Shiva13

Re: The Death Note and How To Stop It The Death Note is sort of an ultimate expression of Name and True Name magic. And given that modern society primarily is very public about a person's true name, someone with such an artifact would be incredibly hard to counter. But I believe it could be done. Name magic is dependant on knowing a target's name. The Shinigami eyes allow seeing even a concealed target's name. But there has to be a way of protection of a person's true name. Some counter-pell. The original L and Near operated anonymously. Under a great deal of concealment of their identities. This allowed them to evade being targeted for quite awhile. So to counter the Death Note, anonymity is really the key when it comes to investigation. This is definitely not something fit for a superhero game, however. As killing the owner of the Death Note before finding and destroying the Death Note would be the only real way to make certain that owner doesn't have hidden pieces. And if there are hidden pieces, that could mean that the nightmare wouldn't end, because the killings could just continue without the main notebook.

Magic and Psi-Activity. Imagine magic as being a rather large lump of clay. One waiting for a sculptor to mold it and give it a purpose. But instead of needing hands to physically mold it, it needs a psi-active mind to do the job. Homo Sapiens are not psi-active by default. The potential exists in every person. But trying to explain it to the average peson is like trying to tell someone who has been blind all of their life what it is like to see. Psi-activity is literally an unused and untrained sense in the average Homo Sapien. A recessive trait.

Hidden truth: Human species defined. In this setting, there are three species of human beings. Homo-Sapiens, Homo Sapiens Psion, and the hidden third. Homo Sapiens, the primary strain of humans on earth are, in truth, not native to the planet. But instead are the decendants of war criminals and other survivors left on earth after an intragalactic civil war. Earth was a focal point, one of the major battlefields, of that civil war. Homo Sapiens Psion are the decendants of the main human galactic civilization. An empire filled with its own troubles and strife. And this species has several major differences from those on earth. Is that they are much more frail in constitution. have great difficulty with the atmosphere and pollution on earth. Without medical assistance, they would die a slow and horrible death from poisoning. They are a psi-active race. Active minor telepaths. Verbal commuinication is simply not their standard method. This has led to another problem. Extremely sensitive hearing. So much that filtration devices are needed by the few members on earth to cope with the day to day noise. The others. Who are the secret revealed in book two. An earth native species. Who are a vast minority when compared to Homo Sapiens. Living quietly and generally out of sight of the majority of the population, they were largely left alone until after WW2. But things changed radically, when their existance is thrown unavoidablly into the public eye. And the public has to deal with the fact that not only is humanity not alone, but never truly has been. That a true other species of person has been there all along. Co-existing quietly.

Gorudon It was 1954 when it was first seen. Gorudon: Lord of Destruction. The first of the Kaiju. A leviathan oozing radiation. And some say, an elemental born of death and suffering. An expression of nature's vengeance. Gorudon has been classified as a heavily mutated descendant of the Iguanadon. One that reasserted its amphibious ancestory. The beast is primarily a radiovore. Having been seen dining on radiation sources, and sometimes lesser Kaiju. It is a living weapon of mass destruction. Gorudon is extremely territorial. And as such, has come into constant conflict with other Kaiju that have appeared. These battles have resulted in a movement that see's Gorudon as the lesser evil, if not some type of primal hero. As the beast tends to just leave after finishing a battle, instead of staying to continue to rampage. A unpopular science has risen powerfully in the face of the Kaiju menace, and particularly because of Gorudon's appearances. Kaiju behavoural science. A science dedicated to observation of Kaiju and eventually being able to predict their behaviour, in the hope of minimizing the damage done in those attacks. It is seen by its many critics as a waste of energy and resources that could better be put toward civil defense.

