The World In The Aftermath (Formerly A World Less Magical)

Where in all of your character write ups will go.
User avatar
Davies
Posts: 5080
Joined: Thu Mar 23, 2017 10:37 pm
Location: Edmonton, AB

Re: A World Less Magical But No Less Fantastic

Post by Davies »

The Flying Fox
Image

In 1961, twenty-two year old Graham Anderson had found himself becoming very concerned about the possibility that the phenomenon of the super-powered criminal, now a common occurrence in America and Europe, was going to spread to his native Australia. Gifted with a brilliant scientific mind and a well-trained body, he decided that the only thing to do about this disturbing prospect was to adopt the mantle of the superhero. But he knew that he would have to adopt an identity that could provoke fear in the superstitious and cowardly lot that were criminals, and as he was contemplating this, a flying fox flew in the window of his apartment, startling him. He decided to adopt this as his symbol.

Or at least that was the story that he told the Cowl and Masque, when they joined forces against 'Noose' Redd, an international assassin, four years into Graham's career as the Flying Fox. On hearing it, Masque observed that flying foxes were rather tiny and not particularly dangerous, and asked why Graham had been so startled. The other costumed crime-fighter stammered something about how it had just been very surprising, and then briefly mentioned his concerns about rabies, and then tried to steer the conversation in a different direction.

That incident illustrates some of the problems that the Flying Fox faced as Australia's first superhero. It seems plausible that the episode never actually happened, and that he chose the flying fox because he had already invented his cape, created from a special material of his own design, that allowed him to glide for limited distances. Not only did the supercrime epidemic that he supposedly feared never materialize, leaving him fighting a never-ending parade of mundane criminals -- who were genuinely dangerous to the citizenry of Sydney, where he was based -- he had chosen as a symbol one of the more harmless examples of Australia's wildlife.

Consequently, the Flying Fox found it difficult to be taken seriously by the majority of Australians, who are actually a skeptical and cynical lot, rather than superstitious and cowardly. While he helped many people, who were generally grateful for his assistance, the general public regarded him as something of a joke. It didn't help that his accomplishments were nowhere nearly as impressive as those of the American superheroes he tried to imitate. Even when he finally attracted masked villains, towards the end of the sixties, they turned out to have been perfectly normal crooks who'd been hired as distractions, and he looked like a fool in the press.

It seems likely that this was what inspired him to volunteer his services to assist during the Battle of Vietnam, working closely with the Grail Knight and apparently saving the British hero's life at the cost of his own. Ironically, his death actually generated a swell of popularity for the hero in his own country, which was frankly cynically exploited by certain individuals who portrayed him as a crusader against the influence of communism. It didn't last long, prompting those individuals to pursue other agendas, and the Flying Fox is not particularly well-remembered in Australia. Motley is known to have regarded him as an inspiration, but his recent changes in behavior have led some to believe he must have become disillusioned with the man's ideals ...

Flying Fox -- PL 7

Abilities:
STR
1 | STA 3 | AGL 4 | DEX 2 | FGT 5 | INT 7 | AWE 4 | PRE 3

Powers:
Glidersuit: Flight 2 (8 MPH), Gliding, Winged; Removable (-0 points) - 1 point

Advantages:
Benefit (Millionaire), Connected, Defensive Roll, Equipment 5, Evasion, Improved Initiative, Instant Up, Inventor, Jack-of-all-Trades, Power Attack, Ranged Attack 5, Well-informed.

Equipment:
25 points of equipment as needed.

Skills:
Acrobatics 7 (+11), Athletics 8 (+9), Close Combat: Unarmed 4 (+9), Expertise: Science 2 (+9), Expertise: Streetwise 2 (+9), Deception 6 (+9), Perception 6 (+10), Persuasion 4 (+7), Technology 5 (+12).

Offense:
Initiative +8
Unarmed +11 (Close Damage 1)

Defense:
Dodge 7, Parry 9, Fortitude 5, Toughness 5/3, Will 8

Totals:
Abilities 58 + Powers 1 + Advantages 22 + Skills 19 + Defenses 13 = 113 points

Complications:
Responsibility--Motivation. Reputation (nobody takes him seriously.) Secret Identity.
"I'm sorry. I love you. I'm not sorry I love you."
User avatar
Davies
Posts: 5080
Joined: Thu Mar 23, 2017 10:37 pm
Location: Edmonton, AB

Re: A World Less Magical But No Less Fantastic

Post by Davies »

El Sabio
Image

Much like the man who was his greatest inspiration -- Rudolfo Guzman Huerta, better known to much of the world as El Santo -- Jose Moreno was born in the Mexican state of Hidalgo. That's pretty much the only similarity that existed between them. Unlike Huerta, who followed three of his older brothers into the business, Moreno was the first member of his family to become involved in professional wrestling. He was also a member of the Ñuhmu people, or the Sierra Otomi as they were also known, who were -- in some parts of the world -- somewhat famous for their association with a certain well-known New York surgeon and philanthropist, noted for operating a trading company named for Hidalgo.

Jose was thirteen years old when he first saw El Santo wrestle, as part of the crowd which watched him defeat the Bulgarian for the NWA Welterweight Title. Cheering the man's alias, Jose realized that he had just witnessed what he wanted from life. Not just physical power, but the ability to use that physical power in the name of something greater than himself, just as El Santo had just symbolically defended Mexico against a hostile foreign nation. He began training to become a wrestler himself, pushing himself to the limits of his ability and then past it.

Jose made his debut in 1952, as El Sabio ("The Sage".) Again unlike El Santo, he was a technico from the very beginning, and always strove to conduct himself in a dignified and heroic manner, despite the way that this led to him being taken advantage of by the rudos he fought. This didn't bother him (much) as he firmly and sincerely believed that by living up to his principles, and striving to do right to all, he was winning in life regardless of the booked outcomes of his matches.

It's not really clear when El Sabio realized that his fanatical training had apparently granted him superpower levels of strength, speed and toughness. He carefully held back from demonstrating that full power, so it's certainly possible that he knew what he was doing quite a while before what is regarded as his first 'real' fight in 1957. That episode involved a Bulgarian mad scientist who had developed a method of reanimating the dead and decided to use Mexico City as a demonstration of this technique, for reasons that defied ready explanation. Having assured himself that the risen dead were mindless abominations, El Sabio felt no compunctions about using his full strength to defeat them and their sick master.

That was only the beginning of his legendary journeys, pitting his strength and skill against monsters, mad scientists and mobsters. He fought not only with power, but presentation as well, something that was rare in the early days of this first age. His exploits proved to be excellent fodder for the entertainment industry, though El Sabio usually ended up getting written out of the published accounts in favor of claiming these victories for El Santo. This didn't bother him (much) as he still felt a deep admiration for the man who'd inspired him as a boy, and hoped that acquiescing to this would help to inspire other young people. It did that, and if Santo was always more respected, Sabio was perhaps more beloved.

