GoldenAge

Re: The Role Models

Re: The Role Models Captain America is great (one of my favorites) but he's really just a copy of The Shield who had his origin in Archie Comic's almost a year and a half earlier than Cap. Of course Captain America has transcended his predecessor by leaps and bounds, eventually becoming a big enough icon to eclipse all other patriotic heroes, past and present... But, honestly, he's not THE patriot archetype (unless it's true that Captain Marvel is the true "super man" icon because he was cooler and sold more comics than that other guy). http://www.toonopedia.com/shield1.htm

Re: Characters Places Things and Groups Needed for the Perfect Superhero Universe? Oh, Oh... and a superbase!!! Every hero group needs a place to meet and call their own. Without places like the Halls of Justice, Avenger's Mansion, Strange's Sanctum Sanctorum and the Baxter Building there would be hundreds of unintended civilian deaths as hordes of villains rut around trying to find our heroes. A well defined superhero headquarters saves lives!!!! Even hidden headquarters like the Batcave and Superman's Fortress of Solitude are hella-fun. Where else will your supers keep the Brillion death ray they confiscated from Professor Poof? How else will they keep the entire genome of the human race safe as a contingency plan for global genocide? Where the heck will they park their cars??? Can you imagine Batman feeding the meter every 3 hours? Well, can you??????

Re: Characters Places Things and Groups Needed for the Perfect Superhero Universe? Oh, and a corporate megalomaniac. Y'know, that guy who has a festering love/hate relationship with supers and is determined to prove that a normal man is still their better. Give me Lex or give me death! (Okay Dr. Thaddeus Bodog Sivana will do too... and maybe Ra's Al Ghul, or perhaps Wilson Fisk.. okay, there are a bunch of these guys out there.)

Re: Characters Places Things and Groups Needed for the Perfect Superhero Universe? A link to the common man... let me explain: Supervillains and superheroes are awesome and that's what we're here for. It's assumed that they will hog the spotlight every time they appear... but who is shining that spotlight on them? Every good campaign needs a common man, a person(s) who can ground the game in reality. If super-powered people are all that's talked about in your game they'll become the norm. That's bad. Super powered folk should always be looked upon with awe as they do things that cause us to drop our jaws in awe and horror, hoping and wishing that they can save us or that some day we can be just like them. Some of the great common men include Lois Lane & Jimmy Olsen, Mary Jane & J. Jonah Jameson. One of the most effective in history was Billy Batson, who also held the godlike stature of Captain Marvel If you look closely there seems to be a common thread among the "spotlight" common man. They're the folks the rest of us get our news from. Be it by newspaper, radio or television these people tell us how we should feel about our paranormal neighbors. There is also the common man who, despite having no other powers than his conviction and courage, puts himself in harms way to protect us. He is the cop, the flatfoot, the PI, the guy who isn't all trusting in our super-protectors. He's the guy who screams foul when he sees the supers abusing their power. People like Police Commissioner Gordon, Harvey Bullock and Sam & Twitch help keep our superheroes on moral ground and are sometimes tasked with the unenviable chore of cleaning up after the supers skedaddle. And finally there's the common man behind the hero - the mechanic, the inventor, and my favorite, the butler. Without Alfred and Jarvis Batman and the Avengers would have been lost long ago. Be sure that your campaign never leaves these people behind. They’re the folks your superheroes are defending.

Re: The Role Models Actually, in addition to Captain Marvel's connection to the "every boy" through Billy Batson, his power set was quite different from his contemporary Superman. He was immensely faster, incredibly stronger, could fly and his powers were solidly based on gifts from gods... not a hodgepodge of scientific accidents like Superman. Marvel also had the Marvel Family (Mary and Marvel Jr. came before Supergirl and Superboy) and a bald, genius, corporate super villain - Sivanna. Superman writers later copied both of these Marvel innovations. In truth, if it weren't for Captain Marvel, Superman would be nothing like the character we have today... and there'd be no Lex Luthor! Not to say that Fawcett didn't cash in by making a bigger, better version of an already popular character, just that Captain Marvel was more original than people realize. Sorry... big Cap fan.

