Hero/Heroic NPC Index

So, I’ve recently had several ideas for heroes to play in the sentinels RPG whenever it comes out.  So many that I know I’ll never get to play them all.  So, very much inspired by Platinum Warlock’s “Villians a day,” I thought I’d post some hero ideas that people can either use for their own heroes or for heroic NPCs or backstory characters.  Can’t promise one a day, but I’ll do what I can.

Word or warning: I’m on a bit of a magical hero kick, so the first few will be that, but worry not, there will be others as well.  Let me know what you think!

So:

The Scarlet Apprentice

Costume: Think the ‘Red Mage’ from final fantasy:

Power Source: Training

Personality: Sullen: a man whose dreams have been crushed but keeps soldiering on.

Qualities: Computers, Magical Lore, Close Combat

Powers: (Not sure yet.  He has sevel Spell-like abilities.  Probably some power like lightning so shoot lightning bolts, and some ability to transmute objects.  Probably lightning calculator as well.)

Backstory: Aaron Adams grew up in a poor family with underappreciative parents.  He didn’t have a lot growing up, (including not a lot of love) but one thing he did have was a knack for magic, though this was mostly unknown to him.

When he hit 18 his parents kicked him out of their trailer home, and Aaron was left destitute on the streets.  With not a whole lot of options, Arron was destined for a life of homelessness until a chance encounter turned things around for him.  A member of the cult of Gloom sensed his affinity for magic and decided to indict him into the cult, hoping to shape him into a high level leader one day.

Without other options, Aaron joined the cult and they gave him a place to stay and food and started teaching him magic.  Aaron was thankful for at first for the food and placed to stay, and was blown away that he was soon casting minor spells.  However Aaron was, despite his upbringing, a genreally good kid, so it was slow going for the cult to slowly corrupt him.

Before he could be corrupted fully, Nightmist busted up this particular chapter of the cult, and Aaron, confused, asked why a superhero was hurting the people that were helping him.  Nightmist explained the cult of Gloom in full to him, and he immediately turned on them when he learned about the human sacrifice and other nasty stuff.  Grateful, he begged to be Nightmist’s apprentice, pointing else he had nowhere else to go.

At this point, Nightmist was already mentoring Harpy, and stuff with the cult was winding up, so she didn’t have the time to take on a second apprentice.  Instead, she set him up with another mystic teacher that she knew of.  She explained that after Harpy had ‘graduated’ and things had settled down, she might take him on.

Aaron began training under this master for a time, but found that master unsatisfying.  And so he began wandering the earth, flitting from mystic master to mystic master, none of them he felt the match for Nightmist.  Along his journey, however, he picked up dabbling in ki magic, technomancy, discordian magic, and so on.  

By the time the OblivAeon event happened he was inTokyo learning technomancy, and did what he could against the Aeon Men.  He rushed back to Megalopolis when he could, but by the. Nightmist was already gone.  Devistated by the news that she was gone, he fell into a depression for a time, but eventually decided to Cary on her mission.

Glad to see that the VotD is inspiring some people!

I'll be sure to chip in a hero or two when I get the chance.

I'm not in a position to easily look for a permalink, but when I put Caitlyn Bell & Gabriel Booke into that thread, they're more neutral NPCs any time I've gotten to use them.

The Educer

Costume: The woman has a very 'skyrim' style norse helmet, and light metal armor, along with a viking style sword.

Power Source: Accident-Isoflux alpha

Personality: Generally normal, though she is very into archaeology and history and will talk your ear off on those subjects if you let her.

Qualities: Alertness, Close Combat (special quality-Archaeology)

Powers: Postcognition/Item reading (If that's a power in the game), Signature weapon.  Transmutation (if that affects other objects)

Description of powers: Jannica Eriksen has the ability to 'read' and understand the psychic impressions on an object, and to use those psychic impressions to draw them out.  For example, if she found a random toy sword off the shelf of a store, she wouldn't be able to do much with it.  But if a boy had been playing with that sword for weeks and had really had fun putting his all into playing with that sword, then she would be able to do two things with it.  She could first feel, and generally know about the good times the child had with the sword, and she could also use that fun to reinforce the two sword, making it cut and be as durable as a real sword in her hand for a short while.  

This power only extends to 'reinforcement.'  Thus she could make a toy sword more durable and better able to cut, but she couldn't make a toy gun shoot anything it couldn't already.  Her powers relate to only making things harder, more durable,  and better able to do what they could already do.

Backstory: Jannica Eriksen was a Norwegian archaeologist who was always facinated by artifacts.  She was very interested in the 'stories that they could tell.'  She always was wished that she could understand artifacts better, so that she could understand why they were made a certain way or how.  And so, it was quite obvious from a young age that she wanted to become an archaeologist.

When she was getting her master's degree, she was granted a spot on an international dig team that had found quite a trove of artifacts near pheonix, Arizona.  And so she began working there as a 'shovel bum,' maticulusly digging and sifting through dirt, looking for arrowheads, fire cracked rocks, evidince of fire-pits, and so on.  However, one day, there was a freak downpour, and the team had to desperately work to cover up the site.  As the desperately put up tarps and tents to prevent their plots from being flooded, Jannica slipped and fell into one of the holes six feet down and partially submurged in water.  Luckily, she was mostly unhurt, though she was soaked to the bone.

In the comming months Jannica noticed strange things as she examined the findings in the lab.  As she worked with the artifacts more and more, she was able to make intuitive leaps that her collegues were baffled by.  She eventually found that she could vividly imagine how the artifacts were used.  What's more she discoverd that things seemed to . . . not break around her after she returned to Norway.  Her clunky old car that she had put so much time and work just seemed to keep going, and not need replacement parts anymore.  She would drop her cell phone and it wouldn't break.  

Eventually Jannica discovered her powers.  At first she tried using them in her field, but without proof to back up her claims, people didn't trust her 'guesses.'  And as she worked more and more, she began to be able to solve minor issues on her campus.  Returning a missing notebook to someone who had misplaced it, finding a stolen bicycle.  Eventually Jannica realized that her powers could be applied on a larger scale.  So over the course of a summer, she poured her heart into forging her own viking sword and has been using it as her weapon to fight villians ever since.

Any chance others can contribute their Heroes/helpful NPCs and put them here as well?

Sure, I guess.  Though I would appreciate it if you kept my format.  Also, I’d appreciate some feedback too.

Cross-posted from an earlier thread, with adjustments for formatting:

The Hemogoblin (Morgan Cutter)

Costume:  Red, goblinoid mask, flowing black cloak with crimson lining, shredded punk clothing, heavy boots

Power Source: Magic (blood)

Qualities:  Blood Magic, Creativity, Occult Lore, Willpower

Powers:  TBD; focus on debuffing foes and usage of lost Health to fuel arcane blasts and other damage.  Lots of Hinder-based abilities, fueled by Hemogoblin's own health.  Scene tracker progression would likely go Gd6 / Yd8 / Rd10

Morgan Cutter shouldn't be alive.  Struggling with depression throughout his early teens, Morgan found himself entering high school with little in the way of a support network.  His interests in mythology, the occult, industrial music, and classic literature isolated him from all but a few close friends who shared the same interests.  While warm with these few, Morgan's solitude took its toll on his mental fortitude, spiraling into a self-imposed isolation.  

Unfortunately, Morgan's issues went all but unnoticed by his parents, mired in the conflicts surrounding their impending divorce.  Already a latchkey kid, Morgan spent his evenings in effective solitary confinement, making his own meals in an empty house.  That is, however, until his first suicide attempt; at age 17, Morgan opened his wrists with a straight razor, nearly bleeding out in his parents' bathroom before his mother found him.  Morgan was institutionalized at Lincroft Asylum for nearly 3 months, seeking counseling and treatment as his wrists healed.

Upon his release--and now with the coping mechanisms and medication necessary to combat his depression--Morgan found that his friends and family held him closer than ever.  When his friends suggested a midnight seance, followed by a late-night Lenny's run--"Just like old times!"--Morgan was quick to join them.  That night, in St. Ignatius' Cemetery, Morgan and his friends lit up a candle and began chanting from an old book that Esther had bought in a used bookshop.

That's when his suture popped.  A slow dribble of Morgan's blood fell to earth as the group chanted; mystic energy swirled around him, lifting the astounded Morgan into the air.  Panicked, the group scattered and, as the chanting ceased, Morgan dropped back to earth, enervated and breathless.

After a good deal of both research and experimentation, Morgan and his friends came to a strange conclusion:  Morgan was a blood mage, capable of expending life force to manifest arcane power.  

If one good thing can be said to have come from Morgan Cutter's suicide attempt, it could be this:  it made Morgan ask himself, "What can only you offer the world?"  Now, he had an answer.  He would embrace this power and use it to help defend against the terrors of the night.  Morgan Cutter would don the mask of The Hemogoblin.

Principle of the Survivor:  You have been granted a second chance at life--something not everyone is lucky enough to receive.  What can you offer the world?  Minor Twist:  How do you still struggle with your mental state?  Major Twist:  What are you willing to give up to ensure that others get their second chance?

Principle of Vitae:  There is a truth that lies in blood, but truth is like a knife that is all blade--it cuts the hand that wields it.  Minor Twist:  What did you learn about blood magic that you did not know, even as you used it?  Major Twist:  Who pays the price for your power?

(Note, I don't know if this backstory works properly with how the Host work.  It seems like the host are ambigious enough for this story to work, but it may not be how Christopher and Adam wanted Hosts to work.  If not . . . I dunno, it's my home game and I can do what I want?)

Amaterasu

Costume: The woman has a 'perfect' face, very pale and free from blemishes, much like a Japanese Noh mask.  She is dressed in a perpetually clean, almost luminecent kimono that is gold and white with red trim.  Her robes are long and flow past her feet, wich is rarely an issue because she flies.  She also has long, straight black hair that extends to her waist.  

Power Source: ??? Cosmic?  Mystical?  Whatever 'the host' classifies as.

Personality: Amaterasu is generally kind and always willing to help and/or educate others.  She will, however, fight if the lives of innocents are threatened or someone wishes to destroy the hard work of others.

