Level Scape

[mcmeeple]

Level Scape!
Character Sheets:
Download the main Character sheet PDF including: Cleric, Wizard, Warrior, Paladin, Ranger, Rogue and Summoner.
Download characters sheets here.

Blank character sheets:
http://www.heroscapers.com/community...o=file&id=4527



Introduction:
I know many others have done RPG style character development inside the world of Heroscape. This is my take on it.

This system isn't meant to be a rigid one and it has a lot of flexibility. The primary enhancement here is that I have added experience points and characters that progress and learn new skills or powers. In this way a character gets more powerful over the course of a game or games. Beyond this I worked hard to keep the powers fairly simple and inline with typical heroscape powers. I wanted it it to feel very much like heroscape.

Typically when played there is a Dungeon Master of sorts that plans out a campaign or adventure. This person will decide the qty and type of opponents the players will face. Typically this requires a lot of flexibility in that the players power level is constantly growing. You have to keep it hard, while avoiding making it impossible. You can use various events in the game to cover over situations where you inadvertently over power the players.

Experience Points:
Experience points are the key new element here. The idea is that it takes 3 experience points to do any of the following, and you spend them to do one:
- increase a base stat by one
- learn a new talent
- learn a new level 1 skill
- upgrade a skill to level 2 or 3 if possible.

In terms of earning experience points I have tried several systems and it all really depends on how quickly you want the players to level up. For example, I played an ongoing campaign with my son that took a little over a month to play out. In contrast I played a single 3 hour game where players went from newbies to very high level very quickly. This was a LOT of fun as the players went from fighting spiders in the forest to one shot killing giants and dragons at the end!

If you want a rapid progression I suggest offering the following for experience points:
- 1 point for wounding a figure
- 2 points for killing a figure (non-hero)
- 3 points for killing a hero figure

For a slower game you can do something like:
- 1 point for killing a figure
- 2 points for successfully completing a quest

Sometimes the end of a game event or level will conclude with some bonus exp to enable players to level up.

I prefer to allow players to spend experience points at any time. This gives the game a continuous sense of progression. If you want the leveling up process to take a really long time you could only allow them to upgrade them between games.

Sometimes we allow players to swap experience points. The idea is that you earn them as a group, so you can spend them as a group. It all depends on your play style and the type of game you want.

The exp system is simple so it really is a matter of what you want.

Base Stats:
You will notice on the character sheets that next to the base stats there are 3 circles for most stats. The idea is that you can level up each stat 3 times at most. Fill in each circle as you level them up. Figures with a Range 1 can not upgrade that stat.

Each time you "level up" a stat it adds +1 to its value.

Skills and Talents:
Talents can be learned in any order. Each character has 3 and there are no requirements for learning them. They also only have a single level.

Skills all have 3 levels each. When you learn a new skill for 3 exp points you learn it at level one. Spend 3 more exp to get it to level 2.

Skills are also stacked in two columns of three. You must learn the first skill before you can learn the one below it. And a skill below another one can never exceed the level of the previous one. In this way it really does feel like your character grows in power as you unlock the higher level skills. At this point things get explosive and players tend to have a LOT of fun as they feel the momentum of their character pick up...a squad of orcs? no problem!

Order Markers:
You can play with order markers, however each player will only have their character, so order markers really just seem to slow things down. Instead we typically just play clockwise with each player going in order. When the dungeon master goes he can activate all of the "bad guys". This tends to increase their power, which is actually a good thing because the player characters are very powerful and tend to wipe out squads with amazing speed (this is half the fun btw)

Treasure:
I have worked on various treasure systems where players get additional equipment with various effects. I have yet to find one that isn't overly complicated and reliant on way to many cards. In one iteration I made over 100 custom equipment cards. It was WAY too much. So I will keep working on this and try to post the results here.

One idea is to simply have dead figures or treasure chests produce gold coins. These could be used to purchase training. Or maybe just some basic potion cards for healing and what not.

Character Sheets:
Download characters sheets here.

[TheAverageFan]

This is a really cool idea! I've always enjoyed making my own units, and having heroes specific to players that level up is one of the main appeals of D&D Heroscape. I may have to give this a fling sometime.

~TAF

[Sir Heroscape]

I've done similar things like this with our big group games we have locally, and players have always loved it...but it has always been so exhausting creating the scenario with how they level up throughout the campaign. THIS sheet will be well used you can be assured! i'm very excited about this, and thank you for putting this together, i think this'll bring our gaming campaigns to a whole new level! +rep

EDIT: In fact, do you have a blank version with the same format? That way I can edit it with my own versions etc...

