Playbooks

What Are Playbooks?

Think of playbooks as personality templates that capture different parts of the teenage experience. They're not classes or character builds; they're emotional frameworks. Imagine taking every teen superhero from comics, TV and film and sorting them by their core psychological struggle. That's what playbooks represent.

Each playbook is a printed sheet with a starting spread for the five Labels (Danger, Freak, Savior, Superior, Mundane; you add +1 wherever you like at creation), a set of playbook moves, two Team moves, a Moment of Truth, a list of advances, and usually one special mechanic that no other playbook has. That special mechanic is the quickest way to see what a playbook is about, so this page leads with it.

The High School Cafeteria Analogy

Traditional RPG classes are like choosing your lunch: Fighter, Wizard, Rogue. Masks playbooks are like choosing your table in the cafeteria: the kid with a famous name to live up to (Legacy), the kid with no real powers who wants in anyway (Beacon), the rebel questioning authority (Delinquent). Your powers are just how you express your personality.

The Ten Core Playbooks

The core rulebook has ten playbooks: the Beacon, the Bull, the Delinquent, the Doomed, the Janus, the Legacy, the Nova, the Outsider, the Protégé and the Transformed. Each represents a different way of navigating the challenge of growing up as a superhero. One rough way to group them is by where the pressure comes from:

flowchart TD A["Growing up super"] --> B["Other people's expectations"] A --> C["Something inside you"] A --> D["Where you fit in"] B --> B1["Legacy Protégé Beacon"] C --> C1["Nova Doomed Transformed Bull"] D --> D1["Janus Outsider Delinquent"]

The Playbooks One by One

For each playbook: the question it asks, the struggle behind it, the special mechanic on its sheet, and a few famous characters who feel similar. The comparisons are only for flavor; the Masks book doesn't map its playbooks to existing heroes.

The Beacon

Core Question: "How do I prove I belong here?"

The Struggle: You have no powers, or only minor ones. You get by on skills, gear, determination and sheer stubbornness, and you desperately want to be a hero alongside people who can bend steel.

Special mechanic: Drives. You choose four drives from a list, things you want to do as a hero. When you fulfill one, you mark it and choose a benefit: mark potential, clear a condition, or take Influence. The drives section also points toward the big exits: changing playbooks, retiring from the life, or becoming a paragon. The Beacon move Won't let you down lets you spend 2 Team to give a teammate +2.

Everyday parallel: the walk-on athlete, the scholarship kid at a prep school, the self-taught programmer joining a tech company.

Feels like: Hawkeye among gods and super-soldiers; Stargirl (Courtney Whitmore), an ordinary girl with a cosmic staff.

The Bull

Core Question: "Am I more than a weapon?"

The Struggle: You're tough, strong and used to fighting. What really drives you, though, is how you feel about the people around you.

Special mechanic: The Bull's Heart. You always have exactly one Love and exactly one Rival. You take +1 ongoing to any action that impresses your love or frustrates your rival. You also pick a role you play for the team (such as Defender, Friend or Listener).

Feels like: the super-strong teammate whose crush and whose grudge are both written all over their face.

The Delinquent

Core Question: "Why should I follow their rules?"

The Struggle: Adults keep trying to control you, but you know better. You might do the right thing, but you'll do it your way.

Special mechanic: none, and that's the point. The Delinquent has no extra track or resource. Everything lives in its moves (such as Mary Contrary), which reward bucking expectations.

Everyday parallel: the rebel teen, the punk rocker, the activist who challenges the system.

Feels like: Beast Boy, who jokes to cope and doesn't always follow orders.

The Doomed

Core Question: "How do I make my limited time count?"

The Struggle: Your powers come with a terrible fate, and it is getting closer.

Special mechanic: the doom track. You pick two things that bring your doom closer; doing them marks your five-box doom track. When it fills, you clear it and take a doomsign, a new power or sign of your fate (Dark Visions, Infinite Powers, Portal, Burning Bright, Bolstered). Once you have taken them all, your doom arrives: you confront it and perish. You also have a Nemesis (at the end of each session, if you made progress against them you mark potential; if not, you mark doom) and a Sanctuary.

Feels like: Raven fighting the darkness she was born with.

The Janus

Core Question: "How do I balance my normal life with being a hero?"

The Struggle: You have a civilian identity that matters to you, and keeping it separate from your heroics is incredibly hard.

