Doctor Agenda

Re: Hero Alliance Sourcebook? Yeah, I liked those guys!

Re: People with Powers What do you suppose Britney Spears really, really wants?

Re: People with Powers That's VERY helpful, I had read most of the series when it came out, but the reminder could not have been more timely. I guess my world is similar, with the 'virus' (mine is subatomic nanotech, but same difference) resulting in 90% Deuces in 10% of the population(but a small power point-wise can be very useful), gradually going up in power until you reach Ace-level. Jokers would mostly come from subcultures: gamers who really want to be Elves, Goths who really want to look like Vampires (but don't have the points to REALLY screw themselves over), Furries that want to be half Arctic Fox or something, that sort of thing. I'm not sure what kind of percentage that would be. I heartily agree on the Pre, and it works on TV, too!

Re: People with Powers

Re: Would Marvel/DC Sue? If the 'real world super person' picked a name that just happened to be the same as some obscure comic book hero or villain they'd probably be fine as long as they didn't just happen to have the same concept, too. A Crimson Avenger who is a supersoldier with laser eyes would probably not overlap the 30s Mystery Man or current haunted pistol-wielder enough to cross up a trademark.

Re: Opinions On Being An "Ex-Viper Member" On an 8-...the AWOL super villains have to take priority, unless you're VISIBLY an ex-viper agent. Might want a new paint job for the armor and weapons.

Re: Need Perjoratives! Thanks, BD, I think I'll use this one in my Vibe campaign for people jealous of the ones gifted by the Vibe. Repped.

Re: People with Powers An entertaining (to me, at least) diversion playing with this concept is to roll 10% to see if a famous person is affected. I did it with the presidential candidates, none of the Democrats were affected but two of the Republicans were: Tancredo and Huckabee. Huckabee was further fortunate enough to be one of the 1 in 100 to be at the next higher power level. I don't plan to change the election results from how they play out in the real world, but I may use it to add some color. I presume I know what both men really want. I'm thinking along the lines of +5 Int, +5 Ego, +10 Pre, 2d6 Luck, and +5 to Oratory for Huckabee and lesser similar abilities for Tancredo, maybe +2 Int, +2 Ego, +5 Pre, and +2 to Oratory. I'm not personally for either of these guys, but it's kind of fun to think about how it will affect the race in the world of the Vibe...will they be outed, will a shadow organization form to keep altered people out of politics, or will one of them win the election and turn out to be more competent than expected?

Re: [Character] Megan Grant Repped. I like, may I lift her for my Vibe campaign (thread is People with Powers)? I'm mutating 10% of the Earth's population, but most of them will be even lower-powered--few really useless abilities, though. Megan fits right in except I'll have to bust her down to high-level Congressional staffer for continuity reasons.

Re: Need Perjoratives! Flukes Hypers Longshots Meddling Kids Subs

Re: People with Powers Can anyone point me to a thread about a similar concept to this setting?

Re: Gestalt Now Available In Color I just ordered the B&W from my retailer. I like B&W, it's easier to copy if you find the perfect look to steal for your character.

Re: People with Powers I think the default Luck would be something you could have without being aware of it at first, the rules are a little vague on this point, but my impression is the player reminds the GM (or vice versa) to use Luck when appropriate. Maybe it would be an advantage to use Luck at will, since usually you only get to use it once per scene? A 'coincidental magic' based on Luck would be a tres' cool power for someone to have.

Re: People with Powers Do you think, particularly in the USA and the rest of the First World, that ill-will and envy will outweigh wonder and curiosity? Barring overreaction from society, an empowering event could be a very good thing. Most peoples fundamental desires are fairly innocuous and sometimes beneficial to others as well as themselves. The next best thing to getting rich yourself is having rich friends and relatives. If your formerly nerdy bud is suddenly a chick magnet it may be humbling, but his cast-offs might be an improvement over your usual. If your best girlfriend's IQ goes up 30 points, she might have a helpful idea or two for you. I'm not saying that small-mindedness and jealousy won't be pretty common, I guess they must be, but won't it be a mix? And what will dominate? Speaking of dominate, I know there will be a nasty cohort with nasty abilities who will use them for nastiness. I think they would be a minority, like criminals. I think most of the ethically-impaired would realize there are legal ways to profit from their gifts, and while they might mess it up by being shady out of greed or impatience, few true super villains at first. The most powerful of all, the Guy Behind It All, will be a dangerous lunatic capable of almost anything, including a campaign to reclaim all the power that was supposed to make him truly omnipotent.

Re: People with Powers Luck would be useful frequently, maybe not every day, but it should help keep you safe and help you get what you really want. Once a week, minimum, plus dynamic situations, especially if there is a big risk. The risk doesn't have to be physical, trying to pick up a date 'out of your league' or moving half your 401K into emerging markets would certainly count. Good point about people noticing they get more good luck when they engage in risky/dynamic behavior. It's especially interesting when you keep in mind you can never really count on Luck. Yes, most of the PCs top out around 10 DCs, although one has high layered defenses as his 'schtick'. NPCs with armor-piercing, sticky, uncontrollable Luck are certainly an option. Luck variations are more likely to be limited versions of Luck, though, like only with gambling or only to get away with infidelities.

