Potential Teen Superhero Game

[Xerial]

Alrighty folks, my twisted mind has been mulling this one over for a little while, and it's time to see if there's an interest out there...

What I'm looking to start up is YAHGBNQ (Yet Another Hero Game but not Quite).

The game will feature a group of 4-6 high school aged heroes (16-18) with an older mentor, akin to the Teen Titans. The characters have been together sice they were heroes in training, and as such are at least comfortable working as a team. Of course that doesn't mean they know everything about eachother, especially since they're all in that nice happy hormonal period in their lives when things they are a changing. I would like characters to be more than the sum of their powers, in that I would like to see them fleshed out as much as possible before the game starts. I intend to spend some time looking over the characters to cater the scenario to them, and as well I intend to bring together a group that will be able to have a nice blend of tension and teamwork, as well as providing interesting interactions amongst eachother.

In creating character concepts, I would like to see at the very least the following:

- Information on what powers the character has, when/how they manifested, and how capable they are of controlling them;
- Background on the character's upbringing, family and relationship with them;
- A little bit of insight as to how the character came to be part of the supergroup;
- How the character responds to stress, as well as any fears or outright phobias;
- How sexually experienced the character is, and what their previous encounters might have been;
- At least one secret the character is keeping from the others, and why they feel the need to keep it;
- Something that really gets the character going; and
- How open the character is with the other members of the team.

Remember, details are good, so if you want to include a little blurb about your characters pet racing turtle Michelangelo, all the power to you.

I would also encourage players plotting amongst themselves, creating links between their characters prior to application, commonalities and such. Site limits, and anything in my ons/offs as off are the only limits I intend on having at this point in time, as this may be quite the dark little number, so the links between the characters are entirely up to you, the players.

As said, this is a preliminary probe, to get your minds rolling. If I get the player base, I will set an application deadline. Fair warning, once the team is set I'm going to take at least a few days to plan the initial setup, in order to create a rich environment.

Questions, comments, concerns, and death threats can be levied here, or PMed to me.

[Jefepato]

Interesting thought.  Any system in mind, or just freeform?

[Xerial]

Freeform, as I don't really like system for a character interaction driven story.

[Lirliel]

*Latches fingers around doorway, eyes peeking in, together with slight bit of forehead offcourse*.. consider intrest peeked.. *then runs off*

[Xerial]

On a further note, expect the villain to have the upper hand in this one early, and the characters to potentially be put out of their element for some time... which of course will only further ratchet up the possibilities for tension, and for everyone to shine as a team...

[indarkestknight]

Not sure... I'm really busy right now, so I might join, might not, and if I do, it'd be as a latecomer...

[Lirliel]

Have to go with Glab on this one actually..

[Xerial]

No worries, as I warned it'll be a little while in setting up... got a bit of a snag with certain things on my RL end which'll result in some catch-up once I get the e-mail I'm waiting on, so I expect any character deadline won't be until the weekend after this upcoming one...

[Ajoxer]

I actually have a character idea for a Super Hero game I've been wanting to use forever... Based off a combination of general super-heroly stuff, combined with Mary Zero from Agent X.

Essentially, a mutant, whose mutation gives him a good deal of Super-Strength and physical ability, but makes him almost never impact on the minds of others. They see him, they know he's there, but he never sticks in anyone's memory, he never gets any credit, making him desperate in many ways for fame. The only way to stop this effect would be to suppress his mutations, and he couldn't stand to be unable to make the difference he can as a super-hero. His existence is a catch-22.

I can flesh him out a bit more, but I'd figure one of the others- preferably female- has either some power or unusual mental state that allows her to percieve him, and remember him. This basically means that he loves the hell out of her, would do damn near anything.

I sorta love the character because he's stuck in a rough situation, he works like hell, but never gets recognized, and he responds to 'Hey, Joe!' as a super-hero name.

Might require a little work, but it would be a fun character to use...

[Ryvaken]

I am intrigued.

What is the setting of this RP? What technologies are available? How abundant are supernatural forces? Should character powers be innate or do you allow for tech-based heroes?

[Jefepato]

I can flesh him out a bit more, but I'd figure one of the others- preferably female- has either some power or unusual mental state that allows her to percieve him, and remember him. This basically means that he loves the hell out of her, would do damn near anything.

That's a cool concept, but wouldn't it be really tough to interact with the rest of the group or the mentor?

[Ajoxer]

Aye, that's a part of it. He'd almost function as an 'invisible friend' type for the one who can see him- They've grown used to the fact that the rest of the group ignores him, so she relays his thoughts, that sort of thing. And there are always the possibility of somebody dampening his powers, giving them memories of him once again- I think that it could make for some good scenes.

[Creeper]

Colour me interested. I'm imagining a weird druid plant controller/healer type.


Edit: NO! No!

better idea.

A Mole-man.

A radioactive mole-man!

[schnookums]

I think I'd be interested as well, if I can get my act together to come up with a concept and suchlike.

[Ryvaken]

I've got about, oh, a dozen concepts floating in my head.

Idea number one is a shapeshifting individual. He is capable of altering his body in many ways; he started by just mimicking animal life but quickly expanded his repertoire to creating unique forms by mixing up traits from several animals at once. His powers are instinctual, and help him adapt to a new form within a few hours of his first attempt, but before that he can barely stand up. He is capable of manipulating his mass, allowing larger or smaller versions of forms without difficulty, but he is not yet capable of engaging a giant eye-to-eye or taking on a microbe with his bare fists. It seems, however, that the more he shifts the stronger his powers get, like exercising a muscle, and there is no indication of just what his limit might be. His given name was Sam, but no one is really sure if that's short for Samuel or Samantha.

