StGrimblefig

Re: Should all skills be everyman to some degree?

Re: Implications of single-aspect magic on game worlds You are forgetting that in medieval times, it was in the royalty's best interest to keep the peasants uneducated and/or illiterate. It made it more difficult for the peasants to realize how much the local lord depended upon the peasants for his way of life. That was a large part of how they kept in power for so long. If a lord of a fief believed that everyone being able to create these gates would erode that power base by increasing the literacy of the people, he might possibly demonize the ability (with the help of the church, as they had just about as much to lose), and make it illegal to practice it. With both the royalty and the church behind the belief that the ability is evil, most peasants would likely not try it. And, if only royalty and the church are able to practice it, their ability to control the population is magnified. With the ability to send troops instantly to any point in your realm, counterinsurgency is made a lot easier. Guerilla tactics are less useful, since any strike could be reported and troops dispatched to the site within mere minutes. Unless, of course, the first target of the strike would be the main gate mage at the site. But, if the peasants were told by their lord and the local priest that the ability was evil, and not to be practiced by law abiding, God-fearing people, who would believe that the lord himself had people in his employ that used the ability? Only, perhaps, a deposed noble who was leading a small band of men against a corrupt nobleman (a la Robin Hood).

Re: Implications of single-aspect magic on game worlds

Re: Healer Nerf

Re: I Need a Plot, and Fast! Try S. John Ross's Big List of RPG Plots It has nudged me out of mental blocks in the past.

Re: Do characteristics break the Hero way of doing things? Have you ever read the rules for FUDGE? (http://www.fudgerpg.com/fudge/) It sounds to me like you are talking about some kind of melding of Hero and FUDGE. Specifically, the powers from Hero on top of the character creation of FUDGE. Just a thought. Take it or ignore it at your whim.

Re: Cyber Hero: Money or pts for Cybernetics? Has anybody considered the option of paying points for anything that the character has at the start of the game (i.e. created into the character), and having to pay money (and do some roleplaying) to add anything after that? Depending on the setting, the character may have to find a doctor that will perform the surgery, pay him an exhorbitant fee to do it, and worry about what else the doctor might do while he is under the knife. That way, the character gets the new ability that he wants, but the GM can add in any "mystery disadvantages" that will keep things interesting (and provide future plot hooks). Or am I just too cruel as a GM?

Re: Campaign Concept RFC (sorry for the delay, was out of town for the weekend without internet) Thanks for the suggestions. See my additions, above. I want to make it clear that I am open to some discussion of the campaign tone/morality, because I am not sure exactly who will be playing, and because I want to make sure that it is fun for everyone (if possible). any other comments?

