The Unmitigated Gaul

Asterix, also known as Asterix The Gaul, Asterix and Obelix, or The Adventures of Asterix, is a franchise based on the French Comic Strips and Albums of the same name(s) created by René Goscinny (Writer) and Albert Uderzo (Artist) and originally published in the Franco-Belgian comics magazine Pilote, first released in 1959.

I am a big fan of the Asterix comics - 41 Volumes as of this post selling over 393 million copies in 111 language across the world - as well as the animated films - a dozen of those I believe - and the recent 3D Computer Animation series Asterix and Obelix: The Big Fight (in French) on Netflix (based on the story from a comic album published in 1966). I haven't seen any of the 5 live-action outings yet - two of which were among France's high grossing films! - as I'm nervous they won't be able to duplicate the feel of their illustrated counterparts. 

Like the Smurfs, I first came across those in both French and English adaptions when I was very young and so I was familiar with Asterix and his adventures long before they'd gained any kind of widespread footing in the book and comic book stores of the USA. In addition to the artwork and humor, I loved the mix of History and Fantasy. As with Smurfs, there was an occasional anachronistic twist on the setting and its inhabitants that was expertly handled and so I pretty much fell in love with it.

 

The premise is fairly simple and nearly every Asterix story begins...

The year is 50 BC. Gaul is entirely occupied by the Romans. Well, not entirely... One small village of indomitable Gauls still holds out against the invaders.

The mighty Legions of the Roman Empire, four of which camp not too far from this small Gaul village, have been unable to defeat these 'barbarians' as they possess a secret weapon; their Druid Panoramix (Getafix in English versions) has created a potion that temporarily gives the imbuer Superhuman Strength. In addition, one member of the village, Obelisk, has permanently enhanced strength as he fell into a cauldron of the concontion when he was a child.

As with all things that interest and/or inspire me, at some point I have to ask myself, "How do I game this?" 

As it turns out, Asterix is no stranger to gaming. 15 Board Games, a few dozen Computer/Video Games, and even a series of 10 'Choose Your Own Adventure' style Gamebooks have been produced over the decades since 1970. Impressive, no? Of course, I'm talking about Tabletop Roleplaying Games and it's very likely I'm the only one crazy enough to want to...wait a sec. What's this?

Indominable Gauls by Thomas M. Grenery is an Asterix inspired game that uses an interesting mechanic based on the game Cthulhu Dark [as I understand]. It is very clearly Asterix with the numbers filed off and that's not a criticism. That was basically the objective and he achieved his goal. 

So we have our Asterix game, yes? It would certainly make my life a lot easier to just use this instead of trying to make my own version, if indeed I was looking to run an Asterix RPG. Well...I do intend to do this, I've never been one for 'the easy way' if there might be 'a better way', and I actually do I a system in mind. 

I think Asterix and his world could benefit from the game system designed to run the adventures of our gallant Gaul's Franco-Belgian Comics cousins the Smurfs. 

Please note this is a fan made creation. As of this writing Maestro Media does not have the license to and is not making an Asterix RPG to my knowledge. If that changes in the future, call me guys. 😉

Gamemechanix

The core rules of the Smurfs RPG regarding Character Creation, Difficulty Level/Dice, and how Actions are resolved will largely remain the same. Probably identical at their most basic level. Having one 'Specialty' or signature ability that can lower the Difficulty Dice as well as Expending Effort will also be handled in the same way.

Where things get interesting is that Smurfberries and Smurf Power would need to be renamed or replaced, especially Smurf Power. I am thinking I need something that simulates how the Gaul Villagers become Super Strong once they drink their magic potion and that should be more reliable than the way Smurf Power works but also perhaps more rare.

Rare or infrequent isn't really the correct terms though. Conditional or Contingent Upon is a better way to put it. Their Superpower comes from drinking this elixir and it lasts X amount of time and that's it. There is no way to spend points to that. It either happens within the context of the narrative or it doesn't. 

Asterix getting his drink of the Magic Potion in Asterix and Obelix: The Big Fight

Maybe. I am suddenly thinking of an alternate approach wherein one can spend or activate a condition, like how Smurf Power functions, to gain Super Strength but you need to explain it. 

GM: Your group is surrounded by Romans who happen to have lions with them. It seems they were taking them to the Colosseum when they ran nto you.

Gaul Player 1: Lions?! Well that does it! I activate my Indominable Power! Now I have Super Strength (However I decide to have that function mechanically)! 

GM: Wow! How did you get a potion?

(You must come up with a reason why you have a potion handy if not anywhere near one).

Gaul Player 1: Uh...wait! Remember when I was discussing with Druid whether the potion would still work if reheated or frozen? Well I took a small vial to test my idea at some point and still have it on me.

GM: Ah-ha! Most fortunate! The vial is small though so it will only last one round.

Gaul Player 1: That's all I need! *Rolls up sleeves*

I'll need to think on this some more and test it in play a few times and see if anything else needs major adjustments. Overall, I think the conversion from the Smurfs to Asterix should be pretty smooth. 

