Zeta Gundam would work if the group is really into that setting and
world.  I played in a group that was (half) into it, and we had a
lot of fun.  We also nearly drove the referee insane, but that was
another point.

Me, I like Dirty Pair, but shudder at the horrors that Palladium 
Games will visit on it.  Toren Smith's version was bad enough.

I think Five Star Stories is quirky enough and high-powered enough
to have appeal.  It would help if I knew exactly what was going on
in there, but what I see of it I think gamers would like.

Lastly, ROLW may have the slightest possibility of working as an RPG.
Call me adventurous for suggesting it... =)


-- 
After all, what is your hosts' purpose in having a party?  Surely not
for you to enjoy yourself; if that were their sole purpose, they'd have
simply sent champagne and women over to your place by taxi.
		-- P. J. O'Rourke
From: bell@beethoven.cs.unc.edu (Andrew Bell)
Newsgroups: rec.games.frp.misc
Subject: Re: lead toy ban      1/2
Date: 14 Dec 92 16:26:05 GMT
Distribution: rec
Organization: The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

In article <1992Dec14.2467.6583@execnet> "jeff zeitlin" <jeff.zeitlin@execnet.com> writes:
>  Crazy Egor is living up to his name.  The ban was not on lead
>  FIGURINES, it was on TOYS containing lead, and then only in contexts
>  where the lead has a large likelihood of being propagated into the
>  body.

State of New York: Department of Health
    In The Matter                          Order for
         of                                 Summary
The sale and/or distribution of             Action
Figurines containing lead

[...]

    NOW, THEREFORE, THE COMMISIONER OF HEALTH DOES HEARBY ORDER THAT:
    1) Pursuant to Public Health Law Section 16, the following Respondents,
 manufacturers of the figurine products containing lead specified at paragraph
 3 below shall immediately cease the sale and/or distribution of said products
 in New York State:
[Addresses removed]
        Citadel Miniatures
        GHQ
        Grenadier Models
        Lance & Laser Models, Inc.
        Miniature Figurines, Ltd. <MiniFigs>
        Rafm Company, Inc.
        Ral Partha
        West End Games
2) Pursuant to Public Health Law Section 16, all distributors and retail
establishments in the State of New York, which sell and/or distribute the
figurine products containing lead specified below, shall immediately cease
the sale and/or distribution of said products within New York State.

[...]

>  There is no certainty that it even
>  applies to "collectable" figurines; even if it does, the regulation
>  may be worded in such a way that the sale is _controlled_, not
>  _prohibited_.

It was not.

   Andrew Bell
   bell@cs.unc.edu

Newsgroups: rec.games.frp.misc
From: jwolf@nyx.cs.du.edu (The WolF)
Subject: Re: T$R and SF (Re: STAR FRONTIERS: does anyone remember it??)
Organization: University of Denver, Dept. of Math & Comp. Sci.
Date: Sat, 19 Dec 92 20:51:28 GMT

In article <1992Dec17.180011.27720@jupiter.sun.csd.unb.ca> apace@mta.ca writes:
>>>> Has T$R ever had a successful Science Fiction game?
 
>>>For that matter, has T$R (the game Nazis) ever had any successful product
>>>outside of its D&D/AD&D lines?

>Marvel Superheroes was a commercial success.
>Top Secret was a game design success. (IMPO)

>Other than that.......

Well, Marvel Superheroes does NOT even appear in T$R's 1993 catalog.  But then,
other than a single XXVc novel due in Feb., neither does the old Buck Rogers.
There is a NEW Buck Rogers High Adventures Cliff Hangers though.  Uses its own
logo, so I would assume its not merely a continuation of the failed line, but
rather a new line destined to fail!  :)

Jon WolF

Newsgroups: rec.games.frp.misc
From: pjmelody@eos.ncsu.edu (PATRICK J MELODY)
Subject: Re: SRII Is Magic getting out of hand?
Organization: NCSU Computer Science Dept. 
Date: Thu, 17 Dec 1992 22:52:22 GMT

I agree that magic is definitely out of hand in shadowrun.  I GMed a game
a while ago and the magicians were so pumped up with increase attribite 
spells, various foci, and elementals assisting them that it was ridiculous.
Part of this was a result of some poor campaign design decisions, but there 
were also problems with the game.  Usually the combat mages won initiative
and then hammered with their spells doing lots of damage.  Even if the 
samurai/merc types managed to go first, their contributions to combat were 
small compared to the mages'.  The mages were also superior at surveillance.
Non mages and non deckers didn't do as much as mages and deckers.

