Bedlam City

Bedlam City Basics is a free supers setting by Plain Brown Wrapper Games. This 47 page pdf contains everything you need to include a dark and dirty Iron Age city to your supers game. The pdf is system agnostic, though there is an expanded version I'll talk about below. So what is Bedlam City exactly?  If you want a comparison, it's the Gotham City to your Metropolis. In the pdf you'll find an overview of the city, as well as neighborhoods, important locations, government info, the media, organized crime, and a discussion of the few heroes tied to the city.  It's a cesspool of greed and corruption. The government is inefficient and crime has infiltrated all aspects of life. I used the pdf many years ago when I ran my FreedomOPS M&M 2e game. My players took a liking to the city, especially in contrast to the gleaming metropolis of Freedom City,

Bedlam City is a greatly expanded version of the setting. There is a Savage Worlds version and a Mutants and Masterminds 2e version. They are huge, clocking in at 535 and 555 pages respectively. You can't really ask for more material in a setting, but too be honest, its too much for me. I think Bedlam City Basics is in the sweet spot of setting information for a GM (minus stats), whereas this one contains too much detail. I know I said that Bedlam City is grimy dark ages 90's stuff, but it's ever darker when fleshed out. Miller's Sin City has nothing on Bedlam City. I have the Savage Worlds pdf, and while I have a lot of Savage Worlds stuff, I can't really gage how well the stats are written because it's just not one I grok with. While the pdf contains a lot of content I won't recommend it for one big reason. There is a note at the end of the item's description that says "[THIS PRODUCT CONTAINS AI-GENERATED ARTWORK. BECAUSE WE'RE POOR]." While I can relate to funds being tight, I still can't condone using AI artwork in books. If that's not an issue for you, that's fine, but I don't like supporting products that use it. I don't remember AI being mentioned in the original version I bought, it must have been added in the updated one.

If you want to add some grime to your supers game, I really recommend downloading Bedlam City Basics.

The Bucky, Jason Todd, and Uncle Ben Rule

While I know it isn't always true, almost nobody stays dead in comic books. I don't think this is necessarily a bad thing and it's just a convention of the media. I've previously shared a fun supers-inspired rule I found online for bringing back NPC's here. I decided to create one that could be used with players too. 

When a character dies if they wish, you can have the player roll a d100 and consult the list below. Each result was inspired by something that actually happened in comics. Some of these resurrections don't take place immediately, while others do. If the method doesn't work for your game, feel free to roll again or just pick the one you want. Most of these have plot hooks connected to them and have room to be fleshed out. Also if you have suggestions you think would be interesting, leave them in the comments and I can update this.

1-87- "He's dead, Jim."

86 - The killing blow wasn't actually as bad as it looked and the character is barely alive, but stable.

87 - The character's body is placed in a pool of rejuvenating liquid/ooze with the power to heal and bring back the dead. There are side effects. 

88 - A powerful cosmic force of creation and destruction bonds with the character bringing them back from death.

89 - An alternate universe version of the character appears to take his place.

90 - The deceased character is revealed to be an extremely sophisticated robot copy. Who created the robot? Where is the actual character?

91 -  The laser/death ray that killed the character actually just teleported them to another time or dimension.

92 - The dead character is a clone. Where is the real character? When were they replaced?

93 - Wait nope, the character is actually dead, but they have a clone that can take up their identity and mantle. 

94 -  The character is just almost dead and their body is taken, repaired with technology, and potentially brainwashed. 

95 - The character had been secretly replaced by an alien infiltrator. Could this be the beginning of some sort of clandestine infiltration?
96 - The character's lifeforce is transplanted into an advanced android body.
97 -  An older or younger (50/50 chance of either) appears to replace them.
98 - The character is brought back by a god, demon, or other entity. Did they have to sell their soul to do so or where they chose to be an avatar or perform a specific task? Do they appear as they did before or do they have a new form?

99 -  Right before the character died a time traveler teleported them to the future and replaced them with a deceased clone.
100 - A powerful individual who exists outside of this dimension punches the walls of reality, sending ripples throughout the universe changing things which resurrect the character.

Time Traveler's Codex Review

While at Super-Fly Comics & Games for Free Comic Book Day 2024 I picked up the Time Traveler's Codex for Mutants and Masterminds 3e. Like many M&M books this book provides both advice and rules on a subject, as well as relating the topic back to Earth-Prime (the home of Freedom City and Emerald City).

