Over a year ago I started using an alternative Hero Point system which my group really likes. As it's become a really popular house rule I thought I'd share it here in case it's of interest to anyone else. It's speeded up combat a bit and gives the players a bit more control over the story than normal. It's adapted from the Fortune Point system in Atomic Highway. There's a long post about how these mechanics affect the game, in my experience, over on my blog if you're interested. Anyhow on to the rules!
Fortune Points in Pathfinder RPG
I start with about 20 Fortune Points (FPs) divided amongst all the players, so depending on how many people there are, players get between three and five each. I sometimes give out extra ones during play if someone does something particularly cool or funny but usually just two or three over a four hour session. I always have physical counters that people can pick up and pass around, somehow it's just better than making them another number on the character sheet.
If you want to just test out the mechanic in your game you might try giving one to each player to start with.
Using Fortune Points
You can use Fortune Points in the following ways:
- You can spend one FP to change one d20 roll to a natural 20. You can't score critical hits from doing this but that's the only limit. You can use one to confirm a critical. You can only affect d20 rolls so damage cannot be affect.
- You can spend two FPs to create a plot tweak, a small change in the plot that you want to see happen.
- You can spend more plot points, typically five, to create a plot twist which is a more major change in the plot.
- Players may spend points on other players if they wish. They may also club together to buy plot twists and tweaks.