Creating characters in Sentinels Comics

Fiction Menagerie Phase 3
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Now that we have some hero and villain action, let’s build some character sheets and see how it works out. We’ll be using the Sentinels Comics RPG (SCRPG) rules: Sentinel Comics: the Roleplaying Game — Critical Hits

We’ll start with Radiance, a hero character. Following the quick reference for heroes, we’ll follow these steps:

  1. Background
  2. Power Source
  3. Archetype
  4. Personality
  5. Red Ability
  6. Retcon
  7. Health
  8. Finishing Touches

Radiance has the Created background. We assign d12 to Technology and d6 to Science. If we were rolling for power source, it’d be 2d10 + d6. We pick the Principle of the Indestructible - Summer is very hard to injure.

The Artificial Being power source seems logical. We assign d10 to Robotics (representing her drones), d10 to Flight, and d6 to Strength. We also pick two yellow abilities: Created Immunity (letting her absorb energy from heat and fire, as with the Apollo module) and Multiple Assault (representing offensive use of her drones). For the green ability, we take Created Form. For archetype selection, we get d10 + 2d8.

We take the Robot/Cyborg archetype. We assign d10 to Signature Vehicle (the Chariot), d8 to Speed, and d8 to Deduction. The archetype lets us assign d10 to Inventions. We pick Metal Skin and Self-Improvement as green powers, and Living Arsenal for a yellow power. We pick the Principle of Science. Our personality dice are 2d10.

The Nurturing personality seems appropriate to Summer. We assign a d8 to Persuasion a roleplaying quality, Everybody’s Friend. We gain the ability to boost an ally by rolling that die. Our status dice are d6 (green and yellow) and d12 (red). For our two red abilities, we take Finishing Blow and Combustion.

For Retcon, we take Close Combat at d6.

For Health, we add the following: 8, a random roll (we’ll take 4), the maximum value of our red status die (12), and the max of an Athletic power or Mental quality (10), giving us a total of 34. Our green zone is 34-26, our yellow zone is 25-13, and our red zone is 12-1.

The final rundown of powers, abilities, and qualities is:

Green: d6 (34-26), Yellow: d6 (25-13), Red: d12 (12-1)

Powers:

  • Strength d6
  • Speed d8
  • Signature Vehicle d10
  • Deduction d8
  • Flight d10
  • Inventions d10
  • Robotics d10

Qualities:

  • Science d6
  • Technology d12
  • Close Combat d6
  • Persuasion Everybody’s Friend d8

Abilities:

  • Carbon Allotrope Construction (Created Form, green)
  • Mecha-Medica (Metal Skin, green)
  • Link Up! (Self-Improvement, Signature Vehicle d10, green)
  • Principle of the Indestructible (green)
  • Principle of Science (green)
  • Apollo System (Created Immunity, Nuclear energy, yellow)
  • Drone Swarm (Multiple Assault, Robotics d10, yellow)
  • This Week’s Gadget (Living Arsenal, Inventions d10, yellow)
  • Solar Sword (Finishing Blow, Technology d12, red)
  • Solar Prominence (Combustion, Inventions d10, red)
  • Perky Cute Pep Talk (Boost an ally - Everybody’s Friend d8, Out)

How does this look? Did I miss anything?

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Only issue I see is Quality taken during Step 4. Rather than a specific skill from the list, you’re supposed to come up with your own broader Quality (see page 121). Something like Everyone’s Friend seems like it would hit the same category as Persuasion, but say a lot more about Radiance.

Also, might just be my vision of Radiance but I would think she should have the Radiant power from Elemental/Energy category. Could be the Robotics is covering that though.

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It felt like Robotics worked just as well, because the drones are supposed to be flexible, not just an energy manipulation power.

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Next up, the fiendish (and perpetually underfunded) cyborg, Doctor Sidorov!

His approach is Creator. Powers dice are d10 + 2d8 + d6. Qualities are d10 + 3d8, plus a d8 roleplaying quality. Base health is 15. We start with two abilities: Summon Mob and Swarm Attack.

His powers revolve around magnetically-powered minions, so we give him Electricity d10, Inventions d8, Robotics d8, and Metal d6.

We give him Criminal Underworld Info d8, Medicine d8, Science d10, and Technology d8 (he only thinks he has Leadership and Intimidation). His extra quality is Magnetic Megalomaniac d8.

His archetype is Overlord. His status die is based on number of minions in play, and he gets +15 health. We choose three abilities: Get Back In There!, Rapid Deployment, and Form Up.

Sidorov has the Mook Squad upgrade, allowing him to muster a team of TALOS robots in his own lair. In addition, he is a Master of Mad Science.

Sidorov’s final health is 30 + 5H.