In truth, Sam was raised male by a loving nuclear family in east coast US suburbia; two parents and a younger sister. His family had the usual bucket of problems, but nothing extraordinary. When Sam's powers began manifesting at the age of seven, things changed. His parents panicked and called in doctors, specialists, psychics, veterinarians...the chaos lasted a year after which, finally, it became clear that Sam had abilities, and that was all that anyone would ever be able to figure out. The best explanation given was "Understand this, you will not. Powers he has. Control he must learn. Your money to me you will give now?"

Once the panic finally settled, Sam joined the superteam in order to get the training he needed. His parents at first treated it like a daycamp, then a school, then a boarding school as the years went on. His sister, on the other hand, was maddeningly jealous of her brother's abilities and tried to monopolize her parents' attention to compensate. With Sam spending most of his time away from home, it became easy for her to achieve that goal, and she grew up a spoiled little brat.

Sam responds to stress by altering his form to whatever seems least likely to be subject to that stress. A cat won't fear small places as much as a human, a hawk won't be afraid of heights, so on. He has an aversion to cleanliness as a proper teenage boy should, but in the event his uncleanliness results in disease he almost always has some kind of emotional break. Current theory is that his unique anatomy doesn't play well with other creatures and expresses its ire to the mind by altering hormone levels. Or maybe he just really hates being sick.

Sam's experience with sex is long and detailed. His talents make physical attractiveness a trivial accomplishment, and he is able to pick up a one-night stand any night he pleases. As alluded to before, he does this as a man or woman as his whim takes him.

Sam's dark secret is that he is lonely. He can be the life of a party, he can make a few phone calls and have an intimate meeting with anyone he wants, and he has comrades in his teammates, but his desire to master his abilities, the abilities that so terrified his ever-more estranged parents, has made it impossible to form any true friendships.

Sam gets going when he's told to get going or when he's really bored. Any excuse to show off is taken without hesitation.

Sam is not terribly open; he wants to please people so any suffering he feels is subjugated by him saying what he thinks others want to hear.



Another idea is the intellectual who manipulates technology to suit his needs, possessing about fifty different gizmos on hydrodynamic servomotors that spring out of his ass at a moment's notice. This type of character is contingent on the technologies available to him, and his effectiveness is dependent on the technologies available to others. As such no progress can be made on this idea without information of that sort.

[MadPanda]

Oooooooo...

I is interested Panda.

Every superhero team needs a Martial Arts Death Machine!  Let me go ponder the possibilities...

[Valerian]

Essentially, a mutant, whose mutation gives him a good deal of Super-Strength and physical ability, but makes him almost never impact on the minds of others. They see him, they know he's there, but he never sticks in anyone's memory, he never gets any credit, making him desperate in many ways for fame. The only way to stop this effect would be to suppress his mutations, and he couldn't stand to be unable to make the difference he can as a super-hero. His existence is a catch-22.

Ooh, have I got just the character for this character!

Melanie was originally designed for an MnM game that sadly ended all too quickly, but she'd be perfect here.  She is, both legally and physically, blind, and has been since birth.  However, she also possesses other senses, primarily psychic, that allow her to "see" for all practical purposes.  She can sense life, emotions, and other psychic abilities that usually let her home in on other living things, and has a sort of telepathic "radar" that allows her to maneuver around inanimate objects.  With a pre-established mental link, she could also project and read surface thoughts, and delve more deeply if she wasn't worried about being caught.  Ironically, she was an excellent spy, since she could project her senses slightly ahead of her and do reconnaissance without even moving.

Originally, she also had the ability to perceive time differently.  This allowed her to move back into the past as well and study things that had happened previously.  (It was really the Postcognition power and a little Super Speed, but the differing perception of time tied it all together nicely.)  Into the future was much iffier and more uncontrollable, but she could do that to a limited extent as well.  (Actually Danger Sense a few seconds ahead.)

So with powers like that, she could easily be immune to whatever forgetting goes on with Ajoxer's character.  Maybe it works primarily through vision?  In any case, she'd be reading his thoughts and sensing his feelings more than anyone else really could, and that really should be harder to forget.

Good, yes? :D

[MadPanda]

Niiiiiice!

I'm tempted to bring back an old Feng Shui character, but I'm not sure if I wanna make it a boy or a girl (we seem guy heavy at the moment).

Short version--character is a Transformed Dragon (that is, a human descendant of a Dragon that managed to become human) but does not know this.  Has been raised in monastary far from the eyes of the modern world.  Sent to campaign location as exchange student and, for whatever reason, ended up sticking around.

Sick stats.  Great skills (in a few focused areas like butt-kicking).  Humorously ignorant of all else.

Too silly?

[Ajoxer]

Ooh, have I got just the character for this character!

Melanie was originally designed for an MnM game that sadly ended all too quickly, but she'd be perfect here.  She is, both legally and physically, blind, and has been since birth.  However, she also possesses other senses, primarily psychic, that allow her to "see" for all practical purposes.  She can sense life, emotions, and other psychic abilities that usually let her home in on other living things, and has a sort of telepathic "radar" that allows her to maneuver around inanimate objects.  With a pre-established mental link, she could also project and read surface thoughts, and delve more deeply if she wasn't worried about being caught.  Ironically, she was an excellent spy, since she could project her senses slightly ahead of her and do reconnaissance without even moving.

Originally, she also had the ability to perceive time differently.  This allowed her to move back into the past as well and study things that had happened previously.  (It was really the Postcognition power and a little Super Speed, but the differing perception of time tied it all together nicely.)  Into the future was much iffier and more uncontrollable, but she could do that to a limited extent as well.  (Actually Danger Sense a few seconds ahead.)