Re: The Role Models I think, at a very basic level, he's right. Either their super powered, super skilled... or both. This simple set of criterion applies to every hero, from classics like Tarzan, Doc Savage and the Shadow to the most modern of heroes like Steel, Firestorm and Sentry. Perhaps you're looking for original archetypes?

Re: GM's "Notebook" I make the players keep track of what's happened to them. It's their lives, right? Then, I have all kinds of notes, ideas and whatnot lying around in order to keep all of my varied NPCs moving through time rather than remaining static until seen. Mostly, the madman in me is constantly shuffling and reshuffling reality in order to make the player's lives as dynamic yet believable as possible. I probably should keep a book but I know that as soon as I do my players will go off on a brilliant tangent and I'll have to trash it for a new set of ideas.

Re: Thank you Just remember... "We don't stop playing because we grow old... we grow old because we stop playing." -- George Bernard Shaw

Re: But I want to play Champions Actually something of what I said in my earlier post is true. I actually am helping my players make the transition to GM quality gamers. What I've done is attach a perk to each character: If they wish, each player gets to create an organization in addition to his PC. The organization can be anything from an industrial corporation to a level of government. In fact one player has developed the company that has the city's trash collection contract - yup, his organization is the sanitation department. They secretly deal in information – talk about the ultimate dumpster-divers. The only criterion for this is that the player keeps current with his organization in case it comes into play during the game. His character may or may not be a part of the organization. In fact, the player's character can be in direct opposition to his organization (Organization = Oil Company // Character = Captain Greenpeace) It's slowly working. Two of my players have developed criminal organizations. I'm slowly bending the campaign their way and soon they may be in opposition of each other. The players are starting to understand the fast paced dynamics of a modern/post modern game (most are D&D experts, where it takes much longer for change to happen). Two of my players are encouraged and have offered to run their first Champions games. Soon, SOOOOOON I will shrug off the yoke of responsibility and bend my considerable abilities towards ruining THEIR best ideas!!!! MWUAHAHAHAHA!!! Seriously though, if you give your players some slack and offer them the opportunity to help develop your campaign they might just surprise you. Give it a try.

Re: But I want to play Champions OH LORD what I wouldn't give for a good GM. I've always been a player at heart. Unfortunately, I always seem to be stuck with GM duties. Why? Well, mostly because I suck less than the next guy, I guess. That and the fact that my ideas are too big to be contained inside my tiny little brain. I've been GMing since '85. It's gotten to the point that I'm expected to GM. BUT....... I'm secretly training a new generation of GMs to take over for me soon. They don't know it, but it's happening. Slowly but surly I'm warping their paradigms, widening their perspectives and forcing them to see the big picture as an easily manipulated, megalomaniacal macro-dynamic. Soon... SOON!!! MWHAHAHAHAHAHA! Okay, Maybe I GM all the time because of my laugh? (See above)

Re: I Need A Teen Champions Plot! Mutant/alien/whatever shape shifters are trying to take over the Earth. Their intelligence tells them that the Earth's youths are already disenfranchised from the adult ruling population. So the bad guys develop a plan where they move into the education process, become teachers and brainwash the Earth teenagers creating an army that their parents can't fight against. It's almost too easy! The thing is... they’re too perfect. Each alien/mutant is that teacher that soooo many students love. For the girls he's handsome, understanding, emotional but strong and knows just what to say. All the girls are tossing themselves at him and dieing to get into his classes and extracurricular events (perhaps he's the assistant girl's volleyball coach?). For the boys... She's HOT, HOT, HOT! She wears revealing clothing, listens to the boys and asks them to stay after class where she flirts unabashedly with them. Now, what if the school becomes sick with teachers like this. Wouldn't our heroes suspect something?

Re: Champions Jargon Chumbawamba: Usually a Brick without KB Resistance... "I get knocked down... but I get up again..." PVT Brok: Any sacrificial follower/trooper: "Captain Amazing is dieing!!! I can save him, but I'll need a donated brain! Private Brok, report to the med bay."

