Boy Wonders and Sidekicks

[LandonSuffered]

Hi!  I don't own Capes, but I have been reading posts and checking out Tony's web site and I really like what I see! I've owned many many superhero RPGs, but I've yet to find one that's really satisfied my love of the genre. However, after reading the on-line examples, the Capes Lite and example of play, I do have a question:

How do you handle sidekicks?

You know those little guys like Bucky and Speedy and Robin? The ones that don't really have super powers...or do they? Kid Flash is kind of a Speedster-Kid combo, that's easy enough. But the guys who don't have powers...just nerve, zest, maybe some acrobatics skill...do they have powers or just abilities like non-superpowered individuals (cops, mooks, etc.)?

It just seems weird to me that this particular archetype isn't one of the standard click-and-locks. I mean sure...the hulk is a brick, Betty Ross is a scientist, but what the heck is Rick Jones? These foils are essential to many comic book stories...what do you use for this type of character?

If I've missed the point of the game, I apologize...as I said, I don't own Capes and I've never played it. This question is one of curiosity more than anything else. I'm looking for a superhero game that allows me to recreate (or at least pay homage to) the comic books that inspire me, and from the threads and reviews I've read, Capes looks pretty good.

Thanks!

[Eero Tuovinen]

Three ways to handle it:
a) The sidekick is an ability of the hero. Like, a '60s Batman interpretation could well have the superpower "Robin". In this case the sidekick is an appendage of the hero, pretty much, without dramatic interest for himself.
b) The sidekick is a non-superpowered individual. This is suitable if he's an independent actor, but not a focus of great drama. Rick Jones in most incarnations fits the bill, as does Robin.
c) The sidekick has superpowers. Note that this has little to do with whether they're superpowers in the fiction, and everything to do with whether they have to wrestle with dramatic debt. Robin in his own comic books has "superpowers", even if they're "Keen detective", "Robin-belt", "Martial Arts" and "Batman comes to aid".

In other words, Capes has little to say about the in-fiction roles of hero and sidekick, but much to say about the actual dramatic roles pulled by each. If you want to stick close to what the sidekick originally means, you probably pick either a) or b). If you later on want to explore the sidekick as an independent protagonist, you'll switch to c). This is pretty common for Capes, which is a very formalistic game; most elements in it have exactly the meaning you decide to give them, and nothing more. Thus you can't be given a blanket answer that fits every sidekick 100% of the time, only several techniques you can use depending on the situation. By playing the game you'll quickly learn to pick the option that best fits the situation.

[Vaxalon]

I'd also point out that "Exemplar" relationships are ready-made for dealing with the deeper issues brought up by sidekicks.

[LandonSuffered]

Thanks, folks!

I'd seen references to "Exemplars" but since there are no rules for them in the Capes Lite rules, I figured I'd get more info on that once I'd purchased the game.

Just a follow-up question to Eero's reply: so if you decide on option "A" (sidekick as an ability) and switch to "B" or "C" (sidekick as a character/protagonist) do the rules support this? What happens to the player using Batman with superpower "Boy Wonder" when another player decides they want to use Robin as a character for the scene? Does the ability continue to work for purpose of action/reaction? Or does the Batman's player change his abilities "on the fly?"

Which leads me to a different question: for re-curring characters that appear in multiple scenes, are the player's allowed to adjust the abilities/superpowers from scene to scene? For example, if Robin is killed by the Joker in one scene, it kind of renders Batman's "boy wonder" ability moot. Can a player re-write the Batman character in later scenes, substituting a different ability for the sidekick?

(to put it another way: I realize there's no real "advancement" for characters in Capes; but is change/re-distribution of resources possible for established characters?)

[Eero Tuovinen]

I'm no expert (in fact, I've personally yet to play the game), but the basic principle seems to be that the connection between the mechanics and the fiction is very formalistic, with little but player say-so deciding how the fiction hooks into the mechanics. Thus I see little difficulty in redefining a character as necessary. I think you'd need the agreement of other players, though, because it affects resource distributions. (The extreme misapplication would be to bring in a completely different character under the guise of "reworking", to utilize the old character's debt or to customize the character for the scene you know is coming.) I'd say that any changes arising from story events are kosher, simple as that.

(Now, for all I know Tony will soon be around to tell us that the character advancement rules are on page XX of the rulebook; I'm just thinking aloud here.)

Also, remember that the "Boy Wonder" ability is not nullified by the Joker killing Robin. The player of Batman can easily still utilize the memory of Robin, his rage over the death, and a new Robin is, of course, possible.

[Andrew Cooper]

Landon,

I've played several times and I've read through the book a couple of times.  I don't have the book with me at the moment so take my statements as going from memory.

In the case where Batman has an Ability called "Boy Wonder" and later someone decides to make a complete character, Robin, no modification of the original Batman is required at all.  Batman can still have the ability called "Boy Wonder" and use it at will.  This isn't even an odd thing in Capes as during any narration, Batman's player can narrate Robin doing something if he wants.  Who can do what with a character is far more fluid than in most games.  In fact, if Batman wants to make his relationship with Robin to be really, really important, not only would he keep the "Boy Wonder" ability but he would also add Robin as an Exemplar.

[Larry L.]

Non-adventuring characters like Alfred could easily be items on a location "character," like Wayne Manor, too.