Steve Jackson Games - Site Navigation
Home General Info Follow Us Search Illuminator Store Forums What's New Other Games Ogre GURPS Munchkin Our Games: Home

Go Back   Steve Jackson Games Forums > Roleplaying > GURPS

Reply
 
Thread Tools Display Modes
Old 08-11-2019, 11:57 AM   #1
Gold & Appel Inc
 
Join Date: Jul 2007
Location: One Mile Up
Default [Supers] Wanted: 23 Bad Guys

Inspired by this thread.

23 supervillains erupt into power on 2/3/23, in a late TL 8 setting nearly indistinguishable from OTL with no other (known) powered individuals. They come from all walks of life and have little in common other than a tendency to present a less-than-ideal presence from the perspective of society, and a few cases of shared history. This happens entire within a 23-mile radius of Austin, TX.

Rules: Each Character must be made with one of the following point balances, with no more than -50 in any negatives:

0 Regular Points / 230 Power Points

230 Regular Points / 0 Power Points / May Take up to -25 Points in loony Batman Villain stuff outside of the cap.

23 Regular Points / 23 Power Points / 230 Points Worth of Legal Immunity, Enforcement Powers, or other kind of quisling benefits that render most societal risks of this disaster beyond knee-jerk reactions moot.

There must be at least 5 of each. Numerology, Destiny, and Probability are strong themes but not required. Begin!
Gold & Appel Inc is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 08-11-2019, 04:11 PM   #2
awesomenessofme1
 
Join Date: Mar 2016
Default Re: [Supers] Wanted: 23 Bad Guys

Quote:
Originally Posted by Gold & Appel Inc View Post
Inspired by this thread.

23 supervillains erupt into power on 2/3/23, in a late TL 8 setting nearly indistinguishable from OTL with no other (known) powered individuals. They come from all walks of life and have little in common other than a tendency to present a less-than-ideal presence from the perspective of society, and a few cases of shared history. This happens entire within a 23-mile radius of Austin, TX.

Rules: Each Character must be made with one of the following point balances, with no more than -50 in any negatives:

0 Regular Points / 230 Power Points

230 Regular Points / 0 Power Points / May Take up to -25 Points in loony Batman Villain stuff outside of the cap.

23 Regular Points / 23 Power Points / 230 Points Worth of Legal Immunity, Enforcement Powers, or other kind of quisling benefits that render most societal risks of this disaster beyond knee-jerk reactions moot.

There must be at least 5 of each. Numerology, Destiny, and Probability are strong themes but not required. Begin!
I have to say, I don't understand completely what you're saying here. If someone has 230 power points and 0 regular points, does that mean they have to spend all their points on powers and none on attributes, skills, etc? And how on earth are you supposed to spend 230 points on social advantages of that style?
awesomenessofme1 is online now   Reply With Quote
Old 08-11-2019, 04:27 PM   #3
Gold & Appel Inc
 
Join Date: Jul 2007
Location: One Mile Up
Default Re: [Supers] Wanted: 23 Bad Guys

Quote:
Originally Posted by awesomenessofme1 View Post
I have to say, I don't understand completely what you're saying here. If someone has 230 power points and 0 regular points, does that mean they have to spend all their points on powers and none on attributes, skills, etc? And how on earth are you supposed to spend 230 points on social advantages of that style?
0-Point characters who gain 230 points of powers seem pretty straightforward to me, I'm not sure I understand the question.
Gold & Appel Inc is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 08-11-2019, 04:30 PM   #4
Phantasm
 
Phantasm's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2006
Location: On the road again...
Default Re: [Supers] Wanted: 23 Bad Guys

A 0 point character is someone whose point expenditure on attributes, advantages, perks, and skills evens out with hir disadvantages and quirks; in this case, 50 in positive points and 50 in negative, net 0 points.

IOW, totally useless in adventuring situations without powers....
__________________
"Life ... is an Oreo cookie." - J'onn J'onzz, 1991

"But mom, I don't wanna go back in the dungeon!"

