Marvel Superheroes – Cthulhu Rising

The End of the World As We Know It. Unless a desperate superhero strike force with one last chance can finish a ritual to banish the big Old Octopus God. Only problem is to do that they need to get to R'lyeh.

Draft 1.0 April 17, 2013 - Blue Tyson

SETTING

The near Marvel future. The crazed cultists have won. A successful ritual summoning has brought back an Old One, wreaking havoc. Heroes struggle to shepherd survivors if they are still alive. Nick Fury is on the run, attempting to coordinate a global resistance. Reed Richards and Tony Stark are holed up in the negative zone, at a loss as to what to do. An exhausted Doctor Strange survives on stimulants and the life energy of a few acolytes trying to buy enough time before dimensional barriers are completely breached. Storm and Emma Frost lead mobile mutant strike and rescue teams, fighting Shoggoths and other horrors. Namor leads his people in holding off a Deep One invasion.

Forge is the man with the plan. A small, versatile team on a lightning raid to R'lyeh. Then help him finish a ritual to banish the badness. The one problem: it requires a blood sacrifice. One of the heroes must die.

ISSUES

Send the Elder God back
Not Everyone Gets Out Alive
Getting Out Dead Could Be Even Worse

THE PLAYERS

The Hulk

Doctor Banner, melted by Gamma Rays
You Wouldn't Like Me When I'm Angry
It's Not Easy Being Green
Hulk Smash

F: Remarkable +3
A: Good +1
S: Unearthly +7 [Super Strength +5]
E: Monstrous +6 [Super Endurance +3]
R: Feeble -2
I: Typical +0
P: Remarkable +3

Resources Feeble (-2)
Popularity -Good (-1)

Other Skills

Class 1000 (+11) Invulnerability: Cold, Heat, Fire, Disease
Unearthly (+7) Super Movement: Leaping only up to 50 zones a turn
Monstrous (+6) Body Armor: Physical, Astral Detection
Amazing (+5) Body Armor: Energy

Stunts

Anger Surge: Hulk gets mad when fighting the same people for multiple turns. Each turn his Fighting and Strength go up +1 to a maximum of +10. When that fight is over he returns to the normal Hulk state.

Alter Ego Bruce Banner

F: Poor -1
A: Typical +0
S: Typical +0
E: Typical +0
R: Remarkable +3
I: Good +1
P: Typical +0

Other Skills

Incredible (+4) Physics

Invisible Woman

Mother of a Mutant
A Thing For Namor

F: Good +1
A: Good +1
S: Typical +0
E: Remarkable +3
R: Good +1
I: Excellent +2
P: Good +1

Resources Remarkable (+3)
Popularity Amazing (+5)

Other Skills

Monstrous (+6) Force Field: one zone
Excellent (+2) Invisibility, Martial Arts
Good (+1) Academics, Science
Typical (+0) Flight

Wolverine

Canadian curmudgeon
Having a skeleton implant at a secret science base was rather traumatic
Berserk killer
Loves a beer and a smoke

F: Incredible +4
A: Remarkable +3
S: Good +1
E: Remarkable +3
R: Typical +0
I: Monstrous +6 [Super Intuition +3]
P: Incredible +4

Resources Typical (+0)
Popularity Typical (+0)

Other Skills

Class 1000 (+11) Claws vs non-living will cut through anything up to Class 1000
Unearthly (+7) Resistance: Poison, Disease
Monstrous (+6) Tracking
Amazing (+5) Martial Arts, Sword
Remarkable (+3) Regeneration (requires rest). Between scenes anything up to Severe Consequences may be healed on a roll. Severe consequence requires a day's rest to remove.
Excellent (+2) Claws vs living, Contacts, Espionage
Good (+1) Adamantium Skeleton bonus damage when using body parts as weapons

Black Widow

I was a teenage Soviet Super Soldier. It sucked.
The old ballerina as spy cover story.

