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Miniatures Adventure => SuperHero Adventures => Topic started by: Erethor on 21 November 2016, 11:45:50 PM
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Here's a battle report playtesting the new Goalsystem game Super Mission Force!
First, we're playing the Weapon scenario, but with a slight change...Instead of trying to destroy a weapon, the villains are trying to break into (and loot) an armored car!
Nighttime in Gotham City. An armored car rolls along through an intersection when suddenly, a rocket streaks out from the darkness up ahead! The armored car is struck, the blast destroying the engine! Luckily the rest of the car stays in one piece. As the drivers bail out, Batman and Robin swoop down to investigate. They are surprised to see Green Arrow swing down and join them! Why is he in Gotham? No time to talk though, as Roman Sionis, AKA Black Mask, and his gang, the False Face Society, race towards the truck! From down the other street, the hulking form of Killer Croc appears, tossing aside a used rocket-propelled grenade launcher. He rushes in for the kill!
Starting Positions:
(http://i.imgur.com/MzAVL6Bl.jpg)
Our heroes in the middle of the map.
(http://i.imgur.com/vfz1ozll.jpg)
Black Mask and his gang come down one street, while Killer Croc comes from another.
We roll for the subplot. Green Arrow and Killer Croc are the main players in this encounter, dealing with the Resource and Underworld subplots. The heroes get 3 subplot dice, the villains get 1.
Round 1 -
(http://i.imgur.com/4xPmZVTl.jpg)
First move of the game and already a mistake! Killer Croc charges Batman, but I accidentally double his move instead of adding an extra half (darn you SuperSystem muscle memory!)
In any case, Batman dodges Crocs charge.
(http://i.imgur.com/nrDwwfGl.jpg)
Green Arrow adds 2 subplot dice to a ranged attack, and targets Black Mask. A combination of great rolls by Green Arrow and poor defense rolls sees Black Mask taken out in one shot! The henchmen move forward to avenge their boss and start shooting at Green Arrow, dealing him 1 damage.
The rest of the round sees Batman and Robin gang up on Killer Croc, dealing 2 damage. Crocs Rage kicks in, and he becomes near unstoppable!
Round 2 -
(http://i.imgur.com/Yzbci9Ol.jpg)
Killer Croc somehow regains focus, and goes after the truck, breaking off from Batman and Robin. Again, a set of poor rolls sees Croc swiping feebly at the armored vehicle. Green Arrow circles around the truck and fires a net arrow (entangle)! Croc fails to score even a single goal to defend, even with using his subplot dice! He's wrapped tight and no sign of him getting out any time soon!
(http://i.imgur.com/YLcK5ndl.jpg)
Black Mask's henchmen continue walking forward, this time pouring their fire on Robin. The Boy Wonder manages to dodge their shots, as Batman charges their group...
(http://i.imgur.com/hxiRsbil.jpg)
...and teaches them a lesson...
(http://i.imgur.com/S5spatdl.jpgd)
...taking all but one of them out.
(http://i.imgur.com/9cr4Lnzl.jpg)
Robin closes the round by charging Killer Croc.
Round 3 -
(http://i.imgur.com/5hFuMlCl.jpg)
Batman finishes off the lone henchmen, while Croc tries (and fails) to break free of Green Arrow's net. Green Arrow charges forward, pulling out his trusty Boxing Glove arrow (melee weapon) and fires a shot at Killer Croc at point blank range! Croc is woozy but manages to stay standing until Robin uses his staff (and last subplot dice) to knock Croc unconscious!
Game Over!
All in all, a fun game and a fantastic set of rules. Other than the opening mistake, the rules were all easy to memorize.
The character makeup for the game didn't follow the rules exactly as written. I selected powers I felt represented the characters, but still kept the number of powers the same, to keep some balance (though the bad guys rolled so poorly they didn't stand a chance anyways). The characters were:
Batman (Brawler) - Scrapper, Iron Will, Super Agility
Green Arrow (Blaster) - Archery (with Melee Weapon, Entangle, Super Agility), Stun, Clever
Robin (Street Level) - Super Agility, Melee Weapon
Killer Croc (Wildcard) - Armor, Super-Strength, Rage, Amphibious
False Face Society (Henchmen) - Power Blast, Veterans
Black Mask (Street Level) - Power Blast, Savant
Now to play another game and figure out what Green Arrow wanted with Killer Croc...
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Great report! Loved the terrain and seeing the rules in action!
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Looks like loads of fun was had. Shame the villans didn't roll any good dice but an easy win for batman isn't a bad thing.
I must sort out some more street furniture for my own city.
