Circling Back to Online Campaign Manager

 In an earlier post I talked about my use of an online campaign manager for my games. At the time I was running a fantasy game and a supers game. I also set up three others for my solo roleplaying. My reason for liking them was a permanent record available as long as I have an internet connection.

For the fantasy game the campaign was coming to a conclusion so my entries were more of a way to clean out some three ring binders and touch the history one more time before shelving. The supers game I need to have a place for stats and rules I needed to access quick because I was using Champions and there are to many rules for me to effectively adjudicate and maintain interesting banter. The solo stuff is perfect for the online campaign manager. I play at these so seldomly it saves space on my shelves and if I pick one up in three months all the details of what was going on are at my fingertips. Once again I can play these games on the road.

My current game, my only game I am running, is a continuation of my supers campaign but with the DC Heroes rules. Specifically the Blood of Heroes Special Edition rule book. 

As this has been going on I have been using three ring binders less and less. Has nothing to do with the use of a campaign manager though. I believe I have just settled into my "minimalist" approach to world building and game notes. 

I love these compact, hardbound notebooks for all my brainstorming and upcoming adventure building. The one in this photo has the Rom'Myr fantasy campaign from the time the PCs arrived in Zeu Orb to the finish and the Champions campaign which has now morphed into a MEGS campaign. The other book is a blank drawing pad. I have soft cover and hard cover books of these drawing pads and here I put down my drawings of the games action when inspired to do so. And this is all I'm using except having a hard copy of a games rulebook nearby. I'm not even writing things up on my computer anymore. My file folders for games are now just a repository for pictures I scanned, pics from the internet and character sheets so I can print out a villain's profile I need before a game. I sometimes write a session report, but I would rather draw some pictures of the action then write down the action. Besides I record all my game sessions so I have an audio record which is the best session report you are ever going to get. 

When I got back into gaming in 2012 I started with my USR Sword & Sorcery campaign and I have three to four thick three ring binders of the whole damn affair. Same for my second campaign Clockwork and Cthulhu. My shift to a minimalist approach began when I stumbled on means to record game sessions. And it has steadily refined into a not-time-consuming means of game prep and organization behind the scenes of my other overt attempts at taming the beast which is DM'ing. 

The point of all this is I don't use an online campaign manager. I take that back, I have a MeWe group for the game but this is just to post when the next game is and a quick way for anyone to get a hold of anyone else. I look at this as a continuous refining of an artistic process. I love to put pen to paper, to sketch, write and think. Compact size of notebook restrains going on and on with text. I hesitate to put anything down which isn't immediately relevant. A good way to stay in the meditative state of "the action is where the players are!"

I have come to the conclusion I have no use for online campaign managers, go figure.

My Verdict on running/playing Champions

Don't do it. [One final comment on Champions. If someone set up a city set piece and I get to bring my superhero, join some friends, and throw down against the GMs super villain team for a four hour mega-battle on a Saturday afternoon? I'm all in! As a tactical supers "boardgame" for this kind of cinematic fun, I think it would be a blast.]

I found the biggest liability for running this game is something called Fred. My definition for the anagram is full rules equal disaster. It is too stupidly big (over 500 pages) with no option to "use what you want and leave the rest." Because someone at the table is going to get butthurt that rule a,b and c (found on page 5, page 36 and somewhere past page 200) isn't being used.

The next liability arises because players think/want/insist? all the rules of the game are in force all the time. You will never get a chance to make a quick adjudication at the table because someone will say "Wait, I think it explains it on page black hole suck of time. In essence people play Champions because they want to play Champions and this is not the same as playing a supers role playing game. You play Champions you just do that. Combat is a slog. The Speed Chart is a cluster fuck of "wait no its my turn." or "Is it my turn yet."

You will never be able to get on with the action of adventuring and campaigning because you will be looking up rules every time someone wants to do something. Or watch someone else at the table do it. Really impractical when your game should be faster than light supers action.

