Project Hail Mary (book review)

I'm taking a moment away from the Champions Let's Read so I can talk about this book. I saw the trailer for the upcoming movie recently, which inspired me to re-read this book. Written by Andy Weir (the guy who wrote The Martian), this is another hard science fiction tale that has much bigger stakes than The Martian ever did. Sure, Mark Watney's heroic efforts to survive on a dead planet were great, but Ryland Grace is trying to make sure Earth doesn't become a dead planet. And he's in a whole other solar system, which is orders of magnitude more awesome than just being on a local planet. And you can consider that your SPOILER ALERT!!!!!!!!!!! for this post.

So, this story is told in two parts: Present day, and flashbacks. The present day sees Dr. Ryland Grace trying to sort out the basic questions like, 'What the hell is going on?', 'How did I get here?', and 'Why are there two dead people lying next to me?' He eventually discovers that he is on a spaceship, the sole survivor of a crew of three, and he's approaching the Tau Ceti star and solar system. So he is a long, long way away from home. And he's not alone.

The flashbacks slowly reveal how Grace got to this situation. He was a simple middle-school science teacher who also happened to be a notorious figure in the scientific community. That notoriety gets him drafted to solve a major problem with the sun losing its energy and heat, which threatens to send Earth into a permanent Ice Age that will destroy most life on the planet. Over time he discovers not one, not two, but three alien forms of life in his efforts to solve the problem and save Earth.

Alright, what works here? Pretty much all of it. The mystery of Grace's past and activities leading up to the Hail Mary mission is very well handled, especially the final surprise twist. Grace is recovering from coma-induced amnesia throughout most of the book, meaning we learn pieces of the backstory at the same pace as he does.

The mission itself is a sci-fi nerd's dream. The character of Rocky is one of the best-developed aliens in science fiction. He's not a human with pointy ears or even humanoid at all; he's truly alien, with a whole different math system, an incredible talent for engineering, and almost no clue about science other than the basics to keep himself alive, because like Grace, he's the sole survivor of his own mission. The two of them form an unbreakable bond that enables them to do what they have to do to save both their worlds.

So, what doesn't work? Not much; the story is tightly-plotted and easy to follow even if you're a scientific imbecile. My biggest issue is the character of Eva Stratt. I don't like her. I know, I'm not really supposed to, but she smacks of the annoying 'girl-boss' trope that has infected so much of pop culture over the past decade or so. She's extremely unlikeable, and even resigns herself to being tossed in prison after the launch of the Hail Mary because she's so extreme in her methods to make the mission work. She orders governments around and makes lifelong enemies work together. Sure, the mission requires that level of pigheadedness, but I'm just tired of seeing the necessary characteristics embodied in a woman. If that makes me a sexist or misogynist, so be it; at this point, having a male character in that position would actually feel like a novelty.

Now, don't misunderstand me; I see Stratt's motives and how her way of doing things is pretty much the only way things would ever get done in a crisis like this, especially when you get layers upon layers of bureaucrats all trying to protect their own fiefdoms even in the face of literal global armageddon. Again, though, this could have just as easily been a man. In fact, if you change 'Eva' to 'Evan', you'd find almost no issues with the gender-swap. And that is the biggest problem: Stratt isn't a character; she's a plot device, and a very abrasive one.

Other than that, though, I like how the book reads. The discovery of Rocky's own ship, the tense atmospheric work to retrieve samples, and Grace's reaction to the realization that this was always intended to be a one-way trip is handled very well. And the final chapter is poignant and wonderful all at the same time.

The book is entirely self-contained; there's no point in a sequel anyway, just like there wasn't a point to doing a sequel to The Martian. It is what it is, and doesn't need to be anything more.

This is the second of Andy Weir's books that I have read, and I've read both of them multiple times. I'm looking forward to the movie next year, because I have a feeling this is going to be truly epic.

Let's Read Champions 1e (page 13)

We're continuing with the Powers list. Next up is Clinging. Spider-Man is the obvious source for this one, although Nightcrawler also has this ability. For every 5 points in the power (minimum cost 10 pts), you can cling to a surface with a STR equal to twice the points (so minimum 20 STR). Movement is like you're on the ground if you're horizontally moving (like on a ceiling) or 1/2 your movement speed if you're climbing up a wall. You can still fight while clinging, too. However, if your normal STR is greater than your Clinging STR, and you use more than your Clinging STR to do something, you fall. So be careful.

Next up is Damage Resistance. This is for the bulletproof characters that aren't wearing armor (like the Thing or Iron Man). Superman would have this power, as would someone like Power Man. Buying this power once gives you resistant defense on half of your PD and/or ED. There are four different levels of Damage Resistance. 5 points gives you 1/2 resistant defense vs. hand-to-hand killing attacks; 10 points gives you 1/2 resistance vs. either physical or energy killing attacks (ranged or HTH); 15 points gives you 1/2 resistance to all killing attacks. You can buy this power twice to give yourself full damage resistance. So, a character with 20 PD and 16 ED who buys the 15-pt. Damage Resistance will have 10 resistant PD and 8 resistant ED. There's an example given of PD 15 character being shot by an agent using an auto-carbine and doing 7 BODY and 21 STUN with the attack. The resistant PD would be 8 (1/2 of 15, rounded up), so there is no BODY damage done (7 - 8 = -1). For the STUN, the character uses their full PD of 15, so they take 6 STUN from the attack (21 - 15 = 6). Simple enough, isn't it?

Danger Sense is that sixth sense that warns you something is about to happen. Again, Spider-Man is the classic example with his Spider-Sense. But anyone can have this; Batman is very intuitive about the possibility of being attacked from ambush, for example. This is basically a 3D6 roll with a target number of 11 or less, costing 10 points. For every 3 points, you get a +1 to the roll (so at 16 points you have to roll a 13 or less). A successful Danger Sense roll allows you to react to an attack with your full DCV; if you roll really well (1/2 or less of your target number) you can actually react with an attack of your own at full OCV.

We continue with Darkness. Cloak from Cloak and Dagger can do this, as can Shadow Lass from the Legion of Super-Heroes. The character can project a circle of darkness in an area 2" in radius for 10 points; this darkness is basically equivalent to night, giving characters a -3 to attacks with an additional -1 per 1" of range. You can intensify the Darkness to fully block normal sight for an additional 5 points; 5 more means it blocks UV and IR vision as well. You can even block Radar or X-Ray Vision for 5 points more each, too. And if you want a larger radius, it's 5 points per additional 1". Of course, this power costs END to use.

Last on this page we have Density Increase. It crosses over to the next page, so I'll just mention here that it makes your character tougher and stronger by increasing their mass. Specifically, it will add to your STR, CON, PD, ED, and BODY without any visible effects to your appearance. And it costs 10 points per level of Density Increase. How it works exactly will be detailed next time, though.

And that's another page down; lots to go.

Let's Read Champions 1e (page 12)

Okay, so last time we went over Skill Levels. That section continues on this page with some more details. Specific Levels can be applied to Energy Blast, or Punch, or Shield, or Flight, or Defense in Melee, etc. Basically, it's one action, and you can't switch it to something else. So this would be a good level to get for someone who is average at pretty much everything, but excellent at one thing, such as shooting an energy blast. A character with a 15 DEX would have a CV of 5, which isn't very good. But if you add three levels to that Energy Blast attack, suddenly the CV jumps to 8, which is much better.

