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Detroit Police Department, Twelfth Precinct, 10:00 AM The sky is overcast above the police station, fair weather for Detroit. Inside, seven people, or what claim to be people, have gathered in the briefing room, though they're not cops, save a sole former officer among them. Into the room walks Captain Martin Houlihan, or "Marty" to his friends. His rotund form is a testament to the department's lax attitude toward physical fitness tests, and his mustache appears to have arrived fresh off the set of a seventies porn film. He takes out a handkerchief to wipe some sweat from his receding hairline as he walks into the room, confident enough to strike a commanding presence, despite his appearance projecting all the authority of a substitute teacher. He looks the seven would-be superheroes over, and his heart visibly sinks as he speaks. "So, uh, you guys are it, huh? Well, seven's a start, and most of you look like you know what you're doing." He gives a skeptical glance towards what appears to be a caveman in a suit. "Anyway, let's go 'round the room, maybe introduce ourselves or some first grade malarkey. I'm Captain Martin Houlihan, you all can call me Captain Houlihan. And, well, uh..." He trails off, staring for a moment at the one of the women in the room. "Say, I thought I recognized you! Kowalski, right? I heard what happened with that, uh, Count Tectonic guy or whoever. Hope the family's taking the whole 'robot parts' business okay, they're drat good cops. Maybe this won't be so bad. So, anyway, why don't you guys introduce yourselves and we'll get to talking about future arrangements." (Okay, I want you guys to post, along with your introductions, completed character sheets for your characters with the numbers I ginned up for you and your powers/Weakness. You don't need any of the rules text for the powers, unless you want it to remind yourself how they work.)
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Oct 17, 2015 01:19
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Stormcrowpre:Luke McGillicutty Strength: 12 Endurance: 14 (24 from powers) Agility: 16 Intelligence: 14 Charisma: 10 Basic Hits: 4 Hit Points: 25 Healing Rate: 3 Damage Modifier: +1 Accuracy: +2 Detect Hidden: 10% Detect Danger: 14% Reaction Modifier: All neutral Carrying Capacity: 372 Basic HTH damage: 1d6 Movement Rate: 52 Power: 66 Invention Points: 1.4/level Invention Chance: 42% Fields of Knowledge: Medical, Transportation (Automotive), Sports Powers: (Device) Transformation - Everything tied to this ability (Magic) Weather Control (Skill) Heightened Endurance (Magic) Sonic Powers (Psionics) Weakness Detection (Device) Revivication He clears his throat and stands, chair scraping behind him. "I'm Stormcrow. Good to meet you all. I just know this is going to work out. This is going to be great, everyone." He holds out his hand for anyone to shake that may want to. IPlayVideoGames fucked around with this message at 21:02 on Oct 17, 2015 |
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Oct 17, 2015 01:40
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Firewall Creaking in the chair that was barely holding his weight, Alex stood up, towering over the group. Unlike the other man- Stormcrow he said his name was?- Alex was wearing a heavy leather jacket and jeans, spandex just wasn't cool, man. Taking the other man's hand, he nodded, then picked up the whiteboard that was beside his chair and scrawled with attached sharpie, Hello, the news calls me. Reaching the end of the whiteboard, Alex wiped off the sharpie and continued. Firewall It's nice to, wipe, meet all of you. He nodded to all of them, at least it was better than grunting. He could do that at least, the accident didn't completely remove his ability to make noise. Alex nodded at the rest of the group, then remained standing. The chair was way too small for him in the first place, and he didn't want to break it. Looking at the other people, he cocked his head. It was definitely an eclectic crowd. Robo-cop, an astronaut, a man-shaped metal creature, a caveman, a teenage girl... it sounded like the start of an overlong, terrible joke. This is going to be interesting. pre:Alexander 'Viking' Verus Strength 16 Endurance: 18 (20 from powers) Agility: 13 Intelligence: 7 Charisma: 9 Weight: 280lbs Basic Hits: 6 Hitpoints: 22 Healing Rate: 3 Damage Mod: 0 Accuracy: +1 Chance to Detect objects: 6% Chance to Detect Danger: 11% Reaction Modifier: +/- 0 Carrying Capacity: 853 lbs Base HTH damage: 1d8 Movement Rate: 31 points/ 260 ft. per round Power points: 58 Inventing Points: .7 Chance to Invent: 21% Knowledge Areas: Sports Powers Flame Power Bulletproof Negative Matter Weakness Mute
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Oct 17, 2015 07:16
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Groo the Eternal Groo casually took in the assembled group. Not the raggedest band he'd ever seen, but probably in the top 5, himself included. Dreadlocked and disheveled, wearing dirty jeans, an old white t-shirt and a battered Vietnam-era Army jacket, he would've been indistinguishable from any other homeless man if it weren't for the low brow, sheer hulking musculature, and grey, heavily scarred skin. He shakes Stormcrow's hand when he offers it, lets Firewall introduce himself (mute or eccentric, he wondered), then speaks. "Uh, hey. Name's Groo. They call me 'the Eternal.' When they don't run away screaming, anyway. Pleased to meet you. And before you ask: I can die, but I tend to get better. And yes, I am a caveman. Homo neanderthalensis, or Homo sapiens neanderthalensis, depending on who you ask. Can't say I care. Anyway, unless some kind of ancient god or manifestation of the cosmos shows up late to this little meeting, looks like I'll be the team's cranky old man." pre:Groo the Eternal Strength: 18 Endurance: 15 (25 from powers) Agility: 12 (10 from weight) Intelligence: 18 Charisma: 5 Weight: 250 lbs Basic Hits: 5 Hit Points: 31 Healing Rate: 7 Damage Modifier: +1 Accuracy: +/- 0 Detect Hidden: 14% Detect Danger: 18% Reaction Modifier: -4 from Good, -4 from Evil Carrying Capacity: 1042 lbs Basic HTH Damage: 1d10 Movement Rate: 53 (265 feet per round) Power: 71 Inventing Points: 1.8/level Inventing Chance: 54% Knowledge Areas: Anything justifiable for an immortal. Powers Flesh Works Dimensional Pocket Multiple Lives (11/11) Weakness Prejudice Dachshundofdoom fucked around with this message at 07:19 on Nov 13, 2015 |
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Oct 17, 2015 09:41
