Point Based Creation

In the standard rules for BASH!, Character creation is presented that players must choose between a few options between an amount of Stats and Powers (usually an array of 7 Stat and 9 Power points). However, what if you want a Hero that is very low on powers, but high in Stats, or vice versa? What if you want a hero below or above the given options for the basic book? Well, it seems that the system is certainly able to accommodate this.

The simplest way to make the power level so malleable is to make Stats and Powers representable by a single classification of points. The scale for points works as follows: each point in Stats is worth 2 points, and each point in Powers is worth 1pt. A Weakness is worth -2 points, and a Devastating weakness is worth -4 points. Advantages and Disadvantages should cancel each other, but if they don't, an Advantage is worth 1pt, and a Disadvantage is worth -1 point. Because skills are a function of a character's Stats and the Skillful Power, they have no additional point cost of their own.

Now that we know how much each part of a character is worth in Power points, we should figure out the scale of the campaign. The standard BASH! characters, when converted to this format, would be 23 Power point characters. Let's round that up to 25 points, and we'll call that "Street-Level" heroes. We can use this as a guideline to build higher power level games. Below you can cross reference a power level you want to play at with a Power point value that the campaign will use to build characters.

• Mystery Men 17 Pts. This is a scale much like that of older Pulp characters like the Phantom, Green Hornet, or the Shadow.
• Street-Level Supers 25 Pts. This is the default setting of BASH! with 2 extra bonus points to make a nice round number. These characters tend to work against crime in a single city. Spider-Man or Daredevil fit in here.
• Powerful Supers 40 Pts. This is the level of supers who work to defend entire nations or even the world. The Justice League and the Avengers tend to fit within these parameters (with some exceptions). Iron-Man and Wonder Woman are good examples.
• Ultra-Powerful Supers 50 Pts. This represents characters who are head and shoulders above even Powerful supers. Such characters are often part of teams of Powerful Supers-- but the strongest members of such teams. Superman or Green Lantern are good examples.
• Cosmic Power 60 Pts and up. These characters fight to save entire universes from destruction, and do battle with beings beyond gods. The Silver Surfer fits here. These characters should be allowed to have Stats and Powers above 5, as well.

What if a character doesn't measure up to the scale assigned by the Narrator? If a character is too low on points, s/he will get to begin each Issue with extra Hero dice, to represent their determination, skill, and sheer luck that enables them to hang with more powerful heroes. For every full 5 pts below the Power Point value given by the Narrator, that character will get to begin with 1 extra Hero die every Issue. If you are using experience points, these extra Hero Dice cannot be traded for xp-- but must be used or they are wasted. Suppose a character is more powerful than the others? In that case, for every 5 Power points (or fraction thereof) that they are above the suggested Power Point value, the Narrator begins each issue with one Villain Die. These Villain dice can only be used in situations that affect that particular character (though if they happen to affect others as well so be it). This represents that even the most powerful Superheroes can suffer setbacks now and again-- and that they just might need the help of "less powerful" friends.

What about building Sidekicks and Super Vehicles? A Sidekick's Power Point Value should equal 4/5ths of his mentor's (14 Pts in the case of Mystery Men). Any excess points must be paid for by the mentor. Also, a Mentor must pay the 1 Power point for every Advantage their sidekick has, regardless of how many disadvantages the sidekick has. A sidekick's Disadvantages have no impact on his/her Power Point Value (they are worth 0 Power Points). A Super Vehicle should have Power Points equal to that of its owner. Any excess Power Points must be assumed by the owner.