After designing characters for GURPS
Supers, Wild
Cards, Super
Scum, and the upcoming Supertemps,
I'm supposed to have picked up some insights into the process
of creating a super, GURPS style.
All roleplaying games have particular strengths and weaknesses -- those
treating the supers genre are no exception. GURPS
neatly divides character generation into several sections,
so that's the best format for discussion.
Attributes: Although 500 character points might sound like a lot,
high-level attributes will melt them away. Unless you want to do a lot of
recalculation -- a legitimate form of character design -- select DX, IQ
and HT as you would for most any genre. (If your campaign will be combat-intensive,
DX and HT may need a slight boost.) Besides, you may actually save
points by raising these attributes after you select skills
(see below).
ST is often an exception. Many characters will have relatively normal levels
of strength, but probably just as many supers will want more raw power.
These latter need to buy Enhanced ST.
How much? As much as you can afford. That's because of the unique nature
of this ability in GURPS -- it becomes more cost
efficient at higher levels. (On the other hand, ST scores between the high
teens and mid twenties are the least economic.)
Advantages: With so many points, it's possible to purchase a large
number of advantages without sacrificing other aspects of the character.
A super designed for combat using the Stun Damage option will often take
enough damage to stun him, unless he has High Pain Threshold, a bargain
at 10 points. Likewise, the +1 to Active Defenses granted by Combat Reflexes
is often worth 15 points.
Disadvantages: The usual point value for a super's Disadvantages
is -100. A lot of us have trouble coming up with only AO for regular PCs,
but supers are easier.
Most will have Secret Identity -- for villains this should be a substantial
point value. Villains also typically have a bad Reputation, and an Enemy
or two. Good guys, on the other hand, often have various forms of Code of
Honor or Pacifism.
Some supers are such eccentric characters that they are burdened with a
mishmash of unusual disadvantages (phobias, delusions, etc.).
Super Advantages: Now we're getting to what distinguishes this
character from normals. Some supers have many Super advantages and few Powers,
some are the other way around. In either case, compromises are usually made
here because these abilities are expensive. Buy as many as you
like, but keep that eraser handy!
Super Disadvantages: Uncontrolled Change and Dependency are fairly
conception-specific, though Vulnerability is viable for most designs (especially
if you're short on disadvantages!). Instead of visualizing this as a bodily
weakness to a particular substance, imagine that the super's defenses are
much less effective against this attack -- like the reduced protection Kevlar
offers from impaling attacks.
Powers and Super-Skills: GURPS Supers
favors those designs that are focused through the Power Group
structure. Some groups in particular (Telepathy comes to mind) are especially
cost-efficient if most of the super-skills are purchased.
But many conceptions demand the judicious use of single-skill Powers. That's
fine, too -- the key word is "judicious."
One trick you may not be familiar with combines these two approaches. Flamin'
Jane (p. SU65) is an example. She has four heat/Fire super-skills at Power
12; the Power cost is 120 points. If she wanted to keep these abilities,
but have greater Power with the Fireball skill, she could raise it by buying
single-skill Power levels specific to that skill. They cost 6 points each,
so after a few adventures she can spend 12 character points, raising her
Fireball Power to 14, gaining an addi-tional 1d + 1 of damage, along with
greater range, etc. Her Power with the other super-skills remains at 12.
This would be listed as: