Dr Archeville

Holy Frak! Discussion thread @ the ATT, started by Steve Kenson himself

Charity race?

Bad news: he easily sees you're trying to distract him (since his Sense Motive modifier is higher than that). Good news: you get an HP.

Is this before or after Grim & Breakdown met Dead Head?

*sees what Goss is doing* Lemme get a Bluff check; your Attractive bonus does figure in.

I will say.... yes. :)

No, no, the Stealth check should be coming first; since he's readied an action to shoot Doc in the face if she does anything, we need to see if he notices her doing anything. (such is the peril of readied actions.) If he makes the Notice check, he reacts during that split-second between when she initiates her attack (or whatever) and the time the attack reaches him (note I said "reaches him," not "connects" ). So, Power Corps leader's Notice check vs. Goss's Stealth (DC 25) is... me handwaving, since his modifier's only +5, so rather than say he's got a 1-in-20 chance of noticing, I'll just say he fails. So he does not get his readied action, and her attack could KO him and- 15 does miss the bad guy :(

Oh, I fully realized that not everyone he called would be able to make it ;)

Both my chars would be interested... but if Wander's there, having Dead Head show up could be a monumentally bad thing. (Unless they'd already met and come to terms during the Invasion....)

Still need to hear from alderwitch Avenger Electra Lone Star playah Sandman Skysong Sorus BType, Doctor Science, mellowgoth, patcore, and Thuellai made no IC posts this month.

As Archeville carries Taylor into the MedLab, he makes a few quick calls on his cell phone. "Vince! Bring de team to ArcheTech Prime, now. Jack und Taylor are here, about to give birth, und Dracula is coming. Yes, I know vhat dat sounds like! Just bring dem in!" "Ace! Archeville here. Jack und Taylor are at ArcheTech Prime, she's about to give birth, und Dracula is breathing down our necks. You haff fought him before, ja?" "Mona! Hi... ja, ja, I'm- no, Mona, listen -- I need you help. No, not like dat; ArcheTech Prime is under attack. Ja... Dracula. Ja, Dracula!" "Elena! Ja, I am in a spot of trouble; vould you mind svinging by ArcheTech Prime? Oh, just some lawyers, sniffing out some blood." Once Taylor was safely on a MedLab bed, Archeville reconfigured his wondrous techno-wand into a communications device, one that used a carrier wave detectable by few beings on the planet. A graviton-based wave. "Doktor Archeville to Dark Star, come in. I can use some of your solar powers; seems a rather potent vampire is about to invade ArcheTech Prime. He appears to be after Jack and Taylor; they're here now, and she's about to go into labor."

Doktor Archeville News Thread (2) And Blackjack (0) Back to School (5; now closed) Childhood Dream (2) Containment Means Never Having To Say KABOOM! (16) The Dragon Wakes (2) Fisticuffs 2: The Opening Credits (4) Fisticuffs 2: Rycon vs. Geckoman (1) The Game's Afoot (2) Grue Invasion: AEGIS HQ (3) I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings (0) Interrupting Cow (3) Life's Bazaar (0) A Meeting of the Minds (0; on hiatus) No Mutation Without Representation (2) Stocks & Bonds (0) Sturm und Dr... Archeville (20) "When They Hear Oom Pah Pah!" (0) 2+0+5+2+16+2+4+1+2+3+0+3+0+0+2+0+20+0 = 62 I finally feel like my page for Doktor Archeville on the Wiki is substantial enough to earn an extra pp. Dead Head News Thread (1) Darkness Rising (1) Dead Men Do Tell Tales (2) Fisticuffs 2: The Opening Credits/Wander vs. Dead Head (17) Gods & Zombies (1; on hiatus) Green with Envy (3) Grue Invasion: Monsters in the Streets (Midtown)! (1) Happier Times (0) 1+1+2+17+1+3+1+0 = 26 I finally feel like my page for Dead Head on the Wiki is substantial enough to earn an extra pp. Things I'm GMing, Using an NPC in, and Non-Canon Stuff And They Called Me MAD! (Non-Canon) (0) Delivery at Pier 18 (0) Go For Broken (Non-Canon) (0) Gods & Zombies (0) "When They Hear Oom Pah Pah!" (4) [interceptors] Zombie Powder is a Helluva Drug (5) 0+0+0+0+4+5 = 9 / 2 = 4.5

