Dr Archeville

SNAP! CRACKLE! POP! Just about every bone in Dead Head's body had been either wrenched out of its socket or broken. Fortunately for the Revoltin' Revenant, he healed fast. Well, not "healed," technically, but that was a close enough term. Dead Head stood and looked up at the rhino-mole creature. "Didn't hurt!" Then he started jumping up and down and waving his arms. "Wassamatter, beastie? Ain't I ripe enough for ya? Afraid a lil' spoiled meat'll turn yer tummy! C'mon, eat me! EAT ME!" Okay, if this works, it swallows me, I start tearing it apart from the inside. It's gotta be soft & squishy in there, not touch and armored... right?

Thomas clearly saw that his thrown-out line snared Archeville's interest. So interested, in fact, that he did not notice when Thomas had finished speaking. He did eventually notice, of course, and thanks to his near-photographic memory could "rewind" the scene in his mind to hear what he'd missed. And thanks to his lightning-fast mind, this all happened in a a few milliseconds. "It is my understanding dat Faeries are 'spirits of nature'," he said between sips of the coffee, "unless you are referring to de more 'Elemental' spirits, embodiments of de four Classical Elements of erde, feuer, vind und vasser. Und my response vould be de same as de previous von: ancient metahumans, or incorporeal beings from another reality forming crude bodies from local materials, or impressionable observers taking liberties mit de descriptions of earthqvakes, forest fires, floods und tornadoes." "However," he added while mixing some cream into the coffee, "dere is a 'spirit of nature' dat I can and vould very much like to study in detail: Freedom's own Doctor Metropolis. I do not know much about him -- yet -- but he seems, both from a metahuman powers point of view, und a psychological point of vifew, a fascinating topic of interest." There was something vaguely sinister about the way the Doktor said "yet". "Ah, much better," he said after tasting the coffee again. "Now, vhat vas dat you said about 'it is not like ve can reproduce'? I understand dat bites are de most common vay de condition is passed, but do you mean to say de condition renders you unable to reproduce in de traditional manner? Dat de condition... spays und neuters you?"

Background and other fluff is quite nifty. Stats are off. You've listed her as spending 18pp, but she's only got 14pp worth of them. Since her knives have the Accurate power feat, her Attack should be listed as "+2, +4 ranged, +6 w/ her knives" If she's only spent 2pp on Defense, and has Dodge Focus 1, then her Defense is +2 (+0 flat-footed). For her Will save, that 3 at the end should be a 4. Otherwise, this is fine. You have 11 ranks in skills, not 11pp worth of skills. Did you mean for each of those points to be 4 ranks? If so, it should look like this: Acrobatics 8 (+10) Climb 4 (+4) Craft (structural) 4 (+7) Notice 8 (+8) Search 8 (+11) Sleight of Hand 4 (+6) Stealth 8 (+10) Aside from the concerns with Sneak Attack (see below), this looks fine. Cute Here's where some issue arise. First, why those Extras and Power Feats? As an Alt Save/Will effect, it means she's attacking the target's minds, not their bodies; her electricity can't damage mindless creatures, or objects. Since it affects Will, Penetrating isn't nearly as useful, since Impervious on a Will save is very rare. Second, the Astral Form AP. The background you wrote seems to be describing Teleport, and the Medium flaw you list there is appropriate for Teleport. Astral Form is not Teleport, it's ESP + Communication. Also, Attack Specialization (Shock) and Hide In Plain Sight aren't valid Power Feats: she can't use her Shock while using the Astral Form, and the Subtle feat is what's needed to make an Astral Form less noticeable. This is fine, though see my note above under Combat re: the Accurate part, and below re: damage from her knives w/ sneak attack. Looks okay. Be sure to list the +3 from Sneak Attack somewhere. Unfortunately, the Accurate on her knife (which bumps her attack to +6) and Sneak Attack on her knives (bumping damage to +7) means she break caps. One of those will need to be lowered by one point.

It seems you'd already put 2pp in her Fort save, but that was never added to her save. So you've still got 2pp unspent!

Ah, but Nicholas Cage is not a regular person!

