Thanks for sharing, Lysander! I used to LOVE playing the orginal DC pen & paper RPG…but I played more of the Marvel game. I had a character named Spike who was kinda a male version of Rogue. My problem now is finding people who are still interested in playing! I’ll still get it though just to see what it’s all about.
My D&D;group still enjoy RPG by using pen and paper. We never have tried doing it by computer or any other mines other than pen and paper. Get face to face with real people and never looking at a computer all day. Now that is how you RPG.
I had the original DCH but didn’t get to play till a few years ago, but that only lasted a few sessions. I never got the actual hang of the system.
As far as actual pen and paper, I wouldn’t WAIT to start printing out homemade character sheets. Just make whatever changes or additions to spell lists, items carried/owned, HP, whatever, without rewriting all the rest, and then printing out a new completely legible sheet when needed, it was heaven. Not to mention I could conserve both paper and table space because type was much smaller than handwriting.
I never played any of the DC pen-and-paper games, but I owned every version of the Marvel RPG. I love both the classic d100 system—where with one good roll and one bad roll, Aunt May could kill Galactus with a butcher knife—and the SAGA version. You can keep that horribly-designed “stones” system, though. Mutants and Masterminds is a solid system, so it’s cool that DC is using it for a pen-and-paper comeback. I think Marvel’s old systems are sturdy enough not to need an update, though.
I’m actually in two pen-and-paper D&D;games now, but both games are enhanced quite a bit by computers. For one, it’s easier to carry a laptop loaded with dozens of rulebook PDFs than a stack of hardbound books. Plus, one D&D;game involves two players who live out of state who are playing via Skype broadcast on the Dungeon Master’s big flatscreen TV.
I actually use pen-and-paper RPGs to do stats for characters I write about in my stories. It helps me look at their capabilities, strengths, and abilities in a way the my highly OCD brain comprehends. I’ve got D&D;(all editions, even though I dislike 4th), Marvel, Buffy, Ghostbusters, Call of Cthulhu, Agone, Cartoon Action Hour, Big Eyes Small Mouth, and tons more.
That’s so cool that people get to stay with they group via Skype after they move. I’ll bet there are onscreen dice rollers they can use too nowadays. Though putting the cam on the dice would do I guess.
BTW, seems like Steve Kenson is also doing another Supers RPG now called ICONS. Apparently much lighter on rules than M&M;. It’s based on the FATE system which is in turn based on FUDGE.
I (heart) both FATE and FUDGE, but FATE is hard to get people behind because its so unusual. It’s a very literary system: much more concerned with words than numbers.
Didn’t the first Marvel game use words as the main description, with the numbers being secondary?
Yes and no. The original Marvel system did give things ranks like “Incredible” or “Amazing” but those ranks all came with a number attached, like “Incredible (40)” or “Amazing (50).” The numbers were used to total Health and Karma, and were of more use on the big FEAT chart on the back of the books. The game could have dispensed with the rankings altogether and used just the numbers without any changes to the structure of the game, but the ranking helped to give things a more comic book feel.
FATE, however, uses almost no numbers at all, at least not in the traditional sense of quantifying abilities. There aren’t even base attributes included in the game (although Storytellers can make them for their own campaigns). You get to choose which words best describe what your character can do. There is still a very mild amount of math involved in the game, but not nearly as much as what goes on in even many rules-light systems. The way I see it, FATE is a true storytelling system, kind of like a writer’s workshop in RPG form.
I recently pre-ordered the book and got the PDF for $5 more. I’ve been looking it over and it’s pretty sweet. I was going to run a Mutants & Masterminds 2ed game, but this has the rules for M&M;3ed, so I figured I may as well use that system (since I never actually played the other edition). So far it looks pretty neat and my players are excited too.
I ran the last Marvel RPG that came out and it was pretty successful, though it was an odd system (using effort stones rather than dice).
I recently pre-ordered the book and got the PDF for $5 more. I’ve been looking it over and it’s pretty sweet. I was going to run a Mutants & Masterminds 2ed game, but this has the rules for M&M;3ed, so I figured I may as well use that system (since I never actually played the other edition). So far it looks pretty neat and my players are excited too.
I ran the last Marvel RPG that came out and it was pretty successful, though it was an odd system (using effort stones rather than dice).
I was so NOT a fan of the “stones” system for Marvel. The classic “100” system is great for people who know about RPGs. It’s structured enough like a standard RPG to easily grasp, and the learning curve isn’t that hard. The SAGA system is just as good in my opinion, and it excels in some places the 100 can’t. Instead of being a completely random roll of the dice, it lets you choose how much effort to put into something (although a good deal of chance is still involved) and its a little lighter on the rules. Although for pure nostalgia value, the 100 system wins every time.
The stones system, though, is way too complex and cumbersome. I appreciate that they were trying to do something new, but it’s obvious that Marvel was trying way to hard to appeal to miniature gamers and non pen-and-paper types: the stones system was obviously a resource management thing, and I think it made the game unapproachable to many (although the system IS highly exploitable for new rules and powers).
I’m actually working on getting a game going. I have a few players who are interested, and I’m just coming up with the storyline and what not.
So far, power building is wicked fun, though it can be a bit overwhelming since there’s so many options. I’ve never played M&M;before, but the system seems pretty straight forward. Once I actually run a few sessions, I’ll get back to ya on how it is.
They actually use the same rules. Only difference is M&M;uses generic superheroes while DCA uses their own universe and characters. But the rules are exactly the same. I’ll be using my own world, based on M&M;2E’s Paragon universe, where it’s very similar to Heroes the tv show.
