Why should I buy Champions?

[Knightgoblin]

Hello. I have been a long player and gamemaster of many super hero RPG's. I bought a champions game way back in 1996, but only game mastered it once. The rules for combat seemed a little complicated and combat went slow. I currently play and game master Mutants and Masterminds, and Heroes Unlimited, I've also played all the marvel and dc games and Aberrant. I use Mutants and Masterminds for high-powered characters and Heroes Unlimited for low-powered games.

What I am wondering is, what do you think about Champions? Why should I try yet another superhero game system? Do you think combat is slow in Champions? Maybe it was hard for me because it was my first time. Could Champions unite my two worlds of low-powered and high-powered gaming?

What books should I have to get a good start on the game? Also how long does it typically take to make a character? Most importantly how long does it take for making an npc? Feel free to tell me what ever you dislike and love about the game. Thank you.

[Trebuchet]

Re: Why should I buy Champions?

 

I love Champions and the Hero system; I've been playing it for almost 24 years. I like its flexibility. I've played pulp, fantasy, spies, World War 2, superheroes both high and low level with Hero. It does anything. I can't say how Champions compares to any other superhero game except Marvel; and I think it blows Marvel Superheroes away.

 

Combat can take a while, but with practice it gets quicker and there are many suggested methods to speed things up.

 

Character design is probably Hero's single toughest aspect, because that flexibility I love also makes for a lot more options. But Hero also has the excellent Hero Designer software available; which greatly simplifies the task.

 

Of course, I may not be an unbiased observer since I hang out on the Hero discussion boards. But for me the system does anything I want; and that's no small thing.

[Narratio]

Re: Why should I buy Champions?

 

In the Hero system, I've only played Champions for superhero RPG's. But, like Treb above, I've played it since 1st ed 24 years back. I've also played every other superhero RPG ever published, including a rather heroic attempt at Superhero 2044...

 

For superheroic RPG's This is THE system to use. NOTHING else compares. Nothing. V&V's strange multi sided dice, M&M's odd power sorts, Heroes Unlimiteds odd power selections, SuperWorlds quirky tables of powers etc. They all have limits and oddities. Champions has only the limits and oddities that YOU want it to have.

 

This very flexibility is probably what makes you think it's hard. But it's not, really it's not. And what do you need? Just one other player, the 5th Ed rules, a couple of the sample charcters included, or that people have posted here, and a few dice.

That's it.

Everything else is just 'cherry on top with chocolate sauce, sugar sprinkles and almond fudge'. Not required to play, just fun to have.

[KA.]

Re: Why should I buy Champions?

 

Just to clarify things . . .

If the book called Champions that you bought in 1996 was a big blue book, then it was actually two books in one.

Part One was the 4th Edition Hero System Rules

Part Two was the Champions sourcebook

 

The current book being sold under the name Champions is just the sourcebook.

It does not contain the rules of the system, just advice and information about using the Hero System to play the superhero genre.

 

To get the rules you need to buy the Hero System 5th Ed. Revised. or better yet, Sidekick.

 

Sidekick is a trimmed down version of the Hero Rules.

It is not some weird abomination that tries to change the rules, it is just a slightly smaller set of rules with a few of the more complex options left off.

It is a great way to get a handle on the basics of the system.

Then if you feel the need, you can always pick up the full 5th Edition Revised Rules.

The good news is, the money you spent on Sidekick won't have been wasted, because you can always lend it to new players so that they can learn the system more easily.

 

If you already knew the difference between the old version of Champions (which also contained the rules) and the new version, sorry for the interrruption.

 

I just wouldn't want anyone to think they had been 'ripped off' because they only got half the book they thought they were buying.

KA.

[Trained Chicken]

Re: Why should I buy Champions?

 

After a long hiatus from posting on these boards, finally an irresistable reason to post again. Thanks.

 

Even if you never, ever sit down with anyone else to play, the granularity of the system allows you to build the abilities of exactly the character you have bumping around in the back of your head. This is useful, since then you can make room for the next character.

 

As a father of two little ones who works second shift, my prospects of sitting down for three or four hours a week to play are minimal- not to mention travel time, or actually writing an adventure. But there's always something superhero-related I want to get down on paper. FREd is the perfect resource for this. I've gotten hundreds of hours of enjoyment out of HERO without any gaming group at all to play it with.

[Spidey88]

Re: Why should I buy Champions?

