Guardian

Re: What Fantasy/Sci-Fi book have you just finished? Please rate it... I would highly recommend "Inheritance" by Devin Grayson. Its probably the best superhero novel I have ever read (and I have read a lot of them). The background plot of searching for Deathstroke is really just window dressing, as the main interest is the relationship development between Batman and Nightwing, Green Arrow and Speedy/Arsenal, and Aquaman and Aqualad/Tempest. This should be required reading for any GM, as it could really flesh out the sidekick or DNPC personality.

Re: Quote of the Week from my gaming group... Umm ... No. Maybe in a world of comic-book science, where matter and energy are created/destroyed with no real respect for the Laws of Thermodynamics. In our world, nail polish uses plasticizers (softeners) because if it were too hard, it would be brittle and break off when the flexible fingernail beneath it is flexed.

Re: Suggestions for a player's Song character? I would recommend paging through an old AD&D Bard's handbook. They had all kinds of spells and talents related to singing. You should also consider the advantages and limitations of the special effect. Should these be bought with the powers, or just considered to be natural extensions (ie- not affecting Real Points) of the singing effect? For example : - Doesn't work in a vaccum - Greater effect and strength underwater - Restrainable (if gagged or entangled) - Lesser effect if target fails perception roll There was an old Legion of Superheroes character from the 1970's named Tyroc, who had various screams for different super-powered effects like teleportation, EB, Force Wall. You could look into that character for inspiration.

Re: Quote of the Week from my gaming group... John Stewart sees an attractive female NPC, and wants to talk with her privately without the other PCs around. In order to ditch them, he says - GL: "Excuse me, I have to go to the bathroom ..." Sky: "You're a Green Lantern, for Chrissakes! Can't you just teleport your urine into space?"

Re: Who are the DC/Marvel cat-themed villains? WOW !!! Thanks everybody for your input. This is truly the best board in all of RPG-dom. I now have several villains that I can research and use to create a feline-themed team. Thanks for posting the character file, Question Man, I will definitely use that. In case anybody is interested, my plot involves the Egyptian goddess Bast gathering together like-minded catophiles (like Catwoman and Catman), and controlling anthropormorphic cats (like Puma, Tigra, and Sabretooth) in order to use a magical artifact to resurrect modern interest in her ancient cult.

I am working on a plot line involving the gathering of feline-themed villains for an upcoming game. Our campaign is an amalgam of DC and Marvel iconic characters. I need some help from Herodom Assembled to generate a list of who might be attracted to the secret cat-prize. So far I have come up with: Marvel : Black Cat DC : Catman, Catwoman, Lion Mane, Cheetah Warren : Pantha There must be other panther, tiger, lion, or cat-themed villains out there. I need a group which can really challenge the heroes (4 PCs in the 550-600 point range). Thanks for any suggestions !

Re: Historical Nexus Points I'll second the suggestion for GURPS Time Travel. It's essential for this type of campaign. It even discusses dimensional physics and how to resolve paradoxes. From the cover description: " - A survey of time and dimension travel as presented in fiction - and current scientific thought. Travel by time machine, by dimension gate, even by powers of the mind! - Six complete campaign backgrounds (and several mini-backgrounds) for travel through time or parallel worlds, or both! Each has its own rules for characters, travel, and paradoxes. - A detailed discussion of the paradoxes you should consider in creating your own time-travel campaign. Is meddling with history easy? Impossible? Or just a Very Bad Idea? - Parallel worlds . . . "what if" dimensions where something or everything, is different. - A timeline of interesting dates in our own world's history . . . as places for time travelers to visit, or as "branch points" for parallel-world campaign. " Good Luck !

Re: QuestionL Would you consider this unfair or rail roading? Personally, I would have no problem with that scenario at all. I enjoy role-playing challenges, and I see that situation as a great way to explore and develop a PC's character. Both his initial decision, and the consequences of that decision later on. HOWEVER, in my gaming group, I could see 2 of my players getting frustrated and crying "Foul". So I think you have to know the group you are playing with for a "no-win" situation to be a fun gaming experience. My suggestion would be to lower the stakes somewhat, which should lower the potential adverse reactions from the players. For example, instead of interrupting a major "Destroy the World" ritual, have it be a lesser spell in which the villain would just gain more power. That way the PCs could leave to save their loved ones, but have the guilt of knowing that the Evil Villain will be harder to stop next time.

