More Flexible Options
The Phoenix classes are now presented alongside other class options, including easy use of standard Base/Advanced classes in a superhero game.
Expanded Skill Rules
Very little is different, but the rules are tweaked for a superhero game, specifically.
Item-Creation Feats
Item creation is now available for magic, psionics, and supertechnology, although the standard item-creation rules can always be obviated in favour of simply spending Character Points, with which you can buy pretty much anything you want.
Superpowers
Over 60 pages of the bleedin' things, and more where that came from. If what you really want is superpowers built for d20 rules, then here they are.
F/X Rules
Spells and psi-powers are now worked into the Powers chapter, so we have included expanded rules for dealing with F/X in a superhero setting.
Super Combat and Movement
More expanded rules for superhero gaming, this time rules for smashing buildings, swinging lampposts, running at super-speed, and swinging around a city on a grapple-gun.
GMing
Finally, a whole chapter of ideas and suggestions for running a superhero game, plus hard rules for adjudicating character points and even calculating XP with PCs and NPCs who have superpowers.
And remember, it's all completely FREE. Go nuts. Enjoy. Download the file from my sig.
Right now, I have 10 D&D style "core" classes in the game, and they've had their power level increased to match a superhero game. They also cover specifically superhero character types (millionaire playboy, master strategist, sidekick, etc.).
I'm starting to feel like just ditching them, though, and letting people play standard d20M characters.
However, anyone who wants to play B/A classes in Phoenix can do so. I've even provided rules that cover exactly that.
So I'm torn. I feel like I've provided lots of options, but I also feel like putting D&D-style classes in an ostensibly d20M game is alienating d20M players.
The extreme end of this thought is that all peopel really need to run superheroes in d20M are superpowers. I could easily publish just the powers chapter, and you all could just add that to your d20M manual, for supers games.
Please let me know what you think of this!
A couple questions/comments.
1. You did away with the Assassin base class?
2. What is Untiring? Is it an enhancement for Need Not Sleep? Feat? Power? The only mention of it is in the "Special" section for the Accelerated Metabolism complication.
3. Personally, I like the class system as presented. However, if I wanted to add advanced/prestige classes from other sources, how many power dice should the character get per level?
Thanks.
2. "Untiring" was our attempt to come up with a less lame named for "Need Not Sleep" and it somehow stuck around in the copy. Sorry about that. I'll change it. (BTW, if you can think of less lame names for the "Need Not..." powers, please let me know.)
3. Thanks for the response. I appreciate it.
There's actually a little guide to converting regular Advanced classes to Phoenix classes on p33. All you need to do is (a) decide which of the mental abilities is most appropriate for a power die and then (b) assign a power die. They're all either d6 or d8, so it's not a huge amount of variety, and basically you're just deciding if that class is going to tend toward powers that draw PPs or not. If it does, then go for the d8. Frankly, it's not game-breaking if you give a class a d8.
I've also just noticed a really annoying formatting error on p33 that put two tables on top of each other. That's going to be a problem. Sigh...
Fixed! Download the new version. Sneak peak at the Classes chapter for v1 because I couldn't find a live copy of the old Chapter.
Another question
I'm playing around with condensing the skills a little. Nothing nuts, not like SAGA condensing, just eliminating one or two that nobody takes. I've folded Balance into Tumble because they're very closely related and I've never seen anyone take Balance. I also eliminated Knowledge (arcane lore) and loaded it into Spellcraft. They seem like basically the same idea to me. And Spot and Listen are now "Observe" because that just makes sense to me.
Thoughts?
And One More Thing...
If you have characters that you've made for the game, send them to me! I need to put some sample characters in the last chapter and I suck at making characters.
True, a hired killer isn't the picture of heroism, but the term 'assassin' doesn't have to mean the character is a hired killer. It just means that they've got that particular skill set. Whe I read the info for assassin, I first thought of Batman.
Need not Sleep > Unsleeping?
Do you have a preferred level for the example character?
The "Need Not" powers are kind of a group. I'd like a group-themed name. What I'd really love is a Latin suffix or prefix that means "doesn't not need to." Medical terms are constructed this way. Latin and Greek terms are assembled to quite literally say something like "little spots on the chin," but it ends up being Shistosymtitis (or whatever).