So with powers like that, she could easily be immune to whatever forgetting goes on with Ajoxer's character.  Maybe it works primarily through vision?  In any case, she'd be reading his thoughts and sensing his feelings more than anyone else really could, and that really should be harder to forget.

Good, yes? :D

That'd be superb. He'd probably be insanely protective of her sometimes, though, heh. And MP, that sounds like a fairly neat character, my character would probably not have nearly as much style, but has a significant quantity of Super-Strength. I actually had him statted out in M&M- I believe he had Super Strength 10, which gave him a lifting weight of around 200 tons, and a significant jumping ability.

But yeah, the empath/psychic girl would probably make the perfect conduit.

[MadPanda]

I guess I'll go 'girl' then  ;)  To give Melanie someone to talk to about girl stuff.

Writeup will follow when I have enough time...but a few things everybody's going to know about Rin (or is that pronounced 'Lin'?)

1.  She's not Chinese.  Chinese girls don't come with jade green eyes and white hair, Mister Burton!  She was just raised there.
2.  She's allergic to magic.  It makes her sneeze.
3.  Her style is probably Jeet Kun Do, since it doesn't seem to be anything else in particular...
4.  Yes, she calls out the name of her moves.  Usually she does so before using them, but there was this one time she make a 'mistake'.
5.  She is also not above pretending that she cannot speak or understand English very well, although she does not do this with her friends and team-mates.

[Ajoxer]

Joseph.

At the age of twelve, young Joe disappeared. Oh, he was still there- he didn't get some fun power like invisibility. But nobody ever remembers him. They ignore him, accredit what he does to the wind or other people.

For a 12 year old kid with dreams of glory, this would be devastating. Except for the fact that he also developed a not unimpressive degree of super-strength. He's still training, and his body hasn't fully developed, but he can lift a few tons, and he hits hard. This is one aspect of his mutations, the other being the way that his body wipes memories of him from the people around him. He spent several years anonymously fighting crime, occasionally nabbing hot-dogs and such to keep from starving. He had plenty of opportunities to do deeply immoral things, but his parents had raised him right.

He's a proper black Irish boy, his family immigrated to America a few years before he was born, and though he was raised in a strict catholic family, he was never a very strict believer himself, aside from the morality bits. He still loves his family, and visits them occasionally, even though they think he disappeared a long time ago.

The happiest day in his life was when he met Mel. She was the first person who ever could see him, and he insisted on working with her- and is highly protective. When she was invited to the group, he tagged along. He admires the others in his group, and sometimes wishes he could get to know them better, even if the only way they know he's actually there is through Melanie.

A little brief writeup...

[Ryvaken]

However, she also possesses other senses, primarily psychic, that allow her to "see" for all practical purposes.  She can sense life, emotions, and other psychic abilities that usually let her home in on other living things, and has a sort of telepathic "radar" that allows her to maneuver around inanimate objects.  With a pre-established mental link, she could also project and read surface thoughts, and delve more deeply if she wasn't worried about being caught.

How far have you thought through the whole psychic thing? Mind readers take character depth to different levels; I'd like to know how much I need to work on Sam's mental processes.

[Valerian]

Ooh, girl stuff.   :D  It's amazing how often I end up as the "token female", especially in the supers games...

Mel is going to object to being sheltered sometimes, since her father was also insanely overprotective of her growing up.  Her mother, who was clinically depressed, also developed the delusional belief that Mel's blindness was somehow her fault, and killed herself when Mel was only a toddler.  She attended schools for the blind "incognito", developing her powers in secret, until she was somehow found and contacted to join the group.

She would have thought meeting Joseph was pretty cool, too -- who wouldn't want an invisible friend that's real?  Hee.  Though as mentioned, she will try to get him to back off a little on the overprotecting.  Now that she's a little older, she wants to see how self-sufficient she can be.

She's probably always thought of him as a sort of big brother, up until the last couple of months when the hormones really hit, and she started getting some very, very mixed feelings towards him...

How far have you thought through the whole psychic thing? Mind readers take character depth to different levels; I'd like to know how much I need to work on Sam's mental processes.

She wouldn't scan deeply into a teammate's mind unless under some really extraordinary circumstances -- like if someone was possessed by another's mind, for instance.  Primarily, she uses her send and receive abilities to relay surface thoughts as necessary during combat or sneaking, and even then, she doesn't do it casually.  So you won't have a constant eavesdropper, if that's what you were wondering...

[Ryvaken]

Mm. I've had bad experiences with psychics in RP and I like to make sure that I know what I'm getting into. I have three concerns.
First, your ability to influence the minds of others. I don't like games that have any kind of mind control. Influence is fine and can be very interesting, but any kind of mental enslavement is a major turnoff for me. From your description I don't anticipate any problems on this issue, and I include it mostly to underline its importance to me.
Second, what you can pick up without trying. Strong emotion, weak emotion, vague thoughts, specific thoughts, obsessive thoughts, so on.
Third, what are your limits? Can you read the thoughts of any creature? If so, can you understand the thoughts of different creatures? Are you limited to humans? Can you make yourself understood to an animal intelligence?

[MadPanda]

Here are a few ideas about Rin for Mister GM to play with:

It's a one in one probability that the kindly old monk who trained Rin is either a) a supervillain, b) a retired supervillain, or c) immortal and sneaky.

One 'secret' I'm considering, unknown even to Rin, is that her bloodline is unusually strong...and that if pushed too far or too hard, she might transform back to Dragon-form with the expected city-flattening results that follow!  Finding a way to push her that far would be a most villainous thing to do.  Perhaps her inner Dragon should serve as her 'dark side'?