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Awesome report! Thanks for sharing. I can't believe I haven't gotten a game in yet :(
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Thanks all!
I think the scenarios will run better and be more balanced with more figures on each side. I plan on playing a few more games with various numbers and combinations of archetypes to see how it works.
In the meantime, I was working on a Character Stat Card for SMF when I saw a post by BaronVonJ on his blog (specifically this post http://baronvonj.blogspot.com/2016/11/central-city-supers-gauntlet-of.html (http://baronvonj.blogspot.com/2016/11/central-city-supers-gauntlet-of.html))
There's a card in the post that looked perfect for what I was trying to make, so I repurposed a "SMF version" for myself. Here's a preview:(http://i.imgur.com/vi4JQnf.jpg)
Still tweaking it in MSPublisher to remove some minor (but unobtrusive) artifacts that crop up when printing as a PDF. Thoughts so far?
And a big thanks to BaronVonJ for the inspiration. Check out his blog for all kinds of gaming inspiration. #notsponsored
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Great little card!
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Another foray into the SMF playtest. Continuing from the last battle...
Green Arrow reveals he's found evidence of Killer Croc acting as muscle during a recent heist on Sagittarius Enterprises, located in Star City. He's chased him back to Gotham to find out what went missing. Whatever was taken wasn't listed on the company's inventory. There's a definite cover-up and Green Arrow aims to find out over what.
After some minor interrogation from Batman...
(http://i.imgur.com/jD3oqJHl.jpg)
Green Arrow finds out that Croc doesn't know what it was he was stealing, just that afterwards he transported the device to a warehouse in Star City. Green Arrow heads back to Star City, and to the address Croc gave him...
Green Arrow calls Black Canary for help. Black Canary shows up with fellow members of the Birds of Prey: Katana and Batgirl. As they close in on the warehouse, they see the villain Captain Cold! He's leading his Rogues: Heatwave, Golden Glider, and Mirror Master. The two groups spot each other and clash! Little do they realize a stranger watches from the shadows...
The villains have 1 subplot die, the heroes have none. Today's game is the Team Up scenario, where one team will get an extra member. Each side rolls off to see whose side the guest star is on, with the villains using their one subplot die to assist. The heroes still manage to win the roll, and a guest star will show up later on.
Beginning Deployment -
The Rogues
(http://i.imgur.com/h5swHJ7l.jpg)
Team Arrow
(http://i.imgur.com/gxqa66Ul.jpg)
Full Table Overview
(http://i.imgur.com/p1MR4Hql.jpg)
Round 1 -
Both sides move in closer to fight. Batgirl swings up to a nearby building...
(http://i.imgur.com/eFV3flWl.jpg)
...while Mirror Master teleports across the field and fires his Mirror Gun at Katana!
(http://i.imgur.com/dfwz0Tel.jpg)
Katana dodges the blast, while unbeknownst to Mirror Master, Black Canary comes around a nearby shipping container and charges him from the back!
(http://i.imgur.com/ZAmr072l.jpg)
Mirror Master remains standing, though just barely.
Round 2 -
The mysterious stranger arrives on the field...
(http://i.imgur.com/lUqoHUwl.jpg)
Merlyn! Long time nemesis of Green Arrow! What could he want? While he enters the battlefield, Katana charges Mirror Master. With Black Canary's help, they easily overpower Mirror Master.
(http://i.imgur.com/CF3WZ79l.jpg)
Golden Glider swoops in on Black Canary, but she dodges most of her attacks.
(http://i.imgur.com/ER25WEql.jpg)
Green Arrow fires a shot at Heatwave, wounding him, but he keeps on coming.
(http://i.imgur.com/A7p70njl.jpg)
Merlyn helps Black Canary! He charges Golden Glider and sends her flying! She crashes into Heatwave...
(http://i.imgur.com/QsP3UaEl.jpg)
...who unfortunately has increased the ambient temperature to surround himself with flames, and accidentally sets Golden Glider alight!
(http://i.imgur.com/96l5Sxql.jpg)
Captain Cold tries to freeze Black Canary...
(http://i.imgur.com/iQiHF18l.jpg)
...and when that fails, he runs behind the building, unaware Batgirl is sneaking up beside him.
(http://i.imgur.com/aDqkhpsl.jpg)
Round 3 -
Captain Cold circles around the building to fire another shot at the heroes, but misses.
Batgirl drops in on Captain Cold...
(http://i.imgur.com/vmld9Mwl.jpg)
..and takes him out before he knows she's there!
(http://i.imgur.com/UaUTks9l.jpg)
Heatwave charges Green Arrow, and wounds him. Katana charges in to defend Green Arrow, but she is overcome by the flames!
