JoeGKushner
Adventurer
The Algernon Files is a M&M Superlink product. This is an NPC book that includes heroes and villains for the GM to incorporate into his own campaign. It’s both a good and bad thing to see a third party product with new characters to incorporate into your campaign but it does present its own problems.
In my Hero years, I loved their Enemy books. Each one built upon the previous one and other products that had come out in the meanwhile like adventures or area sourcebooks. A third party book like this can’t do that. It has its own universe that bleeds through the background of the characters. For the most part, that’s not a problem but it does present certain challenges when trying to craft your campaign as a whole.
Another problem that stems for me from my Hero years is that I could see how the characters were created on a point-by-point basis. Due to the character sheets that Mutants & Masterminds use, I can’t do that. How many points are paid for in stats? How many for attack and defense? How many for skills and feats? Only the powers have a point and that’s only a point by level basis. The game mechanic in me is disappointed by this because unless I playtest everything extensively, I don’t know if these characters actually balance out by their points totals which I have to assume are minimum for their power level and not just below the next power level.
The book is broken up into four chapters and an appendix with several options for a campaign. The chapters are broken up into different sections. For example, the first chapter is broken up into different hero groups, each one with a different section, and a separate chapter for independent heroes.
The character write-ups for the most part are an interesting read. They include game stats, physical stats, quote, public knowledge DC checks, and type. For example, Technomancer is listed as “Ultimate Cybergeek” with a power level of 11. The art for most of the characters is fair. Most of the illustrations give an indication of the character’s physical size as well but some like Stilstkin could’ve probably been larger. All of them do suffer from the standing in the void syndrome, as there is no background to any of the characters. Those with internet access should check out the company’s web site and view them in full color where you can get a better effect.
The bad thing is that the authors didn’t take a few extra steps to increase the utility of the characters. For example, I know many Game Masters don’t want any heroes in their book while others like to see how others construct different types of characters regardless of the type. To satisfy both audiences there should be a section under each character that provides some options for using said character as a villain. There should be some options for adventure seeds to further increase the utility of the characters. Last, there should be some combat tactics for these characters.
Most of the characters uses are fairly self-obvious to any GM reading it. Some have too many links to other characters requiring the GM to rework them. For example, the Crone. This would’ve been a perfect opportunity to showcase how a creature from myth and legend, Baba Yaga, could fit into a modern game setting with supers. Instead she focuses her hatred and power on Troll, a super hero whose family labored under the curse that turned him into a super powered monster. Useful if this was a full fledged comic but as a game sourcebook, highly limited.
If you’re new to the game and are looking at how the character is made, that’s one thing. If you’re new to the GM’s seat and don’t know how to run a character and say forget that Mean Machine has Power Attack and Dodge, you’re not going to be using the character to his full potential, perhaps making his overall power level weaker than the indicated 15.
For example, Speed Demon is described as a flirt. How about an adventure seed where she falls for a bad boy and must be rescued by the players? How about an option where she grows tired of the press and its relentless portrayal of her and becomes rogue? Little things like that increase the utility of a book like this immensely.
In addition to the game write ups, most of the teams include maps of their homes. These maps are missing a scale so I’m assuming the scale is either one square equals ten feet or more likely, five feet. The maps are crisp and clean. The maps of the vehicles, such as the Kestrel and Destriers for the super group the Sentinels, are very well done.
This is not to say that the book isn’t useful by any means. For example, if you need a brick with a little variety to it, Magog, an exiled alien warrior with some superstrength and natural weaponry is a good choice. If you want to add some heroes to your campaign to insure that the campaign survives while the heroes are off in space, then having individuals like Horus, Son of Ra, around, help insure that the campaign isn’t derailed. Heck, they make good scapegoats to kill when you want to showcase how dangerous an enemy is. “They killed Sabbath? These demons must be powerful indeed!”
New options in the appendix include feats, powers, extras and options. This isn’t a massive section, but rather one with a few options like Resounding Blow, a super feat that doubles the knock back distance you do. The one new power, Nauseate, causes a target to become ill. The extras include things like Mind Scan where you locate one mind among many while others like Teleportation have Insertion Attack, a two extra cost that lets you teleport small objects into your enemies body.
What would make this a better book? Here’s my advice for anyone wanting to make a M&M Superlink product of characters. One, keep ‘em separated. The only time heroes should be in a book is in a campaign book or if it’s a book of allies. Two, keep them as campaign neutral as possible. Leave the GM numerous hooks to add his player’s characters to the brew. Three, when updating mythical figures, don’t assume everyone knows about the character but elaborate on them. Four, provide alternative ideas and adventure seeds for the characters. Imagine that you’re running a futuristic campaign where technology is king. Do you want characters that have a mystical background? Most of these rules are followed to a tee in Green Ronin’s Crooks book and Five, include how to use the character and don’t skimp on the tactics. Even if the character is a loner by nature, make sure to include what the character does when working with a group. Many villainous organizations are often nothing more than a group of mercenaries brought together for one quick take.
In terms of price, at 128 black and white pages in a sturdy hardcover, $24.95 isn’t bad at all. Hopefully future books will feature less campaign setting and more advice on campaign integration. For those looking for more characters, both good and bad, The Algernon Files provides a width berth of power levels and options to select from.
