@Bobotron said in POLL: Super Hero MU Gut Check:
Re: Superheroes
I wonder if you could full-on automate the Cortex system in Marvel Heroic.
I was considering this from a coding perspective today, honestly.
In theory, a dice rolling system could be created that would help build the dice pools, request spending of power pool for sfx, and auto-divvy plot points when 1s are rolled.
I'll have to think about it.
@Auspice said in Things We Should Have Learned Sooner:
And fuck instant grits.
And fuck polenta.
And an extra fuck you to anyone who tries to conflate cream of wheat and grits.
Cream of Wheat is wheatygritz
@surreality Another good idea, as was the idea of "in space". Thanks for the input.
@Meg oh so it was Daken or Purple Man?
GASP!
@Apos You may very well be right.
One of the positives of the existing IPs is the learning curve factor, because many names, locations, organizations, and the general makeup of the setting is something many players would have some knowledge of (I.e. I don't read Marvel comics, but I love the movies and Agents of SHIELD). It can also be one of the negatives for some players (You're playing the character wrong!). Another plus, Marvel (for example) comes with hundreds of NPCs to pool from for plots.
The trick with an original setting, or a setting that might exist in the Marvel universe (for example), but only utilizes original characters, is selling super hero fans and players why they should care about your vision of the setting. You will have to transfer the knowledge of how the original setting works, people, places, organizations, concepts, etc and hope incoming players buy it as worthy of their time.
So long as players like it, they'll play, but some concepts prevail over others because of built-in fan bases, which is possibly (IMO) why I think some of the other all-original super games have failed.
@Apos said in POLL: Super Hero MU Gut Check:
@Ominous Hmm, what I more was getting at was that ones that are allow those FCs tend to be about those FCs, and then it's difficult to do dynamic change around them. If I didn't make Arx, I probably would have made a full OC/original theme modern day superhero type game, since I like the genre so much. I just don't like bumping into the hurdles around existing intellectual properties, and I don't really think it's niche, it's just very much an all or nothing proposition imo.
Some OCs have a hard time selling themselves on the WIDE FOCUS games because (IMO) of a few reasons:
I feel the xmen/brotherhood concept would mitigate a number of these issues. So long as the OC was in theme, a mutant, and not a super distracting concept (anime in disguise!), a well devised faction would have purpose to accept said OC into their numbers.
@Ominous Good question. Might be worth another poll in another thread. I know for SOME the juice is in playing existing characters, and others are die hard OC players.
@SunnyJ X Men works because on a philosophical level the two polarized factions make sense. The characters (mutants) come pre-packaged with a reason to care.
DC/Gotham could be a bit more difficult due to the different pockets of effort, with plenty of lone wolves, and various approaches to fighting and/or committing crime.
Remember I'm not pitching game ideas. I'm just discussing conceptual options/themes within the smaller roster;tighter focus mindset.
@Ganymede hahaha 
Dex-Starr
I see it (GL Corps)like this:
With a smaller roster of FCs (feature chars, Hal Jordan, Star Sapphires, etc) you're dealing with a limitless universe of alien races, but very specific power sets.
So one of the pros might actually be that what a <insert Lantern> can do wouldn't be up to a player to stat out, but instead guidelines to paint within. The classic FCs are just other players and personalities in the mix of a larger soap opera, but amongst the Green Lantern Corps, Hal Jordan isn't overpowered...he's just a member of the Corps.
So, in theory, a Lantern Corps game would be a smaller roster of FCs but allow for a ton of creativity around OC aliens, where they come for, who they are, then apply said character to a bucket of factions that are, effectively, warring for galactic control
There would be difficulties in mind, one of them being finding constant stuff, day to day, for Lanterns to do, but when they get together and fight, there's plenty for all of the Corps to scuffle over.
Just another idea.
Lets offline this discussion about what was and was not said or shitty people consent/statted to Random Bitching, plz.
RE-THREAD:
From a super hero perspective, what settings do you feel would work from a tighter focus?
What about DC Cosmic, such as Green Lantern Corps and the ROYGBIV spectrum of heroes and villains?
@Nein ask yourself this on a seriously introspective, zero bullshit level:
Are you wanting to give this advice for the player's benefit, or because you and others you play with are annoyed?
From what you've written, I'm sensing a high dislike of the player's take on the character and their behavior despite the way other players react to it. So, I'm sensing a little bit of being sick of it, which is far different from actually caring about this player's enjoyment of the game or their role play options.
Don't give disingenuous advice to someone under the guise of being what's best for them, when the end result is aiming for something better for yourself.
You'd be better off being honest and asking the player if they mind some constructive criticism, telling them objectively your feelings about their interaction on the game, and letting the dice roll on that.
I just had the derpiest thought today...
Firefighters do not fight fire. They fight inanimate objects which have chosen fire as their preferred weapon.
I appreciate everyone's constructive feedback. This is exactly the kind of discussion I'd hoped to see.
@Coin Agreed.
On more than one occasion, I've seen less ethical players on SuperConsent MUs claim a very powerful character and use said level of power as a walking justification for powerpose and/or ignoring the powers/skills of other PCs.
It basically ends up like a hostage situation. PowerPlayer feels powers justify success despite consent. Staff intervention may end up necessary to stop PowerPlayer, but then it could be construed as staff railroading.
I will note that I am a supporter of dice-assisted resolution and have found that super hero MUs with the diceless, cooperative systems work really well so long as everyone involved is role-playing in a relaxed, reasonable state. However, not all players operate the same, and have seen people abuse the diceless system.
TL;DR: diceless works so long as everyone is cooperative and copacetic, but unethical players will use said lack of dice to their powerpose advantage.
@BobGoblin said in POLL: Super Hero MU Gut Check:
IMO one of the flaws that takes place in this community is not enough planning and design go into the game itself, and too much throwing shit against a wall and hoping it sticks does
Kind of like the Cards Against Humanity card:
_________ was neither the MU we needed nor wanted
Every now and then we see a MU advertisement that is more of a probing for interest, which I think is a smart idea. I see a lot of games go into development, a lot of work goes into standing the MU up, and then the people who put a lot of hard work into this labour of love find out that for some reason (issues with staffing, setting, system, lack of interest, etc) the MU flops.
The way I see it, some of these issues can be mitigated in the development process prior to putting any money or wikispace down. However, with a poll, any yes votes are players who will more than likely give the game a stab when it comes out.
A few other successful, or possible, smaller-focus settings:
There have been Transformers games for a while now. I haven't played them personally, but there always seems to be one hanging around, which I feel may also be a point in favor of tighter focus; smaller scope.
@Tempest said in POLL: Super Hero MU Gut Check:
Straying further away from the preference discussion....I feel like it's worth repeating that X-Sphere in particular has a number of advantages that I'm not sure any other Comic sphere would have.
Agreed. Xavier vs Magneto isn't a story of good versus evil but a philosophical entry in the discussion about civil rights.
Don't give up hope on humanity versus We aren't going to wait to be placed into chains
Concepts of good and evil can be found in both the Brotherhood and the X-Men, and while each have a default setting closer to good or evil, what matters is the point of view.
Is Magneto evil for working alongside Sabretooth who is willing to take human lives...but the Brotherhood would be willing to destroy half of Manhattan to save a mutant life?
It's a great setting. Everybody matters so long as they have an X-gene. They are all at stake.
That's a prime example of what I envision a YES concept game to be.
No PCs in the Avengers, DC, Spawn, Asgardians, etc because the focus of the story is mutant civil rights
Sure, the Avengers may show up as NPCs come mutant registration day...but its just an example my brain came up with as to what might work better.