[7:34 PM]Alex: Hello everyone! My name is Alex Thomas and I am the line developer for Mutants & Masterminds, the world’s greatest superhero RPG, published by Green Ronin Publishing. I’ve been a game designer for 12 years now, starting off as a freelancer, before moving into the lead position in January 2023. I’ve been a forever GM since my dad bought the third edition D&D starter box for my brother and I when I was 11. I’m a karaoke enthusiast, a dog lover, and an aspiring Kryptonian!
[7:34 PM]Alex: Done
[7:35 PM]Dan (Hardboiled GMshoe): Thanks, @Alex! The floor is open to questions!
[7:35 PM]Dan (Hardboiled GMshoe): Does Mutants & Masterminds have a default setting?
[7:37 PM]Zarek – Rochai (Indominant): Considering that it’s a Superhero game, what is the power scale of player characters? Godly power like that of modern DC and Marvel, or more grounded and “realistic”?
[7:38 PM]Alex: It does! The Earth-Prime setting which encompasses a wide universe dealing with all sorts of superhero genres from the street-level vigilantes of Ferroburg, all the way to universe shattering calamities of the Terminus. Most of our adventures are set in and around Freedom City or Emerald City on either coast of the United States. Freedom is a lot like Metropolis in the DC Universe or New York in the Marvel Universe while Emerald City has sort of a grunge freestyle superhero feel to it. Emerald City didn’t have any superheroes until an event called the Silver Storm gave a bunch of people powers so it’s a great place to set first games to put everyone on an even playing field.
@Zarek – Rochai (Indominant)Considering that it’s a Superhero game, what is the power scale of player characters? Godly power like that of modern DC and Marvel, or more grounded and “realistic”?[7:39 PM]Alex: One of the great things about M&M as a system is the character customization options we offer. It’s a point buy system and power scale is dependent on the type of superhero story you want to tell. We use Power Levels to determine the ranks of characters and to set maximums and minimums for difficulty checks.
[7:39 PM]Dan (Hardboiled GMshoe): I take it that in terms of what’s possible, Earth-Prime is an “anything goes” kind of superhero setting? Aliens, gods, dinosaurs, mole men, robots, demons, the whole nine yards?
[7:40 PM]Alex: I’ve made over 300 builds for popular superheroes and have run games in conventions from Guardians of the Galaxy to Justice League, Suicide Squad, and even Fallout and Star Wars
@Dan (Hardboiled GMshoe)I take it that in terms of what’s possible, Earth-Prime is an “anything goes” kind of superhero setting? Aliens, gods, dinosaurs, mole men, robots, demons, the whole nine yards?[7:41 PM]Alex: Yes! Our setting uses a kitchen sink approach that is popular in a lot of classic superhero settings. There’s magic, metahumans, aliens, robots, we even have a super genius T-Rex from an alternate dimension named Cerebrus Rex who wants to conquer the primitive primates of our universe
[7:42 PM]Dan (Hardboiled GMshoe): Does M&M have a universal power cap level?
[7:45 PM]Alex: We have something called Power Level X to replicate characters who have powers beyond the capabilities of most beings. People like Mister Mxyzptlk, Trigon, or Q from Star Trek
[7:45 PM]Alex: But as for characters with actual sheets, I tend to cut things off around Power Level 20
[7:46 PM]Dan (Hardboiled GMshoe): Can you give us an example of a Power Level 20 character from well-known comics?
[7:49 PM]Alex: I tend to use this rank chart for reference: Rank 8-9 Street Level Heroes/Sidekicks (Robin) Rank 10-11 Just Starting Out Superheroes (Nightwing) Rank 12-13 Established Heroes/Villains (Batman, Flash) Rank 14-15 Low Cosmic Level (Green Lantern, Wonder Woman) Rank 16-18 Cosmic Level Heroes/Villains (Superman/Brainiac) Rank 19-20 Universe Level Heroes/Villains (Darkseid)
[7:50 PM]al spader (Sentience, Once Upon): Can you give us an overview of the system mechanics?
[7:50 PM]Dan (Hardboiled GMshoe): And before you do that, do you have a character sheet that we can see?1
@al spader (Sentience, Once Upon)Can you give us an overview of the system mechanics?[7:50 PM]Alex: I have a couple!
[7:53 PM]Alex: So I have some that I made custom for convention games Wolverine and Doomba up there
[7:56 PM]Dan (Hardboiled GMshoe): That’s a nice, clean character sheet.
[7:56 PM]Alex:Superman.pdf694.60 KBSamwise.pdf573.75 KB
[7:56 PM]Alex: And these are two more general sheets, a lot of people use a software called Hero Lab to make their sheets so most people will use character sheets that look like these
@al spader (Sentience, Once Upon)Can you give us an overview of the system mechanics?[7:57 PM]Alex: Mechanics wise, M&M is super simple to play. We only use one d20 and it’s a d20 plus a modifier versus a difficuly check. The higher you roll compared to that DC the better you do and the lower you roll the worse you do.
