Freedom's Finest!

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Hero4hire
Posts: 422
Joined: Fri Nov 04, 2016 11:13 pm

Freedom's Finest!

Post by Hero4hire »

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Character thread for H4H's "Welcome to Freedom City" game.
kenmadragon
Posts: 743
Joined: Fri Nov 04, 2016 8:37 pm

Re: Freedom's Finest!

Post by kenmadragon »

Hello hello! Glad to be here!
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Caelus

Abilities: 48
Strength 1, Stamina 3, Agility 3, Dexterity 3, Fighting 3, Intellect 2, Awareness 7, Presence 2

Skills: 13
Acrobatics 2 (+5), Expertise: Popular Culture 3 (+5), Insight 2 (+9), Perception 2 (+9), Ranged Combat: Psionics 7 (+10), Technology 10 (+12)

Advantages: 5
Benefit (l337 h4x0r s|<177z), Eidetic Memory, Extraordinary Effort, Luck, Inventor

Presence Bonus: Animal Empathy, Attractive

Powers: 64
Psychic: Senses 1 (Mental Awareness)
Psionic Levitation: Flight 1
Telekinetic Field: Protection 9
Psionic Power (45 Point Dynamic Array)
. . Psychokinesis: Move Object 20 [extras: Damaging (10); flaws: Limited to Lifting (10); feats: Dynamic, Precise]
. . . DAE: Telepathy: Mind Reading 10 Linked: Communication 4 (Mental) [feats: Dynamic]
. . . DAE: Force Fields: Create 10 (Force Objects) [extras: Impervious, Movable, Stationary; feats: Dynamic]
. . . DAE: Telekinetic Flight: Enhanced Flight 12 [feats: Dynamic]

Defenses: 20
Toughness 3/12, Dodge 8, Parry 8, Fortitude 7, Willpower 13

Abilities 48 + Skills 13 + Advantages 5 + Powers 64 + Defenses 20 = 150 PP

Notes:
Benefit (l33t h4x0r s|<177z): Provides a +5 bonus to Technology when dealing with Computers and the like. It also lets him use Technology to play video-games. For those who don't know leetspeak (of which I am really out of practice), the name translates to "elite hacker skills". Essentially, it lets him pull stuff like Largo from Megatokyo.

Complications:
Motivation - It's Fun To Be The Good Guy If the world is a stage, then Caelus is definitely a protagonist - not an antagonist. And given his love of superheroes, Caelus is definitely gonna be a heroic protagonist. That, and his mom would kill him if he was a bad guy.
Enemy - Lady Lunar Given that Lincoln's part-alien royalty from the lunar metropolis of Farside City, he is likely to be lumped with the Atom Family as possible-impediments to the throne of Farside City. Good thing she's still locked up on the other side of the moon, no longer possess the Moonstone, and hasn't heard of Lincoln. Yet.
Quirk - A Geek Lincoln is a geek. And a nerd. Normally, this is of no real interest to anyone. But it seems to let him get along with anyone else who happens to share his geeky interests, while at the same time as making him seem rather strange when he starts to "geek-out". Sometimes this can distract him when he starts to rant.
Relationship - The Atom Family Lincoln's grandfather was a Farside royal like Mentac - the father of the current Atom Family. So, Lincoln is indeed related to the Atom Family. He is on speaking terms with them, though Jack Wolf doesn't seem to like him very much. Chase and Lincoln get on famously - they both play rpgs.
Secret - Identity Caelus is actually Windsor Heathcliff Fletcher. Yes, really. That's his real name. Yes, he was picked on a lot. "Lincoln" is the nickname he's gone by since elementary school, and the one he tells everyone to call him by. Had he been born on Farside, however, Jericho's records indicate he would have been named "Caelus". He keeps his heroic identity a secret from all but the Atom Family.

Background:
Many years ago, on the dark side of the Moon, there was a magnificent civlization - a city, by the name of Farside City - whose leaders were being slaughtered by a threat from within. Her name was Selene, a daughter of Farside's royal family, yet cursed with "mind-blindess". In her lust for the power that eluded her, she stole the city's treasured relic, the Moonstone, and utilized it's immense power to trigger her latent psionic powers. Immediately turning upon her family in her madness, Selene bagan her reign of terror over Farside City with familicide - the systematic destruction of the royal blood-line.

The older and more powerful royals attempted a defense against this unthinkable coup, to stave off the threat that had festered within their ranks, unseen. Among them was the young Prince Jericho, brother to the King. A powerful mentat, Prince Jericho utilized his magnificent psychic abilities to buy the rest of his family some time to escape Selene's slaughter - her madness unwilling to allow mercy to neither women, nor children. His power was strong and his skills were exceptional, but all Prince Jericho could do was buy the royals time by holding her off and delaying her with psychokinetic combat while creating mental barriers and mazes to confound her. But in the end, even Prince Jericho was no match for the might of the Moonstone relic. In anger for having delayed her familicide, Selene used the Moonstone to psychically disntigrate the brave Prince Jericho's form, leaving naught but moondust where he once stood. Eventually, Selene would catch up with the royals who fled the palace, then through the force of her power demand their public execution. Once the monarchy had been slain, she installed herself as Lady Lunar, ruler of Farside City. However, Prince Jericho's sacrifice had not been in vain. He had managed to guarantee the safety of at least one innocent life: Prince Mentac, Jericho's youngest nephew, had been bought enough time to be launched to the safety of Earth.

Most would think that was the end of Prince Jericho's story, but Fate had other plans. As his body had been destroyed, the skillful mentat Prince Jericho detached his mind and escaped into the astral realm. There he was trapped, devoid of mortal tether. Cast about on the astral ocean, Prince Jericho fought to sustain himself, attempting to find a way home before all that remained of him were the tattered remaind of a psyche. He needed a body to mold to his features and liking, one that no one would mind if he claimed. But as many scholars would note, the passage of time is not so much a linear path, but an ocean. So when Prince Jericho found a suitable host, it was not who he might have expected, nor when he would have believed.

A young man stood on the edge of the Golden Gate Bridge, teetering over the edge. His name was Nathaniel J. Fletcher, aged 26, and his parents had died three years ago in a car crash on this very bridge. Now his girlfriend had left him for his best friend. His boss had fired him from the job he slaved for and debtors hounded him for their money. And on top of it all, he had just been diagnosed with a terminal illness. He didn't have the money to fight for his life, nor the will to keep going. Nathaniel Fletcher took his own life on that bridge, and in that moment when the soul had fled the body just before it truly died, Prince Jericho of Farside saw his oppurtunity. Lifeless, but not dead, the body was taken over by the psychic entity that was once Prince Jericho and over-wrote the host's genetics to ensure the Farside royal would continue his existence. A transformation that defied conventional medicine eradicated the illness and morphed the form into something nearly unique - a Farside Royal hybridized with a human. Nathaniel Fletcher died that October night, and from the waters, a new man arose.

Emerging from the waters of San Francisco Bay, Jericho took measure of his surroundings. It was the mid-1900s and he was in San Francisco, California, United States of America. Earth. Jericho had ended up decades before his own destruction at the hands of Selene, stranded on Earth. His powers had been diminished by the ordeal of returning from the dead the way he had. He had all the psychic strength he needed to meet his goals on Earth, but he'd never make the jump back to the Moon in time to stop Selene. And violating causality wasn't something he wished to do idly.

So, Jericho made do. Taking on the life of the dead Nathaniel Fletcher, Prince Jericho got a job and used the savvy of a royal to make his way up the ladder of the business world. Once out of debt, Jericho did very well for himself, as the royal education was easily adjusted to suit Earth business models. Eventually, he would fall in love with an Earthling (something the royal in him would have thought impossible, before), and get married. He would have a son, a wife he loved, a job he excelled at, and a life he was actually content with. His son would grow up, and make a family of his own, giving him a grandson and a legacy. Farside City almost seemed like a distant memory.

