Avenger Assembled

Mark spends an HP to make sure Trevor makes that check. http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/4338994/ and makes it himself

Bargainer PL: 10 (150) Abilities: 0 + 0 + 0 + 8 + 4 + 0 = 12 pp STR 10 (+0) DEX 10 (+0) CON 20/10 (+5/+0) INT 18 (+4) WIS 14 (+2) CHA 16/10 (+3/+0) Combat: 12 + 10 = 22 pp ATK: +6 (+10 Magic) DEF: +5 (+2 Base, +2 flat-footed) Init: +0 Grapple: +6/+16 w/Move Object Knockback: -12/-0 Saves: 5 + 0 + 6 = 11 pp TOU +15 (+5 Con, +10 Protection, [10 Imp]) FORT +10 (+5 Con, +5) REF +0 (+0 Dex, +0) WILL +8 (+2 Wis, +6) Skills 36 r = 9 pp [bluff 4 (+7)] Diplomacy 8 (+8/+15) [Gather Info 4 (+7)] [intimidate 4 (+7)] Knowledge (Arcane Lore) 6 (+10) Knowledge (Civics) 6 (+10) Notice 8 (+10) Sense Motive 8 (+10) Feats: 9 pp Attack Specialization: Magic 2 Benefit (Status) Challenge (Combat Diplomacy) Eidetic Memory Master Plan Ritualist Ultimate Save (Toughness) Powers: 6 + 10 + 4 + 3 + 20 + 22 + 20 + 2 = 87 pp Enhanced CHA 6 (to CHA 16/+3) [6PP] Enhanced CON 10 (to CON 20/+5) [10PP] Enhanced Skills 16 (Bluff 4, Diplomacy 4, Gather Info 4, Intimidate 4) [4PP] Immunity 3 (aging, disease, poison) [3PP] Immunity 40 (all lethal damage, Flaw: Limited [Converts to Non-Lethal) [20PP] Magic Array 10 (20 PP, PFs: Alternate Powers 2) [22PP] BE: Blast 10 (mystic blast) AP: Move Object 10 (magic constructs; Effective STR 50, Heavy Load: 12 tons) {20/20} AP: Teleport 6 (600 ft/20 miles, Extra: Accurate, PFs: Easy, Turnabout) {20/20} Protection 10 (Extra: Impervious 10) [20PP] Regeneration 1 (Resurrection 1/week, PF: Regrowth) [2PP] costs abilities 12 + combat 22 + saves 11 + skills 9/36 + feats 9 + powers 87 = 150 pts ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Design Notes: OK, here's a build inspired by Mayor Richard Wilkins III from Buffy the Vampire Slayer. The Mayor was my favorite Big Bad of the show, largely because of Harry Groener's cheerfully paternal wickedness. Wilkins is a man who has sold his soul (and much else) to demons for a chance at true immortality, but with the babies he's had to sacrifice and all and his plans to personally devour most of the main cast he's a natural antagonist for the series. This isn't a true conversion of Wilkins, who doesn't have much offensive muscle in the series (the generic mystic power build I gave him is modeled pretty heavily on Dok's super-Giles build), but I think all the right notes have been hit here - he's charismatic, friendly, and smart as a whip. Unlike a lot of mystics, he's a Diplomacy specialist, capable of talking down a troubled Living Weapon or of breaking apart the franchise's main couple with a few well-placed words. While not _quite_ invincible, in the PL 6-7 world of Buffy, this guy is the baddest dude alive, casually no-selling physical attacks and shrugging off many internal ones. Heroes will have to get very clever to hurt him, like taking advantage of that non-existent Reflex save with Snares, Dazzles, and other Reflex save targeting effects - or maybe just one big Area attack. He'd be a serious threat to even a low-level superteam as built. Too bad the show Wilkins traded in that big immunity for ranks in Growth... Put that Diplomacy to good work for yourself and accumulate lots of magical favors, especially by spamming that Status feat (for whatever organization or body he's in, or maybe leader of!) He doesn't have the raw magical might of his fellow mystics, but on the other hand there's not much they can do to him in most encounters. How to model a weak spellcaster with a complete inability to die as a PC? Well, maybe he's an alchemist who finally cracked that Philosopher's Stone and transformed himself into a walking juggernaut - if so, give him powers more of an alchemical theme rather than straight magic-energy manipulation as above. Or maybe he's an infernalist who sold his soul for what seemed like good reasons at the time; perhaps he traded his soul for the power to clean up all the juvenile street gangs in his town, only to rather belatedly realize that they were as interested in saving his town as he was! There's no reason why an immortal can't be a cheerful, paternalistic mentor figure rather than a darkly brooding loner or a wacky omnisexual party boy.