[7:58 PM]Alex: We also have the BEST player facing currency in all of gaming: the Hero Point
[7:58 PM]Alex: Hero Points can be used to reroll a dice, but if you use them this way you’re guaranteed to get an 11-20 on the dice. If you roll 1-10 you add 10 so it never sucks to use it for a reroll and I was certain companies would take inspiration from that
[7:59 PM]Dan (Hardboiled GMshoe): Puts me in mind of Torg Possibilities.(edited)
[7:59 PM]Alex: You can also use Hero Points to Edit a Scene to include a detail that the GM didn’t mention being present, like if you’re fighting Poison Ivy in a greenhouse you can say oh look the gardener left some herbicide out, I’ll use that to attack her plants
[8:00 PM]Alex: Or look Robin there’s sharks here and I brought the shark repellant spray in the Batcopter1
[8:00 PM]al spader (Sentience, Once Upon): How many Hero points do you get and how do you get more?
[8:00 PM]Alex: You can use them to do a Power Stunt, which allows you to use your powers in a way that isn’t listed under your effects. Like if Bowman needs a trick arrow in a pinch or Zatanna casts a spell she doesn’t usual cast(edited)
[8:00 PM]Dan (Hardboiled GMshoe): What (if any) is the relationship between Abilities and Skills?
[8:02 PM]Alex: Hero Points are earned through good roleplaying, adhering to genre conventions, suffering setbacks from Complications, vivid descriptions, jokes I think are funny, jokes I think aren’t funny (especially puns), and basically up to GM discretion. I like to give out at least one to every player per scene. They’re meant to be constantly flowing from the PCs so they can do all the cool stuff
@Dan (Hardboiled GMshoe)What (if any) is the relationship between Abilities and Skills?[8:02 PM]Alex: Skills have a base Ability that is added to the Ranks you buy in the skill to create your total bonus. Some skills cannot be used untrained, but those that can may be attempted using just the base Ability
[8:03 PM]Dan (Hardboiled GMshoe): I seem to recall M&M being based on d20 (as in D&D 3.x), but it looks like the game has evolved quite a bit since then.1
[8:03 PM]Dan (Hardboiled GMshoe): Fair to say?
[8:04 PM]Alex: Our abilities are: Strength-how big of a tomato you can pick up Stamina-how rotten of a tomato you can eat Agility-how quickly you can grab a tomato Dexterity-how well you can throw a tomato Fighting-how well you can smash a tomato into someone’s face Intellect-knowing a tomato is a fruit Awareness-knowing not to put a tomato in a fruit salad Presence-being able to sell a tomato based fruit salad as salsa1
[8:05 PM]Dan (Hardboiled GMshoe): So it maters how you spend your points.
@Dan (Hardboiled GMshoe)I seem to recall M&M being based on d20 (as in D&D 3.x), but it looks like the game has evolved quite a bit since then.[8:05 PM]Alex: Yes! First edition M&M was very close to D&D 3.x but we’ve moved away from those origins in the 23 years we’ve been around. And I’m very interested in continuing to push us away from those roots as we move into the Valiant Adventures Roleplaying Game and other M&M stuff in the future(edited)
@Dan (Hardboiled GMshoe)So it maters how you spend your points.[8:06 PM]Alex: Yes! One of the things I love most about M&M is that you can use your points to create pretty much anything you can imagine
[8:06 PM]Dan (Hardboiled GMshoe): (Darn. Wasted pun. )
[8:06 PM]al spader (Sentience, Once Upon): Are super powers specific like marvel multiverse or are they more abstract like in MASKS?
@Dan (Hardboiled GMshoe)(Darn. Wasted pun. )[8:07 PM]Alex: I just saw that it said maters XD1
[8:07 PM]al spader (Sentience, Once Upon): The old Valient RPG had a neat dice system.
[8:07 PM]Alex: Plus 1 Hero Point for Dan1
[8:08 PM]Dan (Hardboiled GMshoe): A couple of observations: I like that you have a Fighting stat and that you separate Agility from Dexterity. Those moves help model a wider variety of heroes than would otherwise be possible.(edited)
@al spader (Sentience, Once Upon)Are super powers specific like marvel multiverse or are they more abstract like in MASKS?[8:08 PM]Alex: We create superpowers through Effects in our system. We start with what you want the power to do in the world, whether that is Damage, Protection, Leaping, Flight, Senses, etc. and you flavor it how you like in the narrative. Damage can be a laser beam, a super strength punch, really aggressive teddy bears. Whatever you like. We also have Extras and Flaws that can shape the way powers work and adjust how many points they cost1
[8:09 PM]Alex: Area Burst, Increased Range, Contagious, Permanent, and other examples
[8:09 PM]Dan (Hardboiled GMshoe): For example, super-archers like Hawkeye and Green Arrow have loads more Dexterity than they do Agility.
