A New Setting

[Diamond Spear]

So which genre do you think is most in need of a fresh new setting? I’ve got that creative itch and thought I’d give working on a setting a crack. Now I just need a genre and can’t seem to settle on one so how about a little help? 

[Lord Liaden]

Personally, I'd like to see an "ultimate" Pulp setting. Criminal masterminds. Lost cities. Underground lands. Weird science. Extinct and fantastic species. Dark cults. Space-opera planets. Eugenic supermen. Feral humans. Psychic masters. The works.

[Duke Bushido]

Second on the Pulp setting!

 

However, since someone sold the Champions setting off, and let's face it: Millennium City gives some us of flashbacks of PTSD, maybe the flagship should have some water in which to float?

 

 

[Scott Ruggels]

I'd love an "Expanse" style setting, myself, Hoowever a remake of the proper Marvel Style universe and background to support the  flagships, yes, is probably necessary.

 

[Duke Bushido]

And here's one I'd like to see that likely won't happen:

 

How about a Low Fantasy Setting?  Or a Sci-Fant setting like Barsoom?

 

No idea why, but unless your actual rulebook is specifically for Low Fantasy (like Conan), players want absolutely nothing to do with it.

[Cygnia]

Asiatic setting that's not China or Japan?

[Duke Bushido]

5 minutes ago, Cygnia said:

Asiatic setting that's not China or Japan?

 

Don't let ---

 

you know, let's just say that there's a well-loved guy who I haven't seen around since I came back who might suffer real NND: Does BODY damage if he heard you say that.

 

But actually, yeah: that would be insanely cool!

[assault]

47 minutes ago, Cygnia said:

Asiatic setting that's not China or Japan?

 

South Asia (India etc) would be the obvious one.

 

Of course it covers a lot of ground and a lot of time, so it would be necessary to select "the good bits".

[assault]

57 minutes ago, Duke Bushido said:

And here's one I'd like to see that likely won't happen:

 

How about a Low Fantasy Setting?  Or a Sci-Fant setting like Barsoom?

 

No idea why, but unless your actual rulebook is specifically for Low Fantasy (like Conan), players want absolutely nothing to do with it.

 

This could be tied to the Pulp setting, Lands of Mystery style.

[Lord Liaden]

1 hour ago, assault said:

 

South Asia (India etc) would be the obvious one.

 

Of course it covers a lot of ground and a lot of time, so it would be necessary to select "the good bits".

 

A sizeable chunk of Hero Games's "Turakian Age" setting is culturally derived from Southeast Asia, specifically Indushara and Kumasia. Much more could be done with them.

[Lord Liaden]

8 hours ago, Duke Bushido said:

However, since someone sold the Champions setting off, and let's face it: Millennium City gives some us of flashbacks of PTSD, maybe the flagship should have some water in which to float?

 

I have to disagree. The official CU is both diverse yet detailed, with plenty of room for almost any type of supers game. It only lacks substantial updating since the Hero Games downsizing. The sale of the Champions IP to Cryptic/Perfect World hasn't prevented any of the subsequent publications of CU material. I don't think the Champions Online developers even pay attention any more to what our side of the hobby does.

 

And let's face it: would you rather live, work, and adventure in Millennium City, or Detroit?

[BoloOfEarth]

7 hours ago, Lord Liaden said:

And let's face it: would you rather live, work, and adventure in Millennium City, or Detroit?

 

A friend had a t-shirt that proclaimed  Detroit:  Where the weak are killed and eaten.

 

And Detroit was the setting of two of my first Champions campaigns.  The Heroes of Eastern Michigan ("Oh, no, it's THEM!") operated there for 4 years, and Vigilance for three years.  It's a great city for adventuring.  Living and working, maybe not so much.

[Diamond Spear]

Pulp sounds like a fun project. Makes me wonder if you could do a pulp setting but put it in the modern time frame. Thoughts on that?

[Scott Ruggels]

1 hour ago, Diamond Spear said:

Pulp sounds like a fun project. Makes me wonder if you could do a pulp setting but put it in the modern time frame. Thoughts on that?

 

Kind of defeats the feeling of Pulp, doesn't it?  Pulp doesn't survive Post Modernist attitudes and more's.

[Hermit]

1 hour ago, Diamond Spear said:

Pulp sounds like a fun project. Makes me wonder if you could do a pulp setting but put it in the modern time frame. Thoughts on that?

 

Depends on to what degree you want to do that.... in some ways, the early seasons of the Batman Animated Series of the 90s did just that. Computers and airships, old style cars, and mobsters with hats.

 

I never played it, but TORG had reality take overs IIRC, and one of them was Egypt overcome by a Pulp gone crazy sensiblities. That might be another resource for inspiration if you find bits on it. An outside agency 'reality warping' would certainly allow a reason for an enforced pulp feel on what would otherwise be modern day.

 

 

[Doc Democracy]

2 hours ago, Scott Ruggels said:

 

Kind of defeats the feeling of Pulp, doesn't it?  Pulp doesn't survive Post Modernist attitudes and more's.

 

I guess you could up the tech of a pulp setting to be more modern but have the mores and attitudes of the 1920's.  Pulp included SF and so it would depend on what you mean by a modern time frame.

[Scott Ruggels]

13 minutes ago, Doc Democracy said:

 

I guess you could up the tech of a pulp setting to be more modern but have the mores and attitudes of the 1920's.  Pulp included SF and so it would depend on what you mean by a modern time frame.

 

Anything after the 1950’s, early 60’s. After that, the cynicism, loss of innocence, optimism,’and the reduction of moral contrast in the culture have left pulp looking, perhaps trite? I would say that the Original Star Trek May have been the last gasp of the pulp sensibility. 

