wcw43921

Re: [GROUP] Filthy Minions

you imply that two of them have an on-line porn site. There is nothing "heroic" about that.

Hey--who has fought harder than adult entertainers to keep their First Amendment right to free speech from being abridged?

And when free speech wins, we all win.

It may not be putting yourself in the path of a hatchet-wielding maniac or rushing into a burning building to rescue those trapped inside, but it's heroic nonetheless.

I've always had a liking for the Starburst character. To me he was what I think many of us would be like if we had superpowers--he'd go out, fight crime and Be A Hero , but it also seemed like he was having fun with it, that he got a kick out of having superpowers. And while I believe we can all agree that having superpowers can be fun, it's using them to do the right thing that can make life really tough, if not downright painful--as I've tried to illustrate here.

Anyway, I present this Character Update as a tribute to 4th Edition Champions, and to one of the iconic heroes of the Champions Universe I'd like to think that if Starburst had ever got an official update for the 4th Edition CU that it would look something like this. I've built him with the 4th Edition rules; if any of you are still using those rules or have campaigns set in the 4th Edition CU, feel free to use this update.

Comments and constructive criticisms appreciated--and if anyone can tell me who created the original Starburst, I would deeply appreciate it so I can give proper credit. (I believe it was Bruce Harlick who created Crusader; did he also create Starburst?)

STARBURST–4TH EDITION UPDATE

NAME: Starburst

Secret ID: Dr. Thomas Adams

Originally Created By: ?

Updated By: wcw43921

STR 20 (10) Lift: 400kg HTH Damage: 4D6 Jump: 4 hexes

DEX 27 (51) DEX Roll 14- OCV 9 DCV 9

CON 30 (20)

BDY 13 ( 6 )

INT 13 ( 3 ) PER Roll 12-

EGO 20 (20) EGO Roll 13- ECV 7

PRE 25 (15) PRE Attack: 5D6

COM 12 ( 1 )

PD 25 (21) PD 25/rPD 25

ED 25 (19) ED 25/rED 25

SPD 6 (23) Phases: 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12

REC 12 ( 2 )

END 70 ( 5 )

STN 40 ( 7 )

Total=203

Running 6" (12")

Swimming 7" (14")

Flight 30" (240")

POWERS

75 Multipower (Light/Heat Attacks) END

7(u) 12D6 Energy Blast ½ END (+1/4) 3

7(u) 10D6 Energy Explosion (+½) 7

7(u) 3D6 Flash vs. Normal Sight 7

Area Effect 6" Radius (+1 1/4)

7(u) 3D6+1 Energy RKA Armor Piercing (+½) 7

25 Damage Resistance (25 PD/25 ED)

10 Power Defense (10 pts)

10 Mental Defense (14 pts)

5 Flash Defense for Sight Group (5 pts)

87 30" Flight, x8 Non-Combat, ½ END (+1/4) 3

5 +5" Swimming, 7" Total 1

20 Regeneration, +3 BODY per Turn, Only In Direct Sunlight (-½)

7 +10 REC, Only In Direct Sunlight (-½)

13 N-Ray Vision, Not Through Ice Or Refrigeration, Only To Detect Heat Forms (-½)

12 Telescopic Sense For Sight Group; +8 To Offset Range Penalties

5 Infrared Vision

5 Ultraviolet Vision

7 High-Range Radio Hearing,

OIF Costume Communicator (-½)

Total=314

SKILLS/PERKS

20 +4 Levels With Multipower

3 Breakfall 14-

9 Computer Programming 15-

3 Conversation 14-

5 Deduction 13-

3 KS: Superheroes & 12-

Supervillains

4 KS: Licensing & Publicity 13-

3 Persuasion 14-

3 PS: Scientific Writing & 14-

Editing

3 Scientist

3 SC: Computer Science 14-

3 SC: Mathematics 14-

3 SC: Molecular Biology 14-

4 SC: Nuclear-Based 15-

Superpowers

4 SC: Nuclear Physics 15-

4 Contact: Crusader 13-

2 Contact: Champions 11-

2 Contact: Publicist 11-

Total=81

Overall Total=598

DISADVANTAGES

20 Vulnerability: 2x STUN From Surprise/From Behind Attacks

20 Vulnerability: 2x BODY From Surprise/From Behind Attacks

20 Physical Limit: Severe Chronic Back Pain

(All The Time, Greatly Impairing)