El Sabio first joined forces with the Meteor in 1967, when the Martian invasion of that year targeted Guadalajara. Demonstrating his remarkable astuteness, Sabio reached and (privately) voiced the conclusion that the Meteor's technology could not possibly be the product of any Earthly inventor. The Meteor didn't confirm that speculation, but he did state that El Sabio's alias was well-deserved. They worked together on a number of occasions after this, right up until the Battle of Vietnam. (He also had a somewhat adversarial friendship with Doctor Freeze.)

For the rest of his life, Jose was not sure how he'd survived that one, sometimes experiencing doubts that he had and suspicions that all that had followed was one long dying dream. He joined forces with Perseus and Basilea in the final assault, but was critically injured before he could put Stardust in the Boston Crab as they'd planned, forcing the other two to face him alone. The results are too well-known to be repeated here.

El Sabio continued his career for another decade after this, but there was much less joy in it then there'd once been. He finally met his end in 1982, when a bomb placed near the engine of his beloved Porsche 911 went off as he was starting it up. Jose actually survived this, but was in no condition to fight back when another Python assassin proceeded to fire five shots from a Charter Arms Undercover .38 Special revolver into him. (This individual will not be named here.)

El Sabio - PL 10

Abilities:
STR
6 | STA 8 | AGL 6 | DEX 4 | FGT 10 | INT 4 | AWE 3 | PRE 3

Powers:
Highly Mobile: Speed 3 (16 MPH); Leaping 7 (900 feet); Movement 3 (Swinging, Wall-crawling) - 14 points
Quick Recovery: Regeneration 8 - 8 points

Advantages:
Agile Feint, All-Out Attack, Chokehold, Close Attack 4, Contacts, Defensive Roll, Fearless 2, Improved Grab, Improved Hold, Improved Initiative, Interpose, Jack-of-all-trades, Language 2 (English, Spanish, others, [Otomi is native]), Move-by Action, Well-informed.

Skills:
Acrobatics 6 (+12), Athletics 6 (+12), Expertise: Wrestling 8 (+12), Insight 6 (+9), Intimidation 8 (+12), Investigation 6 (+10), Perception 8 (+11).

Offense:
Initiative +10
Unarmed +14 (Close Damage 6)

Defense:
Dodge 9, Parry 10, Fortitude 8, Toughness 10/8, Will 8

Totals:
Abilities 88 + Powers 22 + Advantages 20 + Skills 24 + Defenses 8 = 162 points

Complications:
Responsibility--Motivation. Fame. Secret Identity. Show-off.
"I'm sorry. I love you. I'm not sorry I love you."
greycrusader
Posts: 1179
Joined: Fri Nov 04, 2016 11:25 pm
Location: Pittsburgh, PA

Re: A World Less Magical But No Less Fantastic

Post by greycrusader »

I like both of these quite a bit; classic old school style heroism, even if Flying Fox was underappreciated (but kept on fighting the good fight anyway). Was the Australian hero a bit of an homage to the "Batmen of Many Nations" concept, perhaps?

Am I correct in assuming that in the World Less Magical El Santo actually was the hero the actor/wrestler portrayed in the movies, a superior physical specimen and polymath genius who battled many of the same types of threats faced by the youth he inspired?

Nice nod to a certain pulp hero. If you want a suggestion for a less well-known potential substitute, you could go with James Anthony, the Manhunter of a 1,000 Talents, one of the more respectable knockoffs of the worthy doctor.

All my best.
User avatar
Davies
Posts: 5080
Joined: Thu Mar 23, 2017 10:37 pm
Location: Edmonton, AB

Re: A World Less Magical But No Less Fantastic

Post by Davies »

greycrusader wrote: Fri Jul 09, 2021 4:08 am I like both of these quite a bit; classic old school style heroism, even if Flying Fox was underappreciated (but kept on fighting the good fight anyway). Was the Australian hero a bit of an homage to the "Batmen of Many Nations" concept, perhaps?
Very much so, same with the original Grail Knight. There probably was also a Gaucho-like superhero in Argentina at this time, but I don't know much about him (yet.)
greycrusader wrote: Fri Jul 09, 2021 4:08 am Am I correct in assuming that in the World Less Magical El Santo actually was the hero the actor/wrestler portrayed in the movies, a superior physical specimen and polymath genius who battled many of the same types of threats faced by the youth he inspired?
That was not my intention. He probably was a bit stronger and tougher than the real world's version of Rudy Huerta, but he was just an athlete and entertainer -- more successful in those professions than El Sabio, because he gave it his all, where Jose had to divide his time between them and saving the world.

My biggest regret is that I couldn't find any information about Otomi names for the fellow ...

Thanks!
"I'm sorry. I love you. I'm not sorry I love you."
User avatar
Davies
Posts: 5080
Joined: Thu Mar 23, 2017 10:37 pm
Location: Edmonton, AB

Re: A World Less Magical But No Less Fantastic

Post by Davies »

Dú Láng (I)
Image

Most of what is definitely known about the first costumed protector of Hong Kong has been told in the account of his successor. What follows is conjecture and supposition, based on a handful of reports from the Hong Kong Police Department's archives which were, to put no fine a point upon it, stolen by Argus operatives shortly before the handover. It appears that more information about him was in the possession of British intelligence, but those files were destroyed in a mysterious fire in 1979.

Fa Hoi-yun, the most likely candidate to have been Dú Láng, was born in 1947 in Kowloon. From an early age, both he and his younger sister, Fa Ni-chen, were trained as acrobats and martial artists, with the intention that they would follow their parents into careers with the Cantonese opera, and possibly the Hong Kong film industry. However, it seems that Hoi-yun was a somewhat hot-headed child, frequently brawling in the streets, and acquiring his fair share of enemies.

In 1966, the consequences of that life style were made horrifically clear to him. Ni-chen was attacked by some people who had grudges against her brother. While she was able to defend herself to some degree, their intentions were clear, and she attempted suicide to preserve her honor. Fortunately, or perhaps not, she survived, though she was horribly scarred by the experience, to the point where her hoped for career as an entertainer was now a mirage.

Infuriated by this, and the fact that the authorities were unable or unwilling to discover the whereabouts of his sister's attacker, Hoi-yun decided to take matters into his own hands. To protect his remaining family, he adopted the masked identity of the Lone Wolf, Dú Láng, and began carving a swath through Hong Kong's underworld. While his initial intent was just to take vengeance on Ni-chen's attackers, Dú Láng gradually came to have a more general sense of anger at the suffering that the Triads, in particular, were causing.

In 1970, Dú Láng finally discovered the whereabouts of the last of his sister's attackers, who had supposedly become the personal agent of the legendary Lord of Strange Deaths. Having gained the assistance of agents of British intelligence during his campaign, Dú Láng infiltrated a secret martial arts tournament, discovering that its supposed mastermind had been dead for quite some time, and defeated his own personal nemesis in a final battle. Vengeance was at last his ... and it did not satisfy him at all.

He was apparently still sorting through his feelings about all of this when he died in the Battle of Vietnam, where he attempted to rescue the young Kid Wolf from Stardust's attack on him, only to die in the process. Despite suggestions that he had recovered from death, it seems likely that the disappearance of his body was simply an accident in the disposition of his remains. But this would not be the least of the mysteries surrounding him.

