Quote Originally Posted by Xefas View Post
As a general rule, I don't like random character generation either. I despise it. I have emotional scars from years of 2nd edition D&D.

That said, I still had fun with Icons. I think they do it well.

This is an explanation from the designer, given in an interview about Icons, if it helps:
Spoiler
Show
Random Character Creation … Really?
Yes, really. If you’re allergic to random character design in RPGs, I’ll just ask you to bear with me to the end of this article before you decide that I’m crazy, having thrown away years of RPG design “evolution” (which is a debate for another time) for the retrograde throwback that is (shudder) random superhero creation.

Like I said earlier, ICONS draws upon the “pick-up game” style of superhero gaming. The idea isn’t to lovingly craft a character precise in every detail, but to be able to throw together a “good enough” kind of “character sketch” and get playing right away, while not sacrificing the creativity and imagination that make RPGs so much fun.

So, ICONS follows the example of prior generations of RPGs with tables where you can, with a handful of die-rolls, whip up a character. (Hell, with a modicum of programming skill, you can probably set it up so you can do it all with one click of a mouse!)

The creative aspect of it comes into play with that aforementioned Determination section. Sure, now you’ve rolled-up your super-strong guy who has some kind of damaging aura, but now you’ve got to ask? Who is he (or she) and what makes this character tick?

The reason I use this specific example is that it has come up twice (randomly, mind you) in various playtest games I’ve run, but produced two totally different characters. On the one hand, you’ve got Volcano, the exiled prince of the Magma Men, who is a super-strong guy made of igneous rock, able to heat up enough to melt metal. He’s imperious, proud, a noble warrior. On the other hand there’s Saguaro, the Man-Cactus, transformed by a scientific accident into a giant, humanoid cactus with superhuman strength and enough sharp spines to make most foes think twice about grabbing him! He’s from the desert southwest (of course).

How many other names and backgrounds can you think up for that thumbnail description of traits? Both Volcano and Saguaro’s players said they would not have come up with those characters on their own if simply instructed to “make-up a superhero.” Part of the fun of the system was it gave them a set of conditions and then they had to invent a hero to go around them! Plus both were able to roll up their characters and play all in the same demo-game session! Not bad, huh?

Now, if that doesn’t sound cool to you, don’t worry; ICONS also includes a short and simple point-based system of character design for those who really prefer that approach. It’s still fairly simple, but it hands all the choices over to the players and starts everyone out with an equal budget. (Who says we don’t deliver on what the people want?)

So, that’s ICONS in a nutshell. I could go on, but honestly, much more than the summary here and I’d literally be recapitulating whole chunks of the game. That’s one of the other things; ICONS is pretty slim, going back to the days when you could put in an entire RPG in a single booklet.

So, look up to the skies! Or at least keep an eye on your website and Twitter feeds for more about ICONS.


If you want an example of the random generation in Actual Play, I believe this episode of the Walking Eye podcast has them gearing up for their Icons campaign.
Not sold at all on random chargen by the description, I'm afraid. It's good for single-session pick-up-and-play, yes, but hell, it's hard enough getting people to roleplay when they actually make their characters as they like! Random dudes, generally, just get treated as Warcraft toons or caricatures that the players do not particularly invest themselves in - it's like getting a pregen character for a module, you'll be more focused in solving the module than in portraying a character you don't particularly know or care about. This is funny for single session or humorous games, but really makes it pretty hard to run a decent Justice League arc, not to mention use it for the myriad other things I've used M&M for (as M&M is pretty much my go-to generic, it really works for nearly everything).

Quote Originally Posted by Mr.Bookworm View Post
Man, what are you on?

d6s are the best roleplaying dice, because everyone at least has some Yahtzee dice or whatever they can grab, and everyone is familiar with them. Makes introducing people to roleplaying games a lot simpler, because you don't have to spend an hour explaining what kind of black witchcraft powers your 20-sided die.
I'm on nothing. I just find d6s to be aesthetically uglier than a frankenstein monster crossed with a deep trench fish and entirely unsatisfying to roll. I should know, I used to play Warhammer, I rolled a lot of d6s in my time, and there's nowhere near the same satisfaction in even a bucketful of d6s than in a single d10 or d20 . D6s feel to me like you're playing parcheesi.