Hermit

Sympathies.

Dude, I hope you don't take offense if I send a prayer up on your behalf.

Intriguing! Best of luck, Jason!

Two posts in a row showing fine examples of different strokes being the rule They say setting books often have the worst sales for superhero RPGs. I wonder if it's because it can be a hard line to walk in finding that balance between trying to make it special in some way, and yet trying to put in something for everyone?

To make a superhero setting from scratch, you'd have to establish a few baselines What is the 'source' of superpowers? Alien tampering? Natural mutation? All high tech? Magic? All of the above? Most folks I know like a mix so they can run wild,, and it is true to the comics, but even then you're going to want to explain HOW superpowered beings came into being, and when they first decided to put on colorful longjohns to explain the conventions we know and love in a 'superworld' You need to touch on how they've changed culture, technology, and politics. You also need to have reasons why they might not have changed it that much. It can be tricky to be original on this, and sometimes trying to get too far out of 'the box' merely means you've fallen off the edge entirely. Let's say I wanted to create a gameworld from scratch. I decide I like the idea of aliens. I love me some aliens. So we declare that Earth is actually a protectorate of the Alliance of Civilized Worlds: A squabbling collection of interstellar species who are, for all their flaws, much better than the alternative. At the start of the 20th Century, Earth has NO clue that they're under the Alliance's protection as a 'potential member in centuries to come'. For once, it is Earth that suffers in ignorance thanks to a philosophy of non interference predominating among the Alliance. Earth is actually important. The space around it is actually rife with warpgates, which allow easy access into hyperspace. In short, it's a hub for travel if you have the right technology. What's more, humans show signs of remarkable genetic potential. Whether it is natural, or some Pre-Alliance tampering is the subject of much debate among Alliance scientists who know of the humans. But being ignorant with nice neighbors is dull. The Alliance can't be alone. Let's say that they find themselves suddenly besieged by the forces of Xarn the Inexorable, Tyrant of the Dutharian Ascendency! The alliance is caught off guard, whole sectors are lost in the first attack. And Earth's sector is next. The politicians of the Alliance debate and squable about whether they should even try to save Earth, or abandon it and focus on its more 'important members'. One Alliance scientist proposes a radical solution.... conscript hundreds of Earth men from around the world. Activate their genetic potential, and send them to war against the Ascendency! Earth is harvested for its people who have the potential to be living weapons. With surprising discretion, compatible subjects are found and pressed into service, waking up to find themselves in a battle of the stars. Ironically enough, this happens but one year before WWI, aka "The Great War". Thanks in no small part to Earth 'heroes', the Ascendency is driven back, and a wary peace renewed. The Earth humans who were super powered soldiers are supposed to have their powers 'deactivated' and their memories wiped. Only it doesn't work 100%. The Roaring 20s and Depression both have a rise of 'mystery men', fellows who may no longer have powers, but remember fighting evil. Some people instead remember a normal life, but find powers they didn't even know they had slowly returning. Cue the Superman homage guy who is destined to become the greatest of them all just in time for World War 2. And from their, they set the stage for superheroes to crop up. Superheroes wear costumes because the aliens put them in 'special unit uniforms' and some of them subconsciously remember that. It establishes a trend. Some humans recall enough of Alien tech to make amazing devices. (Which brings up an interesting thought... do agents of the Alliance scramble to surpress super science in order to keep Earth as close to its original 'development path' as possible? It would explain why our setting won't be one where everyone has 'flying cars' by the 21st Century) The Mcarthy Era gives a good reason for many superheroes to go underground somewhat in a tip of the hat to the All Star Squadron's 'retirement' in comics. Offspring are born, and legacies are certainly possible. They'll be taking center stage at later decades. By then, even those with no genetic potential at all will have been inspired by 'golden age heroes' and there will be plenty of heroes who get by on tech and training as well. At this point, the magic loving players whine. They want to play mystic origin types, and there seems to be NO way to do this in the game world. As they have great influence over my pizza flow, I decide to yield to their demands but I still want to be a little different. So I go with the old 'magic returns' gag, but I decide to go with the whole 'The Mayans weren't all wrong' bit...and make the year it returns 2012! Yeah, mythic gods are no longer banished (Maybe Jesus didn't want competition) and with their return comes quite a few changes as well. Atlantis returning being a big one.., or maybe Atlantis was always there, but the citizens wake up. (Side note: I really think there should be more than one under water civilization, so I decide to have one alien species covertly slip past the Alliance and have set up a Colony here. They'll be more scientific to the Atlantean's mythic stance) Magic works period now. Mystic practiioners, at least some of them, now find that while their Tarot readings may still need work, they can blow the #$#$# out of things with arcane bolts. That's good enough for hero work. What's more, this means certain groups have a lead on the occult powers. Maybe certain Masonic lodges or Wiccan groups were fooling themselves before, but suddenly their 'how to' books are actually handy. More than one mystic organization is sure to rise fast. By now I realize I'm rambling. There would be a lot more to determine. Were aliens and their interference ever publicly outted? Did any individuals in the Alliance decide to go to Earth to help it in defiance of non-interference? Has the Ascendency learned how to empower humans as well and done so to keep Earth heroes too busy to ever help again? And do I want to face the wrath of my players and introduce characters akin to Foxbat or Ambush Bug?

