HACK! (HeroQuest house rules)

[Marchomer]

What's the HACK!?
Like I anticipated some days ago, I worked on a little project I called "HACK!", I choose this name because I'm a traditionalist. Since I don't find a good acronym for it, "HACK!" simply is: "hack, attack, crawl, knack, healers, hit, assassins, corpses, kill, healers, amazons, classes, knights... and so on".
My aim was to create a full compatible HeroQuest game using little add-ons and instead of create new rules, I looked for existing rules. In addition, I wanted to keep the game FAST, that's why the mechanics are the same of HeroQuest with only few changes to make them a little less repetitive than the original version... and that's why I didn't add too many rules or details (if I want to play something with more details, I prefer to play the superb Frank Mentzer version of D&D)


What you need to play HACK!
-Miniatures;
-Several d6;
-Dungeon tiles and accessories;
-HeroQuest rules;
-The additional spells of the expansion set: "Wizards of Morcar";
-The magic traps and evil spells (I call Psionic Powers) of the expansion set "Against the ogre horde";
-The magic items and the scrolls in the American expansion sets (ignore the restrictions in the cards of the Barbarian and Elf packs);
-The American version of the Inventory;

All these things can be easily found in the web.
Magic items and Scrolls may be used to random generate items for particular objects, like great chests, sorcerer's decks or lecterns.

What is changed
-Dice:
Instead of HQ dice, it's possible the use of d6, 4+:skull, 5+:white shield, 6:black shield.
It allow to use more variables, for example an attack with 3+ (as if there was 4 skulls on a dice...)

-The Turn:
Each player roll a dice before the beginning of a new adventure, they will act in descending order, from the highest score to the lower one, the sequence is kept for the whole during of the quest.

-The Round:
In a round you may complete two actions. They must be different from each other.
For example: "Move+Attack", "Search+Disarm Trap", "Search secret doors+Draw a Treasure Card"...

-Searching traps:
1-2: Nothing found, you can re roll; 3-4: You find 1 trap; 5: You find 2 traps; 6: Nothing found, you can't re roll; (or you can use the D&D board game dice)

-Disarm traps (requires Tool kit):
1-5: Success; 6: You accidentally activate the trap; (or you can use the D&D board game dice)

-Jump:
Any character or monster can jump on a table, over a pit, on a wooden box... with a roll of 7+ on 2d6;

-Lantern:
One of the character of the party must carry the lantern (so he can use only one hand), it will light up one single room tile or one single corridor tile;

-Encumbrance:
Each Character can only carry 6 items (excepted for the equipement worn);

-Classes:
I used a mathematical approach to create the new classes:
1.Every class have a lesser bonus skills; 2.The number or the power of the skills increase with the decrease of the body points, each skill has three power level; 3.Each class have 10 points (between Mind and Body);

-Monsters:
You can create your own bestiary according to you miniatures collection, using Warhammer Fantasy Battle stats using this conversion method:
Converting WH creatures to HQ

-Fate Points:
Recycling rules: Fate Points

I introduced two options to these rules:
1. Use the same number of starting FP for each player (for example: 1 roll for everyone or 7 for everyone... players can be envious persons...); 2. FP can be used to improve the result of a dice before the roll (for example: the dice hits with 2+ instead of 3+).

-Additions inspired by Diablo video game:

FOUNTAINS:

1.Blood Fountain
Restore 1d6 Body Points.

2.Purifying
Restore 1d6 Mind Points.

3.Murky Pool
The character can know the content of a closed room.

4.Fountain of Tears
The Attack will increase and the Defence will decrease . Roll 1d4 to determine the number of points.

5.Fountain of Tears
The Defence will increase and the Attack will decrease . Roll 1d4 to determine the number of points.

6.Goat Cauldron
Random shrine effect.

SHRINES (roll 1d100)

1-4 ABANDONED SHRINE
       Quote: "The feet of men are guided by fate."
        +1 to Movement.
       
5-8 CREEPY SHRINE
       Quote: "Strength is bolstered by heavenly faith."
        +1 Attack Dice.
       
9-12 CRYPTIC SHRINE
       Quote: "Arcane power brings destruction."
        The shrine attacks the character (3 Dice) but he will have restored all the Mind Points.
       
13-16 DIVINE SHRINE
       Quote: "Drink and be refreshed."
        Restore all the Mind and Body points and gives a Potion of Full Rejuvenation.
       
17-20 EERIE SHRINE
        Quote: "Knowledge and wisdom come at cost of self."
        +1 Mind Point.
       
21-24 ELDRITCH SHRINE
        Quote: "Crimson and azure becomes the sun."
        All the potions of the character become Potions of Full Rejuvenation
       
25-28 ENCHANTED SHRINE
        Quote: "Magic is not what it seems to be."
        Discard one random spell, another random one will be duplicated.
       
29-32 GLOOMY SHRINE
        Quote: "Those who defend seldom attack."
        Gives one extra dice to every protective object in the equipement and all the weapons will lose one dice.
       
