Marvel Heroic Role Playing: The Authority, from across the bleed, here to kick 616 in the nethers

“Talk to me, Angie.”

“No one’s chasing us. We’re out of the Bleed and near an alternate reality earth. The Carrier is in a comfortable orbit but we’re right out in the open. Navigation and Weapons systems are down and link to the reality anchor back home as been cut.”

“Angie, Apollo, take a look around, figure out who to contact before someone get’s neighborly and knocks on our door.”

What happens when the Authority parks its shiftship in orbit above Marvel’s 616?

Characters

“Daemonites? Any of that kind of alien interference?”

“Lots of off-world tinkering from an array of powerful beings. Shit, they even have some kind of alien watching the world from the dark side of the moon. It ignored Apollo and Engineer when they tried to engage it. Engineer has a hologram of the thing for you, Jenny, thought you’d get a kick out of it.”

“A giant bald man in a toga watches this world from the moon? That is bloody creepy. Does it touch itself, wank off into a moon crater?”

“Don’t make jokes; I had to stop the Doctor from trying to tag the thing’s bald head with graffiti of a penis.”

Jenny Sparks

Affiliations

Solo D8, Buddy D6, Team D10

Distinctions

Spirit of the 20th Century, Been There and Done That, “Bugger this, I want a better world.”

Power Sets

Age of Electricity: ELECTRICAL SUPREMACY D12, LIGHTNING BOLTS D10, INTANGIBILITY D10, TELEPORT D8

SFX: Back Atcha. On a successful reaction against a lightning energy attack, convert your opponent’s effect die into an Age of Electricity stunt or step up an Age of Electricity  power by +1 for your next action. Spend 1 PP to use this stunt if your opponent’s action succeeds.

SFX: Electrocute the Lot.  Add a d6 and keep an additional effect die for each additional target.

SFX: Versatile.  Split Electrical Supremacy into 2D at -1 step or 3D at -2 steps.

SFX: Jolt.  If a pool includes an Age of Electricity power, you may replace two dice of equal size with one die +1 step larger.

LIMIT: Pass Out, Lights Out. If stressed out, passed out, asleep or unconscious shut down Power of the Century. If  Physical Trauma is taken shut down Power of the Century until trauma is recovered.

LIMIT: Scary. Both 1 and 2 on your dice count as opportunities when using an Age of Electricity power.

Specialties

Combat Expert, Cosmic Master, Covert Expert, Menace Master, Psych Master

Milestones

Boss-Lady

1 XP when you bark an order at a member of the team.

3 XP when you send different members of the team to different parts of the world on missions.

10 XP when your team changes the world through super heroics and violence or when you step down and ask someone else to be leader.

A Better World

1 XP when you discuss some aspect of the world that is a total mess.

3 XP when you inflict stress on some bastard because you are seeking social justice

10 XP when you either make the world a better place or fail to do so and seek to disband the Authority so that you can find another way .

“This Logan fellow is by all accounts  a bad-ass.”

“I could kill him.”

“I know, dear.”

Midnighter

Affiliations

Solo D10, Buddy D8, Team D6

Distinctions

Night’s Bringer of War, Sardonic, Loves Apollo

Power Sets

Bendix Bio-Engineered Super Soldier: ENHANCED STRENGTH D8, ENHANCED STAMINA D8, SUPERHUMAN SENSES D10, SUPERHUMAN REFLEXES D10, ENHANCED DURABILITY D8

SFX: Deadly.  Add a d6 to your dice pool for an attack action and step back highest die in pool by –1. Step up Physical Stress inflicted by +1.

SFX: Fought this battle a million times. On a reaction against a Physical Stress attack action, inflict Physical Stress with your  effect die at no PP cost or spend a PP to step it up by +1.

SFX: Sees Your Enhancements. Split either Superhuman Senses or Superhuman Reflexes into 2D at -1 step or 3D at -2 steps.