F: Incredible +4
A: Remarkable +3
S: Good +1
E: Excellent +2
R: Good +1
I: Incredible +4 [Super Intuition +1]
P: Excellent +2

Resources Good (+1)
Popularity Remarkble (+3)

Other Skills

Remarkable (+3) Wallcrawling: via costume, Explosives: via belt
Amazing (+5) Martial Arts, Widow's Bite - Damge: Energy (+2); Gas (+2); 3 zone grappling hook; radio
Excellent (+2) Contacts, Detective, Espionage, Military

Namorita

Atlantean Earth Slummer

F: Remarkable +3
A: Remarkable +3
S: Amazing +5 [Super Strength +3]
E: Remarkable +3
R: Typical +0
I: Excellent +2
P: Excellent +2

Resources Good (+1)
Popularity Good (+1)

Other Skills

Excellent (+2) Ocean Sciences
Good (+1) Body Armour: Physical, Science
Poor (-1) Flight

Stunts

Atlanteans can breathe underwater and are cold resistant and swim like fish.

Forge

Former Soldier
Short A Leg
Blood and Souls

F: Good +1
A: Good +1
S: Good +1
E: Excellent +2
R: Incredible +4 [Super Reason +1]
I: Good +1
P: Amazing +5 [Super Psyche +1]

Resources Typical (+0)
Popularity Good (+1)

Other Skills

Unearthly (+7) Optics
Monstrous (+6) Magic: Dimensional opening and sealing ritual only
Amazing (+5) Inventing: Jury Rig pretty much anything he thinks of, Cybernetics, Electronics
Incredible (+4) Spirit Sight

Stunts

Headquarters

Scarlet Witch

I should be so lucky
My father is a bad, bad man
Recovering Insane Genocidal Maniac
No, you really can't breed with a robot

F: Good +1
A: Good +1
S: Typical +0
E: Excellent +2
R: Good +1
I: Excellent +2
P: Remarkable +3

Resources Typical (+0)
Popularity Good (+1)

Other Skills

Amazing (+5) Probability Alteration: Can cause unlikely things to happen on a roll
Excellent (+2) Mysteries, Occult, Magic: General sorcery and Eldritch bolts, Shields are Incredible (+4)
Good (+1) Telekinesis

Cthulhu Cultist

Fan of gibbering horror

F: Typical +0
A: Typical +0
S: Typical +0
E: Typical +0
R: Poor -1
I: Poor -1
P: Good +1

Resources Typical (+0)
Popularity Typical (+0)

Other Skills

Occult (+1)

Or treat as Typical (+0) mooks.

Deep One

Amphibious Old One Servants

F: Typical +0
A: Typical +0
S: Good +1
E: Typical +0
R: Good +1
I: Typical +0
P: Typical +0

Resources Typical (+0)
Popularity Typical (+0)

Other Skills

Good (+1) Body Amour, Claws, Spear, Magic (possibly)

Stunts

Water breathing

Or treat as Good (+1) mooks.

Shoggoth

5 metre around nasty blob horror
Steadfast guardian

F: Typical +0
A: Abysmal -3
S: Incredible +4
E: Remarkable +3
R: Poor -1
I: Poor -1
P: Typical +0

Other Skills

Excellent (+2): Body Armour: Energy, Radiation
Good (+1) Body Armour: Physical (smooshy and snotty)

Stunts

A Shoggoth can attack multiple targets in its area with no penalty. Tentacles. Many slimy tentacles.

Big Shoggoth

7 metre around nasty blob horror
Steadfast guardian

F: Typical +1
A: Abysmal -3
S: Amazing +5
E: Incredible +4
R: Poor -1
I: Poor -1
P: Typical +0

Other Skills

Remarkable (+3): Body Armour: Energy, Radiation
Excellent (+2) Body Armour: Physical (smooshy and snotty)

Stunts

A Shoggoth can attack multiple targets in its area with no penalty. Even bigger slimy tentacles.

ADVENTURING

Really designed as a one shot adventure, if they really liked the setting it could be Shoggoth and deep one and crazed cultist fighting time afterwards. Or engineering work, too. Or creepy Call of Cthulhu what did we miss style subplots for afterwards. Then the character that died comes back as an evil horror leader and really, really wants the rest of the heroes to join them.

