Supreme Serpent

Re: Military Eye for the Civilian Gal

He's a Rival, not a Hunted. No reason for him to be trying to tear Harry down, when he can build himself up instead.

He's got his own super-group, dedicates himself to saving the world, even to the point of unintentionally neglecting his daughter (even though, by saving the city/world etc. he was protecting her too!) - and he's going to waste time trying to ambush him or manipulate things behind the scenes in petty revenge against Harry and his Little Rascals? Nah, he's got more important things to do.

How to humiliate Harry? Be better than him. Show this upstart how it's done. Drive himself and his team to be better than ever, be rivals, but in the sense that the Super Bowl champions are "rivals" to some team that didn't even make the playoffs. Become the gold standard, the heroes that others are measured against.

Along the way, since he sees some of himself in Harry and is a basically good guy, if a bit rough around the edges, he'll point out Harry's mistakes and give advice on how to fix them. He means well and is genuinely trying to help, but his manner and choice of phrasing will likely ruffle Harry's feathers, who will think the Sgt is just rubbing his nose in things and being overly critical. The Sgt may even invite the PCs to join HIS team, individually or all at once - the PCs have some talent, no disputing it, and with his help they can become even better. And given the threats out there, combining forces makes sense. Of course, the PCs especially Harry will likely balk at the prospect of having the Sgt as their "boss".

If the ages are appropriate, a fun subplot would be for Harry and Kate to start dating. Even better if Harry has no idea who her father is to start with. Then one night she brings him over for dinner to meet her father...

Re: How to make the Loner feel not so Lonely?

If it's served its purpose, just let it drop to the back pages on its own. Bring it back if there's some new developments, like if Slashy McBindalot resurfaces or something.

If you have other game-related things to discuss, easy enough to make new threads. If you have non-game related things to discuss, start a thread in NGD, but beware. If you just want to ramble on about something, start a blog (look to the top where User CP and the FAQ are).

Re: How to make the Loner feel not so Lonely?

I guess now the only thing I have to deal with LABC (Life After BloodClaw) is trying to figure out what I should do with his character (I usually put them on a bus), and also what if he should come back?? I have no idea if he will...

That's one of the upsides to the mysterious loner types - they're easy to write out. He mumbles something about going south or to the woods or something and disappears. He won't be back. Don't invite him. If he shows up uninvited, continue the game without him. You're under no obligation to let anyone who shows up at the door into your game (or even inside at all, if it comes to that).

Also, wanted to get feedback on something, as I'm always a bit worried about things like this. Did I take the "easy way out" and basically get Harry to do my "dirty work" for me?

I now feel kind of bad that I may have inconvenienced him and made him trouble with his friend (even though I didn't like BloodClaw doesn't mean that he didn't...)

Should I have buckled down and talked to the guy myself??

(Sorry to keep asking things like this all the time, really, really unsure all the time on things like this...)

Chill. Harry brought him, Harry cleaned up his own mess. Don't worry about it. Move on.

Re: A Dark Golden Age game

A lot of the Golden Age stories were in fact pretty dark, as were a lot of the heroes, who were a lot closer to the pulps than they became in the Silver Age. For every Mr. Terrific there's a Spectre.

Heck, just not glossing over some of the realities of the earlier ages would help make them plenty dark.

Re: How to make the Loner feel not so Lonely?

No worries SimComm. Everything gets easier with time and practice.

If you want some more anonymity, a gender-neutral avatar pic would probably be good. Also, it's generally a good idea to re-read your post before hitting "Submit Reply" and see if there's things that should be changed or omitted.

Re: How to make the Loner feel not so Lonely?

Not worth the effort.

The GM and the rest of the group prefer playstyle A, he wants playstyle Z. Tell him that you understand he only seems to enjoy Z, but everyone else likes A and that's what you intend to run. If he wants to try A (probably with a newer, more appropriate character) you'll give it a shot, otherwise he might want to find another game more suitable to his preferences.

If I'm running a low powered fantasy campaign, three players want to play in a low powered fantasy campaign, and a fourth player wants to play Star Trek, it's not fair to the others to cram Star Trek into the campaign just for him while he ignores all the fantasy stuff. Same thing with excessively disparate playstyle preferences.

Re: Npc overload!!