LIMIT: War is Hell. Both 1 and 2 on your dice count as opportunities when using a Bendix Bio-Engineered Super Soldier power.

Specialties

Acrobatic Master, Combat Master, Covert Master, Crime Master, Menace Master, Psych Expert, Vehicle Expert

Milestones

Cowled Avenger

1 XP when you threaten an enemy with violence.

3 XP when you when you inflict Physical Stress on an enemy.

10 XP when you either inflict Trauma on an enemy, ending their threat or by sowing chaos and destruction create an asset so that one of your allies can win the day.

Hit the Soft Parts with your Hands and the Hard Parts with a Utensil

1 XP when you discuss how you would destroy someone or something.

3 XP when you destroy a building of some kind.

10 XP when you either destroy a building or kill everyone inside the building with your hands.

“Adorable that their World’s Finest Couple are called Iron Man and Captain America.”

Apollo

Affiliations

Solo D10, Buddy D8, Team D6

Distinctions

The Sun King, So Powerful it’s Scary, Loves Midnighter

Power Sets

Bendix Bio-Engineered Solar-Powered Super Man: SOLAR BLAST D12, GODLIKE DURABILITY D12, FLIGHT D12, SUPERHUMAN SENSES D10, SUPERHUMAN STAMINA D10, GODLIKE STRENGTH D12

SFX: Majestic Class Superhuman. Spend 1 PP to ignore Physical Stress or Physical Trauma unless caused out of direct sunlight.

SFX: Solar Flare. Step up or double any Bendix Bio-Engineered Solar-Powered Super Man Power Set for one action. If the action fails, add a die to doom pool equal to the normal rating of your power die.

SFX: Hand-to-Bastard Ratio. Add a D6 and keep an additional effect die for each additional target.

SFX: Flying Juggernaut. Split Flight D12  into 2D at -1 step or 3D at -2 steps.

LIMIT: Devastating.  Both 1 and 2 on your dice count as opportunities when using a Bendix Bio-Engineered Solar-Powered Super Man Power Set.

LIMIT: Solar Powered.  Once per Action Scene, the Watcher can demand a conflict against the Doom Pool, if you lose, you gain a complication against any use of your Bendix Bio-Engineered Solar-Powered Super Man Power Set.

Specialties

Combat Master, Covert Master, Crime Expert, Menace Expert,

Milestones

Center of the Solar System

1 XP when you talk to a member of the media about your exploits.

3 XP when you cause emotional stress during an interview.

10 XP when you when you either allow an embedded reporter to travel with the team or begin a media black-out, taking yourself out of the spotlight whenever possible.

One Man Army

1 XP when you engage an enemy with at least one D12 power among their power sets.

3 XP when you deal stress to an enemy with at least one D12 power among their power sets.

10 XP when you either acknowledge that you are the most powerful member of the team, the vanguard of all offensives or admit that you need back-up when you attack.

“Where’s the Engineer with the damned tech threat reports I asked for? I want to know where the orbital lasers are on this dump of an earth. We’re sitting ducks up here and its only a matter of time before someone knocks on the door.”

“She went down to the surface. Apparently, she wants to bed some guy named Forge before we announce ourselves.”

The Engineer a.k.a. Angela Spica

Affiliations

Solo D6, Buddy D10, Team D8

Distinctions

Genius Maker, Sense of  Wonder,  Scientist

Power Sets

Nine Pints of Liquid Machinery: WEAPONS D10, SUPERHUMAN DURABILITY D10, FLIGHT D10,  TELEPATHY D8, ENHANCED REFLEXES D8, SUPERHUMAN SENSES D10, ENHANCED STAMINA D8, ENHANCED STRENGTH D8,

SFX: Nano-Machinery. Add a D6 and step up your effect die by +1 when using any Nine Pints of Liquid Machinery power to create assets.

SFX: Every Tool is a Weapon if you Hold it Right. Split Weapons  into 2D at -1 step or 3D at -2 steps.