As a game master I believe making rulings on the fly just to keep the action moving along is an important skill. What I mean is, once I understand the internal logic of the game I can make snap decisions which will never be far off the mark from a "by the book" figure. In a game of Champions this becomes a discussion with people flipping through the book to make sure the situation is totaled up "by the book". It doesn't make sense. And none of the subsystems mesh. Damage has no relation to how you calculate attacks. Speed doesn't track with distance, you can't figure out say if a bomb is going to go off in 4 seconds can you get out of blast radius. Or you can figure out yes you could do it if we are not in combat time, but not if in combat time. Very opaque. There is no base mechanic. You just can't say you need an 8 or less to hit, or a 15 or less to hit on 3d6 (i do like a 3d6 bell curve) because someone at the table will dive into the book to make sure everything is figured correctly. 

New players are generally lost and experienced players generally play a rulebook instead of interesting supers with fucked up situations forcing drastic action from a list of nothing but bad choices. And all these details seem to drive players to expect specific details when in combat. How far away is something, how much can I carry, does it weigh as much as, how long will this power last... Things which in real comic action would have to be guessed at in split second action times. I stand by my earlier statement anything past 3rd edition (2nd edition repackaged) is awful. 

But now I know. I got a good run at the system with my original setting and some decent PC concepts the players came with and I threw my shoulder into it because I wanted to know can a good supers campaign be had with this system. As far as I can tell the answer is no. I have run and played now the classic Marvel supers from TSR, The Hero Instant, Prowlers and Paragons, and Icons. I have read and built characters with Mutants and Masterminds, Supergame, Superworld, Blood of Heroes (MEGS) and Villains and Vigilantes. When you include Champions (which I have the most familiarity with) that is 10 different systems (that I can recall there are probably a couple more) exhaustibly examined and understood and don't care for any of them except DC Heroes/Blood of Heroes, Mayfair Game's MEG system and the Marvel supers game released by TSR. I will most likely  do a blog post for both these systems and why I find them attractive for running supers games, but for now I have to give Champions a big thumbs down. 

Parting shot, Champions has always claimed you can make any superhero you want with their game, and this is true. But it is also true you can do the same with all the other games I listed above! I have translated the same few superheroes of my own in each one of the above listed systems and low and behold I would come up with the same character. Yes, I can build anything I find in Champions with any of these other games - and quicker! Most people who play Champions seem to be married to a piece of character creation software. If you need a computerized spread sheet and custom programmed software to build a character, I don't know. A superhero is an intimate creation and pencil to paper is a strong way to come out with a strong character concept.

Pace. Pace, pace, pace! Like real estate is location a supers game is all about pace. And it should be brisk. And that is why I will not use or play Champions and prefer the old Marvel system and the old DC Heroes MEGs.

What makes Champions 3rd edition (cont.)

 By far the first reason I say this great book is the best version of the game is size. It is slim. Total content clocks in at 135 pages in a reliable perfect bound softcover. It deserves a hardcover treatment. In the forward the writers come out swinging with the games strongest pitch, create any power, any ability to build your unique superhero. And this is true. The point-buy system of Champions coupled with the “Special Effects” rule wrapping the whole powers concept championed by the authors has not been superseded by any other supers game I’ve tried. And this is no different through any of the editions of the game, from first to fifth. But I think Hero Games kind of missed the boat here. The Crystal Ship, the flashing gem which really shines through the third edition lens. Through those few pages. And treating the game like it should be: Old-School! What I am talking about and will eventually get to is the utility of the system's damage mechanic. 

Now I can swallow fourth edition, it is the last iteration of the Hero System as Supers-centric game system, and fifth is a travesty. Most of the additional pages in the fourth are sourcebook stuff which gives the Game Master some useful features to use again and again, like stats for regular folk. But the lower page count in the third does not water down the game system at all and is the perfect set of rules for the GM who needs no assistance in how to play superhero rpg’s.