Theatrix

A key component of Asterix's charm are the characters and the interactions between them. The Roleplaying opportunities abound! While its pretty obvious that Asterix and Obelix are best pals and Dogmatix is just the best friend doggo a Gaul could have. The rest of the village is a bit more complicated and surprisingly nuanced. 

While the men of the village seem to do all the things - Vitalstatistix (French: Abraracourcix) is the Village Chief, Fulliautomatix (French: Cétautomatix) is the Blacksmith, Unhygenix (French: Ordralfabétix) is the Fishmonger, etc. - it is the women of the village that have the real power, at least to a considerable extent.

A Variety of Female Characters from the Asterix Franchise

The wives of the aforementioned villagers are crucial to the smooth operation and continual existence of this group of Gauls. For example, Chief's wife Impedimenta (French: Bonemine) has numerous flaws but fights along side the men against the Romans, often wielding a Rolling Pin as a club. She is not only a good fighter and the village's best cook but is often able to rein in the chaos of the rest of the village when her husband can not. 

Many of the relationships and therefore the characters themselves are very old. The Druid Getafix (French: Panoramix) and the eldest villager Geriatrix (French: Agecanonix) are depicted as looking exactly the same in prequel and flashback stories that show the rest of the villagers as children or very young adults. Geriatrix makes references to having fought in a number of earlier wars and has knowledge of other villages long gone. Imagine playing an older character who remembers fighting Romans before the magic potion!

So many ideas in this category, I could easily write an entire post just on character concepts and stories. Hmm. Perhaps the 'Motivation' entry on the Smurfs Character Sheet could be modified to Relationship so you can identify what other character is important to your PC and why.

Geographix

Where does Asterix take place? Obviously Gaul, in the year 50 B.C.. On to the next...OK, OK, I'll expand on this. 

The Gaulish Village of Asterix and his friends is a seaside town, giving the inhabitants easy access to as much fish as they like. Unfortunately, they are somewhat limited in where they can travel by the four encampments of Roman Legionnaires near by (See above). 

That said, the villagers and their stories go all over the place in the Asterix Comics thanks to use of their magic potion, clever trickery, and dealings with those in power from other lands. Asterix and Obelix have gone to Roman, assisted Cleopatra in Egypt, and traveled to Spain, Germany, and Britain to name just a few of their exstensive travels. 

Sometimes the adventures come to them. Other Gaul tribes occasionally stop by to ask Chief Vitalstatistix and/or Getafix the Druid for assistance. The villagers are constantly confronted by Roman Soldiers of course. Additionally, Asterix's group of Gauls has been visited by the Normans (in the comics. The Vikings in the animated film adaption) and Huevos Y Bacon, the leader of a small town near Montilla in Hispania (Spain), and his son Pepe. 

I can see a nearly limitless series of scenarios of mixing Comedy, Action, Adventure, and Historical Fiction. That's not even addressing the Fantastic Elements of the franchise. 

Mythologix

Asterix takes a really interesting approach to Magic and Mythology. While there definitely is magic as evidenced by the Magic Potion that grants Super Strength, in many other cases the mystical falls more squarely into the realm of heresay and folklore.

Gods of both the Gauls and the Romans are referenced regularly but never seen in the 'flesh', nor do they appear to directly effect the stories in any physical way. In Asterix and The Griffin, the rumored half-eagle and half-lion creature is revealed to be a dinosaur skeleton frozen in a lake. 

However...in some stories and the animated films, the Magic Potion if made improperly can create other effects such as causing people to change color, glow, fly, and even give Getafix 'telekinetic' control over the imbuer. We've seen other evil Druids perform tricks of their own and Sulfurix (aka Demonix) [in Asterix and The Secret of the Magic Potion] grew into a giant after following into a puddle of bad potion. 

So are there 'real' magical creatures, spells, and/or gods in Asterix. It would seem the answer is...maybe. Yes?

Does magic exist? The answer is certainly yes. It takes a subtle hand and a bit of finesse to balance the nature and supernatural worlds of Asterix's setting in my opinion. Personally I love this sort of thing but I can see it being difficult to resist adding a host of witches and dragons and other major sorcerous elements. It can be done but takes a little mental effort to keep the feel of the comics authentic. 

Appendix

This project obviously needs a lot more thought and work but I was so jazzed about it I figured I'd share what I did have. If you have any suggestions, questions, or ideas on the subject I'd love to hear from you. 

Thanks for indulging me and onward ho!

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Barking Alien

RPGaDay 2024 - Barking Alien Edition - Day 14

This is tricky to answer as it's difficult to pick my favorite campaign setting.  

I could easily go with Star Trek and explain why even after 42 years of running campaigns set in that universe, I still love to do so and probably will for 42 more. Honestly, I feel like I've discussed the subject before or I am very likely to do so in the future. It's also...too easy. Too expected. 

Instead, let me tell you why I don't generally like Medieval Fantasy but I do enjoy running my D&D-But-Not setting of Aerth, the world of The Winghorn Guard.