In order to make sure the Refs accurately count all your IC posts and award you the due amount of power points, please post with a list of all the threads in which your character posted IC this month (including the News forum). Please also mark things from the Non-Canonical forum as being non-canonical, as those count 1/2 (2 posts made for your char in a non-canon thread count as 1 post for the char). And if you are GMing something, list those threads, too. GM-only posts -- as well as NPC Villain posts -- also count 1/2, and can be assigned to whichever of your characters needs a 'push' to get up in post numbers. When you make your list, please post a link to the IC threads (preferably the first post of the month, though that's not necessary), so we can jump right to it. Help us help you :mrgreen:

Let's just hope Grim doesn't get too jealous, else she find solace in the big, red arms of another.... ;)

The team is down one Speedster, what with Velocity being no longer with us. And if the Captain Knievel/Malice bromance is any indication, the Colt/Dynamo one should be epic. ;)

72 hours left to get those vignettes in! EDIT: LIES!!! Only a lil' over 10 hours to get them in!

I think a few ranks in Obscure (Radio) would do the same thing. At any rate, since forgeries/fakes can be found out with a Notice check, are there any in the shoppe? Does it look to be a legit place (er, rather, carrying legit items), or is most of the stuff here cheap knockoffs?

"Right, new plan!," he shouted as he dashed from the remains of the gravity pad. He stopped at a nearby panel and furiously entered commands; normally it would take only the press of a few buttons but the chaos around him made everything exponentially more difficult. After a moment he turned back to Fulcrum, "I may haff someding dat can contain dis! Hold still!" The Doktor pressed one final button, and a large dome clapped shut over Fulcrum. The dome was mostly clear, but covered -- no, embedded -- with a criss-cross of thin wires; at each intersection was a small box with a lens aimed inward. Those lenses began glowing, then thousands of tiny beams of light, all colors of the rainbow, lanced out from them and hit Fulcrum. "Dose beams can damper most inherent metahuman abilities," she heard his muffled voice through the dome, "dey should do de trick!"

"He's gonna eat its brain an' gain its knowledge?," Dead Head ruminated as he reattached his arm. "That's just sick!" [beat] "So, since you four got me way beat in the damage-dealin' an' enemy-vacuumin' department, how's'bout I focus on freein' th' hostages? One I get 'em untied, I can make sure they run far, far away from here."

