[7:33 PM] Jason@EarlofFifeGames: Hi, I’m Jason Duff with Earl of Fife Games (http://fifegames.com/). I’m located in Colorado and have been publishing games since 2019. The game I’m talking about today is Heroes & Hardships, a universal RPG suitable for any setting or genre. This game has been in development since 2017 and has been playtested over 1000s of hours by dozens of people. We’re bringing the system to Kickstarter next month! (Done)
[7:34 PM] 13Swords: What kind of resolution mechanic do you use?
[7:35 PM] Jason@EarlofFifeGames
: Heroes & Hardships, also known as H&H (Which I’ll be using mostly from here on out) uses a d10 roll & keep dice pool system. If you are familiar with Legend of the Five Rings 1E-4E, or 7th Sea 1E, there are a lot of similarities.
[7:40 PM] Jason@EarlofFifeGames: Anything else? 
[7:43 PM] sim181: So what made you decide to make H&H?
[7:43 PM] Dan the GMshoe: For those unfamiliar, can you describe roll & keep?
@Dan the GMshoeFor those unfamiliar, can you describe roll & keep?[7:45 PM] Jason@EarlofFifeGames: Sure. In H&H you combine your Attribute Score and your Skill Rank. That’s how many dice you roll. Afterward, you keep only the dice equal to your attribute. You tally the result afterward, adding those dice together. There are exceptions that change your pool of dice. For instance, if you have a Benefit, you add a die to your pool.
@sim181So what made you decide to make H&H?[7:45 PM] Jason@EarlofFifeGames: Initially I wanted to play around with a dice system similar to L5R 4E and combine it with a hitpointless combat system.
[7:45 PM] Jason@EarlofFifeGames: That’s basically how it started.
[7:46 PM] Dan the GMshoe: What do you use instead of hit points?
[7:50 PM] Jason@EarlofFifeGames: There are two thresholds for mental and physical damage. For physical, they are Injury Level and Wound Level. They are thresholds where the levels of success of attacks must cross in order to do that type of damage. Injuries confer what we call a Pre-Roll Modifier. This are static modifiers like -3 in the case of an Injury. These are applied as attacks are made. Injuries go away after a skirmish. Wounds on the other hand are tracked with how many levels of success they apply. These firstly give a Hardship in combat, which is a 1d10 penalty to your roll. 10s explode. The tracked Wounds degrade your attributes. If they aren’t healed over time, those wounds become permanent and you take flaws. These thresholds are in one shot, there’s no accumulation of damage. There’s only accumulation of Injuries and Wounds. You can also be hit for a big shot all in one that will kill you. The accumulation of wounds can also kill you outright.
[7:52 PM] Dan the GMshoe: Do you have a character sheet that we can see?
[7:52 PM] Jason@EarlofFifeGames: Sure!
[7:52 PM] Jason@EarlofFifeGames: Give me one moment.
[7:54 PM] Dan the GMshoe: (brb)
[7:55 PM] Jason@EarlofFifeGames:
[7:55 PM] Jason@EarlofFifeGames: Page 1 looks like it uploaded second
[7:59 PM] Jason@EarlofFifeGames: There will be a fillable version along with PDF.
[8:00 PM] Jason@EarlofFifeGames: We also have a full character sheet over at roll20.net.
[8:01 PM] Dan the GMshoe: (Back, sorry. Had to let the dogs out.)
[8:01 PM] Dan the GMshoe: Okay, let’s see here…
[8:03 PM] Dan the GMshoe: I can get the physical attributes. What are the mental and social ones?
[8:04 PM] Jason@EarlofFifeGames: Intelligence is generally for IQ based disciplines, Knowledge is for just learned, Senses is perception based stuff, and Will is your mental fortitude
[8:05 PM] Jason@EarlofFifeGames: Social includes Presence, which would be similar to Charisma, Emp is Empathy, the understanding of others, Com is Communications, which covers talking skills, and Influence is INF, which includes status, and other sort of learned and political skills
[8:06 PM] Dan the GMshoe: Got it. Nice spread there. What is the human attribute range?
[8:07 PM] Jason@EarlofFifeGames: And Fate. Fate has two primary uses. It is used heavily in magic, and can be burnt or spent for various effects (edited)
[8:08 PM] Jason@EarlofFifeGames: Ancestries don’t change attribute scores, but instead give them access to different Ancestry Traits, which are certain types of abilities. As far as the spread, it depends on something that I think is pretty unique to this game. There are 3 available power levels of play. Power Level 1 is your gritty games, and 3 is epic super powered. The entire game scales to these power levels. No matter what ability, weapon, armor, etc.
