Superhero Games

Modern gaming assumes everyone is a superhero, so there is no real reason to play a dedicated superhero game unless you are playing with licensed characters. But I am tired of the licensed IP heroes; they are too overused. We have seen them too many times, and there are zero stories left to tell with them.

Sorry, they're overused and have told every story in the X-Men and Avengers. The Justice League is a worn-out retread tire. Batman is Batman. Spider-Man will forever be a new hero. I don't even want to tell those stories in a roleplaying game. What is the point?

We should be reading about Spider-Man's grandkids' adventures these days, not Peter Parker's 50th reboot. Batman should be dead and buried, and an inspiration for Gotham's newest crime fighters. Same with the villains, and please stop with the cringy "Harley in every group" nonsense. Get rid of her, too.

Seriously, let these humans grow old and die. Replace them. Give me new heroes. Give me new stories. Give me new groups. And not self-inserts or lame characters, more about social media identity and ideology instead of heroism. I want heroes. Those who sacrifice. Those who give toward greater goods. Not self-centered heroes who sit on a couch, order takeout, and talk about their relationships.

I want villains, too. Despicable bad guys who hate society, and not reflections of people the writers don't like on social media. I want real, classic, heinous villains with powers who reflect humanity's seven deadly sins. Give me something biblical, literary, and important.

I have tried many superhero games, and they all failed me. Some only play with licensed characters, and they never change. Others are too lightweight and simplistic. Others are too complicated and simulation-heavy. Nothing touches Champions and Hero System.

Nothing.

Once I learn the system, I can do anything I can imagine. Also, while GURPS would work, Hero System is more focused on powers than skills. Hero System has too few skills, and while I first saw that as a weakness, I now see it as the game's focus and strength. If a game is laser-focused on powers, let it do that, and let's not have a skill list 300 entries long. I don't want a game focused on skills if it is focused on powers and designs.

Yes, the game is dense and requires mastery on both the player and game master side. But these are power tools for superhero roleplaying. Once you get basic competency and learn how the system works, you can do almost anything you can imagine.

The real benefit is that you can replace D&D 5E entirely and create unique, stylistic, power-based fantasy heroes who can do anything you can imagine. Nobody puts you on a level track; you aren't limited to designer-created subclasses, and you can develop any power you want based on your "power source."

If the game is only about powers, give me a game that lets me build anything I can imagine and set me free. This is a basic user versus power-user thing, and how sometimes it is better to start as the power user and save yourself the pain of buying books you later realize are limiting and just taking advantage of your wallet.

Yes, this is different and "not D&D," but who cares? If my necromancer has a death-ray laser finger and a "skull shield" that floats around him, you can't do that in D&D 5E. Maybe I want him to fly on "ghost boots." Go intangible and walk through walls. Summon a laughing skull as a floating attack minion.

Yes, that sounds like a supervillain. But he is unique; there will only be one, and no other necromancer in the world will follow that build. A high-level 5E character will be the same type of character, but stamped out by a prebuilt template. 

My character will be mine.

Someone else will have their own idea of what a necromancer is, and that character will be theirs. A "she-necromancer" may summon an army of skeletons and throw exploding skulls. She has a ghost form and a fear laugh. She is cool, too. Not a subclass build, and you don't need to buy a new book for her to have any of that - just my imagination.

Uniqueness is why you suffer through learning the Hero System.

Why do people go crazy for personal individuality, yet strictly adhere to character conformity?

Laziness over individuality, I guess.

What makes this game even better is the plethora of unique characters in the universe. They are all based on superheroic archetypes, but each is unique, fun, and not what I am tired of. I could kill them all off and start again. I can ignore them all and start with new ones. I am not obligated to have Superman and Captain America running around in my universe. There are no retcons. Characters can die and retire. Villains can be killed or locked away. New characters can appear, heroes and villains. Heroes can fall into infamy and become villains. Villains can redeem themselves and join the forces of good. Others can exist between them, and who knows which side they are on, probably only in it for themselves.

If I ever include IP characters in my game, they will all be just as vulnerable, just as expendable, falling to villainy, or passing the torch.