Let's Be REASONable.
December 03, 2020 06:28AM
|
|
Registered: 9 years ago
Posts: 91
|
Our local paper has the daily Spider-Man strip and it recently began an arc about Egghead. Wanting to know more about this villain, I quickly consulted the handy character profiles on this site and was surprised to discover the villain's Reason listed as a mere Excellent. Turns out this is the baseline Reason for a Marvel scientist, as listed in the Judge's Book, but that spurred me further investigation, and a question: are the Reason stats consistently portrayed? I think for the most part they are, but would appreciate input. Here's a brief list of Marvel intelligentsia and their listed Reasons:
Arnim Zola IN
Beast IN
Black Panther RM
Bruce Banner RM
Captain America EX (Is Cap this smart? He's not dumb, but I'm not sure he's scientist material.)
Curt Conners EX
Doc Sampson EX
Doctor Doom AM
Doctor Druid EX
Doctor Octopus RM
Egghead EX
Emma Frost RM
Forge IN
Green Goblin EX (seems low for the Lex Luthor of Marvel)
Guardian IN
Hank Pym RM
Kitty Pryde RM
Leader AM
Mad Thinker AM
Magneto IN
Mandarin IN
Mister Sinister IN
Morbius RM
Peter Parker EX
Professor X RM
Red Ghost RM
Reed Richards AM
Roger Bochs EX
Sebastian Shaw EX
Sidewinder EX
Tinkerer IN
Tony Stark IN
Vanisher RM
Vulture GD (Only GD? Well, I guess he spent a lot of karma that one time.)
Walter Langkowski RM
Wizard IN
Re: Let's Be REASONable.
December 03, 2020 12:38PM
|
|
Registered: 16 years ago
Posts: 13,274
|
Don't forget that's the base Reason, their talents give them the equivalent of a higher Reason in their relevant fields.
"A shared universe, like any fictional construct, hinges on suspension of disbelief. When continuity is tossed away, it tatters the construct. Undermines it."
-- Peter David
[ www.classicmarvelforever.com] - Nightmask Character Sheet
[ www.classicmarvelforever.com] - Paragon Character Sheet
[ www.schlockmercenary.com] - The Gospel of Uncle Ben
[ www.furaffinity.net] - Website of Marvel Comics Artist Rusty Haller. R.I.P
'Reality is very disappointing.' - Jonathan Switcher from Mannequin
Be Courteous: Remember to quote who you're replying to so everyone knows who and what you were responding to.
Re: Let's Be REASONable.
December 04, 2020 07:44AM
|
|
Registered: 13 years ago
Posts: 758
|
You must also take into account that official TSR statistics were written from 1984-1993. There has been a lot of continuity, power creep and gradual progression over the decades.
One world of adventure is never enough.
Re: Let's Be REASONable.
December 04, 2020 08:20AM
|
|
Registered: 9 years ago
Posts: 91
|
Good points, both, but I'm just comparing what for Marvel is base intelligence and trying to determine just how much power creep has occurred. Granted, with talents some of the characters can punch way above their weight class, and others like Doom can pull off some truly terrifying technological terrors. Everything starts with their Reason, though. The rest are just column shifts. Here are a few that jumped out at me:
Beast. Hank's the scientist supreme of the X-Mansion. Given what he's worked on over the years, he's quite intelligent, but I'd rate him at RM Reason (because of his talents).
Norman Osborn. He's supposed to be an insane genius, but he's usually only rolling on the RM column. Smarter than the average schmo, but not much more. Maybe that's why his schemes fail a lot.
Leader. If he's as smart as Doom/Richards, why isn't he throwing time machines and star drives at the Hulk? Is he the Ferris Bueller of the gamma world? Seriously, he has "all scientific talents" and has a good shot at rolling on the UN column so what's he really doing in his spare time? Authoring the Times crossword?
Aha!
Re: Let's Be REASONable.
