Hero Points
There are moments in any struggle that influence the outcome. Does the brave warrior lay low the villain before he can finish casting a devastating spell? Does the sly rogue avoid detection as she sneaks into the giant chieftain's lair? Does the pious cleric finish casting her healing spell before the rain of arrows ends the life of her companions? Just a few die rolls decide each of these critical moments, and while failure is always a possibility, true heroes find a way to succeed, despite the odds. Hero points represent this potential for greatness. They give heroes the chance to succeed even when the dice turn against them.
Hero points are only awarded to player characters. NPCs, animal companions, familiars, cohorts, and mounts do not receive hero points. Unlike other points in the game, hero points do not renew over time or with rest. Once spent, they are gone forever. Hero points are awarded as a character gains levels or whenever a character accomplishes a truly heroic feat. The GM is the final arbiter on the award and use of hero points.
Antiheroes
A PC can elect not to use the hero point system, instead relying more on his skills and abilities. Such characters do not receive hero points, regardless of the source, and can never benefit from their use. In exchange, such characters receive a bonus feat at 1st level. The option to allow such antiheroes in the game is subject to GM discretion.
Hero Points for GMs
| Although all of the options presented in this book should be carefully considered before they are added to your game, hero points deserve closer inspection. Although hero points do not drastically increase the power of the PCs, they do grant the PCs the ability to greatly increase their chances of success during critical moments. While the game itself is set up to give the player characters an edge, hero points take that a bit further, possibly more so than you might be comfortable with. |
| The value to hero points is that they add dramatic tension to the climax of your game. Most uses of hero points do not guarantee success, making the moment they are used even more important to the players. Hero points are a very limited resource and their use should be described with additional detail and dramatic style. Used in this way, they can help create very memorable sessions for both you and your players. |
| Although NPCs do not generally receive hero points, there are ways that they can use these mechanics. A number of spells and magic items, as well as the Hero's Fortune feat, grant hero points to a character. Such hero points should be used sparingly, and should be reserved for major villains or truly important characters. If you use them too much, the players will begin to resent the system, making it more of a problem than an opportunity to enhance the game. |
Awarding Hero Points
Each character begins play with 1 hero point, regardless of her level. In addition, whenever a character gains a level, she earns an additional hero point. Aside from these basic rules, awarding additional hero points is up to the GM. The following options are just some of the ways that a GM might award additional hero points.
Character Story
GMs can award a hero point for the completion of a written character backstory. This reward encourages players to take an active role in the history of the game. In addition, the GM can use this backstory to generate a pivotal moment for your character concerning his past. When this key event is resolved, the GM can reward another hero point. Alternatively, the GM might award a hero point for painting a miniature or drawing a character portrait in the likeness of your character, helping the rest of the group visualize your hero.
Completing Plot Arcs
The GM might award a hero point to each of the PCs who were involved in completing a major chapter or arc in the campaign story. These hero points are awarded at the conclusion of the arc if the PCs were successful or advanced the story in a meaningful way.
Faith
In a campaign where the gods play an important role in every character's life, hero points might represent their favor. In such a setting, the GM can award hero points to characters whenever they uphold the tenets of their faith in a grand way, or whenever they take on one of the faith's major enemies. Such hero points might be temporary, and if not spent on the task at hand, they fade away.
Group Service
The GM can award hero points for acts outside the game as well. Buying pizza for the group, helping to clean up afterwards, or even hosting the game for a night might be worth a hero point. This sort of hero point should be given out of generosity, not as a payment.
Heroic Acts
Whenever a character performs an exceptionally heroic act, she can be awarded a hero point. This might include anything from slaying an evil dragon when the rest of the group has fled to rescuing townsfolk from a burning building despite being terribly wounded. It does not have to be related to combat. Convincing the reticent king to send troops to help with a bandit problem or successfully jumping a wide chasm might earn a character a hero point, depending on the circumstances. Note that a hero point should only be awarded if the PC involved did not spend a hero point to accomplish the task.
Return from the Dead
When a character dies, she does not lose any hero points she has accumulated. If she died with no hero points remaining, she gains 1 hero point when she is brought back from the dead through powerful magic, such as raise dead or resurrection.
Maximum Hero Points
Characters can have no more than 3 hero points at any one time. Excess hero points are lost.
Using Hero Points
Hero points can be spent at any time and do not require an action to use (although the actions they modify consume part of your character's turn as normal). You cannot spend more than 1 hero point during a single round of combat. Whenever a hero point is spent, it can have any one of the following effects.