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Our villain today is Somber, the mysterious part-time Concordance Agent (???).

Their approach is Dampening. Powers dice are d10 + 2d8. Qualities are d10 + 2d8, plus a d8 roleplaying quality. Base health is 25. We start with two abilities: Field of Woe and Nullifying Backlash.

Their powers are similar to other Concordance agents, so we go with Cosmic d10, Telepathy d8, and Flight d8.

Their qualities are Deep Space Knowledge d10, Conviction d8, Self-Discipline d8, and a roleplaying quality called Keeper of the Scales d8.

Their archetype is Inhibitor, staying with the theme. Their status die depends on the number of heroes with a penalty, so they like fighting 3 or more opponents at once. Health is +10. We choose two more abilities: Overwhelming Syphon and Twisted Fate.

Somber has a Power Upgrade, raising all their power dice by one size and giving them 20 more health, thanks to their significant reserves of negative energy. If this is cut off, maybe the heroes will have a better chance…?

They have the Master Behind the Curtain mastery, letting them influence things behind the scenes.

Final health is 55 + 5H.

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Good as always.

I actually used the Hallmark Power “make something up” to give Concord “Empathy” in place of “Telepathy” to make things more true to the character. Very much a side-grade.

That said, Somber seems to breaking the rules of what we thought we knew, so maybe Telepathy is more appropriate. Who could say? (You. You could say. :wink: )

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In terms of synergy between abilities, how did I do?

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Oh yeah, from a mechanical standpoint, Somber seems like an interesting villain who will challenge the heroes to not rely on big dice and instead work together to try and make some Boosts or Hinder Somber to bring them down to their level. And Power Upgrade is just full of fun stuff for the players to noodle out how to overcome.

:+1:

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Time for a second hero! This time it’s Keri, aka Superchica, now La Cordera (“the Lamb”). Her journeys through space have changed her, and we’ll be creating that changed character.

Although she was transformed by alien science, Keri effectively has the Tragic background due to how it affected her. We assign d10 to Close Combat and d8 to Conviction. Her powers dice are 2d10 + d6. Although she’s quite powerful, she has the Principle of Compassion to reflect her need to connect with people.

Her power source is Experimentation - unknown aliens made her a conduit to a black hole’s power. We assign d10 to Cosmic, d10 to Vitality, and d6 to Flight. We also pick two yellow abilities: Personal Upgrade and Misdirection. We take Overpower as our green ability. Our archetype dice are 3d8.

Keri is a Physical Powerhouse. We assign d8 to Strength, d8 to Density Control, and d8 to Imposing. Her power choices are Damage Resistant and Galvanize (green) and Power Strike (yellow). She chooses Principle of Strength. Her personality selection dice are 2d10.

Her current personality is Stoic, giving her an Out ability to defend others. Her quality is Aloof Big Sis at d8. Her status dice are d6, d8, and d10. For red abilities, we take Charged Up Blast and Paragon Feat.

Because Keri feels like she’ll often be pushed to her limits, we’ll give her an additional red power, Intercession.

For Health, we add 8, 4, our maximum Red die (10), and the max of Vitality (10), for a total of 32.

Green: d6 (32-25), Yellow: d8 (24-12), Red: d10 (11-1)

Powers:

  • Strength d8
  • Vitality d10
  • Cosmic d10
  • Flight d6
  • Density Control d8

Qualities:

  • Close Combat d10
  • Imposing d8
  • Conviction d8
  • Aloof Big Sis d8

Abilities:

  • Vibing (Overpower, green)
  • Black Hole Conduit (Damage Resistant, green)
  • Furious Determination (Galvanize, Imposing d8, green)
  • Principle of Strength (green)
  • Principle of Compassion (green)
  • The Gravity of the Situation (Personal Upgrade, Cosmic d10, yellow)
  • You Should Worry About Me (Misdirection, Vitality d10, yellow)
  • Living Battering Ram (Power Strike, Strength d8, yellow)
  • Betting Everything On This One (Charged Up Blast, Cosmic d10, red)
  • Big Sister’s Got This (Paragon Feat, Vitality d10, red)
  • Sacrificial Flyby (Intercession, Flight d6, red)
  • He’s With Me (Defend an ally by rolling your single [quality] die, Aloof Big Sis d8, Out)
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Well Keri looks like she has a fun set of abilities to play with.

I really like Misdirection’s effect and could see it being less of an actual misdirection and instead Keri swooping in to punch the attack away (and possibly into another enemy if there is still any damage after the Defend reduces it). Link that with her d10 Vitality and we’ll be doing well.