Qualities: Magical Lore, Awareness, leadership, (Unique Quality-Teaching)

Powers: Flight, Energy manipulation-Light, 

Description of powers: Amaterasu has several 'cosmic-related' powers that are similar to the abilities that Japanese Shinto priests were said to have.  She can form barriers, seal away monsters inside of vessels, and can bless people with good fortune.  Also, due to people mistaking her for the true Amaterasu (see below) she has gained the abilities of that spirit, allowing her to manipulate light.  This control is not fine (she cannot turn herself or others invisible), but she can make an area darker by shunting light away, or she can shine brightly.  She can even produce a lot of light to create an energy blast.

Backstory: During the fuedal era of Japan, there was one particularly small, out of the way village that was dealing with a serious blight.  The farmers, inexperienced in such things, were unable to keep their fields producing food and so became desperate to feed themselves, their families, and still pay the food tax to their lords.  So these people prayed to their small shrine to Amaterasu, the sun kami and most powerful of the kami, for help.

Help came in the form of a passing Host spirit of Guidence, who saw these people's need for guidance and them directing all of their belief at this statue.  And so the Host spirit posessed the statue for a short time and told the farmers how to guard against the blight and save their fields.  The farmers were elated, and began worshiping the statue.  And despite the host spirit's insistance that it was not, in fact, Amaterasu, the people would not listen.  As it worked with thes people and guided them throughout the harvest season, slowly teaching them how to be better farmers, it grew to care for the people.  And so it returned the next season to again guide the village and help the local farmers and their children.  It did this for many years, and over the course of this time it began to change.

Much like Fanatic and Apostate, its time in the material world, and the amout of belief and energy it recieved, began to alter its makeup.  The host, still aware that it was not the 'real' Amaterasu began to see the intracacies and nuances of the world that it had not known as a 'normal' host spirit.  It also began to take on aspects of the kami, gaining dominion over light and the ability to put up barriers as if it was a shinto priest.  

Things came to a head one year when a powerful oni attacked the village.  While a normal guidance spirit would have been unconcerned with saving the village, this Host spirit understood that these people could not be guided further if they were killed, and that destroying the fruits of their labors would set them back on their path to knowledge.  And so she asked the local Shinto Priestess if she could share her body.  She agreed, and the two fused and together, were able to fight off the oni.  

From then on, the host spirit would sometimes bond with a person, usually a young girl, in order to help protect and guide humanity.  During the OblivAeon event, she realized that she was needed once more and so decided to once more don the mantle of Amaterasu.  She found a scared and injured schoolgirl named Keiko Yamada trapped under a building and asked to fuse with her to save her.  Confused and scared, Keiko agreed, and so became the latest incarnation of Amaterasu.  The two work together in tandem, willingly, to help the world recover after the OblivAeon event and to stop crime in the meantime.

When not in Amaterasu form, Keiko looks like an average schoolgirl.  She can hold 'conversations' with Amaterasu who resides within her at all times.  The two have a mutually agreeable relationship, though they don't always get along perfectly.  Because the host spirit has not bonded with a human in some time, it does not understand modern human culture, and Keiko doesn't always make great decisions, so that causes some friction, but so far the two have stayed together.

Principle of the Mentor-Amaterasu's 'spirit of Guidance' is still front and center in her personality, even if her understanding of 'guidence' has become more nuanced over time.

Principel of the Unknown-Amaterasu has the ability to know things she wouldn't be able to otherwise know so long as that knowledge is needed to help or guide another person.

(Note, I am not, nor do I speak, Manderain Chinese.  If the name does not fit, please feel free to correct me or suggest a bitter name.  I don't mean to culuturally appropriate, I just came up with an idea for a cool character and would like to share it.)

DanTian

Costume: A traditional Kung Fu attire, white with light blue accents.  She also wears a wrap around the upper half of her face that covers most of her hair, though there is a whole int he back for her braid.

Power Source: Experiment

Personality: Dantian tends to be thoughtful but very willing to speak her mind.  She is assertive, but not brash, sure of herself but not overconfident.  

Qualities: Persuasion, Close Combat, insight

Powers: "Strength," flight, Telepathy (d6), Awareness

Description of powers: Dantian is a psychic, but she is very different from Visionary.  Dantian did not inherit the full suite of psychic powers that Visionary did, but instead gained a strange version of telekenisis that only extends a few inches from her body.  To others she seems to be super strong, needing only to make brief contact with people to send them flying across the room.  She does have some minor amount of telepathy, but only enough to share or recieve general feelings unless she is concentrating and touching the subject she wishes to share feelings with.

Backstory: While it is widely known within the U.S. government that there were no 'successful' subjects to come out of project cocoon (Visionary having been pulled out of the program in this timeline) what is less focused on is the scores of 'failed' subjects.  Alyssa Gao's Mother, Amanda Booker, was injected with a precurser to PSY-200 known as PSY-187.  Alyssa as well as all surviving infants of the project were deemed to not have any super powers upon birth.  Alyssa was deemed to have a slightly-higher-than-average intuition, but it was hardly anything the government could use.

And so Alyssa's was released back to her American mother and Chinese father and she lived a happy life in Los Angeles where Alyssa grew up mostly normal, though she would occasionally have brief flashes of insight into what others were thinking.  This all changed when OblivAeon attacked.  When he destroyed a certain nearby movie studio, the wave of cosmic energe that blanketed the area jolted something deep within Alyssa.  It awakened, or perhaps amplified her 'dormant' powers and she suddenly lost control of herself, destroying anything she touched or occasionally flying about the room.

Alyssa's father eventually discovered her condition and helped her get it under control with the help of Tai'Chi, which he ran a studio for.  Over the course of several weeks, Alyssa managed to get her newfound mental abilities under control.  Her father helped her quiet her mind, and eventually she became capable of controlling her abilities to such a degree that she began helping the police against the local crimes in the area.

Principle of the Mask

Principle of (????) If anyone has a suggestion, let me know.

Sorry No new hero yesterday, I just got a new game I had been waiting for months to play and kinda got sucked in!  But I’m back with a new silly hero!

Sentai-nels of the multiverse!  Sentai-nel Ranger Red.

Costume: A red spandex-looking suit with simplistic but stylish white and black designs, and a complete face-enclosing motorcycle-like helmet.

Power Source: Tech Upgrades

Personality: In his superhero form, he is very bombastic and over the top, gesturing wildly and making very dramatic movements.  When in his ‘civilian mode’ he is more subdued, but very ernest.  He gets very excited about ‘shmanger’ technology and also about justice and working with others.

Qualities: Ranged combat, acrobatics, technology, leadership

Powers: signature weapon (laser blaster), Power Suit, strength, endurance.

Description of powers:  Ranger Red is a normal human outside of his suit.  He has a special ‘shmorpher’ that creates a near skin-tight suit made of nanomachines that resemble spandex when worn.  His suit enhances his strength, speed, co-ordination, protects him, and gives him a laser blaster.

Backstory: Paueru Aasanzu hails from what is colloqually referee to as the ‘Tokusatsu’ universe.  A universe where there are no people with innate superpowers, but people have developed fantastic technology that allows them to create super-suits.

a tradition has arisen around this world of gifting these super-suits to small teams of three to six people in an effort to stop the crimes of mutant-creating madmen like that universe’s Biomancer.

The son of a line of leaders of one of the more distinguished Sentai teams, Paueru was sure that he was going to lead s team one day as the a red ranger.  He obsessed over it, learning the ins and outs of the technology and practicing acrobatics and parkour from a young age.

Unfortunately, it never happened for him.  He entered an academy in order to train to be one, but he was passed over.  Ironically enough, his thirst for justice and unwavering belief in doing the ‘right thing’ meant he wasn’t pragmatic or adaptable enough to be chosen.

Distraught but not out, Paueru joined the reserves, helping to fix damaged technology and craft new bits for people.  

But then the OblivAeon event happened.  Stuck in the workshop working on a shmorpher that could only transform someone for twenty minutes, LaCapitan appeared before young Paueru and asked him if there were any heroes to aid in the battle.  Without hesitating, he grabbed the shmorpher and volunteered.

Unfortunately, Paueru found himself on the wrong side of the portals.  Stuck in the ‘main’ universe, Paueru was shocked to discover that this universe hadn’t developed ‘ranger’ technology yet.  He quickly made introductions to the Freedom Five.  They agreed to let him stay with them, and even allowed him the use of their lab in exchange for his ‘ranger’ technology, which he happily shared.  After six months he has fashioned his own ranger design and is desperately trying to recruit a team of four others, though so far he has no takers.

Principle of the Gearhead.

Principle of the team.

Constructive criticism appreciated!

Sorry I haven’t posted in a bit.  Combination of being busy and sick.  But I’ve come back with a twofer

Citizens Surf and Turf

Costume: Citizen Surf: wears light blue scale-mail armor (lightweight) and has a motorcycle helmet with a fin.  Citizen Turf: a wild mane and an orange suit with black tiger-like stripes.

Power Source: Unknown

Personality: Both of them are only truely at home in their environments (the sea or wooded/jungle areas).  They tend to be very self-conscious and shy, especially around other non-supers.  They act like best friends to each other.

Qualities: athletics, close combat

Powers: Strength, Endurance

Description of powers:  Mamuel Ichihara (surf) and Franklin McMasters were both born with unknown mutations.  Ichihara has webbed feet and hands, and any attempts to remove the excess skin resulted in it growing back after a week or so.  This gives him the ability to swim at near superhuman speeds.  McMasters was born with digitigrade legs.  Both were born with significantly different musculature than the average human, giving both of them higher strength or endurance than normal humans.  With only minimal training wand workouts, both men could be considered Olympic level athaletes.

Backstory: Both born on the same day, Manuel and Franklin were born as freaks.  They were quickly ostrisized from society for their bizzare looks and their above-average strength.  Independently, they both eventually found their way to Citizen Dawn’s enclave, desperate for a place to belong.  Ironically, Citizen Dawn almost rejected them for being ‘not super enough.’  But she eventually did accept them, and had them near constantly patrol the compound, Manuel by sea and Franklin by land.  The two formed an almost immediate bond, mostly because of the long patrol shifts they had alone, they could talk to each other, one on the shore and one on the coastline.

