Marvel Heroic Role-Playing: A Tour of Marvel’s Golden, Silver, Modern and Heroic Ages w/ Superman, Batman & Wonder Woman

The last post, in which Golden Age Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman are statted out.

tl;dr Batman, Superman and/or Wonder Woman were stranded in Marvel’s 616 during World War II. The game sends the players careening through Marvel’s history, taking part in your favorite flashpoints.

Golden Age

“The world needs Captain America more than it needs Bucky.”

If you are Diana, you are flying Captain America and Bucky in to the Red Skull’s fortress where his rocket ship is hidden. Batman and Superman would likely be flying in a bomber alongside them.

Action Scene Ideas:

• Messerschmitts get on your six and start lighting you up, threatening to put you in the ocean, forcing you to have to swim to Norway.
• A horde of HYDRA goons in the way.
• Thor, god of Thunder, mind-controlled by the Spear of Destiny is guarding the Red Skull’s retreat into his rocket ship.

Does history repeat itself or does Bucky live and Captain America stay out of the iceberg?

P.S. I know it was really Baron Zemo but Red Skull is so much cooler.

Patriotism

“I’ve become a political liability and you, you’re a joke.”

1XP When you discuss what it means to be an American.
3XP When you do violence on behalf of the United States.
10XP When you either walk away from this mission with a patriot’s heart or create Distinction or Milestone about your troubled relationship with United States politics.

Mission or the Man?

“This Ryan better be worth it.”

1XP When you bark orders or follow orders.
3XP When you change the plan.
10XP When you either complete the mission and bring the Red Skull to justice or set that aside in order to save your friends.

Silver Age

The Night Gwen Stacy Died

You hear on the radio that some kid in a spruiced up luchadore mask and some jury-rigged “web” shooters is fighting with a madman dressed in a goblin suit while riding a jet sled over the Brooklyn Bridge. A young lady is involved.

Action Scene Ideas:

• This kid is an amateur. Can you get him out of the way so you can save the young lady?
• The Goblin is tossing grenades.
• Is this all a smokescreen for the Rhino to knock an armored truck off of the bridge into the water below and rob it? Maybe.
• Cars careening out of control. Cops pulling guns on anyone who looks the least bit super-heroic. These are the early days of New York City’s super-hero tradition, before Iron Man flying by your office window was a kinda cool tweet.
• Again, does history play out and if so, does Parker kill the Green Goblin or do you?

Parker’s Mentor

“Don’t loan anyone named Mockingbird or Wolverine money.”

1XP When you tell Spider-man or Gwen Stacy what to do.
3XP When you ask Parker or Gwen Stacy for advice.
10XP When you either take Spider-man or Gwen Stacy as your sidekick or give them a stern talking-to about future super-heroic dalliances and walk away.

The Osborn Solution

“In this world there is right and there is wrong and that distinction is not difficult to make.”

1XP When you threaten Osborn.
3XP When you try to help Osborn.
10XP When you either kill him once and for all or bring him to justice, hoping that his money doesn’t just buy him out of his criminal acts.

Modern Age

The Mutant Massacre

A young Morlock girl whose power is the ability to turn paper-thin runs up to you in (at your home?) and begs for help as the Marauders are hunting her for sport.

Action Scene Ideas:

• Hunting Marauders in the tunnels.
• Batman vs. Sabretooth or Wonder Woman vs. Sabretooth
• Thor’s back…he seems to be a good guy…do you trust him or are you still holding a WWII grudge? Sure, a good old fashioned misunderstanding super-hero fight.
• Showdown with Apocalypse as he uses the slaughter to gather his 4 Horsemen.
• Confrontation with Mr. Sinister…

Mutant-friend

“Magneto was right.”

1XP When you ask mutants about their points of view, history or struggles.
3XP When you offer your skills to aid the mutant community.
10XP When you either go before the U.N. and speak on behalf of mutant-kind or walk away from the X-Men and all of their struggles, leaving mutant problems to the mutants.

Marauder Hunter

“We’re the best at what we do…”

1XP When you plan an attack against the Marauders.
3XP When you deal damage to a Marauder.
10XP When you either track the Marauders down to the person who put them into action or stop them all from ever being able to murder again.

Heroic Age

Civil War

Start with the Congressional hearings, having the Trinity choose sides and then launch into either hunting down non-compliant heroes or going on the run.

I don’t feel like I need to list cool ideas for action scenes because the supplements will be chock full-o-ideas. I love the idea of Batman, Superman and Wonder Woman tipping the scales. And Clor gives them another excuse to beat up a quasi-Thunder God.

Structure

Action Scenes and Transition Scenes

Between each Age, I’ll ask the players how their characters are showing their years. If they are getting old, how are they able to continue? Or is this age the birth of someone new taking the mantle with appropriate changes to the character sheet. That said, I’m happy with the players giving answers that amount to Kingdom Come cosmetic changes that are not reflected on the character sheet or Batman taking Fury’s Infinity Serum or Superman handing the Big Red S to Hyperion or Wonder Woman handing the golden lasso to Carol Danvers or Batman taking Rick Jones as Robin.

Do they become more and more like their Silver and Modern age equivalents or do they stay as they were when they arrived during WWII?

I’d set it up like Mouseguard’s Players’ Turn and GM’s Turn. In the Action Scenes I set up in media res action scenes like the first pages of a comic book. The Transition Scenes being those bits in-between be it fun social interactions, building something, training someone, seeking solace or healing or good ole fashioned investigation. If they had no ideas, just set them up with a conversation in very mundane circumstances with a cool super-hero.

