Fading Stars...when and why should superheroes retire?

[GoldenAge]

Re: Fading Stars...when and why should superheroes retire?

 

I created you??? YOU CREATED ME!!!!!

 

Perhaps our heroes have discovered this to be true. Their subsequent retirement reduces paranormal criminal activity to near nothing. Until....

[Hermit]

Re: Fading Stars...when and why should superheroes retire?

 

Beat you by a hair.

 

I've had these thoughts many times, but they hit me most in a game when I was playing a genius inventor power suit. The GM wanted a long down-time post, and I realized that just about anything my character would be doing in his off time would be far more useful than fighting some bad guy.

 

With some heroes, I could see them worrying that the repercussions of a big good act could be harder to control. The weather control is a good example.

 

With the super-inventor, it's just silly. Why work on making your force field belt a tad better when you could, say invent the greatest imaginable water filter, thereby saving tens of thousands of children every day?

I think, in comics, that occurs because the world changes to be increasingly unrecognizable. Think of someone like Teleios as a good guy. You could probably kiss cancer good bye. Tony Stark actually providing cheaper but stury powered armor to the military and law enforcement? They did a "what if" on that, and it had many of the results you'd expect. Weather controllers dedicated to fighting acts of nature means your Nashville might never have gotten flooded, and so on. Comic book companies sometimes seem reluctant to allow that large degree of drift. Though I'm sure there are exceptions...

 

Game Masters can and do play a little faster and looser with their settings, so that's more likely. I'm not sure I'm ready to make such major changes TOO common place, but unless (Frex) earth quake nullification is a common ability, or so on, I doubt that's a major concern.

 

You guys have given me a LOT of options here, some I thought of and was glad to see they weren't too far out there, others I admit, I missed. I think I've got enough to go on as to the whys, and a few even help me firm up "Who" these retiring heroes might be.

 

On that, there are still a lot of options.

 

If I base it in San Francisco, according to one Champions Universe update in 5th Edition, there was a superhero team fading while younger more vital teams carried on the work.

 

Other options would be to take some of the 4th Edition Champions characters, and use them. A fifty year old Seeker might be perfect for a martial artist hero who's body has taken too much punishment, and is now slowing down. Quantum might be running for office on tougher laws against criminals, and pro mutant rights. Obsidian might be required to return to his home planet and finally take up rulership.

 

Or I could use the Protectors from "To Serve and Protect" (One of my favorites) but regardless, it might be a kick to 'upgrade/retcon and retire' them for a game use.

[Christopher]

Re: Fading Stars...when and why should superheroes retire?

 

I still have ideas:

The cursed power. A power with its own mind (preferebly a cursed weapon). Can't do anything alone and only very few are "destined" to wield it (one every other generation).

On the pro side, it makes you immune to aging and similar things (anything but dying). The downside is, it tries to take over your mind (with the sole result of going berserk) and suddenly a lot of people are after you (the weapon is an enemy-magnet). Of course you can't loose or destroy it. So there are basically two paths for the end of your career:

a) the weapon takes over, goes beserk and someone has to kill you to stop you (making the power dormant for some time)

you get killed before option a) can happen (only a little bit better than option a, but most heroes prefer that)

 

Of course this could also aply to a local protection legacy hero that always faces such unspeakable horros, every one so far has been driven mad.

[Hermit]

Re: Fading Stars...when and why should superheroes retire?

 

I still have ideas:....

 

By all means, folks, while I now have plenty to consider, keep em coming as long as you like. Worse thing that can happen so far is we get a lot of amazing brainstorming and maybe an enjoyable conversation

[Certified]

Re: Fading Stars...when and why should superheroes retire?

 

While a lot of ground has been covered already let me see if I can hit on a few things that may have been overlooked.

 

Disabled: While it's one thing to imagine a super hero killed saving the day rarely do we see them crippled for life. Batgirl being a notable exception. This may be the gold standard for disabled heroes as the character was totally reinvented over the years and some consider her much more interesting as Oracle than she ever was as Batgirl.