I agree that you don't need them all each time. A few per session should generally be enough, maybe with a few others in brief appearances.

Their purpose (aside from color) is to serve the plot/subplot. Ones that don't feature in the plot/subplot or worse distract from it can be left out.

Also try to avoid unnecessary duplication. You don't need three astrophysicists or four reporters when one or two will do. Let PCs have some overlap in contacts. This can also help with bringing new players in, as you can give them a list of a few established NPCs they already know that can help them connect to the larger world/the other PCs faster.

Re: Extra-planar Fantasy Shout out

The Robert Vardeman Cenotaph Road series. Pretty light fare, but enjoyable.

Some good bits like the parts of the bad guy being spread around the various worlds, and an unusual method of traveling from world to world.

Re: Mercenary Supervillains

*Are you actually unstoppable?

*Are you powerful/smart/connected enough to be a master villain?

If the answer to either of these is no, you probably don't want to work solo.

*What happens if/when you get caught? Who arranges for bail, lawyers, and breakouts?

*How do you handle it when someone more powerful than you comes after you?

*How do you fence/launder your loot?

*Who will you go to if you get seriously injured?

*How will you ensure the safety of your hideout(s), so you don't have to be constantly on the run?

If you don't have good answers for these questions, you probably don't want to work solo.

Getting superpowers doesn't turn you into a criminal mastermind. It can work out a lot better to attach to an existing organization and get the benefits of membership. A smart villain can then learn the ropes and take over later.

Re: Sixth Edition Showcase #1: ACV And AVAD

Sounds good to me.

I do hope though that as the system gets broken down into the components further that there is a good bit of space spent on example builds to show how to put all these pieces together. While a lot of the old HERO grognards will be able to pick up on things pretty quickly, the more steps there are in making a power or character, the harder the entry is for new players.

Re: Need a good name for Mind Control magic

What do you call other types of magic in your world? If there's a common naming convention that might suggest something. Ferinstance, if everything else ends in -mancy, this should too.

Re: Force Field Is No Good?

Straight up point-crunching vs. normal attacks, yes Armor is a better deal.

But it has to be looked at in the context of the whole character and of the campaign.

*Conception. Some folks envision a character a certain way and want them built that way, even if it's a bit less efficient. If all characters were made with what's normally most efficient we'd only see campaigns full of invisible mind-scanning mental snipers.

*For some builds, END isn't an issue. High END, high REC, END Reserve, etc. or just short enough fights that you'll rarely run out.

*Not all attacks are normal. Even some of the oldest writeups had things like "NND - Defense is Force Field". Hit the armor guy a few times with that and he may wish he hadn't been so "efficient".

*Advantages. (Again, if END not a big deal)

-Armor +20/+20 = 60pts

-FF +20/+20 Hardened = 50pts

When you get hit by that AP attack, which would you rather have?

*A FF that still costs END can be Pushed.

*Depending on the GM and the character, FF may be able to be an easier justification for some extra defensive powers or constructs.

Re: Super hero one liners

So if your going to be toasted by Dr. Destroyer anyways...

"Dude, just what are you trying to overcompensate for anyways?"

or Gravitar has you pinned down (literally)...

"...I'd...hate...to be...your scale..."

or Viper shows up with 100 more men...

(turns to team) "Crunch all you want fellas, they'll make more!"

Re: Order of the Stick

So. Roy's dad= a jerk' date=' through and through.[/quote']

 

Yep. He's lucky they're letting him stay where he is.

 

The name on the other sign was a nice touch.

Re: What effects would you see on a terrestial planet in a binary system?

At least for a fantasy world, you could probably keep the day/night and seasonal cycles pretty much the same if you wanted to.

First Dawn - first sunrise, early morning

Second Dawn - a bit later, second sunrise, leading to full daylight

etc.

Just a bit more gradation in the twilight type hours.

For a fantasy world, the obvious question would be about the Sun God(s). Parent and child? Rivals? Lovers destined to remain near each other but ever apart? Roughly equal in power or one clearly dominant? Worshipped together or individually?

Depending on how you work the rest of the world and how hot/bright things might be could determine how the Sun Gods are viewed. If summertime is especially hot and dangerous, they could be oppressive types. If the world is cold and the sun is more welcome could be seen as more nurturing.