@Dan (Hardboiled GMshoe)A couple of observations: I like that you have a Fighting stat and that you separate Agility from Dexterity. Those moves help model a wider variety of heroes than would otherwise be possible. (edited)[8:09 PM]Alex: I’ve always been a fan of that too, I find that in some systems characters wind up being really good at things they probably shouldn’t be just because of how broad their abilities can be
@al spader (Sentience, Once Upon)The old Valient RPG had a neat dice system.[8:10 PM]Alex: I did like the old Valiant dice system! Our version isn’t affiliated with that one, but I did do some reading of it when we were designing our version1
[8:10 PM]Dan (Hardboiled GMshoe): Yup! And while Captain America is pretty nimble, his fighting ability is way beyond his agility.
[8:11 PM]Alex: Definitely, and I like that we have the ability to simulate that while having the Power Level system in place to make sure that even with a wide variety of character options everyone feels basically on an even playing field
[8:11 PM]Alex: Some characters will be more skill and advantage heavy while others are effect heavy and some will be quick while others are tough
[8:12 PM]Dan (Hardboiled GMshoe): Hmm. I’m not seeing any combat skills. Do they exist in this game, or does combat just rely on Abilities?
[8:15 PM]Alex: We do have a Close Combat and Ranged Combat Skill, on the custom sheets I made I moved them to the bottom of the second page to pull them out of the skills proper. There are also Close Attack and Ranged Attack advantages that give you a flat bonus to all of the pertaining attacks for 1 point/rank instead of the 2 points/rank that increasing Fighting or Dexterity would cost
[8:15 PM]Alex: There’s also Area Attacks which don’t call for a dice roll on the attacker’s part, but a Dodge check followed by a Toughness check from the target
[8:15 PM]al spader (Sentience, Once Upon): Do you have a solo play option?
[8:16 PM]Alex: And Perception Ranged attacks which can automatically hit one target the attacker can perceive with the selected perception sense
@al spader (Sentience, Once Upon)Do you have a solo play option?[8:16 PM]Alex: We don’t yet, but it is something I’ve been exploring in great detail over the last few months. I’d like to have an option for it once I’m finished with the Valiant Adventures work
@AlexWe don’t yet, but it is something I’ve been exploring in great detail over the last few months. I’d like to have an option for it once I’m finished with the Valiant Adventures work[8:18 PM]al spader (Sentience, Once Upon): I helped write Captain’s Log for Star Trek Adventures. It was a fun challenge and pretty successful
[8:18 PM]Dan (Hardboiled GMshoe): One issue I have with effects-based systems is that they make multi-use powers a lot more complicated; for example, they don’t really allow for you to just take a power called “Weather Control” — you have to break out wind, flight, lightning, cold, etc. Is that an issue with M&M?
@al spader (Sentience, Once Upon)I helped write Captain’s Log for Star Trek Adventures. It was a fun challenge and pretty successful[8:19 PM]Alex: I’ve been studying Captain’s Log! I really like the way it does solo play
@AlexI’ve been studying Captain’s Log! I really like the way it does solo play[8:20 PM]al spader (Sentience, Once Upon): Feel free to reach out if you have questions!
[8:20 PM]al spader (Sentience, Once Upon): Are there rules for superhero teams?
@al spader (Sentience, Once Upon)Feel free to reach out if you have questions![8:21 PM]Dan (Hardboiled GMshoe): You two should schedule a stardate!
@Dan (Hardboiled GMshoe)One issue I have with effects-based systems is that they make multi-use powers a lot more complicated; for example, they don’t really allow for you to just take a power called “Weather Control” — you have to break out wind, flight, lightning, cold, etc. Is that an issue with M&M?[8:22 PM]Alex: That is not a problem in M&M we have a couple of ways to make that sort of power happen. We have something called Arrays which are groups of powers that come from a similar source but have different Effects (a quiver of trick arrows, a collection of superspeed stunts, weather control to slow enemies, damage enemies, or other hinder their actions.) The way an Array works is you pay full price for the most expensive power in the Array and every other power is only 1 point. You can only use one of those powers at a time, but it saves you a ton of points.
[8:22 PM]Dan (Hardboiled GMshoe): Interesting!
[8:22 PM]Alex: I actually built Storm for the convention I pulled Wolverine’s sheet from
[8:22 PM]Alex: This is what her Weather Control power looks like
[8:23 PM]Alex: She can use it to Snare some, Damage someone with an indirect lightning bolt that ignores cover or fill an area with hail stones, use high wind to deflect projectiles away from her teammates, and cause intense cold, slowed movement, and impaired vision in a 2 miles radius
[8:23 PM]Dan (Hardboiled GMshoe): Nice!
@al spader (Sentience, Once Upon)Feel free to reach out if you have questions![8:23 PM]Alex: I will!
[8:24 PM]GavinReadsWords: I’ve played M&M a handful of times (2nd edition, I think?) and had an absolute blast playing an analog of plastic man thanks to the Variable power. Thank you so much for facilitating that experience! What are some challenges that you have faced while developing for M&M and how have you overcome them to this point? And what are some challenges that you’re still facing today?
