The FAQ

• Disclaimer
  
• New to this Version
  
• Introduction
  
• General Questions
  
• Specific Rule Questions

Subject: 1. Disclaimer

Subject: 3. New to this Version

Subject: 4. Introduction

Enjoy!

General Questions

Can you tell me a little about HeroQuest (HQ)?

Sure. HeroQuest is an enjoyable fantasy boardgame, where each player is allowed to develop a recurring Hero over a series of adventures (Quests). The game play is simple yet entertaining for a typical one to two hour Quest. Players are generally encouraged to work together against one designated player who controls the antagonists in the Quest: monsters, traps, and puzzles of all sorts.

Is HQ still produced? How can I reach Milton Bradley?

HQ is no longer in production at Milton Bradley. I mailed them a letter in August 1994 inquiring about this, and also on the availabilty of the remaining HQ inventory. I received a more or less form letter reply saying, "Thanks for your interest, but HQ is no longer produced." They didn't mention whether or not they had additional items in stock.

Here's the US address for Milton Bradley that I used:

Milton Bradley Company
443 Shaker Road
East Longmeadow, MA  01028-5247
Phone: (413) 525-6411

Email: mbconsumer@hasbro.com

Web:   http://www.hasbro.com
       (MB's parent company)

What supplements ("Quest Packs") were made?

• Kellar's Keep
  
• Return of the Witch Lord
  
• Quest Pack for the Elf
  
• Barbarian Quest Pack
  

In addition, the following Quest Packs were released in the UK:

• Wizards of Morcar
  
• Against the Ogre Horde
  
• Adventure Design Kit
  

(Note: I personally own all the above, so, yes, every one of them does exist.)

What is Advanced HeroQuest?

Advanced HeroQuest is produced solely by Games Workshop. It is considerably different from its Milton Bradley counterpart. The rules are much more detailed, and make it a more complex "role-playing" game. AHQ is no longer in production as of this writing (April '95).

Do you have any suggestions for sprucing up the game (besides extra rules, etc.)?

Here are a few:

• Add some non-combat encounters. These could be anything from a dying Goblin with an important message, to a Dwarf who's digging for gold in a remote passage. Non-combat encounters make the players think more about what's going on in their surroundings. Sometimes the encounters have important implications, others may be strictly "random" to confuse or entertain the players.

• Along the same lines, add important plots or themes to your Quests. What if there's a feud going on between the Orcs and the Goblins? Will they attack the Heroes, or try to enlist their help? How about a mystic portal that must be closed to stop the outpouring of Undead? These longer-running plots can create ongoing goals for the Heroes to pursue.

• And who can resist the Recurring Villain? Create a villainous Wizard, Chaos Warrior, etc., complete with some special items or abilities, and have him do his best to foil the Heroes' Quests. You don't have to use him in every adventure, and sometimes he may not even be the primary antagonist, but a properly played Recurring Villain can be a nuisance and a challenge rolled up into one. Make sure he has a way to retreat, however, such as the Escape spell. You don't want your Heroes defeating him on the first encounter!

What public domain info is available for HQ enhancements, and where is it located?

There is a collection of files at the FTP site kewlaid.highfiber.com. The directory is /pub/rpg/miniatures/HeroQuest. The file name is HeroQuest1.0.zip.gz. (The file is ZIPed for IBM PC's.) Any submissions you'd like to contribute go in the /pub/incoming/games directory.I would also appreciate it if you emailed me a copy of any new Quests, items, enhancements, etc.

Please contact Britt Klein at tierna@indirect.com if you have trouble accessing/uncompressing this file. Thanks for the help, Britt!

Also, a WWW site has been established for HQ. Most of the FTP material mentioned above is available now on the Web. The link you need is:

http://www.theminiaturespage.com/rules/fan/hq.html.

Thanks to Bill Armintrout for volunteering to assemble this site!

What other sources of HQ supplements are available?

Most recent addition: AU web page

Publication	Article
Adventures Unlimited #5	"The Inn of Chaos"
Fractal Spectrum #13	"HeroQuest: A Notch Above"
Fractal Spectrum #17	"HeroQuest Hall of Foes III"
Vindicator #2	"Review: Quest Pack for the Elf" "HeroQuest Hall of Foes I"
Vindicator #3	"Review: Barbarian Quest Pack" "HeroQuest Hall of Foes II"
Vindicator #4	"HeroQuest Variants"
Vindicator #5a	"The Rogue"
White Dwarf #134	"The Halls of Durrag-Dol"
White Dwarf #145	"The Eyes of Chaos"

Contact information:

Adventures Unlimited	http://www.greatbearlink.com/
Fractal Spectrum	http://www.fractal.mandarin.org
Vindicator Online	http://homepage2.rconnect.com/forhan/vindicator.html
White Dwarf	White Dwarf @ Games Workshop

What other games have components such as figures or boards that might be compatible with HQ?