General Levels apply to a group of actions or skills, such as Martial Arts, or Guns, or Movement, or Ego Powers. In this case, the levels can be applied to one action within that small group; a kung fu punch or a flying side kick, for example, could both benefit from a General Level applied to Martial Arts. Likewise, a General Level applied to Ego Powers means that the character gets to add that level to Ego Attack, or Telepathy, or Mind Control (assuming the character has those powers). However, it can only apply to one at a time; or, not and.

Overall Levels can be applied to any action or skill. That's why they're so expensive. But it's still cheaper than buying a +1 in every skill.

One of the examples indicates that Skill Levels can be applied to Range Modifiers as well, making an attack more accurate at longer distances. That's something that got switched in later editions; Range Skill Levels were a separate skill, as I recall. But for now, Skill Levels have a wider application.

Alright, that takes care of skill levels. Next up is Stealth, yet another 'Batman' skill. Did they expect anyone to play a character other than a Batman-clone in this game? Stealth is self-explanatory; it's the art of not being seen. Or heard. Or detected at all. It costs 5 points to get the base Dex roll, and 2 points to increase the roll by one. Stealth doesn't help against unusual senses like Radar, Sonar, IR and UV vision; it's just good for sneaking around.

The last skill in the list is...Swinging. Like Spider-Man. Or Batman with a batarang. Neither of those seems to be a mere skill; swinging would require some sort of line to allow for the swinging. It costs 1 point for every 1" of swinging, with a starting minimum of 5 points. There has to be an attach point for the swingline, and the maximum distance is equal to the maximum height (so the swing is a standard parabola, which isn't surprising). And yes, like Missile Deflection, there is an implement required for using this skill, and no, you don't get the Focus limitation.

So, that brings us to the end of the Skills available to 1st edition Champions characters. It's a pretty thin list, to be honest, skewed heavily toward the sneaky detective characters. So, Batman. And Daredevil. And Spider-Man would have a bunch of these skills as well. But mostly Batman.

Now, we get to the first Powers. As the book states, Powers are special abilities that characters have. They can't be learned, at least not normally, but are acquired by design or accident. Alright, then. Let's see what we have. The Powers are all listed alphabetically.

First up is...Armor. Armor is fully resistant defense that adds to your existing PD and/or ED. Every 2 points you spend gives you 1 point of fully resistant defense. However, it's not for both types; you pick PD or ED for each point of defense you buy. Again, this is an addition to your normal defense, so if you have a PD of 10 and you buy 10 PD of Armor, you now have 20 PD against normal attacks, and 10 PD against killing attacks. You can, of course, buy both types, so having 10 PD/10 ED armor would cost 40 points. Armor is passive; it doesn't cost END to use it.

Next is Characteristic Defense. This is a new name for a power I'm familiar with from later editions, Power Defense. Characteristic Defense, however, is restricted to...well, characteristics. If someone drains your STR, this power lessens or eliminates the effect. Like Armor, this costs no END to use; it's another passive power. It costs 1 point to get 1 point of Defense, with a minimum of 5 points spent.

Characteristic Drain follows; this is the power that the previous one defends against. For 10 points times the characteristic multiplier, you drain 1d6 points of an opponent's characteristic. So, a 1d6 CON Drain would cost 20 points (CON costs 2 points per pip). You choose the characteristic to be Drained when you purchase the power. This power doesn't last too long; the target gets the points back once the draining character reaches their next action phase. You can lengthen this duration by one phase per 5 additional points spent. And this power has no range; you have to touch the opponent to affect them. Easier said than done, sometimes. Finally, draining a primary characteristic does not affect figured characteristics; draining 4 points of CON will not affect the target's END or STUN.

Lastly, we have Characteristic Transfer. this is similar to Drain, except that you transfer the drained characteristic points to your own characteristics. This costs 15 points per 1d6 of effect, times the cost of the characteristic, so it gets expensive in a hurry; a 1d6 DEX Transfer will cost 45 points. Note that like Characteristic Drain, you choose the affected characteristic when you initially buy the power; you can't switch it from turn to turn. This power works the same as Characteristic Drain in virtually every way, except that you get to boost your own abilities at the same time.

And that's it for another page. We're into the meat of the character creation section now: Powers. It's going to be a fun ride.

Requiem for a Friend

What can you say about the best dog ever?

Raven came to us on Hallowe'en, 2013. She was the tiniest puppy, a bundle of energy and love. My wife brought her home from a visit to the pet store; it was the last time she was allowed to enter a pet store, because every time she did, another dog found its way into our home.

She had been born on a native reserve and had not had a home prior to us bringing her into our family. We were the only family she ever knew. And she fit right in with our other dog, Harley, a Shi-tzu whose previous owner happened to be allergic to his fur. Raven and our young son Tanner immediately bonded; Garrett was still a baby, less than a year old. Neither of them can remember a time in their lives without Raven there. For that matter, my wife and I can hardly remember a time when she wasn't a part of our lives.

Being so small, my wife was convinced that Raven would make a fine lap dog like a Shi-tzu. I tried to warn her, because we knew Raven was part Lab, which meant she wasn't going to be a small dog. But she did end up a lap dog, anyway. Even at fifty pounds and more than three feet long, she was still my wife's lap dog. Oops...

As she grew, Raven never lost her incredible affection for her family. She was always there, seeking attention and 'lovins' whenever one of us had a free hand. And she never lacked for lovins. Nor did she stint in giving it back. Curled up on the bed at our feet, or laying down with the kids while they watched TV, she was an endless bundle of love. Tanner was so excited the day he got to take her out on a walk solo for the first time. It was such a beautiful bonding moment for them, one he will never forget.

When Harley finally passed, Raven was about five years old, and she spent a week pining on the back porch waiting for her friend to come back. But of course, he wasn't coming back...and she fell into a depression that lasted up until we adopted a new puppy, Dexter the beagle (he's my profile pic to the right). They hit it off incredibly well, and she was overjoyed at having a new little brother.

When we moved from Ontario to Prince Edward Island, she was the most patient dog in the world during that long drive, sitting in the back seat of my car in her kennel. When we stopped for a break or to camp for the night, she was as frisky and fun-loving as ever, but always stayed close by Tanner and I. When we got here, she immediately took to the joys of farm life and twenty acres to run around, still playing with Dexter.

But being out on the farm instead of in town brought us some new surprises. Raven learned that the family now included chickens, and the garden I was carefully tending was sacrosanct and needed to be protected. And so, she became a fierce and loyal guardian for the farm. This played out one day when we heard Dexter barking frantically in the treeline. We saw nothing at first except bushes shaking, and we heard something squealing and screeching while Raven came into view bounding around and growling and snarling. We soon realized she was actually fighting something! At first, I had the wild idea that she'd gone nuts and attacked Dexter, but he was off to the side barking and cheering her on.

A few minutes later, she came trotting toward us with something in her mouth. Something almost Dexter's size. Something with a tail. A ringed tail. Yes, she had fought and killed a raccoon, and she was returning home a triumphant warrior. She pranced right by me with her ears alert, then deposited the dead raccoon right on our front porch like a conquering hero's trophy. I was not quite ready for that display of martial prowess at that point, and our oldest boy, Ashton, had to take the trophy away and dispose of it.

Raven loved being on the farm; the freedom of being off-leash at night, able to wander around and guard the barn and the chickens every evening, letting the foxes and coyotes know that this was not hunting territory for them. She was pretty successful, although we had a couple of unfortunate incidents. But those weren't Raven's fault; she was an excellent guard dog for the farm.