Re: Sex and the Single Superhuman Love affairs and whatnot are fine... But the above exchange between OddHat and nexus was TMI. It made me feel like you two are creepy, basement porn guys (which I'm sure you're not... right? ). I've never had a problem feeling compassion for Rogues condition without the graphic explanation/investigation. I believe that romance, in all its varied forms, leads to enhanced storytelling but the graphic sex that is sometimes is a byproduct of romance is best left to the imagination. I ask you, could anyone write a better sex scene than you could imagine? Please help me understand how such in-depth sexual conversation adds to a champion's game.

Re: Sharing the Campaign ideas you can't use... yet A few years back I started a game called Time For A Change. It was a "you're the very first paranormal ever" low powered mixed game (Dark/4color Champs). Each character could have only 1 super power. In addition he/she had to define that power in such a way as to allow real world consequences for its use. Flinder: A young black male from the ghetto whose anger drove him to burst into flame. Upon immolation he had only a few seconds to act and a few minutes to live. (No flight, EB or other stuff, just a Flame Damage Shield to which he was not immune) Elijah Rhodes: A cop who manifested super speed during a standoff. As he ran to disarm the criminal his speed came upon him and he and the criminal collided. The criminal was killed and Elijah ended up in traction for months. Elijah required special shoes, a breathing apparatus, and an exoskeleton (to keep his bones and tendons from snapping during turns) to utilize his power. Large degree turns at full speed made him black out due to the G forces involved. Society's Shield: Over a two month period SS gained incredible density (but not size). His bones bent and broke as the weight came on. After two years in traction his body finally adapted to the abnormal weight. Unfortunately the world had not. Society's Shield couldn't ride an automobile smaller than a Mac Truck, Walk up stairs, walk on wooden flooring... etc. He was given a special pair of boots with big weight dispersion soles (shaped like inverted medieval shields), which allowed him to walk on roads and sidewalks without damaging them. However, the mark of Society’s Shield was often left at the scene of the action. There were others. This campaign was meant to be a mind bender. The characters still needed to save the day, but do so within the limitations of their very own powers. We tried to play by e-mail… but life got in the way.

Re: Sex and the Single Superhuman Thanks a ton. That's really what I was going for! Let me mention also that Bastion's huge “love background†is just that... background. It all happened in the past. However, it has implications to his future. At no time does our game get bogged down with all-comic spotlights that force all of the other characters to endure even an interesting love story instead of playing the adventure. It is only meant for the GM and player as a tool that will help immerse both in the campaign. Isn’t that what disads are for? (Oh, by "all-comic†I mean: We view each of our games as a complete comic book, from reintroduction of players and last book's recap to amazing cliffhanger. Characters may not be on every page but you are almost assured that they will have their spotlight page, be it during a fight or role-playing. This perspective keeps a level of interest and respect at our table. If a player inappropriately leaves the table or is disrupting play otherwise it is his loss since he will have missed (or skipped over) a few pages of the comic book. Unfortunately for him (and others) those pages may have contained incredible panels full of brilliant strategy or information. We enforce respect by remembering to read the whole comic even if your character isn't on that particular page. Sorry for the silly explanation.)