 

Called Home: Some super heroes are emissaries form other cultures such as Wonder Woman. At some point they may need to return home.

 

Power Evolution (Variant): As has been mentioned sometimes a heroes powers just get too strong and they are forced to leave to for the good of all. A variant of this is when powers change in a way that's unexpected. While this may fall in the crippled example in an alternate Marvel future Mr. Fantastic lost his ability to remain rigid becoming a constant shifting mass, While he retained his intellect he could no longer be an active hero.

[Christopher]

Re: Fading Stars...when and why should superheroes retire?

 

I think something we overlooked so far (except for age and family based retirement) are "mundane" resons you can get disabeled/unable to do your profession:

Normal diseases and injury's, being caught in a normal accident, or "after all the villians I fought, the one that gets me is a random robber that caught me in my secrect identity".

 

This can have an ironic side:

Image the ultimate electro-suite hero, one of the most powerfull beacons of heroism. Suddenly he disapeared. Not even his teammates know why, since he never called again and his suite was never found. There a dozens of rumors and wild guesses what hapened to him.

No image your "uncle", sitting in a wheelchair ever since he fell from the ladder, after getting a electro schock while installing a new Ceiling Lamp.

Now imagine you find the electro-suite in your uncles posessions.

[Clonus]

Re: Fading Stars...when and why should superheroes retire?

 

Succumbing to psychological illness. This can sometimes lead to face-heel changes or undue berserking, but sometimes it just leads to being as useless as Sentry.

 

Accused of a crime with or without the best of intentions or factual innocence, and being too occupied with fighting the charges and/or serving the term.

 

Being still young and vigorous but developing a personality conflict with team-mates that lead to heading out on your own.

 

Getting a better offer, to be a member of a more prestigious team or to lead a government backed team or something.

 

Distracted by civilian career

 

Flop sweat. A series of demoralizing failures and mistakes leads to the character deciding it's better to take a long break before he gets someone killed.

[Peregrine]

Re: Fading Stars...when and why should superheroes retire?

 

Simple psychological maturity - it is the natural cycle to pass from action to leadership to mentorship, allowing those reins to pass in turn to those who come after. Honestly, I think this is being explored in the Batman, Incorporated story that DC is running these days. Bruce Wayne is standing fully in the second phase, and moving into the third. While he has not completely left the first (due to metastory marketing concerns), his overall perspective has shifted from "This is my fight, and I must fight it; anyone who wants to stand with me must be extensions of myself, so that I can control them, because this is my fight." to "I have a family who are, each in their own way, committed to this fight. They look up to me, and I have to honor that. It's our fight, and my role has changed because of them."

[hfergus]

Re: Fading Stars...when and why should superheroes retire?

 

I didn't see a reason one of mine, an unaging mage, would have. Boredom. "Not another world conquerer! This last one, the up and comers will have to handle the next one."

 

Olorin, the mentioned mage, has gone through the following things at least twice, some more thanthat: Adventuring (heroing), magic research, just wondering around (multiple worlds and dimensions), mentoring, and getting married. (once raising a family.)

[Tom]

Re: Fading Stars...when and why should superheroes retire?

 

I 'retired' one hero to be a father to his child, though he's still on call and helping train the younger generation.

 

My first PC effectively took a promotion from the center seat (to borrow from Trek). When his mentor died, he found he'd been named the man's heir. All of a sudden, he had other responsibilities and he could no longer afford the risks of field action. What he was doing was too important to the big picture, and there was nobody on tap to replace him if he got himself killed.

[The Nexus]

Re: Fading Stars...when and why should superheroes retire?

 

While this is covered with other ideas, but Strikeforce:Morturari came to mind. It doesn't really work with a "normal" comics world where powers can come from anywhere, but if you wanted a common place for powers, there you go. The heroes don't have to die either, maybe their bodies will only last a year before the powers are rejected (or have to be removed).

[Christopher]

Re: Fading Stars...when and why should superheroes retire?