Fifth edition is an endless swirling mess around all the basic mechanical features which make Champions a genius of a supers game. Here is my case: The game has for a basic resolution mechanic of 11 or less on 3d6 for success. It is like Classic Traveller in this regard. It uses 2d6 with an 8+ needed for success at anything you are trying. The 3d6 bell curve is sweet though. You get a little more granularity with a bigger spread and I have come to appreciate the difference between a 9 or less chance and a 7 or less chance with three die. But what I find intriguing most is the damage system. There isn’t anyone reading this who doesn’t know how damage is calculated in a Champions game, total on the die is total stun damage while the number on a dice determines whether it should be counted as 2 Body, 1 Body or Zero Body. I think this mechanic is sold short if only used to adjudicate damage. I try to sell it at the table as a means to resolve contested actions. Take the arm-wrestling example. Hero A has a Strength or 20, Villain B has a Strength of 20, who wins? I have the contestants roll their Strength “damage” and count the Body damage. Highest total wins. With both participants at a Strength of 20

There is a universality across the game system which needs to be taken advantage of for optimum play. And this is in how, no matter the power, effect, or type of attack the values and scale never change. This means a GM can make a “ruling not rules” decision on the fly and if using a “damage” result from the rolled ability a GM knows it is always to scale. Not only is it to scale (in other words, fair) it has built in variability. Using our arm-wrestling example above, either one of the contestants can roll a value from 0-8. Variability creates tension. This is good. It begs for a player to figure out how to stack the deck in a fair fight, how to get their roll to be less swingy. I’m the GM so I don’t have to worry about how that would be possible, only to rule on it😊

Works for characters of wildly different power scales in any particular contest. Sure the 60 STR brick should win against the 18 STR martial artists in an arm-wrestling contest, but it isn’t guaranteed. And the correct and fair chances of a surprise upset is built into the system. The uncertain future of any supers action is baked into the damage calc pie. If you want to add an additional variable you can count the Stun damage as well. No matter how you interpret the results you can’t come up with a bad interpretation, but you can have surprising results! This look reveals the transparency inherent in the system as well. I can match Ego vs. Dex, Energy Blast versus Presence, any crazy-ass thing. And it will still be at a correct scale that results will always be an exciting roll while at the same time no one participant getting nerfed.

Let me take this to my logical extreme, where regular Champions players cringe in horror. Initiative! The rules for initiative for action tracked on the Speed Chart are fairly standard. You will find this set up in many a ttrpg. That is, when opponents square off and they both get to take action the character with the higher DEX goes first. All-the-time. Chaosium’s BRP rules have a similar approach to initiative and is even less dynamic. At least in Champions you have the 12 segment Speed Chart which makes for unpredictable, yet trackable results and situations. My distaste here is the predictability of such an accounting in what should be the most unpredictable moment in an action-adventure game. Here is the set up to illustrate my point; Hero A and Villain B are going for the doomsday switch in the same segment. They both are equidistant and have the same SPD but the Hero has a DEX of 30 and the Villain has a 20 DEX. Per the rules as written the Hero is going to win that contest every time. Every-single-time. Yawn. A smart, clever and good-looking GM will call for a damage roll based on DEX. Most BODY damage gets to the doomsday switch first! Hero has a better chance of winning out then the Villain, but it isn’t 100%. Yes, exciting! I don’t consider this an approach to be used all the time. Only for really cinematic, pulse-pounding moments in the story. This makes for the elasticity of the system to really shine. Unfortunately, you will never get players to accept it. They will run to FRED faster than my Derby pick for the back of the pack. And that book is proof-positive you can take a great supers game and fuck it up three ways to Sunday. 

What makes Champions 3rd edition the best edition of Champions?

Brevity.

No, seriously, hear me out...

Less games but More thoughts (Champions)

 Summer season 2020 is running like most summers since gaming has returned to my weekly schedule, big gaps between games. I get it, me, and everyone else in the gaming group does what summer begs us to do, get outside with friends and family! Vacations! Fuck yeah! Going on one tomorrow. All three of the games I’m involved with are getting hit with month long gaps. So, I got some time for a blog post before the holiday disconnect and I’m going to drivel on about the Champions United campaign. Eight sessions down and the superhero effort is, is, ummm, fun! I haven’t read comics on a regular basis since ’94. I like The Max and Savage Dragon and Marvel and Batman. Pretty standard fare, nothing exotic. I think it was the regular Magic tournaments held at my college comic shop that stopped me from visiting regularly. But like much of the “modern” genre in ttrpg’s I feel I run a rough game of supers. Specifically handling fantastic powers and fast combat procedurally while keeping the emergent relationships forming fresh and forceful.