27 March 2010 The scene opens on a cemetery, at night. The scene is far form any city lights, but it's a clear night, and the moon is nearly full, so there is enough light to get by. However, the cameraman is holding a powerful flashlight, casting a harsh beam to light the way. "... and for those of you just joining me, this is Rich "Voyeur" Royer, broadcasting from the Greenville Cemetery. I was here yesterday morning, attending the funeral of my friend Robert, and saw something bizarre, a skeletal figure, out of the corner of my eye. The boys at the studio reviewed the footage and confirmed there was something there, it wasn't just a figment of my imagination. A bit of digging in the studio's crank files paints an interesting picture, which is why I'm out here. Apparently, for the past six months or so, there's been a bizarre figure skulking about the cemeteries and graveyards of Freedom. Now, I know what you're thinking: mysterious figures skulking about in such places isn't exactly news, there's tons of urban legends and such about evil sorcerers and crazed cultists and the like doing all manner of unnatural things out here, late at night, but that's where this... being differs. He's an ugly thing, straight out of nightmares, with weird and decidedly superhuman abilities, but he's been seen in daylight, and while most run when spotting him, those who don't, those who stick around, report that he's a talkative and even, if you can believe this, friendly guy! And that's why I'm here -- to try and interview him! No telling hat I'll find out here, or- wait! I think I heard something... yeah, something's moving out here... c'mon, Sam, get the lead out! Oh, yeah, that's Sam, my bodyguard for the evening. Say 'hi' to the folks, Sam." The view turns to a large bald man in jeans and a tight white shirt. He grunts, and the view shifts back. "Sam doesn't say much. Okay, I heard footsteps over this way, so we- oh ****!" A form off in the distance is seen slowly shuffling by. From this distance all that can be made out of it is that it's roughly the size of an adult human male, and has some sort of green light near its head. "I see a form in the distance, seems to be carrying a light of some sort. A flashlight? No, it's a weird green color? Oh, man, if that's a glowstick from a rave, and this is just some local blitzed out on Zombie Powder, I-" The figure suddenly turned its head and looked straight at Voyeur. "Oh, ****, he's seen us! I- wait, hold on, this is what I came out here for-" The figure began slowly moving towards him. "... yes, yes, interview him, or it, or... whatever. Sam, you're still here, right?" "Hrm." "Real comfort there, Sam. Okay, he's coming closer, let's... let's go over to that clearing there, get a better shot. I- oh, *****, where'd he go? He was right there!" "Over here... over here...." a rasping voice hissed. "Oh***whatthe****wasthatdoyouseewhere-Samwhereareyougoing?!" "Over here..." The scene became jangled, as Voyeur was panicked and running through the cemetery. He stumbled several times as he looked back behind him. The first two times, he saw nothing, but on the third look, he saw the figure again, some sort of rotting zombie with green flaming eyes, reaching out for Voyeur. "**** **** ****-" THUD! The scene flipped along with Voyeur as he tripped over a discarded beer bottle and plowed headlong into a tombstone. The video and audio began to fade out as he lost consciousness. "Hey, I said I was over here... whoa, man, you don't look so good...." The image flickers back, and from the angle one would assume Voyeur is sitting on the ground, propped up against something. The "camera" pans up, and sees what was presumably the creature from before, now looming over Voyeur. It is man-like, dressed in what could generously be called tattered Hell's Angel gear. Its skin is the purplish-greenish-gray of a bruised and decayed corpse, made all the eerier by the lambent green flames dancing in its eyes and the tangled mane of ghost-white hair radiating from its head. Voyeur mistook its leering smile for a predatory look, but then it occurred to him that it was a frozen rictus grin. Q1: "Wh-what are you?" "I am a Southern gentleman. We're a dyin' breed, y'know, 'specially up here in Yankee country." It threw back its head and laughed, a sound that somehow echoed through the open night sky. "Nah, seriously, t'give an answer ya'd find useful: I'm some sort'a Revenant." The 'camera' tilted slightly, and so did the head of the creature. "Revenant... er, like a zombie, but not brainless." Q2: "Oh, ****, you're gonna eat my brain, aren't you?" Voyeur's arms go up in a defensive pose. "What? No!" Voyeur's arms lower slightly. The creature looks quite offended at the suggestion. "You know how high in cholesterol those things are? Or, heck, how strong I'd have to be just to get to yer brains? The skull's the hardest bone in th' body, it ain't an easy nut t'crack; I certainly couldn't just bite my way through it, like ya see in 'em movies." Q3: "O-Okay... not eating my brain... that's good. So... uh... what does keep you going?" Voyeur's voice was slowly becoming more steady, more sure. "Helpin' others, mostly. I investigate deaths, make' sure last wishes are fulfilled an' unfinished business gets finished, that sort'a stuff." Q4: "Ohhh... so you're a homicide detective, and