Upon his death-bed, he created a crystal, within which he used Farside/Ancient-Preserver technology to create a digital archive of his story, his thoughts and his memories. A psychic remnant of his mind, sustained for eternity. So that when he finally died of natural causes, and if any of his earthly descendants developed the mental powers the royal blood of Farside City possessed, they would understand why they had their abilities, and what to do with them. He would guide them from beyond the grave, and warn them of the murderer who might see them as a threat.

Then one day, his grandson found the crystal... and Prince Jericho knew his psionic gift had indeed been passed on. It was a miracle.

--------------

His name was Windsor Heathcliff Fletcher, but for some inexplicable reason, preferred to be known as "Lincoln" The country's sixteenth president's name, for whatever reason, but that mattered little to the point that it wasn't an embarassing name kids could make fun of. Though, he honestly hadn't considered that one day he would be the one to hold back from unloading righteous vengeance on those who mocked his names.

Well, at least he hadn't been unfortunate enough to be named Windsor Theodore Fletcher. That would have been worse.

Lincoln always shuddered at the thought.

Nevertheless, he hadn't known his grandfather all that well. His parents weren't really willing to explain exactly why, but Lincoln suspected it was because they hadn't ever understood the man. Not that Lincoln could really judge, beacuse his grandpa had went to live on the dark side of the Moon when Lincoln was younger.

Lincoln later learned when he was older that this was his parents' euphemism for dying. It was shockingly ironic.

So when he chanced upon his grandfather's posessions one evening after a particularly harsh day, he was immediately drawn to the crystal structures that had started growing in the attic. And after breaking off a piece, found that it contained his grandfather's mind.

And the truths that had been told when his Grandpa Nat had started talking about mental powers and the strength of will and focus were confusing, and they haunted Lincoln's dreams ever since.

He had to muster the courage to go back and talk to the crystals again, when the bed had started hovering in his sleep. And when he started other people thinking.

Lincoln wanted it to go away, like he wanted people to stop laughing at his embarassing given names.

But unlike his given names, he couldn't just get a new one, the crystals had informed him. He had to learn how to make them grow. Master them and make them his. Then he could live with control.

So he did.

Lincoln studied the crystals, learned from their memories and practiced the visualization exercises. He gained focus and concentration, and learned how to focus it.

When his family moved, he took the crystals with him, and thrived.

Years later, he was strong enough to start asking the harder questions. Like where his grandfather had come from. The irony of where his parents had said Grandpa Nat had gone when Lincoln was a child was horrifying. But he understood, and kept on track to live a normal life.

But Lincoln couldn't help but dream of perhaps being a hero. It wouldn't have been hard. But he had made promises to his parents to get a degree, and Grandpa Nat had told him that his parents couldn't be told about Farside.

It was too dangerous for them to even know - they would have no defense against any mentat who thought to look.

So Lincoln lived in Freedom City and trained his skills, cheering on his heroes and idols from amongst the crowd, while his heart desired to soar with them through the skies so high.

He was in high school when the Atom Family found out about him after an attempt to scan for Cosmo when he was missing during a mission. They'd tried to find "an entity from the Moon" on their scanners, and somehow their scan had found Lincoln.

The Atoms were thrilled. Lincoln was thrilled. His relatives from the other side of the Moon weren't all gone. He had cousins!

He made friends with them quickly, and while his scientific acumen fell short of Tesla's he was a wizard with computers, as evidenced by his sheer skill in the area. He and Chase got on famously, and bonded over a love of games. Vicky teased him, and Maximus was the brother his age he'd never had. Sure, he still had to keep Grandpa Nat's crystals safe, and his parents were relatively in the dark to preserve them against the threat of Lady Lunar (who he was glad to hear had been deposed), but everything was going well. The Atoms had tried talking him into joining them in their adventures (much to Jack Wolf's dismay), but Lincoln didn't know how he could explain that to his parents. "Hey Mom, Dad, I'm going to hang with those cousins you never knew I had on an underwater mission to Atlantis this weekend, bye!" Not to mention Grandpa Nat was less than enthusiastic about putting himself out there as a psychic. Old habits died hard.

But when he graduated from college... once he had found a job... then he would have Grandpa Nat's blessing to be a hero. To "sow his wild oats and show off like any youngster". It was his dream and goal since he was a child discovering he had powers no one else did. So what if he did a little vigilantism on the side until then?

By his twenty-sided dice, Lincoln would be a hero!

Appearance:
The familial resemblence to the adventurous foursome, the Atom Family, is remarkable. On the taller side of average, Lincoln is lean with a swimmer's physique. His body isn't too athletic, but he's agile and quick, though not to a noticeable level when compared to some supers. His hark is dark black and eyes bright, and facial features regal and sharp. It's not a conventional handsome, but since he typically lets his hair get messy, and wears glasses to fit in with his compatriots. His favored attire involves sneakers, jeans, and a t-shirt under a comfortable hoodie.

As Caelus, he has yet to truly finalize a costume - prefererring to just use the "spare" meta-molecular suit he borrows from his cousins and adds a cape "because capes are classic". Thankfully, the capes are quick-release, because he has no inclination to get into cape-accidents. For the most part, he sticks to muted colors like Maximus and Chase, and tries not to get embarrassed by it's form-fitting tights. Sometimes he telekinetically grabs nearby detritus in order to form improvised armor to cover up while the meta-molecular suit activates to cover him.

Powers and Abilities:
As befitting someone with the blood of a Farsider royal, Caelus is a reasonably skilled mentat. When focused, his skills in psychokinetics is remarkable, though require singular concentration. Comparitively, his telepathic and sensory powers are rather flagging in due part to his lack of targets to practice with - it's rather unethical to practice telepathy on unwilling subjects. As a child, the only subject to practice with was his Grandfather's Mind-Crystal and his lack of talent in the area made such practice difficult. He occasionally trains his telepathy with his cousin Chase Atom, but these sessions are few and far between.

On the more mundane side, Lincoln is remarkably perceptive and self-aware, a natural result of heavy training in psionic energies. His physique isn't so exceptional, though training in psionics led to slight improvements in general health. He also had to quickly learn the basics of tumbling and acrobatics (at the bare minimum) in order to survive random practice sessions in the Atom's' Danger Room at Jack Wolf's insistence. Suffice to say, compared to trained superheroes, he pales in comparison in the physical fields, and isn't much of a melee combatant without judicious application of tactile-telekinesis. In addition, he is of above average intelligence which is coupled with a near-photographic memory trained over his admittedly short life-time. Couple this with an avid interest in electronics and computers led Lincoln to learn and master the skills needed to tinker with such devices and make games himself, while at the same time using those same technical skills to access information and have a part-time job as a White Hat hacker: making money by attempting to breach computer defenses then collecting the reward for reporting these weaknesses.

Work in Progress?
Last edited by kenmadragon on Wed Jul 19, 2017 10:14 pm, edited 1 time in total.
User avatar
JudgeA
Posts: 12
Joined: Tue Jul 11, 2017 4:29 pm

Re: Freedom's Finest!