15 Psychol Limit: Scientific Curiosity (Common, Strong)

15 Psychol Limit: Feels He Must Prove His Worth As A Hero (Common, Strong)

10 Psychol Limit: Underconfident, Insecure (Common, Moderate)

15 Reputation: Very Famous Superhero 14-

15 Hunted: Pulsar (As Powerful, 11-)

5 DNPC: Howard Springer, Current Publicist, 8-

(Normal, Useful Non-Combat Skills)

15 Secret ID: Thomas Adams

Total Disadvantages=150

Base Points=100

Experience Spent=348

Total=598

Updated Background: The day that Thomas Adams became the superpowered Starburst was the greatest day of his life. Or the worst, depending upon what mood he’s in when you ask him.

Starburst has had one of the longest careers of any active superhero; not even some of the Champions* have been around as long as he has, or have made as big a name for themselves. He’s made a fair number of friends in the superhero community–and more than his share of enemies. Pulsar*, of course, still considers Starburst his greatest foe, and more than occasionally turns up to torment and threaten him as part of his ongoing quest to become the most feared and famous master criminal on the planet. Starburst has always managed to thwart Pulsar–but villains aren’t the only ones with friends and allies. Starburst’s encounters with Pulsar have brought him into conflict with Power Crusher^ and the other members of the Crusher Gang.** He’s fought one or more of them on more than one occasion, and always prevailed–fortunately, he’s never had to face them all at once. Not yet, anyway.

But Pulsar isn’t the only arch-enemy Starburst has acquired over the years. The supervillainous scientist Beamline^ put Starburst on his enemies list after a 1986 battle which ended up with him in Stronghold.^ Escaping in 1990, he attempted to form his own villain team, recruiting such science and tech-oriented villains as Avar-7,^ Ladybug,^ Thunderbolt^ and Vibron^ as the first members of the Society for Scientific Supremacy, an organization he hoped would realize his dreams of a scientific oligarchy. Once again, Starburst opposed and defeated them in their first crime, an attempt to steal some advanced weaponry from a PRIMUS*^ arsenal. Beamline managed to escape, but was eventually recaptured by Starburst.

While Starburst has been a superhero for a long time, he has never been part of an established super-group. Some say that his love of publicity has kept him from sharing the spotlight with other heroes; others speculate that he’s just naturally a loner. Asked directly about it, Starburst usually claims to be extending offers to other heroes about forming his own team. Nothing ever comes of these claims, however.

Perhaps his closest friend in the superhero community is the relentless costumed vigilante known as Crusader.* The two met for the first time when they both happened to be present at a bank robbery committed by the super-muscled brute Ogre.* Working together they stopped him dead in his tracks, but Crusader slipped away before Starburst could talk to him. Then Sunburst^ attacked and captured Starburst in an attempt to study him to learn the nature of the apparent similarity between their super-powers. It was Crusader who tracked Starburst down and rescued him--and so began the Crusader–Starburst Team, as they came to be called by the media. (They’ve also been called "The Dynamic Duet," "The Pair Of Aces," and "The Action Alliance,"--that last one was from Starburst’s publicist at the time.) Together they’ve thwarted Project Sunburst^ on at least two occasions, and the Conquerors^ and the Asesinos* on several others. Perhaps their greatest triumph was when they stopped the maniacal weapons genius Dr. Draconis** from using a massive laser cannon to destroy the moon. Starburst has also been of invaluable assistance to Crusader in his battle against VIPER,* and together they’ve done considerable damage to the organization. While they’ve never been seen hanging out together at Sanctuary or any other superhero gathering place, and Crusader has never been seen at any of Starburst’s public appearances for charity, they each know they can count upon the other whenever the need.

Ironically, it was Sunburst’s kidnaping of him to study his powers that inspired Starburst to begin researching his own powers in greater detail. Through these researches he was able to develop and increase his control over the nuclear energies he wielded, becoming able to focus his energy blast so that it could punch through the strongest defense with laser-like precision, or diffuse it to generate an intense field of blinding light. He figured out how to internalize his own force field so that it required no effort to activate or maintain it, and to attune his eyesight so he could see into both the infrared and ultraviolet ends of the spectrum, as well as seeing thermal images through almost any intervening barrier. But his greatest accomplishment with regards to his powers was that not only did he eliminate the effects of cutting and darkness-based attacks on his altered physiology, he was able to attune his body so that he could regenerate and replenish himself from direct sunlight.