It was in the last couple of months that we knew something was up; she was struggling to keep up on her walks, and soon we cut her down to half the usual distance. Her appetite wasn't very good, either. We took her to the vet, and the initial diagnosis was arthritis, which isn't uncommon in senior dogs. We got some medication to help control it, but it didn't help very much. Finally, a couple of days ago, she simply stopped eating. I couldn't even give her a treat or wet food, which she would normally gulp down with gusto.

Yesterday, August 23rd, she got to see Dexter once again; he lives with our older son now. They came over for a visit to help us with some plumbing issues (he's much handier than I am), and Dexter came along. Then in the evening, as I was getting ready to go to bed after a long and exhausting week of baking for our business, I got a mental nudge to go downstairs and see where Raven was and what she was doing.

She was on the dining room floor by my wife's chair, where she often lay whether my wife was sitting there or not. But now, she wasn't moving. Her breathing was labored, and she didn't even lift her head when I called her. An arrow hit me right in the stomach, and I went upstairs and told Tanner he needed to come down right away. He did so, and started petting her and hugging her head. We both knew somehow that this was the end. When her bladder released and she peed all over the floor, I went up and called my wife and Garrett down as well; they needed to be there for this. Holly, our new chocolate lab, came as well. Together, we petted our beloved puppy-girl and told her how much we loved her until at last, she left us. Surrounded by her family, she knew it was okay to go.

Tanner is still heartbroken, of course. I came up the stairs tonight and looked at the spot in my office where she always lay by my chair when everyone else was getting to bed. She'll never lay there again. I told my wife that I'd have to return to the hospital for surgery, because there is a Raven-sized hole in my heart now.

She didn't appreciate that attempt at humor. I'll have to do better.

This afternoon, Tanner and I brought her to the crematorium; Tanner picked out her urn, because he wants her on a shelf in his room. We shared some memories and photos with Gaylene, the woman who handles the cremation business. Tanner carried her in by himself, all 62 pounds of her, wrapped in the blanket she always lay on in my office, which is mixed in with her ashes now.

Tomorrow, I'll go pick her up along with some mementos for Tanner: a paw print, a nose print, and some of her fur. Why he wants that I don't know, since she left a lot of fur all over the house; she would shed like she was always stuck in a windstorm. But he'll always have those pieces to remember her by, and he wants to get a tattoo of her pawprint. I've never approved of tattoos, and my wife hasn't either. But she's willing to make this exception for him, and I don't see how I can say 'no'.

For such a long time I would scratch her behind the ears and tell her 'you're such a good girl'. But the truth is, she wasn't a good girl; she was the very best girl. We will have other dogs (my wife thinks otherwise, but I know better; I just have to take her to a pet store and that will be that), and we will love and cherish them. But none of them will ever mean the same to us as Raven did. She was our Puppy-Girl, and she was the best dog ever.

Goodbye, Puppy-Girl. We'll see you again someday. I expect your spirit to knock me off my feet when we do. Because your love was always even bigger than you were.

Farewell, Puppy-Girl...

Raven Sprigg, 8/31/2013 - 8/23/2025

The best dog ever. We will miss her so, so much.

Let's Read Champions 1e (page 11)

Okay, we've got more skills. Three of these ended up as powers in later editions, but for now they are just plain skills. Let's dive right in.

First up is Lack of Weakness. This, as I mentioned, was made into a power later on. It's a counter for Find Weakness, of course. It costs 5 points as a base, which subtracts 5 points from the enemy's Find Weakness roll. Every additional point spent on this skill further reduces the enemy's roll by one point.

Next is...Luck. I'm not sure how this would have qualified as a skill, which is why it ended up not being a skill later on as well. You can buy up to three levels of Luck for 5 points apiece. The higher your Luck, the more lucky you'll be with some pretty ridiculous results at times. Basically, when you're in deep doo-doo, you make a Luck roll, which is 1d6 for each level of Luck you have. Every 6 you roll counts as one level of Luck. At Level 1, you might get a clue, or your opponent might be distracted somehow, giving you a quick advantage. At Level 2, you get into coincidences like running into the person you really needed to find, or your opponent's weapon malfunctions. At Level 3, it's the ridiculous results. You're falling to your death, but there happens to be a huge pile of mattresses at the bottom that save you. That sort of thing.

The next skill is Martial Arts. This is very generic; you get access to the Martial Attacks on the Combat Maneuvers Table (which we'll get to later on), which are more effective than normal attacks. There's no distinct style such as Kung Fu or Karate; you're just a martial artist. You pay your Strength value in points; if you have a 10 STR, you pay 10 points. 20 STR, 20 points, etc. You can also pay an additional cost of half your STR total to get a damage multiple of +1/2 to your attacks. The minimum cost is 10 points, so weak characters are still going to pay full price.

The last of the 'skills that should be powers' is Missile Deflection. You can deflect a ranged attack as a DEX roll (9 + DEX/5) at a cost of 10 points. It costs 3 additional points to add 1 point to your Missile Deflection roll target. The only attacks that can't be deflected are mental attacks, No Normal Defense attacks, and attacks you can't anticipate. It takes a half-move action to deflect an attack. If the incoming missile is heavy (half or more of your STR weight limit), you can't deflect it. If it's not your turn to act, you can Abort your next action to attempt the missile deflection; this just means you miss your next phase action. Once you're using this skill, you can keep doing it no matter how many incoming attacks there are, until your next phase. However, the more you try to deflect, the harder it gets (-2 cumulative penalty for every missile deflection attempt after the first one). Normally, you have to have some sort of item (a shield, a billy club, etc.) to use this skill, although you don't get a Focus limitation on it.

Next is Security Systems. This is your ability to get past locks and alarms. It's an INT roll, costing 5 points for the skill and 2 points per additional point to the roll. This skill covers both electronic and mechanical security devices, so it's very versatile.

Finally, we have Skill Levels. This is a bonus that you can buy to various skills, powers, or attacks, making you more adept at using them. There are different types: Specific (costing 3 points and affecting a single attacks, power or skill), General (5 points, one class of powers, skills, or attacks), and Overall (10 points, affecting any power, skill, attack, or action you take). You have to apply the level to whatever action you are taking, and it is locked in until your next phase. So, if you use your 10-pt level to increase your Energy Blast attack roll, you can't switch it to your Missile Deflection until your next phase.

And that's it for this page. We're nearly done with the skills, and then we'll start into the powers.

Let's Read Champions 1e (page 10)

Okay, so we're back with another page of the 1st edition Champions rulebook. We'll cover the character sheet, and start on the skills available for characters in the game. The Champions character sheet has always been one of the best in any RPG; it covers everything and leaves room to add more if and when it comes along. All the formulas needed to calculate figured characteristics are included, as well as all the combat stats needed to keep your character going in a fight. The best part of the sheet is the outline, which gives the player a chance to visually represent their character right on the sheet. There are eight different sheets, all identical except for the character outlines.

Next up, let's talk about skills. Skills are defined here as 'abilities that characters can learn.' Skill rolls are made by rolling 3d6 and trying to get lower than your skill score. Most rolls in the game are the same way: Roll low. Consistency is a good thing, especially for an early-80s RPG. There's a note that any modifiers to a roll affect the target number, not the roll itself. And skills can't be included in a Multipower or Elemental Control, neither of which have as of yet been defined.

So, the first skill on the list is Acrobatics. A classic of the genre; heroes from Batman to Spider-Man to Daredevil to...well, it's a very, very common skill nowadays. It costs 10 points to acquire this skill at a DEX roll level, and you can boost your skill score by 1 point for every 2 points you spend. Successful Acrobatics means your DCV is increased by 2. That's certainly handy.