[mcmeeple]

Originally Posted by Sir Heroscape

I've done similar things like this with our big group games we have locally, and players have always loved it...but it has always been so exhausting creating the scenario with how they level up throughout the campaign. THIS sheet will be well used you can be assured! i'm very excited about this, and thank you for putting this together, i think this'll bring our gaming campaigns to a whole new level! +rep

EDIT: In fact, do you have a blank version with the same format? That way I can edit it with my own versions etc...

I will post a blank sheet today. I am also going to update the original post to show the 6 different characters, I think that detail is lost here.

I would love to hear how they work. Most of my play testing is with my son (8 yrs old). I am sure that the language on some of the powers needs to be adjusted. The upside is that since this is not pvp most of the time there isn't as much fussing over what EXACTLY the text means. That said, I would like to tighten them up. In some cases I did run into space issues so I would figure out how to cut the text short.

I agree, creating the characters is really hard. I have no trouble at all creating scenarios. My intent is that this is not a rigid system, so you can easily introduce all sorts of things. In our favorite scenario your quest is to rescue a master trainer from an orc dungeon. You have to fight spiders in the forest leading to the dungeon and acquire the key to get in. Then you fight troops in the hall including a warden that has the keys to the cells. Then as you continue down the cell hall more mobs come from the end of the hall to fight you. as you open cells you might accidentally release a beast that attacks you...eventually finding the trainer (a monk). Then you have to escape the jail. Once you do he rewards you with extra training. This can easily be extended to enable the players to progress very far.

One thing to keep in mind is that in total you there are 33 to 36 upgrades possible per character. So you can calculate how fast you want players to progress. If you have 4 hours to play you could make sure players earn 30 exp per hour in order to achieve the ultimate level by the end of play. we have really appreciated the ability to pace the game as needed.

Again, I would really love to hear how they work for you.

[mcmeeple]

I updated the character PDF with some items:

- Added Summoner Character
- Fixed LOTS of typos
- Added card #'s to identify them

I have not tested the Summoner much (just 1 time very quickly). Having the person pick a figure can be time consuming while they contemplate their options...but at least it can only happen a limited number of times.

The Summoner:

[mcmeeple]

You can get a blank character sheet here:

http://www.heroscapers.com/community...o=file&id=4527

[obfuscatedhippo]

Thank you for sharing! These are some great ideas.

The Level Advancement and power growth are nicely balanced and simple to grasp. And thanks for posting the blank version!

I really liked this power as well:

MAGIC MIRROR
Start with 3 magic mirror markers on this card. If this figure is targeted with a normal attack roll d20. If you roll 14 or higher, remove 1 mirror marker and the attack misses.

[WolfScape]

Awesome! I've gotta try that!

[Tornado]

Nice system.
Looking forward to more.

[Dr.Phibes]

Would it be okay to post what I'm calling "Level Scape 2nd Edition" rules? I, of course, would give you full original credits.

I and a group of D&D friends have been devising a pretty neat system rooted in what you and this community have built (I'm also a long time lurker). I have the 'Player Manual' ready and am currently working on the 'DM manual'.

[mcmeeple]

Originally Posted by Dr.Phibes

Would it be okay to post what I'm calling "Level Scape 2nd Edition" rules? I, of course, would give you full original credits.

I and a group of D&D friends have been devising a pretty neat system rooted in what you and this community have built (I'm also a long time lurker). I have the 'Player Manual' ready and am currently working on the 'DM manual'.

I am so glad you have enjoyed this and found your own ways to use these creations. My son and I have had s lot of fun with it as well.

Your free to use it any way you like and of course to publish your own version. Credit is always nice!

Regarding the name. Saying it is 2nd edition implies it is connected directly to what I have done. I think it would be better to name your project something new to avoid confusion etc.

I look forward to seeing what you created!

[Dr.Phibes]

Originally Posted by mcmeeple

I am so glad you have enjoyed this and found your own ways to use these creations. My son and I have had s lot of fun with it as well.

Your free to use it any way you like and of course to publish your own version. Credit is always nice!

Regarding the name. Saying it is 2nd edition implies it is connected directly to what I have done. I think it would be better to name your project something new to avoid confusion etc.

I look forward to seeing what you created!

Thank you, I will definitely figure out a different name.