What Superhero TTRPG Should You Be Playing?

[@kolinko78]

It’s nice to have a channel that talk about all types of TTRPG and not just one system. Keep it up guys.

[@wightrat1207]

Hero System? Probably the most crunchy system out there. And it's great.

[@michaelconnor1542]

It may be crunchy, but once a character is made. The system gets out of the way and make Role-playing and fighting fun.

[@BLynn]

I'm @18:41 in. So the creation power creating that force box, I have no doubt, it didn't say that a big strong person couldn't pick it up & shake it around or a telekinetic couldn't toss it in the air causing damage to those inside when they bounced around, or that they couldn't use that box as a barrier that a bad guy could bounce 'normals' off of. They could even toss it into buildings causing damage to the building that the 'normals' would think the heroes caused.

[@BLynn]

My favorite character I made in Mutants & Masterminds was 'Frat Guy'. He had a sonic burp similar to Black Canary's sonic scream. He was a speedster but only while he was naked (streaking). He could also do a 'fart cloud' that nauseated those near the cloud.

[@darth459]

I use Prowlers and Paragons for my superhero campaign. I found it looking for a system that is narrative driven but allows the players to create whoever they wanted and the point-buy system works really well for that and balancing

[@JayBezz]

Love that you guys are excited to talk games. Came to see your Marvel Multiverse convo.. My campaign is DEFINITELY using original characters and most I see are as well. The 616 system wasn't really explained. And there's so much versatility to rank up or down for adventures. The system is great at Homebrew as well. Most streaming campaigns have a lot of homebrew elements. I ... Don't know if you're speaking from experience which kind of makes me question the purpose of this show

[@OdinsKeyGaming]

It’s awesome that you guys cover less mainstream genres of TTRPGs! We have another Superhero RPG that we hope you’d add to a list in the future, please check out Indominant, we are working to have our version 2.0 Game System Primer out soon on DTRPG! We use a d20 + modifiers, roll high dice system, inspired by City of Heroes and My Hero Academia!

[@gregbanks5624]

I'm a bit older and cut my teeth on Villains and Vigilante's and currently playing Monkey House Games Mighty Protectors. Also, heavy invested in M&M. I'd like to give SWADE Supers a play, too. Marvel is getting a lot of hype lately and would like to give it a go.

[@quantus5875]

M&M!! I just wish they'd pick up the DC license again and do some DC supplement and Marvel supplements would be awesome as well!!

[@cryptking6283]

Champions and Marvel Superheroes RPG from TSR is missing from this list. Savage Worlds also has a couple of Superhero games. As for Mutants and Masterminds, the default is Level 10.

[@quantus5875]

Yes -- and M&M is balanced. Because you have certain caps dependiing on power level. A PL11 character is more powerful than a PL12 character. Yes, you can do really bad builds -- but GM can help prevent the player from making bad choices. Also, there are tons of templates in M&M that help you build a character quickly. I many cases you can use a template for your concept and then just tweak it a little.

[@michaelconnor1542]

​@quantus5875 not balanced and the game is wonky hell. Many rules make no sense. Fighting or weapn or balistics aren't stats. They are skills. Always hated that in any game. Looking at you Warhammer Fantasy.

[@quantus5875]

@@michaelconnor1542 Again, I would argue it is fairly balanced because of the cap rules for each power level, i.e. you're limited on certain attributes and skill levels depending on your power level. Supers games are tough -- in general. My problem with almost all currently published supers games is that most of them are very story/narrative heavy. M&M is a little crunchy -- but it is great for combats. So, depends on what you like. Do you want to create supers stories (M&M is not of you), if you want to do lots of supers fights (M&M is for you). For me the biggest disadvantage of M&M is the learning curve. M&M is not hard if someone teaches you how to play, but there is definitely a learning curve if you have to learn the rules on your own. And, if you don't like rules heavy games -- there are many "lite" supers games available. A big plus for M&M it is easily the most "supported" supers game currently being published., in terms of quantity of rule books, supplements, and settings available for it.

[@marcos2492]

I'm on board for a "best character creation systems" video

[@TalesFromElsewhereGames]

Have you tried Cypher for Supers? I had a positive experience with it, even though Cypher is a pretty flawed system. Have you ever heard of Marvel Universe Roleplaying Game (MURPG)? No one ever has - it was a wonderful and ambitious TTRPG from like 20 years ago, and it was absolutely terrible. I loved their ambition, as it is a diceless system that attempts to still be crunchy and combat-focused. It did not succeed, but it's worth tracking down a copy and flipping through!

[@TheSavageGoose]

Savage Worlds Super Power Companion ;) Also Savage Worlds for best Character Creations systems. Am I biased? Probably, but I love the system.

[@whynaut1]

I played Sentinels of the Multiverse with high expectations because there is a lot to like. However, when I actually ran it for my players the minor twists happen all the freakin' time. As a GM I was running out of ideas for them and even when they did happen, the effects were minimal. If I were to run it again, I would homebrew to remove minor twists and only have major twists instead. I don't know if this would work, but that's my 2 cents

[@thegreatkamikaze]

I've found City of Mist great for doing superheroes with a secret identity.

