How to golden age

[Nothere]

Awhile back I made a street level campaign with low stat heroes and villians. The first few villians I made had a golden age feel to them, but I wasn't sure I could really capture the golden age. So I just said the campaign was golden agey, not golden age. How would you go about doing a golden age sort of game?

 

Two of the things I did was to have the supervillians off on their own with plenty of goons, and not require a code vs killing, but not allow casual killings. Even Batman and Captain America had guns at the start of their carrer, but while heores of that age might not care if the villain died they didn't wait outside their house to kill them.

[st barbara]

Golden Age heroes tend to often be VERY powerful (several of the magic using types, such as "The Spectre") or no more than trained human level ("Wildcat", "The Atom" etc). Because of World War II, evil nazi's were very common, as were brilliant scientists, both good and bad ("Lex Luthor" or " Dr Thaddeus Sirvana" for examples of evil scientists , I suppose that "Batman" or "Dr Mid Nite " would be science oriented heroes (I know I should look for a better example, but I can't find one easily right now ).

[assault]

A lot of Golden Age stuff was basically pulp fiction. In particular, hard boiled detective fiction, plus science fiction, horror, etc. I hesitate to mention romance.

 

If you have nothing else better to do, throw them up against an alien invasion, or a Cthulhu mythos monster.

[bubba smith]

I like the idea behind this thread

[TheQuestionMan]

It does nit matter if you are a 400 pt chatacter or a 4000 pt character. They all taste the same to great chtulhu.

[pinecone]

A lot of Golden Age stuff was basically pulp fiction. In particular, hard boiled detective fiction, plus science fiction, horror, etc. I hesitate to mention romance.

 

If you have nothing else better to do, throw them up against an alien invasion, or a Cthulhu mythos monster.

That could work, the Ratzies are so depraved, they are in cahoots with Migo.

[Christopher R Taylor]

Enforcing period stuff helps: study history, having them interact with real events, emphasize the differences back then (it took days, not seconds, for news to travel in many cases.  Phone calls were a hassle that took quite a while to connect to any distance, and went through people running switchboards, airplanes and cars were still amazing to people, etc).

 

So does enforcing the genre.  good guys are GOOD not conflicted and full of angst.  Bad guys are BAD, not misled or technically good guys using the wrong methods, etc.  Heroes were beloved and appreciated, particularly by children.  The press praised them, not attacked.  Nobody protested Hero Guy, they hugged him.  Bad guys knew they were wrong but did it anyway.  Love of country, family, mom, etc was normal and praised.

[bubba smith]

  good guys are GOOD not conflicted and full of angst.  Bad guys are BAD, not misled or technically good guys using the wrong methods, etc.  Heroes were beloved and appreciated, particularly by children.  The press praised them, not attacked.  Nobody protested Hero Guy, they hugged him.  Bad guys knew they were wrong but did it anyway.  Love of country, family, mom, etc was normal and praised

 

 

 

 

 

this is what I like about the super hero genre

[assault]

Namor was both hero and villain, leading to a fight with the Human Torch.

 

Running into a young person who was being lead astray was quite possible.

 

Some villains could reform. Wonder Woman's enemy Paula Von Gunther was a fairly extreme case.

 

Batman rarely put in much of an effort to catch Catwoman, as opposed to thwarting her crimes.

 

Some heroes were basically monsters, except for who their victims were.

[CaptnStrawberry]

I find Golden Age villains to be woefully underpowered compared to most of the heroes.  In many cases, they're ordinary gangsters.  In other cases, they may have mesmerism, a cult of followers, or large amounts of money.  But toe to toe they will never win a stand-up fight.  They have to be sneaky and underhanded, and/or rely on armies of minions.  Maybe there are exceptions, but supervillains in the modern sense, and supervillain teams, would have to wait for the Silver Age.  In a way, though, that makes them underdogs and easier to root for (imo, anyway!).

[Christopher R Taylor]

Also, most of the time, golden age heroes are pretty gullible and trusting.  They're such honest good guys they never would lie, so they trust others.

