Posts tagged m&m
Why I should hate DC Adventures, but I don’t
Aug 23rd
My rpg time has suddenly become a barren wasteland, and that’s a Bad Thing especially given we’re only three sessions away from the end of the world in our Endday Campaign. Here’s hoping that things pick up when normality returns after the school holidays. The Good Thing though is it gives me time to think more about the next campaigns; I’ve got a 4e D&D adventure in the making with Shadowlands, wherein Our Heroes battle gnolls and cross over to one particular corner of the Shadowfell. Then there’s Icon City for our lightweight superhero enjoyment. More on those though, another time.
I’m also slowly digesting the DC Adventures Hero’s Handbook (free Quick Start preview here), the stunning new superhero rpg which serves double duty by being both a new release of Mutants & Masterminds and a full system for gaming in the DC Universe, all at the same time.
And I’ve got to say. It’s a tricky one.
A part of me, I’ll confess, doesn’t like it. I suspect that I don’t like it for the same reason all the people ("girls, mainly", he snorts with derision) who loved David Tennant as Doctor Who don’t like Matt Smith. Or why gamers who loved 3.5e D&D don’t like 4e D&D on principle.
It boils down to this: "OMG WHY DID YOU NEED TO CHANGE?"
Y’see. I love Second Edition Mutants & Masterminds. I’ve said before that it’s as close to a perfect system, imho, as there can ever be. A Third Edition is…. well, unthinkable. How, after all, can you improve perfection? To even try such a thing is folly. That’s a whole lot of resentment, right there. I just know I’m going to nitpick, to find fault. I’m going to question every single change to the system because, as far as I’m concerned, the system didn’t need to change.
But (and it’s a big but) I can’t help but feel that Third Edition IS a better edition of Mutants & Masterminds. Despite my hang-ups and preferences, I’ve got to admit that Steve Kenson has, indeed, done the impossible. He’s improved perfection.
Damn you.
Y’see, what Steve has done is very, very clever indeed. He’s managed to take 2e Mutants & Masterminds and somehow combine that with the epic feel and style of the original DC Heroes RPG from Mayfair Game. 2e M&M’s Time & Value Progression Chart has turned into a much more slimline exponential system. Where previously M&M could quite happily run the whole range from realistic cop drama (CSI:Metropolis, anyone?) to universe spanning ring-wielding superheroics, DC Adventures (and 3e M&M when it’s released as a standalone system, by extension) does it…. well, better.
This is a system explicitly designed for gaming in the world of DC comics, and that covers the entire spectra of power levels. This is a game where The Question can rub shoulders with Batman, and Bats himself can look Superman in the eye (probably while thinking "I can take you, and you know it."). All the things we know and love about M&M are still there – Power Levels, the superpowers, the awesome combat system, but it has been given a fresh lick of paint and a fresh coat of varnish. Some of the points costs for powers have changed, either to better reflect their commonality in the DCU, or to correct those few powers in 2e that were too costly or too cheap, and some effects have changed in (as it seems in my first readthru’) significant ways. I need to playtest it before commenting further about that though.
Much as I hate to admit it, I approve.
As with the previous edition of M&M, this isn’t a system for the beer and pretzels brigade. Steve’s own ICONS system does that, wonderfully well. I’d argue that with ICONS, Steve has re-invented the classic TSR Marvel RPG, and with DC Adventures he’s brought Mayfair’s classic DC Heroes into the modern age. By doing that he’s covered both sides of the market (light’n'fluffy and solidly crunchy) in one fell swoop. Not bad going, I’d say.
Then there’s the artwork. Quite simply, superhero rpgs have never looked as good as this. Heck, it’s one of the best looking RPGs, ever. Seeing Wonder Woman, Superman and Batman stare out the page at you from a frickin’ rpg is something else. What I like especially is that this system doesn’t just stop with the Big Three or the more well known heroes from the DC canon. Steve Kenson really knows his stuff when it comes to comics, and it shows. I’m particularly jazzed to see so many references to my own favourites from the Justice Society. Oh yes!
