Once upon a time—somewhere between the dying embers of 4th edition D&D and the golden dawn of story-first RPGs—a roleplaying system emerged that was cinematic, character-driven, and just crunchy enough to keep your dice warm. That system was Cortex Plus, the evolution of the original Cortex System, brought to the tabletop masses by Margaret Weis Productions (MWP). If that name sounds familiar, that’s because Margaret Weis isn’t just any publisher—she’s one half of the Weis-Hickman duo responsible for the legendary Dragonlance novels, and she was also a driving force behind innovative RPG storytelling outside the D&D dungeon.
So buckle up your plot-point pouches, grab your d12s (yes, they’ll actually get some love here), and let’s explore what made Cortex Plus one of the most interesting, genre-bending RPG frameworks of its time.
Table of Contents
The Cortex System: Where It All Started
Before we hit the “plus,” we’ve got to rewind a little.
The original Cortex System debuted with the Serenity RPG in 2005. It was simple, flexible, and used variable dice (d4 to d12) to represent attributes, skills, and other traits. This meant you could be ridiculously charming with a d12 in Influence, or awkward as a goblin in a tutu with a d4. That early iteration powered a handful of licensed games like Battlestar Galactica, Supernatural, and the Demon Hunters RPG, and it established the bones of what would eventually become Cortex Plus.
But while Cortex Classic was good, it was still largely a traditional RPG at heart. Players rolled against target numbers, initiative was a thing, and the narrative tools were still chained to the GM’s desk. Cortex Plus broke those chains.
What Is Cortex Plus?
Cortex Plus is less a single RPG and more a game design toolkit. MWP built it to handle different genres with different mechanical lenses, making it more of a modular narrative engine than a fixed ruleset. Think of it like the LEGO of storytelling systems—snap a few bricks together and boom, you’ve got a space opera. Shuffle things around and now it’s teen drama with emotional flashbacks and locker room angst. The system was used to power several officially published RPGs, each with a specific flavor of Cortex Plus.
There are three primary “flavors” of Cortex Plus:
- Drama – Character-driven stories, emotional conflicts, and lots of interpersonal tension. Used in Smallville.
- Action – Punchy, heroic, team-focused adventure. Used in Leverage.
- Heroic – Bombastic, superpowered mayhem with room for character growth. Used in Marvel Heroic Roleplaying.
Each of these flavors shared core concepts—dice pools, distinctions, assets, stress tracks—but tweaked the structure to suit the genre. Cortex Plus was genre-emulation-first and rules-second, and that’s part of what made it such a delight for narrative-first gamers.
Let’s take a look at the games that put Cortex Plus on the map.
Smallville: Not Your Average Supers Game
Released in 2010, Smallville: The Roleplaying Game was a shock to the system—especially to players expecting capes, cowls, and city-smashing. Instead, Smallville gave you a relationship map, emotional stress tracks, and the chance to tell a story about teenage super-angst.
This was the debut of the Drama flavor, and it was radical. Instead of focusing on powers, Smallville zoomed in on who your character was, who they were connected to, and what they believed. Every character had Values and Relationships, and your dice pools came from what you believed and who you cared about, not how strong you were.
Got into a fight with your best friend about their secret identity? That was the main event, not a side scene. Character creation was a group affair—everyone built a Pathways Map together, drawing connections between characters and NPCs like a high school conspiracy wall. It was collaborative, messy, and brilliant.
And yes, you could still throw cars if you needed to, but it was the emotional damage that really hurt.
Leverage: Heists, Flashbacks, and Found Family
Next came Leverage: The Roleplaying Game in 2011, based on the TV show that combined slick heists, lovable criminals, and justice-for-the-little-guy vibes. This one introduced the Action flavor of Cortex Plus and gave us a sleek, fast-paced system built for cinematic crime capers.
The characters were all experts Hacker, Grifter, Hitter, Mastermind, and Thief and each one had a signature role in the job. During gameplay, players would roll dice pools based on their Roles, Attributes, Distinctions (more on those in a minute), and could pull off Flashbacks to explain how they’d already planned for this exact moment. Think of it like saying “I planted that EMP last night” and suddenly you’ve got a d8 Asset representing your brilliant prep work.
Leverage was brilliant at reinforcing genre conventions. It encouraged player GM collaboration and made pulling off a big twist not just possible, but expected. Plus, it made Distinctions shine.
