Heritage

This idea intrigues me as well; Grim would play poker about as well as I would (i.e. crappy) but she might enjoy a heroic social group outside the Knights. Hmm, though Friday night is the shabbos and she's supposed to be kind of religious, but not too much. I'll have to think about it and look some stuff up. Hey, what was Ben Grimm doing playin' on Friday nights anyway? In canon the Thing was Jegoogoowish, but maybe he was kinda lapsed.

So the guys at the Geek Squad let me know that both the power supply and motherboard of my Dell Dimension 2300 have gone bad, and that I can either order the parts and have them replaced or buy a new machine with magical Vista and a free upgrade to Windows 7 when that comes out next month. My IT-savvy sister has offered to help with the install if I go that route, and my hard drive appears to be intact, so data transfer should be alright. No matter what, more money than I want to spend right now :(

This is the 'final version' of Grim, which will premiere after her meeting with A_S's PC Darrien Silver; someday soon, this will be the only version of Grim running around :D

Character Name: Grimalkin Power Level: 10 Tradeoffs: +2 Attack / -2 Damage, +2 Defense / -2 Toughness Unspent PP: 0 Alternate Identity: Lynn Epstein Height: 5'3" Weight: 116 lb Hair: Brown, worn short and a bit spiky Eyes: Dark brown Description: A pretty young slip of a girl, Lynn typically wears ragged jeans, T-shirt, tennis shoes and a hooded sweatshirt during the day, but is wrapped in skintight leather of black and midnight blue, complete with domino mask, when she prowls the dirty streets at night. History: A young runaway from Atlantic City, Lynn Epstein turned to a life of panhandling and petty crime to survive; a year ago it became too much, and she crawled into a dark alley on a chill winter night to die, but instead awoke the next day transformed! For many months she used her powers selfishly, living the high life and swindling ‘suckers’, until one night she saw a young streetwalker attacked; the FCPD’s profound indifference to the crime appalled her, and she swore that night to use her powers to help those the Powers That Be would not help. Like a trickster goddess with a vengeful streak, her personal brand of justice might seem somewhat capricious, but she would never willfully take a human life. Personality & Motivation: Being that she's a shapeshifter, it's perhaps not surprising that Lynn is rather hard to pin down; she lives very much in the 'now', making few great plans and doing her best not to dwell on the past. Her emotions are intensely felt, and she can switch from playful to angry to sad almost in the same sentence. Lynn also finds comfort in the little things, everyday wonders like bike rides in the park, ice cream of nearly any flavor, and lazy afternoons spent lying in the grass; she never seems to have enough of the simple pleasures, which makes her cherish them all the more. As a crimefighter, Grim is driven by many things: the desire to see a wasted life blossom once more, an end to cruelty, injustice and indifference, and a strong personal desire to constantly improve her technique. She likes teaming up with other heroes to see how she measures up and maybe pinch a trick or two, but she is frequently very self-critical of her own performance, to the point of downplaying her many successes. However, she’s still quite young and her confidence continues to grow. Complications: Prejudice (the Wealthy), Struggling Abilities [40PP] Strength 16 (+3) Dexterity 26 (+8) Constitution 18 (+4) Intelligence 12 (+1) Wisdom 12 (+1) Charisma 26/16 (+8/+3) Combat [24PP] Initiative +12 Attack +6 Base, +10 Melee, +12 Claws Defense +12 (+6 Base, +6 Dodge Focus], +3 Flat-Footed Damage +3 Unarmed (+5 Sneak Attack), +6 Claws (+8 Sneak Attack) Grapple +18 Knockback 4, 2 Flat-Footed Saving Throws [15PP] Toughness +8, +4 Flat-Footed Fortitude +8 (+4 CON, 4PP) Reflex +12 (+8 DEX, 4PP) Will +8 (+1 WIS, 7PP) Skills [27PP = 108 Ranks] Acrobat 15 (+23) (Skill Mastery) Bluff 15 (+23/+18) (Skill Mastery) Climb 7 (+15) Diplomacy 2 (+10/+5) Disguise 0 (+3, +28 Morph) Gather Information 2 (+10/+5) Knowledge (Arcane Lore) 4 (+5) Knowledge (Pop Culture) 4 (+5) Knowledge (Streetwise) 9 (+10) Notice 14 (+15) Search 14 (+15) Sleight of Hand 7 (+15) (Skill Mastery) Stealth 15 (+23) (Skill Mastery) Feats [36PP] Acrobatic Bluff Agile Climber Attack Focus (Melee) 4 Attack Specialization (Claws) Connected Contacts Defensive Attack Defensive Roll 4 Distract (Bluff) Dodge Focus 6 Elusive Target Evasion Grappling Finesse Improved Initiative Move-By Action Luck 2 Power Attack Setup Skill Mastery (Acrobat, Bluff, Sleight of Hand, Stealth) Sneak Attack Takedown Attack 2 Taunt Uncanny Dodge (Audio) Powers [38PP] Immunity 2 (Aging, Cold) [2PP] Glamour 5 (10PP Array, Feats: Alternate Power 4) [14PP] Leaping 2 (x5) [2PP] Strike 3 (Claws, Feats: Alternate Power, Improved Critical 2, Incurable, Mighty) [8PP] Super-Movement 2 (Slow Fall, Wall-Crawling) [4PP] Super-Senses 8 (Normal Hearing [Extras: Accurate 2, Extended], Normal Olfactory [Extras: Acute, Extended, Tracking], Normal Vision [Extras: Counters Obscure 2 {Darkness}]) [8PP] Drawbacks [-8PP] Vulnerability (Iron, Frequency: Uncommon, Intensity: Major [+50% DC]) [-2PP] Weakness (Iron, Frequency: Common, Intensity: Moderate, -1 CON / minute [10 rounds]) [-6PP] DC Block Unarmed -- DC 20/Toughness (22 w/ Sneak Attack) -- Damage Claws -- DC 23/Toughness (25 w/ Sneak Attack) -- Damage Abilities 40 + Combat 24 + Saving Throws 15 + Skills 27 + Feats 36 + Powers 38 - Drawbacks 8 = 172 Power Points