Special mechanic: The Mask and the Secret Identity. You choose which Label your mask embodies (Freak, Danger, Savior or Superior); once per session you can swap your Mundane with that Label. Your secret identity carries three obligations (from jobs, school, home and social life), and when time passes you roll + Mundane to see how they're going. The move I'll save you! lets you defend a loved one as if you had rolled a 12+.

Everyday parallel: the kid working two jobs, anyone living a double life.

Feels like: Peter Parker's classic juggling act; Ms. Marvel (Kamala Khan) balancing family expectations with heroics.

The Legacy

Core Question: "How do I live up to what's expected of me?"

The Struggle: You carry on a heroic tradition, often a family one. Everyone expects you to follow in those footsteps, but you want to forge your own path.

Special mechanic: your legacy. You name the members of your legacy: an active member, a retired and judgmental one, the next in line, and the greatest foe still at large. When time passes you roll + Savior to see how your legacy reacts to you, taking −1 for each "no" to three questions about upholding its tradition, image and pride. You start by giving Influence over you to all of your teammates.

Everyday parallel: the doctor's kid expected to go to med school, the heir to the family business.

Feels like: Damian Wayne, raised to be the perfect Robin; Supergirl living in Superman's shadow.

The Nova

Core Question: "How do I use this without destroying everything?"

The Struggle: You have enormous power and barely enough control to hold it.

Special mechanic: Burn and flares. When you charge up, you roll + the number of conditions you have marked (so here, more conditions help). On a hit you hold 3 burn, and on a 7–9 you also mark a condition; on a miss you hold 2 burn but mark three conditions. You spend burn on the four flares you chose at creation (examples include Reality storm, Shielding, Constructs and Moat), and you lose any unspent burn at the end of the scene. You also choose a demeanor, a happy facade or locked down, which sets how much Influence you give out at the start.

Feels like: Jean Grey, or any teen whose powers set the room on fire when they're upset.

The Outsider

Core Question: "How do I fit into this strange world?"

The Struggle: You're an alien, literally from somewhere else. You can fly and you're tough, but Earth's customs make no sense to you.

Special mechanic: your home. Many of your moves revolve around the place you came from, and your Moment of Truth calls your home's forces to your side. One of your advances lets you adopt a human life by taking the Janus's Secret Identity and The Mask.

Feels like: Starfire learning Earth customs one awkward misunderstanding at a time.

The Protégé

Core Question: "When do I stop being a sidekick and become my own hero?"

The Struggle: You have a mentor who's training you, but you're starting to question their methods and develop your own ideas.

Special mechanic: your mentor and their resources. Your mentor embodies one Label and denies another. You also choose up to three of the Mentor's Resources you can draw on (such as a hidden base, a vehicle or a supercomputer).

Everyday parallel: the apprentice developing their own style, the trainee who starts to disagree with the boss.

Feels like: Dick Grayson growing from Robin into Nightwing; Kid Flash in the Flash's footsteps.

The Transformed

Core Question: "Am I still a person in here?"

The Struggle: Something changed you, and it shows. You're obviously monstrous, and people react to your body before they meet you.

Special mechanic: a body that defines you. The Transformed has no extra track; its abilities are tied to your appearance, and its moves include I am not my body (take a powerful blow as if you had two fewer conditions marked) and Be the monster.

Feels like: Beast or the Thing, if they were sixteen and still at school.

Beyond the core book: supplement playbooks

Ten more official playbooks appeared in three supplements. They're not part of the core rules this guide covers, so check with your GM before using one.

Halcyon City Herald Collection: the Innocent (a younger self pulled from the past, whose future self is someone they never wanted to become), the Joined (two linked heroes sharing one playbook), the Newborn (a newly created being), the Reformed (an ex-villain with friends in low places) and the Star (a celebrity with an Audience). These began as Kickstarter-backer playbooks.
Secrets of A.E.G.I.S.: the Brain (a genius inventor with a Shame mechanic) and the Soldier (an agent of A.E.G.I.S., with a sixth Label, Soldier, on the sheet).
Unbound: the Harbinger (a time traveler from a dark future with scrambled Memories), the Nomad (a cosmic traveler back on Earth) and the Scion (the child of a supervillain).

Powers Follow Identity, Not the Other Way Around

Your playbook sets your emotional journey, but your powers can be anything that fits. A Legacy might have inherited their parent's exact abilities, or completely different ones. A Beacon might have no powers at all, or a lucky break and a gadget that does one thing well.

