Tag Archives: superhero

Re: Animated • Justice League “A Knight of Shadows” – Part 2

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jl21This blog takes a look at episodes from the Justice League animated series from a tabletop roleplaying game perspective, both in terms of game design and game play.

Obligatory Spoiler Warning: I will be discussing the events of the episode in the post. If, for some reason, you’re interested in the show and this blog and have not seen the show, go and do that first. The blog will make much more sense, and you won’t have your enjoyment of the show spoiled. You Have Been Warned.

“A Knight of Shadows” – Part 2

Part 2 the episode opens with J’onn apologizing to an injured Batman, explaining how, in spite of the illusory nature of Le Fey’s temptations, “I would do anything to embrace my loved ones again.” Now we get some idea of the sympathy Batman feels for J’onn’s plight. (Subtle references to Batman’s motivations are common in this first season, with the viewer well aware, but Batman never acknowledging them.)

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Re: Animated • Justice League “A Knight of Shadows” – Part 1

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jl20This blog takes a look at episodes from the Justice League animated series from a tabletop roleplaying game perspective, both in terms of game design and game play.

Obligatory Spoiler Warning: I will be discussing the events of the episode in the post. If, for some reason, you’re interested in the show and this blog and have not seen the show, go and do that first. The blog will make much more sense, and you won’t have your enjoyment of the show spoiled. You Have Been Warned.

“A Knight of Shadows” – Part 1

The Justice League series is full of homages to the late, great Jack “The King” Kirby, and perhaps the most prominent in the first season is “A Knight of Shadows” featuring one of Kirby’s enduring DC creations: Etrigan, the Demon.

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ICONS: Milestones

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Like comic book superhereos, ICONS characters may change and grow over time. If you plan a long-running series, consider the following options for hero improvement.

Adjust the costs as you see fit, increasing them to make improvement slower and more difficult, or lowering them (or providing more for the same cost) to encourage improvement. You can also control the frequency of particular milestones as suits the heroes and the series.

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ICONS: Flight of the Nova-1

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fn1_cover_300xAfter a brief “hiatus,” Dan Houser’s adventure Flight of the Nova-1 for ICONS Superpowered Roleplaying is  available in an new and improved edition on DriveThruRPG and RPGNow, specially designed as a  launch point for a series featuring a new group of heroes, ideal for new or experienced ICONS players.

The world waits with baited breath as Apex Innovations, one of the largest manufacturers of advanced technology in Victor City is about to launch the Nova-1, an experimental space plane with a revolutionary new engine powered by a theoretical fuel source called the Potentiality Sling, a process that converts irradiated material’s potential energy into thrust.

Then the Nova-1 and its six brave astronauts fall victim to an attack by a team of supervillains determined to steal the Fusion Inductor! Who are “The Plagues” and what is their agenda, and that of the alien mastermind known as Wrack?

The heroes must rescue the crew and stop the assault on The Flight of the Nova-1! Get it now at DriveThruRPG!

Re: Animated • Justice League “Legends” – Part 2

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jl19This blog takes a look at episodes from the Justice League animated series from a tabletop roleplaying game perspective, both in terms of game design and game play.

Obligatory Spoiler Warning: I will be discussing the events of the episode in the post. If, for some reason, you’re interested in the show and this blog and have not seen the show, go and do that first. The blog will make much more sense, and you won’t have your enjoyment of the show spoiled. You Have Been Warned.

“Legends” – Part 2

After a fairly whimsical beginning, the homage to the Golden Age of Superheroes is off to an ominous start in Part 2: Hawkgirl has seen the grave sites of the members of the Justice Guild, the very same heroes the Justice Leaguers are now working with! Something is very wrong in Seaboard City…

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Coming Soon: Flight of the Nova-1

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fn1_cover

Mystery in Space!

An experimental ship in trouble. A deadly new alliance of supervillains is behind it. Do your heroes have “The Right Stuff” to go into space to stop their schemes before it’s too late?

Dan Houser’s epic adventure for ICONS, Part One of the “Rise of the Phalanx” storyline, is being re-released with new layout, additional art, new villains, and even more material, updated for the rules in the Great Power sourcebook.

Flight of the Nova-1, an adventure for ICONS Superpowered Roleplaying, written and illustrated by Dan Houser, coming soon from Ad Infinitum Adventures!

Re: Animated • Justice League “Legends” – Part 1

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jl18

“Justice Guild… roll call!”

This blog takes a look at episodes from the Justice League animated series from a tabletop roleplaying game perspective, both in terms of game design and game play.

Obligatory Spoiler Warning: I will be discussing the events of the episode in the post. If, for some reason, you’re interested in the show and this blog and have not seen the show, go and do that first. The blog will make much more sense, and you won’t have your enjoyment of the show spoiled. You Have Been Warned.

“Legends” – Part 1

One of my favorite staples from the Silver and Bronze Age DC Universe was the semi-annual Justice League/Justice Society crossover so, naturally, I’m a big fan of this episode. Unfortunately, not so much DC Comics, which disallowed the use of the Justice Society characters after reading the script, which they apparently felt was “disrespectful”. (My own impression is just the opposite, actually.)

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Re: Animated • Justice League “Fury” – Part 2

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jl17This blog takes a look at episodes from the Justice League animated series from a tabletop roleplaying game perspective, both in terms of game design and game play.

Obligatory Spoiler Warning: I will be discussing the events of the episode in the post. If, for some reason, you’re interested in the show and this blog and have not seen the show, go and do that first. The blog will make much more sense, and you won’t have your enjoyment of the show spoiled. You Have Been Warned.

“Fury” – Part 2

Things get rolling (quite literally) as the Justice Leaguers leap into action to help people endangered by the chaos caused by Aresia’s allergen as it spreads throughout the city.

There’s some interesting interplay as Batman pushes Wonder Woman out of the way of an out-of-control bus. She then has to deal with a collapsing radio tower while Batman chases the bus and manages to stop it in the nick of time. Batman’s “spotlight” time is over right after that, however, as he succumbs to the effects of the allergen as well.

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ICONS: Aspects, Who Needs ‘Em?

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Aspects are an important element of the Determination system of ICONS Superpowered Roleplaying—both tagging qualities in order to spend Determination and compelling challenges in order to earn more Determination—but how much does the system (and the game) really rely on having aspects or, at least, predefined ones?

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ICONS: Initiative

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A common question about ICONS is its lack of an initiative system although, technically, it does have one:

“Typically, the conflict starts off with the panels of whichever side initiates: if a villain launches an attack, start with the villain’s panel. If the heroes spring into action, begin with their panels. Once one side’s actions are resolved, go to the other side, then back and forth until the conflict ends.”

— Conflict, ICONS Superpowered Roleplaying, page 55

So, there’s no system for it other than “Whoever goes first, goes first.” Usually, that will be fairly obvious. In situations where it is not, or if a group prefers a more detailed or mechanical initiative system, here are some options:

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