Japan Unique in the setting is the nation of Japan. Because nowhere else in the world have superbeings been more embraced. So much that the enhanced are treated simply as a factor of day to day life. Japanese superheroes tend to fall into two different catagories. Idol Supers, and the more traditional. Idol supers are usually brought together by corporations for publicity purposes. They capitalize on the fame and buzz of being the flavor of the moment. yes, they also do some good in confronting real villains and real threats. But largely, they are corporate spokemen. And as such, beholden to their benefactors for support and subject to the whims and short careers that the idol phenomenon carries. Traditional heroes are the breed that tends to have any sort of longevity in their careers. But they also are in no way nearly as common as Idol heroes have become. But they are certainly the most respected of the two types. Given that they they are heroes for purely altruistic reasons. The periodic Kaiju attacks have put the nation on a constant state of adaptation. Heroes and villains are seen as being the lesser issue. The first reflex in the general population is the ability to adapt to disaster and continue on with their lives. It is not uncommon to see a superpowered child in a school with straight human children. Those abilities are just seen as something people in general have to deal with. So the choice has been to work with the superbeing phenomenon, instead of against it. As such, Japan has become a strong advocate for equal rights for humans and nonhumans on the international level. Becoming the lead in sponsoring a UN initiative to make equality between humans and nonhumans international law.

The company is already doing The Book Of The Destroyer. A book dedicated to the machinations and operations of Dr. Destroyer. But another idea has come to me just in speaking to the people in the chatroom. The second greatest threat in the Champions Universe setting isn't a dimensional conqueror. It isn't Gravitar. It's a classic team of supervillains that have been around since the early days of Hero Games. Eurostar. I think Eurostar is worthy of their own book. One that details exactly why they are the second biggest threat around. Describing their operations and machinations. What exactly, besides the physical force they command, that makes them the ever-present threat that they are.

Re: A rundown on some material in some books I have been writing. Thanks for the compliment. Being put in Steve's league is a a big ego booster.

Re: The Silence of the Catgirls or too much realism in fantasy The "meta-explanation" in my material has no impact at all on what a person can play. And I do make sure to tell everyone straight up the fact that Time Travel and other dimensions don't exist. But in the case of the latter, I have a different explanation on the whole "other realms" issue. So impact on what someone can play is really almost nil.

Re: The Silence of the Catgirls or too much realism in fantasy In my own setting, I use an overall unified origin for all supers. It explains whwat they are and what they represent within the context of the setting. A sort of meta explanation. But that doesn't really limit the styles of characters that can be played. Magic in my setting is a form of energy that can be shaped and made to do other things by someone who knows how. Picture it as a ball of clay that can be reshaped by a master sculptor. That's the best analogy. Simply that Magic operates on its own set physics and possibility. Which I don't try to define further.

Further details on the US government's view of the superhuman. After costumes heroes started becoming a serious presence, there were meetings and hearings on dealing with the superhuman phenomenon. Three positions were jockeying for control of the issue. Those who wanted to control superhumans as weapons, and those who wanted their complete elimination stood prominantly forward. But the only logical and moral solution that the Congress could live with would be to recruit, train and support cooperative heroes. So they could act with official sanction to keep the public from harm. Unfortunately, the two sides proposiing the more extremist options pursued their agendas on their own. And instead of helping to keep the situation under control. they evolved to become serious menaces themselves. Inside of the US Government, former heroes have either been put into positions of authority, in regards to the superhuman question. Their expertise being seen as the only ones truly qualified to truly deal hands on with the issue. Popularity of certain heroes with the public has worked in favor of the government. Shifting some of the costs of funding those heroes into the commercial sector. Which has resulted in quite a few innovative ventures. Such as insurance company coverage of damage done by hero/villain battles. In general, the US Government has a very benign attitude toward the country's heroes. So long as they work to uphold the system.

Re: Mutants and Masterminds Paragons It depends on what you are looking for, to be honest. It's a toolkit on making "supers in the real world" style superhero games. But it is also majorly influenced by it's own set of artifacts. I have it. It has some good ideas. But it is something you really need to evaluate for yourself.