Are we sharing a base, or do we live with ordinary folks and try to pass ourselves off as 'normal'?

[Valerian]

Mm. I've had bad experiences with psychics in RP and I like to make sure that I know what I'm getting into. I have three concerns.
First, your ability to influence the minds of others. I don't like games that have any kind of mind control. Influence is fine and can be very interesting, but any kind of mental enslavement is a major turnoff for me. From your description I don't anticipate any problems on this issue, and I include it mostly to underline its importance to me.
Second, what you can pick up without trying. Strong emotion, weak emotion, vague thoughts, specific thoughts, obsessive thoughts, so on.
Third, what are your limits? Can you read the thoughts of any creature? If so, can you understand the thoughts of different creatures? Are you limited to humans? Can you make yourself understood to an animal intelligence?

Understandable -- I don't like mind control either, and Melanie can't do anything like that.  In the MnM system where she was originally "born", mind control is a totally separate power from anything she has.

Second: Without trying, she'd only pick up strong emotions.  With focus (which would require her to do very little else), she'd pick up weaker emotions quite easily.  Whether she can pick up obsessive thoughts without trying or not, I never really decided, since it didn't come up in the original game -- I'd say no, though, since I always intended her empathy to be her primary ability and telepathy secondary.

Third: Again, not something that ever came up originally.  I'll bow to group opinion/GM decision on this one, but my own thoughts are that though she'd be able to pick up nonhuman thoughts, actually comprehending them would be another matter without a common language.  (A common language would probably be necessary with other humans as well.) She could make good guesses, based partially on the tone of the thoughts and partially on emotional cues, but they'd only be guesses.

As for making herself understood, that would depend on the nonhuman and its experience with human speech.  She could project thoughts, but projecting a warning to look behind you to a wild animal isn't going to do much good.  Projecting emotions isn't something she does, either.

Okay?  I do understand what you mean about psychic characters abusing the ability, and I have absolutely no intentions of doing that.   :)

[Ryvaken]

I don't think I could pass as normal.

Oh, wait. The character. Right. Yeah, Sam could pass as normal.

...I sense the eyes....THE EYES ARE ON ME!!!


And Val, I am not surprised that "it never came up" is part of your responses on those last two. When psychic characters start abusing, I start making reasons why it doesn't work. I've gotten very good at confounding would-be psychics by using "I never thought about that before" against them.

Another question, now considering how to use her skills rather than being worried about them, what's her effective range? Could she act as a communication link if Sam was in a form unable to speak?

[Valerian]

And Val, I am not surprised that "it never came up" is part of your responses on those last two. When psychic characters start abusing, I start making reasons why it doesn't work. I've gotten very good at confounding would-be psychics by using "I never thought about that before" against them.

Another question, now considering how to use her skills rather than being worried about them, what's her effective range? Could she act as a communication link if Sam was in a form unable to speak?

Plus the game only lasted a couple of months.  Heh.  Also, since that was a system game, some of these issues just aren't in the book and had to be decided on a case by case basis.  Again, though, I see what you mean.   :)

As for range... I'd have to double-check on that from my home computer, but I think it was in the neighborhood of half a mile originally.  If Sam is inclined to run off to greater distances, though, it might be prudent to raise that here, just to prevent him getting separated from the group too often.  Again, I'm willing to go by majority decision...

[Ryvaken]

I'm thinking fly off, more like. Also that could be an invaluable asset to use you as a communications hub, in certain circumstances. I presume your projections are not as clear as actual language, judging by your description.

[Valerian]

Yes, that's why I'm thinking the GM may want to extend her range here -- she can be very useful at keeping groups together, or at least coordinated.  The projections can be as clear as speaking, but only in non-emergency situations when she has plenty of time to send, and when there's a need for clarity, because that makes sending harder for her.  Most commonly, they'll be more like the sending of ideas and/or images than an actual conversation.

That's how it was, anyway -- if we haven't scared the GM off, the current set-up can be different if he'd like, of course.   :)

[Ryvaken]

Sounds about right. I have some tangential knowledge in real-world communications and a dozen or so Star Wars novels that feature a Jedi Meld basically identical to what you describe.

[Xerial]

I haven't been scared off yet, but at the moment I am letting things play out here, seeing the collaboration. I just got back from a longer than expected work-day, and have a few things to tend to at the moment, but I will have more detailed observations and responses later tonight.

One thing to keep in mind: the characters aren't super-badass heroes, they are still teenagers, and growing into their powers and abilities. While they're definitly not civillians, they haven't quite grown into the mantle of superhero yet.

[Ryvaken]

Limiting the Sam character is as trivial as setting upper and lower limits on his mass. Other limits might be his metabolic requirements limit him to mammalian creatures and derivitives thereof, or a limit on how long he can stay in a form proportionate to the complexity of the change from human to <whatever> and the amount of physical activity in that form. That last one is tricky since degree of change is hard to quantify.

[Ajoxer]

Oh, I'd figure it's not too difficult if you consider it in terms of genetic change. Think about how close their DNA is to human, and consider that unless you're transforming into a non-mammalian form, the specifics probably won't be too serious.

[Ryvaken]

First, I don't want another "I can take the shape of animals" shifter. I want to be able to shift like a single arm, or create unique animal shapes that didn't evolve in nature, like a centaur or the like. Second, minor DNA alteration could easily result in Sam throwing cars at people with the greatest of ease -- primates arn't exactly lightweights. A bad route to take when wanting to limit the effectiveness of his powers.

