>want to run a superheroes campaign>with some of le gritty cynical moral greyness just to be all edgy and "mature", but still about four-color superheroes at its core>players all show up with characters that don't even have a theme to them, or a thematic nickname>just "lol here's John the superhero" with a bunch of disparate powers that have nothing to do with each otherWhy do people do this? Do people want to play actual superheroes or just power wanted emo furry alter egos?
>>98087426Maybe they will develop the character through play, especially once they are more invested in that character. As far as the powers thing, it literally does depend on the system when it comes to how viable that is. Let them figure out how to make it work or learn the hard way that it doesn't. Basically it's too early to tell if it's going to be a bad time. Give them a chance and see how things go after a session or two. Then talk to them if things aren't working.
>>98087454If you're not gonna make a themed superhero with a superhero name then you're just playing some gay shit that isn't superheroes (which are already gay). I've seen stories where normal dudes gain various special powers, but if we agree to Superheroes™ then that's what we're doing. My friends gf is the only one who even got close, making a shadow based superhero who manipulated shadows to scare people. But she drew her with an actual costume and shit.
>>98087426>Why do people do this? Do people want to play actual superheroes or just power wanted emo furry alter egos?Its only gotten worse since those days, for instance;The original one boggled me with the mechanics. Roll and check the column, but I never managed to find clear guidelines about who wins in ties, etc. crunchy bits were lacking, IMO and so eventually it lead me to D&D which took care of explanations much better overall (not sure if I'm unique in this, but pretty much the whole lot of us never fully "got" it from the MSH game).The Saga system, I'm now convinced, was the best thing since sliced bread ... that no one ever played and also never "got" (myself included - I kick myself daily now for not having gotten on that bandwagon when it came along). This I say after years of having ignored and slighted the system for being "diceless" not understanding that there was still the randomizing element. I finally managed to track down a copy from e-bay and I think it is one of the coolest systems I've ever read. It's simple, straight forward, and gives players a degree of control that I have not yet seen matched except by pure narrativist systems (which go too far for my tastes and most players that I know to begin with). The biggest flaw, I think, was a failed ad campaign that relied too much on "it's Marvel - buy it." rather than attempt to explain how it works, etc. Heck, I don't even remember much for advertising come to think of it - so maybe that was mistake #1.I can't say anything about the new one other than that most people really dont' seem to like the idea of bidding for actions (myself included).
>>98087426Try playing games.
>>98087426Did they want superheroes at all?Or did you just announce a superhero campaign with you players barely humoring it?Not throwing blame on you, but player interest is a sliding scale, not a binary. They could want to play something, but that something might not be specifically caped crusaders. People sometimes get worried that critique (in this case stating a preference for something other than capes) might destroy the whole event, good and bad. So they silently compromise without any great input of thought. Another option is they weren't very conscious of their own preference until they had to make a character. Or they have no idea how to make a character to suit the campaign. Or they're in a munchkin mindset focusing on 'winning' rather than a thematic experience. Or they just picked a grab bag of 'cool' or 'interesting' without any specific theme to tie it together.
Sounds like the genre of hero that's just "guy in suit and hat"
>>98087426>with some of le gritty cynical moral greyness just to be all edgy and "mature", but still about four-color superheroes at its coreIf you send mixed messages, don't be surprised when they're misunderstood.
>>98087465Did you play a session at all?If not give them a chance. They may be expecting the first session to guide them on tone and how to better define their character, as well as how lethal the game you are running which also effects how much attachment they have for that character. I know when I play high lethal games I intentionally don't get attached to any character in such games. I mean did you communicate with them what to expect from the game? Did you ever check if their expectations match the game you are running?Regardless a lot would become more clear for both sides if you actually play a session instead of complaining to randomes who aren't in your game.
>>98087426Have the first session end up with them getting a PR agent that dresses them up in brightly coloured latex and capes.
>All super heroes are cape wearing queers in tightsSuper hero fans are so goddamn boring.
>>98087426"Actual superheroes" have zero tonal consistency.
>>98087830Or a government agency swoops in to corral the vigilante supes towards before they damage too much (assigning them code names in the process). No, they do NOT get to choose their code names.
>>98087426>bunch of disparate powers that have nothing to do with each otherOkay>I can fly>I'm bulletproof>I am super smart>I'm almost the fastest man alive>I can hold my breath for a long time>I can shoot heat rays from out of my eyesThose all totally go together as one comparate set.
>>98087961I am still waiting for OP to name what system they are playing to tell if it's even a problem or not.Regardless the player would figure out if their build is viable or not on their own without OP needing to backseat build for him.Especially early into a game where there is usually a lot of room to grow into a specialty later.
>>98088186Savage Worlds Superheroes
>>98087426>emo furry alter egosDon't put your casting call on discord or bluesky and this should be less of a problem
>>98087426Well, most average ttrpg players are not a good comic book writers... Even most comic writers are not good comic writers.But it mostly sounds like your players were just not super interested in the genre.I would have loved to play a supers game with you anon :)My favorites supers stories are about looser D-lister heroes or villains.
>>98087683>>98087842For me it's Mr. A.
>>98091538For me, it's The Phantom.
>>98089115>But it mostly sounds like your players were just not super interested in the genre.Then, I dunno, grow a fuckin pair of balls and say something? Don't fucking pussy about and waste my time spending hours creating material for a game that no one is actually interested in, just because youre a conflict avoidant little fucking pussy bitch who doesn't know how to interact socially. Don't just be a low-effort footdragger just to be passive aggressive. Okay if you don't like it? Tell me and we will play something you do like. I'm not even saying don't play, like these soulless roll20 whores that hop.from game to game after screen capping the "cringe" chat logs to post on reddit so some rpghorrorstories YouTuber faggots can put their story in the next video and they can feel para social pride while receiving none of the ad revenue. Just be honest for fucks sake and if you can't manage that then at least put the effort in to make it good anyway, even if it's not your favorite thing. That's what I have done in the past. Sorry I didn't hand out a fucking consent checklist before I proposed the idea in case the very suggestion was triggering to your inability to say no to anything openly. There's a serious mental issue with these zoomer/millennial players. There's no excuse either, because I'm in that age group. I'm not an "alpha male" either, I'm more beta but I can still bring up when I'm not happy with a situation. You people are literally gamma males compared to me. Just absolute fucking bitces who waste others time because you won't speak the truth about your interests and enthusiasm level for something, and just drag it down instead and waste everyone's time.
>>98092133Holy trauma dump unc frfr
>>98092133Seek help bro.
>>98089115High Impact looks cute, she looks like DCAU Terra
>>98092268Thank you! She is virtually indestructible, but has no other powers, and the general physical strength of a sick puppy.She streams her heroics and has a big following, but everyone is there to just see her get beaten up by villains and lose again and again. And those streaming numbers is the only thing that gives her validation and income, so she keeps going, facing off against more and more dangerous villains.