 My belief rules are for the players and not the DM collide with Champions combat procedure. Injecting unpredictable and additional action during combat dialog is a refereeing technique I favor. Champions thick combat options are getting deliberated during the game sessions. It is almost unavoidable. The more rules in a game the more players will implement them to control the pace of the game, to exert control over their game world. With a DM which wants to push the action with a chaotic fight scene they will constantly have the PCs throwing roadblocks in the form of rules or debating a rule to try and wrest that control back. I want to dialogue and describe some actions the villainous villain is taking and we got to then start counting inches.

It’s a good game. Champions United is running with only two PCs and we have already survived (in style) with an initial PC backing out after three sessions, but the story unfolding is sticky with plot hooks, cool NPCs. The Capitol City Universe of 2020 has interesting things going on all at the hands of interesting heroes. First person, in character interaction is going really well to. Kind of essential in a supers game.

We play bi-weekly and only have a two-hour session. The reason why I get anxious about running an efficient combat encounter with Champions. I want a superhero game session to have investigation, interrogation, and an important combat. Not in any particular order, but as an outline to keep the action moving forward. If these three types of encounters are present the session will have an exciting pace and the settings surprising. The only conclusion so far I have drawn is Champions requires everyone at the table to resolve actions with the simplest application of the rules. Which means instinctively knowing when to follow strict procedure and when to disregard possible “code” exceptions buried in the rules. But this only works with a level of trust the players have to give the DM which I rarely see. How deep do you go with combat modifiers to find out if you need a roll less than 8, 11, 15 to hit? Could players be on board with reducing the amount of combat modifiers they can apply at any one time? Is it more important I have the PC roll the dice to hit fast and only use a big-picture conception of modifiers (I’m thinking like when you have a scale of 1 to 5 and you quickly reduce modifiers to an “appropriate” number). The only other way I can see combat avoiding lengthy rules discussion is everyone is responsible for knowing how their powers work in most situations. Velocity, Move Through damage, how to knock a person prone, these all need to be rote by the player using these abilities. Not so much that everybody is getting every rule right all the time, but everyone is comfortable with the logic of the game mechanics and can quickly decide how the 11 or less to hit should be adjusted.

I’m satisfied I can run Champions. I haven’t found any other supers game which solve these particular challenges in any noticeable way. 11 or less to hit on 3d6 with modifiers is a pretty simple method of adjudication. Contested attribute rolls where highest BOD count wins is fucking simple to. It must just be the eye-glazing effect of all the other considerations you can make which trip up players. At some point isn’t too many combat options unhelpful?

I’m not down on Champions, I’m trying to give an honest appraisal. For players to design their original superhero, for all these different designs being able to work with each other coherently Champions is really, really good. I think I could come to appreciate the DC Heroes resolution and effects charts and live with their character creation process. But I can get a Champions game going and not a DC Heroes game.

Yeah, this is the dynamic I’m working against. There has to be rules for all the powers and their effects. The more rules you have you end up slowing down game pace. Where is the sweet spot? As I search this out through continued play my final conclusion, for now, is to keep flapping my villain’s gums and have them performing extraordinary fucked-up shit. It is one of the ways I have found works to engage the PCs with the characters and not the character sheet.

Here is the list of systems researched and played with. Marvel FASERIP, DC Heroes/Blood of Heroes, Supergame, Icons, Mutant and Masterminds, Villains and Vigilantes, Cowls and Crusaders?, the Hero Instant. They are all different systems so it is a chore to get a comprehensive look on how one game may be an improvement over the other. My yardstick for improvement is a reduction in times I have to turn to the rule book during play. And I haven’t found any of these other games do this. I’ll keep playing Champions because like DnD, if I want to play a game of supers I can play with a system I want and have an empty table or use Champions and have a black and blue campaign world with real, original characters.