Dú Láng (I) - PL 7

Abilities:
STR
2 | STA 3 | AGL 3 | DEX 1 | FGT 6 | INT 2 | AWE 3 | PRE 2

Powers:
Striking Strength: Strength-based Damage 2 - 2 points

Advantages:
Agile Feint, Assessment, Defensive Attack, Defensive Roll, Evasion, Fearless 2, Hide in Plain Sight, Improved Disarm, Improved Initiative, Improved Trip, Languages 2 (English, others [Cantonese is native]), Power Attack, Uncanny Dodge.

Skills:
Acrobatics 6 (+9), Athletics 6 (+8), Close Combat: Unarmed 4 (+10), Deception 6 (+8), Expertise: Streetwise 7 (+9), Insight 6 (+9), Intimidation 7 (+9), Investigation 5 (+7), Perception 5 (+8), Stealth 6 (+9).

Offense:
Initiative +7
Unarmed +10 (Close Damage 4)

Defense:
Dodge 7, Parry 7, Fortitude 5, Toughness 5/3, Will 7

Totals:
Abilities 44 + Powers 2 + Advantages 15 + Skills 29 + Defenses 11 = 101 points

Complications:
Justice--Motivation. Family (sister). Secret Identity.

Note: For those of you wondering why his defenses are low -- "Forget about winning and losing, forget about pride and pain: let your opponent graze your skin and you smash into his flesh; let him smash into your flesh and you fracture his bones; let him fracture your bones and you take his life! Do not be concerned with your escaping safely – lay down your life before him!" - from The Tao of Jeet Kune Do, by Bruce Lee.
"I'm sorry. I love you. I'm not sorry I love you."
User avatar
Davies
Posts: 5080
Joined: Thu Mar 23, 2017 10:37 pm
Location: Edmonton, AB

Re: A World Less Magical But No Less Fantastic

Post by Davies »

And now a series of looks at the kaiju (and other creatures) of Dread Island, starting with one of the heirs to the title of the original kaiju.
"I'm sorry. I love you. I'm not sorry I love you."
User avatar
Davies
Posts: 5080
Joined: Thu Mar 23, 2017 10:37 pm
Location: Edmonton, AB

Re: A World Less Magical But No Less Fantastic

Post by Davies »

Moby Dyck
Image

Between 1810 and 1838, throughout the Pacific Ocean, whalers sought to prey upon and frequently themselves became the prey of an ancient albino whale dubbed Mocha Dick, after the Chilean island near where he was first sighted. A few years after the white whale ultimately fell to his hunters, a sailor from New York heard stories about his activities, most notably an account which claimed that a certain Quaker whaling captain had been so distraught that Mocha Dick had been slain by someone else that he committed suicide, and remembered these tales for a decade. In time, these stories, and reports that Mocha Dick was still at large in 1849, would inspire one of the world's greatest novels.

Mocha Dick had in fact died in 1838, but during his long life he'd had many offspring, some of whom inherited his albinism. It was one of these whales which was sighted in 1849, and yet a different one who was killed in 1902. And sometime in the 19th century, another of Mocha Dick's brood, accompanied by a harem of females, found his way to Dread Island. There, feeding on gigalodons and kraken, and exposed to other strange phenomena in the vicinity of the Island, the whales grew to enormous size and remarkable power. When, in 1956, this whale -- or leviathan, as he might more accurately be dubbed -- was first sighted by human visitors to the island, there was really only one name that he could be called.

Much like their forebear, leviathans in general are not, and Moby Dyck in particular is not, hostile towards or fearful of humans. They are still not particularly safe to be around, as they can easily and accidentally capsize most human vessels, and easily misinterpret accidental contact as an attack. Even if they will ignore humans in the water as too small to be a meaningful threat, that is very cold comfort to the drowning human who is also at risk from the other, much less passive animal life in the seas around Dread Island.

During Kthulu's third rising, in 2013, when the Great Old One used the kaiju of Dread Island as an army, several leviathans fell under its sway. Moby Dyck did not, and attempted to prevent his children from their destructive activities, demonstrating the ability that has been dubbed 'iceberging' by gigantologists. Through some unknown means, the daikaiju is able to transform sea water into a substance not unlike the 'infrawater' employed by Meddows-type freeze guns and expel it through his blowhole to create confining ice structures. However, he can only do this a limited number of times before his supply of this infrawater-like substance is exhausted.

At the time, having observed this, Snowfall imitated Moby Dyck's 'iceberging' to similarly confine the enraged leviathans, putting herself in some danger when the great whale seemed to misinterpret her actions as an attack on his progeny. Before he could harm the heroine, however, he apparently realized what had actually happened, and broke off the attack, taking advantage of the opportunity to replenish his supply. In the aftermath, the leviathans returned to Dread Island with their chief leading them, but Moby Dyck seemed to pause and regard Snowfall with what Nereus described as 'approval' ... or possibly awareness of a potential rival.

Leviathan -- PL 11

Abilities:
STR
14 | STA 16 | AGL -2 | DEX 0 | FGT 4 | INT -3 | AWE 3 | PRE -2

Powers:
Aquatic: Immunity 2 (pressure); Immunity 2 (suffocation, Limited to half effect); Swimming 9 (250 MPH) - 10 points
Bite: Strength-based Damage 1 - 1 point
Gargantuan Size: Permanent Growth 14 (Strength +14, Stamina +14, Dodge -7, Parry -7, Intimidation +6, Stealth -14, Swimming +2); Impervious Toughness 12 - 52 points
Energy Absorption: Immunity 10 (cold effects); Regeneration 10, Source (cold) - 20 points
Senses: Senses 6 (extended accurate ultrahearing, extended low-light vision) - 6 points

Advantages:
Diehard, Extraordinary Effort, Fast Grab, Improved Critical (bite), Improved Hold, Power Attack

Skills:
Close Combat: Unarmed 3 (+7), Intimidation 3 (+7), Perception 4 (+7)

Offense:
Initiative -2
Unarmed +7 (Close Damage 14)
Bite +7 (Close Damage 15)

Defense:
Dodge 2, Parry 4, Fortitude 17, Toughness 16, Will 5

Totals:
Abilities 4 + Powers 89 + Advantages 6 + Skills 5 + Defenses 21 = 125 points

Complications:
Survival--Motivation. Physical (no ground move, no sense of smell, no manipulators, can't talk to humans.)