this is all a costume? To scare superstitious and cowardly criminals?" Voyeur's voice had returned to his usual tone, and now he was slowly standing up, sliding up against the hard surface he had been leaning against. "Detective? Nah, ain't had no real trainin', I just do what I can, like all them other vigilantes. Though I am lucky enough to count a lot of folks as mentors an' advisers, an' I've learned a lot from 'em all. As fer my appearance... well, this ain't th' first choice of clothes I'd wear, but they've stood up pretty well. But... if this were all just a costume... could I do... this!" The strange being grasped its head with both hands and pulled upward, cleanly and neatly removing it from the neck and holding it up as high as it could. It then tossed its head from hand to hand, rolled it across its arms, and performed other tricks worthy of a Harlem Globetrotter. It ended the display by tossing its head into the air, which then landed on the neck, backwards, then grabbing and twisting the head right way around. "And that is why they call me Dead Head the Magnificent!" Voyeur was quiet for some time. A slight distortion in the image was the only indication that he was temporarily stunned with fear. Q5: "That... wow... um, okay... how long have you been... like this?" "How long? Oh, let's see..." The creature taps its chin with one long, bony finger. "Well, guess it's been almost a decade, now. Yeah, got turned on New Year's Eve'a 1999, right when it turned t' 2000." Q6: "What? Some sort of 'Y2K Bug' did this to you?" "Ehhh, kinda. I was at a party, big bash, bunch'a friends there. Right as th' clock struck, some weird energy thing burst outta my head, killed me an' everyone there. But then I got up, lookin' like this." The flames in the creature's eyes dim a bit. "Lost a lotta god friends that night." Q7: "You were the only one to rise? No one else? No one else like you?" Dead Head is quiet and still for some time. In this state, one could easily mistake him for an ordinary corpse... whose eyes were on fire. "No, no one else. Jes me." "Whoa... I can't... can't imagine what that's like, losing all your friends like that, never being able to talk to them again or-" The creature cocked its head, and it became more animated. "Who said I couldn't talk to 'em again?" Q8: "What? You mean to say, you can talk with the dead? How? What do they say?" The creature threw its head back and barked out a short laughed. "Oh, what don't they say! Give 'em a chance, they'll talk yer ear off! But, that's 'cuz there ain't no one else t'hear 'em. An' I pass on what they say to the ones what they want t' hear it... though, sometimes, all they want is jes fer someone to listen. Like, this one gal I was chattin' with, 'bout a month ago. She'd wanted to be a comedienne, but she slipped and fell in the shower th' mornin' of her big debut. Conked her head, died right then an' there. Her spirit lingered, since she never got t'do her bit, 'till I came along. She ran through her routine -- which was really good! -- and then she jes'... moved on." Q9: "'Moved on'? What, you're saying there's an Afterlife, a Heaven?" The creature cocked its head again, and it appeared slightly annoyed at the question. "Boy, look around you! Ya got'a Voudoun Goddess on the Freedom League, an' a Voodoo God tryin' t'run all the drug rackets an' gang activity! Ya had a Greek God invade here, back in the 60s, with a whole army'a undead, an' I hear tell the Nazis had one bound to their cause! Of course there're afterlifes!" "'Uh, yeah, I guess that does make sense." "'Course it does!," it said matter-of-factly, looking straight at Voyeur (and , thus, straight into the 'camera'). Q10: "Does it get lonely? Seeing them Move On, but not Moving On yourself? And, well, looking as you do, I'm sure you don't get to interact much with regular people." "Lonely? Naah," it says with a dismissive wave of the hand. "It took some gettin' used to, sure, 'twas a big shock fer me. But the dead keep me company, and there's a few'a you live folks out there who're happy t'hang with me." Q11: "Oh? Like who? Who hangs out with 'Dead Head the Magnificent'?" "Wow, that does sound cool," it murmurs, just enough for Voyeur to hear. It quickly resumes it normal speaking volume, "Oh, all sorts'a folks. Goth kids, 'course, though just as many of 'em run when they see me as they do stay an' chat. An' I'm on pretty good terms with the folks runnin' th' local morgues, 'specially seein' as how often our paths cross. Spoken with a few priests an' other holy rollers, too." It paused and scratched the back of its head, "'Course, a few'a them tried t' run me outta town, or exorcise me! Didn't relaly work, a'course, but I jes steer clear of 'em. Unless, of course, mah work brings my path 'cross theirs... but then, I can usually get one'a the Midnighters t'act as a go-between there." Q12: "The Midnighters? Who are they? Some sort of 'monsters-only' vigilante team?" "Well, yer partly right, but if Avenger caught you callin' Phantom a monster, he'd tear yer throat out." A loud gulping sound is heard. "Eh, I'm just messin' wit' ya!," it said, chuckling and slapping its knee. "Nah, they're all good'uns. Atlas, th' big red fella what's been jumpin' 'round lately. Avenger, he's a sneaky, stealthy one. An' then there's Hellion an' Phantom; they got some weird magic mojo in their corners. 