Suddenly, Supers!

[christ0pher]

Hey, theoretical question... What social and political changes take place in the modern world when a wavefront of "cosmic energy" hits earth and grants super powers to roughly 1 in 200,000 people. Around 30,000 supers world wide. Ranging from 250 points to over 2000+, the change is literally overnight. Also, due to the genetic melting pot that is the US, the majority show up here.

I'm looking for realistic reactions to a world changing event.

[mr beer]

Are the powers completely random or do they confirm to some kind of a pattern? I think the traditional combat skills will be much less society changing than ones that involve, say, controlling their weather or mind control or tech uplift.

[Xplo]

Everyone gains super powers, but the only super power is being able to ruin cheese. Higher point characters can ruin more cheese and faster.

All of them have Uncontrollable.

Obviously, after six months, everyone has committed suicide.

[Agemegos]

Well, you'll get some kinds of supers and not others, and others will take time to develop, since "cosmic energy" won't [quickly] make a person into a billionaire who put twenty years into training because his parents were killed, a second-generation billionaire-gadgeteer, a surviving 1940s supersoldier, an alien refugee, a Greek god, or the deputy of a galactic law-enforcement body.

Other places that are also genetic melting pots, such as Brazil, the UK, Australia will also get lots of supers. The places that are even more mixed than the USA will presumably get even more supers. Individuals of mixed ethic background will presumably be over-represented among supers.

Most of the supers will lack traditional backstories, including motivating factors.

Most of the supers will lack any particular inclination to be either heroic or villainous. They will deploy their powers for making income, doing good works pro bono publico, doing favours for friends and family, and commiting crimes in about the same proportions as people in the real world today do with their normal capacities. That includes many supers doing some of each. Those that do seek to do good will have the same wide range of opinions as to what is good and what is important as ordinary people have now. A lot will fight etc. for what they perceive as the interests of their nations, ethnicities, religions, clans and families; in this they will be as ill-guided, short-sighted, and ill-disciplined as freedom fighters and vigilantes usually are. They are likely to commit a huge number of very serious mistakes.

The new supers who do volunteer for the regular armed forces and law enforcement agencies of their favourite countries will probably be quite problematic for the existing ways of training and indoctrinating police and service personnel, and perhaps for disciplinary institutions as well.

There will be very little strutting about in fanciful costumes. Those costumes that there are will be tacky.

[malloyd]

Originally Posted by christ0pher

I'm looking for realistic reactions to a world changing event.

Realistic reactions are probably short lived panic, followed by nothing much after everybody calms down. Followed 2 to 10 years later by the release of equipment developed from the study of supers that can do anything any of them were suddenly able to, at which point there is a chance this will do something other than generate a few celebrities.

A handful of supers really aren't going to matter very much, especially if they follow the usual pattern of none of them having the same power set. A technology based on a super power though, that *can* be in enough places at once to have real social effects. If some of these super powers violate the rules of physics - which classic comic book powers typically do - then the new science, and shortly engineering, is even more exciting.

[DangerousThing]

I think it would be more interesting if only a very few who were present at some event were exposed to cosmic/magical/psionic energy that slowly changed them (maybe around 25 CP per month).

That way you can precisely control who has the powers and who doesn't, with the characters getting them by virtue of having been at that place and time. If it was a comics convention, Brett may get his tacky costumes. :)

[Agemegos]

Cosmic energy sounds are though it wouldn't be affected by human chauvinism. Expect large amounts of super-powered livestock and a few examples of super-powered wildlife.

[Flyndaran]

I'm pessimistic. I'm sure most would use their abilities to "cheat" somehow as technically magic power use isn't against most western nations' laws.
Super edges are simply too tempting for most people, in my opinion.
Very few would go all psychotic cartoon villain, but most would be corrupted by super-humanity even if only hustling and unfair competitions.

[Lamech]

Yeah, nobody likes cartoon villains. And really the powers that do damage if you go super villain are less laser eyes and more mind controlling the president and supreme court to really mess stuff up. "A number of people are speculating I have been mind control including a number of so called 'power detectors'. I've declared them a terrorist organization and scheduled them for drone strikes."

Teleportation is pretty nasty too. Remember when we could actually secure nukes? Or world leaders didn't have to live in secret? Yeah, those were good times. Someone with a Death Note power and a little brain power could shake things up. A little precog and a little jackassery and suddenly you can steal books and patents by publishing/filing before the real source. Psychically grabbing encryption keys would set a lot of spycraft way back. Someone who possesses people would be paranoia city.