I have come up with a few tweaks that I think balance the game more which
I can post soon.

Paul Hume and the other designers apparantly don't want the game to be 
balanced, instead saying that magicians are REALLY powerful.  There is also
the dichotomy that magicians are supposed to be really rare, and society
hasn't had a chance to deal with the existence of magic yet (we see this
claim in several places) yet we have talismonger shops in malls (who's 
supporting all these businesses if mages are so rare?) univerisites offering
BS degrees in magic, police forces seemingly have plenty of magic at their
disposal... sounds like society has dealt well to me...

FASA's line is that mages ARE really great, and should be better than other
characters at almost anything (except computers/decking).  This is supposedly
checked by a scarcity of mages, but I don't see this as viable in a gaming
environment.  Why should I play a samurai/merc when I could do it better as
a mage? 

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Patrick Melody                         
melod-pj@lancelot.csc.ncsu.edu   (use this address, NOT eos.ncsu.edu)
NCSU Computer Science Dept.
-- 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Patrick Melody                         
melod-pj@lancelot.csc.ncsu.edu   (use this address, NOT eos.ncsu.edu)
NCSU Computer Science Dept.
Newsgroups: rec.games.frp.misc
From: haavardf@gluon.uio.no (Haavard Fosseng)
Subject: Re: RQ: Runelords and Heros question
Organization: University of Oslo, Norway
Date: Wed, 16 Dec 1992 16:28:27 GMT

In article <1992Dec15.142724.7686@email.tuwien.ac.at> Scheirich Harald <scheirich@eigcl1.una.ac.at> writes:

   Can anybody here explain to me, somebody with access only to RQ3 stuff,
   what on 
   earth Runelords and Heros are.


Heroes are "people" of abilities far beyond those of "normal" mne/elves/
dwarfs/trolls/whatever. I remember that it is implied that one can become
a "hero" thorugh a "heroquest", though I don't recall there being any
explicit descriptions of what this entails.

"Runelord" is a cult rank comparable to that of Rune Priest. The 
requirements for becoming a Rune Lord vary from cult to cult, but 
always include:

- 5+ skills at 90%+ (mostly restricted to skills the cult values highly)

- a certain period as an Initiate of the cult

- passing some kind of test, abstracted as passing a roll based on the
  character's stats.

Also, the status of Runelords compared to that of Rune Priests vary 
from cult to cult, and from situation to situation. As a rule of thumb:
The more warlike the cult, the higher the status of the Runelords
(among the followers of Humakt(God of War) Runelords *always* outrank
priests) and Runelords have more power during times of war/crisis.
In most cults, Priests are leaders during peacs, Lords during war.



H}vard Fosseng
From: ath@LNS62.TN.CORNELL.EDU (Aron Helser)
Newsgroups: rec.games.frp.misc
Subject: Re: clo=DECKER FROM HELL
Date: 11 Dec 92 17:27:38 GMT
Reply-To: ATH@cesr10.tn.cornell.edu
Organization: Wilson Lab, Cornell U., Ithaca, NY, 14853
Nntp-Posting-User: ath2@cornell.edu

In article <Bz2tA3.KAo@rice.edu>, hyatt@owlnet.rice.edu (David Waterman Hyatt) writes:
[details deleted]
>I must stress the following.  If you don't plan to use Virtual
>Realities, with all of the toughened rules contained therein
>(IC Suppression, Load Rating, Alerts, IC Constructs, IC with STAGING, etc.),
>then I would not let a decker of the power level you described in
>your post start out like that.  With Virtual Realities, however,
>I would not have a problem.
>
>Dave
>

But my group has been having some problems with the VR rules.  For instance:
When do alerts go off?  all the time, as VR suggests?  Does a decker have any
chance to suppress them, or do all node (or IC, or node and IC?) ratings go
up as soon as he fails his first test in the system?  If a decker doesn't have
the opportunity to supress alerts, then he is always going to set off alarms.

