As for there being more "events" for players to react to, I think as long as the work is coordinated among an active team and not one person I think that can work.

I'm just hoping I can play as the TMNT next time around, lmao.

So, I am currently tempted to make one of these with one of the following gimmicks:

1) "No Marvel or DC, but everything else is up for grabs" Like, Transformers, TMNT, The Boys, Invincible, Power Rangers, Buffy The Vampire Slayer, Bananaman, Thunderbirds, Danny Phantom, Superted, Mighty Mouse, Danger Mouse, Count Duckula, Jimmy Neutron, VR Troopers, Masked Rider, Darkwing Duck, Freakazoid, Tattooed Teenage Alien Fighters From Beverly Hills, Sailor Moon, The Care Bears, G.I. Joe, Powerpuff Girls, Digimon, Captain Scarlet, Conan The Barbarian, Sonic The Hedgehog, He-Man, Stargate, go nuts.

2) Future RP. The idea is that we skip the origin stories that we get bogged down in. Everyone plays a hero who has been on the job for at LEAST 20 years. OR is playing the next line of their legacy. Damien Wayne as Batman, Old Man Logan, Jubilee's "X-People", Jonathon Kent is Superman, May-Day Parker Spidergirl, etc.

3) Hit the Shuffle Button. You pick the character you want to go with, but then the GM randomly rolls which legacy the character picks up. E.G. You apply for Bruce Wayne, he witnesses his parents get shot in front of him. He goes home and he is *Rolls the dice* Bitten by a Radioactive Spider, becoming the one and only Spider-Man of Gotham. T'Challa of Wakanda is raised to become the champion of his people. He *Rolls dice* is given the sacred ring to become the Green Lantern. Hal Jordan, he is a test pilot testing a brand new plane, when suddenly his plane malfunctions and he goes down over Nevada where *Rolls Dice* He is hit by a Nuclear Blast, irradiating him and turning him into the one and only Incredible Hulk. Steve Rogers is a guy absolutely determined to fight in WW2, but is too physically weak. That's when *Rolls dice* he learns that his parents weren't actually his parents and that he was simply found when a space-ship carrying him as a baby went down in Queens and he's really the Last Son of Krypton, after reading the message, his amazing powers are revealed to him as he becomes the one and only Superman. We can also just let people decide for themselves.

4) Silver Age. Essentially, the tone of the RP is set to "Camp" i'm talking Adam West Batman, Japanese Supaida-Man with his Megazord, the Justice League and Legion of Doom having to play Baseball to decide the fate of the world. Extra points for anyone who can reimagine gritty and super-grim-dark 80's-90's storylines like Demon In The Bottle, The Night Gwen Stacy Died, The Dark Knight Returns, Days of Futures Past, Death In The Family, Born Again, Dark Phoenix, Age of Apocalypse, Knightfall or Clone Saga in campy Silver Age style.

5) Something along the same lines as this, but just open it up to more franchises to be viable, so long as they fit the them.

Honestly, it wouldn't be a bad idea to workshop some of our ideas. Following your lead:

While I don't have a specific plot hook in mind just yet, I wouldn't mind taking another crack at the 'Marvel Knights' concept. All stories would be contained to the Marvel version of New York, with street-level to block-level heroes and anti-heroes. One thing I was considering would be instead of having GM-ran events, players could get a one-shot arc of playing as a villain, driving plots without needing the GM to railroad everything. I figure NY is contained enough to encourage people to start bumping into each other, but also big enough that there's plenty to do if you wanna do your own thing.

If we wanted to veer to DC, the same could apply with Gotham City, but that runs into the issue of everything tying back to Batman.

Thomas Wayne Batman is my strongest idea at the moment.

That aside, I don't have any strong designs on a game style/theme at the moment. My versions of these games generally gravitate toward being period pieces (60s, 80s, etc.) which is not for everyone.

I'm really liking all of the ideas on this thread! I've wanted to play Blade for a while so hopefully whichever RP gets made would fit him.

Alright, i'm probably gonna make one of these sometime soon. I made a Strawpoll to see which one of the idea's i posted earlier would be everyone's preferred setting. Feedback would be appreciated.