Low-Key Transition Scene Ideas:

• Bruce Wayne and Matt Murdock talking law.
• Bruce Wayne and Marc Spector talking about mental health.
• Clark Kent  and Ben Ulrich talking about journalism.
• Diana Prince and Ororo Munroe talking about leadership.
• Superman asking Reed Richards for help finding Krypton or discussing if there even is such a planet in this reality.
• Wonder Woman out drinking with Hercules.
• Batman trying to mentor the Punisher.
• Batman out on a date with Black Cat.
• Being wooed by Namor.
• Talking to Dr. Doom or Dr. Strange about returning to their own reality.
• Dinner at the Avengers Mansion.
• Helping with training exercises in the Danger Room.

Essentially, Action Scenes are exciting set pieces with interesting outcomes based on player choice and success. An Action Scene might grow organically from a Transition Scene and if so, Praise be to Clor! Some Transition Scenes might grow from the Action Scenes, with Batman researching Norman Osborn’s business dealings with Roxxon or Superman scanning the Morlock tunnels for survivors or Wonder Woman training Morlocks to defend themselves.

Milestones

The Authority and Marvel milestones might be relevant at different times.

I <3 Batman

“…and I’m a rich kid with issues, lots of issues.”

1XP When you show affection to the Caped Crusader during an Action Scene.
3XP When you save his ass from serious trouble.
10XP When you either marry him, mask and all or break it off forever, after telling him that he is effing crazy.

I <3 Bruce

“This would be a good life, good enough.”

1XP When you show affection for Bruce, the man behind the mask or downplay Batman.
3XP When you talk about Batman as a sign of serious psychosis.
10XP When you either get Bruce to quite the cape and cowl or accept the Bat as an integral part of Bruce’s life.

Oh, Diana.

“You’re a princess from a society of immortal warriors… “

1XP When you help Diana get in touch with her Amazon roots or do something romantic with her in a place that has mythical significance.
3XP When you get into an argument with Diana about gender and patriarchy or mansplain.
10XP When you either pledge your undying love to Diana or do something shitty and passive-aggressive that you know will force her to dump you (and it does).

Oh, Kal

“You’ve got me. Whose got you?”

1XP When you help Superman get in touch with his Kryptonian heritage or spend a Transition Scene doing something romantic with him.
3XP When you cause Superman mental stress, letting him know that he isn’t responsible for saving everyone.
10XP When you either move in to his Fortress of Solitude and get serious about making a family together or declare his messiah complex bullshit unbearable and move on.

Oh, Clark

“Hey there, Smallville…”

1XP When you show affection for Clark Kent.
3XP When you point out how Clark is being hopelessly naive.
10XP When you either marry Clark Kent or end the relationship because he is too much of a boy scout or you believe he is better than you deserve. If you break it off, choose on and tell him.

Trinity Triangle

“Dating within the team always leads to disaster.”

1XP When you do something petty and jealous.
3XP When you help the other two get together.
10XP When you either step away from any romantic entanglements within the Trinity or find a way to make the relationship with all 3 together work.

Thomas and Martha

“How, father? How do I do it?”

1XP When you talk about memories of your parents.
3XP When you talk about the night they died.
10XP When you either find peace and put your grief to rest or have the injustice of your pain rubbed as raw as the day it occurred.

Last Kryptonian

“My son, you do not remember me. I am Jor-El.”

1XP When you talk about your Kryptonian heritage.
3XP When you talk about something you learned in Smallville or Metropolis.
10XP When you either try to being back the philosophies of Krypton through your own traditions and lifestyle or find peace with your Kryptonian heritage and your adopted home.

Themisciryan

“…in a world torn by the wars and hatred of men…”

1XP When you discuss an injustice of the Man’s World.
3XP When you discuss something you enjoy that was not available at home.
10XP When you either return to Themiscrya never intending to return or find peace in your role as diplomat on behalf of your mother and sisters and teach your sisters here.

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Marvel NOW! #1′s: A few short reviews

My main problem with the creative shuffling going on at Marvel is that there are too many books that I am interested in adding to my pull list.

I get my comics once a month, so forgive me if my reviews will be a bit behind.

All-New X-Men #1 by Brian Michael Bendis and Stuart Immonem

My only criticism of Bendis’ writing is that it often feels like he writes to the graphic novel, sometimes leaving single issues that feel a bit thin. By the time I picked this issue up, I knew the premise of the comic. The first issue pretty much shows how that premise comes to be. That said, I’m in.

I really like the concept, of our present time being a dark future that the X-Men always feared and the original 5 X-Men, all fresh-faced, naive and young, come to the present to deal with the state of mutant-kind. The modern-day Cyclops has become the most interesting kind of villain, in the tradition of Magneto, the kind who thinks they are right and have a damned good point. This is the first time I have been excited by an X-Men comic in my adult life.

The art by Immonen is amazing, the best looking book of the Marvel NOW! lot so far.

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Uncanny Avengers #1 by Rick Remender and John Cassaday

In a way, Uncanny Avengers is the flag ship of the post-AvX, Marvel NOW! world, a world in which the Avengers and X-books will blend a bit more. We get Wolverine’s funeral speech and Havok visiting his brother in jail, some tension brewing between Rogue and the Scarlet Witch and the introduction to the main villain – a clone of the Red Skull that has been in cryo-freeze since WWII.

Based on Remender’s splendid run on Uncanny X-Force and Cassaday’s stellar art I’m buying in to this madness and imagine that it will be good fun.

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Captain America #1 by Rick Remender and John Romita Jr.