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 Michael Bowie pre:Strength: 12 Endurance: 16 Agility: 14 Intelligence: Charisma: 13 Basic Hits: 4 Hit Points: 14 Healing Rate: 2 Damage Modifier: +2 Accuracy: +1 Detect Hidden: 12% Detect Danger: 16% Reaction Modifier: +1 Good, -1 Evil Carrying Capacity: 316 Basic HTH damage: 1d6 Movement Rate: 42 (210 feet) Power: 57 Inventing Points: 1.5/level Inventing Chance: 45% Knowledge Areas: Scientist (Physics, Astronomy, etc.), Transportation (Space Travel), Mysticism/Religion (well, enough for basic magic stuff, anyway) Powers: [Magic] Magic Spells (Open-Target Teleport; [Paralysis Ray Attack Type] 5pp) [Psionic] Willpower [Power] Adaptation [Skills] Heightened Defense Weakness: Diminished Sense (Light Sensitivity) "Hey everyone. My name is M...er...Space...Man. Call me Space Man for now." NovaLion fucked around with this message at 10:30 on Nov 2, 2015 |
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Oct 17, 2015 11:33
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Prototype Valerie is leaning against a filing cabinet at the side of the briefing room, trying to project cool, mysterious, definitely didn't use to work with half the people in the building. Obviously that's worked really well. "Uh, secret identity, Captain?" she says sheepishly. "They're doing okay though, thanks. I'll tell my dad I ran into you." She'd thought a half-mask would be enough of a disguise; maybe the guy in the helmet had the right idea. Aside from the mask, she figures she must look like one of the more normal people in the room. She's wearing a leather jacket over a zip-up Tigers hoodie and an old pair of jeans, with biker gloves for her hands. Okay, her eyes always look a little strange, but who'd notice next to a man straight out of a human evolution diagram and the guy in the elaborate Halloween astronaut costume? She follows the introductions around the group. Stormcrow, who's dressed like one of the serious heroes you see on the news. Firewall, who doesn't talk but seems friendly enough. Groo, who - "You're seriously a caveman?" she says, a little louder than she'd intended. Holy poo poo. Space Man, who sounds like he came up with his codename on the spot. Then it seems to be her turn. "Hey, all. Like Captain Houlihan mentioned, I've been kind of a science project, recently." She folds her arms uneasily, not used to talking about it. "You can call me Prototype, while we're doing... whatever we're doing here." pre:Name: Valerie Kowalski Codename: Prototype Strength: 14 (21 from bionics) Endurance: 16 (25 from bionics) Agility: 15 (24 from bionics) Intelligence: 10 Charisma: 16 Weight: 190 lbs Basic Hits: 4 Hitpoints: 54 Healing Rate: 3 Damage Mod: +3 Accuracy: +4 Chance to Detect Objects: 8% Chance to Detect Danger: 12% Reaction Modifier: +2 Good / -2 Evil Carrying Capacity: 1,117 lbs Base HTH damage: 1d10 Movement Rate: 230 (1,150 feet per round) Power points: 80 Inventing Points: 1 per level Chance to Invent: 30% Knowledge Areas: Crime, Law Enforcement, Legal, Research / Technology Powers Devices: Bionics Better than she was before... better, stronger, faster. Devices: Disintegration Ray 1d20 damage to inanimate objects or liquids, range 15, 17 charges. Devices: Vibratory Powers 2d8 damage, 16% chance to shatter / crumble objects, range 16, 11 charges. Can be used as a defense. Move through solid objects, 12 charges. Powers: Heightened Senses Multi-spectrum vision, includes thermal and night vision. Powers: Absorption Absorb energy from electronics to recharge power. Skills: Speed Bonus Part of the bionics. Powers: Dimensional Travel Wait, what? Weakness Vulnerability: Unknown This didn't come up in training... Ripley fucked around with this message at 14:34 on Oct 17, 2015 |
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Oct 17, 2015 14:30
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Johnathan Doe "Hello", the vaguely human figure says, the word slightly out of sync with the movement of its mouth. "We are Johnathan Doe. We are human, like the rest of you. Thank you. Goodbye." Its flesh ripples slightly. Then, as if it decides that that was insufficient, adds. "We are pleased to be in the Detroit Police Department. The Detroit Police Department is headquartered in the Detroit Public Safety Headquarters. Its Agency Executive is James Craig, Chief of Police. It has 2770 officers as of August 4th, 2011." It then stops as it takes in the rest of the population of the room. "It now has at least 2777 officers." pre:Johnathan Doe XP: 1114 Strength: 15 (turns out being made of robots and absorbing half of Wikipedia is good for a body) Endurance: 15 (but robots, naturally, trend toward uniformity, even if the uniformity is in terms of a numeric abstraction they're not consciously aware of) Agility: 15 Intelligence: 15 Charisma: 15 (modified to 8) Weight: 200 lbs. (I'm assuming somewhat lightweight construction materials, since nanobots) Basic Hits: 4 Hit Points: 41 Healing Rate: 4 Maximum Natural Healing 57% Damage Modifier: +2 Accuracy: +2 Detect Hidden: 12% Detect Danger: 16% Reaction Modifiers: -2 Good, +2 Evil (mad scientists just sort of assume nanobot clusters are on their side, y'know?) Carrying Capacity: 638 Basic HTH Damage: 1d8 Movement Rate: 60 Power: 75 Humanoid appearance 88% Inventing Points: 1.5/level Invention Chance: 45% Knowledge Areas: Research/Technology, Scientist, Scholar, Communications, Manufacturing (one assumes as a nanobot colony, you'd have brushed up on this), Legal (you picked this one up studying what things were crimes, seeing as it was a foreign concept at first) Other: When you grow, you have six size increases you can go through, just gimme a number 1-6 and I'll tell you the stat mods then. For height, the first level of growth makes you 50% taller, every other number is a straight multiplier (so, going up to number 2 doubles your height, 3 triples it, and so on). I'm currently assuming 6'0" exactly as your base height, to continue the trend of extremely regular and uniform base stats Android: +One free instance of Body Power (a mostly freeform power where you pick a body part, and give it a special power, like laser beam eyes or wall-crawling hands and feet) +Unconsciousness swapped for subsystem damage here, as well +Manual repairs still possible, but you can also heal naturally up to a randomly determined (when the power is given) maximum amount. The healing applies to the damage taken, so, if you had 10 HP and had a maximum of 60%, you would heal the first six damage on your own, and any more than that would require repairs (the amount resets each day, so if you took six damage or less each day, you'd just be healing naturally and never need