 

There are two kinds though: the pulp guys who happen to be in golden age comics (Batman, the Shadow, etc) and the Golden Age Superheroes (Superman, Captain Marvel, The Atom, etc).  The pulp guys follow pulp rules.  The heroes follow hero rules.  So you can choose between these two options .

[assault]

If a hero does run into a villain who can go toe to toe with them, the best thing to do is try to outsmart them rather than outfight them.

 

The classic example was Black Adam, who was suckered into saying "Shazam!".

[SteelCold]

The Golden Age was the time where the dumber the origin, the better the hero or villain. ("Your character was stung by bees that drink from the mystical fountain of youth and that gave you the power to shape change into any animal every time you say the magic words - PONCE DE LEON! - three times in a row? Works for me.")

[phydaux]

good guys are GOOD not conflicted and full of angst.  Bad guys are BAD, not misled or technically good guys using the wrong methods, etc.  Heroes were beloved and appreciated, particularly by children.  The press praised them, not attacked.  Nobody protested Hero Guy, they hugged him.  Bad guys knew they were wrong but did it anyway.  Love of country, family, mom, etc was normal and praised.

 

That all sounds kinda more like Silver Age.

[Cassandra]

Awhile back I made a street level campaign with low stat heroes and villians. The first few villians I made had a golden age feel to them, but I wasn't sure I could really capture the golden age. So I just said the campaign was golden agey, not golden age. How would you go about doing a golden age sort of game?

 

Two of the things I did was to have the supervillians off on their own with plenty of goons, and not require a code vs killing, but not allow casual killings. Even Batman and Captain America had guns at the start of their carrer, but while heores of that age might not care if the villain died they didn't wait outside their house to kill them.

 

The best example of this with a large dose of Camp is the Batman Adam West TV series.  He was a "duly deputized agent of law" and cooperated with the police.  The villains would capture the heroes and put them in a "Death Trap", and had their own Followers (Four with names, and another four who only show up in the fight).

 

The first season of Wonder Woman is actual set during World War Two, and has all the family friendly elements of a Golden Age campaign.

[Cassandra]

Also, most of the time, golden age heroes are pretty gullible and trusting.  They're such honest good guys they never would lie, so they trust others.

 

There are two kinds though: the pulp guys who happen to be in golden age comics (Batman, the Shadow, etc) and the Golden Age Superheroes (Superman, Captain Marvel, The Atom, etc).  The pulp guys follow pulp rules.  The heroes follow hero rules.  So you can choose between these two options .

 

A good opportunity for Role Playing Conflict between the Superhero (Superman, Captain Marvel, Wonder Woman) and the Crime Fighter (Batman, Spy Smasher, Wildcat).

[Cassandra]

Golden Age Heroine

 

Lady Liberty

 

Val Char Cost

50 STR 40

18 DEX 24

25 CON 30

10 BODY 0

13 INT 3

18 EGO 16

15 PRE 5

20 COM 5

15 PD 5

15 ED 10

4 SPD 12

15 REC 0

50 END 0

48 STUN 0

Total Characteristics Cost: 150 Points

 

Cost Skills

2 AK: New York City 11-

3 Combat Piloting [Combat Aircraft] 13-

3 Fast Draw 13-

2 Lang: Fluent French

5 Money: Well Off

2 Navigation [Air] 12-

2 PS: Aviator 11-

2 Rep: Patriotic Heroine 11-

2 Rep: World Famous Aviator 11-

2 TF: Large Aircraft, Small Aircraft

Total Skills Cost: 25 Points

 

Cost Powers

25 Multipower (50 Points) OAF: Crystal Flame Torch (-1)

2 u) EGO Attack 5d6

2 u) EB [Light] 10d6

2 u) Mind Control 10d6

1 u) Transform: Instant Change [Any]