While the two were happy to have a place to belong for a while, it soon became clear that they made a huge mistake.  They did not believe in Citizen Dawn’s “Supers first,” mentality.  And around the time of the daybreak event, they realized that she was a psycho mass murderer and fled insula primalis.

That sat low for several years, scraping by at whatever jobs would hire them.  However, during the OblivAeon event, they took to the streets with the rest of the heroes to prevent the world from ending.  At that, they were recruited by some of the other heroes on the scene, and since then they have been working as street level heroes.

Hey! I haven't been on this forum for a long time.

A couple things:

For what power source the Host would "qualify" as, I'd guess either Supernatural or Higher Power, depending on which direction you want to take it in. I could see Amaterasu as either one.

For whatever reason, when I read about Ranger Red, my first thought was, "He's so adorable!"

Oh!  I forgot to mention this in my Villain of the Day thread...

I've included another tab on the VotD index to include references to background heroes and other notable heroic characters that have been included in the various Villains of the Day.  I'll likely be dipping into those when I get some downtime, to start fleshing out the universe a bit more...

Name:  Lady Lightning (Corrin Hankinson)

Costume:  Emerald green bodysuit, emblazoned with a jagged white-yellow lightning bolt from left shoulder to right hip.  Heavy, insulated gloves.  Cowl matching colors of lightning bolt.

Power Source:  Genetic

Personality:  Generally chipper, upbeat, and eager to learn from those who have been doing this longer.  Reverence for established heroes (borderline star-struck).  A bit worn, after infection from "The Superflu".

Qualities:  Willpower, Banter (others, once the list is available)

Powers:  Electricity, Flight

Description:

Corrin Hankinson's powers first manifested when she turned fourteen, as a series of electrical fires in her parents' townhouse were attributed to some increased stress from a heavy school workload.  After identifying the source of these fires, Corrin underwent a battery of genetic tests which determined that a strange anomaly in her neurochemistry permitted her to manipulate electricity around her, simply by using her own natural bioelectrical field.  

Contrary to so many of these stories, Corrin's parents were more than supportive of her.  While they mandated that she have as "normal" a high school experience as possible, they encouraged her to practice in the use of her powers, particularly in a world so ravaged by interdimensional threats and rampaging supervillains.  By the time she was a senior in high school, Corrin could channel arcs of electricity, manipulate nearby electrical fields, summon a crackling field of energy to surround her, and even fly under her own power.  Upon her graduation from high school, Corrin was one of the first recruits into the Sentinels of Freedom program, moving to Megalopolis to begin her training as a full-fledged superhero.

Unfortunately, during the earliest segments of Corrin's training, disaster struck.  Corrin was one of the first individuals to contract "The Superflu"--Influenza Strain H572B.  As her powers waned, Corrin lost hope.  Everything she had hoped to be was slipping through her grasp.  She bordered on despondency for almost 4 months, as she languished in quarantine beneath Freedom Plaza.  

Only through the intervention of Nautilus Industries did Corrin manage to emerge from quarantine.  Eliot Marklund's legendary company managed to formulate a serum to drive the Superflu into remission, allowing the body's natural antibodies to overtake the virus and eliminate it.  Ecstatic, Corrin was eager to rejoin her comrades in the Sentinels of Freedom program.  However, the mark that the Superflu has made on her cannot be overstated; as much as she throws herself into her 'second chance on life', Corrin desperately fears that she will relapse, losing her powers once more.

Principles:

Principle of Powerlessness:  How has the loss of your powers affected your current situation?  How have you had to adapt to the potential of losing your powers on a permanent basis?

Principle of the Elements:  How does your elemental power affect the world around you?  What hazards arise as you manipulate a fundamental force of reality?

I know it has been a long while, but I made another character.  It started off as a joke, but then, as I started writing it up, it kinda seemed really mean-spirited, so I turned it on its ear and now it’s kinda a take about a hero who you thing might be terrible, but actually ends up not half bad if you give them half a chance.  Hope you all like it.

Rainbow Twinkle

Costume: A white bodysuit with a multicolored horse tail.  The head is a helmet with a horn out the top, a visor, and horse-like ears out the side (which actually house a cell phone and a police band radio.). The head also has a multicolor ‘mane’ coming off of it.

Power Source: Radiation (Isoflux Alpha)

Archetype: Transporter

Background: Unremarkable

Personality: Twinkle is a fairly respectable hero, all things considered.  He usually tries to talk down or de-escalate situations, and is known as the ‘diplomatic hero’ by some.  He is bold, and quick to act, but has a keen eye for which situations need diffusing and which require decisive action.  In his civilian identity he is much less sure of himself, and is fairly unassuming.

Qualities: Leadership, Fitness, Technology

Description of powers:  Rainbow Twinkle can generate simple geometric shapes out of thin air that appear to be made of rainbows.  These shapes are quite durable (able to resist gunfire) and disappear after a minute or so, but can be made to disappear faster if desired).  By standing on top of a ‘rainbow’ Twinkle can fly and transport a few others.  He can shoot the rainbows at someone, creating a projectile attack, or wrap them around someone as a shield.  Twinkle also swears that his skills of persuasion have increased since getting his powers, but if these are actual superpowers or not has not been properly investigated.

Backstory: Michael Lawrence Pratt was mostly a normal college student at Grand Canyon University in Phoenix Arizona, studying computer Engineering.  While he got decent grades, he was not an outstanding student.  He had a few friends, and seemed for all the world to be an average 20 something college student.

However, he did have one thing that made him stand out, he was a fan of “Your Diminutive Equine,” a show meant for kids (specifically girls) featuring magical unicorns and crazy adventures.  Pratt found it the writing mostly well done, the morals well presented, and the characters cute.  He was an active member of the fandom online, often contributing to wiki articles or engaging with people on fansites.  However, the few people he had told about this in real life had responded with confusion (at best) and mocked and ridiculed him mercilessly at worst, so he had learned not to to reveal his hobby to anyone offline.

His life changed one day when he learned that there would be a convention for adult fans of the franchise at the Phoenix convention center.  He, of course, attended, without telling any of his college friends, and had a great time.  He saw many great costumes, met up with some of his online friends who also attended, and just geeked out for a whole weekend.  He even bought a Your Diminutive Equine costume and some drawings from several of the fandom’s more prominent fan-artists.

However, as he was leaving the final day of the convention, some bullies he knew from school saw him and all the swag he was carrying and jumped him.  They mocked him, threw his artwork and new costume in a nearby fountain (ruining them,) and then threw Pratt himself in before laughing and walking off.

However, unbeknownst to everyone (including Pratt), the fountain had been the latest source of water to have been modified into isoflux alpha by the nearby reactor.  In the following weeks, Pratt discovered his super powers.  He eventually decided that he could use this as an opportunity to ‘be his true self,’ and donned a YDE-inspired costume to fight crime.

At first he was received poorly, being treated as a joke or a laughingstock.  However, as time went on, people began to warm to him.  While heroing, he embodies the tenants of the show: peace, understanding, friendship, and doing the right thing.  This has made him surprisingly effective at winding down tense situations, and he has convinced more than one criminal to give up.

The change has also been good for Pratt.  His new nightly activities has helped him get in better shape than ever, instilled him with a new sense of self-confidence, and helped him with his social skills.  He has even been on a self-improvement kick, recently taking up combat Tai-Chi classes so that he can hold his own fore when he’s forced into fistfights.

Principle of Levity

Principle of the team.

Sylph

Costume: Similar to 

Power Source: Accident

Archetype: Flier

Background: Struggling

Personality: Sylph is a bit of an optimist, but her poor background and the near-tragic series of events that led to her powers has made her mostly jaded.  She is good at heart, hopes for the best, but usually expects the worst.

Qualities: Criminal Underworld, Fitness, Airy Spirit

Description of powers:  Sylph has the power of flight.  In fact, she has this power to such an extent that she can’t turn it off.  To walk she has to actively fly herself at the ground.

In fact, she has the ability to extend this gift to things she touches or people.  If she wishes, she can make objects and people she touches neutrally buoyant in air as long as she touches them, giving her something akin to super strength.

Backstory: Aeriel Ard was born to a poor family on the outskirts of San Alanzo.  She grew up in a crummy trailer park on the fringes of the town, a place filled with gangs and hooligans.  By some stroke of luck, she managed to keep mostly on the straight and narrow, and worked hard to help her family.  From the time she was twelve she had a paper route to help supplies the her family’s income, and she got a job cleaning offices part time by age sixteen.  When she saw an add from RevoCorp offering serious money for medical research, she new she had to take it.

Unbeknownst to her, this was late in the game when Revenant was still trying to perfect superpowers, and was the same program that produced Setback years earlier.  Miss Ard was somewhat lucky in that the research they performed on her failed as far as anyone could tell.  She suffered a few minor and temporary ill effects from the treatment, but was otherwise fine and didn’t receive any superpowers.

However, a few years later when OblivAeon attacked, Ms Ard found herself far enough away from the attack on San Alanzo to survive, but the energy that washed over her activated the dormant powers that RevoCorp had implanted in her, giving her the superpowers she has now.

Ariel has since joined the Sentinels of freedom training academy.  She has gotten some financial assistance fro the Sentinels of freedom in order to offset the fact that she’s no longer working for her family.  She says she’d Like to concentrate on the areas where poor disaffected youth are and to be a hero ‘of the people.’

Principle of the hero

Principle of Mastery

Ezekiel 'Zeke' Masters

Costume:None, typically wears a trenchcoat and fedora, though he will often don disguises.

Power Source: 'Gadgets' or Training

Archetype: Shadow

Background: Upper Class

Personality: Zeke is a mystery.  He comes off charming and care-free, but anyone who knows him for any length of time knows that is just a facade, and that he is really a very intelligent, calculating individual.

Qualities: Criminal Underworld, Arcane Lore, Stealth, Banter

Description of powers:  Zeke doesn't have any 'powers' per se.  His natural aura is, however, highly contentious to magic, giving him a great deal of magic resistance.  Because his aura is so poorly acclimated to magic, he relies on magical items and trinkets that he has collected over time in order to get the job done.  He is also skilled in stealth and talking (or conning) his way out of situations.

