Graph Paper Games

First of all, I switched out the "new" fancy theme of the blog, because I wasn't really caring for it.  Back to the classic layout, I say! Second, I haven't posted in almost a month.  I'm in the thick of the roller derby season, which means making lots of practices, etc.  I am still running Bash , the superhero RPG.  We had a session last Friday, one that focused on my son's character, the Samoan superhero Haka.   Bash has been a fun game to run, and I feel like there are a lot of plot lines to be explored, especially ones connected to the PC's backstory.  But... We also returned back to my basement, which was a welcome change Two members of my gaming group have indicated their desire to run a game: Rachel wants to run Star Trek  using the Last Unicorn Games; Tony wants to do a Victorian-era Sherlock Holmes game using Baker Street.   Now, I'm leaving it to them to schedule these games, but that makes for a crowded landscape. Also in Jul...

I mentioned in my last post that I had been contacted by the creators of The Ultimate Hero that they were changing the PC creation rules, which I've been using for the April A-to-Z Blog Challenge.  They followed up by saying the rules were not changing substantially, and that my previous (and future) entries will translate into the newer rules without difficulty.  So I continue! Getaway Charisma 3 Intelligence 5 (Primary) Will Power 3 Dexterity 5 Stamina 2 Strength 3 Race: Kasen, Gatekeeper Power Level 1 Motivation: Greed Disadvantages: Wanted (major) Advantages: Attribute Bonus 5 (Intelligence), Portal Keeper, Secret Identity, Iron Will, Skill Point Bonus Skills: Brawling, Range, Athletics, Perception, Subterfuge (Escape, Stealth) Racial Powers: Improved Movement; +1 Racial bonus to Spot, Listen, and Tracking Specializations; Low Tech; Teleportation, Mystical Presence Powers: Teleportation 2, Invisibility, Psi-Shield, Protected Senses Sav...

False Idol Charisma 5 Intelligence 4 Will Power 6 (Primary) Dexterity 2 Stamina 2 Strength 2 Race: Human, Mental Mutate Power Level 1 Motivation: Power Disadvantages: Foe from the past, Megalomaniac  Advantages: Attribute bonus (Willpower) 6, Attribute bonus (Charisma) 5, Influential Benefactor, Power Pool increase, Resources 4 Skills: Meditation (Mental Focus), Social Interaction (Deception, Leadership) Racial Powers: Powers in Manipulation or Mental categories are 1/2 cost.  Power from Body Manipulation and Reduction categories cost double.  Vulnerability to power negation. Powers: Mind Control, Image Generation, Telepathy Saves: Kinetic 0, General 0, Will 6 Defense: Passive 11, Active 13  Health: 40 Endure Pain: 3 Power Pool: 115 Power Channeling: 7 Equipment: Ceremonial robes. Background: "False Idol" isn't what Simon Corrick calls himself; it is the name that DOSHI agents have given him.  Corrick has ...

Egregious Charisma 1 Intelligence 2 Will Power 4 Dexterity 3 Stamina 4 Strength 5 (primary) Race: Human, Physical Mutate Power Level 1 Motivation: Violence Disadvantages: Unusual appearance Advantages: Tough, Very Tough, Large, Attribute Bonus (Strength) 5, Skill bonus combat, Resources 1 Skills: Combat (Brawling 2), Melee, Range, Athletics, Vehicle Operations Racial Powers: powers from the Body Manipulation and Reduction are half price, powers from the Manipulation category cost double, Vulnerable to power negation Powers: Body Armor, Unyielding, Body Weaponry, Battle Fury Saves: Kinetic 12, General 7, Will 2 Defense: Passive 10, Active 14 Health: 127 Endure Pain: 6 Power Pool: 45 Power Channeling: 6 Equipment: Combat Shotgun, 8 Dimeload rounds, 3 Shrapnel grenades, $3000 Background:  Barrett Coles grew up in a difficult, poverty-ridden neighborhood on Earth.  As a youth he became a schoolyard bully and developed a viol...

I got a good bit of constructive criticism regarding my first handful of entries into the A-to-Z Challenge, namely regarding a lack of background, especially for those unfamiliar with the game (which would be just about everybody).  Some of that is just the pressure of cranking out all these NPC's, but I thought I would at least try to give some more insight into how I see these guys working in my own TUH games. Ajax: In TUH, humanity had superheroes and supervillains for over a century, but now there has been an explosion of spontaneously mutating humans manifesting powers.  In addition, the discovery of alien life and cultures whose technologies far outpace what humanity had to offer has caused huge societal changes for the Earth.  In less than fifty years humanity has gone from traveling through the solar system to spanning the galaxy, but their advancement has been under the very controlling gaze of the other races, especially the Xeros.  Those same alien race...

Continuing with my plan of creating 26 supervillains for the sci-fi/superhero RPG The Ultimate Hero Doc Clockwork Charisma 3 Intelligence 5 Will Power 4 Dexterity 4 Stamina 3 Strength 3 Race: Human Power Level 1 Motivation: Scientific Curiousity Disadvantages: Curiosity Advantages: Cyborg Powers (10), Keen Eyesight (3), Media Family (5), Resources 5 (20), Technical talent (20), Tough (7) Skills: Knowledge, Social interaction, Hi Tech Theory (Cybernetics), Medicine (Surgery) Racial Powers:  Powers: Artificial Senses, Cybernetic Arm, Dermal Reinforcement, Nanite Regeneration Saves: Kinetic 6, General 6, Will 2 Defense: Passive 10, Active 14 Health: 58 Endure Pain: 4 Power Pool: 55 Power Channeling: 6 Equipment: Doc Clockwork travels in a custom-built spaceship with a full medical bay including surgical suite.  He is often contracting private security or calling in favors from previous clients. Background: Doctor ...

