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Wednesday, 30 January 2013

Heroquest Advance rules pt4- Spirit Points and Chaos Taints

Spirit points add a new dimension to the game, allowing players to become evil or tainted by the foul powers of chaos. The addition and subtraction of Spirit Points (along with any tainting and purifying) is at the evil wizard player's discretion and based on the characters' actions. For example in one scenario a barbarian butchered a family of goblin children totally unprovoked- definitely cause for removal of a Spirit Point!

Oh, and something else similar, the Equipment  and settlement lists mention being Cursed!- Here's what it means:
Cursed!: A Cursed player does not heal Mind points between games, never discovers treasure, traps or secret doors whilst searching and must reroll all successful attack dice until the Curse is removed.


SPIRIT POINTS:
Each player begins with D6+4 Spirit Points (rolls of 1 or 2 may reroll). If a player (for any reason) drops below 5 Spirit Points they become fallen and may only trade and heal in Evil or neutral settlements. Spirit Points may not be regained by healing. Under certain circumstances a player may become Marked. When this happens instead of removing Spirit Points they are flipped upside down (note- we use counters to mark body, mind and spirit points). If all the markers are ‘Tainted’ the hero becomes a Spawn of Chaos. The character’s features and personality adjust with the taint, so a character whose tainted markers take him below 5 Spirit Points will count as fallen, however tainted markers may be flipped back by special means.



Chaos Taints
To find the effect of acquiring Taint points add up the number of  remaining untainted Spirit Points  to find the ‘purity level’ and consult the following table. If a Chaos Reward is due and no Mark of Chaos has previously been generated then this must be rolled for before deciding on the Chaos Reward.

Purity level                                         Effect
9                                                 + One subtle mutation
8                                                 + One subtle mutation
7                                                 + One subtle mutation
6                                                 + One obvious mutation
5                                                 + One obvious mutation
4                                              + One Mark of Chaos + one subtle mutation
3                                                 + One Chaos Reward
2                                              + One subtle mutation
1                                                                                     + One Chaos Reward
0                                                                                   Chaos Spawn

Subtle Mutations (2D6)                 Subtle mutations are undetectable by others.
                2                                     Atrophied limbs
                                                       The character only rolls 1D6 for movement
                3                                     Dulled vision
                                                       Only spaces up to 5 squares away are visible to the character
                4                                     Misshapen lungs
                                                       The character loses 1 Body point from exertion each time they fight                                                        a round of combat or move over 8 spaces
                5                                     Voices
                                                       The character hears strange prompting from the Warp, but other                                                        than that nothing happens
                6                                     Acute vision
                                                       The character has the Farsight skill
                7                                     Acute hearing
                                                       The character has the Attentive skill
                8                                      Acute smell
                                                       The character has the Foescent skill
                9                                     Powerful limbs
                                                       Add +3 to the character’s movement rolls
                10                                   Warpsense
                                                       The character can feel movements in the warp, chaotic monsters                                                        and tainted adventurers are placed on the board when the                                                        character is within 10 spaces of their location
                11                                   Springheels
                                                      Instead of rolling to move the character can make a basic ‘spring’ of                                                        7 spaces, ignoring any traps on the intervening spaces
                12                                   Burning gaze
                                                       Monsters and adventurers are unnerved by the character’s glare.                                                       One opponent in close combat rolls 1 less combat die in attack, any                                                        opponents after the first attack normally
               
                                               



Obvious Mutations (2D6)             Obvious mutations cause revulsion in untainted individuals. A character with at least 1 obvious mutation may not trade at neutral settlements.