SFX: Liquid Metal. Use two or more Nine Pints of Liquid Machinery powers in a single dice pool at -1 step for each additional power.

LIMIT: Gear in my Blood. Shutdown Nine Pints of Liquid Machinery and gain 1 PP. Take an action vs. the Doom Pool to recover.

Specialties

Combat Expert, Medical Master, Psych Expert, Science Master, Tech Master, Vehicle Master

Milestones

Maker

1 XP when you explain the science behind what is occurring.

3 XP when you create an asset that helps the team with your Nine Pints of Liquid Machinery power set.

10 XP when you either make something with science and engineering to destroy an extinction level global threat or make something to fix the world and make it better.

Wonder

1 XP when you declare something you are seeing as wondrous.

3 XP when you help a teammate recover during a Transition Scene.

10 XP when you either create something to display your sense of wonder at what you have seen or become a jaded veteran of too many super human wars and lose the sense of wonder forever.

“They have their own doctor?”

“Well, he calls himself a Sorcerer Supreme. Heard about him in the Garden of Ancestral Memory. He’s a doctor but…not a Doctor.”

“Huh, what’s his story?”

“He’s a western surgeon magical super hero, all magical surgery and no preventative medicine.”

The Doctor a.k.a Jereon Thorndike

Affiliations

Solo D10, Buddy D6, Team D8

Distinctions

Feels Unworthy, Heroin Addict, Global Shaman

Power Sets

Chosen by the Garden of Ancestral Memory: TRANSMUTATION D12, SORCERY SUPREMANCY D12, SUPERHUMAN SENSES D10, MYSTIC RESISTANCE D12, TELEPORT D12, FLIGHT D8

SFX: Magic is Change. Spend 1 PP to ignore Physical stress or trauma caused by any mystical attacks.

SFX: Action and Reaction. On a successful reaction against a physical or energy attack action, convert your opponent’s effect die into a Chosen by the Garden of Ancestral  Memory stunt or step up a Chosen by the Garden of Ancestral Memory power by a D6 for your next action. Spend 1 PP to use this stunt if your opponent’s reaction succeeds.

SFX: Learned from his Ancestors. Split Sorcery Supremancy into 2D at -1 step or 3D at -2 steps.

LIMIT: Exhausted. Shutdown any Chosen by the Garden of Ancestral Memory power to gain 1 PP. Recover power by activating an opportunity or during a Transition Scene.

LIMIT: Under Pressure. During any Transition Scene, the Watcher can ask for a roll against the highest Doom Pool from the previous scene, trying to either inflict emotional stress on you or creating a complication for the next Action Scene.

Specialties

Cosmic Expert, Mystic Master

Milestones

Talk to the Lineage

1 XP when you discuss your problems with the former Doctors or talk to your teammates about the wisdom they have shared with you.

3 XP when you help a teammate deal with Emotional Stress by sharing your shamanic wisdom.

10 XP when you full accept your role as global shaman, replacing the Distinction, Feels Unworthy with something else or retire your role as Doctor off to the someone you declare as next in line or a predecessor.

Fame

1 XP when you leverage your role as Doctor or member of Authority to gain something petty and mundane.

3 XP when you take Emotional stress from a teammate because of the mess you make in the world.

10 XP when you either deal with your fame with grace and poise or become a media punching bag, putting a complication on the entire team for the next chapter’s conflicts with any public figure.

There are some sexy cities here, boss. Attilan, Kun L’un, more odd underground cities of mutants, monsters and robots beneath New York City than I can easily count. As usual, New York City thinks its the center of the god damned universe but here it seems even more pronounced than usual.”

