The single adventures released for Marvel Multiverse Role Playing Game have been pretty straightforward to this point. That makes sense based on the audience the game is aiming to hit. They want to capture people who are new to Marvel games, new to role playing games and likely both. I think adventures like The Murderworld That Time Forgot are well done but as a veteran of both worlds I also want to see adventures that are a little more complex. When Marvel sent a review copy of Revenge of the Super-Skrull I got excited. Skrull involvement is the kind of shifty intrigue that fits a more complex storyline. Did designer Eddy Webb create a complex web of paranoia and punching? Let’s play to find out.
The Skrulls, for those who may not be hard core fans of Marvel Comics, are an alien species of shapeshifters who exist for two main reasons in the comic continuity. They allow authors to tell “enemy within” stories where the heroes can’t trust anyone because they may have been replaced by a secret Skrull and they also allow comics to retcon storyline decisions by blaming it on a Skrull causing chaos and showing that the hero is once again the real one in the center of the tale. The Super Skrull is sort of a boss version who can not just mimic looks but also powers. In general, that means he can fight a super team with its own powers but recent stories have offered more of a chance for the Super-Skrull to go deep undercover.
That’s the main plot of Secret Invasion which has happened as a big Marvel crossover twice now and as a Marvel Cinematic Universe series once. It also happens to be the general plot of this adventure, which includes a small sidebar on where it might fit into these storylines should the players care about continuity. The players are recruited by some shadowy government operatives because there are rumors that the Skrulls might be trying to swap out heroes for aliens. There’s still room for action as the players assault a secret base full of traps, but just who they can trust to back them up makes for some intriguing role playing opportunities.
Revenge of the Super-Skrull is the only Marvel Multiverser RPG project available as a PDF. This state is due to its original status as a Roll20 exclusive and some inside baseball contract stuff. It’s important to note this because the text includes extensive instructions on how to run the module on Roll20. It didn’t bother me as I read it, but there was enough of it that I felt the need to point it out to potential buyers.
The rest of this review includes spoilers for Revenge Of The Super-Skrull. If you don’t wish to spoil yourself, read no further. Here’s my overall summary: The adventure offers some good roleplay and intrigue mixed with superhero action but it's that same secret agent ambiguity that might require the GM to do a little work to make it fit their campaign.
There are actually two Skrull factions in the story. One is trying to replace the heroes in a secret invasion and the other is trying to stop it. As a further twist, the “good guy” in this scenario is the titular Super-Skrull! He is bound to stop the invasion through the kind of comic book oath swearing that means he’s not turning completely good but is still bound by honor to help the heroes. It might disappoint comic book fans who are executing to throw down with him at the end of the scenario but there are plenty of other Skrulls to battle in the meantime.
The scenario can end with a big battle that depends on which side of the Skrull power struggle the players end up on. That might feel a little railroady for some players but I think it provides a chance to lay seeds for future conflicts down the line. The best fit for this scenario is in the middle of a campaign; once the players know they can trust each other but early enough that Skrull replacements can be fallout for future episodes.
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