Friday, April 27, 2012

Random Power Tables for Mystery Men!

You may have heard of a cool game called Mystery Men!
If not, then all the info you need to get the free e-book or to order a real paper copy for only $8.00 can be found here on the LAND OF NOD blog.


Mystery Men! is a superhero role playing game inspired by the golden age of comics.  The sample characters in the book are derived from characters in the public domain.
Public Domain Superheroes and Comic Book Plus are great sites to research these types of comic books.
And although that is the historical focus of the sample characters and background, the simplicity of the rules and the creatures and enemies provided would allow you to easily run it with other genres such as science fiction or fantasy.

The only thing "missing" is a way to roll random super powers.
(I only say "missing" because many other superhero games include this feature.)
And so...

Random Power Tables for Mystery Men!
These tables are intended to determine random powers for the Adventurer class, but could also be used for the Scientist or Sorcerer with some small adjustments

During character creation, you first need to know the character's Power Level and total starting XP to be spent on super powers.
Then you can decide which power tables you want to roll on based on the XP point range you want to spend on each power.
Keep in mind that the XP cost of the power could be reduced by 50% if you choose to give it a flaw or describe it as an object, gadget or item of power.

There are a total of 262 different power numbers sorted by XP cost on four tables.
Table A lists powers 1 to 76 and the XP cost range is from 500 to 3000.
Table B lists powers 77 to 153 and the XP cost rage is from 6000 to 10000.
Table C lists powers 154 to 217 and the XP cost range is from 15000 to 25000.
Table D lists powers 218 to 262 and the XP cost range is from 30000 to 50000.

After deciding the XP cost range you would like to spend on the power, I.E. which table to roll on, roll the appropriate die for the row and the column and cross reference to find the number of the power on the list of powers below.

EXAMPLE ROLL ONE: I only want to spend between 500 and 3000 on my super power.
Choosing Table A, I roll a 1d10 for the row and a 1d8 for the column.
Rolling first a 4 and then a 5, I see that I get power #29 from the power list below.
This is an Attack type power called Strike True which costs 1000 XP.

EXAMPLE ROLL TWO: I'd like to spend between 30000  and 50000 on another power.
Choosing Table D, I roll a 1d6 for the row and a 1d8 for the column.
Rolling first a 5 and then a 7, I see that I get power #256 from the power list below.
This is an Miscellaneous type power called Elemental Swarm which costs 50000 XP.

I could potentially reduce the cost of any power I roll by 50% by giving it some sort of flaw or saying it's built into some kind of item.