I’m impressed by just how many Hero (and Villain) write-ups there are in this one book, but we’ve still left wanting more. For heroes, we get Aquaman, Batman, Black Canary, The Flash (Barry Allen sadly, not Jay Garrick), Green Arrow, Green Lantern, Martian Manhunter, Nightwing, Plastic Man, Robin, Superman, Wonderman and Zatanna. Facing against them there’s Black Adam, Black Manta, Braniac, Catwoman, Cheetah, Circe, Darkseid, Gorilla Grodd (yay!), The Joker, Lex Luthor, Prometheus, Sinestro and Solomon Grundy. Phew! Add to that the supporting characters including innocent bystanders, cops, thugs, crime lords, soldiers, gang leaders, robots, zombies and animals. Because you need to be ready when Superman wants to throw a shark, right?
Make no mistake: this is a complete one book system. In 276 pages DC Adventures packs in character generation, archetypes, combat, vehicles, headquarters, the history of the entire DC Universe, gorgeous artwork, gamesmastery and campaign advice, and much more – and all without feeling cramped, forced or overburdened. That’s no mean feat.
In short, if 2e Mutants & Masterminds is David Tennant, this is a very worthy regeneration indeed. The big question is whether it will displace 2e M&M in our long-running superhero campaign, and the answer is: probably. That campaign has already travelled through many systems including Golden Heroes, Marvel, DC Heroes (a short lived attempt) and Champions/HERO before settling on 2e M&M. We’re old hands at picking up our characters, re-creating them and carrying on so moving from 2e M&M to 3e M&M is no biggie.
Expect a full playtest report sometime soon.
In the meantime, don’t wait. Go get it!
Character du Jour: Ratman
Jul 4th
When nerdy insular Drew Duayne saw his wealthy socialite parents gunned down by a laughing criminal, he ran. After several months the search was called off and he was declared missing, presumed dead. Ten years later, he returned.
Drew had fled into the sewers, hiding in the comforting darkness. Silence enveloped him as he considered his fate and the evil he had faced that day. That was when they came. The Rats.
They brought him food and water, kept him warm in the cold dark. Their chatter filled his mind as they showed him the secrets of the Under City. He learned the most forgotten sewer routes, the ancient caves that speak of a time before civilised man. They showed him how to use the shadows, and when to choose the right moment to attack. He also saw what it means to go against the law of the pack; justice should be swift, absolute and without mercy.
When the time was right, they showed him the way back into the light.
Drew reclaimed his heritage as head of Duayne Industries, secretly funnelling off the R&D budget to craft a secret base and array of vehicles, weapons, armour and equipment. When the darkness falls, Ratman roams the streets bringing justice – swift, absolute and without mercy.
Not the best render in the world. Picture Batman but skinny, brown and no cape. Got that? ‘Kay.
Dirty little secret: At the centre of it all in the deepest dark sits The Rat King, immortal, silently plotting, using the weakest and most vulnerable of human children to unknowingly forge an army of conquest. And as for the laughing criminal who killed Drew’s parents – well, every King needs a Jester……
Notes: Much as I like Batman, his origin story is a bit crap, isn’t it? I mean – he sees a bat from his bedroom window and decides to become Batman; what’s that about? He could have seen a tree and become Treeman, or the Moon and turned into Moon Knigh… I mean, Moonman. Heck, we could have Cloudman running around catching the crooks if he’d looked up five minutes earlier. The bats did nothing for him except provide a fashion theme. Big woo. So here’s my take where the Rats aid poor Drew, care for him, nurture him and become (should he ask it of them) and entire frickin’ ARMY for him. Bats? Bats are for wusses.
Supporting characters: Colin (weedy sidekick wannabe); Nighthawk (an earlier Colin, now fully grown), Arnold (butler, secretly in the pay of the Rat King), Ratgirl (teenager, also taken in by the Rats); Ratwoman (slightly mad lady with a rat fetish); The Jester (arch enemy), Ratmite (don’t ask).
Stats as per Costumed Adventurer archetype, Mutants & Masterminds, Second Edition page 18. Here’s the direct link to the whole of Chapter One (which includes these stats, and more), for free!
(Note to self: Getting behind on my ICONS and Risus Superheroes versions. Must fix that.)
