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I can sum up why this is the best in fast playing super hero table-top gaming.
Any Hero, Any Power, Any Scenario.
Structured enough to provide excellent relative differences in powers, enough depth to include a full campaign system (with RPG elements and character progression if you wish to use them) and flexible enough to emulate virtually anything you've seen in a comic book.
I have been a fan of Four Color's Super's games for some time. This 2nd edition of Super Mission Force is the latest version of an already excellent game. The goal-system method of game play is perfect for fast-paced, super powered, skirmishes. You can easily fit two full games in an afternoon. If you haven't tried this game before, don't wait. It's a bargain at $10 bucks.
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Bottom line up front: This is a great idea that has been poorly executed. Until a revision is printed that at least corrects the mechanical problems in this game, I can not recommend it.
- Mechanics Problems: In short, the game has multiple examples of game mechanics that are not part of 5th ed. (neither in the main section nor in the optional rules section). Those mechanics therefore are not useable. The game mentions that it was once based "heavily" (their words) on the Pathfinder rules set. This doesn't exonerate the writers from purging the old material out and making this a truly 5th ed compatible game. As it stands the reader will have to adjust a lot of powers and rules himself to conform to the 5th ed RAW. Also, there are optional 5th ed rules being used in this game (which is well and good), but it would be a nice touch if the writers noted where optional 5th ed rules are being used for the benefit of those unfamiliar.
- Index of terms: This game needs an index of terms badly. Meanings of words like "Scene", for instance have to be gleaned and are not overtly explained. An index would be a great one stop shop of information.
- Category of heroes: The authors have done a pretty good job of encompassing the genre, but I don't think their classes and subcategories encompass the totality of the genre. This is merely a personal opinion however.
- Character creation and conversion: The authors really need a better step by step guide to both character creation and most needed conversion guidelines
- Super Heroism--Lastly there is a large section of the book that is an explanation of the philosophy of what it means to be a super hero. It pretty much reads like a wordy op-ed piece. I HIGHLY recommend this be edited down.
- Things I like--the Activation roll is a neat convention. It works well within 5th ed and adds an element of 'comic-bookiness' to the game. The power point / resource point convention is also really good method for 'buying' powers. This game definiatley has a 'Comic Book' feel to it.
In summary, this is a sloppy product in dire need of some editing and revision. Until this happens, again, I cannot recommend. However, I want to be clear if these things were cleaned up I would recommend this product in a heartbeat.
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The Bad. New feats are easy to screw up. It's often hard to translate a good idea into a concise mini-rule that works and is neither too complex nor too weak nor too powerful. These guys have made a valiant attempt to incorporate some GREAT ideas. But they have fallen short in making a GREAT set of feats. Rather they are kind of so-so on the whole. Two or three are useful and not available from UA articles.
The Good. The feat, Unyielding. Balanced, useful, and simple. Excellent! The others are great ideas but are either too complex, unbalanced, or excessively narrow. I would give specifics but I don't want to reveal any contents. Slight tweaking would make these much better. Overall? Certainly worth the .50 I paid. I've seen worse--keep plugging!
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Excellent product. I do recommend it. Crafting rules in the 5th ed RAW are lacking in depth (or options). This takes one of the most iconic crafting skills (blacksmithing) and gives it some much needed depth. I think the DC levels are sufficient and the costs are appropriate. It adds a level of interaction to the game without being cumbersome or overpowering. There is one reason why I give it 4 stars and not 5. Jewelry making should not be included in this. It should be it's own skill. Why? Well for starters it would give players another option for customization. Another reason is that there are both jeweler's and tinker's artisan tools (albeit undefined) listed in the PHB. Let's get them into the game as well! Again though, the big takeaway here is that this is a solid, usable product for any campaign--recommend!
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SPOILER ALERT...Excellent story. Not a fan of dwarf-orc half orcs however. yuck. However, the rakasha as the main villain is great. Also it is a great one-stop shop for the new D&D next rules. I consider it a must have!
