Atomic Ray

Re: PA Hero -- Best all around ammunition I second the black powder idea...great stopping power, ease of technology development, and can be maintained with other ammo...breaking it down, melting rounds into balls, resourcing the gun powder...plus it is loud as hell and will scare the c r a p out of the common critters, low level mutant beasts, as well as the mundane folk.

Re: Vigilante Campaign Settings [Dark Champions Campaign Poll Relationship With Authorities 4. Unofficial allies who give the police a much needed hand Relationship With Public 3. A necessary evil Lethality 2. A rare event reserved for dramatic climaxes (and changing characters) Outlook 3. Everyone has their own agenda. All depends on who can advance theirs. Seriousness 2. A bad blunder can change the course of the campaign for months Things that go bump in the night 4. Low-powered superhumans (Bane, Mr.Freeze, Poison Ivy) Magic/Psi/Paranormal Alien/Superhuman Not the people in the city are human. Some may be from a planet orbiting a sun on the other side of the galaxy or from the 5th dimension or a monster that would give Lovecraft nightmares or a mutant that puts them above humanity. There will be limits to keep the campaign from becoming comic book superhero style. Is the latest wave of missing homeless caused by a hungry alien animal or a dimensional lord seeking new slaves? sounds like fun

Re: The Spirit of Superheroing Hmmm, a while back I had a group who went this direction and then the next step...wolverines, punishers, bullseye, guns, knives, killer claws, AP KA, you know hero stuff cause superheroes stop bad guys with extreme intentions right? Well I solved their blood lust with the group being invited to be villains by the local superbadguys group...the players were so initially excited to be free of hero restraints that they found so alien...soon the bank robbery led to a school bus full of hostages which led to the players having to make a real choice...and this night ended with the characters in jail, looking pretty sad, morning papers headlining them as turncoats...all in all they were frustrated and disappointed. A call for new characters was voted upon and they elected for a family group of brothers from the Midwest, raised on the farm, common power themes with each having that one great element over the other brother (strongest, fastest, etc.) and they created a common history of grandpa being a super and mom/dad paying the price as papa's main enemy killed them in revenge...so in the honor of their slain parents they moved to Chicago to bring the super villain to justice (not kill him) and stayed to make a difference. I would say the easiest way is to use the above examples of right things to do and use your knowledge of the players to bring about change...take the things they all dislike and make the badguys all about those things. Best of luck Atomic Ray

Re: new spin on Justice League Any chance of those templates being available on an English site? I would love to pick up a new template or two. Thanks Atomic Ray

Re: Street Sweepers

Re: Street Sweepers Street Level super heroes...to answer a question I would say the hero with powers is a super...Batman is a super, a gageteer...a scanner has super powers...but all of this is just moot gesturing... Lower power levels does not have to mean 75-100pts. I can fully appreciate raw points and reasonable application points...I was looking back through characters from my collection and 250pts is about average. Compared to a noted 600pt character where the player felt cheated and needed more points...I am at a loss for words on that one...but 200-250pts would be quite low in that case; 600pts indeed. Back to point...Street Sweepers seems like a good starting point for a game, for me. I mentioned Sin City to set a mood and picture more than anything else, not a direct comparison. A modern Shadow would be a great starter, the larger than life super hero with hundreds of informants, agents, etc...the players could be members within such a grouping. But I will take all the useful input to heart and build on it, thanks again. Atomic Ray

Re: Street Sweepers I do agree to a certain degree and I would love to have a group that this would be the case...but truthfully I have not had a group like that, ever, since my first RPG in 1977 at the tender age of 12yrs old. The average player profile was one power gamer for every four players. One "quiet man" who shows up and is happy to step back allowing others to act/speak first. The higher point values tend to lend the individual more tools which for a mechanic is a good thing but if you ever met a grease monkey you know he would most likely never lend you a tool...they tend to be independent. So I guess the point would be that if you have lots of tools, great movement, good range, high end H/H, strong defenses, etc. it tends to push the need for teamwork out the door as each character is his or her own army of one. But this is not a rant about power levels/points, I am really curious if the ground level superhero is appealing as a whole. Most likely this is a better "pulp hero" subject but the setting is more modern and familiar so I started here. Thanks for the input, I do appreciate it. Better still help me find a good local group Atomic Ray