Characters du Jour: Brickbat and Gunfire
Jul 1st
Brickbat was born and raised in a nowhere town in a nowhere state so far in the Deep South they still talk about the Civil War like it was yesterday’s news. His momma told him there was only two ways out: sport, or in a box. Johnny Noxx chose sport. He earned his baseball scholarship easily, and life looked rosy. That was until he said the one word the Iron Coach hated more than any other. Johnny said “No.”
“Gunfire, ah thought you ni-… black folks could all run fast!”
“Honey, I’m from New York. We don’t run anywhere. We just walk like we mean it.”
Meanwhile in upstate New York, Casey Chambers was also having problems with words. In her case, the words were “You’re fired!”, and it was the sixth time she’d heard them in as many months. Her anger management classes suggested a little therapeutic firearm practice, and that’s where the word “Fire” took on a whole new meaning.
“Can’t you just let one of ‘em get close enough for me to hit ‘em? Just one?”
<BLAM> <BLAM> <BLAM> “CAN’T HEAR YOU!”
Refusing the Iron Coach’s “compulsory performance enhancers” meant one thing: being pinned down and strapped to a chair by the rest of the team then having his arm shot with needles while they all cheered on. All for the sake of the team, of course. But the mix o’ drugs they pumped him with that day…. it wasn’t quite right.
“Look at their balls, swing the bat. Look at their balls, swing the bat.” <THWACK!>
“Oh honey that’s gonna leave a mark. On the ceiling.”
The firearms coach told her to hold the gun and funnel everything she’s got into the trigger. All her anger, all her hopes and dreams. Then squeeze. Forty feet away, the target blew into a thousand pieces. Odd thing is, the gun wasn’t even loaded.
“What you running from, Johnny?”
“I broke a gym. And the building. And the baseball team. And the coach. Guess I’m gonna keep running till they catch me. Who you running from, Cass?”
“… Myself, I guess.”
“Damn girl. You’s already caught.”
Dirty little secret: It goes without saying that the evil drug-peddling Iron Coach is after Brickbat so he can replicate the formula, right?
Notes: Brickbat is your typical brick with a bat (hence the name) and Gunfire can shoot bullets of fire with her guns (hence the name). They’re about as stereotypical as can be (a Deep South lummox and a New York sassgirl) but…. I dunno. There’s something about them. Chemistry. Love these two!
For both characters, their weapons (the guns and the bat) are just pieces of equipment that they use as a focus. Brickbat is just as effective a hitter when unarmed and Gunfire doesn’t really need the guns to fire her blasts – the ones she uses are just plastic toy guns as that way she doesn’t need a firearms license and it doesn’t matter if they fall into the wrong hands.
As such, these items don’t influence the points of their powers or abilities.
Brickbat AKA Johnny Noxx, PL8 120pp
Str 30, Dex 16, Con 26, Int 13, Wis 16, Cha 16
Tough +8, Fort +13, Ref +12, Will +9
Attack +8, Defense +8, Init +3Super-Strength 2 (Thunderclap 40′ Area, DC 18, Heavy Load 3.2 tons)
Handle Animal +6, Notice +7, Profession:Baseball +4, Sense Motive +7, Survival +7
Accurate Attack, All-Out Attack, Improved Block 2, Improved Grapple, Takedown Attack 1Equipment: Baseball bat
Gunfire AKA Casey Chambers, PL8 120pp
Str 13, Dex 24, Con 13, Int 16, Wis 12, Cha 16
Tough +1/+3, Fort +6, Ref +12, Will +8
Attack +4, Defense +8, Init +7Blast 8 (200′ DC23, Autofire 2, Improved Range)
Immunity 5 (Fire)Acrobatics +9, Bluff +5
Acrobatic Bluff, Attack Specialization 1 (Blast), Defensive Roll 2, Jack-of-All-TradesEquipment: Fake plastic guns
ICONS stats to follow!
It’s the end of the world as we know it
Jun 30th
….. and I feel fine.
Just five short sessions to go in our Endday Campaign, and it will all be over. Literally over, because that’s when the world ends. Sorry about that. Slightly more importantly, that’s when the campaign ends too meaning it’s time to think about what to do next. Time to shift gears.