Re: how do you like your fantasy games

I prefer:

-Action/adventure swords/sorcery. Howard over Tolkein.

-Skills/abilities/power from the character vs. power from stuff.

-Abilities/powers that do helpful/useful things vs. just massive defense/attack. Characters that can do all kinds of cool stuff instead of just invulnerable howitzer-toting combat machines.

-Some level of possible mortality even vs. minor threats. A pitchfork wielding mob or a hundred goblins should cause anyone to think twice (or more!) before trying to tackle head-on.

Re: Help - I need a base

That is quite possible. I am not sure about having the technology for a force field at least on this scale is available yet. It maybe because I need to assure that there isn's some high-altitude bombing to take the base out.

Prof. Muerte has a pretty impressive personal force wall, at least in the earlier versions. Wouldn't be a big stretch for him to make a larger version.

Re: Urban Fantasy 'white event' idea

That could be a pulp UF campaign right there but my players are not pulp fans.

Egad.

Anyone have suggestions for me, or interesting ideas of their own white events?

 

* I use the term 'white event' as a technical term based on Marvel's New Universe White Event.

Some ideas that spring to mind:

Tunguska event

Krakatoa

Harmonic Convergence

Re: Hero System Good Idea/Bad Idea...

Good idea: Valdorian HERO

Bad idea: Valtrex HERO

Good idea: Everyman

Bad idea: Each and every man

Good idea: Fantasy Hero Grimoire

Bad idea: Fantasy Hero Armoire

Good idea: Hero System Bestiary

Bad idea: Hero System Bestiality

Re: 6E Rules changes confirmed so far

And so, on to 6E:

 

----------------------

 

The basic 3d6-roll-for-success mechanic remains, and it will continue to be "roll-low."

 

No changes to the Speed Chart.

 

Movement will continue to be measured per Phase.

All fine.

All measurements will be given in meters. There will be no use of "hexes" or any other mapping arrangement in 6E.

(shrug) Hexes and the one inch=2m shorthand made things simple on a tabletop, but I'm not going to worry too much about this one.

Comeliness will no longer be one of the Characteristics. It's being replaced with a Talent, Striking Appearance, which a given group can choose to use in their game if they want a character's appearance to have a mechanical effect.

Attractiveness is very subjective, so I'm not heartbroken about it going away as a stat. I liked COM, I use COM, but could see attractiveness being done as limited PRE.

All the other Characteristics will remain, but none of them will be "Figured," i.e. derived from other Characteristics. They'll all start with a base value that must be bought up separately. The costs of some of them have been "tweaked" -- no further details yet.

 

OCV, DCV, OECV, and DECV will become separate Characteristics, not derived from DEX and EGO. They'll start with a base value of 3 and will be bought up separately.

 

Suggested starting point totals will be raised to compensate for the change to Characteristics -- no specifics yet.

Will see how this washes out. Would like to have had it playtested, but...

Some new Powers have been added, and others have been removed. The only one mentioned is Find Weakness, which is being removed. There will be no official way to reduce Defenses below 1/2 as with Armor Piercing.

I've used it, but it was an orphan mechanic. I'd be OK to see it go away. Likewise if Danger Sense was altered to be a specific kind of Detect/Per roll.

Adjustment Powers have been significantly reworked -- no further details yet.

That will be interesting to hear about. Maybe requiring something SFX based?

The Multipower and VPP Frameworks will remain, but Elemental Control is being replaced by a new Limitation, Unified Power (no value given). Aside from GM oversight there will be no restrictions on what Unified Power can be applied to.

And presumably everything with Unified Power will be drained, etc. at the same time (see: Adjustment Power changes)

Disadvantages are being renamed Complications, and Psychological Limitations will become Psychological Complications.

Should have been done in 1st ed. Advantages and Disadvantages not being opposites was needlessly confusing. "Complications" also helps emphasize that they should be used for plot purposes IMO.

Re: Help - I need a base

So they have a base that is fairly safe from being overun by a large force of men. They may have some things to keep them save from a high-altitude bombing. But their main worrry is probably going to be a squad of commandos OR a superhuman group. What sort of things should be standard for defenses to gaurd against the good guys. And once those defenses are set up, what means would make for a good plot to get the heroes past most of the defenses.

