Post Modern (A Setting for Mutants and Masterminds)

Hey Game Fans, this is the first part of a write up for the Mutants and Masterminds SuperHero RPG that i ran for friends in college.  I personally love this world and i work on new characters and ideas for it all the time.  It has been a constant addition to the RPG work that i do and i think it’s a reasonable time to share.  If i ever planned to publish it as a comic book (not likely at all) the title of the book and its Universe is Post Modern.  I chose that because it represents a change from the traditional view of the world as i saw and took a hard look at what happens when society gets jumbled up by super powers and the amazingly awesome people that have them.

Inspirations and Ideas 

Post Modern has its roots in the works of George R. R. Martin and his Wildcards series and is tied deeply to the X-Men franchise from Marvel Comics.  This is also a story that is very much set in our world, but things have changed dramatically with the appearance of super powered individuals and society’s response to them.  

Themes

Post Modern has a few themes that recur regularly.  First and foremost is a dynamic between Responsibility and Freedom.  Every character with super powers has a choice to make with their life.  They can choose to act in the better interest of the world and receive some wonderful incentives from that, or they can choose to go their own way and have to deal with the cost of that freedom.  


Another important theme that i enjoy a lot with these stories is that choices matter.  Every decision that people make has ripple effects on the people around them.  Even good choices can have unexpected outcomes and the universe does seem to be watching the decisions that people make when they think no one is.  Oh, and just about anyone in the world can have super powers, the event that created almost all of the super powered people in the world hit every country, every population equally, and there are supers from everywhere.  (Note, there are some super powered individuals that aren’t human, currently there is an Ape, a Chimpanzee, a Panda Bear, and a Tree that have all demonstrated super powers).  

The Source of All Powers

This is a bit of a misnomer as there are a few people in the world that don’t get their powers from this source, but this is a pretty good starting point for everyone to catch on.  This is with a firm nod to the Wild Cards and the mind of George R. R. Martin and his friends.

On July 5th, 1996, the world as we know it changed.  Deep Space Radar detected an object approaching the planet at high speed.  Further study revealed  that it was making course corrections.  We had an answer to the question of are we alone in the universe.  The object was revealed to be a spaceship, and it attempted to make contact with Earth’s governments as it entered the atmosphere. 


These attempts at communication failed and the United States Navy attempted to intercept the craft as it came in over the Pacific Ocean.  The ship sustained severe damage during the interception, but the alien response was more of a shock.  One of the two occupants of the ship exited the craft following its reentry and engaged the Pacific fleet that had responded.  The fleet was destroyed in a matter of minutes.  The US Military escalated it’s response and would have used more destructive weapons if the following message hadn’t been received.


“For the love of God, quit shooting at us.  Our ship has sustained damage and we are attempting to repair it before we leave your world.  We come in peace and mean you no harm.  Please stop shooting at us.”  


That message was received telepathically by every living thing on the planet.  Every man, woman, and child living on our world knew the message and its sincerity.  The response was outpouring of support for the alien travelers and the world’s militaries stood down their responses.  


Unfortunately, one of the missiles that had struck their ship had damaged an extremely old, ancient piece of technology that had an effect on the people and planet Earth.  Super powers started to appear in the population, and our world changed forever…

Dr. Everett Jowarski

University of California

Something aboard the alien’s ship was released into the air over San Francisco, and it spread quickly throughout the world.  That ancient piece of alien technology activated or rewrote part of the genetic material of the human species and left approximately .018% of the population with extraordinary abilities that some people characterize as super powers.  It is from this origin that all of the superpowered individuals in our world come, and it’s a source of familiarity that separates them from non-powered individuals.  


One interesting side effect of this genetic process is that it freezes the aging process after the final growth spurts, rendering the super powered individuals functionally immortal.