Magic Merc PL: 10 (150) Abilities: 8 + 4 + 8 + 0 + 4 + 2 = 26 pp STR 18 (+4) DEX 14 (+2) CON 18 (+4) INT 10 (+0) WIS 14 (+2) CHA 12 (+1) Combat: 8 + 8 = 16 pp ATK: +4 (+6 Strike, +8 Blast, +10 Gadgets/Unarmed) DEF: +8 (+4 Shield, +4 Base, +2 flat-footed) Init: +7 Grapple: +8 Knockback: -6/-4 Saves: 3 + 4 + 3 = 10 pp TOU: +12/+8/+4 (+4 Con, +4 Protection, +4 Force Field) FORT: +8/+7 (+4 Con, +3, +1 Tuxedo) REF: +7/+6 (+2 Dex, +4, +1 Tuxedo) WILL: +7/+5 (+2 Wis, +3, +2 Tuxedo) Skills: 40 r = 10 pp Bluff 9 (+10) Craft (Mechanical) 5 (+5) Languages 3 (Arabic, English [base], French) Notice 8 (+10) Sleight of Hand 8 (+10) Stealth 8 (+10) Feats: 12 pp Attack Specialization (Unarmed) 3 Challenge (Fast Taunt) Fearless Improved Initiative Luck Precise Shot Power Attack Takedown Attack Taunt Uncanny Dodge (auditory) Powers: 13 + 13 + 32 + 4 + 14 + 1 = 77 pp Device 3 (Arsenal, Flaw: Hard to Lose, PF: Subtle) [13PP] Arsenal Array 7 (14 PP, PF: Alternate Power 1) [15DP] BE: Blast 6 (laser guns, PFs: Accurate 2) {14/14} AP: Strike 4 (various melee weapons, Extra: Autofire [8], PFs: Accurate, Variable Descriptor 1 [bludgeoning/piercing/slashing]) {14/14} Device 3 (Dapper Tuxedo, Flaw: Hard to Lose, PF: Subtle) [13PP] Enhanced Feats 3 (Attack Specialization [Gadgets] 3) [3DP] Enhanced Fort Save 1 [1DP] Enhanced Reflex Save 1 [1DP] Enhanced Will Save 2 [2DP] Force Field 4 [4DP] Shield 4 [4DP] Gadgets 4 (20 pp, Top Hat, Extra: [Move], Flaw: Hard to Lose) [32PP] Protection 4 [4PP] Regeneration 14 (Recovery Bonus 3 [+7], Bruised 3 [No Action], Injured 6 [No Action], PFs: Persistent, Regrowth) [14 PP] Super-Senses 1 (Danger Sense [Mental]) [1PP] costs abilities 26 + combat 16 + saves 10 + skills 10/40 + feats 12 + powers 77 = 150 pts ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Design Notes: Genetic testing abruptly ended Walt's hopes for a career as a professional athlete, but the discovery of his reinforced bone structure and regenerative capabilities made him a natural recruit for the Canadian Army's metahuman program. Sure, he wasn't as powerful as the guys in True North, but he was damn near invincible on anything close to a conventional battlefield. He fought in Afghanistan and as part of other Canadian UN troop deployments, fighting the good fight both on the books and as part of the occasional secret operation. But by a few years ago he was tired; psychological trauma from all his injuries had left him a little jittery, and the voice in his head that had saved his life so many times in the field had gotten him a reputation as a bit of a nut. Normal guys tended to get squished pretty hard when they fought alongside him, so he was usually deployed alone - and sometimes he even talked to himself! All that changed a few years ago, though, when on a mission he found a perfectly preserved gentleman's tuxedo and top hat inside a chest marked FOR THE MAGNIFICENT! Succumbing to temptation, he put the outfit on and found himself imbued with remarkable power - now he really was damn near bulletproof, and if he reached inside the hat he could pull out anything he wanted - ANYTHING. Hey, maybe life would be pretty fun after all! All right, inspired by the recent events in Thunderbolts where Deadpool wound up with a magic tuxedo, here's my build for Deadpool with magic stuff! I think this works fine as a build for Fate (Iron Age-style); a badass merc type who has acquired certain magical artifacts that have allowed him to make a rather significant career change! He's a lot more physically adept than most of his magically-plying peers, and has a lot more assets to bring to bear (and versatility) than your typical mystic guy. If he's still on the government payroll, he's probably one of the most powerful super-agents the government has available - of course if he's doing that, he may well be lying to his employers about how much magic he knows...(which is nothing!)

