Re: [HoE] assorted [HOPLER]

[Atomicandy@aol.com]

Hi, 
	Regarding B.D. Flory's missive, he questions the game balance of 
various ABs.  I've been marshalling a HOE game for a while now.  Pretty much 
when the HOE rules came out we switched from weird west to wasted west.  I 
had some of the same concerns he expressed regarding game balance with the 
psyker and doomsayer.  However, after many adventures, I've found that they 
really aren't unbalanced.
	Strain adds up quickly.  Generally, they are very careful with how 
they use thier strain and most of the time prefer to use thier handguns and 
shotguns, which they're not terribly proficient with.  Due to the fact that 
they spend most of thier bounty points on powers, the psyker and doomie don't 
have the points to increase some basic survival skills.  At the beginning of 
"Apocalypse Now", I had to supress a laugh as the posse was trying to enter 
Trinity Springs by swimming across the river.  Both the doomie and psyker 
dog-paddled across the river holding onto empty gas-cans for flotation 
devices while being towed by the ex-cop and the librarian. .Later, the ex-cop 
(w/ 5d12 quickness) took out a entire black hat patrol with an auto-shotgun, 
before the rest of the posse could act.  Granted, he got great rolls, and 
great cards, but that's what you need to survive the horror show of the 
wasted west.
	Also, the doomie and the psyker are targets of choice for just about 
any intelligent opponent.  They use alot of chips to stay alive.  They end up 
without chips to spend on rolls.
    	The psyker's extended backlash table is killer.   Whenever the player 
running the psyker misses a roll, you can see the sweat appear on her brow.  
She lives in constant fear of backlash and dreads using her powers.  And she 
has 5d12 in blasting!   She has come very close to the "brain blow up - go 
boom"  result a couple of times already.  Remember:  you can't buy off wounds 
if your head blows up.  She pretty has decided her days are numbered, she's 
just trying to make that number as big as she can. 
	The doomsayer plays a little faster and looser with her strain.  And 
let's face it:  Nuke is awesome.  But y'know, she catches the posse in her 
Nuke half the time because she gets raises (that she really didn't want,) 
increasing the blast radius.  Most of the time the opponents are closer than 
is comfortable and she relies on Atomic Blast which isn't much more effective 
than a simple hand weapon.  I always play up the unpredictable aspect of her 
powers.  Also I play up the fact she's a mutant and people don't like 
her/trust her.  This limits her ability to haggle and find info in towns.   
Regarding the Lifetap hindrance:  I dunno, the doomsayer was created long 
before CotA came out,  so it's never been an issue.  But you're right.  It 
sounds broken.  It doesn't really sound like a hindrance.  I would probably 
disallow it.  
	Killer Tomatoes:  Yeah, they're silly. I play a pretty gritty 
campaign and the killer tomatoes have no place in my world.  But maybe you 
could use them.  I try to foster an air of paranoia in my campaign, and jeez, 
now even tomatoes are out to get them!  Plus the players would be pissed that 
they have to use ammo on such a stupid monster!  Might be good for a little 
break.  Anyway, you don't have to use them.  (Killer Klowns, on the other 
hand, sound very scary.)  
	In conclusion, I've found the most effective characters in my posse 
to be the ex-cop, the psycher and the librarian.  In most cases, the better 
players are the most effective characters.  The ex-cop is effective because 
the player is an excellent player.  He also plays up the "heroic" hindrance, 
all the time, at great risk to his character, but also getting loads of chips 
and making the story move along in great dramatic style.  The psycher is 
effective because the player recognizes the objective of a mission, and makes 
sure the posse gets there.  Both of these players are very good players.  I 
think the characters are secondary to thier effectiveness.  The librarian is 
surprisingly effective.  Due to her high mental traits she started with a ton 
of skill points.  I think she has 3d12 in knowledge, 4d10 in cog, and 3d10 in 
smarts.  With all those skill points she is often the one with a seemingly 
trivial, but we absolutely need it right now! skill.  Like demolitions, 
swimming, etc., etc.  She also can shoot just about any weapon.  (Not great, 
but she has the knowledge of how to shoot it.) She is also unassuming, so 
she's not a target of choice.  She's actually not a great player, but 
everyone turns to her and says "hey, does the librarian know anything about 
that?"  She looks at her sheet and says "hey I can do that."    Oh, well.
	Anyway, I think I'm thru babbling.  Just run the campaign, and try to 
stay on top of any percieved unbalance.  The game works surprisingly well. 

Rick - Atomic Candy