Re: People with Powers That's a very good point and probably a VERY common desire. Upheavel in modeling world to follow...not to mention most of the 10% of models affected probably want to look even better. It would probably take awhile to notice you're a bit luckier and a lot of people would take reaching a new plateau in something as being the result of their hard work. Maybe a random time period for manifestation, from instant to weeks or months, would spread out the shock and obscure the triggering event. I'm thinking the event might be accompanied by vibrations, like mild tremors, that could be a serious problem in geologically unstable areas--a few earthquakes and volcanoes would distract the media and give people who just got super powers (like PCs) a motivation to use them heroically. I suppose some people would try costumes and code names because they've learned it's 'the thing to do' from comics and movies...it would probably be a good idea to do SOMETHING to conceal your identity.

Re: People with Powers And, you're repped, and not just cuz I was just thinking some of the same things. That's how it would probably play out in the First World: 24-hour news cycle, a whole new level on 'Who Wants to be a Superhero?', people wanting to get a piece of someone with a kewl ability. But also probably a deniable CIA spin-off to capture and study the people who have changed and old rich guys trying to extract youth or powers from kidnapped extranormals (gotta get a better name for them than that). The cliches would probably dominate in the rest of the world, totalitarian states recruiting super soldiers, treated like gods in India, etc.

Re: People with Powers I'm thinking the foremost desires of certain groups will be predictable. Maslow's hierarchy would apply, where someone is at on the 'need pyramid' would color how they were affected. People in a crisis situation will get something that helps them through that crisis. Someone suffering will be relieved. Someone lonely will be more popular. Competitive careers which require a great deal of dedication and personal investment, where people always have a need to do better (athletes, musicians, actors, physicians, etc) would tend to result in people getting better at what they do (as opposed to merely more successful, which could be covered by Luck). If you're practicing for the Olympics, one more inch of Running could mean breaking a record. If you've always been at the edge of stardom, +1 with a performance skill might put you over the edge. If someone starts running at 40 mph, you know to not let them in the Olympics because they have an unfair advantage, but what about someone who is only 1 mph faster than they used to be? And how unfair is it? Most people who are successful had some breaks: well-to-do family, good lucks, sharp business sense, talent, taught self-discipline, etc. You don't earn your genetic endowment or family situation. Is this event unfair or is it giving everyone, rich or poor, white or black, man or woman, young or old, the same chance for something better?

Re: People with Powers If most of the regular desires (money, success, fame, popularity, etc.) were handled through some manifestation of the Luck ability and 90% of those affected were on the bottom rung (+0-25 points), how long do you think it would take people to figure out the extent of the event? If say, in the USA, about 27 million are at the lowest level, and 15 million of those get something non-obvious like Luck or +5 Ego or 'doesn't get fat no matter how much she eats', how long before people start wondering?

Re: People with Powers Would you be frustrated at getting a little bit, say one step up the character ladder from normal to skilled, when others jumped to super level?

Re: People with Powers Yeah, even an unaffected person who got a break at work or beat out a rival in love might be thought to have gotten some unearned 'extra'. There's definitely going to be some of that, maybe a lot in certain places and situations. Not to mention the religous implications.

I am starting a game that explores the idea of a lot of people getting powers, kind of like Wild Cards, The 4400, and Heroes. The demographics are that a LOT of people (about 10%) will get some kind of boost, mostly very small: 1 in 10 get 0-25 base points, 1 in 100 get 26-50, 1 in 1,000 get 51-75, 1 in 10,000 get 76-100, 1 in 100,000 get 101-150, 1 in a million get 151-200, and so on up to 500 + base points at one in a billion. That's not supposed to be exact, and there's a more or less continuous gradation. Someone with zero points has to pay for their abilitiy from shifting their abilities around (eg, Bod to Com) or taking extra disads. The cause of the empowerment leans toward wish-fulfillment in its effects, and a lot of the low-end 10% affected can be covered by a little Luck, but just in the USA that's a lot (40,000?) of amputees with a shot at buying off their Phys Lim, and maybe 7 million seniors, a lot of whom I would guess would REALLY like to feel 20 years younger. In places like Mali I would expect a lot of people to deveolop immunity to AIDS and/or malaria, get over their eating habit or have some ability to improve their food production. The PC's will be low to standard level supers, but the scenery will be what happens in a world like this, and on what timetable? It would be profound, but I would rather society not melt down over it. I'm interested in people's thoughts on the subject.

Re: List of Forum Members - Super Teams & Members Justice Defenders-North Detroit Legacy Team Horizon-Leader, time-manipulator, CEO. Terra-Brick, farmer. Optimus II-1949 newlywed in Empyrean body. Sideswipe-Battlesuit user and inventor. Rad-Radiation emitting military expert. Captain Future II-Human adventurer with Malvan tech and alien wife.

Re: Heroes for HERO? If "Always On" isn't a valid limitation, I assume it would also not be an advantage to be able to not regenerate if one so chose? If I were playing a regenerating character I would certainly find that option convenient on occasions when I wanted to conceal my power, and if it isn't a limitation to not be able to do that, it logically would not be an advantage to be able to exercise the option. I'm just sayin'.

Re: Super Names Blazer Dharma Dog Drifter Horizon Steel Magnolia Sutra The Vole