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View Full Version : Advice on running or playing in a Masks game



Drowicorn
2018-05-13, 09:02 AM
So, I just recently discovered Masks: A New Generation, and I would really like to try either running one in person for my friends, or playing in one in a PbP game, but as I'm entirely new to the Powered by the Apocalypse system (Most of my experience is in D&D, Pathfinder, and a little bit of Warhammer FRP), I was hoping to get some tips on how it works and how to make the most of it.

I also have not run a Superhero game before, and I don't have as much reference material for the teen superhero subgenre as I'd like, besides Miraculous. What are some good methods of storytelling for this type of game? What are common pitfalls that I should be sure to avoid? In general, how much player freedom should exist compared to your average D&D game, both in terms of character creation options and their actions in-game?

Thanks in advance for any help and advice.

Koo Rehtorb
2018-05-13, 09:43 AM
In no particular order, some best practises and common pitfalls:

1) When the players fail a roll, you make a move. The result of a failed roll is never "it doesn't work, nothing happens". There's a list of GM moves on page 136 that gives you some insight into things you can do to them, but it always has to be something.

2) The only thing you want to restrict in terms of character creation freedom is abilities. The only way to break the game is letting them make their superpowers too broad or powerful. It's a game about teenagers, they're not hot shot superheroes yet. Lots of the abilities are intentionally vague in terms of what exactly they can do to allow people to interpret them creatively. But don't let them interpret them to the point of being all powerful or incredibly versatile or they'll overshadow everyone else. The Nova's abilities are intentionally fairly open ended and powerful which means if someone's playing them you need to hit them in other ways. Emphasize that they have lots of power but very little control. They're a glass cannon and you need to constantly be hammering them.

It's also fair to deny the expanded playbooks too, at least to start out with while you're finding your feet.

3) The biggest genre expectation to make clear to new players is that the PCs aren't killers. It's teen superhero fiction, which means them actually killing people is rare to unheard of. It's never an acceptable option to go gunning down the boss's minions because it's convenient, and it's probably not acceptable to kill the boss either. You can flirt with a bit of a darker tone and allow them to kill people occasionally, but it's always a huge deal when they do and never something to do lightly or casually.

4) The list of principles starting on page 128 are your rules, don't break them. You aren't allowed to do whatever the hell you want when you're GMing Masks. They provide a ton of helpful guidance for emulating this sort of genre too.

5) You can't let the PCs directly engage whenever they want to or they will smash any villain extremely quickly. You have to make them work to get to a point where they can actually engage by making other moves first, on villains that you want to be an actual threat.

6) Watch Young Justice the animated series.

Drowicorn
2018-05-13, 12:21 PM
6) Watch Young Justice the animated series.

Thanks for the help, though I'm unsure where to find Young Justice at the moment. Perhaps KimCartoon is the answer after all.

Another brief question:
Does the Halcyon City Herald or Secrets of A.E.G.I.S. contain anything especially notable? Any rules patches, playbooks, or stuff that are considered particularly good or necessary?

Koo Rehtorb
2018-05-13, 12:54 PM
Thanks for the help, though I'm unsure where to find Young Justice at the moment.

It's on Netflix.


Does the Halcyon City Herald or Secrets of A.E.G.I.S. contain anything especially notable? Any rules patches, playbooks, or stuff that are considered particularly good or necessary?

There's nothing necessary outside of the core book. I'd hold off on supplements until you've played the game some, personally. It's all an implied setting, anyway. You can (and should) make your Halcyon City look however you want it to, inside of a few guidelines.

Koo Rehtorb
2018-05-13, 04:59 PM
Oh, another one:

7) Remember to have adults constantly be trying to shift their labels. It's a major part of the game that's often overlooked. Villains laughing at the PCs for having the audacity to think that a bunch of children could challenge them is always a good one.