I wasn’t going to buy this one but made an impulse buy at the comic book store and this was in that impulsive pile along with Iron Man #1, reviewed below. I like Remender’s take on Cap, he talks a bit like your grandpa and somehow I got a glimpse of conservative politics that I might be making up but I don’t think so. Rather than seeing flashbacks to WWII, we are getting flashbacks to Cap’s childhood growing up in the Great Depression with a tough mom and an alcoholic abusive dad. The book needs some kind of grounding flashbacks, not just to give us a new glimpse into Steve Rogers but because the first issue sends Cap to another dimension ruled by Arnim Zola.

I liked this book and think it will be good fun but I’m buying too many comic books as it is, so this one has to go. If I hear good things maybe I will pick up a trade paperback or keep my eye open for a sale on at Comixology if I should become the owner of a tablet.

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Iron Man #1 by Kieron Gillen and Greg Land

I’ve never been a big Iron Man fan but I tend to follow creative teams, mostly writers, rather than a particular hero or team. That said, I have always liked AIM and loved the movies. I just couldn’t get into this one. The plot didn’t do much for me and Land’s art makes everyone look like underwear models (even more than they usually do in comic books). It was the only book of the lot where I put it down and did not care what happened next week.

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Thor: God of Thunder #1 by Jason Aaron and Esda Ribic

This comic is showing three different Thor’s in three different eras. We’ve got the current Thor, a young pre-mjolnir viking Thor and a grizzled King Thor with one arm, sitting on the throne of a deserted Asgard. The art is luscious and the premise, Thor coming across a faraway planet with a dead pantheon, killed by a serial killer who murders deities is Thor at his best, cosmic and a touch gonzo. That said, it felt like they put an unnamed Native American deity into a fridge on the first issue, a victim of the God-Butcher. That bugged the hell out of me. If future issues don’t somehow make this right, I’ll likely be putting it down.

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Fantastic Four #1 by Matt Fraction and Mark Bagley

A father wants to teach his children about the world around them, so he is bringing them all on a road trip. Only, this family is the Fantastic Four, so the road trip is a cosmic romp through the galaxy and the father’s cosmic radiation-granted super-powers are unstable and he needs to find a cure.  I loved Hickman’s run on the Fantastic Four, so I am really excited to see where Fraction takes the book, as I am a fan of Hawkeye.

Fantastic Four is a book that I always want to be great but only rarely satisfies me. I’m strapped in, hoping this run does the trick.

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tl;dr: I’m adding All-New X-Men, Thor: God of Thunder, Fantastic Four and Uncanny Avengers to my pull list but not Captain America or Iron Man.

If you have any thoughts about this comics, please let me know.

Next Issue: I’ll look at FF#1 and Indestructible Hulk #1. I won’t be reviewing each issue but will go back and look at the titles that hold my interest’s first arcs.

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Marvel Heroic Role-Playing: “NPR is giving Ohio to Tony Stark but Florida is Rogers all the way.”

In the Ultimates, Captain America was just elected president. President Bruce Banner, Vice-President Jennifer Walters and Press Secretary Peter Parker all interest me.

 

Executive-in-Chief

“I have saved you all, now I am honored to be elected to serve you all.”

1XP When you give a presidential order.
3XP When you seek out political counsel during a Transition Scene.
10XP When you either step down as president or announce that you are running for another term.

Veep

“I am behind our POTUS, 100%.”

1XP When you support the POTUS.
3XP When you disagree with the POTUS.
10XP When you either step up and take over as the POTUS or leave the life of politics.

Cabinet Member

“Mr. President, you cannot lift the sanctions against Latveria.”

1XP When you counsel the President.
3XP When you use your cabinet position for your own gain.
10XP When you either step down from your cabinet position or announce that you are running for a more prominent elected position.

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Interviews on Thor: God of Thunder, The Indestructible Hulk and All-New X-Men.

Newsarama published 3 interviews about the upcoming Marvel NOW! books, Thor: God of Thunder, The Indestructible Hulk and All-New X-Men. Here are the quotes that grabbed me and some thoughts.

Thor: God of Thunder

Stringing all three of these stories is one new villain, basically a serial killer of gods,” Aaron says of new antagonist, Gorr the God Butcher.

The series, as noted previously, features Thor from three different eras: Viking-era Thor, current Thor, and “old King Thor.

The story introduces a lot of new “space gods,” Aaron discloses.

In battle, King Thor replaces his missing arm with the arm of a Destroyer.

I like it when Thor goes strange and cosmic.

The Indestructible Hulk

“As it was with Daredevil, part of the edict was, ‘let’s make sure we strengthen Hulk’s ties to the Marvel Universe in general,’” Waid says. Accomplishing that involves Hulk facing off against familiar villains he’s not known for interacting with, and taking him to new (to Hulk) locales. The best way to accomplish this, Waid says, is to make Hulk an agent of S.H.I.E.L.D.

“Bruce Banner’s biggest takeaway of Avengers vs. X-Men is, he never gets to be the science hero,” Waid says. “He’s the guy who smashes stuff. In the context of the Marvel Universe, Banner spends almost all of his time in a lab trying to make himself not the Hulk anymore. He realizes, after the events of Avengers vs. X-Men, two things: Hulk is a chronic condition. Hence ‘Indestructible Hulk.’ No matter how hard he tries, he can’t seem to get rid of the Hulk permanently.”

Next question, from iFanboy: “What kind of leash does S.H.I.E.L.D. have on this guy?” “S.H.I.E.L.D. has what they believe is a fairly tight leash on the Hulk,” Waid says. “They are mistaken.”

There was a while in David’s run when I was a kid where Hulk and Banner were pretty integrated but Doc Sampson made it clear that he wasn’t thinking like a scientist but like a Hulk, smashing his way out of problems.

