# Converting RuneQuest Characters

Some people may want to convert their RQ characters into HW format, perhaps to play HW or to try out the HW HeroQuesting rules. The current guidelines consist of writing the 100 word summary of the Hero and using that to get keywords. This is all very well, but it doesn't give an idea of how to convert power levels, how to ensure that two Heroes keep their relative positions and so on.

What I will try to do here is to put together a set of guidelines that will help to convert a RQ character to a HW Hero.

Feel free to use or ignore them as you see fit.

For the purpose of this article, I will be converting one of my very own PCs, Soltak Stormspear, who I ran for 6 years or so. Soltak was an RQ2 character and I did not convert him to RQ3, as I felt he would not convert particularly well. It will be interesting to see how he converts to HW. Soltak's stats can be found on my web site at www.geocities.com/soltakss/soltakss.html

Soltak is a warrior, enemy of the Lunar Empire and hates Chaos. He is a devotee of Orlanth Adventurous and initiate of Urox and Issaries, has HeroQuested often, gaining the Wind Cloak, Gauntlet of Fearlessness, Lightning Gauntlet, Wind Hammer and Rage of the Bull, amongst other things. He joined the Honour Guard of Stormfist and will return to the clouds with him on his death. Soltak lives in his own temple in Duck Pond where he harries the Lunars in Sartar. Soltak was born a woman but was changed into a man and hates his current form. He has unusual looks and has tried to change his body magically. He is a wealthy merchant and has inherited or gained several taverns, shops and farms in Sartar and Pavis. Windfoot is a flying Shadowcat who follows him after a successful HeroQuest.

## Cults

RQ cults and HW cults are different in that HW has main cults and subcults of those main cults. The Narrator or player must decide which cults to keep, if the PC belongs to more than one cult, and also what level the Hero is in the cult. This may cause problems as the PC may be bound into his cults and they may well determine his character.

Soltak is a High Priest/Rune Lord of Orlanth Adventurous, Associate Priest of Storm Bull, Hunter, Issaries, Argan Argar, Humakt, Initiate Sister Cat and is Illuminated. He chooses Devotee of Orlanth Adventurous and decides to keep membership of Storm Bull (Urox) and Issaries. His player decides that Argan Argar and Hunter are incidental parts of his character and that Humakt does not fit into how he wants to play in HeroWars. His membership of Sister Cat probably is better represented as a Relationship.

## Characteristics

HW has no concept of Characteristics, so unless the PC is immensely strong, large or whatever, these play no part in the conversion.

##

## Skills

One of the problems with RQ was that anyone who has played for a long time becomes fairly proficient in a great number of skills. So, a warrior such as Soltak also has Masonry at 60% and Rowing at 80%. The best way to determine which skills are kept and which are lost, use the 100 word description to get the required keywords, then use only the skills for those keywords. Where the PC has special skills that are unique to him, they can be added to the skills at the Narrator's discretion.

Convert the skills by dividing the RQ skills by 5, break this into sets of 20 and the remainder, this gives the HW skill. So, a skill of 230% becomes 230/5 = 46, which is 6W2. If the campaign has been very high powered, change the divisor to 7 or 10 to reduce the HW skills. This conversion should not give all skills at W4 or W5, for instance, even though the PC has skills over 400%.

If the RQ PC has many weapons, he must chose which abilities to carry over into HW. Normally, a Hero will have two or three weapons abilities. Use the highest Attack/Parry of the appropriate weapon class to determine the skill level. Where a skill uses two weapons, such as Two Sword Fighting, take the average of the two skills.

Where the keyword has skills that the PC does not have, use the standard HW defaults of 13 or 17.

So, Soltak has keywords of Warrior, Devotee of Orlanth Adventurous, Initiate of Urox and Issaries. The Narrator decides that his being a merchant is of minor importance and does not warrant a keyword, even though he belongs to Issaries. These give him skills of

Acute Hearing 2W2
Hide In Cover 5W
Riding 19
Running 17
Spear and Shield Fighting 19W
Recognize Foe 17
Stay Awake 17
Leaping 3W
Sword and Shield Fighting 11W2
Boast 13
Dodge Attack 19
Mythology of Lightbringers 13
Mythology of Orlanth 13
Sense Change in Weather 13
Identify Goods by Touch 13
Bargain 19
Staff Fighting 18
Identify Jewels 13
Identify Metals 13
Mythology of Issaries 13
Mythology of Lightbringers 13
Speak Sartarite 1W
Speak Darktongue 18
Speak Stormspeech 18
Speak Tradetalk 18
Two Sword Fighting 19W
Ignore Pain 13
Tough 13
Intimidate 13
Mythology of Urox 13
Sense Chaos 2W

## Magic

The Hero will inherit the magical keywords based on his description. These will give a number of Affinities. To determine the Affinity score, split the RQ Rune Magic into categories that relate to the Affinities, then add up the number of points of POW of those spells, then convert this number into a HW skill by removing masteries at 20 points each. Count Rune Magic matrices as known spells and Spirit Magic as one point per Spirit Magic spell, ignoring variable points. Spells that do not fit into any particular Affinity are put into an Unassigned category and totalled, the unassigned total may be put against other Affinities to increase their score. Any Affinity below 17 is increased to 17, as in the normal rules for starting Affinities.