"Eh, I wouldn't say I got it worse than you. I mean, sure," he undid his shovel from the makeshift holster on his back, stuck it in the dirt, and leaned against it, "I look like roadkill left out in th' Alabama sun fer a week, an' most times I smell like it, too. An' the dead talk t' me, all the danged time. On th' upside... the dead talk t'me, an' through me can talk t'others, an' helping folks find closure is remarkably upliftin'. Also, I can do this!" The zombie held out his hands, and did the "sliding thumb" trick. Except he really was sliding his thumb off and on. Then he snapped off his right hand at the wrist, and it quickly scampered all over him like a grotesque spider, finally stopping to perch atop his shoulder. The whole time, his rictus grin was a bit wider, as if he was a smiling kid with a new toy. He turned from the thing on his shoulder back to Avenger, "ya said Taylor's never mentioned the folks you killed. Okay, but have you mentioned 'em to her? I know yer way'a thinkin' ain't th' same as it was, what with ye unnatural hunger, but any relationship needs t'be built on trust an' mutual respect. Honesty's th' best policy, man, lies'll always come up t'bite ya in the end. Always."

... bah! /action makes edits

Three minor things for Dead Head: 1) Please mark that he is PL 13 2) Please replace the Dodge Focus feat with the Connected feat. 3) Change this [b]Comprehend 2[/b] (languages [understand all], spirits; [i]PFs[/i]: Alternate Power, Connected, Contacts) [2x2 +3 = 7pp] [u]AP[/u]: [b]Super-Senses 8[/b] (postcognition, precognition; [i]Flaws[/i]: Distracting, Requires corpse) to this [b]Comprehend 2[/b] (languages [understand all], spirits; [i]PFs[/i]: Alternate Power, Connected, Well-Informed) [2x2 +3 = 7pp] [u]AP[/u]: [b]Super-Senses 8[/b] (postcognition, precognition; [i]Flaw[/i]: Unreliable) (Remove Connected from Comprehend, add Well-Informed. Remove the Distracting and "Requires Corpse" Flaws from precog/postcog, and add Unreliable. Those super-senses block your normal senses by default, so Distracting's kinda already part of it; he no longer requires a corpse b/c spirits come to him; Unreliable b/c the things they tell him aren't always useful, or even remotely pertinent.) And eventualy I'll get some Gather Information to make these feats more useful.... DONE BY SHAENTHEBRAIN

Good grief, it just occurred to me that Dead Head's like the love-child of Avenger and Edge!

"Yeah, two brothers been drivin' all around the country, huntin' monsters an' such." He shook his head and gave a little smirk, "Shot me full'a rock salt. Salt! Can ya believe it! They didn't even hear me out, they jes started shotin' soon as they saw me! An' when they saw that weren't slowin' me down none, they brought out a big, whatchacallit, kukri, took ma head clean off! I thought if I played 'possum they'd leave me be, an' move on, an' they did... after settin' me on fire. Good thing I cain't feel no pain, y'know!", he laughed and slapped one knee. "So I jes lay there, let 'em burn me t'ashes. Lucky for me they then buried th' ashes, so the wind couldn't blow me away. Crawled up an' out th' next day. Keep meanin' t'look up what happened t'those two. Think they're still in town?" Dead Head suddenly leaned in close, and spoke in an exaggerated 'stage whisper,' "Hey, y'wanna hear soemthin' really scary? Somethin' sure t'give you -- yeah, you -- nightmares? I used t'be jes like you!" He stood straight and resumed his normal voice, "I was fightin' cultists an' graverobbers when you still had a heartbeat, an' I was as grim and dour as you! I never ate anyone, 'least, not knowin'ly, but I was a terrible force, seekin' bloody vengeance fer th' dead, showin' not a hint'a mercy. An' it weren't just 'cause of the restless dead I was dealin' with, day in an' day out, it was dealin' with all the people what made them restless dead in the' first place, th' drug dealers an' the slavers and th' jealous husbands an' the serial killers. Like what that guy Nicky said: 'He what fights with monsters oughta beware that he himself don't become no monster. An' when you take a gander into an abyss, th'abyss also takes a gander inta you.' But...," he paused, looking past Avenger for a moment, "... but I moved on. They say there's five stages'a grief, Denial, Anger, Bargainin', Depression, an' Acceptance. Most'a th' undead fall into that pattern, too, an' most never get outta th' first three stages, Denyin' that they ain't alive no more, or Angry at everyone an' everythin', or Bargainin' their humanity for more time here, usually by robbin' others of their own. I moved past those, skipped right over Bargainin' an' Depression, an' have been happily sittin' in Acceptance fer about two years now."