Champions United #5 The Sentence is Death! (audio edit for fast play)

My walk down memory lane continues with Champions, logging in a 6th episode last night. All in all still strange, the unfolding of events and complications for the PCs. Here is the edited edition of our 5th session two weeks ago. An audio edit makes the session replay faster, and the dialogue is stripped of most items unrelated to the adventure. From what I've seen, a two-hour game session can be cut down to one hour of adventure content. I'm working on the audio edit of Issue #6 Night of the Leeches as we speak!

Champions Random Road Generator for Vehicle Chase

 The text is poached from An Eye for an Eye by Steve Long. It is not a "one-click" set up, but while in the middle of a fast and furious car chase these generators will 1. prevent the GM from freezing up trying to decide which way the road goes next, and 2. stay up on the screen so as to refer back to it and not have to remember what was rolled.

Champions United 3 Clouds over Capitol City

The home-brewed supers action crackled across the internet the other night and I finally managed to get captured. Like a clear shot of Spidey over Manhattan, it has been hard to come by actual footage of this new Champions campaign. Pilot error was kept to a minimum and the two hour session has been edited down to 52 minutes. If you enjoy listening to game sessions this edited audio (a format I try to get all my sessions into) shortens listening time and weeds out all the ramblings of middle-aged men and keeps the recording focused on the actual game action. If you do not enjoy listening to recorded game sessions then please, do not click on the following video.

If you are a fan of OSR supers game (Villains & Vigilantes, Superworld, Champions, etc.) then this campaign may be up your alley.

Issue #2 INFERNO

Second session of the new Champions campaign has completed and as appropriate there are more questions than answers. The fight with Icicle was cut short by Moscow West going up in a fireball. Seeing this neighborhood go up in flames stopped Icicle short. She had a horrified look on her face calling out “No, no, no” and jetted out on her ice wave through the second-floor lobby window and raced into the night.

Wolf and Knockout catch their breadth and give each other the “WTF” look and agree to go to the fire. It looks real bad. People are going to need help. People are going to need some heroes! They stash the serum sample in Knockouts Honda Accord and double up on Wolf’s Harley.

Three blocks away from the blaze Capitol City Police have begun blocking off streets. The two are told to turn it around and clear the area. Wolf goes west some blocks and pulls over in an empty side street.

“We got to get in there an help save people.” Says Knockout. “We are both paramedics, they need us.” What wolf says is overcome by the peeling horns of first-responders parading past on a nearby cross street. Their conversation is cut short when someone comes out of the man-hole cover in the middle of the street. He is wearing tough looking work wear, a onesie with reinforced elbows and knees. All red. He tosses a tank out in front of him. A large “wand” is attached to the tank by a length of hose. It isn’t till the guy throws his “tank” gear over his shoulder does he notice the two heroes standing nearby on the sidewalk.

“Hey, Patsy, there is a couple of people up here.” From down below someone shouts back up,

“Just get to the car!” the unseen person is heard to say. The guy in the red onesie ignores being addressed by the heroes, pops the trunk on a nearby Ford Mustang and throws his gear in. The smell of smoke and gasoline emanates from him. The black streaks of soot clinch it for the heroes, this guy probably has something to do with this catastrophic fire! Before they can interfere with the suspected arsonist his partner halls himself up onto the street. He is a big guy. Urban fatigues, thick boots. His trench coat covers up his red shirt with some unidentifiable logo. He is wearing a mask, a red and black mask. Just like his partner at the car, his identity is obscured by the mask he wears.

“You got any problems bub?” He asks.

“Yeah we can’t help notice you guys are packing a flame-thrower and there happens to be a raging block fire happening just behind you. Just have to ask you if you know anything about the fire, sure looks like you two started it.”

“Ah, a couple of smart guys. Just get back on your bike there kids and get out of here before you end up in the hospital, kapeesh?”

“Not until you explain yourself.” Answers Knockout.

“I gave you a chance bub, now the White Patriot is going to send you away – in pieces!” and the battle was joined. Knockout and the heavy traded superhuman blows with Knockout getting the worst of it. Wolf foiled Mr. Red Onesie getting away in the car with a blast of his physical, alien attack powers. This blew all 4 wheels of the Mustang into rubber shreds.