Jack Hawksmoor

Affiliations

Solo D6, Buddy D8, Team D10

Distinctions

The God of Cities, Stuffed with 70th Century Tech, Womanizer

Power Sets

Urban Organism: URBAN BLASTS D10, SUPERHUMAN DURABILITY D10, URBAN MASTERY D10, TELEPORT D8, LEAPING D8, SUPERHUMAN REFLECTS D10, SUPERHUMAN SENSES D10, ENHANCED STAMINA D8, ENHANCED STRENGTH D8

SFX: When Cities Bleed. Add a die from the Doom Pool to one or more attack actions. Step up the Doom Pool die by +1 for each action; return it to the Doom Pool when you’re done.

SFX: Streetwise. If a pool includes an Urban Organism power, you may replace two dice of equal size with one die of +1 step or larger.

SFX: Multi-task. Use two or more Urban Organism powers in a single dice pool at -1 step for each additional power.

LIMIT: Cities Only. When you leave a city (the Carrier counts as a city) you must take any effects you cause on the scene, stepped down -1 as Emotional Stress.

Specialties

Acrobatic Master, Combat Expert, Covert Expert, Crime Master, Menace Expert

Milestones

Don’t make me do this.

1 XP when you seek a non-lethal option or point out the Authority’s over-exuberant blood-shed.

3 XP when you have to kill.

10 XP when you either decide you cannot kill again and leave the Authority or slaughter a defenseless enemy and confirm your role as a murderer of bastards.

City Folk

1 XP when you talk about a city as if it was a person.

3 XP when you take stress while defending a city or help with a clean-up effort during a Transition Scene.

10 XP when you either fend off an attacker who would have done damage to a city or do tremendous damage to a city in order to fend off a global threat.

“So, let me get this straight, humans are evolving into these mutants, who are meta-humans?”

“Yeah, they’ve located a gene, have even built this ingenious device to locate others of their kind because naturally, humanity being humanity, the mutants are hunted, hated and mistrusted.”

“Typical. Why haven’t the mutants taken over the world?”

“Uh-oh.”

“Is Shen thinking what I think she’s thinking?”

“No, we can’t take them all on the Carrier. That is a big mess waiting to happen. We can’t…we’re only guests here… right?”

Swift a.k.a. Shen Li-Min

Affiliations

Solo D6, Buddy D10, Team D8

Distinctions

Former Pacifist, Master Hunter, Fastest Winged Mammal

Power Sets

Wings and Talons: CLAWS D10, ENHANCED DURABILITY D8, FLIGHT D12, ENHANCED REFLEXES D8, SUPERHUMAN SENSES D10, ENHANCED STAMINA D8, ENHANCED STRENGTH D8

SFX: Aerial combatant. On a successful reaction against Physical Stress dealt by another flying opponent, inflict Physical Stress with your effect die at no PP cost or spend PP to step it up by ++1

SFX: Easy Prey. Add a D6 and step up your effect by +1 when inflicting Physical Stress against a grounded opponent.

SFX: Wing and Claw: Use two or more Wings and Talons powers in a single dice pool at -1 step for each additional power.

LIMIT: Awake to Fly. If stressed out, asleep or unconscious, shutdown Wings and Talons. Recover Wings and Talons when stress is recovered or you are awake. If Physical Trauma is taken, shutdown Wings and Talons until trauma is recovered.

Specialties

Acrobatic Master, Combat Expert, Covert Expert, Vehicle Master

Milestones

Read the Wind

1 XP when you talk about the glory of flight and the sky.

3 XP when you create an asset to help a teammate navigate through the air in an Action Scene or save an ally from falling.

10 XP when you either inflict trauma from the air to a villain with a D12 in one of their Power Sets or are dealt trauma while flying and must learn to love flight again.

Too Pragmatic for Pacifism

1 XP when you discuss a plan that does not involve killing.

3 XP when you kill an enemy who you have talked to in relatively civil tones in the past.

10 XP when you decide that killing is indeed the only way or decide that killing is wrong and leave the team.

“How are their meta-humans organized?”

