I'm designing a campaign world, and as an homage, one of the deities in it is named Kal-El. In other words, yes, Superman is a deity in my world.
I've got everything down except for his favored weapon. I just can't seem to pick anything that really works for him. And so I come to the Paizo boards.
What weapon, in Pathfinder, would Superman use?
And please, no Unarmed Strike. That feels too much like a cop-out.
...Catch Phrase,
-Chris
EDIT: As an addendum, what do you guys think a Green Lantern deity (named Oa) would have as their favored weapon?
Heres the thing. He dosen't use weapons, and thats a part of the character. It's like saying that thor should not favor the hammer because it's too much of a cop out.
Brass knuckles. They make normal people unarmed strikes feel like Supermans. Perfect fit.
Actually...that or gauntlets might work.
The point behind not using unarmed strikes is two-fold.
1) It feels a bit like a cop-out to say "He's Superman, so he uses his fists."
2) He's a "western european"-styled deity whose followers include knights and paladins. I really can't see a bunch of cavaliers and paladins of Kal-El rushing into battle on horseback beating people with their fists.
He would use a Marvel comic book, so he could have some REAL POWER!
Fair's fair, and I'm a Marvel fan first (DC characters are just easier to deify). Most of my dwarven "ancestors" (they don't worship deities) are based on the Thor comic mythos. One of the "idols" of the as-yet unnamed eastern culture (again, no deities) is also known as "The Iron Man".
Something bludgeoning, maybe heavy mace or warhammer.
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Fair's fair, and I'm a Marvel fan first (DC characters are just easier to deify). Most of my dwarven "ancestors" (they don't worship deities) are based on the Thor comic mythos. One of the "idols" of the as-yet unnamed eastern culture (again, no deities) is also known as "The Iron Man".
Good man, I like a few DC characters too, but I never liked Superman.Favored weapon, maybe Crystal weapons of all types to reflect his home word. Give them the fragil quality, but allow them to regrow?
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What about going something crazy; Martial weapon of choice, but followers of Kal-El must use nonlethal means to defeat their enemies whenever possible.
Favored weapon: Throwing car. Since he throws cars as weapons. Past that Unarmed strike. It's not a copout. it's accurate. or eye lazers
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You could go the steel route and use a sledge hammer
something that does non-lethal damage, like the sap, would probably be favored by Kal-El. A Quarterstaff might also be a good fit and have a special domain to do nonlethal damage.
Green Lantern ... "force weapons"? Perhaps something more defensive? Or very simple like the longsword.
Imagine a Green Lantern teleporting trough time and getting challenged to fair duel in medievil times. He would probably go with (force) full-plate, tower shield and longsword.
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Superman has a sword - every time they give Kal-El a weapon, it is a sword. Post-Crisis Superman confronted by an enemy that only truth and justice can defeat who has turned the world against him? Sword of Superman. Superman/Batman "Sorcerer Kings" storyline? Sword of Superman.
While Clark may be a good old Kansas Farm Boy who is slow to anger and prefers to solve problems in a direct manner, Superman's "Preferred Weapon" is quite clearly a longsword.
-Edit- Velcro beat me to it. I stand by my statements, however. :)
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Kal-el is a vanilla, traditional, conservative fellow. Longsword.
Spear.
Or Lance.
Spear is certainly the traditional, practical weapon of warfare.
Lance has a knightly aspect to it, and if Supes were medieval you know he'd be a knight of some description.
Also, don't overlook the parallels between Superman and Apollo.
Definitely longsword.
Or breath weapon.
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The thing about favored weapon is that it doesn't have to be a literal choice. It's a stylistic one. Batman's favored weapons include martial arts, batarangs, and stun gas; would you make the god Bruswain's favored weapon a boomerang? That would be awful. Just go with something that feels right, something that says "Superman" even if Superman never used the thing.