 

I'm a rookie compared to many here, but as a guy who's used many different systems, I'd like to give my two cents:

 

The Hero System, IMHO, is easily my favorite system for high-flying, four color superhero roleplaying. For me, it does the best job of replicating the feel of a standard comic book. Nothing else out there I've played has the same amount of options for making a character - you can find a way to make pretty much any character concept (though you still have to worry about how many points said character will cost - you can't make Superman with 50 points!). Another generic system, GURPS, comes close, but tends towards more inherent "realism"; that is, it's harder to get the feel of a comic book out of it. Things are inherently very deadly at the default level (though that can be mucked with, in GURPS' defence). Also, GURPS has a somewhat more static list of abilities and powers that are more difficult to tinker with for flavour and effect - HERO is much more of a set of abilities and powers you can build from the ground up (much more "open-source").

 

Combat can move slowly at times, but I don't think it's really any big jump over say, the D20 system - things are just resolved in much greater detail than your standard RPG. As others have said, things can be as simple or as detailed as you want them to be. You want to stand toe-to-toe with the baddy and just trade punches? Perfectly do-able. You want to have your super-strong buddy toss you at the foe for a stonger punch on your part, while your other buddy tangles up the foe's legs so you're more likely to take him down? That's do-able too. Even with all potential combat options available to the players, it goes pretty smoothly once everyone is really familiar with the system. If anything, people don't seem used to really having to think in an RPG fight IMHO, and that is the molasses factor at first.

 

On the other hand, I've never really felt comfortable using HERO for very low-powered games. There just doesn't seem to be quite enough granularity at lower attribute levels to satisfy me. eg. There is no functional difference between a STR 13 and STR 17, as far as I know - and that covers about half the spread of values between "average villager" (STR 10) and "Olympic weightlifter" (STR 20). (I still prefer GURPS for low-powered games, meself.)Many others do use the game at low power levels and love it, though - so I think I am probably in the minority. There's still a million ways to make your character unique, anyway. Ten characters can have exactly the same attributes and still be very different.

 

In a nutshell: nowhere will you find more options for character creation, and despite the vast array of powers and abilities available, things tend to run very smoothly. There's lots and lots of published villains, so this doesn't have to be a nightmare for a GM. All the books are full of plot seeds, and there are some great modules available that account for a lot of different play styles and decisions; so despite the detail involved, it's quite GM-friendly in that regard too - you should never be completely stuck for ideas.

 

Potential problems with the system (again, IMHO): open character creation can potentially lead to min-maxed demi-gods (you'll probably want to set at least some loose standards on maximum damage and defense values) - be familiar with your PC's before the poop hits the fan! If you want to make a lot of your own villains, it can be very rewarding and fun in its own right, but character creation (when starting from scratch, and not using the handy-dandy superhero generator in the Champions genre book) is usually rather time consuming. Expect players to take a lot of time making their PC's, especially if they are new to the system. Read the book a few times to get familiar with everything before you use it, or things may get confusing mighty quick.

 

Really, I don't take issue with these problems as I love the details and crunchy bits to no end, and I'm very quick with math.

 

That's another thing - HERO has a rep for being very math-intensive. It is in character creation, but nothing more complicated that adding, subtracting, multiplying, or dividing. Lots of it, to be sure - but very simple, and fades into the background when said characters are done.

 

Hope that's not too long-winded!

[Spidey88]

Re: Why should I buy Champions?

 

At the risk of putting everyone to sleep, here's a few more specific answers to your questions:

 

I can make a character in 15 minutes if it's a relatively simple build like a super-strong, super-tough guy with a powerful, but limited suite of abilities. A complicated character, like say, a super-mage with a zillion little spells or a metamorph with many forms and a malleable body that can be utilized in unusual ways might take as long as three hours if I want to get really picky. Generally, I tend not to put that much effort into a run-of-the-mill npc or villain - I'd say a half an hour to an hour might be a good average for a fully fleshed-out character.

 

 

Books I feel you need:

 

Hero System, 5th Edition - If this is all you can get, no worries, It's got all you actually need to play.

 

As mentioned, Sidekick is a good "light" version of the game if you want to save some money on the initial buy and start a little simpler.

 

Books I feel would make your life much simpler if you were to buy the above:

 

Conquerors, Killers, and Crooks - a book chock full of premade supervillains (the book is about an inch thich, so you get a lot to play with, of all sorts of power levels). You might never need to make your own villains with this book. To top it off, each bad guy has three plot threads to get the action started. If you only get one other book, I'd make it this one.