First created in 1982 for a campaign called 'The Winghorn Guard', the main idea behind the game is the same reason it remains special to me. The concept was simple, 'Run a Dungeons and Dragons campaign using the Gamemaster advice from a Superhero game'. Instead of planning to do a Medieval Fantasy game using ideas from the Advanced D&D Dungeon Master's Guide , I based how to go about running the game using what I'd learned from years of reading comic books like Marvel's Avengers and DC's Legion of Superheroes. Eventually, when I purchased Villains and Vigilantes [2nd Edition], I used the Gamemaster advice in that game to supplement what I was already doing. 

Giving Dungeons and Dragons 'Four Color' Superhero Comic Book elements allowed the game to have a unique identity and feel. I was able to focus on aspects of world-building and adventure design that emphasized the heroics, ethics, and emotions of the PCs, while de-emphasizing the murderhobo approach. The money, violence, and quest for power normally attributed to traditional D&D PCs are what the bad guys are concerned with on Aerth.

My objective was to inject Medieval Fantasy and Folklore with something I understood a lot better and that, at the time, was Silver to Bronze Age comics. The results were very successful and continue to be four decades later.

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Barking Alien

BONUS FEATURE: Day 14 of the official RPGaDay 2024 Prompts:

What about them, eh? What makes a character compelling?

That's definitely a subject that could take up an entire post (good job official challenge!) and may be too broad a topic for a 'BONUS FEATURE' entry. 

I'll say this; it isn't always clear at the onset what will make for a compelling character. Often times players write multi-page backstories for their PCs not thinking about the fact that what they (really the player) might find really interesting is something they hadn't considered or didn't even know about when making up the character. 

As an example, my Hogwarts/Wizarding World PC, Frank Pellgrove, was created with an eye toward making him less interested in and effective at casting spells or brewing potions but really good with Care of Magical Creatures and Herbology. These were two things I knew most other players wouldn't give much thought to.

At some point during the campaign he helped birth a Hippocampus (mythological fish tailed horse) in the Hogwarts lake and became especially interested in aquatic beasts thereafter. In follow up sessions he would take an interest in boats, other sea creatures, and it was suggested to him that he might someday get a job as the Wizarding World's equivalent of a Marine Biologist.

These were profund moments for Frankie and ones that intertwined with and challenged his sense of self. Now, after roughly 6 or 7 years playing Frank, he's a much more compelling character than I ever would have expected. 

Bottomline is don't limit yourself to what you think would be compelling. Start with a basic concept, an outlook on life, and then through play allow yourself to be compelled. Give it a try!

Among The Spider-Verse

As I think I've said before, while I've always liked Spider-Man, he's never been my favorite Comic Book Superhero. He's definitely cool - great costume, interesting and unusual power set - but Spidey's down-to-earth-everyman nature, the very thing that makes him so popular, just didn't excite me. I was always more attracted to the larger-than-life cosmic adventure type characters, with my favorite comic books being Green Lantern and The Legion of Superheroes.

This all changed with the creation of Miles Morales and the Spider-Verse. In both cases, I'm talking about the Marvel Comic Books here, with Miles' first appearance in 2011 and writer Dan Slott's Spider-verse storyline that ran in The Amazing Spider-Man and throughout several tie-ins in 2014 through 2015.

Something about the character of Miles grabbed me in a way Peter Parker never did and honestly, I can't really say exactly why that is. Maybe it was getting in on the 'ground floor'; I saw his character emerge just as the rest of comicdom did. He was Spider-Man, a Spider-Man I suppose you could say, that was instantly familiar yet very different and definitely his own character.

With the Spider-Verse, well my love of that concept is likely unsurprising to anyone whose been on this blog for any length of time. I am fascinated by the idea of a Multiverse and the possibilities of Alternate Realities. Making Spider-Man the key to a saga about Parallel Universes was really engaging to a classic DC Comics guy like myself. 

In between these new additions to the Marvel Comics milieu, Margaret Weis Productions published the Marvel Heroic Roleplaying Game. In a demo of the game run at my friendly local game store I actually got to play Spider-Man and it gave me a new appreciation for the character. He was a fun character to play, to be for a time. Maybe I thought, he's more fun to read about and explore than I'd thought.

Fast forward to 2018 and the groundbreaking Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse and my mind was blown. The movie was incredible, both narratively and visually. Absolutely incredible. With the recent release of the film's sequel, Spider-Man: Across The Spider-Verse, I was completely brought back to that moment of WOW I had seeing the first Spider-Verse movie. 

Over the decades, I have run and played a lot of Superhero RPGs and in a few of them we've had some variation of the character of Spider-Man. Now I'm not talking about someone simply playing Spidey in a game of, say, Marvel Super Heroes or Marvel Heroic. I'm talking about a PC designed to be an alternate version of the Spider-Man character. Between Alternate Earth one-shots and campaigns, a Champions campaign visiting a Parallel Marvel world, and a homage to the Spider-Verse films themselves, it turns out I've encountered quite a few Spider-Men. Spider-Mans? Spider-People?

Follow me on an RPG tour of the characters I've seen that dwell...Among The Spider-Verse.