(http://i.imgur.com/AFcwrxsl.jpg)
Green Arrow attacks Heatwave, but he too is overcome by the intense heat from Heatwave's modified flamethrower. Heatwave is finally taken down when Batgirl and Black Canary team up!
(http://i.imgur.com/CBsMsxVl.jpg)
With all the villains down, the heroes win again! But why is Merlyn assisting the Green Arrow? Is he involved with the heist from Sagittarius Enterprises? What is he hoping to gain? Find out more in the next battle of Super Mission Force!
This game seemed to move by really quick. A couple questions popped up about how Teleport works, but nothing derailing. Overall the game ran smooth. Mostly used Street Level archetypes. Even with 1 less hitbox they feel much more squishy, but it seems to work out well. Combat feels just a bit "swingy" but you can still strategize to minimize that, and it makes for quick, furious games!
Hoping the next game will include mostly non-street archetypes, or maybe even a powerhouse!
Stats used were:
Heroes-
Green Arrow/Merlyn (Blaster) - Archery (with Melee Weapon, Entangle, Super Agility), Stun, Clever
Katana (Street) - Melee Weapon, Fast
Black Canary (Street) - Stun, Melee Weapon (to represent close combat training)
Batgirl (Street) - Super Agility, Melee Weapon
Villains -
Captain Cold (Wildcard) - Entangle, Power Blast, Stun, Fortune
Mirror Master (Street) - Teleport, Power Blast
Heatwave (Street) - Power Blast, Damaging Field
Golden Glider (Street) - Flight, Melee Weapon
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Dynamite report! Thanks!
Can you expand on the "swingy" nature of the combat? Exactly what does that mean? Just trying ot get a handle on the play dynamics for you.
Thanks, again!
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Apologies for being unclear. By "swingy," I mean that in some cases it seems like characters mostly either stay standing all fight, or are taken out in one hit. Basically, one good roll vs one bad roll can take out a character.
For example, in the last game, Captain Cold and Golden Glider were both taken out in one hit. Somehow, Golden Glider managed to make her KO roll, but then was knocked back into an ally's Damaging Field, taking her out! (pretty great moment!)
Heatwave blocked everything thrown at him, until he was charged and taken down in one hit. Sure enough, he made his KO roll as well, but he went down on the next attack, which ALSO would have done enough damage to take him down in one hit.
Overall, two characters somehow made the difficult KO roll, but if they hadn't, they would have been out after one attack. They didn't really build up damage overtime. Even if they weren't street-level, they still took enough damage to be knocked out as other archetypes.
As a thought experiment- A Brick with Leaping and Armor vs a Street Level with Melee Weapon. If the Street Charges (getting 5D) and manages to score 7 hits after re-rolls (totally plausible- in fact, and please believe this I swear I'm not making this up, I just rolled 5d6 as a lark and got 7 goals, no joke!) the Brick will take 6 damage and has to make a KO roll on 4D, which is possible, but more likely to lose than win. One hit and down.
Of course, these may be some extreme examples and shouldn't be representative of the whole game.
Now, interestingly, the game doesn't suffer because of this like others might. In fact, this seems to work in it's favor! With a low model count, even if you are in the lead, you can still have your own models taken out quickly and your numerical advantage nullified. If you're the one outnumbered, you know you're not out just yet, and can probably even the odds. This plays to the game's strength as simple and fast, and helps the Supers flavor!
I don't think there's anything that could/should be done to the system to change this dynamic. I was just pointing out the feel of it. It's a fantastic game!
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OK, excellent.
It can go very fast and I am happy with that. The key for us at this point is to just pile up a bunch of games played and see what needs tweaked.
Thanks!
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Erethor,
From your example it doesn't look like you gave the Brick his opposition roll to the attack?
With average luck he would score 2 or 3 goals, and reduce the 7 down to 4 or 5, then the Armor would reduce this to down to 3 or 4 damage. It would take two such lucky shots to take him down, which even that would be quite unlikely.
Kim
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Erethor,
From your example it doesn't look like you gave the Brick his opposition roll to the attack?
With average luck he would score 2 or 3 goals, and reduce the 7 down to 4 or 5, then the Armor would reduce this to down to 3 or 4 damage. It would take two such lucky shots to take him down, which even that would be quite unlikely.
Kim
Sorry my example wasn't clear. The intent was that the brick rolled no goals on defense. Once that's happened, it's not that he'll be severely wounded or impaired, he'll just be removed because of a single bad roll. And so far, though anecdotally, its happened quite a bit during my games. Not that this is necessarily a bad thing!
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Unlike SS4 (or any other version of SS) SMF is less forgiving when it comes to tanking a roll.