Hi Steve - I searched the FAQ but I am still not clear ... The Multiform power says the true form pays for the cost of the highest point form. This is very clear how to proceed in the book example given where the True Form has a dinosaur form which is more expensive. However, in our situation, the True Form is the one receiving game experience points, and is the highest point total of his other 4 forms. So either A) The player has to put every 5th earned experience point into his Multiform power, so that he continues to pay for himself as he earns more experience, or The True Form is not included in the "pay for the highest form" rule and it would be more precise to state "The true form pays for the highest point form except himself". Thanks very much for your reply.

Re: Crude Combined Marvel/DC timeline to use as backstory to a Supers campaign

Re: Crude Combined Marvel/DC timeline to use as backstory to a Supers campaign Its always tough to melt down all that history into a coherent timeline, and I have seen many people try as I was doing research for my own current campaign which combines the DC and Marvel universe. One minor error I noted in your list: 1959 - Alan Scott was never a member of the Green Lantern Corp. There's a complex history as to how the Guardians of Oa actually created the Starheart from which Alan drew his power (the "Green Flame"), but the rings that the GLC used and which Alan created himself from a meteorite's green metal are really unrelated. They were fellow Green Lanterns in name only, not in origin, and Scott could not have passed on an Oan power ring. You did a good job overall, and comic book continuity is always a fun discussion topic (like religion, there are many opinions and no right answers).

Hi Steve - I searched the FAQ and my old Hero 5th Ed already; I apologize for wasting your time if the answer is in 5ER but my current copy is at a friend's house. We play in a Champions game with points paid for powers, although the occasional weapon is picked up in combat and used by a PC. Am I correct in assuming: 1) Powers with the special effect of a weapon ARE NOT subject to a half-phase to draw before use, (even powers defined as OAF could still be fired instantly) UNLESS they have the "Real Weapon" limitation. 2) Any weapon picked up at the moment, or used without the character having paid actual points for the power, would require a half-phase to draw UNLESS that character succeeds at a Fast Draw Skill Roll. 3) Am I wrong about the above, and in a SuperHeroic game you never have to take extra time to use a power unless it is specifically listed as a limitation on the power? Essentially, Fast Draw skill is only for a Heroic game and not to be used in a Superheroic one? Thanks again for your eternal attention to detail, and all the effort that you put into making such a great RPG system!

Hi Steve - You've heard it before, but I just want to say thanks again for your tireless work on answering our questions. Your service to your fan base is unparalleled in the RPG community. One of my players (I'm the GM) wants to use a magic-based VPP with several limitations on the control cost. I have no problems with the lims themselves, but I am questioning whether they can be legally applied to the slots as well as the control cost. One of the lims is "Limited Range", but some of the power slots that are planned to be used include Growth, HTH attack, and Characteristics. Obviously range is not a factor with those powers. So can that lim be used with only the control cost, both control cost and the VPP slots, or not at all because the lim potentially wouldn't apply to some of the planned spells? THANKS FOR YOUR TIME !!!

Re: PULP HERO Nominated For InQuest Award! Hi Steve - I'll definitely vote! It would be helpful if you could post a list of all the 2005 Hero products that would be eligible for write-in candidates, and then I could cast other votes while I'm at the site. I don't want to waste a vote by listing something that you released in 2004. THANKS !

Re: Build ? : "Invisible to Damage" I love the term "Achilles fight". Personally, I have always liked those type of battles myself, as one has to rely more on brains and utilizing the environment than just the old D&D mindset of running up and bashing repeatedly with your strongest attack. The players in our group range from age 32 to 40, and include a physician, a lawyer, and a PhD in History. So no, I'm not worried about frustrating them with a mental challenge.