7 ES: Radio Perception/Transmit, IAF: Crown Radio (-1/2)

15 EC [Magic]-15 Points

10 1) Flight 10", Variable Advantages (+1/2), [[invisible [Hearing], Megascale [1km], 1/2 END, or Use Underwater Only (-1/4)]], IIF: Golden Sandals (-1/4)

10 2) FF +10 rPD +10 rED, No END (+1/2), OIF: Book Shield (-1/2)

1 LS: Longevity [200 Years]

Total Powers Cost: 75 Points

 

Total Cost: 250 Points

 

150+ Disadvantages

15 Hunted: Countess Claudia von Kruel (As Powerful/NCI) 8-

10 Hunted: Leopard (As Powerful) 8-

10 Hunted: U.S. Army Air Force (More Powerful/NCI/Watch) 8-

20 PsyL: Code Of The Hero (Very Common/Strong)

20 PsyL: Superpatriot (Common/Total)

10 SocL: Secret Identity [Laura Lockhart] (Occasionally/Major)

15 Vuln: Ambushes/Treacherous Attacks, 1 1/2x STUN (Very Common)

Total Disadvantages Cost: 250 Points

 

Origin:  Laura Lockhart was a World Famous Aviator who while flying over the Pacific on a solo flight discovered a secret Axis base.  An unmarked fighter pursued her unarmed plane and it was only her skill as a pilot that kept her from being shot down.  The two planes flew over a mysterious island and Laura and the Nazi Pilot found themselves in the Realm of the Ancients.  Aphrodite, Athena, and Artemis questions the two of them and after the Nazi showed contempt for the three Goddesses he was cast out.  Impressed by Laura's skill and poise the three Goddess offered her the chance to fight the growing Axis threat.  Aphrodite gave her a Magic Torch, Athena gave her a Book Shaped Shield, and Artemis gave her a pair of Magic Sandals.   Returning to New York Laura Lockhart fights for Forces of Evil as Lady Liberty!

 

Powers:  Lady Liberty has superhuman strength and durability, but is no bulletproof herself, relying on her indestructible Book Shield for additional protection.  Her Crystal Flame Torch gives off three different light beams, destructive Red beams, Mind Controlling White Beams, and Sleep Inducing Blue Beams, and she is the only one who can activate her Torch's powers.  The Golden Sandals allow her to flight up to ten times the speed of sound, and move silently.  Her friend and fellow aviator Stephen Clark built a hidden radio in her Spiked Crown.  After being caught off guard once and captured Laura convinced some Axis agents that her Crown was the source of her power.  In actuality besides the radio all the Crown does is keep her hair our of her eyes

 

Appearance:  Laura Lockhart is a 29 year old woman with red hair, and blues eyes.  She is 5'8", and 150 lbs, and has an impressive figure.  Her costume is a long white sleeveless dress with a Golden Crown, Belt, Sandals, and Bracelets.  On her right bracelet is a small Crystal Torch, and on her left bracelet a small Book Shaped Shield.  When she calls forth her Torch and Shield the crystals glow and they appear in her hands.  

 

Allies:  Nighthawk/Stephen Decatur Clark, Crime Fighter/Aviator.  American Eagle/James Davenport, Patriot Hero/U.S. Army Air Force Officer.

 

Enemies:  Countess Claudia von Kruel, German Aviator and Spy.  Leopard/Dr. Lenore Packard, Archaeologist and Criminal.

[Christopher R Taylor]

That all sounds kinda more like Silver Age.

 

Silver age was even more silly and juvenile.  The main bad guys were either wild nonsensical things, monsters, or communists.  Anti-communism was a huge theme.  Lots of sidekick kids and funny animals.  Stories were almost entirely self-contained without any reference or logic to other stories.  Nobody killed, ever, and nobody ever was seriously hurt.  Bad guys could be gigantically powerful but defeated through trickery.  People used their powers in simple, cartoonish ways.