 

Hero System Combat Handbook - everything you'll need to know about fighting. Very little here that's not in the main book, actually; but it's a lot simpler to find what you need in the middle of a fight, and the extra stuff included is great - all the combat maneuvers in one place and how to use them, and unusual things like the "fastball special".

 

UNTIL Superpowers Database - if you shudder at the thought of creating guys from scratch, this book gives you a whole list of powers already made up for your convenience. I honestly never bothered to buy it (yet), but it looks like it'd be invaluable to a newbie (I've been making HERO characters since 1989, just rarely had the chance to play - so it wasn't high on my list).

 

Champions - now a genre book, and not the standalone game of yesteryear. Still, even without all the advice on running different styles of superhero games, it's be worth the dough for the superhero generator I mentioned before. I'm no stranger to the superhero genre, let me tell you - but the book was still plenty useful to me, and continues to be.

 

Villainy Amok - a great book that gives a huge amount of advice on how to run typical comic-book type scenarios as bank robberies and alien invasions in all sorts of permutations.

 

I own both "Champions Battlegrounds" and "Sharper Than a Serpent's Tooth" - they're both adventure modules, and they're both pretty darn good. Very flexible for different power levels, party loadout, and gaming style. If you're not opposed to prepublished modules, these should give you many sessions of fun.

 

 

In the last 4 or 5 months, I've bought something like 20 of the 5th edition books, and they've all felt like a good buy. The quality of all of them is top-notch, I must say. Any other reccommendations would have to depend on your tastes! There's still plenty of books I'd like to get, too - DOJ has been cranking out a lot of stuff, and so far it's all gold!

 

 

Incidentally, the difference between the Champions you played in '96 and the HERO system now is small enough that any books you had then will still jive (with a couple minor tweaks here and there) with the current edition. I've got 15-year old books I still use frequently.

 

Oog - I hope this is useful, and not just sycophantic rambling!

[BoloOfEarth]

Re: Why should I buy Champions?

 

To throw my $0.02 in here:

 

I just wanted to add that, in addition to the ability to create any power you can imagine, Champions also has this discussion board where you can post just about any question (from "How do I build a power that does XXXXXXX?" to "Any plot ideas for using supervillain XXXXXXXXX?") and have a half-dozen answers in a few hours. Not a bad resource, and it's free.

 

Another thing to keep in mind is that, in HERO, there are many different ways to do the same thing, each equally valid. You're generally not stuck with having to use one Power to do a particular thing. For instance, your time-manipulating villain has an Aging Ray. You could do that as a straight Energy Blast, or with one or more linked Drains, or even a Transform. (And I'm sure there are even more ways to do this besides those three.) Which is right? Really, any of them, depending on the effect you're looking for.

[Knightgoblin]

Re: Why should I buy Champions?

 

Thank you all for your help. I believe I will buy this game. I know your guises advice will go a long way with me. Hopefully by next summer when I'm on summer break from college I can give this game a try. I will be saving up my nickels, dimes and pennies. So hopefully next summer or maybe Christmas Break I will be on here more. I will defiantly be asking a lot of questions.

[CraterMaker]

Re: Why should I buy Champions?

 

One of the niftiest things about Hero system is it's malleability. I really think that is something people unfamilier with the game cant wrap their heads around.

 

I mean, how do you wan't superpowers to work? Where do they come from? what are the in-game ramifications of this? Let's say superpowers are the result of a dimensional explosion, and they get a boost to their power level the closer they get to the Shattered City (ground zero for the D-bomb).. but at the same time, the closer they get to the city, the more prone to insanity they get. Bah! Easy! How long do you want it to last? Permenantly? Fade over a day? Untill they go through electroshock therapy? Pfffff

 

You want to run a game where superpowers burn out a lifespan quickly? Easy. Want a game where you only have powers while the common people believe in you? Piece of cake - CHOCOLATE cake!

 

I mean, it is so ... straightforward, to get your game out of your head.. The brainbursting secret of Hero System is that you really can have a creative and innovative setting without "winging" it, all the while in the secure arms of an expansive rule system!

 

I mean... I mean... There I was sitting on the group "W" bench..

 

-CraterMaker - And that's just the flexibility with SETTING!!!

 

p.s. Son, have you rehabitulated yourself?

[Spidey88]

Re: Why should I buy Champions?

 

Even if you never buy the game (heaven forbid ), I think I speak for everyone here when I say "feel free to keep posting and asking questions." That's what these forums are for, after all!

 

Cheers!

[TheRavenIs]

Re: Why should I buy Champions?