Welcome, new folks! :)

"Yes und no -- bubonic, septicemic, und pneumonic plague are all caused by de bacterium Yersinia pestis, vhich can be carried in de guts of fleas, vhich infest small und mobile animals," Archeville clarified, "such as black rats carried over to from Asia to Europe by de trade routes, und later on Europe's native brown rat population. But dose three diseases vere not de only part of de Black Death, und possibly not even de most prevalent part; recent findings indicate the Black Death may haff been some sort of viral hemorrhagic fever, akin to Ebola, de Hantavirus, or Lassa fever, vhich can be carried in the saliva, urine und feces of rodents." The young man in the booth behind the Doktor dropped his spoon and dashed off to the restroom. The beginnings of a sneer had crept onto Archeville's face when Thomas asked about Faeries. At the mention of magic, the sneer manifest fully and abruptly. "Dere is no such ding as magic," he said flatly, "only dings people do not understand und ascribe a supernatural cause to. People used to believe de vorld vas flat, or dat de Sun und all de planets orbited de Earth. But ve know different now. If de Atom Family or de Psions or de Power Corps vere sent back in time do de days of de Black Death, dey vould likely be branded as vitches und sorcerers, deir abilities seen as magical. Many sources say 'magic' is an inheritable trait, passed from generation to generation und honed mit practice und guidance from experienced mentors -- just like any other metahuman power. 'Spellcasters' are just metahumans mit some psychological hangups, dinking dey must gesture und incant to use deir powers... or are con-men who know vhat dey are, und go through de motions to impress de crowds. At best, de 'spellbooks' dat are passed on from generation to generation vould have information akin to vhat de Albright Institute searches for, how metahuman powers vork und how to use dem, but it vould all be hidden under dense symbolism or dream-fueled gibbering." He paused a moment, then cleared his throat. "You said dat no von has been able to... reverse your condition, dat none of de traditional remedies have shown any effect. Vhat can you tell me of de history of de condition? Dat is, vhat does your culture say on de origins of de condition, vhere it started, who was first to show signs of it?"

"Vell, at least dey bothered to pin down your nationality -- most vould not bother to make de distinction!," he laughed. "Freedom is much more... vibrant since de last time I vas here. I had been here before, you see, as a student at HIT. I first came about a year after de big Terminus Invasion, und de mood of de city vas still a bit... haunted, I suppose, even mit de return of all de costumed heroes. Dings rapidly picked up, of course, but as a native you know all about dat. After I got mein first doctorate, I returned to Europe und began my vork in earnest." His smile had returned; speaking of his (simpler?) college days seemed to buoy him. "Oh, lookee here!," the Doktor exclaimed, with all the giddiness of an excited schoolboy. He pressed a button on his techno-wand and a holographic display of the gravity pad's performance popped into the air. "You just passed de seven hundred ton mark!" He found himself looking into her eyes; his showed mostly excitement, a bit of yearning, and something... else. He turned to study Fulcrum's limbs, how they muscles tensed and strained. "Vhere did you go to college? Or did your assorted ailments hinder dose plans?"

I was thinking Dead Head's existing super-senses -- acute analytical necromantic awareness -- would be enough to let him detect lingering traces of the resurrection magic used on Fleur.

Dead Head kept an eye on the three as he followed Breakdown around to the back. When he got past the gate, he stopped looking over his shoulder, and focused on what was ahead of him. He knew Hellion from the Midnighters, and Jack from the forest and the Carnival. But the other girl was new. And... 'off,' to his way of seeing things. As if she'd been dead before, but brought back. "Evenin', gents, ma'am," the zombie said, tipping his hat to her. Well, replace "hat" with "his entire head." "This all have anythin' t'do with that big green shootin' star I saw streak overhead?"

Looks like we should all be rolling initiative? initiative for combat #2 (1d20+1=16)

2/3rds of the Refs have daily (or nearly so) offline interactions with one other player. Making this known in the Ref cave would mean about a third of the total player base would've been in on it. So :P

Happy Birthday!