The Endday Campaign has been a blast from start to finish. We’ve run 4e D&D in the modern day and our stalwart band of heroes have faced off against the Lords of Hell themselves. They have battled demons, interceded to save a Demon Lord’s life against a horde of angels and seen several major cities wiped off the map. The game started big, and got bigger.
Everything changed on Day 15 when…… ah, but you’ll have to wait. I’ve kept quiet about the Endday Campaign for the past few months because there’s a pretty good chance it’s going to find its way into print. Yep – my mammoth epic 30 days to the end of the world campaign could well be coming to your gametable! There’s lots of things to sort out first, the most important of which is converting it over from 4e D&D to Mutants & Masterminds Third Edition. That brings it under the Super-Powered by M&M (formerly M&M Superlink) banner and the OGL, something I find far more palatable than WoTC’s GSL. In a fit of legalistic gymnastics I’ll most likely put up a minisite with conversion notes how to run the campaign in its original form, but that’s for later. The first challenge is completing the darned thing!
But enough of that.
When Endday comes to an end it’s going to leave a void in our gaming calendar which we aim to fill by running one-shot 4e D&D delves, messing around with ICONS and catching up with our long-running Mutants & Masterminds superheroes campaign. For us, this is comfort-zone lazy gaming at its finest. I’m looking forward to being able to put on the spandex again (figuratively speaking) and already have plans to introduce a couple of new characters into play. Fresh from the Legion of Heroes With Obvious Names, here’s Brickbat and Gunfire:
Brickbat: He’s build like a brick, and he wields a bat. What more do you need to know?
Gunfire: She has guns. They shoot bullets of fire. Simple concepts. I love ‘em.
Expect full Character du Jour write-ups for both Mutants &Masterminds (currently just $9.99!) and ICONS ($14.95!), real soon.
Till next time!
Mandelbrot Heroes
Jun 23rd
One of the (many) things I like about Mutants & Masterminds is that it’s possible to generate characters with whatever level of complexity you desire. Just like a fractal you can view your character from 10,000 feet up or zoom in, adding details as you further explore the possibilities. It’s entirely up to you, the GM and the style of play whether your superhero is a broad sweep of the brush or a finely nuanced creation.
The rules don’t dictate how many Powers or Feats you must have at any given Power Level. There’s no concept of Class Skills – you just choose your Skills and pay your points. I’ve known grown Third Edition D&D gamers weep at the liberating effect. Ok, that’s a slight exaggeration but one of them definitely had something in his eye.
What’s more, you can mix-and-match heroes right at the game table. Your minimalist brick superhero with STR 40, Impervious Toughness 10 and not much else can sit right next to the uber-specialist with three page character sheet, a multitude of Feats and Powers detailed (and costed out) with excruciating accuracy. There aren’t many other systems around where the minimalist gamer and simulationist gamer can sit at the same table and play the same game.
Most folks sit somewhere in the middle with one or two Power Options and a comfortable number of Skills and Feats to help flesh out more about the character’s personality, abilities and combat style.
Even so, I find that the character they first generate is rarely exactly the character they want. I always let my players fine-tune their characters and juggle their points around (within reason!) between sessions if it means they’re having fun and getting to known their character better. Even that STR 40 brick superhero might want to turn down the Strength a touch to increase their combat accuracy and buy some Super-Strength instead to boost their out-of-combat lifting ability (this is not a hint to one of my players. Nope. Not at all…..).
That’s the fractal zoom effect I’m talking about – you can generate a character at 10,000 feet and add & refine the details where they’re needed as you futher explore your character in-game. And just like a fractal, the potential for customization is infinite.
In short, it’s up to you. Mutants & Masterminds is as finely-grained and complex as you want it to be. Play it four-colour simple (though not quite as simple as ICONS), or play it with the simulationist complexity turned right up. It’s up to you.
And that’s a good thing, right?
Incidentally, Mutants & Masterminds Second Edition is currently just $9.99 at RPGNow. Even with Third Edition scheduled for release later this year, that’s an absolute bargain, especially if you prefer a rule set closer in style to the D&D norm. What are you waiting for?