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I was looking for something to make the new 4E combat both more lethal and a bit quicker. This product serves that purpose nicely. It overlays onto the existing 4E system with little adjustment. Beware, if using this be sure you have a strong healer in the group (if you don't travel with a cleric you are crazy, IMO). One of the other benefits of this system is that it also makes powers and feats that cancel out critical hits (such as Armor of Bahamut) MUCH more useful. It also raises the stakes a bit on those Opportunity attacks! I could regale you with tales of the characters in our group one-punching monsters and pulling their bacon out of the fire in the process. Suffice it to say that combat is a bit more nail-biting and when that natural 20 does come up, it is a LOT more exciting. Pick it up, you won't be dissapointed.
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Great scans. Easily a great buy. Re-live the nostalgia.
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Another great product. Fantastic illustrations. Again, I only wish they included a full color option as well.
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I am very happy with the content of this item. The artwork is great and it is simplicity itself to assign your own stats to the card. Being black and white you at least have the option of coloring it yourself but having a colored option would be welcome. All in all it is a good product.
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Simply a fantastic product. If you EVER wanted to make gemstones a part of your treasure hoard, use this, please. Gives you the knowledge of a mineralologist as a DM. tell your players EXACTLY what the gem is worth and what it is, what it looks like, what color variant it has, how rare it is, the cut (or not). Simply put, I learned more about gem stones in this book, than I ever would have thought possible. Again, fantastic product.
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Creator Reply: |
Joel,
Thank you for a wonderful review. We are pleased that you enjoy this product. We definately tried to make it so that GMs could understand minerology and gems without having to go through a minerology class (like I did!). We hope this book will find lots of use in your games.
Geoff & Coy
Tangent Games |
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GET THIS. I can't tell you how useful these cards have been for me. I literally use them EVERY adventure. It keeps me from having to flip from book to book for every little thing. The ability to cut and paste from Adobe makes this really functional. All I do is refer to my key, and whip out the ol' monster sheet I have prepared ready to go. I like to paste mine within a Word document with a note sections to track damage, initiative, etc. But this is versatile enough to use in any way you wish. You can even use the blank ones to add your own stuff. Trust me you will love it.
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GET THIS. I can't tell you how useful these cards have been for me. I literally use them EVERY adventure. It keeps me from having to flip from book to book for every little thing. The ability to cut and paste from Adobe makes this really functional. When I hand out my cleric's spells at the beginning of the game for instance, they are all ready to go. Leave the bulky book on the shelf. If the wizard wants to actually build a spell book, Print out and insert. EASY PEASY. Trust me you will love it.
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GET THIS. I can't tell you how useful these cards have been for me. I literally use them EVERY adventure. It keeps me from having to flip from book to book for every little thing. The ability to cut and paste from Adobe makes this really functional. When I hand out my cleric's spells at the beginning of the game for instance, they are all ready to go. Leave the bulky book on the shelf. If the adventurers find any items, bam, here's your card. No "hang on a sec while I look this up". Trust me you will love it.
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Ok this is a MUST HAVE purchase in my opinion. Want to give your characters that extra special something but not OVER do it? Want to put them on a quest to DESTROY an item they have found? This is an essential book. Basically these are great "end of dungeon" items. Very imaginative and something that you really can't create using the D&D creation system. Probably the best thing about the book is that the items are powerful but not excessively so. They are PERFECT for lower level characters but not the hum-drum of, "yipee a +2 sword" as a final quest reward. One of the other great things about the items is that it lists the method by which it can be destroyed--which can be a whole other campaign series on it's own. Trust me, this book rocks. I have purchased several works by Tay Lay and while I like them all, I really think this is the best yet.
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Excellent products. I use these things books literally all the time. The objects make great quest items or a little something off the beaten path. Keep up the great work guys.
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