Hero's Games and it's Gift to RPG's and Game Masters

The Hero RPG System is one of the first 3rd generation role playing system. And the addition of the generation is not the gift it gives to role playing games. Nor is it the fact that rules even though they're old,simple and versatile is not the gift. It is simply the view it takes on creating anything with in the system from super powers to technology.

The Hero System started out simply as Champions a super hero game back in the late mid to late 80's. It was moderately successful. Simply because ppl could grab the game and build the super hero they dreamed of to play in the world that was created by the Hero Games and the game masters of that time. Hero Games expanded and released more games all with the same system. About 89 they released a system wide rule book to put all the genre books together and released champions.

Generations in role playing games work simply like this. First generation games had classes and no skills everyone of one career or race or what have you looked like everyone else of that type. For example in a modern day campaign if there was a spy. they would all pretty much be able to do the same thing. They also locked advancement to levels and not achievements in anyway.

Second generation added skills to this mix and you can pick and choose the ones that you want with in your class. Yep occupational classes are still there as are the levels. Locked linear advancement with a little verity. Now there are 2 spys and one spy plays like a break in expert and can pick any lock. The other spy is a sniper and weapons expert. Simply because the player picked the type of spy they wanted. We play games like this all the time. Look at the D20 System, it's all like this with FEATs and non weapon skills.

Third generation removes the leves and the classes from the mix. You are stats and skills. How do you advance? Well if you don't use the skill you don't advance the skill. So if our spy that can break in an steal information never fires a gun. Well in adventure 10 when he needs to fire a gun?? hummm prayer is a good thing. Then you open up the stories you can tell. I never fired a gun and was in a gun fight and the tension is on. Also you gotta come up with something quick.

Third generation opens up the idea of play anywhere you have the skills for. Hero gave you the gift of equipment for anything you could thing of. With the point system you simply built it. Oh did I tell you third generation also took the dice away? Well yea charaters aren't rolled up in third generation you build what you want with points.

So equipment has powers like a space ship would have fly at light speed as an advantage. Cool right but what stops me from giving a player fly at light speed?? Cost, the gm gives everyone the points they can spend and also cares what skills you take and what disavantages you can take to lower the cost.

Ok now for the gift Hero gives every rpg. It gives a list of things that any "Power" can do. It can be a type of attack, Effect a stat, or allow a skill to be used. Nothing more or less then that. With those things you simply agument the "Power" to do what you want. You want to build a gun? Simply a ranged killing attack with charges and requires a skill roll to use. Add whatever mods you want to that. You now have your gun.

Simply seeing the all things like that in any game let's you have a more fluid game and opens up your mind to story telling.