Next up is Climbing. Another Spidey special. Although the skill requires handholds; you're not climbing up a glass skyscraper with this skill unless you've got some hardcore climbing gear. Still, this skill only costs 5 points to get started at a DEX-roll level, and 2 points gets you an additional +1.

Computer Programming is next, and it costs a mere 5 points to get it. But in 1981, computer programming was a lot different than it is now. No internet, for starters, unless you were working in certain government agencies or on campus somewhere. Tech was really primitive; I remember when having 64K of RAM was considered high-tech. Nowadays, anything under 64GB is considered obsolete. This one is an INT roll, obviously, and it's 2 points to gain an additional point.

Detective Work...well, that covers a lot of ground, doesn't it? This skill list isn't going to be nearly as large as it is in later editions, but it looks like we're getting the basics. So far, all of these skills would have been handy for a Batman-style vigilante. For this one, it's pretty generic and widespread. 5 points for the base skill, +2 points per additional point.

Disguise, another INT skill, is next. I would think PRE would be more useful here, but I didn't make the rules. It's a pretty effective skill, though, requiring Perception checks at -5 to penetrate the character's disguise. Of course, if they do penetrate it, the character might be in trouble.

Finally, for this page, we have Find Weakness. I remember this one being in the Powers section at one point, but I could be mistaken. Anyway, this one costs 10 points and doesn't have a base characteristic attached to it, so it's a straight 11- roll. And unlike the other skills, it costs 5 points to bump your roll up a single point. Yikes. Of course, it's that expensive because it's a hell of a useful ability to have. A successful roll halves your opponent's defenses, and you can make successive rolls. As long as you keep succeeding, that is; once you fail a roll, that's it, you can't find any further weaknesses on this opponent. And the more rolls you try, the harder it is to succeed; every roll after the first one takes a cumulative -2 penalty to each roll. Note that this skill is restricted to one particular attack form; you can't just Find Weakness in general and have all your attacks striking half your opponent's defenses. You have to tie it to one of your particular attacks, such as punching, or firing your energy blast. Finally, Find Weakness doesn't carry over; once the battle is over, so is the Find Weakness effect. Next time you fight that villain, you'll have to start Finding Weakness earlier. Oh, and the roll is modified by your range from the target, too; -1 for every 3" of distance.

And that covers this page. Six skills so far, all of them useful (and all of them suitable for Batman). We'll continue with this next time.

Prayers Answered

So, after a trip to the vet and some fairly pricey medicine, our puppy-girl is doing better. She's got arthritis, which isn't curable but is manageable. We figured out to get her to eat her food to take the medicine (canned dog food is the key), so she's walking better without so much limping. She's still not chasing raccoons and chickens, but at least she's not whimpering in pain with every step. I don't know how long the medicine will be effective, but I'll take whatever we get. As I said last time, we aren't ready to say good-bye just yet.

So, for those who did keep Raven in your prayers, thank you, and God bless.

Let's Read: Champions 1e (page 9)

Page 9 is the last page covering characteristics. Specifically, it covers Strength and how it works in the game with regards to lifting, jumping and throwing. There is a Strength Chart that runs from -20 to 100 STR, in increments of 5 points. It's very useful to see what that Strength score actually means in the game. The lifting capacity goes up very quickly; as mentioned earlier, 5 points of STR doubles your lifting capacity. So, a STR of 10 means you can lift another human (100 kg), but that's about all you can do with them; you can't toss them or long jump with them on your back. At 15 STR, you can lift twice that amount, or 100 kg. 20 STR is 200 kg, and the example of a motorcycle is given. At 45 STR, you can lift an F-15 over your head (jet fighter). The chart tops out at 100 STR, which means you can life a 25 kiloton battle cruiser. That will impress the ladies.

The Chart also gives damage done for punching, or the additional amount of damage done by hand-to-hand (not ranged) killing attacks. The normal damage is 1d6 per 5 points of STR, so a 50 STR brick does 10d6 points of damage when he punches someone. A 20 STR character with a sword does an additional 1d6 points of killing damage on top of what the weapon itself does. That can get pretty nasty at higher strengths. Finally, there's the jumping distance (broad jump, not high jump). It's 1" per 5 points of STR, so a 70 STR character can broad jump 14", or 28 meters. Hulk can do that in his sleep.

While the chart only extends to 100 STR, you can go further using the different formulas for lifting, damage, jumping, and killing damage. The lifting formula is the only complicated one, where your lifting capacity is 25 kg x 2(STR/5). So divide your Strength score by 5, double that result, and multiply it by 25 to figure out how many kg you can lift. I would presume there is no rounding here, so a STR of 12 would mean the calculation is 25 kg x 2(12/5), or 25 x 2(2.4), or 25 x 4.8, which works out to 120 kg. A STR of 18 would be 25 x 2(18/5), or 25 x 2(3.6), or 25 x 7.2, which is 180 kg. And...that formula doesn't fit with the numbers on the Strength Chart.

And now I see why the typesetting looks the way it does. I initially thought it was a printing error, but no, the (STR/5) is actually...an exponent. That's right, we're doing serious MATH here, people. Let's try that again. So, a STR of 12 would be 25 kg x 2^(12/5), or 25 x 2^2.4, which works out to 132 kg. 18 STR is 25 x 2^3.6, or 303 kg. Okay, those numbers make more sense. And no, I did not work those numbers out in my head; calculators are still your friend.

As far as I know, this is the most complicated math in the entire system, and I've played it through 5th edition.

Damage is 1d6 per 5 STR points; Jumping is 1" per 5 STR points; and killing damage is +1d6 per 20 points. That will be modified in later editions, but for now it's an easy calculation that makes up for the exponential lifting capacity formula.

Next up is Throwing Distance, so again a Strength thing. Some objects are balanced for throwing; some are not. Balanced objects can be thrown much further (five times as far) than unbalanced objects. To figure out how far you can throw something, simply figure the minimum strength needed to lift the object (the examples in the Strength Chart will be helpful here) and subtract that from your STR score. Once you have that number, consult the Throwing Distance chart to figure out just how far you can throw it.

Now, this does lead to a slight issue that has been known about for a long, long time in the Champions system: the baby quarterback. Babies have an effective STR of 0. The example object for -20 STR on the Strength Chart is a football. Subtracting -20 from 0 gives a result of 20. Looking at the Throwing Distance Chart, that means a baby can pick up a football (balanced object) and chuck it 40", or 80 meters. That's 87 yards to you Americans. Heck, that baby can toss a shotput (-10 STR) half the distance he can throw the football. So needless to say, there's a wee bit of an issue with the Strength calculations, but we'll leave those alone for now.

The basic calculation for throwing distance is simple enough; 2" per point of Strength for a balanced object (anything from a ball to a girder to a manhole cover), and 2" for every 5 points of STR differential for unbalanced objects (like a car or a grumpy supervillain). If you're throwing the object straight up, the distance is halved.

And now we have a brief section on rounding numbers, which is very handy in a game that uses fractions and stuff. The rounding rules are simple enough; round to the nearest whole number. So a CON of 22 means your ED = 22/5 = 4.4, which rounds down to 4. For a 23 CON, the calculation becomes 23/5 = 4.6, which rounds to 5. So for two power points, you gain an additional point of Energy Defense, which isn't a terrible deal. The one exception to rounding is, as mentioned before, the SPD figured characteristic, which never rounds up; fractions are always retained.

