FAQ: Heroquest

This article is copyright 1995-1998 by Carl Forhan, and 1999 by Dewayne Agin, and may not be reproduced in any form without permission by the author, except for personal use or redistribution through normal Usenet channels and no fee is charged for such use.

HeroQuest is a trademark of Milton Bradley. Advanced HeroQuest is a trademark of Games Workshop. The use of these and other trademarks is not intended to challenge their respective copyrights. This document is not specifically approved by Milton Bradley or Games Workshop.

5. What is HeroQuest
6. Who Designed HeroQuest
7. What differences are there in the UK (1989) and the US (1991) versions of HQ?
8. What is Advanced HeroQuest
9. Is HQ still produced?
10. How can I reach Milton Bradley?
11. Where can I find HeroQuest?
12. What supplements (Quest Packs) were made?
13. What other sources of HQ supplements are available?
14. What information is available on the Internet for HQ?
15. What other games have components such as figures or boards that might be compatible with HQ?
16. Do you have any suggestions for improving HQ?

20. HeroQuest game system
21. Kellar's Keep
22. Return of the Witch Lord
23. Quest Pack for the Elf
24. Barbarian Quest Pack

12/07/99 Updated the Miniatures Page URL
11/05/99 Added info about HeroQuest books.
09/26/99 Updated question on Quest Packs, added question about Unarmed Combat
08/02/99 FAQ taken over by Dewayne Agin. Many changes in questions and answers, hence the upgrade to version 1.0

Welcome to the HeroQuest FAQ! This Frequently Asked Questions document is intended to provide you with information on the current status of HeroQuest (HQ), such as new web sites, obtaining the main game and its supplements, and answers to frequently asked rules questions. Please forward all questions, comments, and suggestions for this FAQ to Dewayne Agin (dagin@my-deja.com).
Enjoy!

HeroQuest (HQ) is a fantasy boardgame. Players take on the role of one of four Heroes: the Barbarian, Dwarf, Elf, or Wizard. Another player takes the role of Zargon, the Game Master, who controls the forces of Chaos that the Heroes face in hidden stone labyrinths of underground rooms or corridors. Game play is simple, and allows the players to play as a straight board game or to incorporate Role Playing. A typical session, or Quest, lasts between one to two hours.

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.

Subject 7: What differences are there in the UK (1989) and the US (1991) versions of HQ?

HQ was first released in 1989 in the UK. The initial release contained cards for every item that could be purchased from the Armory, plus each monster had only one Body Point. The Heroes' adversary was named Morcar. The US version released in 1991 had a cardboard box insert with the Armory listing, and monsters had different Body Point statistics. The adversary in the second release was named Zargon. The Quests contained in the UK and US versions were basically the same with some minor differences.

Advanced HeroQuest was produced solely by Games Workshop. It is considerably different from its Milton Bradley counterpart. The rules are much more complex and detailed. AHQ has been out of production since 1992-1993.

Milton Bradley is no longer producing HQ. Carl Forhan mailed them a letter in August 1994 inquiring about this, and also on the availability of the remaining HQ inventory. He received a 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:
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)

Since HQ and all the accompanying Quest Packs are out-of-print (OOP), you can only rarely find them in stores these days. Check flea markets and garage sales, or the Rare/OOP section in your local game store. Online, HQ can be found at online auctions like eBay, and can be found for sale on several of the newsgroups (go to Deja's Powersearch page to look for recent postings for HQ). A good idea when searching either an online auction or newsgroup is to look for 'heroquest' (one word) and 'hero quest' (two words) as the game gets posted both ways.

Three HeroQuest books were released in the UK. Two of these contained single level, solo quests:

Adventures Unlimited #5	-	"The Inn of Chaos"
Fractal Spectrum #13	-	"HeroQuest: A Notch Above"
Fractal Spectrum #17	-	"HeroQuest Hall of Foes III"
Vindicator Vol 1, #2	-	"Review: Quest Pack for the Elf" "HeroQuest Hall of Foes I"
Vindicator Vol 1, #3	-	"Review: Barbarian Quest Pack" "HeroQuest Hall of Foes II"
Vindicator Vol 1, #4	-	"HeroQuest Variants"
Vindicator Vol 1, #5a	-	"The Rogue"
Vindicator Vol 2, #3	-	"HeroQuest Treasure Cards"
White Dwarf #134	-	"The Halls of Durrag-Dol"
White Dwarf #145	-	"The Eyes of Chaos"

Adventures Unlimited: http://www.greatbearlink.com/
Vindicator Online: http://homepage2.rconnect.com/forhan/vindicator.html
White Dwarf: http://www.games-workshop.com/whitedwarf.html

I have new Quests, Board Overlays, Monsters, Heroes, and Rules that can be downloaded from my HeroQuest page, and a large collection of HQ links on my Link Page.

There is also a free HQ email newsletter, the Alchemist's Bench being published.

Dewayne HeroQuest Page:
http://www.geocities.com/TimesSquare/Chasm/9223/
The Alchemist's Bench: http://alchemist.htmlplanet.com/
The Miniatures Page: http://theminiaturespage.com/rules/fan/hq.html

Subject 15: 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

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 to confuse or entertain the players.

You can design Quests around a plots or themes. 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!

Subject: Section II: Specific Rule Questions
Subject: 20. HeroQuest game system

a. Spell Cancellation
How does one handle multiple (and possibly conflicting) spells cast on the same character? For instance Zargon casts Fear (reduce to 1 attack die) on the Elf whose normal roll is 2 attack dice. The Elf then casts Courage (+2 attack dice) on himself. How many attack dice does the Elf roll?

The spell effects should be applied in the order they occur. So in the above example, the Elf would have 3 attack dice. No matter what weapon he is using, he is reduced to 1 attack die because of the Fear. The Courage spell then adds 2 attack dice to this number. If the Courage spell is broken (either by losing sight of a monster or by using the 1 attack that it is good for) then Fear is the only spell in effect and the Elf is reduced to 1 die. If the Fear is broken first, the Elf can roll 4 attack dice (2 + 2 for Courage).

b. 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?

In the basic rules, a pit may be jumped if the Hero has 2 movement squares left. He moves into any of the Adjacent squares beyond the pit (see the rulebook section JUMPING A TRAP). In this instance, the only adjacent square is diagonal, so it is the only pit that the Hero may land on.

c. Unarmed Combat
What happens if a Hero's weapon is destroyed with the Rust Spell? How do they fight?

In HeroQuest, the Heroes roll attack dice depending on the weapon they are using. The rules make no mention of fighting without weapons, yet the possibility does exist. In the Quest #6, "Legacy of the Orc Warlord", it states that an unarmed Hero rolls 1 attack die. Since this is the same as a Hero armed with a dagger, I let the Heroes roll "Unarmed Combat Dice" to attack unarmed. The Hero must roll a Black Shield to hit. They may roll this many dice:

a. 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 (an artifact gained in the Return of the Witch Lord) behave the same regardless of the size of the pit.

b. Jumping Long Pits With A Potion Of Dexterity
Does the Potion of Dexterity really guarantee a long pit jump?

a. 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.

b. 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. However, many things don't count as an action, only those things specifically listed on the Hero cards and rulebook. You could allow the Gremlin to use his remaining movement points in the escape.

c. 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.

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 of the group to think twice before wildly attacking. :) One suggestion would be to allow the Hero to roll his/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).