The GURPS Marvel Universe Reboot Project A-G, H-R, and S-Z, and its not-a-wiki-really web adaptation.
Ranoc, a Muskets-and-Magery Renaissance Fantasy Setting
Phantasm is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 08-11-2019, 07:58 PM   #5
AlexanderHowl
 
Join Date: Feb 2016
Default Re: [Supers] Wanted: 23 Bad Guys

I would argue that they would be fairly useless even with powers. Average attributes and average skills do not make for a good super. Anyway, 230 CP is an odd choice for a power level...

A better option may be to have a priority system for 250 CP (A/B/C/D/E), with A worth 100 CP, B 75, C 50, D 25, and E 0. The categories would be attributes, secondary characteristics, advantages/perks, skills/techniques, and power talents/abilities. The characters could also take up to -100 CP in negative traits.
AlexanderHowl is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 08-11-2019, 08:51 PM   #6
Prince Charon
 
Prince Charon's Avatar
 
Join Date: Dec 2012
Default Re: [Supers] Wanted: 23 Bad Guys

Quote:
Originally Posted by AlexanderHowl View Post
I would argue that they would be fairly useless even with powers. Average attributes and average skills do not make for a good super.
If Power Talents and Power Skills (or even just Power Talents) are counted under 'points spent on powers,' then a character who has a net 0 points before points spent on powers are counted is still dangerous. An IQ 10 individual with 20-30 points spent on Power Talents and 200-210 points in abilities and skills that use those talents is capable of being fairly effective, especially in a setting where very few people have powers at all, and few mundanes are up to 100 points.
__________________
Warning, I have the Distractible and Imaginative quirks in real life.

"The more corrupt a government, the more it legislates."
-- Tacitus

Five Earths, All in a Row. Updated 12/17/2022: Apocrypha: Bridges out of Time, Part I has been posted.
Prince Charon is online now   Reply With Quote
Old 08-11-2019, 09:19 PM   #7
AlexanderHowl
 
Join Date: Feb 2016
Default Re: [Supers] Wanted: 23 Bad Guys

Not compared to more balanced characters.
AlexanderHowl is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 08-15-2019, 06:19 PM   #8
TGLS
 
Join Date: Jan 2014
Default Re: [Supers] Wanted: 23 Bad Guys

Name: Rick Frost
Race: Ice Cream Blob

Attributes [55]
ST 16 [48]
DX 10
IQ 10
HT 10

HP 20 [7]
Will 10
Per 10
FP 10
SM +2

Basic Speed 5
Basic Move 5

Social Background
TL: 8 [0]
Cultural Familiarities: Western (Native) [0].
Languages: English (Native) [0].

Advantages [212]
Constriction Attack (Engulfing) [24]
Controllable Disadvantage (No Manipulators) [1]
Freezing Touch [15]
Injury Tolerance (Homogenous; No Blood; No Eyes; No Head; No Neck) [62]
Reduced Consumption 4 (Cast Iron Stomach) [4]
Regeneration (Very Fast: 1HP/Sec) (Trigger (1 Gallon of Ice Cream)) [90]
Regrowth [10]*
Slippery 3 [6]
Temperature Tolerance 4 (0ºF to 95ºF) [4]

Disadvantages [-45]
Dependency (1 Gallon of Ice Cream) (Daily) [-15]
Gluttony (6 or less) [-10]
Impulsiveness (12 or less) [-10]
Laziness [-10]
No Legs (Slithers) [0]

Quirks [-5]
Allergic to Frozen Yogurt [-1]
Amoral [-1]
Can't Control Himself Around Ice Cream [-1]
Exceptionally Delicious [-1]
Makes a Mess Everywhere He Goes [-1]

Skills [9]
Area Knowledge (Austin) IQ/E - IQ+0 10 [1]
Computer Operation/TL8 IQ/E - IQ+0 10 [1]
Fast Talk IQ/A - IQ-1 9 [1]
Hiking HT/A - HT-1 9 [1]
Hobby Skill (Television Trivia) IQ/E - IQ+0 10 [1]
Wrestling DX/A - DX+1 12 [4]

Notes
Freezing Touch is Fatigue Attack (1) (Always On (effects are physically inconvenient); Aura; Freezing Hazard; Melee Attack: Reach C).

