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I see that several rpg.net reviewers have beaten me to the punch on this one. No matter, since my opinion of Aberrant differs a bit from all of them. To wit:

Aberrant is the best superhero RPG I've ever seen. No kidding.

Why do I say this? Well, for starters, superhero RPGs have always been very much a mixed bag. There has never been one which I didn't feel was unacceptably flawed in its basic design. See, there are two things I want from a superhero game: a character creation system which puts complete control in the hands of the player while allowing detailed definition of the character, and a combat system which flows fast and clean, simulating the fast action which one actually finds in comics. Champions has the former, but not the latter; Marvel Super Heroes has the latter but lacks the former. DC Heroes is an uneven mix between the two extremes, and simulates very high-end supers much better than Batman or Watchmen types of characters.

Beat me with a stick if the angst-soaked goth punks at White Wolf haven't managed to pull it off. And not only that, but they do it with panache (see, I read 7th Sea, too!) and a believable setting that isn't lifted directly from Marvel or DC.

I picked up the Limited Edition of the game at Origins '99 on sheer whim. Boy, I'm glad I did.

A prequel of sorts to White Wolf's Trinity game, Aberrant uses the evolution of the Storyteller system first employed in that game. The two systems (storyteller and Aberrant/Trinity) are very similar, but not completely cross-compatible. For my money, the mechanics of Aberrant are a notch better. Not only is the basic mechanic cleaner and easier to manage, but, unlike the Magick rules of Mage (for example) they're easy to grasp.

Unlike Storyteller, where the GM needs to not only assign a target number but has to keep in mind the number of successes the player rolls, Aberrant's target number is *always* 7. Difficulty is accounted for by requiring that additional successes be rolled. Gone is the well-known Storyteller system bug of botching more often with higher levels of skill--Aberrant uses the Trinity system for botches, (an idea adapted into 3rd Edition Vampire, I might add--why wasn't this thought of before?) where you only botch if you're showing ones and *no* successes, and one's *don't* cancel successes.

Storyteller has always done at least a pretty good job handling character with powers beyond the realm of normal humans, and Aberrant's superhumans, the Novas, are no exception. There is a far broader array of more-than-human abilities available here than in Vampire, or indeed in any of White Wolf's games, with the possible exception of Mage. But where Mage gives you a small set of highly abstract abilities and turn the characters loose with them, Aberrant deals in powers with fairly concrete effects, without hemming payers in with too-specific power description.

The setting owes quite a bit to Miracleman and the Wild Cards shared-world project, but very little to anything else in particular. The closest approximation to see print in the RPG hobby is the IST setting for GURPS Supers, but Aberrant isn't saddled with the GURPS rules which are, in my opinion, poorly suited to four-color superheroes. (Don't get me wrong--I adore GURPS and would use it for just about any genre *except* four-color superheroes. But for old-fashioned high-powered masked vigilantes, Aberrant is going to work better.) The dawn of *this* superheroic age has changed the world irrevocably. Technology has advanced rapidly thanks to Novas with super-intellects, the media has made supers into pop-culture icons so huge that Mark McGuire and the Spice Girls are to be pitied.

One oddity is that the hardcover (limited) edition of the game sells for $29.95, while the softcover retails at $24.95. Why anyone would buy the softcover when the hardcover is only five bucks more is beyond me. The book is an odd size, slightly smaller than most RPG books, but larger than TSR's digest-size items (like the Complete Wizard's Spellbook, for example,) or the old black Traveller books.

I'm impressed enough with Aberrant to seriously consider looking into Trinity (which had until this point received nothing but sneers from me) as well. Now, if only I can get my White Wolf-hating Rolemaster group to try it out...

Style: 4 (Classy and well done)
Substance: 4 (Meaty)

Aberrant
Author: Robert Hatch, et. al. Category: game Company/Publisher: White Wolf Line: Aberrant Cost: 29.95 Page count: 286 Capsule Review by Gary N. Mengle on 07/09/99. Genre tags: Modern_day	I see that several rpg.net reviewers have beaten me to the punch on this one. No matter, since my opinion of Aberrant differs a bit from all of them. To wit: Aberrant is the best superhero RPG I've ever seen. No kidding. Why do I say this? Well, for starters, superhero RPGs have always been very much a mixed bag. There has never been one which I didn't feel was unacceptably flawed in its basic design. See, there are two things I want from a superhero game: a character creation system which puts complete control in the hands of the player while allowing detailed definition of the character, and a combat system which flows fast and clean, simulating the fast action which one actually finds in comics. Champions has the former, but not the latter; Marvel Super Heroes has the latter but lacks the former. DC Heroes is an uneven mix between the two extremes, and simulates very high-end supers much better than Batman or Watchmen types of characters. Beat me with a stick if the angst-soaked goth punks at White Wolf haven't managed to pull it off. And not only that, but they do it with panache (see, I read 7th Sea, too!) and a believable setting that isn't lifted directly from Marvel or DC. I picked up the Limited Edition of the game at Origins '99 on sheer whim. Boy, I'm glad I did. A prequel of sorts to White Wolf's Trinity game, Aberrant uses the evolution of the Storyteller system first employed in that game. The two systems (storyteller and Aberrant/Trinity) are very similar, but not completely cross-compatible. For my money, the mechanics of Aberrant are a notch better. Not only is the basic mechanic cleaner and easier to manage, but, unlike the Magick rules of Mage (for example) they're easy to grasp. Unlike Storyteller, where the GM needs to not only assign a target number but has to keep in mind the number of successes the player rolls, Aberrant's target number is always 7. Difficulty is accounted for by requiring that additional successes be rolled. Gone is the well-known Storyteller system bug of botching more often with higher levels of skill--Aberrant uses the Trinity system for botches, (an idea adapted into 3rd Edition Vampire, I might add--why wasn't this thought of before?) where you only botch if you're showing ones and no successes, and one's don't cancel successes. Storyteller has always done at least a pretty good job handling character with powers beyond the realm of normal humans, and Aberrant's superhumans, the Novas, are no exception. There is a far broader array of more-than-human abilities available here than in Vampire, or indeed in any of White Wolf's games, with the possible exception of Mage. But where Mage gives you a small set of highly abstract abilities and turn the characters loose with them, Aberrant deals in powers with fairly concrete effects, without hemming payers in with too-specific power description. The setting owes quite a bit to Miracleman and the Wild Cards shared-world project, but very little to anything else in particular. The closest approximation to see print in the RPG hobby is the IST setting for GURPS Supers, but Aberrant isn't saddled with the GURPS rules which are, in my opinion, poorly suited to four-color superheroes. (Don't get me wrong--I adore GURPS and would use it for just about any genre except four-color superheroes. But for old-fashioned high-powered masked vigilantes, Aberrant is going to work better.) The dawn of this superheroic age has changed the world irrevocably. Technology has advanced rapidly thanks to Novas with super-intellects, the media has made supers into pop-culture icons so huge that Mark McGuire and the Spice Girls are to be pitied. One oddity is that the hardcover (limited) edition of the game sells for $29.95, while the softcover retails at $24.95. Why anyone would buy the softcover when the hardcover is only five bucks more is beyond me. The book is an odd size, slightly smaller than most RPG books, but larger than TSR's digest-size items (like the Complete Wizard's Spellbook, for example,) or the old black Traveller books. I'm impressed enough with Aberrant to seriously consider looking into Trinity (which had until this point received nothing but sneers from me) as well. Now, if only I can get my White Wolf-hating Rolemaster group to try it out... Style: 4 (Classy and well done) Substance: 4 (Meaty)