ROLL

POWER

TYPE

XP COST

1

Force Missile

Attack

500

2

Cat fall

Defense

1000

3

Chilling Touch

Attack

1000

4

Color Spray

Attack

1000

5

Command

Psychic

1000

6

Create Water

Elemental

1000

7

Detect Poison

Psychic

1000

8

Disguise

Transformation

1000

9

Doom

Psychic

1000

10

Endure Elements

Elemental

1000

11

Enlarge

Transformation

1000

12

Energy Hands

Elemental

1000

13

Entangle

Movement

1000

14

Frighten

Attack

1000

15

Grease

Attack

1000

16

Hypnotism

Attack

1000

17

Invulnerability 1

Defense

1000

18

Iron Grip

Attack

1000

19

Jump

Movement

1000

20

Mount

Movement

1000

21

Potent Attack

Attack

1000

22

Protection

Defense

1000

23

Ray of Enfeeblement

Attack

1000

24

Rope Trick 1

Miscellaneous

1000

25

Shield

Defense

1000

26

Sleep

Attack

1000

27

Speak with Animals

Psychic

1000

28

Stomp

Attack

1000

29

Strike True

Attack

1000

30

Summon Item

Miscellaneous

1000

31

Super Ability

Transformation

1000

32

Understand Language

Psychic

1000

33

Unseen Servant

Miscellaneous

1000

34

Ventriloquism

Illusion

1000

35

Weapon Master

Attack

1000

36

Ghoulish Touch

Attack

2000

37

Super Speed

Movement

2000

38

Blur

Defense

3000

39

Calm Emotions

Psychic

3000

40

Chameleon

Transformation

3000

41

Chill Metal

Elemental

3000

42

Control Air

Elemental

3000

43

Darkness

Miscellaneous

3000

44

Dark vision

Transformation

3000

45

Daze

Attack

3000

46

Delay Poison

Healing

3000

47

Energy Blade

Elemental

3000

48

Enthrall

Psychic

3000

49

Fog Cloud

Elemental

3000

50

Glitter Dust

Miscellaneous

3000

51

Gust of Wind

Elemental

3000

52

Heat Metal

Elemental

3000

53

Hideous Laughter

Attack

3000

54

Hypnotic Pattern

Attack

3000

55

Levitate

Movement

3000

56

Make Whole

Transformation

3000

57

Mirror Image

Defense

3000

58

Obscure Object

Psychic

3000

59

Precognition

Psychic

3000

60

Pyrotechnics

Elemental

3000

61

Read Minds

Psychic

3000

62

Rope Trick 2

Miscellaneous

3000

63

Scare

Attack

3000

64

See Invisibility

Psychic

3000

65

Shape Wood

Transformation

3000

66

Shatter

Attack

3000

67

Shield Other

Defense

3000

68

Spectral Hand

Attack

3000

69

Spider Climb

Movement

3000

70

Strike Blind

Attack

3000

71

Strike Deaf

Attack

3000

72

Super Hearing

Transformation

3000

73

Super Vision

Transformation

3000

74

Touch of Idiocy

Attack

3000

75

Web

Attack

3000

76

Zone of Truth

Psychic

3000

77

Blink

Defense

6000

78

Call Lightning

Elemental

6000

79

Clairvoyance

Psychic

6000

80

Displacement

Defense

6000

81

Elasticity

Transformation

6000

82

Energy Bolt

Elemental

6000

83

Energy Resistance

Elemental

6000

84

Fission

Transformation

6000

85

Gaseous Form

Elemental

6000

86

Inflict Pain

Attack

6000

87

Inflict Wounds

Attack

6000

88

Invisibility Sphere

Illusion

6000

89

Invisibility Purge

Psychic

6000

90

Invulnerability 2

Defense

6000

91

Light

Miscellaneous

6000

92

Liquid Form

Elemental

6000

93

Non detection

Defense

6000

94

Protective Circle

Defense

6000

95

Quench

Elemental

6000

96

Rage

Attack

6000

97

Ray of Exhaustion

Attack

6000

98

Regenerate

Healing

6000

99

Searing Light

Elemental

6000

100

Shrink Item

Transformation

6000

101

Siphon Strength

Attack

6000

102

Sleet Storm

Elemental

6000

103

Slow

Movement

6000

104

Speak with Dead

Psychic

6000

105

Speak with Plants

Psychic

6000

106

Stinking Cloud

Attack

6000

107

Suggestion

Psychic

6000

108

Tongues

Psychic

6000

109

Ubiquitous Vision

Psychic

6000

110

Vampiric Touch

Attack

6000

111

Wall of Wind

Elemental

6000

112

Water Breathing

Transformation

6000

113

Water Walk

Movement

6000

114

Negate Power

Defense

7500

115

Fusion

Transformation

8000

116

Black Tentacles

Attack

10000

117

Charm

Psychic

10000

118

Command Animals

Psychic

10000

119

Command Plants

Psychic

10000

120

Confusion

Attack

10000

121

Contagion

Attack

10000

122

Control Body

Psychic

10000

123

Curse

Attack

10000

124

Despair

Attack

10000

125

Detect Spying

Psychic

10000

126

Dimension Hop

Movement

10000

127

Discern Lie

Psychic

10000

128

Energy Blast

Elemental

10000

129

Energy Burst

Elemental

10000

130

Fear

Attack

10000

131

Flame Body

Elemental

10000

132

Fly

Movement

10000

133

Force Sphere

Defense

10000

134

Ice Body

Elemental

10000

135

Ice Storm

Elemental