Endgames
Jun 21st
I’ve been thinking a lot about endings lately – and not in a negative way. When it comes to role-playing games many campaigns simply don’t have (nor need) an Endgame; they’re set to run for as long as the gamers want to huddle ‘round a table and chuck dice. The heroes might complete an adventure or story arc but then they ride into the sunset and seek further challenges.
That’s fine ‘n’ dandy, for some campaigns.
For others there needs to be a fitting conclusion, a climactic finale which draws the game to a close and it’s time to generate new characters and begin afresh. That happened recently in a sporadic solo campaign I’ve been running for one of my players, and it’s set to happen again over the next few weeks as my mammoth Endday Campaign finally draws toward its own personal (and very literal) Endgame. More on that another time.
For the solo game I generated Redhawk, a hero with the ability to bestow powers on others (as well as himself) along with the Harriers, a cadre of five loyal soldiers. Mark took him up and ran him brilliantly as a tactically minded superhero who expects the best and leads from the front.
Against him I pit the villain Identity. He’s an egomaniac with just two powers: Duplication, and Morph. He can create up to 2,500 duplicates of himself and they’re all different. Oh, and unless you take them all out, he’s still very much alive. Until that point if one Identity “dies” it just goes back into the resource pool. Unkillable? I’ll say.
This game ran from early 2009 and featured more awesome stories than I could possible share in a single blog, let alone a single blogpost. Folks, solo superhero gaming is where it is at. Here’s a few highlights:
- Identity successfully takes over as crime boss in Southside – all of them! At first it’s believed that organized crime has become just a bit more organized, but Redhawk discovers the truth and proceeds to take down each one of Identity’s duplicates in turn. Punisher ain’t got nothing on this guy when he’s obsessed.
- Which led us to Redhawk being arrested for murder. No one else believes his crazy story about morphing duplicates and he’s jailed and bound with a Power Nullifier. Problem is, his psychiatrist has an awfully familiar look on her face……
- Redhawk’s team is called in to assist in a hostage situation in a Bank. Redhawk enters, alone and unpowered. All of the “hostages” are Identity and it’s a total setup – he’s knocked unconscious, bound and gagged. Can the Harriers rescue him? Oh yes!
- Identity hits the streets, bigtime! Over 4,000 rioters are looting Southside and at least half of them are Redhawk’s sworn enemy! Can he and the Harriers tell “innocent” looter from megavillain and restore order? Nope. One of the Harriers (Schultz) is killed in action with three Identities laughing over his smoking corpse.
- Redhawk is called to account by Paragirl One, Upgrade and a host of other heroes for his failure to prevent the Southside Riots. None of them believe his crazy tale about this Identity guy and Redhawk feels like he really is going insane. Cue excuse for a little Hero versus Hero slugfest!
It continued for a while before I ran The Search for Prime arc. So far, Redhawk understood that there was no central controller for Identity. I began to drop hints that’s not quite true; there is a Prime. Take him out, and all the rest will fall. Things once again turned into a bit of a Punisheresque bloodbath as Redhawk and his team followed up leads and squished Identities left, right and centre.
Then Identity offered to meet. One Identity, alone.
All the way through this we’ve only lightly touched on Redhawk’s origin. The more prescient superheroes have called Redhawk a newly born fledgling god with the ability to command and control reality itself. That’s how he can command someone to grow wings, turn invisible or form rock-like armour. Reality literally bends to his will.
Identity, on the other hand, I’ve said nothing about. Heck, he didn’t even have any other name. The irony that a guy called Identity doesn’t have one is not lost, by the way.
What Redhawk has is the power to mould, to shape creation. What he lacks is the ability to create life, to form beings from nothing. That, Identity possesses. They are flipsides of the same coin, two halves of the same godhead. Theirs is the duality of the divine – good and evil, creation and design, order and anarchy. Apart, they are powerful. But should they become one………
This is how it turned out:
They meet in an old abandoned office block on the outskirts of Southside, top floor. The lone Identity is clad plainly – shirt, pants, long coat – and is clearly unarmed.
Redhawk asks, “Are you Prime?”
Identity replies, “No,” and lunges forward, grabbing Redhawk by a wrist, “YOU ARE!”
FADE TO WHITE.