Whoa there, my faithful Scottish companion! I hain't even finished writin' the first issue yet, though it is coming along nicely (at last!). I have concept art on several of the main characters (one of which is being designed as we speak - go Capacitor go!) and I hope to bring that plus my three first written issues to Chicago Comic & Entertainment Expo next April to shop it around. I will say in your case Ecal, if it's picked up by someone without UK distribution I will personally mail you a copy each month, unless you don't like it, in which case to heck with you! :P

Hmm, Doc lead me astray on that one, but maybe he misunderstood my question. The day d20 grapple rules make sense to me is...well, they may never make sense to me. But a miss is still a miss, a sigh is just a sigh. Wait, what was the question again?

Gossamer shivers at the thought as she takes a few samples for later study; as disturbing as this all is, it's not often she has something this interesting to analyze! The beautiful scientist frowns as she stands and brushes off her knees. "Wait, I'm confused; do you think this the work of your student, or an Erde version of him? I thought we'd determined that it came from their world."

I'm waiting on Doc before posting for Grim, just so folks know.

I'm sorry, I misunderstood; I though you were gonna finish it on your response with Wesley, but I can finish it if you want.

This is true; we can lock this one up.

"I have the scent; this way." Her voice sounded so strange coming from her canine mouth; back in Avalon, the Queen had said her powers would be in flux for a while, and she might be able to do things she'd never done before or would be able to do again. Four moons, and then the final phase; what will I be when I grow up? The great beast shuffled down the darkened street in search of her quarry.

"Works for me, Ace." She gives him a thumbs up before fading from view; she slowly makes her way towards the hoods downstairs, careful not to make even the slightest sound.

Whoa, that's a crappy roll! 1d20+5 = 6 Edit: I'm gonna play it like she's being extra careful to be quiet, and therefore goes much later in the Initiative order :)

Estelle smiled as she followed Erin. "Actually, I hope I don't give in to temptation during class and showoff, but I'm sure I will from time to time; fetching labware from across the room with the merest thought does tend to make one a bit lazy." She looks between the two students and frowns thoughtfully. "You know, if you two are busy, or have things to do, I'm sure I could wander around the grounds for a bit on my own; I don't want to put you out."

Gossamer arches one elegant eyebrow and casually looks down at the point of impact; she is far too annoyed for this cretin to put the fear of God into her. "You missed, you moron." For a moment, the golden goddess is rocked backwards, but she never losses her balance or her disdainful expression, which was now gone ice cold. "You're going to regret this intrusion." She swings her arm, and her 'lash' darts out towards No.1, aiming for his weapon arm.

Things are rapidly getting quite weird inside the bank; between herself, the hideous black eyeball streamers emanating from the otherwise normal-looking young man, and now the freakish metamorphosis she caught out of the corner of her eye, the Wading Way branch has gone all Heironymous Bosch. Let's see how good I am at this. The golden cloud forms into several thick tentacles, one of which lashes out with alarming speed towards the ring leader.

Finally got this done! Grimalkin Once Upon a Time... There's Magic In The Air Vaster than Empires and More Slow Some Enchanted Evening Getting the goods Trickster's Game Checkmate The Story of Grimalkin the Cat Gossamer "When They Hear Oom Pah Pah!" The Visit Back to Basics Team Science!

