James Nicoll Reviews

Green Ronin’s 2019 Superteam Handbook is intended for use with their Mutants and Masterminds superhero roleplaying game. It’s a source book for game masters, with advice on how to run superhero teams in an SHRPG.

As is appropriate for a product of this nature, Superteam Handbook is a team effort:

• Writing & design: Jennifer DK, Crystal Frasier, Steve Kenson, Jack Norris, John Polojac, Lucien Soulban, Miranda Sparks, Fred Wan, and Jordan Wyn
• Development: Crystal Frasier Editing: Samantha Chapman
• Art direction: Hal Mangold Graphic Design: Crystal Frasier
• Cover art: Conceptopolis
• Interior art: Domenico Neziti, Alberto Foche, & Denis Medri
• Publisher: Chris Pramas

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Aaron Allston’s 1988 Strike Force was a campaign source book for the third edition of Hero Games’ superhero roleplaying game Champions. The book is based on the author’s long experience (close to a decade) of running games based on various editions of Champions.

The sourcebook was an unintended consequence:

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Many, many role-playing game companies have been tempted into doing RPG adaptations of established media franchises, such as books, TV shows, or movies. The attraction is obvious; the product comes with a built-in market. Unfortunately, there are also many, many pitfalls. Many of the companies who have dabbled in licensed products have emerged from the experience poorer for it. There’s a trick to surviving adaptations and not every company has it.

Way back in 1983, I was thrilled to read in Different Worlds 29 that Chaosium Games had acquired the rights to do a role-playing game based on Larry Niven’s Ringworld (a title that did not at that time inspire feelings of melancholy and despair over the decline of a once-great author). Not only had Chaosium created Runequest, one of my favourite RPGs, but they had ample experience at turning literary properties into games¹. By 1983, Chaosium’s licensed products included Thieves’ World, Stormbringer, and of course Call of Cthulhu.

It’s not entirely true to say that Ringworld the RPG got caught up in Development Hell, but I do think it’s safe to say the project turned out to be bigger than John Hewitt or any of the other people involved could have envisioned. Despite delays, Larry Niven’s Ringworld: Roleplaying Adventure Beneath the Great Arch was finally released in 1984².

And what did a youthful James find when he popped open his copy of the game?

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