[Ajoxer]

Let's not overexaggerate- Primates are strong, chimps are capable of putting out some impressive strength, but unless it's a very small car, or a very, VERY large ape, they probably won't be able to toss a car around, though they'll certainly be strong.

As for shifting a single arm or select parts of the body, that's hardly that difficult. Might require additional concentration to only change part of the body, but I still don't see it being some horrible, game-breaking power, to be quite honest.

And without some SERIOUS mass alteration, there's not too much worry. A hippo won't do much if it only weighs 400 pounds.

I'd say if you want to impose some limits, the most sensible ones would be in terms of mass, as you mentioned.

And remember- It's just a freeform game on an adults-only board, we probably won't need to show our work too much. ^_~

[schnookums]

Myself, I was thinking of playing a Kitsune type...a magical hero with mostly trickster type powers

[Creeper]

C'mon guys!

Radioactive!

Mole-man!

MOLE-MAN!

[Valerian]

Yes, I'm sure the radioactive mole-man is just... adorable.  Heh.

Now Mel does have lots of powers, but none of them are really for combat.  I've got no problem with limiting ranges and the like, just as long as she's all about sensing things that other people can't usually see.  That's the concept I really want.   :)

[Ajoxer]

I figure that for my own character's limits, his psychic power- I figure that should be the orientation- is as strong and controllable as it will ever be. It's effectively a minor uncontrolled psionic trait that erases peoples memories of his actions and him, and replaces it with one of the people around him.

He's currently superhumanly strong, but only somewhat so- A strength limit of somewhere from 2 to 5 tons lifting, good leaping skills- Maybe being able to get as high up as about 20-30 feet with a good running start, and skin tough enough to be unbroken by .22 caliber ammunition, though anything higher will probably cut him up bad. It'd take some heavy wounding to put him down, all the same.

In general, he's still young, but he's reasonably tough. The unmemorable thing is useless in combat- His opponents can see him and shoot him as easily as usual.

[MadPanda]

Rin's stronger, faster, and tougher than she looks (which isn't hard to pull off...) but she's hardly super-superhuman.  ;)  Maybe about Batgirl's level.  She'd certainly surprise anyone who expected her to be 'normal'!  But her main asset is going to be the wide variety of tricks up her sleeve, plus some nice acrobatics and sneaking about potential.

Now if only she'd pay attention in class...

[NightBird]

Just thought I'd chime in here. I'm working on a concept that won't get a whole lot of attention until Friday at the earliest, but Xerial has expressed preliminary interest in the idea. Essentially, she's a Norse variant on Wonder Woman, called Valkyrie (name Elina Michaelsdatter), born on Alfheim to an Alfar mother and human father. Her Alfar grandfather wants to take her into training for service to Frey and Freya, but she wants to try and find her father first. She'll have a blend of personal powers and magic items.

One of her personal powers is mild empathy, but only in the receptive/perceptive sense. She will not have the ability to project.

[Ryvaken]

For the adult angle, I want to be able to turn things into prehensile tentacles and I'm happy. ;D

[NightBird]

With that for a mutant power, Ryvaken, you wouldn't be the only one who'd be happy! *chuckles*

[Ajoxer]

Awww, I'm fairly sure tentacles are game-breakingly powerful in a Hentai game. :-P.

[Ryvaken]

I am aware of this. I was thinking I'd make a 'normal' kid with an IQ in the triple digits and a buttload of gadgets and then the phrase "Bob the Tentacle Sex Demon" came to mind.

[Ajoxer]

Correct me if I'm incorrect, but aren't all decent IQ scores in the triple digits? Of course, anything more than extremely low triple digits would be plenty brilliant, heh.

[MadPanda]

Here's where I'm going with her so far:

Rin's origins are a mystery.  She was abandoned at the gates of a remote monastery not long after her birth.  As is the custom, the monks took her in and did their level best to raise her according to their tradition, even after it was plain and clear that this strange little girl with her white hair and jade-green eyes was too restless and wild at heart to make a proper nun.  By the time she was four, only one of the monks was still willing to spend time and effort on her.  One day, on a whim, he showed her the first movements in a beginning kata in Tiger and Crane style...and to his delighted surprise found that he had a new prodigy on his hands.  From that day forward, Rin trained when she was not doing chores, sleeping, or eating.  She soaked up new moves and techniques like a sponge, delighting in her skills.  She paid rapt attention to Master Tso's lectures on the duty of a martial artist: defend the weak and helpless, uphold justice, and do no harm where it could be avoided.

So her life continued until the sad day when Master Tso, her mentor and father figure, passed on.  Within an hour, the Abbot swept Rin aside and quietly advised her that he had left two things for her: first, his personal manual of martial arts lore from a family style; and second, a letter of introduction to a man who owed him a life favor.  That night, Rin left the monastery for the wider world.

Some months later, she finally found her master's friend in a graveyard in Hong Kong.  By chance, his sons were visiting his grave and were willing to honor their father's obligation to the old monk.  One of them was moving to America shortly for business reasons and offered to 'adopt' her.  She did not think to argue with her good fortune...nor ask what manner of business the man might have.

Thus, here she is, a world away from the tiny monastery, wide-eyed and curious at all the wonders around her.  At first glimpse, she is but an innocent lass late to bloom...but total immersion has brought her English up to speed with ruthless efficiency and she is only too well aware that she does not fit in here any better than she did back in that quiet monastery.  As she grows up, she is becoming aware of a growing rage within at the petty injustices of the world.

Rin is a rather direct person.  She is also prone to interpreting things literally: sarcasm and puns are two things she simply does not understand.  Her preference is to resolve any dispute politely and without fuss, but if etiquette does not work (as it usually doesn't), 'reasonable' force is permitted.  What she considers reasonable can be frightening to innocent bystanders!  