All-New X-Men

I like where Bendis took the Avengers. I’m curious to see what he does with the X-Men and his concept, with the original 5 X-Men coming forward in time to see what has become of the world is damned interesting.

“Sometimes I get a reputation for torturing characters, but it is because I love the characters so much, that I want to put them in the most interesting situations to see where the heroism lies,” Bendis says.

Reminds me of Mouse Guard and Burning Wheel.

Every scene with Jean Grey in it has been just the best. I literally have to stop myself and move onto other characters. Young Jean Grey, in this situation, is everything I love about comics.”

What I like about a young Jean Grey, is he can take this whole cycle of women not being able to handle power that has been present forever and turn it on its head through this character.

Next press question, from us: Any lower-rung X-Men characters you’re looking to develop? And what villains might we see? “Yes and yes,” Bendis says. “There will be quite a lot of question as to ‘Who is a villain?’ Some people will see modern-day Cyclops and his associates as the villains, and some will see them as the heroes. I’ll be showing it to you from all angles, and let the reader decide.”

I like how he’s turned Cyclops into the most interesting kind of villain, the kind who truly believes that he’s a hero.

Next question, from iFanboy: What generation do the original five come from, given the sliding scale of Marvel time? Bendis says “specificity of this would be the death of this book. It’s not Back to the Future, it’s not Austin Powers. I’m very specific on where they’re coming from, after that, it’s just a general idea that you’re 16-year-old, and you’re looking at yourself at however old Cyclops is now, and acting accordingly.”

It is a fun time to be a Marvel fan.

I have a blog post coming on using Previews and monthly comic book solicitations to jump-start a Marvel Heroic campaign.

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Marvel Heroic Role-Playing: Shipping as a campaign starter.

Shipping:  A term used to describe fan fictions that take previously created characters and put them as a pair. It usually refers to romantic relationships, but it can refer platonic ones as well. (Just think of “shipping” as short for “relationSHIP”.)

So, you’ve got the Marvel RPG and you and your buddies want to get playing. Problem is, no one wants to play a pre-made iconic character out of the box but, you’d like to get started fast and furious.

So, you ship any two characters, declare them as having had a child or created a being through a relationship and off you go. You base the character’s stats off of things on the two parents’ character sheets and run with it.

For an example, I am going to ship Iron Man and Captain America.

Watcher: Pick two characters, say they had a child, or created a child or made a being together and that will be the group.

Me: I want to ship Iron Man and Captain America. They realize their feelings for one another and have a child together.

Someone: How do they do that? They’re both men!

Me: They go to Reed Richards who combines their DNA and hooks them up with a brilliant, bad-ass little girl.

Other Idea Person: I want to play the child of Storm and Black Panther and the god-father is Thor.

Someone: But in the comic they broke up.

Other Idea Person: I don’t care.

Watcher: Sounds good, let’s track down those two characters and take a look at Thor too just in case there’s something there we want to grab.

And Another Idea Person: What if Dr. Strange and Nightmare had an epic battle and in the summoning and sorcery and such this Dream-child was created in some other dimension to bring about the downfall of the Sorcerer Supreme. Now that the fight is over and Nightmare was defeated, Strange brought the child to earth.

Watcher: That is wild, we’ll look at Dr. Strange and brainstorm some Power Sets for Nightmare. It’ll be work.

Imaginary Bret: I want to play Johnny Blaze’s son, someone he didn’t know he had, conceived when he was jumping over buses at state fairs in the 70′s.

Watcher: It is close enough to the campaign concept that I’m cool with it.

Other combos that come to mind: Cloak and Dagger, Sue and Namor, Hercules and Wolverine, She-Hulk and Juggernaut, Hulk and Red She-Hulk, Johnny Storm and any alien in the Marvel Universe, Cyclops and Emma Frost, Wolverine and Jean Grey, Thor and Sif, etc.

Name? I have no idea what to call her? Which name does she take? Jean Rogers-Stark? Iron Citizen? Iron Lady? Patriotech? Thoughts appreciated in comments.

Affiliations

Solo D8
Buddy D10
Team D6

Distinctions

Socially Liberal Republican

Most Famous Young Lady in the World

#3? I’m at a loss for a third distinction, so I wonder if we could let this occur in play, writing it down after the first session when the character get’s some life breathed into her. Thoughts?

Power Sets

Super Soldier Serum in her DNA (See Super-Soldier Program, CW 164)

Stark Nanotech in her Blood (See Extremis Enhancile, CW 188)

Specialties

Note: I just cherry-picked from her fathers’ Specialties and gave her areas where she had surpassed dad or had learned from one of them.

• Acrobatics Expert D8
• Combat Master D10
• Business Expert D8
• Tech Expert D8
• Science Master D10
• Vehicle Expert D8

Milestones

Out from Your Fathers’ Shadows

Note: I almost made this a Distinction but I like it as a milestone better, as it allows her to actually emerge from her fathers’ shadows and become her own adult person.

1XP When you answer questions about your famous fathers or bring them up.
3XP When you rebel against either of your fathers.
10XP When you either find your own heroic identity and declare yourself out from your father’s shadows or get out from your fathers’ shadows by becoming a super-villain.

Born Leader?

Note: Altered version of Cap’s Milestone on page CW164.

1XP When you give an order to an ally.
3XP When you take advice from an ally or utilize an ally-created asset to stress out a villain.
10XP When you either take the lead of your own super-team or follow the lead of an ally.

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Batman Begins, Dark Knight, The Dark Knight Rises, a trilogy review

Yes, spoilers.

Seriously.

I watched the trilogy, all in one sitting and watched this third installment right at midnight.

