So, now that the whole world has seen Black Panther (right? right?) and we're all still basking in the glow of the movie's awesomeness and success, it's time to reveal our next Masks - Black Panther playbook! Just like our release of the first playbook, this is a pre-filled Masks playbooks for playing Black Panther in your own home game! That means the character (this time, Shuri) is aged down to Masks-appropriate age, and slotted into a Masks playbook. This version of Shuri isn't exactly the same as in the movie, to reflect her younger age, lack of self-assuredness, and growing personality.

Our Second Playbook is….Shuri, Princess of Wakanda!

Background

Shuri is T’Challa’s younger, 13 year old sister. She already possesses a genius-level intellect, and stands likely to surprise any of Wakanda’s brilliant scientists. But she doesn’t display this intellect openly—Shuri is generally very shy and unsure of herself. Coming up in the royal family, with a beloved and just mother, a generous and honored father, and a brother who is the youngest Black Panther in Wakandan history has all put an enormous burden on her, and for fear of coming up short, she tends to keep to herself, hiding her incredible intellectual prowess. Her parents aren’t oblivious to how skilled she is, but they certainly don’t yet understand the extent of her ability. They love her and treat her with kindness and understanding, but also respond to her shyness and uncertainty with restraint. They do not push her the way they pushed T’Challa, thinking they do her a kindness. And all the while, she reinterprets that lack of a push to mean that they think less of her than her brother. The only exception is her brother himself. T’Challa has seen how capable of a mind she has, and has always encouraged her to do more, to let others see her brilliance. That said, he clearly sees her future in the laboratory or the workshop—not in the field. Everything changed for Shuri after one of T’Challa’s earliest missions as the Black Panther, a nigh failure. She watched recordings and realized with shock and horror that she had nearly lost her brother to defending Wakanda—and she wasn’t going to let that happen again. Nervous as she was, she applied her mind to some inventions for herself. Cat-styled gauntlets capable of emitting force blasts with a number of different settings, along with some very simple armor. And she followed her brother out into the field on his next mission. What happened next, no one would have anticipated. She was not only instrumental to his success—she even saved his life!—but she loved being out in the field with him. The thrill of the fight, the joy of saving people, the feeling of victory and success—she’d felt nothing like it! And in no time, she was planning everything so she would follow him out into battle again and again, tagging along and saving her brother’s butt. She’s been doing her best to hide her activities from her parents, knowing that there is no way they would approve. After all, she has none of T’Challa’s intensive training and combat skill. But that’s not going to stop her. This is just too awesome. And at the back of her head, a new notion grows, something she had never considered—the idea that she might one day become the new Black Panther. Download the playbook here! And stay tuned for our next entry, with a new Black Panther-themed playbook to download! Let us know if, and how, you use these playbooks, or if you come up with any other write-ups for your own favorite Black Panther characters!