Urthona

Affiliations:	Solo  Buddy  Team
Distinctions:	14 Feet Tall Alien Wants the Mantle of Sorcerer Supreme Cannot Wield Dimensional Energies
Power Sets:	ALIEN MAGIC	GEVALTUAN
	Supreme Sorcery Teleportation  Mind Control  Psychic Resistance Magic Resistance	Enhanced Strength Enhanced Stamina
	SFX Summon Armaments. Add a d6 and step up your effect die by +1 when using SUPREME SORCERY to create weapon or armor assets.SFX Spells of the Darkhold. Step up or double any ALIEN MAGIC power for one action. If the action fails, add a die to doom pool equal to the normal rating of your power die. SFX Area Attack. Add a d6 and keep an additional effect die for each additional target. SFX Versatile. Split SUPREME SORCERY into 2d10 or 3d8. Limit Exhausted. Shutdown MAGIC to gain 1 PP. Recover power by activating an opportunity or during a Transition Scene.	SFX Mighty Blow. Spend d6 from the doom pool to double Enhanced Strength for one action.Limit Second Best.  Add d6 to doom when you step up stress or complications caused by emotional manipulation.
Specialties:	Mystic Master  Combat Expert

Urthona (used without permission)

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House Rule: Descriptive Stress

Hi all,

In my Marvel: The Verge campaign, I came across the following problem…

One character had taken emotional stress from fighting another character (they had actually spent 1PP to change the stress to emotional, instead of taking physical stress). During the next adventure, they had not entirely rid themselves of the stress but when it came time to use that stress in against them, I could not remember the circumstances by which they had accumulated the stress. All they had written down was “Emotional d8.”

Now, we could have just came up with something entirely different, but I felt that if we had made note of the circumstances, we could tie the narrative together, from an earlier fight to a later conflict.

So, I’ve begun to ask my players to make a short descriptive note to accompany any stress they receive. For example, “Burned by Hellfire d10.” Now, when that physical stress is rolled against them, I can invoke the specific cause as I narrate, or they narrate. Or, “Father Issues d12” will allow me to allude to their self doubt about living up to their sire’s expectations.

If the stress is stepped up, add in another description for the new level, keeping the old description too. As the stress is healed later on, the description will remain until that level of stress is recovered.

Of course, we have already been doing this for our complications, resources and assets, but it seemed natural for stress to follow the same suit, and I couldn’t find reference for this in the OpManual.

What do you think?

Minor Persona: Agatha Harkness

Agatha Harkness (used without permission)

Affiliations: 

Solo      Buddy      Team

Distinctions: Restless Soul, Capable Witch/Nanny

RITUAL MAGIC

Sorcery	Magical Awareness
Resistance to Psychic Powers	Resistance to Magic
Telepathy	Mind Control
Superhuman Durability	Teleport

SFX: Versatile. Split SORCERY into 2d8 or 3d6.

SFX: Multipower. Use two or more RITUAL MAGIC powers in a single dice pool at -1 step for each additional power.

Limit: Restricted Movement/Speech. If unable to speak and gesture, shutdown RITUAL MAGIC. Recover RITUAL MAGIC when complication is removed, or via opportunity.

Specialties: Mystic Expert 

The Cromagus: Prehistoric Scourge of the Timestream!

Affiliations: 

Solo      Buddy      Team

Distinctions: Savage Temper, Gentile Veneer, Traveled the Timestream

CROMAGNON

Enhanced Strength      Enhanced Stamina      Enhanced Senses

SFX: Claws. 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: Inferiority Complex. Add d6 to doom when you step up stress or complications caused by emotional manipulation.

THE TIME GEM

The Time Gem (used without permission)

Time Supremacy       Time Travel      Godlike Speed

SFX: Time Freeze. Add a d6 and step up your effect die by +1 when inflicting Frozen in Time! complication on a target.

SFX: Age/Youth. Add a d6 and step up your effect die by +1 when inflicting Old Age! or Infant! complication on a target.

SFX: Immune to Aging. Spend d6 to ignore stress, trauma, or complications from aging effects.

SFX: Precognition/Postcognition. Spend d6 to borrow the highest die in the doom pool as an asset for your next action, then step back and return the doom die.

SFX: Rapid Healing. Spend d6 to recover your own Physical Stress or step back your own Physical Trauma by –1.

SFX: Area Attack. Add a d6 and keep an additional effect die for each additional target.

SFX: Versatile. Split TIME SUPREMACY into 2d10 or 3d8.

SFX: Replay. Spend d6 to reroll when using any TIME GEM power.

SFX: Multipower. Use two or more TIME GEM powers in a single dice pool at -1 step for each additional power.