And the load rules may keep deckers under control, but they don't really make
any sense.  Why should MPCP affect the load in the node?  It's in the decker's
deck, after all... and what about programs in his active memory that aren't
running?  They have even less reason to affect load, yet they do in VR rules.

IC supressing and IC with staging are good ideas, and will probably be
included in whatever rules my group finally settles on.  Give us some input--
what do you think is realistic and reasonable????    ---- Aron

PS.  My groups standards may be kind of high, because two of them, including
the decker, and Comp Sci majors in junior year.  Slot it and run, chummer.
Newsgroups: rec.games.frp.misc
From: akuma@netcom.com (Steven E Barnes)
Subject: Re: FantasyHero and CyberHero
Organization: Netcom - Online Communication Services  (408 241-9760 guest) 
Date: Sat, 12 Dec 1992 00:24:11 GMT

In article <2528@cix.cict.fr>, maillet@tls-cs.cert.fr (Luc Maillet) writes:
> |> 
> |> I'm not sure what you mean.  Actually, the background info on the
> |> Net seems reasonable.  I just don't like their mechanics for handling
> |> things.  From what I've seen of SR, it has similar problems.
> 
>   Sorry, but I think that the SR rules about matrix/decks ( including those in
> the Virtual Realities book ) are among the best written so far. Sure, the nd6
> system is irritating. But their view of the matrix, the importance of real
> computer constructs, the emphasis on programs, the rules on load and speed, they
> all sound right. They sound like "real" matrix and not cyber-fantasy stuff like
> Cyberpunk, which has, in its 2020 version, the worst matrix system I've ever
> seen. The guys at FASA sure know more about computers than the ones at Talsorian
> Games.
>   There are good ideas in Cyberspace, but the mechanics ideas are bad IMHO. 
> Never read GURPS cyber, but as I don't like GURPS, I see no reason to.

I agree with you on the worthlessness of the Cyberpunk net rules.
I will also agree that the net rules for SR are the best published
net rules.  I only skimmed thru the Virtual Realities book at
a game store, so I can't really get into specifics.  I do remember
there being a certain amount of "fuzzy science" in the rules
though.

What I don't like is the fact that these rules take the concept of
virtual reality, and then describe net combat in terms of real-world
combat.  When faced with a security program, attacking it just doesn't
make any sense.  Yes, I read the section in the VR book that explained
that an "attack" in the net is really the launching of various viruses
and attack programs at the target.  But then why are the visuals
descriped using real-world combat terms?  How can someone "dodge"
an attack program?

Maybe I'm just bogged down with outmoded 20th century notions
about how computers work....

-steve
Organization: Carnegie Mellon, Pittsburgh, PA
From: philipd@cs.kuleuven.ac.be (Philip Dutre)
Subject: Re: Warhammer FRP - WH40k conversion
Organization: Dept. Computerwetenschappen
Date: Mon, 14 Dec 1992 10:36:40 GMT

The WFRP contains a conversion table between WFRP & WFB3 statistics (in the
bestiary section, I think). Since WFB3 & WH40K are easily interchangable, you can
use that conversion as a guide. 

Although, if you intend to roleplay in the 40K universe, you still have to invent
careers, skills etc...

