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Message: <blockquote data-quote="ruleslawyer" data-source="post: 2936347" data-attributes="member: 1757">Back to topicFor the OP:Keep in mind that Iron Heroes isn't really "low fantasy." For that, you'd want something like Grim Tales or Thieves' World. Iron Heroes is really attempting to emulate classic fantasy or sword & sorcery, genres in which magic exists but is rare and/or dangerous. Think Conan, Lankhmar, or even Lord of the Rings rather than the D&D "brand" of fantasy. IOW, IH characters have less magic gear than D&D characters, but they're just as insanely powerful and heroic at high levels; think Broken Sword and Flying Snow charging through hundreds of assembled warriors in Hero, or Aragorn Great-Cleaving uruk-hai at the end of the Fellowship of the Ring film, or River taking down a horde of reavers in Serenity. As a brief page through the errata should suggest, the problems with IH (other than the magic system) are anecdotal rather than systemic; a combination of the errata and some of Adam's and others' houserules should plug the gaps. When running an IH game, I would suggest the following:1) Use an alternate armiger (I recommend hong's or Soulmage's version). Trust me; you'll avoid a lot of headaches.2) Try playing without a spellcaster. An IH party doesn't need one, and you should probably get familiar with the game and "playtest" a few magic system alternatives in your head before trying to plug in something. 3) Read the AoO FAQ. IH AoOs are simpler than in D&D, but they take a bit of getting used to precisely because they are similar, but not identical to the D&D default.4) Strongly consider using a glory or fate point system, especially if you plan on using any monsters with save-or-be-in-trouble abilities. IH PCs will not have the ability to dispel magic, get resurrected, etc. Consequently, they can use a little padding on the front end.5) Understand that an IH party may be a bit stronger than a D&D party at low levels (1st-3rd). A berserker 1 with the right traits is a bit more robust than his barbarian cousin, and trait abilities like Mighty Build and Weapon Bond can make certain PCs into damage monsters right off the bat. I'd assume the party is one level higher when setting ELs from 1st-3rd level.6) If using D&D adventures, keep in mind that from mid-levels onward, most modules assume the characters can fly and/or breathe water. Hard stuff for IH characters, so make sure to deal with that issue before it comes up in active play.7) There are a bewildering number of ways to deny a target its active bonus to defense in IH. Because active bonuses to defense represent a large chunk of the target's protection (as opposed to Dex bonus to AC, which is the D&D equivalent), getting denied your active bonuses is *extremely* deadly. There are a number of ways to deal with this: You can make class bonuses to defense passive rather than active (or 50% passive, 50% active, which is a common house rule); you can rule that any effect that denies active bonuses only denies Dex bonuses; or you can come up with countermeasures. IMC, I use the rule as written because I like ambushes to be deadly, but it may not be your cup of tea.</blockquote>

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