My computer got hit by a very nasty virus on Friday night, and I am very much afraid of losing lots of writing and creative material on the hard drive. Needless to say, I will be unable to access from home for the near future, so it will have to be libraries and Kinko's for a bit.

And exactly why was I so damn eager to move back to Freedom again? Sadly by this point Estelle was more annoyed than anything else, though she was concerned for the safety of non-combatants in the building. On the plus side, just yesterday the boys from FAR presented her with a gift: a complete upgrade on her old jumpsuit, which stored in a special container on the back of her portable data console. Pulling back the left sleeve of her casual business suit, she types a code sequence into the bracelet, and soon a microthin coating of 'smart sticky molecules' (?) quickly oozes up her forearm, shoulder, chest and waist, until soon her whole body is covered in the protective layer. In fact, the highly-experimental molecules converted her street clothes into part of their structure, which the mouthbreathing techs at ASTRO swear will be instantly reversible :roll: If her last jumpsuit was form-fitting, her new look is downright aerodynamic, her old blue and whites traded in for metallic blue and silver; her hair now unfurled like menacing storm clouds on the horizon, Gossamer stand with hands on hips in what she fails to recognize is a classic heroic pose. "Haven't you ever heard of 'computer crime'? Why go to all this trouble when you can just commit simple wire fraud like everyone else? Or is it just that you're too simple to do more than wave around a few guns and puff out your chest like a rooster?"

Oh for the love of... Lots of innocent people, violent armor-plated thugs and here Estelle neglected to bring her jumpsuit along on her date, not that she could have practically worn it under her little blue dress. Hmm, I might need to speak with the FAR boys about that. Her first thought is to get the baddies to focus on her and no one else; to do that, she will need to be highly visible and well-protected. She could try the weird idea she'd been toying with...well, desperate times and all that. The beautiful blonde turns to her companion and grimaces ruefully. "Excuse me one moment, won't you?" She sets down her purse, rises to her feet and kicks off her shoes; she then begins purposefully striding towards the entrance, and as she does, something remarkable happens, even for this heroine. Her long shimmering hair, each strand stronger than tensile steel, begins to wraps itself around her body, weaving itself into a bizarre suit of golden armor that fits her like a glove. Even stretched out to its limit, it takes almost every fiber to sheathe her from head to toe, but enough is left for her to wield a golden braided whip some ten feet long that lashes about like an angry snake. "I'm sorry, you gentlemen seemed to have dropped something."

As per Doc's post above, using HP to convert PH 10 to Force Field 8 and PH 2.

Estelle politely ignored the 'too old' comment, as she was sure no slight was intended, and firmly returned the enthusiastic boy's handshake. She grins at his comment. "Nice to meet you, Eddie. Yes, chemistry is indeed cool, at least I hope it is when I teach it, as is biology if you give it chance. Biology helps makes us what we are, including those of use with enhanced capabilities. She turns to Erin and smiles hopefully. "I'm going to do the same thing I did before, Erin, just to give you fair warning this time. Now, Eddie, I want you to watch closely, and try and think how biology let's me do this-" Suddenly her shimmering hair unfurls, extending outwards like a massive pair of wings two hundred feet across; each individual strand gleams like gold in the sunlight. "Now admittedly, this isn't normal behavior for protein filaments, but even the most mundane strand of human hair is as strong as a copper wire of the same diameter. Normal dry hair can stretch one-fifth its length before breaking, and wet hair over twice that." As she speaks, her hair shifts through a number of shapes and configurations, each one surprisingly detailed: a five-masted galleon, a horse and buggy, even a fair representation of the Marines raising the flag on Iwo Jima. Each construction is about twenty feet high by forty across, almost like parade floats. At last, Estelle's amazing locks collapse inward, shedding excessive length as they once again fold and twist into her usual thick braid. She sighs as her display comes to a close. "Yes, I've been practicing that bit, on the off-chance I'm invited back on Craig Ferguson." The new teacher shakes her head in slight embarrassment before giving Eddie two thumbs up. "So, in conclusion, biology also cool." ;)

I would like to convert Gossamer's single unspent power point on Quick Change; logically I don't this could be effective until 'Back to Basics'. It would indicate an new suit that is based on 'sticky molecules' that oozes out of the computer link bracelet she wears on her left wrist. Done by Sandman XI

Hmm. In the 'Team Science' thread set after this one, she specifically says that it's 'murder to get into' her outfit, so logically I'm thinking she doesn't have her Devices; adding Quick Change is starting to sound like a real good excuse for an upgraded suit. Perhaps she can stunt Protection with her hair? I had an idea for that, actually. Estelle got a 10

Initiative = 20 Notice (untrained) = 15