Roll for Origin: Supers TTRPG History: Ep. 7 Mutants & Masterminds

Roll for Origin: Supers TTRPG History looks all four editions of one of the most important modern supers TTRPGs, Mutants & Masterminds. Jay and Lowell talk about the core elements of the game-- what has remained the same and how the powers system has shifted over time. They then cover the publication history of the game and how each edition rolled out, followed by talk about how M&M has dealt with media, genres, and a few IPs. The episode then wraps up with a general discussion, where *spoilers* Lowell talks about why this has become his favorite trad-leaning supers game and his most embarrassing convention story.

• Mutants & Masterminds 4e Kickstarter (running through March 5, 2026)
• The Play Fearless Greatest Crits Zine Kickstarter (Jay's project running through March 1, 2026)
• Muses of Play (Mad Jay and Sarah Doom's new podcast project)
• Mutants & Masterminds System Guide for 3e
• RPGs I Like: Mutants & Masterminds, 2e (Part One)
• RPGs I Like: Mutants & Masterminds, 2e (Part Two)

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Jay's the author of By Aecer’s Light, The Clockwinders for Fate, Cortex Prime's Supers, and a contributing author on Pathfinder’s Mwangi Expanse, Trophy Gold, Hit the Streets: Defend the Block, and the upcoming Lifted: Indomitable RPG, a supers game about everyday folks with extraordinary powers in a tech-aggressive world.

Check out Mad Jay's work at Play.Fearless and at the Diceology Podcast.

Lowell is the designer and co-author of Hearts of Wulin. He's the ENnie-winning creator of the Age of Ravens blog and community manager for the Open Hearth Gaming Community.

You can find Lowell's work on YouTube, on Itch.io, and on DriveThruRPG.

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00:00 Intro
01:13 The Pitch
09:34 Gaming History
17:53 Comics & Media History
25:53 Thoughts