Lastly on this page, there is a note about the eight character sheets in the center of the book that can be photocopied by players (permission is explicitly given). Ah, the good old days before you just printed off the page from a PDF. We had it so rough back then...

And that does it for page 9 of 1st Edition Champions. Next up...skills!

Let's Read: Champions 1e (page 8)

Alright, we're looking at how figured characteristics are actually figured, and what each of the characteristics actually does in the game. This is a pretty busy page, so let's jump right in.

The figured characteristics, as mentioned last time, are Physical Defense, Energy Defense, Speed, Recovery, Endurance, and Stun Pips. Three of them are figured from Strength (PD, REC, STUN), four from Constitution (ED, REC, END, STUN), and just one from Dexterity (SPD) and Body (STUN). So these are pretty important characteristics to have good scores in.

Physical Defense is Strength divided by 5; Energy Defense is Con/5. Recovery is those two numbers combined. Endurance is just double the CON score. STUN is your BODY plus half your STR and half your CON. Finally, your Speed is 1 plus your DEX divided by 10. There's no indication yet about rounding partial numbers, though.

So, once the figured characteristics are figured, you can still add to them by spending more Power Points. If you want, you can even reduce some characteristics below the base of 10 to gain back points. So a dumb character with an INT of 6 would get 4 Power Points to spend on something else. You can reduce any or all of your primary characteristics, but only one figured characteristic. There's no specific reason given for this restriction, so use your imagination.

Okay, so now it's the individual characteristics themselves. We start with the primary ones, in listed order, and I'll include examples of characters that would be examples of each characteristic. Strength is first, and most people can figure out what Strength is used for. It determines your damage done in hand-to-hand combat, as well as how much you can carry, lift or throw. Five additional points of STR basically doubles your carrying capacity, and it's a cheap 1 Power Point per point of Strength. There are a lot of bricks in comics, from Superman to the Thing.

Dexterity represents coordination and agility. Your Combat Value (OCV and DCV) is based on your Dex. Some of your skills are also based on this characteristic, and it's an expensive one: 3 Power Points per point. Dex is the most expensive primary characteristic, which shows how important it is in the game. Spider-Man is the obvious example here.

Constitution is your overall health. It keeps you from being stunned, and adds to four of your figured characteristics. It's 2 Power Points to boost your Con. The Juggernaut is a great example of a high CON.

Body Pips is effectively your 'hit points'. Lose all your BODY points, and you're dead. Same cost as Con. Wonder Man would be a guy with a very high BODY score.

Intelligence is brain power, but not mentalist-type brain power. Reed Richards brainpower, not Professor X. It adds to some skills and your Perception rolls, and costs 1 point per point.

Ego is the Professor X type of brainpower. Strength of will, that sort of thing. It determines your base Ego Combat Value (ECV) for mental combat. 2 points per point.

Presence is your charisma. Presence actually does have a combat use, so it's important to not skimp out on it, and it's cheap at only a single point per point. Captain America is loaded with Presence.

Comeliness is your looks. 1 Power Point gets you 2 points of COM. Wonder Woman comes to mind, as do dozens of other heroes and heroines.

Alright, it's now on to the figured characteristics, starting with Physical Defense. You subtract your PD from both the STUN and BODY from normal (not killing) attacks of a physical nature, by which I mean physical impacts such as punches. As mentioned above, it's 1/5 of your Strength score, and costs 1 point to boost it by a point. I mean, most of the people who qualify as bricks would have a very high PD score, so pick one. I'll go with the Rhino, one of Spidey's villains. Quite a tough guy to hurt.

Energy Defense is your toughness against energy attacks such as fire, intense cold, or lightning. It's the same as PD except it uses CON as the base. Human Torch would have a very good ED.

Speed is just how many actions you can take in a 12-second turn. There's note here that Speed is the only value in the game that does not round off in favor of the character. Which means that all the rest of them do. So, if you have a STR of 28, your PD would be 28/5=5.6, which rounds up to 6. But Speed doesn't work like that. It's your Dex divided by 10, plus one more. So the base character (10 DEX) has a base SPD of 2. If your DEX is 18, your SPD becomes 2.8, which rounds down to 2. If you want to bump it up to 3, it will cost you 1 point per 1/10th of a Speed point. In this case, it would be a cost of 2 points to get you to SPD 3. If you want to bump it up further to 4, it costs an additional 10 points, for a total of 12. Flash would have a high SPD score.

Recovery is how fast you come back from being knocked out or exhausted. The base is your STR/5 plus your CON/5, and it costs 2 points per point of REC. Wolverine is the obvious example.

Endurance is how much energy you have to do things like fight or fly or blast people with your megabeam. It's double your CON, and it costs 1/2 a point to boost it by 1 point, or 1 point for 2 pips of END. Hulk has almost limitless END.

Finally, there's Stun Pips, which is your 'knockout hit points'. If your STUN is zero, you're out cold, but you're not in danger of dying. It's calculated, as mentioned above, as BODY + 1/2 STR + 1/2 CON, and it costs 1 point to bump it up 1 more point. There are more examples than I can count that would have a high STUN score. Again, it's a common thing with bricks.

So, that's it for the characteristics, or at least their basic descriptions. We'll get some more information on what your STR score is good for in the next installment. See you then.

In the meantime, if you're interested in the history of 3rd edition D&D, check out my 25 Years Ago... blog which is taking us through the publication of 3rd edition and its many, many add-ons. It's a lot of fun to go through this stuff, so come have a look-see.

Let's Read: Champions 1st Edition (page 7)

Hello again, and welcome to the next episode of this Let's Read. Today we'll be covering the topic of Character Conception, as well as learning what the basic character is like in a Champions game. Sounds like fun? Well, too bad; we're doing it anyway.

Since Champions is a point-buy system with no random element in character creation, Character Conception is vital to making a workable character. There are three suggested starting points for a character concept: Abilities, Name, and Costume. All three are briefly described as follows: For Abilities, the player may have an idea of what kinds of powers and skills he wants the character to have, like super-strength or powerful energy bolts. If your starting point is a Name, then that name might suggest certain powers and abilities (two examples are given: Ogre, with super-strength, and Starburst, who uses energy blasts). Finally, the Costume outline on the character sheet can be inspiring for artistically-minded players, who might doodle out a costume that suggests something about the character, such as a shield or gun.

The best character concepts are the ones in which the character's powers, skills, characteristics, limitations, and disadvantages all fit together in a logical way to give a well-rounded character. But there are other factors that need to be considered when putting together a 'well-rounded' character.

For example, how will your character get from place to place? Can you fly? Run fast? Teleport? Catch a cab? That last one would be rather embarrassing, wouldn't it? Make sure your character has a way to get around that fits the concept. Maybe you've got boot-jets on your powered armor. Maybe you have wings. There are plenty of options for movement in the game, so make sure you have that covered.

Next, you need to have a way to actually stop a villain. Few of them will surrender just because a super-hero shows up. So, offensive capability needs to be considered. There are lots of options for attack powers in the game: Energy blasts, killing attacks, mental attacks, punching, martial arts, etc. A superhero who can't fight is just a clown in a costume.

Defense is also important; as the text puts it, it's embarrassing to show up to the scene, blast the villain with a 20-dice attack, then get taken out by a child throwing a small rock. Again, there are many options for defense, such as a high DCV, high defenses, force fields, etc.

The final consideration is Flavor. I like that this is here; it's an important part of superhero gaming and comics in general. How does your character stand out in the crowd? Do you have a secret power that you bust out in emergencies? Do you have a special advantage on your energy blast that sets it apart from everyone else's? How about the special effect of your power? What does it look like? An energy blast that shoots off harmless sparks as a side effect is cool, and makes you look different.