[8:24 PM]Dan (Hardboiled GMshoe): Oh, what edition is M&M currently on, and did you have a hand in all the previous editions?
@al spader (Sentience, Once Upon)Are there rules for superhero teams?[8:25 PM]Alex: We do have a whole sourcebook about superteams that talks about how to make characters feel like a cohesive team rather than a collection of mismatched strangers, and I always encourage a strong session zero to go over character concepts and genre expectations, especially with a genre as wide open as superheroes. The last thing you want is 4 Power Rangers and John Constantine showing up to be your party of PCs. (Although that does sound kind of dope)
@GavinReadsWordsI’ve played M&M a handful of times (2nd edition, I think?) and had an absolute blast playing an analog of plastic man thanks to the Variable power. Thank you so much for facilitating that experience! What are some challenges that you have faced while developing for M&M and how have you overcome them to this point? And what are some challenges that you’re still facing today?[8:26 PM]Alex: I’m glad you’ve enjoyed it! It’s my favorite game, but I’m kind of biased.
[8:26 PM]Dan (Hardboiled GMshoe): “Four Power Rangers and John Constatine walk into a bar…”1
[8:27 PM]Dan (Hardboiled GMshoe): (“The bartender says, ‘What is this, some kind of joke?'”)
[8:28 PM]Dan (Hardboiled GMshoe): You mentioned that degree of success matters. Can you say a bit more about that?
@GavinReadsWordsI’ve played M&M a handful of times (2nd edition, I think?) and had an absolute blast playing an analog of plastic man thanks to the Variable power. Thank you so much for facilitating that experience! What are some challenges that you have faced while developing for M&M and how have you overcome them to this point? And what are some challenges that you’re still facing today?[8:30 PM]Alex: As for challenges I’ve faced, most of them have been external business things or internal issues. The game has largely been awesome to work on, I’ve had an in-depth understanding of the rules and our setting for the last ten years. The D&D OGL debacle happened the second week after I was promoted to line developer and M&M was originally developed under the OGL so I got a lot of “Is M&M going to be okay” questions that I wasn’t super qualified to answer. Fortunately, I’m pushing us away from OGL as we go forward with M&M. As for the internal issues, I deal a lot with what I’m sure a lot of creative people deal with, imposter syndrome, periods of writer’s block, and a lot of doubting myself. I’ve been overcoming them by learning how to ask for help, regular therapy, and self-reflection1
[8:31 PM]Dan (Hardboiled GMshoe): I got a lot of “Is M&M going to be okay” questions that I wasn’t super qualified to answer.
[8:31 PM]Dan (Hardboiled GMshoe): How can you do M&M if you aren’t super-qualified?
[8:32 PM]GavinReadsWords: I think that’s something that designers and developers don’t talk publicly about too much – the business side of the industry. Thank you for sharing your experience! Since you’ve gotten started in TTRPGs, as a player, storyteller, and developer, how has the industry changed and where do you see it going in the near future?
@Dan (Hardboiled GMshoe)You mentioned that degree of success matters. Can you say a bit more about that?[8:33 PM]Alex: So degrees of success! Every 5 points you beat or fail a DC by adds a degree of success or failure. This is most reflected in our damage system as well as our challenge sequences. We don’t use Hit Points, we use Resistance Checks that incur penalties to future checks. Fail a Resistance Check by 1-5 you get a bruise that gives you a cumulative -1 to future Resistance Checks, 6-10 you get a Bruise and a Daze which limits you to a standard or a move action not both in the following round, 11-15 get a Bruise and a Stagger so you’re Dazed for the rest of the fight and if you’re Staggered twice you’re knocked out, fail by 16+ and you’re knocked out
[8:34 PM]Dan (Hardboiled GMshoe): Is it possible to die?
@Dan (Hardboiled GMshoe)> I got a lot of “Is M&M going to be okay” questions that I wasn’t super qualified to answer.[8:34 PM]Alex: I just mean to say that I wasn’t super qualified to answer questions about contract law or licensing agreements between organizations. I’m great at the design part and one of the things I love about my job is that it rarely feels like a job. Until something businessy happens like Wizards trying to nuke the industry
@GavinReadsWordsI think that’s something that designers and developers don’t talk publicly about too much – the business side of the industry. Thank you for sharing your experience! Since you’ve gotten started in TTRPGs, as a player, storyteller, and developer, how has the industry changed and where do you see it going in the near future?[8:35 PM]Alex: I think it’s really important for designers to talk about the business side too, because it is an industry that can seem sort of opaque from the outside.
@AlexI just mean to say that I wasn’t super qualified to answer questions about contract law or licensing agreements between organizations. I’m great at the design part and one of the things I love about my job is that it rarely feels like a job. Until something businessy happens like Wizards trying to nuke the industry[8:35 PM]Dan (Hardboiled GMshoe): I know. I was just being silly, what with the “super.”
