Dark Champions: The Animated Series

[Supreme Serpent]

Sorry, can't wait for the 2005 releases.

 

Inspired by Supreme's thread on "Enforcing Style" and a new campaign one of my friends will soon be starting, I wanted HEROdom's aid to help my friend and future GM.

 

He wants to run a 30's-40's Men of Mystery/Pulp style campaign (mobsters, cliffhanger adventure, masked crimefighters, low-level supers), with that era's feel, but in modern day setting. (GM is not a major history buff, and would be annoying trying to deal with multiple players who are - myself included).

 

So - what are your ideas for representing/running the type of universe such as in the Batman: TAS show with its mashing of times/genre conventions - AI's, airships, tommyguns and rocket launchers?

[Metaphysician]

Re: Dark Champions: The Animated Series

 

In many ways, B:TAS struck me as pulpish, and it worked. Superman:TAS was also pulpish, though in a different way.

[Supreme Serpent]

Re: Dark Champions: The Animated Series

 

In many ways' date=' B:TAS struck me as pulpish, and it worked. Superman:TAS was also pulpish, though in a different way.[/quote']

 

Exactly. So, what kind of "bits" or flavor pieces would fit in well? How would a modern dayTAS universe differ from and be similar to the real world/normal modern day comic worlds?

 

Some of my thoughts:

 

TV exists, but is in black&white. Radio is very prevalent as a "breaking news" source.

 

Cars are mostly throwbacks to 30's-50's in looks. Some "futuristic" looking cars may exist, especially as hero/villain vehicles (ie Batmobile). Running boards are common.

 

Planes are mostly prop-driven. Some jets exist (again, some hero/villain vehicles, plus some military and plot-device things). Zeppelins common.

 

Space program exists, but very unlikely PC's will have contact with it in normal crime-busting game. (Alternatively the game could bring in Buck Rogers/Flash Gordon elements like rocketships to Mongo, etc)

 

Serious Indiana Jones-style archaeology still going on. Lost Pyramids, Atlantis, hidden Incan temples, journeys deep into the jungle, into Hollow Earth, finding lost civilizations, etc.

 

Supernatural exists.

 

Mob is prevalent. May be normal mobsters at the head, may also be more colorful figures in charge of various gangs - Two-Face, etc. Often not ethnically/family based, just collection of various thugs/criminals.

 

Much of the music is jazz&big band. Techno/other types exist, especially among the younger crowd.

 

Out in public, adults are often in suits and hats (men) and dresses (women). Exceptions, especially for working-class and younger crowd.

 

Firearms mostly seen are revolvers, automatic pistols (ie .45) and Tommy Guns. Cops have riot gear/tear gas etc when needed. Heroes/villains can have rayguns, etc. but you won't see your average agent with a blaster.

 

Crime dealt with is more racketeering, corruption, theft etc and less drug-related.

 

Internet and computers exist. Again, mostly display in B&W. Phone technology, esp. cellular, varies widely depending upon scene/plot point.

[steriaca]

Re: Dark Champions: The Animated Series

 

Villians for this type of campain can be devided into a few groups.

 

1) Theaths with a theam (Penguin, Catwoman, and basicly most eveyone in the Batman universe).

 

2) Members of a major crime sindicate in the city, which exist only to be smashed down by the heros.

 

3) People with a grudge agenst someone, and that someone has the means to act out on that grudge (like, say, a fiared gardner of the rich, who developed a costume idenity of The Gardner, and plans on kidnaping a series of rich socolites with plant names as a way of getting revenge on his ex-emploer).

 

4) The rair loonie (The Joker, Roxie Rocket, Harly Quinn).

[steriaca]

Re: Dark Champions: The Animated Series

 

Also, special tech exists in this world, but it is confined to the heros and the villians. Normal people can not carrie around Mr. Zero's Cold Cannon, for example.

[HeroGM]

Re: Dark Champions: The Animated Series

 

Mobs are bigger bad guys then they are now with hits on each other.

The Villians do have Themes, but they are are also low-powered as well, most being simple thungs.

NO (stress NO) Mutants. If there are such things science hasn't identified them yet.

Heroes can be almost as much of a threat as the bad guys (remeber batman threatening to throw people off roofs and carrying a gun?)

Not only are the cars and tech retro but so are the fashions. Weomen wear fashionable gloves, men wear double-breasted suits.

On the same token as Mutants, Radation accidents aren't big until the late 50s/Early 60s (outside of Government testing of course). Chemicals are big though as well as Magic.

[Brandi]

Re: Dark Champions: The Animated Series

 

Mobs are bigger bad guys then they are now with hits on each other.

 

The Villians do have Themes, but they are are also low-powered as well, most being simple thungs.

 

NO (stress NO) Mutants. If there are such things science hasn't identified them yet.

 

Heroes can be almost as much of a threat as the bad guys (remeber batman threatening to throw people off roofs and carrying a gun?)

 

Not only are the cars and tech retro but so are the fashions. Weomen wear fashionable gloves, men wear double-breasted suits.

 

On the same token as Mutants, Radation accidents aren't big until the late 50s/Early 60s (outside of Government testing of course). Chemicals are big though as well as Magic.

 

Just quoting you 'cause your text came up WHITE for some reason. Quite unreadable!

[Dr. Anomaly]

Re: Dark Champions: The Animated Series

 

Also remember that most mental-type abilities are either built on a basis of hypnosis (mesmerism) and tend to take several minutes of "set up" time...conversation, etc. if the victim is unaware, a "locking of wills" if the victim is aware and resisting.