[8:09 PM] Jason@EarlofFifeGames: There’s also two ways to create characters in the CRB. The first is random Attribute generation, the second is a point buy system.
[8:09 PM] Jason@EarlofFifeGames: In PL 1, attributes can be 1-4 at character creation
[8:10 PM] Jason@EarlofFifeGames: Typically, they can only go to 5, unless you use optional rules that removes the cap.
[8:10 PM] Jason@EarlofFifeGames: PL 2 and 3 increase the top range be 1, and PL 3 increased the floor by 1.
[8:12 PM] Dan the GMshoe: Is that just the human range, or is that the universal range?
[8:13 PM] Jason@EarlofFifeGames: Universal range
[8:13 PM] Jason@EarlofFifeGames: Ancestries don’t directly impact attributes.
[8:13 PM] Dan the GMshoe: That being the case, how do you create characters with superhuman attribute levels?
[8:15 PM] Jason@EarlofFifeGames: If you raise your attributes in play, it will widen the gap there. But most the differences between ancestries are through abilities, ancestry traits, magic, etc. There are over 100 abilities, 100 ancestry trait ranks, almost 100 manifestations (these are the baseline of spells), 50 skills, etc
[8:16 PM] Dan the GMshoe: So how strong would something like an ogre or a troll be?
[8:19 PM] Jason@EarlofFifeGames: Funny you mention, as those both have entries for our bestiary. They probably have the highest STR score, a 4 in PL 1. But, the main difference is they also have a size score higher than 1. Their Post-Roll Modifier for damage (This is what you add to your roll only if you successfully hit) is multiplied by their size. So a maul with a damage of 8 now does 24 if their size is 3. However, large sized creatures are also penalized when it comes to their natural defense. Subtract 5 x their size from their Base Defense. Which is used heavily in ranged combat.
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[8:20 PM] 13Swords: What would you say the primary audience for your game is?
[8:21 PM] Bo: just catching up on what’s covered. i’ll have some ?s1
[8:22 PM] Jason@EarlofFifeGames: I would say it is going to be people who like universal systems. Those that aren’t satisfied with GURPS or Savage Worlds, which I believe our system compares to in many ways. I think that people will also be attracted to H&H by what we release next. As we have some exciting announcements coming in the following weeks.
[8:22 PM] Dan the GMshoe: Looks like Size covers the damage issue, but what about lifting strength?
[8:23 PM] Jason@EarlofFifeGames: It is directly impacted by a strength and athletics score. Plus there are other abilities that can help. (edited)
[8:25 PM] Dan the GMshoe: How do super-powered attributes work?
[8:27 PM] Jason@EarlofFifeGames: I’m not 100% sure what you mean, but attributes will be higher as the power level increases. PL 3 is a range of 2-6 typically. In a point buy, characters receive more points to spend. Since your skills and abilities are directly related to how high your attributes are, you can increase your skill ranks higher, and spend more on ancestry traits and abilities.
[8:27 PM] Bo: what weak points of other universal systems like GURPS or Genesys do you think H&H improves upon? Not saying the others are bad – I’ve played and enjoyed both – but we all have our preferences.
[8:28 PM] Bo: Is a super power purchased as an ancestry trait or ability?
@Jason@EarlofFifeGamesI’m not 100% sure what you mean, but attributes will be higher as the power level increases. PL 3 is a range of 2-6 typically. In a point buy, characters receive more points to spend. Since your skills and abilities are directly related to how high your attributes are, you can increase your skill ranks higher, and spend more on ancestry traits and abilities.[8:28 PM] Dan the GMshoe: Well, for example, Superman isn’t huge but is unbelievably strong. How would you simulate that in H&H?
[8:29 PM] Bo: That’s a challenge. Walk through chargen of Superman 
[8:29 PM] Bo: I’d like that.
@Bowhat weak points of other universal systems like GURPS or Genesys do you think H&H improves upon? Not saying the others are bad – I’ve played and enjoyed both – but we all have our preferences.[8:31 PM] Jason@EarlofFifeGames: GURPS, for all the good things about it, has a really problematic skills system. There are too many skills, many are totally useless IMO. Skill defaults are a nice idea until you put it into practice. Having to look up various skill defaults in game if you don’t have a skill is beyond cumbersome. The plain 3d6 system also really doesn’t not tend to produce dynamic results. Genesys is just an entire thing. Custom dice, and not a huge range of options.
