casualplayer Posted May 30, 2006 Report Share Posted May 30, 2006 Re: Champs and players with no comic book background I've always enjoyed having a non-comic geek in my gaming groups. Those type of players certainly wouldn't have much fun in a game set in DC or Marvel's universe, and you can't use the descriptive crutch of "He's like Cyclops, but the beams are burgundy," but you get a fresh perspective on things that are incongruous or frankly silly. I would never shoot down someone's character concept because it was too close to some character in a fictional universe that they will likely never meet. Comic creators have thrown a lot of crap at the wall, hoping some of it would stick and become popular. They have tried everything, so don't worry about it. Same with names. If your character bulks up, roars a lot and can throw a bus the media is going to dub you The Hulk so go with it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bloodstone Posted May 30, 2006 Report Share Posted May 30, 2006 Re: Champs and players with no comic book background My main gaming group has three fairly hard core comic fans, but most of the rest haven't really read anything since the 90's. One guy has, to my knowledge, never read a comic in his life but he has been gaming for a decade or so. Guess who always wants to loot the bodies, check for secret doors and refers to our sidekicks as henchmen Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GoldenAge Posted May 30, 2006 Report Share Posted May 30, 2006 Re: Champs and players with no comic book background Guess who always wants to loot the bodies' date=' check for secret doors and refers to our sidekicks as henchmen [/quote'] Heh. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Supreme Serpent Posted May 30, 2006 Report Share Posted May 30, 2006 Re: Champs and players with no comic book background Guess who always wants to loot the bodies' date=' check for secret doors and refers to our sidekicks as henchmen [/quote'] Man, are all these foci cursed? They all have -1, -1/2 and stuff on them. And how the heck do you take -1/2 off of a die roll? Stoopid HERO! While I'm a comic buff, most of my regular group isn't as much. Out of our group, I'm the only one really still reading on a regular basis. I grew up on things like X-Men, Spider-Man, Avengers, FF. Another, older player also read similar things, but stopped a while ago. Third reads a variety, but sporadic. These two are most in synch with me as to supers stuff. We also tend to be the most common supers GMs in our group. Fourth reads some, prefers things like newer Ghost Rider, Punisher, Wolverine and such. Enjoys supers but doesn't always get all the genre "bits" the other three above do. Fifth read a lot of things like Silver Surfer, more cosmic/oddball stuff. Sixth didn't read too many supers comics, came into the genre through anime, etc. Sometimes early on it was rough, as we all worked to take these various visions and directions and mold them into a coherent game. Years later, it's pretty easy, but you can generally tell who's going to make the ninja bonded with the alien being, who's going to make the extradimensional four-armed gorilla, who's going to make the Superman homage, etc. Not that all their characters are like that, but if I was told basics about the various characters, it would generally be pretty easy for me to pick out which one went with which player, due to knowing the players and "where they come from". Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lucius Posted May 31, 2006 Report Share Posted May 31, 2006 Re: Champs and players with no comic book background Well, it's not like I NEVER read comics. I haven't in a long time, but I've had a couple phases in my life where I read a lot of comics. But I wouldn't say I've ever been a "hardcore fan." And I haven't had a lot of problems with the game. Maybe a few things like, my current character takes a lot more precautions to protect his secret ID than are necessary in a genre where putting on or taking off your glasses is supposed to ensure that no one will EVER guess that the reporter and the superhero are the same person. Oddly enough, when I run into stuff I just don't "get" it's more likely to be here online than in a game. And for that matter, only in the last year have I noticed it much. Things like the "metallic ages" - never heard of that years ago when I haunted the Hero boards. Never heard of it back when I was reading comics. And then there's the "I" word issue, which I've decided I never WILL understand. Lucius Alexander The palindromedary has not been approved by the comics code authority. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OneWingedAngel Posted May 31, 2006 Report Share Posted May 31, 2006 Re: Champs and players with no comic book background Nope. No comics whatsoever. I came in via the RPG trainingwheels known as D&D. The closest I come is that, after switching to Hero, I watch the cartoons. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bloodstone Posted May 31, 2006 Report Share Posted May 31, 2006 Re: Champs and players with no comic book background Maybe a few things like, my current character takes a lot more precautions to protect his secret ID than are necessary in a genre where putting on or taking off your glasses is supposed to ensure that no one will EVER guess that the reporter and the superhero are the same person. I'm not personally a big fan of that particular convention and I really don't like having to play along side it, though I will if I must. It just feels like such a huge slap in the face to the intelligence of everyone else in the world. Kal-El must have Disguise and Acting at 35- to pull that **** off Many modern comic book writers seem to only grudgenly tolerate that sort of thing. Several have stated outright that they think secret ID's should be rare and almost impossible to maintain in our information age. I think that's why comics are trending towards "celebrity" heroes and heroes that don't use code names (if they even have one). Things like the "metallic ages" - never heard of that years ago when I haunted the Hero boards. Never heard of it back when I was reading comics. I kinda encountered this too. The terms golden age and silver age have been around since the 60's. I'm pretty sure when I was reading in the 80's and early 90's that those terms were used, though mostly by collectors. I think the Overstreet Price Guide may have even used those terms, but I'm not 100% sure. However, I didn't ever hear anyone refer to the late 70's- mid 80's as bronze age until I got back into comics a few years back. Iron Age was an entierly new term to me as well. And then there's the "I" word issue, which I've decided I never WILL understand. There is a part of me that REALLY wanted to jump into that "debate", but after so much back and forth I don't think I could have even made a dent. But I'll gladly chat about it via PM's if you ever want to rehash it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wrestlinggeek Posted May 31, 2006 Report Share Posted May 31, 2006 Re: Champs and players with no comic book background Ok, maybe I'm just dense, but what is the "I" word? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bloodstone Posted May 31, 2006 Report Share Posted May 31, 2006 Re: Champs and players with no comic book background Invulnerability Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wrestlinggeek Posted May 31, 2006 Report Share Posted May 31, 2006 Re: Champs and players with no comic book background Ah. Thank you, Bloodstone. I must have missed the debate. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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