I really enjoyed this book and if you plan on including time travel at all in your game, I recommend this one. I'm also going to say I love that the book discusses eras and places outside of Europe and North America. 

Chapter One discusses including time travel in your campaign (big surprise I know). It also discusses the big ideas behind time travel and tropes associated with it. This is a nice section and even discusses several different types of time paradoxes. It all made me think of the scene in Avengers: End Game in which Bruce explains how time travel works. "So Back to the Future's a bunch of bullshit?" There is some crunch too. New time travel rules, including temporal navigation, temporal drift, temporal mishaps, and other rules related to temporal retcons. The chapter ends with a discussion about "Ugly History." If you want historical accuracy sometimes hard subjects are a part of that. The book gives some good advice to addressing these subjects and making sure your players' are comfortable.

Chapter Two discusses Time Traveling Heroes. It starts off with discussing how time travel will be used. Are you just having the occasional jaunt or going full Doctor Who? More character framework is presented. Suggested power levels and themes are given. The are quite a few character options. Skills are discussed in connection to different eras and cultures. Just because you are an expert in one time doesn't mean you are in another. Along with this are simple rules for tech familiarity. There are several new time travel based Advantages, including a new type: chronal. Three time based powers are given (with how they are built using other powers). The same is done with several pieces of time travel equipment and devices. Of course we get some heroic archetypes. They are:

• Hyperintelligent Dinosaur (PL 8) - this might be my favorite, it's a super smart raptor 
• Quantum Alien (PL 12) - basically the Doctor, they even have a quantum spanner, redundant organs, and rejuvenation
• Temporal Tourist (PL 10) - it's basically Booster Gold and even includes its own Enthusiastic Robot Buddy
• Time Warden (PL 10) - want to be a Timecop?
• Time-Lost Teenager (PL 8) - definite Bill and Ted (or even Marty McFly) vibes
• Warrior From a Grim Future (PL 10) - the art and name definitely shows its inspiration because this one is definitely Cable (or Bishop)

Chapter Three is for Gamemasters. It is a more detailed discussion of many of the things mentioned in Chapter One. We get several hazards that make time travel more dangerous (and interesting). Time Travel and Earth-Prime is given a few pages of discussion. Included in this is stats for counter-culture villain, the Tick-Tock Doc and his Groove Machine. This is followed by several time-travel villain archetypes. They are:

• Exterminator (PL 12) - Terminator-like robot sent to the past to ensure a certain future
• Future Perfectionist  (PL 14) - though this isn't Kang (we get that archetype later), there are elements of him in it, the Maker (the evil Ultimate version of Reed Richards) has elements of this, particularly in the recently recreated Ultimate Universe
• Immortal Conqueror (PL 13) - this one might be my favorite, it's a primitive looking woman in a business suit and is an obvious tribute to Vandal Savage.
  
• Living Gateway (PL 10) - this varied villain has the ability to travel through time to play around with things, it reminded me of the DCAU version of Chronos depicted in "The Once and Future Thing" episodes of Justice League. 
• Temporal Wizard (PL 13) - This magical time travel seems to be inspired by TMNT's Savanti Romero
• Time-Hopping Tyrant (PL 16) - this is our Kang, though he's also been presented in the Cosmic Handbook's Time Master villain archetype.

Chapter Three ends with ten new minions.

Chapter Four discusses different heroic comic eras. The Platinum, Atomic, Bronze, and Copper Ages of comics are given brief discussion  (three paragraphs each) before more popular ones are given a more thorough treatment. Each era discusses life during the time as well as rules considerations. This is followed by PL/theme suggestions and stat blocks. Included in two of these sections are classic comic book items with the serial numbers filed off.  Finally we get a look at one of the Earth-Prime's cities during this time.

