Champions (role-playing game)

Champions is a superhero-themed role-playing game (RPG) created by George MacDonald, Steve Peterson, Bruce Harlick, and Ray Greer. It was first published by Hero Games in 1981. It is notable for its highly flexible and customizable character creation system, based on point allocation, allowing players to design virtually any superhero archetype or power imaginable.

The core of Champions is the Hero System, a generic RPG system designed to be adaptable to various genres, though it is most strongly associated with superhero gaming. The Hero System uses a common set of mechanics across all its genres, including fantasy (with Fantasy Hero), science fiction (with Star Hero), and pulp adventure (with Justice, Inc.).

Key Features:

• Point-Based Character Creation: Characters are built by spending points on a wide array of characteristics, powers, skills, and disadvantages. This allows for a high degree of customization, enabling players to create unique and personalized heroes.

• Flexible Power Design: Powers are defined using a modular system of advantages, limitations, and special effects. This allows players to tailor their powers to function exactly as they envision. The degree of customization available is a major selling point.

• Detailed Combat System: The combat system is designed to be realistic and tactical, taking into account factors such as speed, damage resistance, and maneuverability. It focuses on a segment system for tracking actions.

• Genre Adaptability: Although primarily used for superhero games, the Hero System can be adapted to various genres. This adaptability has led to the creation of supplemental books and settings for different types of campaigns.

• Hero Designer Software: Hero Games also provides Hero Designer, a software program designed to facilitate character creation and management using the Hero System rules. This aids players in tracking costs, creating character sheets, and generally streamlining the character creation process.

Editions:

Champions has gone through multiple editions, each refining and expanding upon the core rules. Notable editions include:

• 1st Edition (1981)
• 2nd Edition (1982)
• 3rd Edition (1984)
• 4th Edition (1989)
• 5th Edition (2000)
• 6th Edition (2009)

Each edition brought changes to the rules, often focusing on simplifying or clarifying certain aspects of gameplay or character creation. While broadly compatible, earlier editions can require some conversion to be fully compatible with later ones.

Legacy and Influence:

Champions has had a significant influence on the RPG industry, particularly in the superhero genre. Its flexible character creation system has been praised for its ability to model a wide range of fictional characters. While perhaps not as commercially successful as some other RPGs, Champions maintains a devoted fanbase.