Moby Dyck (Daikaiju Leviathan) -- PL 15

Abilities:
STR
16 | STA 18 | AGL -2 | DEX 0 | FGT 6 | INT -2 | AWE 5 | PRE -1

Powers:
Aquatic: Immunity 2 (pressure); Immunity 2 (suffocation, Limited to half effect); Swimming 9 (250 MPH) - 10 points
Bite: Strength-based Damage 1 - 1 point
Colossal Size: Permanent Growth 16 (Strength +16, Stamina +16, Dodge -8, Parry -8, Intimidation +8, Stealth -16, Swimming +2); Impervious Toughness 16 - 64 points
Energy Absorption: Immunity 10 (cold effects); Regeneration 20, Source (cold) - 20 points
Iceberging: Ranged Cumulative Burst Area 4 Affliction 15 (Resisted by Dodge, Overcome by Damage; Hindered & Vulnerable, Defenseless & Immobile), Extra Condition, Limited Degree, Unreliable - 90 points
Senses: Senses 6 (extended accurate ultrahearing, extended low-light vision) - 6 points

Advantages:
Diehard, Extraordinary Effort, Fast Grab, Improved Critical 2 (bite), Improved Hold, Improved Initiative, Power Attack

Skills:
Close Combat: Unarmed 3 (+9), Intimidation 3 (+10), Perception 6 (+11)

Offense:
Initiative +2
Unarmed +9 (Close Damage 16)
Bite +9 (Close Damage 17, Crit 18-20)

Defense:
Dodge 2, Parry 4, Fortitude 20, Toughness 18, Will 8

Totals:
Abilities 32 + Powers 191 + Advantages 7 + Skills 6 + Defenses 23 = 260 points

Complications:
Survival--Motivation. Physical (no ground move, no sense of smell, no manipulators, can't talk to humans.) Responsibility (leviathans.)
"I'm sorry. I love you. I'm not sorry I love you."
greycrusader
Posts: 1179
Joined: Fri Nov 04, 2016 11:25 pm
Location: Pittsburgh, PA

Re: A World Less Magical But No Less Fantastic

Post by greycrusader »

Kthulu's THIRD rising!!!???
User avatar
Davies
Posts: 5080
Joined: Thu Mar 23, 2017 10:37 pm
Location: Edmonton, AB

Re: A World Less Magical But No Less Fantastic

Post by Davies »

greycrusader wrote: Mon Jul 12, 2021 6:11 pm Kthulu's THIRD rising!!!???
The first one is discussed in the big doof's article, the second one happened in 2008 (when he fought the dai-gojirasaurus for the first time) and the third one was in 2013, when this happened and Kyoseki died. There wasn't one in 2018, which has some people who believe in patterns (possibly too much) concerned ...
"I'm sorry. I love you. I'm not sorry I love you."
User avatar
Davies
Posts: 5080
Joined: Thu Mar 23, 2017 10:37 pm
Location: Edmonton, AB

Re: A World Less Magical But No Less Fantastic

Post by Davies »

Al-Mushtari the Gas Giant
Image

The origins of the being that menaced the Arabian Penninsula for one month in 1970, dubbed al-Mushtari by the local press, with "the Gas Giant" added by Western newspapers, remain unknown. Lukas Ammanuel, alias Yedokiteri Girumi, who studied the creature more than any other observer, privately vacillated between two different theories. He publicly stated that he believed that it was an extraterrestrial being who had had travelled to Earth in some undocumented manner, most likely in a spacecraft that had crashed somewhere in the region that he was attacking. The fact that no such wreckage was ever found led him to privately speculate, in his personal journal, that the creature might have travelled to Earth through some sort of teleportation ... or that it was actually of extradimensional, rather than merely extraterrestrial, origin.

Regardless, after it had terrorized the people of Arabia for three weeks, a concerted effort was begun to deal with the monster, who was immune to all conventional weaponry. Concerned that al-Mushtari's rampage might eventually spread across the Red Sea to his own homeland, as well as for the suffering it had already caused, Yedokiteri Girumi offered his assistance. By quickly reviewing all information about the creature's attacks, he was able to develop a plan based on two factors -- first, that the creature was able to alter its size, and second, that it had recoiled on a few occasions when its electrical projections had rebounded back towards itself.

Equipped with a lightning gun of his own creation, Ammanuel proceeded to drive Al-Mushtari into a trap that exposed it to a different device which compressed it into a small cube of incredibly dense material, rendering it immobile and helpless, though every bit as impervious to physical harm as it had ever been. Yedokiteri Girumi warned the governments of the region that he believed that this process would eventually wear off, though he was uncertain when it would happen. But he offered his personal assurance that when it happened, he would return to deal with the monster again.

A year later, with Lukas Ammanuel among the casualties of the Battle of Vietnam, that reassurance ceased to be reassuring. The decision was made at the highest level of the House of Saud that al-Mushtari could not be allowed to regain its mobility in their country, and so must be transported elsewhere. Aware that the United States had had some success in disposing of unusual threats, such as the Protean entity and the gerolds, on Dread Island, they politely requested that this be done again. And it was.

Just when al-Mushtari regained its mobility is not positively known. It was first sighted in its current form on Dread Island in 1993, but monitoring of the island was very sporadic in the 1980s owing to the Pythonian Insurgency. The creature's periodic rampages across the island have generally been dealt with by its native creatures, many of which possess powers that can harm it, further documenting what Ammanuel described as a very cowardly streak in the creature. While it has ventured forth from the Island a few times since, Chokyojin and other superheroes have usually sent it back in defeat, and it has not left the island since 2009. It has been seriously suggested that its first and only encounter with Bàofēngyu terrified it to the point where it has no interest in confronting her again.

Al-Mushtari the Gas Giant -- PL 13

Abilities:

STR 15/9 | STA 18/12 | AGL 7 | DEX 5 | FGT 8 | INT 1 | AWE 3 | PRE 0

Powers:
Air Elemental: Affects Corporeal on Strength 15; Concealment 6 (auditory, visual), Passive; Continuous Flight 8 (250 MPH); Immunity 3 (starvation & thirst, suffocation); Permanent Insubstantial 2 - 58 points
Far-Seeing: Senses 5 (extended 3 darkvision) - 5 points
Variable Mass: Permanent Growth 8 (Strength +8, Stamina +8, Intimidation +4, Speed +1, Dodge -4, Parry -4, Stealth -8); Growth 6 (Strength +6, Stamina +6, Intimidation +3, Dodge -3, Parry -3, Stealth -6) - 42 points
Weather Command: Array (38 points)
  • Lightning Bolts: Ranged Mulitattack Damage 12, Indirect 2 - 38 points
  • Precipitation: Environment 7 (1/2 mile; impede movement 2, visibility 2) - 1 point
Advantages:
All-out Attack, Evasion 2, Fearless 2, Improved Initiative, Move-by Action, Startle, Uncanny Dodge.

Skills:
Close Combat: Unarmed 3 (+11), Intimidation 4 (+11/+8), Perception 8 (+10), Ranged Combat: Lightning Bolts 7 (+12).

Offense:
Initiative +11
Unarmed +11 (Close Damage 9)
Lightning Bolt +12 (Ranged Multiattack Damage 12)

Defense:
Dodge 8/11, Parry 8/11, Fortitude 20/13, Toughness 18/12, Will 6.

Totals:
Abilities 58 + Powers 144 + Advantages 9 + Skills 11 + Defenses 19 = 183 points

Complications:
Destruction--Motivation. Cowardice. Nonverbal.