• Golden Age
• Rules Considerations 
• Skills
• Advantages
• Gear - Alan Scott's ring, the Blue Beetle Scarab, Wonder Woman's Lasso of Truth
• Rationing Rules
• Statblocks - Fifth Columnist (PL3), Wonder Dog (PL 3)
• Golden Age Emerald City - we're presented with several villains and a heroic team, the Victory Squadron (13 stat blocks in total
• Silver Age
• Rules Considerations
• Skills
• Advantages
• Gear - Flash's cosmic treadmill, Green Arrow's gimmicked arrows, Captain America's Shield, Spider-Man's web-shooters, Daredevil's Billy Club
• Statblocks - Plucky Reporter (PL3), Rock & Roll Legend (PL2), Super Spy (PL5)
• Silver Age Freedom City - Set the Destroyer, the Atom Family, and the Freedom League are all discussed. (there are 11 new stat blocks, we're told to use stat blocks found in other books for some)
• Iron Age
• Rules Considerations
• Lethality
• Ability Strain
• Skills
• Advantages
• Realistic Powers
• Statblocks - Detective (PL5), Middle Manager (PL4), Sewer Mutant (PL6)
• Iron Age New York City - capes were illegal in Freedom City during this age and the only supers in Emerald City kept things quiet, so it makes sense they discuss another city, the primary focus is on the Lower East Side, a few villains are discussed: Riot Shield and Ghengis as well as a heroic female punk band, the Gorgons (Genghis and the Gorgons get statblocks)

Chapter Five discusses other eras of play. Like the previous chapter several eras are touched on briefly (only a paragraph this time). Then other eras are given multiple pages. While they don't get a whole subsection detailing an Earth-Prime city, there are sidebars that discuss these eras in that setting. It should be noted that the Legion of Super-Hero-inspired Freedom City 2525 isn't discussed because it's in the Cosmic Handbook.

• Jurassic Planet (Circa 175 Million BCE)
• Rules Considerations
• Skills/Advantages
• Equipment
• Statblocks - Compsoganathus (PL1), Early Hominid (PL3), Megaldon (PL11), Smilodon (PL7), Titanboa (PL9)
• Old Kingdom Egypt (Circa 2500 BCE)
• Rules Considerations
• Advantages
• Equipment
• Statblocks - Charioteer (PL4), Priest (PL1), Sphinx (PL8)
• Imperial Rome (Circa 100 CE)
• Rules Considerations
• Skills/Advantages
• Equipment
• Statblocks - Champion Gladiator (PL7), Legionary (PL5), Senator (PL3)
• Islamic Golden Age (Circa 900 CE)
• Rules Considerations
• Skills/Advantages
• Equipment
• Statblocks - Alchemist (PL3), Jinn (PL7) Royal Guard (PL6)
• Medieval Europe (Circa 1000 CE)
• Rules Considerations
• Advantages
• Equipment
• Statblocks - Jester (PL3), Sidhe (PL8),  Shining Knight (PL6)
  
• The Great Ming Empire (Circa 1410)
• Rules Considerations
• Skills/Advantage
• Equipment
• Statblocks - Scholar-Official (PL2), Warrior Monk (PL6), Long (PL12)
• The Triple Alliance (Circa 1500 CE)
  
• Rules Considerations
• Skills/Advantages
• Flaws
• Equipment
• Statblocks - Ahuizotl (PL9), Engineer (PL2), Jaguar Warrior (PL7)
• Golden Age of Sail (Circa 1715 CE)
• Rules Considerations
• Advantage/New Skill
• Equipment
• Statblocks - Buccaneer (PL4), Dread Pirate (PL6), Siren (PL4)
• The Wild West (Circa 1870 CE)
• Rules Considerations
• Advantages
• Equipment
• Statblocks - Hidebehind (PL7), Legendary Gunslinger (PL7), Smooth-Talking Huckster (PL2)
• Cyber Revolution (Circa 2060 CE) 
• Rules Considerations
• Advantages
• Equipment
• Statblocks - Cyber Ronin (PL7), Hacker (PL2), Information Broker (PL3)
• Post-Apocalyptic Earth
• Rules Considerations
• Power-Immunity - these abilities might cost more or be barred from character creation given the nature of the world
• Equipment
• Statblocks - Death Machine (PL10), Giant Roach (PL2), Mutant Survivor (PL5)

The book ends with a very thorough index. 

There's No Way ANYONE Could Have Survived THAT!

I originally came across this rule,  posted by Pól Rua, on the World of Supers RPGs Facebook group. He said its one he created several years ago while running a game of Mutants & Masterminds 2e, but has used it as a possible addition in every supers game he's ran since. 

I think its fantastic, gives players' agency, and fits with the genre. What are your thoughts?

Valiant Adventures Roleplaying Game Kickstarter

The Valiant Adventures Roleplaying Game is in it's final days on Kickstarter. If you aren't aware of this project it takes the Valiant comic book universe and converts it to Mutants and Masterminds (much like the previously released and now out of print DC Adventures Roleplaying Game). This will use the 3rd edition of M&M (again like DC Adventures), though I believe it's a bit more streamlined and updated (thought still fully compatible with previous 3e content).