I lied; there's one more consideration: Your character's Origin. There are some suggestions here that cover the main archetypes (alien, exposed to radiation of some sort, training, gadgetry, magic, etc.). It also suggests the possibility of tying in the origin with a supervillain, thus giving them a reason to Hunt you, or during some sort of accident that caused psychological trauma. Origins can be useful not only to define the character, but also give the GM ideas for scenarios involving the character's past. Every loves a good origin story, after all.

What about a character's secret identity? Does he even have one? Most heroes do, but not all; the Fantastic Four are an example of a team without Secret Identities. How does the character's secret (or public) identity affect them when they aren't in costume? What does your character do in his off-time? More things to consider to make a character as well-rounded as possible, and to help the GM fit them into the setting of the game.

So, this is a very useful section, especially for players who are new to the genre. Mobility, offense and defense need to be paramount in a player's mind to make his character useful in the game; you don't want to end up playing a character who is basically a supporting cast member. So, there's lots to consider for players when building a character. Think it over.

Alright, to finish off the page we will now be introduced to the Basic Character. This is simply the baseline characteristics for each and every character. All the primary characteristics (of which there are eight) have a base value of 10. Each characteristic has a point cost from 1 pt. for Strength to 3 points for Dexterity. To increase a primary characteristic, just pay the cost in power points to get the number you want. The eight characteristics are Strength, Dexterity, Constitution, Body Pips, Intelligence, Ego, Presence, and Comeliness. Note that this is four years before D&D introduced Comeliness as a stat in Unearthed Arcana in 1985. And in Champions, Comeliness only costs half a point per pip, so to get a Comeliness of 20 would cost 5 points.

Next are the figured characteristics. These are based on the primary characteristics, so they are initially set based on the values of certain primary characteristics. They are Physical Defense, Energy Defense, Speed, Recovery, Endurance Pips, and Stun Pips. PD, ED and SPD in the basic character all start at a value of 2; REC starts at 4, END and STUN start at 20. Again, they are modified based on the different primary characteristics, and can be further added with the expenditure of Power Points. Endurance, like Comeliness, costs 1/2 a point to improve by one Pip. Speed costs 10 points per Pip. Speed is expensive in this game.

So, we don't yet know how the figured characteristics are derived from the primary ones, but that will be on the next page. And we will get to that as soon as possible. Until then, stay hydrated and enjoy your day.

If you're interested in another project that I'm working on, I've got an in-depth retrospective look at 3rd edition, which was originally released exactly 25 years ago on August 10th, 2000. You can look at what I'm doing at 25 Years Ago... and follow along as I take a look at a game I never got into until years later.

Let's Read: Champions 1e (page 6)

Okay, we're continuing on with the Glossary of Terms today; the terms run from Hex to Value, so we'll take them one at a time.

Hex is the standard area in the game, a six-sided 1" hexagon that represents a 2-meter real area. No square graph paper for this game.

Human Mass: The game assumes that all characters weigh 100 kg (220 lbs). I'm sure the ladies won't be too thrilled with that. But it makes calculating some things easier, I suppose. After all, hyper-realism isn't a thing in RPGs in 1981.

Inch: Again, the standard unit which represents 2 meters of real length in the game. So if Hyperman is six inches away from a berserk dinosaur, that's 12 meters (about 40 feet) between them. I'm surprised that a game made in California uses meters and not feet as the standard of measurement. I would have expected that from a designer in Canada or Britain, not America.

Killing Dice: No, this isn't the Champions equivalent of casting dice storm on the GM when he ticks you off. This game accounts for killing attacks being separate from normal attacks. Wolverine's claws don't hit the same as Spider-Man's fists. So, when making a killing attack, you roll the dice and add up the total, which is the amount of Body damage done to the target, against which your normal defenses don't apply. Ouch. And then you roll a 1D6 and subtract 1 from the roll to get a Stun multiplier; multiply that number by the total Body damage done to find out how much Stun the target loses. Again, standard defense doesn't reduce that number, so a single killing attack can take down an otherwise-tough character real fast.

Limitation: These are restrictions on powers that reduce the power's cost in points. They have to be applied when the power is first bought during character creation.

Martial Artist: Standard archetype for superheroes and villains; Batman, Daredevil, and Iron Fist would all qualify here.

Normal Dice: This the standard attack as opposed to killing attacks. Roll the total dice and add them up to get the Stun damage, which is reduced by the target's applicable defense. Then look at the individual dice; a roll of 1 equals 0; a roll of 6 equals 2; anything else is a 1. Add them up to get the Body total (also reduced by the target's defense). So, for example, an 8D6 punch attack with rolls of 4,1,5,2,6,3,4, and 2 would give a total Stun of 27 and a Body score of 8 against the target's Physical Defense. If that defense is 9, then the target takes 18 Stun and 0 Body.

NPC: Non-Player Character. I don't think there's an RPG in existence that doesn't have those.

OCV: Offensive Combat Value. This is the number you add to your attack roll to see if you hit the target. It is countered by the target's DCV, which is subtracted from the number. The higher the OCV, the more likely you are to hit.

Pips: A term for the value of a characteristic. It fell out of use in later editions.

Player: Come on.

Power: These are abilities that can't just be learned by anyone. It includes things like super-tough skin, flight, laser blasts, etc. But super-strength would be considered a characteristic.

Power Points: These are the points used to purchase characteristics, skills, and powers. The base amount is 100 points; disadvantages can increase this number.

Range Modifier: A number expressed in inches that represents how much an Attack Roll degrades at range. The further away the target, the harder it is to hit.

Scenario: Well, if you don't know what the scenario is, why are you even playing? This is the adventure your superheroes are going through; it might be something as simple as a bank robbery or as drawn-out as an alien invasion. Good luck.

Segment: The smallest unit of time in the game, about a second in length. Superhero fights move fast.

Skill: These are abilities bought with Power Points that can be learned by characters and are not considered superpowers. Normal people can have these.

Slot: This is a term used for something called a 'Multipower'. A Multipower has various slots, but we aren't given any more information on them just yet. We'll see in future pages.

Superhero and Supervillain: Good guys and bad guys.

Turn: 12 Segments make a Turn; therefore, a Turn is about 12 seconds.

Value: The number defining a characteristic.

Alright, that covers the glossary. The next section is 'Building a Character', which crosses over to the next page, so we'll cover that whole section right now.

What made Champions unique in its day was its character creation system. Unlike D&D, where abilities were randomly rolled, and Traveller, where your entire pre-adventuring career is determined (and you might die), Champions let you build your character the way you wanted to from the ground up. You start with 100 points to play with, and took Disadvantages to increase that total to make your character tougher and well-rounded. And everything was done by your own choice.

There were three steps to building a character. First, decide the concept of the character you want to play. Your initial ideas aren't set in stone, but should give you a pretty good idea of what to buy.

Second, choose how to spend those precious Power Points. Want a strong guy? Spend points on Strength, Constitution, and being bulletproof. Batman is more your speed? Martial arts, detective skills, and gadgets are the way to go. Give yourself a shopping list, and don't forget the limitations that will make buying your powers cheaper. Of course, you don't have to take limitations on your powers if you don't want to.

Third, balance the point costs and the total points available. Odds are pretty good your character won't have everything you want them to have, at least not yet. But over time you'll gain experience that will allow you to add stuff you missed.