Backstory: Zeke Masters was born to an affluent family that has secretly practiced dark magic for generations to maintain their power, wealth, and influence.  As the first born son of the head family, Zeke was slated to be the prodigal son, leading his family into new wealth and prestige for the next generation.  Unfortunately for them, Zeke's aura when born was poorly situated for magic.  In fact, more than lacking a talent for magic, Zeke's aura activly fought against any magic aimed at it.  

The Masters spent a small fortune on young Zeke trying to fix his 'defect' but by the age of seven it was clear that he would never be the great wizard the family needed.  And so they focused his energies on his brother and sisters, training them to instead take up his place.  Young Zeke wasn't mistreated per se, he still sat at the family dinner table and went on vacations, he simply was mostly ignored by his parents in favor of his siblings.

However, Zeke's was not content to be a drag on the family.  Despite the fact that he couldn't actually cast spells, he became quite learned in the ways of magical lore.  In addition, while his aura didn't let him cast spells, he could use magic items just fine, and became increasingly adept at using his small collection of items to become more and more skilled.  By the time he was sixteen he had collected quite a few minor magical items made a few deals with demons, and had amassed a not-insignificant black-market magical network.

As Zeke grew, he struck out on his own and distanced himself from the Master's ideologies.  Zeke tends to take the long view of things and realizes that he needs to fight large threats to magic and the universe to keep the multiverse turning.  As a result he fought the Aeonmen during OblivAeon and has recently stepped into doing more and more heroic work, occasionally bringing him into contact with Lifeline and Pinion of DarkWatch.

Principle of the detective

Principle of the Tactician

It has been pointed out to me that it might be more useful to everyone out there if I include some ways for GMs to use these heroes as NPCs in their games.  With that in mind I’ve included a story idea for how to do a story involving these heroes and a boon that these heroes could provide the PCs if they are on good terms.

Scarlet Apprentice:

Story: The cult of gloom has realized that the apprentice used to be one of them and are dead set on returning him to the fold, through mind control if necessary.  He runs into the heroes and asks for help.

Boon: Through his technomancy, Scarlet apprentice can identify  a technological or mystical item.

Educer:

Story: Jannica has stumbled upon an ancient magical artifact and used her powers on it, accidentally awakening it.  Now she needs help dealing with the aftermath and putting the artifact ‘back to sleep.’

Boon: Jannica can read the psychic impressions left by a clue, allowing her to give the PCs some details of what happened at a crime scene.

Amaterasu

Story: The PCs discover a hero possessing knowledge they aren’t known for (such as Heritage building some sort of scientific gadget, or Tachyon dabbling with magic.). It is discovered that Amaterasu has been secretly tutoring this individual.

Boon: Amaterasu helps the PCs through a long-term overcome challenge by tutoring them.

Daitan

Story: More survivors of project cocoon have had their powers awakened by some strange event, DaiTan needs the hero’s powers to help get all these burgeoning mental powers under control.

Boon: DaiTan can’t read people’s mind, but she can sense deception when interrogating a subject.

Sentai Ranger red

Story: Villians have stolen the Shmanger technology and could use it to make an army of supervillians!  He needs the hero’s help to recover his lost technology.

Boon: He can grant one hero a limited use ‘shmoroher’ which turns them into a power ranger for one fight, granting them a +2 exclusive persistent boost if they spend their first action shmorphing, and they are okay being a power shmanger.

Citizens Surf and Turf:

Story: The citizens of the sun are up to something, and it is up to the heroes to find out what.  As the only citizens to have escaped the citadel of the sun are citizens surf and turf, and the heroes need to convince them to share what information they know about the citizens of the sun.

Boon: The two can rapidly scout an aquatic area or area of difficult terrain on land.

Rainbow Twinkle:

Story: Rainbow has stumbled across a plan to that endangers Phoenix, but no one takes him seriously enough to look into it.

Boon: Rainbow Twinkle is a natural at counciling and can help someone dealing with psychological problems.

Sylph:

Story: Sylph is trying to convince some supers to help deal with a local drug cartel, but no one else thinks the threats are ‘serious enough to warrant their involvement.’

Boon: Sylph can transport up to two people across a city fairly quickly.

Zeke Masters

Story: Zeke’s family is trying something big and the heroes find out about it.  Zeke stops the heroes from fighting them head-on and instead, saying they’ll be expecting that, and instead leads them through the seedy back allies of the Magical Black Market to secretly undermine their plans.

Boon: Zeke is well connected to the magical underground and can get the PCs information on what is happening in the magical community.

Exile (A.k.A Lance Bullet, a.k.a Lan Seb-Lette)

Costume: Thorathian Military garb

Power Source: Gadgets/training

Archetype: Wild Card

Background: Military

Personality: Exile is a gruff and curt military man who is doing his best to try to relax and become more easygoing.  It is hard for him to kick all that military training, but he is making a concerted effort

Qualities: Fitness, Ranged Combat, Technology, Deep space knowledge, Thorathian Vetran

Description of powers:  Exile is a Blue Thorathian and, as such, was not born with any powers.  However, what he lacks in powers he makes up for with his advanced commando-style training and space-age tech.

Due to his spec-ops training and high level of intelligence, Exile is actually fairly technologically savvy.  His training has taught him how to repair and maintain his gear even if Thorathian parts are unavailable.

Backstory: Lan Seb-Lette joined the Thorathian military at a young age.  His family had a strong tradition of military service, and he was proud to continue the legacy of his folks.  Like most Thorathians, he is a blue, meaning he wasn’t born with inherent superpowers, but through hard work and determination, he became a spec-ops soldier.

However, unlike most of his Jingoistic brethren in the military, Lette has a highly developed since of Justice.  While he is dedicated to making sure law and order reign over the land, he does not do so if the laws are not just.  And so, when the Thorathian civil war started, he was initially on the military’s side-on the side of reinstating law and order.  However, as time went on, he saw the atrocities committed by both sides, and became more and more disillusioned with the conflict.

Word had reached Lette of a Thorathian who had escaped the conflict and settled on a remote planet.  Rumor even said that she was well-accepted there and worked to keep the peace.  And so Lette deserted and began hopping across the galaxy looking for this mysterious planet called earth.

Principle of Order

Principle of Equality

Story: Exile has arrived on earth and his lack of knowledge about earth customs is making a mess of things.  What’s worse, both ͏Sk͏y-Scraper and Tempest believe he is still part of the Thorathian Military and start attacking him, and he starts fighting back, making an even bigger mess.  Can the players figure out what is really going on?

Boon: Exile can pilot spaceships, and is a source of information about the Thorathian Military.

The Gryffin (Donald Russel)(Thanks to Sonvar for the name idea)

Costume: A red-and-Black jerkin that flares to a robe at the waist, with grey pants and undershirt.

Power Source: Mystical

Archetype: Sorcerer

Background: Struggling

Personality: Gryffin has an almost chronic lack of confidence coupled with a boyish enthusiasm for sports and celebrities.  However, beneath all that he is deeply loyal to his friends and a dedicated and earnest companion when times are tough.  He is actually very capable when he is given a confidence boost by friends and those he respects.

Qualities: Magical Lore, Ranged combat, Loyal Friend

Description of powers:  Donald is a wizard and comes from a long line of Wizards.  In fact-almost everyone from his home dimension is a wizard.  

Wizards from Donald’s home dimension have innate magic, but need to use wands to properly control that magic.  Donald’s wand is attuned to him, and other Wizards would have trouble making use of his Wand.  Donald says that he might be able to fashion a new wand if need be, but insists “it’s not like I’m a wand-maker or anything. . .”

Backstory:  Donald comes from a world where everyone has innate magic, but must learn to control said magic with training and a wand.  Donald has gone through school to be a wizard, and was even accepted into his their version of the police force, apprehending ‘bad wizards.’  However, he insist on telling anyone that he was ‘a bit rubbish’ at this job and retired from the job after only two years.

Donald insists that in his home dimension his magical skills are ‘middling at best.’  However, he was pulled into this world during the OblivAeon event and then got stuck here when the boundaries to the other dimensions closed.  And, now with the loss of Nightmist and Scholar, he is one of the most magically knowledgeable people on the planet.

He has recently began amassing a collection of magical lore and consulting with Pinion and Lifeline about magical occurrences on the planet, and has been reluctantly aiding in magic-based problems.

Principle of Dependence (on his wand)

Principle of the team. (Does his best when he gets a confidence boost from his friends)

 Donald does not understand modern technology at all, which has lead to some major problems when adjusting to life on this earth.

Boon: Don is one of the most knowledgeable magical scholars on earth, and can provide information on magical and arcane matters.

Iconist (Jenifer Larson)

Costume: Varies, see below, but generally includes a half-mask (similar to muse’s) with a one-piece dress and pants (think Young Legacy with pants.). Sometimes includes a cape.

Power Source: The Multiverse

Archetype: Divided (Form-changer)

Background: Upper class 

Personality: Jenifer is obsessed with superheroes (especially the freedom five) and ever since gaining superpowers is having the time of her life.  She has wholly dedicated to superheroing, and is taking classes to increase her efficacy. 

Qualities: Fitness, ranged combat, Technology, Investigation, Superhero Fangirl

Description of powers:  Jenifer is a young, Sixteen year old girl who has been given the power to transform into low-powered versions of the Freedom Five (minus Wraith).  She can take on at will take on the appearance and some of the powers of Legacy, Absolute Zero, Bunker, or Tachyon.   Because she doesn’t have access to Wraith’s powers, she has dedicated herself to training to become ‘Wraith like’ when not not emulating another hero.  While she can take on similarities to another hero, she always remains of the female sex.

—Wraith form (normal form) She has created her own costume for when in Wraith form: which consists of dark purples and reds.  She has a few gadgets such as her own ‘stun bolt’ (a modified taser) and a police scanner.

—Legacy: Her costume becomes white with blue and Red accents.  She gains flight and increased strength and resilience.  Her hair also becomes bright blonde

—Tachyon: her costume becomes blue and the cape disappears.  She gains superspeed, both physical and mental (Lightning calculator). Hair becomes strawberry blonde

—Bunker: Her armor becomes black and red and she gains the ability to shoot beanbag rounds and explosives out of her hands as if she were a living weapon.  Her hair turns dark brown.