Sample characters: any level is fine. Write them up like a standard stat block (as in the Menace Manual), but make sure sure to note all the CP costs for various parts of the character (extra feats, powers, ads/comps, etc.), and then the total cost of the character in CPs. So that's total CPs spent, and Character Level x10 (because it's 10 CP per level).
So in an attempt to make it simpler, I've thought of something: make it a power. From a storytelling point of view, it effectively is a power, in comics. It's Reed Richards' primary power, really. The stretching is just so he has something visual he can do. So I'm going to write up supertech item-creation as a power that runs on PPs for low-power items, and I'll have to think of something else for higher-powered stuff.
At the very least, I'm going to make a big-ass table for XP costs of item-creation. Sometimes I think people don't do it because applying the formulae just seems like a pain in the ass, so if I make a big table, you just have to look it up.
Edit:
I whipped up a power that covers for the Item-Invention feats. Bare in mind that you can take this power as well as the other Item powers (Gadgets/Power Armour, Esoteric Item, and Iconic Item). The upshot is that you really can't make items for other people, at least not in the long-term. If you use an item on a regular basis, you gotta pay for it with CPs, or the GM can just give it to you. The only logical problem is that, going by these rules, there can be no such thing as a profession "item builder," but that's actually okay with me. PCs shouldn't be doing that anyway, and I'm happy to call it something that happens "in" the game world, but not in the lives of the players.
NB: I've also started putting particularly important sentences in bold-face, so that they're easy to find when you scan down the page. Tell me if that's annoying, helpful, or "other," okay?
INVENT SUPERTECH
[Trait]
Cost: Varies
Activate: Varies
Sustain: Varies
Range: Touch
The power represents "the knack," the bizarre, dimly-understood ability to make machines and technology that achieve effects that, by all rights, science should not allow. With the base power, you can build a Supertech device called a Gizmo. The enhancements allow you to create Superchemicals, Ray Guns, and Contraptions.
The CP cost of this power represents the maximum strength of any Power you can load into a device. The number of CPs you invest into Supertech is the maximum CP cost of the Power(s) you can load into a device (i.e., Gizmo, Superchemical, Ray Gun, or Contraption). Thus if you invest 20CP into Invent Supertech, you can create devices that duplicate the effects of any power(s) with a cost of 20CP or lower.
To actually build a device requires three steps. First, you have to Research the power you want to build into it and, second, you have to imbue it with your PPs.
Step One, you have to research the particular power you want to build into the device. You can use any power in the game that you can afford with your CPs invested in the base power. The DC for your Research check equals 10 + the total CP cost of the power. The cost includes all levels, enhancements, or limitations you might select. You make all decisions about how the power functions during the build time. The Research check is part of building the item, so do not add the time it would normally take to Research something to the total build time (see below). If you fail the Research check, you may try again until you succeed. If you pass, then you can go on to step two.
Step Two, you transfer some of your PPs into the device. You can rationalise this process any way you like. Many artists and inventors talk about putting their "blood, sweat, and tears" into their creations. Expending PPs is just the game's way of representing that. The number of PPs you expend equals the Activation cost of the device. At the start of the build time, you no longer have access to those points. You must take that number of PPs off the top of your total. You will not regenerate them. They are not in you any more, they are in the device. You can still use whatever points you might have left to Activate any other powers you might have. Thus, you can have only a limited number of Supertech items at a time.
Step three, is the actual build check, for which you use the skill Supercraft. For a Gizmo, DC for your Supercraft check equals 20 + the total CP cost of the power. The GM makes this check for you. You cannot Take 10 or Take 20 on this check. Building a Supertech device is delicate work, and the consequences of doing it wrong are that it blows up in your face. If you fail the check, you expend the PPs you tried to invest in the device, and you go "back to the drawing board," and make a new Research check. If you fail the check by more than 10, then you do not know that you failed the check (this is why the GM makes the check for you), and the device will squeal, fall apart, leak radiation, and generally refuse to work the first time you try to use it in a high-stress situation (i.e., combat or the like).
