FASERIP!!

Some of you may recall that many moons ago I blogged about an old RPG I used to play, and LOVED in high school.  I am, of course, speaking of the Marvel Super Heroes RPG, put out by TSR, Inc. (the original makers of D&D)  Now long out of print, MSH still has a loyal, if aging, following online.

(For those who are not familiar with the game, the title of this post is an acronym given to the core system that MSH used.  It is based on the seven attributes heroes in the game had: Fighting, Agility, Strength, Endurance, Reason, Intuition and Psyche.  FASERIP.)

At the time of my previous post, I had lamented that I could never find a generic version of the game, with all of the Marvel Comics IP stripped out of it.  Well, apparently I didn't look hard enough.  Because today, on a whim from nowhere, I did a Google search for FASERIP, and one of my results was a link to a product offered for free at DriveThruRPG.  It's called the 4C System (as in four color), and it's free and offered as public domain.

So, what that means is, I can have my MSH game back, without the M, and can substitute my own heroes.  It also means that I can modify the system to accommodate a more "skills-oriented" RPG, which would allow me to use that dynamic system for other genres, like fantasy, modern and science fiction.

Will it work?  I dunno.  I remember it working really well for Supers.  And I have always wondered how it would handle other genres.  So, here's my big chance.  Will I do it?  Ok, now there's the $64 question.  I am notorious for starting crap like this and never following through.  Although I am getting better about that, it still takes me a long time, usually.

Anyways, just thought I would share my geeky treasure find with you, just in case anyone was interested.  Now, where did I put those d10s...?

Mid-life?

So, I think I am going through the gamer-geek's version of a mid-life crisis.  Instead of wanting to be single with a sports car, I just want to relive my gamer youth.  I want to play old RPGs, watch the movies and cartoons I grew up on, and read old-school comics.  Ok, and a part of me looks longingly at that motorcycle I saw for sale on my way to work.

Actually, now that I think about it, I've been feeling this way for a long time.  So, maybe no crisis, per se.  Still, it is cool to play 1E D&D, and yesterday we bought Michele a copy of Shadowrun 3E at Half-Price Books for $10, and she plans to run a game.  Which is cool for me, since I only ever played it once, when I was in the Army, and I'm pretty sure we never actually finished a game.  In fact, I'm not sure we did anything more than create characters.  Which is usually my favorite part of an RPG anyways.

Speaking of RPGs, Saturday was Free RPG Day, so I dutifully headed down to my FLGS, and picked up a copy of the annual free Pathfinder adventure.  I figure that someday, when I can convince my group to play the game, I will have a whole campaign's worth of free stuff.  We also got Catalyst's free preview versions of Shadowrun and Battletech RPGs (a flip-side two-in-one publication, and which inspired the aforementioned HPB purchase). 

I also picked up a copy of the new Marvel Superheroes RPG from Margaret Weis Studios (no, that wasn't free).  I haven't read it all yet (and I probably won't, since I don't think I have ever read an entire RPG from cover to cover).  My initial impression:  Well, it's certainly pretty.  Seriously, it's sized the same as a standard comic book Trade Paper Back, and the quality is just like what you get with the new TPB books.  The art is directly from the comics, and they showcase all the best characters.

As for the system itself, I'm not sure what to think.  For me, personally, it's kind of counter-intuitive.  The stats don't match the standard physical and mental attributes you usually find in RPGs.  And instead of numbers for stats, they use die-types.  I've always been kind of on the fence with those kinds of systems (ala Savage Worlds), but I know they can work fine, so that part is ok.  They also don't detail Hercules.  However, they give stats for Captain America (of course) and Colossus.  So, it's all good.

I'm sure it won't matter, though.  This is just another in my large pile of RPGs that are cool, but will probably never get played.

So, what are you playing?

Super Conception

Once upon a time, in the vast, fertile fields of my imagination (at least, that's how I imagine it), there were two Role Playing Games. One was an old, worn out, somewhat dated game, who, despite his age and mechanical problems, still held a lot of charm and character for me. His name was Marvel Super Heroes. The other was a bit younger, but still no spring chicken. Yet she held a slick beauty that made her very "flexible" and able to handle many situations. Her name was Storyteller.

One day, these two systems met, and it was a match made in...well, in my imagination. And the rest, as they don't say (but should) is the future.