The project as two books: Valiant Adventures Hero's Handbook and the Worlds of Valiant. The Hero's Handbook is everything you need to play. Worlds of Valiant is a larger sourcebook that will talk about the setting and give stats to the characters inhabiting it. There is also a Gamemaster's Kit, cards, and more. 

Mutants and Masterminds used to be my go-to supers game. I have some wonderful memories with it and one of my all time favorite campaigns I ran used the system. That being said it just seems so crunchy to me now. I'm personally on the fence about this one, but I'm glad to see the project is doing well.

If you want to check out the rules and setting, there is a free Quickstart that can be found here.

Campaign Elements - Brands, Franchises, and Other Businesses

I've been reading several new-to-me miniseries recently (such as The Craptacular B-Sides). Another one I really enjoyed was Deadline. It was a 2002 miniseries that focuses on a young reporter at the Daily Bugle that focused on capes (her derogatory name for heroes and villains), though she didn't like them. One of the fun parts about the series for me was that it showed the business and other side of a super powered world. For example she goes to the Bar With No Name, a hangout spot for criminals, to get info. She also visits a back alley doctor who's primary clientele is made up of villains, and a tattoo shop for capes who can do tattoos on even the most durable because the owner has a tattoo gun with an adamantium tipped needle. 

Maybe it's just me, but I think things like this really make a setting feel alive. I can think of other random products and foods available in series that I like. For example, Young Justice has a snack called Chicken Whizees that always sticks out to me when mentioned. A bag of them was even used to advance the plot in the latest season. I've had things like that in my own games that have stuck out. FreedomO.P.S., my long term Mutants and Masterminds 2e game I ran back in the day had a reoccurring franchise. Though the game was primarily set in Freedom City, there were a few sessions that took the team to Bedlam. The city had a group of Chuck E. Cheese style restaurants that served Gopher Shakes and Pizza Buckets (aka Pizza Napalm). For some reason, our Iron Man/Green Lantern mashup really took to it and started flying to the city just to snack. This (and Five Nights At Freddy's) served as inspiration for Galaxy Gopher's Pizzeria. 

Do you ever use things like this in your games, particularly modern ones? Do you think it makes things more grounded or is it empty setting info that no one needs?

#RPGaDay2022 Share An Intriguing Detail From A Game Setting You Enjoy

 

As I mentioned on Day 11, I'd love to live in Freedom City. It's just a great amalgamation of DC and Marvel comics. Instead of just one intriguing detail, I thought I'd direct y'all to this blog post by the creator, Steve Kenson, that reveals more than 30 homages included in the setting.

Also going to share this pic of me with Mr. Kenson at GenCon 2019, because I was so excited to meet him.

#RPGaDay2022 If You Could Live In A Game Setting, Where Would It Be?

 
If I could live in any game setting, I'd choose the Mutants & Masterminds setting, Earth Prime/Freedom City. Why because to quote Kirby Krackle, "I wanna live in a world full of heroes."

I could have picked the Marvel's 616 or the DCU, since they've both been settings for games, but I decided to go with Earth Prime, because it's the best of both worlds. And who knows, if I did live there, maybe I could get powers too.

Ninja-K for Mutants and Masterminds (Official Stats)

Someone recently posted this in the World of Supers RPG Facebook group. This advertisement for Mutants and Masterminds features official 3rd edition stats for Ninjak was featured in Shadow Man #3 (and I'm assuming other Valiant titles). This is a dope way to advertise the game and I love M&M partnering with comic publishers to do this. This means that their have now been official stats for DC (which had its own line of M&M 3e game rules books), George R.R. Martin's Wildcards (2nd setting book and adventure, plus 3e character stats), Marvel Comics (Incredible Hulk write-up in Games Trade Magazine for 1e, which can be found here), and now Valiant Comics.

There was an official Valiant Universe game. I haven't heard anything about it in a few years and I would take this as the official nail in the coffin that it's not making a comeback.

As far as the stats are concerned, Ninjak is created with a beastly 248 points, despite being PL 11. Most M&M player characters start at PL 10 and are made with 150 points. This makes sense in game though, because when you look at abilities, Ninjak is the Batman of Valiant Universe. I know the images aren't the easiest to read. I've hyperlinked them to larger versions hosted on my Google Drive.

