Teamwork

Oddly enough, despite superhero stories being all about teamwork a lot of the times, especially the avengers or justice league style stories, this doesn't seem to happen all that much with actual PCs. Sometimes it's because the characters were made separately and they have disparate goals and powers. Sometimes it's because there is lack of a solid leader or communication between members. Sometimes it's because EVERYONE wants to be the one who takes down the big bad and no one wants to be the one who fights the minions, or the reverse: the big bad seems so powerful that everyone leaves it up to each other to fight the big bad, and when he doesn't get attacked or countered, he wipes the floor with the party.

Lack of teamwork does force some PCs to focus on area of effect attacks (area snare, blasts, etc) that damage everyone (selective attack maybe to spare the party) and gives us a heavy case of the Angel Summoner and the BMX Bandit in the party, where some people feel that their character is nothing. I've had PCs make plans where the punchline is "And then Paul will kill all the bad guys". Not as much fun for the other players.

The system leaves itself open to so many ways for the PCs to help each other through teamwork.

The Aid Action: Basically you can make an attack roll against defense 10 to give a friend +2 to attack OR defense on his next turn. Multiple bonuses stack and breaks power level limits. (This is extremely useful when the person getting the bonus has autofire!)

Combined Attack: The team shoots the enemy all at once, and instead of making multiple saves (or winning via impervious toughness or something) the enemy must make 1 save with +2 per PC, potentially making the save unbeatable, or allowing it to bypass his tough defense.

FEATS FOR TEAMWORK

Set Up (Feat): Allows one person to use an interaction skill (such as feinting) and someone else to take the benefit. Allows you to accomplish things in less rounds.

Leadership (Feat): Standard action and Hero Point to remove dazed, fatigued, panicked, shaken, or stunned. Stun is probably the big one here, as nothing else really cures this, and this effectively allows you to use your hero point on someone else's behalf.

Master Plan (Feat): Gives the party +1-+3 for skill checks and attack rolls for 3 rounds (then you lose 1 point over the next 1-3 rounds). You need to have prep time, but there's no action involved in invoking this ability. Breaks power level limits.

Inspire (Feat): Use a hero point to give your allies +1-+5 on attacks,  saves, and skill checks for 1 round. It's a full round action and costs a hero point.

Interpose (Feat) Allows the stronger warrior to take a hit for the weaker warrior.

Teanwork (Feat): Allows the aid action (above) an extra +1-+3 (for a total of up to +5 to attack or defense when used).

POWERS FOR TEAMWORK

Healing/Boost: These are pretty obvious as they increase the strength of other PCs (or yourself). Healing fatigue and taking it into yourself is handy as it allows other PCs to utilize extra effort to greater effect.

Power Use: While normally used on the enemy, this can allow you to use a PC's power using your actions rather than his, especially if he has a power more suited to the given situation.

Deflect: The area version especially as you can protect a party with it.

Gestalt: The ultimate teamwork power, allows you to make a new character with different powers by combining two PCs. Deciding who is in control is another matter altogether, but this can be extremely useful.

Affects Others (Modifier): Allows you to "give" powers to others rather than using them on yourself.

That's all fine and good, but how do you get PCs to actually use tactics like these? Here are some thoughts:

1. Make the enemy weak to a specific weapon, and give one of them to the PCs. This forces the other characters to spend actions feinting and aiding and inspiring the PC with the weapon so that he can make the ridiculously difficult attack roll (or increased his defense so he can survive the attack roll) against the enemy.
2. Give the enemy impervious toughness a few ranks above the PC's power level so they need to combine attack in order to damage him.
3. Have enemies who use these tactics in order to inspire the PCs to try them out.
4. Give out teamwork abilities as mission rewards so PCs don't feel that they need to spend character points using them.
5. Have an NPC battler who helps the PCs use these tactics instead of attacking the enemy themselves.
6. Perhaps give out TEAM hero points that can only be used to power the teamwork feats that require hero points to encourage them to be used more.
7. When you're PLAYING rather than running, have a character who tries to lead the other PCs and plan out attacks ahead of time.
8. Give the PCs time to plan. If everything is always jumping out at them and they don't know what they're up against they will be very reactive. When they're attacking the enemy, they can have a plan and work more in unison.
9. Limit perception based powers. If everyone is using them, many of these teamwork abilities have little to no effect. Encourage PCs to use attack rolls.
10. Have an NPC (or even you as the GM) send them to a leadership camp or make the suggestion to them (like in mystery men with the Sphinx). Reward them with better outcomes if they work together as a team.

Not sure if other people see this in their own campaigns, but PCs who don't work as a team find themselves getting wiped out more often, and it leaves a few power gamers to run the board while the other PCs are getting killed or running around the battle being useless.

UPDATE:

An update to this, and a bit of a correction. I HAVE seen teamwork tactics being used, but not across PCs. I see them being used by Sidekicks, Minions, Duplicates, Summoned Creatures, Animated Objects, etc.  (I'll group them together and call them all henchmen).

Using henchmen, a PC can drastically offset PL limits. Minions don't have hero points, so can't inspire, but they can heal battery, they can AID (and potentially give +5 when aiding each, so 4 henchmen gives  you a +20 to attack- deadly with Autofire), or +20 to defense, or interposing in case of an attack, et cetera. Just something additional to consider when you're approving extra characters. See the Too Many Actions post for more issues with Henchmen.