Note: I always kind of felt a bit annoyed that Godzilla vs. The Smog Monster wasn't about something actually gaseous ...
"I'm sorry. I love you. I'm not sorry I love you."
User avatar
Davies
Posts: 5080
Joined: Thu Mar 23, 2017 10:37 pm
Location: Edmonton, AB

Re: A World Less Magical But No Less Fantastic

Post by Davies »

Dreadwolves
Image
Dreadwolf
Image
Lycaon (with Dreadwolf inset for size reference)

There is some dispute in the gigantological community as to whether the species dubbed dreadwolves (tentatively dubbed aenocyon horribilis) actually constitute a kaiju species. While they fit the profile of resembling an extinct species, and that of being significantly larger than any documented examples of that species, they are not (with one exception) giant-sized in comparison to humans, and lack the energy absorbing powers of other well-known kaiju. That said, the term 'kaiju' is generally (though often incorrectly) used to describe any large animal to be found on Dread Island, and they certainly fit that definition.

By and large, dreadwolves are secondary consumers within the Dread Island food web, feeding on smaller, primary consumer species (and occasionally on producers) and are themselves fed upon by tertiary consumers, including many smaller carnivorous kaiju. Like mundane wolves, they gather in packs of around twenty or more dreadwolves, consisting of up to three interrelated families of mated pairs and their young. They mark their territory in the same way that wolves do, and it is rare for a dreadwolf to cross into territory claimed by a different pack. The exact number of packs on Dread Island is not known with certainty, but believed to be less than ten.

All of the above fails to describe the single largest known dreadwolf, the being named Lycaon (after the Arcadian king transformed into a wolf.) It should not come as a surprise that there is very little definitely known about this creature, as observations have been difficult. Lycaon sometimes attacks and even kills other dreadwolves, but has also protected other groups from other predators. For an extended period, it was believed that Lycaon must be a female, as most mundane lone wolves are females who have eitheer left or driven from the pack. After an extremely uncomfortable close encounter with the creature, the surviving member of a Morrison Institute research team was unequivocal in declaring Lycaon to be male. This raises more questions than it answers.

All dreadwolves, including Lycaon, are capable of generating sound at a specific frequency that includes some ultrasonic tones, which can cause other creatures to be rendered incapable of movement or response, with this ability typically used as a prelude to an attack. This ability is sometimes misrepresented as a howl that induces fear in the subject; whatever emotional response is provoked by the 'song' is ultimately secondary, as it appears to directly affect the subject's neurochemistry. Dreadwolves of the same pack are unaffected by each others' song -- this serves as a secondary territorial marker -- while Lycaon appears to be immune to that of all of the packs, raising further questions as to this being's nature.

As the dreadwolves are perhaps one of Dread Island's unique species which is closest in makeup to a living species -- and leviathans, the other one, are significantly harder to study -- the researchers of the Morrison Institute remain highly interested in studying them in general, and Lycaon in particular. It is hoped that understanding how Lycaon developed from the dreadwolves will lead to a better understanding of how the daikaiju develop from the kaiju, and in turn how the kaiju themselves develop. This might lead to a further understanding of how superpowers develop in many species, including humanity ... and how to deliberately induce that development.

Dreadwolves -- PL 8

Abilities:
STR
6 | STA 7 | AGL 3 | DEX 0 | FGT 6 | INT -4 | AWE 2 | PRE -2

Powers:
Bite: Strength-based Damage 2 - 2 points
Loping Movement: Enhanced Advantages 2 (Evasion, Uncanny Dodge); Leaping 2 (30 feet); Speed 3 (16 MPH) - 7 points
Size: Permanent Growth 2 (Strength +2, Stamina +2, +1 Intimidation, -1 Dodge, -1 Parry, -2 Stealth) - 6 points
Song of the Wolf Pack: Auditory Perception Area Affliction 8 (Resisted by Will; Dazed and Impaired, Disabled and Stunned), Extra Condition, Limited Degree; Immunity 1 ('songs' of other members of the same pack) - 17 points
Wolf Senses: Senses 5 (danger sense, low-light vision, acute tracking olfactory, ultrahearing) - 5 points

Advantages:
All-out Attack, Diehard, Evasion, Fast Grab, Great Endurance, Improved Initiative, Improved Trip, Startle, Teamwork, Uncanny Dodge.

Skills:
Athletics 2 (+8), Close Combat: Unarmed 2 (+8), Insight 5 (+7), Intimidation 7 (+6), Perception 6 (+8), Stealth 6 (+7).

Offense:
Initiative +7
Unarmed +8 (Close Damage 6)
Bite +8 (Close Damage 8)

Defense:
Dodge 7, Parry 9, Fortitude 8, Toughness 7, Will 5

Totals:
Abilities 28 + Powers 37 + Advantages 7 + Skills 14 + Defenses 13 = 100 points

Complications:
Survival--Motivation. Pack Dependent. Physical (no hands, no speech with humans.)

Note: At least one dreadwolf has been somewhat tamed and serves as the Sidekick to one of the best hunters of the Mahani people, herself also PL8.

Lycaon -- PL 11

Abilities:
STR
12 | STA 13 | AGL 3 | DEX 0 | FGT 6 | INT -4 | AWE 2 | PRE -2

Powers:
Bite: Strength-based Damage 2 - 2 points
Loping Movement: Enhanced Advantages 4 (Evasion, Improved Initiative 2, Uncanny Dodge); Leaping 4 (120 feet); Speed 5 (60 MPH) - 13 points
Size: Permanent Growth 8 (Strength +8, Stamina +8, +4 Intimidation, -4 Dodge, -4 Parry, -8 Stealth); Impervious Toughness 8 - 32 points
Song of Lycaon: Auditory Perception Area Affliction 11 (Resisted by Will; Dazed and Impaired, Disabled and Stunned), Extra Condition, Limited Degree; Immunity 2 (songs of all dreadwolves) - 18 points
Wolf Senses: Senses 5 (danger sense, low-light vision, acute tracking olfactory, ultrahearing) - 5 points

Advantages:
All-out Attack, Diehard, Evasion, Fast Grab, Great Endurance, Improved Initiative 2, Improved Trip, Power Attack, Startle, Uncanny Dodge.

Skills:
Close Combat: Unarmed 2 (+8), Insight 5 (+7), Intimidation 7 (+6), Perception 6 (+8), Stealth 10 (+5).

Offense:
Initiative +11
Unarmed +8 (Close Damage 12)
Bite +8 (Close Damage 14)

Defense:
Dodge 7, Parry 9, Fortitude 14, Toughness 13, Will 8

Totals:
Abilities 28 + Powers 69 + Advantages 7 + Skills 15 + Defenses 21 = 140 points

Complications:
Survival--Motivation. Loner. Physical (no hands, no speech with humans.) Temper.
"I'm sorry. I love you. I'm not sorry I love you."
User avatar
Davies
Posts: 5080
Joined: Thu Mar 23, 2017 10:37 pm
Location: Edmonton, AB

Re: A World Less Magical But No Less Fantastic

Post by Davies »

Gogunta
Image

Named by an eccentric Morrison Institute researcher after a toad monster from a fantasy game, with the name kept as a memorial to that individual, the creature dubbed Gogunta is an unusual example of Dread Island's wildlife. Regarded as male by the Mahani, though this has yet to be scientifically verified, Gogunta is a life form on the scale of a kaiju, but one which is as unique as a daikaiju. While creatures which resemble Gogunta have been discovered, and are actually very common across the Island, they are about the same size as typical mundane toads, despite having claws and multiple eyes and mouths. While probably very dangerous to other life forms of their size, they are more often preyed upon by larger creatures -- including Gogunta, who has been seen eating those who stray too close to the larger creature's current position.