 

Official Hulk Stats (M&M 1E)

Way back when, Game Trade Magazine had an issue that included official stats for different versions of the Hulk for various supers games of the time (M&M 1E, Silver Age Sentinels, and Champions). I've been looking for a long time now to find those stats. I finally found the Mutants & Masterminds version and am posting them here for anyone that's interested. 

Nothing To Fear!

Even though I don't really play Mutants and Masterminds anymore, I wanted to share their newest adventure. Nothing to Fear is a spooky adventure that's available for free! It looks fun. Also, don't forget they released a free Halloween adventure last  year, Monster Mash-Up!

Gen Con 2019 Recap

This isn't going to be super detailed and I'm sure I'll forget to mention things, but here's an overview of my Gen Con experience and some photos to accompany it.

Sadly this isn't all of the DCC/MCC swag I wanted to buy.

Wednesday

We left the day before the con started. Indianapolis is about 3.5-4 hours from home. I rode and stayed with some of my oldest friends, Wirty, Amanda, and Chris. We stayed at the JW Marriott, which was pricey, but also connected to the Indiana Convention Center. Tim Brannan was staying at the same hotel and I ran into him gaming with his family in the executive lounge. It was really cool because Tim is the reason I started blogging. That night we had reservations at an expensive, but delicious steak house, St. Elmo's.  I ordered the Dry Aged New York Strip and it was hands down the best steak I have ever had.

Thursday

I started my day out by playing Sparkle*Kitty. It was a lot of fun and I won two of the three games I played. It's kind of an advanced version of UNO, but it makes you say ridiculous word combinations out loud and would be a great party game. I also attended a Tabletop Gaymer panel, which was a lot of fun. I ran into my gaming muse, Dave, and he gave me a copy of the Buddy O'Burger issue of Crawling Under A Broken Moon. The last game I played that day was Mantic's The Walking Dead: All Out War. I'm not normally a fan of war games, but this was really good. The starter is reasonably cheap and I've thought about picking it up. I didn't spend much money in the exhibition hall, but I did pick up a set of DCC nunchucks for Matt Kelley and myself.

Friday 

Friday was rpg day! I started my day by playing my first game of QAGS. For Lucha Beach Patrol, I made a character named Silver Starfish. He was a honorable high flyer, and the de facto voice of reason for his group. After this I played in a session of of DCC Lankhmar with Thorin Thompson. Our session was No Small Crimes In Lankhmar (which is a part of the boxed set). It's a great adventure and was fun because our characters were shrunk down to the size of mice. Thorin was a great judge and I picked up his third party adventure, Sky ov Crimson Flame, after we finished. That night I also did an after hours game at the Embassy Suites. I am excited that I was in the first play group for Joshua Burnett and Leighton Connor's Leopard Women of Venus DCC. Josh ran the session and Leighton, Eric Bloat, and I ran through the 0-level funnel. It got late and we didn't get to finish the funnel, but it was fun. Seriously y'all, you definitely need to back this project when it goes live. I'll review the pre-Kickstarter preview Josh gave me later today. I also met Eric's lovely wife Jamie. She's a really sweet lady. Friday also ended in the best possible way. I finally got to meet Diogo Nogueira in person. Diogo and I have been online friends for a few years and he really seems like the nicest guy ever. After meeting him in person I can confirm that he actually is a living saint.

The Wholesome Trinity of Gaming

Saturday

I didn't do any on site gaming on Saturday. I met several folks for the first time in person, among them Bradley K. McDevitt, Alan Bahr, Matt Orr, and Brandon K. Aten. It was particularly cool to meet Matt and Brandon, because I worked on their project, Never Going Home.  I spent a majority of my time in the exhibit hall and relaxing. My feet and back were really hurting so I called it a day early and took a nap. I did wake up to go play board games and drink with the gents I came with. It was a good evening and Champions of Midgard is a pretty decent worker placement game.

Why yes,that is a Lamentations of the Flame Princess branded condom...

Sunday

We only hit the exhibit hall for an hour or two on Sunday. My feet were aching and I sat down at a demo table. I played Bahamas by Z-Man game which was a fun dice and cards screw-your-neighbor kind of game.