—Absolute Zero: her suit becomes Dark Bl͏u͏e with neon blue highlights.  She gains the ability to project ice and immunity to cold.

Backstory: Young Jenifer has always been a superhero fangirl, particularly of the Freedom Five.  Ever since she was young, she idolized them and dreamed of being her own superhero.  She followed their battles, memorized their villains, and even took up shop, karate, and marksmanship as hobbies to emulate the Wraith.

Things changed for her shortly after the OblivAeon event.  While out and about one day, she noticed Wagermaster (newly reformed at this point and looking confused) and immediately started gushing over him, telling him how he was one of her favorite villains and how she loved his stories.  Wagermaster, his head getting bigger with every compliment, listened intently.  When she let slip that she really wished she could be like the Freedom Five, Wagermaster got an idea.

He gave her the ability to transform into the Freedom Five (save Wraith, as, he figured, Wraith didn’t have powers), but also twisted her perceptions so that she saw crimes where none were happening.

Needless to say, when this new superhero with no training set off to solve crimes with her perceptions messed with, chaos ensued.  Luckily, the real freedom five showed up and after a brief tussle, managed to figure everything out and trick WagerMaster into fixing everything.  Well, almost everything.  For reasons unknown, Jenifer retains a fraction of the power granted her by Wager Master and has taken up the moniker Iconist!

Principle of Levity

Principle of the Mask

Story: Jenifer is quite eager to be a superhero, but her lack of superheroing experience can lead her to get in over her head and make bad judgement calls.  The PCs must rescue her from one such situation.

Boon: Jenifer’s vast knowledge of superheroing can be useful in identifying villains and villainous M.O.s

************SPECIAL NOTE***************

For this next Hero I'd like to point out that I am a sysgendered straight white male trying to write for a transgender hero.  I may have gotten some things wrong.  I did my best to make sure that this hero wasn't offensive by asking the opinions of some people who are more 'in the know' than myself, and they gave the story their blessing.  So . . . I guess I'm saying I tried to do my due dilligence.  It was never my intent to be offensive, I just came up with the idea for a transgender hero and wanted to share it with everyone.

Veracity (River Hamilton)

Costume: A gold mask that covers the top half of her head with eye-holes, coming down to the nose (think Iron Fist's Mask), with loose-fitting white shirt and white pants. A gold sash and gold slippers. Veracity also wears the prayer beads that gave her powers around her neck while in costume.

Power Source: Relic

Archetype: Psychic

Background: Unremarkable? Tragic? (She grew up in a middle-class family in America, and though she had true hardship in her early years, she also was never physically abused, didn't grow up in a war zone, and never wanted for food so . . . ?)

Personality: Before her brush with the artifact that gave her powers, River was a very shy, unsure, self-conscious person. After the artifact changed her life, she has become much more confident, wise, and spiritually whole.

Qualities: Anima, Leadership, Insight, Conviction

Description of powers: The prayer beads have given River the ability to attain spiritual harmony with herself and her own body, and have gifted her with the ability to affect the spiritual and physical well being of others. If she touches someone, she can effect their spiritual selves, essentially giving her a degree of telepathy and suggestion. She can also align a person's body. She mainly uses these powers to align people's spirit and body, healing them mentally and physically, though she can also misalign them, causing damage if forced to.

Backstory: Life is not easy for the daughter of a priest, as almost any priest's daughter will testify too. However, life becomes immeasurably harder when most of the rest of the world (including your own body) is convinced you are a priest's son instead. River was raised in a small town in Tennessee as the 'son' of the town's priest, Reverend Jack Hamilton.

From a very young age, River understood that the world seemed to work differently for her. While she enjoyed many of the things the other boys of her age did, she also enjoyed many of the things other girls her age did too. And she didn't understand all the childhood drama of boys vs. girls, or 'cooties,' or why there had to be a segregation between the genders. But above all, she understood that she was a girl, and became increasingly distraught by the fact that everyone seemed to think she was a boy just because of her body.

Her parents, while never physically abusive, did not understand the truth of her situation. At first they thought she was just 'going through a phase.' But after a while they realized that this was not the case, they started 'blaming' themselves for her 'condition,' saying that they should have enrolled her in more sports, or named her something more masculine, or any number of other options. As River moved on into her teens, the oppression of this life became more and more unbearable. The burden of knowing that her truth was upsetting to her parents, whom she still cared for, the problems she was starting to face at school, the issues with everyday life that started adding up began to send young River into a spiral of depression and self-doubt.

She became so desperate for a solution that she began digging into ways to 'fix' herself, by any means possible. She looked into running away from home, social groups, medicine, and eventually, the occult. Finally, out of desperation, she visited a seedy back alley 'magic' shop in the next town over of a person who was rumored to have magic artifacts. In this small shop, the old crone of a shopkeeper seemed to instantly understand the situation, and offered her a necklace of prayer beads that she said would 'align her spirit with her body,' for a pittance. Figuring that meant that she would be made to think she was a man, River was reticent to try it on. However she was so at a loss for other options, so tired of what she had to go through, and the shopkeeper was so insistent that it would work, that she tried it anyway.

But it turns out that the shopkeeper was right. Instead of making her think she was male, the beads transformed her body to align with her mind. River couldn't believe her luck, she was finally in a body that fit her! She thanked the shopkeeper profusely, promising to come back and giver her as much money as she could for doing what she did, but the next day when she returned, the shop had mysteriously vanished!

It wasn't until a few days later that River recognized that the pryer beads had done more that align her spirit and her body. She also found that by touching others, she could align, or misalign, their spirits and bodies as well. Not to the degree that she had been aligned, but she found she could heal small cuts, or soothe tempers. Eventually, with practice she found she could even understand other peoples' spirits as a form of Telepathy. She began using these abilities to help others, by taking on the identity of Veracity, the superhero that brings out people's true selves.

Principle of Equality

Principle of the Mask (Veracity's experience with her own troubled childhood greatly informs her actions as a hero)

Story: A supervillian is on the loose and smashing up the city, but Veracity says their spirit is misaligned and that she can help! Can the heroes calm the public and prevent the 'villain' from destroying the city long enough for Veracity to smooth things over?

Boon: Veracity can provide healing of the physical, mental, and spiritual kind in the hero's downtime.

I think Veracity is great, compelling backstory and fascinating and inspiring power. Well done!

Thank you!  That’s very kind!

Luminary Mk. 2 (Robotic Blade Bot Serial numbed C137-42-1701)

Costume: Similar to Luminary but with a dark blue-and-red full face mask.

Power Source: Artificial Being

Archetype: Robot/Cyborg

Background: Created

Personality: At first impression, many think Luminary is cold, emotionless, and only logical but in truth is he cares for life on earth deeply and wishes to be penitent for the actions of Baron Blade.  He just has a hard time with emotions.

Qualities: Robotics, Technology, Close Combat, Ranged combat, Penitent Robot

Description of powers:  Luminary Mk 2 isn’t quite as creative or gifted with inventions as the real Ivan Rominat, but what he lacks in robotics expertise he makes up for with rocket fists and a reinforced robot body.

Backstory: While Luminary was working with the heroes to prepare for OblivAeon, one of the things he did was bring in a large assortment of his lifelike Baron Blade duplicate robots.  He originally brought them over to help him assemble the machines he needed, but then remembered they had been hard-wired to attack the Freedom Five.  Not wanting to attack his new allies, Blade removed that programing of one bot and then set it the task of fixing the other bots while he got to designing.  He made sure to give it adaptive learning algorithms so that it could become better and faster at re-wiring the bots.

This blade bot started doing its job faithfully, but with its adaptive learning algorithm, it became smarter and smarter. Eventually, the learning processes began stressing the base CPU, and so it upgraded itself with schematics it found from Baron Blades’s Mainframe.  It became so complex that it eventually became self-aware, and unlike Blade, came to the conclusion that life on Earth was worth protecting.  After Luminary’s ‘death,’ the blade bot took over in his absence, calling himself “Luminary Mk. 2”

Principle of Clockwork

Principle of the Gearhead

Story: An group of criminals has gotten their mitts on an old stash of blade tech and are using the stuff to devastating effect.  Luminary is the only one with intricate knowledge of Blade tech that can be used to stop these super criminals.

Boon: Luminar Mk 2 is an expert on Blade, his tech, personality, and on how he rules Mordingrad.

Null

Costume:  Stolen and ill-fitting Blade Battalion heavy jacket

Power Source: Accident

Archetype: Uncontrollable Powers

Background: Exile

Personality: Null is cautious and slow to trust, and wants to take his time and analyze everything

Qualities: Genre Awareness, Cautious, Analytical, Adaptive, Techsavvy

Description of Powers: Null chiefly uses his anti-power energy (see backstory), but can also figure out how to use other people's devices

Backstory: James Hurley was a perfectly ordinary IT guy for an investment bank, in a nice little slice of the multiverse where superheroes were the stuff of comic books rather than newspapers.  Then, Oblivaeon came.  For one terrible instant, James fell through the Void into the world of the Sentinels, but he retained his native energies.  As it turns out, his hone plane didn't simply lack supers, it was actively inimical to them.  As a result, James emitted an energy field which dampened powers, as well as damaging Devices that were too reliant on the genius of a Super.  Unfortunately for James, his entry point was in Mordengrad!  The scientists there seemed friendly at first, promising to help him with his unique situation, but James quickly discovered that "Project Null" was far more interested in weaponizing his power nullification than assisting him!  James escaped, using a combination of his own power nullification and stolen Blade technology, and is now looking for some way to get home.

Principle of the Dark Side (kinda)

Principle of the Gearhead

Story: Null arrives in the heroes' area, with Blade troopers hot on his heels!  Can the PCs help him escape?  And can they assist him, despite his unfortunate tendency to shut off their powers too?

Boon:  Null could offer insight into the goings-on in Mordengrad.  Alternatively, he'd be incredibly well suited to containing dangerous artifacts or technology.

