From: [s--m] at [Eng.Sun.COM] (Sam Bell) Newsgroups: rec.games.frp.super-heroes Subject: CH: Write-Ups: FAQ Date: 17 Apr 1996 00:07:26 GMT Frequently Asked Questions about Sam Bell's Write-Ups Version 1.0 prepared 4/16/96 by Sam last updated 4/16/96 by Sam 1.0 What are the write-ups? 1.1 What are they for? 2.0 Who is Sam Bell? 3.0 How are the write-ups done? 3.1 Why don't the write-ups have full background, personality sketches, etc? 4.0 Why are the characters so powerful? 4.1 Why are they so much tougher than characters in my campaign? 4.2 Why are they so much tougher than Champions Universe characters? 4.3 Why did you give character X Str Y, when the Marvel Handbook says they should have Str Z? 5.0 How can I use the characters? 6.0 Why haven't you done character X? 7.0 Where can I get the write-ups? 8.0 What write-ups are available? ======================================================================= 1. What are the write-ups? A: They are DC & Marvel characters written up under the Champions rules. I started posting them around February of 1995. So far I have posted over 200 write-ups with many more to go. 1.1 What are they for? A: For fun. I originally started doing them to spark discussion on how to best do certain powers in Champions. They were moderately successful, and did start a few discussions on desolidification and how to do disads. For myself, I enjoy doing them for the mental exercise, the chance to brush up on comics trivia and for the fame (yeah, right). ======================================================================= 2. Who is Sam Bell? A: I am a software engineer at Sun Microsystems. Two of my hobbies are comic books and Champions. I have no proffessional connection with DC, Marvel or Hero Games. I have been reading comics 20 years (since 1976) and have been playing Champions for 13 (since 1983). I have run a number of campaigns down the years, none of which have featured write-ups of existing comicbook characters (there have been a few rip-offs, homages and parodies down the years). ======================================================================= 3. How are the write-ups done? A: Usually I read the appropriate reference work (Who's Who in the DC Universe or The Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe) if the character has an entry, then I write them up, attempting to include as many of their powers as possible. Sometimes I will leave a power out if the character seems to have lost it or if it particularly silly. I usually don't include powers/skills that have only been seen once. My priorities (in order) are: 1) Represent what is portrayed in the comics. 2) Conform with the relevant reference (OHotMU or DC's Who's Who). 3) Keep relative power levels consistant with other comics characters (Thor should be stronger than the Thing, Batman should be a better detective than Nightwing). 4) Keeping relative power levels consistant with typical Champions games (the Hulk should be a tough brick, Mon-El should not be a be a push-over). Note that the last item is definitely my lowest priority, so I try to "call 'em like I see 'em" even if the resulting power level is too high (or too low) for successful interaction with most campaigns. (See question #4). Since the comics often contradict each other and the reference materials I often have to just pick a number based on totally personal preference. This is very often the case with the more intangible stats (Int, Ego, Pre, Com). 3.1 Why don't the write-ups have full background, personality sketches, etc? A: If they did, I'd still be working on my 20th character. These are supposed to be for people who already know the comics. If you don't know who Spiderman is, I'm not going to tell you. I'm trying to get the majority of two universes done, hundreds and hundreds of characters, and that requires that I keep them fairly terse. I even omit disads unless they are particularly interesting. ======================================================================= 4. Why are the characters so powerful? See below. As a general comment, most of these write-ups aren't all that powerful, they are just very expensive, and that is because I'm not trying to shave points here, I'm trying to accurately translate the comics. Most numbers were arrived at by comparing the character I'm working on with other characters already written up. For instance, I gave the Human Torch an 18d6 EB. Now, when the Human Torch has blasted Colossus in the past, Colossus was unaffected, so Colossus should have at least a 63 ed. Colossus was give a 75 Str, so when I write-up Juggernaut, I'll make sure that he can beat a 75 Str brick, since we know that Juggernaut can beat Colossus, etc. Of course, with all the interactions in comics it would be all but impossible to do write-ups that mirror every interaction ever shown, since the comics themselves aren't very consistant, but I try. 4.1 Why are they so much tougher than characters in my campaign? A: No particular reason. There are campaigns at many different power levels out there. I think the Champions games tend to be too 'balanced' relative to genre fiction. In the comics, Superman teams up with Black Canary but in Champions most players don't enjoy playing underpowered characters. I've made some progress overcoming this in my group, but that's a subject for another FAQ. 4.2 Why are they so much tougher than Champions Universe characters? A: No particular reason. Again, while they are more expensive than CU characters, they're often not as combat effective. 