For comic book geeks, it was a hectic mix of Knightfall, No Man’s Land with pinches of Dark Knight Returns here and there (specifically the one scene with the older cop and the younger cop, “You’ve never seen Batman? Slow down, kid, yer in for a show.”).

Watching the trilogy left me wondering a few things:

Gotham City

Gotham is a character in any Batman fiction and in the first of the trilogy we see the rail system, built by the Waynes and the Narrows, a rough part of town where Arkham Asylum is located. The rails are never seen again in the trilogy and the Narrows are never mentioned again. I would have liked a throwaway line about the rails having to be scrapped after the League of Shadows shenanigans of the first movie if the city suddenly does not have trains.

In Rises Catwoman could have been from the Narrows…something, some kind of a sense of continuity of Gotham as a consistent character, the city worth saving no matter what league of ninja, clown-faced psychopath or masked terrorist might attack it.

NOTE: A G+ buddy said that he could see the 3-tiered rail system in Rises, particularly in the IMAX version of the film. Nice!

Batman

Bruce Wayne/Batman does not have an original thought in his head. Almost all of his lines are quotes from other people, taken out of context and run through his cowled head so that it has to do with his quest for justice. Watch them again, when he does something inspired by someone else, he almost always quotes that person verbatim so the audience will remember where he got his idea.

Themes

All in all, where the first movie was saying, “Gotham is worth fighting for,” and the second movie said, “People will still do good even in the worst of situations,” the third seemed to say, “Poor people will rise up, bath in rich people’s blood and steal their shit if there are no police there to stop their psychopathic tendencies.”

Maybe it was just that Rises didn’t have a Ledger-caliber performance to off-set its philosophy 101 questions.

The WTF’s

Why do they bother with a fake Asian Ra’s al Ghul? Why does Dark Knight stop in its tracks so that Batman can grab a money launderer in China? Rises has too many WTF’s to narrow down to just one sentence.

Fighting

The only fights I really liked in the whole trilogy was when Liam Neeson’s character picked young Wayne’s fighting style apart and the Joker went bat-shit crazy on Batman at the end of Dark Knight. The rest of the fights felt unnecessarily frenetic. There was good stuff going on but I was missing it in the shaky-cam.

I wanted to see an older, wiser Batman pick Bane apart as Bats did the Mutant leader in Dark Knight Returns but I didn’t get a sense of why Batman won the fight at the end of Rises. He was hitting Bane’s mask but he was hauling off on Bane’s mask in the first fight too. I want fight scenes that are cool and say something about the characters fighting. And when Bane laid hands on a mofo, I wanted to feel it the way I did when Joker did the pencil trick. It wasn’t Hardy’s fault, I thought his physical presence was solid. It was the way Bane’s violence was shot.

The Ladies

Man, I don’t like the Rachel Dawes character. The ladies who played her were fine and I respect her decision to love Dent over Wayne but when she told Bruce that she liked Batman but didn’t like Bruce…man, that felt just mean. I’m glad that Selina Kyle could come along and let Bruce know that his brand of crazy was okay (even if it really isn’t).

What is good in Rises?

Anne Hathaway and Joseph Gordon-Levitt do great work as the Catwoman and a young Gotham cop.

Does it Rise?

No, sometimes, Bruce, when we fall down, it is because we made poor creative choices and did not have the editing skills to get back up again.

I thought all of the Nolan’s Batman movies were a big, glorious mess and didn’t expect anything different from this one. This one felt like a bigger mess than usual and that could’ve been okay but it didn’t quite hold together.

I liked this take on Bane and liked his link to the al Ghul family. I saw it coming but I enjoyed it all the same. This Bane had an intimidating physical presence and was a good choice after Ledger’s amazing Joker.

All in all, we’re left with what all three of these Batman movies leave us with, some fun action scenes and some half-assed thought on heroism. The action scenes were alright and the thoughts on heroism were just plain repugnant.

The Trilogy

We have a huge, sprawling mess that folks are going to insist is going to be impossible to top. The origin movie was a fun primer. The second film was a great Harvey Dent/Joker film and a mediocre at best Batman film. I’m a sucker for the first ten minutes that felt like something inspired by Heat.

And Rises takes the mess of the first two films and makes an even bigger mess.

It is not going to be long before someone launches another Batman franchise. Nolan did a better job than Burton and Schumaker but I think a better Batman series of movies can be made.

P.S. I’ll post re-boot thoughts in a future blog post but I think it would be cool to base the first movie on the first Detective Comics with Batman, even set it during the 40′s and tell the origin during the opening credits.

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Superman: The Movie, review

Re-watched the 1978 Superman film for the first time in years. A few things occurred to me.

The first ten minutes on Krypton are even better than I remembered. Brando earned his truckload of cash, really setting up the whole film. The music is as good as I remember too.

Superman Returns (a whole other can of worms) was a sequel to Superman I and II way more than I realized. After seeing super-capable Lex Luthor on the Justice League cartoons it was jarring to watch Kevin Spacey’s Luthor use Krypton technology for a real estate scheme but Gene Hackman’s goofy Luthor set that all up with his speech about real estate and his nuclear missile/San Andreas Fault real estate scheme in in this first movie.

Christopher Reeve is supernaturally good looking and he’s the only real looker in the movie. It really makes it seem like Superman is from another planet because he’s just so handsome.

The big conflict of the movie is the only thing Jor El tells his son not to do. “Do not meddle in human history.” Naturally, Lois Lane dies and Superman freaks out and disobeys his father but there aren’t really any consequences. I would have wanted General Zod and his posse to get free of the Phantom Zone directly because of Superman disobeying his father but that wasn’t how it shook out.

