Tommy's Take on The Super Villain Handbook Deluxe Edition

As regular readers may recall, about a year and a half ago, I reviewed The Super Villain Handbook while it was being Kickstarted. I even named it as one of my Top Six. So now The Super Villain  Handbook Deluxe Edition is out, and I'm taking a look at it and its Savage Worlds conversion book.

Superhero Kickstarters to Check Out

Hey all, just checking in with a couple of Kickstarters to recommend for you...

SENTINELS OF THE MULTIVERSE: OBLIVAEON



Greater Than Games is doing one of the ballsiest things you can do...they are killing their cash cow while it's still HOT. They insist they always had a plan, and this is the grand finale of that plan: A final expansion in which the heroic characters of the Sentinels of the Multiverse will join forces with some of their fiercest foes to battle an epic Galactus/Darkseid/Thanos-like entity that wants to eradicate the multiverse.

I am a huge fan of Sentinels of the Multiverse. It is, simply put, the greatest card game I've ever played and I have logged hundreds of games and hundreds of hours. For those who are unfamiliar, you have a number of hero decks (generally 3-5), a villain deck (or a team, more on that later) and an environment deck. Then it's (generally) a slugfest until either the heroes fall or the villain does (some villains and environment decks introduce alternate win or lose conditions). The game has continued to grow, with multiple boxed expansions (gritty street-level, mystic and cosmic themed), new variants (two boxed sets introduced the concept of taking on teams of villains) and numerous single-deck expansion packs, as well as promo cards that provided variant heroes and villains to play with. The game is completely co-op, with the villain decks essentially being "automated". There's even an amazing video game version on Steam, Android and iOS devices.

Details about the gameplay in this expansion are still scarce, but it's known that multiple Environments will be used, as well as a Mission Deck. I freely admit, I have a ton of confidence in these guys to deliver, as I have yet to regret a purchase for this card game.

It is worth noting that the larger Sentinels line will still continue with their miniatures/skirmish game Sentinel Tactics (which I also enjoy, but rarely get to play) and the upcoming Sentinels of the Multiverse RPG (which I intend to get due to my love of the universe).

Heck, you can even get an ultimate collector's box in this Kickstarter that promises to hold every official card they have released (even sleeved!).

Highest recommendation for one of the greatest games I have ever played, from a company with an impeccable track record. I would  love to see that million dollar stretch goal shattered.

AGAINST THE AXIS - WORLD WAR II ERA PLAY IN STARK CITY

My friends over at Fainting Goat Games are hard at work on Against the Axis, an ICONS World War II book that is now also getting Savage Worlds and SUPERS! support. They have even joined forces with Heroic Publishing to tie in with several of their Golden Age style characters.

The ICONS manuscript is complete, and this is a full blown sourcebook that ties in with the Stark City setting released a few years ago, not simply an adventure (of which ICONS has seen several of).

Pinnacle's own Clint Black (who was the man behind one of my favorite campaigns of all time, Necessary Evil) is signed on to write a stretch goal book if it gets that far, but right now the campaign is struggling. Fainting Goat is a good company with great quality and reliability, and the ICONS manuscript is complete, so there is very low risk in backing this one, which still needs just under two grand to hit its funding goal in a week.

Tommy's Top Six of 2015 and Birthday Blog Giveaway

It's that time of year again...a New Year and a time to look back on my past year in gaming. I reviewed a ton in the first half of the year, then spent the second half of the year doing way more writing than reviewing. But I did still hit on six products that filled me with a particular joy, so here we go.

The rules, as arbitrarily decided by me: 1) One game per publisher. 2) My primary exposure to the game must have been in from December 1st of last year to November 30th of this year. 3) I must not have been involved of the production of the product (but you should totally check out Savage Tales of Horror, ya'll).

AMP Year One (by Third Eye Games)

1) Perfect for those wanting a Heroes-style "emergent supers game", rather than a traditional comic book-style setting.

2) The unique setting helps the game stand out in the pack of superhero RPGs in the world right now, as the system and setting are married together quite well.

3) Strong adventure support is a focus for the line, as AMP Year One got multiple adventure packs upon release, and Year Two has added in Faction Books with adventures.

4) The metaplot provides interesting twists and turns in the setting, with a five year plan mapped out for the setting and new elements being introduced as the setting develops.

5) The powers are neat and flavorful, and the new powers have thus far done a great job of providing new options, rather than power creep.

6) I loved this setting enough that I worked on two of the Year Two faction books (TRAC and the upcoming Hounds books...to clarify, I only had a hand in two supplements, not on this book at all).

Camp Grizzly (by Ameritrash Games)

1) I have never had a bad game of this. We've busted it out repeatedly, and had a blast each time, including the time Otis just spent the whole game mauling us.

2) The game is lite enough that you can run multiple characters to ensure you have a full spread of counselors, even if you only have two or three players.

3) The game is just full of slasher movie tropes, clearly crafted by fans of the genre, for fans of the genre.

4) Every character in the game, from Counselor to Otis to the campers and the cameos just screams that they walked out of an 80s Friday the 13th knock-off. From the little girl that keeps you from a little late night action, to the a-hole cops that can interfere with you, the brave lifeguard counselor who runs to stop Otis when he appears nearby to the little psycho girl who is going to grow up and live in a horror movie of her own someday...just a great cast of characters.

5) The Finale System (8 unique finales, depending on where on the board you initiate it at) provides ample uncertainty as to how the game will end and what you have to do to stop Otis. It may turn out that Otis was never there at all, and it was just an imposter, or Otis may aim to take you with him as he goes. We still have not played all of them, but the finales are arguably the the strongest part of an already great game.

6) For a simple roll and move game, the interaction between counselors, Otis, random placement of objectives, the 8 finales and the sizable card decks just overflowing with horror tropes ensures that there is a lot of replayability, and five expansions were unlocked with the Kickstarter and are still coming.

High Strung (Precis Intermedia Games)

1) Do you know a lot of other RPGs about playing a members of a rock band who are trying to make it in a harsh and unforgiving industry (as opposed to members of a rock band who fight crime and/or monsters)?

2) Lots and lots and lots of random tables, which obviously draws my attention.

3) Short and sweet. Whole thing comes in well under 50 pages, but provides a full game with no big, gaping holes.

4) The premise is "rock band", but the drama is on the personal events that surround the group in their pursuit of the big dream, essentially making it about a band who is trying to succeed in spite of themselves, especially as Hope (the game's big in-game currency) is stolen from player to player.

5) Brand new layout from the original version released by Flying Mice Games adds an additional visual flair, while still maintaining the indie charm that a game like this requires.

6) Player versus player with no player elimination, great for a change of pace if your group is one that likes to butt heads every now and then, but are capable of doing so without hurt feelings.

Shadow of the Demon Lord (Schwalb Entertainment)

1) Random tables for every aspect of your character, plus Interesting Things and even how you learn your new Paths. Have I mentioned that I love random tables?

2) Evocative art that constantly reinforces the slightly grimy, slightly "off" feel of everything about the setting, from character Ancestries to monsters.

3) The setting is at once a broad strokes kitchen sink, while also having a very distinctive feel and tone to it. While not a true "horror" game, it is definitely "weird", as everything just feels a touch "off".

4) Definitely a change of pace from high powered heroics of modern fantasy games, harkening back to older games with more "expendable" characters, combined with newer design concepts (such as unified subsystems, the Fortune mechanic and so on).