Historical deviation. The choice to to deviate from the standard progression of comic book ages was a deliberate one. It was not a matter of disrespect for the Golden Age on my part. Far from it. I wanted to give the Golden Age of heroes a longer breadth of life. Rather than just being centered around the WW2 era characters and heroes, I wanted to present a Golden Age that was really a Pulp evolution. Instead of giving focus to only to WW2. The Golden Age was more than just that one war. The Golden Age ran from the gangster era, to the Depression, to after the Korean conflict. Which is a pretty long period of time. An age defined by tremendous struggle. Struggle I felt worked better as the harbinger of the first publically known age of superheroes. The Atomic Bomb changed the world. Put forth a palpable level of danger into the world that was beyond imagination. It changed everything. It caused an elevation in the level of danger to the planet as a whole. One beyond anything anyone in human history. It was the apex event in a period of constant unbearable strife. Not just for humanity, but for the existance of the entire world. Nature responded. Gigantic monsters appeared throughout the decades since, in close proximity to where atomic bombs dropped. These Kaiju ravaged that area of the world and those surrounding it almost exclusively. Forcing the people in that part of the world to adapt in their own way. Being in a constant state of waiting for the next shoe to drop. During the cold war age, heroes and villains appeared in greater frequency and power. Global tension maintained a constant state of escalation. Fear ran rampant. Fear that was ever-present. The popularity of and fandom generated by the superhero phenomenon granted the public one of many ways to escape the feelings of helplessness and fear always present in their lives. Heroes became icons of hope that the common person could actually see and touch. Though that also came with its good and bad sides.

Re: A rundown on some material in some books I have been writing. What I could possibly do is put out Mutants & Masterminds versions of the books first. Then wait until enough money comes in to fund the Hero System versions. This will give me some much needed time to see what happens with Hero System 6th Edition, and to get enough money together for whatever licensing fees I have to pay Hero Games. After that, it would be a simple enough task to get the Hero System version off to production. This is if I choose Print On Demand as the option. If I manage to get Blackwyrm or Mongoose to handle the publishing, it is an entirely different matter. Everything could be published simultaneously.

Re: A rundown on some material in some books I have been writing. Scott Bennie's Gestalt proved there is a market in the here and now for 400 page worldbooks. It's sales have been steady and it's been well recieved. So I don't see much of a problem. Plus the setup to print a book via print on demand is far from cost prohibitive. So if I was to publish on my own, I would be taking that route. Plus, 400 pages is the working size. Not the actual size. I wanted to give myself plenty of room to get the job done. I've also approached Blackwyrm, testing the waters, to see if they might be interested in doing the publishing. I have also investigated Mongoose Publishing's Flaming Cobra, independant publisher line. As of yet, I am still evaluating publishing options and working on getting the three books complete. Part of the holdup is waiting on a critical piece of software to be released by the company who created it. Supposedly, that software will be released by the end of this month. Another aspect holding me up is licensing from Hero Games. The cost to include Hero System stats for each book may be more than I can afford. But at the moment, I am just not certain. And there is also the fact that Hero System 6th Edition is just around the corner, and it might just be wise to wait for it to be released before including any potential Hero System support. The format of the books have been decided. The game stats for each game system supported will be an appendix of its own. Which grants me the ease of either printing both appendices in the same book, or selling Mutants & Masterminds and Hero System versions of the books by themselves. What I want from the books in choosing that format, is the ability for the reader to look at the books as the works of fiction they are. Without game mechanics cluttering the main body of the work. This allows non-gamers to enjoy the books with considerable ease. The trilogy is just the beginning. It sets up the entire environment. After the printing of the trilogy, there will be graphic novels that actually show in detail many of the events summarized in the trilogy. So it's only the beginning. I have even tapped a company to possibly make some actions figures based on the characters in the trilogy.

The third book. The third book details events just after those in the second. And features prominantly a very pulp era concept. Counter-Earth. The setting as a whole doesn't feature time travel or alternate dimensions. My reason for making it so had many reasons. Prime among them, is that time and dimensional travel tends to create stories where the actions of the characters end up not making a lot of difference in the world around them. And as we all know, superheroes become superheroes because they strive to make a difference. So I wanted to preserve that. But the issue of other realms needed to be addressed. And after a considerable amount of thinking, I decided that the Counter Earth concept indeed fulfilled that need. That it would be the source of the stories of people falling off the earth, and that it would be the other world referred to in many of the world's mythologies. So part of the third book uncovers the mystery of Counter Earth and how people from earth accidentally ended up there. Counter Earth is a truly savage world. Having gone through a fairly recent apocalypse and a return to an incredibly primordial age. Titanic creatures roam its surface, and it is prone to periods of extreme weather conditions no human can survive without serious protection. Yet in thie savage setting, there is a shining beacon of hope. Not just for its own future, but for Earth as well.