repairs). Actually, since you have the Matter-Eater power, I'll say that as long as you're well- fed, that maximum value is doubled, up to 100%. +Android Body doesn't have as big a defense against Light Control and hand-to-hand, but you're a little less vulnerable to lightning and lose the vulnerability to magnetism entirely due to androids being made of largely non-ferrous materials Super-Consumption: You're Matter Eater Lad. You chomp clean through all but the toughest inorganic materials, but for organics, you can just deal extra damage with bites (2d6 per bite, it's otherwise a normal HTH attack). You can also swallow and digest all the stuff you chew, including explosives, yourstomach disarms them apparently. The stuff you eat is digested super fast, too, giving you extra energy that translates into +1 to hit, -1 to be hit, and +5 to initiative. However, you need twice your weight in food every day, luckily for you, food=everything. Mechano-Link: Regardless of your actual background, you count as having the Research/Technology and Transportation (All) skill areas, with no penalty for alien technology ever, because you can just link up with machines through skin contact. This also gives you +2 to-hit with all mechanical weapons, and +30% to your Invention Chance when doing anything with technology. Evasion Defensive Will (fun fact, it was renamed in the power descriptions, but not in the chart where all the powers are listed): You can elect not to make any attacks this turn to get +5 initiative and enemies are at -4 to hit you and also let's say it counts as Willpower as an active defense. No Power cost to use because you literally can't attack while benefiting from this power. Electrical Discharge (Hands) -Ranged Option: As Lightning Control (range of twice Endurance, damage 2d8, Power cost 4), but to use it as a defense requires one Action and 2 Power per attack defended against, as you're parrying with blasts rather than electrifying your whole body. You can't use this power to take control of machines (unlike normal Lightning Control), but you already have technopathy so you don't need to. However, you can still short out machines with the blasts, Power cost of 4, twice Endurance for both range and percent chance of success. -Melee Option: Electrify your hands for 2 Power per round, adding 2d8 to your base Hand-to-Hand damage, and your punches (or other relevant melee attack, if, say, you wanted to modify your already-improved bite) use either Hand-to-Hand or Lightning Control as their attack type, whichever is more advantageous. While your hands are electrified, can spend one Action per incoming attack to gain Lightning Control defense through parries. Can short out electronics as above, but at melee range only. Weakness: Reduced Charisma (-7) Epicurius fucked around with this message at 01:11 on Jan 23, 2016 |
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Oct 17, 2015 16:34
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(As a note, for those that haven't done so, be sure to note whether each of your powers is magical, psionic, technological, skills, or other. There's certain stuff that can affect, say, a magic power, but not a psionic power, or can affect technology, but not anything else. Also note if it's a device or an item, since those can be temporarily removed from your possession under certain circumstances.) As Stormcrow introduces himself, Captain Houlihan just stares at the homemade costume, his eyes filled with dismay. "Oh, Jesus... Welcome aboard, I guess. Uh, maybe, maybe we can get in touch with one of the guys that does costumes, they all lost a lot of business after what happened, I'm sure they're eager for new clients. Oy." The captain is, of course, referring to the noble sacrifice of nearly every prominent superhero on Earth, defending the universe against the evil Dredlaxicor as he tried to gain the power of the Eternity Glove. The sole survivor was the Scottish-American sidekick of Patriot Man, Laddy Liberty, who had been sent back to inform the world of what had happened. Houlihan seems a little more at ease as Firewall makes his introduction. "Oh, I read your profile, you're the only guy who has a profile, a bit of prior activity on record. Some sorta plane crash, collateral damage deal, left you mute, right? Sorry about all that, guess we don't gotta worry about too many of those for a while, eh? Shoot, sorry, that ain't funny." Having put his foot in his mouth, the captain once more falls silent, as Groo makes his greeting. While appearing wary, he makes an attempt at connecting with the ancient hominid. "Hey, now, you can have 'old', but leave some 'cranky' for me, pal, I feel like I'm gonna need it." As Martin gives his improvised codename, Houlihan starts eyeing his suit more closely. "Hey, hold on, I kinda thought those burn marks and stuff were a style thing, but they look pretty real. What's up with-" The captain's eyes widen in a sudden realization, and he grabs the newspaper from the table in front of him, quickly scanning the front page, which anyone that had read it would know contains the story of the Unity-1 space station's destruction, from which there were supposedly no survivors. Of note is that pictures of the presumed deceased were printed with the story, including that of one Michael Bowie, who just happens to be sitting in this room, still, apparently, wearing the remains of his space suit. Captain Houlihan puts the paper down slowly, looking both stunned and deeply, profoundly disturbed, like a man who has just seen entirely too much. It's clear that Captain Houlihan is woefully unfit to deal with this sort of strangeness. His hands shaking, he quickly fumbles through his pockets, producing an antacid, which he quickly consumes. "Ohhhh, boy, my ulcer did not need that. I'm not even gonna ask." He just nods quietly as Kowalski introduces herself, recovering from the shock of seeing a dead man fresh from his zero-g grave. Compared to that, his response to Johnathan Doe is almost blasé. "Okay, good meetin' ya, sure, remind me to get you an appointment with the department shrink, she used to do liaison work with Otto Industry, that superhero robot GM built, she helped him act human a little better, seems like you could use the assistance. Cuz lemme tell ya, that act ain't foolin' nobody. I don't know if you're fresh from the lab or what, but there've been enough robots and androids runnin' around that you'll actually need to put some effort into blending in." Finally, Captain Houlihan looks over at the sullen-looking teenage girl, who has yet to speak up. "So, uh, what about you, young lady?"
