Friday, October 8, 2010

Traits vs Non-Traits

So, Robin has a motorcycle. Does this mean that the player of Robin needs to buy a Motorcycle Trait? No. Unless the character sees it something that might be used in a scene, the player can be assumed to have it (again, that trust between Editor and Players) and if the player wanted to use it, it is a Trait with a Rank of 0.

Traits- in the game I am running, two characters wanted to be regenerators, and two wanted to be teleporters. In many systems, this would likely mean the stepping on of toes and overlapping powersets. However, in this case, it meant that they all had different Traits, how their Traits worked and what they did. One teleporter was unreliable, meaning it didn't always work (the character actually wholly denied being able to teleport, instead just kind of shrugging and usually ending up where he/she wanted to be), the regenerators- one was a classic wolverine style regenerator, one was more of a I'm too clueless to notice how hurt I am, and I get better.

Instead of having to craft characters who had overlaps, it was alot of fun to think about why their powers, on paper in many systems, were the same, but how they were different, and not just in the Ranks they had in the Traits.

3 comments:

  1. I cant wait to see the book. Trait system presented in this game seems great for solo play with help of Mythic GM emulator.
    If you need a play-tester for solo games with the system, just let me know :)

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  2. This is all looking very interested. I wonder if you may enlighten us a little on advancing a character? One thing that always annoyed me with other supers systems was to have an experience point system (I know Cartoon action hour doesnt so I am hopeful) which seemed to have nothing to do with comics. Supers seem to develop when important for a story - after a few years, they reboot, bringing characters back from the dead, retelling an origin etc. Are you planning to introduce these genre elements to character advancement?

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  3. There will be several XP systems presented, but the default one is: there is none. With the Editor's approval, characters may retool their characters as they change and develop, but their point total will remain the same. This seems to be the most superheroic and in keeping with the genre.

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