Marvel custom philosophy

[badgermaniac]

One of the elements that characterized the rise of the Marvel age was the notion that the characters were flawed. Instead of having characters like Superman or the early Captain America and all of their grand nobility, we had characters like the X-Men that were misfits misunderstood by society, Iron Man with a bad heart and later a drinking problem, Spider Man with his teenage angst, and so forth. This made the characters "relatable" to the reader and also served to drive many a storyline.

I think this is something that was missing from the official Marvelscape cards (though I understand their desire for simplicity).

After delving into the custom world, I really like this concept and try to include "weaknesses" wherever possible for a number of reasons.

1. Thematically, it makes the game much more authentic. Marvel, in particular, is not Marvel without having heroes with "issues".

2. As I like to play scenarios involving master villains often against teams of heros, it helps me to balance the game. Just as I have tried to create some mega-villians for this purpose (see my 400+ point Doc Doom or Ultron), adding weaknesses can bring those hero values down and make setting up such type scenearios more possible.

3. It adds a lot of variety and fun to the game...a bit of a wildcard element if you will.

Some examples:

My Hercules does not benefit from teammate bonuses due to his arrogance.

Namor loses his order markers due to his unpredictable temper.

Wonder Man freezes up due to his death phobia.

Quicksilver can turn on his team, much as the comic version has often done.

Sometimes it doesn't work and you can't put too much on a card, but for those customizers who want maximum thematic accuracy, it is something that I really like.