Blackjack and Hookers

Note: looking for a less-sexist name.

The system:

• Adventuring gives you skill points, but never Power Levels
• PL makes you super. PL 0 is a normie, PL 10 is a superhero, 20 a god, etc
• PL costs humanity
• PL is a fixed resource--it has to come from somewhere
• Imagine if 3e had no magic, but still had skills, feats, etc
• And instead of XP and levels, there was the Deities and Demigods system
• Kinda like that

The setting:

• A modern world (not Earth), with 2021-like culture and (magi-)technology, but with elves, dragons, and shit
• Playable races generally live together in peace (as well as real-life ones do, at least)
• But there are way more areas where violence holds sway
• It's not so easy for superpowers to keep the third world down when nukes can be turned into bowls of petunias by a single wizard

PL

Rough tiers:

• 0: normal (John Smith)
• 1: action hero (John McClane)
• 2: over-the-top action hero (John Wick)
• 3: B-list superhero, wizard (John Constantine)
• 4: A-list superhero (John Hancock)
• 5: lesser god
• 6: greater god
• etc

What it does:

• Primarily allows you to exceed normal reality
  • Take impossible hits
  • use skills stupidly well
  • be super strong, fast, charismatic, etc
  • have "hit points"
  • and of course, use magic