According to Mahani oral tradition, for as long as the people have lived on Dread Island, Gogunta has lived in a pond (named, of course, Gogunta's Pond) within a short distance of their village. The creature rarely leaves this region, and the Mahani do not recall any time when Gogunta attacked their home, unlike other, more mobile kaiju. They do not regard the creature with any affection, but rather believe Gogunta to be a cunning but lazy entity who waits for prey to approach and then consumes or annihilates it.

Like many kaiju, Gogunta absorbs and redirects certain types of energy, with the latter taking the form of a laser-like beam that projects from one or more of the creature's eyes. While this is Gogunta's preferred attack form, as it appears to require very little effort on the creature's part, Gogunta is able to grab hold of opponents at a considerable distance with one of eight tongues, typically using this to swallow smaller creatures whole and tear them apart with their teeth. Against beings of similar size, Gogunta will occasionally fight with claw and body blows. While only of animal intelligence, Gogunta cunningly fights only while the sky is not clouded and the sunlight is facilitating the creature's regenerative properties, avoiding fights when this is not the case.

Gogunta is perhaps most famous for having killed Scorpia in 2011, facilitating the exploration of the scorpion-creature's lair and everything that followed from that. This unlikely victory is believed to have only happened because Scorpia had been injured in some other, undocumented conflict, but may have simply resulted from the fortunes of war favoring Gogunta on that occasion. Some gigantologists believe that Scorpia goes out of 'her' way to avoid further conflicts with Gogunta, but this might just be a coincidence.

Gogunta -- PL 11

Abilities:
STR
11 | STA 13 | AGL 3 | DEX 2 | FGT 8 | INT -4 | AWE 2 | PRE -2

Powers:
Amphibious: Immunity 4 (cold, drowning, heat, pressure); Swimming 6 (30 MPH) - 10 points
Claws and Teeth: Close Damage 2, Improved Critical 2 - 4 points
Energy Absorption: Immunity 20 (energy effects); Regeneration 20, Source (light) - 30 points
Feeding Tongues: Extra Limbs 8; Elongation 2, Limited to extra limbs - 9 points
Huge Size: Permanent Growth 10 (Strength +10, Stamina +10, Dodge -5, Parry -5, Intimidation +5, Stealth -10, Speed +1); Protection 2, Impervious 10 - 42 points
Laser Barrage: Ranged Multiattack Damage 12 - 36 points
Many-Eyed: Senses 1 (radius vision) - 1 point

Advantages:
Benefit (multidexterity), Improved Grab, Improved Hold, Power Attack.

Skills:
Close Combat: Grab 1 (+11), Intimidation 6 (+9), Perception 7 (+9), Ranged Combat: Laser Barrage 8 (+10).

Offense:
Initiative +3
Unarmed +8 (Close Damage 11)
Claws and Teeth +8 (Close Damage 13, Crit 18-20)
Feeding Tongue +11 (Grab 11)
Laser Barrage +10 (Ranged Damage 12)

Defense:
Dodge 6, Parry 7, Fortitude 15, Toughness 15, Will 6

Totals:
Abilities 26 + Powers 128 + Advantages 3 + Skills 11 + Defenses 18 = 186 points

Complications:
Survival--Motivation. Lazy. Physical (no speech with humans, no fine manipulators.)
"I'm sorry. I love you. I'm not sorry I love you."
User avatar
Davies
Posts: 5080
Joined: Thu Mar 23, 2017 10:37 pm
Location: Edmonton, AB

Re: A World Less Magical But No Less Fantastic

Post by Davies »

Gerolds
Image

On Earth, at least, the story of the creatures known as gerolds is inextricably linked with the story of the criminal organization known as Vaskhane. In the earth year 1958, two Chiraben-descended agents of this syndicate, Taddely and Aunat, were in the Alpha Centauri star system on other business (specifically selling drugs to the denizens of the refueling station there) when their ship was damaged by the wavefront of a hyperspace phenomenon originating in the Sol System two years earlier. Unlike Bzz Trgal, whose ship was affected by the same event but was under way again within a week, it took them several months to return theirs to function, though they were eventually able to follow his course.

Where Trgal spent several months in orbit around Earth, the Vaskhane agents' cloaked ship immediately descended to the planet's surface, landing in Sylmar, California. From there, they began posing as Terrestrials and conducting a wide variety of criminal activities on the planet, selling extraterrestrial technology and lifeforms, most notably examples of hemovoric plantlife and early blaster weaponry. They were not really interested in the money these schemes raised, beyond its immediate uses, but rather in establishing connections and laying the groundwork for future operations. The Meteor detected their activities soon after his debut, and foiled some of their plans, but was never able to capture the operations' leadership. Other superheroes thwarted individual schemes without ever discovering the truth about them.

In 1967, Vaskhane's Earth branch began one of their most dangerous schemes ever. Earlier in that decade, a mission to the Enigma sector brought back an animal species that the Technate quickly realized was a dangerous, potentially lethal threat to any ecosystem other than its native one. Their attempts to control the species, dubbed gerolds after a favored pet of their discoverer, were thwarted by both the creatures' own fecundity and the efforts of Vaskhane, who recognized them as an incredibly useful asset for the syndicate's ecological sabotage operations. A small number were sent to Earth (turning into a much larger number along the way) where they were marketed as unusual pets in North America, with plans to spread beyond there.

A bit less quickly than the Technate, the local governments realized that the danger of the gerolds -- in addition to their rapid reproductive cycle, typically spawning a new gerold every six hours, they could and would eat anything organic and smaller than themselves, and tended to leave those around them in a state of stupefied bliss while that happened. A number of regions where large numbers of gerolds had been purchased found themselves on the verge of famine before steps were taken. All the creatures were gathered up, with exotic means (provided by Diane Fortune, Jeremiah Wander and some of their allies) used to ensure that none escaped, and transported to Dread Island, in the belief that the creatures there would keep them in check.

And that has happened; they have become a major part of the diet of most carnivorous species on the island, while continuing to prey on those creatures whom their empathic fields are able to affect. The island has also seen the development of a phenomenon known as the gerold swarm, in which dozens of the creatures act as something of a hive mind, while acting like folkloric piranha that are able to devour a human-sized target in a few moments.

Ironically, the gerold operation was actually a major disaster for Vaskhane's Earth operations, as it drew the attention of Stardust upon them. Taddely and Aunat ended up transformed into giant gerolds that promptly ate each other, and most of their employees died similarly horrible deaths. Vaskhane's operations on Earth wouldn't recover until the mid-1970s, though that era and the '80s proved to be glory days for the organization thanks to its alliance with the Pythonian Insurgency. They have never tried to import gerolds again, though. If they ever need any, they can just get them from Dread Island.