Pre-last day breakfast selfie with fam

Final Thoughts 

• For the love of all that is good and holy, do no pick you badge up Will Call. Just pay the extra cash and have it shipped to you. 
• It was great to go with old friends and see many online folks I've known for years. 
• I loved getting the con exclusives. I'm going to try to not kill myself with the nunchucks. Also I bought the Lamentations of the Flame Princess ones, despite telling myself I wouldn't.
• There were nearly 70K in attendance. This didn't seem as bad as I expected because the convention center is huge!
• That is actually one of my major issues with it. The events and exhibit halls were too large for my taste. I'm two days removed from the con and still sore. Pretty much every point A to point B trip I made required a 5-10 minute rest break. Yes this is because I'm really out of shape, but it still affects my opinion of the experience.
• While I had an absolute blast, I think I'm skipping Gen Con next year. I really like the size and scale of Origins (which has about a third of the attendance). It's also only an hour from where I live and though I moved away from it, I love Columbus. Both conventions are fun, but I prefer the latter (even if it means missing out on things like nunchucks and LotFP exclusives).
• I think I've caught Con Crud. I've been sniffling, coughing, and had a sore throat since Sunday.
• I'm actually looking forward to Con on the Cob even more now. I think it will be interesting to go from biggest tabletop gaming con in the world to a really small one. 

The Champion

ICONS: The Champion is a new by Steven Kenson (of Icons and Mutants and Masterminds fame) designed to raise money for a worthy cause.  Here's the product description:

The People Need a Champion...

Chosen by the immortals, with a magic word, he becomes the Champion, protector of the people. Troy Stevens was an queer rights activist who nearly lost his life, but fate has transformed him into the super-powered Champion.

This special product for Icons Superpowered Roleplaying is a fundraiser for Rainbow Railroad, which exists to help get LGBTQ people out of danger and to someplace safe. All profits from the sale of this product will be donated to the Rainbow Railroad. We recommend and ask for a $5 donation, but the product is pay-what-you-want on the honor system and any amount is gratefully accepted, especially if you feel moved to donate more!

The Champion includes the background of Champion, his origin, adventure ideas, and Icons and Mutants & Masterminds (third edition) stats for Champion, along with an illustration by Icons artist Dan Houser and the Hero Lab file for Champion's M&M stats.

If you want to support LGBTQ and have the means to help, consider doing so. 

Printible Mini For All Your Super Cameo Needs

David Okum of Okum Arts Games has a wonderful gaming tribute to Stan Lee on his Patreon. Follow this link to get your own printable Stan Lee miniature (with bonus effects). 

Mastermind Monday - Zombie Centurion (Revised)

Turning Freedom City's Centurion into a flesh eater, ala Marvel Zombies, was one of my first Mastermind Monday posts. I thought I'd flesh out the stats (pun intended) and repost. 

Zombie Centurion - PL 15

Strength 19, Stamina -, Agility 2, Dexterity 2, Fighting 6, Intellect 4, Awareness 2, Presence 3

Advantages: Chokehold, Fast Grab, Improved Smash, Leadership, Power Attack, Seize Initiative, Startle, Takedown, Tracking

Skills

Close Combat: Unarmed 4 (+10), Expertise (Journalism) 6 (+8) Intimidation 10 (+13)

Powers

Infecting Bite

Weaken Stamina 10 (Incurable, Resisted by Fortitude, Progressive) – 31 points

Invulnerability

Impervious Toughness 18 – 36 points

Super Movement (Array)

Flight 15 (64,000 MPH) - 30 points

Quickness 15, Speed 15 (64,000) - 1 point

Zombie

Immunity (Fortitude Effects) – 30 points

Offense

Initiative + 2
Unarmed +10, Close Damage 18

Complications

Fallen Icon: The Centurion remembers being Earth’s protector and is horrified by his current conditions.

The Hunger: The Centurion must feed on flesh. The hunger tends to override all other emotions and thoughts.

Language

English, Latin

Defense

Dodge 10, Parry 10, Fortitude 15, Toughness 18, Will 15

Power Points

Abilities 72, Powers 121, Advantages 9, Skills 10 (20 ranks) + Defenses 44= 212Points

Mastermind Monday - Bat-Ape

Why should Light City have all the fun?

Mogo the Bat-Ape
PL 8

Strength 6, Stamina 5, Agility 3, Dexterity 2, Fighting 3, Intellect 0, Awareness 3 , Presence 2

Advantages

Beginner's Luck

Skills

Acrobatics 4 (+7),  Athletics 4 (+10), Close Combat: Unarmed 4 (+7), Intimidation 4 (+6), Perception 2 (+5), Stealth 2 (+5)

Powers

Ape
Feature 1 (Prehensile Feet)
Growth  2 (Permanent, Innate, -2 defenses included)
Protection 2
Senses 2 (Low-light, Acute Smell)

Bat Cape and Cowl
Protection 1
Movement (Safe Fall)

Offense
Initiative +3
Unarmed +7, Close Damage 6

Complications

Animal: He might be very intelligent, but Mogo is still considered just an animal by most.