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Oct 17, 2015 20:44
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Stormcrow Luke blinks at the Captain, and then gives himself a quick one-over. "What's wrong with...?" He looks over to Spaceman. "What's wrong with my costume? Is it the boots? poo poo, I knew the boots were too much." He regards the Captain again. "Listen, man. Sir. When you're hucking lightning around you really need some good insulated footwear." IPlayVideoGames fucked around with this message at 21:08 on Oct 17, 2015 |
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Oct 17, 2015 21:04
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Space Man Looking over Stormcrow then checking his own 'costume' , Mike just shrugs. "You've got me. I'm hardly dressed for the part. Think your costumers can do anything handy for me, Captain?"
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Oct 18, 2015 05:41
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(OOC: Sorry, the OOC thread fell off my first page of bookmarks so I missed the announcement that the thread was live. I am a schmuck.) Nightwitch There is one other who has not spoken up, a sullen-looking "This is going to be a massive cluster, isn't it?" she opines, shrugging. "Yeah. Nightwitch. I fight demons." From a small pouch (don't call it a purse) she produces a pack of cigarettes, which look oddly fragile in her gauntleted hands - but before she can pull one out and light up she is interrupted by a soft whining from the Tibetan Mastiff that's sitting by her feet. She looks down at the dog, who pointedly looks over at the No Smoking sign on the wall. "Oh come on!" The dog does not look moved. "They're, like, herbal, even." The dog stares at her. She puts the cigarettes away with a huff. Since glaring at the dog isn't working, she glares at everyone else instead. quote:Stella St. Claire
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Oct 18, 2015 21:08
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Houlihan just sighs. "Great, a superhero that acts like my daughter, I can only hope to see you just two weekends a month. Are you even old enough to have those smokes? Gonna have to call my sponsor after this, I just know it." As the others ask follow-up questions, Houlihan recovers a little, rattling off answers with almost practiced ease. "Don't worry about it, it's mostly the onesie. The one thing I know about superhero fashion is you gotta have something at the waist or you look stupid. Patterning, a belt, whatever. Don't worry, there's a pretty good costumer in town, Mario Angelino, we already talked to him, so if you need new threads, or just want better-looking ones, he'll get you squared away, our treat. Police departments all got superhero budgets for the guys who have trouble making ends meet in their day jobs but still need money for their smoke bombs, costume repairs, and so on. But, seeing as what was once a budget for about seventy heroes is now being used for seven, we got a lot of wiggle room, as long as it's legal." Houlihan follows up with more information, looking fairly proud about it. "And, more good news. As you might imagine, pretty much all the secret superhero lairs out there are free to use, and as luck has it, we actually know where one of them is. Used to belong to Johnny Karma and the Bogus Heroes, they were a punk band on top of the superhero thing. Head on down to Graystone Hall, men's room, last stall. Hidden panel behind a wall tile's got a keypad, password is 'Punk's not dead.' That'll at least get you covered in terms of storage space and computers, and we might be able to track down some of the other abandoned lairs, pass on any special equipment we find. Now, you guys got any other questions before you run off to get new outfits or check out your base of operations?"
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Oct 18, 2015 22:31
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Johnathan Doe "We wish to point out that we are not a robot. We are, in fact, multiple robots. However, we understand your point. We do not get out much." the nanobots confess.
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Oct 19, 2015 02:54
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Groo the Eternal Groo grunts. He'd never had much use for costumes. Not like he could have a secret identity to begin with; what was he going to do, put on a pair of glasses and work for the local newspaper? Still, armored clothing or at least a kevlar vest would be handy. "Alright, did you call us here for anything other than the costumes and the base? With all the heavy hitters gone, I'm guessing it won't be long before every two-bit supervillain on the planet comes crawling out of the woodwork, so we'll have our work cut out for us."
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Oct 19, 2015 04:56
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Stormcrow "Hey, I remember Graystone Hall. That was where there was that shooting not too long ago, right? I was..." He was there. His and several other EMS teams were responding to that mess. It wasn't pretty. Lot of innocent people were hurt. Luke's hand shakes a little and he glances at his backpack he brought that's slung over the back of his chair. "I saw it all over the news. Hey. Captain. What's the deal with collateral damage? Like building and property damage and stuff? Do we have an allowance or something? And exactly how much leeway do we have to hurt some nutjob that can shoot fire out of their rear end when we're stopping them before you're cuffing us for assault and battery too?" He never thought he'd have to think about this sort of thing before.
