nitrosyncretic

As reference for Champions Now, it's really worthwhile to buy access to the Marvel Comics online and read the 60s through early 70s of Spider-Man and the FF and whatever else takes your fancy. You can also get anthologies from most libraries. Ron sees the original Champions as inspired by this era and that is indeed what he's trying to capture.

Well, Ron hasn't used the term "narrativist" for more than 12 years. 
 
The dice falling where they may is a perfect partner to the "now." The concept is to establish a starting condition full of motivated and planful NPCs, let play determine how any conflicts turn out, then visit how that changes the motivations and plans of the NPCs.
 
Each now is a list of NPC cast members with their motivations and any actions they intend to take in the next session. You can read about this in the chapter called "The Now."
 
During a session, the GM plays the NPCs to follow their plans until the players get in the way. If the players don't get in the way, the NPCs just proceed uninfluenced. If the two collide, then play (including but not always dice rolls) determines  outcomes. No planned outcomes. No gifts from the GM. 
 
Then the GM creates a new Now sheet, where the NPCs adjust their attitudes and plans based on what just happened.
 
Things the GM does not do include: require a particular outcome from a conflict, require a particular course of action, set things up so only one path will work, or invent discoveries and conflict in front of the characters wherever they decide to go.
 
This evolution aims to create what Ron has termed "Story Now."
 

As reference for Champions Now, it's really worthwhile to buy access to the Marvel Comics online and read the 60s through early 70s of Spider-Man and the FF and whatever else takes your fancy. You can also get anthologies from most libraries. Ron sees the original Champions as inspired by this era and that is indeed what he's trying to capture.

There are at least two approaches to what you're describing.
1) create powers using blast, entangle, etc. with no range and call them martial moves.
 
2) Use the Strike advantage on page 99 to attach powers to one of your martial moves.
 
For the framework, you'll be using the Elemental Control because Multiform requires a half phase to shift between slots. 
 

I wanted to let everybody know that my physical copy of Champions Now arrived today. And even though the package looked like it had been run over multiple times, and was ripped open on one side. The contents were absolutely pristine. So I'm happy.

Here's an alternate build for Morningstar's Elemental Control. First, I'll just mention that powers in an EC in Champions Now must cost endurance (p. 93).
 
10 Biokinetic Energy: Elemental Control, all Slots 20+ points
10 Biokinetic Shield: Force Field, +8 Resistant Defense [4]
10 Biokinetic Propulsion: Flight, 10 hexes [2]
7 Biokinetic Redirection: Missile Deflection, 13-, Costs Endurance (-½) [4]
12 Biokinetic Strike: +3d6 Blast, High Impact (+½), Strike (adds to martial punch) +3/4, OF -1 [7]
(6d6 martial punch with +3d6 high impact for a total of 9d6. And the drop the +3d6 strength and invest the remaining points in body to up your End.)
 
 
 
 

The author just confirmed to me that you don't have to keep track of endurance, recoveries, or segmented action outside of combat.

Ego-based only changes the value used for the attack roll. It doesn't change the defense against an attack. If you want that, you need to take Severe as well. (Ego-based, when applied to a defense, however, makes that defense work against Ego effects.)

Read the listing for Ego-Based advantage (p. 96) closely. It only changes the attack value to Ego. That's all.
 

Here are the two statements for one game I’m running now:
 
1. The world is just coming to terms with the existence of super powers.
2. Paranoid political thriller: history is made by bad men (or is it?) in New York City.

Here’s another set for a game on the launchpad:
 
1. Heroes are monstrous, but villains almost never seem to be.
2. For better or worse, you’re stuck with your family.
 
And one more:
 
1. Powers are wacky or sinister, or, often, both.
2. Workplace drama and corporate espionage.
 
 

1. Everything is martial arts.
2. Struggling executives in high finance in Chicago.
 
1. Powers change bodies irrevocably.
2. Modelling career burnout.
 

Here's what the rules say about Statement 2:
"This part says nothing about powers or superhero/villain material. It’s really tempting, but resist."
 
Your statement 2 is all about superpowers. I'd suggest changing the statements up like this:
 
1. Powers are colorful and fun.
 
2. Celebrity careers live or die in front of and behind the cameras in Hollywood.
 
See how the second statement could be about non super activity? That's what you want for a second statement.

Keep in mind that Champions Now has no one to one conversion relationship with Hero System and does not attempt to make a literaly translation between special effects of the power and the way it is built. Ask the player to describe what the power would look like if it were drawn for a panel of a 1970s Marvel comic. What are the common uses it would be put to? Hitting a single target hard may well be a simple 10d6 blast with the special effect of a shower of bullets. Hitting multiple targets may be an area effect. Selective fire will have to be slots in an elemental control (multiform is NOT multipower, it's for actually changes of form, not ammo).
 

I can confirm from playtest with Ron that The Champions Now Focus limitation is intended only for items that will often be taken away in play. Many powers, like PowerStar's resistant defense and his Distortion Generator are gadgets that are separate, but I did not want them taken away, so no focus limitation. His Tesla Tap does have an inobvious focus, because I imagine the connection between the generators in the PowerCave and his receiver are subject to interference. The Focus limitation is primarily intended as an exploit heros can use against villains. 
 