5) The Paths are fantastic, allowing you to guide your character through the career paths of their choice. You can even willingly become, say, a Warrior at level 1, turn Thief at level 3 and transform into a Magus at level 7, hitting three of the four major "multiclass" points. Obviously, certain combinations of Ancestries and Paths will mesh better together, but none are forbidden.

6) Shadow of the Demon Lord was one of my favorite purchases of the last year. Not least because of all the cool stretch goals I got in the Kickstarter, but the corebook itself as proven to be worth it, both reading and in play.

Star Wars Force & Destiny Beginner Game (Fantasy Flight Games)

1) Great introductory set for what can otherwise be a confusing system to get your heads around. The handy charts breaking down the dice symbols on each character folio made running and playing the game very smooth.

2) As is to be expected with both Star Wars and Fantasy Flight Games, the production values are top notch and intentionally evoke the darker mysticism of the Star Wars universe.

3) The included adventure not only provides multiple encounters, but multiple ways to resolve those encounters as well. One of the PCs in the game I ran was a top flight negotiator, and he managed to talk his way through half the adventure, whereas the other PC would certainly have had to fight.

4) The system, once you get the dice symbols down, is both simple and flexible. Struggling to explain some of the "Yes, but..." and "No, but..." results can be a problem, but in a pinch you can always hand out Boost and Setback dice to keep it moving.

5) The Force system is great in that it can force "Conflict" without automatically turning you to the Dark Side. Essentially, it randomizes your concentration and emotions (based on your Force Rating), providing actual incentive to tap into darker feelings to use The Force.

6) It convinced me to not only buy the Force and Destiny rulebook, but Age of the Rebellion and Edge of the Empire as well.

The Super Villain Handbook (Fainting Goat Games)

1) Available in ICONS, Fate and Supers! versions, each villain archetype has a set of sample stats for the system in question.

2) If you have the Field Guide to Superheroes, it has an appendix that discusses how to tweak those archetypes into villains.

3) The focus is on who the villains are, not what they can do. The ability to shoot bolts of energy from their eyes should define a good villain less than that they are a white supremacist who is using that power to "cleanse the genepool".

4) Multiple examples are provided for each archetype to draw a mental connection between the character types and actual villains you have actually read about.

5) Each entry breaks down not only the abilities that the archetype is likely to have, but the qualities they are likely to have, as well as the stories you can tell with them. This is useful to drive home the fact that there is more than one way to make an Assassin, or a Mastermind or a Cult Leader.

6) This book is at least as useful to me as a writer as it is for me as a GM. Honestly, even if you're running a supers RPG that this book hasn't been released for, it's still a valuable resource. It's that good.

And now, for the part you have all been waiting for...The Birthday Blog Giveaway! The blog turned six years old today, and we have prizes! Send me an email to "tommybrownell(a)gmail(dot)com" with the subject "Birthday Blog Giveaway" and send me your choices for prizes in order of preference. The prizes are:

- Two (2) PDF copies of AMP: Year One.
-  One (1) PDF copy of High Strung.
- One (1) PDF copy of the Victims of the Demon Lord Starter's Guide.
- One (1) PDF Copy of The Super Villain Handbook (ICONS, FATE or SUPERS!, your choice)
- One (1) Print Copy of The Super Villain Handbook (ICONS)
- One (1) Print Copy of The Super Villain Handbook (FATE)
- One (1) Print Copy of The Super Villain Handbook (SUPERS!)
- One (1) set of Laser Cut Wood and 3D Printed Gaming Terrain by Daft Concepts

For the Print Prizes and the gaming terrain, I can only ship them to the continental US, sorry. All entries are required by 11:59 Central time on 1/14, after which I will select winners! I do require a valid email address to provide to publishers for the digital rewards, and valid US mailing addresses for the physical rewards!

Good luck, thank you to the publishers for the prize support, and thank you to everyone who is still reading!

Tommy's Take on The Super Villain Handbook

There is currently a Kickstarter running for the Super Villain Handbook, written by the author of The Field Guide to Superheroes by Vigilance Press, Jason "Dr. Comics" Tondro. What is the Super Villain Handbook? Well, that's the point of the blog post...so read on.

Tommy's Take on ICONS: The Assembled Edition

So last year, after my review of ICONS, Ad Infinitum and Green Ronin Publishing joined forces to release ICONS: The Assembled Edition...not quite a second edition, more of a 1.5 Edition...something closer to what Pinnacle does with the Savage Worlds core books than what D&D does with its editions (that is, remaining 95% compatible from edition to edition with little work).

The Bamfsies Are Announced and You Can Win MORE Prizes!

So, a while back I told you that the Bamfsies were a thing.

Well, the Judges had their say and the people had their say and awards were given to well deserved games. You should totally go check it out.

ICONS Character Roster

Some of you may have noticed over the weekend that I added a new page to the blog: My ICONS character roster. This is because ICONS character creation is fun, and I recently picked up ICONS Assembled Edition, and have started making characters using it and Great Power.

All heroes are created using the optional rules for Determination based off of power level, and all villains are created starting with the Villain Role chart (originally from Villainomicon, now in Assembled Edition). Images (so far) are all created with Hero Machine.

For those of you that follow my comic book work, some of these folks may well wind up appearing in a comic book someday, who knows?

Anyway, enjoy!

Tommy's Take on ICONS Superpowered Roleplaying

So I have reviewed a lot of ICONS products over the years (and you may have seen my Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles posts)...but I've never reviewed ICONS. So, today, I'm going to change that.

The villains they are rushing at are on the
Villainomicon cover.

New Year, New Game Sale - What Should You Buy?

RPGNow, in conjunction with some wonderful RPG publishers, is launching the New Year, New Game Sale once more, providing a toooooooooon of corebooks for half off their normal price.

And that's all well and good, but WHAT should you BUY?

Weeeell...I have some experience with some of the games, and I thought I'd call those out to you.

Age Past: The Incian Sphere - I wrote two pieces of short fiction for this fantasy RPG. Very fun if you like having powers to tinker with.
Don't Rest Your Head - One of the first RPGs I ever reviewed, actually.
Epoch - This unique horror RPG is actually being reviewed on my blog tomorrow, so stay tuned for that!
Heaven's Shadow - I obviously think highly of this RPG, naming it one of my Top Six of 2013. Speaking of...the print version of this is now on sale until the end of the month, in honor of being named one of my Top Six!
ICONS - I've ran it once, and I own a lot of books for it, but I've never review IT. Tons of support.
Leverage - A previous Top Six pick, based on one of my favorite TV shows.
Part-Time Gods - Another previous Top Six pick, playing mortals suddenly imbued with Godlike powers.
Savage Suzerain - Another previous Top Six pick. I've contributed to a few Savage Mojo projects because of my high opinion and reviews of their products.
Savage Worlds Deluxe Explorer's Edition - It's my favorite RPG. Ever.
School Daze - A very cool and unique school-based RPG.
Shainter: Legends Arise - The new version of the awesome fantasy setting for Savage Worlds.
Stormrift - Another RPG I reviewed very highly, featuring an alien invasion and the freedom fighters that would stop them.
The Mutant Epoch - Another Top Six pick, featuring some of the craziest, over the top, post-apocalypse fun one can find.