10000

136

Imbue with Power

Transformation

10000

137

Invisible Eye

Psychic

10000

138

Locate

Psychic

10000

139

Magnetism

Elemental

10000

140

Neutralize Poison

Healing

10000

141

Phantasmal Killer

Attack

10000

142

Poison

Attack

10000

143

Polymorph

Transformation

10000

144

Remove Curse

Healing

10000

145

Remove Impairment

Healing

10000

146

Restoration

Healing

10000

147

Rusting Grasp

Elemental

10000

148

Shape Stone

Elemental

10000

149

Shout

Attack

10000

150

Solid Fog

Elemental

10000

151

Spy

Psychic

10000

152

Wall of Fire

Elemental

10000

153

Wall of Ice

Elemental

10000

154

Adapt Body

Transformation

15000

155

Blight

Attack

15000

156

Break Enchantment

Healing

15000

157

Cloudkill

Attack

15000

158

Command Many

Psychic

15000

159

Commune

Psychic

15000

160

Contact Other Plane

Psychic

15000

161

Correspond

Psychic

15000

162

Create Object

Transformation

15000

163

Dismissal

Attack

15000

164

Dream

Illusion

15000

165

Energy Cone

Elemental

15000

166

Fabricate

Transformation

15000

167

False Vision

Illusion

15000

168

Feeblemind

Attack

15000

169

Hold Person

Attack

15000

170

Illusion 1

Illusion

15000

171

Invisibility

Illusion

15000

172

Invulnerability 3

Defense

15000

173

Mirage

Illusion

15000

174

Nightmare

Illusion

15000

175

Phase

Movement

15000

176

Polymorph Other

Transformation

15000

177

Power Leech

Attack

15000

178

Sending

Psychic

15000

179

Shrink

Transformation

15000

180

Telekinesis

Psychic

15000

181

Telepathic Bond

Psychic

15000

182

Transmute Stone

Elemental

15000

183

Tree Stride

Movement

15000

184

Wall of Force

Defense

15000

185

Wall of Iron

Elemental

15000

186

Waves of Exhaustion

Attack

15000

187

Magic Jar

Attack

20000

188

Miracle

Miscellaneous

20000

189

Acid Fog

Attack

25000

190

Analyze

Psychic

25000

191

Animate Objects

Transformation

25000

192

Control Water

Elemental

25000

193

Create Undead

Transformation

25000

194

Death Zone

Attack

25000

195

Disintegrate

Attack

25000

196

Energy Current

Elemental

25000

197

Eyebite

Attack

25000

198

Heal Wounds

Healing

25000

199

Heroism

Transformation

25000

200

Illusion 2

Illusion

25000

201

Illusion 3

Illusion

25000

202

Legend Lore

Psychic

25000

203

Move Earth

Elemental

25000

204

Negation Field

Defense

25000

205

Petrify

Transformation

25000

206

Planar Binding

Miscellaneous

25000

207

Repulsion

Defense

25000

208

Shadow Walk

Movement

25000

209

Suggestion Many

Psychic

25000

210

Summon Creature

Miscellaneous

25000

211

Time Acceleration

Miscellaneous

25000

212

Time Hop

Miscellaneous

25000

213

True Seeing

Psychic

25000

214

Veil

Illusion

25000

215

Wall of Thorns

Defense

25000

216

Word of Recall

Movement

25000

217

X-ray Vision

Psychic

25000

218

Command Undead

Psychic

30000

219

Control Weather

Elemental

30000

220

Energy Conversion

Elemental

30000

221

Etherealness

Movement

30000

222

Finger of Death

Attack

30000

223

Force Cage

Attack

30000

224

Force Sword

Attack

30000

225

Insanity

Attack

30000

226

Power Reflection

Defense

30000

227

Project Image

Illusion

30000

228

Simulacrum

Illusion

30000

229

Statue

Transformation

30000

230

Suspend Life

Transformation

30000

231

Teleport

Movement

30000

232

Vision

Psychic

30000

233

Charm Many

Psychic

35000

234

Clone

Miscellaneous

40000

235

Demand

Psychic

40000

236

Dimension Lock

Movement

40000

237

Earthquake

Elemental

40000

238

Firestorm

Elemental

40000

239

Force Hand

Attack

40000

240

Horrid Wilting

Elemental

40000

241

Incendiary Cloud

Elemental

40000

242

Mind Blank

Defense

40000

243

Polymorph Anything

Transformation

40000

244

Power Protection

Defense

40000

245

Rainbow Pattern

Attack

40000

246

Screen

Defense

40000

247

Shadow Body

Transformation

40000

248

Telekinetic Sphere

Defense

40000

249

Temporal Stasis

Attack

40000

250

Trap the Soul

Attack

40000

251

Whirlwind

Elemental

40000

252

Astral Projection

Movement

50000

253

Control Gravity

Elemental

50000

254

Disjunction

Attack

50000

255

Dominate

Psychic

50000

256

Elemental Swarm

Miscellaneous

50000

257

Foresight

Psychic

50000

258

Freedom

Movement

50000

259

Gate

Movement

50000

260

Imprisonment

Attack

50000

261

Shambling Mound

Transformation

50000

262

Tornado Blast

Elemental

50000