Act Out of Turn
You can spend a hero point to take your turn immediately. Treat this as a readied action, moving your initiative to just before the currently acting creature. You may only take a move or a standard action on this turn.
Bonus
If used before a roll is made, a hero point grants you a +8 luck bonus to any one d20 roll. If used after a roll is made, this bonus is reduced to +4. You can use a hero point to grant this bonus to another character, as long as you are in the same location and your character can reasonably affect the outcome of the roll (such as distracting a monster, shouting words of encouragement, or otherwise aiding another with the check). Hero points spent to aid another character grant only half the listed bonus (+4 before the roll, +2 after the roll).
Extra Action
You can spend a hero point on your turn to gain an additional standard or move action this turn.
If you feel stuck at one point in the adventure, you can spend a hero point and petition the GM for a hint about what to do next. If the GM feels that there is no information to be gained, the hero point is not spent.
You can spend a hero point to recall a spell you have already cast or to gain another use of a special ability that is otherwise limited. This should only be used on spells and abilities possessed by your character that recharge on a daily basis.
Reroll
You may spend a hero point to reroll any one d20 roll you just made. You must take the results of the second roll, even if it is worse.
Special
You can petition the GM to allow a hero point to be used to attempt nearly anything that would normally be almost impossible. Such uses are not guaranteed and should be considered carefully by the GM. Possibilities include casting a single spell that is one level higher than you could normally cast (or a 1st-level spell if you are not a spellcaster), making an attack that blinds a foe or bypasses its damage reduction entirely, or attempting to use Diplomacy to convince a raging dragon to give up its attack. Regardless of the desired action, the attempt should be accompanied by a difficult check or penalty on the attack roll. No additional hero points may be spent on such an attempt, either by the character or her allies.
A character can spend 2 hero points to cheat death. How this plays out is up to the GM, but generally the character is left alive, with negative hit points but stable. For example, a character is about to be slain by a critical hit from an arrow. If the character spends 2 hero points, the GM decides that the arrow pierced the character's holy symbol, reducing the damage enough to prevent him from being killed, and that he made his stabilization roll at the end of his turn. Cheating death is the only way for a character to spend more than 1 hero point in a turn. The character can spend hero points in this way to prevent the death of a familiar, animal companion, eidolon, or special mount, but not another character or NPC.
Additional Hero Point Rules
Since hero points themselves are an optional rules system, other mechanics that go along with hero points have been included here to avoid confusion in the rest of the book. The following feats, spells, and magic items all have to do with hero points in one way or another.
Hero Point Feats
The following feats enhance your ability to store and gain hero points.
You have a sense of destiny about you and always seem to succeed, even when the odds are against you.
Prerequisite
Hero's Fortune.
Benefit
Whenever you gain a level, you gain 2 hero points instead of 1.
Normal
Whenever you gain a level, you gain 1 hero point.
Hero's Fortune
Even at the start of your career, it was clear that you had a chance at greatness, and your legend continues to grow with every adventure.
Benefit
You gain a hero point. The maximum number of hero points you can have at any one time is increased to 5.
Normal
You can have no more than 3 hero points at one time.
Special
NPCs who take this feat receive 1 hero point and can have up to 3 (not 5).
Luck of Heroes
To others, it seems that you always have a bit of luck around you.
Prerequisite
Hero's Fortune.
Benefit
Whenever you spend a hero point to reroll a die roll or to grant yourself a bonus before a die roll is made, there is a chance that the hero point is not spent. Whenever you spend a hero point, roll a d20. If the result is greater than 15, the hero point is not spent. You cannot use this feat when you cheat death.
Hero Point Spells
The following spells grant temporary hero points or prevent characters from using hero points.
School: evocation [] ()Domain:
Level: alchemist: 2; investigator: 2; bard: 2; skald: 2; cleric: 2; oracle: 2; warpriest: 2; paladin: 3
Components: V, S, DF, M (diamond dust worth 100 gp)
Casting time: 1 standard action
Range: touch
Duration: 1 round/level
Saving Throws: Will negates (harmless)
Spell Resistance: no
Target: creature touched
Description: Grants one hero point to a character
This spell grants 1 hero point to the target. This hero point must be spent before the duration expires, or it is lost. The bonus hero point is spent before any other hero points the target might possess.
School: evocation [] ()Domain:
Level: skald: 4; cleric: 5; oracle: 5; warpriest: 5
Components: V, S, DF, M (diamond dust worth 1,000 gp)
Casting time:
Range: close (25 ft. + 5 ft./2 levels)
Duration:
Saving Throws:
Spell Resistance:
Targets: one or more creatures, no two of which can be more than 30 ft. apart
Description: Grants one hero point to all characters in range
This spell functions like heroic fortune, except as noted above.