Commentary on the setting's flavor. I mentioned the presence of Pulp era heroes becoming part of the system. But what I didn't mention was the fact that this setting, at every stage has huge Pulp Genre overtones. And those overtones simply don't disappear when this series gets to the modern age. If the Pulp genre was anything, it was larger than life. The fantastic never got stale. That's the aspect I am trying to keep present in this trilogy.

A bit on the first modern heroic age. The fallout from Cheetah's death happens in the second book. Her death triggers the revelation of a pretty staggering secret. And it has worldwide implications. Her death is the event that signals the end of the first publically known heroic age, and the beginning of the second. That is what the first book covers. The first modern heroic age. Where the eyes of the public are opened to the existance of superheroes and the revelation of what superbeings actually are. Knowledge that changes everything. In this world, in the united states, there was no Golden Age of heroes. Not in a widely known or recognized way. Pulp era heroes soon graduated from acting solo, to working with the system. Where the unusual was handled by unusual operatives, when necessary. Operating so as not to disturb the public or damage their perception of reality. McCarthyism had no significant impact behind the scenes. It was mostly a very public spectacle which had its time in the spotlight, but quickly faded away. Heroes started appearing in response to the unavoidably public acts of the the first supervillains, and various other organizations. The first sighted hero was in 1968, during the social unrest.

Cheetah She was found on the run from a terrorist group, with no memory. Arrived just outside of a base that was training UN special operatives, fighting for her life. Fighting with a speed and determination far beyond human. The terrorists were defeated and she was soon taken into custody by the base. Examination revealed that her memory had been shattered and suppressed by extreme trauma and torture. But her abilities made her a valuable asset. So she was trained and kept as an operative of UN Special Operations. Where she exceeded all expectations. In time, she became uncomfortable with her position. And especially with one of her teammates, who certainly had used their abilities in an abusive way. So she went to the commander and presented her resignation. But alas, one doesn't simply resign from that type of an organization. Instead, she was given a new assignment. Technically putting her on indefinite leave from Special Operations. The door was forever left open for her to come back. She traveled to South Africa to help in the building of a UN research and observation post. During that time, she crossed paths with the worst criminals of the region. Poachers, warlords, and slavers. And she soon became famous as a regional protector. It was there that her insecurities and her sensation of being lost started to fade away. She soon found and trained a successor before returning to the civilized world. She decided she needed more education. So she went to the United States and entered school. Worked very hard. But it was only a matter of time before she collided with villainous forces and extremists. And her instinct to protect others overcame her desire for normalcy. So she obtained a costume and created chose the name would come to be regarded as legendary. She was soon approached and asked to join a team. A truly motley crew. But soon that team became embroiled in events that would change the world. And she was always at the forefront. Always making the protection of others her priority. But all superhero careers come to an end. She went back to the UN to discuss her options. And her actions as a heroine carried considerable weight in what was decided. She would go public, revealing her identity to the public and enter into a career as a diplomat, a crusader for human rights. But also would work for UN Special Operations in the management and research. Allowing her to lay considerable groundwork for future generations of heroes. Then the black day came. One that would be remembered forever. An American Senator was speaking on a controversial human rights issue. A gunshot rang out. And before anyone could react, she had pushed him for cover, but took the bullet in her chest. Time stood still, as everyone froze in disbelief. The madness that followed as the crowd reacted in fear, disbelief, and anger. But it didn't change the horrible fact that someone who had been one of the world's greatest superheroines was gone in a flash. In the days afterward, the public trauma would be compounded. As details of her past and aspects of her private life would be thrown into the public eye. But her legacy would always survive.

A living nightmare made manifest. The Four Horsemen, It happened in Nevada. A transmission showed the forces of Absolution being literally torn apart by a blur. Speed so fast it shattered the sound barrier at ground level. Causing shorts in the view. But always cleat were the screams and cries of the soldiers, the thunderous crushing of machinery. The hacking cough of men having their very air poisoned. Shock and awe around the country as the dust cleared, revealing four horrifying presences. Omega, The Ultimate Man. Cybercide, The Living Weapon. Mindstorm, Fear incarnate. Vapor, whose toxic fog sucked the life out of anyone who was exposed to it. Death, War, Famine, Pestilence. The Horsemen are here. Proudly brought to you by The Omega Foundation.