His father told him not to do one thing, Superman broke his father’s only rule and nothing at all happened. Other than Lex Luthor’s kryptonite necklace, the movie is without any real threat and his father’s warning turned out to be meaningless.

The score and the first ten minutes are solid super heroic movie-making and the rest was weak.

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Marvel Heroic Role-Playing: The Trinity from another world’s Golden Age

In the midst of WWII, a Crisis on 52 Worlds. Now they are stranded here on 616, an alternate reality embroiled in its own eerily similar second World War.

Batman a.k.a. Bruce Wayne

Bruce Wayne

Affiliations

Solo 1d6
Buddy 1d10
Team 1d8

Distinctions

Detective

Inspires Fear

Playboy Facade

Power Sets

Peak Human Conditioning and Training: REFLEXES D8, STAMINA D8, PERCEPTION D6, SENSES D8

SFX: Skills, Means and Method. Use any Peak Human Conditioning and Training Power Trait with any Utility Belt Power Trait in a single dice pool at -1 step for each additional power.

SFX: League of Assassins trained. Step up one Power Trait from Peak Human Conditioning and Training when you trying to stalk or kill your enemies.

SFX: Sherlock’s Student. Add a D6 and step up the effect die by +1 when you are creating an Asset that utilizes your Crime Master or Psychology Mastery.

SFX: Cowardly and Superstitious Lot. Step up the effect die by +1 when you are using Menace Master to cause Emotional Stress to your enemies.

SFX: To the Batcave. You can step up any Specialty to D12 for an entire Chapter if you spend a Transition Scene in a conflict with the next scene’s upcoming Doom Pool.

SFX: Lucky Amateur/Lucky Old Man. Spend 1PP to reroll when using any Peak Human Conditioning and Training power.

Limit. Flesh and Blood. If the opponent has DURABILITY at Superman D10 or higher, this Power Set can only be used to create assets to be used against the opponent or complications against the opponent unless you beat the Doom Pool in a conflict, showing how you prepared.

Utility Belt: WEAPONS D8, SWINGLINE D6, ENHANCED DURABILITY D8

SFX: Pistol. Step up or double any Weapons die for one action. If the action fails, add a die to the Doom Pool equal to the normal rating of your power die.

SFX: Gas Grenades. Step up the effect die when creating an asset or complication.

SFX: Prepared.

LIMIT: Gear. Shutdown Utility Belt and gain 1PP. Take an action vs. Doom Pool to recover.

Specialties

• Combat Master D10
• Covert Master D10
• Menace Master D10
• Psych Master D10
• Acrobatics Master D10
• Vehicle Master D10

Milestones

 Crime Alley’s Shadow
1XP When you talk about justice.
3XP When you inflict Mental or Physical stress on someone breaking the law.
10XP When you either take justice into your own hands and execute a villain or decide that killing is a line you will never cross, no matter the cost.

Batman Family
1XP When you talk to a bystander or ally about an injustice they have suffered.
3XP When you recruit an ally or bystander as a soldier in your war on crime..
10XP When you either adopt and train a new member of your family or use your resources to make sure that they can lead a happy life apart from your war.

No Powers
1XP When you talk about how one might bring down a super hero or villain.
3XP When you spend a transition scene studying a super hero or villain’s powers, habits and methods.
10XP When you either bring down a hero or villain with one D12 in their Power Sets or give a file you have compiled to someone else so they can bring the threat down.

Superman a.k.a Clark Kent a.k.a. Kal-El

Affiliations

Solo 1d10
Buddy 1d8
Team 1d6

Distinctions

Last Child of Krypton

Farm Boy from Kansas

Truth, Justice and the American Way

Power Sets

Kryptonian under a Yellow Sun: DURABILITY D10, LEAP D10, REFLEXES D10, SENSES D10, STAMINA D10, STRENGTH D10, EYEBEAMS D8 

SFX: Speeding Locomotive, Tall Buildings… Use two or more Kryptonian under a Yellow Sun powers in a single dice pool at -1 step for each additional power.

SFX: “Great Krypton!” Combine 2 D10′s from the Kryptonian under a Yellow Sun power set to get a D12.

SFX: Invulnerable. Spend 1PP to ignore stress, trauma or complications from mundane physical attacks.

Limit: Sorcerous Weakness: Complications created by Sorcery take +1 to their effect die.

Limit: Kryptonite: Stress from attacks using Kryptonite take +1 to their effect die and Kryptonian under a Yellow Sun cannot be used until an action is taken against the Doom Pool to recover.

Specialties

• Combat Master 1d10
• Vehicle Expert 1d10
• Cosmic Expert 1d10

Milestones

Lessons of Ma and Pa Kent
1XP When you simplify a morally complicated situation into right and wrong.
3XP When you
10XP When you either

Refugee
1XP When you talk about alienation, loneliness or Kryptonian super-science.
3XP When you use Cosmic Expert to create an asset.
10XP When you either disconnect from your earthly origins and take up your Kryptonian name or make peace with your heritage and dedicate your Fortress of Solitude to remembering your birth parents’ home.

Wonder Woman a.k.a. Diana, ambassador of Themyscria

Diana

Affiliations

Solo 1d10
Buddy 1d6
Team 1d8

Distinctions

Themiscyran Diplomat

Amazon Warrior

Feminist Icon

Power Sets

Hephaestus-forged Arsenal: WEAPONS D12, DURABILITY D10

SFX: Bracelets. Spend 1PP to ignore stress or trauma from any bullets, melee weapons or missile weapons.

SFX: Golden Lasso. Step up the effect die by +1 when inflicting mental stress after already inflicting the D8 or higher Complication, Tangled in the golden lasso.