Re: Sex and the Single Superhuman

Re: Sex and the Single Superhuman BASTION: * Is he/she married? Does your character have a husband, a wife, a boyfriend, a girlfriend, a fiancée, a "significant other," a lover, or several of the above? Sebastian Castle was almost married two years ago... (Queue dream sequence – jk!) After three very successful years as Dr. Sebastian Castle’s scientific assistant Molly Checkett earned her Doctorate in Physical Sciences and Quantum Physics, graduating Summa Cum Laude from Epic City’s esteemed Iron’s University. Until that time Dr. Castle looked upon her as a student - a very beautiful and intriguing student, but a student none-the-less. However, after her graduation Sebastian privately acknowledged her maturity and quickly fell in love with Molly. After her graduation Dr. Checkett agreed to stay on with Dr. Castle as a peer. Together they explored the fascinating world of QCD (Quantum Chromodynamics - learn more about their fascinating work here: http://www.physics.adelaide.edu.au/theory/staff/leinweber/VisualQCD/ImprovedOperators/index.html) Dr. Castle’s genius in the field of quantum physics was world renown. As his partner Dr. Checkett was privy to some of the most groundbreaking research happening in the quantum realms. As Dr. Castle’s love for Molly grew her respect for him peaked. The two became a couple and their partnership, both professional and private, lasted for another two years. During their years together Dr. Checkett played the role of marketing executive to the masses. Many of Dr. Castle’s theories were too complicated for even the scientific community at large to grasp. But with Molly’s clever help Dr. Castle’s ideas were spun into understandable and exciting new research possibilities. With Molly at the helm of his grant appropriation there was an endless stream of money available to energize Dr. Castle’s research. Unfortunately Dr. Castle’s research continued to produce more questions than answers. Eventually and despite Molly’s considerable efforts, venture capitalists began turning their backs on Sebastian’s research. Not surprisingly Dr. Castle was unfazed by the loss of trust in his research and continued to focus on potentially unreachable goals. It was during this time, as the Castle facilities were falling apart, hemorrhaging resources and cash at an incomprehensible rate, that Dr. Molly Checkett conspired to strike out on her own. Realizing the damage being caused to the Castle name and the inevitable fall of the Castle Research Facilities Dr. Checkett began to manipulate events in her favor. It took the attractive and market savvy Dr. Checkett little time to attract professional and private suitors in many of the world’s major scientific institutions. Gradually she morphed Dr. Castle’s successes into her own. Soon it was she, Dr. Molly Checkett who enjoyed all of the fame and recognition for Castle Research’s former achievements, leaving Dr. castle alone to defend the reality of imaginary worlds and sci-fi theories that would put Isaac Asimov to shame. Throughout the loss of his company and his reputation Dr. Castle remained sublimely oblivious to Dr. Checkett’s machinations, assured as he was of their impenetrable love. The killing blow came on Christmas Eve. Despite loosing all of his researchers and assistants Dr. Castle continued to persevere, spending long days and nights at his laboratory in hopes of cracking the quantum conundrum. However, Sebastian had set aside Christmas Eve for a very special event. No amount of lab work would keep him from meeting Molly at Harold’s Herald, a restaurant/pub not far from his lab in Epic City’s 1st District. On this occasion he was to ask the love of his life, Dr. Molly Checkett, to marry him. Everything seemed to go splendidly. Molly had arrived on time, Sebastian had remembered the engagement ring, the Champaign was ordered and the night was beautiful. By the end of dinner Sebastian was ready to pop the question. So, on one knee, he proposed marriage. Feigning shock and confusion Molly quickly refused Sebastian’s proposal. She seized upon the moment to break off relations with Sebastian sighting the stress of their recent professional problems as her reason for leaving. In but a moment Sebastian’s world was turned upside-down. It wasn’t until weeks later that Dr. Castle discovered that Dr. Checkett had usurped many of his most profitable patents and discoveries. Apparently she had used his unfailing trust in her to get signatures under the guise of everyday paperwork. Dr. Castle was left broke and broken. All he had left was his research, and soon even that would be impossible. Dr. Molly Checkett, on the other hand, was enjoying new highs in her career. She was pursued by many but finally took over as the Head of Quantum Research at Antares Corporation in Epic City. The position was as prestigious as they come. Unfortunately for her, the demands on her scientific skills were incredibly demanding. Soon the young Dr. Checkett was in over her head, unable to produce scientific results at Dr. Castle’s level. This situation led Dr. Checkett to become even more insidious. In the ultimate act of subterfuge she called Dr. Castle and asked him if he was willing to reconcile. Sebastian was stunned by Molly’s return. He had spent considerable time watching her rise to success on the back of his work and was certain that she would never speak to him again. So, in a moment of weakness Sebastian agreed to meet with his estranged lover. Over dinner at Harold’s Herald and late into the night Molly worked her considerable charms on Sebastian and had her previous actions against him not been so heinous she would have certainly won Sebastian back. Unfortunately for Molly Dr. Castle suspected her plight and refused to reunite. However, Sebastian’s love for his former student and assistant was still strong and he found it impossible to forever dissociate himself from Molly. Sebastian eventually agreed to a renewed plutonic friendship with Dr. Checkett. He was aware of Molly’s plans to steal from him in order to maintain her esteemed position at Antares Corporation. To him it didn’t matter. He would only be happy so long as he could continue to see her. Since then Dr. Checkett has regained the faith of her supervisors with a series of recent quantum breakthroughs. However, unknown to her, the fantastic quantum innovations that she most recently stole from Dr. Castle were knowing planted by the doctor for her discovery. Sebastian has come to terms with the situation and is perfectly willing to seed his laboratory with research for Dr. Checkett to subsist on. Doing so keeps her in his life and sustains Sebastian’s hopes in the possibility that they might, one day, reconcile. Though Dr. Castle sincerely believes he is over Molly, subconsciously he still unconditionally adores his first and only true love.

