Picture this: you’re sitting around a table with your friends, dice clattering like the sound of an alien armada descending on Earth, and you’re not just Spider-Man swinging through New York or Captain America tossing his shield at Hydra goons. No, you’re Nova, blasting through the cosmos, or Drax, slicing through Annihilus’ bug army with a grin. Welcome to Marvel Heroic Roleplaying: Annihilation, the tabletop RPG that takes you from street level heroics to the kind of galaxy shattering stakes that make Galactus look like a picky eater at a buffet. This blog post is your warp gate to everything you need to know about this cosmic gem from Margaret Weis Productions, complete with a sprinkle of humour to keep the void of space from feeling too lonely.
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What Is Marvel Heroic Roleplaying: Annihilation?
Marvel Heroic Roleplaying (MHRP), released in 2012 by Margaret Weis Productions, is a love letter to Marvel Comics fans who want to live out their superhero fantasies without getting bogged down in crunchy math. The game uses the Cortex Plus system, a flexible, narrative driven engine that’s less about hit points and more about capturing the drama of a comic book panel. MHRP was built to be “event driven,” meaning each major release focuses on a famous Marvel story arc, letting players rewrite the tale with their own choices. The Annihilation Event Book, released in 2013 as a PDF (with limited physical editions), is one of these cosmic epics, diving into the 2006 Annihilation crossover where the Marvel Universe’s space-faring heroes face an invasion that makes Thanos’ snap look like a mild tantrum.
The Annihilation Event Book comes in two flavours: the Essentials Edition, a full colour hardcover with the campaign, character rosters, and expanded rules, and the Premium Edition, which adds the Operations Manual (the core rulebook) and extra goodies. Unlike the Civil War event, which got a fancy hardback, Annihilation was mostly a digital release, making it the rare comic book collectible that doesn’t require a longbox to store. Sadly, Margaret Weis Productions lost the Marvel license in 2013, so this game is now a bit like a Kree artifact hard to find, but worth the hunt.
The Cosmic Scope of Annihilation
If you’ve read the Annihilation comic crossover, you know it’s not your typical superhero slugfest. This is Marvel’s cosmic side, where the stakes are entire galaxies, and the heroes are a ragtag bunch of space misfits. The story follows Annihilus, a bug lord from the Negative Zone, who unleashes his Annihilation Wave a swarm of insectoid nightmares to conquer the universe. Opposing him are cosmic heavyweights like Nova (Richard Rider, the human rocket), Drax the Destroyer (pre Guardians of the Galaxy fame), Gamora (deadliest woman in the galaxy), and the Heralds of Galactus (because when you’re fighting a cosmic bug invasion, you call the guys who work for a planet eater).
The Annihilation Event Book captures this epic vibe perfectly. It’s structured like a three act comic arc, with a sourcebook section to get you up to speed on the Marvel cosmic universe (think Kree, Skrulls, and planets with names you can’t pronounce). The campaign itself is open ended, letting players reshape the story. Want to save the Kree homeworld? Go for it. Want to team up with Ronan the Accuser? Sure, but don’t expect an invite to his birthday party. The book includes datafiles (character sheets) for fan favourites like Rocket Raccoon, Groot, and Bug (yes, the insect guy who’s ironically fighting bugs), plus villains like Annihilus and the Phalanx, a techno organic nightmare that makes the Borg look cuddly.
“Annihilation is handled like the epic science fiction delivered in the source material. We’re not just talking heroes we have spaceships, armies, alien race templates, and the big guy, Galactus himself.” – Underwear on the Outside
Game Mechanics: Dice Pools and Cosmic Chaos
MHRP’s Cortex Plus system is the secret sauce that makes Annihilation feel like a comic book come to life. Instead of rigid stats, you build a dice pool based on your character’s traits: Affiliations (Solo, Buddy, or Team), Distinctions (like “Herald of Galactus” or “Last of His Kind”), Power Sets (like Nova’s Worldmind or Drax’s dual knives), and Specialties (Combat, Cosmic, etc.). Roll the dice, keep the best two for your total, and pick one for the effect. It’s simple but flexible, letting you narrate how Nova’s supernova blast or Gamora’s swordplay saves the day.