@BoIs a super power purchased as an ancestry trait or ability?[8:32 PM] Jason@EarlofFifeGames: Super Powers are unlocked with an ability, OR an ancestry trait, but they work differently. Super Powers when unlocked allow you to purchase the individual powers. the ancestry trait allows you to use them instantly, but only at a very low, baseline level.
[8:33 PM] Jason@EarlofFifeGames: The superman example is a great one. I’d argue that Superman is not a beginning character, and that it is impossible to build a true superman at character creation, but with the right abilities, XP spends on STR and Athletics, ancestry traits, etc — you can emulate just about anything.
[8:35 PM] Dan the GMshoe: I’d suggest that a PC of any power level can be a starting character, depending upon the power level of the campaign. If you’re in a supers game in which the Big Bad is Darkseid, then sure, Superman can be a starting character.
[8:36 PM] Jason@EarlofFifeGames: In that case, I’d suggest a PL 3 game. You can add a lot of stuff to characters there.
[8:36 PM] Jason@EarlofFifeGames: PL 3 is developed for high powered supers campaigns. In fact, that’s how I playtested it.
[8:36 PM] Dan the GMshoe: Actually, that brings up a good question: In a PL 3 game, how would you compare the power level of a superhero character to that of a popular comicbook superhero?
[8:37 PM] Jason@EarlofFifeGames: We had a Superman type, and he was pretty close to a typical superman.
[8:37 PM] Bo: Is there a large ‘survivability’ difference between PLs?
[8:37 PM] Jason@EarlofFifeGames: I would compare PL3 to typically high level D&D, Super Heroes, or any genre where characters are doing all sorts of high powered things.
@BoIs there a large ‘survivability’ difference between PLs?[8:38 PM] Jason@EarlofFifeGames: Not really. The defenses and damage thresholds all scale. There’s a change to get merked any any PL.
[8:39 PM] Dan the GMshoe: Would a PL 1 super-powered character be akin to a pulp hero like the Shadow?
[8:40 PM] Jason@EarlofFifeGames: I equate them to street level heroes. They’d have special abilities, etc, but they wouldn’t be as high powered or varied. Not familiar with the Shadow specifically.
[8:42 PM] Dan the GMshoe: He’s basically Batman with guns and (in the radio show version) the psychic power to make himself invisible by “clouding men’s minds”.
[8:42 PM] Jason@EarlofFifeGames: Yeah. That seems about right.
[8:42 PM] Walterpeck: What do you like about your combat system compared to others
[8:43 PM] Jason@EarlofFifeGames: Well, not hitpoints for one thing.
[8:43 PM] Jason@EarlofFifeGames: I had always disliked massive HP pools. Lets say you have a max HP of 100, and you were down to 1 HP. You function exactly the same.
[8:43 PM] Jason@EarlofFifeGames: In many systems like D&D this is how it worked.
[8:43 PM] Jason@EarlofFifeGames: I disliked that greatly.
[8:44 PM] Jason@EarlofFifeGames: So Wounds and Injuries take care of that.
[8:45 PM] Jason@EarlofFifeGames: The combat is also tactical, using either a vertical hex grid, or just using “units” which is a generic measurement. There are around 50 offensive actions and 20 defensive actions, allowing you to fight how you want.
[8:45 PM] Jason@EarlofFifeGames: And, our “special” sauce is that there are no rounds.
[8:46 PM] Jason@EarlofFifeGames: Each action costs a certain amount of AP. These AP pushes you down the combat track. Whomever is lowest on the combat track acts. Ties are broken by initiative.
[8:46 PM] Jason@EarlofFifeGames: Defensive actions can be taken any time, but also push you down the track.
[8:46 PM] Dan the GMshoe: What happens when you reach the end of the track while combat is still going on?
[8:47 PM] Jason@EarlofFifeGames: There’s no end.
[8:47 PM] Jason@EarlofFifeGames: If you are the end you wait until your turn.
[8:47 PM] Jason@EarlofFifeGames: Which as others spend AP, you will be up again soon. (edited)
[8:47 PM] Jason@EarlofFifeGames: Unless you spend a lot of AP with big actions, this combat system will have you acting quicker than in a round system.
[8:48 PM] Jason@EarlofFifeGames: Where you are quickly reacting to the battlefield quicker instead of having to wait for a round cycle
[8:49 PM] Dan the GMshoe: How many skills did you say there are?
[8:49 PM] Jason@EarlofFifeGames: There are about 50
[8:49 PM] Jason@EarlofFifeGames: Across 13 attributes
[8:50 PM] Dan the GMshoe: How specific are they?