4.3 Why did you give character X Str Y, when the Marvel Handbook says they should have Str Z? A: The Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe is a wondeful book. I have great admiration for Mark Gruenwald and Peter Sanderson, however, the strengths are wrong at the high end. They do not correspond to what has been shown in the comics, time and time again. Let's use the Thing for an example. The OHOTMU says he can lift 85 tons. 85 tons sounds like a lot, but it corresponds to a block of stone 2.77m on a side. Ben uses rocks that size to throw at people, one handed. If we figure backwards for champions str (85 tons = 58.66 Str) things get worse. Ben can't uproot a medium sized tree (5def 8 bod) in a single phase, he can't crush a howitzer barrel (6 def 8 body) with his bare hands: is this the blue-eyes idol o' millions? Another problem is that all the brick's strengths come out too close together if we figure backwards from OHOTMU: OHOTMU figured str Doc Samson 50 tons 54.83 Colossus 75 tons 57.75 Thing 85 tons 58.66 Thor 100 tons 59.83 In the comics, Thor is signifigantly stronger than Colossus, and 2.08 str is not signifigant enough, IMHO (Yes, I know all about the logarithmic nature of Champs Str, I just think that Thor is more than 1.333 times stronger than Colossus). So what to do? I needed a yardstick from which to measure power levels, and strength seemed the best. After all, which is better, Vision's heat vision or the Human Torch's blast? It is hard to tell from the comics. But it is clear that Wonderman is stronger than Powerman, even though the two never arm-wrestled. How do we know? Because there have been enough contests of strength down the years to accurately gauge everyone's relative Strs (even though the absolute values are vague). I had to make an executive decision and arrived at this formula: Write-up's Str= Greater Of [ Str figured backwards from OHOTMU value, OHOTMU value in tons] Not only does this address the problems mentioned above, but it has the important benefit of 'feeling right' to me. 85 Str sounds about right for the Thing and 58.66 doesn't, IMHO. I could have done it any number of other ways, but I had to pick one, and this is what I picked. Many people don't like this, and I don't blame them. As soon as they come up with a better way to do it, then write-up and post 200+ characters using their system, I'll be happy to sit back and offer my constructive criticism. ======================================================================= 5. How can I use the characters? A: The write-ups also have several other uses: 1) Example characters: These can be shown to players who are new to Champions but are familiar with comic book characters to give them a feel of how to write characters ups. I've tried to keep the math correct, and think I've managed to keep my bug rate below Hero Game's (I know, big deal...). 2) Brainstorm aid: I've playing Champions for 13 years and have run hundreds of games and written up hundreds of villains (all original, thank you). These write-ups give you a chance to see how one experienced GM solved some sticky problems. Some of my ideas may inspire you. 3) Checklist aid: Imagine you are working on a stretching character. You could check out my Mr Fantastic write-ups for a good list of stretching-based powers. Maybe there is something you've forgotten? 4) Power Database: You can cut-and-paste powers and gadgets from these write-ups to create characters in a jiff. Say you want a powered armor villain team and the game starts in ten minutes. No problem. First you brainstorm up some names (Silly names used for example purposes, I'm saving all the good names for my own campaign). You come up with Insectnaut, Ironwing, Motormouth and the Plutonium Man. The write-ups are a snap: Insectnaut: Ant-Man's cybernetic helmet plus the Beetle's armor. Ironwing: An agent, plus Archangel's wings bought OIF. Motormouth: Blue Streak's rocket skates plus Cottonmouth's bite (assumed to be a cybernetic enhancement). Plutonium Man: Iron Man's technical skills, plus the Radioactive Man's powers bought OIF. 5) Use them in as characters. Many won't be at the right power level, but chances are some of them are. There are several options: A) Same write-up, different name: Use Whirlwind, but call him Cyclone and give him a new costume. No one need ever know :-). B) Same name, not really the same character. There just happens to be someone in your campaign with the same name, powers and costume as a character in the comics. This works fine with reasonably second-string characters (who cares if your Rattler or Judomaster is a rip-off?). If you bring in a character named "Batman" or "Spiderman" you are just asking for trouble, unless... C) Same character, different universe. The evil Dr Dimension detonates a D-Bomb