@Dan (Hardboiled GMshoe)I know. I was just being silly, what with the “super.” [8:35 PM]Alex: I’ve got to learn to read tone better XD1
[8:36 PM]Dan (Hardboiled GMshoe): Hang out here long enough, and your Punny Senses will be heightened to paranormal levels.
@AlexI think it’s really important for designers to talk about the business side too, because it is an industry that can seem sort of opaque from the outside.[8:36 PM]al spader (Sentience, Once Upon): I agree. The back end of stuff is much more challenging than most aspiring writers know
[8:37 PM]al spader (Sentience, Once Upon): Especially with printing and shipping costs these days
[8:37 PM]Dan (Hardboiled GMshoe): How do weapons and armor function in the system? I’m going to take a wild guess that for the latter, you’ve abandoned AC for damage reduction.
@GavinReadsWordsI think that’s something that designers and developers don’t talk publicly about too much – the business side of the industry. Thank you for sharing your experience! Since you’ve gotten started in TTRPGs, as a player, storyteller, and developer, how has the industry changed and where do you see it going in the near future?[8:40 PM]Alex: I started in 2012 as a freelance writer for M&M, an opportunity that I sort of lucked into and I’ve been fortunate to have steady work doing that until I was brought on as line developer. The biggest change I’ve noticed since I got my start is just how many more opportunities exist to do things on your own, either through zines, POD on DriveThru, itch.io and any where else that indie games live right now, and there are a lot more people interested in the market who weren’t when I got started, both in terms of fans, content creators, and even business people starting to sniff around. Those opportunities to do things on your own and the saturation of the market however have made it harder for people to break into work for the traditional game companies if that’s what they’re looking for. It’s something I’ve been trying to help in the small ways I can because someone put the ladder down for me to climb in and it’s not my place to pull the ladder up behind me1
[8:40 PM]Dan (Hardboiled GMshoe): (Bio-break. brb!)
@AlexI started in 2012 as a freelance writer for M&M, an opportunity that I sort of lucked into and I’ve been fortunate to have steady work doing that until I was brought on as line developer. The biggest change I’ve noticed since I got my start is just how many more opportunities exist to do things on your own, either through zines, POD on DriveThru, itch.io and any where else that indie games live right now, and there are a lot more people interested in the market who weren’t when I got started, both in terms of fans, content creators, and even business people starting to sniff around. Those opportunities to do things on your own and the saturation of the market however have made it harder for people to break into work for the traditional game companies if that’s what they’re looking for. It’s something I’ve been trying to help in the small ways I can because someone put the ladder down for me to climb in and it’s not my place to pull the ladder up behind me[8:42 PM]al spader (Sentience, Once Upon): Yeah, market saturation is legit
[8:42 PM]al spader (Sentience, Once Upon): I lucked into my role at Modiphius too
[8:43 PM]Dan (Hardboiled GMshoe): (back)
@Dan (Hardboiled GMshoe)How do weapons and armor function in the system? I’m going to take a wild guess that for the latter, you’ve abandoned AC for damage reduction.[8:43 PM]Alex: Weapons and Armor are usually a descriptor for an Effect that adds the Removable Flaw to save some points. We break them down into two categories: Devices and Equipment. Devices are things that are superpowerful, usually one of a kind items, that form the backbone of a character’s abilities. Something like an Iron Man suit, a Green Lantern Ring, Wonder Woman’s Lasso, and Green Arrows…arrows. While Equipment is stuff you can buy off the shelf in universe or is standard issue for certain professions. That does mean that the difference between the two can be sort of murky and vary widely from setting to setting. A blaster rifle is going to be sort of weird in a medieval fantasy story but is common place in a space opera.
[8:44 PM]Alex: Devices cost normal power points with the removable flaw removing 1 per 5 points of the total cost of the item whereas Equipment is purchased through the Equipment Advantage. That Advantage is 1 point per rank and gives you 5 points to build Equipment with.
[8:44 PM]Dan (Hardboiled GMshoe): So a pistol would be statted out as a power?
[8:46 PM]Alex: Using the blaster rifle example: As a Device: Removable Ranged Damage 5 (1 point per rank of Damage + 1 point per rank to add the Increased Ranged Extra brings it to 10 points, minus 2 points for the Removable flaw) Costs 8 Power Points As Equipment: Equipment 2 buys 10 Power Points worth of Equipment for 2 Power Points.
