Mutants & Masterminds: RPG

The M & M 2nd ed. book is simply an amazing RPG. Using a point build system, it allows for complete freedom to create and customize not just your character, but also their individual powers. You can also faithfully recreate virtually any superhero or anime character if you wanted. The "balance" in the system between powers is remarkable, considering the freedom given to character creation, and how insanely powerful some comic book villians can be. I do have two complaints however. All the freedom to create your character almost encourages players to make characters that try to abuse the point system, tacking on flaws to reduce power costs, while trying to circumvent the negative effect of the flaw in some way. Though the system is very good at making power flaws exactly that, there are a few small holes that, baring omnipotence on the part of the creator, are bound to crop up in any RPG. I strongly recommend that any GMs using this system have their players flesh out their character concept BEFORE letting them see the power list or even open the book, as I find this makes for more exciting and "theme based" characters, rather then "functionality-utility-handle-any-situation" characters. My other complaint is that an average toughness character or villian can easily roll poorly on a "toughness save" (a roll to resist damage) and be knocked out in one hit, as if they had a glass jaw. Since the system uses a d20 as the main (read: only) dice type needed, the roll obviously ranges from 1 to 20, with an equal (5%) chance to roll each number. Since degrees of success/failure on a toughness save are determined in increments of 5, a low toughness character can roll a 20 and laugh off an attack, while a much tougher character can roll a 1 and be severely hurt or knocked out by that same attack. The same holds true for attack and defense, though to a lesser extent. As a house rule, I have been experimenting with rolling 3d6 for attack and toughness rolls, giving a range of 3-18 and making the rolls more consistent (a much higher probability of getting average rolls rather then extremes). In conclusion, I HIGHLY recommend this book for anyone who enjoys superhero RPGs. In 9 years of GMing I have yet to find a superhero system I like better, and I look foward to a possible future edition.

I play a lot of PnP RPGs. In fact, I have one for every "Geek" in me. I have D & D for the "Fantasy-geek" in me, World of Darkness endulges my "Goth-geek", D20 Future keeps my "Sci-fi-geek" running as maximum power, and Castle Faulkenstein has a hold of the...uh..."Victorian-geek" in me. But for a long time, I could find nothing to satisfy my greatest Geek - the "Comic-geek." I tried using a little known system called Villains and Vigilantes, but my Comic-geek was not happy. I tried multiple systems people had created and posted online, and my Comic-geek cried. He had lost all hope. With his hopes shattered, he plunged himself of the Cliff of Roleplayersville, believe there was no place for him here. But, before he hit the ground, he came to a halt and began to ascend the cliff by some unknown source. He looked up and saw the sillouette of an amazing figure, cape waving in the breeze, it was the answer to his prays. The figure looked down at Comic-geek and said "Everything is going to be ok. I'm here now." The amazing figure was none other than Mutants and Masterminds. Though the book doesn't actually wear a cape, it's system is nothing short of a super-powered success. M & M's (go ahead, get the giggles out of your system. Good? Ok then.) system will be decently familiar to those of you who've played D & D, but don't be fooled. The system incorperates game mechanics all it's own, making sure the overall experience of a game session is just like an action packed comic book adventure. I started with the 1st Edition, and it was nothing short of amazing. However, even such a great system had it's fair share of problems, but I could live with them. Well, it looks like they took their slightly sputtery system in for a tune-up, and now she's purring like a kitten! There are a number of things that seperate M & M from the rest of the pack... 1.There are no classes! Though you are given some premade templates to chose from, the real joy of the system is combining skills, feats and powers in any way you can imagine, creating a unique and interesting character. 2.Hit Points?! We don't need no stinking Hit Points! Instead of using the very mathmatical HP system, your character has a Damage Save. Every time you are hit, you roll against it, and depending how baddly you fail the save by, it affects you differently (miss by 5, you are stunned, miss by 10, you are knocked out). It takes a little getting use to, but give it a chance. It really gives the battles that comic book feel! 3.My PP is better than your XP! Instead of gaining experience points, this game works with Power Points (PP). At level 1 you start with 15PP, and every 15PP after that puts you at the next level (30PP=lvl2, 45PP=lvl3 and so on). PPs are also what you use to purchase your abilities, skills, feats and super powers. After every session (or durring if your GM swings that way) you are awarded PPs, which you can immediately spend to raise current abilities! No more, "Man! I'm 1

