Hello, again, boys and gulls. It's been a few weeks since old Papa-'Scape has had a chance to sit down and share his amazing wisdom with the wonderful world of HeroScapers.com. We've had a national election and many local ones, some of which are still counting. You can count on them to be counting and recounting for another month, at least, and that brings us to our first question.
Dear Papa-'Scapeman,
Our game group is arguing about how many starting hexes you have to have in a game. So, dude, how many?
Dear Counting,
There was that old flag, back during the American Revolution (I remember it like it was yesterday) with the motto "Don't Tread on Me." Well, I say, "Don't Count on Me." Don't call me "dude," either.
As to your question, though, how many starting hexes do you have to have in a game, the answer depends on several factors. First, it depends on what game you're playing. In Shoots and Latters, you don't need any starting hexes at all. In HeroScape, though, you usually need some, unless you're playing "Heat of the Battle" style (which is huge fun), when you don't. Usually you need at least one and less than half the number of surface hexes on the map. A lot of people use 24 as if it was magic or the Law, but it isn't. The 24 karat standard came about because one day someone asked Grungebob how many hexes to use and he said, "Oh, a couple of dozen ought to do it."
From that historical perspective, we turn to a current question with scientific overtones...
Dear Pooper-'Scoop,
My dog still keeps chewing on my HeroScape hexes. What can I do to get him to quit doing that?
Dear dog,
I happen to know that Revdyer has the same problem with one of his dogs, Ralph. His answer is to begin a series of biological experiences to see if he can develop thumbs on the Black Lab (he's doing the genetic work, in fact, in a secret place called "The Black Lab"). He's convinced the dog is already smart enough to play the game and all he needs is thumbs, and that once he starts building his own maps, he'll stop chewing on the hexes. I'll let you know how it turns out.
If you're interested, here's a picture of Ralph:
Here's a picture of Rev's rat Terrier, Maggie, who isn't smart enough to play 'Scape.
Now a question that has been on everyone's mind at one time or another...
Dear Papa, Sir,
Why hasn't anyone ever thought about putting Star Wars figures into HeroScape?
Dear Excited,
I have no idea why this hasn't been thought about before. Why don't you start a discussion thread about it? You could start another one about Lord of the Rings figures too. And one about Transformers. And don't forget to start one about My Little Pony.
The last question for today is one that is near and dear to my heart...
Dear Papa Smurf,
Why isn't Wizards of the Coast bringing out a Smurf HeroScape to go with Classic and Marvel HeroScape?
Dear Blue,
I am taking a big sigh before I say this: "Arrggggh!!!!"
And that's it for this time, my friends. If you haven't voted yet, you need to hurry up and send in those absent-minded ballots. Remember, too, to send your questions to Revdyer in a PM. I don't promise I'll answer all of them here, but I'll read most of them some of the time.
Papa-'Scape
Dear Papa-'Scapeman,
Our game group is arguing about how many starting hexes you have to have in a game. So, dude, how many?
(signed) Counting on you
Dear Counting,
There was that old flag, back during the American Revolution (I remember it like it was yesterday) with the motto "Don't Tread on Me." Well, I say, "Don't Count on Me." Don't call me "dude," either.
As to your question, though, how many starting hexes do you have to have in a game, the answer depends on several factors. First, it depends on what game you're playing. In Shoots and Latters, you don't need any starting hexes at all. In HeroScape, though, you usually need some, unless you're playing "Heat of the Battle" style (which is huge fun), when you don't. Usually you need at least one and less than half the number of surface hexes on the map. A lot of people use 24 as if it was magic or the Law, but it isn't. The 24 karat standard came about because one day someone asked Grungebob how many hexes to use and he said, "Oh, a couple of dozen ought to do it."
From that historical perspective, we turn to a current question with scientific overtones...
Dear Pooper-'Scoop,
My dog still keeps chewing on my HeroScape hexes. What can I do to get him to quit doing that?
(signed) Dog-goned
Dear dog,
I happen to know that Revdyer has the same problem with one of his dogs, Ralph. His answer is to begin a series of biological experiences to see if he can develop thumbs on the Black Lab (he's doing the genetic work, in fact, in a secret place called "The Black Lab"). He's convinced the dog is already smart enough to play the game and all he needs is thumbs, and that once he starts building his own maps, he'll stop chewing on the hexes. I'll let you know how it turns out.
If you're interested, here's a picture of Ralph:
Here's a picture of Rev's rat Terrier, Maggie, who isn't smart enough to play 'Scape.
Now a question that has been on everyone's mind at one time or another...
Dear Papa, Sir,
Why hasn't anyone ever thought about putting Star Wars figures into HeroScape?
(signed) Excited about this new idea
Dear Excited,
I have no idea why this hasn't been thought about before. Why don't you start a discussion thread about it? You could start another one about Lord of the Rings figures too. And one about Transformers. And don't forget to start one about My Little Pony.
The last question for today is one that is near and dear to my heart...
Dear Papa Smurf,
Why isn't Wizards of the Coast bringing out a Smurf HeroScape to go with Classic and Marvel HeroScape?
(signed) Blue
Dear Blue,
I am taking a big sigh before I say this: "Arrggggh!!!!"
And that's it for this time, my friends. If you haven't voted yet, you need to hurry up and send in those absent-minded ballots. Remember, too, to send your questions to Revdyer in a PM. I don't promise I'll answer all of them here, but I'll read most of them some of the time.
Papa-'Scape