@al spader (Sentience, Once Upon)I lucked into my role at Modiphius too[8:46 PM]Alex: It’s weird how common a story that is.1
[8:47 PM]Dan (Hardboiled GMshoe): What can you tell us about Titan City Chronicles?2
@AlexIt’s weird how common a story that is.[8:48 PM]al spader (Sentience, Once Upon): I should say that I lucked into an opportunity, then delivered, then earned my spot as a regular writer.2
[8:48 PM]Alex: I got my start at Origins Game Fair 2012, because back then they would put the con’s special guests into games randomly by lottery and Steve Kenson, the designer of M&M, was put into a Suicide Squad game I was running. They told me 15 minutes before it started that he would be there and I got to freak out because I had my pre-gens with me, a two sentence synopsis about the adventure, and a half remembered episode of Justice League I was basing it on. But he had a great time and afterwards I asked if I could write for him and he got me in touch with the line developer at time and I’ve been here ever since
@al spader (Sentience, Once Upon)I should say that I lucked into an opportunity, then delivered, then earned my spot as a regular writer.[8:49 PM]Alex: That is the part I’m trying to connect in my brain XD Yes I got lucky with an opportunity, but obviously my work is good enough to stay here and advance otherwise they wouldn’t have kept me1
@Dan (Hardboiled GMshoe)What can you tell us about Titan City Chronicles?[8:50 PM]Alex: The Titan City Chronicles is my baby! It started as a novel series, the first book of which is already out with two more in that trilogy on the way and a short story anthology expected soon, but it’s also featuring in some of our Mutants & Masterminds releases. We had our first adventure in that setting come out this month title the Lost Library
[8:50 PM]Alex: It is a fantasy noir setting that I’ve been building since 2011, that was actually centered around my first every M&M character
@AlexThat is the part I’m trying to connect in my brain XD Yes I got lucky with an opportunity, but obviously my work is good enough to stay here and advance otherwise they wouldn’t have kept me[8:50 PM]al spader (Sentience, Once Upon): Yup. You deserve it for sure! What new does the Cosmic Handbook bring to the game?
@AlexIt is a fantasy noir setting that I’ve been building since 2011, that was actually centered around my first every M&M character[8:51 PM]Dan (Hardboiled GMshoe): How would you describe fantasy noir, and to what degree does it resemble adventure pulp (Doc Savage, the Shadow, et al)?
[8:53 PM]Alex: The stories take place in an alternate America of the 1920s and 30s in which the existence of magic and monsters is known to the public at large and everyone is trying to figure out how to live together/take advantage of that situation. Mobsters use monsters in their gangs, there’s a Department of Monster Affairs which is suitably Hooverian in their application of Managed Democracy, costumed crimefighters and hard-boiled detectives are trying to keep everyone “safe,” and it’s an interesting time in the history of their world.
@al spader (Sentience, Once Upon)Yup. You deserve it for sure! What new does the Cosmic Handbook bring to the game?[8:54 PM]Alex: The new Cosmic Handbook brings a bunch of advice for GMs looking to tell space faring stories from Guardians of the Galaxy/Firefly style to space opera, to other weird and wonderful edges of the cosmos. There are PC archetypes for players to use, villains archetypes for GMs, and a lengthy breakdown of space in the Earth-Prime setting.
[8:55 PM]Dan (Hardboiled GMshoe): When you say that magic and monsters are known, has that always been the case in the setting, or is that a recent development?
@Dan (Hardboiled GMshoe)How would you describe fantasy noir, and to what degree does it resemble adventure pulp (Doc Savage, the Shadow, et al)?[8:56 PM]Alex: Fantasy noir to me is using urban fantasy tropes alongside classic noir archetypes. There is definitely pulp elements to Titan City as well, a lot of masked heroes who are hand over fist instead of being more superpowered. I often tell people it’s kind of like the Dresden Files meets the Maltese Falcon.
@Dan (Hardboiled GMshoe)When you say that magic and monsters are known, has that always been the case in the setting, or is that a recent development?[8:57 PM]Alex: It’s a recent development! Monsters and magic have always existed, but an order of wizards kept that a secret until they were wiped out in 1863 at the height of the American Civil War. It took a while for their protections to fade and in 1907 one of the few surviving wizards, Anson Walker, revealed everything to the public.
[8:57 PM]Dan (Hardboiled GMshoe): If the focus isn’t so much on superheroes in this setting, what makes M&M a better fit that Green Ronin’s AGE system?
@Dan (Hardboiled GMshoe)If the focus isn’t so much on superheroes in this setting, what makes M&M a better fit that Green Ronin’s AGE system?[8:58 PM]Alex: That’s a great question! M&M is a better fit in my mind because it allows the level of customization for players looking to have a group of wildly different PCs. Groups of PCs are often a combination of mad scientists, monsters, magic-users, and costumed crimefighters with a diverse range of abilities.
[8:59 PM]Alex: Here’s a group of PCs I use in a lot of my con games
[9:00 PM]Dan (Hardboiled GMshoe): Did you draw any inspiration from the made-for-HBO movie Cast a Deadly Spell?
