Hero System 5th Edition

As posted in the AOL Hero board

1. This list is based on my final draft manuscript, and the editing process may ::sigh:: result in changes which would invalidate items on this list.
2. #1 is NOT, let me repeat NOT, to be taken as an excuse to bombard me, or, more importantly, the Hero Games staff, with suggestions or complaints regarding something you don't like.  We already had an incredibly lengthy period of comment and input (and once again, my thanks to all who participated); at this point we need to concentrate on simply getting the book finished. :)  Of course, feel free to discuss things here in this forum if you'd enjoy
   doing so.

So, briefly, here's some of what you'll see.

Skills

Several new Skills, including Power, Teamwork, and Rapid Attack. General Skills eliminated; all appropriate Skills now based on Characteristics.  A number of Skills broken down into subcategories (like TF and WF).

Perks

Several new ones, mostly adapted from the Dark Champions line or previously-published works.  An expansion of Contact.  A new "Reputation" Perk for positive reps.

Talents

Talents see some significant changes, in that we wanted to make clear that they are, in a sense, non-powered Powers -- "Powers" which even normal people sometimes have.  Put another way, they're a sort of a halfway step between Skills and Powers.  As such, you should be able to build Talents either with Powers or Skills or some combination of the two.  Former Talents which couldn't be constructed with Powers or Skills (such as Defense Maneuver, Fast Draw, Find Weakness, Luck) become Skills or Powers.

Powers

Aid now costs 10 points per die.  HA is 5 Active Points per die with a mandatory Limitation (it's what it always was -- a Limited type of STR, really -- broken out into its own category for ease of conception and play). Sense-Affecting Powers like Flash/Darkness now have differing costs for Targeting and Nontargeting Senses, and affect entire Sense Groups at their base level.  Flash costs 5 points per d6, but works for a number of Segments, not Phases.  One new Power, Healing.  Regeneration folded into Healing; Instant Change folded into Transform.  Substantial expansion of Transform to answer many (I'd say "all," but I'm not going to kid myself) of the questions surrounding that Power.  A general expansion of most of the Powers to do the same thing and provide a lot more options (either as base rules, or as Adders/Advantages).  Duplication and Multiform revised to make them easier to use (and, hopefully, more "player friendly" without being unbalancing). Expansion of Change Environment to allow minor combat effects.

Power Modifiers

More discussion of and options for Advantages and Limitations.  A new Advantage, MegaScale, to allow Movement Powers and other abilities to work over vast ranges.  Boostable Charges and Fuel Charges options for Charges.  The "Great Linked Debate" put to rest (but no doubt leading to round 2 :) ).

Power Frameworks

Extended discussion of the restrictions on ECs. Discussion of how Advantages apply to slots and reserves, what it means to lose a slot (e.g., have a gadget broken), and so on.

Disadvantages

Expansion of several, including Dependence, Distinctive Features, and Rivalry.  A new Social Limitation, into which Secret ID and Public ID are folded.

Combat

Mostly just greater discussion and options.  Clarification re: the use of multiple attack powers in a single Phase.  More Combat Maneuvers (mostly taken from Dark Champions/Ultimate line).

Other stuff

A chapter on the environment which, among other things, provide some guidelines for many uses of Change Environment.  A chapter on tinkering with/changing/adapting the system to do what you want.

Those are the high points which occur to me off the top of my head. Overall, I'm extremely pleased with the final draft, and I hope you'll be equally as pleased with the published book.  As I mentioned above, thanks to everyone who participated in the comments phase, either via questionnaire or some other method.  I can't say I found something worth adapting in every questionnaire, but I *did* find every single one thought-provoking, and thus useful.

-- Steve Long

If I may clarify, what we've done with Talents is make them buildable with either Powers or Skills. The Talents list becomes something that a GM (or an author) creates for a given campaign. We've included the 4th Edition Talents list as an example. Essentially, making something a Talent allows "ordinary" characters to buy Powers that the GM feels should be accessible to them in the campaign; or, in the case of Skills, it makes a Skill something unusual. A working rule we suggest is to make each Talent unique in the campaign; that is, once one player-character has a particular Talent, no other player-character can buy it (this is an optional rule, of course, and shouldn't apply to all campaigns).

Also, one other thing that I particularly like in the 5th Edition: We made all the Enhanced Senses buildable. So now there's a huge range of possible senses you can build.

-- Steve Peterson, Hero Games (www.herogames.com)