 

I've been playing HERO before it was called HERO. 25+ years, I can do anything in this system and I have.

 

I GM only HERO.

[Balabanto]

Re: Why should I buy Champions?

 

You should buy Champions for superhero roleplaying games because it is, quite simply, the best system out there.

 

Combat in my game moves fairly quickly, and I've been running the same game world (Tentatively called Legacies) in Hero for 20 years now.

 

The thing about Hero is that you can do anything with it. And you've already heard that from these other guys, but as someone who also plays d20 games, I don't like what M+M took out of d20 to DO Mutants and Masterminds.

 

One of the things you can do with Hero is set RANGES for your PCs and the bad guys. This is the BEST thing about the system. You know EXACTLY how powerful the PC's COULD be when they reach the top of their ranges. Is the campaign over? Heck no. Reaching the top of your power level is not what a roleplaying game is all about. There's always contacts, powers, and new skills to buy.

 

Oddly, one of your best resources for this is not a 5th edition sourcebook. It's the fourth edition sheet that sets up a series of theme parameters for your gameworld.

 

Does my game have 20 pages of house rules after 20 years? It sure does! But then, my game has about eight different groups of heroes who are played between New Jersey and Rhode Island, and I travel a long way to run these games for my old friends.

 

Your game needs a strong presence from the gamemaster, or it will fall apart from powergaming. Be tough, but don't kill them. They're superheroes. Picking themselves back up and going on is what it's all about.

 

ALL of your problems with Hero will come from character generation. After that (And I am living proof of this. Just ask Dave Mattingly, who publishes my stuff in Digital Hero), your game will run itself. In fact, sometime either this year or next year, in Digital Hero will appear an article entitled "Secret Origins II" (I hope) that shows you how to take your own players sheets and alter them to create a variety of allies and adversaries.

 

You can run an entire game with a very small number of character sheets, and some adjustments.

[Knightgoblin]

Re: Why should I buy Champions?

 

Another quick question. what software do you use for the game and how handy is it?

[BoloOfEarth]

Re: Why should I buy Champions?

 

Many people here swear by HeroDesigner, which is the character creation software that Trebuchet mentioned early in the thread. (I still use Creation Workshop, an older software that I don't believe is available with Hero templates anymore.)

 

Some people have homemade software for tracking combat, creating speedsheets, dice-rolling, and so on. I'm sure somebody else has links to those, unfortunately I don't.

[actingkeith]

Re: Why should I buy Champions?

 

Like others who've posted on your thread, I've been playing this gaming system all during it's evolution.

 

I have a thought about one of your critiques about the speed of combat... It probably the most often voiced criticism of the game. Most long-time HERO gamers know that Combat Speed is the biggest hurdle to recruiting new insane-fanatics.

 

It will run slowly under a great many conditions, and it can be frustrating.

 

The main thing that slows combat, IMO, is a lack of familiarity and comfort with the rules of combat by everyone involved. While the basics of combat are relatively simple, the variations are many. Getting your players familiar enough with their characters' combat style (and the accompanying rules) so that they can know their characters' Combat Values is the first goal. Having the GM or another player help calculate a character's Combat Values every time that character is supposed to act is really slooowwwww.

 

Combat speeds up markedly when the GM only has to worry about counting off time and controlling the bad guys. It speeds up even more when the GM doesn't have to worry about counting off time because the players are so familiar with the way things are supposed to go that everyone helps manage the Speed Chart.

 

Once everyone in the gaming group (or at least most of them) become comfortable with the combat rules, the GM only has to manage combats, not direct them.

 

That stuff takes time, and it's not an insignificant hurdle. But once you get past that, the power of the flexibility of HERO system rules really starts to shine on through... then you're hooked.

 

Peace,

 

Keith

[gojira]

Re: Why should I buy Champions?

 

Another quick question. what software do you use for the game and how handy is it?

 

 

Welcome Valkyrie...er, Knightgoblin!

 

 

Besides the official CAD system HeroDesigner, check out the Other Software forum here at Hero Games. The best cheapy aids are spread sheets, imho. I have one posted in that forum that I still use almost exclusively, and there are a couple more very worthy free spread sheets there also.

 

If you get Open Office (free software), you can even avoid buying a spread sheet program. Open Office is what I use.

 

 

Over all, what everyone says here is correct. The system book is now called Hero System. Champions is the super hero supplement.

 

You should probably start with books like Gadget and Gear, Super Powers Database, and the Ultimate series as a player. Crooks, Killers and Conquerors and Villainy Amok are better if you are going to be the GM.