Nemesis. Some things just eventually happen as a matter of coarse in society. Riots start because people get sick and tired of the conditions they face. The percieved injustices they face everyday just get the better of them and it explodes. Absolution chose a moment of great public upheavel in a major city to launch its purge of superhumans. Under the cover of the L.A. Riots, they deployed troops and their infamous Bishop units to begin the "cleansing" in grand style. To strike a staggering blow to the "inhuman". To send a message to the supers that their days were at an end. What they didn't count on was a vertiable army of locals crawling out of the crowd, disabling their units and sending what operatives that did get away, fleeing in terror. Operatives that told stories of the unwashed beating them back. Something they certainly were not prepared to face. Nobody was prepared for the transmission that hit the airwaves, along every band. The voice that boomed out, directly at Absolution, "We are Nemesis, we are your enemy. We are the voice of the people, and their voice of justice. You have been warned. You are not welcome in our homes, our neighborhoods, or our lives." So started the greatest vigilante movement ever assembled. Not of superheroes, but seemingly of ordinary people. An incredibly well organized network of cells in virtually every major city in the United States. Dispensing their brand of justice to whoever invites their wrath. And another just seems to pop up to replace any one that is found and quashed by either villains or the authorities. Someone is certainly behind Nemesis. That scrambled voice who spoke with such wrath. The only time that voice spoke. But so far, no-one seems to know who or what is behind it.

The Omega Foundation Eugenics is a bad idea, no matter how anyone slices it. The idea to create the "ultimate man" has persisted in our society for a long time. But one has to ask the following questions: "Who sets that standard? Who has the authority to decide?" The idea of the "master race" has been around a long time. WW2 had it as a focal point because of the agenda of the Nazis and other fascists present in that era making it a central part of their agenda. A concept that has continued to exist in eugenics programs that went beyond WW2 and close into the modern age. It started with a committee deep inside of the US Government. Whose job was to examine the superhuman question and determine how best to take advantage of that emerging phenomenon. And it was concluded that superhumans were the new weapons of the age. Ones that could be manufactured, programmed, and exploited. That the superhuman be put underneath the heel of this committee. Controlled, regulated, and manufactured to serve. Which Congress not only eventually rejected, but forced the apparent disbanding of the commitee, in utter disgust. But projects like this never die. Most really bad ideas don't. And their legacy, their living weapons have been released on the public at large. And god help anyone who gets in their way.

Absolution. It started with simply looking at Genocide in the original Enemies book and thinking "Someone has got to do this justice. Someone has to make it as distinct and special as the rest of the classic Champions material." But instead, after waiting so long, we ended up with The Mutant File. And in every way, it was not anywhere close to good enough. Not in my mind or opinion. So I thought I could do better, In my early days of gaming, I created a group of heroes. Wanted and on the run from the government for a hist of crimes they didn't commit. I made the linking force a single corrupt general, pulling the strings on an unsuspecting government and military to do his villainous bidding. Pretty simplistic idea, I know. I created an agency that general ran rampant with that hunted and scavenged extraterrestrial technology, and generally made it a greater scale menace. A menace to the whole world, in that it stood a very large chance of drawing the ire of alien civilizations who came looking for things of theirs that organization took. But it ended up on the back burner for a long time. I found it after awhile, just too simplistic to use. Something was missing. I started my revision of Genocide out of pure ego. I wanted to keep classical elements, but also make it distinct and stand out. The Minuteman robots were a must. But I felt that simply hunting one type of superbeing was thoroughly illogical. And in my mind, it just didn't work. So I pushed the human supremesist angle. Looking into the psychology of those groups, the sickening charisma, The pure horror of how average people could be sucked into the insanity of extreme fascism. The sheer insideous evil of it. Then I remembered that simple organization I made. That little scavenger of extraterrestrial artifacts. And it all clicked. So I integrated that original group into the mix, and it just fit. It gave a substance and body to the organization it lacked. Faith can make the smartest man do the most stupid and insane things. And in my early life, I had grown up in the presence of racial and religious extremists. So I had a pretty good idea on how dangerous, and seductive twisted faith could be when manipulated for nefarious ends. It just clicked. That would be the angle I would use. Twisted faith. The name, Genocide, no longer felt like it applied. It was so radically different that it was time to cast off the artifacts of the past and give the organization truly its own name. Which came to me one night when I woke up and leaped out of bed and uttered a single word: Absolution. My history with that name started with Rolemaster. It was the name of an absolutely destructive spell, called Dark Absolution, Pure. The effect of which was, the utter destruction of a person's soul. Permanant death. Resurrection wouldn't work, because there was no soul left to bring back. It was definitely a spell of immense evil. But that name. Absolution had two distinct definitions in the dictionary. Redemption and Death. Which played perfectly with the whole idea of an organization recruiting based on twisted faith. An organization whose twisted ideals are pushed forward as good and moral to its followers. One that can convince members competing racial supremasist movements to set aside their primary fixations and focus on something of common blame. To make them tools the leaders of the organization could exploit and then discard. They will say they want to save a hero's soul. But believe killing that hero to do it. Because there is no room in the world for people who do not conform to their definition of human. But then again, who are they to set the standard? Who gave them the authority? Nobody. They just took it upon themselves to force their view and ambitions on everyone else. Which is the motivation of tyranny. The motivation of the purest evil there is. Absolution: Redemption and Death. Watch out! They are coming for you!

