To improve the chances of a hero's success against overwhelming odds, let the player re-roll if the maximum amount comes up on the die roll. He can keep doing this as long as he rolls maximum. Critical Successes are handled as usual.
Anytime a hero suffers physical damage, the GM can have the player make a Heroism roll against a difficulty equal to the levels of Power lost. If the roll fails, the hero is stunned and unable to take any actions for the next full combat round. He is able to act normally the round after that (unless the damage took him to zero Power and he fails the Heroism roll). A Critical Failure on the roll means the hero is unconscious (same result as being reduced to zero Power). You can even say the levels of effect determine the number of rounds the hero is stunned (say, levels of effect or levels of effect times 2). This will slow down combat a little, though.
There are several different options of tracking losses due to defeat. These mostly apply to physical damage, but can be used for other types of effects as well- in the following options, 'damage' can mean any types of losses to Power level.
A Drawback is any bad thing a hero has, but that is not exactly a Complication, like a vulnerability to a substance that is harmless to others, a weakness to a particular kind of attack, or a physical disability. You can take one (and ONLY one) Drawback for your hero at creation; this functions just like a Complication for modifying your hero. A Drawback can be given a rating and treated like an attack (like being susceptible to Kryptonite), an increase in level of an existing attack (a fire hero being weaker against water attacks), or it can be absolute (the hero is a paraplegic). A Drawback must be really bad and limiting in some way to qualify; Daredevil may be blind, but it is not a Drawback for him because of his radar sense.
A Power that seems especially powerful or let the hero do lots of things can cost an extra Hero Point when creating the hero, if the GM wishes. An example would be Green Lantern's power ring, which lets him create almost any effect he can imagine. Such a device can make it difficult for the GM to provide challenges for a hero who possesses it.
Conversely, A Power that is limited in some way can give the hero an extra Hero Point. The limit must mean that the hero is pretty much rendered powerless if it comes into effect to qualify for the Hero Point bonus. The Human Torch may qualify, since his powers are useless in wind or water. A gadget or piece of equipment would qualify if it is the main source of the hero's power and if it can be taken away easily. Green Lantern's power ring in itself does not give him limit, since it is not easily lost or stolen; the fact he has to recharge it every 24 hours might, though- GL is pretty much powerless if his ring fizzles out. Thor's hammer or Spiderman's web-shooters would not qualify- they are both plenty capable even without them.
In most cases, bonuses and penalties will balance each other out, in which case there is no need to calculate Hero Points (Green Lantern's ring is a good example, as is Gen-Storm's energy control power).
The GM should apply limits by raising the difficulty for certain challenges or making them Impossible for the hero when the limit is in effect.
If you wish, you can incorporate new levels into the chart by using other die types. There are a variety of other types of polyhedral die available, such as d5, d7, d16, d24, and d100 (a d100 can be simulated by the use of 2 d10's). Doing so means that you will have to adjust some of the rules, but character creation should not change much (you would still choose Power, then subtract it from the highest level to get Karma). Using d24 would make the upper Power levels a lot closer to Cosmic-level beings; a good way around this is to let heroes use d30 as the upper limit and make d100 the highest level. The level-boosting rules may have to be adjusted depending on the difference in the die sizes (boosting from d12 to d20 would still be two levels, but you could go to d16 with one level).
Another option is to use the extra die types ONLY for purposes of 'filling in' the spaces between the die types, but NOT for base Power or Style levels. For example, a hero increasing his Power of d12 one level through Pushing could boost to d16, but d16 would not be available as a 'real' level for him to increase it to through Experience.
A Signature Move is something that, once per adventure, allows your hero to perform an exceptional action (usually with no chance of failure). A Signature Move costs 3 Hero Points at hero creation, or 15 through Experience. Not every hero will have one. Here are some examples from the comics:
Captain America- Inspire: Cap can automatically add +1 to all his teammates' Power levels for 1 combat (this is in addition to any Teaming Up bonus).
Spiderman- Taunt: Spidey can choose one foe and talk smack to him; that foe becomes enraged and attacks Spidey at -1 Power level for the rest of that combat.
The Hulk- "The strongest one there is!": Hulk can automatically gain +1 Power level over an opponent if the opponent's Power involves raw strength, and the Hulk can re-roll the die 1 time against that foe.
The Thing- "It's Clobberin' Time!": The Thing can use his famous battle cry and automatically get +1 effect against a Goon Squad.
When your hero's Karma and/or Heroism reaches d20, he has reached Icon Status. This means that your hero has been elevated to legendary status, along with the greatest heroes in comics (Superman, Spiderman, Batman). When your hero makes it this far, you can re-roll ANY die one extra time. You must choose a nickname or title for him- you can take the Marvel route (The Amazing Spiderman, the Mighty Thor, the Invincible Iron Man) or the DC Route (Superman is The Man of Steel, Batman is the Caped Crusader, Aquaman is King of the Seven Seas).
If the GM is using the option under Resolving Actions which allows opponents to roll separately for success, this opens up the option for maneuvers. Maneuvers add spice to conflicts and give the players more options, but they can slow things down a little. They can be used for all types of conflicts, not just physical combat- A Feint could represent a verbal distraction or lie during a persuasion attempt.
As usual, Power level can never go below d4 or above d20. Whether a maneuver
that gives +1 level can raise d12 to d20 is up to the GM.
| Maneuver | Effects |
|---|---|
| Dodging | If hero takes no other action during a round, he gets +1 to Power level against all attacks |
| Aiming | If hero takes no other action during a round except getting a bead on a target, he can raise his level by +1 against that target |
| Grab | Hero takes -1 to level; once target is grabbed, he cannot move and attacks at -1 level. Target can be thrown, or 'squeezed' at -1 to his defensive level. |
| Feint | Hero get a +1 level to attack, but -1 to defense. |
[Writer / Artist] [Origin] [Superpowers] [Motivation] [Costume] [Hero!]