If the players want to use their own characters and there are several, then suggestions:

A Brick [use a Forge kit bashed tech boost if the PC is not strong/hardy enough for the scenario] - Shoggoths are tough
Lethal Killers - for occupying servitors
Sneaky Types - for getting by and/or hiding others
Magic Users - for the ritual and support
Super Genius - for building guy and ancient languages
Protectors - that can use shields, forcefields, barrier creation

If only one PC is playing, just add them to the team if they want to use their own character.

Forge has kit bashed some gear to let the players survive underwater and Namorita is along for support, given her natural abilities. The gear could get damaged, particularly in a succeed with cost or taken out and other such combat scenarios. She could get someone that can’t breathe out at least alive. Allow them more standard type weapons that will work underwater if they want to take them. Spear guns, knives, swords, etc. Assume the gear warm will have an underwater knife in a calf sheath.

SCENARIO SEQUENCE

1. The Underwater City has been located, the players assemble off New England. Have a cultist patrol attack if you fancy a warmup.

2. The heroes must traverse an ever blackening sea, harassed by Deep Ones. Using lighting is a beacon to draw attacks with higher probability. Which they should quickly discover.

3. Finding the city might cause psyche checks to stay the course. Or Fate Points if they fail, to preserve their sanity.

4. Definitely a whole bunch of attackers to get through, or to delay while part of the group searches for the ritual site. Just some perhaps slightly tougher Deep Ones, even led by a Mage if more than one sorcery capable hero. Not enough to need a Brick though.

5. Traps. Give them at least one Indiana Jones or D&D classic to survive on entering the ritual chamber. Plus a spears from the wall trap. Deep Ones love their spears. Then one from the floor. And one from the ceiling. If you can't think of one, the classic stone in floor opens so you fall into a pit of slavering eldritch horrors works wonders.

6. The tough hero came for a reason. Shoggoths. If it is The Hulk, plenty of them and the chamber is big enough. Otherwise, enough to challenge our super strong friend. Shoggoths have tentacles, so even sneaking past gives them at least one chance to attack.

7. The idea is to get the ritual done, not beat all the Shoggoths. If the Hulk smashes them too quickly, throw some more at him, pile on with tougher ones even.

8. If two magic capable characters make it, the ritual can be performed more quickly with an easier difficulty. Having the main person doing the ritual sacrifice themselves during it will definitely go badly wrong if they are dumb enough. The assistant could, but will make a really nasty bad guy later when they return from the dead and the depths.

If only one original PC playing, the Black Widow will volunteer to take the ritual knife in the heart. Wolverine will overrule her, reasoning that there's a chance he will survive. Or anybody, if no-one is pretty much dead already. Whether having a pseudo immortal in the ritual messes it up slightly is a GM call. If he makes it back, maybe he has a hybrid infection. Hate Brood and Mythos then.

If the characters don't work out that using Fate Points etc. on the ritual roll is a good one, then becoming smooshed Shoggoth stains is pretty well deserved. If you are feeling nice, have a massive aquatic monster smash the walls in to give them a clue this is an even more desperate situation.

9. After a magical ritual in a trapped underwater city, of course it will fall down around their ears. So they have to survive rubble, any opponents in the city, a few on the way back and if feeling mean, an armed cultist welcoming party. Which a rather grumpy hero group is likely to treat very meanly. If they have done a good job and are almost dead, have someone else take them out. Otherwise, let Hulk smash puny humans.

THE LADDER

Being a big Marvel Super Heroes fan from way back, this is how I like to think:

Value Adjective

+13 Cosmic 5 (Class 5000)
+12 Cosmic 3 (Class 3000)
+11 Cosmic 1 (Class 1000)
+10 Legendary Z (Shift Z)
+9 Legendary Y (Shift Y)
+8 Legendary X (Shift X)
+7 Unearthly (Epic)
+6 Monstrous (Fantastic)
+5 Amazing (Superb)
+4 Incredible (Great)
+3 Remarkable (Good)
+2 Excellent (Fair)
+1 Good (Average)
+0 Typical (Mediocre)
-1 Poor
-2 Feeble (Terrible)
-3 Awful 0 (Shift 0)
-4 Abysmal

FASERIP - basic human attributes

Physique is split compared to Core, into a Strength component and an Endurance component, the latter of which should be used for the Stress track. Reason is native intelligence.