There is not that second damage/soak sequence. So when you tank a defense roll, you're more likely to get hammered, and KO'ed.
One minor thing that we could do is reduce the base KO check from TN4 to TN3. This way you're a little more likely to make that KO check at least.
Any thoughts on this?
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Unlike SS4 (or any other version of SS) SMF is less forgiving when it comes to tanking a roll.
There is not that second damage/soak sequence. So when you tank a defense roll, you're more likely to get hammered, and KO'ed.
One minor thing that we could do is reduce the base KO check from TN4 to TN3. This way you're a little more likely to make that KO check at least.
Any thoughts on this?
I'm ashamed to say that I have yet to play a game, but my first inclination when I heard that everything is all wrapped up in one roll was concern about some really deadly combat. I think combat is deadly in reality, people spray lots of bullets that mostly miss. When you get hit by military weapons, it's pretty much game over, not necessarily dead, but you are pretty much done for the day.
Comics on the other hand are long drawn out battles. Lots of Hollywood drama an multiple punches thrown, falling off buildings, all the stops before someone goes down. Perhaps a max of 3 damage from any one attack as an optional rule for heroes? Henchman can go down like a house of cards?
Or a larger body damage pool? Would the game suffer from that? Like I said, I haven't play tested SMF yet, so I could be way off base.
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I'm ashamed to say that I have yet to play a game, but my first inclination when I heard that everything is all wrapped up in one roll was concern about some really deadly combat. I think combat is deadly in reality, people spray lots of bullets that mostly miss. When you get hit by military weapons, it's pretty much game over, not necessarily dead, but you are pretty much done for the day.
Comics on the other hand are long drawn out battles. Lots of Hollywood drama an multiple punches thrown, falling off buildings, all the stops before someone goes down. Perhaps a max of 3 damage from any one attack as an optional rule for heroes? Henchman can go down like a house of cards?
Or a larger body damage pool? Would the game suffer from that? Like I said, I haven't play tested SMF yet, so I could be way off base.
I am loathe to move too far away from the core of Goalsystem. So I don't want to go there yet.
But I have considered it! ;)
The KO check change is milder in my mind. The games are fast and furious because of this combined attack / defense mechanic. It's just striking that balance that's the trick.
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I am loathe to move too far away from the core of Goalsystem. So I don't want to go there yet.
But I have considered it! ;)
The KO check change is milder in my mind. The games are fast and furious because of this combined attack / defense mechanic. It's just striking that balance that's the trick.
So, my experiences with the game is that battles are super-fast, but super-deadly, with the occasional bad-roll causing a one-hit KO. It can sometimes be a bit of a disappointment to lose a figure so fast.
If you were trying to keep figures/battles going a bit longer, it seems like it would be a good experiment to try a few games with the KO roll at TN3, though perhaps not immediately change it until more feedback is acquired.
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So, my experiences with the game is that battles are super-fast, but super-deadly, with the occasional bad-roll causing a one-hit KO. It can sometimes be a bit of a disappointment to lose a figure so fast.
If you were trying to keep figures/battles going a bit longer, it seems like it would be a good experiment to try a few games with the KO roll at TN3, though perhaps not immediately change it until more feedback is acquired.
Ok. I am going to play a few games with the base KO of TN3. Would you do that too so we can get a decent sample of games for feedback?
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Had a longer think on this while driving to work. A few easy "fixes" that might make for slightly tougher characters:
-- Add +2 Body / +2 Psyche to every starting profile
-- Lower base KO check to TN3
And then perhaps a more ambitious addition:
Recovery Check
Use a special action and make a Chance roll. Any goals scored on the check allow the you to recover lost Body or Psyche on a 1 for 1 basis. You can mix your recovery between Body and Psyche. You cannot recover more lost damage than you started the game with.
Example: Doc Shock is hurting, down 2 Body and 1 Psyche. He uses a special action and makes a 2D check, scoring 2 goals! He chooses to recover 1 Body and 1 Psyche.
Thoughts on this?
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Recovery Check
Use a special action and make a Chance roll. Any goals scored on the check allow the you to recover lost Body or Psyche on a 1 for 1 basis. You can mix your recovery between Body and Psyche. You cannot recover more lost damage than you started the game with.
Example: Doc Shock is hurting, down 2 Body and 1 Psyche. He uses a special action and makes a 2D check, scoring 2 goals! He chooses to recover 1 Body and 1 Psyche.
Thoughts on this?
This particular solution doesn't stop the 'one crappy roll' and your out possible issue. And it adds quite a bit of time/fiddly-ness to each round.