[9:00 PM]Alex: Galatea: One of the surviving wizards and a leader of the Amazons in Titan City Isabella Thorne: A scrappy pre-cog with connections to the head of Monster Society Liam Slaine: Former monster whisperer to the Irish Mob Minerva Vanter: Golem Social Worker Myrrh: Spokesgargoyle for the DMA Sarina: Vampire princess/socialite Champion: Plucky superhero Erik Larsen: Half-giant bartender(edited)
@Dan (Hardboiled GMshoe)Did you draw any inspiration from the made-for-HBO movie Cast a Deadly Spell?[9:02 PM]Alex: I’ve not seen that but I will definitely look it up. I drew some inspiration from the Penny Dreadful series, the League of Extraordinary Gentlemen movie, Dresden Files, American Gods and Sandman, and a bunch of other places
[9:02 PM]Dan (Hardboiled GMshoe): Erik Larsen… Isn’t that the name of a comic book artist?
[9:02 PM]Alex: Obviously my love for superheroes and the Marvel Noir series
@Dan (Hardboiled GMshoe)Erik Larsen… Isn’t that the name of a comic book artist?[9:02 PM]Alex: It is! But I didn’t know that before I named him XD
[9:03 PM]Alex: The first novel in the series is called The Magician’s Sin and is about that Anson guy who kind of ruined everything for everyone
@AlexI’ve not seen that but I will definitely look it up. I drew some inspiration from the Penny Dreadful series, the League of Extraordinary Gentlemen movie, Dresden Files, American Gods and Sandman, and a bunch of other places[9:03 PM]Dan (Hardboiled GMshoe): Cast a Deadly Spell is set in an alternate 1940s in which magic has been recently discovered and is seen as the “wave of the future.” The main character is a hardboiled P.I. named Lovecraft.
@Dan (Hardboiled GMshoe)Cast a Deadly Spell is set in an alternate 1940s in which magic has been recently discovered and is seen as the “wave of the future.” The main character is a hardboiled P.I. named Lovecraft. [9:03 PM]Alex: That sounds awesome! I will look it up
[9:04 PM]Dan (Hardboiled GMshoe): Oh, and it’s free on YouTube.
[9:04 PM]Dan (Hardboiled GMshoe): Here it is: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s0xHtxgNVeAYouTubeFree Movies 4uCast a Deadly Spell 1991
[9:04 PM]Alex: Hell yeah!
[9:04 PM]Dan (Hardboiled GMshoe): Highly recommended.
[9:04 PM]Alex: It’s from the same year I am
[9:05 PM]Dan (Hardboiled GMshoe): Well, damn. Now I feel ancient.
[9:05 PM]Alex: No! I’m just a baby1
[9:05 PM]Alex: It’s weird to think about, but I’m really part of only maybe the third generation of game designers
[9:06 PM]Dan (Hardboiled GMshoe): I suppose that’s true!
[9:06 PM]Dan (Hardboiled GMshoe): What was the thinking behind releasing Titan City as a series of adventures rather than as a full setting?
[9:06 PM]Alex: It was Gary Gygax and Arneson and those guys, my bosses Chris Pramas, Nicole Lindroos, and the other Gen Xers, and now me
@Dan (Hardboiled GMshoe)What was the thinking behind releasing Titan City as a series of adventures rather than as a full setting?[9:07 PM]Alex: I can’t say more than there is a plan to release as a full setting coinciding with an event in the future…
[9:07 PM]Alex: But in the meantime we wanted to give people a chance to dip their toes in the universe
[9:08 PM]Dan (Hardboiled GMshoe): Ah, I see. Cool.
[9:08 PM]Alex: Here’s the cover for the Lost Library which features one of my favorite minions: Mummified Baboon Servants of Thoth”
[9:09 PM]Alex: And I guess the super soldier Chevron and the world’s fastest woman: The Riveter
[9:10 PM]Alex: The Lost Library in question is the Library of Alexandria and a plot by its last librarian to destroy Egypt for forcing the Hellenic influence out
[9:10 PM]Dan (Hardboiled GMshoe): To what degree are the masked pulp heroes of Titan City actual superheroes? Are they proto-supers along the lines of the Shadow and the Avenger, or are they full-blown (but perhaps lower-powered) supers?
[9:11 PM]Dan (Hardboiled GMshoe): Great cover, by the way!1
[9:12 PM]Alex: It depends! Chevron is kind of Captain America meets the Punisher, but he’s not going to be throwing cars around or anything like that, but he is on a team with Atlas: the Titan who used to “hold up the Earth”
[9:12 PM]Alex: The full-blown supers tend to be monsters, aliens, wizards, or mythological figures but there are lower level heroes more akin to the Shadow or Doc Savage
[9:13 PM]Alex: Atlas didn’t really hold up the Earth, he was punished by being forced to carry the weight of human evil on his back as punishment for his brother Prometheus giving the “fire” of free will to humanity
[9:13 PM]Alex: So now Atlas has a neat Sense Evil power on top of his massive strength, stamina, and longevity
[9:14 PM]Dan (Hardboiled GMshoe): Speaking of Doc Savage, how do you model someone like him, or like Batman, for that matter? Do you have some kind of “super-skill” power like Chaosium’s Superworld that allows “normal” people to be superhumanly competent?