'When things go bump in th' night, we's the ones what bump back!' Got that from a movie." Q13: "How did you all meet? How did you come to form a team?" "Well, let's see..." The creature strokes its chin in thought, but on the third stroke its jaw comes off in its hand. It looks down at it, raises its free hand in a "just a minute" pose, and turns slightly. When it turns back, the jaw is reattached. "Well, let's see... I met Atlas, Avenger an' Phantom back in early October. We was all investigatin' some weird goin's on an' our paths all crossed. Good thing, too, since it got pretty hairy down in th' sewers! We worked well together, an' we'd come t'each other's aid if th'other gave a holler. 'Round about December, Hellion joined, an' we decided t'make the team a more organized thing." Q14: "Any other heroes you'd like to work with?" "Oh, I'd be happier'n'a hog in slop t'work with any'a Freedom' heroes! 'Course, a better question is, would any'a them wanna work with me, y'know?" Q15: "Heh, yeah, I suppose so. So... is there any particulat type of criminal element you go after? You mentioned monsters..." "Yeah, monsters, an' those who make 'em. Some mad scientist types, but mostly necromancers, raisin' up th' dead as mindless shells, desecratin' their remains, or bindin' spirits t'do their evil bidddin'. Nasty sort. Graverobbers, too, even the non-magicin ones, what just rob graves fer any valuables inside. An'... well...." The creature looks, astonishingly, a bit sheepish. "I... I got a soft spot fer kids. Hate seein' 'em get hurt." Q16: "Wow. That's... wow. Okay, so, we know what you hate -- what is it you love?" "Well, helpin' folks, like I said. Both th' livin' an' the dead. Horror an' sci-fi movies, too, I was a huge movie an' tv geek in college, an- hold on a sec. 'We'?" "Yes, 'We'. The audience. My viewers." "Yer what?!" The creature turns this way and that, looking for hidden cameras. "Yes, I... don't you know who I am? I'm 'Voyeur', the guy who can broadcast whatever he sees and hears to any television or radio. I'm broadcasting this all now to some recording units at the GBN studios!" The creature turns to face Voyeur/the camera. It appears agitated. "You what?!" Q17: (nervously) "So... uh... h-how do you like it here in Freedom City? Must be a long way from your home, based on your accent" The creature stalks forward, the lights in its eyes flaring up. Voyeur takes a few steps back. Q18: "H-how do you feel about superhumans and aliens, and their p-place on Earth?" The creature continues slowly stalking forward, now with arms outstretched, mouth slightly agape. Voyeur keeps backpeddling, but also keeps stammering out questions. Q19: "If there's one b-bit of advice you could give the audience -- the children! -- what would it beEEE?!" The creature had lunged forward and grasped Voyeur by the shoulders, and pulled him close. "Yousaidyoudon'teatbrains!yousaidyoudon'teat-" Viewers would see the 'camera' being pulled towards the zombie, up towards its open mouth, then up level with its flaming eyes. "AAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!" Suddenly, the 'camera' jerked, and a view could easily think that the undead monster had just taken a large bit out of Voyeur's neck. The long drawn-out smooching sound, and then the reappearance of the creature's smiling face (with not a hint of blood on its lips or teeth), indicating that it had drawn Voyeur close to hug him and kiss him on the cheek, was perhaps a relief. "I always wanted t'be on tee-vee! Ha!" The scene wobbles a bit, as Voyeur fights the urge to faint. "An' t'answer yer questions: Freedom's a great city, very welcoming t'all types'a folks. Aliens an' superhumans have as much place here as anyone else; jes 'cuz they may not be people don't mean they ain't folks." "Oh, Lord, I think I soiled myself." "An' as fer advice: drink plenty'a milk, stay in school, an' don't do drugs. Take time, make time, t'enjoy life, an' take care'a each other, 'cuz we're all in this together." Q20: "I... oh... that... that's good advice, yeah... okay, s-so... if... if someone w-wanted to contact you, or the other Midnighters, how w-would they do so?" "Oh, we do patrols e'ry night, we keep an eye out fer trouble. We all gout our sources, see, an'-" The creature is suddenly still, and looks past Voyeur. Voyeur quickly turns to see what might be behind him, but sees nothing immediately threatening, and turns quickly back to his interviewee. "Sorry, Voyeur, but duty calls! Been a pleasure, though!" The creature shambles off in the direction of Wharton State Forest. "Holeee ****!" Voyeur's impromptu interview with Dead Head the Magnificent has yet to air, deemed too controversial for airing by the Globe Broadcasting Network execs. However, it does still exist on tapes in the GBN studios.

Doc plans to call in the Interceptors, Ace Danger, Dark Star, Fulcrum, and Scarab.

Doc's still got his brain set to Enhanced Charisma. With his Mental Quickness, he can Take 20 on a Notice check as a free action. Taking 20 gets him a 30. Anything of note pop out, either in the store, on The Finn, or in The Finn's back room?

Except the House Rules. ;)

Some people like watching trailers and clips. Some do not. No one is forcing those who do not want to view them to click those links.

Dead Head's good to go :)