 

While this is covered with other ideas' date=' but Strikeforce:Morturari came to mind. It doesn't really work with a "normal" comics world where powers can come from anywhere, but if you wanted a common place for powers, there you go. The heroes don't have to die either, maybe their bodies will only last a year before the powers are rejected (or have to be removed).[/quote']

There was at least one Stargate episode with similar theme: Artifacts that gave you superpowers (especially superspeed, supherstrenght, superspeed eyes), but only worked for a certain time and afterwards you were "immune" against them. It may still work on a single hero, when the source of his powers have a timelimit.

 

Another Idea:

It could be that major members of the team (or even the entire team) was artificially created like the Ultimen from JLU. Perhaps after some kind of selection like "Milenium City's next Supherhero". You get powers for some years, but then they fade and you continue to live normal. Also, while the process usually defines the "Special Effect", what you get (Brick, EP) is pretty much random or depends on the one receiving the treatment.

Of course, side effect would may be a negative reputation amongst other heros ("It's the tv-team"), some fame among the populace ("It's the MCnSH-Team. Whooo!") and a team set of arch enemys ("They are not match for the last team. This time the revenge and fame will be mine.")

 

Edit: This doesn't mean the Show is the only way to get in. Perhaps the moneygiver stopped the show, one or more of the Secret Formulas got destroyed or the current member using them got evil/bad reputation. Now the old team is basically "dying out" with no successors, or their ranks are so thin they need "normal" superheros.

[kahuna's bro]

Re: Fading Stars...when and why should superheroes retire?

 

sometimes a her could tire due too legal problems as in the watchmen

[Cassandra]

Re: Fading Stars...when and why should superheroes retire?

 

Given the timeline you metioned, maybe the heroes retired at the end of the Cold War.

[GoldenAge]

Re: Fading Stars...when and why should superheroes retire?

 

"Questions... Morphology? Longevity? Incept dates?"

 

"More human than human" is our motto.

[sinanju]

Re: Fading Stars...when and why should superheroes retire?

 

"Been there, done that." The hero(ine) is just...tired of dressing up in a costume and trolling for bad guys. It was fun for a while, then she got into doing good because it was the right thing to do, not just for the adrenaline rush. But now it's...a job. A job she realizes she hates. And it's not like there aren't plenty of other heroes out there now to take up the slack.

 

Time to try something else. Maybe pursue a career you didn't have time for when you were moonlighting as a superhero. Or raise a family. Or just enjoy the relative peace and quiet of "only" having a full time job (not full time job in your secret identity plus crimefighting).

 

Or maybe your name just doesn't fit anymore. Calling yourself "Iron Maiden" works when you're twenty-two*. It's not so charming when you're forty-two. And "Iron Matron" just doesn't have the same ring to it. Ditto for Kid Flash, Robin, etc.

 

*And it may not be technically true then, if you're not a virgin, but so what?

[DrDestiny]

Re: Fading Stars...when and why should superheroes retire?

 

--You quit because it is time for you to go back to... ... the place of no-coffee.

 

The horror, the HORROR!

[Hermit]

Re: Fading Stars...when and why should superheroes retire?

 

Given the timeline you metioned' date=' maybe the heroes retired at the end of the Cold War.[/quote']

 

That could certainly be it. In the back of my head, there's even an image of a hero who ages at half the normal rate finally too old to keep going despite that. If I develop him, that would mean a lot of experence during the entirity of the cold war

 

kind of kirk like "No more netraul zone"

[dmjalund]

Re: Fading Stars...when and why should superheroes retire?

 

Calling yourself "Iron Maiden" works when you're twenty-two. It's not so charming when you're forty-two.

It worked for Margret Thatcher

[Hermit]

Re: Fading Stars...when and why should superheroes retire?

 

Ok. thanks folks. you've helped me make up my mind on something...

and I may even be starting a new 6th Edition campaign using the Protectors (From Scott Heine's excellnt "To Serve and Protect") as the fading stars, and a modified "Bay City" as the setting. I may start a new thread to hammer out my thoughts,a nd continue to rip you good people off if you pipe in.

