Tell Me About M&M

[jdsivyer]

Hey there. Been a long-time gamer, played many different rpgs, but I have never gotten around to playing M&M - and I keep hearing some glowing reviews and opinions of it.

I know the basics of it (super-heroes, etc), and I know it's a variant of the d20 system, but can people please tell me WHY so many think it is so good?

Is it the setting? Is it the changes to the mechanics? What?

Thanks very much

 

[Jeff Wilder]

I know the basics of it (super-heroes, etc), and I know it's a variant of the d20 system, but can people please tell me WHY so many think it is so good?

Is it the setting? Is it the changes to the mechanics? What?

The appeal to me comes down to:

(1) Mechanics. The M&M combat system (which is also the True20 system, I believe, though there are differences for genre purposes) is fast. Attacker rolls to hit, then Defender rolls a save. The save itself tells you how much damage you take (if any).

(2) Flavor. Leading out of the mechanics, M&M feels like a super-hero game to me in play. Move around, use the environment. I love to tinker with numbers, so I loved Champions back in the day, but in play Champions was horribly slow.

(3) Setting. Freedom City is one of the best settings sourcebooks I've ever read, for any system. Everything is there, and yet anything can be easily altered.

(4) GM control. The GM can do nasty things to the PCs, by fiat, and it's not "by fiat." The rules account for it. If the GM messes with the PCs, the PCs accumulate Hero Points, which makes the villains easier to beat. It's very elegant.

So far I've only played M&M at cons, but I desperately want to run a game. Maybe, fingers crossed, in a couple more months when my Eberron game wraps up ...

 

[Angellis_ater]

Great mechanics, both for in-game play and for creating characters. Its varied power levels also allows for an extremely easy way to set the tone for a game. I've run an Aberrant (using the setting) game, using M&M mechanics.

Ease of understanding - if you've played D20, you quickly catch on how to use M&M. It REALLY uses the concept of D20 for the benefit of both company and players. The vision of people being capable of moving from group to group, system to system and still needing only minimal teaching is perfect here.

 

[Aus_Snow]

You can build anything with it. And run just about anything with it, if you're so inclined.

With ease. That's the most impressive thing about it, IMO.

It's a very smart and streamlined take on the d20 system, that provides near infinite flexibility, with a surprisingly low level of accompanying grind or drag.

I agree, too, that Freedom City is an excellent setting, if that's your cuppa.

Anyway, here are some reviews that should shed some further light on various aspects of the game:

[ame=http://www.amazon.com/review/product/1932442529]Amazon.com: Customer Reviews: Mutants & Masterminds: RPG - 2nd Edition[/ame]

RPGNow.com - Mutants & Masterminds, Second Edition Reviews

 

[Crothian]

It has quickly become one of the best supers RPGs ever. It has won over even some long time fan of the much oldser hero systems and people in the anti d20 crowd. It is a great game.

 

[The Green Adam]

For all those reasons and more...

In addition to a great set of mechanics (D20 without all the annoying elements of most D20 games), incredible ease and flexibility (I never thought I'd find a game that can do what Champions does but doesn't require I spend weeks as a DM each time I want to generate a multi-villain encounter) and a great setting (which I use and don't use equally. The writers of M&M just seem to 'get it' when it comes to the same type of Superhero comics I like), there are also some less then obvious aspects that just make it click...

1) The Art. Best Art for a comic book superhero game ever. Yes, I'm including the old Marvel and DC games. Why? Because the artwork and character designs are simultaneously classic and original, the production values are full color and top notch and the variety makes you want to flip through it even if its just for inspiration.

2) The Quality. The books are well made, well organized and last. I've still got my 1e rulebook, signed by creator Steve Krenson in 03' and it looks like I just bought it.

3) It is Generic with a Feel. I love world-building and miss games like D&D, Traveller and Champions, where the mechanics were designed to let you play the game you want to play but still portrayed a genre or a style. Now its all about the various settings. That's fine with me if the setting is an option but games like WoD, D&D 4e and others don't feel right because their story isn't the story I want to tell. My story is the story I want to tell.

Another fantastic thing is the writers really know their comic books and there are great sections in some of the sourcebooks about how the professional comic creators create stories for their respective books. This really helps when generating ideas for scenarios. For example, Hero High, a sourcebook on teenage superheroes, has commentary by Marvel Executive Editor Tom Brevoort on the history and idea behind the sidekick and young heroes. Too cool. The book also includes comments by Stan Lee, Jeph Loeb, Brian K. Vaughan and Robert Kirkman.

I have a lot of friends in the industry and I know a few comic book writers and artists who game. The superhero game they're playing...Mutants & Masterminds.

'Nuff said!
AD

 

[Tetsubo]

Best supers genre system ever. And the supplements are solid and entertaining.

 

[Storminator]

I run a once a month Golden Age game with it.

The speed of combat makes for excellent episodic games. I run each session as a single issue of a comic, and the speed and ease of play gives me an excellent guide as to how long a session is going to take.

It was mentioned above, but let me emphasize: GM Fiat is the best rule ever. I make a super villain, and the heroes jump him. I freeze initiative, let my villain monologue for half a page (remember, it's a comic book!) or maybe a full page, then throw everyone a hero point for listening. Then combat starts. If my super villain drops a 1 on his toughness save (i.e. "dies" on the first hit), I throw another hero point, and he's made his save. If I think the situation warrants it, I give my super villain a bruise.

There's another truly awesome combination of rules that really gives a comic book feel.
1) Super powers can be made into "arrays" which means you pay full price for a basic power, then spend a feat to get a second version.
2) Hero points can be spent to gain a feat for a single round
So when you combine those rules you can blow a hero point and do something with your powers that you've never done before. This means you don't have to plan for every contingency when you make your power suite. Those once-a-campaign powers are built in. If you think about a super hero like Green Lantern, you can easily imagine how flexible you can make your hero.

If you go thru the books, reading the editorials and sidebars, it's very clear that they weren't designing a super hero game, but a comic book game. They wanted to be able to make sure you could make any comic book character imaginable, and that play would feel like a comic book. IMO, they succeeded brilliantly.

That flexibility means there are some broken powers, and some sketchy combos to look out for, but a little GM direction can usually solve those. The only rules I've had to reign in are those that are outside my Golden Age conventions.

Oh, and it's widely known at my game table that this GA campaign is the single greatest RPG campaign ever!

PS

 

[pawsplay]

Character creation is fast. The powers are very flexible. The books are well-written.

The system is not perfect, but it really doesn't have to be. It's a set of rules that usually stay out of the way. I can name other games I prefer in certain ways, but for a casual game, M&M may be the best supers game ever published.

 

[Dragonblade]

Best supers RPG ever. And that includes great rules, in fact even though it is a d20 game, I think Kenson has really transcended that with a variant that really takes d20 to a new level. Its easy to play, and easy to run.

It also includes the most fantastic art and best production values of any supers RPG.

And it also has the best original supers campaign setting available with Freedom City being a great amalgam of concepts and heroes inspired by classic Marvel and DC universes.

If only Marvel and DC knew something about the RPG industry and realized how awesome it would be for their fans if they were willing to cut GR a break on licensing fees. If GR is ever able to do a M&M Marvel or DC sourcebook, my supers gaming life would be complete.