Has anyone been using Simon Washbourne's Supers! RPG for their superhero game? I'm an admirer of his fine work on some other titles, but I've been toying around with ICONS and have sort of ignored this one. I see where the print/pdf bundle is still available at C7, and was thinking about getting it.

Does it do anything better than ICONS, or how is the feel different? What's your experience with it?

Ran it once, a few weeks ago, when only half the gang showed up for the WFRP game. Chose not to run WFRP and ran this instead, making up an adventure on the fly.

Ridiculously simple chargen. I can put together a character in a minute or less; 2-5 minutes for players unfamiliar with the system. No exaggeration. However, my two players spent ALL their dice (0 hero dice for both) and ended up with 7D or 8D in one or two powers, vastly dominating the game and never failing at anything.

The game moves very quickly. You roll as many dice as indicated in your Skill or Power, and compare to a difficulty table, or to your opponents' roll. If it's combat, loser takes damage to one of his or her Resistances (Composure, Fortitude, Reaction or Willpower). If any one Resistance hits 0,  you are incapacitated.

The idea that you can attack or defend with any power (e.g. Professor X attacks with Telepathy and Juggernaut defends with Super-Strength) is fun at first but ends up with all powers -- and eventually even the characters -- feeling very "samey".

That's all I got from a really quick, seat-ofthe-pants game.

Won't run it again (sorry Simon. You rock but Supers! just isn't my cuppa) and nowadays I suspect something crunchier like Wild Talents, M&M or Hero might better appeal to the DC Heroes (MEGS) fan in me. Nevertheless, I'd still loike to give ICONS a try. And if all else fails, Savage Worlds with the Super Powers Companion actually looks pretty good to me; maybve you should check it out too.

Isn't the game in the planning stages for a second edition? I bought it but it's on the pile of stuff yet to play. Truth told it kinda looked like a homegrown indie effort, but sometimes the best ideas come from homegrown indie types.

I think someone was trying the bash the round peg of BoL into a square Superheroes hole but its gone quiet on that front as far as I know.

Come to think of it, BASH! is an option too, or the old Marvel FASERIP game available free off the internetweb place here

Supers! has its fans but against the might of fan love for M&M and Marvel Heroic it might always be another little supers game. Be interesting to see what happens with Icons now that Steve Kenson is back in charge of it.

Its a nice simple little game. I think its fun, however, it isn't as genre aware as Icons or H&S or similar games--for me that's a small problem as I like the games doing the genres well.

Quote from: Silverlion;632990Its a nice simple little game. I think its fun, however, it isn't as genre aware as Icons or H&S or similar games--for me that's a small problem as I like the games doing the genres well.

Interesting! Could you perhaps give an example? Your comments on supers gaming are always worth hearing, IMO.

While a solid game it doesn't really play up say epithets (Icons), banter (H&S) or the pace and language of comics. Its not bad, or anything just another game.

Comics at least better/earlier comics use language fairly specificially for some over the top things like the things "It's Clobberin Time" or the Hulks "Strongest one there is.." or Spider-Man's constant prattling/taunting speech to his foes. The are things that it would be fun if games took a look at and found a way to include them.

The game doesn't explain how to threaten relationships/loved ones in interesting manners (not that many games do that.) However, it is nice to have advice on those things on how to run a superhero game and get the feel to seem like you are participating in a comic book, as opposed to a game about the same subjects as comic books.

Hey folks!

I'm a HUGE fan of SUPERS!.  I picked it up a couple of years ago, and it didn't make an impression. Then I picked it up again, and I truly realized how flexible and comprehensive it is!  I still play other games occasionally, like BASH, but SUPERS! is now my go to game for superhero gaming.

The sameyness mentioned by The Butcher can happen, but only if you aren't reveling in the game's narrative elements.  Juggernaut can't defend against Professor X's Mind Blast with his Super Strength, unless he can come up with a cool narrative explanation for why he's doing that.  There is strategy involved too, because using the Super Strength for Defense means that Juggy can't use it for attack the same round, so he might not want to do that.

Anyway, a Revised Edition is in the works.  It promises to kick it up a notch in terms of presentation, examples of play, etc.

Best,

Dragonfly

Quote from: Silverlion;632990It isn't as genre aware as Icons or H&S or similar games--for me that's a small problem as I like the games doing the genres well.

I can see what you mean here in terms of presentation. Systemwise, however, it includes much of this.  For example, it has a mechanic for social damage.  The Presence Aptitude is meant to allow characters like Spider-Man to render their foes ineffective with witty banter and taunting, or a character like Captain America to subdue a crowd with a commanding speech.  That stuff isn't highlighted, though, so it takes awhile to realize its there.  Personally, I find that the narrative approach it brings to combat allows me to model comics action far more easily than any other superhero game that I've played (and I've played most of them).