The Joy of Random
May 21st
Role-playing games in the ‘80s were typified by two things: random character generation, and big-ass tables. Only the trendy systems used point buy. Rolling up your character meant literally rolling up your character where Actual Dice were thrown onto a flat surface and the result recorded on a character sheet. Crazy, I know.
And you know what? I miss those days.
Some rule systems were less random than others and you used a combination of Sound Judgement and dice rolls to guide your virtual person down certain paths. In Traveller, for example, you can choose which career to try for – but it’s up to the dice whether enlistment succeeds. In the much-loved Teenage Mutants Ninja Turtles a combination of dice and batshit-crazy could result in you playing a Pigeon Samurai, Weasel Bomb Disposal Expert or (heaven forbid) Cyborg St Bernard.
Character generation wasn’t the thing you did before the game; it was a part of the game – almost a meta-game unto itself, ideally suited for solo and group play alike. We had entire sessions of Marvel RPG where we did nothing but roll up heroes and villains. Some of them still survive to this day as Mutants & Masterminds characters. Arguably, they are the best character we’ve ever made.
And that’s the thing. Random character generation injects a spark of life into a character, something that’s beyond the control of the player. It’s the voice of Fate saying “Yes, I know you want to play a Magic-User. That’s why I made you roll INT 4. Deal with it.”. Your role-playing skills are put to the test as you learn to read the attributes, forming a character from the raw numbers on the page. This, my friends, is role-playing. Putting an 18 in one stat and using another as a dump stat, frankly, isn’t.
I’ve said before that 4e D&D is probably the first edition of D&D where it’s possible to roll stats using the “3d6, in order” method and still create a character that has a reasonable chance of survival. Rolling in this manner also has the happy side-effect of turning the game from one of high-powered Heroes to a game that’s far more gritty and street-level. Anyone who complains that 4e D&D isn’t for them ought to try it sometime.
Over in the world of superhero gaming, my one regret with Mutants & Masterminds is that it doesn’t support random character generation. There is a system for it in the Mastermind’s Manual but it doesn’t work well. Those times I’ve needed a little random inspiration, I’ve used the excellent Zan’s Character Generator for Marvel RPG and ‘ported the resulting character across to M&M.
The huge advantage of random character generation for Superhero gaming is that it eliminates the problem where everyone ends up playing Batman/Superman/Iron Man clones. When you can end up with a power combination such as Astral Body, Telescopic Vision and Gravity Manipulation the challenge is to come up with any kind of viable concept which links them together. (Astra the Star Boy! See how this works?)
Which leads us in a roundabout way to ICONS. This is the new Superhero game from Steve Kenson which unashamedly brings random character generation back in from the cold (there is a point-buy option for the wusses out there too). This is the ‘80s, reborn – a four-colour testament to the Superhero role-playing games of a previous age. It’s lighter than Mutants & Masterminds so perfect for those folks intimidated by that system’s crunch, but still has a fresh and modern feel in it’s design. The best of both worlds? We’ll see.
Make no mistake.
Random is back, and it’s the new black.
Character du Jour: Math-Whizz
May 4th
If I could only persuade someone to run a Mutants & Masterminds game set in the Kick-Ass universe, this would be my character. Say hello to Math-Whizz!
Poor Sammy Tomkins. Cleverest boy in school, and all round bully magnet. Some kids get picked on for their pocket money – Sammy gets picked on for being Sammy. At least, he was until Bodger and his gang chased him into an alleyway, and Something Happened. Sammy saw the math of the situation, right there: the angles and vectors of it all. He grabbed a trashcan lid and let fly. It launched from his hand and hit Bodger square on the nose, bounced off into a gang member then ricocheted into a third. The rest fled, followed by the awed and bloodied Bodger. They’ve kept their distance since then.
Math-Whizz was born, and Geometry is his battleground.
Since that day Sammy has found a renewed passion and has gained remarkable grades not just in Math, but also in Metalwork and Sports (much to the surprise of his teachers, who had written him off long ago). His pride and joy is The Equalizer, a collapsible and mathematically perfect shield of his own devising. It fits snugly hidden inside his backpack with his books, calculator and his dad’s binoculars.
Wherever there is crime, Math-Whizz is ready for some Subtraction Action!