“Not unlike how we had Stormwatch towards the end, really. For the global threats, they have different teams of Avengers for different kinds of threats. The X-teams are the mutant equivalent, also set up into teams based on mission type or creed. The links between the Avengers teams and the government is tenuous even though their leader is a military boy scout from the second world war. Here he is on the big screen.”

“Is there something about him that just makes you want to sully him a bit?”

“Is he a virgin?”

“It is going to be a race to sleep with him, isn’t it?”

Event Milestones

The Big Bads

“They’ve let some bad eggs flourish down there. Let’s kick some heads in and end some bad patterns I’m seeing.”

1 XP when you declare your intentions to do harm to one of Marvel’s biggest villains or heroes because of the harm they have done the world.

3 XP when you do harm to one of Marvel’s iconic villains (Magneto, Dr. Doom, Kingpin, Norman Osborne, Loki, Kang, etc.).

10 XP when you either publicly execute a villain or ask them to join the Authority.

Fall in Love

“She’s a gamma irradiated lawyer with can squat thrust over 80 tons. What is not to love?”

1 XP when you tell a hero or villain you are in love with them.

3 XP when you spend a Scene on a date with a hero or villain.

10 XP when you either marry the hero or villain or move on, leaving them behind as the Authority traverses the Bleed.

Fall in Lust

“He’s an egomaniacal king of Atlantis whose in unrequited love with some science hero’s wife and the body of an olympic swimmer. What’s not to lust?”

1 XP when you make over advances towards a hero or villain.

3 XP when you spend a Scene recovering from stress by being in bed with a hero or villain.

10 XP when you either decide that you love them and this is serious or casually toss them aside, letting them know that this relationship is nothing but physical.

Best Intentions

“Take me to your leader, wankers.”

1 XP when you assure someone that you have no intentions of causing a ruckus while visiting.

3 XP when you cause trauma to someone or capture someone and take them back to the ship.

10 XP when you either announce to the world that you plan to kick its teeth in or try to work with the populace to effect change on their own.

Endangered Species

“Their mutants are nearly extinct; I’m going to help them.”

1 XP when you talk to a mutant about how to solve their community’s problems.

3 XP when you use one of your specialties to create an asset for a mutant to use.

10 XP when you either decide to eradicate all enemies of mutant-kind or take the mutants on to the ship so they can find a better world than this.

Alphabet Soup

“The Hand, Hydra, A.I.M., the Hellfire Club, H.A.M.M.E.R., S.H.I.E.L.D., and the list goes on and on, all with different ideas about how to make the world heaven or hell.”

1 XP when you talk to a grunt in any of the above organizations.

3 XP when you talk to the leader of an organization and deal them mental or emotional stress from the conversation.

10 XP when you either decide that this organization needs to be decimated and declare war upon them or take control of the organization so that it is ruled by you.

Not So Secret War

“Burn it down. All of it.”

1 XP when you tell a major world power that they are being a shit in a public venue.

3 XP when you declare war on a major world power.

10 XP when you either declare the war a victory because your enemy is decimated or find a middle ground or declare the war lost and pull out

Welcome to the Authority

“She’s too amazing to leave in this back-water reality.”

1 XP when you mention to the team that someone in this reality is worth recruiting.

3 XP when you test that person to see what they are made of.

10 XP when you either ask them to join the Authority or find them lacking and let them know they blew their shot.

Hunger

“Something is coming to eat the Carrier’s engine.”

1 XP when you ask someone about Galactus or one of his Heralds.

3 XP when you deal stress to one of the Heralds of Galactus.

10 XP when you either deal trauma to Galactus, fending him off or get the ship moving and run from his hunger.

Unlockables

Spy, 10 XP

You have a spy on the inside of an organization or community (Kingpin’s mob, Sect of Mutants, Hellfire Club, The Hand, A.I.M., S.H.I.E.L.D., S.W.O.R.D., Hydra, The Avengers, The Hulks, The Inhumans, Nova Corps, Atlantis, Wakanda, Latveria, 50 State Initiative, Stark Corp., Roxxon) who will feed you information in return for something…

The Carrier

Distinctions

Powered by a Baby Universe, Abandonment Issues

Traits

Fifty Miles Long d10

Door, 10 XP

The Carrier’s teleportation system is now online and can take you anywhere on earth.

