Setting expectations, violence isn't the only way to victory

[supers]  Setting expectations, violence isn't the only way to victory


Superhero stories are different than many other fantasy genres.  Because of that role-playing games,  the NPCs,  and the players  "need"  to understand the differences before playing their characters and helping co-create and tell the story of the RPG sessions.

One problem I run up against in playing superhero games that frustrates me sometimes is players who think more on the "traditional" style of game play (and story) that they've played out with so many other RPGs.   ...  Namely the "remove them from the battlefield"  mentality that often results in  "kill them"  actions that we're all very familiar with in our traditional  D&D fantasy fare.

Not only do (many) players resort to "take them out" by physical "beat the heck out of the bad guy"  methods alone  but  they also get frustrated when they see (assume) that a villain or threat seems to be  "unbalanced"  to their character's  "power level"  -  the result of a problem created by the extreme effort to BALANCE game mechanics that (I've seen)  happen in game design  over the last 10 years.

Some players can't  "enjoy"  the story because they're too busy wondering what "power level" the villain is at  or  why the "minions"  didn't go down in one hit. 


I find this frustrating and confusing (to the players) unnecessarily especially in Superhero games.

Because in superhero comic stories the villains are OFTEN way more powerful than the hero team.  Many times the heroes are up against odds that are overwhelming.  Sometimes those odds are meant and welcome to be challenged through various means such as:


- [B]Team Actions[/B]:  many rule systems allow for team tactics to increase combat effect.

-  [B]Non-physical Actions[/B]:  sometimes villains are just invulnerable and need to be "beaten" through other methods such as mental powers, restraining circumstances, or even role-playing to convince the villain to stand down.

-  [B]Achilles' Heel[/B]:  often the only way to beat a villain is to discover its Achilles' heal,  which might be an actual combat point  or  a social conflict that stops the villain.

-  [B]Out of Juice[/B]:  sometimes the Achilles' Heel is a more specific  "timetable"  in which the villain needs to "win" by getting the mission done BEFORE running out of power, or ending whatever timeline they're dealing with.

-  [B]Job's Done[/B]:  many/most villains in comics (especially the lower tier crooks)  are often ONLY in the battle for the mission.  Whether it be the prize/money or the achievement.  Not all villains fight to the death and many comic villains actually have their own codes!  Surprisingly to many players not every villain WILL kill in battle!

-  [B]It's ALIVE![/B]:  sometimes the entire point of a story (RPG = encounter)  is the "origin story" (creation) of a new villain!  So sometimes their is a deus ex machina that stops the villain at that point.

-  [B]Villain Fight[/B]:  another classic "endgame" of the villains is that they squabble and fight each other  or  the big bad decides to "eliminate" his foolish minions for their incollence. 




Anyway...
I get frustrated in games when players don't understand,  don't consider,  or even scoff at the fact a villain can't/won't or doesn't need to be taken down by punching them in the head,  and/or  KILLING them -  to "remove" them from the battlefield like a Chess Board.


Two questions.

#1.  Adding to my ideas above.  What other options have you seen/read or experienced that villains in superhero comics can be beaten beyond being punched in the head until all the hit points are gone? 

#2.  How would you get those points across to players starting a superhero game?  Without hamfisting the "win method" in each story/encounter by hinting heavily that their may be another way to BEAT the villain,  how would you make sure the players REMEMBER those options and try them?


looking forward to thoughts
-kev-