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The World We Live In
Welcome to the new millenium. Of course, this isn't the world
you live in. Where you live, men don't do cartwheels in the sky or
shoot laser beams out their eyes or wear colorful tights and talk like
they were in a comic book. Not so on the Earth where our heroes will
be living. You see, in our game world men and women have been flying
through the skies and rumbling across the earth for close to a century.
Perhaps even more.
For the first part of the 20th century they were a rare sight; just the occasional marvel, the once-a-month hero. But come WWII, spandex was in high demand. The metahuman populace hit another boom in the sixties. And by the time the eighties came 'round, Metahumans were coming out of the woodwork. Six-term President, Ronald Reagan has been an outspoken supporter of Metahumans. His work in Metahuman legislation is one of the key reasons he's still acting President. Metahuman registration is not required, but is recommended. Special agencies of the government(The Shop) monitor all Metahuman activity.
Once a rareity, Metahumans are a rather common sight. Not to say they overcrowd the populace, but everyone has heard of the supermen and women and their deeds to fight the evils of megalomaniacal villains. Some have even caught glimpses of these giants. The Atomic Man, Miss Marvel, Nightstar… these are household names across America.
So I bet you're wondering just where the heck you fit into all this?
After all, you're just a kid. Sure you've got super powers, but you've
also got that Geometry test on Monday. Yes, Captain Cold is putting
a chill over the city, but you're grounded. I mean, what can one
kid do fighting the injustices of youth AND the villainy of the…err villainous?
Well, fortunately for you, you're not alone. See, Coast City happens
to have a handful of high school kids who by some incredible chance(or
is it just chance?) are all Metahumans. Heck, they even go to the
same school! That ought to make for some after-school club!
Coast City
Located just north of San Francisco, Coast City is a relatively quiet
town. With a population of 675,000 it's got its share of crime.
Founded in 1827, Coast City--hey, stop that yawning. Alright, alright,
I'll get on with it. Coast City, as you probably know, once had its
own sworn protector(as most large cities do), but the Green Guardian retired
nearly ten years ago and since then Coast City has been without any Metahuman
protector. Fortunately the Green Guardian's notorious rogue's gallery
made few appearances in the years since his retirement. Actually,
the city's been pretty boring since he left. But in recent months
there's been more and more criminal activity. Good thing you came
along, huh?
Coast City High
School is -such- a drag, but we all gotta do it. It's bad enough
you have to juggle academics with a social life(you do have one, don't
you?), but toss in being a Super Hero and life can be a real mess!
It won't be easy protecting the city, keeping your grades and your cool
while under the watchful eye of your fascist Principal Ms. Musso and her
darkly-clad watchdog assistant, Frank Lemmer. They're always searching
for trouble makers, which is -so- not cool. So yeah, maybe Heat Wave
crashes your prom or Galactus comes to eat the Earth while you're on your
first date, I'm sure you can handle it. After all, you're a Super
Hero.
The Meaning of Life(Importance of the PCs)
You're it, man. You and your gang of super friends are the only
defenders Coast City has! You're the last line of defense against
the evilness of Mirror Master and the Red Demon. Don't screw it up!
The city's counting on you! You probably won't ever have to sweat
crime outside the city(but you never know). All your worries should
be on keeping the city and your grades from falling.
Watch Your Tone(Campaign tone)
Okay, so this isn't the most serious of campaigns. Actually it's
pretty lighthearted. But you can't just be a total bonehead about
it. Bullets still kill, and if the Coast City Dam is destroyed the
city will be flooded and you'll have to explain why your homework is soggy.
Villains are a nasty bunch and most don't have much sympathy for little
brats with masks. Sometimes the campaign will be almost cartoonish,
but the threat of death and destruction are real.