The revised edition promises to provide far more in terms of options and advice.  I hope it also brings a sense of comics fun to the way its presented.

I remember back in the day when I played Champions (for like 20 years straight).  The game was hyper crunchy (almost intrusively or oppressively so), but what drew me in were the Stan Lee-esque advice sections, Fox Bat's breaking the fourth wall, and all sorts of other gimmicks that made me feel like I was in a comic book. T'was fun. :-)

All the best,

Dragonfly

Here's the review I did for the game:  http://www.therpgsite.com/showthread.php?t=20650

Does anyone have any idea when the Revised Edition is coming out?

Best source of information is here which is the new Supers! owners board and probably the best source of news on the game.

We also play a lot of SUPERS! and have found it to be really good for fast comic book stories.  While I personally like ICONS and BASH, my players always want to play SUPERS!

It is deceptively tactical with some neat story game bits without all the meta game elements.  The resistance system is great for emulating physical attacks, mental attacks and social attacks with the players describing what the effects are to their characters.

We don't really see the sameness factor as much because you can only use each power once in a panel.  So if you attack with your super speed then you have to choose another power, resistance or aptitude to defend.  Sure, if you invest all your points into a signature power your going to succeed big when you use it but it will leave you vulnerable in other areas.

I have to say that I get much better player descriptions and storytelling with it than any of the other Superhero games we have played.  The mook rules are fast and fun and we have a blast with the environment obstacle battles.

Actually we experienced the sameness factor most with ICONs because of the static numbers and after the third or fourth "It's Clobberin Time" it kind of got boring not to mention trying to take down those big bads with big numbers.

SUPERS! is a lite game with some neat bits but it won't hit the buttons if you want detailed effects style play or crunchy bits.  It does have a lot of room for interpretation but with a good group and a few house rules it does it's job admirably.

OK, so re: use of abilities or powers, it's that you can only use once per round. So if Chimpan-Z, genetically modified cyborg ape of the future, uses his Laser Vision this round, he needs to either find a way to incorporate one of his aptitudes or other powers for his next action? So, if I have, say, Laser Vision and Super Speed, I'd need to use each one no more than once in a round, then switch over to Aptitudes like Athletics or Fighting? I assume aptitudes are unlimited use?

You can use a power, aptitude or resistance one time per round.  So he might attack with his laser vision then use his super speed to defend against one attacker and then his athletics skill to avoid a second attack or maybe use his fortitude resistance to take it on the chin and keep fighting.  Now you can take boosts to give him a split attack for say his laser vision so it can be used twice.

The system really makes you think about using all your skills and powers to be effective.

The next round he might use his Fighting aptitude to clock the guy who took a swing at him then laser blast the car that was hurled at him and his super speed to get clear of those chain wielding mooks closing in on him.

The fun comes trying to describe how your using your powers rather than what they can and can't do.

Quote from: Malistyr;633316You can use a power, aptitude or resistance one time per round.  So he might attack with his laser vision then use his super speed to defend against one attacker and then his athletics skill to avoid a second attack or maybe use his fortitude resistance to take it on the chin and keep fighting.  Now you can take boosts to give him a split attack for say his laser vision so it can be used twice.

The system really makes you think about using all your skills and powers to be effective.

The next round he might use his Fighting aptitude to clock the guy who took a swing at him then laser blast the car that was hurled at him and his super speed to get clear of those chain wielding mooks closing in on him.

The fun comes trying to describe how your using your powers rather than what they can and can't do.

I couldn't have described it better, so I won't try.  I'll say this - the first time I read the rules I put them aside somewhat disdainfully, thinking, "What! Spider-Man can only use his Reaction to dodge once per round? That doesn't emulate the comics! How's he supposed to take on the Sinister Six!?"  About a year later I tested the system by doing write-ups of about 30 Marvel characters then pit them against each other.  That's when I realized that Spider-Man (or a character like him) would have PLENTY.  He avoids Electro with a Reaction check (dipping out of the way of his blast), avoids Rhino with Super Leap (jumping over the charging behemoth), Green Goblin with his Webs  power (thwipping a pole in mid-leap, and swinging out of the blast radius of his pumpkin bomb), Sandman with his Danger Sense (detecting the attack before it even begins and acting accordingly), and Doc Ock with Wall Crawling (as he runs up a wall to avoid his arms).  He runs right up to Mysterio and clocks him with his Super Strength.

Now, he probably would have taken some damage from these attacks.  The player could decide how this damage is applied - either to Fortutude (minor scratches from shattering walls or exploding bombs), Composure (torn mask from shrapnel that makes Spidey worry that his Secret ID will be discovered), or Reaction (minor taser like effects because Electro's blast came a little too close), but he'd probably still be ticking and more than ready to continue the fight.

Makes for some dynamic gaming! :-]

All the best,

Dragonfly