Go Vote

I do want to take another crack at either playing or GMing, but not until after Christmas.

Alright, i'm probably gonna make one of these sometime soon. I made a Strawpoll to see which one of the idea's i posted earlier would be everyone's preferred setting. Feedback would be appreciated.

I personally think your "No Marvel or DC, but everything else" will run into challenges in terms of balance, competing/conflicting themes, and disproportionate power sets. The DC and Marvel universes provide a framework for their various titles to co-exist with one another and they're close enough that they mesh well. Without that common framework, you're going to risk balancing He-Man and the Masters of the Universe with Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and Star Wars.

In that case, it'd be better to pick a defined universe that isn't Marvel and DC and try to stay to whatever that universe is.

But that's just my two cents.

@AndyC All things considered, probably the sensible option, since most RP's tend to die over Christmas.
@Bounce See, whenever it comes to power balancing in RP's, especially in RP's like this, the only thing that matters is "Rule of Narrative" Which states "If X needs to defeat Y for the story to progress, then X will defeat Y." Meaning if the story calls for Master Splinter to manhandle He-Man, then Splinter is gonna Manhandle He-Man. (Which actually happens in the Turtles of Greyskull series, although it's a Mutant He-Man.)

But i do appreciate the feedback. I'm gonna think on it over the next month and probably put something up in January, or maybe just open the Interest Check in late December.

@mattmanganon I'm taking the opposite angle with what I'd like to do, honing in on a specific place and period, but hit me up if you'd like to kick some ideas around.

That goes for all of y'all who wanna brainstorm too. Seriously, I'm lonely.

@mattmanganon I'm taking the opposite angle with what I'd like to do, honing in on a specific place and period, but hit me up if you'd like to kick some ideas around.

That goes for all of y'all who wanna brainstorm too. Seriously, I'm lonely.

What're your primary ideas at the moment?

<Snipped quote by AndyC>

What're your primary ideas at the moment?

Like I'd mentioned, I'd like to do a more street focused game set in the Marvel New York. More specifically, though, I'm thinking Marvel New York during the Bronze Age, the late 70s/early 80s- not as gonzo as the Silver Age or as cutesy and self-aware as the modern age, but not as grimdark as the 90s, and where a lot of the mainstay characters were in their most famous runs (Conway's Spider-Man, Claremont's X-Men, Miller's Daredevil, etc). The story focus would be on less out-there material-- gang wars, murder mysteries, neighborhood-level crises with only the occasional "big" villain here and there-- but the overall emphasis would be on getting characters to interact with each other and with the city, really flesh out the neighborhoods and the people in it while also being tormented by Kingpin or kicking around Stilt-Man.

Are there currently a group of you discussing together ideas, and parsing through what works and doesn't work in these games? Or is everyone doing some solo brewing still?

Are there currently a group of you discussing together ideas, and parsing through what works and doesn't work in these games? Or is everyone doing some solo brewing still?

There's not really a group chat, or at least not one I'm invited to. I'd be down for it though

Aside from those who have already implied or stated they're thinking of potential ideas for another game, let me know who is interested in collaborative brainstorming and I'll get something started.

I think, collectively, there's quite a bit we as individuals may disagree on how these games should be run, but I also believe that we have enough shared experience to understand what fundamentally does and does not work. Communicating at least those fundamentals and workshopping how to start and then keep momentum for longer than a month can only be beneficial.

And I think most people who have gamed with me for the last thirteen years know that I'm pretty decent when it comes to brainstorming and worldbuilding, so I'm confident I can help in that regard if nothing else.

I think the best idea I've heard so far is waiting till after Christmas.

I think the best idea I've heard so far is waiting till after Christmas.

Yes, but discussing things in advance is helpful.

I personally think your "No Marvel or DC, but everything else" will run into challenges in terms of balance, competing/conflicting themes, and disproportionate power sets.

We've tried to run a Indie Comics game (and thats far more focused than such a idea) a few times and we always end up with these issues, I agree. The only one who really feels inspired is whoever gobbles up the TMNT or Hellboy, I find.