SFX: Sword of Ares. 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.

LIMIT: Gear. Shutdown Hephaestus-forged Arsenal and gain 1PP. Take an action vs. Doom Pool to recover.

Invisible Jet: FLIGHT D12, DURABILITY D10, INVISIBILITY D10

SFX: Sentient Plane. If Wonder Woman is stressed out, spend 1 PP and the Invisible Jet can enter into a conflict with the Doom Pool in order to remove her from the scene.

Limit: Off to Hephaestus for repairs. Gain 1 PP when the Invisible Jet is out of a scene.

Amazonian Warrior Princess: DURABILITY D10,  REFLEXES D10, STAMINA D10, STRENGTH D10, SPEED D8

SFX: Counterattack. On a reaction against physical combat, inflict physical stress with your effect die at no PP cost or spend a PP to step it up by +1.

SFX: Second Wind. Before you make an action including Amazonian Warrior Princess power, you may move your Physical Stress die to the doom pool and step up the Amazonian Warrior Princess power by +1 for this action.

Limit: Conscious Activation. If stressed out, or unconscious, shut down Amazonian Warrior Princess. Recover Amazonian Warrior Princess when stress is recovered or you awake. If Physical trauma is taken, shut down Amazonian Warrior Princess until trauma is recovered.

Specialties

• Combat Master D10
• Acrobatics Expert D8
• Psych Expert D8
• Vehicle Master D10
• Mystic Expert D8

Milestones

Diplomat
1XP When you discuss peace with warring parties.
3XP When you inflict Physical stress on an enemy in an attempt to force a cessation of the conflict.
10XP When you either broker peace between two warring nations or choose a side and arm yourself for war.

Gather the Furies…
1XP When you talk to a woman about her power.
3XP When you inflict stress on someone who is oppressing another based on their gender, race, class or religion.
10XP When you either gather an army of super heroic women with you as their general or train super heroic women so they can be their lead their own armies.

I’m blending inspirations from a bunch of different eras and comics for the Trinity.

If I was going to play this, I’d start in WWII and let the group age through the Silver Age, having adventures in the founding moments of Marvel’s greatest heroes and villains into the Modern Era of the Marvel Universe where I’d probably rock out with an event.

Fun What If? Things to Think About:

• Are there Amazons in the Marvel Universe and if so, how do they react to Diana?
• Are Bruce’s parents alive here?
• Does Arkham Asylum exist here?
• Does Krypton exist and was it saved from destruction from the Nova Corps?

I’d want familiar details, Lex Luthor as a struggling executive at Roxxon Oil, a struggling comic hired to poison a water treatment facility outside of New York City, Harvey Dent running for D.A.,  a WWII fighter ace named Steve Trevor.

Other blog posts to consider:

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

Places to Brawl in the Golden Age (WWII – Fantastic Four’s Voyage)

• Pick a WWII battle
• Red Skull’s fortress in Norway alongside Captain America and Bucky. [Rocket Ship, HYDRA goons]
• The Nazi Submarine Siege of Atlantis [Nazi Underwater Robots, Undersea monsters]
• The Nazi Siege of Wakanda [Unstable Vibranium, Wakandan Freedom Fighters]
• The Nazi Occupation of Latveria [Fleeing Refugees]
• Isolationist Inhumans’ City [apathetic mutants, decadent mutants]

Places to Brawl in the Silver Age (Fantastic Four vs. Mole Man – X-Men vs. Krakoa)

• The under-construction Baxter Building [Iron Beams, Super Science Widgets]
• The Gamma Radiation Testing Site in Arizona [Radiation, Green Rage Monster?]
• The Brooklyn Bridge when Spider-man and Green Goblin were battling over the falling Gwen Stacy [kid in a mask, crazy guy on a rocket sled, bystanders]

Places to Brawl in the Modern Age (X-Men vs. Krakoa – Break-Out)

• 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]

If you have any critique or questions, please let me know in the comments and if you play using these folks and/or situation, please let me know.

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Marvel Team-up Draft: Namor the Sub-Mariner

Please click on this link to vote (for me!) in the first heat.

Michael Miller rocked out with another draft over on G+, this one with some funky rules and a fun concept. We each pitched a team-up book, drafting our main character, each team-up character and the villains.

Here’s mine:

Namor the Sub-Mariner and Medusa of the Inhumans versus the Sentinels
Namor announces a withdrawal from the surface world so that he can concentrate on his undersea kingdom. Some subjects think this is the beginning of a golden age for the seven seas, others believe he is only hoping to distance himself from Sue Richards.

Queen Medusa visits, setting up an embassy of water-breathing Inhumans who can withstand the great pressures of the undersea kingdom while strengthening the bonds between Atlantis and Attilan.

Meanwhile, an orbital platform of Sentinels mysteriously activates itself and taking in geo-political data, launches into the ocean, having decided that Namor is in fact the most powerful mutant threat on earth. The bulk of the sentinels attack Atlantis during a feast welcoming the Inhumans’ delegation while the others venture into the depths of the ocean for a more mysterious goal.

In a vicious battle, Medusa and Namor destroy the giant robots. The King of Atlantis scoffs when the Queen of the Inhumans suggests that the sentinel attack might be the start of more subtle troubles to come. The issue ends with the Sentinels making contact with a shadowy cabal of undersea rulers, tired of being ruled by a mutant half-breed.

Namor the Sub-Mariner and Black Panther versus Attuma
A Wakandan satellite’s orbit fails and falls into the ocean, causing tension between Wakanda and Atlantis concerning the recovery of the vibranium within. T’Challa and Namor meet at the site and have a good ole fashioned team-up brawl before Attuma shows up with his nomads, claiming the satellite. The Kings put their differences aside in order to stop Attuma.