Notes: I’d set Kick-Ass around Power Level 4. Characters aren’t even up to sidekick (PL6) standard but can pull off some awesome stunts for being nothing more than a bunch of dorky losers. These are guys who will fall and sprain their ankle one minute then see off a load of mobsters the next. It’s tempting to go lower (perhaps even PL 2) but PL 4 feels to me to strike the balance between cinematic and low-powered just right.
Math-Whizz is Captain America, ultra-lite. Armed with The Equalizer he can use its sharpened edge to fight in close quarters or lob it with a 50’ range and ricochet off surfaces or enemies. The mathematically perfect design even allows it to deflect bullets back to their source, so it’s a foolish mook indeed who lets rip against him. Without his shield though, he’s a punching bag.
I’ve added the fact that he’s “just a kid” as a complication, and whenever that comes into play (school night, out of pocket money so can’t repair his suit, babysitters, coming against foes who laugh at him and hold him upside down by his ankles, etc) he gains a Hero Point. Those things are all-important currency in a Mutants & Masterminds game.
Dirty little secret: Sammy’s mom ran off with a bad man. A very, very bad man. Guess who the local crime boss is – and Sammy doesn’t know!
Math-Whizz AKA Sammy Tomkins, PL4 60pp
Str 8, Dex 13, Con 11, Int 14, Wiz 13, Cha 12
Tough +0/+2, Fort +5, Ref +6, Will +6
Attack +0 (+4 w/Shield), Defense +6, Init +1Acrobatics +5, Climb +4, Computers +7, Craft:Mechanical +5, Craft:Structural +5, Disable Device +4, Investigate +4, KS:Tactics +6, Notice +5, Stealth +5
Attack Specialization 2 (Shield), Defensive Attack, Improved Block 2, Improvised Tools, Equipment 1
“The Equalizer” Shield (Device 4)
- Deflect 4 (Fast Projectiles, Reflection)
- Shield 5
- Strike 4 (+4 DC19, Thrown 50’, Ricochet, Split Attack)Binoculars, Programmable Calculator, Padded Bodysuit
Complication: “He’s just a kid!”
Seven Champions: The Cathedral
May 2nd
Every superhero group needs a Headquarters. This is their home, their meeting and living space of their super identities and – most important of all – a visible edifice and target for their equally super-powered foes.
A good HQ should say something about the group. The Justice League of America orbit far above us in their satellite, looking down on we lesser men, the Batbuddies hide in their dark and brooding cave; and the X-Men ironically isolate themselves behind locked school gates.
The heroes known as the Seven Champions are no exception, for these incarnations of the Seven Champions of Christendom call The Cathedral their home. This is, quite literally, an ancient cathedral built in a high and nigh-inaccessible part of the Yorkshire Moors. It stands proud and intact, an aged blessing on the stone walls renders it invisible to any but the purest of heart or those granted leave by its occupants.
The whole of The Cathedral and surrounding grounds (a roughly 1 mile radius) are protected by a continual aura of calm. It’s a DC20 Will Save to overcome it for a single round, and even the most angry and dangerous folk would find peace within these hallowed walls.
This is far from a high-tech HQ – you’ll find no cutting-edge computers or holographic danger rooms here – but it is surprisingly well equipped. As well as enough living space for 10 occupants (the Seven Champions, groundkeeper, caretaker and cook) there is a gym, infirmary, extensive laboratory and workshop, all running from The Cathedral’s own power supply. An old stable block has been converted into a garage, complete with maintenance pit.
The outstanding feature of The Cathedral is The Library Tower. It is easily the equal of any large public library. The caretaker regularly takes deliveries of new books, though no one quite knows where they come from. The Library specialises in History, granting a +4 to any KS:History checks if used, but covers a broad range of other topics as well, and includes the last remaining copies of several important Early Christian writings.
Building a HQ in Mutants & Masterminds is fun! Set the size (The Cathedral is a Huge structure, making it roughly the same size as a castle) and overall Toughness (at +15, the walls are thick age-old blessed stone that have suffered much punishment and survived countless centuries) then it’s just a matter of picking the features, paying 1 Equipment Point for each. Buildings can even have Powers of their own (want a Flying Castle? No problem!). For the Singular Citadel (home of the multiverse-spanning Forgotten Heroes, another superhero group of ours) I gave it a multi-dimensional teleportation device, ripe for sending heroes to everywhen and as a convenient plot-device for invading Dog Soldiers.