RPGs for sale here that I haven't had hands on experience with, but are on my "to-read" pile include:

Astonishing Swordsmen & Sorcerers of Hyperborea - I'm not a big OSR fan, but this looks great.
Bulletproof Blues - I have a fondness for supers, what with being a comic book writer and all.
Dead of Night - Because I also like horror.
Dungeon Crawl Classics - I got to play a short PBEM game of this, and I looooove the 0-level character funnel and magic system. It's on my "review list".
King Arthur Pendragon 5.1 - I've had this for a few years, but not yet ran it. It may well be on the agenda soon, with the Great Pendragon Campaign.
Rapture - I bought their big charity bundle recently.

And there are those that I DON'T yet own, but I have my eye on. Namely...

Adventures Under The Laughing Moon
Against The Darkness - I have almost pulled the trigger on this a dozen times, but the timing is never right.
Atlantis: The Second Age - It looks REALLY cool.
Crimson Exodus - Comes highly recommended from a friend.
Eldritch Ass Kicking
Eternal Contenders
Hoodoo Blues
Little Wizards
Modern Day Gladiators - Being an ex-pro wrestler has me curious about this one.
Noir - Because I like noir.
Numenera
Shattered Moon
Sojourner's Quest
Sorcery & Super Science!

(Of course, I'm open to review copies of these or any other games on the sale. *cough*)

So try a new game, and use my affiliate link so I can get store credit and try a new game of my own, that I will then review on this blog!

A Super Colorado Flood Relief Bundle

Colorado has been hit with some pretty nasty flooding recently, and gamers being the great people they are, a relief bundle has come together to help out. Headed up by Mike Lafferty and Fainting Goat Games (based out of Colorado), this astonishing bundle consists of $268 worth of RPGs and products for only $20. Some of the gems include"

• Shaintar: Legends Arise Player's Guide for Savage Worlds.
• Slasher Flick: Director's Cut
• The ICONS Rulebook
• The Bulletproof Blues rulebook
• Deadlands Reloaded: Blood Drive 1
• Capes, Cowls & Villains Foul
• All eleven Improbable Tales adventures for ICONS!
• And much, much more, for supers gaming and otherwise.

$20 for a crapton of awesome stuff and a good cause. Why would you NOT do it? The bundle is available through October 22.

Tommy's Take on Justice Wheels #1, #2 and #3.

Justice Wheels #1: Black Scarab

WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW: The first in the Justice Wheels series for ICONS by Fainting Goat Games, it includes a character (Black Scarab) and his car (F.A.L.C.O.N.). With art provided by Scott Harshbarger, both the car and the character looks fantastic. Black Scarab is essentially a much cooler looking Moon Knight, with a villain variant that has him going all Azrael and thinking the only way to save the world is to burn it down. Fine line between justice and vengeance. Perhaps most importantly, it provides crunchier vehicle rules, as well as chase rules, or teams buying the Vehicle power as a group. There's even a handy chart to compare movement powers (fliers getting a bonus to escape burrowers, for instance). Finally, the PDF includes a printable cutout for both Black Scarab and his car.

WHAT WORKS: If you want more vehicle rules, this is fantastic. Black Scarab is a cool Moon Knight twist, and the villain variant is interesting enough that I would put him to use in a supers game, easily. Great art.

WHAT DOESN'T WORK: At 50 cents, there's not much to complain about. The ultra crunchy rules are not a great fit for ICONS, but that's not surprising as it's not an ultra crunchy game.

CONCLUSION: My understanding is that the Vehicle rules here are supposed to show up in...Team-Up, I believe. The art is great, the character is interesting...really, the biggest complaint is that you'll need to buy it with something else in order to avoid the small order surcharge from One Book Shelf.

Justice Wheels #2: The Auguste Anarch

WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW: The August Anarche is the second Justice Wheels release, featuring a character and their vehicle, and comes across a lot like The Joker if he were built like Kingpin. He has enemies in both the police and mafia, because he's trying to make his mark in the underworld, and he has a sweet, sweet roadster. The hero variant recasts him as a modern day Robin Hood, making his stat block continue to work completely unaltered. The vehicle rules from volume #1 are reprinted in #2, so you don't need #1 in order to use #2. You also get a printable stand up of the August Anarche and his roadster.

WHAT WORKS: The hero/villain twist works out well once more, and August Anarche being inspired by the Joker but having a few tweaks isn't bad. It is nice that the rules are included here as well, in case you want to jump in here instead of volume 1.

WHAT DOESN'T WORK: Half the product is reprinted material (the veihicle and chase rules), but one could argue that's as much a pro as a con.

CONCLUSION: If you just want the rules, get The Black Scarab...it's $1 cheaper. Otherwise, it's a really good, low cost pick-up. Scott Harshbarger again provides the art, and it looks great, though I prefer Black Scarab's art over Auguste Anarch, if I had to pick just one.

Justice Wheels #3: Bluejay

WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW: You know the deal by now...a character and their vehicle. This becomes the first release to feature an aerial vehicle instead of a car, as we get Bluejay and his Golden Eagle airship. Adrian Smith provides the art this time, and it's very good, though lacking a bit of punch that Scott Harshbarger's first two releases had. Bluejay is the weakest concept thus far, being a boy genius who won the lottery and decided to build an airship to fight crime. He has villain version where he steals the material for his airship and decides to take revenge on everyone that doubted his intellect. An adventure hook for the villain version is provided, as well as the Vehicle rules and cut outs of the character and vehicle.

WHAT WORKS: The links inside this document are clickable, whereas they weren't in the past, and the layout looks a bit better. It is a welcome sight to see a non-car vehicle utilized in the Justice Wheels set.

WHAT DOESN'T WORK: Neither the hero nor the villain version of Bluejay clicks as well as the Black Scarab or the August Anarche did.

CONCLUSION: Better technical improvement to the PDF compared to the first two, even if the creative end falls a bit shorter this time. The vehicle proves to be the most interesting part of this release, showing off the range of the Vehicle rules. Now we just need a Wizardry (Gadgets)-like allowance for multiple vehicles, ala Batman.

Tommy's Take on Hacking 2.0, IZ GM Screen and Oktobermen

INTERFACE ZERO: HACKING 2.0

WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW: This mini PDF requires Savage Worlds and Interface Zero for maximum use, as it is an overhaul of the hacking rules from Interface Zero. The PDF has a short intro from Gun Metal Games' David Jarvis, explaining why this document was released (folks having issues with the hacking/virtual world/etc)...IZ 2.0 is coming later this year and will provide both Basic and Advanced Hacking rules. This document is presenting the Basic rules in advance of IZ 2.0's release. Some of the changes on the character creation end is that Hacking gets its own skill, some Edges have been removed (like Programming 101 and Advanced Programming) and new Edges are introduced (Cool Under Pressure lets you ignore penalties when a system goes on Active Alert and Interference makes you harder to hack, for example). There are also three Hacker specific Hindrances, with advice warning the GM to not allow them if a character who isn't REALLY a Hacker is trying to take a Hindrance that won't affect him. Hyper Gloves are also introduced (the first example that comes to mind to me is the FBI Agent from Heavy Rain, but you have seen them in various other media). The system for Hyper Gloves is pretty simple, a basic stat set that can be upgraded. The Gloves determine everything for the Hacker: Armor, Damage, Hacking Bonus and Range and can be set into three modes: Control (in case you need to manipulate a gun turret or an elevator), Edit (for heavy changes to things) and Destruction (when you need to inflict damage). Additionally, Hyper Gloves have additional MODS that can be used to provide extra bonuses. The hacking itself takes up the final few pages: Essentially, it's a normal skill roll in Savage Worlds, with the level of security providing a penalty to the roll and the Hyper Glove and/or Edges providing a bonus. Unlike most skill rolls, however, Hacking is NEVER without risk: Any Hacking roll failure will have consequences (determined on a die roll against the table appropriate to the type of security firewall).