Armored-Man (Peter Parker of Earth-GC82092)

Art by Midjourney AI and modified by me in Photostudio.

Secret Origin: Armored-Man was a pre-generated PC created by Villains & Vigilantes Gamemaster Mark Olsen for a two session run at the Gen Con Gaming Convention in 1992. The players chose their characters by blind pick and a young man got this one and ran with it. The Player created the character's backstory and I came up with the name when my own character, in-game, referred to him as 'The Amazing Armored-Man'. 

Peter Parker, a science prodigy and inventor, missed the infamous science exhibit where he would have been bitten by a Radioactive Spider when he was almost hit by a car! That car belonged to billionaire industrialist Tony Stark of Stark Industries. One thing led to another and Stark took on Parker as a intern, then an employee, and eventually a close confidant and friend. Parker helped perfect the 'Iron Man' Class Battlesuit that Stark was planning on selling to SHIELD. Unfortunately Stark never got the chance, as an attack of industrial sabotage left Tony Stark dead and destroyed the Iron Man Prototype. Only...it didn't. 

While Stark was indeed murdered, Parker managed to escape the burning facility using the Battlesuit and proceeded to track down and defeat the saboteurs. He turned the criminals over to SHIELD but kept the survival of the Iron Man Armor out of the report. It would turn out that Tony's will left a large portion of the company to Peter and the younger man continued to work on the suit in a hidden workshop below Stark Industries Headquarters. Sometime later, Uatu the Watcher would assemble a team of secret superbeings on this Earth to thwart the threat of a malfunctioning artifact known as The Cosmic Sphere. Parker was among the chosen and used his most updated suit for the adventure. Never intending to become a 'superhero' Parker simply introduced himself to his fellow adventurers by his real name. He received the name 'Armored-Man' from fellow hero Superguard.

The armor had many impressive abilities such as Repulsor/Tractor Ray Emitters, Super Strength, Computer Enhanced Senses, and made the wearer nearly-invincible to physical harm. One of its most clever features were the repulsor jets in the boots that enabled the user to fly but could also be reversed so as to pull things to him or him to things. As a result, Armored-Man could 'attach' himself to surfaces by tractor beams and walk on walls! 

The Black Spider (King T'Challa of Wakanda of Earth-71966-M)

Illustration by Me based on illustrations by Frank Cho

Secret Origin: The Black Spider, along with The Golden Age Spider Man (see below), was a PC created for a Superhero One-Shot I ran soon after seeing Into The Spider-verse titled 'Spiderpocalypse!'. This particular character was the creation of my good friend Arthur, a member of 'Dan's Group' with whom I run Star Trek Adventures and play our Hogwarts homebrew. Arthur's idea was to pose and answer the question, 'What if Wakanda's founding was tied not to the Cat God/Goddess Bast but instead the Spider God Anansi?'

King T'Challa is the ruler of the highly advanced African nation of Wakanda, a hidden utopia gifted with the blessings of Anansi, the Akan Trickster God of knowledge, stories, and wisdom. These gifts manifest in the form of massive deposits of Vibranium and a Heart-Shaped Herb that grants T'Challa the powers of 'The Black Spider'. The mantle of The Black Spider is a hereditary position passed down from the first kings of Wakanda onward to T'Challa in the modern day. The Black Spider, through a potion made from the Heart-Shaped Herb and Spider Venom, possess powers such as Super Strength, Super Agility, Super Leaping, a Danger Sense, and a number of Trickster abilities such as Merging into Shadows, Moving Silently, and an amazing ability to Disguise his voice and appearance out of costume. 

Speaking of his costume, The Black Spider's suit is a wonder of Wakandan technology. Lightweight and as flexible as cloth, the costume has Vibranium mesh and is highly resistant to attacks by kinetic/concussive force. The suit allows The Black Spider to Cling to Surfaces, generate Webs, and gives him retractable Claws in the fingertips of his gloves. 

Captain Spider (Steven 'Steve' Parker of Earth-BL2001-M)

Like the Action Figure he is based on,

I made him out of cut and pasted images

and repainted parts.

Secret Origin: Sometime around 2005, maybe earlier, I lived in NYC's Chinatown and everyday I would pass a particular store on my way to work. It sold bootleg and knock-off products - bags, shoes, toys, etc.. One day I saw this Action Figure...it had Spider-Man's head, painted blue, atop the body of a Captain America figure in inverted colors. A white spider sticker was placed on his chest as well as the center of a miscolored shield. Every day I would look at it and wonder, 'Who is this supposed to be?"

In my minds-eye this wasn't a bootleg figure but a toy representing the most popular hero of some Parallel Earth. He was, um, Captain Spider! I told my then wife about it and said, "It's only $5. If it's still there Friday, I'm buying it."

Selina, in her typical psychic fashion replied, "It might be gone." Gone? Who would buy something like that other then me? Fast forward to Friday and as you probably guessed, it was no longer there. Never saw it again. I like to think it wasn't purchased but rather it shifted back to its own dimension. 