It’s interesting to consider which power or quality would be linked to the Galvanize ability. Since it was picked up during the Physical Powerhouse portion, it should be either Strength, Density Control, or Imposing. Since they’re all d8’s it doesn’t matter from a mechanical standpoint, but from a narrative one I would lean towards Imposing: Keri being the center of attention allows everyone else to work harder when they know Keri is going to be taking the big hits.

Charged Up Blast and Paragon Feat both seem on point for her, and Intercession seems like good tankiness. Too bad it needs to be linked with that dinky d6 Flight (unless it came from a different category than Mobility Powers) but her d10 Red Status die should help shore that up.

Overall, a good representation of the character with a good set of complimentary abilities that should be fun to pick up and play. :slight_smile:

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I haven’t been listing the linked powers/qualities for these characters, I should probably be doing that for clarity.

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Today it’s time for another villain, Khyrrsz, a member of the Seven Wonders.

Khyrrsz is a Neanderthal god, similar in scope to Palamedes. While Palamedes is concerned with vengeance and glory, Khyrrsz’s portfolio is closer to what their tribes were concerned with at the time - hunting, battle, and the weather.

Their approach is Ancient, befitting a prehistoric divinity. Their power dice are d12 + 2d10 + d8. Qualities are 2d12 + d10 + d8, plus a d8 roleplaying quality. Base health is 30.

For powers, we pick Cold d12, Vitality d10, Presence d10, and Animal Control d8.

For qualities, we pick Otherworldly Mythos d12, Imposing d12, Magical Lore d10, and Insight d8.

We start with two abilities: Frozen World (Behold My Immortal Glory, Cold) and The Eternal Hunter (Immortal Vitality, Vitality) Legacy of the Lost (Ideal Action, Otherworldly Mythos).

Khyrrsz is a Bruiser. Their status is based on their current health (green/yellow/red gives them d6/d8/d10 status dice). They gain +20 health.

We take two abilities: Everlasting Winter (Grin and Bear It, Imposing) and Hearthkeeper (Living Wall).

Khyrrsz is a formidable combatant even against a team, so we give them the Group Fighter upgrade. This provides +20 health and the Extra Attack ability.

Khyrrsz is a Master of Superiority where Cold is concerned, letting them dominate a situation where control of temperature is helpful.

Their final health is a whopping 70 + 5H. Good luck, heroes.

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Partnered with Khyrrsz on their first outing is Glom, who can create a sort of ectoplasmic material that either attracts or repels things. She uses this for a variety of tricks, and should hopefully play like a villainous Spider-man.

Glom is a Disruptive villain. Her power dice are 2d10 + 2d8. Her qualities are d10 + 2d8, and the d8 roleplaying quality. Her base health is 20.

For powers, we take Agility d10, Leaping d8, and Wall-Crawling d8.

For qualities, we take Alertness d10, Acrobatics d8, and Banter d8. Her roleplaying quality is The Universal Sidekick d8.

Her abilities are This Is A Stick-Up (Beneficial Chaos, Agility) and Let’s Bounce (Heedless Explosion, Acrobatics).

Glom’s archetype is Guerilla. Her status die is d10 with 4+ opponents, d8 with 2-3, and d6 otherwise. She gets +20 to health. Her abilities are Combat Cognition (Human Shield, Alertness) and Float Like a Butterfly (Tangled Fray).

Glom has no upgrades or masteries. She’s clever and annoying, but isn’t the most powerful member of the Seven Wonders. Still, she’s an agent of chaos and can get away from many fights that turn against her.

Her total health is 40 + 5H.

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It’s time for a special surprise villain: The Scurrilous Hullabaloo and their Babble Rabble!

The Hullabaloo’s concept is “mostly harmless mind controller”. They can get people babbling contagiously, and use this as cover for their robberies. But they don’t hurt anyone in the long term, and are pretty good about getting away.

That makes their approach Specialized. Their power dice are d10 + d8. Their qualities are d12, d8, and a d8 roleplaying quality. Their base health is 20.

We choose Babble d10 (an Invented Power) and Suggestion d8 for powers. For qualities, we choose Stealth d12 and Creativity d8, plus Invisible Mastermind d8.

We take three abilities: Face in a Crowd (Active Cover, Stealth), Where’d That Come From (Known Target), and Surrounded! (Tangled Torment, Stealth).

Similar to Sidorov, their archetype is Overlord. Their status die is based on number of minions in play. Their health is +15.

For abilities, we take Spread the Word (Rapid Deployment, Creativity), Vox Populi (Give Me Your Strength, Babble), and Who Am I? (“Look Out, Boss!”).

The Scurrilous Hullabaloo lacks upgrades or masteries. They’re a jobber and seem content with their lot in life.

Their total health is 35 + 5H.

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