Aberrant RPG - Save The Cheerleeder, Save The World

[Jackson Creed]

Okay, I've been watching Heroes on YouTube lately and it is a brilliant show! It is one of the most intelligent takes on and superhero genre I've seen in a long time. It is reminiscent of Mutant X in some ways (like each character having a single power), but the metaplot, character interaction and story are just awesome. You can certainly tell the series creators have been watching Lost and 24!

Anyway, I can't help keep trying to quantify the character's powers in some sort of Aberrant way. It certainly would make a very good, low powered, gritty Aberrant campaign.

Anyone else seen the show?

JC

[Alex Green]

Heard lots about it. The Cheerleader's theme AFAICT isn't regeneration, it's Immortality. This then explains her importance. If that power thief gets her then he basically becomes unstoppable and proceeds to stomp Godzilla like over the world.

And I really don't understand why he's still alive. Someone that dangerous simply gets a bullet between the eyes if he gets captured. In RL, the public would have a very low tollerance for super villians of that stripe.

[Sprocket]

Haven't been watching much TV these past 8 months or so, but judging from your rave reviews, I may actually wind up buying the first season of this when it comes out on DVD.

About the only reasons I can think of for the "supervillain's" survival are these:

1- nobody in authority takes the news about people with superpowers seriously,

>or<

2- somebody in authority does take this news very seriously, & hopes to employ the supervillain as a controllable (the authority is quite overconfident/arrogant) living WMD. Whether the supervillain actually is controllable is an open question.

I'm not certain how well Reason #1 would stand up (if it would at all), as I haven't been giving the show any attention. Reason #2 sounds plausible, though.

Of course, it could just be the dreaded Plot Writers at work again, but nobody in that show is paranoid enough to believe that, right? ::laugh ::devil

[phoenix]

Watched the first episode this evening. Not bad. ::thumbup1

[Alex Green]

2- somebody in authority does take this news very seriously, & hopes to employ the supervillain as a controllable (the authority is quite overconfident/arrogant) living WMD. Whether the supervillain actually is controllable is an open question.

It's reasonable to try to control crazy villians (Nuke is a good example, Sabertooth is a bad one), it's reasonable to try to control powerful villians (that kid from Jumper would be a good example). Powerful AND Crazy is a different issue, and this one probably isn't possible to control, even in theory, simply because of his power theme.

On the other hand I'm dealing with second or third hand information... and also granted, I'm not sure if any of them *truely* could be called powerful by comic book standards.

[archer]

To be fair, people in the show have tried more than once to riddle the villain with bullets, but it never works out.

Once because they had no idea what they were dealing with, and the second attempt was because the folks who captured him underestimated how powerful he actually was.

[Alex Green]

Sure... but my understanding is that right now the guy's unconscious.

I'm reminded of the book "The Night of Madness" when a fairly wide selection of people all became "wizards" (i.e. gained TK). One of them was a nut who decided to use his powers to gain revenge on *everyone* who'd ever offended him.

After he'd been captured the guy who'd captured him remarked that they were really going to have to see whether or not "X" (i.e. the method he'd used to capture him) took away someone's powers forever. Then he continued, to say that of course they'd have to run this test on someone else because he was simply to dangerous; then he killed him.

Personally I felt that the speach was uncalled for. Evil Overlord rules say "no gloating".

[Jackson Creed]

Warning: CONTAINS MINOR PLOT SPOILERS

Below is a rough precis of the mai characters and a very loose adaptation of their abilities into the Aberrant system.

Sylar: He's the villain of the piece as of episode 11. He has the ability to steal the powers of other "heroes" by slicing off the top of their head and absorbing their DNA direct from the victim's brain. This unfortunately kills the victim (unsurprisingly). He's bullet proof because of his telekinetic ability to catch/stop bullets, rather than any particular level of super toughness. Almost certainly has other powers (he has killed at least 4-6 heroes) but has yet to exhibit other powers on the show. His control over his telekinesis is frightening however...

Loose stats: Quantum 5; Taint 6; Quantum Vampire 5 (Extra: Permanently gains power or Mega-Attribute; Weakness: Must remove the victim's M-R Node and absorb it's DNA into himself (killing the victim)); Telekinesis 5 (Multiple techniques). Aberrations (mental) aplenty, including Delusions, Sociopathy, and Megalomania.

