The Owls, a dark super family

Where do my ideas come from? In this case, I think they come from reading the RPGnet random superhero ideas thread after watching The Old Mill on Disney+...

There are a lot of superhero families out there, some created together as a unit like the Fantastic Four but others growing over years like the Superman and Batman families. And Batman’s family really wasn’t part of his original and often returned to grim dark dark grim “I work alone” bit.

So... a deliberately designed Batmanly family of vigilantes. A brooding hero who had kids, maybe even starting with the child of the original brooding hero and their family. Using similar costumes and fighting styles so the city’s criminals can’t be sure just how many of them are out there.

The choice of owls refers back to Batman’s evil mirror universe counterpart Owlman, Nite Owl from Watchmen, and the Court of Owls, a recent-ish addition to Gotham as a conspiracy of powerful families and their Talon enhanced assassins keeping the city the way they like it. As well as the occasional in-universe theories about how Batman can’t possibly be one guy. And also the Owl from Marvel. And also the Strix from Vampire: The Requiem. And possibly also the Brownies.

But also, there are lots of kinds of owl.

So the father figure can be Eagle Owl, the rebellious teen Screech Owl, the “person in the chair” running comms Barn Owl, the much mourned victim of heroic death by backstory Grey Owl.