Post by JudgeA »

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^That, but beefier^

v This Beefy v
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Name: Dave Murdock
Alias: Bullet Train
Age: 22
Gender: Male
Occupation: College Football Player

ABILITIES
STR: 6 (4) STA: 6 (4) AGI: 3 DEX: 0
FGT: 3 INT: 1 AWE: 4 PRE: 2

POWERS
Big Guy: Growth 2 (+2 STR and STA, +1 Intimidate, +2 Mass Ranks, -2 Stealth, -1 Dodge and Parry), Permanent, Innate - 5 Points

Bullet Train: Super Speed 12; Immunity 1 (Own Slam Damage); Movement 3 (Wallcrawling 2, Water Walking), Limited to While Moving - 40 Points

Too Fast to Follow: Enhanced Defenses 22 (Dodge 11, Parry 11) - 22 Points

Rapid Punches: Strength-Based Multiattack Damage, Accurate 4 (+14) - 10 Points
AE: Different Rapid Punches: Selective Burst Area Strength-Based Damage, 2 Ranks Unreliable (5 Uses) - 1 Point

SKILLS
Acrobatics 4 (+7), Athletics 6 (+12), Intimidate 8 (+11), Perception 4 (+8)

ADVANTAGES
Close Attack 3 (+6), Evasion, Instant-Up, Move-By Action, Teamwork

Presence Advantages: Set-Up, Daze (Intimidate)

DEFENSES
Dodge: 14
Parry: 14
Tough: 6
Fort: 10
Will: 10

OFFENSES
Init: +52
Unarmed +6 Close Damage 6 (DC21)
Slam Attack +6 Close Damage 12 (DC27)
Rapid Punches +14 Multiattack Close Damage 6 (DC21)
Different Rapid Punches Selective Burst Area Damage 6 (Dodge DC 16, DC21), 4 After 5 Uses (Dodge DC14, DC19)

POWER POINTS
Abilities: 42
Powers: 78
Skills: 11
Advantages: 7
Defenses: 12
Total: 150/150

COMPLICATIONS
Motivation - Thrills: He moved to Freedom City one part for the football team, and one part for the excitement. Now that he's got this Super Speed, and not a lot else to do, he's more than happy with using it to fight crime, just like the greats.

Family: His parents live on the other side of the country, but they can still be targeted by particularly spiteful enemies. They may also come by for a visit to make that a more viable option for less spiteful enemies.

Guilt: He lives with a lot of guilt about his origin story. Getting his powers from a drug, discovering they were permanent when he sprinted across the nation in 15 minutes to punch out his best friend to stop a school shooting. A lot of bad choices lead to where he is now, and people could easily break his spirit if they knew. So he lies about his origin.

Stamina Powered (Power Loss): While the life-burning side-effects of Zoom are gone, his power still eats stamina. While he's Fatigued, his speed ranks are halved (rounding down), and while he's Exhausted, his powers won't activate at all.

Backstory: He was good, maybe even great. A world of potential rested before him, he was moving while the world stood still. That was how his peers saw him. Throughout his gradeschool years, Dave was a pretty reknown individual, standing head and shoulders above his fellow gradeschoolers. He was an early bloomer in the best sense, which lead him to be feared as a freak, standing at a whopping 5'7" before leaving fifth grade. Some of his best friends were simply other freaks, one super smart bald kid, one spunky foreign kid, some trailer trash kid who always smelled like a wet possum. But one of this other friends, probably the guy he called his best friend, was just a guy.

Andre Conway was probably the most typical kid you'd ever meet, you couldn't pick him out of a crowd without marking him with a stamp of some sort. Nothing about him really stood out, except for the fact that he hung out with the tall guy. He had dreams though, dreams like any other person. Since a young age, both Andre and Dave were fans of American Football, one of the most hyped sports amongst the male population of the United States. They often shared their fantasies of being on the field, and played catch, sometimes touch football when they could gather enough friends when they were young.

When they were in middle school, they finally had the opportunity to start living their dream. Of course, when Dave showed up to try outs, he was let in almost without having to show them that he could run pretty swiftly for a kid his size. Andre, the smaller of the two, managed to get in on his first try as well, all that practice with the big guy paid off. A couple of linebackers in their element, as long as they were playing, their team pretty much wiped the opponents, they went to the middle school nationals, and lost because of something fishy. See, one of the opponents on the opposing team was a superhuman, someone who used their powers to cheat even at their young age.

Judging by their memories of the event he must have been some kind of gravity manipulator or telekinetic, but he was incredibly subtle about it, and because of this, the team with the linebackers known as the "Double Dragons" was soundly defeated. Despite their loss, they were unfettered, it only made their drive stonger. It happened again the following year, the same kid, the same invisble powers that let him push aside people twice his weight like they were a revolving door. The second time was unforgivable; It was one thing to steal the dreams from more deserving kids once, it was another thing entirely to continue doing so as if nothing is wrong.

Dave decided that his only possible course of action was to train harder. He was determined to become the best, better than a superhuman. Meanwhile his friend seemed to grow more distant, he appeared to have given up on his dreams. After a pep talk from Dave, Andre responded with, "I've got an idea. Don't worry about me too much." The way he phrased it unnerved the tall kid, who was now a towering 6'3" tall, but his genuine smile was reassuring as well. Dave let it go, and continued his fierce workouts.

Indeed the 8th grade championships came around, and the Double Dragons were in them, along with those other guys who were carried by their superpowered freak of a running-back. Dave was now intimidatingly muscular, while Andre... stayed roughly the same. In the first half of the game, Dave attempted to prove that all he needed to take the trophy home this time was a great deal of training and hard work. He pushed himself to the breaking point, and managed to pull off two touchdowns by altogether juking the superkid and sprinting like the wind to the end zone. It was the best he could do while also attempting to prevent the superkid from getting the ball, walling him off with his size. Unfortunately, the best he could do was tie the game up.

Andre was warming the bench for that game, plotting something. In the second half, he stepped onto the turf for about a single down's worth of playtime. In this time he would immediately go after the superhuman running back. Not many people caught it, since Andre was pretty hard to pick out of a crowd, but at the very last second, Andre would gain a tremendous burst of speed over a couple of feet, and sacked the kid viciously. In an ordinary case, Andre might have winded the kid and gave him whiplash. In this instance, however, he shattered four of his ribs, and the whiplash gave him a serious concussion.

While he was called off the field for the rest of the game as a penalty, Andre left smiling rather deviously. Without their running back, Dave almost single-handedly won the rest of the match. This event was what carried him through the rest of his career, through high school. Andre moved after middle school ended and they never saw eachother again. Dave was a reknown player, strong, tough, could lift three of his peers with one flexed arms, a towering example of the male genotype, 6'8" by Senior year.

Then he moved on to college, on a football scholarship. His reputation preceded him, but he only had one place in mind, the best possibly place for him in his opinion, and they wanted him just as much as he wanted them. Freedom College held one of the most prestigious football teams in the United States, as well as being located in one of the most exciting areas in the nation. Alien Invasions, flying supermen, technology beyond his wildest imagination! Indeed, Freedom City was his holy land throughout his youth, his goal, the land he would call his home.

It was here that he would meet his friend Andre Conway once again, and of course they hit it off like old times. As if by fate, they were assigned as roommates in the dorms, and they lived it up like old times. Dave never thought to ask about that time in middle school where his friend almost killed another kid with the force of his tackle alone. It never came up either. Year after year they were competing against the best of the best, but it was never a superhuman toying around with the hard work of mere humans. Until recently that is... Their team was crushed by another superhuman competitor... a different one from the first, but it felt nostaligic to be defeated so soundly by someone with godlike powers, disguising them as talent.

Andre would finally bring up that time in the past himself, asking Dave if he wanted to know how he did it. Dave would nod silently unsure of what to think. Indeed it was as he feared, his best friend resorted so some kind of super steroid in middle school that gave him immense power at the cost of some of his lifespan. "Why are you telling me this?" Dave asked his best friend... and Andre replied with that same genuine smile from before, "Because... I've got a plan."

He was good, maybe even great. Dave was a star athlete in his prime, a bright future rested before him. But he was no superhuman, he couldn't compete with someone capable of bending the laws of physics to their advantage, had no ability to fend off the effects of mind control. He was a mortal man, made of flesh and bone, and maybe a metal plate somewhere in his skull but that's unimportant. He could push his team to the last game with his own merit, but he couldn't defeat a god, not on his own. Andre was a smart kid, if not pretty amoral, but he was also Dave's friend. He was someone that Dave clearly felt had his best interests in mind.

