Hermit

As said on another thread, I recently took advantage of the sale going on, and now possess the PDF file of Shades of Black. I have yet to run it, but I have finally finished reading (and rereading) it. I felt I had to comment on it.

I'll try to keep this spoiler free, but do be forewarned there maybe some 'slips'.

Allen Thomas can write.

Sometimes, you have to open with the obvious. Perhaps I should say "Allen Thomas can write well." I state this, because some of you may not be familiar with his work. I wasn't particularly familiar or aware of it before.

Man, am I ever now.

I think I once told others that what I wanted most in my adventures that DoJ was selling was a good plot and story. I can, if I must, make villains. Maps and art are nice... but again, I can wing it. Plots and good storylines, those are a joy and a relief for the often brainfried GM. Others agreed with me on that.

For those who did, you'll be pleased to know that "Shades" has a classic, beautiful plot of romance and rescue....

inverted and twisted with malign elegance to something sublimely dark that must be stopped by our heroes at all cost. What's more, Allen has tried to take almost everything (I say everything, because anyone who GMs knows you can't anticipate the players 100% all the time) into account.

Your group hates investigations? There are suggestions for spicing it up, or getting around it somewhat. Your group loves the darn things? There are suggestions on how to let your dark detectives shine. Got one of those Telepathic/Precognitive/Mind Scanner sorts there? Well, Allen has some suggestions built in for those as well.

The story drips mood and atmosphere in an almost tangible way. One particular setting had me almost expecting Vincent Price to come out of the shadows and smile at me. The art only furthers that.

Can I praise the characterization enough? While some may think we don't need to know the very soul of a villain to tell a fine tale, I think it helps. The Black Paladin is not (thank goodness) totally retconned as one might see in comics now adays, but rather expanded and explored in depth. Talisman is also fleshed out even more. I found the insights into their interactions fascinating, and very revealing. Not to be outdone, and perhaps a living testament to the phrase "The female of the species is deadlier than the male" is a certain old flame of the knight of darkness.

Oh, getting back to the Black Paladin here for a moment, while you'll need his write up in CKC (And Talisman's in the Champions genre book), you'll be pleased to find out there is a new weapon for him, and more than one new follower for him... including something every knight should have.

There are two more villains, pretty creepy not for what they are, but what they were and NOW are. A GM could either continue to use them on his roster long after this adventure, or give the PCs a chance to save them from... well, that might be telling. Besides, there will be rescuing a plenty. What would a story with a knight in it be without a few damsels to save eh? Even if, in this case, it is FROM the knight.

Lastly, let me praise the fact that The PCs' actions WILL matter. "Duh" you say, but I'm talking beyond the mere "Beat the bad guys, save the day" sort of thing you can get trapped into too easily. HOW the PCs act will have consequences in this story, for the NPCs about them particularly almost as much as what actions they take do. They can make a real difference, beyond merely trying to shove a guy in stronghold.

I'll end this with a bit of a sum up on the artwork and maps. The art is great. There is a color cover that is very nice. I'm not qualified to really go into details, but somehow it manages to cram a lot of action into one area without being cluttered. It reminds me of a watercolor comic book cover.

The interior art is in black and white, and very well done as well. The art chosen respects and enhances that atmosphere I was praising so heavily earlier on.

The Maps have not been used yet by me, but I do plan to use them. Again and again if I can; and not always as the 'same place'. I don't know how smoothly a print out of them would go, but it looks promising.

In my opinion, this is an excellent product with much potiential for the enterprising GM. This adventure is definitely a must have if you are a fan of the Black Paladin or enjoy mystic chivarly with a gothic twist.

I'd give it an 8 out of 10.

Curse you DoJ, Curse you!

My gaming group is now a collective victim of this insidious ruse. Unable to resist the lure of a 96 page adventure PDF at roughly 10 bucks, Shades of Black lays now in our grubby paws (well, mine, I'll be GMing). I had kept telling myself that I was going to get it... later, but this devious sale stripped me of my ability to hold it off any longer.

My only satisfaction is that as it's a PDF, they emptied not one bit of their warehouses from me (Well, barring the 7 or so 5th Ed books I've already gotten).

Mark my words, If we end up having fun, it'll be the DoJ's fault!

It's a trick, they're trying to give us great products and discounted prices in order to get our money! It's a plot I tell you, a plot!

I don't know how many of you recall the old 4th Edition book, "Champions in 3-D"? It had some good atlernate dimensions to throw your players into, and some good (I thought) scenerio ideas. Briefer mentions were made of yet more options ("Mad Viking World") and there was even a handy dandy set of charts for randomly rolling up your own.

Anyone have any more they've made up and used to good effect, or made but never got to try out?

Here's some I thought of I don't recall in the supplement...

• Facist World- Inspired by the recent "A Better Wolrd" Episode on the JL Animated series, the PCs do not face their criminal opposites but rather their facist ones, who've taken over "for the greater good" using harsh methods
  
• Animalmorphed World/Earth C- In honor of "Captain Carot and his Amazing Zoo Crew" everyone here is a cartoon like animal. PCs may not be amused by their counterparts.
  