“Fuck!” he yelled and got out of the car to confirm the damage.

Knockout took another punch from White Patriot which launched her and left her stunned on the pavement. Wolf gunned his motorcycle and sped towards the fallen Knockout.

“I have to get us out of here before we get killed.” Wolf thought. Knockout got to her feet, but before Wolf could reach his friend White Patriot leaped down the street, blocking Wolf.

“I need that bike bub. You blew the wheels of my ride so I’m taking yours!”

Wolf attempted a controlled skid into White Patriot. White Patriot grabbed the Harley and flung Wolf off of it and into the wall. Wolf felt that one.

Knockout, recovered from her is pummeling, launches herself at White Patriot and sends him off the bike. The guy in the red onesie, now strapped with his blowtorch, gives Knockout a fearsome blast which roasts her clothes and is almost overcome by the explosive1 heat.

“I said get out of here!” White Patriot yells. The guy holding the blowtorch looks disappointed, but nevertheless throws his gear back in the open trunk and pops a flare. He gets ten yards down a side street when the Mustang blows.

This is when Icicle reappears. She is surprised to run into Wolf and Knockout, but she pounces on the opportunity and starts going through Wolf’s pockets.

“Where is it you shit?” she addresses the incoherent Wolf. “Where did you put it?” She looks over towards White Patriot, “Don’t break this guy, he’s carrying something fragile I want.”

White Patriot gives a snort, “See you round sweetie!” and races on Wolf’s Harley after his fire-storm buddy.

Knockout gives up his fight to aid Wolf against Icicle. Not finding the serum sample on him she gives up in frustration and skates away before she must tangle with Knockout. “This isn’t over, I need that sample, and I’m going to get it.” She says to Knockout as she disappears. All that can be heard is the pealing on sirens and horns as more first-responders close in on the burning neighborhood.

Our heroes resign themselves to aiding the injured for the rest of the night. With their paramedic skills they easily mix in with the other medical workers on site. Volunteers in these situations are always welcome. Come dawn Wolf and Knockout grab an ambulance ride back up to Capitol City University Medical Center. They are exhausted and nodding off. Wolf’s cell breaks him out of his dozing, it’s his mother, Dr. Nancy McKeever.

“Jim your father left with two men last night from the reception. He said it was nothing and he would be back soon. He said they were federal agents and they just had some questions on what happened last night. Especially with the break into the lab. But he hasn’t returned. Its morning and I still haven’t seen or heard from him.”

“I’m sure he’s alright Mom. He’ll call you when he can. I’ll be home soon. If you don’t hear from him by the time I get home we’ll call the police. Okay? Bye.” Wolf looks over to Knockout, “My dad’s missing.”

“What are you going to do? What happened to him?”

Wolf relays what his mom told him. “So I’ve managed to lose my bike and my foster dad in the same night.”

“If we are going to find him we are going to have to put some pieces together. You think this has anything to do with the serum sample we have?”

“Gotta be. But where do we start?”

“We need some sleep before we sort this out.” Knockout concludes.

“Call me in a couple of hours, we should probably start by searching the lab for any clues to who or what is going on.”

“Shit.” Breaths Knockout.

“Who is it?” Wolf can see Knockout looking at his ringing phone. “Ahh, it’s a federal agent. FBEE. Tell you about it later, but I am not talking to him right now. See you in a couple of hours”

Champions Instant Adventure Generators

I'm looking to keep a brisk pace in the new Champions game I am running and this will mean at some point the action on any given night  will outrun current circumstances. That's when it is real handy to have an instant adventure generator to tease the next exciting encounter. 

Therefore I have created some more instant generators and given them a page on this here old blog of gaming cracked-ness. I have provided three buttons; Hero vs. Villain, Hero vs. Nature and Hero vs. Themselves. All three of the generators are taken from the 5e Champions sourcebook and its random adventure generator tables. I have modified them here and there at my whim and formatting desires.