Claire Bennet: She's the cheerleader. Her ability is to heal almost any injury immediately, effectively making her immortal. She has so far been "killed" by the tree brach through the head, but during her autopsy, the branch was removed and she healed and re-awakened (a la Highlander). However, it was made very clear that she would have been killed by Sylar. Why? Well, the series has been establishing that the powers all come from the brain (sound familiar?). Sylar's Telekinesis would be able to slice and remove her brain faster than she would heal. The result? Sylar gains the super regeneration ability and becomes even more unstoppable.

Loose stats: Quantum 3; Body Modification (4 Extra Incapacitated); Healing 5 (Extra: Reflexive; Weakness: Self Only)

Peter Petrelli: Has the ability to mimic the powers of other heroes. Only works when they are nearby but does not require touch. Unknown at present if he can gain multiple powers from several nearby heroes.

Loose stats: Quantum 3; Quantum Imprint 4 (Range).

Nathan Petrelli: Has the power to fly.

Loose stats: Quantum 3; Hypermovement 2 (Flight); Flight 4.

Hiro Nakamura: Has the ability to bend time and space. He has been shown to teleport across the world and to travel backwards and forwards through time. Potentially the most powerful of the all the heroes; if Sylar got his powers, the world is ****ed! However, he is an uber geek.... although he has the potential to be a great hero in the future...

Loose stats: Quantum 5; Taint 1; Time Travel 2 (Asynchronous Location), Temporal Manipulation 4 (Multiple techniques, especially Stop Time). (Yes, I know TT is Q8 min, but in the Heroes universe it is both limited and unpredictable and works along the lines of fate/destiny; so Q5 min is okay for this...)

DL Hawkins: A petty thief, set up for a crime he didn't actually commit (akoy, he was going to commit it, but someone set him up before he could pull off the caper!). He has the ability to phase through solid matter.

Loose Stats: Quantum 4; Density Control (Lower) 5.

Nikki Hawkins: Doesn't have any powers normally but when Jessica, her villainous alter ego takes control, she has vast strenght and no morals.

Loose stats: Mega-Strength 4 (Crush); Flaws: (Multiple personalities/only Jessica has Mega-Strength).

Isaac: Painter and comic book artist witht he ability to paint the future. Can normally only do so while in a drug induced trance. However, gradually learning to control his ability while sober and clean.

Loose stats: Quantum 4; Taint 4; Pretercognition 4 (Weakness: Works only through his art and only while high (this weakness gradually becoming overcome)); Aberrations: Addiction (Heroin).

JC

P.S.

On the other hand I'm dealing with second or third hand information... and also granted, I'm not sure if any of them *truely* could be called powerful by comic book standards.

Sylar is downright scary. He is truly an exceptionally powerful and dangerous villain because he has no mercy, and uses his powers in truly horrific ways.

Hiro is arguably the most powerful hero because of his powers scope for expansion and mastery... especially after having seen Future-Hiro...

[BlueNinja]

Nikki Hawkins: Doesn't have any powers normally but when Jessica, her villainous alter ego takes control, she has vast strenght and no morals.

Loose stats: Mega-Strength 4 (Crush); Flaws: (Multiple personalities/only Jessica has Mega-Strength).

I would say that rather she's got the Jekhell/Hyde Aberration, that works when she looks in a reflective surface.

[Alex Green]

RE: Claire Bennet:

Giving her regen and a lower level of healing would (I think) work a bit better with Healing "once per scene" limit.

RE: Hiro Nakamura

Rather than full Temporal Travel, it might be better (although a fudge) to just give him Precognition. Granted, this means that he spends entire shows in one of his visions, and it's not a great representation since he can walk around and interact with people, but it's close.

So that's Temporal Manip, Teleport, & Precognition.

RE: Nikki Hawkins

Mega-Str 4 is a lot (keep in mind my information isn't first hand). Do we see her walk through walls, throw tanks around, etc? M-Str 2 or 3 might be better. And "Hyde Syndrom" works pretty well with her.

RE: Sylar being scary.