"Seems more folks than not are surprised t'hear themselves say those words," Dead Head replied, nodding. "An' even when it's 'normal' folks involved, it can still be horrifyin'! I can't even begin t'imagine what it'll be like fer you, though, given... well... given the way most'a yer kind looks on that sort'a thing." "But," he said as he stood up some flowers on a grave which had fallen over, "if people bound their actions t'what society said, miscegenation an' segregation laws'd still be in effect. Then again..." he paused, "Well, it's clear you two love each other -- an' Lord alone knows how that came t'be! -- an' that's th'important thing. Jes like I know you two are gonna take great care'a that kid. Well... as best as ya can, at least." "I mean, don't get me wrong," he turned to Avenger with hands raised up in defense, "she's a great gal, very carin' and kind. I mean, she lets me into yer house t'catch up on all the latest horror an' sci-fi movies, you cain't get more amicable than that! But... you... " Dead Head shrank down a bit, "yer a vampire, man, an' they ain't known fer their compassion. Sure, ya love her, an' you'll love th' kid, as best you can... but, let's be honest here, the best ya can do is always gonna be a bit tainted. You'll love 'em both, but there's some part'a ya that's always gonna be lookin' at 'em as yer next meal, or as a threat to your own existence, a burden to yer freedom t'hunt. Which kinda means my bit about comparin' what you two have to a mixed-race marriage an' segregation an' Civil Rights falls apart when th' differences 'tween you an' her are a heck of a lot more than skin-deep."

"Make it two, please," he told the waitress before she'd left. "Faeries?" he repeated as he turned back to Thomas. "Dat is an unexpected qvestion! Not much, I am afraid to say, dough dat is someding I intend to remedy soon. I know de term applies to a vide range of beings, in uch de same vay 'undead' is a term dat can apply to a vide array of creatures. Dey are most frequently associated mit nature, untamed wilderness und de like, dough some make deir home in do cottages of men. Dey are reported to haff a vide range of abilities -- stunning beauty, immense strength despite a miniscule frame, illusions und trickery of all sorts -- und just as vide a range of veaknesses. Iron is de most common, dough some legends say Chrisitan iconography can vard em avay; some say varing von's clothes inside-out protects you, as dey vill be too busy laughing at your appearance to do anyding harmful." Archeville drummed the fingers of his right hand on the table three times, then lightly slapped it. "Do you know of any ozher vere-creatures, other therianthropes? I haff read of verecats und vererats und verebears, but haff you encountered or heard of anyvon who has encountered such beings?"

"Oh, I am sure dere vill be," the Doktor said as he skimmed the stock quotes, "criminal elements like dese are symptoms of far greater evils, such as inadequate education und psychiatric und psychological counseling." "I had heard about dat particular crime," he said after a moment's pause, "de doppelganger stole some dings from de evidence lockers. Gases dat could be used to turn people avay, or turn dem to your cause. Also qvite useful for any up-und-coming supercriminal, or as part of some larger und more convoluted scheme." He folded the paper neatly and laid it across his lap. "I noticed you took a wrong turn back dere," he said calmly, "und it appears you are about to take anozher wrong turn. Dere are two reasons you vould do dat: either you are new to de job und do not know vhere you are going, or you are intentionally trying to drag dis ride out. Given de state of dis vehicle, de personal idiosyncrasies in it such as de vay de steering vheel is slightly deformed due to de vay you grip it, und your ease in handling a taxi driver's duties, I vould theorize dat you are not new to de job. So, vhy de delay? If it is merely to expand de fare, I shall be quite irritated...."

I'm going to be away from a computer for most of Thursday (all-day library seminar), and most of the weekend (visiting family). If I'm on over the weekend, it will be with a slow and spotty connection.

You're on fire, man! Atlas and Helion are already done, so the Midnighters just needs Dead Head, Avenger and Phantom.

"Dey are not dat random, really," the Doktor said as he casually glanced over the paper. "Most of de items stolen could make somevon into qvite an effective super-criminal. Or are part of some existing supervillain's schemes. True, de resources und manpower expended already could be better used for simpler, more immediately lucrative heists, und dat is vhat concerns me -- if dey are going to all dis trouble for dese specific component, den vhy? Vhat is de long-term goal?" "For example," he continued in a very nonchalant tone, "from Star Island some components from a recently-downed spacecraft vere taken, components vhich could be made into a man-portable teleportation system. Dat vould be useful for anyone, especially if it utilizes heretofore unknown technologies, und de teleportation cannot be blocked by de teleport denial systems used by certain high-end security firms."

"I suspected as much..." he said, though Thomas may not have heard due to the electrical sensation that was making his hair stand on end, and the slight vertigo he was experiencing. A blink later, Thomas and the Doktor stood just outside a coffee shoppe in the Theatre District. It was a bit busier than the street they had been on, but it was warm and inviting. "... vhich is vhy I asked. You are not averse to coffee, are you? I know excessive caffeine can be qvite toxic to... vell, to normal canines."