[Cassandra]

Golden Age Villain

 

Medusa

 

Val Char Cost

15 STR 5

20 DEX 30

20 CON 20

10 BODY 0

13 INT 3

20 EGO 20

15 PRE 5

18 COM 4

5 PD 2

5 ED 1

4 SPD 10

7 REC 0

40 END 0

28 STUN 0

Total Characteristics Cost: 100 Points

 

Cost Skills

3 Conversation 12-

3 High Society 12-

2 KS: Greek Mythology 11-

4 Lang: Native English

0 Lang: Native Greek

5 Money: Well Off

2 Navigation [Ground] 12-

3 Persuasion 12-

3 Seduction 12-

Total Skills Cost: 25 Points

 

Cost Powers

20 Armor +10 rPD +10 rED, Linked [Density Increase] (-1/2)

31 Density Increase: Mass 3200kg, STR +25, KNB -5", PD +5, ED +5, Cost END Only To Activate (+1/2)

10 ES: N-Ray Sight [Magic]

50 Multipower (50 Points)

5 u) EB [snake Venom] 5d6, NND [LS: Self Contained] (+1)

3 u) Entangle 2d6 DEF 2, Based On Ego Combat Value (+1), Takes No Damage From Physical Attacks (+1/4), Works Against EGO Not STR (+1/4), Eye Contact Required (-1/2)

5 u) Teleport 10", 4x Mass, 8x NCM, Safe Blind Teleport (+1/4)

1 u) Transform: Instant Change [Any]

Total Powers Cost: 125 Points

 

Total Cost: 250 Points

 

150+ Disadvantages 

10 Hunted: Athena (As Powerful) 8-

10 Hunted: Hera (As Powerful) 8-

15 Hunted: United Superheroes of America (More Powerful) 8-

20 Normal Characteristics Maxima

20 PsyL: Greedy (Very Common/Strong)

15 PsyL: Overconfidence (Very Common/Moderate)

10 SocL: Secret Identity [Melinda Ursula Gorgan] (Occasionally/Major)

Total Disadvantages Cost: 250 Points

 

Origin:  Melissa Ursula Gorgan is the actual Medusa from Ancient Myth.  She was freed from her stone imprisonment by a wealthy Archaeologist who she seduced in marrying him.  After he died in an accident she lived as a wealthy socialite but her wicked ways lead her to a life of crime.

 

Appearance:  Medusa is an attractive brunette with green eyes who wears a long green sleeveless gown, with gold belt, bracelets, and sandals.  When she used her Density Increase she appears to turn to stone.  Her eyes glow when she uses her Entangle and her victim seems to turn to stone.  Holographic Snakes appear when she used her EB NND and spray her victim with venom.

 

Allies:  Hecate.  Medea.

 

Enemies:  Athena.  Hera.  United Superheroes of America.  

[Cassandra]

Golden Age Elements

 

1.  Sidekicks - Many superheroes of the era had sidekicks.  Some were teens in an effort by the publisher to give the reader someone to identify with.  Classic examples are Robin (Batman), Speedy (Green Arrow), Sandy (Sandman), Bucky (Captain America), Toro (Human Torch).  Some of the more intelligent superheroes had a female sidekick who not only served as a love interest but occasionally a damsel in distress.  Heroes with female sidekicks include Sub-Mariner (Namora), Hawkman (Hawkgirl), and Flash (Joan Williams).  

 

2. Non-Costumed Villains - The majority of the villains in the comics were spies or gangsters.  They may have aliases but generally dressed normally.  Usually they either had one powerful weapon, or relied on threatening innocents to keep the hero at bay.

 

3.  Nazis - During the Golden Age the Nazis were the main enemy.  Even before the U.S. entered the war comic book characters like Captain America and Wonder Woman were taking on the Axis.  

 

4.  Death Traps -  If you read a "Team" comic like Justice Society you'll see that the member all go off on individual missions to meet the various threats.  During this missions the Hero discovers the true nature of the scheme only to be captured, usually because they are fighting fair and get struck by a cowardly blow from behind.  This would lead to the Hero waking up in peril, so have your Contortionist roll ready.

