Hero Forming

Using Heroforming

Continuing my conversion from Hero Wars/HeroQuest to RuneQuest here are my basic rules for Heroforming. As a side note, I think heroforming is somewhat different from incarnating a deity, which in my game is either a powerful Hero Power - the rules of which are HeroQuest specific - or a shamanic gift (under Sandy Petersen's sorcery system) which increases Runes and Passions. This system makes some limited use of my HeroQuest rules.

The Skill

Heroforming is the skill of incarnating a hero that one worships. It is rare, and limited to only the most devote followers of a particular Hero. Within a large tribe there will only be a one or two people who might have access to Herforming. It depends upon the flavour of your campaign, you might make it a very rare skill that few people have. personally I prefer the idea of battles where one or two high level initiates, acolytes or people who just qualify for Rune Lord entering the battlefield, heroforming and fighting it out with others. Your game style might vary.

Heroforming is a skill in the Magic category. It can only be learnt by advancing to a certain stage in a Hero Cult, or by HeroQuesting. Once gained it is learnt at 1d6+magic modifier. Every year in the cult the Heroforming skill increases by 1 percent, it can be increased by experience and it can be researched as a Hard skill but takes twice as long as normal (so a character with 20 percent in Heroform requires 40 hours of research to get a 1d4-2 increase). It can also be increased by heroquesting along the Hero Paths of the one you wish to Heroform.

To use Heroforming takes one uninterrupted melee round. The character must elect how much of their skill they wish to devote towards that particular Heroforming, usually (but not always) it is all of it. For instance a character with Heroform Harmast 83% can elect to use between 1 and 83 percent of their skill. The roll is made based upon how much they chose to devote to this Heroforming attempt. So if the Hero devotes 40% this leaves them with 43% in their Heroform skill, and their Heroform roll for that attempt is a mere 40% (this is why normally all of the skill is devoted). The amount of the skill devoted temporarily reduces the skill, so our example Hero would be left with 43%. It returns at the rate of 10% per day spent in pray, sacrifice, veneration etc... to the Hero in question. This means that a character who can Heroform cannot do it all day every day. Ceremony cannot be used to increase the Heroform skill.

Should a character trying to Heroform be interrupted during the process they must make a concentration roll. Success means that the process is interrupted, but no skill loss occurs. A failure means that the process is interrupted and temporary skill lose does occur.

Heroforming, whilst magical in nature, cannot be dispelled or neutralised via standard magical means. Divine Intervention cannot stop someone from Heroforming. Other Hero Powers might stop one from Heroforming. You cannot Heroform whilst on a re-enactment HeroQuest, unless that Quest is to the Hero that you wish to Heroform. Characters can Heroform elsewhere on the Heroplane with general impunity.

These are the general effects of Heroforming:

Level of Success	Result
Fumble	The Hero is displeased. The character fails to Heroform and loses 1d10 percentiles permanently from their Heroform skill. If this decreases their skill below 0 then the Hero is so disgusted that they may never increase their Heroform skill again, forever being cut off from the Hero.
Failure	Nothing happens. Temporary skill lose occurs.
Simple	The effect lasts 10 minutes. The character gains +90% in the Heros primary skill and +60% in the Heros secondary skills. They gain any primary attribute adjustments. They gain the spirit magic spells. They gain the primary rune magic of the Hero. They gain the passions and runes of the Hero at one multiple. The Heroformer obviously resembles the Hero and acts like them to some extent.
Special	The effect lasts half an hour. The character gains +150% in the Heros primary skill, +90% in the secondary skills and +60% in the Heros tertiary skills. They gain primary and secondary attribute adjustments. They gain the spirit magic spells of the Hero with one of them as a Heroic Casting. They gain the primary and secondary rune magic of the Hero. They gain the passions and runes of the Hero at two multiples. The Heroformer could now easily be mistaken for the Hero.
Critical	The effect lasts an hour. The character gains +150% in the Heros primary and secondary skills, and +90% in the tertiary skills. They gain the Heros attribute adjustments. They gain the spirit magic spells of the Hero as Heroic Castings. They gain all rune magic of the Hero with one of them as a Heroic Casting (if available for that Hero). They gain the passions and runes of the Hero at four multiples. For all intents and purposes the Heroformer is now the Hero.
Supercritical	The effect lasts a day. The caster gains +250% in the Hero primary skill, +200% in the Heros secondary skills and +100% in the Heros teriary skills. They gain the attribute adjustments. They gain all spirit magic and rune magic as Heroic Castings. They gain the passions and runes of the Hero at seven multiples. The Heroformer is now the Hero, incarnated in the Inner World. When the Hero departs, the entire of the Heroformer's skill instantly returns.
Hypercritical	Should this ever occur it is the GM's decision, the effects should be as above, although the Hero may choose to never leave the heroformer, may bestow gifts upon them as they leave, or whatever. No Identitiy Challange is possible.