Yep. Powerful, dangerous, crazy, and has the potential for unlimited power, and that's what he's working towards.

[Blue Thunder]

I would give the cheerleader Mega-Stamina plus Regeneration as well as Healing. I would also give her Hardbody to represent how she can survive anything, even something with Aggravated damage. Extra Health Levels are a good choice. Plus maybe a few dots in Armor to represent how her body heals injuries almost as soon as they affect her? Then maybe the Immortality enhancement from the Aberrant Compendium.

Uh, also, isn't there another character you're forgetting? I seem to remember the law enforcement guy having telepathy powers.

[Jackson Creed]

Ah... yes.

Matt Parkman: Has the ability to read thoughts.

Loose stats: Quantum 2; Telepathy 3 (Extra: Surreptitious).

The Haitian: Mysterious and textbook enigmatic. He can block powers, at least mental powers, but whether he can block all powers is not yet known (he didn't stop Nathan Petrelli's ability to fly).

Loose stats: Quantum 4; Disrupt 4; Telepathy 4 (Weakness: Can erase memories only)

Eden McCain: Has the ability make people do whatever she wants them to do.

Loose stats: Quantum 3; Domination 4.

JC

[BlueNinja]

I'd say that Parkman's Telepathy is modified, so that it activates on its own (2-3 point weakness) but he can also read multiple people at once (2-3 points to Area, since he never seems to read an area larger than a room).

Eve also modifies memories, and we don't know that the Haitian can't do more than modify the memories of people, so I'd give him full telepathy and Eve the scaled down erasing version, or perhaps Hypnosis to cover "telling them to forget".

[tooho]

For anyone still catching up on it, I'd definitely watch next week's rerun. It will catch you up on what has happened six months prior to this story arc's ending. Then the new episodes start up Jan 22.

[Ammonites]

Hey,time to bump.

I'd like to say Peter, as of recent events, is arguably one of the most powerful. He displayed the ability to use powers that he had previously mimic'd, without the people possesing the powers being nearby.

[BlueNinja]

I think that in Aberrant terms, as Nullifier hinted towards in another thread, Peter probably has Node Spark at a low level, that only works to grant him powers he's "borrowed" before.

In practical terms, though, I think this means he could copy anything Sylar used around him - TK, freezing, verbal trickery, etc.

Alternately, he's buying the powers that he's mimicked, and they are just as uncontrollable as his Q-Imprint that he's using to steal powers.

[Alex Green]

Ya, a solid theme helps a lot there.

Of course that raises another possibility, maybe they all can do anything.

[BlueNinja]

Ya, a solid theme helps a lot there.

Of course that raises another possibility, maybe they all can do anything.

From the way the show has gone so far, I would doubt it. Their powers don't seem to be as terribly versatile compared to virtually any nova PC or NPC.

[Alex Green]

From the way the show has gone so far, I would doubt it. Their powers don't seem to be as terribly versatile compared to virtually any nova PC or NPC.

The typical 10 point PC might not seem all that versatile either. ::sly

[AnonCastillo]

Some of them are pretty powerful. Claire's regeneration so far seems better than even Wolverine's at least in terms of how quickly she heals (I'm not sure Wolverine could have regenerated massive radiation damage in a minute or so as we saw Claire do this week). Sylar and Peter are both steadily becoming insanely powerful, Sylar right now is probably well past a 30-point starting character (he's recently picked up a dot or two of mega-perception and something akin to a weaker molecular manipulation or limited disintegration, we haven't seen enough of it to know) and Peter will be once he's learned to control his power (as he at least has access to flight, regeneration/healing, temporal manipulation, telekinesis, pretercognition, and invisibility).

Anyway, if you haven't been watching the show, you can find many of the episodes on their website. The rest shouldn't be too hard to find on youtube, google video, bit torrent, or similar. It's been a very interesting show so far, although personally I don't care much for the nikki/jessica storyline and unless her and her family somehow tie into the main storyline better they'll continue to drag the series down a bit. Thankfully, the last couple episodes have had little to do with her, but unfortunately that probably means that the next couple episodes will have more of her.

