I have been making noises about starting another Champions campaign for years. The last three I ran were all high-point supers games, one akin to the Legion of Super-Heroes where every character had to e capable of surviving deep space and FTL travel somehow.
This time? Street level!
I sat down with he three players, Jack, Sam, and Nick, and we agreed on a point range (175 points, 50 complications), Normal Characteristics for no points, and no equipment points for PCs. We also decided we wanted a gritty, hardcore vibe, like Punisher. I finally get to use the amazing supplement Hudson City: The Urban Abyss. If you do any game set in the contemporary world, get that supplement!
Characters
Warlord- Jack made a melee combat specialist that uses sword, akin to Deathstroke, but lower points. The usual 'vigilante mix' of stealth, streetwise, etc. Minor contacts. Background of being a professional killer.
Wyvern- Sam made a former sniper with a drinking problem (inside joke) with the 'vigilante mix' of skills, minor contacts, etc. No real melee ability, but excellent sniping and pistol skills.
Wizard- Nick went toward a Dove build and is subverting the system; very skills heavy, all defensive martial arts, not killing attacks, etc. He's a normal guy that wants to make a difference. He has a top-notch police contact.
Background
The various members either returned to their home or always lived in Hudson City. Warlord is obsessed with his mission, so he lives rough in empty warehouses, etc. Wyvern crashes in a flophouse. Wizard has a small condo. Their various contacts, streetwise checks, etc. pointed them all to a potential showdown between street gangs near Club 20, a nightclub popular with Hudson University students in the Forsythe neighborhood.
The Carp gang (once the Carpenter Street Warriors) and the 21 gang (once the 21 Chains gang) had been engaged in low-level feuds over the drug trade around the club for months and both were facing the spectre of being too small to continue, so they were planning a final showdown.
The Adventure
Each player told me in the pre-game that their character was going to scout the location of the probable fight in the afternoon, about 2. I have never seen a meet-cute come together on its own so smoothly!They all made excellent perception rolls so they all spotted each other! They also saw 4 Carps and 4 21s lurking in alleys across Moss Street from each other, probably prepping for the fight.
Wyvern tried to snatch a lone 21 who was a block away, but his total lack of martial arts led to him getting stabbed before he shot the 21! The crew in the alley ran out and brought their comrade back, but the Carps took the opportunity to prepare an ambush. The vigilantes moved in, too. As the Carps faced down the 21s, Wyvern sniped a carp, initiating a firefight between the gang members.As the gang members wounded each other or downed each other Warlord waited, then leapt from the roof he was on among the 21s - his first blow severed the gun arm of a 21 and put him down.
Wyvern downed another Carp and drew fire from the last one on his feet as Warlord gutted the last 21. Wizard closed with the last Carp and easily disarmed him, then kept him engaged with dodges, etc. until Wyvern put him down.
Post
The PCs met up, exchanged contact info, and set up some meeting points. Since they crippled two gangs at once, met without the super-cliched 'superheroes always fight when they first meet' I gave them 2 character points each.
Overall
A ton of fun was had for an intro adventure. We will be working on out-of-band activities and such for a week.
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