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Oct 19, 2015 06:20
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Nightwitch Yes, yes, yes. She's gloomy and angry and stereotypical. But upon hearing the news of their new hand-me-down base, Nightwitch perks up visibly. "The Bogus Heroes? Those guys were killer. Did a great cover of 'Police Truck,' that musta made 'em popular around here..." She leans back, humming the chorus to one of the Bogus Heroes' songs with an impish gleam in her eye. Something about squatting in the home of punk rock superheroes appeals to her. Plus, she heard Johnny Karma collected old punk memorabilia, and she's been meaning to figure out how the whole 'contact the dead' thing works... (The dog looks up at her, and while canine faces aren't expressive in the same way human ones are, one might swear he looks nervous.)
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Oct 19, 2015 07:22
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Space Man The crew of Unity used to receive entertainment coms every month. Mike was sure he's heard of the Bogus Heroes, but he wouldn't be able to tell you which song is which. It was all a bit samey and angsty for his tastes. "Once we're done with the costumer and the Graystone Hall...where do we start?"
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Oct 19, 2015 08:07
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Firewall Nodding as the remained of their eclectic team introduced themselves, he rolled his eyes. The girl seemed like the stereotypical angry at the world types that permeate highschool. She was probably going to be incredibly grating, but maybe she'd grow up and realize she was just a brat. Yeah, right. Still, if she was effective, that's about all they had, and so hopefully she'd become a bit more tolerable. As the Captain mentioned the options that he had available to them he grunted coarse grunt before grabbing the sharpie. Wiping off the old text he began to scrawl on his wipeboard base is neat there beds. He motioned to the duffle bag beside the chair he was sitting in. Have 2 move clothes. He didn't want to mention that his old landlord kicked him out because he may have accidentally set fire to the kitchen one too many times for the landlord to deal with. Picking up the bag, he stuffed the whiteboard back into it. Inside was a bunch of clothes. Shouldering the bag, the large man paused before pulling the whiteboard out again. If costumes FIREPROOF. Stuffing the whiteboard back inside again, he looked down at his hands.
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Oct 19, 2015 08:12
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Nightwitch "Fireproof is good," the Teenager With Attitude(tm) agrees, nodding sagely. "Prof... the guy who made my robes for me fireproof'ed 'em up and that's come in handy a bunch of times. 'Course, he said something about fireproofing and Hellfireproofing being not quite the same thing, but whatever. Point is I don't think any of us wanna have to worry about getting in a fight and ending up giving the tabloids a front-page photo, is the thing. Like, if I gotta make a big-rear end wall of fire to stop bullets or something, it ends up being, you know, a big-rear end wall of fire, so fireproof is good." There's a two-beat pause. "Yeah, you know what, I'm gonna second that question about the collateral thingy."
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Oct 19, 2015 08:25
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Space Man The annoying little girl had a point, in spite of her shrill voice. "What about a mask, or a helmet? Can Mr. Angelino do those?" The last thing Mike wanted, just after being dead, was being recognized. The world might think he's dead, but he still had a family back home.
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Oct 19, 2015 15:45
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Captain Houlihan shakes his head at Groo. "Actually, we caught a hell of a lucky break. Turns out Lord Calamitous is smart enough to realize that if something big enough to destroy the world showed up, there's no way the supervillains could get organized in time, so you guys would be the only thing between him and not having a world to conquer. He sent a message to every major villain and law enforcement agency in the world this morning, set some ground rules until things start approaching normal. Anyone that breaks 'em, deals with him." Houlihan shudders, and rightly so, for those who cross Lord Calamitous, the world's most dangerous supervillain, are not known for their longevity. "Basically, he told the other bad guys to limit themselves to what they'd be doing normally, so guys like you lot don't get overwhelmed. He also told 'em not to go looking for secret bases or loved ones for the time being, which is why it's no problem that most of the department knows where you guys'll be staying. You'll still have your work cut out for you, but it won't be war in the streets, at least." At the mention of the shooting at Graystone Hall, Houlihan nods. "Oh, right, yeah. Some punk kids tried to hold up some people trying to do their laundry and it went south fast. Not the best night, but the building owners have repaired most of the damage, so at least there won't be any bullet holes to bring down the mood. Speaking of which, the owners know about the base, always have, they're the ones who told us about it, so don't worry about being seen by the landlords as you move in." As Stormcrow asks about collateral damage, Houlihan seems pleased. "Now there's a question I like to hear. Pretty much every city has money set aside for fixing places up, but try to avoid knocking down any whole buildings, you never know which one the historical society'll get their panties in a twist over. 'Cultural landmarks' and all that. And as long as they're still breathing and have all their limbs attached and functional when you're done with 'em, you're totally fine. If you do end up icing one of those scumbags or put 'em in a wheelchair, then we gotta conduct an excessive force investigation. It's pretty much the same thing as if a cop shoots somebody, so Kow- uh, Prototype, can tell ya how those go." The captain smiled at the teenager. "Glad to see some enthusiasm, at long last. Y'know, in my younger days, I saw Black Flag perform live at Graystone Hall. 'Course, it's just a laundromat now, but they say if you listen closely, you can still hear all the wild parties that went on there." Nodding at Bowie, Captain Houlihan shrugs. "Well, as you might expect, between all the superheroes dying and Lord Calamitous sending that message, there's a bit of confusion going around, so it'll be at least a few hours before something happens. Plenty of time to get settled. Don't sweat it, the computers in your new base will let you know when it's crime time. If you want my guess on what's gonna go down first, I'm thinkin' somebody's gonna want to hit that new exhibit at the museum, the one with all those Phoenician artifacts that were recently found at the bottom of the Mediterranean. Every time new artifacts get uncovered, some yahoo in a mask tries to steal 'em, hoping to get one with magic powers. Either that, or they'll hit the prison and try to break out some of their friends." Houlihan raised an eyebrow at Firewall. "First time getting a real costume? They're made with some kinda sciencey molecule crap, they're resistant to pretty much everything, and will adjust their shape to accommodate pretty much any superpower. And, yeah, we checked it out ahead of time, there's a place to crash if you don't got an apartment or something, but, we could also just make a couple phone calls and get you an actual apartment if you need it. And yes, it'll be fireproof, there's a ton of contractors who made their living by discreetly superproofing people's homes, and like the costume-makers, they need the business." Looking back to Nightwitch, the captain rubs the bridge of his nose. "Just keep in mind, a fireproof costume doesn't necessarily mean a fireproof wearer. Try not to charbroil any of your teammates, okay?" Lastly, he nods at Michael. "Yeah, of course, Angelino's been in the biz for thirty years, he's done everything. Now, any other questions, or are you ready to hit the bricks?"
