Magmarock

Re: character image I don't know why but Cavalier, in this picture, reminds me of a shell-less teenage-mutant-ninja-turtle. Could be the grin. Mags

Ooh, that's even better! With everyone singing commercial jingles and villains getting sentenced to cyrogenic prisons. And don't forget to wear your tux when you dine at Taco Bell... Mags

Here, here, Ghost! I am in much agreement with you. But seriously, dude, you don't have to walk... can't you take a bus or something? Mags PS: Taxis are cool, too!

Yeah, I know. But you can't take a Recovery on a held action. It's nice to have the option. Mags

One last comment: A low DEX can be a beneficial sometimes. If your PC's powers are AE- especially AE: Line- and your PC has good mobility, going last is what you want to do so you can position your attack better. Remember, low DEX doesn't mean low SPD, you can still buy the SPD up. There are people who will argue that isn't cost-effective pointwise... but it works for some concepts. Also, with a lower DEX you can risk more recoveries without losing them by taking damage. You just need to pay attention to make sure all your PC's opponants have attacked. Mags

Wouldn't it be nice if Rogue could shut off her powers this way? By consciously paying END for it? I think the writers for X-Men should allow it! Give the poor girl a break, already! One question: If I had a PC that had (in 4th Ed) Growth always on, and had to change that to the new rules for 5th Ed, then wouldn't it be more correct to buy Shrinking- only to normal size, instead of paying END to shut all those smaller powers off? Just curious. Mags PS: And, yes, I would allow this LIM if the 'always on' power(s) was one that had consequences when on- like a Damage Shield, or the Invisibility....

200 points is a good start for a lower level game. I believe the reason for the suggested higher points in FReD (5th Ed) is so that the PCs don't have to skimp on the skills. In the past, when creating a PC, too many people were putting nearly all their points into powers. (I've seen this in PCs presented to me at gaming conventions- PCs with no non-combat skills... can you imagine?) But now people can put the same amount into powers that they always have and still get some decent skills for their PC. Personally, I think it's a great idea. In our group, when we played 4th Ed, we set a standard: 10% of a character's points must be in non-combat skills (Breakfall counted as a combat skill due to it's usefullness). Even then, it seemed that most people in our group still bought as many skills as possible, and all at the minimum cost. Now we don't have to do that. With more points to spend on skills, the characters are well-rounded and work better in non-combat situations. Just have your players put more points into non-combat skills and actually put more than the bare minimum points in skills the PC excels at. I'd say, for a game like you are describing, set a minimum of 50 or 60 points out of the 200 for non-combat skills, perks, contacts etc., but not for talents. That should do it. Cheers! Mags

Yeah, but all the businesses need to employ workers/laborers to run on a daily basis, you know, the low-wage people? Perhaps the majority of them commute into the city everyday. I could see major businesses housing their workers onsite, too. (Oooh, shades of Shadow Run... proxies who sell their votes to corporations... That's it! Mister Johnson will definitely have to show up in my next game!) Mags -scheming nefariously for my next game...

Simple and clear, Monolith. Very nice. And one could raise or lower that cap to suit the power level of the game. Say, for instance, a street-level or teen hero game might be only 100 or 110 points, while a galaxy level game could go as high as 160 points. Mags

If you do decide to go with the bounty hunter idea: have the NPC be the perfect companion-type for the PC and then have the bounty hunter fall in love with the PC. Maybe the bounty hunter will decide to help the PC instead of taking him in... and if she (or he) is spurned, then have the bounty hunter try to kill the PC instead (bounty dead or alive, right?) It's the ol' "If I can't have you, no one else can"! Works every time. And if, chance they two DO get together, there is always the "child" to think about later on. Maybe the bounty hunter will leave the child with the hero (look, instant DNPC! Well, maybe not "instant")... Mags - It's always better with drama!

Damn! That is one hell of a picture! I love it! The shading is clean, the swords look perfect as do the runes. Wonderful! Just wonderful! Taurin Maur is fantastic! The idea of having the magical tattoo instead of standard magic items is cool, too. What an awesome game that must have been. (I am totally jealous!) I hope you don't mind, but I'm going to borrow this idea- and possibly the PC's name- for an online game I am running. I'd like to make him an NPC for my epic adventure. Once again, great picture! Mags -seriously humbled by the art she's seen posted here recently...

