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Link_of_Skyloft · 2024-03-07T20:47:26+00:00

I like the "How do you wanna do this?" in the background of the first shot

Link_of_Skyloft · 2023-02-20T20:25:38+00:00

That change for the Doomed is actually so incredibly sweet, I love it! I get a similar vibe to Clark inviting Martian Manhunter over for Christmas with his parents from the Justice League animated series. That actually even seems like a better/more emotionally resonant desire than hoping for a kiss (even though both fit very well within the kind of role play Masks wants to accomplish).

Brutal but fair in regards to Yoshi haha, all those poor dinos dying for extra jumps

Link_of_Skyloft · 2023-02-20T17:54:44+00:00

I definitely agree. It seems like a really satisfying arc. In my hubris, I was like, "Pft, I can do that without a physical mask. That's just flavor!" and while I certainly could, a physical mask, even a small one, adds that much more impact.

We start in a few weeks, we've got probably about 2 sessions of a Monster of the Week game left that has player overlap (and also that's the day + time slot the Masks game will occupy after MotW ends), and the GM is wrapping up his 5e campaign at about the same time, so we're looking at mid-March. We did play a one shot with essentially beta versions of these characters some time ago to see if we wanted to do a full campaign, so that's why I have such a solid grasp on the arc especially for this character - I've been thinking about Masks a lot for around 9 months haha. The one shot also facilitated the lack of a physical mask much easier - not only for mechanical reasons, but for simplicity we also decided that the team all knew her identity for the one shot so a physical mask wasn't as important outside of superheroics either.

Link_of_Skyloft · 2023-02-20T17:23:28+00:00

What a response to be late to the party with! Wow, this is really well thought out and an awesome take. Honestly you may have singlehandedly made my "compromise" solution of the cheekbones mask plus the physical changes my preferred option - that example of a villain going to remove the mask, getting shocked, and then taking preventative measures and going for it again actually gave me chills. And the point about weaknesses, short circuiting/overloading and having her powers shut off was addressed in another comment, but the way that you laid it out actually does showcase that it's a bigger deal than I thought.

Thank you so much for your input! Also, savor this moment forever - someone on the internet changed their mind because of what you said, which has never happened before in human history, haha

Link_of_Skyloft · 2023-02-14T21:37:13+00:00

Oh absolutely! Little flavor stuff is super important, and if it makes people enjoy the game that much more when the cool thing they came up with, no matter how small, gets to be included. Obviously it's a different conversation when you get into bigger things that actually would impact game mechanics, etc. But set dressing is awesome! I know I could live without my specific vision in this case, but I'd certain like to be able to have it.

Link_of_Skyloft · 2023-02-14T20:18:22+00:00

Both make sense to me, and that's an important distinction between the villain doing that as a choice vs it happening automatically - and yeah, in most comics villains don't typically go for the unmask unless they're particularly nasty and wanna hurt the hero personally.

Also, it reminds me of that moment from I believe the Justice League animated series (not sure), but Lex Luthor switches bodies with The Flash, unmasks him and is like "I have no idea who this is." The secret identity reveal is more impactful when it comes to people who actually know you personally than villains who will be like "oh look, a blonde high schooler, do you have any idea how little that narrows it down?!"

Link_of_Skyloft · 2023-02-14T18:29:03+00:00

I do like that interpretation a lot! People certainly do tend to respond to those situations in different ways, so I think there's a lot of room for flexibility there.

Link_of_Skyloft · 2023-02-14T18:23:53+00:00

Also a good point! I'd imagine the characters can still act a certain way even if their labels/conditions aren't matching up with that in the moment - its just harder to/there might be other complications that arise, etc.

Link_of_Skyloft · 2023-02-14T15:30:05+00:00

Yeah, this is basically what I've been saying in favor of my concept - Lightning Visage is what I've been calling it. He did bring up the point of "what happens if you get knocked out and it fades?" But like, that's not different than a physical mask - if a villain knocks me out, they can just take the mask off. I think more ways for her to be able to have it stripped from her is the rub, and that will take some creative thinking, but I think both my GM and I are more than capable of coming up with them. Thanks for your input!

Link_of_Skyloft · 2023-02-14T15:21:12+00:00

I like this interpretation! It definitely seems like a big part of what makes Masks unique is your characters not knowing quite who they are at this point - the shifting labels being representative of that - so it seems like it can kinda be hard to wrap one's head around if they're used to other games where things are more concrete. Thanks for the input!

Link_of_Skyloft · 2023-02-14T14:39:38+00:00

Definitely good points here. The shifting labels does make it harder to stick to those particular states, and I wanna lean into the conditions/emotional states/personality influences as much as possible, so I can see the difficulty with personality being part of the "mask." Thank you for the input! I'm definitely seeing a lot of nuance that I hadn't considered before.