Marvel Heroic Roleplaying: The Game Too Cool for Hit Points
In 2012, MWP dropped what many consider the magnum opus of Cortex Plus: Marvel Heroic Roleplaying. Built with the Heroic flavour, this game didn’t try to simulate street level tactics or superhero slugfests with overly granular rules. It streamlined the experience, focusing on narrative control, powerful characters, and dramatic consequences.
Every character had Affiliations (how they operate solo, with a buddy, or on a team), Distinctions (quirks and catchphrases), Power Sets, and Specialties. You rolled a pool of dice from those categories, aiming to beat your opponent’s total and effect die. Plot Points and Doom Pools added a dynamic currency system to power cool moves and narrative drama.
This game let you play Thor, Spider-Man, or Iron Man as they appear in the comics not just approximations. Thor could smack a Frost Giant into another dimension; Spider-Man could win a fight just by out-talking the bad guy. Narrative trumped tactics, and boy, was it refreshing.
Sadly, Marvel Heroic ended too soon due to licensing tangles, not because of a lack of love. It’s still a cult favorite among fans, and it’s widely regarded as one of the best superhero RPGs ever written. And yes, people still play it. Religiously.
Distinctions: The Quirky Engine of Cortex Plus
Every Cortex Plus game has its quirks, but none more central than Distinctions. These are the narrative traits that define your character. They can be personality traits (“Hot Headed”), backgrounds (“Raised by Wolves”), or genre tags (“Former Villain”). You can use them to your advantage or your detriment rolling a d8 when it helps, or a d4 (and gaining a Plot Point) when it complicates your life.
The genius of Distinctions is that they make the system invite trouble. Instead of avoiding flaws, players are encouraged to lean into them because they generate narrative currency. Want to complicate a scene with your bad habit of over promising? Take the d4, snag that Plot Point, and get into a deeper mess. Cortex Plus thrives when characters are people, not just builds.
Plot Points and the Currency of Chaos
Ah, Plot Points the lifeblood of Cortex Plus. These tokens are handed out like candy whenever players complicate their lives, activate special effects, or roleplay their hearts out. They can be spent to add extra dice, create assets on the fly, or do wild cinematic things like grabbing the villain’s monologue remote and fast-forwarding to the fight.
On the GM side, there’s often a Doom Pool or Complication Pool, depending on the game. This is a pile of dice that the GM can use to escalate tension or introduce surprise threats. The constant back and forth of Plot Points and GM dice makes every session feel alive like the story is pushing and pulling as it unfolds.
Cortex Plus As a Toolkit
Perhaps the most ambitious thing MWP did with Cortex Plus was to present it not just as a set of games, but as a toolkit for designing your own RPGs. While individual games like Smallville or Marvel Heroic were excellent at capturing their genres, the system underneath was modular. Swap out Values for Attributes. Replace Powers with Careers. Use Stress Tracks or don’t. Add a Doom Pool or use Scene Distinctions instead.
The idea was that Cortex Plus could be remixed endlessly to suit any kind of story and fans took that to heart. There were homebrew hacks for Star Wars, Doctor Who, Avatar: The Last Airbender, and original settings aplenty. Cortex Plus wasn’t just a system it was a playground.
The Legacy of Cortex Plus
So what happened to Cortex Plus?
Margaret Weis Productions eventually wound down their RPG production, and the rights to Cortex passed to Fandom Tabletop (yes, the same folks who run D&D Beyond), who launched Cortex Prime a streamlined, toolkit focused evolution of the system that took all the Cortex Plus lessons and made them even more flexible.
But Cortex Plus still has a devoted following, and many consider it a golden age of licensed RPGs. It was the first system that made people say, “Wait, we don’t have to simulate combat at all if we don’t want to?” It showed that relationships, drama, and narrative choice could drive gameplay as much as numbers and tactics.
And while Cortex Prime carries the torch today, Cortex Plus games like Smallville and Marvel Heroic still sparkle with that original fire.
So Should You Play It?
If you like:
- Telling stories where character emotions matter as much (or more) than stats
- Systems that encourage collaboration and drama
- Heist movies, superhero comics, or CW level interpersonal conflict
- Rolling pools of shiny dice to create unpredictable, explosive outcomes
…then yes. Absolutely. You should track down a copy of a Cortex Plus game and give it a whirl.
Even if you never run Leverage or Smallville as written, they’re phenomenal reading material for GMs who want to learn about narrative mechanics. Cortex Plus was ahead of its time, and it laid groundwork for many of today’s indie darlings.
So pour one out for the system that asked “What do you feel about punching that robot?” and dared to turn your emotional baggage into a mechanic. Cortex Plus: gone but never forgotten, and maybe just maybe still plotting its next dramatic comeback.
