How a team fits in its world (team types)

[Powerhouse]

I'm sorry if I put a crappy title up. Basically, most teams have a hook, outlook, or function that lets them stand out. Doing some thinking, I have so far:

 

Best of the best: the guys that you have to kill, imprison, or otherwise put down if you're going to take over the world. Fortunately for the world, these are usually the most powerful (or among the most powerful) heroes. Examples are the JLA and Avengers.

 

Teen Team: often, but not always, a group of sidekicks who take after their mentors. As the sidekicks, they are looked down upon and underestimated; often they fight silly villians are save, at most, the city. But there are also great stories to be told as the team members mature and learn life lessons. Examples are the Teen Titans, New Mutants, early New Warriors, and Young Avengers.

 

Outlaws: the group that is misunderstood and sometimes hunted. Members are often freaks and clearly no longer human. Some are very angry and may lash out but fortunately the team helps to give them a positive outlet for their pathos. Often, these teams are the most heroic since they fight and die for the common good with little of the credit and glory. Examples include the Doom Patrol and X men.

 

Tired for now. Please post your own comments as well as explore what makes up each team such as what's vital to them in terms or tone or members.

 

Thanks!

 

Other teams to come would be the mystic defenders and the proactive team.

[transmetahuman]

Re: How a team fits in its world (team types)

 

I'm sorry if I put a crappy title up. Basically, most teams have a hook, outlook, or function that lets them stand out. Doing some thinking, I have so far:

 

Best of the best: the guys that you have to kill, imprison, or otherwise put down if you're going to take over the world. Fortunately for the world, these are usually the most powerful (or among the most powerful) heroes. Examples are the JLA and Avengers.

 

Teen Team: often, but not always, a group of sidekicks who take after their mentors. As the sidekicks, they are looked down upon and underestimated; often they fight silly villians are save, at most, the city. But there are also great stories to be told as the team members mature and learn life lessons. Examples are the Teen Titans, New Mutants, early New Warriors, and Young Avengers.

 

Outlaws: the group that is misunderstood and sometimes hunted. Members are often freaks and clearly no longer human. Some are very angry and may lash out but fortunately the team helps to give them a positive outlet for their pathos. Often, these teams are the most heroic since they fight and die for the common good with little of the credit and glory. Examples include the Doom Patrol and X men.

 

Tired for now. Please post your own comments as well as explore what makes up each team such as what's vital to them in terms or tone or members.

 

Thanks!

 

Other teams to come would be the mystic defenders and the proactive team.

 

Common Origin Team: Held together by their common experiences and problems, though the archetypal Fantastic Four are considered more of a family dynamic by now. The X-Men sort of fall into this, too, but the type is better characterized by a single shared origin event than a common power type.

 

Grab-Bag Team: I was trying to figure out how to characterize the Defenders in your terms. My take on them from the short time I read the book was that they were a nearly random group brought together by Doc Strange for specific threats. So, to generalize, maybe "team of unrelated people brought together by one leader/boss for the boss's purposes"? Of course friendships develop from that.

[transmetahuman]

Re: How a team fits in its world (team types)

 

Also,

 

Villains Turned Hero Team: Suicide Squad etc. - Criminals turned hero, reluctant hero, or coerced gov't operative because they're forced by the government, they're putting one over on the public (with new identities), or they genuinely want to change and atone for their past misdeeds.

[David Johnston]

Re: How a team fits in its world (team types)

 

The Pros: The characters are part of some actual paying law enforcement, military or espionage agency as opposed to the typical amateur vigilante group. If they wear flashy costumes it may not be by choice instead of the

edict of the PR department. Often they'd rather just get down to business than play dressup.

[jkwleisemann]

Re: How a team fits in its world (team types)

 

Common Goal Team: Similar to a grab-bag team, but not brought together by some outside force. Often seen with vigilante teams; they have a specific goal they're working towards, and come together as a group to deal with it. Could be as broad as "clearing out the city" or as specific as "we need to band together to beat Doctor Destroyer's plot."

 

In my experience, this is the most common "team origin" - they work together against some specific threat, then stick together afterwards, because they work together well.