Finally, the total build time is a number of hours equal to the total CP cost of the power you load into the device, including all enhancements and/or limitations. The build time must be essentially uninterrupted. You can take breaks for meals, sleeping, and the like, but while you're working, you must maintain concentration. This concentration can be disrupted exactly the same way as interrupting a spell. The build time includes your Research time; don't add the two. You can work up to 12 hours a day, although 8 is a little more humane.
Be sure to read the full descriptions of all Supertech devices in Chapter 6: F/X so that you know how all the Supertech devices work.
Enhancements
Enhancement: Invent Ray Guns
Cost: 5CP
This enhancement grants the ability to create Ray Guns, which are more complicated Supertechnological devices. Thus, when you attempt to build a Ray Gun, your Research and Supercraft check DCs are both +5 (Research: 15 + CP cost, Supertech, 25 + CP cost). All other rules remain the same.
Enhancement: Invent Contraptions
Cost: 5CP
Prerequisite: Invent Ray Guns
This enhancement grants the ability to create Contraptions, which are even more complicated Supertechnological devices than Ray Guns. Thus, when you attempt to build a Contraption, your Research and Supercraft check DCs are both +10 (Research: 20 + CP cost, Supertech, 30 + CP cost). All other rules remain the same.
Enhancement: Invent Superchemicals
Cost: 5CP
This enhancement grants the ability to mix up Superchemicals, which are a finicky form of Supertechnology. When you attempt to create Superchemicals, your Research and Supercraft check DCs are both +5 (Research: 15 + CP cost, Supertech, 25 + CP cost). All other rules remain the same.
NB: "Gizmos" are the superpower equivalent of scrolls (single-use, single power), "Ray Guns" are like wands (multiple use, single power), and finally "Contraptions" are like staves (multiple use, multiple powers).
As for a "powers" feat at first level, I don't think I want to introduce that as an in-game mechanic because I really do think you're better off to not take powers until 4th or 5th level. That said, you can do whatever you like! There's absolutely nothing stopping you from taking powers at first level, and it would be extremely easy to convert the base classes so that they work with powers. I have instructions on how to do so at the end of the Classes chapter.
As for Base classes, as I said, there's nothing stopping you from adding powers to them.
Oh, the campaign we're looking at for my group is sort of a modified Suicide Squad (players will all be playing formerly incarcerated Super Villains.)
As for item-creation, the way I have it right now, you can take a power that lets you create short-term supertech items, which is the equivalent of Reed Richards slapping together a special kind of Ray Gun just for this issue, and you can take radically simplified item-creation feats that allow you to make permanent items. In a nut shell, I removed the XP costs and the zillions of skill checks from item creation.
The limiting factor now is the cost, which is a pretty reliable rubric in Modern because of the Wealth bonus. No magic item costs so little to make that it wouldn't reduce even an astronomical Wealth bonus by -1 (i.e., they're all above 15). There's also an incidental rule that you can't make more than a certain number of items in any given seven-day period, but the money is the real problem. If you want to be an inventor, you really need to take an occupation/class combo that grants a high Wealth.
I thought I would mention that I really like the 20 level base classes, and that is probably the approach I would recommend.
For supertech, I see the power as a way of mocking up both the occassional one shot device from Reed Richards, as well as the Utility Belt concept (a bunch of lower level powers that can be swapped out once used.) To overcome the wealth DC obstacle, frankly I would just ignore the wealth check all together.
Here would be my first pass write up (feel free to laugh at it, or use it as you see fit):
SuperTech
Cost: varies, see below
Activate: varies, see below
Sustain: varies, see below
Range: NA
This power allows you to create a variety of SuperTech devices. The cost of this power represents the total number of CPs in gadgets you may have at any one time, in other words, it is your CP pool for creating gadgets (referred to as a gadget pool). To build a gadget requires Craft: SuperTech. The maximum CP of any one power is equal to your ranks in Craft: SuperTech (before any discounts.) Each gadget can receive any of the following discounts, reducing it's CP cost by the amount listed. The final cost of the gadget is the amount of CPs it takes up from your gadget pool.
Medium Size - 3 CP
The gadget is medium sized, and must be held in two hands, or worn over the Torso.
Small Size - 2 CP
The gadget is small sized, and must be held in one hand, or takes up one body slot (i.e. hands, feet, back, head, etc.)