A request has been made to have this moved as it is not (at least far as is known) an official hero product. Carry on

That's my belief as well. Disagreements on how to get to the goal (and perhaps where the finishing line is) will arise, but I'd like to think the majority of both Men's Rights activists and feminists both actually want the same end result. Heck, I would like to think the majority of people in the Western World want that.

Wow. I thought I was a rarity. Yeah, I never tried contacts for the same darn reasons as others above

I never could keep all the periods of the Stone Age in my head, still can't, but this kindly cave fellow tries to help

And it's a fantastic series IMO. Love it. Sorry, I know this thread isn't for that, but it really deserved a quick plug

I like quite a few of these. She's got a gift for visualizing I admire

Unfortunately, some sections of 3rd Wave feminism have poisoned the name brand with a lot of hate for men. I'd like to think they're in the minority mind you, but thanks to them, for some in the public, the term 'feminist' doesn't conjure up images of a person fighting for equal rights... it conjures up a misandrist who believes that all men are rapist scumbags and treats them as such. It's become an oddly loaded term. Jackwagons like Rush Limbaugh trying to portray ALL feminists like the worst of their fringes didn't help. Or perhaps Finch just wanted to stress that he didn't see Wonder Woman as being politically active, and that her focus would be superheroing. Unfortunately, in trying to avoid labeling Wonder Woman, he ended up putting his foot into a hornet's nest by , intentionally or not, making it sound like the label was in some way 'bad'. Add to this that Wonder Woman has always had a prickly fan base (And with some justification, every time they relax their guard they get a 'Bees, My God" moment) and I can't say I'm surprised folks are angry at him even though I doubt he meant any harm, and indeed, I'm pretty sure if asked about equality for the sexes, even in private, he'd answer he was for it. Also, Finch is not my favorite artist, he's improved, but seriously he's not very good on faces that I've seen. That said, he's the artist, not the writer, and while the writer is his wife, it is SHE, and not her husband who will quite literally be putting words into Wonder Woman's mouth. I'll wait till the first story arc is done before ripping him a new one.

Roter Baron is not off his meds... he's just built up an immunity to them.

I really like that. I may even scrap the "New Gomorah" idea I've been working on (I was trying to mix all the elements) and use that instead.

As I once had a really good time in a campaign where I played a mind controlling superhero with an ethical code to keep himself from falling into temptation too much, I have to say I really have a soft spot for Allegiance

See, I didn't know about the two inch deep pockets thing. That is... well, bull$#!t. I hope there are some alternatives out there for women to take their hard earned cash to.

My sympathies to you and your wife's boss. I know not all corporations are like this, but the disposable people attitude they have towards employees who have gotten the job done for years, and done well never fails to rankle me.

There are some excellent ideas here guys. Consider a few of them stolen for later use

"Ladies an gentlemen, the Blowfish Avenger!" "Blowfish gets New Rochelle."

Well, I was thinking more of 'if you were starting in a setting that had superheroes in other cities'. One could certainly start a game where the whole world is stunned true, and nothing wrong with that.

Looks like villain ville isn't getting too much love. I'm rather surprised Boom Town took the lead. I actually thought it might be considered the least exciting of the options.

True! Good catch

VIPER Ville might work very well indeed. If I recall, there is a town that's pretty much a company town for VIPER n the official CU

I wonder if you could put Double Knockback on a strike or two?