So Dave went along with this plan, and before the final game, against the same team who defeated his earlier in the season, Andre revealed his secret weapon: Zoom. Dave had heard rumors about this particular drug through hearsay and occasional bouts of eavesdropping, but he never thought that he'd see it in his lifetime. "See Dave, I can't use this shit anymore. I'm cut to keeling over in my thirties, but you... You've got a whole lifespan ahead of you. If it's only once, you can still live well into your nineties, hypothetically," spoke Andre.

"I don't know, man, I think we might be able to beat him this time," Dave would respond.

"Oh yeah, just like you could 'Beat the superkid this time' back in middle school, right?" Andre would reply with a bit of venom in his tone, "Face it, without Zoom that team's gonna leave us in the dirt a second time. Now then, how about it... Just one time and we'll call it even."

"Even?" Dave would ask, "I never asked you to do it to begin with."

"Sure, sure. But without me doing it, you'd have lost again. Because of me, you won that game, and your life up until now has been a total breeze. If that ain't a favor, then I don't know what is," responded Andre.

"..." Dave was unable to think of something to reply with, eyeballing the hypodermic needle containing the chemical.

"C'mon, what's the matter? Are you afraid of needles? Is that it?"

"Fine... But after this, never again, you hear me?"

"Of course, buddy. I'd never ask this of you to begin with if it wasn't absolutely necessary. We can forget all about this when we've won," Andre said in a reassuring tone.

"Will it be enough?"

"Don't you worry a hair on your head. I made sure to get a little extra so that it could affect someone of your, eh... stature. One dose of this and you'll be faster than a bullet train on demand."

"Makes sense, alright, let's do this," resolved Dave.

A sharp pain later, he was injected with a mysterious chemical compound that was supposed to give him superhuman speed. "Now then, remember the effect is totally will-based, you want to go fast, you gotta think about going faster. The effects will kick in soon, so lets get ourselves in there..."

"Ahem..." cleared a familiar throat. The two of them turned around slowly. "Are you... taking steroids? You are aware that this is a highly illegal action not only by the standards of College Football, but by the Law, aren't you?" spoke the voice associated with that stuffy throat. It was their coach.

"Uhhh... Of course not, Coach," Andre would reply, still holding the needle, though quickly making a futil effort to hide it.

The coach stared intently at Dave for a moment. Dave gave him a look like a deer in headlights, unable to vocalize anything from fear. Coach sighed and shook his head, "Look I understand how you feel, the opposing team is amazing, they stomped us almost flawlessly last time. But drugs are not the solution, you hear me!?"

Dave would kneel down before his coach and begin pleading, "Please don't turn me in Coach! If you don't want me to play, I won't, but don't turn me over to the officials! I'll never do it again!"

The coach looked at the pathetic scene before him, taking it in. One of his star players taking steroids, now begging for mercy. "How long have you been doing this?" he would ask Dave.

"I swear, Coach, this is the first and only time!" Dave would reply.

"Fine. Go home and I'll tell everyone you suddenly got sick. You're off the team for the rest of the season, so you won't get tested. But I swear to God, Murdock, if you do drugs again, any drug, I'll turn you over to the police so fast your life will flash before your eyes and you'll be in a jail cell before it finishes. Capiche!?" the coach would forgive, then threaten.

"C-Capiche!" Dave would comply, before getting his clothes back on and leaving without another word.

He was humiliated, unable to believe that he let his best friend talk him into doing some stupid miracle drug, instead of the other way around. He was so humiliated that all he wanted to do was run... So he did. He ran away from football, he ran far away from Freedom College, he took off. After a few minutes of running he felt his stamina redouble. Suddenly, he felt it in his veins, the power surging through him. He tried it out... and suddenly he was fast. He was really fast. Stupid fast. Super fast.

Before he could even consider stopping he was outrunning cars. Suddenly he really wanted to go somewhere, where he could feel safe. So he ran home, his speed rapidly increasing as he shot down the roads at speeds he couldn't believe. This one-time superhuman experience was going to be something he remembered for his whole life. Within an hour he had made it from the Freedom City coast to the coast on the opposite side of the country, 3000 miles away.... He'd run home. However, all that running, the immense boost to his speed, had caused his body to metabolize the Zoom in a much shorter timeframe that it should have been, not that he knew such.

He finished his jog to his parent's house, and fell down infront of their residence.

He awoke the following day with a throbbing headache, in his old bedroom. He wondered if it had all been a dream, Freedom College, football, Zoom. It was all a blur for a moment, images rapidly flickering in his mind. Yet he could see them clearly, he would stumble downstairs, and his parents would give him that same warm smile, but he knew they looked different. "It wasn't a dream..." he would mutter.

"You know, you should have called if you were coming for a surprise visit, hun," his mom spoke, "Sorry about the new locks. You looked horribly pale when we found you, have you been eating alright?"

Indeed that was his mom... He explained what had happened to his parents, being open hearts with the two of them. "So... you took something that was going to make you better at running, and got booted from the team, so you ran all the way here?" his dad would summerize, then started laughing, "Great story, son, tell another!"

His mother was a little more willing to believe it, but the way Dave looked afterwards she tried to play it off. "No need to mock him, if he wants to visit us, then any excuse will do, won't it?" she reasoned.

Dave sighed and accepted their judgement, it wasn't like he had any proof anyways.

For a few days he stuck around, using the excuse to anyone who called him that he was sick, though never picking up for Andre, never having an excuse to discover something amazing. It wasn't until a few days later, he saw a newscasting that Andre was committing a school shooting. It actually only said that 'School Shooting in Progress at Freedom College', but the video showed Andre, which was enough to get him running.

He had no idea how, but he had to make it to Freedom City before his friend hurt anyone. His need to go faster triggered something in him... a familiar feeling although different. His feet were moving faster than ever before, even while he was on Zoom. His body was sliding through sound barrier after sound barrier, he ran with everything he had. Within 15 minutes, he was back across the country, and with a single punch, he knocked Andre out before he shot one of the students for real.

So there it was... he was super fast. Zips in to save the day faster than anyone could percieve, knocking out a school shooter. Suddenly he was a new legend: a blur that saved the day. He slipped out of there before anyone could see him, and Andre was arrested, no questions asked. When he showed back up at class the next day, everyone told him that he'd missed so much. But he knew...

With nothing to do for the off-season, he's decided to give his powers a test run for real. With a little help from online shopping, he's gotten himself a decent heroing outfit, and decided that he is the train that runs for justice: Bullet Train!
RainOnTheSun
Posts: 1152
Joined: Wed May 03, 2017 7:20 am

Re: Freedom's Finest!

Post by RainOnTheSun »

Image Image

Pictures by niqichui and Dan Brereton.