Let me start out by saying that I have not gotten around to playing M & M yet. I have both editions and both look great. The color pictures really put you in the mood to save the world. Now, what is the difference between rulebook 1e and 2e? 1. More archetypes for heroes to get you jump started in your playing. 2. Different villain examples along with three adventure ideas for each. 3. 100 generic adventure ideas. 4. Ability scores range from one to infinity. 5. Attack and Defense bonus are independent of ability scores and purchased separately. 6. Skill costs are cheaper: one power point per 4 skill ranks rather than one power point per skill rank. 7. Feats cost one power point per feat rather than two. 8. Powers have been "tuned-up, expanded, and refined." 9. Weaknesses have been replaced by a)drawbacks of variable intensity and value, allowing for more detail and fine-tuning and b)complications: ways of earning hero points in play. 10. Hero Points have been refined and the method by which heroes acquire them is different, focusing on the development of the adventure. 11. A lot more of everything: powers, feats, equipment, etc. 12. A bunch of supporting characters, animals, and monsters. 13. Two new introductory adventures. For those of you who have never played the game, the great thing is that everything you need is in one book. While there are other "worldbooks" to get, they are not necessary to play. There are also no hitpoints(though there is an optional rule for them if needed) and you just need a d20. All in all, the second edition is definitely worth getting. It looks great and I look forward to actually using it instead of it just taking up space on my book shelf.

I have only two complaints about the book: 1) The index is not as thorough as it should be. Some people don't mind that but, well, I am not gifted with eidetic memory. I'm an index person, and love to use it to find all those obscure topics that may pop up in a game. Some have suggested to buy the PDF verrsion as well so I can then do full searches, but that means spending $20 more. Granted, I'd probably do that :), but that doesn't erase the fact that the printed book should have done a good job from the start. 2) Erratas are a blessing, but I honestly believe the editors should have done a more thorough job organizing and spellchecking the book. If I can spellcheck and check for consistency in a 300+ page thesis on my own, I'm sure anyone can do the same with a 255+ page book with generoush breathing room between sentences and paragraphs. It's nothing major, really, but when important information such as how on earth you get Impervious Toughness is "hidden" in the entry for the Protection power (and not mentioned anywhere else, not even in the index!), its a bit frustrating. What about the Character Sheet *adding* Dodge Bonus to the Defense total, while on page 150 one sees that the entry should have a "Miscellaneous Modifier" instead. A few trips to the forums can clear these issues, but I usually don't have access to a PC at the gaming table. Apart from those glitches, it is a solid book, and the system does a superb job of emulating that "comic book" feel in campaigns. Just remember to download the errata and FAQs, and that Green Ronin's "Mutants and Masterminds" forum is THE place to go when you get stumped with anything in the book.

I had been looking for a good superhero RPG for some time, and knew nothing about Mutants and Masterminds. However, yesterday I walked into my local gaming store and the cover grabbed me, so I bought it on a whim. When I got home and began to read it, I was so enthralled that I read through most of the book in one sitting. This is an amazing quality book. It has great paper quality, good page layout and chapter structure, and amazing art. The rules are easy to understand but seem to have incredible depth as well. The book operates on a heavily modified d20 system, eliminating a few d20 staples, namely class systems, attacks of opportunity, and hit points. That sounded insane the first time I looked at it, but it works perfectly well in the context of superheroes. The cover promises the best Superhero RPG, and I was a bit skeptical, but this book has quickly made me what Stan Lee might call a "true believer". 5 stars.