As a new member I came off a bit strong, but, it cleared the cobwebs out of my head. To the point I was throwing rocks at the glass house of point levels and in particular low point characters vs power gamer point levels...well I still seek the lower point levels for my games but I do appreciate the high level characters; in someone else's game Street Sweepers...plain clothes, underground supers who cruise the alleys, docks, slums, warehouse districts, and the industrial zones cleaning up the trash. Sin City is a good example of the theme I am looking to paint. A modern pulp hero. The best part being the times that the sweepers meet and deal with situations that are beyond their resources...running into the big villain who is ducking the radar, catching the evil agency with their pants down as they are bringing in the big shipment, or the like. In the end I think I prefer the interaction and reaction of the players/characters to having to deal with a situation with teamwork, planning, and thinking rather than picking which power to use for the moment. Anyway...Street Sweepers, Janitors, Cleaners, or whatever you want to call them...does this style/theme appeal to you? Do you prefer the costumes, four-five color, with big points and if so why? This is not a my way your way kind of thing, more of a curious issue of the seaming need for mega levels of points. Do super heroes need to be gods? I can see the concept of ultra high point levels/characters having a place in a comic book world but I do not see the need for all characters to be that level. I like the idea of blue collar super heroes...tradesmen, professionals, craftsmen, union card holding members with a license to kick evil's dirty a s s. Does this do anything for you or am I alone...fighting the good fight without hope of backup? Atomic Ray

Re: An exercise in the creative process There is no real way to consider every angle in regards to a fictional/fantasy element, so unions, guilds, and such are just another of those bits of fluff to be dealt with as they come up. But as for this bit I would say the unions would only object if a given regulation or law was broken. As for the above reference I would say an individual super with the appropriate talents to do for themselves would be granted a waiver or be cited with the standard fines/community service. As for any serious usage of ability to defeat a given union's venue services I would think an honorary status would be granted for the right to advertise the same...good PR and all. I am trying to avoid all of the potential ugly, dirty, and bad that is easy to put a finger on. Instead I will focus on the force that drove comics to begin with the right against injustice in its many forms...even when the public doesn't know it. A new age for supers: Internet Age What they do not know could easily hurt them, so we do what we must and tell them what they need to hear. Atomic Ray

Re: An exercise in the creative process Greetings, Thanks for the input. As for all the particulars of legality, ethics, moralies, etc. those are en flux. I would say that laws bend to the waves of public outcry, usually quite a bit after the actual time of need...10yrs later a bill is passed to correct "insert"...but minor laws/ethic choices have already dealt with it and now the bill creates bad blood, red tape, all in all nothing good. I would suspect that a good direction to go would be an underground of supers making strides to govern themselves with a UN of sorts...countries represented on equal terms with super reps. Creating two potential super agencies...one public and one not. Public agency would be the media support keeping the masses fed with data, rarely real or complete. And the other being a "lost the comic at the moment but it binds a large collection of agents, spys, craftsmen, politicians, scientists, military leaders, criminals, etc. within a group effort to maintain global balance" I think it was Global Frequency? Anyhow this balance of public and covert agencies would make best use of the lower end powered characters, retired members, pretenders, etc.. So even speedy pizza boy would be well positioned as a speedy pizza boy, speedy boy working a covert angle, Speed Demon a truly powerful super hiding in plain sight waiting his time to act, etc.. For my name sake I will work on Atomic Ray: Retired from decades of action, Ray (not his real name, but at this point no one wants to know his real name) appears to be 60-65yrs old with a serious limp and a well known battle with cancer...Ray is a public speaker traveling the globe spreading the good works of the public agency to the world at large; his frustration with the system is growing due to personal issues with certain laws, processes, and individuals so his time as the public voice of the agency is growing short. In reality Ray is aging quite slowly and is in perfect health, ready for action at a moments notice. His actual mission is to maintain a finger on the pulse of supers worldwide, keeping contacts, finding new resources, and waiting to be approached by the dark side...there is a dark side to the covert super community but it is staying deep underground for now. Atomic Ray (picture a modernized Rocket Man...picture soon to follow)