Being a Champion Again

The new 5e game started off at a Gala fundraiser at Capitol City University Medical Center on the CCU campus.

The clapping was much less than would normally be expected for such a gala fundraiser, when his adoptive mother, a brilliant doctor, got up to deliver the keynote address. The global pandemic, the continuous spread of Covid-24, the "Purple Plague", has brought normal life to a standstill in Capitol City. Important gatherings such as this are necessarily sparsely attended. Wolf's adoptive father is obviously distressed when he turns to Wolf and makes a confession; the vaccine has no long term viability. He pleads with Wolf to go up in the lab and retrieve the single sample of the serum. He will come clean in the morning and turn over the fake to the proper authorities.

Knockback was upstairs in the hospital lab working late, double-checking her work. The administration said they would handle the formulation issues she uncovered in initial trials. They hadn't! How could something like this get past the team leaders? It was just then she heard a heavy thunk in the virus containment vault.

"That's not good." Jumps Knockout. She approaches the vault door just as a viscous, purple mucus extrudes through the steel door and forms a horrid looking humanoid. It seems senseless and incoherent. Knockout asks "it" if everything is alright? At the sound of Knockout's voice the creature leaps violently at the hero. Instead of hands and feet it has starfish shaped appendages with grasping, gaping maws lined with jagged teeth. It wraps its boneless arm around Knockout's neck and begins sapping the strength from her body.

It was then that Wolf comes in and encounters the struggle. Wolf recognizes the resident technician Olga Knox, so springs into action against the monster. Working together, Knockout delivers a devastating blow while the monsters limbs sought out its new assailant, Wolf! The purple beast explodes into a spray of goo and liquid tissue.

The two heroes catch their breath and introduce each other with the tried and true "Hey, I know you." Wolf secures the sample and the two exit the lab out in to the hallway. Wolf is immediately blasted with a spray of liquid ice which suddenly hardens, trapping Wolf's arms and legs in unyielding ice. They turn to see who their attacker is.

"I'm sorry boys I need to be taking the sample you have on you." She was dressed like an Olympic speed skater, if the Olympics were held in the Thunderdome and the skaters had an iridescent, frosty aura around them! Red and blue, the tight suit showed the body of an Olympian at least.

"What sample, what are you talking about lady? And let my friend go!"

"The sample your frat boy friend pocketed after you blew up that, that thing."

"You mean you just stood there and watched? You weren't even going to help us?"

"Why get my hands dirty, besides you two almost looked like you could win it. I thought I would give you a chance."

"The serum is leaving with us!" yells Wolf as he breaks out of the immobilizing ice.

Knockout takes her que and thunders forward with a smashing fist. Alas, the ice aura surrounding their attacker absorbs Knockout's blow, seemingly to leave her untouched. For her troubles Knockout takes a blast of blue ice from the villain's hands, sending her bouncing down the hall. Wolf engages with his concussing magnetic powers and this, the second unknown assailant of the night, staggers back clutching her sides. He may have heard one of her ribs snap.

"What the hell did you just do to me?" she says. "You want to take the gloves off with me boy, with Icicle? Well you got it... !

(to be continued)

What was established so far? The vaccine doesn't work in the long term. May even cause serious harm after 90 days. Having an initial limited roll out in three cities; Capitol City, Millennium (old Detroit), and San Caliente (replaces LA, its still shitty though).

[

9:07 AM

]

The feds/administration is going to do a phased withdrawal after 30 days so they can fix and reintroduce a safe vaccine. Problem is, Dr. McKeever is being extorted for a sample of the corrupt, dangerous serum.

[

9:08 AM

]

In an act of conscious he wants to take the sample from the lab upstairs so no one can use it and then in the morning come clean about the whole thing, no matter what it will do to his reputation and standing.

[

9:11 AM

]

Some hideous slime monster oozed out of the containment vault which tried to drain Knockout's strength with starfish like hands, but Knockout and Wolf's teamwork obliterated the postulant thing.

[

9:12 AM

]

… and you are now in a fight with a ice blasting villain demanding they turn over the serum to her.

[

9:12 AM

]

a dangerous felon known as Icicle.