[@rodneywk1]

I'm curious.. does CoM present, in any way, as any of the era types we usually associate with superheroes (golden, silver, bronze, etc..)?

[@thegreatkamikaze]

@@rodneywk1 It could, depending on how you run it. It's not as specific as Masks would be about the eras. CoM has 4 cards for a character split between Mythos (the powers) and Logos (the secret identity) that works well with superheroes. "Leveling" plays with getting marks on each of those cards when you RP into them, but you could also get strikes on the card and lose if. One example I use is Spider-Man sees Green Goblin but he also has to turn in photos to the Daily Bugle on time. Get enough strikes on the Daily Bugle card and he loses it, like getting fired, and loses access to tags that could be used to get information and investigate. So it could probably do older eras well. Modern might be tricky for Logos when stuff like Avengers have less jobs or secret identities.

[@MrJerks93]

Reach out if you want a GM for Mutants and Masterminds. It's a great toolkit, but it takes agreement between players and GM on the concept. You can build anything, but it's more fun when you don't.

[@quantus5875]

M&M is a great game!! Easily my favorite current supers TTRPG. And they have so many templates -- so it's easy to build most thing using templates and then tweaking the template. Regarding breaking the game -- actually really hard to do with a strong GM. IMO breakeage only occurs if the GM allows some min/maxer to interpret or misinterpret rules to their advantage. GM just has to keep people honest IMO. Where M&M shines is if you really like super hero combat. If you like "stories" I'd go with a lighter game -- but if you really enjoy combat -- M&M is incredible!!

[@octaviustyree8899]

Awesome video, I too agree that Sentinel Comics RPG is the better Comic RPG. I would make a note in your video around 23:20-23:40. You start talking about Close "quarters" Combat (close combat), eluding to it being like a power and then mention picking a quality. Close Combat is a quality, so you would not be able to choose another quality. It's pick a power, quality, and status. Status is Health or where you are on the scene tracker (whichever is worse/further along).

[@juauke]

Haven't got the chance to play Supers ever But I'd love to play either ICRPG Vigilante City or Longshot City (Troika! sequel) for one shots or short campaigns

[@octaviustyree8899]

Around 24:50 you begin to mention succeeding against a minion. As far as Combat goes, you always succeed. What determines and minion flat out being eliminated is if the damage is so great that they cannot save on their roll. Other than that they drop a die size up until the d4 value. Whereas lieutenants can save and don't decrease their die size until they fail the save.

[@elderwookiee]

No discussion of superhero role-playing games is complete without talking about the first and best one superworld

[@quantus5875]

First supers TTRPG was Superhero 2044 (1977). Superhero 2044 is also the first TTRPG that ever had a point buy system (although Melee/Wizard/The Fantasy Trip was pretty close behind with point buy -- pretty amazing really -- point buy was created back in 1977.

[@rodneywk1]

I'll throw Marvel Heroic RPG into the mix here.. I understand that the rules presented a level of adjustment for a lot of players, but I still think it mixed narrative nicely with dice mechanics. Great topic, gentlemen!! Thanks!

[@geoffreyperrin4347]

I want to hear more about sentinels of the multiverse

[@sinmaan7568]

Very informative! Now, how do you write homebrew scenarios for a group where PCs have such capabilities?

[@WhatisTableTop]

As a life long comic book fan I love this question! There’s a few ways you could go about it like having a very strong villain that the party has to overcome like Darkseid/Thanos but I’m always a fan of the comic stories that put the heroes morals into question over their fighting potential like Superman vs the Elite

[@sinmaan7568]

@@WhatisTableTop Would love to see how you PREP for such a session. What and how you prepare, especially in the context that PC have super human capabilities and often can do pretty much what they want...by design. Again, thanks for sharing the wisdom!

[@GrizzledNoob]

Great conversation about the games. Champions was the first RPG that I ever played and I love superheroes. I have struggled to find a supers RPG that I still want to play these days. Here are my comments about the systems I have tried. Marvel Multiverse - The system is ehhh.... I hate the Ranks because it basically dictates everything in the game. It seems like an unfinished game with great potential if more development could have gone into it but some execs jumped in and said time's up just release it and make it new player friendly. But at least it is official Marvel!! Masks - The game for you if you loved Smallville back in the day. Or if the CW style high schooler shows are your favorite, and you just want to sprinkle a little bit of superhero into it. Mutants & Masterminds - Good for its day. Morphed from trying to keep as close to D&D rules as possible in 1st ed, cool game but it feels old now in 2nd ed, to Champions RPG lite in 3rd ed with how you build powers now. Sentinel Comics - Really cool and unique. I love everything about it!!!! Until I play it and the game just flows weird for an RPG and there is limited stuff about what to do out of combat. It also does not do a great job of giving an understanding on the scope and limitations with the powers (what is a Strength power with a D10 vs a D8? Can both lift a tank? Can neither even lift an elephant? I get that it is narrative but I need some idea of the power limits). It does really capture comic book combat in a great way! Champions RPG - Classic and simulates superheroes perfectly. However if you don't like math and learning how to turn a generic power into a specific power concept, and if you hate long combats, it is not for you Marvel FASERIP - Cool system and awesome, but who wants to play a 40 year old RPG? It definitely shows its age. I could roll up random characters for hours and figure out how to make it all come together. DC Heroes (MEGS) - My favorite system for high level superhero play. It flows well, character creation is great, hero points rock, and you can find stats for every DC character that existed up until the mid 90s when it went out of print. The only downside is the charts. No problem once you get used to them, but they take some time to get used to. SWADE Supers - Good for street level heroes (I have that same opinion for any SWADE setting) but once you try to replicate Justice League level supers, it does not work all that great.