Naturally Poor Swimmers: Because of his density, Mogo can't swim very well. He takes a -5 penalty to Swimming checks and must spend Extra Effort to keep his head above water.

Defense

Dodge 8 , Parry 8 , Fortitude 8, Toughness 8 (with Defensive Roll), Will 6

Power Points

Abilities 48, Powers 1,  Advantages 9, Skills 10 (20 ranks) + Defenses 11 = 79 Points

Larger Than Life (M&M Edition) Review

I got an Amazon gift card for Christmas and decided to pick up Xanthar's Guide to Everything and some for the Mutants and Masterminds. While looking I came across Larger Than Life: Folklore Legends of America. It's a third party product that apparently had a kickstarter that I missed. There's also a Hero System and Savage Worlds version.

Physically the book has the same dimensions as other 3E M&M releases (which are slightly smaller than typical rpg books). It's quite massive, being over 300 pages. The book is black and white and contains mostly public domain illustrations and photographs. This works well, considering the nature of the content. There is a weird printing error in my copy. Before the book begins there's a totally unrelated short piece of academia. I'm assuming the printing company messed up and mixed files.

Are you wondering what this book is? Essentially it's an American who's who. The book is divided into eras: Colonial Age, Tall-Tales Era, Wild West, and finally Post-War. There are 20 different characters that are discussed in detail. They are then statted out and a related archetype/template is presented. These vary in power level. In addition other historical figures that have a similar schtick are discussed. There's also discussion of using the characters in your games. Here's a list of the characters, their PL, and the related archetype/template.

Colonial Age

• Blackbeard, Pirate (PL 6) - Pirate 
• Peter Francisco (PL 7) - Continental Soldier
• Mike Fink, River Man (PL 7) - River Man
• Johnny Appleseed (PL 7) - Man of Nature
• Davey Crockett, Backwoodsman (PL 7) - Backwoodsman

Tall-Tale Era

• Alfred Bulltop Stormalong, Blue-Water Sailor (PL 9) - Blue-Water Sailor
• Febold Feboldon, Pioneer (PL 8), John Henry, Steel-Driver (PL 9), Joe Magarac, Steel Worker (PL not listed) - Occupational Hero
• Paul Bunyan, Lumber Jack (PL 12) - Lumberjack (also included are template custmizations for Paul's Logging Game and Babe the Big Blue Ox (PL11))

 Wild West

• Pecos Bill, Cowboy (PL 8) - Cowboy (also included Widow-Maker (PL6))
• John "Liver-Eatin'" Johnson, Mountain Man (PL 8) - Mountain Man (also includes Hawkens Rifle stats)
• James Woodson James, Outlaw (PL 7) - Bushwaker/Outlaw
• George Armstrong Custer, Cavalry Officer (PL 7) - Cavalry
• Sitting Bull, Indian Chief (PL 7) - Native American Warrior
• James Butler "Wild Bill" Hickok, Lawman (PL 7) - Lawman, Basic Pinkerton, Basic Texas Ranger
• Martha Jane "Calamity Jane," Canary, Scout (PL 7) - Scout
• Henry "Billy the Kid" Mccarty, Shootist (PL 8) - Shootist

Post War Era

• Uncle Sam, American Icon (PL 8) 
• Joshua Abraham Norton, Eccentric (PL 8) 
• Stackalee, Trickster (PL 8) - Trickster
• Nikola Tesla, Inventor (PL 8) - Inventor

Finally, the book ends with a timeline of important American events and bibliography.

This book is an odd one. It's definitely not a must have for Mutants and Masterminds. However, if you want something other than the the standard supers game, it could be quite useful. One of these days I'd like to do a western supers game and I believe this book will be invaluable. 

Team Rocket's Meowth

To get used to working with M&M again, I thought I'd stat out my favourite Pokemon, Team Rocket's Meowth.

Team Rocket's Meowth
PL 4/Sidekick Level 12

Strength -1, Stamina 0, Agility 4, Dexterity 2, Fighting 1, Intellect 3, Awareness 2 , Presence 3

Advantages

Beginner's Luck, Benefit: Team Rocket Member, Defensive Roll 4, Evasion, Language (English), Teamwork

Skills

Close Combat: Scratch 4 (+5), Deception 4 (+7), Stealth 4 (+8)

Powers

Scratch (Damage 2) - 2 Points

Offense
Initiative +4
Scratch +4, Close Damage 3

Complications

Freak: Team Rocket's Meowth is an outcast among other Meowth's and Pokemon because he taught himself to speak. In addition, it takes so much focus for him to speak that he is unable to learn new moves.