Greetings, I am collecting my thoughts for a world where supers have been absorbed by the social machine. These super powered persons fill the various niches that super powered people would, from pro wrestling to super action rescue crew. I will go with the 1:1,000,000 basic formula for how many super powered people are on the great blue marble. The year is 2008. Basic history is consistent with a few superhero inputs for key nudges, but nothing major like the Nazis won the war. What I am looking for is the creative process of other thinkers to play with themes and names, best of the bunch going on to be recorded as character for the world at hand. For instance: 1. Ocean themed super(s)...heroes, villains, good, bad, indifferent...but this would be a key player in which every aspect the character fits in society. 2. Elemental avatar theme...again any alignment choice...high profile...I personally would go with a single element but that is just me and I am asking for input 3. Genesis a world recognized character, enigma, larger than life even among supers, high point values but very little interest in the day to day of mankind...what does hold Genesis's interest? You tell me... There is room for any type of hero...from two fisted street sweepers, organized agents, costumed adventurers, pro wrestlers, actors, vigilantes, killers (not tolerated and soon to be dealt with), etc.. But the world is no longer surprised by super presence. When there is a big fire it is expected that some super will show up to help, but not required. Not all crimes are going to be stopped by costumed adventurers but is they are then that's cool too it makes great TV/video. The world treats them as they warrant it for the most part...like pro sports heroes in some cases and public enemy number one in other cases. Some countries will end a super's life because of religion, culture, politics, etc.. Some countries will seek out supers and put them on public display/pedestal. Anyway, I would appreciate any inputs. Atomic Ray PS As I suspect some people need the points to help frame their character creation process I would say the ratio of the world's known supers are built on 15% <200pts, 20% 200-225pts, 40% 225-250pts, 20% 250-275pts, 05% 275+pts.

Re: A question of power level This was not a baited hook in which to troll with...rather a selected vent within a like minded, super-gamers, forum. I agree 200 would be a great deal easier to flesh out a concept than say 125-150; completely. The original thought was not so much an off the cuff question but rather a soapbox theme tainted by the flavor of a couple decades of dealing with whimpering, point crunching, power gamers that have sucked the will out of me. So I have successfully released the venom from my system and I thank you all for the recovery of my tact and bearing. Humble appologies to all who were slighted. I guess the end recount is this: "If the highest point character in the given world has 200pts then starting characters with 125-150pts could expect to be young gods and thusly enjoy a margin of playability and success." The idea of not being a super because of a certain starting point with power level is a tomAto and tOmato aurgument IMO. For me a super is a character who has ability, talant, and/or a gift that exceeds the realm of what normal people could achieve...a guy who can throw a bowling ball over a mile, a kid who can walk through walls, a lady who can teleport these are all supers in my mind. Super in regards to super powered does not reflect the choices of the character as in superhero or supervillian but rather the fact of having a super ability/talent/power period. Modern Pulp might be fun. Today's setting with politics, internet, and $5 gas along with 100-150 people developing into supers without prior generational peers...they are the first within reason (1000yrs ago there was 2-3, 500yrs ago there were less than 10, 250yrs ago 20-30, etc..). One process I used in the past was to allow up to a certain level say 300pts, period. But, if you chose to start with any points saved then you could apply them to the character with valor or experience...basically say you had made a 200pt character then you have growth potential equal to your playtime experience, earn 15 valor points (given at the end of sessions) and you can apply an equal amount of saved points to improve or refine your character...so 15VP would grant 200pt guy 15/15=30pts and 300pt guy 15 in reserve...reserve points were used in crital situations to recover from death, fight off radiation sickness, not to mutate, etc. but not for improvements. Players could use their VP to boost rolls, powers, etc. but once use it was gone....stong guy needs 4 more die of strength to save the busload of kids etc.. Anyway my question was misdirected by venom and tempered by power gamer poison, thanks for you collective calm. Atomic Ray