Tiny Size - 1 CP
The gadget is tiny size (standard size for gadgets) and is the size of a cell phone, wand, or watch.
One Shot - 3 CP
The gadget is consumed once it is used.
Multi-Shot - 1 CP
The gadget can be used a set number of times. See construction below for how many uses the gadget has before it fails.
Construction: To build a gadget, first decide which power you want. Next, determine how many times the item can be used. If the item is a one shot device, you must expend during it's construction a number of Power Points equal to the cost of activating the power once. If the item is a Multi-Shot device, you must expend during it's construction a number of Power Points equal to the cost of activating the power however many times the device will be used. If the device is permanent (i.e. it will not be consumed after X number of uses) you must a number of Power Points equal to the cost of activating the power once. However, each actual use of a permanent gadget drains the required Power Points from your pool. Power Points spent during construction are not regained until the gadget is consumed or destroyed, at which point they are regained at their normal rate. If the gadget is being constructed in a lab, there is no skill roll needed. However, if the character is constructing the gadget on the fly, then s/he must make a Craft: SuperTech skill roll, with a DC equal to 15 + the original CP cost of the power (before discounts.) Constructing a device in a lab takes 2 hours/CP. Constructing a device on the fly takes 10 minutes/CP, reduced by 1 min, per point by which the check is made, minimum 1 turn.
Example 1: Our hero Gadgetron has SuperTech 15. He has a 8 ranks in Craft: SuperTech. He is in his lab, designing a new weapon to use on the criminal scum of The City. He decides on Energy Blast as the power, with a cost of 6 CP (Energy Blast - Fire 3d6 dmg 50' rng.) He decides to make it medium sized, it will be a rifle, and will be repeatedly used. Medium size is worth 3CP, and the device is neither One Shot nor Multi-Shot. The final cost is 3 CP. He is left with 12 CP in his gadget pool. The device costs him 3PP to build out of his Power Point pool. These points will not come back to him until the device is destroyed. In addition, each time the rifle is fired it will cost him 3PP to power it.
Example 2: Our hero Gadgetron isn't quite finished yet. He's still got 12 CP in his pool and he decides to build a Fire Grenade with some of those points. He again choose Energy Blast as the power, with a cost of 8 CP (Energy Blast - Fire 2d6 dmg, 10' radius Burst, Ranged Burst). This is a tiny gadget, and is a One-Shot device. The final cost is 4 CP, leaving him with 8CP in his gadget pool. He expends 6PP to make the device, which he will recover at their normal rate once the device is used. The device costs no PP to activate.
Enhacement: Portable Lab
Cost: 3 CP
The DC check required to make a device on the fly is now reduced to 10 + the CP of the Power (before discounts.)
Enhancement: Advanced Portable Lab
Cost: 2 CP
Prerequisites: Portable Lab
The DC check required to make a device on the fly is now reduced to 5 + the CP of the Power (before discounts.)
Note: I know reducing the DC of the check reduces the time it takes to build the device, that's part of the advantage.
I would rewrite the magic and psionic crafting feats to mimic the above write up. Actually, I would just change the name of this power to Armory, and change the Skill required based on power origin now that I think of it (i.e. Craft: Arcane Armaments for Mystics, Craft: Psiforger for Psionics, or whatever.)
Rage
1st Level Martial Artist, 4th Level Sidekick
Rage was originally part of a dynamic duo with his brother Fury (same stats and class choices.) Fury was killed in a battle with Professor Aeon and his cosmic army. Rage has since drifted from supergroup to supergroup looking for a team that feels like family. Rage is a low level brick, with some interesting combat options (the 4 levels of sidekick help simulate the time spent training and fighting as a unit with his brother.)