[bwdemon]

Re: How a team fits in its world (team types)

 

UberHero and his Less-Competent Friends: One incredibly powerful/talented character and an essentially unnecessary supporting cast generally only used to provide distractions (e.g. training sessions) or plots (e.g. rescue Kid Hostage again) for the main character.

[TheTemplar]

Re: How a team fits in its world (team types)

 

The Home Team - A bunch of local supers who join forces to protect their town. Typically found in a large urban community. This definition could also be expanded to include a team of superpatriots created for the defense of a particular nation. The most obvious examples that jump into my mind would be the MC 8 or Tiger Squad from the Champions universe.

[Pyre-Archer]

Re: How a team fits in its world (team types)

 

UberHero and his Less-Competent Friends: One incredibly powerful/talented character and an essentially unnecessary supporting cast generally only used to provide distractions (e.g. training sessions) or plots (e.g. rescue Kid Hostage again) for the main character.

A twist on that would be the red-herring hero and his uber-competent friends; The public hero is all a sham, while all the work is done by his seemingly incompetent sidekicks. Though this might be better suited to a villain team.

[Robyn]

Re: How a team fits in its world (team types)

 

A twist on that would be the red-herring hero and his uber-competent friends; The public hero is all a sham' date=' while all the work is done by his seemingly incompetent sidekicks. Though this might be better suited to a villain team.[/quote']

 

Sounds like Inspector Gadget and Penny

[Pyre-Archer]

Re: How a team fits in its world (team types)

 

Sounds like Inspector Gadget and Penny

 

That's who I was thinking of, thanks. It just struck me as acampaign idea once; the PCs are all sidekicks and do all the work, while the incompetent glory hound gets all the good press. Definitely a comedic style setting.

[David Johnston]

Re: How a team fits in its world (team types)

 

There was the movie where Watson was really the detective and Holmes was just an actor who wasn't good at anything except posturing and fencing. It's a bit more difficult however to have an entire group of sidekicks backing an incompetent lead because you have to start wondering why they're doing it. Penny was using her idiot uncle for cover because as a child she couldn't get these investigations for herself, the same as Conan Edogawa.

 

So why would an entire team of capable assemble around an incompetent glory hound? Well, he could be really rich, but if he's that incompetent how would he be so good at picking his backup crew? That would surely require some degree of shrewdness. Of course that could mean just that his personal assistant is doing all the hiring and firing and he just was lucky enough to get a good personal assistant at the start.

[Lord Liaden]

Re: How a team fits in its world (team types)

 

The Theme Team. A group that has strong similarities in powers, backgrounds, motifs or motivations, such that those elements are immediately identifiable with them. Examples include teams of mystics/supernaturals, martial artists, gadgeteers/technology users, superpatriots, "new gods," etc. Crosses over somewhat with the "common origin" and "common goal" teams, but the theme is much more visible.

[GoldenAge]

Re: How a team fits in its world (team types)

 

The Government Sponsored/Created Team

A group that is gathered or created by governmental forces. This team could incorporate the characteristics of the Theme Team, Common Origin Team (if they were created by the government) or the Grab Bag Team... They could also be a Suicide Team.

[Trebuchet]

Re: How a team fits in its world (team types)

 

The Urban Legend Team: A team that operates entirely in the shadows; and avoids publicity so carefully most people think they're just a rumor (if even that much). Pretty much the only people who actually know better are the bad guys they beat up, and they're not talkin'.

 

TV's "The Charmed Ones" from Charmed might be an example of this. All they lack is costumes; and street clothes are probably a better idea for this type of team anyway.

[TheRavenIs]

Re: How a team fits in its world (team types)

 

Common Origin Team: Held together by their common experiences and problems, though the archetypal Fantastic Four are considered more of a family dynamic by now, plus First of the Heroes. In the two games I am in at this moment the main team's are the first Heroes to appear, plus all have a common origin.

[Manic Typist]

Re: How a team fits in its world (team types)

 

The Urban Legend Team: A team that operates entirely in the shadows; and avoids publicity so carefully most people think they're just a rumor (if even that much). Pretty much the only people who actually know better are the bad guys they beat up, and they're not talkin'.