Fighting (Fight)
Agility (Athletics)
Strength
Endurance
Reason
Intuition (Notice)
Psyche (Will)

secondary

Popularity is a measure of charisma, reputation and public influence. If you like, bad people can have a negative popularity ladder equivalent. Supervillains, mass murderers, ruthless thugs in The Ball, etc.

Popularity
Resources

SCALE AND SUPERPOWERS

For any skill, the scale number is the automatic successes done when rolling. So Spider-Man is 4dF+2 when attempting a roll involving his Strength.

For superhuman abilities some simple tables.

FIGHTING

Above Amazing is superhuman, so Thor and Hercules roll 4dF+2 involving Fighting.

+08 C5
+07 C3
+06 C1
+05 SZ
+04 SY
+03 SX
+02 Un Thor, Hercules
+01 Mn Mephisto

AGILITY

Above Incredible is superhuman so the Silver Surfer rolls 4dF+1 for Agility.

+09 C5
+08 C3
+07 C1
+06 SZ
+05 SY
+04 SX
+03 Un Odin
+02 Mn Silver Surfer
+01 Am Spider-Man, Nightcrawler

STRENGTH

Above Excellent is superhuman so Spider-Man rolls 4dF+2 for Strength.

+11 C5 20^15 tonnes
+10 C3 20^13 tonnes Pre-Crisis Superman
+09 C1 20^10 tonnes
+08 SZ 200000 tonnes Post-Crisis Superman+, Shi'Ar Gladiator
+07 SY 20000 tonnes
+06 SX 2000 tonnes
+05 Un 200 tonnes Hulk, Thor, Hyperion
+04 Mn 100 tonnes Thing, She-Hulk, Submariner
+03 Am 50 tonnes Rogue
+02 In 10 tonnes Spider-Man, Iron Man
+01 Rm 1 tonne Power-Man, Beast

ENDURANCE

Above Remarkable is superhuman so She-Hulk rolls 4dF+2 for Endurance.

+10 C5
+09 C3
+08 C1
+07 SZ
+06 SY
+05 SX
+04 Un Silver Surfer, Thor
+03 Mn Hulk, Thing
+02 Am She-Hulk, Loki
+01 In Spider-Man

REASON

Above Remarkable is superhuman, so Mister Fantastic rolls 4dF+2 for Reason.

+10 C5
+09 C3
+08 C1
+07 SZ
+06 SY
+05 SX
+04 Un Watcher
+03 Mn Mephisto
+02 Am Mister Fantastic, Doctor Doom
+01 In Iron Man, Professor Xavier

INTUITION

Above Remarkable is superhuman, so Wolverine rolls 4dF+3 for Intuition.

+10 C5
+09 C3
+08 C1
+07 SZ
+06 SY
+05 SX
+04 Un Watcher
+03 Mn Daredevil, Wolverine
+02 Am Professor Xavier
+01 In Captain America

PSYCHE

Above Incredible is superhuman so Doctor Strange rolls 4dF+3 for Psyche.

+09 C5
+08 C3
+07 C1
+06 SZ
+05 SY
+04 SX
+03 Un Doctor Strange
+02 Mn Professor Xavier
+01 Am Marvel Girl

MOVEMENT

Super movement Zones per turn capability

Warp Speed +13 Cosmic 5 (Class 5000)
Lightspeed +12 Cosmic 3 (Class 3000)
Solar System +11 Cosmic 1 (Class 1000)
10000 +10 Legendary Z (Shift Z)
1000 +9 Legendary Y (Shift Y)
100 +8 Legendary X (Shift X)
50 +7 Unearthly (Epic)
30 +6 Monstrous (Fantastic)
25 +5 Amazing (Superb)
20 +4 Incredible (Great)
15 +3 Remarkable (Good)
10 +2 Excellent (Fair)
08 +1 Good (Average)
06 +0 Typical (Mediocre)
04 -1 Poor
02 -2 Feeble (Terrible)
01 -3 Awful 0 (Shift 0)
00 -4 Abysmal

REFERENCES

Cthulhu: Wikipedia - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cthulhu