Does the big BRP book shortchange us on superheroes?

[Conrad]

Oops! I'd been reading it as "Gravy Cannon" and was about to ask that the device be statted up.

It already is, in Chronicles of Future Earth. Gravity cannon that is, not gravy cannon!

[Jason D]

Oops! I'd been reading it as "Gravy Cannon" and was about to ask that the device be statted up.

I will never rest until I own a gravy cannon.

The closest I can get is a gravy dispenser, and my wife is yet to be convinced.

[Atgxtg]

I will never rest until I own a gravy cannon.

The closest I can get is a gravy dispenser, and my wife is yet to be convinced.

She7s right. The cannon tends to stain everything, and it7s impossible to keep the mashed potatoes on the plate. The cannon just isn't that practical. THe enemy always target the corn starch storage depots. A biscuit cannon with a gravy feed device, yes, but not the actual gravy cannon.

Now a gravy bomber on the other hand, is a very logical and reasonable means of applying technology to meet (meat?) the need for aerial gravy distribution.

[Jason D]

For instance, if someone has an attack that no one bought armor against, then the PCs are toast. Those "X-Men" would have a hard time in BRP if they were up against the Radioactive Man.

If I were GMing an X-Men campaign, I'd create a "Mutant" package that includes some level of radiation resistance. Makes sense for the Children of the Atom.

I'd also use total HP, a rule that 0 HP equals unconscious unless the attacker is using a lethal form of attack, and some sort of second wind rule allowing characters to make a Stamina check and recover a handful of HP in exchange for power points.

BRP's options let you create a version of the game that works for your conception of a particular genre. The X-Men, for example, have gone through a number of distinct phases and tones throughout their 40+ years of publication, with the team and individual power levels varying tremendously over the years. Some are easier to model with RPG rules, some less so.

[Atgxtg]

If I were GMing an X-Men campaign, I'd create a "Mutant" package that includes some level of radiation resistance. Makes sense for the Children of the Atom.

Yes,it does. And on more that one level. Packages for the various types of heroes (call the "Origin Packages" and spring them at the next Convention) would be a nice boon for such a game.

I'd also use total HP, a rule that 0 HP equals unconscious unless the attacker is using a lethal form of attack, and some sort of second wind rule allowing characters to make a Stamina check and recover a handful of HP in exchange for power points. [/qupte]

All things that would help with running such a game, but still a sign that BRP realy needs tweaking to handle Supers. At least Supers inthe mold o the comics. If you wanted to run a more gritty/realistic type of Supers campaign, without the "four color" trappings, BRP works nicely, "out of the box." I could see using it for a "modern day" version of Cybergeneration. With teenagers in 2011 getting super powers in a world devoid of superheroes and villains.

Yes. BRP is, at it's heart, a toolkit to create and RPG system tailored to a concept. No debate there. I7m not saying that BRP can't be adapted to handle something. I'm saying that it isn't well suited for some things "out of the box". For instance, I think Superheroes would require some tweaking with the STR, SIZ Table, and damage relationships to get them to beeter match up with the genre. I don't see that as a flaw, just a sign that "super reality" is substantially different from most other RPG "realities".

Plius some RPGs are better suited for this sort of thing. Any one of the three MArvel Super Hero RPGs handles the X-Men better than BRP does, in no small part becuase those games were specfically designed to do just that.

But running a typical Supers campaign in BRP is going to require more work on the Gms part than running a typical antasy or modern day campaign.

[Atgxtg]

If I were GMing an X-Men campaign, I'd create a "Mutant" package that includes some level of radiation resistance. Makes sense for the Children of the Atom.

Yes,it does. And on more that one level. Packages for the various types of heroes (call the "Origin Packages" and spring them at the next Convention) would be a nice boon for such a game.

I'd also use total HP, a rule that 0 HP equals unconscious unless the attacker is using a lethal form of attack, and some sort of second wind rule allowing characters to make a Stamina check and recover a handful of HP in exchange for power points.

All things that would help with running such a game, but still a sign that BRP really needs tweaking to handle Supers. At least Supers in the mold o the comics. If you wanted to run a more gritty/realistic type of Supers campaign, without the "four color" trappings, BRP works nicely, "out of the box." I could see using it for a "modern day" version of Cybergeneration. With teenagers in 2011 getting super powers in a world devoid of superheroes and villains (Hmm, that could really be interesting...)

BRP's options let you create a version of the game that works for your conception of a particular genre. The X-Men, for example, have gone through a number of distinct phases and tones throughout their 40+ years of publication, with the team and individual power levels varying tremendously over the years. Some are easier to model with RPG rules, some less so.

Yes. BRP is, at it's heart, a toolkit to create and RPG system tailored to a concept. No debate there. I'm not saying that BRP can't be adapted to handle something. I'm saying that it isn't well suited for some things "out of the box". For instance, I think Superheroes would require some tweaking with the STR, SIZ Table, and damage relationships to get them to beeter match up with the genre. I don't see that as a flaw, just a sign that "super reality" is substantially different from most other RPG "realities". It just ins't possible for one system to hanbdle all things equally well without some "modding".