[NightBird]

Correct me if I'm incorrect, but aren't all decent IQ scores in the triple digits? Of course, anything more than extremely low triple digits would be plenty brilliant, heh.

That would depend on your definition of 'decent.' American average is 90, and, as of 1995 (the date of my reference) about three-fifths of adults were measured with scores under 100.

[Ajoxer]

True, but most people with extremely low scores die off much faster than those with extremely high scores, so I'd figure that it's a receding bell curve. The average is at 100, even though the mode is lower than that.

[Valerian]

Darwin Awards, anyone...?

[Ryvaken]

...it's been a very stressful evening that very nearly involved a call to the hospital and did involve a great deal of me panicking. Quadruple digits.

[Ajoxer]

Owie, hope that everything is alright?

[Ryvaken]

It is now. I have a diabetic relative. At least some of you are wincing and know exactly what happened to me tonight.

[Ajoxer]

Ow, god... Hope they'll be okay. Is it Juvenile? They're working on a cure for that which looks pretty promising...

[Ryvaken]

Heh, no, senior citizen. He just got really stubborn and we didn't really know whether or not to call in the pros and let them deal with him instead.

[Seereous]

Ummm...if there is space available I would like to throw in my two cents. 

As a kid, Batman was my favorite comic book character.  You know, one of the few heroes that has no superpowers.  I also like Tony Stark aka Iron Man, because of the suit and let's just face the fact that gizmos kick ass.  I never really liked Spider Man until I did some research about spiders and found out all the cool stuff that they can do.

My proposal is to essentially have a wealthy (okay extremely wealthy) kid that uses toys and a suit of armor to portray the powers of a Spider Man esque character.  I would have to think of something else for colors, I'm leaning toward having the suit be black with some red in it somewhere in an hour glass, like the black widow spider.  Given that there is a character called the Black Widow, I'm leaning toward an equally cheesey name like Widowmaker or Recluse or something like that.  However, if I use the name Recluse, the suit would have to be a kind of brown color.

The suit would give him strength, the webs, climbing up the walls, etc; maybe even extra arms to aid him in fighting.  He would have to be somewhat athletic, maybe trained in the Brazilian art of Capoeira, which would aid him with the more acrobatic aspects of spiderdom.

Now, I know that you can't have a hero that doesn't have some sort of flaw.  His would be that he feels like the "token rich kid".  He's there because his money (aka insert rich relatives money) bought him a place on the team though he is rather talented and extremely intelligent. 

He would be rather aggressive, overly so at times, feeling that the violence would make him a more integral part of the team, making up for his lack of mutant/supernatural powers. 

There are just a few brain stormed out ideas.  Let me know what you think. ;D

[Ajoxer]

Fairly nifty, I gotta say.

[Ryvaken]

A tad cliche, the rich gizmotist, but generally an interesting character to have around.

[Ajoxer]

I'd say we could use somebody more traditional in this team, we've got a rather eclectic group so far, heh.

[MadPanda]

That's putting it rather mildly, methinks.
Let's see.  Mage.  Mentalist.  Speedster (I think).  Martial Artist Death Machine.  Yeah, we're about due a Guy In Suit  ;D  We got a Brick already, right?

(dives for cover)

[Ajoxer]

I imagine that I may be the Brick.

Rare that the Brick is the least-noticeable guy on the team. :-P.

[MadPanda]

Rare also that the Brick has mental powers, but it happens.  ;D

[Ajoxer]

Calling 'em mental powers is a bit of an overstatement, also.  :P

[MadPanda]

True, true.  We're none of us Jean Grey, Wolverine, Cyclops, THE Batman...

[Ajoxer]

We're rather like the Teen Titans, except even more dysfunctional a family.

[Valerian]

Dysfunctional?  Who, us?   ;)

The more usual sorts of characters may end up seeming refreshingly different around this bunch...

[MadPanda]

Heh.
Just don't nobody try to 'borrow' my pinups of Raven and Starfire, 'kay?

;D ;D ;D

[Valerian]

Ah, Starfire -- the only keeping that outfit together was the Comics Code.  Heh.

[MadPanda]

*nodnods*

Uh-huh!

[Ryvaken]

*reverses the polarity on the Comics Code* Weapons to maximum! Full power to the forward Pervertatrons!

[MadPanda]

Pardon me while I slip out of these wet things and into a dry martini...

[Seereous]

A tad cliche, the rich gizmotist, but generally an interesting character to have around.

*nods* Yeah.  It is a bit on the cliche side. 

As it appears I may have to think of something else anyway.  During the Marvel Comics Civil War line, Spider Man wore a suit of Stark Armor, much like Iron Man's, using the same powers that he already had and the spider arms and all. *sighs*  Just when I thought that I had an original idea. *laughs*  Oh well, back to the drawing board.

There's always the Hulk/Beast mix ;D.  Intelligent.  Not as strong as Hulk (few things are), but has a good deal of the acrobatic ability that Beast has.  With that, his body can take a tremendous amount of punishment.  Now, would his power manifest by will, or would be just be that way permanently? Hmmmm....

[Ajoxer]

Eh, I dunno- Spiderman during the Civil War was fairly different from the character you have in mind. His powers were still his own, but he had a nifty armor suit with it- I sorta like that one.

And not only because it'd usurp my status as 'Brick'. >.>

[indarkestknight]

Hrm... Half-demon struggling to control his powers has always been a staple of mine...

[Ryvaken]

Meh. The automatic characterization of a half-demon as having evil powers gets tiresome.

[Valerian]

They don't have to be evil powers.  Maybe they're just plain difficult to control.

