Re: RE: [HoE] Junkman Cometh/Huckster ?

[Steve Wallace <ceesrw@cee.hw.ac.uk>]

<snippage>
> I guess I'm not following.  If I draw a pair in the HoE universe, using the 
> new rules, while casting, say Bodyguard, I still negate two and only Wounds, 
> correct?

By Hucksters and Hexes:-
  The better the hand a huckster gets, the more powerful 
the manitou he's beaten and the power he can get.
  Therefore, the more powerful the hex (the poker hand), 
the bigger the manitou was.

> Now, the minimum hand for Bodyguard is an Ace, which I ignore.  So I got to 
> skip the less powerful Hex level/effect.  But I don't see any way that that 
> somehow makes my Pair more powerful.  Two Wounds is Two Wounds, right?

Yes, two wounds is two wounds.  
The hand needed is the same, because the manitou power 
level for that effect is the same in HoE and Deadlands.
The thing is, in Deadlands there are weaker manitou that 
can be beaten with an Ace - but not in HoE.

The minimum hand to cast a hex is higher; as a consequence, 
the effect of the hex is stronger.

In character terms, the huckster was to challenge a more 
powerful manitou because there are no weaker ones around.  
If he beats it, his hex is more powerful.

> 
> (I'm quoting from memory here, so if I'm off by a Wound or so, forgive me.)
> 
> The new rules don't assure you get a higher hand, or make the hand you draw 
> more powerful - they simply eliminate a lower hand from giving you _any_ 
> effect.  I don't see how this somehow makes a Hex effect more powerful, as I 
> suggested.

It doesn't make a hex effect more powerful - it means the 
power level of hexes in HoE is higher than in Deadlands, 
since a higher hand is required in the first place.

To get a hex to work, you need a good hand.  If you get it, 
the hex is powerful.

Example - You're Out!

In Deadlands, it needs an Ace.
In HoE, it needs a pair.
In Deadlands, the minimum affect (Ace) is to swipe three 
bullets.
In HoE, the minumum effect (Pair) is to swipe six bullets.


The hex hasn't miraculously become more powerful - it's 
just that when it works, it works better.

> 
> My understanding is that the game of mental poker represents how much 
> power/effect you finesse from the manitou you're dueling with.  However, if 
> that manitou is more powerful, wouldn't it make sense that the final 
> hand/effect you achieve would be boosted a level because in addition to the 
> finesse, the power of the manitou itself kicks up the power/effect?
> 
> That's what I meant by "more powerful."  The current HoE huckster system 
> doesn't make your Pair, or your Two Pair, or whatever, have a more powerful 
> effect as far as I can tell

If the huckster wins the battle of wills, the manitou has 
to dance to his tune.  The higher the hand your huckster 
got, the stronger the manitou he beat, the more power it 
has, and the bigger the hex effect.

If all manitou are more powerful, all hucksters need a 
higher hand, and all their hexes will have a bigger effect.


The strength of the manitou you beat is reflected in the 
poker hand a huckster draws - an Ace doesn't beat some 
unGodly super-powered manitou, it beats a wuss.  

In HoE, all the wusses have became mediocre after Judgement 
Day - you need a pair to beat them and get a mediocre 
effect.  

--
Do you think you can keep on running
Like the papers that blow down your empty street
Outside in the dark when you can't sleep
The ghost of your father, always watching
--
Steve Wallace
http://www.cee.hw.ac.uk/~ceesrw
ceesrw@cee.hw.ac.uk