a quick thanks for the downloadable character datafile.

[starphoenix26]

wanted to know if we could get a snazzy villian datafile just like it's presented in the operational manual? it seems to be easier to set up the baddies.

[MidnightBlue]

Oh yeah...without having to come up with Milestones? MUCH faster and easier to create!

I'm not saying that I don't like Milestones, just that they can take some thought to make originals.

[starphoenix26]

agreed, blue.
it's becoming one of my biggest pet peeve of this system, to be honest.

[Kasha]

I would hate to call milestones pet peeves. They do take a lot of thought and sadly when you have characters who are not romantically attached that cuts the milestones you can look at in the book almost in half.

Power Milestones are now coming easily enough to me, but I still feel like I am missing something.

Having a formula to write milestones would be bad. Half the players would not even think about creating a milestone and just slap one down. (Heck half of my group would love to just play a numbers game and never care about their character.)

[MidnightBlue]

If Milestones are not to a group's liking, it wouldn't take anything to cut the mechanic out of the game for your group.

Just saying, like most things in MHR, it is pretty easy to modify it to your tastes.

We all deserve the game we want to play the most!

[MidnightBlue]

(Heck half of my group would love to just play a numbers game and never care about their character.)

I hear/read things like that and it makes me want to cry.

Big MANLY tears of course, but cry none-the-less.

[starphoenix26]

power milestones are a lot easier to consider, it's that pesky backstory one that defines your character that does it for most beginners in my group.

[Mouse]

Milestones are the only part of the character related systems that I haven't touched yet. I've been playing around with Powers, SFX, Limits, and such in order to build some NPCs (well, rebuilt them from another system). So far I seem to be able to cram three to four NPCs on the front of a single index card, which is super awesome. (It just requires me to remember how all the SFX and Limits work exactly, which will come on its own soon enough).

I'm just sort of glad that NPCs don't have Milestones. Because every time I try to conceptualize one, it's really lame.

But next week we're going to be sitting down and discussing Milestones for the PCs. So I need to beef up on them a little bit between now and then.

[MidnightBlue]

Since it's an XP mechanic, definitely no need for NPC's to have them.

I look at Milestones as turning a character goal into a game mechanic.

In every game that I play in, I try to give my characters goals that I want them to strive for. It gives me some roleplay fodder and something to reach for.

MHR is really ground breaking in that, if you create your own Milestones, you are effectively deciding for yourself how you will gain XP.

You aren't relegated to "the number of monsters you kill or the amount of loot you find."

Each player (with Watcher approval) can basically decide for him/herself what will move the character further down its path.

Does the player see a romantic interest in the character's future? Milestone it.

Does the player see a development of powers/skill/training in the character's future? Milestone it.

Does the player see the formation of a new super team as a defining motivator for the character? Milestone it.

What about trying to be a normal person despite the accidental power gain? Milestone it.

Want your character to finish college while trying to lead the hectic life of a superhero? Milestone it. (Not a bad idea for an Invincible datafile.)

Basically, any goal that you can think of that would be important to your character can be statted as a Milestone.

That's how I see them anyway.

The power of XP accumulation is directly in the player's hand when he/she builds his/her own Milestones.

[Kasha]

(Heck half of my group would love to just play a numbers game and never care about their character.)

I hear/read things like that and it makes me want to cry.

Big MANLY tears of course, but cry none-the-less.

Personally, I cry on the inside and cover my head with my hands. Then again guys don't like girls crying. Once I wrote over 16 pages for a character, a player in that same group answered 7 questions and wrote less than a page. Characters are important! (Sobs internally)

I look at Milestones as turning a character goal into a game mechanic.

In every game that I play in, I try to give my characters goals that I want them to strive for. It gives me some roleplay fodder and something to reach for.

MHR is really ground breaking in that, if you create your own Milestones, you are effectively deciding for yourself how you will gain XP.

You aren't relegated to "the number of monsters you kill or the amount of loot you find."

Each player (with Watcher approval) can basically decide for him/herself what will move the character further down its path.

Characters trying to achieve their goals honestly changes the role play experience. If you have someone who normally plays just to kill what is in front of them their character never becomes more than a mask. If instead they are killing everyone because they think it is an illusion and there is that added layer of drama it makes for better game play.

The hardest part is trying to make players create goals. One hard thing two very different players share is a fear of the GM taking their goals away. It is hard to grasp, but that is their fear they don't want to make a deep character because then something bad will happen to motivate their character to act.

Luckily, MHR has Event based Milestones, meaning characters can just work towards the mission and nothing else.