[9:21 PM]Alex: So modeling a character who isn’t usually superpowered is still along the point buy system, those characters just often wind up being more skill and advantage focused than effect focus. Their Effects (powers) wind up being more like gadgets, detective senses (I built something like this to simulate detective vision in the Arkham games for my Batman build), and then tend to be lower Rank effects. The benefits for having lower Ranks in an Effect is that you can have more of them, giving these characters a little more depth in terms of options and ways they can help the adventure along, and they tend to be more accurate. Power Level is balanced by baking in trade offs for certain things. These trade offs can never add up to more than double the character’s Power Level. These are things like Dodge/Parry vs Toughness, Will vs Fortitude, To-hit vs Damage, etc. So if I was going to build characters like Batman and Superman at Power Level 10 (if I use the Justice League Unlimited method and make everyone roughly equal in terms of usefulness to the story) I would probably break them down like this Batman Dodge/Parry 14-Toughness 6 Will 12-Fortitude 8 To-Hit +15 Damage 5 Superman Dodge/Parry 4-Toughness 16 Will 8-Fortitude 12 To-Hit +8 Damage 12
[9:22 PM]Alex: You could run a game with mixed Power Levels if you wanted to simulate a difference in scale between certain characters, but that adds a level of difficulty to your adventure design, in that you want to make sure the lower Power Level characters have plenty of things to do to contribute to the story and they’re not just watching Superman do all the cool stuff
[9:23 PM]Alex: You can facilitate that by adding Minions to fight scenes. These are villains that are taken out in one hit instead of having to be whittled down and have other effects that trigger off advantages and the like
[9:23 PM]Alex: You can give more Power Points to the lower Power Level characters to give them more skills and things to bring to the team
[9:23 PM]Dan (Hardboiled GMshoe): Random thought: Have you ever tried to build the Martian Manhunter, and if so, how long did that take?
[9:24 PM]Alex: And you can build in other cool story moments to let them shine
[9:24 PM]Alex: I have built Martian Manhunter and it was the worst lol(edited)
[9:24 PM]Alex: I like to run my convention games at Power Level 10 150 Power Points which is our recommended starting range for PCs
[9:24 PM]Alex: But forcing all of those powers into such a small space while making sure the character feels like that character is tough
[9:25 PM]Alex: I’ve built 178 DC characters at Power Level 10 150 Power Points
[9:26 PM]Alex: The trick with Martian Manhunter was to build some interesting Arrays. He has a Density Shifting Array so he can be super dense or intangible with paying full price for the ability to do both of those and I gave him a “Martian Tricks” Array to reflect his telepathy, Martian vision, Shapechanging/Elongation, and all that fun stuff
[9:27 PM]Alex: I even managed to squeeze a couple of points into the Investigation and Technology skills, but he’s not at the level I would make him if I were going for an “iconic” Power Level 15 build for him
[9:30 PM]Dan (Hardboiled GMshoe): Cool!
[9:30 PM]Dan (Hardboiled GMshoe): In the time remaining, is there anything we haven’t covered that you’d like to bring up?
[9:30 PM]Alex: I actually “get” to make 18 characters tonight for a convention tomorrow after we’re done XD
@Dan (Hardboiled GMshoe)In the time remaining, is there anything we haven’t covered that you’d like to bring up?[9:31 PM]Alex: Just that I will be running M&M events at Origins Game Fair in Columbus this June and Gen Con this year (including Harley Quinn the Musical)
[9:32 PM]Alex: And I’d love to have anyone come play with me who is interested in experiencing Mutants & Masterminds or just my weird sense of humor1
[9:32 PM]Alex: And I want to say thank you to you @Dan (Hardboiled GMshoe) for organizing this and having me on
[9:32 PM]Dan (Hardboiled GMshoe): Thanks very much for joining us, @Alex!
[9:33 PM]Dan (Hardboiled GMshoe): My pleasure! I hope you’ve enjoyed your visit and that you’ll hang out with us in the future!
[9:33 PM]Dan (Hardboiled GMshoe): Usual reminder: If you’ve enjoyed this Q&A and would like to treat me to a coffee or two, you can do so at https://www.ko-fi.com/gmshoe. Anything’s appreciated! Ko-fiBuy Dan Davenport a Coffee. ko-fi.com/gmshoeBecome a supporter of Dan Davenport today! ❤️ Ko-fi lets you support the creators you love with no fees on donations.
[9:33 PM]Alex: Definitely!1
[9:33 PM]Alex: Oh!
[9:33 PM]Dan (Hardboiled GMshoe): If you’ll give me a minute, I’ll get the log posted and link you!
[9:33 PM]Alex: And I should probably mention that I stream Mutants & Masterminds most weeks on twitch at Twitch.tv/untoldstoriesproject
[9:33 PM]Alex: But I’m bad at plugging myself XD
[9:34 PM]Dan (Hardboiled GMshoe): Heh.