Starburst’s research into his own powers naturally led him to study other superbeings with similar powers–which is how he became involved with Starlyn Johnson, better known to the world as the superheroine Quantum.* What began as an informal scientific collaboration led to a deep, passionate romance, which disintegrated one night when an argument over an alleged infidelity on Starburst’s part escalated into a super-battle that caused extensive property damage to downtown–even for a super-battle. The property owners sued Starburst and Quantum, and Starburst and Quantum sued each other for their share of the damage. Everyone managed to settle out of court, but Starburst still came out on the losing end. Eventually it was discovered that the "cheating" Starburst was actually a disguised Pulsar, who was collaborating with Foxbat^ in a scheme to discredit the hero–but the damage, in every sense of the word, had already been done.

In spite of such incidents, Starburst is one of the most popular superheroes in history, largely due to his own efforts towards publicizing himself. His official comic book line comprises six monthly titles chronicling adventures fictitious and real, along with annuals, bi-annuals, special editions, and trade soft-cover and hardcover compilations. He has been the subject of four live-action television series, seven animated TV series, three major motion pictures, and nine direct-to-video features and documentaries. His action figure line is the top seller among both children and super-memorabilia collectors, and includes such items as All-American Starburst (blue tights instead of yellow, with a white Starburst emblem), Stealth Starburst (solid black tights, cape, mask, gloves and boots, with dark red trim and Starburst emblem) Space Armor Starburst (reinforced space suit with red arms and yellow torso with Starburst emblem) and Starburst 2220 (based on the animated series; solid yellow tights with white Starburst emblem over the left breast and radiating throughout the costume). His battle-damaged costumes routinely fetch thousands of dollars at super-memorabilia auctions, and his autograph signing appearances draw crowds that wait for hours in lines that extend for several city blocks. And of course, he donates a substantial portion of his licensing and appearance fees to charity.

Although Starburst has had tremendous success popularizing himself, he’s never had the best luck keeping a publicist on hand. Most of the ones he’s hired usually leave his employ as quickly as possible after getting caught in the middle of their first super-battle. One who didn’t was Serena Norman, a beautiful, ambitious and assertive forty-something woman whose business association with Starburst evolved into a wildly passionate affair that ended when he proposed marriage. Claiming she wasn’t the "marrying kind," she broke things off both personally and professionally. Then there was the time that Fabian Bartleheimer** offered his services–that went well until Starburst learned Bartleheimer was also the publicist for the super-terrorist team Deathstroke.** (To this day no one is sure whether Bartleheimer was setting up Starburst for Deathstroke or attempting to expand his client base.) Starburst’s current publicist is Howard Springer, an ambitious young man who doesn’t seem to mind getting caught in the middle of a super-battle–some would say he enjoys it a little too much, which is why he needs Starburst’s help every now and again.

With tremendous popularity comes tremendous controversy, and Starburst is no exception to this rule. There are many who revile him for being so popular, believing that anyone so thoroughly well-known and idolized must be completely worthless, and proclaim loudly to anyone who will listen that life and the common good would be best served if Starburst would just go away or be blasted into oblivion. Preferably both. Politicians, editorial columnists, and TV news pundits alike use Starburst as a metaphor for everything wrong about superheroics, saying that his propensity for claiming the lion’s share of the spotlight draws away attention from those more deserving of such praise–police, firefighters, paramedics, even lesser-known superheroes. And then there are those who spread the ugly rumors that Starburst is a total fraud, a poser, that without Crusader or some other hero covering his back he would have killed long ago. The worst of those rumors was that he actually paid villains to commit crimes, then take the fall when he shows up to "fight" them. Despite Starburst’s vehement denials, the rumors persisted–those who spread them believe that if he’s denying them, they must be true.

That, of course, was before Gotterdammerung.

June 6, 1994. Starburst was attending a celebration commemorating the 50th anniversary of the D-Day invasion at Illinois Beach State Park, north of Chicago. As historical re-enactors in period costume and driving landing craft of the era "stormed" the beaches of Lake Michigan, the "invasion force" suddenly came under live artillery fire. Spectators reacted in horror as they turned to behold a thirty-foot tall heavily armed robot resembling the infamous Dreadnought^ power armor suit coming slowly towards them.