 

Many thanks

[SKJAM!]

Re: Fading Stars...when and why should superheroes retire?

 

"I got cured," for those people who were only super because of a horrible mutation or curse (or at least they considered it a curse...) Sure, they might miss the crimefighting and saving the world aspects of the job, but ex-Monstroid can walk down the street without making people recoil in fear, hold down a day job--heck, he's even able to date again, though he's awful rusty at that.

 

One Astro City issue was about a speedster who retired because while he was still as physically fast as ever, his brain had aged, slowing his thinking so that he wasn't as creative and able to outthink his opponents any more.

 

And of course, many of the superteam's old villains will face similar issues over the years, with a higher percentage of "got convicted and spent a few decades in prison." It just so happens that their legacies have now passed to younger, stronger villains, plus a few new ones that spring from current events. By perverse conincidence, all these new baddies show up within a couple of months of each other, just as the old good guys are feeling their age.

[Tasha]

Re: Fading Stars...when and why should superheroes retire?

 

A scientist superhero realizing that research will help more people than going out to beat up that bad guy.

 

A Hero(ine) who's powers have hit the next level. Deciding that fighting crime on earth isn't as important as helping the people of the Galaxy from those truly nasty threats. or perhaps even deciding on going exploring to see what is out there

 

BTW in CNM The Marksman has retired due to an leg injury recieved during the last epic all hands on deck vs every villain and the cosmic nasty. He decides to use his money to finance superteams in his Normal ID. Also, Challenger has retired and is also training kids at Hero High school.

 

So perhaps some older hero(ine)s retire to persue teaching/ training the next generation of heroes.

 

Scientist hero makes millions off of their patents, decides to retire the supersuit and enjoy their new wealth.

[Hermit]

Re: Fading Stars...when and why should superheroes retire?

 

Good stuff, guys. As you can see in the other thread, I've been utilizing quite a few of your suggestions. A few are grimmer than I originally wanted, but omelets, eggs, and game-mastering.

[Karmakaze]

Re: Fading Stars...when and why should superheroes retire?

 

 

At first it was just going to be maternity leave, you know? Stretch kevlar's not all that forgiving, and it's kind of irresponsible to be fighting crime when you're four months pregnant. Not to mention the time-consuming search for an obsetrician who could work around my unique metabolic needs. And then Louise came along, and took after me maybe a bit too much. We got it all sorted out - good thing Dr. Franklin has nerves of steel - but it was a while before I could think about anything else, and then Frank, Jr. was coming along, and I guess I realized I was never going back to full-time heroics. A couple of teams still have my number for the big emergenices, but it's been more of a once-a-year thing.

 

Lou's going to be eighteen next year. When she found my stuff I made her promise to hold off until her 18th birthday, and in return I'd get her trained up and geared up. I guess now I've got to let her do it. Frank's laughing at me - he says its karma for all the sleepless nights I gave him back in the day. I'm going to have to brush up my skills, maybe even check up on who's active out there these days. My baby's going to need backup...

[Blue]

Re: Fading Stars...when and why should superheroes retire?

 

When they can no longer fulfill the duties required.

When they become more of a hazard than a help.

 

If the person is able to pass on their powers then it may make sense to pass it on in their waning years to a legacy hero.

 

The only retired hero in my campaign is Paragon, the most powerful hero in the world. He wore a suit of armor that slowly was killing him. His infimaties are to the point where he risks his life by merely firing up the suit. He will one day go out in a blaze of glory, I'm certain, but for now he's a retired pilot and mechanic at the campaign city's municipal airport.

 

Uncle Slam's end is nigh. Mind you it could be a long time before I run again, but I've built in... well.. planned obselecense to the character. He is a symbol, and when his time is done someone else becomes the symbol. He's been it since the late 1800's. New times call for new symbols.

 

Most of my characters though will do it til the bitter end.