I’m using the MyGurps house rule for Regrowth, if you don’t like that just replace it with Injury Tolerance (Unbreakable Bones).

I assumed that points from disadvantages could be spent either way, in other words as a mix of powers and mundane abilities. I also assumed high strength/HP could at least be partially treated as a power.

There's probably a half dozen other disadvantages that probably apply (negative appearance, wealth, social stigma, enemies, etc.) but those were ignored to avoid going under the limit.

Appearance
Rick Frost is now a smoothly rounded blob of ice cream, about five foot seven tall and wide. He appears to be a mix of French vanilla and chocolate ice cream, well marbled with sprinkles. Near the bottom, there is a buildup of dirt and general grime. When it is necessary to grab or handle objects, he can extrude up to twelve tentacles on demand (though six are necessary to emulate a human arm and hand of the same strength). In theory, he could extrude more, but lacks coordination.

Story
Rick Frost was an amateur wrestler. He could hardly keep a job, though; he was just too lazy to hold a job. Even when he ended up with a plum position, he ended up screwing it up on a poorly thought out decision or two. In fact, poorly thought out decisions were a mainstay in his life. From dropping out of high school in mid-2017, to joining the Army and then deserting over a week in 2020 (he had a good lawyer though, and got off light), to deciding to move cross-country from Bangor, Maine to Austin on a lazy July in 2022, bad decisions made at the drop of a hat were all too common.

In early January 2023, he managed to land a job as a security guard for an ice cream company just outside of Austin. This was pretty much ideal for him; hours and hours with effectively no work, punctuated with occasional walks. Occasionally, there were some stern words with his boss about taking regular rounds (once every hour apparently didn’t include rounds that began the previous hour), but he kept out of the company’s business and they seemed content to keep him on.

On the night of February 2nd at 11:57 PM, something unusual happened. Doing a patrol round, Rick decided to take a break and lean against a tall stack of ice cream drums. He had too much of a head on his shoulders to ask what was in “Industrial Strength Ice Cream”. Unfortunately, he leaned a little too hard on the stack, causing it to tumble down. One of the drums fell on his legs, crushing them and pinning him to the ground. Though he avoided death by crushing, the apparently highly pressurized ice cream spilled out, suffocating him.

When he awoke four hours later, he felt different. He couldn't feel his legs, yet he could move about just fine. Whenever he reached for something, a tentacles or group of tentacles reached for it, not a hand. Everything was very cold to the touch. Worst of all, he was hungry, too hungry.

At 8 AM when the first employees arrived for the day, they discovered an odd sight. All the ice cream was gone and eaten, with empty containers strewn about the place. All of the frozen yogurt was fine, though, except one container with a disgusting mess left inside. Some went to look for what could be responsible for this, and why the guard did nothing about it. When they came upon the break room, they found an odd mass scarfing up basically everything in the refrigerator. When it noticed them, it charged out in a blink of an eye, knocking both of them to the floor. In their report, they mentioned it was so cold they were shivering for hours after the incident.

Rick learned awfully quickly that he needed ice cream to survive and raids supermarkets and restaurants daily to survive. His strategy is to barge into a location, making noise and generally scaring people away. Anyone who attempts meaningful resistance ends up getting grabbed, crushed and frozen (at least until they pass out). After everyone is driven away, he eats ice cream until he’s full, then gather up food and flee the scene. He is often intensely hungry, and eats practically anything he can get his hands on. It’s probably a matter of time before he eats somebody, though this realization doesn’t seem to bother him too much.