Pius some RPGs are better suited for this sort of thing. Any one of the three Marvel Super Hero RPGs handles the X-Men better than BRP does, in no small part because those games were specifically designed to do just that.

But running a typical Supers campaign in BRP is going to require more work on the GMs part than running a typical fantasy or modern day campaign.

Edited March 5, 2011 by Atgxtg

[Jason D]

See, this is where we're talking past one another.

"Supers" and "the comics" means what, exactly? Gritty costumed adventurers like Daredevil or the Punisher, or are we talking about the Green Lantern Corps?

As I've noted in a few other threads, it handles the lower end of the spectrum fine, the middle end of the spectrum with a bit of tweaking (tweaking that's more-than-encouraged in the core book), and it gets a bit less-than-satisfactory or outright cumbersome at super high levels.

I'll agree with you about the first two Marvel games (Saga is my favorite superhero game of all time), though the third one didn't do much of anything very well.

[Atgxtg]

See, this is where we're talking past one another.

"Supers" and "the comics" means what, exactly? Gritty costumed adventurers like Daredevil or the Punisher, or are we talking about the Green Lantern Corps?

Point taken. The comic lines aren't what they once were. There was a time when Marve's super hero titles worked under a certain "common reality". DC's too. Now there is a lot more variation between titles or even in one title, depending on who is wrting it. While I do like more flexibility and variation, I think that the lack of a any consitency is one of the things that is hurting the comics industry in recent years.

As I've noted in a few other threads, it handles the lower end of the spectrum fine, the middle end of the spectrum with a bit of tweaking (tweaking that's more-than-encouraged in the core book), and it gets a bit less-than-satisfactory or outright cumbersome at super high levels.

And as I have noted, I disagree. I don7t think it handles the "lower end" fine, but needs tweaking there. The middle end requires massive tweaking, and it cannot handle the high end at all without a massive rewrite. Now we might be disagreeing on just where the middle and high end are. But even at the low end, BRP BAtman and BRP Daredevil need a LOT of help to avoid becoming a statistic. One "bat-fumble" and it's over.

I'll agree with you about the first two Marvel games (Saga is my favorite superhero game of all time), though the third one didn't do much of anything very well.

Hey, we see pretty much eye to eye here. I prefer the SAGA edition to either of the two other Marvel games. The first one is the most popular, buy really doesn't play that well (I think the fans of the old MSHRPG are probably looking at it through rose colored glasses, forgetting things like AMAZING Strength vs. AMAZING body armor). I thought the MARVEL UNIVERSE RPG was interesting, but the "allocated stones" mechanic was flawed. Too much was tied to the refresh rate, and characters with fixed bonuses looked like they could rule the game. But I never tried the system out to see how it actually ran.

IMO the SAGA system, both in MArvel and Dragonlance was a very good game that never got the attention it deserved.The "player active"mechanic used, where all tasks were treated as something for the players do do, was an inspiration. I still think that Marvel SAGA would make a great system for an anime RPG.

[soltakss]

Sorry, missed this question.

Quite clarification. By HQ1 do you mean HQ1 or HeroWars (the name HQ was forced to go by when somebody else had the copy write on the HQ name)?

By HQ1 I mean the first edition of HeroQuest. I use HW for HeroWars (which could be HQ0.5).

[Atgxtg]

Sorry, missed this question.

By HQ1 I mean the first edition of HeroQuest. I use HW for HeroWars (which could be HQ0.5).

Fair enough. I thought that was what you meant, but with the various editions and name changes it can sometimes get confusing. Not as confusing as RQ2, but then Issaries wasn't trying to confuse things.

I haven't seen HQ2. From what I've read the major difference seems to be that the game has dropped any sort of benchmarking or absolute scale, and instead all tasks are rated on a scale realtive to the characters. Not necesariliy a bad thing, at least for a game that aims for the mythic/cinematic style of play that Robin Laws shoots for, but not ideal for ALL sorts of gaming.

[Conrad]

Just curious, did you think the sentai hero write-up was a good fit for BRP?

It was a nice little write up. I think I'm going to put some super sentai into my supers campaign due to your write up.

[seneschal]

It was a nice little write up. I think I'm going to put some super sentai into my supers campaign due to your write up.

Glad it was inspirational. Let us know how it goes.

[sladethesniper]

I use BRP for my super's game. I stat the NPC's out and let the casualties fall where they may...STR of 70? No problem... DEX of 38, you got it. If you can kill with a punch, so be it. What this means is that I have a super's game, but it does not follow the super genre...

To make a super genre BRP is difficult, but to have (for lack of a better term) realistic supers, it works fine.

It works for me.

-STS

[threedeesix]

To make a super genre BRP is difficult, but to have (for lack of a better term) realistic supers, it works fine.

-STS

Wow, nicely put.

Rod