What do you think about Powered by the Apocalypse games?

[heks]

i've only played 'bluebeard's bride' and the new edition of 'kult' and loved both (but i can see the basic mechanics not working for a lot of settings/ideas and think it would be difficult to run any real longterm campaign.)

 

[amethal]

I've only ever GM'd Dungeon World and it went terribly. I struggled to improvise, and the players struggled to get out of the more traditional RPG mindset. But I love the idea (and am REALLY loving reading Stonetop) and wish I could play in a game with an experienced PbtA GM.

If I ever get to play in a PbtA game, it will be as the GM, with no one at the table ever having played before (or even heard of PbtA, in most cases). It's less than ideal, but on the other hand that was the starting situation with pretty much every RPG I've run. We had no idea how to play (Mentzer) Basic D&D, but we had a lot of fun finding out.

Having said that, we were much more forgiving in those days, and had far less calls on our time. Nowadays, if the first session of a new game goes badly there probably isn't going to be a second one.

How many sessions of Dungeon World did you run?

 

[Vael]

Masks gives fantastic GM rules - not advice, but rather goals, principles, and rules. I've read Apocalypse World and as the granddaddy that's it's legacy - it gives fantastic guidance to the GM how how to run a very particular game incredibly thematically.

And the games are more focused. I don't know if I could see a "big tent" PbtA - and if it loses that hard focus into creating playbooks it would lose a lot of it's appeal. For as much as I like Masks, I wouldn't use if for a general supers game, it's fine tuned around finding out about who you are as a teen super, when your friends, mentors, the public and even your enemies have their own views on who you should be.

How tuned for teen Supers is it? There's been a lot of interest from some friends and myself to do an X-Men in the current era of Krakoa campaign, and I've bounced off a lot of other Supers RPGs. Masks seemed intriguing, but I've only played Monster of the Week a few times, and never DMed a PbtA game.

 

[payn]

How tuned for teen Supers is it? There's been a lot of interest from some friends and myself to do an X-Men in the current era of Krakoa campaign, and I've bounced off a lot of other Supers RPGs. Masks seemed intriguing, but I've only played Monster of the Week a few times, and never DMed a PbtA game.

The focus is off your super powers and more on your relationships with each other. I think that is highly appropriate for X-men. Now of course if you want a detailed tactical combat system that will balance out powers, PbtA/Masks is not the way to go.

 

[Vael]

The focus is off your super powers and more on your relationships with each other. I think that is highly appropriate for X-men. Now of course if you want a detailed tactical combat system that will balance out powers, PbtA/Masks is not the way to go.

I very much do not want that. I've tried a few crunchy Supers systems that drove me nuts with their point buy systems. FATE was the leading system in contention for me beforehand, but I'll have to give Masks a look.

 

[Blue]

How tuned for teen Supers is it? There's been a lot of interest from some friends and myself to do an X-Men in the current era of Krakoa campaign, and I've bounced off a lot of other Supers RPGs. Masks seemed intriguing, but I've only played Monster of the Week a few times, and never DMed a PbtA game.

As payn mentioned, it's more tuned for Teen supers than teen Supers.

Much of the game is modelling comics and shows like Young Justice, Teen Titans, even My Hero Academia where who you are, and where do you fit in the world, are major, mechanically supported themes.

If you are looking for tactical-heavy fights, Masks isn't it. If you are looking for the party that comes to shouting and blows within itself and then has that reunion that may leave them brittle or might leave them stronger, and we won't know if you can fully trust each other until a Godzilla-expy is terrorizing downtown - then it's the right game for you.

There is a laser focused on that teen supers genre and aspects of figuring yourself out, and how you fit into the world. I'm loving Masks, but I wouldn't use it for generic supers.

Also running it was my first experience as player or GM to PbtA. I read the rules, skimmed some forums, listened to an actual play, and following the advice reread the rules. It's working, but there's habits from traditional games I need to be able to lay aside I'm still working on.

Oh, and just as a resource, generic supers games I'm interested in (but haven't had a chance to play):
Sentinel Comics: Fate and Cortex had a kid, in the world of Sentinel Comics. Got some interesting ideas, like unlocking powers as the situation gets more dire.
Worlds in Peril: PbtA - how hard can you push yourself and the dangers of stopping a villain at all costs.
Galaxies in Peril: Successor(?) to Worlds in Peril, Forged in the Dark
Marvel Heroic Roleplay + Cortex Prime: Almost more of a Superhero Comic RPG then a Superhero RPG. MHR was obviously very Marvel focused, but bringing in the new edition of the rules from Cortex Prime, whihc includes character creations, could allow a more own-world feel. Among other points, I like that it was able to handle Thor and Hawkeye going out for a boy's night and not worrying about the power differences.
Champions/HERO System: Okay, I'm lying. 6th Ed has all the magic sucked out for me. But I played so much 2nd ed and BBB back in the 80s and 90s that I still have a soft spot for the ultimate in supers simulation.)

 

[Campbell]

I think the larger issue for an X book type game is that Masks really leans into superhero tropes in a way most X titles do not. Most X titles are pretty much soap operas with occasional fights thrown in. If I were run a X-Men game, I would probably use Cortex Prime (although hewing closer to Smallville than Marvel Heroic).

 

[hawkeyefan]

Galaxies in Peril: Successor(?) to Worlds in Peril, Forged in the Dark

For a more general supers game as opposed to Masks (which is indeed very much about teen heroes) I’d recommend this game. I was surprised at how suitably the basic FitD system worked for supers. I ran a very fun campaign of this not too long ago, though I used a home brew setting rather than the one presented in the book.

Among other points, I like that it was able to handle Thor and Hawkeye going out for a boy's night and not worrying about the power differences.

The amount of times this comes up… poor Thor’s gonna develop a complex!

 

[Greg K]

Not a fan of PBTA. I really dislike the playbook aspect and don't understand the attraction to the system
I also bounced hard off the Masks playbooks.
The super games that do interest me include:
Icons: Assembled
Marvel SAGA (incorporating fixes by Steve Kenson and the online community and Tom Costa's fixes of the official roster books)
Smallville
Marvel Heroic
BASH: Ultimate Edition
Supers: Revised Edition
DC Heroes 1-3/ Blood of Heroes
Mutants & Masterminds 2e and Champions 4e (if I want to run crunchy systems)
I am also tinkering with DC Universe RPG

 

[Eyes of Nine]

Just got the fulfillment for the kickstarter of Good Guys Finish Last.

DriveThruRPG

www.drivethrurpg.com

It's originally from the 90's, but apparently has some tech way before it's time that's still fresh today. Once I read, perhaps I'll report back.