The campaign will shift between the heroes' personal/school lives and their heroic lives. Often the two will mix. Okay, like way often. Your girlfriend may turn out to be the supervillainess The White Princess! Or your Principal might really be a vicious, mucous-spewing, flesh-eating alien from the planet Xarnab VI(you've got a stack of evidence on this one). Though your character may react to situations in as realistic or as dry a manner as you want(hopefully, whatever fits your character's persona), as a player you can't be a stuffed shirt, or a rules/reality hound(I sense a transition to the next paragraph).
The most important thing to remember is that we're having fun(I hope).
The Champions book(and the very laws of the universe) are -not- rules.
They are guidelines. Sometimes we're gonna have to ignore these guidelines
for the sake of the adventure/campaign. I like to run my games very
loosely and off the cuff. If it makes sense for something to happen,
it will probably happen. I don't care much for rolling dice all the
time. If you're inventive, or if you're making it fun for everyone,
then I'm easy at giving leeway. On the same token, sometimes the
villain escapes, and you gotta accept that.
You Gotta Have Character(Character Building Guidelines)
*Characters will have 150 base points and 100 points in Disads(no more
then 60 pts in one category).
* Characters should be balanced, rather then overpowering. It's
hard to set a limit on power levels(though 60 active points is about the
ceiling) because other aspects of the character need to be considered.
To have a 60 pt energy attack AND a speed of 10 is overpowering.
The same can be said defensively. Having 20PD/ED armor with 75% damage
reduction for both PD and ED while having a DCV of 11 is just plain silly.
Use good judgement and try and give powers and levels that make sense for
the character you're creating.
* Average villain stats will be: Dex - 18, PD/ED - 10, Main Attack
- 8d6, SPD - 4.
* Killing attacks are discouraged, as is killing. Any killing
attack should be low enough not to kill on a single attack.
* Secret IDs are recommended but are by no means required. Public
IDs are okay but come with the consequences.
* Hit Locations will not be used.
* Pushing will only be allowed under extreme situations, when it seems
reasonable to do so.
* No high tech equipment without talking to me first.
* Remember, you're a high school kid(between 13-17 years old) and your
powers should be of a lower level then an adult hero. Keep in line
with your character concept.
* Picking Disads for teens has some slight differences from your standard
hero. Some good examples would be a Watched by Parents or Ms. Musso(Coast
City High's principal), having a crush on a teacher or other student, rivalries
with other students, your social status. In case it helps, Coast
City High's rival school is Lincoln High, across the water.
* Characters will not know about each other's secret ID's at the start
of the campaign, nor will they be formed as a group. That can change
depending on the choices the characters make during the course of gameplay.
All the characters attend Coast City High and may or may not know each
other at school.
* Players are recommended to write a background on their character.
Tell about their daily lives. Their family. Their interests.
Also make mention of where you want to take the character. If there
are particular character developments you want(plot-wise or power-wise)
here's a good chance to let me know.
While creating your character and while playing in this campaign, I hope that we all keep in mind that as much as we like to win, that's not the goal. Sometimes the most interesting situations come from when we don't win. The point is not to be the greatest super hero in the universe, or to rape the rules so that you get a mega-deadly attack for only 2 points. Power gamers and rule mongers are not what I'm interested in. I hope that we can create an environment where, for a few hours, we can immerse ourselves into another world. One where our daily problems are supplanted by the unreal problems of characters we've created, living in a world we've populated with our imagination.
Players are encouraged to be actively involved in shaping their characters. Meaning if you have an idea for things to occur to your character(subplots, as it were) it is to your benefit to let me know so I can work with it. While I may be the GM, it is still our campaign and everyone should feel free to be creative in their backgrounds, motivations, and in roleplaying their characters.
Suggestions and complaints are always welcome. If there's something you think could be better, or if you think things are running great, let me know. If you have ideas for ways of improvement don't hold back.
Thanks for reading this wordy campaign summary. In case you didn't notice, I really want to make this an enjoyable and unique gaming experience for us all. Excelsior!(please don't sue me, Stan Lee).
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