[indarkestknight]

Actually, was leaning more towards phasing/dream-walking/pheromones this time. Son of an incubus... and painfully shy.

[Ryvaken]

...................

I LOVE IT!

[Seereous]

I'd rather have the spider armor, personally.  Never was too good at the Brick role. *laughs* 

Who wants to help me think of a name?  These are the best that I can come up with concerning spiders:  Widowmaker, Recluse, Arachnis, and this is the point where my brain stops working.

[Seereous]

Actually, was leaning more towards phasing/dream-walking/pheromones this time. Son of an incubus... and painfully shy.

Very Cool!  Great concept!

[Ajoxer]

Depends.

You're a skilled Capoera fighter, as you were mentioning- The dancing fighting style. And what spider is known more for it's causing dances?

Tarantula.

[Seereous]

Depends.

You're a skilled Capoera fighter, as you were mentioning- The dancing fighting style. And what spider is known more for it's causing dances?

Tarantula.

*nods* Thought about that as well. I considered Recluse because the Brown Recluse is an aggressive spider as well as being poisonous.

Okay.  Tarantula is on the table.  Any others?

[schnookums]

Yikes, all sortsa folks are queuing up for this game...

[Valerian]

How about Anansi, the spider from the African folktales?  He was called the Dancing Spider.

[Seereous]

How about Anansi, the spider from the African folktales?  He was called the Dancing Spider.

Very nice. Anansi.  I like it.

[Valerian]

I actually suggested a good name?  But I'm usually terrible with names.  *swoons in shock*

Heh.  Glad you like it.   :)

[Ajoxer]

Anansi, actually, is basically PERFECT for that character. Very intelligent... Make him a bit of a charmer/manipulator, and he's perfect.

[Seereous]

Looks like we have a winner then.  Anansi it is!  Very cool, thanx bunches! ;D

[Valerian]

You're very welcome.   :D

Now I just need a name for my character... though actually, maybe she doesn't even have a hero name, considering her powers...

[Seereous]

You're very welcome.   :D

Now I just need a name for my character... though actually, maybe she doesn't even have a hero name, considering her powers...

Mindseye?  *shrugs*

[Ajoxer]

Mind's Melody?

[Xerial]

In order of what caught my eye/mind and in brief form, as for the moment I am ramblinbly incoherant...ish.

- The setting for the RP is contemporary Earth, but in the sense of most comics. The world is as it is today, but with magic, monsters, mutants and machina thrown into the mix;
- Powers and their sources are up to your imagination, but keep in mind this isn't a high power game, and while tech toys and magic items are allowed, they can be taken and possibly used against you;
- The game isn't necessarily first come first serve; I tend to be selective, and if you don't make the cut, I appologize ahead of time, but there is a semi-mystical force which guides my mind and the processes of selection which I often can't quantify... as usualy, however, questions, comments, concerns and death threats can be tendered via PM;
- The game will be a blend of combat, character interaction, and a hefty dose of puzzle solving to boot... one dimensional characters might have a chance of being accepted, but they might find themselves feeling left out from time to time;
- Radioactive mole men will be confined to anti-radiation running globes for the safety of their non-radioactive teammates;
- And limits with regards to powers will be discussed upon application, but one `reality` should be remembered... no matter how powerful you are or think you are, someone out there in the big bad universe can clip your wings, if only at a comically wrong moment for a short period of time;
- This isn't a hentai game, but tentacle-transformations may well result in the appearance of Lovecraft obsessed `heroes` intent on preventing the rise of the Elder Gods;
- A high IQ does not a survivalist make... for evidence, see the first five minutes of Idiocracy, or my life;
- I will not mention the idea for this game came to me while watching a flash video of a certain Teen Titan getting a birthday present, nope;
- Y'all are being observed like so many white mice... be wary... *Kefka laughter*

And with that glut of info spat out for your perusal, I offer the simple sheet of simplicity, but keep in mind what's been asked of you already:

Codename: 
Real Name:
Age:

Height/Weight: 
Hair/Eyes:
Appearance/Costume:

Kinks:
Frets:
Sexual Experience:

Personality Sketch:

Powers/Skills/Gear:

History:

PM your character when you're happy with 'em... lines will be open for at least a week on this.

[firestorm]

This caught my eye this afternoon, and I brainstormed up some character concepts at work.  Is there room for one exceedingly new person, or has recruitment already been slammed shut like an iron gate?

[Xerial]

Applications are still open...

[Ryvaken]

Do we have any kind of timeframe on how things are going? There was a call for PMs and then utter silence. Silence is not informative.

[Ajoxer]

He probably wants a decent number of characters before deciding who he'll accept- He's mentioned that he's rather picky, and it hurts a lot more to accept somebody and then kick them out for somebody you like better than to wait a while, y'know.

[Xerial]

He probably wants a decent number of characters before deciding who he'll accept- He's mentioned that he's rather picky, and it hurts a lot more to accept somebody and then kick them out for somebody you like better than to wait a while, y'know.

Correct in one... at least in part... I'm giving time for people to submit characters, then I will be adressing each application with a few additional questions/concerns as is fit... after those responses will come the roster... otherwise, how much more informative need I be?

[Ryvaken]

how much more informative need I be?

Enough to silence the monkeys in my brain. They get angsty when I don't know if I need to fix something or not. Wait, no! Stop! Not the sofa!! Excuse me, I need to get a squeegee rated for monkey poop.

[firestorm]

Well, I guess it is true: better to keep your mouth shut and look like an idiot than open your mouth and prove them all right.   :D  See what I can do about a character, then.

[Ryvaken]

Bah. Crazy and stupid are entirely different things.