Navigation, 10 XP

The Carrier’s in-reality navigational system is now online. You can move the ship to anywhere in the Marvel Universe but it can’t cross into the Bleed yet.

Weapons, 10 XP

The Carrier’s weapons systems are now online. You can call on the Carrier during Action Scenes.

Once all 3 of the above unlockables have been bought by players, they may chip in so that they can unlock the following:

Carrier is a go, 40 XP

The Carrier is able to tack into the Bleed and leave this reality. You can go at any time.

Cool Places to Punch One Another

• Inhumans City [Mutagenic Gas Chamber, Super Powered Bystanders]
• Savage Land [Dinosaurs, Abandoned SHIELD Installations]
• New York City (particularly near the Flatiron Building where we always see Spider-man swinging around)[Beautiful Bystanders,]
• Genosha [Busted Sentinels]
• Xavier School for Gifted Children or Jean Grey School for Gifted Children [Mutant Bystanders, Danger Room]
• The Baxter Building [Unfinished Experiment, ]
• Right in front of the Watcher on the dark side of the Moon [Craters, ]
• Morlock Tunnels [Unstable Tunnels, Reeks of Death]
• Roxxon Oil Platform [Secret Super Villain, Pipes that Explode]
• Atlantis [Under Water, Thermal Vents]
• S.H.I.E.L.D. Heli-Carrier [Top Security, Villain Transfer]
• Wakanda [Unstable Vibranium, Panther Guard]
• Latverian Tech-Castle of Doom [Oppressed Bystanders, Latverian Artifacts]
• Asgard (especially the Rainbow Bridge) [Mythological Bystanders, Monsters, Epic Architecture]
• On an Avenger’s Quinjet [Inevitable Crash, Stark Tech]
• Negative Zone [Bug Monsters, Reed’s Gate]

Notes

Y’know, I’d be really tempted to start this game during the Breakout, just because it is the iconic Marvel Heroic Role Playing game start point. Honestly, I’d be tempted to start this game in the middle of any event or comic book. Toss the Authority at the MU in the middle of something big and ask them to take sides and punch someone hard.

The Authority are a hard lot to write milestones for because, particularly in their first few graphic novels, they don’t really have much in the way of moral quandaries. If you need a list of who to punch, here’s a good place to start.

If you play with these folks, please let me know how it goes.

This was mostly based off of the Warren Ellis stories but some Mark Millar’s stuff crept in.

The Authority: Relentless by Warren Ellis, Bryan Hitch, Paul Neary and Laura Depuy

The Authority: Change of Management by Warren Ellis, Bryan Hitch, Paul Neary, Laura Depuy, Mark Miller and Frank Quitely

Things to do in Action Scenes

• Stick your nose into a well worn Marvel conflict.
• Punch someone in need of punching.
• Depose a country’s ruler.
• Help a team take down a villain.
• Stop a natural or ecological disaster.

Things to do in Transition Scenes

• Wake up hungover in bed with any number of villains and/or heroes.
• Throw a party in the Carrier.
• Uncover secrets that change everything.
• Meet up with someone who holds a similar archetype as you and talk shop.
• Meet with leaders.
• Be interviewed by the media on television.
• Discuss this world with a teammate.

Addendum

Over at the MWP forum, Jim has some solid critique for my character builds that are well worth thinking about. I changed a few characters with his comments in mind but will keep the 1 and 2 adds to the Doom Pool for Apollo, Midnighter and Jenny until playtesting tells me differently. I really like the idea of those power-houses making a situation worse at times.