Jump to content

Mutants & Masterminds: Future Imperfect - Our World


z-May Allman

Recommended Posts

Hi, guys. I'm starting this thread to ask us to give Joani a bit of help. The idea is that creating the society and culture of a world like FI takes effort. When you have mutants being public for the last sixty years, things are fundamentally changed, especially socially. I'd like this to be a collaborative effort to build Our World.

So what kind of changes do we see? The people that modify their body (such as giving themselves 'horns') - do they still do this? Or with the anti-mutant sentiment are alterations such as this and colored hair and contacts more a statement of support for mutants? What about movies? Music? What industries have sprung up, catering to mutants or to anti-mutant movements? Terrorist groups?

I think we could have a lot of fun working all of this out, with Joani getting to override whatever isn't going to work. If you're interested, please start posting ideas below.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'll take a first stab.

In the wake of mutants stepping forth into the world and eventually taking up what can be best described as superheroic activities DC and Marvel comics shift away from telling fictional tales of the astounding to telling true tales of the supers, in effect becoming real time biographers of the modern day heroes.

By the late 70's the two companies have expanded into multimedia creating biographical films, television series, and publishing books in both written and graphic format. By the turn of the century the two companies have merged and are attempting to stay both relevant and solvent in the wake of the Mutant plague and the change in sentiment toward the supers. DCM Publishing is attempting to re-brand themselves as a publisher of non-mutant fiction and biographies, to little success.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

What about unions and Labor Laws? What about the indestructible man who tries to join the stuntman's guild, or the healer who tries to get his Dr.'s license, or the silver-tounged mutant who goes into sales? Would the first one be welcomed for his abilities or shunned because others fear he'll take all the best work? Would the second have to pass FDA tests as well as all his exams before he could use his ability on anybody (would they still have to sign a waiver before he did, what if they were on the verge of death and there wasn't time to get or no one knew who to go to to get permission?)? Would the last even be able to get a job, and could the people he sold to come back and sue or stop paying because they say he used his abilities on them?

What about the guy who can manipulate fire? Arson, firefighter, or Carney? Would he always be the prime suspect for the first, would he be accepted, lauded or despised at the last two?

Carnivals/Sideshows are a dying breed now, but what about with supers? If someone could literally create fire out of nothing, would traditional fire eaters still have a place? If someone could teleport objects, what place chance would a slight of hand magician have?

The Guiness Book of World Records would definitely have some issues to face (human vs. mutant record, are mutants just banned, or does it not matter?).

What about workman's comp? Insurance? Liability? Do hyperspeed people need 'body' insurance, in case they get in a wreck with a car? What if they run over somebody? What if they break windows running down the street at supersonic speeds? Do flying people need ATC clearance to fly? Do they get in trouble with the FAA if they fly too high? What happens if they get drunk and fly into a jetliner and cause it to crash? What if some or all of the passengers die? How would such laws be enforced? What would the penalties be, and how would they be enforced?

Not a whole lot of answers, I know, but I could honestly see all of these going two or more directions. Thoughts?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I think in those cases, you're looking at both outcomes: positive and negative for the mutant in question. I think that a lot of press and public sentiment in the Golden age would have been positive. Following the fall of the mutants in the late 90's, early 2000's, all of that would have been flipped on its head.

That's a pretty short answer, but to break down into specifics would take time and I'll revisit with some ideas later.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

My sense is that the Popular Culture of the 'golden age' would have been pro-mutant, seeing the possibilities more than perils. That doesn't mean that it was all rosy though. Organized labor would be leery of supermen, SG is right. The same from professional athletics.

I think there'd be a lot of talk about human potential, and what the implications of mutant humans on evolutionary theory are and so on. The march of science. Progress!

That would mask fringe groups within the population that have their own, less publicized reaction to the mutant phenomenon. Doomsayers on the religious right equating it to witchcraft and citing it as evidence of the coming Apocalypse. Doomsayers among biologists, suggesting that 'normal' humankind is now obsolete, and will begin phasing out. Doomsayer economists predicting that the impact of superhuman labor will play havoc with the very fundamental foundations of economy, leading to chaos and exploitation...either of them by us, or of us by them.

So what you have is a powder keg. Social tension and pressure building, but underneath, where it's not easily visible. The popular culture, reinforced by worshipful TV, movies and so on, steamrollers all that other stuff and keeps people from reacting to it.

Then the Virus shows up, and the powder keg explodes. All these people who've been smiling on the outside but quietly grinding their teeth suddenly have a solid, concrete REASON to feel the way they've always felt. And in a heartbeat, the global narrative changes. The evolutionary future of mankind becomes a subrace of misfits, an evolutionary cul-de-sac. A hiccup in the natural order. People who used to look up to mutants and worship them now pity them. Powers or no, they are all doomed to sicken and die.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I see it as a world of pain and misery for mutantkind. Those who used to own the world (so to speak), the leaders and role models, are now the followers and the pitied.