My idea is that on Earth-BL2001-M, during the Second World War, a young army man named Steve Parker volunteered for an experiment to create the USA's first Super Soldier. A secret serum and some vita-rays later and...nothing. Nothing happened. The project was a failure...or so they thought! Some days later Parker is bitten by a spider and its venom reacted strangly with the serum in his blood. He becomes Captain Spider, the American Arachnid! The Star-Spangled Spider-Man! Give those Ratzis hell Spidey!

I got the chance to play a version of Captain Spider in our ol' Kapow! campaign with a new secret identity and slightly different backstory. 

Interesting, this independently devised backstory is remarkably similar to the one for my friend Leo's Golden Age Spider Man. (See below). 

Creepy Crawler (Eugene Enfield of Earth-WC871-M / Challengers Earth-Mu WC1)

Based on a Spider-Man illustration by Dave Williams

Secret Origin: Creepy Crawler appeared as an NPC in my friend William Corpening's long running Champions campaign 'The Age of Champions'. My specific encounter with him was in our 'Age of Chaos' era of the campaign. During a multi-part adventure titled, 'The Dark Trinity Event' (or something like that), our Champions campaign world - Champions Earth-Wilcox Charlie-1 - encountered the heroes and villains of two Parallel Earths: The DC Comics world of Champion League Earth-Delta Ceti-WC1 and the Marvel themed Challengers Earth-Mu-WC1. During this adventure, the big bads of three different Earths tried to merge their worlds and absorb the life energy of all those killed in the process of doing so.

Will likely created Creepy Crawler as a background element, a touch of local color to remind the players the universe they were interacting with was a Marvel type of universe. After all, a Marvel-like setting absolutely needs a Spider-Man. Of course with Will Corpening, nothing is incidental. No character is just an extra. Everyone you meet has a story, personality, and a reason to be there. 

At one point in the game my street level alternate character The New Yorker found himself on Challengers Earth-Mu-1 and saw a gaggle of six sinister supervillains beating up on one young hero. After falling about 20 feet onto the pavement from an aerial battle with one opponent, the black clad super-teen wasn't moving and New Yorker ran to his aid. Removing his mask, New Yorker found out he was 'just a kid', albeit one with some weird superpowers.

After a quick reassurance to the boy that everything would be alright, The New Yorker turned his attention to the six bad guys. By 'attention' I mean brass knuckles, a crow bar, hitting one with a car (driven not thrown) and a lot of face punching. I mean A LOT. Thanks to an upgrade/assist from a Champion League Earth-DC-1 hero named Fusion, the otherwise outclassed New Yorker unloaded a Yankee Stadium worth of payback on Creepy Crawler's assailants, forcing the still conscious ones to retreat. New Yorker than took the kid, who revealed his first name to be Eugene, to a nearby hospital. New Yorker waited while the doctors got to work even though Crisis on Three Earths was going on outside. The New Yorker was kind of a joke character but after this I, and the rest of the gaming group, starting treating him more seriously and with respect. 

Eugene Enfield was a sickly orphan kid from Staten Island who was raised by his Aunt and Uncle after his parents' mysterious disappearance. A genius fascinated by all things that crawled, skittered, slithered, and squirmed, Eugene collected and studied the biology of bugs, lizards, snakes, worms, and especially spiders. By the age of sixteen, Eugene was taking college courses in biochemistry, genetics, and hoped to develop a way to change his own medical conditions using the amazing advantages he'd found within the critters he loved that so many others considered icky. 

One night, while working in his home lab, a burglar broke into his family's house. His Aunt and Uncle confronted the crook who panicked and shot his Aunt. As she began to fade away right in his Uncle's arms, Eugene injected himself with an as yet untested serum that rapidly re-wrote his DNA, turning him into a hideous but powerful superbeing. While he managed to quickly and easily defeat the criminal, his appearance terrified his Uncle and Eugene was forced to run from the house with burglar in tow. Eventually he left the baddie webbed to a lamppost in a nearby town while he hid in a heavily wooded area where he tried to control his monstrous transformation. Eugene ended up passing out and waking the next morning seemingly back to normal. He returned home to discover his Aunt had gone to the hospital and his Uncle in dire straights. Believing Eugene had been kidnapped by either the burglar or the monster from the night before, his Uncle shed tears of joy upon seeing him. Then and there Eugene decided to use his new capabilities to protect the weak, defend the innocent, and scare the living crap out of the criminal element. 

Creepy Crawler is and very much isn't Spider-Man. His powers are similar: Super Strength, Super Agility, Wall Crawling, and Webs (which are biologically generated like Tobey Maguire's Spider-Man) but also near invisible Camouflage, Multi-Faceted Eyes, a Paralyzing Venomous Bite, Regeneration, and more. In some ways he's more like DC's Animal Man but limited to a group of thematic creatures. Changing abilities too quickly or too often under duress or stress causes Eugene to physically mutate, exhibiting such traits as insect eyes, lizard-like skin, and suction cup growths on his hands and feet for example. His largely black costume is designed to hide his appearance as much as possible.

