So, as a long term GURPS fan, I have to say I've never really thought that it handled well the 'large point value' games. Once you hit 300 pts, you are essentially 'running the system' in many ways... but to really encompass a comic book super powered game, the system practically demands 500 points or more.

Okay, that's what the designers used. The fact of the matter is, many of the cooler abilities available to Super types already cost 100 or more points. Things like altered time rate or invulnerability at lower point totals give you one trick pony 'heroes' that just don't seem to measure up.  

This COULD devolve into a discussion of balancing the cost of various facets of GURPS, but I had a rather different tack to take on balancing high powered GURPS games, specific to the Superheroic genre.

First, lets disabuse ourselves of the Supernormal for the moment.   This might seem a rejection of the Batman school of thought, but that is a mistaken view as I hope to address.  The reason to reject Supernormals is twofold: First it breaks the solution, in part by highlighting the failings of the system, and secondly, most 'normal' heroes in comicbooks can be done more Super than Normal without violating tropes.

Essentially, the hotfix is both incredibly simple in that it can be summed up in essentially one line, and incredibly complex in that... this being GURPS we have to address many elements on a practically case by case basis.

the One Line Solution:

Build a character on a normal point value (100 pts OR 20% of starting Super Points), as normal (disads, quirks etc...) then add remainer of value as 'super powers'.

the More Complex Explanation:

The one line solution explains the basics clearly: The character should be a normal, mundane character at a balanced point value (100 pts default), complete in every way.   The remainder of the points are spent later on purely 'super' qualities... in fact, in settings where 'super supression' is at play, this entire point value is what would 'go away'.

Of course, by itself, unregulated, this division only provides an unnecessary extra step without actually fixing anything.

So we cover the caveats, and the list is long.

First: even when making the 100pt character: Attributes should be limited to, say, 15 as a value. Above that and the skill system becomes a virtual joke.  Second: Unless power supression is common, beware the guy that 'stacks' his points, though really... who cares? this is GURPS, he's paying for what he gets anyway....

Now:

Super Stats:

ST is bought as normal, as is HT.  Note that GURPS needs to clarify the 'cinematic rules' of high value games where supers can theoretically kill ordinary people by accident (things like stun damage with lethal cosmetics (punching ordinary people through brick walls...) and the like.

DX, as is, can't be bought up. Sorry folks, this one is a deal breaker, and super 'Dex' is actually not really all that comic-bookie to me. Note that there are sub-Dx are available and can be bought freely (fine manipulation) along with other super advantages that should fit the bill.

IQ can be bought as super IQ, however Per and Will have to be bought seperately.  Normal IQ uses Per and Will normally (for your game). Note that many super smart characters still have flaws that GURPS links to IQ (noticing stuff and resisting mental whatevers...). Note that both Per and Will are reasonably cheap at this point level so this is not a terrible penality.  While a Super IQ will make a mockery of the skill system for 'smarts' skills, I don't feel this is quite as big a problem as the one sided DX escalation of unstoppable combat munchkins.

Mundane Advantages: Note that MANY mundane advantages can not be bought with Super points. Wealth, for example. Some are debateable (Patron, Allies... can represent higher powers or super-allies (robotic buddies?), and should go through the GM.

Due only to the point totals we are talking about I recommend the following rule be emplaced for all open ended stacking advantages (Charisma, Alertness, etc...): They can only be bought to +5 for mundanes. I debate allowing Supers to buy and additional +5 only.  Following that rational, advantages like Voice (one time only) could be 'doubled up on' as well to represent superior, superhuman ability.

Non mundane advantages are the 'meat and potatoes' of Supers and can remain unchanged.

Mundane Disadvantages: Note that in GURPS 4E, the number of points allowed in Disads is dependent upon the number of points total for the character. Obviously our 4E 100 pt character should only be built on 50 pts of disads, not the 250 available to him. The remainder of the disad points should NOT be mundane Disads (exception for Enemies... which should reflect the total value of the character) but must instead come from Super Disads.

Quirks: Still limited to 5 points, and who cares about them anyway?

Skills: Super Skills: Aside from allowing ! skills with Supers points (Science!), I am inclined to restrict Supers skills to those skills which require Superpowers to use (flight, Shoot raybeam, Body Awareness...). However, as many characters seem to have an abnormal number of skills, this may be relaxed without prejudice.



There: The Hotfix.



Now: To disabuse the Myth of the Supernormal.

As stated the GURPS system tends to perform poorly at high point values. Of course, this is compounded by the requirement of many advantages to be 'high point value games'.  Gunslinger, for example, at 45 points (er... factcheck?) is POSSIBLE at 100pt games, but singularly unpleasant in anything shy of 200+. Altered Time Sense, at 100pts is also possible, but becomes virtually the only thing your character has...

And really, there isn't much call for 'supernormal' heroes anyway.

Lets look at the ICON of Supernormal characters: Batman.

Batman is an unaugmented human who goes toe to toe with normally low level supervillians (often normal humans with colorfull schticks... Joker...), with the glaringly shoddy case of taking down Superman. Shoddy in craptastic writing, rather than impossibility. I can totally see Bats having Kryponite on hand, but superman level augmented cybersuits? Bah.

But to call Batman a 500 pt supernormal is missing the point. Batman has TOYS. Now, this is explained away many times as 'wealth'... bah, most of Batman's toys aren't available on the market (Shark Repellant?!), and are pretty unnatural anyways (batarangs work a LOT cooler than they would outside of a comicbook). These, my friends, are POWERS. Some are Gageteering (even Gizmos.. Batman's gotta have at least half a dozen Gizmo powers... and gadgeteering to make them comic booky!), and his staples (the Batarang as a weapon, the Batarang as a 'I swoop through the night' grappling hook, or the grapple gun) are actual powers that cost actual points. If (and why wouldn't you...) the Batsuit is armored... that's a POWER.

Batman is chock FULL of powers.  And once you've made that step, why not go the distance and allow that his superhuman drive for revenge/training has given him low level 'super attributes' and just give him super ST and HT and even, heck, IQ to make up for the fact that most of his mundane points went into money and Alfred?  Of course, his Batcave is Superpointed, as is the Batmobile (which, really... is far too cool to be 'just a car') and the batwing and the batboat and the batcycle... none of that shit is mundane, my man...

So at the end of the day you've got a guy with purely human levels of ability (no more than 15 pts in any attribute), with lots of powers that require devices to access, and maybe some points in superskills to represent all that fanatic training.

Hell, I'm tempted to stat him completely up using my 'hotfix' purely as a guideline (no house ruling, just breaking down how the points are spent).