Last edited by TGLS; 08-25-2019 at 03:01 PM. Reason: Typo
TGLS is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 09-01-2019, 03:39 PM   #9
TGLS
 
Join Date: Jan 2014
Default Re: [Supers] Wanted: 23 Bad Guys

Name: Devyn Tyrell

Attributes [0]
ST 10
DX 10
IQ 10
HT 10

HP 10
Will 10
Per 10
FP 10

Basic Speed 5
Basic Move 5

Social Background
TL: 8 [0]
Cultural Familiarities: Western (Native) [0].
Languages: English (Native) [0].

Advantages [248]
Contact (Underworld Associate) (Effective Skill 15) (12 or less; Usually Reliable) [8]
Gene Tweaker (2) [10]
Morph (Extra Morphing Capacity (+150); Mental Aftermath) [230]

Perks [2]
Always Uses Morph to Increase Appearance [1]
Information Dabbler [1]

Disadvantages [-45]
Debt (-5) [-5]
Obsession (Wants to Understand her Powers) (Long-Term Goal) (15 or less) [-5]
Secret (Shapeshifting Super) (Imprisonment or Exile) [-20]
Stubbornness [-5]
Wealth (Struggling) [-10]

Quirks [-5]
Not Choosy About Partners especially while Drunk [-1]
Loves to Party Hard [-1]
Tries to Impersonate High Status [-1]
Unconsciously Puts Animal Sounds into her Speech [-1]
Vindictive [-1]

Skills [30]
Area Knowledge (Austin) IQ/E - IQ+0 10 [1]
Bioengineering/TL8 (Genetic Engineering) IQ/H - IQ+0 10* [1]
Biology/TL8 (Earthlike) IQ/VH - IQ+0 10* [2]
Chemistry/TL8 IQ/H - IQ+1 11* [2]
Computer Operation/TL8 IQ/E - IQ+0 10 [1]
Current Affairs/TL8 (Headline News) IQ/E - IQ-2 8† [0]
Current Affairs/TL8 (Science & Technology) IQ/E - IQ-2 8† [0]
Disguise/TL8 (Human) IQ/A - IQ+0 10 [2]
Driving/TL8 (Automobile) DX/A - DX-1 9 [1]
Fast-Talk IQ/A - IQ+0 10 [2]
Holdout IQ/A - IQ+0 10 [2]
Observation Per/A - Per+0 10 [2]
Occultism IQ/A - IQ-2 8‡ [0]
Pharmacy/TL8 (Synthetic) IQ/H - IQ+0 10* [1]
Research/TL8 IQ/A - IQ+1 11* [1]
Savoir-Faire (High Society) IQ/E - IQ+0 10 [1]
Sex Appeal (Human) HT/A - HT-1 9 [1]
Stealth DX/A - DX+2 12 [8]
Wrestling DX/A - DX+0 10 [2]
* includes: +2 from 'Gene Tweaker'
† includes: +2 from 'Information Dabbler'
‡ includes: +3 from 'Information Dabbler'

Notes
Gene Tweaker only affects the skills listed. Mental Aftermath on Morph works as a variable Temporary Disadvantage with Aftermath. Whenever she returns to her default template, she receives up to -25 points of mental disadvantages that reflect who or what she turned into, for as long as she was transformed

For example, if she turned into a cat for an hour that has Compulsive Pouncing and Laziness on its template, she could gain both of those for an hour after she returns to her normal template. It doesn't matter whether or not she removed the disadvantages from the template when she shapeshifted. For variety, consider adding some physical disadvantages that can be explained mentally too (i.e. Restricted Diet, Bad Sight, but not something like quadruped).

As noted by her perks, she always uses her Morph ability to increase her appearance, unless it would give her away (she's deliberately trying to conceal her identity, she would reveal her secret, etc.) She usually ends up at Beautiful, but with effort could go higher. To keep things simple, the Mental Aftermath gives Selfish (12 or less) at Beautiful (worse if higher).