In our group, the balance is between Dex and Speed and the average amount of dice damage a character can do- tempered by logic, PC concept and reasonability. Generally the more damage a PC can do, the fewer chances to hit or a lower OCV so the PC won't hit as often. This means Bricks will be slower and/or less agile, and the big-gun weapons master can either be a crack-shot with lower damage and many shots, or fewer shots with massive damage. You can see how this goes. Our martial artists tend to hit a lot but do less damage. Also, to keep the PCs balanced during creation we followed this rule: "70 active cap for characters with -any- kind of power framework, 90 active for characters without. This should balance those who desire more versatility, at the cost of raw power. Solid 70 active cap on STR" That's how we balance for combat. Here's the numbers we came up with: SPEED: 3-4 Bricks, Agents, and any PC who can deal out massive damage attacks. 5-6 The normal SPD for most character in the Superhero genre 7+ Martial Artists, Speedsters and any PC with multiple attack capabilities PD/rPD and ED/rED Bricks, lesser Bricks and Battlesuits: 25-40 total defenses All other PCs: 15-25 Resistant Def may equal full Def, but is usually partial. We've had some brave PCs go with lower defenses, but there was usually some major compensation like a high Regeneration rate, Desolid or a really huge Def Force Field. Generally a PC wouldn't go over 40 Def unless it was with stacked defenses and the last bit on charges or with a higher END cost. Hope this helps. Mags

One more thing... If the hero is too powerful for the local police to deal with, have them hire a super-powered bounty hunter to bring in the villain. If that fails, call on the hero team from the nearest metropolis. The well-known heroes should be willing to help, either by capturing the PC or intervention: talking him into turning himself in. Mags

There are always two sides (at least) to any conflict. Now that we've heard from a couple of the Players, and after re-reading the original thread, I am seeing this in a whole different light. Something that hadn't occurred to me before was the title of this thread "My Players have Become Villains..." Players can't become villains, although their PCs can. I think a major part of the the problem here is that neither the GM or Players are willing to step back and look at the game session from an omnipresent point of view... something that should be done at the beginning of any new campaign: I see a GM that didn't listen to his players when they said they wanted to run a certain type of character (i.e. Brick altered to EB, etc. I liken this to someone being forced to run a cleric when they really wanted to run a mage). I see Players willing to conspire against the GM rather than have a serious discussion (waiting until the GM is out of the room). I see a GM that shoehorned the PCs into a campaign that only he was comfortable with. I see Players willing to make their PCs go to an extreme action rather than using logical, everyday resources (not everyone is evil or in the conspiracy- what about the PC Contacts? Other Heroes? The news media? Or trying more covert tactics, just to name a few. There are always more options than turning to the mafia for work.). At the very least, someone could have turned to the GM and ask, "What the hell are you trying to do to us?" It is more than apparent that there were extreme levels of frustration going on here. Roleplaying any game should be a collaboration, not a contest. The GM is never supposed to be against the Players nor vise versa, and if it ever comes to that, then the game is being played wrong! Even in games that pit Player verses Player, the GM is still an omnipresence. A judge. A referee. The GM's job is to make sure everything is running smoothly, to keep the story moving forward, to run ALL NPCs in such a way that they are not included in the GM's omnipresence. Sure the game should be challanging... the PCs shouldn't be able to waltz through each and every adventure or scenario, but they need to win sometimes. Some Players need their PCs to win even more than that... so gauge the wins in such a way that they won't be frustrated. The GM must be willing to let his NPCs lose in the end- some right away, others after a long, drawn out story-arc. And the Players must be willing to allow their PCs to be captured once in a while (hell, in Champions it is a well-known convention that a hero needs to be captured in order to hear the villain gloat about his latest nefarious plot, just so the hero can escape and foil his plans!). Bad things happen to every PC, it's what makes their lives interesting, but that needs to be tempered so that the PCs won't give up on everything they believe in, on what makes them heroes in the first place. As a GM, I have been upset on one or more occasion when my idea of how a plot should be resolved was tossed out the window or completely ignored. I've even ended campaigns over such incidents, although now I regret doing so because ultimately, this is just a game. As a Player, I have been guilty of not talking with GMs, away from the gaming table, to voice my concerns... the last time as recently as 6 months ago. I regret not being able to play in a great game with a bunch of great people, because I was unwilling to talk to the GM until I was too angry and ready to quit. In the future, I won't bottle it up... that is something I have learned from this thread. My advice to you guys is to be willing to give and forgive, but not forget; Use this as a learning experience of how not to play the game. Set down parameters before creating new characters. Decide on the power level, style, and game environment- look to the comics for examples and make sure everyone is on the same page as for what to expect. Make sure each PC has something special they- and only they- can do, so the PCs aren't redundant. make sure each PC get their chance to shine and this, hopefully, at least once each gaming session! Let each Player play what they want... it is there game too. Allow for the GM to confound the PCs and, yes, the Players too (but only pertaining to the scenario) because this is still a ~game~ and there are things the PCs must figure out on their own (challanges, riddles and tactics). Even if the GM is aware of the PC's plans, the villains shouldn't be unless they are actively spying on the PCs- and then there should be some way for the PCs to discover this. The one thing the Players should never have to figure out on their own is the rules of the game or how something works, and thus they should never be punished for metagaming mistakes. (Punish is a harsh word, and also, Players should never be punished for anything. Period.) So let me rephrase that: "thus the PCs should never be made to pay for metagaming mistakes (Just in case you don't know what metagaming means, see the end of this post for examples) . I hope this can be resolved. From what I read, the Players were being introduced to a new game system, and there was no mention of whether they ever played this genre before, or even what the other games they play are. Super-hero gaming is like none other- the style cannot equate to any other genre although some aspects may come close- so for first timers (both Players AND GM) it takes an adjustment period. Well, my minirant has gone on long enough. I shall end it here. Cheers! Mags Metagaming terms vs In Character (IC) dialog: 1) Captain Starburst to his team members: "Wow, team! That Brick is Muscles the Maniac and he has an 80 Strength so be careful approaching him! And I know what I speak of, since my other character, Prime-Rib, fought him before and was pasted by a 4th edition haymaker!" Verses Captain Starburst to his team members: "Wow, team! This dastardly villain is Muscles the Maniac and I've heard he is on par with Grond in strength! Be careful when approaching him! He bested Prime-Rib in a one-on-one match last summer!" 2) "I am the Archmage of Doom, Montre De'LaMort and I am a 27th level, specialized wizard in the school of Necromancy... so fear me! Verses "I am Montre De'LaMort, the Archmage of Black Death. My powers far surpass your collective realities, do-gooders! Face me and die!" Pause. "Oh yes... you may fear me, too, I give you permission!" 3) Speedbug the Shrinking Speedster to Sledgefist, in a fight: "What? You get to go again? I thought you were only a Speed 4?" Verses Speedbug the Shrinking Speedster to Sledgefist, in a fight: "Damn! You are way faster than I thought!"

