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Mutants & Masterminds - [Review] Gadget Guide: Robots


jameson (ST)

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Gadget Guide: Robots
Vitals: Published By Green Ronin • 7(6) pages • $1.29 • full color PDF
"Kiss my shiny metal ass!"
The start of 2013 brings a new supplemental product line from Green Ronin to support Mutants and Masterminds Third Edition. After last year's Power Profiles series (to which the Gadget Guides will be compared thoroughly) there was a great deal of expectation for the announced Gadget Guides. Power Profiles was a generally strong series that at times touched on true "must buy" greatness; would the Gadget Guides be able to do the same?
What's in it?
The first Guide is seven pages in total; six of content and one for credits and licences. There's a half page splash of artwork, much like that in the Power Profiles, as well as an inset of the same on the front page. Layout, headers, borders, and the like are up to Green Ronin's usual high standard.
Section headings are Robot Design, Basic Capabilities, Abilities, Skills, Advantages, Powers, Complications, Robot Creation, and Sample Robots. These sections run from a single paragraph for some to a page or more for others, providing some level of insight into common purchases for robots as well as discussion on how specific aspects will impact a robot.
In this way this Guide reads somewhat like a sort of Power Profile, instead of building powers it builds robot minions. Unfortunately that is also its greatest weakness. In delving deeply into the fundamental tasks to needed to create a robot the Guide ends up reading like material that was left out of the Hero's Handbook (where we only got two pages) instead of being additional, and presumably advanced, material worth shelling out additional funds for.
The final page, which contains five sample robots ranging from PL 4 to PL 9 is useful, and I could have done with another page or two like it, providing ready made robots of various design.
Ultimately the quality of the writing itself isn't worthy of harsh condemnation, indeed it is generally good, but its value as a micropayment product two years out from the initial release of this edition of the game is unfortunately limited. This makes it difficult to justify as a product for most of the game's player-base.
Closing Thoughts
Aside from the page of sample 'bots there is limited use in this product for players and GMs who are familiar with the M&M system. Players who are not familiar with Robots, or those very new to the system mechanics might find some degree of useful information within, but there is little to love for what is likely to be the core audience. Unfortunately the content really feels like it should have been in the Hero's Handbook when the new edition was launched two years ago, which only serves to lower its perceived quality.
Rating: 40% - Unfortunately much of the product feels like material that should have been in the Hero's Handbook, and the section of pre-made/read-to-use Robots is too short.
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Okay here are some questions then.

1: Does it address how when someone builds a giant, pilotable robot, that if the growth levels are where they should be, that the strength bonus violates the PL cap and thus can't be purchased? I've tried to build a 120 foot giant robot that is piloted with the same method a powersuit would be and I was smashing into the PL cap due to Growth's boosting of strength.

2: Are all the robots listed in the guide just minions with an AI or something similar, thus being just walking automatons?

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