 

While the base will have some "high tech" defenses, they will not be many in nature. I am keeping 1983 mostly with some advaced tech available but either hideously expensive OR draws too much power.

 

One of our heroes is being hunted by the group. Not for anything she did but because she was a former spy and Terror Inc. has decided to remove those people from existance.

 

One of the spies from the characters old team sent her a message regarding the threat and the murder of former team members. Two other members are in hiding and the one who wrote the message is running and hiding. One thought is for the team to finally catch up/rescue the former team mate and perhaps some of the goons may provide a means into the fort/base. But I am not sure if the whole, dessing up on the uniform thing is too cliche'

 

Thoughts?

The best defense for a superteam base is the superteam itself. Since the real threat is another superteam, the defenses should serve three main purposes.

1) Dealing with minor issues, so the supers aren't bothered with every little thing.

2) Intelligence. Let the team know who's coming, and where they are. If the team can take them, they move in. If the attack looks too powerful, bug out. Sensors, surveillance, probing attacks by underlings can work well. "They took down Squad Bravo without breaking a sweat, and that one's a mentalist."

3) Impairment. Slow the attackers down enough for the team to get away if necessary. If a counterattack is planned, the defenses help wear the attackers down and stack the deck further in the defender's favor. Knowing where the secret doors and minefields are is a big advantage in a fight.

The whole dress up in the uniforms bit is either cliche' or classic, depending on your taste. For a group like Terror Inc. which issues its agents feature-concealing skull-mask helmets, I'd go with classic. There's also coming in from an angle the sensors/defenses might not cover (the former spy might know this) like underground, underwater, parachute drop, etc. Then the superworld options like stealth fields, teleportation, shrinking the whole team, etc.

Re: Help - I need a base

Check out old D&D products/modules. Squares instead of hexes, but can find lots of keeps/castle plans in them.

Re: GM help with The Guild of Swords

As a GM' date=' I would like to use them to be a pain in the heroes backside. However, and this is my weak side, I do not want the heroes to be able to turn them over to the law enforcement - even if directly confronting the heroes. They will never be any direct way for the heroes to show that these people are criminal behind the scenes.[/quote']

 

I would just note that this would be very unsatisfying as a player. It might be hard, it might take a lot of work, but the PCs should be able to take them down if they work at it.

 

Once they realize these are bad guys and the PCs want to take them down, if they can make no progress they'll get pretty frustrated. Expect dissatisfied players, characters turning to more vigilante methods, or both.

 

As for introducing them, do it slowly. Let them seem just like a group of rich folks with an interest in medieval stuff. Maybe the heroes even come to them from time to time for help with medieval-themed problems, taking advantage of their knowledge. Maybe they start giving the heroes tips that help the heroes bust folks that just happen to be rivals of Guild members. Eventually the heroes start noticing bits of info and seeing patterns - will probably dismiss at first due to their friendly history with them, but over time...

 

The "no real bad stuff" angle is also possible (even likely) to be turned on its head. It only takes one bad apple to ruin that. If one member is willing to strongarm and blackmail the others they could take over and turn the group in a more sinister direction, confident that the others are too squeamish to respond in kind. If that happens, one of the braver members might even contact the heroes for help in stopping the Guild, maybe trying to get immunity/better deal out of it.

Re: people with powers

Superhero game vampire:

http://www.marveldirectory.com/individuals/b/baronblood.htm

People with powers vampire:

http://www.lucienlacroix.com/forever-knight.htm

Re: Top 5 Champs books of all time

Of real interest to me are the two votes that went to the 4th Edition Viper book that I despise so much. Can I ask those two voters to tell me what I missed? What was I doing wrong that made me hate this book?

I didn't vote for it as one of my top 5, but I liked it. I had some of the same problems you had but I just ignored or modified those parts. Ignore the AI and snake god stuff, ignore the stock supervillains, ignore or scale down the guns and gear. Thankfully with Champions scaling things up or down is pretty easy. The stuff about goals, recruiting and so on I liked, and I think the book was good maybe not so much as a VIPER book per se, but as a "stuff to consider when making an agent organization" book. Of course the old Super Agents book is also good for that.

And it had a cool cover.