Super-powered Killing Game with Randomized Super Powers

[MediumDaddyLena]

Hello everyone,

I'm working on a project that I realized today would be absolutely perfect for a large-group RP. I have not taken part in one in ages, but I'd like to run my concept as a sort of Game-Master if I can gather enough players.

I'll preface by saying this: I've always thought that having a super power that matched a characters personality perfect felt.... somehow wrong. I've wondered how characters would respond to receiving random powers that, in some cases, maybe don't match them at all. Many years ago a friend and I took this concept and made a document with 200 superpowers and then used random.org to assign powers to our characters and then again to determine how strong the power was.

Right now, I'm taking that document and refining it. Removing powers that are too similar, or just plain jokes we threw in to reach 200 back in the day. I'm calculating probability on how likely certain powers should be over others, and considering what variants may exist of different powers. After beginning all this work, I decided I had to find some way to put it to use.

What I imagined was a killing game. A group of characters are thrown into one on an island somewhere ala Battle Royale or the Hunger Games and each is injected with a serum that grants them a random power. My thought is that these will be completely random, leading to some people being.... much stronger than others. But just like in real life, with cunning and strategy sometimes the weak can overcome the strong. I want to warn any potential players not to have any expectation of fairness, since we are not 'competing in a game' so much as 'crafting a story together'.

I'm working on a system and lore that would allow characters to earn new serums in the middle of the RP to gain power, and allow for something a little more complex than 'one person leaves' since that discourages proper teamwork and interaction between characters. For the moment, I'm imagining a point system where kills and other achievements earn points and characters must compete to 'buy' their way off the island.

I'd also love creative input on my list of powers(I want it to be as diverse and thorough as possible) and the economy of a point based killing game, especially if the idea sounds interesting but you don't want to take part. If interested in taking part, consider that having the pool of potential powers be a surprise may be more fun before volunteering.

Looking forward to hearing from you all. :>

[Dark Cloud]

@MediumDaddyLena I like the idea, the element of randomness intrigues me.

[MediumDaddyLena]

@Dark Cloud Thank you! I find that random is often more fun than balanced, especially in any form of storytelling. My hope is that we have situations like one person being so strong others band together to stop them, or an upset where someone with a 'weak' power is craft and beats someone with a 'strong' one. Obviously stories where the strong/lucky one just goes on a rampage and 'wins' their way off the island exist but those are fun in their own right.

I've made a lot of progress on the system so far today, but the economy is proving tricky. I don't think I can truly balance it until I know how many characters will be involved in the roleplay.

[Agunimon]

This sounds very fun. I used to do something similar with a character in tabletop superhero games, running a "lottery" power and rolling random ones to manifest at given times. I have been sticking to one on ones lately but this sounds like a good time in a group. If you are looking for input, I would say that points-based killing would have to be thought over a lot before committing to it. Unless players can run more than one character, or there are "NPCs" able to killed off, there might not be many opportunities to earn points that way. But in general the idea for an economy isn't a bad one.

If I may ask as well, what kind of aesthetic are you going for? Battle Royale and Hunger Games both have characters that skew younger. Were you looking for like an anime-style high school killing game, or a grittier more realistic adult cast?

[MediumDaddyLena]

@Agunimon To address the first half, I specifically don't intend on every PC being able to win/escape. Rather, I think it needs to be rare/difficult enough that most of the cast should die, even if I'm not restricting it to a single winner. My main goal with the point system is to prevent situations where characters have absolutely no real merit to teaming up and working together since only one person survives. Would make a boring RP, IMO. If a group of 2 or even 3 can live together under the right circumstances, it allows us to see that potential as well as interesting circumstances if their situation changes(IE, a group of 3 can win together and teams up, but someone else wins, so suddenly only 2 within that group of 3 can win and someone has to be betrayed.)

As far as aesthetic.... I don't specifically want an underage only cast like most popular killing games, but I'm not restricting it either. I actually think a diverse cast that includes both younger and older cast members would be interesting. Ignoring the age range though the vibe I'd ideally like is a realistically dark one that doesn't exist solely to glorify that darkness, if that makes sense. I like the idea of leaving enough room for fluffy happy moments to fuel the angst that'll inevitably happen as circumstances shift.

[Agunimon]

@MediumDaddyLena That makes sense, it's a fine idea. Having a certain number of winners would definitely add a lot more options and drama to the story. And for the second point, yes it does makes sense. And I agree, having a mix of ages, backgrounds, etc. would only improve the story. For example, an older character that couldn't bear to attack youngers and seeks out other adults, or something like that. I don't have a preference myself, I was just wondering. Thanks for the answers. I will certainly keep an eye out if you decide to run the RP!

[Dark Cloud]

Hrm well I wouldn't want to die at the very beginning, even if it has a slim chance of happening.

