An original superhero RPG inspired by the band, Rise Against, and by the upcoming movie and award-winning graphic novel, Watchmen, as well as other various comic books.
Uses the Myriad system by Ashok Desai.
In this roleplaying game, forget the dragons, orcs, and elves. Leave your sword and your spellbook at home. This time the power will come from within you, whether you're a newly born god from the legends of ancient times, a mutant with blossoming powers you can barely control, a product of a secret government experiment, or a being from a faraway planet, your power to influence the world, for great good or for terrible evil is in your hands.
Gameplay takes place on Earth, in the present day. Though the heroes (or villains, if they prefer) may come from various origins, the action is centered on our beloved planet. The overarching theme is good versus evil, though the shades of gray in between are infinite. But the heroes may delve into deeper issues, such as the meaning of heroism, sacrifice, and duty. Much of the conflict stems from the ostracism of the super-beings from mainstream society, thus earning them the label of Outcasts.
*** Author's Note: Originally, I was mulling the idea of a Marvel or DC Universe RPG, but with their already established universes and stories, I felt it would be better if players were allowed to do that themselves. Though obvious inspirations are apparent (X-Men) the stories players create are their own, without having to worry about Superman or the Incredible Hulk coming in to bash the baddies for them.
A fellow Viking Games creator and I were listening to some Rise Against in the car, namely their newest album, An Appeal to Reason, and I thought to myself, you could create a really deep RPG based on these songs. So, campaigns in Outcasts will be named after Rise Against songs, following the themes of the songs.
Great Minds
OMG
The super hero setting that I'm going to use to playtest Play it Cool is heavily influenced by music as well.
The beginning of the first session I was going to have the players describe the opening credits as if it were a TV show showing clips that will appear later in the series but it would be kind of a challenge to me to work those clips into the game somewhere eventually. The opening credit music is Drove Through Ghosts to Get Here by 65daysofstatic.
The entire "show" is scored by 65daysofstatic, to the extent that some of the villains have theme songs. Mr. Punch (a Joker style villain that will beat on the PCs like Danny the Dog, screaming "physic" and throw babies from windows and whatnot) has Aren't We Running as his theme song.
In my campaign, like Watchmen, the heroes are vigilantes, but unlike Watchmen, by the time the heroes catch up to the villains the people will be screaming for help, any help, and glad of it.