Would you allow <blank> in your game?

[lemming]

Re: Would you allow <blank> in your game?

 

I guess I'm just weird that way.

Nah. That's pretty common so that's not one of your wierd factors.

[lemming]

Re: Would you allow <blank> in your game?

 

As long as the character met the game criteria I wouldn't care if someone played a "real" comic book character at all. The point of any game is for people to have fun. If a gamer can have fun playing a 350 point Spider-man then more power too him.

I think Treb mentioned the reason many people shy away from allowing players play comic book heroes. It's like adding another rule book for just that character.

 

Cybertooth's way is fine with me.

[casualplayer]

Re: Would you allow <blank> in your game?

 

Maybe he's got reduced endurance?

 

And folks have given him higher dex and speed and provided explanations. Your argument against that is that he makes MPAs? I don't buy that. It doesn't fit the actions he performs panel-to-panel. Maybe you meant sweeps. That's more plausible but hard to do right in Champs and potentially more imbalance and he'd still have an endurance problem with MPAs or Sweeps.

 

The Area Effect selective strength - I would quibble with that much more than an 8 speed. I can just imagine the things a Spidey built with that could be doing that Spidey can't do in the comics.

 

I highly doubt after 40 years that Spidey's player has gotten around to buying Reduced END

 

But seriously, the main problem people get into when converting published characters is that they forget where they started. Spider-Man started out with 28-30 STR, maybe 26 DEX, 20 CON. As he gained experience, he kept wanting to buy more DEX, more SPD and his GM capitulated to a point, but when he started to get ridiculous the GM steered him towards levels and funky stuff. Modern comic characters sheets should be several pages long!

 

There is never a drawback to buying more DEX. It's all good. If the GM doesn't put the brakes on, you end up with goofy stuff like 40+ DEXs (I double-dog-dare Trebuchet to not respond to this.) I spend 5 points and get a level w/ HTH Combat. I spend 6 points on DEX (and keep my SPD constant) and I get + 1 OCV, + 1 DCV and quite possibly a + 1 to all my DEX-based skills. Let me think about which I want to buy.

 

Spider-Man is all about MPAs and attacking multiple people over much more than a Sweep-sized area. He has 2 webshooters, each bought separately, and fires in multiple directions and with often differing effects. In fights with groups he often covers several square meters of area, fists swinging merrily and backflipping all over the place. He is designed as a solo hero able to fight villain teams.

 

If it helps any, Spidey and Daredevil share villains like fraternity brothers share...well, anyway. The guys that give Spider-Man a tough time would annihilate DD, if you envision Spider-Man at the stats suggested. Unless of course you think Daredevil has greater than a 26-29 DEX, 6 SPD, in which case we are both speaking English but not speaking the same language.

[Guzalot]

Re: Would you allow <blank> in your game?

 

Although Spider-Man's STR is often subject to the will of his writer I've never known him (in a classic sense) to be able to lift more than a car... with effort. That would place his STR closer to 30 or 35.

 

With a 45 STR your version of Spider-man can lift a jet fighter over his head. That's too strong.

IIRC the Marvel Universe stated that Spidey could lift 10 tons. That would put him at about 45 STR.

[Hugh Neilson]

Re: Would you allow <blank> in your game?

 

As long as the character met the game criteria I wouldn't care if someone played a "real" comic book character at all. The point of any game is for people to have fun. If a gamer can have fun playing a 350 point Spider-man then more power too him.

 

I think the key is for the player to be OK with the fact he is playing Spider Man as written on this character sheet, not as written in the comics. That can be tough for some players, especially if no effort is made to change names, background issues, etc.

 

I've seen Spiderman, Adam Warlock and Sub-Mariner clones (off the top of my head) and many powered armor characters are Iron Man clones. However, they have their own names, their own personality and their own stats - pulling out the comic and saying "but he can" never happens.

 

You want to play Spider-Man, then we get into the guy who has every issue since Amazing Fantasy 15 who points out that "Spidey would never do that" and we get arguments about what "your character" should or should not do. You play Parker Peterson, the Webspinner, and now he's YOUR character.

 

This also solves the "but he can do it - look at this issue" conundrum. Sure, Spiderman can do that (once), but with several monthly series over the years, and hundreds of guest star roles, he's got about 2,500 xp. Webspinner doesn't.

[Fox1]

Re: Would you allow <blank> in your game?

 

I think the key is for the player to be OK with the fact he is playing Spider Man as written on this character sheet' date=' not as written in the comics. That can be tough for some players, especially if no effort is made to change names, background issues, etc.[/quote']

 

In 24 years of running a marvel campagin in four different states...