STR 24(+7) DEX 16(+3) CON 20(+5)
INT 10(+0) WIS 10(+0) CHA 8(-1)
Attacks ToHit Dmg
Unarmed +11 1d6+7 Super
War Axe +11 1d12+7 Super
HP 61 Init +3 BA +4
AC 23 FF 15 Touch 23
Powers
Natural Defence +5
Mighty Lifting 2
(L 699 M 1398 H 2100)
Extra Feats (Improved Toughness) x2
Weapon and Armor Proficiencies: Archaic Weapon Proficiency, Personal Firearm Proficiency, Simple Weapon Proficiency, Improvised Weapon Proficiency, Light Armor Proficiency, Medium Armor Proficiency
Feats: Improved Grapple, Defensive Martial Arts, Combat Throw
Skills: Acrobatics +11(8), Climb +15(8), Drive +11(8), Intimidate +3/+11(4), Jump +15(8), Observe +8(8)
Class Features: Combat Martial Arts, Improved Unarmed Damage, Cooperative Attack, Improved Flanking I, Armor of Obscurity, Sneak Attack I, Heroic Intervention
CP Cost: 25 (75 with 5 levels)
Total Cost: 22, 10 pts. carried over
A potential problem with purchasing super attributes is that, unless you have a strong worry about power draining, there's no reason not to just buy your attributes up to 14, and then increase them in round two. I don't have a good answer for that, and don't necessarily think it should be changed, just passing it along.
Also, with the free attribute point for level 4, if all you want is a super attribute (only to 24) then you end up with the same trope every time:
Buy it to 14 in round one (cost 6 AP)
Buy it to 23 in round two (cost 9 CP)
+1 for Level 4
Total Cost 15 CP
Again, I'm not saying it's necessarily broken, just pointing it out. It's useful to know the cheapest way to obtain something, as that's what players are going to opt for once they have some experience with your rules.
(And please don't point out that they're not done to d20M standard. I know that. They're built on the core-class model.)
Thinker
Hit Die: d4
Power Die: d12 (Intelligence)
BA: Poor
Saves: Fort (poor), Reflex (poor), Will (good), Rep (good)
Thinkers are cerebral creatures who get by on wits and smarts at the expense of strength. The real power, so says the Thinker, is in knowing more than your enemy. Thinkers, Sleuth, and Masterminds are cut from the same cloth in that regard, but the Thinker does not necessarily focus on one particular skill set, either puzzle-solving or leading people, but instead is a Renaissance Man or Woman who takes in knowledge and secrets from every direction and uses it all to their own, often inscrutable ends.
Skill Points at 1st Level: (10 + Int per level) x4
Skill Point per Level: 10 + Int modifier
Class Skills: [forthcoming]
Jack of All Trades (Ex): At level 1, Thinkers can use all "trained only" skills as if they were trained. However, when using those skills untrained, a roll of 1 is a Critical Failure, which can result in breaking a tool, hurting themselves, or otherwise royally screwing up whatever they're trying to do. Regardless of the specifics, the failure will be spectacular and unfavourable. GMs are encouraged to toss some good natured disaster at those know-it-alls.
Renaissance Man (Ex): At level 2, all skills are considered Class Skills for the Thinker, for the purposes of paying skill points. NB: this applies only to the Thinker class. If the character takes levels in other classes past this point, the normal restrictions for cross-class skills apply at those class levels.
Special Ability (Ex): At levels 3, 6, 9, 12, 15, and 18, Thinkers can take one of the abilities, listed in italics. They can take each ability only once, unless its text says otherwise. Unlike Class Features, Special Abilities that replicate feats require prerequisites, just like a normal feat.
Encyclopaedic Memory: You can re-roll any failed Knowledge check once.
False Papers: Gain a 2CP Alternative Identity. You can take this special ability multiple times. It grants a new Alternate Identity each time.
Bonus Feat: You can pick a free feat from one of the following groups: Mystical, Psionic, Skill Enhancers.
Field Experience: You get 2 free skill points.
Nerves of Steel: When using the Jack of All Trades class feature, rolling a 1 on a d20 does not count as a critical failure.
Scholarly Pursuits: 6 bonus ranks in any Knowledge skill. Sleuths can take this special ability multiple times.
Skill Mastery: With 2 skills in which you already have at least one rank, they can now Take 10, even under stressful circumstances or when failure involves direct personal risk. You can take this ability multiple times. It applies to two new skills each time.
Slippery Mind: If you fail a Will Save against a mind-affecting spell or power, they can re-roll that Will Save once, on your next turn.