That said, he sometimes purposely shows his lower face and mouth, takes off a glove, or something similar to reveal his frightening appearance when it manifests. In this way he is more akin to Batman, using fear to intimidate lesser opponents so he doesn't have to fight and hurt them. 

The Golden Age Spider Man (Benjamin 'Ben' Parker of Earth-82817)

Art by Kitbash and Modification n Photostudio 

Secret Origin: The Golden Age Spider Man, along with The Black Spider (see above), was a PC created for a Superhero One-Shot I ran soon after seeing Into The Spider-verse titled 'Spiderpocalypse!'. The character was created by my pal Leo, a member of both 'Dan's Group' and my Sunday Night Group. He plays First Officer and Chief Science Officer Mr. Solok in Star Trek Adventures, The Paladin in our Champions campaign, and as Arimus Bonaventure in our Hogwarts homebrew.

Daily Bugle reporter John Jonah Jameson and photographer Benjamin 'Ben' Parker were on assignment in Europe covering the activities of the Allies greatest heroes, none other than Captain America and The Invaders, during the height of the Second World War. A surprise attack on the Invaders left Jameson dead and Parker badly injured. In the instant an explosive device shattered their camp, Ben Parker flung himself to knock Captain America clear of danger, saving the First Avenger but at the cost of being fatally wounded and the loss of the life of Parker's long time friend J. Jonah Jameson. Captain America insisted on a blood transfusion to help save Parker, even though that might have unexpected consequences given the Super Soldier Serum in Cap's veins. Luckily, Parker lived and there were no unusual side effects. At least not right away...

Weeks later on a mission in a jungle environment, Parker was bitten by a venomous spider while tagging along with Capt. America and his team, continuing his role as wartime photographer. The spider bite reacted with the Super Soldier Serum giving Parker spectacular spider-like abilities! After a crash training course and the development of 'Web-Shooter' Pistols and a colorful costume, Ben joined the Invaders as Spider Man. 

[The Golden Age] Spider Man has the same suite of superpowers as the typical Spidey, though he seems physically stronger but slightly less agile. His pistol-like Web-Shooters can fire 'Web Bullets' that explode into a large web upon impact or he can hold the trigger to fire a long stream (for spraying or swinging for example). 

The Spider-Man (Eugene 'Flash' Thompson of Earth-AD6163-M)

Art by Midjourney AI and modified by Me in Photostudio

Secret Origin: This variant of Spidey was the creation of my friend Daniel Grant and myself as part of the backstory for his version of the Prowler [his PC in our 'What If?' Marvel Super Heroes campaign, The Sentinels.]. Dan knew he wanted to create a heroic Prowler and needed both an antagonist and a motivation for his character to become a costumed vigilante and fight crime. It only made sense, given the fact that Marvel Comics' Prowler is part of Spider-Man's rogue's gallery, to make Spider-Man the arch-enemy of Dan's character.

In the midst of bullying his classmate Peter Parker, high school jock Eugene 'Flash' Thompson was bitten by a radioactive spider on a field trip to a science exhibit, developing amazing superpowers such a Super Strength, Super Agility, a Danger Sense, and the ability to Cling to any surface. Flash intimidates Parker, a brilliant young scientist, forcing him to make Thompson a colorful costume and Web-shooters. With his new look and abilities, Thompson enters an Open Match Challenge to wrestle the Heavyweight Wrestling Champion. Not only does Flash win as 'The Spider-Man' but a TV producer offers to make him a star. Moments later The Spider-Man thwarts a criminal trying to steal the profits from the wrestling match. Within a very short time, The Spider-Man is a media sensation!

Never learning the great lesson of Uncle Ben, Flash Thompson thinks, 'With Great Power Comes No Responsibility'. Flash quickly becomes wealthy, popular, and even more of a jerk then he already was. His popularity is maintained through real and staged crime fighting, talk shows, and endorsing various products. One night, The Spider-Man decides he's 'too busy' to help the police stop a serial burglar in the Bronx who ends up robbing and killing the father of engineering student Hobart 'Hobie' Brown. Brown, a teenage inventor paying for Engineering School with a Window Washer job, decides to expose The Spider-Man for what he is, an attention whore and no hero. Brown creates a special suit and crime-fighting equipment and the ironic identity 'The Prowler'. 

The Prowler's encounter with The Spider-Man reveals the latter's true nature on live television. Additionally the public learns he's been continually blackmailing Peter Parker to keep Parker helping him and not going to the authorities. The fight between Prowler and The Spider-Man begins an ongoing feud between the two, with The Prowler repeatedly embarrassing and thwarting Thompson again and again. The Prowler's activities earn him the attention and respect of the superhero known as The Patriot and eventually a spot on the SHIELD sponsored superteam 'The Sentinels'.

Nowadays when I think about this character I think of a crooked version of DC's Booster Gold.

Spider-Woman (Patricia 'Patty' Parker of Earth-SC9509)

Art by Shunya Yamashita of Kotobukiya, modified by Me in Photostudio

Secret Origin: My criteria for this post was that each character had to be an intentional variant or version of Spider-Man. This one is therefore a special case. This Pre-Generated Player Character was created for a Marvel Super Heroes RPG one-shot at a gaming convention in the Fall of 1995 (If memory serves). It was not intended to be an Alternate Spider-Man but rather the traditional, classic, Earth-616 Peter Parker/Spider-Man you all know and love. Thanks to the jumbled memory of a very creative and entertaining young woman, we got this instead. 