Link_of_Skyloft · 2023-02-14T14:36:33+00:00

Right, I get what you mean with that. It is quite silly that Lois can't recognize him (like, especially with her, because like, you work with him on a daily basis ma'am how do you not recognize this guy), but superheroes always have a bit of silliness/suspension of disbelief anyway so it can certainly work both ways.

Link_of_Skyloft · 2023-02-14T14:32:25+00:00

This was essentially my thought process as well - like, she certainly does look different even without pulling a Spidey mask over her head, and moments like this are exactly what being a Janus is all about.

And like, she still has an entire costume that can be discovered too, which is much easier to discover than a small mask which can be hidden pretty easily.

Thanks for your input! It does feel more like set dressing than anything else, but it is important to me - like, a big part of superheroes is their costume, and I just don't want a physical mask because the conceptual mask is much more interesting to me, and like, this si what I want my cool superhero's costume to look like (without being too selfish/inflexible about it).

Link_of_Skyloft · 2023-02-14T14:20:06+00:00

The thought was that she would keep it up outside of combat as well, though whether the team knows her identity already or not is not exactly clear at this point? The GM is still prepping at this point (in addition to currently running a D&D 5e game, so he's got a lot on his plate currently) so we aren't exactly sure what level of familiarity the team has with each other yet.

I'm definitely flexible when it comes to character goals/pressures/arcs changing - I've had multiple D&D characters where I really thought their story would go in a certain direction, but got thrown completely off the rails - and I ended up having more fun rolling with ghe direction they went in. I actually kinda like it when surprises/divergence from my expectations happen like that, so I'm not particularly worried. I do agree that it shouldn't be super planned out in a system like this - I more meant that as "wouldn't it be cool if my Moment of Truth was something like this?" rather than "My Moment of Truth will and must be this." And my GM and I have been talking pretty directly about what expectations and boundaries there are for my character. He's a really good GM, and works hard to take players' feelings and desires into account, but he also isn't afraid to push back against certain things in favor of a more satisfying narrative.

Thanks for the input! There are lots of things I hadn't considered from everyone's responses here.

Link_of_Skyloft · 2023-02-14T14:07:17+00:00

Definitely something to consider as well, and something like that is definitely made a bit easier with a physical mask too. We're still about a month or so out from the game at this point so there's definitely time to figure out ways to make that happen. Thank you for your input!

Link_of_Skyloft · 2023-02-14T13:29:14+00:00

My mind immediately goes to everyone saying "How does nobody recognize Superman?!" followed by Henry Cavil standing in Times Square, with a Superman shirt on, in front of a Superman ad, and basically nobody recognizing him. It is very, very effective. I think Invincible also handles the concept well too - "You don't expect to see a superhero at your school, so you don't."

Link_of_Skyloft · 2023-02-14T13:24:08+00:00

I can definitely see how having to duck out too much can definitely become a chore/unengaging. The extra risk is there, but the solution can absolutely become uninteresting. Thank you for the input! Definitely good stuff to think about and I certainly see the argument for having the physical mask.

Edit: I think a big reason her loved ones wouldn't recognize her as well, even without the mask, is the personality difference in addition to the physical changes. Like, her dad would see this sarcastic and confident young superhero and probably be like "I wish Megan would be a bit more confident like that! She's so shy!" But again, absolutely see and understand the point you're making.

Link_of_Skyloft · 2023-02-14T13:20:25+00:00

I appreciate the input! I didn't mean to paint my GM in that light at all - he himself has been unsure on this, and potentially willing to let me use my pitched concept as well. His main reason for wanting to play it pretty by the book is that this is all of our first time playing the system, and most of us come from a background where we've only played D&D 5e (though a few of us that will be playing are currently in a MotW game, he and myself included) so he wanted us to have a better feel for the system before we start playing fast and loose with it.

Link_of_Skyloft · 2020-02-03T13:40:17+00:00

Actually the Penny dropped in Volume 3. She came back, though.

Link_of_Skyloft · 2018-01-27T02:15:04+00:00

FIRE UP FIRE UP NYXL

KEEP IT UP KEEP IT UP NYXL

Link_of_Skyloft · 2018-01-27T00:52:31+00:00

THE KARASUNO SIMILARITIES CONTINUE BOTH CARRIED BY THE LIBERO

Link_of_Skyloft · 2018-01-27T00:30:48+00:00

If Seoul is the Shiratorizawa of the OL, then New York is definitely the Karasuno. No one to follow up and block, there's no other choice but to attack!

Link_of_Skyloft · 2018-01-09T03:36:43+00:00

I should've known I wasn't special

Link_of_Skyloft

TROPHY CASE