Greetings Heroes, I have been slowly coming up with a concept for a Champions campaign, and I am wondering if I am missing anything. So, I am opening it up for comments to the massmind here to shine the bright (if sometimes oddly colored) light of truth on my ideas. I present for your consideration, the draft of my "announcement" flyer (the text of it anyway). There are a few things you should keep in mind as you read this: It has been quite a while since I last ran a Champions game, so I am trying to start it simple. I may add complexity as I get back into the groove. Most (if not all) those who will be playing have never played Champions, so I am trying to start it simple. However, they will likely be veteran roleplayers, so I want to keep it interesting. There are several things that I am keeping "undecided" at this stage, because I want to base the answer on the specific characters involved and the specifics of the game as it develops. To this end, I have a few NPCs selected, but many of the supervillains will occur based on the specific characters in the game (their backgrounds and/or weaknesses). I do not yet have Sidekick, but I hope to obtain it before the campaign would start. I want to know what questions will come up that should be answered here but aren't, or any glaring issues that I need to address. Thank you, --Jim Tetrick ============================================ Power Cycles BE A HERO! Power Cycles is a superhero roleplaying campaign using the Hero System and Champions. SETTING The campaign is set in an alternate-history version of Cedar Rapids, where super-human powers are beginning to re-emerge after 30 years without super heroes. Nobody knows why superpowers were gone for so long, or why they are returning now, or why Cedar Rapids is the center of it. Timeline 1938 Super Humans first emerge * Shadowy "Masked Men" fight unseen villainous powers. 1940-1945 Super Humans in WWII (on both sides) * Mostly engaged enemy supers 1945-55 Post-War Supers and McCarthyism * Many Supers accused for not revealing true identities. * Superhuman Registration laws passed. 1960-70 The Magic Fades * Fewer (then no) new supers appear each year 1971 The last super hero retires * Superhuman Registration laws never repealed, just ignored. 1971-1980 The Game is Afoot (Normals Ascendant) * Both police and criminals re-learn how to go on without supers. 1988-1994 Criminals Organize * Gang "mergers" create more powerful criminal organizations. 1994-1998 The Cedar Rapids Gang Wars * Three large criminal organizations war openly in CR. * Police ill-equipped to stop it, and several become corrupt. * Ends without clear victor. CHARACTERS The PCs are new Super Heroes. They have only one "power," but they may develop a couple different ways to use it. For example, a PC with a "power concept" of "ice control" may use it to shoot ice crystals at an opponent (energy blast) and also to freeze an opponent's feet to the ground (entangle). The simpler you keep the powers, the easier it will be to design the characters. As the PCs gain experience, they may expand their repertoire of applications of their power, or maybe even add completely new powers. Detailed backgrounds for the Player Characters are **VERY IMPORTANT**. These backgrounds should include (but not be limited to): 1) Who was this person before they had a super power? a) Who was/is important in their life? What do they have to do (job/school/?)? c) What do they do to maintain their sanity? 2) How did they get their power (do they know how)? a) Mutants are (almost) always acceptable. Gadgeteers/Tech origins will be screened carefully. c) Accidental/Created origins will depend on the backstory. d) Mystics/magical beings are discouraged at this time. e) Alien beings are discouraged at this time. 3) How/when did they realize that they were "different?" a) Was anyone else around at the time? Does anyone else know? c) Was anyone hurt when the power first appeared? 4) How are they dealing with their new abilities? a) What are their beliefs as to why they have the power? Have they always had heroic intentions? 5) What is their outlook on life? a) what will/won't they do to achieve their goals? what do they love/hate? c) what clubs/groups/cliques do they associate with? The first session will be dedicated to character building & system introduction. The players need to bring their character backgrounds, and the GM will help with character creation. There will be a simple play demo as well, having no impact on the campaign, just to show the players the basics of things like combat and skill usage. Early stories/arcs will be simpler affairs with more direct action, and as the campaign matures, so will the stories. Later stories/arcs will build upon the depth established during the earlier stories, with new twists and bits added for flavor. Here are my initial thoughts for continuing campaign guidelines, but these will be open for discussion during the first couple of sessions. Morality: 3 1 Good vs. Bad is black & white; 2 Good vs. Bad is mostly clear-cut; 3 Some cross over between Good vs. Bad; 4 There is little difference between good and bad; 5 Morality is always in shades of gray; The Good Guys do good because they know it is right. The Bad Guys do bad because they think it is the right thing to do at the time. Most of them either know what they do is wrong and do it anyway (see previous sentence), or they are criminally insane, and thus think they are doing right. There might be a Villain that thinks they are doing the right thing (Robin Hood-style), and may even have some sympathy from the public. I want to steer away from Heroes that are morally ambiguous, or do the wrong things for the right reasons (e.g. indiscriminately killing villains that the law cannot touch). Realism: 3 1 Very romantic; 2 Romantic; 3 Neutral; 4 Realistic; 5 Extremely realistic I will try to keep a balance between realism and 'comic book realism' -- I don't want any single-shot kill attacks, but I don't want this to look like a Doctor Strange comic either. Outlook: 2 1 Everything works out - Very Optimistic; 2 Almost everything works out; 3 Successes balanced by failures; 4 Successes are rare; 5 Almost nothing works out - Very Pessimistic I think it is more fun for everyone if a lot of the stroies work out, even if they do not appear to do so at the end of any one play session. That being said, there will be times that the long-term story needs will outweigh the immediate players' desire to catch a Villain. Let's face it -- in the comics, most mastermind-level Villains have an escape planned just in case some Hero foils their plans. And it would be no fun if the Heroes catch the Mastermind in the second session, not knowing who he really is. Seriousness: 3 1 Very light-hearted - Campaign plays for laughs; 2 Mostly light-hearted; 3 Seriousness balanced by light-hearted; 4 More seriousness than light-hearted; 5 Almost entirely serious There will be some stories that will be run purely for fun, and some that have deep implications or revelations regarding one or more story arcs. I will try to make sure that each of the PCs has some kind of "spotlight episode" that will focus on aspects of their character's background or abilities (sometimes humorously). Continuity: 4 1 Episodic - No effort is made to tie the adventures together; 2 Mostly episodic, with some continuing stories; 3 Some long stories and some episodic ones; 4 Mostly serial, some enforcement of campaign continuity; 5 Entirely serial - everything must fit into the storyline There will be continuing story arcs that expand the game world and the PCs understanding of it, and there will be single sessions that have nothing to do with anything else. But I reserve the right to take anything said or done by any character in any game session and use it in a later session. I will bring the PCs backgrounds into the story, and I expect the players to play as if their past and present actions have future consequences (because they will). There will be recurring characters (NPCs), and things that happen in previous game sessions will persist in later sessions (e.g. if a building is destroyed, it will stay destroyed, or will take some time to rebuild). For anyone who has used Champions before, here are some Character Building Guidelines (don't worry if these don't mean anything to you right now): Starting Points for PCs: 150 Maximum Disadvantage Points for PCs: 100 Max points from one Disadvantage Category: 50 Charaters automatically have Normal Characteristic Maxima disdvantage at no point value: NO Character can carry normal technology (weapons, etc) at no cost: NO Power LevelsBeginning RangeMaximum Characteristics10-3030 SPD3-68 CV3-911 DC6-1012 Active Pts40-7575 DEF/rDEFtbd12/6 Skill Rollsdependstbd Campaign Rules Combat Uses Hit Locations Chartfor Flavor only Knockdown Rules UsedNO Long-Term Endurance Rules UsedNO Limited PushNO