It's been a long time since I started this project. It went from a simple campaign book that was originally to be submitted to the original ownership of Hero Games, to a failed proposal to the current ownership of Hero Games, to languishing in limbo, to finally come screaming out of the darkness when the M&M SUp[erlink became a factor. It started originally as a single worldbook. projected page count, about 400 pages. But it finally evolved into a staggering three volume worldbook series. Each of the three volumes with a projected 400 pages. The story of this started back in my early days of gaming. Where I wanted to immortalize the setting in which the game group I was in played. And oh boy were there a lot of false starts. For some of the participants, it was like pulling teeth to get their characters and histories from them. Some even took 2 years after I moved away from the area to get the information to me. It was arduous. In time, looking over the material, I tried distilling the information into something useable. Concise. And given the ambition to have Hero Games publish it, I focused primarily on including characters from their game books in the setting. It was a good solid idea that had already been done by Aaron Allston. I thought there was plenty another setting in the Hero Games pantheon at that time. But it simply was not meant to be. Nagging in the back of my mi9nd, though, had been the fact that it was just another dirivative world. I always had ambitions higher than the original game group had actual talent. I always envisioned the setting as more. I wanted to produce comic books based on the setting. I wanted to make the material truly sing. That is where I started the first big developmental shift. From dirivative setting, to completely original environment. With purely original characters taking over the roles characters from Hero Games once held. And as things progressed, it all started falling into place pretty rapidly. Events were changed, altered, or completely disposed of. All in favor of making the setting sing out. Later on in the development process, I found out that I just had too much material. I dragged my feet while. Then came to teh realization that my original plan of a 400 page book wasn't going to do the job. I simply had more stories to tell than one book could handle. And it went from one book into two. Past and Future books. But again, I underestimated myself. And a trilogy was born. As the years went by, I started working on my artwork. An injury during my teenage years had put any concept of doing the art by myself out of my mind. Until someone in the Hero Community introduced me to an awesome little program called Poser. It gave me back my artistic outlet. And in time, I learned how to use it in concert with other programs to really produce some fantastic results. When I got confident enough, I decided it was simply time to throw out the idea of hiring other artists and produce the art for the book myself. My ambition at this point is to either publish the books myself, or to work with an existing RPG publsher to get it out the door. Inclusion of the M&M Superlink is a given at this point. But I would also like to include Hero stats in the books, or to make seprate Hero and M&M versions. How or if Hero stats or versions go is dependant on working out licensing with Hero Games, and very importantly, the Hero Community. Would the fans want another setting. The answer to that is something everybody who reads this may have a hand in making reality. The next post, we get into the meat. Some teasers from the first book to wet your appetites. Enjoy.

Re: The Ms Champions Universe contest Still in Eurostar or not?

Re: The Ms Champions Universe contest Wasn't Pantera written out of the current Champions Universe?