 

TV's "The Charmed Ones" from Charmed might be an example of this. All they lack is costumes; and street clothes are probably a better idea for this type of team anyway.

 

 

The Charmed Ones are reknowned in the Underworld. They are the bogeywomen to the demons.

 

 

How about the Misfits? A bunch of disallusioned, self-centered, or otherwise disreputable and "non-heroic) individuals who still somehow end up doing the right thing, even if its for the wrong reasons? Or just prefer to do things THEIR way, and who cares about the consequences?

[transmetahuman]

Re: How a team fits in its world (team types)

 

The Illuminated Team: Much like the Urban Legend Team, few people know What's Really Going On, and most of those are the bad guys. As new people gradually learn the truth, the good guys band together in their common knowledge. Often being in the know makes you a special target. Usually a Hidden Magic world like White Wolf's or the Whedonverse of Buffy/Angel, the key here is being in the know, and some reason that you can't just tell everyone.

[Trebuchet]

Re: How a team fits in its world (team types)

 

The Charmed Ones are reknowned in the Underworld. They are the bogeywomen to the demons.

Sure, the demons, dark lighters, evil witches, warlocks, and other bad guys know who the Charmed Ones are; as do a host of magical good guys. But not the authorities or John Q. Public. The Halliwell sisters go to great lengths to be not only anonymous but to prevent their very existence from being known.

 

Buffy the Vampire Slayer and her little band also fit this team type.

[GoldenAge]

Re: How a team fits in its world (team types)

 

The Protectors Of The... Somethingorother

 

Often a group (perhaps council or cabal) are created to watch or protect something very important. This group is usually comprised of the leaders of other groups, uber powerful characters and even gods. The Quintessence comprised of the Wizard Shazam, Zeus, Ganthet, Highfather and the Phantom Stranger comes to mind.

[SKJAM!]

Re: How a team fits in its world (team types)

 

The Emergency Back-Up Team

 

The heroes who band together to take care of business when the heavy hitters in the Best of the Best team are unavailable. The classic example, of course, is the Legion of Substitute Heroes. There have been a couple of examples elsewhere, but those teams were short-lived, for the duration of the emergency. Only the Subs made a career of it.

[Haerandir]

Re: How a team fits in its world (team types)

 

Speaking of emergencies...

 

The Emergency Services Team

 

One idea that keeps cropping up whenever I design a campaign world is a team of supers whose primary function is to fight natural disasters and rescue people. It's always nice when Superman stops a tsunami from wiping out New York, but in a universe where supers were somewhat common, you'd think governments and corporations would be looking to hire people to do that sort of thing full-time. Best example I can think of off the top of my head is Project Utopia from Aberrant.

[jkwleisemann]

Re: How a team fits in its world (team types)

 

So why would an entire team of capable assemble around an incompetent glory hound? Well' date=' he could be really rich, but if he's that incompetent how would he be so good at picking his backup crew? That would surely require some degree of shrewdness. Of course that could mean just that his personal assistant is doing all the hiring and firing and he just was lucky enough to get a good personal assistant at the start.[/quote']

 

Well, here's a pretty good reason - Decoy Man.

 

As somebody on these boards put it - "the rest of the Justice League is just there to kick the kryptonite out of the room."

 

You have this superhero that everybody is utterly convinced will be the threat to their plans, the one thing that can stop them, and you'll have every villain and his dog planning on ways to short-circuit his powers/stop him from being a threat.

 

By contrast, his 'sidekick squad' is going to be considered a minor threat at most - throw some agents at them and they'll fold.

 

And so everybody heads in to take on (say) Gravitar, and because of their apparent 'luck,' the Sidekick Squad is still there. When they reach the central control room, Lady G throws the switch and robs Decoy Man of his powers. She then laughs and postures, confident that she can subdue the Sidekick Squad with a wave of her hand.

 

Up until Mr. Mentalist looks at her funny and she starts singing 'I'm a little tea-pot' as they load her onto a handcart and wheel her out to be taken care of by the cops, giving the credit to Decoy Man for everything.