Alright, that takes care of page 6 and the first two paragraphs of page 7. Next up, the building blocks of putting together a magnificent superhero.

Also, I've started a second blog for my ridiculously-overblown 3e D&D retrospective, free at this link. Come check it out.

Prayers for a Family Member

 

This is Raven, our puppy-girl. She's turning twelve in three weeks, but she's struggling right now. We're hoping and praying that it's just an injured shoulder, but she's nearly unable to stand, let alone walk or climb the stairs. So, we'll see what the vet says on Wednesday. Until then, please add Raven to your prayers. We're not quite ready to say good-bye.

Champions 1st Edition Let's Read (Page 5)

So, the first four pages are the title page, dedication, and two pages of the table of contents. Let's jump right into the next page.

First of all, there's the obligatory 'welcome' paragraph that promises that you can 'recreate the fanciful world of the comics books and pulp adventure novels.' That last part is interesting, since it implies that there's a lower-powered way to play as well. After all, the pulp heroes were not on the level of superheroes, not even the ones like the Shadow or the Phantom. Oh, and "Champions is not a game for the weak at heart. It takes guts, intelligence, and imagination to survive." I presume they are referring to the player characters, not the players themselves surviving. Although that would be quite the game, wouldn't it?

Next up is the 'what is a role-playing game' section that is part of every single role-playing game introduction since...well, not since the very first game (Dungeons & Dragons), since Gygax and company hadn't even coined the term 'role-playing game' yet. Anyway, this is a pretty bog-standard description of how a role-playing game works. The last paragraph promises that the mechanics will become easier to work with as you play the game so you can concentrate on the role-playing part of the game. Good to know.

Then we have the list of 'playing materials'. First, the necessary stuff. Obviously, the rules are important, as are paper and pencil for each player and at least three standard six-sided dice. We see the first instance of the '3D6' shorthand here. Oh, and we also need...a ruler or a tape measure. Gotta love the old 'clinging to the wargames' attitude of these earlier RPGs. Incidentally, I found out in an interview on YouTube that George MacDonald was in fact a wargame tinkerer before he started the Champions game. So it's no surprise that he's thinking in terms of inches and rulers.

Next, the 'optional' and very useful but not totally necessary stuff. 'At least 3D6' per player would be useful. Considering how the game works, I would suggest plenty more than three dice would be a good idea. Copies of the character sheets, inch-wide hex paper, and miniatures or counters to represent the PCs are also recommended. Pretty standard stuff for an RPG of the time.

Alright, now we get to the most interesting part of the introduction: The Glossary of Terms. Usually, this would be found at the back of the rules, but here we are getting everything right up front. The topics on this page are: Active Points, Agent, Attack Roll, Brick, Character, Characteristic, Cost, D6, DCV, Disadvantages, ECV, Energy Projector, Figured Characteristics, Game Master, GM, and Half Move. The Glossary will continue on the next page.

Of the things here, Brick and Energy Projector are just superhero archetypes (strong guy and ranged attackers, respectively). Agents are just what they say: Members of various organizations in the game, either good or evil. They're better than normal citizens, but cannon fodder for supers.

The DCV and ECV are 'defensive combat value' and 'ego combat value', the latter being for mental combat. DCV is how hard it is to hit you.

Active Points is an important term. It refers to a power bought with a limitation. The Active points are the amount of points of effect the power has, but not necessarily how much it costs to buy it. More details on the next page.

Disadvantages refer to problems the character has that hinders them in some way. Disadvantages are helpful to define the character, but more importantly give you additional points to buy more powers and the like.

Figured Characteristics are just characteristics based on other characteristics. Your Physical Defense, Energy Defense, Speed, Recovery, Endurance Pips, and Stun Pips are all figured from the other characteristics, such as Strength.

Finally, a Half-Move is simply a portion of a character's action. You can move up to half your maximum speed in a phase and still attack. Phases aren't defined just yet, but we'll get to that tomorrow.

So that's it, the first look at what Champions has to offer. Tomorrow we'll finish the Glossary.

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I've got another blog project I'm working on that I just started; it's a retrospective review of the D&D 3rd edition game that came out almost exactly 25 years ago. And that's the name of the blog: 25 Years Ago. It's going to be a very, very ambitious project that would basically take over this blog completely, and since I'm finally getting back into this one I don't want to bury it with one long project. So, please check it out and let me know what you think.

Champions, 1st Edition Introduction

 

The original cover

A long time ago, I did a 'let's read' series of posts on the original 1977 Traveller boxed set, consisting of three booklets. It was a very interesting series for me, since I was completely unfamiliar with the game, so it was fun to learn how it was originally laid out. So, I decided to do something similar with the superhero equivalent to games like Dungeons & Dragons and Traveller: Champions.

The reason I say it's the equivalent of those games isn't because it's a three-booklet game like the other two originally were. Champions is a generic game, where the players can create their own comic-book heroes (or copy ones from the comics) and fight villains of the GM's concoction. Over a decade and a half, Champions did create a 'universe' that became the official setting, but it wasn't created on purpose. It just developed from all the various supplements, adventures, and rules updates that came out over time.

But originally, in 1981, it was just a simple, one-book game consisting of 56 pages of rules and NPCs, and eight character sheets in the middle. The reason there were eight is because they were all enhanced with an outline of a superhero that the player could fill in to match their character's idea. There were four male and four female, in different poses and body types. One of each was flying (or swimming, if you had an Aquaman-type); the others were standing in different action poses.

So, as I did with Traveller, I'm going to go through this rulebook one page at a time, describing what rules are included and my thoughts on things I notice. I'll also create a new character based on these rules once I'm done, just because I can. For this first post, I'll run through to the table of contents so as to have a bit of actual content to talk about. I've played Champions before, and I bought the 4th edition when it first came out in 1989, so I have plenty of experience with the system. But this is where it all began, and it's going to be quite primitive by comparison. So I'm looking forward to seeing where the differences lie.

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We begin with the cover, which is a wraparound in full color. On the front we see a red and purple-clad supervillain with a Cyclops-type eyepiece shooting a green eyebeam at a mask-less hero in grey and blue whose fist is glowing red as he prepares to punch back at his opponent. On the back are three more heroes (or are they villains?): An Iron Man clone, a woman with long white hair in a very skimpy navy blue outfit, and a monstrous green gargoyle-like create with batwings, spikes from its knees and elbows, and a long tail. There's action here, although it's not easy to tell who is who from the cover alone. Maybe the inside will give some more clues.

The title page tells us that George MacDonald and Steve Peterson designed the game, and Mark Williams did the cover art as well as some of the interior art. The company is called 'Hero Games', and the book is copyright 1981. Oh, and that gargoyle on the back? That's a superhero named...Gargoyle. Created by Mark Williams. So there you go.

On the next page is the dedications to a few people with superhero names in quotes as their middle names; I recognize them as players and characters that were long known to be the original Guardians team that George ran games for, although this isn't indicated on the page itself. The heroes are Icestar, Force, Marksman, Mind Maid, and Mercenary.

Then we have the almighty Table of Contents, which runs for two pages and just breaks down what's going to be showing up in the book. I see a glossary of terms will show up right away, and character generation will run about twenty-five pages or so. Man, that's a lot shorter than the fifth edition, which dedicated a couple of hundred pages to creation. Sixth edition just shrugged its shoulders and did the entire first book on nothing but character creation. So it's refreshing to see how much simpler the game was in its original form.