 

While I wouldn't reccomend picking it up for the game system itself (it isn't very good) you might want to take a look at Danger Quest by Torchlight Games...it's pulp adventures set in the 24th century. Ignore the rules, and guzzle the flavor!

[Guest Witch Doctor]

Re: Dark Champions: The Animated Series

 

Isn't Croc a Mutant?

If not, what is he?

[assault]

Re: Dark Champions: The Animated Series

 

Isn't Croc a Mutant?

If not, what is he?

 

Actually, there's stacks of mutants: all those grotesque Dick Tracy-esque criminals.

 

Of course, they're not usually the kind of mutant that has superpowers, but they are grotesque freaks.

 

There is one kind of "powered" mutant that is appropriate, and that's the kind of which Croc is an extreme example: the big strong ugly guy. These guys push the limits of what is human in terms of strength, ability to aborb damage, and, usually, stupidity.

 

There's another potential feature of the Animated Series world that hasn't been mentioned: Really Big Things.

 

These are the ludicrous giant props that were favoured in early issues of Batman. The kind of thing that said: "Bill Finger worked on this story".

 

You wouldn't want to use them too often, because, let's face it, they are silly, but occasionally they could be quite neat. They could add a real "you're in your character's world, not yours" touch, if handled properly.

 

One final thing: while a DC:TAS world is mainly non-powered/low-powered, there's nothing to prevent you having The Big Guys occasionally fly over the roof-tops. After all, Batman and the Big Blue Boyscout coexist in the same world - they just usually fight different kinds of battles.

 

And having the more four-coloured characters appear occasionally might be just the reminder your characters need that the world isn't all doom and gloom.

[JmOz]

Re: Dark Champions: The Animated Series

 

Mobs are bigger bad guys then they are now with hits on each other.

The Villians do have Themes, but they are are also low-powered as well, most being simple thungs.

NO (stress NO) Mutants. If there are such things science hasn't identified them yet.

Heroes can be almost as much of a threat as the bad guys (remeber batman threatening to throw people off roofs and carrying a gun?)

Not only are the cars and tech retro but so are the fashions. Weomen wear fashionable gloves, men wear double-breasted suits.

On the same token as Mutants, Radation accidents aren't big until the late 50s/Early 60s (outside of Government testing of course). Chemicals are big though as well as Magic.

 

CAN SOMEONE PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE give me an issue numebr where batman uses a gun, I can't afford it, but the closest I have found is some opening "In this story" type pages where he has one in a holster, but in the story he never uses it (Based on the reprints in the Batman Archieve)

[steriaca]

Re: Dark Champions: The Animated Series

 

Another thing which is important for a DC:TAS is guns. Basicly, only the bad guys have them, and thay always miss on there first shot (unless thay aim at that Big Blue Boy Scout or Big Red Cheeze guy...).

 

And, finaly, all heros have a Coad VS Killing. It might not be as big as a full color charater, because thay WILL kill, if only at the last resort. And thay will proably not prevent, say, a cop from gunning some guy down who points a gun at them. But thay do feal bad afterwords.

 

Villians, of course, have no coad, but thay will NEVER just go outright and shoot the pore unconsess hero. Thay use a deathtrap if thay want to kill a hero.

[bubba smith]

Re: Dark Champions: The Animated Series

 

don't forget that dc tas can be used to make tv style martial arts heroes a la the double dragons

[Vondy]

Re: Dark Champions: The Animated Series

 

CAN SOMEONE PLEASE' date=' PLEASE, PLEASE give me an issue numebr where batman uses a gun, I can't afford it, but the closest I have found is some opening "In this story" type pages where he has one in a holster, but in the story he never uses it (Based on the reprints in the Batman Archieve)[/quote']

 

The first time Batman uses a gun is Detective Comics #32. He's shown using guns fairly regularly until Detective Comics #256, when he suddenly announces he never uses guns - though he mentions it once before that (#121). This wasn't due to the comics code, but an editorial change that happened shortly before the comics code. He also used them in the first hundred issues of Batman (or so). Note, when I say "uses" guns I inlcude brandishing. He did, however, kill a few people early on and even used the phrase "as much as I hate to take human life." He also lectures Robin about needing to be well versed in the use of all weapons. Was that the end of it? There's one exception. Take a look at Detective Comics issue 627. Ahem.

 

Link: http://sacomics.blogspot.com/2005/08/batman-and-guns.html

[FenrisUlf]

Re: Dark Champions: The Animated Series

 

The first time Batman uses a gun is Detective Comics #32. He's shown using guns fairly regularly until Detective Comics #256, when he suddenly announces he never uses guns - though he mentions it once before that (#121). This wasn't due to the comics code, but an editorial change that happened shortly before the comics code. He also used them in the first hundred issues of Batman (or so). Note, when I say "uses" guns I inlcude brandishing. He did, however, kill a few people early on and even used the phrase "as much as I hate to take human life." He also lectures Robin about needing to be well versed in the use of all weapons. Was that the end of it? There's one exception. Take a look at Detective Comics issue 627. Ahem.

 

Link: http://sacomics.blogspot.com/2005/08/batman-and-guns.html

 

Nice link there. I'm surprised we didnlt see any pics from thr 90's though. Sometimes it seems every superhero in the 90's was packing heat -- I even remember stories in which the Hulk and Thor were using guns!