PEACEKEEPER

STRENGTH 12, STAMINA 14, AGILITY 6, DEXTERITY 1, FIGHTING 6, INTELLECT 1, AWARENESS 6, PRESENCE 8
* 108 points

Advantages:
Close Attack 2, Power Attack * 3 points

Presence Advantages:
Attractive 2, Benefit (Cipher), Fascinate (Deception), Languages (French), Set-Up, Skill Mastery: Deception, Taunt

Skills:
Acrobatics 2 (+8), Deception 7 (+15/+20), Insight 5 (+11), Expertise: Streetwise 9 (+10), Ranged Combat: Throwing 7 (+8), Sleight of Hand 10 (+11) * 20 points

Powers:
Impervious Toughness 8 * 8 points

Leaping 8, Acrobatics check required, 1 Alternate Effect * 5 points
Speed 4

Bracing - Sustained Impervious Toughness 4, 2 Alternate Effects * 6 points
Numbing Strike - Weaken Fighting 8, Fortitude resists, Limited to vulnerable/defenseless enemies, Linked to Strength damage
Strong Legs - Leaping 4 (up to 12 total)

Offense:
Initiative +6
Unarmed +8 (Close Damage 12, DC 27)
Thrown Object +8

Defense:
Dodge +6, Parry +6, Toughness +14, Fortitude +14, Will +6 * 0 points

Total: Abilities 108 + Advantages 3 + Skills 20 + Powers 19 + Defense 0 = 150

Complications:
Secret (Anti-earthling) - Genevieve is from an alternate earth under the sway of the Tyranny Syndicate, an evil version of the Freedom League. After the accident that tossed her through worlds, she's made learning about her new home her highest priority, but her knowledge is still incomplete and off-kilter. She often sees people who she knew, or at least had heard of, on anti-earth, and has to remind herself that they're different people.
Motivation (Responsibility) - On anti-earth Genevieve's job was to make sure the trains ran on time in dystopia. In her new world she thinks of herself as having the same job without the constant moral compromises.
Bills to Pay - Genevieve doesn't actually have a lot of job skills outside of manipulating people. Her lifestyle isn't as lavish as it used to be, and she takes a lot of odd jobs to make ends meet. If she wanted to, she could make a lot more money as a super-powered mercenary or a con artist, or even just picking pockets, but she tries to resist the temptation to go back to her old way of life.
Doppelganger - The world of Freedom City didn't have a Genevieve Kazan before she came to it, as far as she can tell. This probably just means her parents never met in this world, or something like that, but she still worries that someday, someone almost exactly like her will want to know what she's doing here.

Background:
Genevieve Kazan was born, abandoned, and largely self-raised in the slums of Paris, where she learned an important lesson about the world: In life there were people who had power and people who didn't. People with power got whatever they wanted, and people without it got nothing... unless they could trick or flatter it out of somebody stronger. So Genevieve got good at tricking people and flattering them. When her genetic quirk kicked in, making her stronger and tougher and even more charming than she already was, the Syndicate put her in their Empire City academy for indoctrinating super-powered enforcers. She became the star pupil quickly, not by being powerful or good at fighting, but by playing her rivals off each other and telling her teachers exactly what they wanted to hear. Genevieve graduated from the academy with a cushy job as highly paid muscle for the Syndicate and whatever dictator or crimelord they loaned her out to.

And she hated it. Every day she tried to hold together a hopelessly corrupt society while hurting as few people as possible, without letting the Syndicate know how miserable she was. It came to a head when she decided to help one of Daedalus's pet scientists flee the country instead of turning over his new invention. The Syndicate caught them, but in the battle someone's powers reacted to the invention and threw Genevieve through a hole in space. Or... something. Physics isn't really her field.

All she knows is that she woke up in a cleaner, friendlier Empire City called Freedom City, where nobody knew who she was, the money had differfent faces on it, and the Tyranny Syndicate smiled a lot and helped cats out of trees. She spent a few months feeling things out, learning what was different and what was the same, and decided to start a new life she could be proud of. She calls herself a Peacekeeper instead of an Enforcer now. Basically the same job with a friendlier name, but... this feels like a society worth protecting.

Description: Genevieve is well over six feet tall, strongly built, and somewhat denser than an ordinary human being, but she's so good at presenting herself however she wants to be perceived that people sometimes don't even notice. She wears the nicest civilian clothes she can afford, which are respectable, but not as nice or expensive as the clothes she could afford on anti-earth. She also has a black cape and bodysuit for "official business." It used to be more revealing and have spikes on it, but on this world you can get away with having a less threatening costume.

Personality: Genevieve usually presents a cheerful, even naive face to the world, but she's much more cynical and world-weary than she lets on. Genuine compassion and selflessness amaze her, and she'll do anything to protect them. She doesn't think of herself as having a secret identity: she doesn't tell people she's a mutant, but if she sees an opportunity to help someone with her powers in her daily life, she takes it. If they ask her for an explanation afterwards, she tells them whatever story she feels like, or pretends she doesn't know what they're talking about.

Powers and Abilities: The mutation that made the Tyranny Syndicate put Genevieve in their Academy is very simple: She's strong, and she's tough. Strong enough to rip through armor plate with her bare hands, and tough enough to stand in the middle of an artillery barrage without being hurt, but still, not a complicated power. She considers it less valuable than her ability to manipulate people.

Genevieve has been tricking people since she was old enough to speak. It's her principal survival trait, and lying comes as easily to her as breathing now. The words she chooses, the tone of voice, the accent she uses, her body language... all of it goes together in ways she sometimes isn't even consciously aware of to sell the fiction she wants. She's also good at robbing people, and seeing through deceptions herself, although the people of Freedom City are... bizarrely honest, by her standards. It makes her self-conscious about her own lies.
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Psistrike
Posts: 650
Joined: Fri Nov 04, 2016 7:57 pm
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Re: Freedom's Finest!

Post by Psistrike »

Imp Impossible PL 10
Imageimp_capslock_cols_2116web_by_eryckwebbgraphics on Flickr
Quote: "Nothing's imp-possible when Imp Impossible is around!"
Concept: Probability controlling experiment victim
Occupation: Adventurer
Base of Operations: Freedom City
Real Name: Sara Whateley
Legal Status: U.S. citizen with no criminal record
Identity: Public
Marital Status: Single
Height: 5'4"
Weight: 120 lbs.
Eyes: Yellow
Hair: Black with streaks of red
Age: 22 years old

Abilities
Strength 2, Stamina 3, Agility 7/2, Dexterity 1, Fighting 6, Intellect 3, Awareness 2, Presence 1

Powers
Augmented Agility: Enhanced Agility 5 • 10 points
Breakfall: Movement 1 [Safe Fall], Reaction • 3 points
Defensive Luck: Protection 7, Sustained • 7 points
Ease of Movement: Movement 2 [Sure-Footed 2] • 4 points
Exotic Eyes: Senses 1 [Night-vision] • 1 point
Lucky: Enhanced Advantage 5 [Luck 5] • 5 points
Lucky Dodge: Enhanced Advantage 1 [Uncanny Dodge], Enhanced Dodge 2, Enhanced Parry 2 • 5 points
Odds In Her Favor: Enhanced Fortitude 3, Enhanced Will 3 • 6 points
Prehensile Tail: Extra Limbs 1 • 1 point
Probability Manipulation: Array [34 points]
Catastrophe: Perception Range Damage 9, Indirect 4, Subtle 2, Variable Descriptor 1 [Accidents] • 34 points
Jinx: Perception Ranged Affliction 9 [Resisted and Overcome by Will; Inpaired and Vulnerable, Defenseless and Disabled], Extra Condition, Indirect 4, Insidious, Subtle 2, Limited Degree • 1 point
Probability Manipulation: Luck Control 4, Area Burst 2 [60' radius], Selective • 1 point

Equipment: Grapple Gun [Movement 1 [Swinging], Feature [climbing bonus]; 3 ep]; Advanced multi-tool [Features 2: Negates circumstance penalty for not having tools; 2 ep]

Advantages: Agile Feint, Benefit 2 [Ambidexterity, Wealth 1], Defensive Attack, Equipment, Fearless, Improved Grab, Luck 5, Uncanny Dodge

Presence Advantages: Taunt

Skills: Acrobatics 4 [+11], Athletics 6 [+8], Deception 7 [+8], Expertise: Popular Culture 4 [+7], Insight 2 [+4], Perception 2 [+4], Stealth 1 [+8], Technology 6 [+9]

Offense
Initiative +7
Unarmed +6, Close, Damage 2
Catastrophe, Perception Range, Damage 9, Indirect 4, Subtle 2, Variable Descriptor 1 [Accidents]
Jinx, Perception Range, Affliction 9, Indirect 4, Insidious, Subtle 2