 

HERO can be a little tedious to run. Make sure to enlist players to help you if you are GM. Appoint people in charge of various aspects of combat so you don't have to take care of everything. Have a group secretary too, so you don't have to write notes for everything that comes up during play. One way to speed play is to ignore Endurance and Knockback rules.

 

I think Hero does suffer a bit on the lower powered end. There are granularity problems with a system that was built mostly for super heroic characters. However, a lot of people seem to enjoy playing hero with lower powered characters, so I think it's still very possible to have fun.

 

This group is also very open to giving advice and help. Please feel free to post any other questions. We all collectively like making characters, so if you are having problems there, post up some ideas and you'll get half of a dozen characters back for you to look through.

 

 

Take care and good luck!

[TheQuestionMan]

Re: Why should I buy Champions?

 

I can think of plenty of reasons to buy Champions and no reason not too.

 

KillerShike's Hero System Resources - Anatomy of a HERO

http://www.killershrike.com/GeneralHERO/HEROAnatomy.htm

 

And then there is everybodies Conversions, Adapatations, and Fantastic Creations.

 

Anthropomorphic/Furry Hero Resources

http://herogames.com/forums/showthread.php?t=31789

 

Battletech/Mechwarrior Hero Resources

http://herogames.com/forums/showthread.php?t=31861

 

Champions (Super) Hero Resources

http://herogames.com/forums/showthread.php?t=31865

 

Pulp Hero Resources

http://herogames.com/forums/showthread.php?t=30071

 

Star Wars Hero Resources

http://herogames.com/forums/showthread.php?t=30644

 

Victorian Hero Resources

http://herogames.com/forums/showthread.php?t=30759

 

Regency HERO Resources

http://herogames.com/forums/showthread.php?t=27221

 

[Compilation] "to Fantasy HERO Conversions & Adaptations"

http://herogames.com/forums/showthread.php?t=24968

 

[Compilation] "to Star HERO Conversions & Adaptations"

http://herogames.com/forums/showthread.php?t=24969

 

Your "2004" Pet Gaming Projects

http://herogames.com/forums/showthread.php?t=10675

 

Your "2005" Pet Gaming Projects

http://herogames.com/forums/showthread.php?t=31932

 

Your "2006" Pet Gaming Projects

http://www.herogames.com/forums/showthread.php?t=40094

 

 

 

Cheers

 

QM

[zornwil]

Re: Why should I buy Champions?

 

Thank you all for your help. I believe I will buy this game. I know your guises advice will go a long way with me. Hopefully by next summer when I'm on summer break from college I can give this game a try. I will be saving up my nickels' date=' dimes and pennies. So hopefully next summer or maybe Christmas Break I will be on here more. I will defiantly be asking a lot of questions.[/quote']

One thing I would say is don't get overwhelmed by the volume. Concentrate on just the core of using skills, basic combat, and the basic idea of how powers work and you'll be fine, since most of it logically flows from a few basic rules. Even if you make "mistakes', so long as they're logically proceeding from the basic core of the rules, you should be fine. Of course, feel free to always come back for advice.

[gojira]

Re: Why should I buy Champions?

 

Yes. Sidekick can be a worthwhile investment just because it's short and to the point. Plus you can loan it out to players later, and they can still build 80% to 90% of what they need.

 

The PDF of Sidekick is only $7. With PDFs you can keep a backup copy too, so it never gets lost. Just a thought...

[Knightgoblin]

Re: Why should I buy Champions?

 

Could some one tell me the difference between 4th edition and 5th?

[Lord Liaden]

Re: Why should I buy Champions?

 

On the rules front, Fourth and Fifth Edition HERO are about 90% similar. The basic mechanics are identical, and most of the elements have the same names, Character Point costs, and function the same way. Fifth did change the function and/or cost of a few things, but the biggest differences are much more detailed explanations clarifying areas that were vague under Fourth, and many more options. For those reasons Fifth Edition rules also use many more words than Fourth.

 

On the physical book front, Fourth Edition was originally bundled with the genre advice and examples for Hero's superhero line, Champions, in a single volume. The system was later published in a separate volume for folks who didn't want to pay for the supers stuff. For Fifth Edition the rules and the supers genre material have been separated and elaborated upon in their own distinct books.

[AlHazred]

Re: Why should I buy Champions?