Another bit of advice: make characters that are fun to play, not combat optimized. Half the fun is coming up with creative ways to bring down a villain when your best attack can't on its own. The other half is getting knocked down and coming back. Heros aren't about winning, they are about persisting.

I don't think there's any mathematical sweet spot and the group sets it's own standard by what it chooses. That said, these are close to what I see in my game -- but that might be the legacy of playing 4th ed. The only exception is that resistant defense is often zero and rarely more than 3.
 
I know that focus is on building a character as envisioned. So beware spending too much thought on covering every basic action (eg offense, defense, ranged, movement).
 
 

The author just confirmed to me that you don't have to keep track of endurance, recoveries, or segmented action outside of combat.

Champions Now is a set of rules for creating superhero comic book adventures in roleplaying in the way they emerged in the comics of the 60s and 70s. It is not a universal system or an attempt to codify the fictional reality in points. This is the divergence between Champions Now and Hero System.

The author just confirmed to me that you don't have to keep track of endurance, recoveries, or segmented action outside of combat.

Wow!
 
Congratulations!
 
Tell us all how awesome it is.
 
 
 
 

Hi, nitrosyncretic!  Let me know if you have a spot open up.  I'm new to Hero and I'm looking for a game to join.  Thanks!

Well, Ron hasn't used the term "narrativist" for more than 12 years. 
 
The dice falling where they may is a perfect partner to the "now." The concept is to establish a starting condition full of motivated and planful NPCs, let play determine how any conflicts turn out, then visit how that changes the motivations and plans of the NPCs.
 
Each now is a list of NPC cast members with their motivations and any actions they intend to take in the next session. You can read about this in the chapter called "The Now."
 
During a session, the GM plays the NPCs to follow their plans until the players get in the way. If the players don't get in the way, the NPCs just proceed uninfluenced. If the two collide, then play (including but not always dice rolls) determines  outcomes. No planned outcomes. No gifts from the GM. 
 
Then the GM creates a new Now sheet, where the NPCs adjust their attitudes and plans based on what just happened.
 
Things the GM does not do include: require a particular outcome from a conflict, require a particular course of action, set things up so only one path will work, or invent discoveries and conflict in front of the characters wherever they decide to go.
 
This evolution aims to create what Ron has termed "Story Now."
 