under the heroes' base and they are flung into another universe. A friendly Latverian scientist offers to help them return home, but first they must recover a stolen time platform being held by the evil Dr Richards... D) Same character, same universe. Or you could just set a campaign in a comic-book universe. Tricky, but I suppose it could be done. ====================================================================== 6. Why haven't you done character X? I am still busy working, I imagine A: I'll hit the 500-character mark before I am through, so it may be that I haven't gotten around to it yet. There are some characters you'll probably never see: 1) Humor characters. The Tick, the Inferior Five, Ambush Bug. I love them, but I'm not very interested in writing them up. 2) Abstract Beings. Dream, Galactus, Phantom Stranger. These aren't handled very well by Champions, IMHO. 3) Non-Big Two characters. Youngblood, Astro City, etc. For most of these I don't have enough info. ======================================================================= 7. Where can I get the write-ups? A: Right now, the only place where you can get all the write-ups is directly from me. Just send e-mail to [samuel bell] at [sun.com] ======================================================================= 8. What write-ups are available? A: Here's what is available, as of today: All Star Squadron 143 Wing 145 Sandy 153 Tiger 228 Atom (v1) 229 Amazingman 229 Wildcat 239 Hourman 242 Tarantula 271 Dr Midnite 276 Airwave 279 Iron Munro 280 Crimson Avenger 290 Liberty Belle 304 Judomaster 308 Sandman 312 Atom (v2) 323 Firebrand II 327 Fury 328 Starman 337 Hawkwoman 341 Hawkman 348 Commander Steel 363 Shining Knight 415 Robotman 497 Dr Fate (v1) 526 Superman (v1) 558 Uncle Sam 695 Flash 695 Superman (v2) 720 Johnny Quick 1164 Dr Fate (v2) 1497 Spectre Avengers 314 Falcon 322 Hawkeye 337 Mockingbird 344 Scarlet Witch 378 Tigra 385 Wasp 399 Black Knight 416 Black Panther 449 Black Widow 496 Yellowjacket 505 Jocasta 518 Quicksilver 545 Sif 579 She_hulk 609 Captain America 640 Starfox 727 Wonderman 777 Vision 778 Hercules 833 Iron_man 1217 Thor Fantastic Four 635 Thing 645 Invisible Woman 697 Mr Fantastic 787 Human Torch Frightful Four/Fearsome Five 257 Mammoth 272 Medusa 290 Gizmo 368 Dr Light 395 Shimmer 436 Trapster 442 Wizard 578 Psimon 607 Sandman 631 Brute Hamner's Mercenaries 181 Discus 181 Stiletto 271 Boomerang 276 Blizzard 286 Constrictor 294 Bluestreak 318 Blacklash 367 Porcupine 469 Force 493 Spymaster Infinity Inc 214 Dr Midnight 232 Hourman 254 Wildcat II 261 Brainwave Jr 325 Silver Scarab 332 Mr Bones 369 Fury 372 Nuklon 372 Star Spangled Kid 374 Northwind 401 Obsidian 476 Jade Justice League of America 292 Ice 325 Green Arrow 380 Blue Beetle 390 Hawkwoman 399 Hawkman 401 Black Canary 408 Fire 423 Rocket Red 482 Aquaman 513 Dr Light 535 Mr Miracle 546 Batman 571 Elongated Man 628 Power Girl 752 Wonder Woman 758 Maxima 827 Flash 1055 Martian Manhunter 1661 Superman Legion of Superheroes 217 Matter Eater Lad 262 Invisible Kid II 355 Magnetic Lad 356 Bouncing Boy 387 Invisible Kid 395 Phantom Girl 405 Star Boy 414 Atmos 423 Lightning Lad 429 Lightning Lass 434 Polar Boy 439 Tellus 439 Tyroc 441 Dream Girl 442 Duo Damsel 480 Cosmic Boy 496 Shadow Lass 498 Chemical King 504 Sun Boy 539 Karate Kid 545 Kent Shakespeare 546 Timber Wolf 548 Ferro Lad 573 Colossal Boy 589 Braniac-5 631 White Witch 661 Saturn Girl 705 Dawnstar 707 Blok 738 Sensor Girl 752 Ultra Boy 810 Chamelion Boy 905 Shrinking Violet 1088 Element Lad 1213 Wildfire 1583 Superboy 1617 Mon El 1650 Supergirl Legion of Super Villains 85 Ron Karr 148 Tarik 195 Spider Girl 203 Radiation Roy 271 Hunter 282 Mist Master 330 Saturn Queen 350 Lightning Lord 351 Esper Lass 358 Magno Lad 367 Silver Slasher 374 Titania (LSV) 397 Chameleon Chief 403 Tyr 448 Sun Emperor 557 Lazon 615 Micro Lad 642 Cosmic King 901 Nuetrax 1312 Ol Vir Marvel Misc 227 Angar 261 Aguila 267 Batroc 313 American Eagle 343 Ant Man 363 Armadillo 386 Arabian Knight 408 Arkon 472 Attuma 552 Abomination 629 Annihilus 679 Blaastar 694 Spider Man 707 Captain Marvel 777 Ares 1168 Beta Ray Bill Masters of Evil 198 Egghead 226 Melter 248 Piledriver 248 Thunderball 249 Bulldozer 284 Shocker 296 Screaming Mimi 333 Scorpion 349 Titania 358 Yellowjacket 362 Wrecker (v2) 365 Black Knight 2 368 Beetle 372 Fixer 398 Baron Zemo 2 422 Baron Zemo 1 423 Tiger Shark 429 Wrecker (v1) 445 Mr Hyde 486 Blackout 526 Whirlwind 582 Radioactive Man 592 Grey Gargoyle 617 Moonstone 686 Executioner 690 Goliath 884 Klaw 907 Enchantress 1044 Absorbing Man Serpent Society 138 Cottonmouth 179 Coachwhip 218 Boomslang 232 Bushmaster 246 Rock Python 253 Sidewinder 261 Puff Adder 276 Diamondback 290 Anaconda 292 Black Racer 293 Rattler 297 Asp 315 Diamondback (Post SSS) 321 Death Adder 395 Cobra X-Men 320 Boom Boom 349 Domino 351 Shatterstar 362 Shadowcat 372 Warpath 410 Havok 421 Sunspot 427 Psylocke 437 Beast 450 Siryn 466 Sunfire 472 Nightcrawler 479 Cannonball 490 Marvel Girl 511 Banshee 542 Archangel 550 Cyclops 557 Colossus 637 Cable 710 Prof X 713 Wolverine 793 Storm =======================================================================