Limit: It Takes Willpower! Change any TIME GEM power into a complication for 1PP, which can be rolled in opposition to you anytime you use that power trait. This complication can be targeted and removed by spending doom pool dice. If the doom die is less than the complication, it is stepped back. If it equals or is greater, remove the complication. (This represents the fact that only individuals of high mental capabilities can wield the time gem properly).

Specialties: Menace Expert      Combat Expert      Cosmic Expert

KANG!

Affiliations:

Kang (used without permission)

Solo      Buddy      Team

Distinctions: Ruthless Conqueror, Shrewd Tactician, Thrill-Seeker

EVOLVED PHYSIOLOGY

Enhanced Reflexes      Enhanced Stamina      Psychic Resistance

SFX: Second Wind. Before you make an action including an EVOLVED PHYSIOLOGY power, you may remove your physical stress die (or greater) from the doom pool and step up the EVOLVED PHYSIOLOGY power by +1 for this action.

SFX: Careful Planner. Spend d6 to borrow the highest die in the doom pool as an asset for your next action, then step back and return the doom die.

Limit: Prideful. Add d6 to doom when you step up stress or complications caused by emotional manipulation.

Limit: Exhausted. Shutdown any EVOLVED PHYSIOLOGY power to add d6 to doom pool or step up lowest. Recover power by activating a player’s opportunity or spending a d6 from the doom pool.

ADVANCED TECH

Superhuman Durability      Gadgets      Blasters     Melee Weapons     Hover Pad       Time Ship

SFX: Area Attack. Add a d6 and keep an additional effect die for each additional target.

SFX: Boost. Shutdown your highest rated ADVANCED TECH power to step up another ADVANCED TECH power by +1. Recover power by activating a player’s opportunity, or by spending d6 from the doom pool.

SFX: Burst. Step up or double an ADVANCED TECH die against a single target. Remove the highest rolling die and add 3 dice for your total.

SFX: Summon Minion from Timestream. Add a d6 and step up your effect die by +1 when using ADVANCED TECH to create minion assets.

SFX: Dangerous. 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 an ADVANCED TECH trait and add a d6 or step up lowest in doom pool.  Spend d6 from the doom pool to recover.

Specialties: Combat Master      Crime Master      Tech Master

Hobgoblin I

Real Name: Roderick Kingsley

Hobgoblin (used without permission)

Affiliations: 

Solo      Buddy      Team

Distinctions: Unscrupulous, Eye for Detail, Fashion Designer

GOBLIN FORMULA

Enhanced Reflexes      Enhanced Strength 

SFX: Boost. Shutdown your highest rated GOBLIN FORMULA power to step up another GOBLIN FORMULA power by +1. Recover power by activating a player opportunity or during a Transition Scene.

Limit: Another Dose. Shutdown any GOBLIN FORMULA power and add d6 to the doom pool, or step up lowest. Recover power during a Transition Scene.

GOBLIN TECH

Enhanced Durability      Pumpkin Bomb     Goblin Grenades     Glove Blasters     Razor Bats       Glider

SFX: Area Attack. Add a d6 and keep an additional effect die for each additional target.

SFX: Knock-Out Grenade. Add a d6 and step up your effect die by +1 when inflicting GASSED! complication on a target.

SFX: Spider-Sense Clouding Grenade. Add a d6 and step up your effect die by +1 when inflicting DULLED SPIDER-SENSE! complication on a target.

SFX: Dangerous. 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 a GOBLIN TECH trait and add a d6 or step up lowest in doom pool.  Spend d6 from the doom pool to recover.

Specialties: Combat Expert      Crime Expert      Business Expert

Little-Known Avengers: Living Lightning!

With the AVENGERS being released this Friday…

LIVING LIGHTNING (Miguel Santos)

Living Lightning (used without permission)

Affiliations:

Solo      Buddy      Team

Distinctions:
College Student, Newbie, Former Reluctant Villain

PLASMA FORM

Intangibility      Blast      Flight      Space Flight

SFX: Area Blast. Add a d6 and keep an additional effect die for each additional target.

SFX: Invulnerable to Physical Attacks. Spend 1 PP to ignore physical stress or trauma unless caused by energy attacks.

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

Limit: Stasis Suit (Gear). Miguel has a specialized stasis suit that allows him to return to human form. If he cannot access his human form, gain 1 PP. Spend 1 PP to recover, or during a transition scene.

Limit: Grounded. Gain 1 PP and shutdown PLASMA FORM vs. grounding or electricity-dampening attacks. Spend 1 PP to recover the Power Set, or during a transition scene.