December 04, 2020 09:20AM
|
|
Registered: 16 years ago
Posts: 13,274
|
Quote Pel Morba
Good points, both, but I'm just comparing what for Marvel is base intelligence and trying to determine just how much power creep has occurred. Granted, with talents some of the characters can punch way above their weight class, and others like Doom can pull off some truly terrifying technological terrors. Everything starts with their Reason, though. The rest are just column shifts. Here are a few that jumped out at me:
Beast. Hank's the scientist supreme of the X-Mansion. Given what he's worked on over the years, he's quite intelligent, but I'd rate him at RM Reason (because of his talents).
Norman Osborn. He's supposed to be an insane genius, but he's usually only rolling on the RM column. Smarter than the average schmo, but not much more. Maybe that's why his schemes fail a lot.
Leader. If he's as smart as Doom/Richards, why isn't he throwing time machines and star drives at the Hulk? Is he the Ferris Bueller of the gamma world? Seriously, he has "all scientific talents" and has a good shot at rolling on the UN column so what's he really doing in his spare time? Authoring the Times crossword?
Leader actually DID throw a time machine at the Hulk, he intended to use it to go into the pass and increase the gamma exposure rate to the Earth in the primordial past so that all life on Earth would be a gamma mutate (which it would have just sterilized Earth).
"A shared universe, like any fictional construct, hinges on suspension of disbelief. When continuity is tossed away, it tatters the construct. Undermines it."
-- Peter David
[ www.classicmarvelforever.com] - Nightmask Character Sheet
[ www.classicmarvelforever.com] - Paragon Character Sheet
[ www.schlockmercenary.com] - The Gospel of Uncle Ben
[ www.furaffinity.net] - Website of Marvel Comics Artist Rusty Haller. R.I.P
'Reality is very disappointing.' - Jonathan Switcher from Mannequin
Be Courteous: Remember to quote who you're replying to so everyone knows who and what you were responding to.
Re: Let's Be REASONable.
December 04, 2020 09:27AM
|
|
Registered: 13 years ago
Posts: 758
|
Quote Pel Morba
Good points, both, but I'm just comparing what for Marvel is base intelligence and trying to determine just how much power creep has occurred. Granted, with talents some of the characters can punch way above their weight class, and others like Doom can pull off some truly terrifying technological terrors. Everything starts with their Reason, though. The rest are just column shifts. Here are a few that jumped out at me:
Beast. Hank's the scientist supreme of the X-Mansion. Given what he's worked on over the years, he's quite intelligent, but I'd rate him at RM Reason (because of his talents).
Beast has created some impressive technology in his time, most of it revolving around genetics. Most especially, during his time with the Avengers when he had access to federal funding. Good examples include: the power inhibitor which was adapted for Sentinel technology, his various serums which induce/revert mutations and jet propulsion and stealth technology..
Norman Osborn. He's supposed to be an insane genius, but he's usually only rolling on the RM column. Smarter than the average schmo, but not much more. Maybe that's why his schemes fail a lot.
Despite Norman's gifted intellect, he is also deranged from the Goblin Formula. Often his own greed and poor temper destroy his brilliant plans.
Leader. If he's as smart as Doom/Richards, why isn't he throwing time machines and star drives at the Hulk? Is he the Ferris Bueller of the gamma world? Seriously, he has "all scientific talents" and has a good shot at rolling on the UN column so what's he really doing in his spare time? Authoring the Times crossword?
As someone who has collected long stints of The Incredible Hulk from the Silver Age to the Bronze Age, the Leader has made extensive use of time travel, created countless artificial and genetic life forms and even created a self aware artificial intelligence in his orbital space station known as Omnivac. A "typical" plot by the Leader revolves around traveling back in time to the Primordial Sludge and having a mind controlled Captain Marvel II gamma irradiate humanity before they crawled from the slime or infecting the city's water reserve to gamma irradiate the entire population. Back in the day, the Leader also always carried teleportation technology to escape justice when his plans were defeated. Also, there was that time he detonated a freaking Gamma Bomb in Middletown, Arizona. I don't know what else the man has left to prove.
One world of adventure is never enough.
Re: Let's Be REASONable.