The nomads are stopped by the Sub-Mariner and the Black Panther, all of the vibranium is recovered. The issue ends with Attuma handing over the satellite’s advanced Wakandan circuitry to the shadowy cabal from the first issue and then is torn apart by sentinels’ energy blasts, as he is a mutant.

Namor the Sub-Mariner and Dr. Doom versus Nimrod
The Latverian Embassy visits Atlantis to pay its respects and honor the undersea kingdoms. Namor holds council with the Inhuman embassy and his closest council, one of whom is a member of the shadowy cabal currently working with Sentinels to bring about Namor’s downfall.

Doom and Namor share a private meal, in which the arch-villain suggests the recent events are part of a larger conspiracy. When Doom suggests that Namor turns to his surface world allies for much needed help, Namor grows irate and leaves.

Meanwhile, a device made of pillaged parts of the Wakandan satellites is created by Sentinels, powered by a thermal vent, they download Nimrod from the future to lead their armies against Namor.

Namor the Sub-Mariner Team-up Annual
Hearing that Namor’s kingdoms are being ravaged by war, the Avengers, X-Men and Fantastic Four approach Namor, who sends them all away. “Leave the seven seas to us. See to your own surface world wars.”

Led by Nimrod, a sentinel from the future, undersea revolutionaries attack Namor’s military strongholds with Sentinel technology aiding them. Namor leads a valiant effort, aided by the many undersea mutants and Namor loyalists, including the Inhuman ambassadors.
In the final battle, Namor’s forces are fighting a losing effort and Namor finds himself locked in single combat with Nimrod. He is beating the robot from the future with his hands and just as he screams his battlecry,”Imperious Rex!” Nimrod fires a weapon, knocking Namor unconscious.

When he comes to, Namor find himself in a polluted sea. When he comes to the surface in Manhattan Bay, the Statue of Liberty has a Sentinel’s face and the horrible truth of Nimrod’s weapon is made clear. Namor has been teleported through time to a dark days of future past timeline.

Namor comes to the surface and is greeted by the Sue Richards of this timeline, a grizzled leader of what is left of the super hero world. “My daughter had calculated that you would arrive. Welcome, King of Atlantis.”

The last panel is Namor looking at this alternate timeline’s Sue, obviously still in love, if not even more in love with what this apocalyptic future has made her become.

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Comics Pitch: Batwoman and the Outsiders

Michael Miller started a DC Heroes draft, where we took turns picking DC heroes and villains and pitched a comic book series based on what we got in the draft. I tied with Alex for the win. It was good fun. Check it out.

Here’s my pitch:

Team Name: Batwoman and the Outsiders

Elevator Pitch: Two very different former Batgirls, Cassie Cain and Stephanie Brown, resign from Batman Incorporated in order to put together a team that can really go out into the world, kick down villain’s doors and get proactive about justice, led by the Bat they most look up to.

Plot Synopsis: The Outsiders are characters on the periphery of the DCU, without a firm place in any team or family. Cassie and Stephanie find a link between Intergang and Talia al Ghul’s sect of the League of Assassins and prod Batwoman into leading them, forming the Outsiders in order to take the fight to the villains. The Justice League defeated Darksied months ago, fending off a full on Apokolips invasion but Apokolips tech is all over the black market.

Together, this team of super heroes on the outskirts of the families that make up the DCU put their differences aside and make a family of their own, while punching villains in the face.

Character Issues:

Batwoman, Kane was kicked out of the army for being gay. In her own comic, she continues to be a soldier but in Batwoman and the Outsiders, she becomes a general.

Cassie Cain has spent her life being brainwashed and mind controlled by the League of Assassins. In this book, she is dealing with having full control of her actions and taking responsiblity for them, dealing with being a grown-up. She is a trained assassin in a cape and refuses to wear masks or cowls anymore.

Stephanie Brown is taking a year off from college in order to work for Batman Incorporated but when that wasn’t what she wanted, she partnered up with Cassie and sought out a team of super heroes who could do the job the way these young ladies thought it needed to be done. She is a naive sophomore with big ideas, hopes and dreams. This book will see the real world smash into them and how far she is willing to go to see those dreams become reality.

Big Barda is separated from Scot Free, leaving him when he admitted that he was feeling trapped in their relationship. She is a tough, older woman of the group who has been through the wringer and has hard won wisdom and the ability to punch through walls. Barda is a Granny Goodness trained super-soldier thug, trying to figure out what it means to be a good person on her own for the first time in her life.

Renee Montoya is a woman who get’s answers. Her issues will be the ones where she gathers information for the rest of the Outsiders to act on; they will be black and white with rare splashes of color to show the information she is gathering and the violence she does to get it.

In the New 52, Steel isn’t the former Justice Leaguer I wanted for the group but that is still fine. In this world he is a former government weapons expert who left a top secret government program. Now he is an AWOL secret agent with technological know-how, about to reinvent himself and become the American Dream, a captain of industry and a super hero. We will get to see him become the Steel who is inspired by Superman to put on a cape and wear the “S” but in he beginning of the series, he’s part walking tank, part Q.

One Cool Moment: The final pages of the first arc, After the Apokolips, has the Outsiders surrounding Talia al Ghul, where we find that she has been leading them to their targets, taking stock of them so that she can offer her own leadership, so they can be led by her against the League of Assassins and a growing threat, her own recently resurrected father.

Next issue, Talia al Ghul and the Outsiders, as Batwoman takes her leave and the real gist of the book becomes clear, the team seeking its own goals by choosing its leaders carefully.

DC, Bob Harras, call me.

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