Specialties: Combat Rookie      Tech Rookie 

MILESTONES:

TEAM PLAYER

1 XP — when you give support to another hero.
3 XP — when you’re given an official place on a team.
10 XP — when you either sacrifice something you hold dear for the benefit of your team or walk away from your team to avoid that sacrifice.

BEING HUMAN…

1 XP — when your STASIS SUIT limit is activated.
3 XP — when you help a hero or bystander without using the PLASMA FORM power set.
10 XP — when you defeat a villain without using your PLASMA FORM power set.

House Rule: Campaign Assets and Complications

Hi all,

During games, heroes and villains can create assets, complications and resources that allow them to add dice to their action/reaction rolls.
While working on my Verge campaign, I began to think about how I would handle my group’s reputation. Their team is a band of intergalactic specialists-for-hire. They’re not quite heroes, but not quite villains, and they certainly do their job for the money.

In the FATE system, campaigns can have Aspects that the players can invoke at any time, as long as the theme of their actions match that of the Campaign Aspect. So, I thought, why can’t I use this idea?

For example, I decided to give my player’s group a persistent Reputation Asset die that they can roll in their dice pool, if their team’s reputation is at stake. This Reputation die can be rolled in addition to another asset (like Scene Distinctions can also be rolled with Personal Distinction, as suggested as another House Rule).

The die will step up or step down depending on their actions during the adventure. Did they complete their mission? Did they cause too much collateral damage? Did the exceed their mandate? If they consistently foul up, then the die moves from being an asset to a complication (and is thus rolled against them whenever their reputation is involved).

The progression would be d12 Asset -> d10 Asset -> d8 Asset -> d6 Asset -> d0 Neither -> d6 Complication -> d8 Complication -> d10 Complication -> d12 Complication.

Individual or group wealth can also be handled in this manner, when making Resource rolls involving purchases, for example.

Or perhaps you just want to keep track of the campaign’s progress, depending on the actions of the heroes. Suppose the campaign revolves around a theme of war and peace.

(used without permission)

The War/Peace die could be rolled whenever their respective themes are involved. The progression can look something like this d12 WAR! -> d10 Troop Build-Up -> d8 Weapon-Making -> d6 Harsh Words -> d0 Status Quo -> d6 Peace Talks -> d8 Disarmament -> d10 Demobilization -> d12 Peace Accord

What do you think?

Fear the Porcupine!

With a preponderance of minor villains flooding the MHR web community, I submit my favorite one…

THE PORCUPINE (Alexander Gentry)

The Porcupine (used without permission)

Affiliations:

Solo      Buddy      Team

Distinctions: Greedy, Paranoid, Proud of his Technological Achievements

PORCUPINE ARMOR

Boot-Jets      Darkvision       Enhanced Durability      Sharp Spines

SFX: Spray of Spines. Add a d6 and keep an additional effect die for each additional target.

SFX: Sealed Mask. Spend 1 PP to ignore stress, trauma, or complications from vacuum or gas attacks.

SFX: Knock-Out Gas. Add a d6 and step up your effect die by +1 when inflicting Gassed! complication on a target.

Limit: Gear. Shutdown PORCUPINE ARMOR and gain 1 PP. Spend a d6 from the doom pool to recover, or during a transition scene.

Specialties: Combat Rookie      Tech Expert      Crime Expert

Running on Ongoing Campaign with MHR

Hi all,

The Watcher (used without permission)

As I’ve been Watching my campaign for the new Marvel Heroic Roleplaying Game, I’ve noticed how Action Scenes and Transition scenes seem natural ways to break-up the flow of the Event, as designed by the good people at Margaret Weis Productions.

However, as an ongoing campaign, I’m not sure this is the best structure to hold the game to. My sessions tend to be much more organic, some heroes switching between battles and roleplaying scenes while another subgroup doing the reverse, instead of having the whole group move between them as the Event demands.
As a consequence is that I usually ditch the Scene-Act-Event sequence for Scene-Issue-Arc-Campaign:

• Scenes are pretty much the same, but I do not wait for everyone to finish before moving to the next, whether it be Transition or Action. If someone wants to heal during breaks in the action, I judge whether they have enough time to do so.
• Issues are simply gaming sessions, and can be any permutation of transitions and action.
• Arcs are the equivalent of Events, and are two to three Issues. Unlockables and Milestones are geared towards Arcs, not individual Issues.
• Campaign is the overarching, ongoing story, made up of Arcs and stand-alone Issues.

Given that XP is designed to be given out and cashed in during self-contained Events, I have modified them slightly, to produce a slower payoff:

• 1XP can only be hit once a Scene.
• 3XP can only be hit once an Issue.
• 10XP can only be hit once an Arc.

What do you think?