For the A-to-Z Challenge I'm creating 26 villains for the sci-fi/superhero RPG The Ultimate Hero . Cryo-Jenny Charisma 3 Intelligence 4 Will Power 3 Dexterity 5 (Primary) Stamina 3 Strength 3 Race: Human, Meta-Mutate Power Level 1 Motivation: Greed Disadvantages: Wanted, Minor Phobia (fire) Advantages: Attribute Bonus Dexterity 5 (7), Jack-of-all-trades (15), Luck (10), Power Pool Increase (10), Power Trick Basic (20) Skills: Martial Arts, Range, Athletics, Subterfuge (Lockpicking) Racial Powers: Specialization (General Powers), Vulnerability to Power Negation Powers: Ice Manipulation, Hyper Speed, Night Vision, Combat Reflexes Saves: Kinetic 1, General 1, Will 1 Defense: Passive 10, Active 14 Health: 44 Endure Pain: 4 Power Pool: 115 Power Channeling: 5 Equipment: Personal Armor, Handgun (3 clips normal ammunition), silencer, business and casual clothes, PDA Background: Cryo-Jenny is a young mutate and professional assassi...

I'm creating 26 supervillains for the sci-fi/superhero RPG The Ultimate Hero for the A-to-Z Blogging Challenge. Borden, Lisbeth Charisma 3 Intelligence 3 Will Power 4 (Primary) Dexterity 3 Stamina 3 Strength 3 Race: Supernatural, Spirit Power Level 1 Motivation: Vengeance Disadvantages: Blood Lust Advantages: Hide True Power, Tough, Skill Bonus (Blade Master) Skills: Melee (Blade Master), Knowledge, Perception, Social Interaction, Subterfuge (Stealth) Racial Powers: Undead, Spirit Form Powers: Shadow Walk, Soul Forged Weapon (axe) Saves: Kinetic 1, General 1, Will 2 Defense: Passive 9, Active 12 Health: 65 Endure Pain: 4 Power Pool: 85 Power Channeling: 5 Equipment: Victorian clothes, axe Background: Three years ago local law enforcement were summoned to the home of Carl Morton, a senior partner at the financial consulting firm IFH.  There they found Morton and his wife fending off what the police described as a spectral woman...

Ajax Power Level 1 Human Paragon (full conversion cyborg) Motivation: Fanatic Attributes Charisma 4 (Primary) Intelligence 4 Will Power 5 Dexterity 4 Stamina 4 Strength 5 Disadvantages: Wanted (major), Intolerance, Advantages: Ally; Attribute Bonus, Strength 5; Attribute Bonus, Dexterity 4; Attribute Bonus, Will Power 5; Attribute Bonus, Stamina 4; Influential Benefactor; Iron Will; Military Heritage; Resources 2 Skills: Martial Arts (Kickboxing), Range (Firearms), Social Interaction (Leadership), Subterfuge, Demolitions Powers: Full Conversion Cybernetics       Power bonus to Kinetic and General 10      Health bonus of 20      Close combat damage bonus of 5      Strength 6 lifting capacity      Vulnerability to magnetics Saves: Kinetic 12, General 12, Will 9 Defense: Passive 10, Active 16 Health: 66 Endure Pain: 5 Power Pool: 120 Power Channeling: 5 Equipment:  Assa...

This all began in 2015 when I went to KantCon and had a chance to play The Ultimate Hero , a sci-fi/superhero RPG created by Paragon Notion .  It was a lot of fun and it was interesting to play in a game run by its creators as the game itself was in its Beta phase.  At the end of the session I happened to win the hardcopy of the rules which I've been picking my way through ever since. There is not a lot of supplementary material out there for the game, including any supervillains with which the PC's can come into conflict, so I thought for the April A-to-Z Blogging Challenge I'd try to come with 26 villains, including backstory and stats, from A to Z. The background of The Ultimate Hero is that it is the year 2135.  There have been superhumans thoughout history, rare individuals who became the stuff of legend and mythology.  In the latter half of the 20th Century there was a boom in superhumans fueled by human mutation, followed by the appearance of typical ...

I thought I would try out making my own character for The Ultimate Hero .  My character concept was a creepy hitman-style character who could pop out of the shadows, unload a couple of pistols, and then disappear again.  It less than an hour to put together, but here's the result. Name: Unknown Alias: The Ghoul Race: Supernatural (no subrace) Charisma 2 Intelligence 3 Willpower 4 Dexterity 5 (primary) Stamina 4 Strength 2 Disadvantages: Dark Secret (10), Foe from the past (10) Advantages: Ambidextrous (10), Attribute Bonus (Dexterity, 10), Damage Resistant (10), Keen Smell (3), Magic Sense (2), Supernatural Power Specialist (30), Very tough (15) Racial Abilities: Immune to Cold Vulnerability to Soulfire Passive Defense 11 Active Defense 15 Health 104 Endure Pain 5 Starting Power Level 1 Power Channeling 6 Power Pool 95 Saves Kinetic 15 Will 3 General 3 Powers: Shadow Walk 1 (5) Life Drain 1 (5) Night Vision (5) Healing (5) Skills: Martia...