The main topics that will be covered are Building a Character, Skills, Powers, Advantages, Limitations, Disadvantages, character examples, Combat, Perception and Characteristic rolls, Movement and scale, Weapons, Breaking things, Building a Scenario, World Building, the origins of the game, a few supervillains, and an afterword. Again, all in just a mere 54 pages or so.

So, next time I'll cover the first actual page, which will be familiar to just about anyone who's ever picked up a role-playing rulebook in their life.

Fantastic Four: First Steps (Review)

 My, it's been quite a while, hasn't it? A year and a half since I posted. Well, it's been a busy year. With my surgery and our full-time baking business, it's been crazy. But I miss posting, and I decided it was time to get back to it. And I'm going to do so by reviewing the first Marvel movie I've seen since Spider-Man: No Way Home.

I've always liked the Fantastic Four; that comic book was foundational to the entire Marvel Universe, with dozens of characters and key concepts debuting within its pages, particularly in the Lee-Kirby era. I stopped reading the book a couple of decades ago, when the entirety of DC and Marvel became a massive hot mess, but I still enjoy reading the older stuff. And the buzz about the movie hinted that the old stuff would be a big part of this endeavour.

Fantastic Four: First Steps was better than I had feared it would be. Marvel has had a string of disappointing movies over the past few years, and early takes on this movie weren't suggesting it would be any better. Thankfully, I saw some online reviews from people whose opinions I trust, and they gave the movie at least a mild recommendation, which was enough to get me back to the theater to check it out.

And boy, am I glad I did. It name-dropped no fewer than six classic FF villains (and no, Doctor Doom was not one of them), half of them in the introductory sequence. I'm going to include a SPOILER WARNING here, so if you don't want to know what happens, skip past the starred section to get to my final thoughts. You have been warned...

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Okay, so the movie is set in what is basically the 1960s. It could be a retro/art-deco version of the 1960s that is actually set in the modern day, but the movie feels like it's set in the time period when the comics were first published. So, bonus points right there.

The intro to the film skips the whole 'origin story' thing, choosing instead to start things off with a retrospective of the team's first four years. It's the classic origin, with the team getting into space in their rocket and being exposed to the cosmic rays. No Doom in the picture, no weird extra-dimensional portals like in the previous iterations of the team's films. More bonus points for this whole sequence, which includes a direct homage to the cover of FF#1. The Mole Man, Mad Thinker, and Red Ghost (and his Super-Apes) are name-dropped in this brief but comprehensive intro to the team. Later on in the movie, the Puppet Master, the Wizard, and Diablo are also mentioned in passing.

We join them with Sue discovering that she's finally pregnant after years of trying. Reed is worried that the kid will have superpowers or effects from the cosmic radiation that affected his parents, because he's Reed Richards and that's what he does.

There are some nice exposition scenes of the team's family life, and the reality of having public identities is addressed. The team are celebrities (and the only heroes on this version of Earth), and their lives as as public as any movie star's, if not moreso. The action picks up when an alert goes off to announce the arrival of the Silver Surfer, who in this version is Shalla Bal rather than Norrin Radd. Meh. I wasn't all that thrilled about the switch, but it worked out because it was more interesting for Johnny to be chasing a 'naked silver chick' rather than a dude on a surfboard. Incidentally, Johnny had quite a bit to do in this movie besides be a snarky thrill-seeker.

The Surfer warns everyone that Galactus is coming, and the team decides to be proactive and go hunt him down. It...doesn't go well. They are no match for this cosmic being, and he demands a high price for not using the Earth as an hors-d'oeuvre: He wants Franklin, and induces Sue into premature labor to get him faster. The team escapes and returns to Earth, refusing to give up their child.

When they return, the press assumes they were triumphant, only to be stunned and shocked to find out that not only did the FF not defeat Galactus, but they refused to give in to his demands, thus putting the entire planet at risk. For myself, it was the obvious answer; no parent is going to give up their child like that. But of course, the majority of Earth doesn't see it that way, and the FF become public enemies overnight. It takes a passionate plea from Sue to get people to understand where the team is coming from.

Reed is desperate to find a solution to stop Galactus, and eventually does come up with one: Teleport the Earth to another solar system. Um...okay? That seemed a little far-fetched, but it was obvious that wasn't going to be the way it went down. Running away isn't the way to defeat the bad guy. Of course, the Surfer wrecks the teleportation tech all around the world, so the team is forced to use Franklin as bait to lure the Big G to the last remaining teleporter so they can send HIM across the universe instead.

The final action sequence is one that would rival any other superhero movie climax with the possible exception of the two Avengers movies that closed out the Infinity Saga. The whole team does their part to bring down Galactus, and Sue makes the ultimate sacrifice, burning herself out to shove Galactus into the teleporter. Yes, Sue is that powerful in the comics as well. It wasn't a 'girlboss' moment so much as it was a 'mama bear' moment. She gave everything for her child, and paid the ultimate price.

Fortunately, Franklin is already endowed with the Power Cosmic and brings his momma back. That was the perfect way to use Franklin (besides bait), hinting at what he will eventually be capable of doing. The movie ends where it began, with a TV interviewer based on Ed Sullivan talking about the team. The mid-credits scene takes place four years later, with Sue reading to Franklin before Doctor Doom makes his first appearance.

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Alright, spoilers are done. Here are my thoughts on the movie in general

All four of the team are well-developed characters, which is no surprise considering there are over sixty years of stories to draw from. Reed (played by Pedro Pascal, who is the least fitting of the cast but managed to make it work) is driven to protect his family as well as the entire world. Sue is the mother-figure, the team's real strength and unquestionably the most powerful member. Johnny is a quick-thinker with a penchant for problem-solving, and Ben is the rock of the team (no pun intended) and one hell of a pilot. All four of them are trained astronauts and work as a well-oiled machine.

The movie wasn't 'woke'. There was no race-swapping, no gay characters, no girlbossing. Sue was portrayed as a world leader and often the voice of the team, but it's clear that Reed is the leader despite his personal flaws. Johnny still likes the ladies, just not as blatantly as Chris Evans' version twenty years ago. And Ben is actually Jewish like he is in the comics, or at least it's hinted that he is near the end of the movie.

Mostly, the movie is about family. Unlike teams like the Justice League or the Avengers, the FF are a true family. Reed and Sue are married, Johnny is the younger brother, and Ben is the best friend. Together their dynamic is strong, and it really binds the whole movie together. Johnny and Ben are as happy as Reed and Sue to find out she's expecting, promising to be the best uncles ever. I really liked this aspect of the film, which wasn't nearly as played up in the previous attempts to make FF movies.

There's also a metric crap-ton of nostalgia here. Anyone who is a fan of the original series, particularly the Lee-Kirby years, is going to be loving this movie's callbacks. Earlier I mentioned several supervillains who are talked about, and one of them gets to play a role in the climax of the movie. I was half expecting Willie Lumpkin to show up at some point.

The other thing I liked was that this movie has no connection to the broader MCU, at least not yet. In fact, this isn't Marvel Earth. This is Earth-828. So there are no Avengers, no Spider-Man, no X-Men...just the FF. So it was easy to watch and not have to worry about knowing a thousand or so hours of prior continuity just to follow along. To me, that was the best part of the whole thing. I know from seeing the Thunderbolts end credits scene that the FF is going to end up in the official MCU Earth at some point, but that's fine. For now, this movie stands on its own, and that's the best part about it.

So, I do recommend this movie. It's the FF done right. The 2005 cast was stronger, but this cast holds their own and gives us the FF we have been waiting on for decades. I give it a strong recommendation.

Incidentally, we watched the 3D version, which worked just fine. Good stuff all around.