I'm pretty sure that "world's best superhero rpg" was green ronin's slogan for m&m (or something close to it). I guess what I don't understand is why a purely-numbers based branding guy would go with a relative unknown system (which is a little too abstract IMHO ) versus M&M when m&m clearly has bigger sales numbers . Seems like bad business.
I don't care for the cortex+ system on initial reading, but this review cemented my uninterest in this game because of the poor support for the gm/watcher. I'm a gm first, and I don't much care for canned adventures. This game will have to do quite a lot for custom scenarios and provide me some good guidelines for creating /converting marvel's obscure characters before it gets any of my money
Well if you don't like Cortex+ games then you might not like MHR, but this review, like many I have read... was written from a certain perspective of complete misunderstanding of the game itself...
The biggest glaring mistake is it saying there is no character creation, which the book has 8 pages of making your own character. The second is it saying the book doesn't explain how to play or what to roll when the book goes into incredible detail Twice on what the Datafile IS and how it works... what your Affiliation is, Distinctions, Power Sets, and Specialties and how each function.
On page OM4 it goes over the Captain Americas Datafile and each section is highlighter and explained. On page 5 it goes over what you can add into a Dice Pool with a sidebar showing you the list... One Affiliation Die, one Distinction, One from each Power Set, one Specialty, One Asset, One Stress Die or One Compilation Die...
The key to understanding this game is that it is designed around comic book action and stories... and this game does it superbly. Each time you act you explain what. You are doing and how and Then look on your datafile and pick the dice that apply. Then Roll. Pick two dice, add together and pick a third as your Effect Die. The opposition then reacts by describing how they react and rolls dice, picks two and adds together and an Effect Die. If Reaction rolls higher they avoided the Action... if not, the person doing the Action can apply his Effect Die in many ways...
Do I cause Stress... Do I create a Complication for the target so my teammates can use that. Complication Die in their die rolls... or do I create an Asset? You mean as a Player I get to choose HOW my Action applies to the scene and give it a mechanical result and not just rely on the GM deciding for me after I roll... That's really cool.
On page 11 it goes into detail on Plot Points, the fuel of the game so to speak... And how you can spend them.
Page 14 goes into the Doom Pool, The Watchers special dice pool that is one of the coolest elements of this game period and really sets Marvel HR apart from the rest. It represents not just extra dice the Watcher could add to a die roll but also like the ever growing danger of what the heroes will be facing. It is to the Watcher what Plot Points are to Players.
When you add Milestones into the mix, Milestones being major decision points and personal story arcs for your character, goals or internal complications that the character has to deal with... and you have Distinctions which are basically the same as Aspects in FATE games, personality traits, defining quirks, professional job, catchphrases, like Iron Man's Billionaire Playboy or Things It's Clobberin' Time... put these two together you have a real, simple, fun in game mechanic that fuels Roleplaying your character... and working through Milestones is how you get XP, so yes you have to roleplay to gain XP.
How XP works in this game is another part of the game that is done on a different paradigm, and I think they should have used a different term than XP just to avoid this confusion... but basically XP is used to "buy" character upgrades during the Event in question... but even the sidebar on page 109 goes into the difference of Temporary vs. Permanent things that come in the expenditure of XP's and how to work with them between Events if you want to use the same character from Event to Event.
XP can be used towards things like changing a Distinction or switching Affiliations to gaining a new Specialty or adding a new SFX to a Power Set, or even changing a Power Set completely... or Unlocking Event Resources which can become available through the combination of meeting certain Event results and completing Event Milestones, so for example you worked with SHIELD in an Event and helped them deal with a crisis that saved them and you have the XP you could spend some to maybe get to use a SHIELD transport... or maybe become an official member of SHIELD itself.
IMO this is the greatest thing about the game... as a player I get some narrative control on how my character changes during the Event by this unique use of XP where I can spend 10 XP and declare that I do work for SHIELD... If that is possible through the Event... and become an agent and not just have to rely on GM allowing it.
It's a really cool, really fun game. it is also very simple and there is rarely any book lookup... especially when every player has a Hero Cheatsheet... then everything you need to know is on your Datafile.