                2                                     Extra fingers
                                                       Reduce the character’s attack dice by 1 as their extra digits cause                                                       them to fumble
                3                                     Forked tongue
                                                      The character has difficulty communicating, they may not trade at                                                       settlements but other adventurers may trade for them if they wish
                4                                     Tentacle face
                                                       The character may not wear helmets
                5                                     Four eyes
                                                       The character’s range of vision is increased but it has little or no                                                        effect in most gameplay
                6                                      Massively obese
                                                      The character may not wear armour
                7                                      Spines
                                                        The character makes an extra attack using 1 combat die on each                                                          model which attacks him in close combat
                8                                       Scaly skin
                                                         The character rolls an extra combat die in defence
                9                                       Very tall
                                                         The character adds 2 to their movement roll but rolls 2 less combat                                                         dice fighting through doorways
                10                                      Scorpion tail
                                                          The character makes an extra attack with one combat die against                                                            any model in base contact after each round of combat
                11                                      Tentacles
                                                          The character can wield three single-handed weapons or one double                                                     and one single-handed weapon at a time, gaining the bonuses from all
                12                                      Wings
                                                           The character’s tough, leathery wings make movement in tight                                                           passages difficult, no adventurers may move through the character’s                                                          space and the character himself deducts 3 from his movement rolls,                                                            to a minimum of 1. However the wings provide excellent protection,                                                         only models in front of the character (either directly or diagonally)                                                          may attack him (provided they could normally do so).

Mark of Chaos (1D6)                       A character with a Mark of Chaos may not remove tainted Spirit points beyond the Mark (ie, they will always have at least 5 tainted Spirit points). If a Chaos Undivided Mark is rolled the character may choose Chaos Rewards from any of the four Chaos gods. For a wizard add 1 to the value rolled, for a dwarf subtract 1

                1                                              No Mark
                2                                              Mark of Nurgle
                3                                              Mark of Khorne
                4                                              Mark of Slaanesh
                5                                              Mark of Tzeentch
                6                                              Chaos Undivided



Chaos Rewards                                 Characters roll Chaos Rewards according to their Mark. 

Khorne Rewards
                1                                              Bloodthirst
                                                                The character needs to taste blood in order to sustain himself. At                                                             the end of each turn in which the character has not inflicted wounds                                                      in combat he must lose one Body point
2                                              Rage
                                                The character is driven by an insatiable desire for slaughter. If a                                                          character can see an enemy model at the start of the turn he must                                                         try to enter combat with it
                3                                              Might
                                                       The force of the character’s attack is brutal. Each time he wounds an                                                    enemy in close combat he does an additional Body point of damage                                                       (in total, not one per wound) which may be saved as usual
                4                                              Horns
                                                      As he charges into combat the character lowers his fearsome horns,                                                       roll 1 combat die to see if a Body point is inflicted (may be saved as                                                          normal). This attack is in addition to any usual attacks
                5                                              Bellow
From his bestial throat the character sounds a terrifying, guttural                              roar. Instead of attacking, searching or casting a spell once per game
the character may let out a bellow. All models in the same room or
corridor must roll a combat die, if they roll a black shield they must
miss their next turn. Models may still defend if attacked
                6                                              Breathe fire
                                                                Once per game, instead of moving and searching, attacking or                                                         casting a spell, the character may make an attack on a model within                                                        sight as if casting a fireball spell

Nurgle Rewards
                1                                              Wither
                                                        The character’s limbs shrivels until they are wire-thin. Roll 1D6 each                                                        time a wound is inflicted upon them. On a roll of a 1 they break a                                                              limb, beginning with the left arm, then the right, then a leg. For each                                                                arm broken the character loses half their attack dice, for each leg                                                                broken they lose half their movement dice
2                                              Pustules
                                                The character breaks out in noxious purple pustules. Each time they                                                       take a Body point of damage a pustule explodes, spraying the                                                                   opponent with corrosive slime. This inflicts one Body point of                                                                    damage and may be saved in the usual way
                3                                              Resist Pain
                                                                The character feels no pain, however they still lose Body points in                                                            the usual way. Because they are unaware of how serious their                                                           injuries are they might fight on beyond the point where they would                                                         usually die. If the character ends the turn with no Body points                                                                   remaining roll 1D6, on a roll of a 1 they die. Each Body point                                                              sustained beyond this point decreases their roll by 1, so a character                                                        which has sustained 3 Body points since they would have died                                                                   expires on a roll of 1-4


