What is Masks | The New Generation | Halcyon City | The System | Buy |
Downloads | The Team | Community
Photovore roared, the massive creature’s head thrown back in a cry of victory. The air around it grew dark as it drew in the ambient light. Fission lay on the asphalt at the monster’s feet, drained and unconscious. Huma was still in the air, trying to get a shot at Photovore but barely dodging the creature’s blasts of scorching heat.
Lian—she still didn’t think of herself as Hornet—watched from atop a nearby roof, trying desperately to come up with a new play…but instead, thinking about what Mantis would say when they got back to base. “Why couldn’t you keep control?”, or “You have to do better, Hornet,” or the worst, “Are you sure you still want to be here?”
No. She couldn’t let herself get distracted. Mantis would lecture her soon enough. Right now? She and her team had a monster to take down. She put her hand to her ear and clicked on her communicator.
“Fission, if you can hear me, stay low. Huma, get ready to come in at a 45 degree angle along the street. I have a plan. We can do this, boys.”
We can do this, she thought, and she dove off the building into battle.
What Is Masks?
| 3-5 players | Campaign Play 2-4 hour sessions | Rated Teen |
Masks: A New Generation is a tabletop roleplaying game of superheroes, drama, and action, in which you play young superheroes who are growing up in a city several generations into its superheroic age. Halcyon City has had more than its fair share of superheroes, superteams, supervillains, and everything in between.
Players take on the roles of members of the latest generation of superheroes, young adults trying to figure out who they are and what kind of heroes they want to be. The rest of the world is telling them what to do, but they’ll find their own path amidst the noise. And kick some butt along the way.
As these young heroes find their own identities, they’ll also forge strong bonds as a team. They’ll connect with each other, comfort each other, rail against each other, and ultimately support each other—whether it’s in an argument with an older hero, or in a fight against a 30 foot tall lizard.
If you are a fan of Young Justice, Teen Titans, and Young Avengers you will love Masks!
The New Generation
In Masks, you play a young hero trying to figure out who they are and who they want to be while the world tells them what to do.
As a hero you might:
- Unleash a torrent of cosmic energy to hold up a collapsing building
- Get into an argument with your mom because you’re spending too much time superheroing and not enough time doing your homework
- Rescue your crush from being abducted by villains like the interstellar conqueror Vanquish, or the criminal overlord known only as the Spider
- Throw yourself into battle and save the day even in the face of tremendous odds in a Moment of Truth!
You’re young and inexperienced, but full of potential and hope.No one knows yet what you’re going to do or how you’re going to reshape the world, but everyone is sure you will. What matters are the choices of you and your team.
Halcyon City
Halcyon City is a metropolis of gleaming spires and countless cultures, one of the greatest cities in the world. It also has far and away the greatest concentration of super-powered history anywhere. The people of Halcyon City see more superheroics in a day than most people see in a lifetime. Supers have been around publicly for over half a century and can be classified by generation.
(Heroes Born From ‘20s to 40s) The first generation, filled with costumed adventurers and men and women with powers greater than mere mortals. They were noble and honorable, and they fought for their country, for justice, for freedom and liberty. At the time, they could do no wrong. The Gold Generation started it all. (Heroes Born From ‘50s to ‘60s) The first generation of true supers that could fly, tear holes in the fabric of reality, or summon up the primal forces of nature. The devoted themselves to fighting supervillains, monsters, and dangerous phenomena instead of criminals or political wrongdoers. They’re the heads of the largest superhero teams, giant megacorporations, and powerful political factions in the city, and they’re looking for new heroes to carry their torches. (Heroes Born From ‘70s to ‘80s) The children of a world filled to the brim with superpowers and cosmic phenomena. Many became explorers of the strange and unusual, dark vigilantes in the streets, or even government agents. They were the first introspective generation, examining the legacy left them by their elders. They’ve come to shape the world in their own way. (Heroes Born From ‘90s to Today) The newest generation of superheroes, in a world well-used to the idea of superhuman individuals and activities. Aware of fame and popularity, of the voices of everyone around them. The eyes of the older generations are on them and so far, they’ve proved themselves a generation of great hope and greater skepticism, as they struggle to find their own way.
The Silver Generation
The Modern Generation
The System
Labels and Influence
Characters in Masks each have five mechanical attributes called “Labels.” Labels represent how your character views their identity. Are you a Danger or a Savior? A Freak or Superior? Or are you just Mundane?
Over the course of the game, other characters will use their influence over the young heroes to shift how they see themselves, changing their Labels up or down. Your self-image will determine what you’re good at, and it changes regularly in response to the world around you.
Conditions
Masks uses five Conditions—Afraid, Angry, Guilty, Hopeless, and Insecure—to track the well-being of its characters. When the villain hits you, it’ll hurt, yeah—but the real danger is the fear that you’re not up to the fight!
Team
Masks is all about a team of young heroes, and the Team Pool is the key way they lend each other a hand. It’s a simple and fast mechanic involving a pool of points the team can spend to give each other bonuses to rolls—and a good way to get an idea of the team’s cohesion at a single glance!
Buy
Downloads
SRD/ CC and Logos
Play Materials
The Team
- Brendan Conway – Creator
The Core Team:
- Mark Diaz Truman
- Amanda Valentine
- Shelley Harlan
- Marissa Kelly
- Michael Lee Lunsford
- Daniel Solis
- Derrick Kapchinsky
- Sarah Richardson
- Hal Mangold
Community
Looking for other Masks fans? Have questions about the game? Want to keep up with the latest Masks news? Join our online community!
Kickstarter Video
Actual Plays & Interviews
Masks on +1 Forward