[Doc Democracy]

I think you  could take today's personalities and issues and frame them in a pulp sensibility though - like an Earth-2 style story.

 

It would be interesting to pulpify today's politics to explore them in a different way.  What would things look like if we were still the same culturally as we were in the 1920's??

 

I think it might make a better novel than a game - or for the players to visit as outsiders...

 

Doc

[Scott Ruggels]

36 minutes ago, Doc Democracy said:

What would things look like if we were still the same culturally as we were in the 1920's??

 

I think it might make a better novel than a game - or for the players to visit as outsiders...

 

It would be poison to anyone under 40. We kind of want to attract new players to HERO, don’t we?

[Scott Ruggels]

Okay, then what new setting, or perhaps license would attract new players to Hero?  Currently hot shows on Netflix might work, like The Dragon Prince, or the new She-Ra reboot might be good examples, if not candidates. I have a fair amount of online interaction with younger generations, in the circles Intravel (artist mostly), and while many are gamers, not all that many of the folks I know are asninto the “Murder Hobo 4 Life” game style that I am so fond of. Most of them are heavily influenced by anime, and for the readers, YA novels. Both influences are heavy with character inter-relationships, and rivalry and romance. Many individuals are very experienced with chat, or text based role play. As such they are far more narrative focused than I (usually) am. These are just my observations but they might be useful for figuring out what might be a setting to help HERO along. 

[Lord Liaden]

Hmm... interesting observations, Scott. What you describe sounds less like specific genre, and more like style and tone. Rather than focusing on metaplot or pushing people into combat-heavy adventures, the setting should perhaps emphasize setting up the stable framework for a range of opportunities for character interactions and advancement, in social situations as well as "murder hobo" adventures. That could be arranged for almost any genre.

 

Another example would be the Game of Thrones television series, and the Song of Fire and Ice novels it derives from. There is an overarching metaplot, but it takes a long time to build and coalesce, with many other developments taking center stage in the meantime. A while back I suggested a loose campaign premise inspired by GoT, utilizing Hero's Turakian Age setting: Besruhan Intrigues.

[sentry0]

I've always longed for a really good FF7 inspired game with swords and sorcery alongside magitech devices.  I feel like there would be widespread appeal because it's really a blend of the fantasy and sci-fi genres.  Really, it has already proven itself as having mass appeal with audiences as evidenced by the original game, the animated movie, and now the remake of the game.  The movie may have been meh, but the game is an absolute classic.

 

There are many types of conflict that could be explored as in the game itself and a diverse set of characters that could be built.  Mage, cleric, gunslinger, golem pilot, technomage, Gadgeteer, monk, Oracle, Summoner, Mage-Knight to name a few that I can think of off the top of my head ?.  Then there's races...so many possibilities....

 

 

 

 

[Diamond Spear]

2 hours ago, Scott Ruggels said:

Okay, then what new setting, or perhaps license would attract new players to Hero?  Currently hot shows on Netflix might work, like The Dragon Prince, or the new She-Ra reboot might be good examples, if not candidates. I have a fair amount of online interaction with younger generations, in the circles Intravel (artist mostly), and while many are gamers, not all that many of the folks I know are asninto the “Murder Hobo 4 Life” game style that I am so fond of. Most of them are heavily influenced by anime, and for the readers, YA novels. Both influences are heavy with character inter-relationships, and rivalry and romance. Many individuals are very experienced with chat, or text based role play. As such they are far more narrative focused than I (usually) am. These are just my observations but they might be useful for figuring out what might be a setting to help HERO along. 

Hmmm... Maybe a kind of "Combo genre" setting? Modern day with a touch less cynicism but focused on various secret societies, perhaps even with typical urban fantasy elements such as vampires, werewolves, magic, etc. with the societies keeping themselves separate from the "normal" society and only interacting with each other, with, of course the secret societies operating under pulp rules and sensibilities. Kind of a pulp version mash up of the Illuminati and various urban fantasy settings? That's kind of a stream of consciousness spitballing of the idea. It's still trying to sort itself out in my head. Does it make sense? 

[Lord Liaden]

If I ever have twenty grand or so to spare, it's been my ambition to approach our former forum colleague and Hero Games ace cartographer, Keith "insert relevant clever comment" Curtis, to publish his magnificent original campaign setting, The Savage Earth. This is a magical post-apocalyptic Earth thousands of years in the future -- imagine the world of the old Thundarr the Barbarian cartoon, only treated seriously, given internal consistency, and expanded over a continent-sized area. The material on Keith's website linked above features world history, geopolitics, cultures, many distinctive races and creatures, a large roster of NPCs, a unique detailed magic system and artifacts (for Hero 5E), numerous maps, gorgeous color artwork, and copious campaign logs easily translatable into adventure scenarios.

 

At least 75% of the work needed to make it publishable is already done. It would only require editing and updating game stats to 6E. And AFAIK there's nothing else like it available in the hobby.

[Scott Ruggels]

34 minutes ago, Diamond Spear said:

Hmmm... Maybe a kind of "Combo genre" setting? Modern day with a touch less cynicism but focused on various secret societies, perhaps even with typical urban fantasy elements such as vampires, werewolves, magic, etc. with the societies keeping themselves separate from the "normal" society and only interacting with each other, with, of course the secret societies operating under pulp rules and sensibilities. Kind of a pulp version mash up of the Illuminati and various urban fantasy settings? That's kind of a stream of consciousness spitballing of the idea. It's still trying to sort itself out in my head. Does it make sense? 

 

As long as it's isn't "World of Darkenss Hero" That could work.  Rather than WOTC's insular racial segregation, have the groups more or less mixed by race, but lined up by mission or ideology.  Also Maybe no Vampires? Okay, maybe one offs, but no Vampire society.  But yeah making it more urban Fantasy into that Harry Dresden area might work.