Have you ever wondered why people design superhero games? There have been so many over the years that one wonders why the world needs one more. Well, the answer to that question is right here -- theres always room for one more superhero game if it's as well done as Guardians of Order's new release Silver Age Sentinels.
The title refers to a more innocent, optimistic time in comics, when the good guys were usually good (with occasional shades of grey) and worked for higher callings. In Silver Age Sentinels, you are a hero, and you live up to being a hero in several ways even if society does not recognize you as one....
The game is a huge hardcover book with a nice cover. On one side are the heroes of the Guard -- Slipstream (alien speedter), Red Phoeniz (woman with armor and an energy sword), Caliburn (faceless knight-warrior of the darkness), Sentinel (patro\iotic champion of the American dream) and Mother Raven (Native American mystic who com,municates with the spirit of the Raven and draws powrer from it). The Guard are the defenders of the Earth, operating out of Empire City (which really IS New York with a new name). On the back are the Guard's arch-enemies the White Rooks; Mister Matthews (vengeful geneticist who despises heroes), Alice, Queen of Hearts (psychopathis assasin and terri\orist with psychic powers), Iron Duke (automaton from the 1890's who goes on the occasional rampage), Kruezritter (Nazi villain from WWII who has now raised a kingdom for himself from the bottom of the sea) and Janus (a muderous psychopath who specializes in hunting superheroes for sport). There are many kore heroes and villains in the SAS universe, including plenty of room for your own.
Silver Age Sentinels as a game uses a modified version of the Tri-Stat System made popular in Big Eyes, Small Motuh and various anime games. The main difference is that it uses d10s instead of D6s and stats can now go up to 20 to reflect truly superhuman levels of ability. Other than that there is a very small learning curve for anyone familiar with Tri-Stat. The main difference is that characters are built on many more points and have access to far more powerful attributes than they did in the anime games. For experienced superhero games, all your favorite powers are there, from flight and superspeed to mind control and telekenesis. There is even a Dynamic Powers attribute that lets you simulate any other power in the game and change what you're doing on the fly provided it is linked to your base element (it's part of what makes Kruezritter so deadly).
It's a very strong system, and very playable. Most actions in combat are resolved in three die rolls, all using 2D10. The first is to hit, made against the ACV of the attacker. The second is a defense made against the DCV of the defender. Finally, if a hit is scored a roll is made to see what percentage of the attack's base damage is actually done so there is a lot of variance in how effective your attacks are. (This is a change from basic Tri-Stat, where damange is fixed to one level and is always the same). In practice you can resolve an attack in a minute.
The presentation throughout the book is exquisite. The interior of the book is in full color, with pictures of many important characters, maps of Empire City, full-color comic book covers from the history of the SAS universe, and combat scenes played out in vivid detail. The historical sections are especially rich and colorful -- the Guardians people put a ton of work into their background and truly created a living, breathing superhero world with living legends, fallen heroes and vile masterminds. It's a universe you will want to play in almost immediately.
This beautiful edition is only going to be available for a limited time. Get it while you can -- it's that good.