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Oct 19, 2015 16:19
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Prototype Valerie has been distracted by the eighth member of the team. "Cute dog," she says to Nightwitch in an undertone while Captain Houlihan is elaborating about Graystone Hall. "Can I pet him? Or is it a demon-y hellhound, not to be messed with?" Doesn't look scary, but in this company, she's not going to judge by appearances. Back to the actual topic - "Do we have comms equipment in the base, Captain? Portable radios, or - whatever superheroes normally use?" Superheroes like us. Right. Sure. ...I hope someone here knows what they're doing.
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Oct 19, 2015 17:23
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Firewall Alex shook his head at the mention of getting him an apartment. The base would do, not a hell of a lot tying him to Detroit, really. But it was nice that actual costumes were decently fireproofed for those times that he set himself on fire. Ending up naked in the streets doesn't create a good pose for the tabloids. Comms equipment didn't really work for him though. Maybe someone could get a text to speech program set up? That might work for communications. Whatever, they'd figure it out eventually. It was 'nice' to know that they would have a bit of time before trying to fight Lord Calamitous though, they weren't going to get obliterated trying to go up against him on the first day or some such. Getting out the clipboard he wrote Any of you know ASL
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Oct 19, 2015 18:21
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Nightwitch "Nah, he's just a regular dog," the girl tells Prototype, as the aforementioned dog promptly gets up and walks over for pettings. He would like some pettings, please. "I mean, basically. He belonged to a wizard and I'm not sure but he mighta been something else once for all I know, but he doesn't, like, breathe fire or anything. At least, he hasn't yet." Nightwitch sort of glares at the dog. "He didn't come with an owner's manual. I just got stuck with him when the guy vanished without teaching me any of the crap he'd promised to teach me 'oh don't worry about it kid it's just a quick jaunt off to the etheric realms make sure you don't let my dinner get cold or it's the Curse Of The Drunken Wombat again' screw you wherever you are, jackass. So, yeah. Regular dog." The dog does not care about being glared at, and looks up at Prototype hopefully. Perhaps there will even be ear-scritches. Those are awesome.
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Oct 19, 2015 19:36
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Groo the Eternal "Lord Calamitous to the rescue? Didn't see that coming." Groo gives the group another glance over, feeling a little more confident. Maybe they really can do this. If nothing else, the base would give him somewhere to sleep. Spotting Firewall's sign, he shakes his head. "No luck, buddy. But hey, maybe the costume people can set you up with one of those things Hawking has." Groo finally cracks a smile. "Speaking of which, you think they give a senior discount?"
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Oct 20, 2015 01:28
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Johnathan Doe "Hello!", the nanobots say to Firewall. "We understand that you are asking if anyone here knows ESL. We know ESL." Then they sign: <Would you like to talk in ESL?>
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Oct 20, 2015 04:15
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Space Man "I think we're good to go, point us at Mr. Angelino and we'll get to the Graystone. We should find out as much about these artifacts as we can before the bad guys do."
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Oct 20, 2015 09:47
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Nightwitch "I've got a costume," the robed girl notes, "so how about we kill two birds with one shotgun. Me and anyone else that doesn't need new threads goes to the museum to reconnoiter the artifacts - if there is anything genuinely magical there, I'll stand a good chance of finding it - while those who need the makeover go to the costume place. Then we meet up at the Graystone when we're done to compare notes and form a, what do you call it, a plan of action and like that."
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Oct 20, 2015 10:48
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Prototype "Heeey, buddy," Valerie whispers as she hunkers down and gently scratches the dog's head. "Who's a good magic dog? Yeah, you are." She straightens up to join the actual conversation again. "ASL? I know half a dozen words, but they're all, uh, pretty offensive. And you guys are right, we should probably head out. Are you all going to get flashy costumes? I was getting used to being a semi-casual vigilante..."
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Oct 20, 2015 17:26
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Space Man Mike chuckles lowly, "If anything I could stand to be a bit less flashy! We'll see what he comes up with. " Turning to Firewall Mike makes some gestures with his hands. I can sign only a little bit of ASL.
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Oct 20, 2015 17:35
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Stormcrow "Yeah, alright. I can deal with the costume fix later. Right now I'm good checking out the base at Greystone." He shrugs at Firewall, recognizing it as sign language, but not knowing anyway.
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Oct 20, 2015 20:07
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Firewall Signing At least there's somebody here that I can have a proper conversation with at the pile of sentient robots, he shifted the bag on his shoulder. I'd really like to go to the base, dropping these off first, then I guess I'll check out the museum with dark and broody over there, make sure she doesn't lift anything. Either way, we should head out, unless the captain needs anything else from us. Looking at the uniformed man, he tilted his head, silently asking a question. Waiting a second, he started to head out, ducking his head as he crossed the doorframe, one of these days he was going to smoke his head on one of those, and it wasn't going to be pleasant.