I was hanging out with some friends between events and I happened to overhear a Marvel Super Heroes session occurring at a nearby table. Pre-generated characters were chosen or handed out and after some discussion with a friend of hers, one of the two female players said something like, "it's fine, I'll take Spider-Man. But I want to play a woman."

This confused the GM and he asked her if she wanted to change characters. He quickly looked through his notes and materials for another character but the player said, "No, no. I am playing Spider-Man. A female Spider-Man." At first this clearly irked the GM but he changed his tune after seeing the positive reactions from the other players.

Throughout the rest of the game the female player, let's call her Kate, established the personality of this PC and it was great! She had the character using wisecracking quips volleyed against the villains to hide a lack of assurance and a heap of self doubt. At the same, Kate had a weird view of Spidey's powers. She would pantomime shooting her webs with her hand out, palm down, more like a superhero blasting a ray than the typical way Spider-Man's web-shooting is depicted. She would often suggest her Spider-Woman could fly or glide. When corrected, 'Spider-Man can't fly', she would respond, "OK. Why the 'Web-Wings'?" There were other odds bits: references to her origin, background, and other elements that made me wonder, "Does this person know who Spider-Man is? Or...".

By the end of the game, Kate had made Spider-Woman, who she named Patty Parker, the MVP of the team. She also revealed that she'd never read a comic and really only knew about Spider-Man from the 1967 Animated Cartoon. It also became clear from her description that she was mixing the Spider-Man cartoon with that of Spider-Woman and Web-Woman. Her attempts to reconcile the different stories in her head resulting in this weird gestalt superheroine.

Weird, wild, and absolutely awesome. 

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I hate to end on a sad note but I must acknowledge a massive loss to the Comic Book Community and particularly to Spider-Man; John Romita Sr., the legendary illustrator who took over drawing The Amazing Spider-Man in 1966 from original artist Steve Ditko, passed away at the age of 93 on June 12th according to his son, John Romita Jr. (who is also a well known and celebrated Comic Book artist). 

Rest in Peace.

Rest in Peace, George Perez

Upon leaving the movie theater after having seen Doctor Strange and The Multiverse of Madness (which I shall discuss in a future post). 

To all of George’s fans and friends,

    Constance here, with the update no one wants to read. George passed away yesterday, peacefully at home with his wife of 490 months and family by his side. He was not in pain and knew he was very, very loved.

      We are all very much grieving but, at the same time, we are so incredibly grateful for the joy he brought to our lives. To know George was to love him; and he loved back. Fiercely and with his whole heart. The world is a lot less vibrant today without him in it.

       He loved all of you. He loved hearing your posts and seeing the drawings you sent and the tributes you made. He was deeply proud to have brought so much joy to so many.

        Everyone knows George’s legacy as a creator. His art, characters and stories will be revered for years to come. But, as towering as that legacy is, it pales in comparison to the legacy of the man George was.  George’s true legacy is his kindness. It’s the love he had for bringing others joy - and I hope you all carry that with you always.

     Today is Free Comic Book Day. A day George absolutely loved and a fitting day to remember his contributions to comics and to our lives. I hope you’ll enjoy your day today with him in mind. He would have loved that.

       Please keep his wife Carol in your thoughts and again, I thank you for respecting her privacy. I remain available through the contact on the page.

        George's memorial service will take place at MEGACON Orlando at 6pm on Sunday, May 22nd. It will be open to all. Details to follow. 

       We will miss him always.

I've been unable, until now, to properly convey my thoughts on the passing of my favorite comic book artist of all time, the one and only George Perez.

George Perez was the first comic book artist whose name I actually knew. Prior to his illustrating 'The New Teen Titans' (1980-1984), I absolutely adored comic books but it never occurred to me to know who made them. This all changed when my local comic book store announced, sometime in 1982 I believe, that writer Marv Wolfman and artist George Perez, the creative team on one of my favorite comics at the time, would be attending a comic book convention in New York City in the fall. I immediately got tickets and went with my friend Joe Cangelosi to meet with the people who made our beloved Titans.

We managed to speak with George and Marv before their panel, for some time actually, asking them questions, sharing our own superhero ideas, and generally getting to know them as people. When we went into the panel, Joe and I sat in the third or fourth row and were recognized by Marv and George and called on several times. Afterwards, I bought this massive poster of the Teen Titans which Perez signed on the back. It was one of my most cherished items when I was younger.

It was because of George Perez that I decided to go to the High School of Art and Design and the School of Visual Arts. I wanted to be a comic book artist. I knew it was a real job as I had met a real person with that job and he was happy.

