"When you create a hero, is it your class that defines you—or the choices you make along the way?"
Welcome to Life of Fiction, where we don’t just tell stories—we build them together. Today, we’re diving deep into skills, customization, and progression in The Hero Within.
Unlike static RPGs where classes dictate every move, The Hero Within puts skill progression in your hands. The real question is—how should those hands shape your journey?
If you’d like to read the article this podcast is based on, here it is:
The Hero Within RPG 5: Shaping Your Legend Through the Skill Tree
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Key Takeaways from this Episode
🔹 Hero Progression: Class vs. Choice
Are heroes defined by their class, or by the choices they make along the way?
The Hero Within aims to put skill progression in the hands of the player.
The goal: make RPGs exciting for new players while rewarding veteran creativity.
🔹 Skill Tree – Structured vs. Freeform?
Structured Paths: Clear upgrades, balance, and clarity.
Open-Ended Paths: Mix-and-match abilities for hybrid builds.
Debate: Should progression be a winding road or have clear signposts?
🔹 Skill Unlocking – XP or Story-Based?
XP-Based: Traditional system—earn points, buy skills.
Story-Based (Trials): Unlock abilities through challenges and roleplay (e.g., a warrior must defeat a legendary foe).
Hybrid System? Core skills via XP, elite techniques via story.
🔹 Balancing Power – Should There Be Limits?
Skill Caps Per Stage: Forces strategic choices.
Class-Locked Abilities: Maintains unique class roles.
Mastery Trade-Offs: Mastering one path locks another.
Community Questions – Help Shape the Game!
Should skill trees be structured or allow full hybrid customization?
Should skills be unlocked through XP, story progression, or both?
Should power be limited by class and caps, or should players have full freedom?
🛠️ Join the Conversation at LifeOfFiction.com and help build a system worthy of the heroes who play it!
Drop your thoughts in the comments!
NEXT TIME: Let’s talk Warrior Class!
Start the Adventure we’re all talking about…
Thats it. That’s all I’ve got for you this week.
If you love storytelling, role-playing games, or just being part of a creative movement, now is your chance.
Come play with me.
Remember: You are MORE than you THINK you are!
...see you next time. 🚀
Let us know what you thought of the podcast, or if you have any questions, make sure to leave them in the comments or email podcast@lifeoffiction.com.
I'm not the best to guess on these but I love the idea of a hybrid... Structured paths that occasional creativity or skills can unlock variations or bypass bits. Skill based, but with limitations to keep them from being over powered.
I'd like to touch on the 'overpowered' comment...because you're not wrong, but it got me thinking...
Don't we have overpowered people in the world around us? Aren't the bad forces we have to contend with often overpowered, which is one reason we must contend??
What measures can we take or what things should we look for to avoid this overpowering?
Oooh, I love that. But still... With great power comes great responsibility, and in many cases also weaknesses that keep us humble.
D&D with its fixed paths is too simple (ignore multi-classing, that's outright bad) and GURPS is way too loose. I'd go with unique perks/traits that you gain over time, and a suggested list of skills you advance in. So you start with distributing points to a fixed set of skills and a given set of traits. And later you can continue that path or deviate from it to get a unique character. I like how Pathfinder 2e allows you to touch into a lot of topics by giving you a lot of feats ourside of your class path. A few skills could be given just by a trait, like the gnome tinkerer class that builds gadgets. You get something like Craft (Gadget), which no one else has/can roll on.
So I'm curious, though -- are there boundaries as to what a PC CAN play? Are there any walls, or limitations as to what someone can choose?
Say like due to a race, or lower stats?
...or maybe you get bonuses for some races, but not weaknesses??
I wouldn't give any besides stuff like: if elves in your world are all kinda "good" characters, they'd not be warlocks. Or if you have some evil species, they wouldn't work well with a class "Paladin" except it's a paladin for an evil deity. I wouldn't add any additional hurdles. If you have fitting attributes, you should be able to pick it... fitting as in: if you have intelligence 5 and intelligence is what you need to cast, you better not be a caster then. :-P
Also again: flair. I like for everything if a play can put their flair onto it. I have an archetype/class "Warchef". That could be a flair of an "alchemist". Creating tiny cakes and snacks instead of potions.