Supers

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The usual nickname for RPG settings and systems with Superpowers, especially those with Superheroes. Called "Supers" probably in part because the word "Superhero" is trademarked by Marvel and DC.

(And, yes, Batman counts as Supers; very low powered superpowers, usually, but impossible-super-science gadgets (which even the Dark Knight trilogy and the Adam West version engaged in), and that level of recovery from injury both count as "Superpowers".)

Some General Trends

There's a vast amount of territory covered by Superpowered RPGs, in keeping with the comic books and TV shows that birthed most of them. There are a few general trends:

  • Secret Identities:
    • As a general rule, as time has gone on, fewer and fewer superheroes have them, as the reason to have one has gone down. That being said, the usual explanation nowdays is to protect unpowered family members, which as reasons go is at least reasonable.
    • Further, as a general rule, at Marvel, there's a general feeling that "Street-level" superheroes are allowed a secret identity; those whose individual aspirations extend beyond a city (e.g., The Fantastic Four, Iron Man)
    • That being said, Japanese (and East Asian more generally) superheroes either don't have them, or have them more because the hero is an benevolent infiltrator of some kind.
  • Power level:
    • As powers get more powerful, the "relatability" of the hero goes down.
    • It's possible to make this work, by emulating mythology and going full SuperGods.
    • Live-action TV shows tend to love superpowers that don't require any expensive special effects, such as Telepathy or Mind Control. Look out for budget cheats.
    • A setting can have a very vast degree of scale of powers; DC has Green Lantern (cosmic scale science fiction) alongside Batman, where Killer Croc (mild super-strength and crocodile traits) and Mr. Freeze (who has a freeze gun and immunity to cold) are unusually powerful.
  • Unpowered Superheroes
    • They exist. They're usually impossibly well-trained and skilled, but, again, that still counts as the level of training or skill in question is usually impossible for a real person.
    • Usually exist in either lower-powered settings, or are effectively just masterminds or stealth operatives.
  • Villains and Sanity
    • How insane the villains are is something of a variable from setting to setting, and villain to villain. Some villains can be "ordinary" criminals, just some of them have powers; some villains are obsessed with destroying the universe (and haven't thought through the "but that's where I keep all my stuff!" objection), and have the power to pull it off.
    • Nowdays, more rational villains are more common then they were back in the Silver Age. There's usually some flaw in their thinking, admittedly, but mostly gone are the days of robbing banks so you could fight Superpoweredheronumberseventyeight.
  • Technology
    • Civilian technology is usually kept just barely beyond the current state of the art, to maximize "relatability".
    • But the Important Named Characters usually have access to stuff that's flat out impossible.
    • This leads to a certain tendency of Super-Inventers to be restricted in some way.
  • Genre
    • If you don't count "Supers" as a genre, or only partly so: While individual settings and stories can be Mundane, Horror, Science Fiction, Urban Fantasy, or a few others, most supers settings that get glommed together as they evolve (such as DC/Marvel or many animated ones) tend to be classifiable as Science Fantasy.

Commonly Cited Non-/tg/ or /v/ Originating Settings

  • DC Comics. Most notable heroes for /tg/ purposes: Batman, Superman, Green Lantern. Most notable villains for /tg/ purposes: Darkseid, Lex Luthor, Ra's Al Ghul.
  • Marvel Comics. Most notable heroes for /tg/ purposes: Iron Man, Spider Man, Thor, Captain America, The Hulk. Most notable villains for /tg/ purposes: Thanos, Galactus, Paste-pot Pete (that last for the idea "they can't all be winners")
    • The X-Men have, since their 1975 revival, and particularly since the 90s, been sort of their own continuity, almost-but-not-quite separate from the main Marvel one.
  • Various adaptions of the two above.
  • A few anime; notable Supers anime include "My Hero Academia", "One Punch Man", and "Sailor Moon".
  • There exists a kind of show in Japan known as "Tokusatsu"; essentially, live action special effects spectacle. A lot of the more famous Tokusatsu shows are effectively Superhero works; notable examples include Power Rangers, Ultraman, Kamen Rider, and the 1970s Japanese Spider-Man (which is a fascinating story all in itself).
  • Wild Cards, a setting masterminded by the same George R.R. Martin of Game of Thrones.

Supers Roleplaying (Or: /tg/ Relevance)

There have been plenty of Supers roleplaying games. Here are some of the more notable ones:

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