Back in '98 (a lifetime ago for some of you I know, but for me, the last stable campaign I ran- if I dare call my players 'stable') I started a campaign with the adventures in the back of the BBB. The players and their characters were diverse to say the least. I'll briefly describe the characters, the players shall remain anonymous.
1. Mental Midget - a 15-year-old midget mentalist.
2. Doc Shock - a MD with electrical powers (whose player had an unnerving ability to roll 13 'vitals' on hit location with his electric grab maneuver. We came to call it his "Turn your head and scream" attack)
3.Tank - a woman with 140 STR and a "why shouldn't I kill the bad guy? Or you for that matter?" attitude
4. Mr. Black - The quintessential G-Man (Dist. Feat: Dark suit and glasses and radio earpiece)
5. Atonement - a long dead ghost that built himself a physical body so that he can atone for past sins. He can shed this shell at will.
All the PC's (except Midget and Atonement) are members of SPAD (federal police) Mob Rule is the scenario. They see the drive by assassination attempt on the Mob boss, and investigate like good little Feds. Few days latter Tank sees a man thrown out a 5th story window. She catches him and jumps up to see two Viper agents in the apartment. For kicks, she throws one out the window, and arrests the other. They get the clue about avoiding Pier 17 next night. Our Feds show up, fight the Viper agents, and stop the weapons shipment. However, the property damage is high as Tank used the CARGO SHIP as a missile weapon to take out the sniper on the roof near by.
The team had some issues, but got the call about the bank robbery and arrived on the scene. Atonement went ghostly to scout out the interior situation, as any team with an invisible, desolid scout should do. (this part is foreshadowing for what happens later) Mr. Black calmly declared everyone under arrest as the wall exploded out at him. Ogre and the Viper agent bank robbers are subdued. They have to put up with Barbie Binkers the TV reporter (actually an undercover Viper agent) (I loved this role!) They also meet Merry Franks a newspaper reporter who is a little more understanding.
They put clues together, the save a baby from a house fire and are generally feeling good about themselves. (I decided to give them a few heroic things to do so they can fully appreciate just how spiffy they are compared to normals, but I felt they needed one more easy fish...)
Their car parked at a stoplight under a highway overpass, a carjacker steps up and waving a Saturday Night Special, demands the car. Doc Shock steps on the gas, but Tank gets out. She grabs and throws the would be assailant straight up THROUGH the bridge. As his pulped corpse causes a traffic pileup, Tank casually leaps up and takes his wallet. The remaining team climbs the embankment and tries to arrest her, but she resists! So between Midgets ego-blasts and Shock's DEX drains she is taken down. A whirlwind trial lands her 7 years in Stronghold for manslaughter. Merry Franks writes an article lamenting the tragedy of a superhero snapping under the immense pressure of her powers. WJOY’s Barbie Binkers warns the public that any one of the Fed super team could turn on us next. Serpent (the Viper nest leader) is pissed, as he wanted all this limelight for himself. He calls the Assissinos.
OK. So here comes the part where the women are kidnapped and the heroes are supposed to go to the junkyard (where the supervillian team lies in wait) to free them. But, they refuse to bite. Midget just mind scans for Merry Franks (whom he has interviewed with) and tracks her to the mansion lair of the Serpent. Atonement went ghostly to scout out the interior situation, as any team with an invisible, desolid scout should do. He went in the basement window, saw the hostages, went back out the basement window, and reported back that two Viper agents guard them. The team charged up the long, long driveway to the mansion, up to the front door, kick it open and charged in, and were cut to pieces by all the emplaced Viper agents and automated guns. --- Ya see, Atonement only scouted the basement, even after hints like “Is there anywhere else you’d like to go while you are invisibly scouting?†What could I do?
Doc Shock survived the crossfire because he had prioritized freeing the hostage, and so rode the power lines into the basement (teleport, only where electric outlets are). He eventually just surrendered.
Ahhh, the classics.