WHAT WORKS: That cover art is awesome. I'm not sure what it has to do with Hacking, but that is probably the single most compelling piece of artwork I have seen on an Interface Zero product. I like the Hyper Gloves a lot. It's a clean, easy to modify system that fits the Savage Worlds vein.

WHAT DOESN'T WORK: Well, if you're planning on buying IZ 2.0, you might not want to pay for content that's going to be in the eventual release.

CONClUSION: Though designed for Interface Zero, there's not much here that you can't use without it, and it's both inexpensively priced and not a huge document, so if you are running any kind of game in which futuristic hacking would be helpful, it's worth a pick-up. Interface Zero got kicked around (a tad unfairly) for changing "too much" about Savage Worlds, but this is a step back to the feel of SW without sacrificing the unique flavor of IZ.

INTERFACE ZERO GM'S SCREEN

WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW: GM Screen's as we know them are fading fast. There was a Savage Worlds GM screen a while back that was clear plastic panels that you could slip cardboard panels for the game you were running in. The Interface Zero GM screen is along those lines...a "do it yourself" GM screen. The three art panels consist of some gorgeously thematic art, running a decent range of IZ material, including an android, cyborgs and mercenaries...(and a cyberpunk street samurai looking figure). The three rules panels include the Gritty damage rules, Zeek fatigue and the Hacking 2.0 rules.

WHAT WORKS: Great art, all the relevant IZ setting rules...about what you would want from a GM screen.

WHAT DOESN'T WORK: It feels a TAD cluttered...but there's just a metric crap ton of tables on this thing.

CONCLUSION: Unless you hate GM screens, this is a very good pick-up for $3 if you have access to a good printer. Much better deal than the $20 GM screen standard we've seen in the past, especially if you have one of the clear Savage Worlds screens to slide the panels into.

DUE VIGILANCE: OKTOBERMEN

WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW: Oktobermen is "issue 1" in the Due Vigilance line, fitting in the same universe as the Smoke & Mirrors supplement I reviewed back in January. This is the ICONS version of said product, $5.99 for a 19 page PDF filled with a team of supernatural killers and assassins. Oktobermen is more than just a villain book. I mean, it IS a villain book, but it includes a relationship map for the six members of the Oktobermen, complete with a paragraph on each of the six explaining their viewpoints. The book also includes four common sets of tactics employed by the Oktobermen. The bulk of the book is taken up by the character bios and stats for the six members:

Bookbinder - An escapee from a mysterious organization called The Library, Bookbinder is the most reluctant of the Oktobermen, having joined up when Springheel Jack saved her from The Library. The can use magic in some powerful and freaky ways, like trapping people in stories or summoning literary characters to do her bidding.

The Floating Skull - He is not unlike a D&D Demilich, the floating skull of a powerful sorcerer. He can never use the same spell on a given target more than once. Luckily, he knows 666 of them.

Hexenwulf - Hexenwulf is a werewolf, but not of the common type. No, he's a werewolf of the "wearing wolf skins" type. Heavily resistant to magic, so he's usually the lead man in taking out sorcerers.

L'Enfant Terrible - The prototypical Creepy Kid, born with a soul of evil. Often used to take people by surprised...has a "bodyguard" named Mr. Bear who has a VERY disturbing secret.

Sister Sanguine - A creepy (ex)nun who answers to evil fae and gains powers from drinking blood.

Springheel Jack - A half-demon in charge of The Oktobermen, Springheel Jack is on a quest to consume take a number of souls and become a Lord of Hell. There is even a sidebar explaining how to alter his stats if he succeeds.

Also included are four plot seeds (including two related NPCs) and a set of standees fot the Oktobermen.

WHAT WORKS: Some GREAT character concepts here, as well as some nice tidbits hinting at the larger world (like The Library). I also love the amount of detail as to how the villains operate and treat each other, making this more than just a set of stats.

WHAT DOESN'T WORK: My only real complaint is the dramatic art shift from the cover to the interior. I don't think either one is inherently better than the other, though the cover seems to fit the source material better, while the latter fits the ICONS feel better.

CONCLUSION: Another fantastic product by Vigilance Press, providing a slew of baddies that are just downright frightening (in power level as well as concept). At one point, this product wasn't going to be released for ICONS, but I'm glad it ultimately was.

Some Early February Announcements

THE MOST UNREAD BLOG EVER GETS READ

Yep...last month was the highest traffic month in my blog's history, shattering the previous record of last January's traffic. This was due in no small part to Tommy's Top Six and the Birthday Blog Giveaway, which received a lot of extra publicity this year. For that, I thank you, and I hope at least some of you come back even when I'm not giving away stuff.

FEB-WU-ARY IS BACK

Third Eye Games has resurrected Feb-Wu-Ary, a contest in which you can win a free copy of Wu Xing every day this month. Pop on over to their website to learn all about your ways to win because Wu Xing is WELL worth it.

A PAIR OF KICKSTARTERS

Mike Lafferty, the guy behind some of my favorite ICONS material by Vigilance Press, and the host of the Bamf Podcast, has launched a new venture called Fainting Goat Games, and they are running a Kickstarter to provide a series of adventures for ICONS. Normally, I would say that adventure support isn't something ICONS really needs MORE of, but Mike wrote Wargames, so check out Improbable Tales on Kickstarter.

Also, the Rogue Mage Kickstarter is underway, and just over halfway to their goal. Rogue Mage is a post-apocalyptic (or very apocalyptic) fantasy RPG by Christian Stiles, Faith Hunter, Raven Blackwell and Spike Y Jones, based on Faith Hunter's novel series. The game system is based off of the Mutants & Masterminds second edition rules, tweaked a bit for the fantasy feel. I'm expecting a review copy any time now, and I intend on providing this blog's readers with one of the first looks at the game even before the Kickstarter is completed. Check out the Rogue Mage Kickstarter page to see the incentives available for those who donate.

Hellrazer: Living in Shadows (SAGA/BASH/ICONS)

Here ya go, folks...

Game stats for Rachel Strand, half-vampire hero of HELLRAZER: THE CHRONICLES OF RACHEL STRAND and Tonton Macoute, her first adversary.

Special thanks to Greg Kerner for putting these guys to character sheets. I compiled the PDFs, so if anything got jacked up, you can totally blame me.

Hellrazer BASH version

Hellrazer ICONS version

Hellrazer Marvel SAGA version

Tommy's Take on Smoke & Mirrors, Teen Force 5 and The Globalist

DEVILISH DUOS: SMOKE & MIRRORS

WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW: The first in a new set of ICONS products (Mutants & Masterminds version also available) by Vigilance Press, Smoke & Mirrors features a pair of supernatural villains for your ICONS game. Written by Jack Norris and featuring art by Jack Dawsey, and only 99 cents in PDF format, Smoke & Mirrors is only ten pages, (closer to six when you remove covers and OGL information), but that's still more than enough to detail a pair of characters. Smoke and Mirrors are lesbian lovers and vicious murderers, and each have unique twists: Smoke is a ghost who can touch things in the real world, while Mirrors is perpetually invisible, and can only be seen in mirrors. Smoke is a spirit of vengeance who has a hard time keeping her rage focused entirely on those who deserve it, while Mirrors is a psychotic killer who murders on behalf of The Unseen Gods.