"DEATH!" screeched the robot in a metallic voice. "Death to the decadent and despicable dogs of democracy! Your Gotterdammerung is at hand! With your obliteration the old orders shall be swept away to the dustbin where they belong, and the New Reich shall rise to take its rightful place as master of the world! The weak will be erased, and the unworthy shall be cleansed from the Earth, leaving only the pure and the strong! SIEG HEIL!"

Starburst stood there, still as a statue, listening to the monstrous robot’s speech. There were no other heroes, no one else to help him–and he was certain that if he faced it alone, he would die. And if he fled for his life, like the crowd around him, it would be the end of Starburst–his superheroic identity would be ruined forever, and any good he had ever done or could have done with his powers would have been washed away by the memory of his cowardice. His detractors would be proven right–he would be nothing but a fraud.

And then, as the robot approached, he heard, as though for the first time, the screams of the helpless crowd. And he realized–it wasn’t about him. It was about them. They were the ones in the greatest danger. They couldn’t flee as easily as he could. And they had no way to fight this monster.

They needed help.

They needed a hero.

They needed Starburst.

For a moment he wished Crusader was with him–if for no other reason than to say good-bye. Then he took off at full velocity, charging towards Gotterdammerung. He had the idea to take out its legs, figuring anything that massive couldn’t crawl as easily as it walked. But as he closed to striking range the robot fired a Panzerfaust-style rocket at him, forcing him to dodge. Changing plans, Starburst concentrated on disabling its weapons–the shoulder-mounted cannon, the large machine gun mounted at its waist, the Panzerfaust launchers and flamethrowers mounted in its forearms. Having succeeded in disarming the robot, Starburst tried to get in closer–but it struck out with one hand and grabbed him around the waist. As he felt his legs breaking in the robot’s monstrous grip, he focused an energy blast at the exposed shoulder joint, severing the arm entirely. The arm crashed to the ground with Starburst still in its grip–and that’s when he felt something else break. Forcing himself to remain conscious as the pain overwhelmed him, Starburst saw Gotterdammerung attempting to escape by the massive rockets fixed to its back. With one last energy blast he disabled one of its rocket engines, and it careened out of control into Lake Michigan, where it exploded.

Then–and only then–did Starburst pass out.

He didn’t wake up until several days later. While he was still alive, the doctors told him in addition to his broken legs, his pelvis was fractured in three places and there was considerable damage to his spinal cord. Every doctor he spoke to–including Quantum–said he’d never walk again. He then set out to prove them wrong. Every day he forced his way past the pain, trying to make his legs work the way they used to. Hydrotherapy was included in his rehabilitation, and he became a really good swimmer. Seven months after his battle with Gotterdammerung, he was walking upright; four months after that he was walking without assistance.

It was not, however, a complete recovery. Despite the surgeries to reconstruct his skeleton, despite his own persistent efforts at rehabilitation, Starburst was left with severe pain in his lower back. Even with all the advanced medical science available, every doctor he spoke to–including Quantum–said it was likely he’d have the pain for the rest of his life. And this time, it looked like they were right.

Starburst took the advice of one of his motivational speeches–"A hero’s greatest competition isn’t against the villains, and it isn’t against other heroes. A hero’s greatest competition is against himself. Every day a hero has to do better, work better, be better than the day before. Every day a hero strives to make things better than the day before--for himself, for his friends and family, for the world around him. If you believe in your own power to make things better–for yourself, for your friends and family, for the world around you–if you make the decision to do better, work better, be better than the day before–then you can be a hero, too."

And that is what Starburst does, each and every day, battling the pain just as strongly and tenaciously as he battles villains, super and otherwise. He has built up his mental strength as well as his physical strength, for even to stand up straight, let alone walk normally, is an excruciating ordeal requiring a supreme act of will to endure. And while he can withstand the shock of an attack as long as he’s aware of it, it’s the attacks he doesn’t see coming that send him into paroxysms of agony. He’s become known for taking a tougher, no-nonsense attitude towards his opponents, preferring to blast first without announcing himself the way he did in the past. But while he may seem more forceful and confident outwardly, inwardly he’s plagued by the same collection of self-doubts as he’s always been throughout his superhero career. Each time he goes into battle is like going up against Gotterdammerung again–he’s certain he could die, and he’s got the back pain to remind him just how close he came to dying. But at the same time he believes he cannot back down from a fight–ever. If he ever did, it would confirm the worst suspicions of his detractors and the rumor-mongers–that he is a coward and a fraud.