[@antagonistrpg]

I'm guessing heroes unlimited isn't still a thing? I remember that being a broken but fun hodgepodge of special rules for every single character archetype, none of which were remotely balanced against each other.

[@cryptking6283]

@@antagonistrpg Died when Palladium went under. Think it's on a 2nd edition with the renewed Palladium

[@cryptking6283]

Champions is still my favorite RPG. 2nd to 4th is the best range of edition, with 4th the BBB being the peak. 5th had some good ideas but you could tell the old guard was gone, and it became the Steve Long game. 6E sucks in my opinion.

[@quantus5875]

I would disagree that M&M 3ed feels old. If you're saying it feels old because it is not a more "narrative" type system -- like many of the newer supers games -- which is why I stick to M&M because I really dislike narrative supers games. Green Ronin still makes M&M and still supports it. I think it's probably their best selling line still. I wouldn't be surprised if we see a 4ed -- before 2030. "old" -- people always use that term -- but what does that even mean? I think the main negative with M&M is there is a bit of a learning curve for the GM -- but super easy to learn how to play if you have someone to teach you. If you don't have a GM to teach you learning on your own can be daunting. Played many supers games back in the day: V&V, Champions, Marvel FASERIP, and DC Heroes -- and my favorite supers TTRPG from the 80s was DC Heroes. Stayed with DC Heroes until M&M 2nd ed and then switched M&M 3ed. Have tried a few of the newer ones -- but most of them are just to "light" for me. btw: If you like Smallville -- there actually is a Smallville TTRPG which I own. Great game if you like Smallville.

[@stochasticagency]

Spectaculars

[@acediamond73]

One of my favorites. A comic book label in a box.😁

[@kotsosdam]

ICONS Superpowered Roleplaying is the supers RPG for me. MASKS is too narrative driven and M&M is too mechanical. ICONS is like a toned down version of M&M. ICONS as a base is great. It is true, it is kinda broken, but with a lot of homebrew work it shines.

[@michaelconnor1542]

As someone else pointed out, Hero System's Champions is the best superhero game out there. 5th Edition and earlier. 6E screwed the pooch. 5e and earlier may not be the first, but did it best and is internally consistent. Unlike Mutants and Masterminds. Also, Hero doesn't believe in invulnerable. There is always a counter. Even if it plain brute force. Also, there are no levels. Just cost. It is a point buy system, though the Champions sourcebook does have rules for rolling up characters.

[@WhatisTableTop]

I will have to check out this game. The beautiful (and downside) of the TTRPG space is that there are so many games I’ve never heard of - Frank

[@sinmaan7568]

Another question. I read Sentinel comics and i must say its very interesting. But two things stuck me as missing: any drawbacks for characters (ex kryptonite) or a social interaction system. How would you handle those situations?

[@WhatisTableTop]

Sentinels has the Major and Minor Twists which act like drawbacks but focus more on the personality of the character rather than their power. So if a PC gets a twist their “need to protect” a random civilian will take priority over fighting the bad guy As for the social interaction, I’d have to reread it but I do agree there isn’t much to those kinds of situations. But I would just have the rolls happen but without adding their power/ability

[@tabletopgamingwithwolfphototec]

0:13 you would definitely get Copyright striked for the song.

[@TweaksDIRT]

Have you ever looked at spectaculars? I think it's on sale right now, but it's like an all-in-one RPG box and you can customize it however you want to. In terms of death and what not, it's more of a narrative game

[@larsnelson8431]

I'm kinda disappointed that you pictured Absolute Power in the thumbnail, but didn't actually talk about it in the video.

[@DeviousHearts-nn3jd]

Mutants & Masterminds? Calculus level? Really? It's basic math..... honestly. Basic remedial algebra.... guys.

[@northernlight8857]

It's too much and it's slow. It's wonderfully detailed and that is part of the problem. People want easier games at cons and events.

[@DeviousHearts-nn3jd]

@@northernlight8857 All the math is in the character generation if you go the point buy route and there is no better game for fine-tuning. The combat is basic d20. Instead of keeping track of hit points, you just make saves for damage. Super-simple to use a pre-gen for a con game. You can also use the random table generator and just roll d20 to make your character or pick something off the table. Really.... simple.... honest