Individual Gerold -- PL 5

Abilities:
STR
-3 | STA 0 | AGL 1 | DEX 0 | FGT 0 | INT -3 | AWE 2 | PRE 1

Powers:
Empathic Manipulation: Burst Area Cumulative Affliction 5 (Resisted by Will; Dazed, Stunned), Concentration, Limited Degree; Immunity 1 (gerold empathic manipulation) - 16 points
Tiny: Permanent Shrinking 12 (-3 Strength, -1 Speed, +6 Dodge, +6 Parry, +12 Stealth, -6 Intimidation) - 12 points
Universal Digestion: Feature 1 (iron stomach) - 1 point

Advantages:
None.

Skills:
Stealth 0 (+12)

Offense:
Initiative +1
Unarmed +0 (Close Damage -3)

Defense:
Dodge 7, Parry 6, Fortitude 1, Toughness 0, Will 5

Totals:
Abilities 2 + Powers 29 + Advantages 0 + Skills 0 | Defenses 4 = 35 points

Complications:
Hunger--Motivation. Physical (cannot talk to humans, no manipulators.)

Swarm of Gerolds -- PL 8

Abilities:
STR
-- | STA 2 | AGL 1 | DEX 0 | FGT 0 | INT -- | AWE 2 | PRE 0

Powers:
Aura of Empathic Manipulation: Burst Area Cumulative Affliction 8 (Resisted by Will; Dazed, Stunned), Sustained, Limited Degree; Immunity 1 (gerold empathic manipulation) - 33 points
Swarm: Permanent Insubstantial 2, Innate, Quirk (limited to Size -3 or larger holes) - 10 points
Swarm Attack: Damage 6 - 6 points

Advantages:
Improved Initiative, Seize Initiative.

Skills:
Close Combat: Swarm Attack 8 (+8), Perception 6 (+8), Stealth 8 (+9).

Offense:
Initiative +5
Swarm Attack +8 (Close Damage 6)

Defense:
Dodge 8, Parry 6, Fortitude 8, Toughness 2, Will 6

Totals:
Abilities -10 + Powers 49 + Advantages 2 + Skills 11 + Defenses 23 = 75 points
"I'm sorry. I love you. I'm not sorry I love you."
User avatar
Davies
Posts: 5080
Joined: Thu Mar 23, 2017 10:37 pm
Location: Edmonton, AB

Re: A World Less Magical But No Less Fantastic

Post by Davies »

Mr. Odin
Image
Photo taken c. 1959

Nearly everything that is known about the early life of Oddvar Berg, better known as Mr. Odin, comes from what the man himself revealed in an interview conducted by FBI agents in 1984, and should be taken with several grains of salt. He had worked diligently to destroy any other sources of information about himself, and all of his claims were likely directed towards his immediate goal of persuading the FBI, and by extension the American government, to grant him clemency in exchange for his promised assistance in combating the Pythonian Insurgency. Berg was ultimately unsuccessful in achieving this goal, largely because the agents in question believed him to be lying to them, and would ultimately die in prison seven years later.

Oddvar Berg was (he claimed) the last scion of an ancient family of his native Norway, born in 1923. (This birthdate was relatively consistent with his apparent age in 1947, when he entered the United States.) Many members of his family had possessed psychic abilities, usually some form of clairvoyance, but the talent had been growing rarer and weaker in recent centuries, and had last manifested in his great-grandparents' generation. When he developed his own limited ability to foresee the future, in 1938, his parents believed him to be making up stories, and didn't listen to his warnings. Thus, they died in a car crash later that year, which also cost Berg his eye.

As he was already practically an adult at this point, being stronger even as a youth than most grown men, Berg was largely left to his own devices. Following the invasion of his country in 1940, he decided to collaborate with the Nazis, viewing this as the most effective way to preserve his own safety. He became associated with the Rinnanbanden, the group of informants for the German spy apparatus led by Henry Rinnan. Berg claimed that he didn't employ his powers on the group's behalf, just his more mundane talents, and that he was not personally responsible for any of its assaults or murders. Further, he claimed, he grew disenchanted with Rinnan towards the end of the war, and had double-crossed the man when Rinnan and his followers attempted to flee to Sweden in 1945.

If he did so, it seems likely that he did so mostly as a way to further cover his tracks, with his destruction of records concerning him serving as the primary way that he did so. It sufficed to keep him free and at large during the massive purge of Rinnan's group that took place between 1945 and 1946, and allowed him to make his way to America in search of greener pastures. He arrived in New York and soon found a niche for himself as a professional seer for many of New York's gangsters, under the name Mr. Odin. Around this time, he also began his hobby of 'training' ravens to serve as his minions; the training largely involved brute-force mental conditioning.

As the first age of the superhero began to dawn in 1956, Mr. Odin (he later claimed) found himself increasingly disgusted with the petty villainy of the gangsters who employed him, believing that he could give the city a better class of criminal. He took advantage of the confusion following the Apalachin disaster to seize control of some of his former employers' rackets, which led to his first clashes with the Cowl and Masque, becoming their most persistent enemy. (Interestingly, Berg never claimed to have set up the raid.)

Pressure from his heroic opponents and criminal rivals alike finally saw Mr. Odin arrested and tried for his numerous crimes in 1967. He was sentenced to death for several murders, but the sentence was commuted to cryogenic suspension in 1968. In its turn, that sentence was lifted after the cryogenic revival process was shown to occasionally have serious neurological consequences for its subjects. In Berg's case, this meant the loss of his major superpower, the ability to control animals at extended distance and perceive the world through their senses, while leaving him with his limited precognition. His attempts to leverage this talent into a method by which he could know some freedom failed, and he ultimately died in prison, largely forgotten, in 1991.

According to his own account, he never fathered any children. But he was believed to be lying about that too.

Mr. Odin - PL 9

Abilities:
STR
4 | STA 3 | AGL 1 | DEX 3 | FGT 7 | INT 4 | AWE 7 | PRE 5

Powers:
Eyes of the Raven: Perception Range Affliction 9 (Resisted by Will; Dazed, Compelled, Controlled), Limited to Animals; Remote Sensing 6 (all senses; 60 miles), Medium (animals) - 42 points
Forewarned is Forearmed: Enhanced Advantages 2 (Improved Initiative 2, Uncanny Dodge); Enhanced Defenses 6 (Dodge 3, Parry 3); Senses 1 (danger sense) - 10 points

Advantages:
Benefit 3 (Millionaire), Connected, Contacts, Defensive Roll 2, Equipment 6, Great Endurance, Improved Initiative 2, Languages 3 (Danish, English, German, Italian, Spanish, Swedish, others, [Norwegian is native]), Minion 2, Set-Up, Uncanny Dodge, Well-Informed

Equipment:
Light Pistol (Ranged Damage 3), Walking Stick (Strength-based Damage 2) and 22 points of equipment as needed (usually a vehicle.)

Skills:
Deception 8 (+13), Expertise: Civics 6 (+10), Expertise: Criminal 7 (+11), Expertise: Magic (INT-based) 4 (+8), Expertise: Streetwise 8 (+12), Insight 6 (+13), Intimidation 8 (+13), Perception 7 (+14), Persuasion 6 (+11), Ranged Combat: Guns 6 (+9).