A couple of extra body/psyche points isn't radical and doesn't add anything new to remember, just adds a bit more staying power.
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This particular solution doesn't stop the 'one crappy roll' and your out possible issue. And it adds quite a bit of time/fiddly-ness to each round.
A couple of extra body/psyche points isn't radical and doesn't add anything new to remember, just adds a bit more staying power.
Well, not everyone has to do it. You would need to use a special action to do a recovery check.
Anyway, I think I will up the starting Body / Psyche totals. Seems like an easy, non-controversial helper, if not a total fix.
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I like the idea of upping the starting levels as a solution. Adding the TN3 KO check also work.
Not a fan of the recovery idea as this just negates the Healing and Regen powers.
Lets just try the higher body/psyche and TN3 KO check for know.
Kim
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I like the idea of upping the starting levels as a solution. Adding the TN3 KO check also work.
Not a fan of the recovery idea as this just negates the Healing and Regen powers.
Lets just try the higher body/psyche and TN3 KO check for know.
Kim
Yep, that's the plan. Excited to play some games with these adjustments!
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I hadn't mentioned it because I figured it was just a design philosophy but yeah I did find games tobe quite short because of the hit points totals. An extra couple of hits may well be the sweet spot.
Would you also increase the maximum hits for henchmen groups?
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I hadn't mentioned it because I figured it was just a design philosophy but yeah I did find games tobe quite short because of the hit points totals. An extra couple of hits may well be the sweet spot.
Would you also increase the maximum hits for henchmen groups?
We'll leave Henchmen as is for now.
I am going to play some games tomorrow so I hope to get some firsthand experience with the increased totals.
I think we will reach a sweet spot with that and the TN3 base KO check.
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Wow, this looks great. Are there stat write-ups for any major comic heroes like Captain America, Deadshot, Batman or Wolverine ?
Thanks for posting.
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Wow, this looks great. Are there stat write-ups for any major comic heroes like Captain America, Deadshot, Batman or Wolverine ?
Thanks for posting.
I started a tumblr to post images for my SMF design and test work:
https://supermissionforce.tumblr.com/
More to come!
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Several updates to the SMF rules, but haven't had any time to play any games. Gonna fix that! But first, getting back to rebasing some more clix figures...
(http://i.imgur.com/t1WTi2Ul.jpg)
It's not a comic book if it doesn't have gorillas! (Seriously, there's an urban legend that Gorillas on comic covers led to boosted sales!)
I use Loctite Gel Control super glue to help avoid "frosting" and base the figures on 30mm clear round bases from Litko (http://www.litko.net/ (http://www.litko.net/))
One of the gorillas pictured above is half painted in a pale color. I intend to paint him up as Solovar, chief of security in Gorilla City! (pictured below)
(http://i.imgur.com/06QeKNRl.png)
Mostly I'll be repainting him to make him stand out, seeing as how he and Grodd are actually the same figure!
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After a quick paintjob, I have my gray gorilla, Solovar!
(http://i.imgur.com/pUZ9cscl.jpg)
This should help him stand out enough from the Grodd figure
(http://i.imgur.com/LV8TNfpl.jpg)
Beginning work on some more papercraft terrain, this time for Gorilla City.
(http://i.imgur.com/nYUUmYWl.jpg)
This tree is from Fat Dragon Games (http://www.drivethrurpg.com/browse/pub/346/Fat-Dragon-Games (http://www.drivethrurpg.com/browse/pub/346/Fat-Dragon-Games)), as are a bunch of my city buildings seen previously.
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The final battle of our mini-SMF "campaign"! (not really a campaign in the traditional sense. More just making up plot as an excuse for our game setup)
As the heroes investigate the stolen machine, one of the villains sneaks a small box onto it. With a push of a button, the mysterious machine teleports away, taking our heroes with it!
The Justice League receives a transmission from Solovar, chief of security in Gorilla City. Grodd had hired the Rogues to steal this machine! And he has taken over the minds of the Gorilla City soldiers! And using the machine's ability to manipulate anti-gravitons, Grodd now has an army of flying Gorillas! The Justice League race to Gorilla City. They meet up with Solovar and vow to rescue their friends, and take back the city from Grodd and his Secret Society!