Second Class Citizen: Despite his intelligence, Meowth is just considered a fighting monster by society.

Defense

Dodge 4, Parry 4, Fortitude 4, Toughness 0/4 (with Defensive Roll), Will 4

Power Points

Abilities 30 , Powers 2,  Advantages 9, Skills 6 (12 ranks) + Defenses 9 =  83 Points

Cosmic Handbook (M&M 3E)

The Cosmic Handbook is a 139 (with OGL) supplement for the third edition of Mutants and Masterminds. Much like the Supernatural Handbook, the book is divided into five chapters.

The first chapter is  entitled is very informative. It talks about the history of aliens and cosmic encounters in comics. Then we get a discussion of trope and elements that will affect adventures in space. Finally there's a discussion of Power Level X characters, those Galactus/Anti-Monitor baddies that your heroes will face but not be able to fight directly because of their immense power.

Chapter 2 is all about cosmic heroes. The book expands range charts to include intergalactic distances and discusses how powers work in space. We're also given new skills, advantages, and equipment. The bulk of the chapter is new archetypes. Here they are (with PL and comic character they're based on):

• Cosmic Corsair (PL 10) - Corsair or maybe Star Lord
• Cosmic Critter (PL12) - Rocket Raccoon
• Galactic Peace Officer (PL 14) - Though there powers are different, concept-wise this is the Nova Corp or Green Lantern. Possibly the L.E.G.I.O.N.
• Ray-Gun Hero (PL 10) - Adam Strange
• Space Demigod (PL 12) - Orion and the New Gods
• Space Knight - Rom or Green Lantern
• Space Soldier (PL 11) - The Omega Men or L.E.G.I.O.N.
• Star Hero (PL 12) - Captain Marvel or Adam Warlock
• Strange Visitor (PL 14) - Silver Surfer

After the hero archetypes, we're presented with several simple templates that make cosmic heroes easier to build.

The third chapter focuses on Game Master info. The bulk of the chapter are villain archetypes, which are as follows:

• Alien Overmind (PL 15) - Mentor
• Avatar of Destruction (PL 16) - Thanos or Darkseid
• Imperial Champion (PL 15) - Gladiator
• Space Dragon (PL 16) -
• The Devourer (PL X) - Galactus
• Galactic Tough Guy (PL 14) - Lobo
• Renegade Space Cop (PL 14) - Sinestro
• Star Hunter (PL 12) - Predator
• Time Master (PL 15) - Kang the Conqueror

The chapter ends with suggestions for using pre-existing minions in cosmic games and new cosmic minions (including xenomorphs).

The fourth chapter is my favourite because it deals with the cosmic aspects of Earth-Prime (the Freedom City universe). We're given updates from previous editions, including stats for Crater Apes, the Grue, and the Star Khan. The Khan gets a big upgrade, by the way. He now leads the remnants of the Lor Republic, now known as the Stellar Imperium. Unsurprisingly Blackstar also gets an update, now having his own Sinestro Corps. The Star Knights are also discussed as well as another faction that was created as results of the Emerald City Knights series.

The final chapter details Freedom City 2525, the Earth Prime equivalent of the Legion of Super-Heroes. In general this chapter is just a rules update of things presented both in 1e and 2e. That being said, there are some really cool characters to use in your game.

The book ends with a short appendix that includes more useful alien templates.

If you playing Mutants and Masterminds and want to include any cosmic stuff in your game, this is a pretty useful book. That being said this one isn't really geared to PL 10, like standard games. Still there's a lot of good crunch and inspiration for anybody that plays M&M.

Mastermind Monday - Monster Mash-Up

If you want a fun four colour Halloween hijinks for your Mutants and Masterminds game, Green Ronin is your hook-up. Last week they released a free adventure featuring Scream Queen and Madame Macabre called Monster Mash-Up. It’s 11 pages of supernatural fun (12 if you count the credits and legal info). You can snag it here. I've read through it and it seems like a lot of fun. When I do finally put my cape back on and run some M&M, this session will be a part of my series.
By the way, that may happen sooner rather than later if I can get Emerald City and Freedom City in print.