For Superman to walk around with a medieval weapon would be anachronistic, but if it was my game, I'd call it longsword. The longsword is the staple weapon of fighting forces the world over. It represents strength, authority, and might. I think it's a good choice, but you should go with whatever feels right to you.
As for Oa? I'd go a little off the map with something like favored weapon; wand, or ray.
Isn't supes' favored weapon cheat codes?
But seriously, I think given the personality and how that usually falls in fantasy rpgs we are talking big ole sword here. maybe bastard sword?
Crystal longsword
Thanks, all, for the feedback. At the moment, I think I'm going for longsword. The only issue with that is that I already have someone with a longsword (Pendragon, God of loyalty and generalship). So either I go for a pair of longswords or I switch one of them.
And Oa, my god of universal balance and magic, now treats all ray spells as favored weapons.
I'm really having fun with this. Most of my deities are references to some of my favorite literature/comics/video games/whatever, and figuring out how to re-adapt them into a campaign setting, as well as deciding things like domains and favored weapons has been a blast.
...Catch Phrase,
-Chris
Isn't supes' favored weapon cheat codes?
But seriously, I think given the personality and how that usually falls in fantasy rpgs we are talking big ole sword here. maybe bastard sword?
Actually, the bastard sword is the favored weapon of Diana (Wonder Woman).
...Catch Phrase,
-Chris
Isn't supes' favored weapon cheat codes?
But seriously, I think given the personality and how that usually falls in fantasy rpgs we are talking big ole sword here. maybe bastard sword?
Actually, the bastard sword is the favored weapon of Diana (Wonder Woman).
...Catch Phrase,
-Chris
Honestly, given the Greco-Roman history of the Amazons and Diana herself, I'd suggest the Gladius/Shortsword. And frankly, since Diana is a Diplomat (tries to solve problems peacefully) and a Warrior (Knows when peace is no longer an option), maybe have the Priests of her order pick either the Lasso (for the non-violent angle) or the Gladius (for when the kicking of multiple asses can no longer be avoided) at character creation?
For your Pendragon, why not the lance or spear? Or, heck, as he's loyalty and friendship, go into a previously untamed wilderness and give his Priests the Shield as a favored weapon. Have them fight side by side with those of Kal-El. Now you have an interesting dual-religion association - one is the sword, the other is the shield.
Ta-Da! Your pantheon just got another layer. :) (Or not, you know, whatever works for you.)
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The only issue with that is that I already have someone with a longsword (Pendragon, God of loyalty and generalship). So either I go for a pair of longswords or I switch one of them.
Far be it from me to tell you how to run your game, but I'd seriously consider cutting either Pendragon or Kal-El from the pantheon, or at least docking one down to the role of demi-god or lesser deity. It sounds like those two deities eclipse each other pretty thoroughly in terms of weapon, portfolio, possibly even alignment and description?
If you were to make Pendragon a lesser deity with a slightly more specified portfolio - maybe a LN deity of military tactics and nobility or something similar - the fact that both use longsword as their primary weapon becomes less of an issue.
I'm designing a campaign world, and as an homage, one of the deities in it is named Kal-El. In other words, yes, Superman is a deity in my world.
I've got everything down except for his favored weapon. I just can't seem to pick anything that really works for him. And so I come to the Paizo boards.
What weapon, in Pathfinder, would Superman use?
Nodachi.
Honestly, given the Greco-Roman history of the Amazons and Diana herself, I'd suggest the Gladius/Shortsword. And frankly, since Diana is a Diplomat (tries to solve problems peacefully) and a Warrior (Knows when peace is no longer an option), maybe have the Priests of her order pick either the Lasso (for the non-violent angle) or the Gladius (for when the kicking of multiple asses can no longer be avoided) at character creation?
For your Pendragon, why not the lance or spear? Or, heck, as he's loyalty and friendship, go into a previously untamed wilderness and give his Priests the Shield as a favored weapon. Have them fight side by side with those of Kal-El. Now you have an interesting dual-religion association - one is the sword, the other is the shield.