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Oct 21, 2015 07:11
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Captain Houlihan waved his hand at the heroes. "Nah, I don't need anything else. There'll be communicators at your base, it's actually equipped with one of those fancy-pants 'minifacturing' devices, so you can replace 'em easily. And yeah, they got text-to-speech options, though it won't help much in a fight. So, go, have fun, try not to get hurt. I got some calls to make to finish setting you guys up, plus that appointment for John Doe here." With that, Captain Houlihan exits the room, grumbling about his ulcer. Their first courses of action decided, the heroes split up to visit the local tailor and investigate the museum. Later, downtown... The tailor shop owned by Mario Angelino turns out to be a pretty swanky place, in the ritziest part of the commercial district. Though, where the other clothing stores have examples of new fashions and haute couture in the windows, Angelino's store instead displays material samples, rolls of ultra-thin polymers stronger than kevlar and swatches of titanium that somehow move like fabric. This makes sense, given that superhero costumes are very personal things. Inside is more of the same, with samples of all sorts of materials in a variety of colors, more like the carpet section of a home goods store than a fashion boutique. As the heroes enter, the bell above the door rings, and shortly afterwards, they find themselves greeted by a handsome man in his late fifties, well-dressed, but looking a little worn down. "Oh, good, Captain Houlihan called ahead, said you'd be coming. You wouldn't believe how badly I needed this, I had to let all my salespeople go already, I wouldn't even have a store if the mayor hadn't arranged for the city to cover my lease. Normally I never try to upsell my customers, but please, feel free to pick out the most expensive materials and components in the store. Capes, belts, masks? You name it, I can make it to precisely your specifications. I just got in a new material a couple months ago, it's sad to say, but it's the last thing Professor Universe ever invented. It's got the usual quality of resisting and adapting to superpowers as needed, but the flexibility and comfort are unparalleled. Of course, the supply is rather limited, Professor Universe was never one to share his breakthroughs immediately. So the price it commands will probably keep me in business for the time being, at least until, hopefully, the superhero population recovers. I've also got some decorative ultratanium in stock, if you want more solid details on your costume." Ultratanium, as you all know, is a nearly unbreakable alloy, made using the same molecules as costume fabrics. This, however, makes it very brittle if it's too thin, so it can't hold an edge or serve as any practical sort of armor, and it's too light to be used as a blunt weapon. So, ultratanium is ideal for adding solid parts to costumes, among various civilian applications. It is also unspeakably expensive. Having given his customers the sales pitch, he awaits their decisions quietly. (Feel free to describe any costume, with any details and colors you want.) Meanwhile... The WSU Anthropology Museum is largely deserted, in part because the president declared a week of mourning following the loss of the nation's heroes. However, inside, several professors continue to work on the newly-uncovered artifacts, cleaning and restoring them, perhaps to keep themselves busy. One of them, a younger man, in his late thirties, is volunteered to walk the heroes through the basics of the exhibit. "Hello. My name is Hyun Park, I'm one of the people assigned to restoring these Phoenician artifacts. They were discovered at the bottom of the Mediterranean about a month ago, and we haven't been able to assess them for supernatural properties. Given the Phoenicians' aptitude for magic and advanced laser technology, it's likely that one or more of the artifacts uncovered are empowered in some fashion, and we'd like to make certain before we send them on to Ann Arbor for display. Feel free to take a look, but let us know if you're going to do anything. I'll be here if you have any questions." (Here's where you can grill Professor Park about the artifacts or investigate them personally, though be sure to ask first. If anyone intends to go directly to Graystone, let me know and we'll catch up with them later.)
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Oct 21, 2015 14:58
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Stormcrow Luke looks over the riot of colors and material, before shrugging at Mario. "I was told I needed a belt. Though this stuff can maybe stop a bullet, right?" He rubs over one of the samples. "Yeah, I need a lot of that, then. Can you do a whole suit up in that? Grey is fine. Maybe something that'll work for a helmet, too. Can you make those? I'm looking to avoid concussions." He starts to wander around until Mario is ready to size him, enjoying this whole experience a little bit more than he'd admit. It makes him feel like something approaching legitimate. Plus, ditching the uncomfortable onsie will be a blessing. One grey and yellow trim costume later, complete with the suggested belt to hold various little things, some combat boots, and a helmet, and Stormcrow is ready to head over to Greystone or the Museum with the others once they're done.
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Oct 21, 2015 17:25
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Space Man, Redux Running his hand through the reams of Professor Universe's new material, Mike's mind begins spinning with possibilities. "This can adapt on the molecular level to any powers, anywhere, on anyone? What other applications have you put it to? Can we take some of this back to the Hall for research? You say it's flexible, does it have any elasticity? What sort of weight can it bare, and pressure?" Mario's obvious frustration served to quell Mike's curiosity for just long enough to get the actual costuming done. Hermetically sealed, helmet, lightweight, flexible, yadda yadda...I need to find out how he made this! He hardly heard Mario's suggestion that he think of a better name. 
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Oct 21, 2015 18:19
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Nightwitch She'd thought about switching to civilian clothes for this visit, but in the end Nightwitch decided that it was more valuable to show the flag, as it were; people need reassurance, and 'kid in a costume' is, somehow, reassuring to people. They need to know there are superheroes out there still. Besides, she doesn't want to broadcast her secret ID to people she's just met. "Good to meet you, Mr. Park. Is it Mr.? Or Doctor? Anyways, I'm just going to look around for a minute. I'll try to stay out of everyone's way. Also, I passed through part of the exhibit hall on the way in and you've got a plinth out there with a sign saying it's from around 700 BC but it's engraved with markings from around 500 BC - the priests of Ptah didn't start using those markings until after the High Priest survived an assassination attempt by the Cult of Typhon." Stella keeps herself busy looking at the artifacts - and the equipment the researchers are using, to see if there's anything she can use to put together a quick ritual to detect any magical energies. Not having access to a huge repository of magical supplies is kind of a pain in the butt. She should check with that Captain Whatshisname to see if the cops have anything in the evidence lockup from that time they raided the Madcap Magician's hideout after that time he turned the Mayor into a carnivorous rabbit. If I CAN find some usable resources, let's use a Gizmo Point to make life simple and see if any of the artifact actually ARE magical. If they are, we know what we've got to guard most carefully.