So, Soltak has the affinities of Orlanth (Combat, Movement, Wind), Issaries (Communication, Merchant, Travel), Urox (Anti-Chaos, Berserk Combat, Wild Wind)

Combat (Demoralise, Disruption, Dispel Magic 9, Healing 6, Countermagic 9, Befuddle, Strength, Bladesharp 4, Repair, Co-ordination, Fireblade, Ironhand 4, Protection 4, Shimmer 4, Befuddle, Protection 2, Firearrow, Bladesharp 4, Dispel Magic 2, Repair, Multimissile 4, Speedart, Shield 10)
Movement (Mobility, Jumping 4, Telekinesis 3, Teleport 2, Guided Teleport 2)
Communication (Mindspeech)
Merchant (Lock, Create Market, Spell Trading)
Travel
Anti-Chaos (Defend Against Chaos 4, Face Chaos 2)
Berserk Combat (Fanaticism 3, Berserker 3, Flawed Berserker)
Wild Wind

Unassigned (Detect Spirit, Extinguish, Darkwall, Farsee, Detection Blank 9, Detect Life, Glue 5, Detect Magic, Detect Enemies, Vigour, Xenohealing 3, Food Song, Lantern 2, Spirit Binding, Spirit Shield 4, Detect Traps, Detect Undead, Detect Spirit, Spirit Shield 4, Spell Teaching, Multispell I, Extension 1, Divination 5, Spirit Block 5, Mind Link, Summon Small Sylph, Heal Constitution, Analyse Magic, Summon Small Tumbler, Truesword 4, Catseye (One Use))

Affinity | Number Spirit Magic Spells | Points of Divine Magic | Sum | Unassigned Bonus | Skill
Combat | 25 | 10 | 35 | 0 | 15W
Movement | 2 | 15 | 17 | 10 | 7W
Communication | 1 | 0 | 1 |  | 1
Merchant | 0 | 6 | 6 |  | 6
Travel | 0 | 0 | 0 |  | 0
Anti-Chaos | 0 | 6 | 6 | 20 | 6W
Berserk Combat | 1 | 8 | 9 | 12 | 1W
Wild Wind | 0 | 0 | 0 |  | 0
Unassigned | 19 | 23 | 42 | 0 | -

Since the affinities of Communication, Merchant, Travel and Wild Wind are very low, the Narrator increases them to 13 rather than 17 because they are incidental to the Hero. The Narrator thinks that Soltak should not be an Initiate of Issaries as it is not a major part of his character, but the player argues that in RQ he was a merchant who used his status as cover to travel throughout Sartar and Prax, so the Narrator reluctantly allows it. Had the player not had a god rationale, he would have lost the Initiate of Issaries keyword.

## Equipment

RQ characters traditionally have very many magic items, as they pick them up fairly easily in the normal run of play. Most of these magic items are minor and need not be converted to HW. POW Storage Crystals and similar things are not converted, matrices are included in the calculation of Affinities, minor items are lost. Only major magical items should be included in the HW character and they should be included in the Hero's description. Most magic items convert fairly easily and each one has an Ability Rating. At the Narrator's discretion, they may also give other skills and abilities written separately.

Iron armour and equipment are converted as iron in HW, this may increase armour or weapon rank.

Soltak has the magic items of Wind Cloak, Gauntlet of Fearlessness, Lightning Gauntlet, Wind Hammer and Rage of the Bull.

So, Soltak gains Wind Cloak 17, Gauntlet of Fearlessness 3W, Lightning Gauntlet 20, Wind Hammer 2W and Rage of the Bull 17. Had these items given a skill to Soltak, their rating would have been calculated using the Skill rules. Gauntlet of Fearlessness is converted at 23 because Soltak resists Fear based spells with POW 23 in RQ. The Narrator converts Wind Hammer as 2W because Soltak had 115% Thrown Wind Hammer. He can use Wind Hammer as Ranged Combat (Thrown Hammer) if required.

Whereas the descriptions of the items were quite detailed, they are very simple in HW terms. If a foe throws a lightning bolt at Soltak, then he can use his Lightning Gauntlet 17 to both catch the lightning bolt and throw it back at the foe. If Soltak is affected by Fear magic then he can use his Gauntlet of Fearlessness to augment his Brave and resist the effect. Similarly, he can use his Gauntlet of Fearlessness to become enraged at the drop of a hat.

## Relationships

A RQ character will not have explicit relationships except as notes on his character sheet. Relationships should be picked out from the 10 word description as in the normal HW character generation. If a relationship is not important to include in the description then it is not important enough to have a HW rating. However, the Hero's Backstory may hint at relationships that may become important. If this is the case, then the Hero must improvise the Relationship and buy it with Hero Points later on, as in the normal rules.

Soltak gains the Relationships of Stormfist Honour Guard 17, Duck Pond Temple 13, Enemy of Lunars 5W. Although he is married, as explained in his Backstory, he has no love for her, she merely satisfies the needs that his male body has.