Ta-Da! Your pantheon just got another layer. :) (Or not, you know, whatever works for you.)
Re: Diana and the Gladius/Lasso
I like the idea of a gladius being used, and may switch over to that...hmm. Originally, bastard sword just struck me as somehow "right". But I do really like the idea of gladius. Though Lasso seems a bit cheesy.Re: Pendragon and the Shield
As he is the god of Generalship, I really get a kick out of his followers telling their soldiers: "Remember. When in combat, your most practical, useful and reliable weapon...is your shield."
Far be it from me to tell you how to run your game, but I'd seriously consider cutting either Pendragon or Kal-El from the pantheon, or at least docking one down to the role of demi-god or lesser deity. It sounds like those two deities eclipse each other pretty thoroughly in terms of weapon, portfolio, possibly even alignment and description?
If you were to make Pendragon a lesser deity with a slightly more specified portfolio - maybe a LN deity of military tactics and nobility or something similar - the fact that both use longsword as their primary weapon becomes less of an issue.
Actually, this came up in their creation. Originally, they were stepping on each other's toes, so I had to go back to the drawing board with them. Kal-El is intended to be a deity of righteousness and honor, representing paladin-like codes of conduct. Pendragon, on the other hand, is representative of command, loyalty and tactics on the battlefield. He is, essentially, a god of practical war.
And just to be clear (since this thread is drifting from its original topic into a "help me with my pantheon" thread), I do have a few differences in my pantheon from a traditional D&D/PF pantheon.
It is much more historically based, in that none of these gods are necessarily "real" (I'm keeping the actual existence of the deities ambiguous). They're much closer in similarity to the mystery cults of the dark ages than they are to the greek/roman pantheon, as they all possess their own belief systems and rarely "interact" with each other.
In general, they are also defined by their worshipers than actual divine law.
And finally, I'm not using alignment in this setting, other than used as a definition for outsiders and certain abilities/spells.
I hope that helped in setting up some basic parameters.
...Catch Phrase,
-Chris
RPG Superstar 2009 Top 32, 2010 Top 8
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Hmm, I'd go for staff or sling to be honest.
Comparing Superman's origin to Moses (he was written by a couple of Jewish boys) a staff makes sense.
And a sling for the amplification of physical power.
Of course the dreaded reBoot and reality altering punch also have merit. :-)
Sap.
If you follow DC comics there are a few elseworlds books where he wields a longsword. I would go for that one.
Diana in Kingdom Come used Longsword, Spear, Lasso.
I like Gladius/Lasso
Superman - Rod....Superman doesn't have a "classic" weapon he uses (a problem with most superheroes), but his position in the JLA pantheon is clearly that of leader and from antiquity the leader/king/emperor holds a rod.
Wonder Woman - Spear....Again, unless you can find a good way to make wielding a lasso viable WW doesn't have a consistent weapon, so I'd go with a (arguably the) classic weapon of war. Ideally, given that she's an Amazon it should be a bow, but that's the signature of another classic JLA member.
Batman - Longsword....He is the Dark Knight after all.
Green Lantern - Pistol....Surprising perhaps, and my first thought was mace, but more than once I've seen the power rings described as "the most advanced weapons in the universe" and thought, what's the most advanced weapon in a Pathfinder campaign?
Flash - Rapier....Flash is often depicted as something of a swashbuckler so that fits, and the rapier is the speediest weapon I could think of in any case.
Green Arrow - Bow....Duh.
Superman: Scythe He is a farmboy at heart.
Batman: Shuriken- Batarangs.
Wonder woman: Whip, closest mechanically to a lasso.
Green lantern: +1 to hit and damage rolls with spiritual weapon and force spells.
Aquaman: Trident
martian manhunter: All weapons. Every weapon. He does everything. Someone invents a new weapon? He uses that too and he's better at it than you are.