• Gender Bender Wolrd- The PCs find a world where people have the opposite genders from the ones they know, "Yo, Thunderer, your counterparter here is like a total babe!" "Don't be sick, and don't even think about it."
  
• Panel World- This universe is one giant comicbook, but the participants KNOW it. Think She-Hulk when the 4th wall was gone. PCs will have to adjust to comercial ads in the middle of their fightscenes.
  
• Villain's ideal- Be it a robot only world run by Mechanon, or a place where Bulldozer is emulated by men, adored by women... this one can be either played for laughs, or deadly danger.
  

Then, of course, there's XXX world, but... well, no decent Hero would go there!

Nope, I'd missed that one, but thanks for the heads' up.

And unless you have some sort of limitation on your 12d6er, there's nothing to prevent you from using less dice for it. Heck, you can even spread it a bit increasing your odds of hitting, while doing a fair shot.

AE can be weak, but don't be afraid to alternate. If you explosion an area, and only take out a few guys but ding many more around them, you can follow up with an AE to finish them sometimes.

For that matter, don't underestimate knocking them on their butts even without damage. Your teammates will thank you for the easier pickings

It depends on the situation... and the villain. Psychology and other skills that let you know your opponent are a great idea for a mentalist.

For example, mind controlling Durak to tell him to hit Fiacho might work... but, if you suspect Durak is loyal to Fiacho, why not instead tell him this as a command...

"Durak, Fiacho is under MY power...and the only way you'll free him is knocking him unconcious!"

It might work better

Speaking of getting one villain to knock out another, see if you can super impose the image of a super hero on a bad guy's teammate in a villain's mindseye with mental illusions. It can be.. interesting to watch (Though, as always, be careful you don't end up killing someone by proxy).

One day I want to make a villain named "Bluebell"

Sure, he's a crook and a brute, but he doesn't want to scare anyone

Interesting, I like the 'accessing computer' feel to it all, you seem to have that down pat (Unless you can make the darn thing beep or click when buttons are pressed) .

Thanks for some of Sam's snippets there, Lemming. And thanks to everyone who replied. If anyone wants to post some "Newspaper clippings" based on their own campaigns or what not, please, add on. It might inspire a plot or two for others.

I definitely want to get my butt in gear and make a few for my players next run.

Foxbaturga it is then.

Re: Organization Name Help Wanted

Originally posted by Worldmaker

I've got a criminal agency in the new GGU that is to mentalists as Genocide is to mutants in the CU. I just need a name, and am coming up very, very dry.

 

Anyone have any good ideas?

The Coalition for Free Thought.

Okay, back to reality

Has anyone ever written up a "In Character" (even if the character is an NPC reporter) article like this to spice up the feel of a campaign? I'm thinking of using this, handing it out, that sort of thing, to let my players know public opinion of their PCs. After all, there's nothing preventing Nightbringer from getting a cup of coffee and the local paper to see how things are going.

Good idea, or waste of time?

(It was kind of fun to do here, but that's neither here nor there)

Too Many Heroes?

November 9, 2003

By Dallas Kingsly

Eat your heart out New York. With no less than four confirmed super hero teams, the Big Apple has been long considered the dominant city when it comes to super hero population. Chicago and San Francisco have been the long term contenders, but suddenly there's a new kid in town gaining fast. The latest public reports released from the Department of Superhuman and Paranormal Affairs indicate that Millennium City may soon take top spot in sheer number of super heroes even if not organized teams.

The Champions first come to mind when most think of the City of the Future. They've been here pretty much since the name change, and let's face it, have already been through more in their first few years than some teams have been through in a decade. With such high profile heroes as Sapphire among their ranks, they never fail to get noticed. To their credit, they're good neighbors, seeming ready and eager to comply with the city's wishes and help out any chance they get. Oh sure, there are complaints about Ironclad leaving dents in the pavement, but already his contributions have made up for that in most folks opinions.

Nor are the Champions alone. Numerous solo heroes have always been here. Something of the spirit of old Detroit makes for rugged hard workers even among our costumed population. You won't catch the likes of Kinetik slouching, and even the corporate hero Binary, or the immensely comercial (but still popular) Cavalier take time to help the "little guys" out daily it seems. Some theorize that for every hero we see publically, there's one working in the shadows to protect us. That is an annoying thought for reporters like me who would love to scoop any crime fighters, but likely a comforting one for most walking alone at night.

Now the MC-8, who were mostly among those 'solo heroes' have pretty much taken the niche of 'Non-team team' , gathering at least twice on record to save the day. With Steadfast's charity causes, and Commando Rubberbando's participation in civil rights marches; it's pretty clear they aren't fading from the limelight any time soon either. Just how organized that group will eventually get is unknown, but already there are rumors that different companies are hoping to be the first to publish an "MC-8" comic book.

Not bad for a city beaten down in 92' and reforged anew only recently in the last decade or so, eh? It makes a Lennie proud.

Of course, after the initial "We rock" moment, a Lennie also has to pause and think to himself, Is this a GOOD thing?