School: necromancy [] (death,evil)Domain:
Level: sorcerer: 3; wizard: 3; arcanist: 3; witch: 3
Components: V, S, F (onyx dust worth 500 gp)
Casting time: 1 standard action
Range: touch
Duration: instantaneous/1 minute per HD of the target; see text
Saving Throws: Will negates
Spell Resistance: yes
Target: living creature touched
Description: You curse a dying creature to gain hero points.
You utter a dire curse over the body of a dying creature, allowing you to consume its waning life force. Upon casting this spell, you touch a living creature that has –1 or fewer hit points. If the target fails its saving throw, it dies and you gain 1 hero point for every 5 Hit Dice possessed by the target (minimum 1, maximum 3). These hero points last for a number of minutes equal to the target's Hit Dice. Any hero points remaining when this spell ends are lost.
School: enchantment [] ()Domain:
Level: cleric: 3; oracle: 3; warpriest: 3; witch: 2
Components: V, S
Casting time: 1 standard action
Range: close (25 ft. + 5 ft./2 levels)
Duration: 10 minutes/level
Saving Throws: Will negates
Spell Resistance: yes
Target: one living creature
Description: You curse the target causing them to be shaken and preventing them from using hero points.
You curse the target, preventing it from drawing upon the powers of destiny. The target is shaken and cannot use hero points for the duration of the spell. This effect can be removed by dispel magic, remove curse, or other similar effects.
School: divination [] ()Domain:
Level: cleric: 3; oracle: 3; warpriest: 3; sorcerer: 3; wizard: 3; arcanist: 3; witch: 3
Components: V, S, DF
Casting time: 1 standard action
Range: short (25 ft. + 5 ft./2 levels)
Duration: 1 round/level
Saving Throws: Will negates
Spell Resistance: yes
Target: one creature
Description: Target suffers a penalty to multiple rules for every hero point they possess.
You utter a dire portent, causing destiny and fate to unravel around the target. This profoundly disturbing effect causes the target to suffer a cumulative –2 penalty on all ability checks, attack rolls, saving throws, and skill checks for every hero point it possesses. The target can reduce this penalty by spending hero points normally, but it takes 2d6 points of damage for each hero point spent while this spell is in effect.
Hero Point Magic Items
The following magic items grant characters additional hero points or allow them the possibility of recovering points as they are spent.
Aura: moderate evocationCLl: 7th
Price: 3,600 gp
Weight: &mdash
Description
This golden elixir grants good luck to the imbiber. After drinking the elixir, the character gains 3 hero points that must be used within 1 hour. These hero points do not count against the imbiber's limit. They can only be used to aid the imbiber. They cannot be used to aid the rolls of others. A character cannot benefit from more than one elixir of luck in a 1-month period.
Hero's Blade
Aura: moderate evocationCLl: 9th
Price: 17,315 gp
Weight: 4 lbs.
Description
The pommel of this ornate +2 longsword is made to look like a coiled golden dragon with six small diamond scales running down its back. When made, this sword holds 6 hero points. The wielder can use these points at any time, and they do not count against the wielder's maximum. As the hero points are used, the small diamonds on the dragon's back turn into coal. After the last hero point has been used, the hero's blade remains a +2 longsword.
Aura: moderate necromancyCLl: 12th
Price: 80,318 gp
Weight: 10 lbs.
Description
The black blade of this +2 keen unholy scythe reflects faint images of the souls of those it has claimed. Whenever the scythe is used to drop a creature to –1 hit points or less, the creature must immediately make a DC 14 Will save or be instantly slain. If the reaver's scythe kills a creature, either through damage or because the creature failed its Will save, the wielder immediately receives 1 hero point. This hero point must be used within 1 hour or it is lost. The wielder cannot gain another hero point from the scythe until the first is used or lost.
Ring of Heroes
Aura: moderate (no school)CLl: 7th
Price: 8,000 gp
Weight: &mdash
Description
Sculpted in the shape of two noble looking bronze lions charging toward a centrally placed garnet, this ring grants the wearer the Luck of Heroes feat. The ring must be worn for 24 hours before it takes effect. The wearer can also call upon the ring's power to gain a hero point that must be used immediately, although this causes the ring to lose its powers permanently.
Aura: evocation (moderate)CLl: 9th
Price: 44,400 gp
Weight: 3 lbs.
Description
This staff is made of ivory and gold and is topped by a large, flawless piece of quartz. It allows the use of the following spells.
- Heroic fortune (1 charge)
- Mass heroic fortune (2 charges)