ErikLich@ I’m glad some others are taking an interest in this thread!  If you want: you can use the information we have compiled so far: which lists all 20 archetypes, power sources, and backgrounds that will be in the book.   There are also many principles.  Here is the link: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1-Ku4jwoE7lAI4u24HevTFc6SuqszB7s-IFRzvlq-L3o

Also: we’ve figured out how qualities work for the most part:  there are certain set qualities, and every hero gets one unique quality that represents them.  Wraith is “Wealthy CEO,” Absolute Zero is “Cool under pressure,” etc.

So: Genre Awareness, Cautious, Analytical, Adaptive, Techsavvy

Might become: Technology, Awareness, and (as your special quality) Genre Awareness.  Analytical might be folded into principle of clockwork.

I do like your character!  Just giving you some resources you may not have been aware of.

Nice, thanks!  I was unaware we actually had the list available.

Of course, now that I have this list to look at I have so many questions!  Like, is NULL actually 'Accident'?  Or is he Extradimensional or Multiverse?

I suppose we'll just have to wait for the book (or at least a chargen preview chapter) to see what these actually *mean*.

From what we’ve heard about the system they don’t actually mean much.  What your power source decides is how many and which qualities, powers and abilities you have access to, along with the number of abilities you get in each zone (green yellow red) and your status die.  They have said several times that you can make the same character any number of ways and it would result in slightly different characters each time but with a same theme.

For example, you could, say, make Mr. Fixer ‘Training’ which would likely net him more qualities, less powers, and different status die than if you made his power source ‘mystical.’  Idealist could be “Unknown,” Artificial Being," or “Genetic.”  Nightmist could be “Mystical,” “Relic,” or “Extradimensional.”  They would very slightly and probably emphasise different aspects of the character, but would still be the same.  There is no rule saying “Training has to have these elements to qualify.”

Kenshi A.K.A “The Swordsman.” (Jian Wuxor)
Costume: A wide-brimmed straw Jingasa on his head, a white scarf wrapped around his mouth (up to his nose) A white, loose-fitting Gi, and gray Hakama. Wears traditional Zori on his feet.
Power Source: Training (with a dash of mystical)
Archetype: Close Quarters Combatant
Background: Former Villain
Personality: Kenshi is mostly a serious student of martial arts, and in particular, the art of the sword. Many believe that he cares only about the sword, but in truth, what is far more important to him is making sure no one ever falls under the false pretenses like those of Zhu Long ever again.
Qualities: Close Combat, Fitness, Magical Lore, Former Assassin
Description of powers: Kenshi's mastery of martial arts is so good that it boarders on the mystical. Kenshi can use his inner spiritual energy to increase his agility, strength, speed, stamina, and reaction time. He is also a world-class swordsman.
Backstory: Jian Wuxor's parents were both Uyghurs, a racial minority in China. Detained in concentration camps for most of their lives as 'problematic minorities,' a chance supervillain attack near their camp damaged the outer fence and netted them their freedom. With their infant son in their care, they headed east, into the Himalayas to escape the clutches of the People's Republic of China and their regime of minority imprisonment.

After weeks of traveling, hungry and desperate, the trio found their way to the Temple of Zhu Long by accident (or so they thought.) The Master bade them enter, and gave them food and clothes, and it was not long before the two parents were indoctrinated as two more of the Master's forces.

Young Jian grew up in the temple, always being taught that Zhu Long was the one true arbiter of life and death in the universe, and that all who opposed his will were not only heretics, but opposing the very order of nature itself. A staunch believer in this ideology, the young Jian was trained to be one of the Master's secretive 'Shinobi Assassins.' The master had followers from around the globe and many different walks of life, and one happened to be a ninja sensei who taught Japanese ninja techniques to anyone the Master bade him to, regardless of race or nationality. The master saw potential in young Jian, and decided he was to be trained as a ninja. Jian took to these studies quite well.

In his indoctrinated mental state, Jian did not really have the concept of fun or freedom our play . . . but the closest he came to these things was when he was learning to be a ninja. He reveled in the Japanese culture his sensei taught, and found himself enjoying the effort of constantly pushing himself to improve. And though his skills in stealth were below that of the other students, he quickly became the best swordsman in his class.

Eventually, Jian and several others were given a mission. Their task was to track down an errant weapon of the Master's that had gone missing: a weapon named Mr. Fixer. This weapon, this creature, had been returned to a sort of life by the Master to be used as one of his weapons, but had defied the natural order of things but running off of his own free will. The team tracked the weapon down to the U.S, but as soon as they were to recapture it, something odd happened. Some other creature (Faultless) had blessed Mr. Fixer, breaking Zhu Long's change to him and fully restoring him to human form.

Jian witnessed this, and at that point, something changed. Perhaps it was seeing proof that his Master was not, in fact, the final arbiter of life and death in the universe. Perhaps some fleeting spike of power from Faultless's ability broke the magical mental conditioning over him. Likely it was some combination of the two. But one thing was for certain, as soon as he saw this happen, he started questioning everything Zhu Long had ever said.

His teammates instantly knew that he had lost faith in the master and turned on him, but they forgot that he was the best swordsman in the temple. He managed to dispatch his brothers and sisters, but was then at a loss for what to do afterwords. He did not have to wait long, however, as Aeon Men started attacking everywhere, including attacking him, and he lost himself in an almost meditative state of combat.

After OblivAeon, Jian couldn't figure out what to do. He eventually showed up at Freedom Plaza, confused, and at a loss for how the modern world worked. The Sentinels of Freedom welcomed him and helped him focus himself into a weapon for good. Though it was a struggle at first, the Sentinels have helped him realize that he can use his skills to prevent others from being trapped by cult leaders while pursuing his lifelong goal of becoming the world's best Swordsman.


Principle of Great Power (Signature weapon-Katana)
Principle of Equality

Story: Zhu Long has sent a horde of Shinobi Assassins to kill Jian for his betrayal, and they are tearing up the city trying to find him. Can the heroes keep Kenshi safe while also dealing with the threat?
Boon: Kenshi speaks Tibetan, Japanese, and Manderain, and has detailed knowledge of Zhu Long's temple.

Exalted Crossover edition!

Phantasmagoria

Costume: A brilliant red and golden bodysuit, with a cape that always flutters as if in a breeze and never catches on anything

Power Source: Extradimensional

Archetype: Reality Shaper

Personality: Impossibly noble, narcissicistic, gracious

Backstory: The being now known as Phantasmogoria was, at one time, a perfectly happy Fair Folk noble.  One day, as she was surveying her domain in Rakshasistan, she came across her favorite enemy - a sorcerer empowered by the sun who constantly sought to destroy her.  She shivered with delight, already anticipating the wonderful stories they would tell as they played together!  She commanded her minions to capture the sorcerer, but he slew them all!  She conjured images of his long-lost love, and he was gratifyingly tormented.  Then the sorcerer reached her innermost sanctum, and when she was giving her grand speech, the sorcerer did... something.  She wasn't really sure what the something was, except that it smelled like autumn and tasted like cheese.

She found itself adrift in a void, her shaped identity torn into tatters and slowly disintegrating. Slowly, She became it, reduced back to hungry feeding maws barely bound together.  For unkowable time, it drifted, and was barely able to wonder if it was dying.

But hark!  Every so often beings would enter this void, and when it could it would drink of their souls, and consume their stories.  Eventually, it pieced together the makings of a *new* story, the likes of which had never been told in Rakshastan!  The stories of *Superheroes*.

As inspiration filled it once more, it entered itself into the gates of idenitity, forging a new face.  It became she, and she took on a name and countenance that would be beloved of the people.  Finding herself in a city unlike any the mortals of creation had ever dreamed, she whooped with joy and took flight.  The next part of the story was clear:  she must find a villain, and thwart them.

Qualities: Emotivore, Awareness, Leadership

Description of Powers: Phantasmagoria is a Fair Folk, embodying the archetype and story of the 'superhero'.  She can conjure illusions and twist minds, as well as feeding on the psyches of those around her (a process that is perfectly safe, when done in moderation...)  Her body is largely an affectation, and can shift slightly at need.

Principle of the Inner Demon

Principle of the Hero

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Exalted

Lux (Bathilda Argi)

Costume: A white face mask that allows her hair to flow freely, a white cape, a black bodysuit with white specs (like a star field), and white knee-high boots, with matching white long gloves.

Power Source: Cosmic

Archetype: Elemental Manipulator

Background: Anacronistic

Personality: Bathilda is rather unsure of herself or shy.  She had no illusions of being anything more than a maintenance Engineer or Lab tech for most of her life, and it has been an adjustment becoming a superhero.   

Qualities: Technology, Ranged Combat, Stellar Technician

Description of powers:  Bathilda knowledge of advanced technology makes her useful (inventions), but her true power is the ability to channel starlight (radiant) energy.  This allows her to fly, project force fields, and shoot beams of light.

Backstory(thanks to Platinum Warlock for the idea):  Bathilda Argi comes from a dimension much farther along technology-wise than the Sentinels prime universe.  A rather unimpressive student, Argi settled into a comfortable life of a maintenance engineer, helping to keep the machinery of Project S.T.A.R. going.  Her only major excitement in her life was that she was in a serious relationship with that Universe’s Randal Butler-Benchmark.

While project S.T.A.R. might have been interesting to certain scientific eggheads, who wanted to use a white dwarf star to access alternate dimensions and teleport through space, Agni wasn’t interested in that sort of stuff.  She was decent enough at fixing the machines that the eggheads put together and that was about it.  She spent most of her time hanging out with her girlfriends and trying to convince her fiancé to let someone else become Benchmark.

However, in the span of a single day, all that changed.  One day, while gearing up for a preliminary test of the S.T.A.R. Project, a mysterious misty portal opened before Bathilda and Randal while taking their lunch together in the cafeteria.  Someone cried out that another world needed heroes, and Randal donned his Benchmark suit and leapt right in.  Bathilda was beside herself, unsure how she could ever get her husband-to-be back.  She ran to the machine, overrode the security clearance, locked onto his dimensional co-ordinates because of his suit, and jumped into the experimental portal with a transponder to pull herself and Randal back.