This is one of the wildest things I've ever purchased. In a nutshell, this is a remix of old school Champions, the superhero roleplaying game, first through third editions, by Ron "I am definitely modern gaming" Edwards of Sorcerer fame. The whole book is written in caffeinated, stream-of-consciousness format, defying decades of textbook-style game writing, in favor of a style I usually associate with hundred page spirals from the university print shop. To get right to the point, this is one of the most fun and exciting things in gaming I've read in years. If you have even one superhero game on your shelf, you owe it to yourself to buy this game. Why? I'll tell you why, true believers. That is, after all, the main point of a review.
Many people associate Champions with baroque, math-heavy character creation. My personal introduction began in a book store in the early 90s with a charming-looking hardback called Champions. After a quick thumb through, one thing jumped out at me: Energy Blast, 5 points per 1d6 damage. After learning from the amazing-but-chart-heavy classic DC Heroes and the quirky yet catchy Marvel Super Heroes games, this was like a bolt from the blue. You could just spend a few points for whatever you want, no scaling costs, no limits, and powers were as simple or as complex as you wanted them to be. And make no mistake, under the surface, Champions and Hero System retain that core of simplicity after six editions. You can still make a 6e Champions character with five powers, no modifiers, a handful of skills, and some characteristics. Champions Now takes that core and brings me right back to that bookstore. Make no mistake, Champions Now retains such familiar elements as modifiers and characteristics. Champions Now strips that right down to its essential core. There is only a bare minimum a new Champions player would need to sit down and join a game. Champions Now poses the question of our day: what do you really, truly, need beyond that? Moreover, "special effects" has long been a hallmark of Champions. While Champions 6e allows you to modify a power to a truly exacting description of its effects, "special effects" remain in play. Essentially, it's the idea that fire burns. Regardless of all the modifiers and costs on the worksheet, intended to capture the essence of an ability, the GM is supposed to use those artifacts of play to reflect a fictional narrative. Does your character know how to make sushi? Of course she does! There's no point value for that. Well, Champions Now brings that completely to the front. Everything is special effects. The Powers section is prefaced with the statement: "Although we call these “powers” for convenience, they aren’t. They’re rules to punch the powers’ special effects into play." I'm not sure that's something I want to spell out. It's a little like revealing a magician's tricks. But as a concept, it's a winner. This is well beyond Hero System's "What does this power really do?" This is beyond M&M's "these are effects that build powers." This is way back to Marvel Super Heroes, "Here is a somewhat rambling essay about Wolverine's regeneration masquerading as an entry on a character sheet," but, as Ron says, "with teeth."
Champions Now, however, is its own beast. Combat is very fast and very rough. Ron states repeatedly and emphatically that this is a "let the dice fall where they may" style game. This is not only true to the roots of such old school games, but is also a tool of design. From the get-go, Champions Now is about putting elements into play to see what happens. The GM designs a game around Two Statements, one of which is about superheroes and the other one isn't. Like you might have, "The characters are young adult mutants living in Greenwich Village," and "Friends who are family." Having put that in place, the GM turns things loose to the players. Each player is urged to build their character around three corners: person, powers, and problems. So you have Jennifer, a perpetually broke graduate student on the outs with her wealthy parents. She has lightning powers, but specifically, close-in, high voltage current. And she feels a lot of sense of responsibility for her powers. She also has, I don't know, a teenage cousin who moved in after running away from her alcoholic parents. There is no negotiation phase, no hash-it-out, no setting bible. It's more like one of those games where every participant adds a sentence to the story. Nonetheless, the game is built around integrity. Every element is intended to add change, excitement, and dare I hope, emotion to the game.
Mechanics fall into the "get out of the way" variety. Almost everything is special effects. A power consists of little more than how much, how often, and what is the result. Is it a Piercing blast? A damage Aura? As to what to do, Champions Now doubles and triples down on Champions's two most iconic elements. The first is Endurance. While a lot of modern games dispense with such resource accounting, this element will be very familiar to any MMO player who has had to deal with limited energy and powerful cool-downs. CN is all pacing. Sometimes you fire off a few punches. Sometimes you expend extra effort, dipping deep into your endurance reserves at some risk. Sometimes you hide behind a pillar and Recover while your allies hold the line. Characters are durable, but if you start to take punishment, you will go down fast as Endurance and Knockout quickly run out. The other iconic Champions element is the Presence Attack. Just as much as they are defined by punches, dodges, and energy blasts, Champions characters are defined by Presence. Some characters have just a little, just enough to cow an ordinary thug with your powers. Others literally stop the action just by talking into the room. More importantly, though, are situational modifiers. Just glaring at people in the middle of a pitched fight will get you nowhere. But if you stride into a room, announced, "You started with out me? How rude!" and toss a bad guy through a window with telekinesis while standing literally on top of table with a cutting-ceremony cake for two hundred, you get a few extra dice. Online combat per se with its beat by beat pacing, Presence Attacks take no action, little time, and can happen at any moment, even, if you can get a word in edgewise, on someone else's turn. Presence Attacks reinforce the tropes of superheroes while encouraging constant, dig-deep inventiveness.
And what is a superhero, anyway? Early Batman hung guys out windows to their deaths. Superman ricocheted bullets right back at bad guys, ending them karmically. Later Batman refused to kill at all. Iron Man wrestled with alcoholism. DCAU series Wonder Woman was an out-and-out warrior, but with the heart and boundless compassion the character is known for. Champions Now focuses on the pulpy, messy, forget-continuity-the-Watcher-will-know-his-own style, mostly from the early Silver Age to the early Bronze. But literally, there is no telling you want to do. This could be the Mystery Men movie, or The Specials. It could be the New 52. It could be your own version of Cold War era do-gooders. It could be Cold War era style do-gooders, in the 21st century. Guys in goggles. Women in tights. Gorillas in football jersies. Ten year old wizards. Twenty foot tall anthropomorphic dogs. Lovable kid sidekicks. Terrifying actual-kid sidekicks in danger.
This is not a perfect book. Like the game it contains, like the media and stories it seeks to unleash, this lo-fi, superheropunk, indiepunk, retro-futuro madness. This is not the most accessible game to dive into and read. Still, if you walk with this book, if you read this book through once without trying to understand it all, if you go back and read it again, and jump around to the different parts until you get it, this thing will get inside you. If I had any complaint, it's that there is no newbie-friendly capsule version. Mind you, that won't capture the full spirit of what Ron is trying to accomplish here. But I think it might be a bit much to expect your average player to "get it" on the first time through. Make no mistake, though, this is a very accessible game to a new group, if presented in actual play. If one or two players make the effort of digging deep into it, they can easily lead the way. And for a savvy GM, this game is a cinch to run and a cinch to teach. If CN really catches on, I think it could lead to a refined second edition, with maybe a few helpful pamphlets to fire up the coal in the engine. Such refinement, though, needs to be done carefully, lest this four-color rock star nerd magic of a game turn into a glossy, never-sweating, overproduced imitation of itself.
Even if you never play this game, by all means, at least read it. But play it.
Special Thanks to: Ron Edwards, Steve Long, George MacDonald, and Steve Peterson, long may they reign.

Telepathy or Mind Control with the Lethal (does body) advantage.

As reference for Champions Now, it's really worthwhile to buy access to the Marvel Comics online and read the 60s through early 70s of Spider-Man and the FF and whatever else takes your fancy. You can also get anthologies from most libraries. Ron sees the original Champions as inspired by this era and that is indeed what he's trying to capture.

As reference for Champions Now, it's really worthwhile to buy access to the Marvel Comics online and read the 60s through early 70s of Spider-Man and the FF and whatever else takes your fancy. You can also get anthologies from most libraries. Ron sees the original Champions as inspired by this era and that is indeed what he's trying to capture.