Creating a Survive This!! Vigilante City campaign set in a Public Domain Super Heroes (PDSH) version of New York City

 Creating a Survive This!! Vigilante City campaign set in a Public Domain Super Heroes (PDSH) version of New York City is an excellent way to capture the Golden Age of comics feel using a flexible, OSR-inspired system.

The "Public Domain" aspect means you have free rein to use classic characters, locations, and concepts without copyright restrictions.

Campaign Concept: The Post-War Boom & Shadow

The year is 1947. World War II is over, and New York City is booming. However, the shadows of conflict remain. GIs are returning with new skills, but also new traumas. Organized crime is flourishing, and a new wave of technologically-advanced or magically-gifted villains is emerging, capitalizing on post-war anxiety and atomic age science.

The characters are new heroes rising to fill the void left by wartime heroes, navigating a city grappling with a rapidly changing moral landscape.

Key Campaign Themes

• Golden Age Grittiness: The tone should be noir-ish and grounded. Heroes have powers but aren't god-like; they get hurt, they deal with police skepticism, and they face real danger.
• Technological Marvels vs. Street-Level Crime: The villains range from simple mob bosses to scientists wielding bizarre atomic-age weapons.
• Moral Ambiguity: The line between a "vigilante" and a "hero" is often blurred.
• A Living City: NYC is a central character, with its diverse boroughs, iconic landmarks, and hidden underworlds.

Campaign Hub: "The Liberty Legion" (PDSH Team)

Instead of a single headquarters, the characters might operate out of an old, abandoned firehouse in Greenwich Village, functioning as an unofficial base of operations. The PCs form a new hero team, perhaps named "The Liberty Legion" or "The City Spirit."

Key Locations

• The Docks of the East River: Perfect for smuggling operations, organized crime meetings, and late-night fights.
• Times Square: A bright, crowded centerpiece for major villainous attacks and public disruptions.
• Lower East Side Tenements: Gritty urban landscape for street-level crime and poverty-related investigations.
• The Baxter Building/Stark Tower stand-in: The science-hero "Dr. Tomorrow" (PD character) operates a high-tech lab that the PCs might interact with for gadgets or information.
• Central Park: A surprisingly dangerous location at night, used for secretive meetings and monster appearances.

Public Domain Heroes and Villains

Integrate existing PD characters as NPCs:

Heroes (Allies/Mentors)

• The Green Mask: An established hero who provides cryptic advice or asks the PCs to handle specific cases he is too busy for.
• Miss Victory: A patriotic hero focusing on large-scale threats, perhaps providing backup in major battles.
• The Flame: A powerful elemental hero who is sometimes an unreliable force of nature, requiring the PCs to manage the collateral damage of his presence.

Villains (Antagonists)

• The Claw: A classic pulp villain, a master criminal with clawed hands and a penchant for international espionage. His organization can be the main street-level threat.
• Black Owl: Not the heroic version, but a criminal using the identity. A tech-savvy villain using advanced optics and sound dampening gear for high-tech heists.
• Dr. Fu Manchu (or a similar pastiche): A master mind focusing on chemical warfare and mind control, a primary user of strange science against the city.

Campaign Starters and Adventure Seeds

1. The Dockside Smugglers: The PCs receive a tip about strange cargo coming through the East River Docks. They discover that The Claw's organization is importing a powerful "magnetic weapon" designed to paralyze military defense systems.
2. The Times Square Terror: A bizarre, atomic-age monster (a giant insect or reptilian creature created by experimental science gone wrong) appears in Times Square, causing chaos and attracting media attention. The PCs must stop it without causing massive civilian casualties.
3. The Chemical Conspiracy: A series of unexplained deaths involving victims laughing uncontrollably points toward a new chemical developed by "The Clown" (from the previous prompt) or Dr. Fu Manchu. The PCs must track down the source before it's released into the city's water supply.

Using Vigilante City Rules

• Use the "Classless" character creation in Vigilante City to let players build unique heroes based on PD characters or original concepts fitting the era (e.g., a "mystery man" using a fedora and fists, a "science hero" with gadgets, or a "strong man" with enhanced physiology).
• Emphasize the DANGER mechanic. Golden Age heroes get beaten up. Combat should feel risky and dramatic.
• The modular rules make it easy to quickly stat out PD villains and their unique gadgets or powers using the system's simple framework (Health, Defense, Damage, Ability Checks).