What few mutants are left (the Class I, II, and III) are treated like second class citizens, barely able to find employment as their lower tiered powers really aren't as useful in day to day society as they used to be and the scare and bad press of mutantkind has spread everywhere. Once they're registered, that's it... everyone knows they're a freak. Those that don't register, are eventually discovered and the 'perfect' life they've been living suddenly crumbles around them or they're forced underground (like a few of us PCs). Those who are smart 'sell' themselves to those with money and power, ending up in careers as thugs, mercenaries, military lap dogs, corporate hackers, etc... the sort of jobs that pay well, but under the table. In return the employer protects their investment.

The homeless rate among the mutant population must be sky high. Most are self sufficient thanks to their abilities, but among the nameless and invisible of society they find open arms. There the people don't judge them or treat them any different. Would you shun a guy who could easily steal you food for your family's empty bellies?

I see a very bleak and dark world filled with misery, pain and ruin. I see mutants hating their lives but not being brave enough to accept dying as the alternative since that means proving the virus has won. They hate life, they hate death, and everything in between just isn't worth it anymore.

Welcome to an imperfect future.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

AFA current, when Joani and I were discussing things, he kept making references to the Jewish Internment camps of WWII but without the killing as an example of what the MICs were. Mutants go there and literally begin to rot to death.

As for life on the outside, I imagine it as something similar to what the life must have been like for what few free blacks there were in the South when slavery was still popular and a booming business. You are literally a second class citizen that may have some few rights on paper, but bigotry and racism more or less take those away. Not to mention, all it would take is walking into one dark alley for you to be nabbed by someone looking for a buck to sell you to the highest bidder.

I could easily see it being the same for any mutant that has any physical 'giveaway' and tries to go about in public.

In regards to regulations and such of the golden/silver age... With Mutants accounting for 1:1000 people, I imagine by and large most of those are Class I and II, so therefore do not pose the risks to the general economy and/or safety of most people.