WHAT WORKS: Each villain has some unique twists, and have backstories open enough that they could be used in a variety of settings. A few general plot seeds are included, in case you just really have no idea how to use them. Also, the PDF includes printable stand-ups of Smoke and Mirrors, if that's your preference.

WHAT DOESN'T WORK: One plot seed includes a sidebar for using the Oktobermen from Due Vigilance #1, a Mutants & Masterminds supplement that hasn't seen an ICONS release yet. Smoke's powers indicate that she can become "hard to see", but I'm not sure how that's reflected mechanically, unless it's meant to be part of the Blinding stunt off of her Mental Attack power.

CONCLUSION: Strong art by James Dawsey combined with interesting writing by Jack Norris and an "impulse purchase" price point make this a winner, unless you only like to use ICONS for "animated series" type games, then these two are going to be a tad too dark for that sort of thing. Impressive product.

WATCHGUARD ICONS: TEEN FORCE 5

WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW: Teen Force 5 is a PDF release by Vigilance Press and Xion Studios for ICONS set in the WatchGuard universe, featuring five heroes (Teen Force 5) and five villains (Dark Faction). Each character is given an extensive bio (Marvel Handbook style, almost to a "T"), stat block, character portrait and printable standee. The PDF is 26 pages (including cover, OGL information, standees and so on), and costs $10.99, which admittedly, makes it stand out like a sore thumb among the rest of the Vigilance catalogue. Teen Force 5 is Bluechip (who reminds me a bit of Triatholon from Avengers, except his enhanced Traits are boosted and not always "on"), Jupiter (the female "brick" of the team"), Soundwave (a DJ with sonic/auditory powers), Tempest (a moody weather controller) and Vignette (a Goth mind controller). Dark Faction consists of Braindamage (a Telekinetic with ADHD), Bulldog (the team's brick), HardKnox (son of a luchador, with Osmium Steel Knuckles bearing "Hard" and "Knox" on them), Vespa (scientist turned thief in powered armor) and Zero (who can "halt molecular motion", making him REALLY hard to hit if he's aware of the attack).

WHAT WORKS: Zero is one of the better power concepts I've seen in a while. HardKnox having his name printed backwards on his Knuckles threw me at first, until I realized this way they would leave a "Hard Knox" impression on anything he hit. Standees are always great. The artist on Jupiter does a nice job of drawing her as an attractive woman with muscles, and not just a regular comic book female who happens to be super strong.

WHAT DOESN'T WORK: The only background information for the setting is buried in the backstories of the characters, leaving references to things like Summit City and the MHx-trait chromosome pretty meaningless for someone picking this book up (and it is the only Watchguard release for ICONS thus far). Bluechip's bio is (mostly) written in past tense, for no reason that is ever explained. Superhero mind controllers are always really awkward to pull off. The price point versus the content just does not hold up well to other Vigilance releases.

CONCLUSION: At a lower price point, I would have a higher opinion of this product. None of the characters really stand out as anything I haven't seen before, but they also aren't noticeable rip-offs or homages of existing characters, either. Not usable as a starting point for the WatchGuard universe, but certainly mineable for your own games (I'd especially swipe Zero...fun challenge right there).

WARGAMES: THE GLOBALIST

WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW: Ah, the Wargames series. GI Joe meets superheroes in ICONS. The Globalist is a Cobra Commander looking chap who is head of an organization called UNITY, which basically seeks to become a big enough of a terrorist threat that the rest of the world joins forces against it, breaking down the barriers between nations and forging a one world government. Kinda like what Ozymandius wanted to do in Watchmen, except The Globalist is putting himself in the line of fire. The PDF is only $1 and includes The Globalist's backstory (with a fantastic twist), his stat block and stats for his Peacekeepers.

WHAT WORKS: The Globalist has a CRAZY secret in his backstory that is almost impossible to just guess, and makes him and his Peacekeepers MUCH more dangerous than you would think. He's also a villain of a radically different philosophy than General Venom, providing a "balanced outlook" to the crazies of the Wargames universe.

WHAT DOESN'T WORK: Oh, the backstory twist may be TOO much for some people. Not in an offensive way, just an oddball way. I, personally, think it's great. Yes, I'm reaching for "complaints" here.

CONCLUSION: I love the Wargames series by Vigilance Press, and this entry continues to impress me with a unique villain who pays homage (in appearance) to another classic Cobra Commander look (mirror face instead of hood), but with a unique backstory and approach all his own.

Tommy's Take on Museum Mayhem, Moreau-1 Files and Copperhead Guard

MUSEUM MAYHEM

WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW: This Action Scene for ICONS is a little pricier than the Vigilance Press Battlescenes that have been released in the past, but you're also looking at about an additional 10-12 pages this time. The premise is a hostage situation at a museum, in which a sorcerer and his minions are repelling the authorities, so your superheroes get called in to do the deed.

What ensues is a nice set-piece against a sorcerer who has a variety of minions from generic thugs to mystics to mummy wraiths. If the villain's plan succeeds, it provides (intentionally or not) a shot out to the X-Men villain the Living Monolith. The adventure has lots of sidebars and "What Ifs" to help you out in case the whole thing is going too smoothly or two simply.

Two pages of figure flat stand-ups are included, for those who like such things (and I do), as well as a new power: Summon (more commonly used by villains than heroes, but laid out here just the same).

WHAT WORKS: Some VERY nice art here, my favorite piece being an action scene on page 6. A good amount of flexibility is written into the adventure, to help the GM along. The adventure is set in the USHERverse, the "modern day" of Vigilance's WWII setting, but you could easily replace USHER with SHIELD or AEGIS or whoever, if you wanted to move it into a new setting.

WHAT DOESN'T WORK: And here we start getting into the problems of open content: Redundancy. Misfit Studios' DOOM filled in the same gap of a missing "Summon" type power, so now we have two third party versions of the power out there...and what happens when Adamant decides to do it themselves? My only other gripe is that I wish Vigilance had handled the new power the way Adamant handles new powers, by providing a "substitution suggestion" for the Summon power, for folks who prefer rolling up characters versus point buy (I hate ICONS point buy).

CONCLUSION: Not surprisingly, this is another great product by Vigilance, with sleek production values, lots of stat blocks you can use for your own stuff, printable stand-ups and more. I believe Vigilance will continue to be a growing force in supers gaming in the future.

MOREAU-1 FILES

WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW: The Moreau-1 Files is seemingly unconnected to the USHER setting, the Wargame setting or the world being laid out in the Field Guide to Superheroes, but also seems like it would be very simple to insert in a number of settings. This $1 supplement is basically two full character write-ups: The android Moreau-1, and his creation Erapato. Moreau-1, as his name implies, is all about genetic engineering, tinkering with people and animals. It is laid out in the form of stolen intelligence, setting up the menace of Moreau-1. Erapato is an interesting creation, a type of elephant man designed to be the leader of Moreau-1's new race, though he's not so much a fan of his creator's tactics. Three plot seeds are also provided for using the material within.

