What SuperHero RPG do you play ?

[underfoot007ct]

HERO (a.k.a. Champions) is my game of choice. I find its system is simply unsurpassed in flexibility: I have yet to come up with a PC concept I can't model in HERO. While it is complex, most of that is due to its flexibility- you can model just about anything 10 different ways- the complexity is mostly limited to character creation. Once you're playing, nearly everything you need to reference will be on your PC sheet.

Mutants & Masterminds is also exceptionally flexible, second only to HERO in this regard, IMHO. It will also be easier to understand if you're familiar with the D20 system.

While I've not played a supers game in it nor particularly care for it, GURPS is another game quite capable of modeling a huge variety of character concepts.

Besides those, I've played a variety of superheroic games over the years. While these others may not be as good as modeling the whole supers genre as the ones listed above, they may do a better job of modeling a particular subset of the genre. For example, if you really want to play in the Marvel or DC universes, the games designed for those companies' comic lines are really where you should start looking.

Do you have a particular supers campaign type in mind?

We play mostly D&D 4E, and was just looking for something different. I was tossing around a few ideas, and a few guys said they were interested in a SuperHero campaign. They play alot of Heroclix's minis. So I am 'very' open to ideas at this point.

 

[underfoot007ct]

M&M 3e/DC Adventures (they are the same system) is by far my first choice. HERO is cool, but the system is complex. Still, I own every HERO 5e book published except for a couple and they are easy to convert for use in an M&M game and make fantastic reference material.

ICONS is intriguing because its written by Steve Kenson, but I hate the FATE system and I hate random elements in character generation.

I am NOT looking for random powers, I want people to create their Super Heroes to their own ideas, and hopefully be balanced. Also not looking for a system that is too complex, thanks.

 

[jaerdaph]

I've been playing ICONS Superpowered Roleplaying regularly for well over a year now. It was exactly what I wanted in a supers game. I've ran and played it with adults and children. It's one of my top favorite RPGs of all time now.

I like that it is rules lite and easy to prep, run and teach. I also think it captures the genre very well, from comic books to animated cartoons.

If you do decide to check out ICONS, I suggest joining the Yahoo Group ICONS mailing list and visiting the Truth, Justice and Gaming ICONS Wiki where you can download my ICONS Clarification Notes that collects many of Steve Kenson and others involved in ICONS clarifications and suggestions for using the rules from various message boards and the Yahoo Group.

If you have any questions about the game, feel free to ask here or at the Yahoo Group!

 

[jaerdaph]

One more thing, ICONS *can* do point buy character generation too (see p. 17 "But I Don't Want to Roll Up a Hero!" in the core rules) if you prefer that to random. My ICONS Clarification Notes (linked above) includes some additional helpful tips from Steve Kenson et al. on point buy as well.

 

[Mercutio01]

I suppose I should have linked to the Yahoo Group, too, since I'm also on that mailing list.

The wiki is also pretty good, and has quite a few different characters to look at.

Below is my version of Captain America (It even won me a free Kindle from Adamant Entertainment) so you can see that you don't have to do the random character generation.
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[jaerdaph]

Below is my version of Captain America (It even won me a free Kindle from Adamant Entertainment) so you can see that you don't have to do the random character generation.

Well deserved, too! In addition to the great writeup, that was a pretty sweet layout you did as well!

 

[BASHMAN]

I am NOT looking for random powers, I want people to create their Super Heroes to their own ideas, and hopefully be balanced. Also not looking for a system that is too complex, thanks.

BASH! (now available in full color in a +PDF bundle by Cubicle 7 or at your FLGS bundling is available through C7's "bits & mortar" program) may suit your needs.

You get to build your characters? Check.

Customize your own powers? Check. Razor claws, energy beams, a magic sword, etc, are all built with the same power "Special Attack". Players get to decide how it works.

Fast character generation? 25 point to 40 point instead of 250 to 400 points to build a character? Check. Spend less time making your hero and more time playing your hero.

Simple mechanics that are robust enough to handle many situations in game? Check? If you want to trip a foe or knock a bunch of crates on top of them, the rules handle that. Want to know if you punched that guy hard enough to send him through a brick wall? The rules handle that. The simple mechanic is roll 2d6 multiply by stat/skill/power used. Matching dice "explode" allowing underdogs to prevail. If you don't care for the multiplication angle, there is a nice colorful chart on the back cover (just as easy to check 2d6 on a colored chart as it is to check 2d10 I promise ) and in the appendix alternate mechanics including FUDGE Dice (easily replaced by d6-d6), dice pools, playing cards, etc, to fit your needs.

System allows a 25 point patriotic shield slinger and a 40 point thundergod to be on the same team, giving both a chance to shine? Check. Characters with less power get more Hero Points which can be used to augment die rolls in clutch situations or to perform very comic-genre appropriate stunts (such as crashing through the wall in the nick of time; shaking off status effects, even unconsciousness; or countering a power used by a villain). Every player feels valuable without everyone having to be the same "level".

Channels the superhero comic genre? Check. Between the stunts performed by using a Hero Die and Hero Points, there is also the "Golden Rule" of the system, that ties always go to the Hero, and you always round in the Heroes favor.

If you are interested, you can check out an example of character creation and an example of play here.

 

[Relique du Madde]

In order of the games I played...

TMNT/Super Heroes Unlimited. It was a good system... but somewhat broken and a mess to use (the books that is).

GURPS. I've played a "super" using GURPS... I don't really remember any of the games I did using this system, sadly.

HERO. Never played it. My group really only made characters then said, "F-it! Creating characters for this system sucks."

My old group tried Silver aged Sentinels/BESM in both the Tri-Stat and D20 systems. We didn't play many super games using these rules... in fact we didn't play many games using these systems at all because there seemed to be little bits and pieces which didn't seem to work quite well, however some of us did end up liking the rules. I for one did.

I love Mutants and Masterminds 2e/3e. I've used the system for both super heroic and non-super heroic games. In both of it's 2e and 3e the game feels balanced and versatile enough to do almost anything (even if it requires some customization). The only real problem with this system is that characters take a while to create, but luckily they do not take as long as the ones did in HERO.

I tried ICONS but it was so rules light that it felt "meh" due to the holes that existed in the system which required a house rule patch to fix. The biggest problem was there is no balance between powers and a game can have two characters of vastly different power levels due to the randomness of the default character creation method.

 

[howandwhy99]

We've been playing Silver Age Sentinels (SAS) with villain characters for awhile now. We're switching over to superheroes next session though. It's an interesting enough system, but I've never really been a big fan of supers games.

 

[Richards]

I'm on my third generation of using the Champions game (1st edition). I first started GMing Champions when I was in high school; my second campaign was years later when I was married and I ran a campaign for my two sons (when they were 8 and 10, or thereabouts); and now I'm running a solo campaign with my youngest son, now 25.

As others have pointed out, it's very flexible (at the expense of complicated character design), but the other advantage I appreciate is that the entire game consists of one small paperback rulebook. I have never picked up (nor have I ever needed) any other supplements since I bought the original boxed set back in 1981 or so. In that aspect, it's given me the most bang for my buck of any of my RPG purchases.

Johnathan