In my Hero years, I loved their Enemy books. Each one built upon the previous one and other products that had come out in the meanwhile like adventures or area sourcebooks. A third party book like this can’t do that. It has its own universe that bleeds through the background of the characters. For the most part, that’s not a problem but it does present certain challenges when trying to craft your campaign as a whole.
Another problem that stems for me from my Hero years is that I could see how the characters were created on a point-by-point basis. Due to the character sheets that Mutants & Masterminds use, I can’t do that. How many points are paid for in stats? How many for attack and defense? How many for skills and feats? Only the powers have a point and that’s only a point by level basis. The game mechanic in me is disappointed by this because unless I playtest everything extensively, I don’t know if these characters actually balance out by their points totals which I have to assume are minimum for their power level and not just below the next power level.
The book is broken up into four chapters and an appendix with several options for a campaign. The chapters are broken up into different sections. For example, the first chapter is broken up into different hero groups, each one with a different section, and a separate chapter for independent heroes.
The character write-ups for the most part are an interesting read. They include game stats, physical stats, quote, public knowledge DC checks, and type. For example, Technomancer is listed as “Ultimate Cybergeek” with a power level of 11. The art for most of the characters is fair. Most of the illustrations give an indication of the character’s physical size as well but some like Stilstkin could’ve probably been larger. All of them do suffer from the standing in the void syndrome, as there is no background to any of the characters. Those with internet access should check out the company’s web site and view them in full color where you can get a better effect.
The bad thing is that the authors didn’t take a few extra steps to increase the utility of the characters. For example, I know many Game Masters don’t want any heroes in their book while others like to see how others construct different types of characters regardless of the type. To satisfy both audiences there should be a section under each character that provides some options for using said character as a villain. There should be some options for adventure seeds to further increase the utility of the characters. Last, there should be some combat tactics for these characters.
Most of the characters uses are fairly self-obvious to any GM reading it. Some have too many links to other characters requiring the GM to rework them. For example, the Crone. This would’ve been a perfect opportunity to showcase how a creature from myth and legend, Baba Yaga, could fit into a modern game setting with supers. Instead she focuses her hatred and power on Troll, a super hero whose family labored under the curse that turned him into a super powered monster. Useful if this was a full fledged comic but as a game sourcebook, highly limited.
If you’re new to the game and are looking at how the character is made, that’s one thing. If you’re new to the GM’s seat and don’t know how to run a character and say forget that Mean Machine has Power Attack and Dodge, you’re not going to be using the character to his full potential, perhaps making his overall power level weaker than the indicated 15.
For example, Speed Demon is described as a flirt. How about an adventure seed where she falls for a bad boy and must be rescued by the players? How about an option where she grows tired of the press and its relentless portrayal of her and becomes rogue? Little things like that increase the utility of a book like this immensely.
In addition to the game write ups, most of the teams include maps of their homes. These maps are missing a scale so I’m assuming the scale is either one square equals ten feet or more likely, five feet. The maps are crisp and clean. The maps of the vehicles, such as the Kestrel and Destriers for the super group the Sentinels, are very well done.
This is not to say that the book isn’t useful by any means. For example, if you need a brick with a little variety to it, Magog, an exiled alien warrior with some superstrength and natural weaponry is a good choice. If you want to add some heroes to your campaign to insure that the campaign survives while the heroes are off in space, then having individuals like Horus, Son of Ra, around, help insure that the campaign isn’t derailed. Heck, they make good scapegoats to kill when you want to showcase how dangerous an enemy is. “They killed Sabbath? These demons must be powerful indeed!”
New options in the appendix include feats, powers, extras and options. This isn’t a massive section, but rather one with a few options like Resounding Blow, a super feat that doubles the knock back distance you do. The one new power, Nauseate, causes a target to become ill. The extras include things like Mind Scan where you locate one mind among many while others like Teleportation have Insertion Attack, a two extra cost that lets you teleport small objects into your enemies body.
What would make this a better book? Here’s my advice for anyone wanting to make a M&M Superlink product of characters. One, keep ‘em separated. The only time heroes should be in a book is in a campaign book or if it’s a book of allies. Two, keep them as campaign neutral as possible. Leave the GM numerous hooks to add his player’s characters to the brew. Three, when updating mythical figures, don’t assume everyone knows about the character but elaborate on them. Four, provide alternative ideas and adventure seeds for the characters. Imagine that you’re running a futuristic campaign where technology is king. Do you want characters that have a mystical background? Most of these rules are followed to a tee in Green Ronin’s Crooks book and Five, include how to use the character and don’t skimp on the tactics. Even if the character is a loner by nature, make sure to include what the character does when working with a group. Many villainous organizations are often nothing more than a group of mercenaries brought together for one quick take.
In terms of price, at 128 black and white pages in a sturdy hardcover, $24.95 isn’t bad at all. Hopefully future books will feature less campaign setting and more advice on campaign integration. For those looking for more characters, both good and bad, The Algernon Files provides a width berth of power levels and options to select from.
