test content
  • Games
  • Social
  • Arc News
  • Support
  • Zen
What is the Arc Client?
Install Arc
Forums > Home› Champions Pen and Paper RPG

Y'know what'd be handy? A list of available books...

Archived PostArchived Post Posts: 1,156,071 Arc User
edited November 2011 in Champions Pen and Paper RPG
...with what they cover and their purpose in the tabletop game. Seriously, I look for Champions books (on DriveThruRPG, as I have an account there) and have no idea where to even start.
Post edited by Archived Post on

Comments

  • Archived PostArchived Post Posts: 1,156,071 Arc User
    edited September 2011
    https://www.herogames.com/browse.htm
  • Archived PostArchived Post Posts: 1,156,071 Arc User
    edited September 2011
    A little more targeted to folks specifically interested in Champions:

    https://www.herogames.com/browse.htm?keywords=&categoryID=220001&releaseDate=-1&available=Y&book=Y&pdf=Y&multiBook=Y&damaged=Y

    Note that some of these books are not set in the current official Champions Universe -- i.e. some (not all) that don't refer to the "Champions Universe" in their descriptions. If you're not sure about a particular book, post here for clarification. :)
  • Archived PostArchived Post Posts: 1,156,071 Arc User
    edited September 2011
    The hero games site has the same problem: a huge unstructured mess of versions and editions (I think that more than one edition's books are there, I can't really tell). Looking at that, I still can't say for certain what the core books of the setting are, let alone which books I'd be interested in buying.
  • Archived PostArchived Post Posts: 1,156,071 Arc User
    edited September 2011
    Fair enough. :)

    The current edition of Champions/HERO System is Sixth, and starting from that edition Hero Games has coordinated their Champions Universe books with the latest additions and modifications made by Cryptic Studios. However, Cryptic based Champions Online on the CU continuity which was established with Fifth Edition, which the majority of Champs sourcebooks were written for; and those books are still at least 90% in accord with the world of the MMO. You can spot a Fifth Edition book by its price listing, which is slashed in half from when Fifth Edition was current -- if you're just looking for a book for lore, the system should make no difference. There are also a few Fourth Edition books mixed into the bunch, as well as a few published by other game companies, but for the most part they don't conform to current continuity.

    Now, which books are "core" depends on whether you want to play the game, or just read about the setting. For the former, the full rule set is comprised of two books, HERO System Sixth Edition: Character Creation, and HSSE: Combat And Adventuring. Alternatively, you can buy the HSSE Basic Rulebook, a simplified version of the rules designed to teach the game to newcomers, or be a handy quick reference. All these books are just the mechanics of the rules -- you can use them to play any game genre, but they don't include specific advice on how to play particular genres, like superheroes. The book titled Champions is a "genre book" which is packed with such advice. Hero Games publishes several other genre books, for fantasy, sci-fi, pulp, modern adventure, and so on.

    If you're interested in the universe itself, the book to get first is called Champions Universe, which lays out the whole setting: detailed history; the state of the Earth, Milky Way Galaxy, and Multiverse; the major individuals and groups; the effect of superhumans on society; and more. Other books delve in-depth into specific areas of the setting, but this book is the foundation, with the broadest possible coverage.

    What books would follow, in either case, would depend on what you're interested in learning about or using them for. You can almost always find the focus of a book in the Hero Games website store by clicking on "View Item Details" in its listing. Or, as I mentioned previously, you can post here for what areas you'd like to know about, and we can point you in the right direction. ;)

    Since you mention setting, I'll just quickly point you to the books that are most relevant to what you'll find in CO: the Champions Villains trilogy, Millennium City, Vibora Bay, Champions Worldwide, The Mystic World, Champions Beyond, Hidden Lands, VIPER: Coils Of The Serpent, UNTIL: Defenders Of Freedom, DEMON: Servants Of Darkness, Champions Of The North, Book Of The Destroyer, Book Of The Machine, and to a lesser extent Teen Champions, Champions Universe: News Of The World, and Cops, Crews, And Cabals. Stronghold is also set in the CU, but there are significant structural differences between the super-prison in CO and in the PnP game, and the 2009 breakout staged in CO has rendered the list of prisoners outdated.
  • Archived PostArchived Post Posts: 1,156,071 Arc User
    edited September 2011
    Thank you. And of course, this brings me back to my original point, being that having all this kind of information in an accessible format would be useful.
  • Archived PostArchived Post Posts: 1,156,071 Arc User
    edited September 2011
    it'd be nice if you could dviide search perameters by edition. I know you can search for 6th but I'm still useing 5th right now
  • Archived PostArchived Post Posts: 1,156,071 Arc User
    edited November 2011
    Forum: HERO Games Product Line
    http://www.herogames.com/forums/forumdisplay.php/53-HERO-Games-Product-Line

    I can only agree with you Sir. The product listings has always been a pain to use. HERO Games Online Store was always badly placed and organized.

    Ask and you shall receive.

    QM
Sign In or Register to comment.