 

Let me also mention there are plenty of ways to speed up combat. When people trying Hero for the first time complain about how slow combat is, they're usually talking about how long it takes with all the options. Start with the basics. Hero gamers have come up with lots of good suggestions. Check out these threads:

 

Speeding up combat suggestions?

http://www.herogames.com/forums/showthread.php?t=4628

 

Seeking suggestions on speeding up the Hero System

http://www.herogames.com/forums/showthread.php?t=43000

 

Speeding things up

http://www.herogames.com/forums/showthread.php?t=25007

 

Simplification of Combat

http://www.herogames.com/forums/showthread.php?t=39730

 

Apologies to QM and LL for borrowing the link list shtick! The Great Old Ones made me do it!

[Vondy]

Re: Why should I buy Champions?

 

Speed of combat?

 

Its faster than Chartmaster.

 

Actually, almost any game you are unfamiliar with can take a long time to run combats in. I'm always mildly surprised when people complain hero combats are long. I've run them in less time than many M&M players have recounted similiar combats in that system have run. The key is knowing the system well and pushing it along. Don't let the players stall it, either.

 

And while the core rules and dense and written by and for lawyers, they really are all you need to run the game. I do recommend, however, that you get hero-designer, and people have sung the combat handbook's praises. Also, if you're running champs and don't want to do a homebrew world, you should probably get champions universe and conquerors killers and crooks. I didn't find the champions genre book very useful, personally.

[Funksaw]

Re: Why should I buy Champions?

 

Hello. I have been a long player and gamemaster of many super hero RPG's. I bought a champions game way back in 1996, but only game mastered it once. The rules for combat seemed a little complicated and combat went slow. I currently play and game master Mutants and Masterminds, and Heroes Unlimited, I've also played all the marvel and dc games and Aberrant. I use Mutants and Masterminds for high-powered characters and Heroes Unlimited for low-powered games.

What I am wondering is, what do you think about Champions? Why should I try yet another superhero game system? Do you think combat is slow in Champions? Maybe it was hard for me because it was my first time. Could Champions unite my two worlds of low-powered and high-powered gaming?

What books should I have to get a good start on the game? Also how long does it typically take to make a character? Most importantly how long does it take for making an npc? Feel free to tell me what ever you dislike and love about the game. Thank you.

 

The Hero System (Champions is a genre book in 5th ed) is useful precisely because it really isn't a superhero RPG. It's a generic RPG that was designed to measure the superhero genre - and because the superhero genre itself is a mishmash of pretty much every genre under the sun, it did very well evolving into a generic system.

 

Whether or not the Hero System is for you depends on three things: Are you likely to run games based on original settings and movies-not-yet-adapted to RPGs - not published ones?

 

For example, were I to run a game based on "My Name Is Earl," (something I'm thinking of calling "Karma, Tennessee,") I would probably find a way to model the show's unique take on karma in the Hero system.

 

But if I were running a Buffy/Angel game, I'd probably use the Buffy system - it's more tailored to the licence, and does exactly what you need to do to run Buffy. (Note that I would probably use the HERO system for Stargate and Farscape campaigns... but that's because I'm not thrilled with the official adaptations.)

 

Hero's flexibility makes it ideal for multi-genre and strange ideas; not only, for example, can Hero make a fantasy campaign like D&D - it can make a fantasy campaign quite UNLIKE D&D, because D&D constrains you to certain narrow paths.

 

Are you willing to spend a very long time in character creation (although it gets faster when you're more familiar with the system) modeling the abilities of your characters in exchange for nearly unlimited flexibility, creativity, and very precise modeling - or are you the type of GM that really wants to just "roll up and play?" HERO system makes that tradeoff - added complexity for added flexibility, but it tends to do so by being "front-loaded" - meaning that you spend a lot of time in the beginning of the game creating the characters (or essentially, the "rules" of your campaign) but once you do so, all the information you need to play is right there on your sheet.

 

Mutants and Masterminds tends to play faster and create faster but I'm hamstrung by the lack of flexibility in that game. It's well done, no doubt, but that's more of a "We want to play a supers game -today-" kind of game.

 

Aberrant tends to also create faster, but there is NO flexibility - you either have the specific power or you don't, and there's no "tech" powers in Aberrant.

 

Do you want a game that plays in multiple genres? If you're just looking for "a superhero game" then M&M will provide a unique system, Aberrant will provide a unique setting, but they're both limited to the Superhero genre.

 

Hero is not only multi-genre but unlike other "generic" systems, it scales very well from low-powered games to games where characters are outright godlike in their abilities.

 

I hope I've kinda helped to explain what HERO System IS and what it ISN'T, and hope you can make an informed choice.