Here's the team rosters:
Villains -
(http://i.imgur.com/0MeNBHql.jpg)
Gorilla Grodd (Mentalist) - Mentalism, Super Strength, Super Agility
Giganta (Brick) - Super Strength (major), Tough, Growth
Cheetah (Speedster) - Speed, Super Agility, Super Strength
Dr. Light (Blaster) - Power Blasts (major), Forcefield, Stun
Copperhead (Street Level) - Melee Weapon, Armor
Gorilla Soldiers (Henchmen) - Veterans, Super Strength, Flight
Heroes -
(http://i.imgur.com/1pu9Hlml.jpg)
Batman (Brawler) - Scrapper, Gadgets, Super Agility
Superman (Super-Brick) - Super Strength (major), Resistence, Flight, Power Blast, Enhanced Senses
Wonder Woman (Super-Brawler) - Scrapper, Flight, Super Strength, Shield, Entangle
Flash (Speedster) - Speed, Stun, Armor
Solovar (Street Level) - Super Strength, Super Agility
Table Setup -
(http://i.imgur.com/JMyDG00l.jpg?1)
A sparse layout, but this game is just a basic brawl.
Round 1 -
Superman flies to the top of the pyramid, leaving himself vulnerable to a blast from Dr. Light!
(http://i.imgur.com/9FmTnxCl.jpg)
Luckily Superman dodges the blast. Flash runs forward, until being intercepted by Cheetah!
(http://i.imgur.com/xHL4uQol.jpg)
As the speedsters clash, Solovar climbs the pyramid, only to be attacked by his former allies! The Gorilla Soldiers soar through the air with their new flying ability, and swoop down on their former commander!
(http://i.imgur.com/InS6ZCUl.jpg)
Wonder Woman flies forward and uses her lasso to tie up Giganta! Grodd probes into Wonder Woman's mind, taking control of it for a split second, causing her to let go of her lasso! (Grodd uses mind control and has Wonder Woman end her Entangle!)
(http://i.imgur.com/WwKv3Iml.jpg?1)
Batman hurries to Solovar's aid and takes out several Gorilla Soldiers.
(http://i.imgur.com/VxRuGUdl.jpg)
Giganta embraces her newfound freedom and attacks Wonder Woman!
(http://i.imgur.com/jG1DaDWl.jpg)
Round 2 -
Superman punches Grodd...
(http://i.imgur.com/HOA2817l.jpg)
...as Giganta sends Wonder Woman flying back!
(http://i.imgur.com/hp33lt1l.jpg?1)
Flash continues dueling with Cheetah, until she scores a lucky hit and knocks him back.
(http://i.imgur.com/y4kcclsl.jpg)
While Cheetah is distracted, Wonder Woman gets up and tries to use her lasso on her. Cheetah sees the attack and rushes out of the way.
(http://i.imgur.com/3QbUB3il.jpg)
As the Flash shakes off Cheetah's attack, Dr. Light blasts him from behind! Flash barely manages to remain standing.
(http://i.imgur.com/SXAyxMVl.jpg)
Solovar knocks out the rest of the Gorilla Soldiers. Copperhead charges Batman, but fails to land a hit.
(http://i.imgur.com/ogqTNtjl.jpg)
Round 3 -
Wonder Woman begins pummeling Dr. Light...
(http://i.imgur.com/NZ6HMq9l.jpg)
Then Giganta joins the fray...
(http://i.imgur.com/gkCnq7bl.jpg)
Then Flash joins the scuffle...
(http://i.imgur.com/RTH28gUl.jpg)
Finally Cheetah joins in! With one rake of her claw, Flash is finally out of the fight...
(http://i.imgur.com/GT8uOFol.jpg)
Grodd flees Superman's attacks, but he unable to break through his mental defenses.
(http://i.imgur.com/jlmi5Cll.jpg)
Batman and Copperhead continue battling.
(http://i.imgur.com/Jjdmh7ol.jpg)
Solovar comes to Batman's aid and they put down Copperhead.
(http://i.imgur.com/vr9hf3wl.jpg)
Dr. Light scores a lucky blast in close combat, sending Wonder Woman flying back. Things are not looking good for the warrior princess...
(http://i.imgur.com/NrQPmofl.jpg)
Round 4 -
Superman flies to Wonder Woman's rescue, sending Giganta flying back with a well aimed punch! Suddenly, Grodd finally breaks into Superman's mind, forcing him to use his heat vision against the fallen Wonder Woman!
(http://i.imgur.com/SjMXJJel.jpg)
Wonder Woman stands up and entangles Dr. Light in her lasso. Cheetah charges Wonder Woman.
(http://i.imgur.com/C2tNB42l.jpg)
Batman circles around and hits Dr. Light with a batarang! Though woozy, Light remains standing.
(http://i.imgur.com/S0SqqnKl.jpg)
Giganta gets back up and begins beating down Wonder Woman! She won't be able to take much more...
(http://i.imgur.com/XKMB0Gnl.jpg)
Round 5 -
Superman takes flight and knocks out Giganta!
