How did it go for you?
Are there lots of points moving around (some of the spells and items make me think it can)?
Are they unbalancing?
Any 3pp support?
I'd be interested to know to as I am pondering their use in my next campaign.
We use hero points in our campaigns and it isn't unbalancing. Most of the time they're used to re-roll saves. On rarer occasions they get used to try confirm a crit with a re-roll, when a battle is really tough for the party and the baddest of the bad guys needs to drop soon.
They are good for balancing those times when the character did everything right, the DM wasn't trying to make the character pay a price for a really bad move, and they still rolled a "1" on something they could save with with a die roll of 7 or better.
When I DM, there are times I do want the characters to make their saves, I just want to add a little tension to the game. But if it's a fluke round of rolling and I see a "1", a "2", and a "4" come up, and it means all the party is going to fall asleep with monsters with sharp objects ready to do some throat cutting, I might even suggest using hero points if the players don't think of it.
I've tried them out for the first time during my Jade Regent campaign. I was a bit skeptical but thought I'd try them as we weren't doing xp so I use them as a reward for individual rping, derring-do etc and each player gets one each time they level as well.
On the whole I like them and the players seem to enjoy them as well. My group notoriously hoards them not using them even when they probably should have. However, they do tend then to unload them in boss fights which has worked out fine in this campaign so far as all the end fights have been pretty bloody for them. That said if your group follows this behaviour be prepared to toughen up your final encounter.
That and I would add we've made fair use of the cheating death rule just remember they need to have two Hero Points in 'storage'.
I also have found this to be helpful as on a few occasions this avoided some pretty random deaths (critical hit from a shark-eating crab in a minor encounter). That said depends on the group as some might try to abuse this.
That and I would add we've made fair use of the cheating death rule just remember they need to have two Hero Points in 'storage'.
I also have found this to be helpful as on a few occasions this avoided some pretty random deaths (critical hit from a shark-eating crab in a minor encounter). That said depends on the group as some might try to abuse this. Just highlight its at the GMs discretion.
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My players tended to forget them. I'd recommend something like glass beads or poker chips.
They tended to be hoarded, saved for boss fights. Making them more expendable, such as being a once/session bonus, might encourage their use.
Currently, for my homegame, I'm using the card variant from the Carrion Crown adventure path (see the player's guide). This makes the points a little more flexible but adds the reminder they exist in the form of little cards kept at the table.
RPG Superstar 2013 Top 32
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I use hero points in my games with some modifications. I do not allow the "extra rules" that go along with hero points (the spells, feats, and so on). I don't see how they are necessary. I also do not allow the "cheat death" option. When I used to allow "cheat death," players mostly just saved up their points for that purpose, and I wanted them to actually be using their hero points. Without the "cheat death" option, we have had a lot of cool moments when PCs spend hero points to act out of turn in order to save themselves or their allies from certain death. It's a lot more exciting and requires more thought and tactics than simply "cheating death."
Other than that, hero points are commonly used to re-roll failed saves or attacks, and there's nothing wrong with that. I tend to run fairly difficult games and hero points help to prevent poor strings of rolls from dooming the party.
How often do players spend them during a sessions? Once, twice, more?
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RPG Superstar 2013 Top 32
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How often do players spend them during a sessions? Once, twice, more?
It really depends. In our five-person group, usually at least 1 person will spend a hero point in any given session. In boss battles, several might be used in quick succession. Sometimes they don't help, but usually they help at least a little. We have not found them to be unbalancing or to make things too easy.
Some of our most memorable gaming moments have come from using hero points, such as the paladin who charged the general of the legions of Hell in the final session of our game, rolled a natural 1, and spent a hero point to re-roll, getting a natural 20 and then confirming a critical hit! Without hero points, the we all would have been groaning and shaking our heads. With hero points, we were standing and cheering.
Sweet. Thanks for the answer, man.
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I also do not allow the "cheat death" option. When I used to allow "cheat death," players mostly just saved up their points for that purpose, and I wanted them to actually be using their hero points.
Seconded.
In my game everyone kept 2 points held back to keep their character alive (which did save a couple lives) but also meant they were reluctant to use hero points until they had 3 or more.
Would a feat that lets you cheat death for 1 point solve the problem and be worth it?
There is a feat that lets you gain 2 hero points per level and keep 5. When you have 5 hero points and know that you will get 2 more at next level, you are more likely to be looking for opportunities to spend a hero point or 2.
Still -- I tend to be conservative about spending hero points without a very good reason, especially since our rate of gaining levels in our campaign seems to have slowed down -- although I breathed a little easier when the DM awarded me a hero point out of the blue (to me -- apparently to him my character had just done something heroic that warranted the award).
Yeah, I wonder why they didn't say that when you take a luck feat that you gain 1 hero point with it? Sort of like a one time thing.
Our DM has mentioned that he thinks hero points work very well for our group. During our last big fight, two of the PCs had to use them to cheat death. I use them in big fights to gain an extra standard action---very useful for casters.
The players in my game use them either to cheat death, or make saving throws. I suggest other uses from time to time (extra action in a round, act out of initiative order, etc.), but for the most part, they seem to enjoy the security that comes from having a few hero points banked. Which actually isn't all that heroic, but whatever.
There is one thing I find very useful about them as a DM. I only award them in exchange for reading the hand-outs that I print up about various aspects of the story line. I think that's the only way I could get them to read this stuff.