Appearance
Devyn stands about 5'3" and very slender. She tends to keep her brown hair tied in pigtails when she most of the time (untied long hair is a fire hazard in the lab), but let's it hang free at other times. Even in warm weather, she likes to wear long pants as opposed skirts, though sometimes she likes to wear a sundress. She prefers blue over other colors.

Story
Devyn Tyrell was born in Baton Rouge, Louisiana to a well-to-do family of four. She recalls her childhood fondly, and her high school years less fondly. She managed to do relatively well academically, doing especially well in her biology and chemistry courses.

However, her social life fared much worse. She remained relatively plain while her classmates grew more attractive (at least to her perception). This made her profoundly jealous and she began blaming all kinds of things on differences in appearance. She came up with many cruel punishments for those who offended her.

That was a long time ago. In her senior year, she had mellowed out after therapy. She managed to secure a scholarship at the University of Texas - Austin. Things appeared to be looking up for her, but unfortunately, they weren't. After a wild graduation party Devyn got totally plastered at, her parents wanted to talk to her about the bad path she was on. What began as a conversation turned into an argument, then things got out of control and she found herself moving to Austin a few months early.

Living on her own was quite a change of pace. She wasn’t used to having to do any work for a living, and the scholarship didn’t really meet her needs in terms of living expenses. Being used to a higher standard of living didn’t help matters either. So, she slowly and steadily sank into debt. Teaching and research assistant jobs did provide some help, but by that point the damage was already done; she needed to spend lots of money. It did make her fairly popular though; renting her own place, flashing cash, and throwing parties makes friends fast.

Her money problems ended up driving her towards crime. Her lab access did give her a lot of access to controlled chemicals and drugs. Through some friends, she managed to come into contact with Owen Reginald.

Owen Reginald is a loan shark and small-time smuggler (drugs, sometimes guns and people) with connections to biker gangs and the cartels. He prefers to keep an unassuming, businesslike image, but isn't afraid to get threatening or physical if the situation demands it. He operates from under the cover of an express courier service. When he first met Devyn, her directness was almost refreshing. Devyn began stealing opiates and amphetamine precursor and selling them through Owen. This helped her even out her finances, and things settled down.

On February 3rd, after a long day in the lab, went to bed and fell asleep nearly immediately. At 3:31 AM, she awoke to a start… She somehow turned into an exact copy of her cat. This confused and excited her terribly. Her social life more or less collapsed as she spent more and more time trying new and different things with her power. She was amazed when she could turn into a snake; even more when she could turn into insects, amoebas and trees. After she learned she could transform into specific people, she began to tweak her appearance to an over-idealized form. The mechanism of how she can transform herself eludes her; she doesn’t understand why her intelligence is so variable (i.e. amoebas & trees have her full intelligence, while she’s barely sentient as a polar bear) or where the mass goes. She’s decided that the mechanism is beyond normal science, and beginning to steep herself in occultism.

Once Devyn mastered shapeshifting, she began to search for more difficult illegal jobs. Owen was a little concerned about this, and has concluded that she probably developed some kind of power after the 2-3 incident. He keeps his concerns to himself, and pretends not to know about it; the finder’s fees he’s collecting are becoming considerable and is concerned she’ll kill him if he digs too deep. She is transitioning from stealing things (sometimes by contract) to contract killings. Her favored strategy is to gain access to her target privately (usually by seduction, but sometimes by posing as a guard), then transforming into a cobra and poisoning the target. She keeps a tiger memorized as a contingency form if she meets serious opposition, and also has a bluebonnet, a butterfly, and a mourning dove memorized in case she needs to vanish without a trace.

Last edited by TGLS; 09-01-2019 at 03:40 PM. Reason: Formatting
TGLS is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply

Tags
supers

Thread Tools
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Fnords are Off
[IMG] code is Off
HTML code is Off

Forum Jump


All times are GMT -6. The time now is 09:17 AM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.9
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions, Inc.