Mark Rand Posted October 28, 2006 Report Share Posted October 28, 2006 In Champions terms, how would you write up a Renaissance man? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lord Liaden Posted October 28, 2006 Report Share Posted October 28, 2006 Re: A Renaissance Man For a supers game? Essentially, Doctor Destroyer without the armor. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OddHat Posted October 28, 2006 Report Share Posted October 28, 2006 Re: A Renaissance Man Rules from Ultimate Skill. KS: Everything, 35- SS: All Human Science, 35- AK: Everyplace, 35- PS: Every Job, 35- Pretty much covers it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kristopher Posted October 29, 2006 Report Share Posted October 29, 2006 Re: A Renaissance Man I forget, did the froofy powdered wigs with lice in them show up during the Ren, or was that later? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OddHat Posted October 29, 2006 Report Share Posted October 29, 2006 Re: A Renaissance Man I forget' date=' did the froofy powdered wigs with lice in them show up during the Ren, or was that later? [/quote'] +5 PRE, OAF: Froofy Powdered Wig with Lice Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
L. Marcus Posted October 29, 2006 Report Share Posted October 29, 2006 Re: A Renaissance Man I forget' date=' did the froofy powdered wigs with lice in them show up during the Ren, or was that later? [/quote'] . . . That'd be the Barocque era -- mid-1600's to mid-1700's, or something like. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maelstrom Posted October 29, 2006 Report Share Posted October 29, 2006 Re: A Renaissance Man PS: Warrior with enough CLs and perhaps MA. PS: Writer with KS: Poetry and 5-pt Perk Poetic License optional PS: Statesman with Oratory and Persuasion. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Meinos Posted October 29, 2006 Report Share Posted October 29, 2006 Re: A Renaissance Man Uh... isn't the first step to ask what a Renaissance Man means in non-game terms in the specific instance being statted? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
L. Marcus Posted October 29, 2006 Report Share Posted October 29, 2006 Re: A Renaissance Man "One who knows everything," basically. I think OddHat came closest. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark Rand Posted October 29, 2006 Author Report Share Posted October 29, 2006 Re: A Renaissance Man I'm hoping to have the team's Department of Homeland Security representative be a Renaissance man. He played baseball and football in high school and college and was a member of his high school debate club. In college, he attended law school and joined the NROTC. He is still a reserve member of the JAG corps. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
L. Marcus Posted October 29, 2006 Report Share Posted October 29, 2006 Re: A Renaissance Man How about the sciences? Those are a vital part of a Renaissance Man's portfolio. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OddHat Posted October 29, 2006 Report Share Posted October 29, 2006 Re: A Renaissance Man I'm hoping to have the team's Department of Homeland Security representative be a Renaissance man. He played baseball and football in high school and college and was a member of his high school debate club. In college, he attended law school and joined the NROTC. He is still a reserve member of the JAG corps. So now you have his basic skill set. He has high-normal base stats, maybe a simple HtH martial art, a few combat skill levels and weapon familiarities, Scholar, and maybe Jack of all trades. Under Scholar and JoAT he gets KSs and PSs for sports and military and legal training. 200 points or less, maybe 150. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Villianous Scum Posted October 29, 2006 Report Share Posted October 29, 2006 Re: A Renaissance Man That sounds like a good start. Hes both physically and intellectually accomplished. I would give the man Linguist and provide him with several languages hes fluent in. I would also give him a fair bit of knowledge of the geography, history and culture of the nations those languages are from. Since hes going for National security I would give him psychology and sociology skills. Hes a man that tries to think like his adversary so he can counter his crimes rather than react to them. Hes a man that understands human nature and how to motivate others. I would give him a healthy amount of scientific knowledge in fields such as Biology, Chemisty, and Physics especially how these powers relate to super powers or acts of terrorism. He could run down a list of random stolen chemical heist around the nation and relaize that the villians makeing X for example. He doesn't have to relie on reports he knows how to apply all the science himself. To round him out I would give him great taste in foods and wines. A contemporary sense of style and fashion would also fit him. He should always be impecably dressed. I might also give him an extensive knowledge of baseball or football stats and history as a hobby. Just my thoughts on a Renassance man in the role your wanting him in. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BNakagawa Posted October 29, 2006 Report Share Posted October 29, 2006 Re: A Renaissance Man I've never been fond of meta-skills like KS: Everything. It devalues anyone else's points in any specific KS. Also, I like to employ a 'negative space' philosophy of character creation. In other words, what a character can't/won't do is just as defining as what they can/will. Using that approach, a character with a well-rounded set of knowledges and other skills might be interesting. A character who knows and does everything isn't. I mean, other than increasing combat effectiveness, what can a character with: KS: Everything, 35- SS: All Human Science, 35- AK: Everyplace, 35- PS: Every Job, 35- improve? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OddHat Posted October 29, 2006 Report Share Posted October 29, 2006 Re: A Renaissance Man I mean, other than increasing combat effectiveness, what can a character with: KS: Everything, 35- SS: All Human Science, 35- AK: Everyplace, 35- PS: Every Job, 35- improve? Depends on the other characters and the campaign. Sometimes the pollymath master of all knowledge is useful, sometimes he overshadows the other PCs, and sometimes he's a waste of points. There's always a division in HERO between what can be done in the system and what should be done in a given game. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark Rand Posted October 29, 2006 Author Report Share Posted October 29, 2006 Re: A Renaissance Man I forgot to tell you the man's name and who I'd cast as him. The name, John Masters. The actor, James Earl Jones. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vondy Posted October 29, 2006 Report Share Posted October 29, 2006 Re: A Renaissance Man Know Stuff 20- Do Stuff 20- Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Powerhouse Posted October 30, 2006 Report Share Posted October 30, 2006 Re: A Renaissance Man An Overall level or two would be a rather good idea since he's good at everything pretty much. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ranxerox Posted October 30, 2006 Report Share Posted October 30, 2006 Re: A Renaissance Man History is littered with real life Renaissance men and the present day even has some running around. So obviously, it is not necessary to 'know everything' or 'do everything' to be a Renaissance man becuase no real person could know or do everything. It is my understanding of the term Renaissance man, that it denotes someone with accomplishments in art, science and the public sphere, and generally their accomplishments in at least one of these areas should be truely significant. A important job with the DoHS should cover the public sphere requirement. Now all that you have to do is add some significant science skills and an art, or significant art skills and a science. To add character you might want to pick an offbeat or unusual art or science to round the character such as video game design or entomology. Of course that is to meet the minimun bar claim to claim the title Renaissance man. Since this is a game based on comic books you might want be a less realistic in your Renaissance man's scope of accomplishments. For an example character of a comic book level Renaissance man, I would like to recommend Susano's write-up of Buckeroo Banzai.http://surbrook.devermore.net/adaptionsmovie/buckaroo.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lucius Posted October 30, 2006 Report Share Posted October 30, 2006 Re: A Renaissance Man I forgot to tell you the man's name and who I'd case as him. The name, John Masters. The actor, James Earl Jones. Distinctive Features: Unmistakable voice PRE: 20+ Oratory at a high level Lucius Alexander The palindromedary notes that if Mr. Alexander did not enjoy being Mr. Alexander so much, he'd want to be Mr. Jones. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vondy Posted October 30, 2006 Report Share Posted October 30, 2006 Re: A Renaissance Man More seriously: I'm going to take a different tack. I don't think a renaissance man needs to be conversant and/or accomplished in every discipline of arts and sciences under the sun. The historical renaissance men certainly weren't. The term merely denotes someone who has broad intellectual interests and is accomplished in both the arts and the sciences. I think an investment in several arts and sciences based skills is sufficient. Being multi-lingual would be good, but probably isn't strictly necessary. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike W Posted October 30, 2006 Report Share Posted October 30, 2006 Re: A Renaissance Man In the traditional sense, give him several well rounded skills, including some knowledges. Make sure to give him Etiquette, Dancing, and some Contacts. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark Rand Posted October 30, 2006 Author Report Share Posted October 30, 2006 Re: A Renaissance Man John is fluent in French, Spanish, Italian, Hebrew, and Arabic and he has contacts in several foreign countries. He and his wife, Ann, a former trauma surgeon, she was downsized out of a job with the George Washington University Hospital's emergency department, enjoy ballroom dancing and the opera. Additionally, for a number of years, he performed stage magic with her as his assistant. Ann herself is a fellow of the American College of Surgeons and is fluent in Latin. She is knowledgable in the medical aspects of the physical sciences and is comfortable in the clinical laboratory. She is also a fan of figure skating. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zornwil Posted October 31, 2006 Report Share Posted October 31, 2006 Re: A Renaissance Man More seriously: I'm going to take a different tack. I don't think a renaissance man needs to be conversant and/or accomplished in every discipline of arts and sciences under the sun. The historical renaissance men certainly weren't. The term merely denotes someone who has broad intellectual interests and is accomplished in both the arts and the sciences. I think an investment in several arts and sciences based skills is sufficient. Being multi-lingual would be good, but probably isn't strictly necessary. Depends how literal we are. I've had teachers (incorrect, obviously) refer to, IIRC, Ben Franklin or Thomas Jefferson as the las Renaissance men because they knew everything that there was to know at that time in the West, and that after their time the knowledge base grew too quickly for anyone to master knowledge as they did. So if you take that (let's say) cinematic view, an OddHat-ish approach would make some sense, but I would tailor it a bit to require Inventor or such to do new things in addition, basing the KSes/SSes on "That which is already discovered" or something. That being said, whether it's a good or bad idea depends on the game. I have 2 ridiculously high INT PCs who do sort of know everything about certain subjects, and use negatives in the same fashion as FH suggests re area knowledges. However, the players are good enough to be sure they leave some areas for others, though it is a balancing act to not let it dominate. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maelstrom Posted October 31, 2006 Report Share Posted October 31, 2006 Re: A Renaissance Man When I think of a renaissance man, I always think of Sir Philip (bleeding) Sydney -- warrior, poet, statesman. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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