Re: PBEM Soundtrack Gotta include The Matrix Reloaded Soundtrack. 'Burly Brawl,' 'Teahouse' and 'Mona Lisa Overdrive' are great fight scene music.

Re: PBEM Soundtrack

Re: Minor player problem ... I don't suppose it would work to actually tell him this and expect him to understand... I like Madstone's and Magmarock's ideas, too. Either A) his attack power comes from his hand, but is "always on" and "unfocused" (kind of Cyclops-like) so that he MUST have something gun-like covering his hand to direct, concentrate and control the power (which later also serves as the focus for several other "powers," as he upgrades and experiments with it), or for whatever reason a gun-like image appears whenever he wants to use the power -- perhaps his power is EGO-based, and the character cannot wrap his head around the concept of mental powers, so his subconcious generates an image that he can understand (high EGO, low INT). Good ideas, all.

Re: Minor player problem ... How "realistic" is your campaign? In the "action movie" style to which HERO is supposed to apply well, it is not unusual for the hero of the movie to have some high-powered weaponry left over from his military service. Of course, as GM, your decision should be final, regardless of the realism.

Re: Instructors needed, apply within. Well, I am not sure I would trust a world-class mastermind with the job, but then, if he was captured and allowed himself to fall under a judges order to teach high school, he's not really world-class mastermind, is he? The really world-class villains always have an escape plan. A lieutenant or assistant villain will do just as well, especially if the school is short-staffed for some other reason. Of perhaps the judge does not like the school, and wants something to happen with the villain teacher to allow him to shut it down. The school, being a decent, law-abiding institution, would never decline the order of a federal judge (that would only incur the judges wrath), so they would take in the new teacher, and do whatever they could to keep an eye on him. Of course, I think it would play better for the occasional light-hearted moment, where the young students giving the beaten bad guy fits, to the point that he exclaims something like, "I was THIS CLOSE to having the entire east coast as my mindless slaves, and I cannot get SunStar to turn in his homework on time!" Or, "I will fail you all before the day is though, oh yes! MWAHAHAHA!"

Re: Instructors needed, apply within. One of the instructors could be a vanquished supervillain that has the instruction of young superheroes as a condition of his parole, or something like that. I cannot claim this idea as my own, however -- I stole it from Dr. Devious vs. Lincoln High, a webcomic based on a similar concept.