Re: Super Bases and the Gm's who love them Take a look at this (if you haven't already seen it): http://www.herogames.com/forums/showthread.php?t=32904

Re: When you think "Superhero".... Exactly!

Re: WWYCD: The Mirror, Mirror Trap Bastion could be in some trouble. Both Bastion and his doppelganger would have intimate knowledge of the Chromo-Dial and it's abilities. They would also know that without it each is just an ordinary man (okay, as ordinary as Doc Savage). Both would probably make a play to disable or deprive his opponent of his advantage (the Chromo-Dial). Unfortunately for Bastion, he has a tendency to grow in the face of adversity. Usually his size and increased density are enough to hold any villain at bay. However, being his exact opposite, it's probable that the Doppelganger opts for the shrinking option of Chromo-Dial’s chromodynamic field manipulation. As Bastion grows in response to a brutal attack the doppelganger shrinks, perhaps to his infinite smallness??? If the doppelganger can get onto Bastion... Well, there are a number of things he could do to hurt a giant... HOWEVER, Bastion's no fool. He would immediately counter! GROW! SHRINK! GROW! SHRINK! It would certainly be a visually dynamic battle. Conservation of the Chromo-Dial's energy could be the difference. Whoever runs out first is at a severe disadvantage. Now, about that mirror... Dr. Castle (Bastion) has a driving need to discover the Microverse (which is, for now, only a theory). I'm positive that the mirror's ability to access another dimension would give him serious pause. Hopefully he'll be able to put his curiosity on hold until he's dispatched his doppelganger! BTW: Great thread! I love reading about everyone's characters. This WWYCD gives us some good insight into the psyche of those heroes (and villains).

Re: Every Good Golden Age Supers Campaign Needs: Very, very rich heroes who have turned to crime fighting out of pure boredom, patriotism or revenge (or all of the above). Here are some fun GA heroes... http://www.toonopedia.com/shield1.htm http://www.toonopedia.com/crimson.htm http://www.toonopedia.com/comet.htm http://www.toonopedia.com/vision1.htm http://www.toonopedia.com/womanred.htm http://www.toonopedia.com/daredev1.htm http://www.toonopedia.com/h-bomb.htm http://www.toonopedia.com/b_terror.htm For many more go here: http://www.toonopedia.com/index.htm http://blaklion.best.vwh.net/women.html http://ratmmjess.tripod.com/gold/page.html http://www.geocities.com/Area51/Labyrinth/7393/ http://blaklion.best.vwh.net/heroes.html

Re: Robotics in the Marvel Universe Check out this site... It might help. http://www.marvunapp.com/Appendix/approbot.htm

Re: WWYCD: The Vampire Who Doesn't Want to be a Vampire Anymore Bastion: Find the cure, of course. Then taint it with a dependency that will force the bat*itch to inform on all of her kind in Epic City. Should she comply and, with her help, every single vampire in Epic City is vanquished, a pure vaccine will be administered, curing her. If after being cured Bastion finds that her actions as a vampire were similar to madness he'll remand her over to professionals for psychiatric help. Should she show no remorse for her crimes as a vampire or symptoms that would lead Dr. Sebastian Castle (Bastion) to believe that said crimes were not caused by madness he will have her incarcerated to the full extent of the law. Either way, Bastion would take special care to keep tabs on this person until she dies.

Re: Superhero Images I know this isn't exactly what you need but I just happened to have this deep in my computer files. It's a character I did circa 1993. If you can use him, please do. Oops, I'm having some trouble with my connection. I'll post the pic as soon as possible. --- A few hours later... It turns out I'd already posted the pic in this thread. Here's the link: http://www.herogames.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=11399&d=1100644290