(http://i.imgur.com/FZ4gILHl.jpg)
One well placed kick to the face, and Dr. Light goes down as well!
(http://i.imgur.com/nESNkdMl.jpg)
Realizing he's outmatched, Grodd begins trying to make his getaway...
Wonder Woman and Cheetah continue bloodying each other until both are ready to collapse (both have had their hitboxes depleted and are only standing due to making their KO rolls!)
(http://i.imgur.com/fvdkVqFl.jpg)
Solovar is faced with a choice: go after Grodd and finally put a stop to him once and for all, or save Wonder Woman, leaving Grodd free to terrorize Gorilla City another day...
(http://i.imgur.com/YIH4fCxl.jpg)
Solovar charges Cheetah and does enough damage to take her out of the fight.
(http://i.imgur.com/dARkG0Ql.jpg)
Round 6 - With Grodd alone facing down Wonder Woman, Superman, Batman, and Solovar, we call the game. Grodd makes his escape, but the heroes have freed Gorilla City! (for now...)
(Apologies for some pictures with a slapdash censoring. Hope it doesn't distract too much.)
This was a very dynamic game! Played on a small table (3'x3') which made the higher movement powers seem a bit much, but still had plenty of room for positioning. The game moved fast, with plenty of action and flowing movement.
Used the archetype maneuvers from the "advanced" rules. Added lots of flavor!
Several times, the villains (always the villains!) had some rather poor rolls, but with the increased hitboxes, it always felt like they could still come back.
The only suggestion I would have is that the difficulty for KO's should go back to TN4, only because at TN3, everyone made it. Most made it ONLY by rolling 3 goals. It feels like making a KO roll should be a bit more special. I felt like the increased number of hitboxes already makes up for it.
For anyone who hasn't yet actually tried out the playtest rules for Super Mission Force!, I urge you to do so now. A great supers game!
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Fantastic report! Thanks!
On the KO Check TNs, 4D gives you an average of 2.65 goals. 5D averages 3.32.
So I am thinking it will bear out over time that the TN3 is OK. Remember too, if you make that TN3 on one track, then have to make KO check on the other, it rises to TN4. In the meanwhile, any damage on a track you've made a successful KO check on and your down, as you know.
Let's play some more games and see how the numbers bear up.
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Got another quick game in of SMF. This time, tried something a little different. Used a bunch of Street Level types, but for some of them, instead of picking 2 minor powers, I selected 1 major power instead.
(My thinking goes, the difference between a 0.5 figure (street) and a 1.0 figure (regular) is a major power. The difference between a 1.0 figure and a 1.5 figure (super) is two minor powers. So two minor powers should essentially be equivalent to 1 major power.)
On to the game! Klarion the Witch Boy has summoned zombies to destroy Hudson City! The Suicide Squad is dispatched to contain the outbreak...
Bronze Tiger, Captain Boomerang and Harley Quinn in one alley...
(http://i.imgur.com/TWitxAcl.jpg)
...Vertigo and Killer Croc down the next...
(http://i.imgur.com/ymxyGWSl.jpg)
...Deadshot takes position on the roof
(http://i.imgur.com/MIRlLPvl.jpg)
Klarion and his familiar, Teekl, on a rooftop opposite the Suicide Squad
(http://i.imgur.com/LIt14G3l.jpg)
Klarion's zombie minions
(http://i.imgur.com/cPPfAtQl.jpg)
(http://i.imgur.com/01rfYDdl.jpg)
(the bottle of superglue in the background was used to fix one of the zombies arms that broke off!)
The zombies and the Squad clash!
(http://i.imgur.com/ERd6aDQl.jpg)
(http://i.imgur.com/M4av7eJl.jpg)
Klarion flies across to Deadshot and burns his mind with a psychic attack! Vertigo arrives and stuns Klarion with his "Vertigo Effect!"
(http://i.imgur.com/vRrfwJKl.jpg)
(as you can see, flat roof sections make great dice trays!)
The Squad cleans up one group of zombies...
(http://i.imgur.com/ceiCT5Ml.jpg)
...as Bronze Tiger goes to help a wounded and outnumbered Croc.
(http://i.imgur.com/PV2CHQKl.jpg)
Klarion summons a group of zombies on the roof!
(http://i.imgur.com/FbS0Oaml.jpg)
Vertigo takes out Klarion while Deadshot deals with the zombies. The next turn, Deadshot is overrun!
(http://i.imgur.com/mIZF7Inl.jpg)
The Squad cleans up the remaining zombies and stop the undead invasion.
