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<blockquote data-quote="Professor Phobos" data-source="post: 4033769" data-attributes="member: 18883">The only game I'm aware of that even tries is GURPS, and even that has mook rules, cinematic options, etc.&nbsp; Yes, here is the disconnect. Superman is a Kryptonian; he's invincible. He can't break his neck. Even a Superman who never went super-heroing, Clark Kent the tax accountant, couldn't break his neck. A high level fighter is still a mortal man. A man of exceptional skill, luck, daring, experience. A man who might be blessed by destiny or the fates, a man of great cunning or strength, but still just a man. His levels are not something people in the world can recognize- oh, sure, they know he's a great hero. They know he's dangerous. But he still has to go to the bathroom. He still gets stuck in the mud. He still gets indigestion from spicy food. And he can still break his neck. Particularly in a grim world where heroism yesterday means nothing today.Hit points and levels are abstractions. They're not meant to map directly to in-world concepts like physical health, just like blood points don't map directly to actual blood. &quot;Being a Kryptonian&quot; isn't an abstraction. It's a concrete, in-world thing like being an Elf.Being an Elf isn't an abstraction. Being &quot;high level&quot; is. A better example is Batman. Batman's neck can be broken. He could die in the shower as easily as he could die crashing through some warehouse skylight to punch a bunch of gangsters. But readers of Batman stories don't expect Batman to suddenly break his neck by accident, no? Because he's the main character. He's the focus of the narrative. Likewise, major supporting characters- Jim Gordon, Catwoman, the Joker- are not particularly likely to die meaningless accidental deaths, though in the universe it wouldn't contradict anything. A man of Jim Gordon's age could easily just have a heart attack or get in a car accident. From a narrative perspective, it's incongruous. Because these people regularly interact with Batman, readers get attached to them. They matter. And...who is the focus of the narrative in an RPG? Starts with a &quot;P&quot; and ends with a &quot;C&quot;...</blockquote>

[QUOTE="Professor Phobos, post: 4033769, member: 18883"] The only game I'm aware of that even tries is GURPS, and even that has mook rules, cinematic options, etc. Yes, here is the disconnect. Superman is a Kryptonian; he's invincible. He can't break his neck. Even a Superman who never went super-heroing, Clark Kent the tax accountant, couldn't break his neck. A high level fighter is still a mortal man. A man of exceptional skill, luck, daring, experience. A man who might be blessed by destiny or the fates, a man of great cunning or strength, but still just a man. His levels are not something people in the world can recognize- oh, sure, they know he's a great hero. They know he's dangerous. But he still has to go to the bathroom. He still gets stuck in the mud. He still gets indigestion from spicy food. And he can still break his neck. Particularly in a grim world where heroism yesterday means nothing today. Hit points and levels are abstractions. They're not meant to map directly to in-world concepts like physical health, just like blood points don't map directly to actual blood. "Being a Kryptonian" isn't an abstraction. It's a concrete, in-world thing like being an Elf. Being an Elf isn't an abstraction. Being "high level" is. A better example is Batman. Batman's neck can be broken. He could die in the shower as easily as he could die crashing through some warehouse skylight to punch a bunch of gangsters. But readers of Batman stories don't expect Batman to suddenly break his neck by accident, no? Because he's the main character. He's the focus of the narrative. Likewise, major supporting characters- Jim Gordon, Catwoman, the Joker- are not particularly likely to die meaningless accidental deaths, though in the universe it wouldn't contradict anything. A man of Jim Gordon's age could easily just have a heart attack or get in a car accident. From a narrative perspective, it's incongruous. Because these people regularly interact with Batman, readers get attached to them. They matter. And...who is the focus of the narrative in an RPG? Starts with a "P" and ends with a "C"... [/QUOTE]

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