I'm thinking of starting a new campaign for some friends. One aspect that is appealing is a city with no apparent superhero heritage at all. Yes, that can restrict the players a bit in the legacy department (Though they can still play an ex side kick now finding a city of his own or some such) but I was thinking it might be cool to have the public of the city being relatively unjaded when it came to meeting people with true superpowers. Or maybe said public is used to it, but only from villainous sorts and thus alturistic empowered types will confuse them ("Here's my wallet..wait, you're helping me??"). Some ideas that come to mind: 1) Boom Town- The city is a modern day boom town, having gone from small city (or smaller) to sizable draw for one reason or anothe very recently and very rapidly. Maybe it's become the next silicon valley, maybe a natural resource was found nearby and its almost a modern day 'gold rush'. Maybe it's just where the jobs are in a time of economic trouble elsewhere. With this sudden growth, there is also new crimes, with the sudden wealth, there are people wanting to steal that wealth and take it for themselves. Enter the need for superheroes to settle. Maybe they're natives who have had origins there and realize their city needs them to stick around instead of heading to NYC or the other 'usual hero grounds'. Maybe the city government has put out word that any super team moving in would have the mayor's support. The Locals might feel superheroes really put them on the map like they deserve, or they might mutter 'There goes the neighborhood". If supervillains arrive first, then the heroes probably can't show up quickly enough in the mind of some here. 2) The Deal Undone- I should add this idea is totally stolen from a great guy name of Winterhawk. He used the concept for Vegas very well. The idea is that sometime in the city's past, an odd 'no mask' agreement came up between various powers that be. Any supervillains OR Superheroes seemed to be sublty, and covertly redirected or even encouraged to go elsewhere. Organzied crime groups agreed not to hire nor try to create powered types with each other. The government might have decided heroes would break that odd 'no paranormals' peace. Maybe some old superheroes themselves helped set it up for reasons unknown. Now, however, the deal is broken, the genie is out of the bottle...etc. With the status quo gone, it might be interesting to see if EVERY crime group decided it wanted to get the jump on its rivals by hiring their super powered muscle...but how do you keep the guys loyal? 3) The Device Broken- Up to now, this city has had a few 'masked men' in its history but none exhibited true super powers. The reason? Powers just didn't work here. Supers, good and bad, found their powers rapidly weakening within a few days of coming into the city. Maybe it even affected magic and tech of a certain level. The town might have become something of a hidey hole for non powered individuals who had made enemies of supers elsewhere. Now, however, the McGuffin has been broken (Or turned off, or stolen, or whatever) and superpowers are possible. Indeed, depending on the nature of the device and how it worked, it's possible orgins will be happening all over the place as the "Dam has broken" allowing a flood of origin causing energies have quite the excess to clear out. However colorful they are, the criminals of the city find themselves now facing folks with REAL powers. However smug the police department was, they find themselves unprepared for supervillains who have enough raw power to give the likes of PRIMUS trouble. The McGuffin could be forgotten after this, or could become a recurring plot seed. After all, some folks are going to miss 'the good ole days' and if they can fix the device...dot dot dot. 4) Forgotten History - The city actually DID have superheroes (and supervillains) at one time. A golden (or dark) age of wonder (or terror). Too bad no one knows about it. They've been erased from thie history books. Folks who should be old enough to remember, don't. Should superheroes appear, folks will act like it's a brand new experience for them though other than that, it may vary "About time" or "What are THEY doing here?". Is magic at work? Some alien device? Is it a grand conspiracy by the government, villains, or the heroes themselves? Regardless, eventually the PCs may find signs that there were once heroes here who fought for right, bleed for others, and maybe even died protecting a city that no longer knows they ever where. In a way, this city violates some of the basic premise as it DID have heroes, but it still might give a similar vibe at first. 5) Instant City - The city has never had superheroes because the city has only recently appeared. Perhaps, in 2012 when folks were waiting to see if the Mayans were right, a complete modern city with almost everything you could want just appeared... but it had NO people: None, nada, zip. Maybe an old superhero with vast powers and resources decided it was time to leave the planet (or maybe he only had a month to live, whatever) and assembled a city with a speed that would be impossible for just about anyone else leaving it as a gift to the country (Or as a way to thumb his nose at the government which had told him to stop upsetting the status quo). Then said hero left. However it got here, there is now a perfectly usuable city and while authorities might have tried to keep people out, lawsuits and persistence would eventually have a population playing 'Sooner' and moving in period. And they're coming in by the thousands! In the chaos of the rush, superheroes are going to be needed, because some villains plan to be preying on these modern pioneers. The idea of a city coming out of nowhere has been mentioned on these very boards, but I don't recall the name to give credit to (Very sorry). One advantage to this is it allows me as a GM to put almost any type of population I want if I can even remotely rationalize it. Maybe a large chunk of the town will be third world refugees, another a company trying to get a monopoly on the city, and then we throw in a think tank of scientists to study the city in question. 6) Villain Ville - The city in question has had people with powers, high tech, and colorful costumes for a long time now. Unfortunately, about 90% of them have been supervillains. Maybe a big hitter on par with Dr. Destroyer took over it decades ago, opened it to other criminals, and the government and heroes alike failed to stop it again and again. Maybe the villains just showed an uncanny knack for organizing? Maybe Corrupt politicians were heavily invested in supporting the villains covertly and made laws that made it almost impossible to be a superpowered vigilante? Maybe the villains weren't obvious about owning the town. Regardless, just a few months ago, a great coalition of superheroes from over a dozen super teams stormed the city, took out the bad guys, and cleared the place up. Both authorities and superheroes alike know that it won't last. Someone always tries to fill a power vacuum. The only solution? A group of heroes needs to stick around and make what was a villain haven a place where justice can continue to prevail. ------------ And there are possibly others I didn't think of , feel free to share. And just because I can, I'm putting up a poll asking folks which city without superheroes idea they'd like to play in.