(http://i.imgur.com/h2ytJFql.jpg)
Another fun game, and only took about a half-hour. Subbing a major power for minor powers felt a bit...overpowered. Only tried this once though, so I'd likely try it again (to see if this will make it as a definite house rule) The zombies were two groups of veteran henchmen (I would have used 10 figure groups of henchmen, but didn't have enough painted zombie models!) It feels like veteran henchmen are a bit underpowered, at least compared to a regular character. Perhaps henchmen should count as half a character, like street level archetypes? I'll have to play with henchmen more to feel this out...
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Great report thanks for sharing!
Everything below is meant for the purpose of discussing the SMF rules rather than a critique of your game.
Another fun game, and only took about a half-hour. Subbing a major power for minor powers felt a bit...overpowered. Only tried this once though, so I'd likely try it again (to see if this will make it as a definite house rule)
I know you are trying to push the games edges to see if it can handle it and of course it's your house, so go for it. I just wonder if you are looking for more than this game can handle with all of the this=that that was never intended from the design point of view. SMF is supposed to be simple and fast. Character creation was one of the tenets on which it was built, simple character creation. I think all of the subbing powers for 2 of these will break a system that was never intended to handle it. I'd hate to see all of these complication take away from the ability of the system to remain simple and fast.
Again, your games are your own, but I'm just throwing this in for the sake of discussion.
The zombies were two groups of veteran henchmen (I would have used 10 figure groups of henchmen, but didn't have enough painted zombie models!) It feels like veteran henchmen are a bit underpowered, at least compared to a regular character. Perhaps henchmen should count as half a character, like street level archetypes? I'll have to play with henchmen more to feel this out...
Again, rather than counting things as half of this or that, just use 5 zombie models and give each 2 hits (accumulating the leftovers and adding them to the next round, keeping it simple), bingo, regular henchman group. And also thematically unstoppable zombie like. Henchmen groups are supposed to be simple mooks, but here again they are getting minute tweaks which will then incur other changes that will need balancing.
I'd like to not see this turn into supersytem light.
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Great looking game! Aside from fine tuning of the powers and archetypes we have, I am good with rolling as things are.
Nine core archetypes.
Three alternate power archetypes if you and your group are comfortable using them.
But what your games prove is the versatility of the rules for players who want to employ house rules.
That's the beauty of it!
On henchmen, the Veterans are really for folks who have only 5 of certain models, or want to model elite fighters. The extra +1D does make them tougher, I think. They'll have 3D defense instead of 2D. Remember, Henchmen don't get their numbers bonus on defense checks.
Anyway, keep playing!
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Great report thanks for sharing!
Everything below is meant for the purpose of discussing the SMF rules rather than a critique of your game.
I know you are trying to push the games edges to see if it can handle it and of course it's your house, so go for it. I just wonder if you are looking for more than this game can handle with all of the this=that that was never intended from the design point of view. SMF is supposed to be simple and fast. Character creation was one of the tenets on which it was built, simple character creation. I think all of the subbing powers for 2 of these will break a system that was never intended to handle it. I'd hate to see all of these complication take away from the ability of the system to remain simple and fast.
You've got it exactly right. I know making equivalencies between powers and adding choices wasn't the intent of the game, but I still think it could be good feedback. I haven't really tried to push the extremes of this=that a lot yet. So far, it doesn't seem to overtly break the game. That'll be good for those who like to tinker with scenarios and such. If you make a mistake in the balancing, it doesn't seem like it will be too noticeable.
As far as breaking the system...it's kinda what I want to do! I want to see how far the game will bend, while still being fun AND balanced. I'm trying to stay within the framework provided by the game and not make any changes that are completely unfounded. I want to see how resilient/flexible the base rules of the game are (don't play to see what works, play to see what doesn't work!)
If I bend the game to extremes and it still seems balanced, that's a good sign!
Again, your games are your own, but I'm just throwing this in for the sake of discussion.
Again, rather than counting things as half of this or that, just use 5 zombie models and give each 2 hits (accumulating the leftovers and adding them to the next round, keeping it simple), bingo, regular henchman group. And also thematically unstoppable zombie like. Henchmen groups are supposed to be simple mooks, but here again they are getting minute tweaks which will then incur other changes that will need balancing.
I'd like to not see this turn into supersytem light.
For the zombies, I used the henchmen rules as is. I was just wondering if henchmen were really equivalent to 1 standard archetype instead of equal to 1 Street Level. I haven't tinkered with that yet (though I plan to!)
And you're right, I don't want to think of this as SuperSystem light ("swapping detail for elegance" as the book says) So far, the stuff I've personally changed/tested didn't seem to add time or complexity, at least for myself. I just want to see what kind of limits SMF can really push! (don't ask me to test out a motorcycle and expect me to not go top speed!)