Annihilation introduces new mechanics to match its cosmic scale. Timed Actions, for example, are a clever way to simulate the ticking clock of an alien invasion. Imagine your heroes racing to disable an Annihilation Wave mothership before it glassifies a planet. The Watcher (the game’s GM) adds a complication that grows each round, making every decision feel like it’s ripped from a comic cliffhanger. The book also includes rules for scaling up to cosmic level threats, with Power Sets like the Quantum Bands, the Uni Power, or even a Symbiote (because nothing says “cosmic” like bonding with a gooey alien parasite).
The system’s narrative focus means you’re not just rolling to hit you’re telling a story. Want to use Rocket Raccoon’s “Tactical Genius” to outsmart an enemy fleet? Roll those dice and describe how he hacks their nav systems with a jury rigged blaster. The Milestone system rewards roleplaying, giving you experience for hitting character specific goals, like Nova sacrificing himself for the greater good or Rocket mouthing off at the worst possible moment.
Pro Tip: The Doom Pool, where the Watcher collects dice from your bad rolls, is like the universe’s way of saying, “Nice try, hero.” Use Plot Points wisely to avoid turning a skirmish into a galaxy-ending catastrophe.
Why Annihilation Shines (and Sometimes Stumbles)
Annihilation is a masterclass in adapting comics to table top. The sourcebook is a crash course in Marvel’s cosmic lore, making it accessible even if you’ve never heard of the Skrull Empire. The campaign’s flexibility means you can play as established heroes or create your own, with hooks and milestones that let you rewrite the Annihilation saga. The inclusion of spaceships, alien armies, and cosmic artifacts like the Power Cosmic gives the game an epic scope that feels like Star Wars meets Avengers.
But it’s not all smooth sailing through the stars. The game’s free form nature can be overwhelming for players used to rigid systems like Dungeons & Dragons. Without clear character creation rules (a common MHRP critique), you might spend more time figuring out your hero’s Power Set than fighting Annihilus. Margaret Weis Productions tried to fix this with a random character generator, but it’s more of a Band Aid than a cosmic cure. Also, the PDF only release disappointed fans who wanted a shiny hardcover to display next to their Civil War book. And let’s not forget the abrupt cancellation of MHRP in 2013, thanks to Disney’s acquisition of Marvel, which left *Annihilation* as a bittersweet “what could have been.”
Playing Annihilation Today
Getting your hands on Annihilation in 2025 is like trying to find a Nova Corps helmet in a thrift store. The PDF is no longer sold digitally, and physical copies are rare, popping up on eBay or in the back of comic shops. If you can snag one, it’s worth it. The Essentials Edition is perfect if you already own the MHRP Basic Game, while the Premium Edition is a one stop shop with the core rules included. You can also find fan communities on forums like RPGGeek or Reddit, where players share tips and homebrew content to keep the game alive.
Running Annihilation is a blast, but it takes a Watcher who’s comfortable improvising. The campaign’s open ended structure means you’ll need to adapt to your players’ wild ideas (like convincing Galactus to join the fight). Start with the sourcebook to set the scene, then dive into the three act structure, using the provided datafiles for heroes and villains. If your group is coming from a street level campaign like Breakout, transitioning to cosmic stakes can feel jarring consider a session zero to introduce the cosmic setting and let players pick or create their characters.
Final Thoughts: A Cosmic Classic
Marvel Heroic Roleplaying: Annihilation is a love letter to Marvel’s cosmic universe, capturing the grandeur and chaos of the Annihilation crossover with a system that feels like scripting a comic book. It’s not perfect the lack of character creation rules and the PDF only release are bummers but its ambition and flexibility make it a standout RPG. Whether you’re blasting through space as Nova, scheming as Rocket Raccoon, or facing down Annihilus with a Symbiote powered hero, this game delivers epic moments that’ll have your table buzzing like a Kree warship.
So, dust off your dice, channel your inner cosmic hero, and dive into Annihilation. Just don’t be surprised if Galactus shows up and eats your campaign for lunch. Excelsior!
If you enjoyed this article you might want to check out A Comprehensive List of Every Cortex System Book Ever Published Next