Each Hero has a list of abilities that looks like this:

Primary Skill: Heroes normally have one, and only one, primary skill.
Secondary Skills: Heroes normally have three secondary skills.
Tertiary skills: Heroes have a number of tertiary skills that can vary widely.
Primary Attribute Adjustments: These are the primary adjustments to the character.
Secondary Attribute Adjustments: These are the secondary adjustments, they are in addition to the previous adjustments. So if a character incarnates Vogarth then they will gain +30 STR from the primary and another +50 STR from the secondary for a total of +80 STR.
Spirit Magic: Heroes have an amount of spirit magic, usually 15-25 points over four or five spells. These can be used by the Heroformer and take up no Free INT. The spirit magic spell that is underlined is the spell that becomes a Heroic Casting should a special or higher be rolled on the Heroforming chart.
Primary Rune Magic: The Rune Magic the Hero grants.
Secondary Rune Magic: The secondary rune magic the Hero grants.
Passions: The passions that a Hero grants it's Heroformers. These are gained in multiples. So if a Hero has Hate Trolls 5 and rolls a special success on their Heroforming they gain Hate Trolls 10.
Runes: The runes that a Hero grants, again in multiples. They do not grant any additional powers above and beyond what the Hero grants already.
Additional Information: Some Heroes have additional information, either additional powers or disadvantages beyond those listed here.

This is an example heroform description for Vogarth the Strongman (see Storm Tribes p.243):

Primary Skill: Throw.
Secondary Skills: Fist Attack, Dodge, Kick Attack.
Primary Attribute Adjustments: +30 STR, +10 CON, +5 SIZ, INT=8.
Secondary Attribute Adjustments: +50 STR, +10 CON, +5 SIZ, INT=4, +10 POW, FP+100, HP+5, Move -1
Spirit Magic: Strength 10, Vigour 10.
Primary Rune Magic: None.
Secondary Rune Magic: None.
Passions: Hate Trolls 3, Hate Chaos 3, Hate Dara Happan 4, Hate Dragons 3, Love Family 5, Loyalty Family 6, All fears -3.
Runes: Man 4, Storm 3, Mastery 2.
Additional Information: Whilst Heroforming the character must tell the truth at all times or face an identity challenge. They must not exercise any mental abilities, or powers of logic, or face an identity challenge at -20%.

Here's another example, this time for Ger-ak Kaggrokka (that's Gerak Kag to RQII folk):

Primary Skill: Jumping.
Secondary Skills: Climb, Breakfall, Dodge.
Tertiary Skills: 2H Maul Attack, Darksense/Scan, Darksense/search.
Primary Attribute Adjustments: +5 POW.
Secondary Attribute Adjustments: +5 STR, +5 CON, +5 POW, +1 INT.
Spirit Magic: Bludgeon 6, Heal 4, Jumping 12, Sneak 4.
Primary Rune Magic: Darksee, Precision Jumpx2, Truemaul.
Secondary Rune Magic: Command Shade x4, Darksee x2, Precision Jump x10, Spirit Block 5, Truemaul x5.
Passions: Hate Chaos 3, Hate Fire Worshippers 3, Hate Storm Worshippers 1, Hate Aldryami 4, Hate Mostali 3, Love Mother 2.
Runes: Mastery 1, Darkness 4, Man 1.

Identity Challenge

It is difficult for Heroformers to retain their identity sometimes. Often an action, either by the Heroformer or by those around him, can result in them casting off their Heroform - an equivalent to someone saying "Look mate, you might think you're Harmast Barefoot but you just ain't." An identity challenge can occur in one of four ways. The first is when a character breaks a restriction listed specifically for that Hero - for instance those who Heroform Alakoring Dragonbreaker must face an identity challenge whenever they do not charge dragons. Second is when the character tries to use their own spells and knowledge - whenever a character tries to call upon their own knowledge, or cast a magical spell from their own Free INT, they must face an identity challenge. Third is when a character acts against how the GM feels that the Hero would act - for instance those Heroforming Healers are not normally violent or aggresive. A modifier should be applied depending just how far the breach goes (someone who runs through a defenceless child whilst Heroforming one of the Sisters of mercy should face an horrendous penalty!). Lastly, other people can challenge the Heroformers identity. This requires an opponent to have some knowledge of the Hero that is being Heroformed. In game terms the character can be forced to face an identity challenge if a particular person makes a special or better on an appopriate Cult Lore (or if, like me, you don't use it you can substitute Ceremony). So someone facing a Heroformed Orlanthi Hero must use an Orlanthi ceremony skill/cult lore. Characters who have specific knowledge of the hero (say because they've researched him) need not roll and can force an identity challenge whenever they feel like it, and those with greater knowledge (or maybe even knowing him personally!) can inflict penalties on the identity challenge, making it harder for the Heroformer ("You're not Harmast! He had a single toering on his little piggy!" etc...). Use your discretion.

To face an identity challenge the Heroformer need only roll under their unadjusted Heroforming skill (so don't use their temporarily reduced Heroforming skill). If they suceed then they remain Heroformed. If a character ever criticals during an identity challenge, his level of success for Heroforming shifts up one level - for example a character who scored a simple success on heroforming who then criticals his heroforming skill now gains the benefits of a having scored a special success. If they fail they shift down one level, until the Hero departs. If they fumble, the Hero immediatley departs and the Heroforming ends.