-- 
| Phil Dutre                            Dept. Computer Science              |
| philipd@cs.kuleuven.ac.be             Katholieke Universiteit Leuven (KUL)|
| Phone: (32) 16 201015 x3094/3552      Celestijnenlaan 200A                |
| Fax:   (32) 16 205308                 B-3001 Heverlee, BELGIUM            |
From: mjo@iao.ford.com (Mike O'Connor)
Newsgroups: rec.games.frp.misc
Subject: Re: City State of the Invincible Overlord
Date: 18 Dec 1992 00:19:16 GMT
Organization: Not an official spokesperson for Ford Motor Company
Reply-To: "Mike O'Connor" <mjo@fmsrl7.srl.ford.com>
NNTP-Posting-Host: localhost

In article <1992Dec17.165406.1@ulys.unil.ch> pgyger@ulys.unil.ch writes:
:Has anyone heard about a campaign called "The City-State of the Invincible
:Overlord"? It was published by Mayfair games in 1988 or so and I am trying

Sounds like repackaged Judges Guild material.  If so, it's a lot older
than 1988.  I had a copy in '83-'84 or thereabouts.  It was a decent
sort of campaign setup, and I did a bit of work on fleshing it out for
the campaign I was running at the time.  It was raw, but I liked the
maps and campaign "feel" and for about 7-8 months, my gamers were very
happy gamers.  Anyone know if Mayfair did anything to City-State
before re-releasing it?

						...Mike

-- 
 Michael J. O'Connor           |  Internet:  mjo@fmsrl7.srl.ford.com
 Ford Motor Company, OPEO      |  UUCP:      ...!{backbone}!fmsrl7!mjo
 20000 Rotunda, Bldg. 1-3001   |  Phone:     +1 (313) 248-1260
 Dearborn, MI  48121           |  Fax:       +1 (313) 323-6277
From: at731@cleveland.Freenet.Edu (Troy L. Nothnagel)
Newsgroups: rec.games.frp.misc
Subject: Re: Shadowrun Question -- Auras and Spells
Date: 13 Dec 1992 10:54:43 GMT
Organization: Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, OH (USA)
Reply-To: at731@cleveland.Freenet.Edu (Troy L. Nothnagel)
NNTP-Posting-Host: hela.ins.cwru.edu


In a previous article, hyatt@owlnet.rice.edu (David Waterman Hyatt) says:

>How can Physical Combat spells be cast at inanimate objects, when
>it is explicitly stated in both editions of the game that inanimate
>objects have NO AURA WHATSOEVER?
>Which brings us to the Ram, Wrecker, and Urban Renewal Spells.
>How can these exist?  How can they even work, if inanimate objects
>have no AURAS?  

A few choices:
 
a)  All objects have SOME form of aura.  Natural objects have the
strongest, hence a mage travelling astrally cannot pass through the
ground and has difficulty passing through water.  The more refined and
processed an object, the less of an aura it has and thus is harder to
effect using any kind of magic.
 
b) Change all of these spells to damaging manipulations.
 
c) Wait for the Grimoire II, due any minute now.  (I hope.)

Newsgroups: rec.games.frp.misc
From: jhk6@cunixb.cc.columbia.edu (John H Kim)
Subject: Re: STAR FRONTIERS:does anyone remember it??
Keywords: STAR FRONTIERS
Reply-To: jhk6@cunixb.cc.columbia.edu (John H Kim)
Organization: Columbia University
Date: Tue, 15 Dec 1992 04:05:50 GMT

irvine@uxh.cso.uiuc.edu (Brent Irvine) writes:
>sfo@milton.u.washington.edu (Stephen Omalley) writes:
>>Does anyone out there remember Star Frontiers, T$R's SF RPG?? What happened
>>to it? I admit it wasn't that good of a system but the Zebulon's Guide...  
>>supplement was GREAT!!! 
>
>What a dog of a system! ...
>
>IMNSHO, TSR experimented with the bland Care-Bear whitebread no substance
>generic game feel, ditched the beta system and took the theme over to 
>their AD&D game! 

	Well, agreed about the generic game feel. The mechanics were not 
bad - especially for the time, but the base background material was *awful*. 
I did like alot about how they handled skills, however - there was alot of 
description about how to actually run and use specific skills beyond generic 
task resolution. 
	They did put out an excellent SF adventure entitled 'Bugs in the 
System' concerning a makeshift refining facility on a gas giant: a fine plot 
somewhat marred by bad layout, artists, and editors. There was also an 
adaptation of 2010 which I would not recommend, although it was also 
interesting. 