The same suspicions that have lingered in the back of his mind since he became Starburst.

Of course, since his battle with Gotterdammerung, the rumors and criticism have dwindled down to nearly nothing, with only a few professional "hero-bashers" sowing any fresh detraction. The credit he received for single-handedly defeating a thirty-foot tall robot at nearly the cost of his own life has gone a long way, earning him a new-found respect in the eyes of the superhero community. He’s even reconciled with Quantum, although there’s little chance of renewing their relationship. Even his life as Thomas Adams has gotten better, having found himself a place in the scientific community as a science writer. He’s the current editor of The North-Eastern Journal Of Theoretical And Applied Nuclear Research, and a regular freelance contributor to Science International, one of the more popular mainstream science magazines. But for all the observers inside and outside of superheroism who applaud Starburst for taking superheroics more seriously, there are those who miss the days of the seemingly carefree Starburst, who was always ready with a smile for the cameras and a smart quip for the press, who represented the possibility that fighting crime, saving lives and stopping evil was not only the right thing to do–it was also fun.

There are times when Starburst misses those days, too.

Footnotes:

*Champions 4th Edition (Big Blue Book)

^Classic Enemies

**Champions Universe 4th Edition

^*Classic Organizations

(P.S. I'll post stats for Gotterdammerung at my first opportunity.)

Re: Champions 1st edition picture request

Link is broken.

It's working now--if it doesn't later on, here's the link to the group itself--

http://games.groups.yahoo.com/group/champions2/

Re: Champions 1st edition picture request

This is from the champions2 Yahoo! group--

http://f1.grp.yahoofs.com/v1/kNxqRmY15Rx9vnsA2wrFeh-gwgUuz0e-2BLTKkgHdIVF7hDUnsJ8QQFS8dUbPXIw1Wfw4CUI5WqpjdkhJglRZnH_iEJBSg/Champions%20cover.jpg

Glad to be of help.

Re: Now THIS is a SUPERCAR my friends!

Here's a "supercar" that actually got built--from the imagination of custom car genius Ed "Big Daddy" Roth, the Rotar--

If I ever get to the Futurama universe, this is the car I want--although from the pic below, I think I'd like it if it were more roomy--

More about the Rotar here--

http://www.petersen.org/default.cfm?docid=1049

And here--

http://www.mrgasser.com/rotar.htm

Re: Need a cool superhero picture...

Very nice!

I think, however, you need to put a copyright notice on the artwork. While I don't think Image Comics' or Storn Cook's attorneys will track you down in Finland, it doesn't hurt to cover your bases, nor to give credit where credit is due.

Re: Now THIS is a SUPERCAR my friends!

Recently I've been on a kick of collecting Hot Wheels cars that I believe resemble superhero-mobiles. As a result the top of my desk resembles a miniature custom car show, minus spectators and bikini babes.

Here are a few of my favorites--

Vulture--

http://www.southtexasdiecast.com/hwguide/images/worldrace/B2848.jpg

Swoopy Do--

http://www.southtexasdiecast.com/hwguide/images/2004/2004_003.jpg

Sling Shot

http://www.southtexasdiecast.com/hwguide/images/worldrace/ZED36.jpg

Xtreemster--

http://www.southtexasdiecast.com/hwguide/images/2004/2004_082.jpg

Iridium--

http://www.southtexasdiecast.com/hwguide/images/acceleracers/G8119.jpg

The Formul8r--

http://www.southtexasdiecast.com/hwguide/images/2005/2005_013fte.jpg

Buzz Off--

http://www.southtexasdiecast.com/hwguide/images/2004/2004_091.jpg

Ballistik--

http://www.hiros.com/hotwheels/image/dscn3150s.jpg

F-Racer--

http://www.southtexasdiecast.com/hwguide/images/2004/2004_030a.jpg

For those who want something a little different, the Hammered Coupe--

http://www.hiros.com/hotwheels/image/dscn2154s.jpg

Wild Thing could be used for a Jetcar (HERO System Vehicle Sourcebook, pg. 148)--

http://www.southtexasdiecast.com/hwguide/images/worldrace/B1060.jpg

And of course, the Batmobile--

http://www.batmobilehistory.com/toys/mischotwheels-batmobile11.gif

There's now a Hot Wheels TV series Batmobile--

http://actionfigureinsider.com/main/wp-content/uploads/HWBatmobileCarded.jpg

There's plenty more, of course--Hot Wheels is pretty much the "gateway drug" for fantasy car lovers.