[MediumDaddyLena]

@Dark Cloud It's unfortunately possible. The good news is that this can easily be rerun multiple times, maybe even reusing characters to give them a second chance if it goes over well the first time. Being among the first deaths is a necessary risk to this sort of RP. Ideally the group is focused on storytelling rather than 'winning', at least when it comes to our OOC intent.

@AgunimonThank you for your input! When I create the OOC thread I might tag people from here in it so that they see it. It will likely take me another few days to fine tune all the details though, since I have plot and world building to accomplish after the raw systems are crafted.

[ERode]

I'll keep an eye on this for now. I'm guessing the idea is that we don't find out about our character's powers until the IC begins?

[MediumDaddyLena]

@ERode Exactly. I want them to be designed without the assigned powers in mind. That said, I've considered having a portion of the RP before giving them to players but.... I feel like that might be too slow paced and ultimately boring for the start. In fact.....

For anyone interested, would you prefer a scene exists where the cast mingle before the powers and killing game are revealed, or do you prefer that the characters get thrown right into things?

[Agunimon]

@ERode Exactly. I want them to be designed without the assigned powers in mind. That said, I've considered having a portion of the RP before giving them to players but.... I feel like that might be too slow paced and ultimately boring for the start. In fact.....

For anyone interested, would you prefer a scene exists where the cast mingle before the powers and killing game are revealed, or do you prefer that the characters get thrown right into things?

@MediumDaddyLena

Well what are you considering for the set up? Kidnapees forced into it, or volunteers (with or without knowing it's a killing game)? If the former, I think being thrown right in might be better for a more exciting start. For the later, the mingling beforehand could provide some relationship building before having to ultimately start fighting each other.

[MediumDaddyLena]

@Agunimon More like kidnapped victims. I'm still considering different plot ideas so I won't post any of my ideas here for now, but my general idea in my head is that they wake up in the situation without knowing what's going on, at first. I'll probably come up with an origin story that's flexible so players don't have to match their character to the opening as strictly.

[ERode]

A set up where the characters are forced to participate in a killing game is very different from a set up where characters know they are going to participate in a killing game. You'll probably also have a higher chance of people just going "ok my power's pretty good...AT ESCAPING THIS GAME SEE YA LOSERS" in the former scenario, especially because randomized powers and no singular author would allow things to go whack fast.

[Dark Cloud]

@MediumDaddyLena How many people are you hoping for?

[Cu Chulainn]

Seems interesting. Count me in, potentially~

[MediumDaddyLena]

You'll probably also have a higher chance of people just going "ok my power's pretty good...AT ESCAPING THIS GAME SEE YA LOSERS" in the former scenario,

@ERode

You're not wrong. I've been considering that myself, since many powers would be..... difficult to keep under wraps at higher levels. (Power to fly go brrrrr) They are superpowers after all. For that, I've been considering taking inspiration from media like Danganronpa where people trapped in the game have some form of blackmail/outside insurance forcing them to take part. I too enjoy characters who are self serving or have no sense of self preservation, so binding them to an external motivation might help things as well.

@Dark Cloud It depends how many players everyone will play. Depending on how many people are interested, I'm leaning towards something like 6 players 2 characters each or 8+ players one character each. I'd like to avoid having to interact/kill off between your own characters as much as possible, so if we can roll with one character I'd like to have at least 8 players so that the game has some depth. The maximum I'd likely consider is 12 individual players because that's the most I can imagine before it's far too crowded to sustain without dividing players up into groups somehow.

[Noxious]

I think it's pretty easy to nip the escape plan part in the bud. I mean, the powers were given to them by someone who has the ability to hand out powers. I would just go ahead and assume anyone handing out super powers for a game and a few lols would have some pretty intense stuff hidden up their sleeves. Omega powers, the ability to have the powers removed or only active within a certain area. You could explain the lack of escape a million different ways. "There are atom destruction rays pointed at the perimeter of the playing field and anyone attempting to cross will be removed from existence." "There are omega level powered guardians who have the power to warp reality and just move your character back into the play field." "The powers are activated by an ultrasonic frequency. Moving out of the play range, and the range of the sound, removes all abilities and leaves the player weakened as they adjust."

[Dark Cloud]

@Cu Chulainn Eyyy it's my favorite person.

[MediumDaddyLena]

@Noxious Thanks for the input. Honestly, I feel a little silly for not thinking about the situation the exact same way. I think it's mostly because I've been slacking on the world building so far in favor of focusing on the raw background systems that inspired this concept. Your reply gave me a lot of ideas, so I'm going to work on catching that up a little bit right now.

Are you perhaps interested in joining once I get everything prepared as well?

[Noxious]

Definitely keeping my eye on it. I have been on a mega hiatus so I don't want to join just to disappoint, but I am tentatively throwing my hat in the ring.

In regards to thinking about the specifics, it seems like making random power generator has consumed a majority of time so don't get down on yourself there! Very cool undertaking all around!