Plot Device (Ex): At level 4, Thinkers gain one Plot Device, as per the feat (see Chapter 4: Plot Device).
from Chapter 4:
PLOT DEVICE
[Tongue-In-Cheek]
Where do you get those wonderful toys?
Benefit: Once per session, you can dig into your pockets and find a single, extremely useful mundane tool or device. The exact nature of the device is unspecified until such time as you invoke the feat, but it can become virtually anything you happen to need—an electronic lock-pick, a grappling hook gun, a re-breather, a compact motorcycle repair kit, etc.—up to Purchase DC 15. For the remainder of the session, the Device stays as whatever you wanted it to be, but at the beginning of the next session, it is once again unspecified and ready to be something else that you miraculously just happened to have with you. Invoking the Plot Device does not require a purchase roll and it does not affect your Wealth score because you had it the whole time (wink, wink). You can take this feat up to three times. Each time, you get one more plot device per session.
Sixth Sense (Ex): At levels 5 and 14, Thinkers receive a +2 to all skills or checks related to observation (Observe, Search, Spellcraft, Psicraft, etc.).
Inflexible Will (Ex): At level 7, Thinkers can Take 10 on any Will Save, but they must declare their intention to do so before they make their rolls.
Tactical Genius (Ex): At levels 8, 13, and 17, Thinkers can grant a +1 circumstance bonus to the skill checks and attack rolls of anyone who fights on their side and remains within earshot or within sight. This effect lasts for a number of rounds equal to the Thinker's Intelligence modifier +2. The bonus increases by +1 at level 13 (to +2), and 17 (to +3).
Mind Expansion: At levels 8, 16, and 20, Thinkers apply a permanent +1 to either Intelligence, Wisdom, or Charisma (player's choice).
Bafflegab (Ex): At level 10, Thinkers can spew out a fluid stream of smart-sounding gobbleygook. This takes a swift action to perform, and Thinkers can use it once per session. Opponents who are in earshot and can understand the language that the Thinker is speaking must make Will saves (DC = 15 + Thinker's Intelligence bonus). Opponents who fail are so puzzled that they cannot attack the Thinker at all. Opponents who pass are distracted enough that they cannot make attacks of opportunity against the Thinker. At levels 10, 15, and 20, Thinkers can use Bafflegab an additional time per session.
Set-Up Attack (Ex): At level 11, Thinkers can effectively give their highest attack to an adjacent ally. Thinkers use a standard action to create an opportunity for an ally to attack an opponent that they both threaten in mêlée. The attack made by the ally is either at the Thinker's highest attack bonus, or the ally's, whichever is higher. Thinkers can Set Up only one attack per round. The attack happens during the Thinker's round, but is rolled by the ally. The ally expends one Attack of Opportunity in order to use the Thinker's Set-Up Attack.
Contingency Plan (PL): At level 19, Thinkers are so prepared for any dangerous foe that they just happen to have the right weapon, device, or item on-hand at all times that will take care of that, specific individual. This ability is essentially a Plot Device with teeth. For 2 Action Points, the Thinker can produce a hand-held object from an inner pocket. This object is a Super item the Origin of which matches the Thinker's Origin (if the Thinker has no powers, then the Origin is Supertech by default). Drawing this object requires an Immediate action and provokes an attack of opportunity.
The Thinker must make a ranged touch attack at the target (which represents waving the object in the general direction of the target, throwing it at his/her/its feet, etc.). This effect has a range of 10 feet. If the attack hits, it then provokes a Fortitude save (DC = 25 + Thinker's Intelligence bonus). If the target succeeds, then they are exhausted (-6 Strength and Dexterity, moves at half speed) for 1d6 rounds. If the target fails, they are rendered helpless for 1d4 rounds, and when they wake up they are then exhausted for 1d6 rounds.
Just my opinion though, otherwise it's a very interesting system.
I agree that PPs are a pain to keep track of, but it's the mechanic that I keeps certain powers under control. Because PPs are awarded by level, you can count on low-level characters not having enough of them to level buildings with an Energy Attack or use Telekinesis to pick up enemies and throw them in the ocean. To convert to a system with PPs would require a rewrite of the whole thing, from top to bottom, so even if I were inclined to, I don't think it's a job I could take on at this stage, although as I say, I do see your point.