Defense
Dodge 10/8*, Parry 10/8*
Toughness 10/3**, Fortitude 10/7***, Will 8/5***
*Without Lucky Dodge **Without Defensive Luck ***Without Odds In Her Favor

Power Points
Abilities 40 + Powers 78 + Advantages 6 + Skills 16 [32 ranks] + Defenses 10 = Total

Complications
Motivation: Though having a good sense of right and wrong, a wish to bring justice to victims of crime, she just loves the thrill of it all. Her transformation altered her mind some, making her crave the raw adrenaline from the excitement, thrills, danger, and challenge of being a superhero.
Enemy: Those who abducted her wish to regain their 'experiment', but wish to avoid anonymous.
Devilish Good Looks: Her 'unique' appearance draws the ire of those who believe she is a demon, in league with demons, or simply see her as a monster. Unfortunately it also draws the attention of those with a particular type of fetish.
Fickle Luck: Sometimes she pushes her luck too far or pushes the odds against others too much and it boomerangs back on her.
Relationship: Mr. and Mrs. Whateley [her parents], and younger brother Brian
Weirdness Magnet: Her ability to affect probability draws the strange and unusual to her and her to it. From the most minor of strange coincidences, to drawing the attention of the likes of Quirk who thinks she is his cousin for some reason.

Notes
• Victim of the DNAscent process years ago and Claremont Graduate, with the odds on her side she is a daredevil adventurer and heroine who will take on any challenge with a grin on her face.

History: Sara Whateley was just a normal, if intelligent, school girl who preferred to read over spending time with her peers. Shy by nature, she went through life barely noticed. Which made her the perfect target one day when she was abducted off the street by masked men. Kept sedated, she barely made out anything of what was being said around her, injected various times and hit with unknown energy which racked her body with pain. The experiments seemed to go on for weeks, her skin itching like crazy, her body hurting and the base of her spine feeling like it was being pulled out.

By the time the sedatives started to wear off, she was shocked to find herself strapped to a table. Trying to move, she was shocked as she felt something moving where nothing should have been. A long, red...thing whipped about as she panicked, knocking over a nearby metal tray, shocked as she finally saw her reflection. Staring back as a yellow-eyed, red skinned curvy woman with a tail like a devil she could just barely make out. What the hell had they done to her!

Her panic turned to anger, without realizing it she lashed out with powers she wasn't even aware of. The ceiling began to crack, wires came loose from the wall, and a chunk of ceiling fell down onto a nearby tray, launching several scalpels which landed just right to cut through the straps hold her arms and legs in place. Not aware of what she had done, she ran in a blind panic from the building as it began to crumble around her.

When she stumbled into her home and called for her mom, she almost got hit by frying pan upside the head, only missed because she slipped on the rug and backpedaled. Only when she turned and looked her mother in the eyes did her mother halt. Even changed, she could still see her little girl in them. 3 weeks, 3 weeks she had been kept and experimented upon, the police followed what clues she had to their base but found only a pile of rubble and no bodies.

With help, she was placed in Claremont Academy, having to avoid the 'normal' students as she went to classes and learned about her new abilities. Her agility was borderline superhuman, her tail fully prehensile and just as strong as her arms, as some of the boys who messed with her quickly found out. But most impressive were the test which showed she had gained the psychic ability to affect probability, luck in simple terms.

She didn't rest on her laurels, learning what she could and trained to compliment her powers in her time at Whateley. She even showed a knack in various areas of technology, including electronics, mechanics, and chemical engineering. While her time at Claremont Academy was far from a dream, she still has a lot of fond memories of sneaking out and going on adventures, outwitting bullies, and simply enjoying the rush of learning all her powers could do.

Her luck boomeranged on her when she went to Freedom City University. One of her professors took an interest in her, acting like he simply had an interest in helping a student who had trouble fitting in. When she was invited to his classroom for some tutoring, she naively went along. Only to find out what a creep he really was.

He thought she was a succubus, a demoness simply made for sex, and tried to force himself on her. She defended herself, but when campus security showed up he turned it around on her. Lying and said she was obsessed with him, that she attack in a fury when he rejected her. She was expelled from the university and banned from setting foot on campus grounds again.

But she refused to let scum like that get to her, she would turn this around, the odds were in her favor. With the help of her parents, she got the components she needed, building a grapple gun to get around with and adaptable multi-tool that could handle most jobs. Making an outfit for herself with her mother's aid, she was ready. Hitting the streets, she began to use her training, powers, and experience to take down muggers, various gang members, and more.

Operating for almost 4 years, she has learned even the most extreme of sports isn't a thrill compared to laying out a dozen guys as they run into trees and such while trying to catch her, or that one time she made a small meteor to plow into White Knight, now that had been intense. Now if she could just find a way to up her game, maybe join a team.

Description: Sara looks like what some would believe a demon does. Standing only 5'4" with compact muscles and athletic tone, her red skin makes her stand out wherever she goes. Her black hair has natural streaks of red in it, while her yellow eyes have a slight glow to them and show someone who is always up for any thrill or challenge. Her spaded tail is as strong as her arms and prehensile, able to do things which a normal arm can't.

She almost always wears shorts and a sports top with tennis shoes, unless going to a fancy affair which require better class clothes. When on the job as Imp Impossible, she wears a one-piece sleeveless outfit in black and gold with a horned skull symbol on the chest area. A pair of black, finger-less gloves and durable boots round out her costume, along with her utility belt that has a grapple gun and adaptable multi-tool for nearly any job.

Personality: Sara used to be a shy, soft-spoken young woman, escaping into the world of books as she tried to avoid notice of those who would pick on her. The DNAscent process changed not only her body, but her mind as well. No longer shy, she is an out-going thrill-seeker. She enjoys a good fight as much as sky-diving without a parachute, somehow all fear was removed from her, not just due to the nature of her powers. She is also known for her use of puns and bad jokes to taunt foes, loving saying things like imp-possible, etc.

Powers and Abilities: Imp Impossible's body was altered by the DNAscent process, granting her near-superhuman agility and reflexes, along with a fully prehensile tail. Even her eyes were altered, having night-vision much like a cat. These are minor compared to her psychic ability to manipulate probability, both on a conscious and subconscious level.

She is impossible to catch off-guard, avoiding attacks by just not being there when the attack lands or avoiding them through circumstance. She is lucky enough most things which would harm her turn out to be merely a graze, scratch, or even nothing at all. No matter where she falls from, she always somehow manages to survive, completely unscathed. And she evades obstacles to her movement through sheer luck and good fortune.

Her power to consciously affect probability is her most formidable. By simply concentrating for a moment, she can cause harmful "accidents" to befall a target, even objects and buildings aren't safe from this. With a focused gaze she can "curse" a target with bad luck, making it difficulty to accomplish any task. And her most versatile ability, the power to shift the odds in others favor, for good or ill. She can affect everyone within 60' of her with this, but all either benefit from it or face the same ill effect, though only the targets she wishes to affect are.

Tactics: Imp Impossible prefers to use her Jinx on living targets first, making them see how badly the odds are against them, before she even thinks of using her Catastrophe on them. When greatly outnumbered, she prefers to shift the odds into her favor with Luck Control to make things worse for her foes.

If facing smaller numbers, she will Jinx a few of them first, then simply avoid the rest while taunting them. If her Jinx doesn't work on a target, she will always try to taunt them next, shifting the odds in her favor however she can. Even when she causes others to be harmed by "accidents", she always makes sure to "pull her punches" so to speak and not risk killing anyone.

Allies: Her parents and younger brother, Brian, can always be called upon for aid. Though she is loathe to do so, not wishing to put them at risk.

Enemies: She has no idea who abducted her, but has avoided several attempts to capture her over the years, suspecting they are still out there.
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StarGuard
Posts: 933
Joined: Sun Nov 06, 2016 12:23 am
Location: Indiana

Re: Freedom's Finest!