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Oct 22, 2015 00:29
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Groo the Eternal Spending a few seconds scanning the shelves, Groo turns to Mario and shrugs. "Really, I just need something tough. No need to be flashy. Think you can just give my regular duds an upgrade? I kinda like the unwashed vigilante look. Besides, I don't think I have the cash for a crazy outfit." The tailor seemed a little cranky about it, but he still got to charge (heavily) for all the measuring, color-matching, and labor. Not to mention the helmet and belt. Still looked a little silly at the end, but at least he wouldn't risk his army jacket getting vaporized next time someone threw a fireball at him. Once the tailor finished up with him, Groo leans against the wall, half-dozing, until it's time to go. "Alright, now that Mario's done with us, let's get moving. Are we meeting the Nightwitch girl at the museum or at Graystone? I mean, unless something came up I doubt there's any investigating left to do." Dachshundofdoom fucked around with this message at 07:44 on Oct 23, 2015 |
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Oct 22, 2015 02:11
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Prototype Valerie spends a few minutes wandering around the store, eyeing up the more exotic materials. It's tempting to test the strength of some of them and see if they're as impressive as advertised, but adding damaged goods to the bill probably wouldn't be a great start to her superhero career. ("Superhero career". What was she even doing here?) "I'm thinking along the same lines as Groo," she tells Mario. "Something practical, more than eye-catching. Thicker material - I'd rather have some tough padding between me and all the jackasses with knives out there. Loose enough to be easy to move in. And more of a mask than this," she adds, gesturing at her sadly inadequate domino mask. "I guess I'll be moving pretty fast in it, and - can we go into the fitting room? I'd better show you my arms..." She keeps her voice steady, hoping it's not obvious how little she enjoys that prospect. After some consultation with Mario, they settle on mostly classic black with bronze trim, with combat boots and customized gloves.
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Oct 22, 2015 17:56
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(If it wasn't clear, the money for your costumes and other official superhero stuff is being charged to the police department's superhero fund, since that's part of what it's there for, and also the budget has a massive surplus in light of recent events. This won't do much to reduce the cost of making Gizmos, just because the materials needed for Gizmos are generally exotic or restricted enough that you're looking at gray market dealing, at best. In the case of illegal materials, law enforcement's stance is "We won't go looking for it, but don't go showing it to us." So, as long as you can obtain it without getting caught, you won't get in trouble.) Mario seems mostly pleased with the group's fashion choices, he's seen enough superheroes come in and out of his shop to appreciate a wide variety of aesthetics. He shakes his head at some of the questions, however. "The material won't stop a bullet, but, much like the silk undershirts worn by the Mongol Hordes, it's resistant to damage. Unless it's got enough force to go clean through you, sharp objects won't damage your outfit, and that can make it much easier to remove a bullet or similar. I can bear a lot of weight and pressure without breaking, but that's only because it will stretch. Once it's done stretching, then it breaks. As far as I'm aware, it's just a more breathable, comfortable version of existing super-fabrics. I figure Professor Universe would have made a bigger announcement when he perfected it, if it had any more practical applications than clothing. As usual, the Universal Molecules in the fabric require a certain amount of direct contact to adapt to powers like stretching or invisibility, but they're immune to fire and the like regardless, that's why I never do capes for heroes that can turn invisible. Anyway, let me know if there's anything else I can do for you. A number of the locals used to go through me for materials for their net guns and ziplines and what-have-you, so I've got a surplus of high-strength polymers, should any of you need them. I can do special orders as needed, too, it's one of the benefits of being the only licensed high-tech textiles merchant in the Great Lakes region. Since you're using an established base, I heard, the computer there should already have my frequency programmed in, if you don't want to use your phones. Or just drop by, it's not like the store's exactly bustling." Shrugging, Mario waits to see if anyone has anything else on their minds. (To be totally clear, these costumes are just using a variant of the pseudoscience used in Marvel comics to explain how costumes are so resilient, so none of these materials are actually useful for anything but wearing.) "Professor Park, actually. And that plinth was just put on display a few days ago, we'd had a much older plinth there that's since been sent to MSU, where these artifacts are headed. I'll let the maintenance crew know to change the sign." The professor gives Stella a bored look, one that says that he's used to know-it-all kids second-guessing his work. Left to study the artifacts as necessary, Nightwitch finds she has enough spare spell components for one detection ritual that should cover the artifacts currently in the room. However, lacking deep training in the mystical traditions of the Phoenicians, she doesn't know exactly what she's looking for. (Modern magic, in this setting, is based primarily on Kabbalistic rites similar to those championed by Aleister Crowley, minus the creepy poo poo, but includes certain specific European traditions, mainly English Druidic rituals, Norse runes, and Romany tarot reading, along with more general alchemical principles that were common throughout the continent. Eastern mysticism is also popular, though more associated with martial arts due to the emphasis on body-mind unification. Less common magic, such as Egyptian, Native American, and Atlantian, generally require specialized training to become familiar. Unfamiliar magical traditions impose a -50% on inventing chance, due to how wildly disparate they can be. So, roll a d100, you want less than 85%. Also, your character does know that the Phoenicians also had advanced technology due to contact with extraterrestrial explorers, which wouldn't register on a magical scan.)
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Oct 22, 2015 20:52
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| # ? Apr 25, 2024 17:50 |
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Johnathan Doe "We are a colony of self replicating nanobots, each with limited processing power, but who, together, form a neural network, allowing us something akin to consciousness and coordinated action." Johnathan Doe explains to Mario. "Do you recommend a costume for us? We understand there are cultural taboos against nakedness, and do not wish to offend."
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Oct 23, 2015 16:18
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