All of these things can be made a million times worse if you get something muggles don't have counters for. Ms. Death Note is even worse if she does it from a pocket dimension or is incorporeal. If the teleporter simply reappears somewhere else when he's killed or incapacitated you have an issue. If harming the possessor's host has no affect on the super you have an issue; especially if it has enough control to kill the host on the way out.

To summarize: eye lasers are unlikely to be the most terrifying unless you have someone who can tank a nuke. The real issue is when Congress all dies on C-span.

[christ0pher]

Originally Posted by mr beer

Are the powers completely random or do they confirm to some kind of a pattern?

I'm thinking mostly random at lower levels and some version of the Archetype template from Supers with some unique powers per individual(teleporting, lightning bolts, shape-shifting...). The power distribution would resemble a pyramid with there being more lower-mid range Supers and far fewer high powered demigods.

Originally Posted by Xplo

Everyone gains super powers, but the only super power is being able to ruin cheese.

Lol! The group I used to play with would try to come up with the most useless powers and build a character around them. Lots of fun.

Originally Posted by Agemegos

Well, you'll get some kinds of supers and not others, and others will take time to develop, since "cosmic energy" won't [quickly] make a person into a billionaire who put twenty years into training because his parents were killed, a second-generation billionaire-gadgeteer, a surviving 1940s supersoldier, an alien refugee, a Greek god, or the deputy of a galactic law-enforcement body.

Yeah, I pictured a lot of "everyday people" trying to figure out how to live with these powers initially.

Originally Posted by Agemegos

Other places that are also genetic melting pots, such as Brazil, the UK, Australia will also get lots of supers. The places that are even more mixed than the USA will presumably get even more supers. Individuals of mixed ethic background will presumably be over-represented among supers.

I hadn't considered Brazil or the UK...

Originally Posted by Agemegos

Most of the supers will lack traditional backstories, including motivating factors.

Most of the supers will lack any particular inclination to be either heroic or villainous. They will deploy their powers for making income, doing good works pro bono publico, doing favours for friends and family, and commiting crimes in about the same proportions as people in the real world today do with their normal capacities. That includes many supers doing some of each. Those that do seek to do good will have the same wide range of opinions as to what is good and what is important as ordinary people have now. A lot will fight etc. for what they perceive as the interests of their nations, ethnicities, religions, clans and families; in this they will be as ill-guided, short-sighted, and ill-disciplined as freedom fighters and vigilantes usually are. They are likely to commit a huge number of very serious mistakes.

Yes, thank you for this. Some people might feel the responsibility to do something when a psychopathic with Superman powers starts tearing up New York, and then disappear back home when the dust settles. Some with the power might just go to watch the carnage.

Originally Posted by Agemegos

There will be very little strutting about in fanciful costumes. Those costumes that there are will be tacky.

Yeah, I would think most would lean toward easily obtainable, existing identity concealing gear. Ski-masks, motorcycle helmets, goggles...

Originally Posted by Agemegos

Cosmic energy sounds are though it wouldn't be affected by human chauvinism. Expect large amounts of super-powered livestock and a few examples of super-powered wildlife.

As much fun as a super-powered monkey would be, I think I'm just going to say that the powers are dependent on a human level of cognition.

Originally Posted by malloyd

Realistic reactions are probably short lived panic, followed by nothing much after everybody calms down. Followed 2 to 10 years later by the release of equipment developed from the study of supers that can do anything any of them were suddenly able to, at which point there is a chance this will do something other than generate a few celebrities.

Interesting, I hadn't thought of technology based off the Supers. I just wonder if very few people with power would let themselves be studied that much.

Originally Posted by Flyndaran

I'm pessimistic. I'm sure most would use their abilities to "cheat" somehow as technically magic power use isn't against most western nations' laws.
Super edges are simply too tempting for most people, in my opinion.
Very few would go all psychotic cartoon villain, but most would be corrupted by super-humanity even if only hustling and unfair competitions.

Oh yes, but I think the laws would change in short order.

Originally Posted by Lamech

Yeah, nobody likes cartoon villains. And really the powers that do damage if you go super villain are less laser eyes and more mind controlling the president and supreme court to really mess stuff up. "A number of people are speculating I have been mind control including a number of so called 'power detectors'. I've declared them a terrorist organization and scheduled them for drone strikes."

Oh thank you for my new villain, "Lamech - the Mind Flayer"! Lol!