Post by StarGuard »

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Skarab (Abdul Garrett)
PL: 10 (150 pts) - OPL: 10; DPL: 10; HP: 1

ABILITIES: STRENGTH 2 (12), STAMINA 2, AGILITY 2, DEXTERITY 2, FIGHTING 4, INTELLECT 6, AWARENESS 5, PRESENCE 2*

SKILLS: Acrobatics (+2) , Athletics (+2/+12), Close Combat 4 (Unarmed + 8), Deception 3 (+5/+7) [Attractive], Expertise 4 (Archaeology +10), Expertise 4 (Business +10), Insight 5 (+10), Intimidation (+2), Investigation (+6), Perception 5 (+10), Persuasion 3 (+5/+7) [Attractive], Ranged Combat [Magic Powers] (+2), Sleight of Hand (+2), Stealth (+2), Technology 4 (+10), Treatment (+6), Vehicles (+2)

ADVANTAGES: All-out Attack, Assessment, Attractive*, Beginner's Luck, Benefit 5 (Wealth: Billionaire), Eidetic Memory, Extra-ordinary Effort, Holding Back, Jack-of-all-trades, Language 1 (Egyptian, English*), Luck 2 (Recover), Power Attack, Speed of Thought, Untapped Potential

POWERS:
Amulet of Khepri 66 pts Traits. Removable (-13 pts); 53 pts
Lifting the Veil: Feature 1 (Quick Change from Abdul Garrett to Skarab and vice versa); 1 pt
S Awareness of Sekhmet: Comprehend 3 (Read, Speak, Write All Languages), Enhanced Trait: Advantage 5 (Assessment, Beginner's Luck, Eidetic Memory, Jack-of-all-trades, Speed of Thought), Senses 1: Danger Sense (Mental); 12 pts
K Protection of Khnum: Protection 10 (Impervious 10), Immunity 2: (Aging, Disease); 22 pts
Pantheonic Powers: 25 pt Dynamic Array; 31 pts
A Strength of Atum: Enhanced Strength 10; +4 Strength [(Flaw: Limited to Lifting 1,600 tons) (Extra: Dynamic)]; 25 pts
R Light of Ra: Magic Energy Damage 10 (Extra: Area Line [30 ft], Variable Descriptor: Light); 2 pts
A Flight of Amun: Flight 12 [Extra: Aquatic (8,000 mph/15 mpr)]; 2 pts
B Healing of Bastet: Healing 8 (Extra: Persistent, Restorative); 2 pts
Blood of Pharaohs: Immortality (1 month), Feature 1 (Homing Instinct) Always knows the direction and distance to the Amulet of Khepri; 3 pt
Indomitable Spirit: Enhanced Will 4 (Flaw: Limited to Mental Effects): 2 pts

EQUIPMENT:
NONE

OFFENSE:
Initiative +6
Close Attack +8 [Unarmed +12]
Ranged Attack +2
Special Attack [Magic Beam +10, Area Line]

DEFENSES:
Dodge +6 [DC16] Parry +8 [DC18]
Toughness +2 [+12 (+10 Impervious with magic Force Field)], Fortitude +5, Will +8 (+12 against Mental Effects)

COMPLICATIONS:
Avatar: When no longer Holding Back Abdul becomes the Avatar of Khepri. Abdul has no memories during his time as the Avatar.
Compulsion: Is drawn to seek out the Amulet of Khepri above all else.
Enemy: The Scarab has been opposed by the Cult of Apophis for 5,000 years.
Motivation: to protect those who cannot protect themselves.
Power Loss: The Amulet of Khepri must be able absorb solar energy every couple days or its magical powers begin to fade 1 rank per day.
Responsibility: to carry on the legacy of the Scarab.

Abilities 50 + Skills 16 (32 ranks) + Advantages 12 + Powers 58 + Defenses 14 = 150 / 150

Build Comments: Skarab is to Freedom City's Scarab as Daniel Garrett is to Ted Kord. Which is to say retro, and let's not forget Roy Thomas's Scarlet Scarab. Abdul Faoul very much is inspiring the secret identity of the Skarab.

Background: It was said that Prince Heru-Ra possessed a powerful artifact, a figurine in the shape of a red scarab; with its powers, he was able to defend his followers from all evil. When Pharaoh Heru-Ra died, the Scarab was buried with him in his tomb; over the years, thousands died attempting to claim it for their own.

In August of 1939, several weeks before the Second World War, Professor Abdul Faoul and American archaeology student Daniel Garrett feverishly raced crews of Nazi treasure hunters, entering Heru-Ra's tomb, they become the first people to reach the Pharaoh's sarcophagus in millennia. Atop the sarcophagus rested Heru-Ra's scarab.

Barely escaping capture, injured, the two men were able to make their way back to the professor's daughter in Cairo. on death's door, Adele placed the scarab amulet over her father's head and prayed. Professor Faoul miraculously recovers and soon after an Egyptian mystery man, the Scarlet Scarab, appeared on the scene.

Faoul considered the war a European conflict and hoped to avoid Egypt being entangled in it. As one Axis victory succeeded another, he grew increasingly convinced that Germany would win the war. The Scarlet Scarab fought both German and British military because he viewed each as enemies of Egypt.

Unfortunately, Khepri seemed to have his own agenda and the power of the scarab was too great for Professor Faoul's heart. On the same night the Scarlet Scarab died, his grandson, Abdul Garrett was born.

For years the Amulet was lost, until upon his sixteenth birthday Abdul felt a yearning to travel. The Garrett's had moved to America and became wealthy dealing in Egyptian antiquities. Abdul attended Tonbridge in England, returning to Egypt to major in archaeology at Al-Zhar University .... which is where he found the Amulet of Khepri that his grandfather had once served.

Stories of his grandfather's experiences with the Amulet made Abdul cautious, and while he agreed to don his birthright, he refused to use the higher powers Khepri promised him. His prudence was well-founded for as time went by he realized it to be as much a curse as a gift.

Watching first his father, and later his mother die of old age while he remained young and vigorous almost caused him to abandon the amulet, but he could not. Only after years of strengthening his Will, and the only in times of great need, he would become the Skarab. Still to this day Abdul is careful with revealing the amulet's power, always searching for clues to it's past and Khepri agenda.
Last edited by StarGuard on Fri Jul 21, 2017 3:23 pm, edited 2 times in total.
Zero Prime
Posts: 158
Joined: Mon Jun 12, 2017 4:40 pm

Re: Freedom's Finest!

Post by Zero Prime »

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Battalion - PL 10

Strength 2, Stamina 4, Agility 4, Dexterity 0, Fighting 8, Intellect 0, Awareness 4, Presence 4

Advantages
Defensive Roll 2, Fearless, Improved Initiative, Luck [Leadership] 2, Power Attack, Ranged Attack 8, Second Chance: Mental Control

PRE-based Advantages
Connected, Benefit; AEGIS Clearance, Leadership, Well-Informed

Skills
Athletics 8 (+10), Expertise: Civics & Current Events 5 (+5), Expertise: Military Tactics & Strategy 5 (+5), Insight 6 (+10), Perception 6 (+10), Persuasion 6 (+10)