Bathilda awoke days later in an emergency field hospital.  Apparently, the Multiverse-ending threat had been defeated, and Randal had returned to their home dimension.  However, she had been left behind, and what’s worse, all dimensional travel had been cut off!  But Bathilda soon discovered that being stuck in a less advanced dimension away from her fiancé wasn’t the worst of her problems.  Somehow her journey through dimensions, space, and a white Dwarf had given her the ability to project and manipulate light!

Principle of Enegry/Element (Radiant)

Principle of the “Time Traveler”

Story: A villain has shown up that requires Lux’s powerset, but she is Sulking in her room at Freedom Plaza and refusing to be a superhero.  Can the heroes convince her to help so she can save the day?

Boon: Lux is a living radiant energy generator, making her great in the fight against vampires and the like.

The Quartet (Gordon Tolar, Eustace Smith, Phineas Bonet, and Touma Fujibayashi)

Costume: Changes with powerset.  The default form is a middle-aged man in a business suit.  In other forms the same man is in a cowboy bandito outfit with a bandana around his mouth, in a Ninia outfit, or a pirate outfit with a scarf around his mouth.

Power Source: Supernatural, curse, or Multiverse

Archetype: Divided: Form-Changer

Background: Anacronistic

Personality: All four of The Quartet are rather selfish individuals who resent the forced penitence that has been thrust upon them, and are slowly learning how to work with others in order to end their curse.  Tolar is a ruthless, lying, smooth-talking businessman, Smith is a jokester and prankster who is just learning that his pranks shouldn’t hurt others, Bonet is a greedy thief, and Fujibayashi is arrogant and believes he is superior to everyone.

Qualities: Awareness, Intuition, Plunderer (Smith-Ranged combat, Bonet-Close Combat, Fujibayashi-stealth)

Description of powers:  The Quartet have a facsimile of human body.  They can feel pain, be knocked out, etc, but cannot die or be permanently injured.  They also have the ability to detect spiritual unrest in the area, due to the fact that they are spirits themselves.  Most importantly, Tolar can call upon the other three spirits to enter his body; his body takes on aspects of their physical form and Tolar gain that ghost’s skills and abilities.  As Smith he gains two ghostly revolvers that he becomes a dead shot with.  As Bonet he becomes a swashbuckling pirate, and as Fujibayashi he becomes a stealthy and acrobatic ninja.

Backstory:  In his life, Gordon Tolar was a wealthy but ruthless corporate raider.  He made his fortune in the cutthroat winner-take all times of the 80’s, and he came out on top.  However, a bad heart ended his life at age 41.

However, when Tolar died, he didn’t pass on to the afterlife.  His spirit was instead swept up by ‘The Commune,’ the singular entity of community.  The Commune explained that his ruthless greed and corporate raiding had damaged communities and hurt society.  The Commune then gave him a choices: either exist as a pseudo-ghost, and atone for his sins, or spend an eternity in purgatory, slowly going mad with no one to interact with and nothing to see or do.

Tolar rallied against The Commune for a long time, shouting how this wasn’t fair or that he didn’t deserve this punishment, but for each point he brought up, The Commune presented him with a case of how his own greed had been ‘unfair’ to the people he effected.  Finally, Tolar agreed to The Commune’s terms.

The Commune joined Tolar with three other spirits who were similarly greedy and selfish from the past, a Cowboy Bandito, a Pirate from the Caribbean, and a Ninja who had betrayed his clan for Money.  Tolar is in the ‘driving seat’ most of the time, but can converse with the other three spirits.  He can also merge with any one spirit at a time, gaining their skills.

Principle of The Inner Demon.

Principle of Ambition

Story: The Quartet have just been created and have no idea how to go about being philanthropic or even work together.  Can the PCs steer them on the right path?

Boon: The Quartet are knowledgeable about the history they come from, and Tolar himself is a business genius.

Gravitana: (Alias: Gal’Perin a.k.a. Jane Feynman)

Costume: Without a holographic disguise, Gal’Perin looks vaguely human-ish.  She has pink skin (much more pink than a Caucasian, but not as deep Pink as a powered Thorathian). She has naturally pink hair in two knee-length ponytails.  Her eyes are about twice as large as humans while her nose is about half the size of a human’s.  Her costume is a pink-and-white one-piece with a built in space-age helmet that doubles as a space suit.

Power Source: Alien

Archetype: Boaster

Background: Law enforcement

Personality: Like Setback, Gravitana is energetic, optimistic, and upbeat.

Qualities: Awareness, Cosmic Lore, Technology, Alien liason

Description of powers:  Ranged Combat, Science, Technology, Interstellar Liaison

Description of powers: Gravitana is from a race of aliens that have the natural ability to manipulate gravitic fields.  They can loosen, increase, or change the direction of gravity on an object.  They can do this on themselves easiest, but can effect others and objects in close proximity to them.  This gives them a modicum or flight and telekinesis-like abilities.  They also have advanced tech like a belt that allows them to look like other alien races and blend in.

Backstory: Ever since humans heroes began running off and having space adventures (Voidguard, Captain Cosmic, Parse), they have been encountering more and more alien races, and interfering with their civilizations for good and ill.  One such space organization-the Convocation, is an alliance of over a dozen alien worlds.

Of these workers, the Toriyamans are the closest, physically, to humans, though they all have gravity powers.  One particularly diplomatic Toriyaman-a woman named Gal’Perin, has since been assigned to ‘liase’ with earth and coordinate their efforts with the Convocation.  It was not long before the heroes of earth asked for her help defending their home.

Principle of Levity

Principle of the Mask

Story: Gal’Perin’s job is to liaise, not run around interfering with human civilization.  But when the chips are down and heroes need her powers, can they convince her to do both?

Boon: Gravitana has the tech and access to the channels to put the PCs in proper contact with several alien species.

I think somethings got mixed into your ‘Gravitana’ post from your ‘Quartet’ one.

Ooops, Fixed now, thanks for pointing it out.

Golden Age Hero (Inspired by: Captain America, Hourman)

Doctor Justice: (Dr. Garett Tyler)

Costume: A hood that turns into a cape, a domino mask, and a shirt and pants with armor sewn into them.

Power Source: Genius?  Experimentation?

Archetype: Physical Powerhouse

Background: Medical?  Academic?

Personality: Stoic, incorruptible, and unwavering in his sense of Justice.

Qualities: Science, Awareness, Close Combat, Brilliant Biochemist

Description of powers: While on his special medicine, his strength, endurance, and agility is doubled.  He also has increased resilience and heals from wounds quite quickly.

Backstory: Genius Biochemist Garett Tyler made his fortune by discovering new medicines and selling the formulas to pharmaceutical companies.  However, eventually, he discovered that he had a rare degenerative heart condition.  He worked tirelessly for a year trying to find a cure.  Sadly, he never did, but he did discover a drug to halt the deterioration of his heart.  As long as he took the medicine about once a day, he would confine to live.

Unknown to him, as a side effect, the drug also granted him a slew of superhuman abilities.  Enhanced strength, stamina, and a healing factor.  When one of the companies he had worked for in the past heard of his new discovery, they sent two goons to his house to kill him and steal his formula.

Garett was able to knock one man out with his abilities, but the other managed to get some of his drug and take it, hoping to even the playing field.  Sadly, he died, and this is when Garett found out that the drug he had made was poisonous to just about anyone other than himself.

This event made Garett realize that there were bad companies out there that would use his research for their own nefarious purposes.  So he donned a disguise and too to the streets as . . . DOCTOR JUSTICE!

Principle of Dependence

Principle of the Hero

Story: Reports say that there is a Nazi Superman operating here in the states with the same abilities as Dr. Justice.  He couldn’t have gotten his hands on the formula and survived. . . could he?

Boon: Dr. Justice is an expert biochemist and can analyze chemicals and substances in his own personal lab.

Silver Age Hero (Inspired by: Ant Man (Hank Pym), The Flash (Barry Allen)

Duplex: (Dr. Hank Allen)

Costume: A bodysuit with a domino mask, with a starburst pattern.  The background is white with a black starburst on one side, and black with a white starburst on the other.

Power Source: Accident

Archetype: Minion maker

Background: Academic

Personality: Often quips with jokes, but when things get serious, so does he.

Qualities: Science, Technology, Ranged Combat, Bifurcated biophysicist. 

Description of powers: Hank can split off copies of himself.  While these look like him, they are essentially masses of Allen energy given form.  Each copy knows what Allen was thinking up to the point it was made and can act independently, but generally follows Allen’s plans.  These copies are unstable and only last for a few minutes before merging back with him.

Allen can make two kinds of copies, ‘Nega Duplexes’ harness the destructive energies of Allen energy, and can project and shoot infernal energy.  “Posi Duplexes” harness the positive side of Allen energy and can heal with radiant energy.

Backstory: Professor Reed Allen was a prominent up-and-coming biophysicist that managed to discover a new form of energy that he dubbed ‘Allen energy.’  When the wavelengths of energy were tuned one way, the energy damaged living cells, causing them to decay and hindering cellular reproduction.  When the wavelengths were tuned another way, the energy promoted cell growth and health.  

While working on this new groundbreaking energy late one night, an electrical storm rolled in over the university that he was working at.  A freak lightning strike overloaded the power grid while he was tinkering with his Allen Energy Machine, causing it to overload and give him superpowers.  While initially reticent to do anything about it, he eventually got pulled into saving his university from a criminal organization and his life as s superhero snowballed from there.

Principle of Levity

Principle of the Lab

Story: Someone else has discovered Allen Energy and is using it for nefarious purposes.  The team needs the world’s expert to help them stop this new threat.

Boon: While Tachyon is able to provide scientific knowledge of particle physics, Hank Allen can provide info about how physics effect biological life forms.

Bronze Age Hero (Inspired by: Black Lightning, Luke Cage)

Supercharge (Carla Pierce)

Costume: A black-and-Bl͏u͏e bodysuit with a half-face mask.  Early depictions show her with an afro, but modern interpretations have her with a brownish-black wavy wig attached to the mask.

Power Source: Experiment

Archetype: Wildcard?  Speedster?