When the latest 50 foot tall menace is testing our archetictural structures in its rampage, and neo-godlings in spandex hurl their own equivilents of thunderbolts at it in an effort to stop said menace- well, it's the common working joe (and jane) who has to deal with the fall out. What's more, heroes and villains seem to attract each other. In fact, another theory is villains actually out number the heroes on a scale of 3 to 2. Reasons vary from the sociological to the metaphysical, and I won't get into them here. The point is, somedays it seems you can't look up in this town without getting a glimpse of a costumed savior or neer do well.

Property damage moments are rarer than you'd think, thanks chiefly to a tendency by some super heroes to "take it outside" (or to a clearer area), but it can still add up. If not for the caps on "Super human" insurance in this town, one shudders to think where the rates would be. In the last year alone, over 23 injuries and one death could be attributed to falling debris and other fall out. This has caused some officials and special interest groups to demand greater restrictions and accountability for super humans in Millennium City, but dissenters point out that many of these people were the ones pursuing the super battles to "get a closer look", despite the obvious danger. Besides, they continue, many superheroes choose not to comply with the registration act, so how could anyone possibly enforce more restrictions without driving away our best defense against the villains?

Mayor Biselle, when asked about super heroes, particularly the ones who do not register, had this to say, "Like many, I have my doubts... and I will give the benifet of that doubt to these well known mysterymen and women until they have proven to no longer be a benifet themselves."

The city council may not agree with him. Already proposals and counter proposals are being brought to the table to vote on, regarding how much leeway should be granted to our staunch defenders in their zeal to defend us. Now's the time for every Lennie to make his or her voice known on these issues.

For myself, well, I think Super Humans are the Millennium City equivilent of L.A. earthquakes. They're dangerous, they're powerful, and you never know when they're going to hit. They're also a fact of life. Tieing the hands of super heroes will do nothing to restrict or hold back the villains they oppose. Pouring more tax dollars into enforcement of such isn't going to help do anything but drive some of our protectors away. Perhaps council member Lena Schroeder's proposal to set up a Superbattle aid and relief program would be a more productive and less antagonistic use of those funds.

As annoying as they can be sometimes, as frightening as they sometimes seem, and despite the fact we tell dirty jokes about them around the water cooler; the super heroes of Millennium City have given their support to us again and again. I think it's time we returned the favor.

Originally posted by BobGreenwade

(You do have Terran Empire for reference, don't you?)

Yeah... and I purused it a bit more after posting. There's mention that the Hzeel were at a respectable Tech 9 when they invaded earth and got repelled by Super heroes... So that locks them down.

Iron age types aren't my thing, but I'm sure someone else can help you. However, I can at least bump this up for their notice by responding to it

As folks might have guessed from "Blue Bolt" , I suspect that if Sapphire and Defender never really work out, she'll end up with Kinetik. Given her mutant nature, and his altered state... odds are good at least one kid would have powers.

I was wondering if anyone knew, or at least had a rough estimatation of the tech levels of many of the races presented in Terran Empire during the Heroverse time of 2003 AD. Particularly the Mon'Dabi, the Perseid, and other guys running empires etc in the future, but any thoughts are welcome. I mean to use some of it for Champions, so this might not be the appropriate board, and my apologies for that... but more folks here seem in the know on our favorite TE races period.

Thanks for any help/thoughts before hand.

Okay, the Scorpius art is great!

I should check this thread more often.

Whadday mean no membership?

You know, I've never made a Spectrum. I need to get to work just so I can join this club

Well, question... does this villain team WANT the heroes to know (in part at least) who is responsible for crushing them? or do they want to protect that? it might change what motiff they go with if, for example, the Tong wants to keep it's involvement in the team creation hidden. No "Dragon" motiff , for example.

Houston, those are some great limitations

One of my favorites had a variant of "Sucker for a pretty face".

EDIT: Afraid I couldn't do the "Must Humilate" one though, just totally unlikable for me.

Of course, the ultimate hidden HQ for villainry is a small Role Playing Game company. People can come and go, and you claim it's just "giving the fans tours". If someone is seen in an odd costume, claim it's just some marketting related gimick. And , of course, because the industry tends to draw from various sources for personel, no one will be suspicious on why you have people from all walks of life (business, law, computer programming, wet works, etc.) on the payroll.

Really play your cards right, and you can even get a sizable fan base that fanatically feeds you data on the goings ons with super heroes etc in their own cities/areas, and sometimes theorizes on their strengths and weaknesses. An unknown massive think-tank at your disposal, that may yet yield the seed of genius that will grow into your fruits of conquest and... dare I say it? World domination!

I'd give an example, but ..hmm none are coming to mind

Originally posted by McCoy

It's not the distance. Wondering if this might be better for a villian group? Don't know how relations stand between US and Canada in the CU, but interesting if the villians can run amok in Millennium City, and retreat to Turkey Island, where no sanctioned US hero has authority to arrest them. Long as they don't commit a crime on the Canadian side of the line, they're safe!

Hmm, that has posiblities.

Either that, or I could have Foxbat "Claim" the island, and create "Foxbaturga" then petition the UN....

nah.

wow, and it has nothing to do with Cap and Bats ? I'm in shock...