Doesn't anyone like low-powered campaigns?

Jhereg · March 19, 2004

Now when I say we like low-powered FH, I mean we like to be the random thugs.

Legendsmiths · March 19, 2004

Now THAT'S what I'm talkin' 'bout.

Tasha · March 19, 2004

I agree that point totals don't necessaraly equal power level.

I can create a 500 pt character that balances pretty well with 350pt characters. It all depends on how much you munchkinize your character. I prefer not to have to come up with cheesy limitations (ie not in intense magnetic fields) just to make a power construction fit into 250pts. I also like my characters to have a decent amount of background skills. In 250pts I have a very difficult time doing that.

Way back in the 3rd edition days, we played at 250 pts. Then Fantasy Hero and Danger International were released. We decided that having those cool skills were essential to our characters. The problem was that we couldn't take our characters as written and add the skills without increasing the power level. So we decided to play champions at 100+150 +50pts in non-combat lvl skills (150+150). That made our characters more rounded and we started have adventures where we didn't spend all session beating up villains. Now in 5th edition we have characters 200+150 and I find that I can write up characters with more complex power conceptions. I can also play competitive characters that don't have every power focused, and limited to death. I am sick of playing mystical focus girl, powered armor suit woman, removable cyber module lady etc.

So I am running my Teen Champions game at 200+150. I prefer that level and besides it is much easier to use the published villains if I am at the assumed power level of the Champions Universe. Some of the players in my campaign have marveled that the feel of 200+150 wasn't much different than 100+150, just the amount of cheesing and the amount of affordable skills was different (ie less cheese, more skills).

BTW when I am playing non-supers (ie Fantasy hero or Star Hero) I like playing at 75+75. I have also had fun with 50+75 as well.

Tasha

ghost-angel · March 20, 2004

Power level can also mean different things .. we restrict the Active Points on powers to around 60 normally, which means no matter how high you go in points you're not getting above that 60pt AP, which helps to even out playing fields a bit. It simply allows us to put in more powers allowing for more diverse courses of action. Of, what usually happens in our group is the number of skills explodes, at 350 pts you have better got a min. of 50pts just for skills, preferabbly closer to 100. By the time you reach 500 with experience most characters in our group are at, or excede, 100pts in non-combat related skills and skill levels.

But.. there are always those games that spin wildly out of control.....

tgaptte · March 20, 2004

For supers, I definitely prefer higher points. Specifically I prefer the new "standard hero" at 350 pts. Previously on the 250 pt standard, I would have to severely limit and cram my character concept into a small pool of points...I'd have cool character ideas that I just couldn't make work.

I find that with 350 points, I don't have to come up with cheesy limitations or short myself on skills to fit my character under the point limit. My 350 pt heroes are not any more powerful than my 250 pt heroes, but they are more rounded and much more fun to play.

Tim

Kdansky · March 20, 2004

We do feel though that some of our characters have too few background skills because they simply can't pay for them (as I said, we only have 150 cp). It concludes to this: The more broken a character is (Multiform/Multipower/VPP) the more background skills he usually has, because he has a lot of points spare compared to the rest.

Jhereg · March 21, 2004

Some may be happy to learn that partly thanks to some of the responses on this thread, Iâ€™ve decided to give a Standard Super campaign a shot (to date, Iâ€™ve never started a campaign higher than 250 pts). Iâ€™ve only talked to one of my players about it, but he seems eager. The biggest change however is the wide open Champions Universe scope weâ€™ll be using for the first time in 10 years. Previously, our Superhero campaigns have been limited in scope in one way or another (only mutants, only mentalists, etc.). But I think everyone will enjoy an all out 4-Color campaign.

bubba smith · May 17, 2008