Fast forward 25 years to my time working for Wizard World Conventions and getting to meet George Perez again. I was introduced to George by one of my bosses and I relayed to him the story of our first meeting. He kindly told me he didn't remember the events I described but he also didn't remember what he'd had for breakfast that morning. "It isn't you", he said with a smile. The next morning I randomly passed him in a hallway; he smiled, pointed at me, and said, "ADAM!" with his eyes wide. I chuckled and replied, "Yes, thank you. And you're George!" He laughed and walked on. We would talk maybe one or two more times that weekend and each time it was warm, friendly, and casual.

Sometime later, perhaps a few months, we (Wizard) were trying to get guests for an upcoming show. We had a neat idea for a series of panels on how comics were made and when it came time to get a writer I suggested Marv Wolfman. "Marv won't do it", I was told. "He doesn't like us." I asked if I could at least try and was given the go ahead as long as we had a few back-up plans.

I called Marv, introduced myself and why I was contacting him, and said, "before you consider the proposal, can I tell you a story about meeting you and George Perez when I was 13?" I proceeded to tell him what I told you above, with a few more details regarding some humorous anecdotes that had occurred during that first encounter in 1982. I also mentioned seeing George a few months prior. Marv asked if I'd told George the story. I of course told him I had and how George had responded. "Heh. That sounds just like George. It's been a while since we've spoken and longer since I've seen him. I miss him." Marv ended up signing on to the event and as George was a guest as well, the two got to chat which was worth everything to me. That was almost 15 years ago.

Today I learned of George's death and the disappearance from this world of yet another of my heroes. Although I was not close with him, I got to know him for a time. I got to speak to him, listen to him, know he listened to me, and make him laugh. What more could you ask for in this life? He will live on in my heart and memories as he will in the hearts and memories of his family, friends, and many, many fans. Tonight I raise a glass to George Perez, who disproves the adage that you shouldn't meet your heroes.

Mine was awesome.

Rest in Peace.

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Multiverse Mayhem in The Mighty Marvel Manner!

 Before I move on to discussing the various Japanese Tabletop RPGs that cover the Superhero genre (and thereabouts), I thought I'd share some news on an upcoming American Superhero TRPG that has come to my attention...

MARVEL MULTIVERSE ROLE-PLAYING GAME

Look at that cover! Wow. It has some awesome stuff on it, as well as some things that make me scratch my head a little. 

First, I like the title, Marvel Multiverse. It ties into the upcoming Doctor Strange and The Multiverse of Madness film as well as implying that each campaign you play, that anyone plays, exists somewhere in the infinite dimensions of space and time. Yes! Love it. 

If you read the full article, Matt Forbeck and the games' design team have done my kind of reinforcing of the IP and setting. Their new, original rules for the game are referred to as the D616 System, a homage to the main universe of Marvel Comics being Earth-616. The Attribute stats for a character appear to be Might, Agility, Resilience, Vigilance, Ego, and Logic. Yep, MARVEL and honestly I just did that from memory after reading it only once or twice. Clever on their part. I would say even easier to memorize than FASERIP (I can never remember what all of those letter stand for). 

Lastly, I love that the character in the forefront of the cover is yours. A silhouette that could be any hero but which intrinsically implies you can be the greatest hero Marvel has ever seen. Brilliant! A long way from Marvel Heroic's lack of built-in Character Creation and a mindset of 'Why wouldn't you want to play as Spiderman?". Maybe because I'm an Tabletop RPG gamer? I want to meet Spiderman. I don't want to BE Spiderman. I want to be someone I created and have them save Spiderman!

Now for some...odd choices on the cover and in the write up of the announcement.

First, who the heck is this supposed to be?

Is that supposed to be Thor? Just when I get done praising the designers for brand identity and marketing they gotta go and do dumb stuff like this. Are the art directors and editors working on this new to comics? Even if Thor looks like this now, by the time the book comes out in a year or so he definitely won't look anything like this. Why not draw him to more closely resemble the iconic image of Thor we'd all recognize. Even better, why not illustrate him so he resembles the MCU Thor. That is what is going to sell your game to fans of 'MARVEL the Entertainment Empire' as opposed to those who like Marvel Comics (smaller group) or gaming (waaay smaller group).   

The second thing that bugs me is in the title...Playtest Rulebook. It says the players can get the Playtest Rulebook and effect the shape of things to come as their feedback will be included in the final, complete version of the game due out a year later.

Are you saying...wait...does the Playtest Rulebook cost money? Are we, the fans and consumers, going to need to pay you in order to make your game for you? I know I'm being cynical here but it just sounds like we'd be buying an incomplete game that Marvel is going to complete a year latter using the fans' ideas and then sell then the book again. That may not be what's going on but that's what it sounds like. I could really use some clarification on how this is going to work. 

Still and all, I am looking forward to it. I haven't run or played a lot of games set in the Marvel universe, usually preferring my own setting or DC as I was once a huge DC Comics fan. Nowadays however, with the MCU in theaters and on TV, the upcoming What If? animated series and DC doing at terrible job of being DC, I could definitely see myself running another alternate universe Marvel game like I did way back when. 

I'll be following the developments of news of this one closely so check back and stay tuned.

Excelsior!

Now back to Japan...

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