What does all that mean? It means I am going to re-invent the old Marvel Super Heroes RPG from TSR, by merging some concepts from White Wolf's Storyteller System. Basically, instead of rolling percentage dice on a chart, you will be rolling handfuls of d10's and looking for successes (ie.: 7 or better).

I think I will call it "Marvelous Stories."

Why bother? Because I like the concept of FASERIP. I like the idea of stats being denoted, not just with a bland number, but with a description word that has some zing to it. I like the look and feel of the old MSH game, and would like to see it updated with something that is easier to grasp. Plus, I'm bored.

I also don't have the money or the gaming group to go out and buy the next big Supers RPG. And besides, I have always liked screwing around with what other people invent, as far as RPG's go. And this effort costs me nothing but spare time, and I can ditch it whenever I want. Because that's what I do.

In other news...

Vacation this week! Woohoo! Road trip with the wife.

Revisiting an old game in my mind

Today I posted a link to Margaret Weis Productions’ new Marvel Superheroes RPG on Facebook. I stated that it sounded interesting, and even though I know none of my current gamer friends would play it with me, I still might get it, because…what the hell? It’s looks way cool!

This sparked a brief discussion about previous Marvel RPG’s, including my beloved Marvel Superheroes (TSR, 1984), wherein one friend proceeded, within the span of a single paragraph, to destroy it with hate and, frankly unfounded, assessments. His opinion is fine, though on one point (that it was unsupported) was flatly wrong. I’m fairly certain that D&D is the only TSR game that got more support than MSH.

That being said, it got me thinking. Was it really a good game? Is my love for it tainted by the ever-present spirit of nostalgia that often seems to run my life (as far as my tastes go)? Would it stand up today? And is there room for an “OSR” for MSH? Hmm…

Was it really a good game?

I had this boxed set.



Well, that depends on your definition of “good” I suppose. For me, that means “Is it fun?” It is, after all a game. And games are implicitly meant to be fun. So, if a game is fun, then it is, by definition, good. MSH did a good job of evoking the larger-than-life feel and grandiose characters of four-color comics. It had a standard set of stats for the characters, and each was given a rank described by a Stan Lee-ism, rather than just a number. Your Strength could be Unearthly, your Fighting Amazing, your Psyche Remarkable, etc. And each of these related to a column that you rolled a percentage die against to test for success. True, it had an inherent fault, mathematically. There was an argument that, according to the rules, “Aunt May could kill Galactus with a spoon, if the player rolled well enough.” Well, that would just be shitty story-telling, wouldn’t it? Any referee who allowed that roll on principle should be taken out back and shot.


 One assessment my friend made was that it was inflexible (which I would highly debate), and only allowed you to play characters similar to those who already existed. Ok. Let’s just say, for the sake of argument, that he is correct. My character can only be a Captain America or Spiderman or Thor rip-off. How is this different than any other RPG? It could be argued that every D&D fighter is a rip off of Boromir, only slightly tweaked and given a new name and look. Personally, I think that’s the biggest strength of RPGs. The fact that I could say “I love Spiderman, I wish I could play someone like him” and then proceed to make Feline, who shared many similarities with Spiderman, but had my own unique spins on him.

Would it stand up today?

Probably my favorite
supplement.



Depends on who is playing, I suppose. It would probably stand up for me, personally. Those with differing views on what makes an RPG “good” would most likely have differing results. But, I think if the players came in expecting to play MSH, and not something else, it would stand up fine. And like any other RPG, the result would depend highly on the quality of the players, and less on the quality of the game.

And is there room for an “OSR” for MSH?
For legal reasons, probably not. However, if someone were so inclined, and if WotC were willing to let it go, I bet a generic Supers game, or one based on some other company’s property, could be made from the framework of MSH. The fact that the system is often referred to as FASERIP (named after the seven attributes; Fighting, Agility, Strength, Endurance, Reason, Intuition, Psyche), indicates that someone has given the idea some thought. I may have to do to some digging online just to see how far it went.

All I can say is that I LOVED this game back in the day. And I probably created about a hundred characters of all sorts with it. So, even if it was limited in flexibility, what it CAN do is very cool.

As an end note, while posting this and searching for links and pics, it became readily apparent that there is a large following for this game on the net.  Some sites may be out of date, but it's still out there.  And with Weis' version coming out, the older versions will no doubt be getting some new attention.