[firestorm]

This is the internet, I thought the former was assumed?

[MadPanda]

Heh.
Writeup will follow, Oh GM.  Just need to return to my homebase and get the downtime to get writing...

[Ryvaken]

True, but the magnitude thereof is extremely variable.

[Ajoxer]

So, how goes the selection process? I'm curious if Joe's going to finally get a chance to play. :-P.

[indarkestknight]

Sorry, been a busy week... I'll try to work on Nightmare tonight, and finish him by tomorrow.

[Xerial]

I'll be looking over aps during the weekend, responding to each PM with questions/comments and such...

[Ajoxer]

Whee. ^_^ Just want to make sure that we didn't turn you off of the game, heh.

[Xerial]

The first round of probing questions has been sent, but for those of you still lagging behind the lines are still open.

[schnookums]

I sent out a pm asking about the initial bought of questions, did you get it?

[Lanzlo]

OK, glad to see that I'm not too late to put in my two-cents worth on this.

I'm actually a friend of the MadPanda over there in the corner. He told me about this game, and how it might be a bit guy-heavy. Also, this concept (after reading the past posts) sounds interesting. Now, to come up with a decent character.

So, what are we lacking at the moment, concept-wise?

[Xerial]

Appologies to all, things are leaning to the busy side here, and the rules update for the EWF proved to be much more work than anticipated. How this will weigh on the game's incept is yet to be seen...

[MadPanda]

OK, glad to see that I'm not too late to put in my two-cents worth on this.

I'm actually a friend of the MadPanda over there in the corner. He told me about this game, and how it might be a bit guy-heavy. Also, this concept (after reading the past posts) sounds interesting. Now, to come up with a decent character.

So, what are we lacking at the moment, concept-wise?

Heeeeeyyyy, you made it!  ;D

[Ryvaken]

No worries Xer. Do what you need to; it's just a game.

[Lanzlo]

Heeeeeyyyy, you made it!  ;D

Yep. And, after a night to think about it, I think I have a concept.

Miranda is the daughter of two very prominent (and very powerful) heroes, which is part of why she's currently being mentored now. She is highly trained in all the skills a good hero needs; martial arts, stealth, athletics,  and investigation. Only one problem at the moment.

She hasn't manifested any powers.

Don't get me wrong, she WANTS to manifest. Her parents want her to manifest. It just appears that her genes are stubbornly refusing. That's the other part of why she's here; to try and coax her into developing powers.

Trick is, she HAS manifested. It's just that her powers are so subtle that no one around suspects them. Things just seem to go her way. Granted, this does not mean that she lives a charmed life; she might discover the one clue needed to crack a difficult case by literally tripping over it, she narrowly avoids getting hit in the head from a sniper by tripping and spraining her ankle, and so forth. Think Marvel's Black Cat, but she's not aware of the ability.

Her secret, personality, etc. I will PM to Xer later today. Right now, I need to come up with a code name.

[Ajoxer]

I already thought of a name for her.

Slapstick!

Or possibly The Vaudeville Avenger.

[schnookums]

I'm wondering if I should just go ahead and submit my idea...I noticed Xerial seems to have a lot on his plate, and that drowning him in more stuff would probably be a bad idea.

[Lanzlo]

I already thought of a name for her.

Slapstick!

Or possibly The Vaudeville Avenger.

Aw, come on. She isn't THAT bad.

[Ryvaken]

Absolutely Ordinary Girl

[Ajoxer]

To be fair, we've set an extremely low standard for names just by considering my character. Although it would be cool to go for a Jimi Hendrix song theme in the team...

[NightBird]

Shamrock, maybe? Something that refers to luck?

[Ryvaken]

Not if we don't know she's super-lucky.

Howabout something that reflects what she wants her powers to manifest as?

[Xerial]

Appologies for the continued delays, but with work, classes, and keeping up with games I'm afraid things are conspiring against this taking off...

[schnookums]

Curse you, real life stuff! And other games!

Seriously though, I hope ya get things stable...I know how much being swamped can suck.

[NightBird]

That's okay, hon! Just let me know if things change. *smiles*

[MadPanda]

Yep.  Hang in there!  By the toes, if necessary...

[Ajoxer]

I've no problems with waiting for you to have more free time, heh. All bad/busy things must end.

[Darwishi]

Well, I've skimmed about half the posts, and read the one concerning the actual game part (sorry didn't read everyone's character description) and I'm interested in this as well.  I've got quite a few ideas (which is pretty normal for me) that could be modified into this setting.  I'd probably play a female character cause I loves me the girls in spandex. ^^

Okay that's it for now. ^^

EDIT: Also it's cool if this is a while in taking off.  I'm trying to get some things done in the RL sense myself. ^^

[Modern Fairy Tale]

I have a character I love to play.  Its a female.  Shes flirty... shes a catburgalar and a mutant whos being reigned in.  Ive played her on an X-Man team almost like a 'To Catch a Thief' or 'XXX' storyline... Ive had her captured after stealing from the Hellfire Club on another board.  Shes cool, slick, sexy, interesting... shes a cross of Catwoman's Cattitude, Batgirl's skills and equipment, and Dazzlers skills with light.  She can only use light at her hands and has to use gemstones which focus her power into lasers and other light effects like holograms and stun attacks.  The principal behind this is similar to the first laser... an intence light source channeled through a ruby creating a laser.  Id like someone whos tough and more powerful then me as my P. O.  My character is bisexual and once tried to seduce Xavier to escape the school... which didnt work admittedly but she was still a lot of fun.  Anyway, hope this intersts you, if so PM me or let me know where to go.  Thanks.