Superia

Click here for a list of pages appearing in the "Superia" category.

Striking a blow for justice!

Bonding with fellow teammates.

Superia is dedicated to superhero and pulp storytelling. Most established characters already existing in comics will fit in well here, as will original characters who have a similar tone. Some characters may be more modern and serious in tone, while others are welcome to be brighter, more iconic, and have more of an emphasis on high adventure. These sorts of differences are found everywhere in Superia.

Teams ranging from the Justice League to the Twink Titans (and the Teen Titans, too) keep the peace. It's neither all grim and grit nor all fun and games, though. The struggle can be serious, and villains still try to take over the world. Even in the Super Friends series, there were dark stories.

So, even if players put an emphasis on fun superhero antics much like the Silver Age, where brightly-colored heroes fought iconic villains and were generally expected to win--the characters will probably go through some really wild ordeals first!

Theme and Tone

Perhaps more so than any of the other worlds on the game, Superia strives to set a specific theme and tone. As noted above, there's room for telling some pretty dark and deep stories in the superhero genre, but those stories must still make sense within the setting. In a superhero setting, the main consideration for that is probably the difference between heroes and villains. In this setting, it is generally assumed that heroes actively make the world a better place and that, in the end, they stop the bad guys and generally save the people that need saving. Superia is a setting inspired more by sources like Justice League Unlimited or Batman: The Animated Series than some of the more grimdark or bloody-minded runs that have been seen in the comics. There's certainly room for shades of gray, but the setting and its assumptions about superhero stories are built upon the belief that superheroes make the world better; the setting is not intended to evoke, say, Watchmen. This means, for instance, that heroes are generally assumed to be heroic, positive influences in the world and that anti-mutant or anti-meta bias is seen as just as wrong in the IC world as racism is in the real life world; otherwise, it would be very hard to justify the idea of "superheroes make for a better world."

• Heroes, in this theme and setting, are generally expected to be generally law-abiding, prioritize defending innocents and bystanders, do all they can to minimize property damage, and otherwise conduct themselves heroically. They should also generally not kill, use excessive force, etc.
• Anti-Heroes blur the line between hero and villain in that they may care less about civilians, may be much more willing to break laws, and may be much more comfortable with violence. However, they shouldn't be such loose cannons or violent killers that they become villains, forcing the heroes to pursue them instead of working with them.
• Villains carry a special OOC responsibility. It's their job, when played as PCs, to generate RP and give others a challenge and things to do. They should still keep in mind their role on the game and how they can support the theme and tone of Superia.

Just remember that characters being able to collaborate and work together builds more options for RP. Characters having to be constantly at odds makes it very difficult to sustain RP beyond, say, confrontational or combat scenes. So, to that end, unless you want to play a villain according to the very specific guidelines we've set out, we strongly urge you to make sure that your character is either a hero or, at least, someone who can get along with a hero within the context of Superia's theme and tone. Thanks!

Abilities Scale

Main article: Character Abilities

Character Abilities in Superia are typical of what one might see in various comic books and superhero television shows or films. The lower end would include characters like Batman or Daredevil, up to characters like The Hulk or Superman at the upper reaches of the Supreme Ability level. At this upper end, it is not unheard of for characters to exhibit truly spectacular feats of power, as referenced by the now-famous "world of cardboard" concept at the upper extreme. Power levels in Superia tend to cover a much broader range and have much greater upper limits than in the other worlds.

• Basic: Super-characters with even basic strength may be strong enough to lift up to a few hundred pounds, nimble enough to acrobatically leap between rooftops, and tough enough to perform extreme "action movie" stunts without sustaining serious injury.
• Enhanced: Physical strength sufficient to lift 25-500 tons. Agility beyond normal human limitations, from dodging bullets up to catching bullets or even dodging energy blasts. Toughness from the ability to resist bullets or small arms up to anti-tank level artillery fire.
• Supreme: Physical strength sufficient to lift as a minimum of 10,000 tons up to, at the upper limit, about a million tons. Agility sufficient to move at super-speed, from breaking the sound barrier up to seeing one's surroundings as though they were frozen in time by comparison. Toughness sufficient to resist at least high-end energy weapons or missiles up to resisting even the discharge of high-yield nuclear weapons.

Remember, these limits hold true even for characters Traveling from other worlds.

Canon and FC Adaptation

Because Superia is a shared setting with a theme and tone that don't fit all superhero sources (and eras) equally, some adjustments exist from the original material. The standards for Canon still apply, and if you have any questions, feel free to contact staff! Here are a few important points to keep in mind when creating a character for Superia.

Locations

Many superhero games focus primarily on some version of New York City as the main activity hub. Here, our main focus is on the "Twin Cities" of Metropolis and Gotham City. We have avoided putting NYC on the game for the sake of something different, but for characters who call the Big Apple home, we wish to note that our version of Metropolis is designed to evoke Manhattan in many respects. While the place names and general inspiration for the city are very based on Metropolis, "the City of Tomorrow," the geography is similar to Manhattan. For characters wanting a more street-level tone, Gotham City is an option, and in this setting, Gotham can be found just across the river from Metropolis, making it easy to move between the two. For more information on the Twin Cities, reference:

• Gotham City, home of Batman and his allies!
• Metropolis, home to Superman, the Titans, and many others!

Other, smaller cities on the Superia grid include:

• Belton City, Massachusetts, is an old world city with beautiful architecture and a European sensibility -- home to Doctor Fate!
• Hump City, California, is a retro-futuristic Silver Agey city named for an unusual geographic feature -- home to the Twink Titans!
• Central City, Missouri, is located across the Missouri River from Keystone City, Kansas -- home to The Flash!
• Civic City, Pennsylvania, is a city that evokes the best of the Golden Age -- home to the Justice Society of America!

Mutant Rights

Anti-mutant hysteria does not exist as a widespread epidemic in Superia. The small-minded in remote, backwater places persist because, just as in real life, there are some people who may hate or fear nearly anything. This sort of bigotry is scattered and infrequent; while there are hate groups, they are generally not tolerated by the vast majority of the populace. It simply doesn't make sense for most people to admire Superman or Captain America, yet find Cyclops somehow unacceptable.

School for the Gifted

Sky High is the most prominent institution providing education and training for the super-powered and the exceptional. Most young heroes and people with powers, if they seek education and training, will probably look to Sky High. Many of those who in Marvel canon might be involved with the Xavier school (or Avengers Academy, Hellions, etc.), including both faculty and students, are likely to instead find themselves attending, teaching at, or otherwise connected to Sky High.