WHAT WORKS: Moreau-1 and Erapato both have interesting character hooks, with Moreau-1 serving both as a supervillain arms dealer and a mad scientist, and Erapato perhaps attempting betrayal of Moreau-1 could make for some fun gameplay. As noted, the characters could fit well into a variety of supers settings with little work.

WHAT DOESN'T WORK: Not much, especially for the price.

CONClUSION: Personally, I see a fair amount of potential use just out of this release (the first of three). There seemed to be a weird shift in fonts on the adventure seeds, but nothing to get too excited about. Thumbs up.

WARGAMES: COPPERHEAD GUARD

WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW: A while back I reviewed WARGAMES: HEROES AND VILLAINS OF THE COLD WAR, which introduced General Venom (who is really kinda cool)...this supplement is The Copperhead Guard, General Venom's elite force of female assassins. Incidentally, the sole character image works, because the women all wear uniforms and tend towards similar hair styles (reddish, what with the copperhead image and all).

WHAT WORKS: Well trained mook stats are always nice. And really, anything without an individual name shouldn't be much more than that.

WHAT DOESN'T WORK: Qualities and Challenges got swapped, unfortunately. This really just feels like an add-on to General Venom, as they are his bodyguards with nary a real personality to be found.

CONcLUSION: Not bad, but nothing particularly interesting, especially compared to, say, Moreau-1 Files, which is the same price but feels "heftier". It is worth noting that the Copperhead Guard aren't complete pushovers, especially when you factor in their Specialties.

Tommy's Take on Wellstone City Encounter Deck, ICONS Hero Pack 2 & 2.5

WELLSTONE CITY ENCOUNTERS DECK

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW: This 8 page PDF is a "random events" chart designed for Wellstone City that can be used with any deck of standard playing cards (which are standard stuff for Savage Worlds). It is notable in part because many of the "randon events" can have HUGE implications on the campaign, like your own faction sending a sniper after you, or your rivals trying to recruit you as a double agent. The events are divided by suit, with a specific event for each card, although Spades/Hearts and Diamonds/Clubs use largely the same events with major/minor tweaks to them.

WHAT WORKS: Based off of a playing card deck makes the PDF incredibly simple to use, especially for folks on a printer budget. So many of the events having the ability to turn things on their ear is very much a plus in my book.

WHAT DOESN'T WORK: Given how big some of the events can be, and how closely they are mirrored in the Minor/Major scale, drawing once per scene seems excessive, especially when you factor in the "Joker" rule that can put multiple cards in play. I did note a few typos that made it into the final product. The PDF price seems a little high, *but only in relation to other Wellstone City/Silver Gryphon Games products*.

CONCLUSION: Great concept, but then I love random roll/draw charts, and the scale at which this chart works is very nice, with some real game-changing options present, which can lead to a series of double-crosses and and the like. A great idea for a great setting, adding an element of chance that can affect the game in minor ways (finding $20 on the street) to major ways (having the FBI offer you the chance to take down the Russian Mafia from the inside, or the CIA turning on you mid-op with an assassination attempt, for their own reasons). Especially recommended if you feel like your Wellstone City game is lacking a certain spark right now.

ICONS HERO PACK 2

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW: With the success of the ICONS Hero Pack, it is no real surprise at a Hero Pack 2 came along. All of the art is still provided by Dan Houser, with characters created by ICONS fans, but this one only had 30 slots...which means the PDF is 65 pages, with every character getting a full character sheet and a background "page". Each character also receives a printable standee, so if you like your standees, there's a whole slew of them available for you here.

WHAT WORKS: One of the gripes I had about the first Hero Pack was that many of the characters weren't usable "out of the box", due to Qualities and Challenges not being specified, as well as the characters not having backgrounds...that is a non-issue here. Many of the characters were created by the same people, and have their backstories interwoven with one another. If I had to pick a favorite from this set, it would be Mook, a common thug with Duplication powers who hires himself out as an all-purpose Henchman force.

WHAT DOESN'T WORK: Some of the images, names and concepts seem to be an odd fit (Shadowform, the shapeshifter who turns into various tools and wears a green costume comes to mind).

CONCLUSION: From a design standpoint, this is an improvement over Hero Pack 1 in just about every way. The trimming down to 30 characters allows all of the characters room to "breathe", and allowing the artist's work to show off more than the otherwise crowded Hero Pack 1 did, and at $2 less than the first one.

ICONS HERO PACK 2.5

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW: For $5, you get six new characters as well as an adventure with map and standees. In addition, Galacticron (who was lurking in Hero Pack 1) is present here, along with a couple of other villainous types specific to the adventure. The adventure itself is a pretty basic affair, with Lady Omega ripped Galacticron across space and into the New Mexico desert, in hopes that he will destroy Earth. The kicker, of course, is that the PCs can't really harm him directly.

WHAT WORKS: I really dig a couple of the new villains, like the tech-stealing Ephemera and Sequence - a villainous powerhouse who has received a serious upgrade. I actually wrote a comic script with villains similar to the "space locusts" that are presented here (although mine were more like cockroaches), so that's rather cool.

WHAT DOESN'T WORK: The adventure could have used some editing, and while Lady Omega is TECHNICALLY a fully useable character...she comes across like the barest stereotype of a supervillain. Also, the "useable map" sure looks like it would be DRAMATICALLY off scale for the standees (and that's being generous with the definition of "scale"). I would have liked, say, a page of Lakmar Shock Trooper standees, myself...I mean, if you're going to use them, you're going to want a bunch of them.

CONCLUSION: A good product, with a great example of an adventure where the heroes HAVE to think outside the box, at least with the Galacticron problem. Despite the paper-thin characterization of Lady Omega, she does at least have a cool look and power set, so an enterprising GM can build from there.

Tommy's Take on Day of Deeds, The Big House and ICONS Hero Pack 1

DAY OF DEEDS

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW: Day of Deeds is an adventure module for Mutants & Masterminds 2nd Edition, released by Action Games. It is a very interesting concept, a whole lot of Bad Stuff happens all at once, and the PCs have to try to get to the bottom of it before the city falls completely into chaos. The set-up is right up my alley: For each of the 24 locations, you can randomly roll a victim, an antagonist and a Wildcard situation. The chaos isn't completely random, there is a connection to it all.

WHAT WORKS: Though stats for the antagonists are provided, anyone familiar with their favorite supers system can use Day of Deeds with something other than Mutants & Masterminds. Myself, I would probably feel comfortable enough using it with Marvel SAGA, Marvel FASERIP, BASH Ultimate Edition, Savage Worlds Supers or ICONS. Also, anyone that pays attention too my reviews knows that I love random roll charts.

WHAT DOESN'T WORK: The bookend segments are written pretty weakly. Basically, it's an excuse to get to random chaotic action. Really, even at the PDF price of $7.50, it's a tad overpriced for what amounts to a big random encounter generator.

CONCLUSION: I love the concept. However, neither the writing nor the production values fully justify the price tag. I can't comment on the stat blocks in the back as I'm not a Mutants & Masterminds guy, but I can say that if the concept appeals to you, most of the encounters are certainly easy enough to state up in your favorite supers system.