Re: Your FIRST Super Hero Character My first super character was from a V&V game based upon ourselves, as adults since I was 13 at the time. The character stats were basically standard human guy nothing special with a nudge towards Dex as I could juggle, balance, and walk a tight rope in real life (got accepted to B&B clown school:)...with the super power of speed/running, 100+mph if I remember right. The Fury was the characters' name, as in the Baseball Furies from Warriors a weekly midnight movie habit. He used modified baseball, hockey, football equipment for "armor" and carried a metal baseball bat...basically do the moveby and take a swing for the fences. We were granted a few points of relavant stats boost to represent our time spent at super boot camp. But basically a guy in good shape, with decent light armor, a metal bat, the will to use it, and could run 100+mph. Tada Atomic Ray

Re: A question of power level That is the rub isn't it? Communication between the GM and players. The funny part of the story is that the GM is question is the regular DM for the long running D&D group who begged for the GM to provide a Champions game for the group...his one request was to make a lower level super world and the characters would be novices. After weeks of preparation and communication with said group, mutiny. And that is where the question of low end gaming resurfaced. To be truthful I do not mind the high end point games, but and it is a huge see it coming from a mile away butt, I prefer the focus of one power or at the very least a tight theme. Super Strong Guy that is stronger than any 10 other strong supers...cool. The same guy with said strength, and FTL flight, and invunerable, and instant regeneration, and laser beam eyes, and...en infinitum at nausium...is not ok. The everything super is lame, anoying, chickenshite, and just plain weak. Ah well to each his own. Power gamers buy games, cry the loudest, and the cycle continues. Thanks again for the inputs. Atomic Ray

Re: A question of power level The potential for a common thug to injure a hero goes far beyond a .22cal or if said thug is unable to cause or affect a hero; the same .22cal put your superhero's girlfriend, mom, best friend, or a common citizen plucked off the street...superman can be hurt by a single .22cal clearly. So in the end it is somewhat insulting to consider the real heroes in our world who do great things with 50pts at best...so in context give that heroic cop another 75pts and you have a superhero. I think it has a great deal to do with the games we started with. My first superhero game was the original V&V where you where a normal person with one power much like the majority of the characters on TV's Heroes. In a city full of blind men the one eyed man is king. I appreciate the inputs either way, the point is actually moot as it is not my game. I have run many a lower point game and they were all fun, challenging, and they did not miss the planet throwing powers. Consider the real question that we all ask our selves, if you could have any one power what would it be? Once you have answered...flight, bulletproof, strength, etc...then ask yourself what would you do with the power? Do you whine and whimper that there isn't enough power(s) to be worth the effort or would you do something with it? Heroes work through the process by effort not by number crunching and lists of abilities. Would you steal, would you be selfish, would you cheat? Heroes are by their nature cursed because they most often do not have a choice, they have to do the right thing regardless if they have any bullets left or if the building is on fire. Get that same guy a power or double his strength or improve his skills by 100% and you will have a superhero...IMO. I am no hero and I suspect I would be a terrible super, because I am not that strong to put my family aside for strangers but I would try...and by trying I would earn my chance to be heroic and noble, and that would be super. Power gamers have poisoned the industry to the point that we can never go back. The starting characters have to be planet smashers, cosmic knights, and avatars of Suns. Gone forever is the chance to be a hero, now there is only a pile of numbers, lists of skills, and a laundry list of powers. I would welcome a decent group of players to run a game but I am not interested in the current vein of everyone starting the game as green lantern/superman/etc. equals. But my 5 minutes on the soapbox are done. Thanks again. Atomic Ray