[HoE] The Junkman Cometh (light rantery)

[Abdullah Oblongota <toadpooka@usa.net>]

I'm saying this right now, just to be clear: I LIKE the Junkman Cometh and Road
Warriors.  I think they're the two best HoE books out so far, and I truly admire
John Hopler for putting them together.  in defense of my opinion, I'm going to
respond to several attitudes toward the book that have popped up on the list...

"The math is too complicated"
Anyone who passed 8th grade Algebra shouldn't find the math too complicated. 
Most devices can be figured out on paper, but I recommend a calculator for the
more complex ones.  If you're simply scared to death of division, fractions, or
exponents, you're probably what's wrong with America today.  Ever since Vampire
hit it big so many years ago, the prevailing attitude in gaming is that "Math is
bad.  The more complex the rules are, the lower the potential for roleplaying." 
This is utter crap, and all it takes to make it easy is the ability to press
buttons on a calculator and cognify what the screen says afterward.

"Junkers should be MacGuyver"
Nowhere does anything imply that Junkers should be MacGuyver.  There is nothing
to imply that a device should be built in a couple combat rounds.  It is an
involved process for the junker building it.  However, the construction times
for many devices do allow for them to be built in a games session.  The example,
a junker motorcycle, was built in an hour with a decent roll.  Now that's Damn
impressive, if you ask me.  If you expect to build a car in 2 combat actions,
you're obviously doing something wrong.  That sort of thing should probably be
done out of game time.  However, for devices the posse needs in a hurry (say, an
hour of ingame time), most of these will use one, maybe two powers.  If you need
a Beer Cannon to use against Black Hats that have an ETA of an hour, your junker
can probably do the job, if he's got all the parts.  Wanna build a spaceship? 
It'll take a while.

"Designing the device takes too much player-time"
If you believe this, then you're either afraid of math (see above) or you don't
know your way around the book yet.  Try coming up with plans for a few devices
before you start playing a junker.  Use a mix of powers.  Eventually, you'll
have a good enough feel for what powers can do what, and it'll get much
quicker.  That, and you'll learn the process while you're at it.  If you've got
a good calculator (I really wouldn't recommend playing a junker if you don't own
one), you should usually be able to design a device in less time than it takes
your character to build it.

"The book has a lot of mistakes"
Well, you've got a point.  I can only conceive dim visions of what Hell this
book was to put together, and it went through a lot of revisions.  However, Mr.
Hopler posted a message to this list not too long ago with corrections to just
about all the number issues in the book.  If you haven't read that, get it off
the archive, print a copy out, and stick it in your copy of the book.  With all
the corrections there and accessible, you'll have all you need.  Besides that,
there's still less errors than you'd find in your average White Wolf sourcebook,
and this one's interesting, to boot.

The task of creating a system that could balance a potentially infinite amount
of options is not easy.  What we have in Junkman Cometh is a balanced rules
system that allows a huge range of possibilities.  The book does not insult the
reader's intelligence by assuming that basic algebra is out of their reach.  It
has an amazing depth of background information that adds to the Deadlands
storyline, and don't seem unwieldy or tacked-on (coughcoughAmarnacough).  It is
smoothly compatible with the Hell on Earth core rules (Frame=Size), as well as
Road Warriors (Load ratings for each device, Locomotion power).  It's not
perfect; Mr. Hopler probably could have worked towards perfecting it for years
and still not fulfilled the lofty goals completely.  Read the errata, as well as
Hopler's answers and comments on the list, digest them, and try building a few
devices on your own time.  You'll probably be able to whip out new ideas without
bogging your posse down quite soon.
-- 
From Whom It May Concern,
Richard "Can't Wait For Cyborgs" Ranallo