[pinecone]

That all sounds kinda more like Silver Age.

 

Silver age was even more silly and juvenile.  The main bad guys were either wild nonsensical things, monsters, or communists.  Anti-communism was a huge theme.  Lots of sidekick kids and funny animals.  Stories were almost entirely self-contained without any reference or logic to other stories.  Nobody killed, ever, and nobody ever was seriously hurt.  Bad guys could be gigantically powerful but defeated through trickery.  People used their powers in simple, cartoonish ways.

To a large part, the "Silver Age Was the Golden Age, Plus the Comics Code. In the Golden Age, local cops/politicoes might be corrupt, after the CC, authority figures can do no wrong. Left with fewer stories to tell, "silly" became more of a thing.

[Christopher R Taylor]

They also were banned from doing stories about vampires, showing authority figures being harmed, etc.  So a lot of stories were just flat off the table, which made them much more lame and restricted options for writers.

There still was some good stuff done but most of it got pretty awful.

[assault]

That all sounds kinda more like Silver Age.

 

Silver age was even more silly and juvenile.  The main bad guys were either wild nonsensical things, monsters, or communists.  Anti-communism was a huge theme.  Lots of sidekick kids and funny animals.  Stories were almost entirely self-contained without any reference or logic to other stories.  Nobody killed, ever, and nobody ever was seriously hurt.  Bad guys could be gigantically powerful but defeated through trickery.  People used their powers in simple, cartoonish ways.

 

A bit of a stereotype, which I don't think is supported by actual Silver Age comics.

 

Which were Dr Doom, Magneto, Lex Luthor and the Joker - wild nonsensical things, monsters, or communists?

 

Anti-communism was a thing at Marvel and some other companies, but close to absent at DC.

 

Sidekick kids - yes, plus teams entirely composed of teens (X-Men, Teen Titans).

 

Funny animals? They were there, but hardly a constant theme. (We're talking superhero stories, not Mickey Mouse, obviously.) The Weisinger Superman titles were the main "offenders" (Krypto, Streaky, Comet etc...), with a few in late 50s/early 60s Batman stories. The latter disappeared in the 1964 reboot.

 

Most stories were episodic, but loose continuity existed. On the other hand, characters tended to maintain a relatively consistent characterization over time.

 

Little explicit killing occurred. There was probably less implicit killing than in the Golden Age though.

 

Characters died. Some came back, foreshadowing the revolving door of modern comics. This resulted in some awesome stories, and some weak ones. An example of the former: the resurrection of Lightning Lad (Proty sacrifices himself). The latter: the return of Alfred (he was revealed to have been mentally affected by his "death" and had become a villain known as the Outsider blah blah blah).

 

Professor X was killed off in the X-Men. His much later return was an attempt to shore up a failing title.

 

The most awesome Silver Age death of all: the entire Doom Patrol.

 

It's true that most Bad Guys had to be out thought not outfought (regardless of power level). This was a feature, not a bug, IMHO.

 

Characters didn't just use their powers in "simple, cartoonish ways", but often in ways that were downright odd. The most powerful of them (Superman, Supergirl especially) sometimes played with their opponents, misdirecting and tricking them into disaster. On the other hand, characters rarely seemed to use their powers in a combat optimized manner.

[Christopher R Taylor]

Marvel broke the Silver Age mold, and changed everything.  Its a bit misleading to include that new wave of stuff into the Silver Age, although people do.

[CaptnStrawberry]

Seems the 'Age-lines' will always be in a state of blurriness.  I tend to think of most of the 50s as the 'Dark Age' of  comics.  Post-WW2, one superhero title after another folded, and the Comics Code in 1954 ushered in a deluge of banal romance and western comics.  The few hero titles that survived did slide into ultra-silliness; I think this was the era that Batman and Robin took frequent jaunts into outer space.  The renaissance, of course, started in the late 50s when DC introduced new versions of Flash and Green Lantern, laying the foundation for the phenomenon that was the Marvel Age of Comics (excelsior!!).