THE BIG HOUSE

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW: The Big House is a generic supplement by Scaldcrow Games that you can use as a superpowered prison for any supers RPG. It is 48 pages and stat-free, although it does have a system of icons to help you gauge how a given NPC should compare to your PCs experience-wise, as well as the level of threat they should pose. Similarly, important skills for each NPC are given on a 1-10 scale that you can use to judge where it would fall in your system of choice. A full map of the prison is included, with staff, security measures and so on, plus a handful of adventure seeds and a big worksheet of the cellblocks so you can track who is locked up where.

WHAT WORKS: I love the system for generically statting up NPCs and such, with a clearly defined scale that you can use to compare to your system of choice. If you're not a map-guy, and I'm not, ready made maps are even better.

WHAT DOESN'T WORK: There are a lot of "see page. XXX" placeholders in the version I reviewed, and if you're fairly new to your system of choice, this is going to of limited usefulness to you, as the appropriate scaling may not be readily apparent.

CONCLUSION: Perfect for a GM that knows their system well but doesn't want to put the time in to detail every last aspect of a prison for their setting. I can't call it a must-buy because a) most existing settings already include a super prison and b) it certainly isn't the most helpful for beginning GMs, but it is still a very well-done product.

ICONS HERO PACK 1

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW: 120 heroes and villains in one PDF, retailing for $9.95. Every character has game stats and art by Dan Houser. This was part of a promotion where people purchased slots for their characters, Mr. Houser drew them in the style associated with the ICONS rulebook and game stats were published for them. In addition, several of the ICONS characters from the corebook are also provided, such as The Whisper, The Hangman, All-Star and All American Girl. A whole slew of standees are also present, which should cover every character in the book as well as some blanks.

WHAT WORKS: If you're a fan of cardboard style standees in your game, having a bunch of new ones to play around with is always fun. Some of Mr. Houser's character designs are really great, providing some very interesting character images.

WHAT DOESN'T WORK: Backgrounds are not present for any of the characters. Vital statistics such as height and weight are likely inaccurate as well, as a particular height and weight shows up a LOT (5'6" and 140 lbs) even when it seemingly makes no sense at all in context of the picture . Many of the Aspects are not defined (with only Epithet, Catchphrase, Social, etc.) listed, making the lack of background for several of the characters even worse.

CONCLUSION: While not a bad idea, the execution is flawed. You don't really get 120 ready to use Heroes and Villains, instead getting a few mostly ready to use Heroes and Villains and a bunch of guys you still have to use a little creative work on to make table-ready. While the standees, character images and what you can glean from the concepts aren't bad at all, be warned that this is not an "out of the box" product.

Tommy's Take on Wargames: Heroes and Villains of the Cold War

I've mentioned a few times how much I like the Vigilance Press WWII stuff, even though I'm not a big WWII buff. Wargames is a bit of a different approach, supers set at the end of the cold war.

WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW: Wargames is normally listed as being being $6.95, but is currently free for the weekend. It comes in two files: A timeline and a profile on General Venom, who kinda resembles a star-spangled Cobra Commander or Baron Zemo.

The Timeline is 42 pages and has a note up front that it should be considered one canon with Phipps Studios Halt Evil Doer! While I've never read it, I recall hearing of it and it certainly sounded cool.

The 42 page timeline is as it sounds: A timeline of major events (as well as recommended reading and viewing for capturing the feel of the setting). While there are some big, full blown changes to the real world timeline, such as Nixon being a bonafide traitor to the country who commits suicide in order to avoid trial, others are more subtle (JFK was still killed, and Russian supers were suspected, but never proven). There is a bit more confusion as well, as some of the WWII team names also show up in this timeline, but are presumably meant to be different entities, since we've seen the USHER Dossiers, which lay out the future of the WWII timeline. The Wargames Timeline covers from 1937 through 1991, pretty much at the end of the Cold War.

The book is a mix of photos and art, the latter of which seems to be drawn from multiple sources and clashes in some places.

The General Venom PDF details the history of General Venom and his terrorist organization, the House of Serpents. General Venom is the son of a patriotic former hero who believes that America has become completely corrupt, and he's intending to shake the whole country to its foundation in order to "fix" it. Fair warning...a lot of the political themes present in this book echo some modern philosophies, taken to a terrorist extreme. If you have strong political beliefs, especially in the more hardcore libertarian/Tea Party bent, it is possible that you will be less than thrilled with the presentation of this entry. In addition to a full character sheet for Venom, the PDF has three plot hooks, as well as a generic stat block for his powered armor minions.

WHAT WORKS: General Venom's character design is very swell, and Vigilance Press again shows that ICONS can be used for more than just "animated series" type stuff that people seem to think it is limited to. The cover is also great, using trade dress that resembles a GI Joe action figure card. Venom, himself, is another fantastic example of how Vigilance pays homage to certain characters without ripping them off - While it is easy to see the image and the House of Serpents, combined with the GI Joe action figure call out, and think "Oh, it's Cobra Commander"...you would be dead wrong, as there are a number of elements included (even a bit of Iron Man), making Venom feel like a fleshed out character, rather than athinly veiled knock-off like you get in many supers products.

WHAT DOESN'T WORK: While I'm not terribly hardcore in my ideology, I've figured out that I'm a biiiit to the right of the Vigilance Press guys - which is fine, as I think folks should feel free to believe what they believe until they start hurting someone else - but there were points where I was a tad uncomfortable with the first villain presented for the Wargames setting being presented as a worst case scenario for a superpowered Tea Partier. There were also a few points, especially in the Venom PDF, where the layout seemed to have a bit of wasted space that a different font size or something might have fixed.

CONCLUSION: The setting certainly has promise, although it is definitely in less politically "safe" territory than World War II, so it is possible that a given segment of the gaming population may not be thrilled with the presentation. It is absolutely worth getting while it's free, and if the Cold War-esque setting appeals to you, then it's probably worth purchasing as well. With a little tweak, Venom and the House of Serpents could easily be dropped into a number of settings (despite my comments above, I would have zero problem using him in a game - and could have much fun using him alongside The Patriot from the Villainomicon, in the right game, of course). Thumbs up on the overall presentation, just be aware that Wargames is NOT just WWII, with Russians inserted in place of Nazis.

Tommy's Take on the USHER Dossiers

I'm gonna put my cards on the table here.

As far as I'm concerned, and no disrespect intended to anyone else, but Vigilance Press is the best thing to happen to the ICONS game, period. It's not just the volume of support, as impressive as that is, but it is the quality of support, and they are trying to raise the bar all of the time.

A while back we got Public Enemies, which was a sneak peek at the future of their World War II universe. Now, we have The USHER Dossiers, which should truly open it up for us. The PDF is 137 pages, in color, and is fully bookmarked. It is available for $7.95 from RPG, certainly a fair price for the size of the product, and is made with ICONS in mind.

INTRODUCTION

The author notes here that this is advancing the World War II timeline up to the present, and it is apparently being left open for individual games to develop, rather than pushing a continued plot.

TIMELINE

We do hit one snafu right off, as there is a placeholder for art that was never filled...and is still sitting there calling for a black and white picture of two heroes, photo style.

We do get a heads up that the timeline is not meant to be a major history lesson, but to focus on metahuman events specifically. We also learn that the metahuman population exploded pretty dramatically from World War II on.

ERAS IN METAHUMAN HISTORY

The first such major era is the Era of the God Kings, which ran from about 5,000 BC, up through 200 CE. Metahumans were scattered among human history and were largely tied in with what we consider myths now.