Offense:
Initiative +9
Unarmed +7 (Close Damage 4)
Walking Stick +7 (Close Damage 6)

Defense:
Dodge 8/5, Parry 10/7, Fortitude 5, Toughness 8/3, Will 9

Totals:
Abilities 68 + Powers 52 + Advantages 24 + Skills 31 + Defenses 8 = 183 points

Complications:
Power--Motivation. Physical (one eye.) Secret (can actually control any animals, not just birds.) Vindictive.


Huge Raven -- PL 4/MR 2

Abilities:
STR
-3 | STA -1 | AGL 3 | DEX 0 | FGT 3 | INT -3 | AWE 2 | PRE 0

Powers:
Keen Eyes: Senses 3 (extended 2 low-light vision) - 3 points
Natural Size: Permanent Shrinking 8 (Dodge +4, Parry +4, Stealth +8, Strength -2, Intimidation -4, Speed -1), Innate - 9 points
Wings: Flight 4 (30 MPH; Wings) - 4 points

Advantages:
None.

Skills:
Close Combat: Unarmed 4 (+7), Perception 6 (+8), Stealth 0 (+8).

Offense:
Initiative +3
Unarmed +7 (Close Damage -3)

Defense:
Dodge 7, Parry 7, Fortitude 2, Toughness -1, Will 2

Totals:
Abilities 6 + Powers 16 + Advantages 0 + Skills 5 + Defenses 3 = 30 points

Complications:
Persistent Domination--Motivation. Animal.

Note: Character concept by Voltron64.
"I'm sorry. I love you. I'm not sorry I love you."
User avatar
Davies
Posts: 5080
Joined: Thu Mar 23, 2017 10:37 pm
Location: Edmonton, AB

Re: A World Less Magical But No Less Fantastic

Post by Davies »

Illuminatus
Image

Up to a point, the story of George Collard is almost identical to that of the man who was first his greatest rival, then his nemesis -- Andrew Lewis, aka the Iconoclast. They were both wealthy and intelligent young men who were, in 1947, recruited as agents of the Golden Mean, and given training that turned them into physical paragons to match their intellect. The difference came in their motivations. Lewis apparently viewed the Golden Mean's goals as impossible, and was only interested in living an exciting and interesting life. Collard was a true believer in the group's agenda, and intended to one day become its leader and thus the secret ruler of America, and in time the world.

They did not get on, in other words. On several occasions during the following decade, Collard interfered with Lewis' missions for the secret society, usually failing to cause them to fail, but generally making them harder than they had to be. As Lewis didn't particularly care whether he succeeded or not, as long as he had a good time, this didn't bother him, but on one occasion he was annoyed enough by the interference to retaliate in kind, and caused a major operation that Collard was supervising to fail in a particularly humiliating manner. And Collard couldn't prove his involvement at all.

Soon after this, the Golden Mean ordered Lewis to infiltrate the Institute, resulting in the birth of the Iconoclast. Still smarting over his failure, Collard tried to sabotage this operation in turn, but repeatedly failed -- either due to bad luck or because Lewis was actually taking this particular assignment more seriously than he usually did. His frustration boiled over, and Lewis developed a costumed identity of his own, trying to become the Iconoclast's archenemy under the name Illuminatus.

This didn't work either, and for a time Collard went into hiding, certain that Lewis had to have recognized him -- that stupid mask didn't really cover anything, after all -- and would report him to the Golden Mean's leaders, this time. When he finally realized that this was never going to happen, Collard achieved a new level of anger and spite. He resolved to continue his career as Illuminatus, but he was done trying to just interfere with the operation. He was going to kill the miserable bastard who viewed him as so irrelevant. (Ironically, it seems that Lewis believed that Collard was actually under orders to help him.)

They clashed again and again through the next decade, with Illuminatus becoming one of the members of the Agents of Destruction at one point. When one of the leaders of the Golden Mean discovered his activities, Collard reluctantly agreed to become the other man's personal agent, gaining access to greater resources for his war against Lewis in exchange for a loss of autonomy. Yet no matter what sort of brilliant scheme he devised, the Iconoclast found his way out of it, and often sent Illuminatus to jail ... from which he was promptly (but sometimes not too promptly) freed by his patron.

And then the Iconoclast died, and Collard presented it to the Golden Mean as his ultimate triumph over their renegade member. (Of course, he hadn't actually had anything to do with it, but they didn't know that.) With a certain amount of reluctance, they gave him a seat at the table on the condition that he abandon his costumed hijinx, which he was more than happy to do. He would have enough on his plate scheming to become the first among his supposed peers, after all.

Six years later, he had achieved that goal, but the Golden Mean that Collard commanded was a hollow shell compared to the organization which had recruited him. Two-thirds of the other leaders had stopped bothering to attend meetings, and his efforts to compel their return were thorough failures. Too late, it became clear to Collard that while he was a cunning strategist -- if perhaps not quite so cunning as he believed -- he lacked the ability to persuade others to follow his strategies, and had gradually seen the ability to force them to do so slip out of his hands.

Collard thus responded favorably to the invitation he received from Pythia, delivering what remained of the Golden Mean's assets into the hands of the Insurgency she was creating in exchange for the title Director of Subversion. Like all of the Directors, he schemed to gain power at the expense of the rest of them with the goal of eventually toppling Pythia and seizing control of the organization. But the Insurgency was not the Golden Mean, and his fellows were perfectly willing to answer his schemes with lethal force. George Collard was murdered in 1987, after one of his plans annoyed General Estrella just a bit too much.

Iluminatus -- PL 8

Abilities:
STR
3 | STA 2 | AGL 4 | DEX 4 | FGT 6 | INT 6 | AWE 4 | PRE 5

Powers:
Striking Strength: Strength-based Damage 2 - 2 points

Advantages:
Agile Feint, Assessment, Benefit 3 (millionaire), Connected, Contacts, Defensive Roll, Equipment 8, Fascinate (Deception), Improved Hold, Improved Initiative, Improved Trip, Jack-of-all-Trades, Languages 3 (several), Power Attack, Redirect, Taunt, Uncanny Dodge, Well-informed.

Equipment:
40 points of equipment as needed.

Skills:
Acrobatics 5 (+10), Athletics 5 (+8), Close Combat: Unarmed 5 (+11), Deception 8 (+13), Expertise: High Society 4 (+10), Expertise: Streetwise 4 (+10), Insight 6 (+10), Intimidation 6 (+11), Investigation 5 (+11), Perception 7 (+11), Persuasion 3 (+8), Ranged Combat: Throwing 5 (+9), Sleight of Hand 6 (+10), Stealth 7 (+11), Technology 6 (+12), Vehicles 6 (+10).

Offense:
Initiative +8
Unarmed +11 (Close Damage 5)

Defense:
Dodge 9, Parry 11, Fortitude 4, Toughness 4/2, Will 7.

Totals:
Abilities 74 + Powers 2 + Advantages 25 + Skills 44 + Defenses 13 = 158 points

Complications:
Power--Motivation. Nemesis (the Iconoclast.) Secret (identity, true masters.)

Note: Character concept by Voltron64.
"I'm sorry. I love you. I'm not sorry I love you."
Post Reply