Champions Online Developer Blog
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When working on City of Heroes, interviewers asked me time and time again, (what comics were your biggest inspirations?) While I certainly rattled off a few titles, I also added something else that they didn't expect: a paper and pencil RPG called Champions. In 1981, I first uncovered Champions in a local hobby shop where RPGs were stuffed into dusty cubby holes. I had been reading comics for several years and had played Dungeons and Dragons. A combination of super heroes and RPGs! Sold!
The biggest hook was, of course, character creation. Using the unique point system, I could create just about any super power I could imagine. To be honest, I carried around a pad of paper, a Champions rulebook and a calculator just about everywhere I went. More than a few of my Champions characters found their way into City of Heroes. I played quite a bit of Champions over the years and religiously bought every supplement (a habit I still have!).
As time passed, the thrill of Champions became not only its rules system, but also the rich background that developed. I loved the feel of VIPER. The evil machinations of Mechanon. The vile power of Doctor Destroyer. The zaniness of Foxbat. Every Champions product seemed to build more and more of a history that I could latch onto. Every year brought changes to the Champions that I knew and loved; Detroit was destroyed. Millennium City was built. New heroes appeared to take up the task. What was once just a RPG became a full fledged narrative not unlike comic books themselves.