The Era of the Warrior Saints also tracked the decline of Pagan religions and the rise of Christianity and other monotheistic religions, with many of those metahumans being hailed as saints.

The Era of National Heroes began around 1700, and helped lead to the metahuman-powered World War II that Vigilance Press has released so many cool supplements for.

The major Metauman events start with the birth of a man in South Africa in the year 70,000 BC, who has multiple powers, including immortality, known as the Forever Man. He was THE Major superpowered being for thousands of years.

Around 5000 BC to 2300 BC, we get a number of nods to Greek and Norse myth, such as Hercules rising up and helping to kill Zeus, and the decline of the Aesir, culminating in war between Thor and Loki.

During the Roman Empire, the Forever Man resurfaces and plays an integral role in events, though even he is unable to prevent Rome's fall.

As we get into the 1100s, some nods to the World War II era heroes begin to surface, laying the groundwork for later legacies.

The timeline runs through the late 30s, where the rise of the Eugenics Brigade occurs, and the bulk of the World War II material is set. We begin to learn the aftermath of World War II in the USHERverse, as Old Glory and Captain Amazing are given full blown military posts running USHER in its secret base under Liberty Island.

1949 sees the rise of Aegis, a NATO sponsored superhuman group, led by Big Ben (who has been in legal struggles with England since the end of the war). 1954 gives us an army of mutated ants in Brazil, whose true source isn't uncovered until 1956, and 1957 sees some of the living legends of World War II tragically killed putting an end to it.

Captain Amazing (now known as Savant), creates what will ultimately be a thorn in USHER's side when he constructs Medusa, a dangerous artificial intelligence.

2001 sees a major turning point when Scion, a member of a metahuman family originally from Earth, returns from the stars and suckers the planet, taking over as Emperor of Earth...the metahumans rise up against him and ultimately prevail, and it is in the aftermath of this that we take over the Vigilance universe in our games.

One thing I want to make clear: I did not do the history section justice at all. Not even a little bit. There are some great narratives weaved in and out of the history, and a great job is done providing a universe that has "real time" instead of the Marvel and DC "sliding time", as well as a universe that's not necessarily dark and gritty, but does have consequences (like people dying and staying dead, rather than a big Revolving Door of Life and Death).

ORGANIZATIONS

These are a number of organizations prominent in the universe, and each are given a brief overview of history and purpose, as well as a sidebar detailing any specific requirements for joining, plus suitable Qualities and Challenges for members, and relevant timeline references for each group.

The Doleman Center for Advanced Studies is kinda like Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters...okay, not exactly, but that's what came to mind. It began as a safeguard against mutant oppression, and is a benevolent organization as written. It does currently serve to train mutants how to use their powers responsibly.

I really like The Institute, who are disabled veterans given a new lease on life through cybernetics, in order to wage a covert war against aliens. We get a "standard" operative here as well.

M.A.N is the Mutant Army of Nationalism...I don't know if I see how that exactly makes sense, but crazy extremists generally don't. These guys are the setting's Brotherhood of Evil Mutants/Mutant Liberation Front.

Medusa is the agency that has been built on the back the Medusa super computer created by The Savant. They are not EXACTLY bad guys...but they are not EXACTLY good guys, either. A generic operative stat block is provided here as well.

The Old Guard are a bunch of racist toe rags. Luckily, they tend to fight M.A.N. as much as, or more than, anything else...leading to bad dudes fighting each other. A White Knight of the Old Guard is provided.

The Omega Syndicate are an organization of assassins, all of whom wear the same "face". He can be everywhere, and if he dies...well...it never lasts, because there's someone else to wear the mask. A generic "Omega" is provided.

The Pawn Broker provides supervillains with henchmen (Pawns and Knights), as well as equipment and the like. A sample Pawn is provided, as is a Knight. I can't help but think the pictures here are mixed up, as the Knights are carrying guns (with no skill), and have a much higher Strength than the Pawn, who is built like a typical brick.

TEA is the Time Enforcement Agency, a group of Time Cops. USHER still treats them with suspicion, as they have yet to figure out their true agenda.

USHER is the main metahuman peacekeeping organization, and their write-up includes a sample agent.

Four subdivisions are provided as well: The Atlas Battalion, The Blue Knights, the Nighthawks and the Pegasus Squadron.

KNOWN ALTERNATE TIMELINES

Pretty standard trope for comics stuff. This is set up with an in character interview with Chronicle (of TEA).

Dark Future is a the world that spawned The Black Knight, the leader of The Old Guard. In addition to a breakdown of the timeline, we get a list of the notable refugees from Dark Future (and there are a few).

Hell is the name given to the reality that helped "make" Walter Frazier, a psychotic time traveler who first appeared in Public Enemies.

Post-Apocalyptia is a very bleak place with a bright  ray of hope...and some unusual healing properties, apparently.

Reverse World is a complete flip flop. Heroes are villains and vice versa.

The Thousand Year Reich is a reality in which a powerful Thule sorcerer tipped the scales for the Axis powers, winning them World War II, and putting them in control of pretty much everything.

METAHUMANS

Ironically, the first NPC listed doesn't appear to be a Metahuman. The Benefactor is a United States senator who offers heroes extra goodies and information, but hides his identity.

Black Knight comes from a future where USHER has gone bad...and he's here, having taken over the Old Guard and using them to continue his mutant hating agenda.

Chronicle is an immortal time traveler and the founder of TEA. In theory, he's a good guy...USHER suspects he has an agenda.

Exclusive is a superpowered journalist that no one really likes.

Forever Man has been around...pretty much forever.

Minute Man is a patriotic time manipulator.

Old Glory is a bonafide living legend, and the leader of USHER.

Professor and Moll are kinda creepy. A drug pusher and his superstrong (female) henchman...with a twist.

Savant would be Captain Amazing, aged and ravaged by cancer.

Last is Scion, the now imprisoned former Emperor of Earth.

THOUGHTS

I've made no bones about being a fan of the Vigilance Universe and the World War II releases. Some great work was done in creating a setting with actual time progression, and the idea of playing in World War II and then zooming ahead to the here and now to see how it all turned out is pretty cool.

As is common with the Vigilance stuff, there are a lot of people, places and things that are clearly inspired by existing comic source material, but nothing that feels overtly ripped off, and that's a good thing. For better or for worse, depending on your point of view, there is still room for expansion as some noted characters, like Crusher (leader of MAN) are never really expanded upon (and there is no mention of him no longer being in power).

The worst part, unfortunately, is the editing. I mentioned what appeared to be a picture swap between Knights and Pawns, and the missing picture at the beginning of the book...but typos abound. Not just inside the text, but in headers as well (such as the Post-Apocalyptia timeline). These issues are common enough and large enough that it drags the overall presentation of the book down, unfortunately. Extra time or an additional editor probably would have made a world of difference.

It is also worth noting that the book lacks both a table of contents and an index. Personally, I don't think that's a huge deal in a bookmarked PDF (though a couple of those are out of place), if this were to be released as a print product, that is basically unforgivable for a book that is larger than 100 pages, in my opinion.

Technical issues aside, it is still a very good product that manages to have its own feel, rather than just a Marvel/DC mash-up or the like. If you have liked the previous Vigilance Press releases, you will probably find a lot to like here.