EDIT: And then there's the Awesomemobile--

http://www.thinkgeek.com/pvp/swag/90ea/

--which looks like it could present its own parking problems, but who cares?

Re: Cool Guns for your Games

--and finally the israeli Tavor assault rifle which is what got me on this in the first place very cool looking I'm sure it will be subbing fro space age weaponry all over holly wood very soon

I was thinking the same thing about the H&K G11--

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/H%26K_G11

--that you could swipe its appearance for a prototype railgun, or laser or plasma rifle that the PCs have to steal or recover.

Good finds, everyone.

Re: Iconic Villains

In addition to the villains already mentioned, I'd include--

Pulsar

Cheshire Cat

Shrinker

Howler

Bluejay

Icicle

Leech

I'd also include Holocaust. Although he never got a write-up until Fifth Edition, he's appeared on the cover of the vert first Champions book, and the very first Enemies. He's been there all along, but never got noticed until now.

And for iconic Heroes, you can't leave out Crusader and Starburst. They may not have made it into 5th Edition, but they were there from the beginning. I'd like to think that in the current CU they exist as comic book characters--which means, as Gardner Fox taught us, that they're real people whose superheroic adventures appear as dreams to the comic creators who write and draw them.

Yes--I think I will think so.

Re: Shamrock

Why would he need to do robberies for funding? I'm sure the Irish government would be willing to fund it out of pocket ( at least secretly ).

That would depend, I think, on how much the government would want to be associated with a well-known terrorist like Shamrock. Publicly, they want to be able to say they prefer to deal with terrorists and their associates like civilized members of the international community.

Privately, it depends on who Shamrock's Contacts in the government (who they are, what position they hold, etc.), and how well he made his Contact roll with them. (A perfect Three can--or should--get you anything the character has to offer.)

He could, of course, do robberies for other reasons--like the institutions he targets could be links in the terrorists' funding chain. Or he could attack a military arms depot as a pre-emptive measure; he'd heard the terrorists were going to raid it for weapons, and he wanted to keep them out of their hands by taking them for his own use.

Re: Character: No-One

Nifty concept, nicely translated into HERO terms. Of course, nothing brings out the strengths and weakness of a character like playing him in a few game sessions, so you'll see what you need to work on better after a few of those.

I don't usually buy Overall Levels for my characters, but your +5 Levels seem to work out really well. A 19- Stealth roll is the next best thing to actual Invisibility, and also gives you the advantage over any normal combatant, and most low-level supers. As long as you don't try to go all Superman on your foes, and attack from surprise as often as possible, you should, to my mind, have little difficulty. I would, however, build up his SPD as soon as you can--being able to act and attack more often than your adversaries is a very good thing.

Good Job. I look forward hearing about your other characters.

Re: Shamrock

This could be an interesting possibility--have Shamrock retired for a while, then Al-Queda or something like them executes a London-subway-style attack in Belfast or somewhere else on Irish soil. Shamrock recruits some of his old IRA cohorts to, in his words, "Take the fight to the enemy." While some may see this as a good thing, there is also the fact that he and his new army are comitting robberies and other crimes to fund his new group, likely to be called the Irish Pro-Active Defense Army (IPADA) or something like that. So on the one hand, he's still a supervillain, on the other he and the player-heroes are likely to have a common enemy--which means there's as good a chance of the PCs fighting alongside Shamrock as against him.

Hope that helps.

Re: What published Champions Universe Miniature would you most like to see?

wcw' date=' that'd actually be neat and a great thing to do for a good collector piece or limited set... but to reproduce or mass produce is beyond my scope. I could easily do a one-off, but it would take me a lot of time. I could cast the figures, but not the vehicle, or the base, as far as I'm aware of. Making it out of pewter would be out of the question. There's probably a way to do it in plaster or resin, but I have no knowledge of it. I'll look into it, though, as that woukd be a nice final goal, even if I only make a very few of them.[/quote']

 

 

I can appreciate that--it wasn't so much a serious request as an idle wish, a daydream. What I really want is that Justice League playset.

 

I remember going by it in the toy section of a department many, many years ago. I saw the handpainted Flash figure and fell in love. I wish I could have gotten it then, but I doubt I could have hung onto all of it this long.

 

From what I understand, the set is worth $10, 000 or more if you can find one in mint condition.