[NFVD]

It's been a very interesting show so far, although personally I don't care much for the nikki/jessica storyline and unless her and her family somehow tie into the main storyline better they'll continue to drag the series down a bit. Thankfully, the last couple episodes have had little to do with her, but unfortunately that probably means that the next couple episodes will have more of her.

There are several storylines running at the same time and they show us different "revelations" about the setting as the series goes on. I have a feeling the nikki/jessica bit will eventualy lead us to meet the mysterious "Mr Linderman", jessica is now working for him and in 1st-basis contact with the man.

I like nikki/jessica because of the tragic nature of the character. But yeah, I do feel they could already have connected her storyline to those of other characters. So far she and her family have only crossed paths and both parties remain unaware of each other's true nature.

[AnonCastillo]

There are several storylines running at the same time and they show us different "revelations" about the setting as the series goes on. I have a feeling the nikki/jessica bit will eventualy lead us to meet the mysterious "Mr Linderman", jessica is now working for him and in 1st-basis contact with the man.

I like nikki/jessica because of the tragic nature of the character. But yeah, I do feel they could already have connected her storyline to those of other characters. So far she and her family have only crossed paths and both parties remain unaware of each other's true nature.

Yeah, so far she's crossed paths with Nathan, although neither discovered the others' powers, and Parkman, though they didn't exactly become best friends She kind of briefly interacted with Hiro and Ando, although again neither learned of the others' powers. As far as I can remember, neither her husband nor Micah have taken part in any other storyline. The central characters have been Hiro, Claire, Peter, Sylar, and Mr. Bennett, so the fact that none of the three of them have interacted with any of those characters other than Hiro, and then only briefly, leaves them way out in left field where they contribute very little to the storyline. Considering that Sylar, Mohinder, and Mr. Bennet's organization are tracking down powered people, and there's a family where both parents have powers, you would think they'd have interacted with someone else by now.

I agree that she'll probably be central to any revelations about Linderman (we've gotten some nice episodes revealing Sylar and Mr. Bennett's organization, hopefully it won't be too long before we get a similar episode based around Linderman), and maybe then she'll get more substantial interaction with Hiro and/or Nathan.

[NFVD]

Almost forgot...

While jessica appears to be in full control at this moment in the series, there was an interesting detail when nikki was still in jail speaking with her husband and son through a glass pane.

Apparently, when the guard tried to bash her with his stick she grabbed it and broke it in half. This would indicate that the nikki personality is also able to use her super-strenght because at no point in that scene was there any indication of jessica taking over.

It would also be nice if they explained exactly "what" jessica is. Considering she is dead, unless jessica is just a "normal" split personality nikki developed due to trauma in the past then I don't see how we can account for it without a supernatural (i.e. "I'm possessed by by dead sister's ghost") explanation.

[Alex Green]

It would also be nice if they explained exactly "what" jessica is. Considering she is dead, unless jessica is just a "normal" split personality nikki developed due to trauma in the past then I don't see how we can account for it without a supernatural (i.e. "I'm possessed by by dead sister's ghost") explanation.

It doesn't have to be supernatural. With taint and dorm rules you can very easily get "different brain chemistries". You can even get that with "every time she uses her powers her brain chem changes".

[Blue Thunder]

It could be a form of Domination, with the Parasitic extra. Her sister's body died, and now she's stuck there.

[tooho]

With this last episode they showed that Jessica's tattoo is related to the Haitian so there is part of the connection and both she and Nathan have connections to Linderman. With his unveiling this next episode I think he's going to be the head honcho behind Mr. Bennet.

[Ammonites]

With this last episode they showed that Jessica's tattoo is related to the Haitian so there is part of the connection and both she and Nathan have connections to Linderman. With his unveiling this next episode I think he's going to be the head honcho behind Mr. Bennet.

Looked to me that Hiro's dad was far up the chain in that organization as well.

[tooho]

Totally. As soon as they showed Linderman, I thought, "Perfect casting."

[AnonCastillo]

My roommate and I were actually talking about how perfect he'd be for that role just a few days before the episode, after watching tank girl (he's such a good villain > ). Then we saw the episode and we thought it was awesome! The makers of Heroes listened to us.

[Heru]

I never realized how interesting and cool this show was until just recently (actually, just today). I have begun watching the episodes on NBC.com and I just gotta say wow.