[Population: One] <A HREF="http://popone.innocence.com/ar

[bryant]

It’s Chris’s fault, really. After a pulse-pounding conclusion to his Morrisonian supers campaign, I have a yen to run Champions. Maybe it’ll pass. I’m probably safe, since I don’t think anyone in my current gaming group is a Hero fan. (“The chargen! It burns my eyes!”)

(The UNTIL Superpowers Database makes it easy! Really!)

Champions Universe? Maybe. Millenium City is a nice piece of work, and there’s a ton of background available. Or I could do my own universe and just reuse all the interesting super writeups from the CU; with novice Hero players, it wouldn’t matter.

I do have a little stock of campaign ideas, to wit:

Infectious

In 1957, the first superhuman came into his powers. He, unlike those who would follow him, had only one ability: by drinking the blood of a human and giving that human his own blood in return, he could grant that human unpredictable powers of his or her own. The only common thread? All superhumans can grant powers to others, just like the long-dead originator of the line. Superhuman powers are infectious.

Bloodlines

The seven Great Familes of metahumans have never been inclined to let the normals know that superpowers are hereditary, and the big lie has held up for centuries. Behind the scenes, the non-powered members of the families plot for position and arrange marriages between just the right superhero teams. Dynastic royalty, hidden from the world.

Man, that’d take a ton of setting work. But it’d be fun.

College Days

By the twenty-first century, college athletics are passe. There’s only one college activity that matters: the superhuman studies program. Where else would young superheros learn their trade? There’s not a superhero team on earth that would accept a non-graduate, so best to take your studies seriously. But hey — when the recruiter gave your family all BMWs as an under the table signing bonus, how serious are you going to be about exams?

And then I have the one where the PCs play non-supers, who’re the minders for the only four superheros in the world. But that one’s just dark and I kinda wanna do four-color.

Comments

[jeregenest.livejournal.com]

Both seem to be examining a latter 20th century developing with superheros meme. Always fun.

And I think superheroes should never be in a system more complciated than Wushu or Over the Edge myself.

[mgrasso.livejournal.com]

The Bloodlines game vibes very Vampire. Is that intentional?

And I didn't know head58 was actually running a Morrisonian supers game; I thought it was instead in the planning stages. Can I find info on this game?

[jeregenest.livejournal.com]

Right...because WW was the first to invent the idea of herditary being transferrable.

Quick, call their lawyers!

Lamarck should rise from the dead and sue the hell out of WW.

[mgrasso.livejournal.com]

Well, there was that magic number of "seven," echoing the number of Camarilla clans, and I also got a "Masquerade" vibe off the description of these bloodlines keeping things quiet. I thought it was an intentional "mashup" sort of thing on bryant's part, and wanted to know if it was.

But then again, why am I even responding to this comment?

[jeregenest.livejournal.com]

Come on Mike, you have to admit that seeing WW behind stuff is rather funny given current legal manuevers on part of WW. Its a good source of poking fun.

Either WW is an obvious refernce , and people will mention it as such. Or its one of a million other parts of the background and its not worth mentioning.

The idea of 7 of something existed way before WW. For example 7 is the holy number of the JLA. Which I figured was a little more likely. And as far as the households/lineages of superheros go look at Moore's whole Twilight of the Gods idea (which predates WW).

WW is an important part of our sourcematerial, but its not the only one.

[mgrasso.livejournal.com]

You're right; it is. I guess I need to have my sense of humor refitted and retooled at this point. It's due for a 3,000 mile overhaul.



I have never heard of this Twilight of the Gods thing. Sounds interesting.

[ratmmjess.livejournal.com]

I can e-mail you Moore's entire Twilight of the Gods proposal if you can't find it online (which can be difficult; DC's lawyers have been persnickety about it). It makes for very fun reading.

[mgrasso.livejournal.com]

I would very much like that, thanks.

[bryant]

There's a copy of the proposal here.

And, yeah, it's not meant to be a Vampire homage. The core concept of bloodlines manuvering for position is drawn from European royal politics; I came up with Bloodlines not long after I read Dorothy Dunnet's Lymond Chronicles. The concept of someone who wasn't any sort of an heir guiding dynastic marriages from behind the scenes stuck with me, as did the sheer importance of lineage in those circles at that time.

I wanted to play with the concept of superheros as royalty. It's always been something that lurks around the edges of four color comic books, and sometimes it comes right in and takes center stage. Astro City has a dynastic superhero group, and Jay Farber's Noble Causes is another. The Flash family is also an obvious example.

I hadn't been thinking of Twilight but I wouldn't be at all surprised if it hadn't been lingering in my subconscious. Moore's Houses are a very powerful concept. After reading the proposal again I begin to wonder if the secret history aspect isn't counterproductive to the central themes.

[bryant]

Nope. Far as I know, there's no web page or anything. Six sessions, tons of fun, and over and out.

[head58.livejournal.com]

Yeah, there was no web page or Wiki devoted to it. At some point I'll do a summary and put it in my LJ. 25-word synopsis: Earth invaded by otherdimensional aliens who, it turns out, are responsible for all Earth's super powers. Big fight ensues. Frequent betrayals and backstabbing. Heroes win.

The climactic scene involved the PCs triggering an event that gave everyone on Earth super-powers (and not temporarily like Morrison wimped out with) and kingfloyd's character Red October leading about 10,000 newly empowered workers of the world in a massive group attack on the Big Bad.

Used MnM for it, which I have mixed feelings about. Probably be posting about that later today. The game was much fun.

[mgrasso.livejournal.com]

I anxiously await your review. As you might know, we played M&M over last weekend (bryant, editswlonghair, ioianthe and rayan4d2). I enjoyed it, but I can't really give a good review of the system because I was so wiped out. It was fast and relatively cinematic but man, can you die quickly without a protective power. My Hyde-from-LoEG analogue snacked on ioianthe's character, who promptly fell unconscious.

[multiplexer.livejournal.com]

Champions utterly defeated me. Clearly, I am not geek enough to play Champions. Or I am too weak. WEAK.

I do like M&M, and SAS, and, uh, the one with the supers in WWII which currently completely eludes me.

Neat.

[mechagm.livejournal.com]

I really like the concept behind Bloodlines. College Days could be amusing over a short run, but I have the feeling it would fizzle a bit after a while.

I like the concepts though. :)

-PeterB