Same Playbook, Different Powers

Three Different Beacons

Maya: Normal human with home-built gadgets
Alex: Parkour, a grappling line and nerve
Sam: Uncanny luck that comes through just often enough

All struggling to prove they belong with "real" heroes

Three Different Legacies

Jordan: Has their parent's exact super strength
Casey: Fire powers in a family of ice heroes
Riley: Telepathy when parents are both flyers

All dealing with family expectations and traditions

How to Choose Your Playbook

The key question isn't "What powers do I want?" but "What internal conflict do I want to explore?" This rough decision tree can help; the answers often overlap, so treat it as a starting point.

flowchart TD Q1["Mostly powerless, just skills and gear?"] -->|Yes| P1["Beacon"] Q1 -->|No| Q2["Is someone's shadow over you?"] Q2 -->|No| Q3["Is your power itself the problem?"] Q2 -->|Yes| P2["Legacy or Protégé"] Q3 -->|Yes| P3["Nova, Doomed or Transformed"] Q3 -->|No| P4["Janus, Outsider, Bull or Delinquent"]

To split the groups: a heroic tradition points to the Legacy, a mentor to the Protégé. Power you can't control is the Nova, a fate closing in is the Doomed, and a body that frightens people is the Transformed. Juggling two lives is the Janus, not being from here is the Outsider, a heart full of love and rivalry is the Bull, and breaking the rules is the Delinquent.

Playbooks and Team Chemistry

The magic happens when different playbooks interact. Each brings its own perspective and creates natural drama:

Classic Team Dynamics

Legacy + Delinquent

The responsible one vs. the rebel. Natural tension between following tradition and breaking rules.

Example: "We should call for backup like the adults taught us" vs. "We can handle this ourselves"

Protégé + Beacon

The trained sidekick vs. the scrappy newcomer. Questions about what makes a "real" hero.

Example: Formal training vs. street smarts and natural instinct

Janus + Nova

The careful secret-keeper vs. the walking catastrophe. Control vs. chaos.

Example: "We need to be subtle" vs. "I accidentally leveled a city block again"

Bringing Your Character to Life

Every playbook shares the same building blocks; the special mechanic is what makes each one different:

Advancement in Brief

Masks characters grow by changing, not by levelling up. The rolls behind it are covered in Labels, Conditions & Moves; here is the shape of it.

Potential: every playbook has a five-box potential track. You mark potential every time you miss a roll, and also through Comfort or Support, Team moves, drives and many playbook moves. When all five are filled, you take an advance.
The top list: typical choices are another move from your own playbook, a move from another playbook, having someone permanently lose Influence over you (plus +1 to a Label), rearranging your Labels (plus +1 to a Label), and unlocking your Moment of Truth. Each playbook's list differs a little; the Outsider, for example, can adopt a human life.
The bottom list: after five advances from the top list, the bottom list opens: unlock your Moment of Truth again after using it, change playbooks, take an adult move (twice), lock a Label and add +1 to a Label, or retire from the life or become a paragon of the city.
Moment of Truth: once unlocked, you can trigger it at any time. You read your playbook's script aloud and take control of the story for that scene; afterwards you permanently lock one Label, so it can never shift again.
Adult moves: five moves (Wield Your Powers, Overwhelm a Vulnerable Foe, Persuade with Best Interests, Empathize, Stand Up for Something) that show a hero who has found their footing.
Endings: retiring from the life means stepping out of the superpowered world, safe from GM moves. Becoming a paragon of the city makes you a peer of the biggest heroes; you're no longer a Masks character and the GM plays you as an NPC.

Try It at the Table

Playbook Identification

For each character below, decide which playbook fits best and why. There's often more than one good answer.

Izuku Midoriya (My Hero Academia): Born without powers, chosen by the greatest hero to inherit his
Damian Wayne (Batman comics): Son of Batman, trained from birth to be perfect
Miles Morales (Spider-Man): Accidentally got powers, trying to live up to Peter Parker's legacy
Raven (Teen Titans): Daughter of a demon, constantly fighting her dark nature

Possible answers

Izuku: Protégé (a mentor shapes everything he does) or Legacy (an inherited power and the tradition that comes with it)
Damian: Legacy (living up to the Batman name and family expectations)
Miles: Legacy (taking on the Spider-Man mantle and its reputation), with a strong Janus streak
Raven: Doomed (a dark fate closing in) or Transformed if you focus on how others see her

Character Concept

Build a character concept this way:

Choose a playbook that appeals to you emotionally
Read its special mechanic and imagine the scene where it first matters
Think of powers that would be interesting with that struggle (not necessarily the strongest)
Consider how your character would clash or connect with other playbooks at the table
Write one sentence describing their biggest fear, and one describing what they want to prove