Re: What published Champions Universe Miniature would you most like to see?

I know a lot of people here would want minis they could use in their game, but I'd like to see a Champions playset like this--

http://bp0.blogger.com/_2kjisMm3M9Y/RdoGdWK3A7I/AAAAAAAAAOo/Kaqjh0uot1Q/s1600-h/ideal_jla.jpg

--with all the Champions and an assortment of villains, a Homestead building, a V-Jet and a bunch of other accessories.

That would be sooo nice--

Re: Matriarchial Societies

I think if it were perfected, human cloning could lead to a matriarchal society. Since women would no longer need men to reproduce, men would become superfluous, and would only survive for as long as women allowed them to survive.

Which, of course, is not to suggest that allowing men to die out completely is a good idea.

Re: Strange "UFO"

I think it'd look better sans the central birdcage on top....much more

"protoculture" that way.

 

-Carl-

I was thinking it could be some sort of "collector"--it draws in EM radiation, or gravity, or "sub-space" or whatever, and expells it through the central ring, thus providing lift and propulsion.

I like it--makes it look like some technology we haven't invented yet--in other words, alien.

Re: Flying Carpet and skills?

There's an example of a flying carpet in The Ultimate Vehicle on page 74 if you want to go that route. Or you could buy it as Area Effect Flight, Usable By Others through an OAF. There's no wrong way to do it, so long as the points add up right.

Re: [RPG.Net Article] The Birth Of The Superhero Game

Part Two has been posted--go check it out;

http://www.rpg.net/columns/briefhistory/briefhistory16.phtml

Re: Need a Name for a Temporal Prison

How about HOLD? That not only describes what it does, but the word is also used historically as meaning "stop." Given its purpose, both meanings seem appropriate.

I like this--you could tell criminals being sent there that they're "put on Hold."

Good One, Trebuchet.

Re: Spider-Man Tech

For those of you who missed it last night, the show will repeat on Sunday at 9 PM Eastern and Monday (late Sun.) at 1 AM Eastern.

Great show--I hope they do something like that about Batman or Superman when it's time for their next movie.

http://www.history.com/shows.do?action=detail&episodeId=221434

This show is on the History Channel right now--you can catch the last few minutes if you hurry. It will of course, repeat.

The general theme is that Spider-Man's powers are not quite so far-fetched as some might imagine. And if Spidey's powers are within the realm of possibility--who knows what other super-powers are possible?

Re: Quick question on Star Wars: Thermal detonator

Well, in the Star Wars novel Shadows Of The Empire, Lando Calrissian uses one--that's one--thermal detonator to destroy Prince Xizor's skyscraper headquarters. The device is described as making "a small fusion reaction," which in this case erases the lower levels of the building, which causes the rest of it to collapse.

It was also described as unstable, if memory serves.

So McCoy is on the right track, but I would say it's more powerful--8d6 RKA vs ED, AEx2 Radius, range limited by STR, no KB, with a Misfire Trigger--the condition for Misfire being rough handling, such as a jarring impact.

If you want to be really nasty--make it a 10d6 RKA.

I'd also give it a bonus to any PRE attacks based on intimidation--

: "LOOK OUT! He's holding a thermal detonator!"

Did I miss anything?

Re: Golden Age Superheroes as Pulp Heroes

I'm with Oddhat--Superman would make a great pulp character. I see him as Publisher and Editor-In-Chief of the Daily Planet, and his reporters (foremost among them Lois Lane and Perry White, with Jimmy Olsen as a copy boy who always tags along and gets into trouble) bring him stories of injustices which he then battles to overcome with his great strength, speed and invulnerability.

Re: Top Eleven Adversaries of Arnold

5 & 6 WTF?

 

How the heck did those 2 get on the list? A bit part robot cab driver and a bad guy from a comedy? Might as well have put that bad guy from Twins on the list.

Hey--he could have put Sinbad's postman character from Jingle All The Way* on the list.

Man--Arnold has the best rogues gallery since Spider-Man. Too bad they're all dead, though. Ah, well--

*Which was a movie I liked, by the way.

Re: V,V & V - Who Made the Cut?

According to the thread for VV&V--

http://www.herogames.com/forums/showthread.php?t=53158

Sunburst and a few more Project: Sunburst creations are in the book, as are a few members of China's Tiger Squad, and a few other characters described elsewhere in HERO publications.

That's all I know. Perhaps someone with more info can post here.