-------------------------------------------------------------------------
John Kim                    | "ALERT: /Earth is 75% full - please delete 
jhk6@cunixb.cc.columbia.edu | all extraneous people."
Columbia University         |
From: acadams@afterlife.ncsc.mil (Arthur C. Adams)
Newsgroups: rec.games.frp.misc
Subject: T$R and SF (Re: STAR FRONTIERS:does anyone remember it??)
Keywords: STAR FRONTIERS
Date: 15 Dec 92 11:21:01 GMT
Organization: The Great Beyond

This thread reminds me of something I've thought about for some time,
now. 

Has T$R ever had a successful Science Fiction game?

Metamorphosis Alpha didn't sell.
Gamma World never did exceptionally well, though I think it did better
	than the rest.
Star Frontiers didn't sell.
Buck Rogers isn't selling.

I suspect what it is is that gamers who play science fiction games 
tend to be more "serious" gamers than the typical T$R sucker errr 
customer. Therefore, they've avoided T$R's attempts in the market.

Although, I'll admit I still consider Gamma World the best post-
holocaust game ever, but that's because I think they had the best
setting. 

-- 
We need not fear those who do evil in the name of evil, but Heaven
protect us from those who do evil in the name of good.
Arthur C. Adams acadams@afterlife.ncsc.mil            	<fnord>
No, I'm not the Arthur Adams who draws comic books. Don't even ask.
Newsgroups: rec.games.frp.misc
From: vanguard@midnight.bellcore.com (Mark Schlagenhauf)
Subject: Re: SwashbucklingIn article <Bz66nz.GA7@news.cso.uiuc.edu>, irvine@uxh.cso.uiuc.edu (Brent Irvine) writes:
Reply-To: vanguard@midnight.bellcore.com (Mark Schlagenhauf) 
Organization: Bellcore
Date: Mon, 14 Dec 92 21:46:54 GMT

|> 
|> Does anyone know of RPG games set in the 1492-1715 era?
|> Thanks in advance,
|> brent

Since no one else has mentioned it, I'll toss one in.

Privateers and Gentlemen, by FGU (I think)

One of the things I liked about the game is the fact that it includes
Heart of Oak as a miniatures game to resolve ship-to-ship actions. 
Otherwise, the game oriented more toward being in the Navy than being a 
pirate. 

As a rule, I've found that FGU games make great source material for a genre.

Mark Schlagenhauf
vanguard@midnight.bellcore.com
From: rhr9081@hertz.njit.edu (Ray Rich)
Newsgroups: rec.games.frp.misc
Subject: Re: NY STATE DEPT of HEALTH--Illegal minis
Date: 16 Dec 92 22:37:49 GMT
Organization: New Jersey Institute of Technology, Newark, N.J.

In article <2525@cix.cict.fr> maillet@tls-cs.cert.fr (Luc Maillet) writes:
>In article <1992Dec9.180128.27760@engage.pko.dec.com>, chad@ithil.enet.dec.com (Chad Leigh) writes:
>|> 
>|> --
>|> In article <1992Dec9.165349.4658@galileo.cc.rochester.edu>, thpr_ss@uhura.cc.rochester.edu (Thomas Parker) writes:
>
>|> >?Miniatures can be made without lead.
>|> >The replacements are either tin or pewter.
>|> >Tin is weak and does not hold on to the paint well from what I have heard.
>|> >It is a material that people would not buy.
>|> 
>|> 
>|> >Tom Parker
>|> 
>|> I think there was a misunderstanding here onthe part of the original
>|> poster, Bret.  The sentence about removing lead had nothing to do
>|> with removing lead from the manufacturing process.  The "studies"
>|> done by the Dept of Health in NY show that it is possible for children
>|> to get lead off from the miniature (ie, chew on it and get
>|> particles in mouth or break parts off etc etc etc) and that this
>|> is bad.
>
>  Knives are much more dangerous, as are matches. Neither are forbidden. Can
>someone explain why to a dumb foreigner ?
>
>								Redwing

	Well, I'm willing to be the NY Board of Health uses both knives
and matches, while none of them presumably use miniatures.

								Raythrax
Newsgroups: rec.games.frp.misc