 

I've had that happen once. The player was removed the gaming group thereafter.

[Mister E]

Re: Would you allow <blank> in your game?

 

Would you allow Spider-man in your game?

 

Not me. Right about the time I saw...

 

45 STR

35 DEX

8 SPD

 

I would have started hitting the player with ReFred...HARD!!! Talk about a munchkined build...

The average character in my 350 pt game, has roughly an Offensive X of:

 

10 DC's

10 OCV

5 SPD

 

total 25

 

I don't enforce the Rule of X strictly, but I do check it for balance purposes, and make changes so no one pulls too far away from the pack... everyone in my game likes to be able to threaten each other.

 

Your guy has a minimum of:

 

9 DC's

12 OCV

8 SPD

 

Total 29

 

This is a little over the top for me... and would create too many competition issues with the other players. If this character compensated by having a very low DEF, it would be lop-sided, but acceptable. The SPD is definately, the source of the biggest problem. If the SPD was dropped to 5, and the character had a below average DEF, I'd let it slide.

 

Now, if all of the characters in your campaign tend to clump up around the 350 pt guideline maximums... which yields an Offensive X of 37... this character would be handicapped.

[sbarron]

Re: Would you allow <blank> in your game?

 

I never imagined this thread would go anywhere! I was just reading the Spiderman vs Firelord thread, and I thought to myself...Spidey is a mini-brick/speedster/martial artist. He has spent enough points in Dex and Spd to make him faster than 99% for the campaign, then bought his strength up make him stronger than 75% of the campaign. These, I think, are the 3 stats that have the most direct effect on combat, and this character spent a ton of points on them. If I were a munchkin looking to build a bad-ass martial artist, that's how I'd I'd do it.

 

Of course, then he threw in a martial art, MP webshooters, and a danger-sense. And viola, a wise-cracking wrecking ball that would be tough to GM for.

 

As for the comment about Daredevil and Spidey sharing villians, that's true, but only on Spidey's low end. Spider-man also stacks up favorably against most non-cosmic Marvel characters. Daredevil just isn't in that league.

[Fox1]

Re: Would you allow <blank> in your game?

 

As for the comment about Daredevil and Spidey sharing villians' date=' that's true, but only on Spidey's low end. [/quote']

 

The comment also ignores the fact that Spiderman is specifically stated as being afraid of hurting people with his strength- thus he rarely if ever uses his full value on those who are anything close to human norm.

[Guest WhammeWhamme]

Re: Would you allow <blank> in your game?

 

I never imagined this thread would go anywhere! I was just reading the Spiderman vs Firelord thread, and I thought to myself...Spidey is a mini-brick/speedster/martial artist. He has spent enough points in Dex and Spd to make him faster than 99% for the campaign, then bought his strength up make him stronger than 75% of the campaign. These, I think, are the 3 stats that have the most direct effect on combat, and this character spent a ton of points on them. If I were a munchkin looking to build a bad-ass martial artist, that's how I'd I'd do it.

 

Of course, then he threw in a martial art, MP webshooters, and a danger-sense. And viola, a wise-cracking wrecking ball that would be tough to GM for.

 

As for the comment about Daredevil and Spidey sharing villians, that's true, but only on Spidey's low end. Spider-man also stacks up favorably against most non-cosmic Marvel characters. Daredevil just isn't in that league.

 

Spidey is a great Solo Hero. He can handle himself in combat, can survive fluky rolls (lucky hits, for example), and has a wide assortments of 'stuff' he can pull out if need be.

 

Fasat and superstrong is fine. The other stuff may make the character a little too independent; tone down the gadgeteering- how about organic webshooters instead? ()

[Mister E]

Re: Would you allow <blank> in your game?

 

I think the mechanical Web Shooters fits with the whole "spiders as craftsmen" schtick.

[Guest WhammeWhamme]

Re: Would you allow <blank> in your game?

 

I think the mechanical Web Shooters fits with the whole "spiders as craftsmen" schtick.

 

Sure, it fits the concept - the minor issue is schtick infringement. Fine as a solo hero, not so great for group play, where everyone needs a niche.

 

Then again, it might work. But the one 'Spider-Clone' I've dealt with wasn't a gadgeteer.

[Mister E]

Re: Would you allow <blank> in your game?

 

Yes... niches/schticks are important, for superteams, and shouldn't be tread on, if you can help it...

 

Peter Parker is a 'total-package' hero... Strength, Speed, Dexterity, Intelligence, Psionics, Gadgets, Hot girlfriends... he's going to irk the other players at the gaming table.

 

"How many hunted disads did you take!?!.... Sheesh..."