33-36 HOLY SHRINE
        Quote: "Wherever you go, there you are."
        Teleport in a room near the shrine.
       
37-40 MAGICAL SHRINE
        Quote: "While the spirit is vigilant, the body thrives."
        The character if damaged loses Mind Points instead of Body Points, the effect ends when remains the last Mind Point.
       
41-44 MYSTERIOUS SHRINE
        Quote: "Some grow weaker as one grows strong."
        Add 1 Body and lose 1 Mind (or vice-versa) and add 1d6 to Attack and lose the same number of points in Defence (or vice-versa). The characteristics are chosen randomly.
       
45-48 QUIET SHRINE
        Quote: "The essence of life flows from within."
        +1 Body Point.
       
49-52 SECLUDED SHRINE
        Quote: "The way is made clear when viewed from above."
        Every undiscovered room, door, secret door and corridor (not its content) of the dungeon will be revealed.

53-56 SPIRITUAL SHRINE
        Quote: "Riches abound when least expected."
        Gives 50 gold pieces for every item the character could carry yet.
       
57-60 SPOOKY SHRINE
        Quote: "Where avarice fails, patience grows."
        Every character and follower restore all their Body Points.
       
61-64 THAURMATURGIC SHRINE
        Quote: "Everything that once was open, is now closed."
        Every opened chest or object contents a treasure will be closed and any content will be reset (unique items will be replaced with 50 gold pieces)..
       
65-68 TAINTED SHRINE
        Quote: "Those that are last may yet be first."
        See the “Mysterious Shrine”, but this time the effect works on every character and follower.
       
69-72 WEIRD SHRINE
        Quote: "The sword of justice is swift and sharp."
        +1 Attack dice to every weapon.
       
73-76 GLOWING
        Quote: "Knowledge is power"
        The character loses all his Fate Points and adds +1 to their Mind Points.
       
77-80 MENDICANT
        Quote: "Give and you shall receive"
        The character loses all his gold and adds 1 Fate Point for every 25 gold pieces lost in this way.

81-84 MURPHY'S
        Quote: "That which can break will"
        The character loses 33% of his equipement (gold included).

85-88 OILY
        Quote: "That which does not kill you..."
        The shrine Attacks the character with 6 Attack Dice, if he survive it gives +1 Attack Dice.

89-92 SHIMMERING
        Quote: "Spiritual energy is restored"
        Restore all the Mind Points.

93-96 SPARKLING
        Quote: "Some experience is gained by touch"
        The shrine attacks the character with a thunderbolt (it's an attack of 1d6 dice), if he survive, he gains as much Fate Points as the dice result.

97-00 SOLAR
        Quote: "You feel stronger"
        Add +1 Body or +1 Mind or +1d6 Attack or +1d6 Defence. (The characteristic will be chosen randomly).

-------------------------

End of the first part... next time I will post the 'Alchemist potions list' (a little modified version of the American one)
PS.I create a printable booklet, but it's in Italian... translate the whole file in English is too stressful! I will translate only the 'core stuff'.

[MortiS-the-Lost]

excellent stuff, just getting round to reading it now, will post comments later

[Marchomer]

MortiS-the-Lost wrote

excellent stuff

Thanks!

I updated the post with the Fountains, the fixed version of the Characters and a little Bestiary (just for an example).
I updated  the conversion topic "WHFB creatures to HQ" too, with some converted skills for the Bestiary I upload.
As soon as possible I will re-update the topic.
I tested HACK! with the help of some friends of mine and it works fine.

Some bugs:
-Assassin works better if the assassination skill uses 5 and 6 combination on 3d6, instead the 6 6 6 roll.
-Dwarf gain 20% of gold pieces instead 10%.
-If in a room there's no trap or if every trap found is disarmed, any trap drawn from the treasure deck in that room can be ignored.

[Marchomer]

Second update (sorry for the slowness, I'm working on a long review I hope to end soon!), after an heavy beta testing... I re-edit the main post.

other updates:
- Revisited the Necromancer, too powerful, now he can rise less powerful undeads that will act for 4 turns.
- Deleted the amazon (she waits for a restyling).
- Druids become Shapechangers, they have 3 combinations of characteristics to use (they can change their shape only three times in a quest).

The only things I have left to post are Potions and some modifications in conversion rules from WHFB creatures to HQ (sometime I find some monsters very strong but defenseless!). I will post everything (classes upgrade and pictures of the beta testing too) in the next future.

[MortiS-the-Lost]

cool, keep it coming!

[Marchomer]

Like promised some centuries ago, I'm updating this post.
This is a ZIP file with the main sources of my work (fixed Potions list too), I've translated it in English, it includes ODT files and fonts, for the people who want to modify/correct/create something and it contains ready-to-print PDF files too. It doesn't include all the stuff you can easily find on the web (like spells, cards, inventory...).
Everything is full tested and works fine.
I don't know if this stuff could be useful for anyone, I hope so, in any case for me is a duty to share it with you.

HACK aka HomerQuest sources