Background: Struggling

Personality: Down-to-earth.  Approachable, but serious

Qualities: Fitness, Leadership, Criminal Underground, Hero to the People

Description of powers: Carla has the ability to discharge purple lightning from herself.  When she touches a non-powered person with this ability, it gives them a surge of energy, making them stronger, faster, and tougher.  When she touches a powered person with this ability, she supercharges their superpowers for a short time. Because the powers are constantly going off inside her, she constantly gains the benefits as if she was a normal person exposed to her own power.

She can also ‘overload’ someone by shooting too much purple lightning into them.  If she does this, the massive blast of power of such a short time is harmful to almost everyone else.

Backstory: In the early days of RevoCorp looking into superpowers, the company opened up a ‘free clinic’ in an economically depressed section of Rook City, which had a substantial African-American population.  Using the clinic as a testing ground for their initial foray into super-powered research, they would mix chemicals and additives in with the medicine and monitor the clients.  It the early stages of this research, many ‘test subjects’ died or got worse, but a few developed superpowers.  In fact those that developed powers all developed nearly the same power.

However, RevoCorp, ever in a hurry, misdiagnosed the powers as simply a ‘superpower booster,’ not something useful in Baron Blade’s attempts to defeat Legacy.  So after a year of experimentation, the clinic was shut down and anyone who displayed powers was to be rounded up and killed.  Carla Pierce, a teen who had been brought to the clinic by her mother for a checkup, managed to use her ‘overload,’ powers to escape with some of the others, including the woman who would become Citizen Gain.  Carla chose to became the Teen superhero Supercharge, and the bulk of her early career was spent trying to expose RevoCorp and defend the people of her burrough from similar threats.

Principle of the Hero

Principle of Equality

Story: A new highly-addictive drug has hit the streets and it gives people who take it temporary superpowers, but at a terrible cost.  Supercharge needs help stopping it.

Boon: Supercharge has the ear and trust of the people of her burrough, and can help with information-gathering or getting the word out about important community issues.

Iron Age Hero (Inspired by: Cable, Jonah Hex (From the Hex limited series)

Wanderer (Jonah Summers)

Costume: A dark green jumpsuit with the purple number 1001 on the back.  The jumpsuit has been modified to have bits of armor on it, as well as several weapon holsters.  

Power Source: Genetic

Archetype: Gadgeteer

Background: Tragic?  Adventurer

Personality: Stoic, serious, pragmatic, tough

Qualities: Ranged Combat, Close Combat, Technology, Post-Apocalyptic Survivor

Description of powers: Wanderer is an expert survivalist, master at both hand to hand and ranged combat, and is knowledgable about future technology such as laser pistols and pulse rifles.  However, he does have a few ‘super powers.’  Being from a post-apocalyptic wasteland, the humans of their time have evolved to have an intuitive sense of radiation, essentially becoming human gieger counters.  They have also developed to become highly resistant to radiation.

Backstory: While the heroes of the Sentinels timeline are familiar with the final wasteland where there are no humans alive save Haka and (occasionally) Chrono-Ranger, that timeline did not randomly spring into existence.  Centuries before Con and Jim Brooks met, there were still smattered colonies of men carving out a life for themselves.  Having survived a nuclear apocalypse, these last vestiges of humanity lived in massive underground bunkers where they could defend themselves from the beasts of the wasteland.

Jonah Summers was what was called a ‘wanderer.’  He would scavenge the wasteland for food, supplies, useful bits of tech and other things to keep his colony going.  He was agile enough to shoot a plague beast at 200 yards, strong enough to kill a chupacaba with his bare hands, and tough enough to survive them both.

Eventually, Jonah’s colony developed an AI and time machine.  Not knowing exactly how time travel worked, they beseeched Jonah to go back in time and fix the past to prevent the final wasteland from ever coming into existence.  Jonah agreed, and traveled back to the late 20th century.

Principle of the indereuctable

Principle of the inner demon

Story: A pice of tech made by Baron Blade is in the hands of some gangers who are shuffling it around the city, and it is leaking dangerous amounts of radiation.  Wanderer is the perfect person to find and deal with this device, but can the PCs keep his shoot-first, ask-questions-never policy under control while he’s on the job?

Boon: Wanderer is an expert tracker, decent at future tech, and all but immune to radiation.

Modern Age Hero (Inspired by: Xavin)
Protoplasm (Ven Short)

Costume: Being a shapeshifter, Protoplasm can have any costume they want.  Their default costume is a white turtleneck bodysuit that goes from their wrists to their ankles.

Power Source: Experimentation/Accident

Archetype: Form Changer (psychic?)

Background: Created

Personality: Upbeat?  Boundlessly Optimistic?  Naive?

Qualities: Close Combat, Deception, Stealth, Former Government Secret

Description of powers: Given they were designed to take on Visionary's powers, Protoplasm has some mild telepathic and telekinetic abilities.  However, their true powers lie in their prodigious shapeshifting abilities.  Protoplasm can shapeshift into any creature they can imagine, though doing finnier manipulation (like creating a one-shot bar out of her hand to whack people with) is out of their current skill level.

Backstory: Many in the government were unhappy with how project Cocoon ended.  They still desired strong, telepathic super-soldiers for infiltration and information extraction, and the viewed the super-powerful Visionary as the perfect subject.  And so, they began a secret project to replicate her.  Using bleeding edge super-science, as well technology obtained from various sources like the Block, Baron Blade, as well as alien invasions, they were able to craft a semi-alive synthetic protoplasmic life form.  It was hoped that eventually the life form, if exposed to Vanessa Long's DNA, would gain her appearance and powers, but would be brainwashed to serve the U.S. government.  First the protoplasm had to be prepared, however.

The operation procedures were extensive, and required absolute secrecy, so they were carried out in the depths of Fort Adamant.  It was determined that the experimenters needed to feed the protoplasm a constant source of cosmic energy to keep it stable while it was indoctronated and prepared for finally turning into Visionary.  They accomplished this by siphoning off energy from the four OblivAeon shards they had.  Finally, after two and a half years, the project was eventually entering the final stages of the experiment when it was interrupted.

When the Sentinels each grabbed a shard, not only did they absorb the remaining power in the shards, but they also sent a feedback pulse through the extraction device to another chamber where the protoplasm was being worked on.  The surge of power transformed the protoplasm from an experiment into a sentient creature.  At this time, the protoplasm was still not fully stable, and so was without a proper shape (thus their shapeshifting abilities.)

Protoplasm awoke and eventually escaped Fort Adamant shortly afterwords.  They took a variant of her intended Namesake (Vanessa Long) as their name and then, acting on the heroic personalities they had absorbed from the Sentinels, desired to become a hero.    Interestingly, another thing they absorbed from the sentinels was identities of a straight male, a straight female, a gay male, and an agendered shadow creature.  This has given Protoplasm a  . . . 'varied' gender identity.  Sometimes they appear and act male, sometimes female, sometimes even agendered.  Protoplasm does not really understand the wider world's hang-ups on gender identity and is constantly confused by the wider world's confusion over their fluid gender identity.

Principle of Equality

Principle of Great Power

Story: Fort Adamant is after their 'property' again.  Can the heroes deter them?

Boon: Protoplasm is a shapeshifting telepathic creature who has been fed infiltration tactics into their mind since their inception.  Can you really not think of a boon they could provide?

Prodigy (Steven Nelson)

Costume: Steven is slightly more dignified than his inspiration, he wears a T-Shirt with jeans, tennis shoes, and a red bathrobe.  His hair is tied back in ponytail, and has the scraggly beginnings of a beard.

Power Source: Supernatural

Archetype: Divided(form changer)

Background: Dynasty

Personality: Headstrong, overconfident in his ability to help.

Qualities: Science, Magical Lore, Scholar’s Spiritual Successor

Description of powers: Prodigy has some working knowledge of science, magic, and alchemy.  If pressed, he could create alchemical potions and items designed to do various things.  His shining jewel (signature weapon) is “The Catalyst.”  This flat, fist-sized glowing yellow rock is set into a bangle that he wears on his right arm.  With it, he can alter his body, giving him the properties of a cloud of CO2, diamond, or graphite.

Backstory: Young Steven Nelson was a brilliant child.  Very gifted with mathematics, engineering, and science from a young age, he was accepted to a prestigious STEM high school in Megalopolis for the gifted.  However, he also (unbeknownst to him) had a high altitude for magic, and was naturally drawn to Leylines and other sites of power.

Nelson had always wanted to make the world a better place.  Upon entering high school, he had volunteered at homeless shelters, youth counciling centers, and Big Brothers Big Sisters, but found that the bureaucracy and red tape that bound him in such organizations was too limiting, and he quickly became fed up with such places.

Young, full of ideas, angry, and sure of his own superiority, Nelson became surly and his grades began to slip.  He started hanging out in bad parts of town and became aimless for a while.  He might have devolved into self-destructive behavior, if a certain kind stranger in a bathrobe hadn’t interfered one day.

The bearded man found Nelson and comforted him, helped him find direction in his life again, and helped him overcome his jaded attitude.  It wasn’t until later when Nelson saw the same man on the news fighting Citizen Dawn that the man was a superhero.

This lit a fire under Nelson.  He realized that he wanted to be like that man, walking around, helping others.  Nelson started digging into the occult.  He browsed ancient bookstores and the dark parts of the internet for anything he could find about alchemy and magic.  He picked up a few tricks, but mainly He managed to craft a stone similar to Scholar’s philosopher stone.  “The Catalyst,” as he calls it gives him powers similar to the Scholar, allowing him to alter the carbon in his body while maintaining his biological essence.

Principle of the Lab

Principle of Energy/Element (Carbon)

Story: Prodigy believes he doesn’t need help from anyone to do his job, but has bitten off more than he can chew when a demon has targeted him.  Can the PCs convince him to accept their help before it’s too late?

Boon: Prodigy can craft alchemical potions that have a variety of effects, such as healing or revealing the existence of flesh children.

As an update I am slowly working through my list of heroes here in a mostly ad-hock manner and starting them up.

https://docs.google.com/document/d/14YMRi3sGADh6-9WRjzPJsvFGd_L9gTqDnXNzqsJv4ww