All right RPMiller, I'll see what I can do. Any priorities here, or should I just work on whatever I want? Mags

What would be easier is if you provided a template of the body you want clothing, armor, etc. for and then we could provide you with the drawings you need. Sort of works like the old paper dolls they used to have back in the day. (Also a lot like the Heromachine design program concept.) I often wondered if the Heromachine creater wanted any help designing additional, partial pics... but then again, maybe he wants to do the whole thing by himself? Mags

Hey Levi! Put a sock in it! I think Keanu is an awesome actor. Plus, he is hot! Zakueins: Dude, you forgot DNPCs! Lots of DNPCs! Also, at the very least, Trinity and Morpheus(?) are his sidekicks, right? And don't forget his PSYCH LIM: In love with Trinity- will do ANYTHING to save her ass. Mags

And here is another one I did of Wildchild in feltpen.

Sigma and Delta. I posted a pic of Delta earlier in the thread (the funky one with the wierd, oversized eyes) and this would be closer to what she looks like.

Set up: A Gross Point house that belongs to a person of interest (our hero group has been investigating this guy) has been engulfed by a large dome of swirling, black smoke and has been this way for at least 24 hours. There are numerous news-crews camped outside and even the Champions have come to investigate... but we have just learned that they won't go inside the dome because no one inside has requested help and they weren't about to trespass without cause. No one has been in or out of the dome since it appeared. Meanwhile Jade (M/A Brick & my PC) and Bolt (Techno Sharpshooter & my brother's PC) are watching this ruckus from a safe distance. Jade is frustrated because our heroes can't get anywhere near the dome since we are all wanted criminals (trying to reform and redeem ourselves, but we all have outstanding warrants, unfortunately). Jade: What? They are heroes and they won't go inside and check it out? The wimps!" Bolt: "Nope." Jade: "Maybe someone should taunt them and get some information from them." Bolt: "That would be you..."

They are? Damn, I knew I shouldn't have skipped all those biology classes in high school... Thanks for the info, dude! Mags

Just for giggles... Here are a few pics from a somewhat obscure card game called "Super Deck" (I kid you not), a Super Hero Trading Card Game from Card Sharks Inc. that arrived on the scene shortly after Magic the Gathering did. The game is easy to learn and plays quickly, but I grew bored of it pretty fast. Even so, some of the artwork is nifty and I thought I'd share. I did not draw or color these pics, by the way. Enjoy, Mags

Oooh cool! I wonder what type of powers Anemone has? Does she control underwater plants? I could see it now... entangles by plant tentacles- some of which could be NND poison. Or a CE (cloud of algea) that obscures vision and maybe hearing. How about spatial awareness? Or is she really an anemone that can change form and coloring so that she only looks human? Shapechanges into any undersea plant... attacks by stealth and/or surprise. Wicked! Mags

Speaking of Aquans... ... back on the bottom of page 12 in this thread, I posted a pic of my Aquarik character, Monsoon. [Removed link because it is old] Mags

Wow! Wow, Blue! Your Astrowalk character is awesome! personally, I'm not a big fan of all the neon colors, but they really look great on this one! And that pose is excellent, too! Nice job! Mags (Makes me want to start drawing some more...)