Knowing governments, they will all have their own take, but I imagine they would deal with it as it happens instead of proactively as governments react to the whim of the public/media, and rarely with any forethought.

~~~

There is tons of airspace out there, unless they start heading for jetliner cruising altitudes of 30-50k feet, it would be nigh impossible to hit one. If he got drunk, he would also have to be powerful/resilient enough to do damage to the body of the plane/engine. I just can't see this plausibly happening outside of maybe once.

If a speedster hits a car (and didn't die), they would have to deal with the consequences, just as they were in a car. I could see states/countries perhaps having legislation stating that they carry liability insurance, similar to contractors in case of property damage. I could see insurance for mutants becoming a very large business, not just speedsters.

I see the mutants of the time, being somewhat self governing. Those that had it good would not want to see that life ended and would look to avoid any bad press they could up to and including 'taking care' of any would be criminals or accident prone mutants

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Diplomatic relations will also be impacted, possibly greatly. What better intelligence/espionage asset than a mutant would can walk through walls, turn invisible, change shape into another person, or hack a computer with their mind?

Stealing a page from Freedom City (the M&M core setting) gives a couple of possible covert organizations for Intelligence:

A.E.G.I.S. - American Elite Government Intelligence Section

AEGIS is basically the CIA with mutants, called Elites, as their operatives. They are the ones who go out there and protect US Interests by hook, crook, or plasma bolt. Officially they don't exist, instead being a higher than top secret Section of the CIA. Unofficially these are the agents who are a cut above, not just by virtue of mutant powers but also by way of training and experience. They do what cannot otherwise be done, wetwork included.

U.N.I.S.O.N. - United NATO International Superhuman Oversight Network

UNISON is sort of the flipside of the coin. A joint venture started by the NATO nations and expanded into other like minded countries. UNISON is tasked with watching and dealing with Mutant criminals and terrorists. Adyah il-Fadul, the Islamic mutant who's powers of self detonation and reconstitution allowed him to carry out a one man string of "suicide" bomber attacks in Israel was finally brought to justice by UNISON. Not that they were given the credit in the news. Officially they don't exist, and Interpol was responsible for his capture.

Similar organizations must exist within any major (and many minor) country on the planet, even now in the wake of the "V" mutant covert ops are simply too capable and valuable to give up.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 2 weeks later...

Jaunt and Sam are pretty much on spot with their posts about how the world feels like. Generally the Mutant Community is degrading from day to day as more and more succumb to the V and all attempts to help so far fail. Conspiracy theorists speak about a large scale plan to destroy all Mutants, Religious groups speak about Armageddon or Gods righteous justice and the Government triest to find a scapegoat or excuses for something no one can explain.

As far as Mutant Laws is concerned the general strategy was to not create specific Mutant Laws unless necessary. Mutants have been treated like normal humans, only their qualification because of their powers gave them better jobs etc. Insurance companies probably charged less for Mutants known to be near invulnerable or able to heal fast.

Most superhero teams were either sponsored by a City or State, or a country so most of the problems arising from fighting in a civilised area was generally covered (unless some really really out of the world scaled damage was done). During the golden and silver ages Mutants really flourished and were on top of the world.

Now all this is no more and a huge vacuum is left behind. It’s like a cardhouse that is now slowly falling apart, the supporting structures unable to keep up the facade it once had.

The last months have been especially tough. Political decisions were made (the Registration act and building of the MICs) and the logistical mess following those decisions is what everyone has to deal with nowadays. Registration can doom you or save you in some cases, only 4 out of 10 Mutants who registered are not assigned to a MIC (most lost their jobs because of this). The number of „public“ Mutants are decreasing and those who are still around are usually considered to live in a MIC.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The situation is worldwide the same with some exceptions which are even more extreme.

Countries known for being racists are even more racisist towards mutants.

Germany in particular (this is made up, btw and totally part of my setting.) for example anti-Mutant sentiment has reached a new high. The MICs build in Germany are high-security prisons. Mutants are almost treated like the Jews back then (Sam hinted at that, I talked to him about it in chat).

The righwing political party has gained a huge surge of votes and thus such drastic political changes were possible. Being a Mutant in Germany is like a life-sentence these days unless you serve some kind of purpose for the Government or Military.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

As a note: based on the fic The Algiers Job, Algeria has Anti-Mutant SWAT Units, teams trained and armed to deal with Mutants directly. Further, Algeria is part of a the Tamazgha Union, an unofficial confederation of Berber countries in North Africa. The TU includes Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Libya, Mauritania, and the disputed territory of Western Sahara. With the exception of Western Sahara*, the members of TU will render aid to one another in a mutant-related crisis. Mutants are to be captured and removed to detention centers where they are sedated and eventually executed - after a kangaroo court appearance. If a mutant cannot be captured safely, they are to be killed, and since most mutants know that capture is a death sentence anyway, they are more often killed resisting arrest.

*Western Sahara is a non-self-governing territory; the Kingdom of Morocco and the Sahrawi national liberation movement Polisario Front, through the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR) (exiled government in Tindouf, Algeria), dispute control of the territory. Algerian AMSU controls the mutants in SADR's parts of Western Sahara, while Morocco manages the 'mutant threat' in their territories.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Pop culture twist...

In this world Star Trek was produced by PBS with enough cheap and cheesy special effects that the series went on for year, and years, often changing out actors or entire casts. It is known for its quality stories and exceptionally bad effects even today when it has returned from some fifteen years off the air in a new revamped and sexy highly polished format.

Meanwhile the BBC produced Doctor Who was a huge hit that was canceled quickly only to return in film and then additional series over the years. It recently saw a new film that effectively rebooted the series in its original form while still maintaining a respectful acknowledgment of the previous incarnations.

In case you didn't catch what I did there I switched Who and Trek in terms of their popularity and cultural impact.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 2 weeks later...

Before the spread of the Virus, militaries around the world were eager to have mutants in their ranks. Some were forced into service; others were offered signing bonuses, particularly those with key strategic skills.

In the US, it was more of the latter. Units of specialists were manned by a mix of mutant and human personal; for example, the Navy's S&R teams always had at least one mutant who could not drown.

As an example, Ronnie served on one of the Marine's demolition teams. She had a talent for blowing things up, but more than that, her ability to survive and regenerate from failed attempts to disarm bombs made her a valued member of her unit.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 2 months later...

The Greatest Heroes of the Golden Age and Silver Age

The following names should be known by virtually everyone who was alive when the Mutant Virus changed the face of the world (that was on 01-01-2001 btw, exactly when the new Millenium started). These were all public figures and

Valiant – The Leader of the former Justice Society and husband of Will-o-Wisp. He died just a few days after the Virus hit as Mutants had gone crazy in San Francisco. He managed to support the almost collapsing Golden Gate Bridge and prevented thousand of deaths at the price of his own. The Virus brutally killed him shortly after that amazing feat of strength.

Click to reveal..
Valiant is the closest thing to a Superman equivalent of this game. He’s one of the mightiest Mutants who ever existed and died shortly after the first surge of the Mutant Virus.

Will-o-Wisp – Second in Comman of the former Justice Society and wife of Valiant. Will-o-Wisp survived for almost another year after the Breakout and managed to keep the Justice Society from totally falling apart. Still it was a losing fight and she succumbed to a simple fever in the end, dying relatively peacefully in her bed (but unfitting for such a great heroine).

Click to reveal..
Will-o-Wisp was very popular and considered one of the most beautiful women on the planet. Her powers were similar to Wasp’s and she was the spokesperson for the Justice Society giving most of the interviews or statements.

Isaac Carter – A lone wolf and Vigilante playing by his own rules. He inspired many young mutants to follow in his footsteps but no one ever managed to get as popular or iconic as he did. Carter died when he was rescuing people out of a burning building which was set aflame by a dying Mutant who suffered terminally from the Virus.

Carter’s death wasn’t mourned officially but many Mutants sympathized with him and his methods (although he often was considered a criminal by the authorities).

Click to reveal..
Carter is a Deadpool/Wolverine mix in terms of abilities and powers. He followed his own set of rules and didn’t give a shit about his public image or laws. Fortunately for many he was a fighter for the ´good´ although he often used methods that were illegal to get problems solved.

ooc: More names will be added to the list. Feel free to PM me Names and concepts just to add more flavour and color to the world. Thanks

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

×
×
  • Create New...