Powers
Directed Dimensional Energies: Damage 12 (DC 27, Advantages: Improved Critical 2; Increased Range: ranged)
. . Destructive Dimensional Energies: Weaken 12 (Alternate; Affects: Toughness, Resisted by: Fortitude, DC 22; Affects Objects Only, Increased Range: ranged)
. . Precise Dimensional Energies: Damage 8 (Alternate; DC 23; Accurate 2: +4, Increased Range: ranged, Multiattack)
Protective Costume & Focusing Visor (Removable)
. . Dakan Crystal Lens: Enhanced Trait 4 (Advantages: Accurate Attack, Improved Aim, Precise Attack (Ranged, Concealment), Precise Attack (Ranged, Cover))
. . Direct Neural Imaging: Senses 5 (Accurate: [Mental], Acute: -, Radius: -, Ranged: -, Advantages: Uncanny Dodge)
. . Kevlar Mesh & Ceramic Plates: Protection 3 (+3 Toughness)
Sensory Compensation: Senses 2 (Accurate: [Normal Hearing]; Sustained; Distracting)
Trained Athlete: Speed 1 (Speed: 4 miles/hour, 60 feet/round)
Trained Combatant: Strength-based Damage 2 (DC 19)

Offense
Initiative +8
Destructive Dimensional Energies: Weaken 12, +8 (DC Fort 22)
Directed Dimensional Energies: Damage 12, +8 (DC 27)
Grab, +8 (DC Spec 12)
Precise Dimensional Energies: Damage 8, +12 (DC 23)
Throw, +8 (DC 17)
Trained Combatant: Strength-based Damage 2, +8 (DC 19)
Unarmed, +8 (DC 17)

Languages
English [Native]

Defense
Dodge 11, Parry 11, Fortitude 9, Toughness 9/7, Will 11

Power Points
Abilities 52 + Powers 42 + Advantages 16 + Skills 18 (36 ranks) + Defenses 22 = 150
Complications:

Accident: Dimensional Bleed: Prolonged use of Cameron's dimensional energies, without the focusing effect of his visor, can result in a weakening of the barrier between our dimension and the Terminus. As the Terminus energy bleeds through, this can cause gravitational, or temporal fluctuations, or even a potential rift between the two dimensions, allowing Omega and his Terminus forces access to our realm.

Disability: Blind: Cameron's eyes are apertures to the Terminus, an other dimensional realm which doesn't conform to our own physics of space and time; when first discovering his powers, these destructive energies permanently damaged his eyesight, rendering him blind. He has since learned to compensate for his lack of vision, and has almost preternatural hearing acuity, however, even with his ability to maneuver through his daily routine by audio stimuli alone, he is still unable to interpret visual data of any nature. His visor and cowl are able to gather and interpret information from his surrounds, and transmit that data directly to the occipital lobe, allowing his to 'see.'

Prejudice: Child of the Terminus: When Cameron's powers initially erupted, he caused significant damage to himself, and to the school he was attending, and those events are a matter of public record. While he strives to maintain a distinction between his civilian identity and the heroic identity he forged during his time at Claremont, anyone moderately familiar with Google, who has a little time and patience can deduce his birth name, family, relatives and residence. A cause of some concern to Cameron, as his powers connection to the Terminus cause more than a little fear and prejudice in his fellow citizens.

Motivation: Responsibility: Cameron is fully aware of the nature of his abilities, and has suffered some prejudice in his life due to his connection to the Terminus. However, with the aid of staff, and faculty at the Academy he has come into his own, resolving to use his abilities as a bastion against the very source of those self same powers, the Terminus. He is committed to acting as a hero, and using his abilities to serve and protect his fellow man, despite their actions, which are, at times, motivated by fear and hate.

Power Loss: Dakan Crystals: When Cameron's abilities first developed, they caused massive internal damage to himself, and significant damage to his immediate surroundings. While he was learning to control the dimensional energies he was capable of emitting, it was discovered that Dakan crystal was able to absorb, and mitigate and focus his energies. His visor is crafted with the crystal, to ensure that he can use his abilities without any dimensional bleed, however, even a focused blast of his dimensional energies would be unable to damage something protected by the rare crystal.
Background
William and Ashley Chase had moved to Freedom City in the early 90's; the couple was overjoyed when they discovered that she was pregnant. In '93 the events of the Terminus invasion occurred, Chase and his wife were attempting to flee the city via Freedom Bridge. Omega and countless drones appeared in a rift of Terminus energy which washed over the traffic logged bridge. Centurion confronted the dimensional warlord, and ultimately sacrificed his life to breach Omega's armor, which acted as a dimensional anchor allowing his forces to remain in our world. The Chase's survived the ensuing chaos, but doctors and specialists feared the long term effects of exposure to the otherworldly energies which had radiated those present at the battle of Freedom Bridge.

Cameron was born in '94, and grew up in a world protected by superheroes, the Moore Act had been repealed, a statue of the world's greatest hero stood vigil in Riverside Park, and the Freedom League was founded by the surviving heroes of the Terminus Invasion. He grew up an only child in a middle class household, with loving parents who valued family above all else. However, there were some concerns in regards to his health, he suffered from debilitating headaches, which would often culminate in seizures. Doctors and specialists were unable to diagnose the condition or provide reasonable explanations for his symptoms. During the throws of a particularly virulent seizure, a nimbus of energy seemed to surround him, until it coalesced into a solid beam focused from his eyes; this dark purple energy coursed through the examination room lancing through his father before exploding with massive force as it tore through wall.

The 911 call was routed to the AEGIS Field Office, due to it's connection to meta-human affairs, and the team that responded was led by Special Agent Jacobs. Using inhibitors typically reserved for meta-human criminals, the team was able to dampen Cameron's energy output and arranged to take him off-site to determine the origin of his power surge. As other incidents of surging powers began to happen across the country, joint research between AEGIS, ASTRO Labs and the League itself discovered the issue, exposure to Terminus energies while in utero introduced entropic energies into the cells of the fetus. They dubbed the phenomenon, Terminus Energy Mutation Syndrome, and as the diagnosis became readily available to the public, there was a backlash against, what the public would soon dub, T-Babies or just Term's.

For many the Term's served as a stark reminder of the losses incurred during the 2nd Terminus invasion. Some blamed the T-Babies for the loss of loved ones, others fear their power, or that they may be agents of Omega themselves. An assumption that the entropic influence of the terminus will effect the minds and morals of those affected. While William eventually recovered from his injuries, he distanced himself from his son, and his wife, Ashley, soon joined Humanity Now, an organization devoted to the idea that those suffering from TEMS were, in fact, agents of Omega and the Terminus, and would inevitably be corrupted by the power they had been granted.

Jacobs developed a fondness for the young boy, and so took Cameron under his wing, often visiting him in the ASTRO Labs complex where he was raised by doctors and scientists monitoring his condition. In time they discovered that Dakan crystal was able to stabilize the surging dimensional energies and constructed a visor which was able to refract and reflect the terminus energies allowing Cameron greater focus and precision. These lens have been modified over the years into the visored helmet he wears today.

Jacobs used his AEGIS contacts to ensure that the young man was enrolled at the Claremont Academy so he could learn to fully control his abilities,
as well as socialize with his peers, something he had not had the opportunity to do while growing up at the joint AEGIS ASTRO Complex. When he first enrolled he was an introverted, shy child, who had an iron will, and a singular focus. One of his first friends at the Academy was Sara Whateley, he was unwilling to judge her based on her physical appearance, and she didn't pity him for his lack of sight. The two would often sneak off campus, and engage in amateur-ish attempts at crime fighting. Cameron's sense of responsibility tempering Sara's thrill seeking nature, the two were more than often successful, and due to Sara's unique ability they were able to escape any serious disciplinary actions or repercussions of their truancy.

After graduation, Cameron enrolled at FCU and was thrilled to learn that Sara too would be attending. He majored in political science and journalism, and continued to train with Jacobs and his AEGIS team rather than attempt to participate in any sports or athletics on campus. However, when Sara was expelled due to her interactions with a professor, he began to investigate past allegations of improprieties, and when he discovered the truth, he exposed the professor both through the campus newspaper, and local Freedom City media. The journalistic investigation and subsequent expose allowed Cameron to secure a position with ABN's Channel Five News room, where he works as a News Affiliate for Charles Maxfield.
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