MCMaenza

My game world has its roots in stories I wrote to pass the time in study hall in junior high school (1976-1979).  Those tales drew inspiration from the DC and Marvel comics I was reading at the time.  The world further evolved when I started to pick up first and second edition Champions product.  I picked my fav characters and concepts to incorporate into my world.

The "why" for me is a couple things:
- I am long time friends with Ron (thanks to the Champions APA the Clobberin' Times) and Steve (we gamed together many times in the 90's).  I support my buds.
- I played mostly with 4th edition but have very fond memories of the earlier ones (much of my world was built on the early rules from 1 to 3). I did not go to Fuzion or 5th edition as at that time I moved away from RPGs.
- I am startzing to get back in to RPGs again as I want to promote them via programming as I finish my librarian master's degree. I think teens (and adults) could really benefit from these kinds of games. 

The "why" for me is a couple things:
- I am long time friends with Ron (thanks to the Champions APA the Clobberin' Times) and Steve (we gamed together many times in the 90's).  I support my buds.
- I played mostly with 4th edition but have very fond memories of the earlier ones (much of my world was built on the early rules from 1 to 3). I did not go to Fuzion or 5th edition as at that time I moved away from RPGs.
- I am startzing to get back in to RPGs again as I want to promote them via programming as I finish my librarian master's degree. I think teens (and adults) could really benefit from these kinds of games. 

At the $15 pledge (or more) you do get those classic PDFs plus the new Now PDF too. That seems like a very reasonable price just for the original stuff. If your physical books are as worn from use as mine are, having the PDFs is a great thing. Consider pledging $15 just to get those. 

Re: The New Circle
 
2
 
Milos Ridavich was a second generation American, growing up in Pittsburgh among the generation of immigrants fleeing the burgeoning power of the Axis. His father was among those working in the steel mills, while he worked as a newspaper boy.
 
Milos worked his way inside the paper, becoming a copy boy and gofer for the reporters at work. He impressed everyone with his diligence. He started covering stories using a pen name.
 
Things were looking up for the immigrant's son.
 
Then came Senator Joseph McCarthy's hearings and the HUAC. The Ridavichs were targeted as immigrants by those that believed they were communists. It didn't take much for a witch hunt to start.
 
The Ridavichs were ruined by the persecution they suffered. The elder Ridavich suffered a heart attack, and died on the way to the hospital. Milos lost his job, his apartment, everything. He threw himself into the river to drown.
 
Milos didn't drown, but he wasn't wholly human after that. He wasn't sure what had caused this change, but he knew that he could use it to take up his own crusade.
 
Milos used his earned reporter skills to target members of the criminal element that had contributed to his fall from grace. His ability to change shape only helped him. Soon he had built a reputation as the Frog Man of Pittsburgh, and the evidence he gathered put many people away.
 
Joe McCarthy's hysteria was shattered. Cooler heads prevailed, and Milos went back to work for the paper. He continued reporting, even earned a column under his pen name, but he also patrolled the city at night to protect the innocent and gain proof for his stories.
 
It's said the Croaker retired for a time, only to reappear at the battle of Detroit. Supposedly he was killed. Then he was seen helping to stop Takofones's rampage across the United States. Again he was supposedly killed by the archvillain before the battle was done. Recently two figures battled their way across Pittsburgh. One was described as a ragged clown with a knife, the other a giant frog.
 
Despite his deaths, every criminal and villain in Pittsburgh still know to beware the Croaker.