[8:50 PM] Jason@EarlofFifeGames: This includes Fate, which only has 1 skill
[8:50 PM] Jason@EarlofFifeGames: They aren’t as specific as GURPS, for instance.
[8:50 PM] Dan the GMshoe: Can you give me an example of a combat skill?
[8:50 PM] Jason@EarlofFifeGames: A few examples are Athletics, Dodge, Guns, Bows, Bludgeons, Axes ..
[8:51 PM] Jason@EarlofFifeGames: Crossbows, Small Blades, Swords
[8:51 PM] Jason@EarlofFifeGames: Spears
[8:51 PM] Jason@EarlofFifeGames: Hand-to-Hand
[8:54 PM] Dan the GMshoe: What was your thinking in having one skill for all firearms but multiple skills for melee weapons? Seems like that would strongly favor the gunfighter.
[8:56 PM] Jason@EarlofFifeGames: Melee weapons are extremely varied in how they are used. The system attempts to lean toward authenticity. I didn’t want to break up guns into the typical pistols/rifles/shotguns. I thought it was unnecessary and cause bloat in the system.
[8:57 PM] Jason@EarlofFifeGames: Also, the game is not balanced as far as making sure every character is as good as another. It depends on how you make them. Taking a knife to a gun fight, and all that.
[8:59 PM] Walterpeck: What made you include surge for magic? Mechanical reasons, flavor, or a bit of both?
[9:00 PM] Jason@EarlofFifeGames: Surge is the critical failure of the magic system.
[9:00 PM] Jason@EarlofFifeGames: I wanted to see a dangerous magic system baseline. There’s optional rules that let you turn surges off, make them more dangerous, or less dangerous.
[9:01 PM] Jason@EarlofFifeGames: For both
[9:09 PM] Dan the GMshoe: How many magic systems does the game include, and can you describe them?
[9:10 PM] Jason@EarlofFifeGames: Sure. Technically there are 2. But they work the same with only slight differences.
[9:11 PM] Jason@EarlofFifeGames: Traditional Magic is for wizards and such. Super Powers are for innate powers. So, in a Marvel context, Thor = Super Powers, Dr. Strange = Magic
[9:12 PM] Jason@EarlofFifeGames: So what’s the difference?
[9:14 PM] Jason@EarlofFifeGames: Well, magic is very flexible. Each manifestation has certain categories like potency, range, targets, duration, etc. Some of those can be increased from the baseline. This make them more difficult and deadly. The target number for these is the level (which is the total enhancements + the base) of the spell. These are hardships, just like when you’re wounded. So if I increase my spell 3 times, I’m going to have a level 4 spell. The difficulty is 4d10!!
[9:14 PM] Jason@EarlofFifeGames: If I target someone, add their MD to that.
[9:14 PM] Jason@EarlofFifeGames: They can’t actively defense.
[9:14 PM] Jason@EarlofFifeGames: With super powers it is different.
[9:15 PM] Jason@EarlofFifeGames: Super powers can’t be raised on the fly, You have to pay for what you have when you buy the power. You can only use it to that level. So they are easier to activate, but more expensive. They are actively defended if someone is targeted by a skill check defined in the manifestation itself
[9:16 PM] Jason@EarlofFifeGames: Manifestations are the baseline of any spell or power. They are what happens. Powers and Spells define how they are used. (edited)
[9:23 PM] Bo: gotta head home from work. later
[9:23 PM] Jason@EarlofFifeGames: Later
[9:33 PM] Jason@EarlofFifeGames: So … I guess we’re done then?
[9:35 PM] Jason@EarlofFifeGames: Lol. Well, for those interested, you can download the QSG and head over to http://fifegames.com/ to learn more. Here’s the quickstart: https://www.drivethrurpg.com/browse.php?discount=92ccc6b833&src=randomworlds And of course, the kickstarter is here: bit.ly/hnh_ksEarl of Fife GamesHeroes & Hardships | Earl of Fife GamesHeroes & Hardships Earl of Fife Games RPG Role-Playing Games
[9:35 PM] Dan the GMshoe: Ooops, sorry — RL distraction.
[9:36 PM] Dan the GMshoe: You mentioned that the game has a bestiary. How large is it?
[9:41 PM] Dan the GMshoe: @Jason@EarlofFifeGames Still there?
[9:41 PM] Jason@EarlofFifeGames: 40 pages or so! Gotta run!
[9:42 PM] Dan the GMshoe: Okay, take care! I’ll get the log posted and link you!
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