Character Sheet Sunday: V&V 2e and Dr. Neutrino

So there's a story I like to tell myself- of my evolution from more rules intense and crunchier systems, to lighter and more story-oriented systems. I like to think about the games I've been doing in the last ten years as a rejection of an earlier weight on my shoulders in favor of a brilliant revelation. I mean I played years of Champions and Rolemaster, two very crunchy systems with highly detailed mechanics and dense rules. But the truth is that I never, ever really played those games with anything other than the lightest use of those rules. Sure, I used the combat and critical tables in Rolemaster, but we never handled even basic process like spell acquisition, initiative, and movement in anyway close to the rules. My Champions only looked like Champions because I had a table of mavens of that system. For everything else- vehicle construction, gadgets, disadvantages- I cut corners where I could. I think the truth is that I've been rules-light since day one. I haven't cared about all of the details and extra chrome, even when I've been a player.

So below is a character sheet that comes from the mid-1980's from Villains & Vigilantes 2e. Specifically, the "Freedom Force" campaign that Charles Braden ran- set in the 1950's, a sequel to a FF campaign set in the 1940's. This would be my character, Dr. Neutrino, a self-involved and self-aggrandizing super-scientist. He partnered up with better and more noble heroes in order to make a name for himself. We played quite a few sessions with this guy. And as you can see below, I had a pretty minimal character sheet- a few numbers and stats scrawled on a sheet- just the basic needed. That plus my notes and sketches chicken-scratched across it. Interestingly, I later ran this character's son in a homebrew supers campaign Art Lyon ran. Dr. Neutrino, Junior was an earnest and enthusiastic supers- believing in the ideas of herodom and usually getting kicked in the face for it.

All of which is to say- I've always apparently gone for light rules- and not worried about all of the crunch, character options, kits, min/maxing, builds and efficiency that some players have.

For a larger and actually legible version of the sheet- see here.