Title	Publisher
Advanced HeroQuest	Games Workshop
Warhammer Quest	Games Workshop
Dragonfire	Heartbreaker Hobbies
Dark World	Mattel
BattleMasters	Milton Bradley
Lionheart	Parker Brothers
DragonStrike	TSR

Note that many of these games are currently out of print.

Who designed HQ?

HQ was originally designed by Steve Baker, who worked for MB UK at the time. He was also responsible for the design of MB's Space Crusade.

Specific Rule Questions

HeroQuest game system

SPELL CANCELLATION

How does one handle multiple (and possibly conflicting) spells cast on the same character? For instance Zargon casts Fear (1 attack die) on the Elf who has Courage (+2 attack dice). Does the Elf have 3 attacks (Fear + Courage = fearfully courageous?) or just 1 (Fear)?

The spell effects should be applied in the order they occur. So in the above example, the Elf would have three attack dice because of the most recent spell cast on him, Courage. If the Courage is broken on a subsequent turn, then Fear will be back in effect (1 die). The other case in this same example is that the Fear is broken first, in which case the attack dice would be the normal amount for that Hero plus 2 for Courage.

JUMPING PITS AND DIAGONAL MOVEMENT

In the basic rules, it pretty clearly states that diagonal movement is not allowed. However, under the section that describes how to jump a pit a diagram shows that a jump to a diagonal square is allowed. (See diagram.) What's the deal here?

         _______
        |   |\ /|
        |   | X | <-- Pit
        |___|/_\|
            |   |
            |   |
            |___|

I think the intention of the rules here is to allow Heroes a means to get around a "corner" pit, and is not truly diagonal movement. If this movement were disallowed, then it would be impossible to get around the pit (unless you just fell in intentionally, I guess). So you have two choices:

1. Allow the jump as the rules indicate. Remember that 2 movement spaces must still be spent, just as if the Hero was walking around a normal corner with no pit. This solution is IMHO consistent with the intent of the rules.
   
2. Allow diagonal movement, which allows a Hero to step directly to the diagonal square, with no need to jump the pit at all.
   

Kellar's Keep

Return of the Witch Lord

Quest Pack for the Elf

JUMPING LONG PITS WITH RABBIT BOOTS

Do the Rabbit Boots behave differently when dealing with long pits? If they fail a normal pit jump on a black shield, should they then not fail a long pit jump on a white shield, or even a skull?

No, Rabbit Boots behave the same regardless of the size of the pit.

JUMPING LONG PITS WITH A POTION OF DEXTERITY

Does the Potion of Dexterity really guarantee a long pit jump?

Yes.

Barbarian Quest Pack

YETIS AND DEFENDING

Can Yeti roll defend dice while hugging? (They can't make other attacks while hugging, but can they defend?)

Every Hero or Monster should get to roll defend dice, regardless of the circumstances. However, one could develop a house rule whereby the defend dice of a Yeti is reduced while hugging by one or two dice. This is strictly optional, of course.

ICE GREMLIN STEALING AND MOVING

If an Ice Gremlin moves first, then steals something, does he still get to run?

One could argue stealing is an action, and as such terminates the movement phase. An alternative would be to allow the Gremlin to use his remaining movement points in the escape, if not the full 10.

LONE HERO AGAINST YETI

If a lone Hero encounters a Yeti which successfully "hugs" him, is the Hero automatically dead? It would seem so; the rules didn't seem to allow for a hero to free himself from the Yeti's grip.

A couple of alternatives here:

1. As the rules indicate, a "hugged" Hero may not defend nor take any actions. This is probably intended to allow a deadly Monster in the game which will cause the egomaniacs in the group to think twice before wildly attacking. :)
   
2. Allow the Hero roll his or her normal attack dice at the start of each turn. If less than two skulls are rolled, the Hero remains in the hug. If two or more skulls are rolled, no damage is inflicted on the Yeti, but the hug is broken, and the Hero may move away if desired (the Hero's action is lost for the turn, however).