The Cathedral’s needs are a little more modest. Rather than a laser-guided Defence System, this haven is protected by its aura of calm. Add in the +4 bonus to KS:History checks, and we’re done.
The Cathedral, 25ep (5pp)
Toughness +15, Size: HugeConcealed, Garage, Gym, Infirmary, Isolated, Laboratory, Library, Living Space, Power System, Security System 1, Workshop
Emotion Control 10 (DC 20, Burst Area 5,000’, Limited: Calm only, Permanent)
Enhanced Trait: +4 KS:History, Affects Others only
In total, The Cathedral costs just 25 Equipment Points. This translates to 5 Power Points which could be shared among the heroes to spread the load. Instead, I’m going to give it to them for free – The Cathedral is their base of operations, but they don’t own it. The cost is instead shared between the caretaker, groundkeeper and cook who are rather more than they appear.
Would you expect anything less?
Seven Champions: Doc Storm
Apr 28th
Doc Storm’s adventuring careers began in World War II when he was one of the original Seven Soldiers. Young Anthony Lisbon was working as a field medic in war-torn Poland in the middle of a thunderstorm, trying to rescue some members of his platoon who had been injured and stranded in the mud. He prayed aloud to any god who cared to listen to aid him, and none other than Sif, wife of Thor, who answered. She granted him the strength of ten men and a healing touch. In return he rescued his men and went on to have an illustrious all-action pulp hero superhero career as Doc Storm, Man of Power.
Doc Storm in his prime!
Time has not been kind to Doc Storm. He is now an old man who knows his adventuring career is behind him. He is wheelchair bound and acts as the central coordinator and information hub for the Seven Champions. He has personal knowledge stretching back over 60 years and access to databases and a vast collection of contacts, allies and friends.
Notes: What do you get when you cross Captain America, Thor, The Oracle and Doc Mid-Nite? This guy. Doc Storm is a Super Soldier past his prime who now serves the Seven Champions as medic-in-chief and the friendly(-ish) face of the team. He’s skilled at neither Diplomacy nor Gather Information and tends to rely on using his high military rank and renown to open necessary doors (ie, burn a Hero Point when needed). Don’t be fooled by that fact he’s confined to a wheelchair – he can pack an impressive punch and if cornered will unleash the Curse of Sif – a 50’ radius burst of intense lightning! He only uses that as a last resort though as the damage it inflicts is incurable; once the Curse of Sif is given, it can never be taken away.
Dirty little secret: With the power to cure all ills and even regrow shattered limbs with a touch, why has Sif seen fit to condemn his legs to wither away? What has he done to earn her displeasure? Or is there another, more malevolent force, testing him?
Risus:
Anthony Lisbon, Doc Storm
Cleric of a Forgotten Goddess (4), Wheelchair-Bound Super Soldier (3), Field Medic (2), Well Connected (1)
Mutants & Masterminds:
Anthony Lisbon, Doc Storm, PL10 150pp
Str 18/30, Dex 12, Con 18/30, Int 16, Wis 14, Cha 16
Tough +10, Fort +10, Ref +5, Will +8
Attack +10, Defense +10, Init +1Enhanced Con 12, Enhanced Str 12, Super-Strength 4 (Heavy Load 12.8 tons), Immunity 2 (Electricity)
’Blessing of Sif’ Healing 6 (Persistent, Regrowth)
- AP: ‘Curse of Sif’ Lightning Blast 10 (DC 25 Area Burst 50’, Tiring, Range Touch, Incurable)KS:Life Sciences +7, KS:Tactics +7, KS:Technology +7, Medicine +8, Notice +6, Prof:Medic +7, Search +7, Sense Motive +7
Benefit 3 (Military Rank), Connected, Contacts, Defensive Attack, Diehard, Endurance 2, Improved Pin, Improved Throw, Power Attack
Drawback: Wheelchair-bound, common, major.
And with that, the Seven Champions are complete.
Coming up next: The Cathedral, home of the Seven Champions!
