Everybody loves superpowers. So, let’s have a go at another superhero role play. What’s going to be so special about this one? The origin of the powers! Have you ever seen the show Misfits? Read the online serial Worm? Both of them have a common source for powers.
In Misfits, a freak storm infects part of the population of a British block with superpowers. Simple.
In Worm, it’s a tad more complicated. People gain powers from “Trigger Events”. Almost as it says on the tin. Somebody goes through a traumatic event, whether it be a physical trauma or psychological, it flips a switch inside of them and their power manifests. Physical trauma creates more physical based powers, and psychological trauma creates more abstract powers. The powers sometimes come with drawbacks, often have limits, more often come with secondary powers that help streamline powers. For example, a girl who controls bugs has super-human multitasking abilities to keep track of what the bugs are doing, and to keep herself from overloading her mind. A guy might have super speed, but the faster he goes the less he can interact with the world around him, it will practically remove drag and air resistance but he can’t deliver a punch while moving mach 3. One limit that is always present is the Manton Effect, a limit on each superhero. Where one couldn’t use their powers on an immediate person, depending on the power. For example, a pyrokinetic couldn’t boil somebody from the inside, but they could light a jacket on fire. A telekinetic couldn’t rip somebody’s heart out, but they could toss them aside.
I’m proposing something in the middle ground. In a world where people gain powers through Trigger Events, with all the fun flavor that creates a dynamic, balanced power. And a freak storm caused a huge amount of people to gain powers at once. If there’s enough interest, I’ll toss together a proper role play thread.
In Misfits, a freak storm infects part of the population of a British block with superpowers. Simple.
In Worm, it’s a tad more complicated. People gain powers from “Trigger Events”. Almost as it says on the tin. Somebody goes through a traumatic event, whether it be a physical trauma or psychological, it flips a switch inside of them and their power manifests. Physical trauma creates more physical based powers, and psychological trauma creates more abstract powers. The powers sometimes come with drawbacks, often have limits, more often come with secondary powers that help streamline powers. For example, a girl who controls bugs has super-human multitasking abilities to keep track of what the bugs are doing, and to keep herself from overloading her mind. A guy might have super speed, but the faster he goes the less he can interact with the world around him, it will practically remove drag and air resistance but he can’t deliver a punch while moving mach 3. One limit that is always present is the Manton Effect, a limit on each superhero. Where one couldn’t use their powers on an immediate person, depending on the power. For example, a pyrokinetic couldn’t boil somebody from the inside, but they could light a jacket on fire. A telekinetic couldn’t rip somebody’s heart out, but they could toss them aside.
I’m proposing something in the middle ground. In a world where people gain powers through Trigger Events, with all the fun flavor that creates a dynamic, balanced power. And a freak storm caused a huge amount of people to gain powers at once. If there’s enough interest, I’ll toss together a proper role play thread.