December 04, 2020 04:50PM
|
|
Registered: 9 years ago
Posts: 91
|
Ah, didn't know about Leader's temporal schemes. Ok, that one's on me. Hopefully this promotes more discussion.
Aha!
Re: Let's Be REASONable.
December 05, 2020 02:05AM
|
|
Registered: 16 years ago
Posts: 1,120
|
If there was a power rank between Amazing and Monstrous, I would put Doom and Richards in that spot.
As for Egghead, is excellent high enough? I mean he seems to exist in both and Marvel and DC universe.
Someday maybe he'll tell us who's the better super hero. Batman or Spiderman?
"To defend: this is the pact. But when life loses its meaning and is taken for naught... then the pact is to avenge."
Re: Let's Be REASONable.
January 01, 2023 11:41PM
|
|
Registered: 5 years ago
Posts: 152
|
Quote Taarna
If there was a power rank between Amazing and Monstrous, I would put Doom and Richards in that spot.
As for Egghead, is excellent high enough?
Surely EGGcellent is the perfect Rank for Egghead!
Re: Let's Be REASONable.
January 02, 2023 12:05AM
|
|
Registered: 16 years ago
Posts: 85
|
Oh dear (lol)
Re: Let's Be REASONable.
November 11, 2023 09:43PM
|
|
Registered: 16 years ago
Posts: 750
|
Yeah, I think in newer editions ( Advanced MSH rpg ) they raised Captain America's reason to Ex-20 but it's too high.
earlier stats had him at Gd-10 for a while. Good seems a fair rank for Caps' reason
Re: Let's Be REASONable.
November 16, 2023 02:53AM
|
|
Registered: 16 years ago
Posts: 1,120
|
Quote Pel Morba
Our local paper has the daily Spider-Man strip and it recently began an arc about Egghead. Wanting to know more about this villain, I quickly consulted the handy character profiles on this site and was surprised to discover the villain's Reason listed as a mere Excellent. Turns out this is the baseline Reason for a Marvel scientist, as listed in the Judge's Book, but that spurred me further investigation, and a question: are the Reason stats consistently portrayed? I think for the most part they are, but would appreciate input. Here's a brief list of Marvel intelligentsia and their listed Reasons:
Arnim Zola IN
Beast IN
Black Panther RM
Bruce Banner RM
Captain America EX (Is Cap this smart? He's not dumb, but I'm not sure he's scientist material.)
Curt Conners EX
Doc Sampson EX
Doctor Doom AM
Doctor Druid EX
Doctor Octopus RM
Egghead EX
Emma Frost RM
Forge IN
Green Goblin EX (seems low for the Lex Luthor of Marvel)
Guardian IN
Hank Pym RM
Kitty Pryde RM
Leader AM
Mad Thinker AM
Magneto IN
Mandarin IN
Mister Sinister IN
Morbius RM
Peter Parker EX
Professor X RM
Red Ghost RM
Reed Richards AM
Roger Bochs EX
Sebastian Shaw EX
Sidewinder EX
Tinkerer IN
Tony Stark IN
Vanisher RM
Vulture GD (Only GD? Well, I guess he spent a lot of karma that one time.)
Walter Langkowski RM
Wizard IN
Mister Fantastic's reasoning is beyond the Amazing rank. Somewhere in between Amazing and Monstrous. It's Fantastic.
"To defend: this is the pact. But when life loses its meaning and is taken for naught... then the pact is to avenge."
Heroes Currently Online
Persons Hiding Behind Secret Identities:
48
Record Number of Persons Hiding Behind Secret Identities:
1815
on March 02, 2024
|
TSR is a registered trademark owned by TSR Inc. TSR inc. is a subsidiary of Wizards of the Coast, Inc., a division of Hasbro, Inc.
Names(s) of character(s) and the distinctive likeness(es) thereof are Trademarks and © of Marvel Characters, Inc. and are used without permission.
Names(s) of character(s) and the distinctive likeness(es) thereof are Trademarks and © of DC Comics and are used without permission.
This site is not intended to make money. It provides resources to players of a game no longer being produced.
|