[caris]

Re: How a team fits in its world (team types)

 

So why would an entire team of capable assemble around an incompetent glory hound? Well' date=' he could be really rich, but if he's that incompetent how would he be so good at picking his backup crew? That would surely require some degree of shrewdness. Of course that could mean just that his personal assistant is doing all the hiring and firing and he just was lucky enough to get a good personal assistant at the start.[/quote']

 

Well, the glory hound doesn't have to be a complete incompetent, just incompetent at the heroing thing. He could be competent in other part of his life.

 

Alternatively, the glory hound was hired specifically to be that. The glory hound was hired by the people putting the team together to be the face of the team because the glory hound is charming, good looking and/or charasmatic. This is often good for a Corporately Sponsored Team, a Governmental Agency Team or any other team that is trying to put out a very specific public image that they want to control and manage.

[Enforcer84]

Re: How a team fits in its world (team types)

 

The Corporate Team

In the more cynical day and age, these guys are "Sellouts" they have a corporate sponsor (or multiple sponsors) and every heroic act they do is seen by some as a publicity stunt. This may or may not be correct.

 

The Conglomerate (DC), Amazing Man (Mystery Men), Binary (CU) are examples.

[David Blue]

Re: How a team fits in its world (team types)

 

Explorers of the Unknown: Fantastic Four, Challengers of the Unknown, the Stargate crew.

 

A team of this kind can have a blast, as long as the GM can keep coming up with underwater, underground, alien, past, future, interdimensional etcetera places to visit, or make the people met in previous visits interesting to visit again.

 

A team like this fits easily into the world: they may be powerful and even entitled to call up the American president when a threat from beyond warrants it, but if they spend most of their time getting out of the way there doesn't need to be a great political problem (unless the gamemaster wants one).

 

To make this team work, obviously you need transport, and a super-inventor is an ideal beginning. But in the long run it's even more important that the characters, and the players and the way they play them, be nice. A group of surly, trigger-happy, acquisitive jerks that nobody sane will willingly interact with twice will give the gamemaster fits, depriving the game of staying power. A group of "sticky" people, with obvious handles for diplomacy, is ideal. Fun-loving, good-looking, intelligent conversationalist, xenophile, code versus killing (don't leave a trail of corpses) these are all good things that make it easy to explain why reasonable NPCs from exotic cultures will want to talk to these heroes again and again.

 

We are Family!: Fantastic Four, The Incredibles, Noble Causes, The Furst Family.

 

Soap opera is endless fun. Fear: this could end our parents' lives - or worse, their marriage! Or: Namor isn't merely a threat to the whole surface world, he's trying to make time with my girlfriend/fiance/wife!

 

This works well. The world has long since figured out how to deal with excessively rich and well-armed families. All the familiar ploys like planting agents and trying to get members of your own dynasty married into the mighty house will be attempted.

 

I don't see any obvious requiement that all such teams would have in common, but it's natural to think about wealth and a base early.

 

World Government in Spandex: Miracleman and friends, The Authority, Crime Syndicate of Amerika

 

The players and the gamemaster need to be able to work together regardless of politics. If the players and the player characters offend the gamemaster with every move they make, this is not going to work.

 

Theme Team: Fantastic Four, Elementals, Metal Men.

 

This has already been mentioned, but it's such a good shtick I thought I'd mention it again.

 

Related to this: common origins crews such as the DNAgents.

 

The problem with this is: you may be more than commonly expendable. A group of people who relate almost exclusively to each other and who have one creator and/or owner can just vanish.

 

What a team like this requires has a lot to do with what the gamemaster intends to do with or to it.

 

On the idea of a team with an incompetent mega-hero and a super-competent team of sidekicks - I think the way to do this would be with a senile or otherwise incapacitated sorcerer supreme, and a bunch of former apprentices who he gave the boot to because nobody was ever good enough for him. Instead of fighting to the death to become the new number one, the apprentices stifle their rivalries enough to work together to save Earth, and keep up the illusion as long as they can that there is still a sorcerer supreme on the job. I think that could be a very good game. Actually I might consider running it.

 

Another reason for a wealthy but less powerful guy to lead a team is that he's wooing the hot chick on it: think of Steve Dayton (Mento) and Rita Farr (Elastigirl) of the Doom Patrol.