                4                                             Fetid breath
                                                            The character’s halitosis is horrendous. Other adventurers which are                                                      not marked by Nurgle will not come within 5 spaces of the character
                5                                              Maggot sac
                                                          Most of the character’s insides have putrefied and their body is full                                                        of maggots. For each Body point they sustain they must roll one                                                        combat die, on a roll of a black shield they sustain an extra Body                                                        point of damage.
                6                                              Nurgling pets
                                                                The character is accompanied by a cluster of nurglings which feed                                                            off the horrible gunk which drips from the character’s orfices. These                                                      nurglings attack alongside the character, adding one combat die in                                                           attack and defence, and will also search, allowing the character to                                                              search for both traps and treasure in a single turn

Tzeentch Rewards
                1                                              Stormwalker
                                                                The character is blinded to the real world, seeing only the energies                                                         of the warp swirling around them. Models are placed on the board                                                         when the character comes within 5 spaces of them (10 for magic                                                       users) but they cannot see doors, furniture or traps and may not                                                       search. They may move as normal through doors opened by other                                                          players
2                                              Bird head
                                                Tzeentch bestows a beaked head upon the character
                3                                              Channel
                                                           The energies of the warp stream through the character, whether he                                                      wants them to or not. Each turn draw a spell at random from any                                                             player or the unused spell deck. That spell must be cast upon any                                                       possible targets, the spell is then returned to its holder
                4                                              Steal magic
                                                          Whenever the character can see a spell user he may pick a spell card                                                      at random from those held by that player. He may keep and use                                                       these spells as a normal spell user, whether he is normally able to or                                                        not
                5                                              Screech
The raw power of the warp screams up from the character’s lungs in a terrifying avian screech. Instead of attacking, searching or casting a spell, once per game the character may let out a screech. All models in the same room or corridor must roll a combat die, if they roll a black shield they must miss their next turn. Models may still defend if attacked
                6                                              Familiar
A strange beast of indeterminate shape accompanies the character on their quests. The familiar is a separate model with Body 3, Mind 5. It attacks and defends with 1 combat die and moves the same number of spaces as the character. Any spells the character can cast may be cast by the familiar instead if you wish.

Slaanesh Rewards
                1                                              Crab claw
The character’s hand are replaced by chitinous crustacean claws. They have a base attack and defend of 5 combat dice and may not use other weapons or shields.
2                                              Long tongue
The character’s tongue grows to unnerving length, tipped with a slight fork. The character has difficulty communicating with others.
                3                                              Crave pain
The character is possessed by a yearning for the pleasure of agony. Each time they may enter into combat they must do so and roll 1 die less in defence.
                4                                              Sweet breath
A seductive aroma spreads from the character, dulling the senses of those around them. All attacks (from players and monsters) are at -1 combat die in the same room or corridor as the character. In addition, other than the character himself, players’ searches fail automatically in the same room or corridor as the character as their perception is clouded.
                5                                              Allure
A powerful magnetic pull emanates from the character. All non-player models which have line of sight to the character will move towards him unless in combat. Any models which reach the character may not attack until next turn.
                6                                              Relish pain
The character has an unhealthy craving for pain. Each turn the character is in combat with an opponent they will allow the attacker to inflict one Body point of damage automatically on them. Fortunately the character is also able to heal himself, at the start of each turn roll 1d6, on a roll of a 6 they regain one lost Body point.

Chaos Spawns
When a character reaches 0 untainted Spirit Points they become a Chaos Spawn. Their mindless, aberrant bodies are thrown into convulsions  as mutations vie for supremacy, contorting the adventurer into horrific and ever-shifting shapes. The character counts as dead for game purposes.
 


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