Make Threats Real

Superhero stories are often about stopping terrible things from happening. But that all becomes rote if the threats aren’t truly threatening. Make the scope and focus of threats real and meaningful—and the best way to do that is often to make them small and personal. If a villain threatens to turn your best friend into their apprentice? That’s a real threat.

The second part of making threats real is to sometimes deliver on them, hard. If the PCs take action to stop a threat, and the rolls go their way, then fine—you’re playing to find out, and they overcame the threat. But if they get a miss, or if they give you a golden opportunity through their actions—then deliver on the threat. Follow through. Make it real.