## Other

The Hero may have other things to be included in the character generation, such as Wealth, Flaws, Personality and anything else the player and Narrator agree would be required.

Soltak is wealthy, corresponding to Wealth 15W.

He has a number of geases that were gained on HeroQuests. The Narrator rules that he is not bound by his Humakt geas as he no longer is a Humakti, but he is bound by his Sister Cat geases as he has retained Windfoot as a follower, although they would be better as Yinkin geases. He gains Never attack non-chaotic cats unless attacked first, Help any needy non-chaotic cat (food, healing etc.), Always use Peaceful Cut when killing non-chaotic cats, Prevent non-chaotic cats from suffering needlessly as geases. The Yelmalio geases were gained on a HeroQuest and the Narrator rules that they should be kept with the ability Resist Fire 17.

Due to his background, the Narrator gives him Sundered from Kin 2W, Unusual Looks 10W and Hates Own Body 10W.

His personality should include Brave at 2W and Boastful as given in the Urox writeup. Other personality traits could be written down, but these are the main ones.

The Narrator looks at the character sheet and decides that the Initiate of Issaries unbalances things and does not add to the character. She rules that Soltak does not have the Initiate of Issaries keyword and may use the 7 points in his Affinities to increase his other Affinities. Because his description says he is a wealthy merchant, she gives him the Mental Skill Pass as a Merchant 2W so that he can continue to do as he used to. The player decides to increase his Combat Affinity by 7 to 2W2.

## Soltak Stormspear

Soltak is a warrior, enemy of the Lunar Empire and hates Chaos. He is a devotee of Orlanth Adventurous and initiate of Urox, has HeroQuested often, gaining the Wind Cloak, Gauntlet of Fearlessness, Lightning Gauntlet, Wind Hammer and Rage of the Bull, amongst other things. He joined the Honour Guard of Stormfist and will return to the clouds with him on his death. Soltak lives in his own temple in Duck Pond where he harries the Lunars in Sartar. Soltak was born a woman but was changed into a man and hates his current form. He has unusual looks and has tried to change his body magically. He is wealthy, passes as a merchant and has inherited or gained several taverns, shops and farms in Sartar and Pavis. Windfoot is a flying, winged Shadowcat who follows him after a successful HeroQuest.

Culture: Heortling
Age: 38
Sex: Male
Homeland: Duck Pond
Key Words: Heortling, Warrior, Devotee of Orlanth Adventurous, Initiate of Urox
Goals: Become a woman again, kill Lunars, kill Chaos, protect Duck Pond Temple

### Physical Skills Acute Hearing 2W2 Dodge Attack 19 Hide In Cover 5W Ignore Pain 13 Leaping 3W Riding 19 Resist Fire 17 Running 17 Tough 13 | ### Relationships Duck Pond Temple 13 Enemy of Lunars 5W Stormfist Honour Guard 17 | ### Magic Type: Theist Pantheon: Storm Great Deity: Orlanth 13 Initiate of Urox 17 Devotee of Orlanth Adventurous 17
### Mental Skills Intimidate 13 Mythology of Lightbringers 13 Mythology of Orlanth 13 Mythology of Urox 13 Pass as Merchant 2W Recognize Foe 17 Sense Change in Weather 13 Sense Chaos 2W Speak Darktongue 18 Speak Sartarite 1W Speak Stormspeech 18 Speak Tradetalk 18 Stay Awake 17 | ### Personality Brave 2W Boastful 13 Followers: Windfoot 17 (Fly 17, Shadowcat 17) | ### Affinities Combat 2W2 (Aid Throw With Wind, Armour of Woad, Enchant Silver Ritual, Flickering Blade, Leaping Shield, Overbear Foe, [Weapon] Help) Movement 7W (Burst of Speed, Leap Over Obstacle, Run on Mud, Run up Cliffs, Sunset Leap) Anti-Chaos 6W Berserk Combat 1W Wild Wind 17
### Wealth Rating: Rich 15W Items: Gauntlet of Fearlessness 3W Lightning Gauntlet 20 Rage of the Bull 17 Stormfist's Sword 17 Wind Hammer 2W Wind Cloak 17 Full suit of iron chain armour | ### Flaws Hates Own Body 10W Sundered from Kin 2W Unusual Looks 10W Cannot Resist Rage 17 Never attack non-chaotic cats unless attacked first Help any needy non-chaotic cat (food, healing etc.) Always use Peaceful Cut when killing non-chaotic cats Prevent non-chaotic cats from suffering needlessly Celibacy during Fire Season Never eat meat on Fireday Worship 1/season at a Yelmalio Temple | ### Combat Spear and Shield Fighting 19W ^3 Sword and Shield Fighting 11W2 ^4 Two Sword Fighting 19W

### Comments

Soltak Stormspear was a reasonably powerful RQ PC. He had been played for a number of years and had developed into a well-rounded character. Some people would have thought he was to powerful, with too high skills and a lot of Divine Magic. However, when converted to HW he seems fairly ordinary. His skills are quite low, not quite a beginner but not far off, he is a fair way away from being able to learn the Orlanth Adventurous Secret, for instance.

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