http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/4338587/ 35! He is completely unhurt.

Okay, Crimson Tiger is up

The monstrously-warped Meta-Grue went for Wraith, skittering saurian-spider form snapping for her with huge claws. Towering well above their heads and stretching out long, the mighty beast's power made him a formidable opponent indeed for a team that was (mostly) all-too-human. He was an animal now, targeting the creature that had sought to strike him first, but no less ferocious or powerful for that. A single claw like a great crab's snapped shut along one of her limbs and he smashed Wraith backwards into a scaffolding, shattered wood showering in a cascade of splinters as a living metal body made contact with fragile earthly oak. Maybe not everything here was as armored as it looked! "Ooh, a palpable hit by the Meta-Grue!" called the announcer again. "Does he have what it takes to pluck these birds' feathers?"

The Meta-Grue swings for Wraith http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/4337569/ And hits! That's a DC 29 Tou save for Wraith.

Fast-Forward Gather Info DC 5: Fast-Forward is a metahuman with a TV show on the Discovery Channel DC 10: See Pop Culture 10 DC 15: Fast-Forward and Hologram are married in real life, yeah, and have been partners for nearly twenty-five years. DC 25: See Streetwise DC 15 Knowledge (History) DC 10: Fast-Forward was active (alongside his partner Hologram) in the 1980s and early 1990s, one of the grimmest eras of supercrime. They fought in the Terminus Invasion of '93 alongside the heroes and retired after receiving a full pardon. DC 15: But they were an exception, closer to guerilla street artists and smash-and-grab theme villains than the murderers and psychopaths of that era. Knowledge (Pop Culture) DC 5: Hey, it's the guy, with the show! DC 10: Fast-Forward (and his partner Hologram) are hosts of Supercrime!, a Mythbusters-style show on the Discovery Channel that focuses on famous super-feats (particularly those carried out by crooks) to try and figure out "how they did that". DC 15: Fast-Forward and Hologram aren't just partners on the show; they're married for real! Their kids have both made appearances on the show now and again. Knowledge (Streetwise) DC 15: Fast-Forward went by Tempus Fugitive back when he was the sidekick of Clock Queen, the glamorous Jet Age speedster-thief active through the 1960s and 1970s. DC 20: Clock Queen and Tempus Fugitive weren't just partners in crime; they were mother and son! Clock Queen has been in retirement since her release from prison in the early 21st century. DC 25: Tempus Fugitive and Clock Queen were no-fooling Crime League members back in the day - and some of the League doesn't like how they've been presented in Supercrime!

Infernal Ring-Bearer PL: 10 (150) Abilities: 10 + 6 + 10 + 0 + 4 + 0 = 30 pp STR 32/20 (+11/+5) DEX 16 (+3) CON 20 (+5) INT 10 (+0) WIS 14 (+2) CHA 16/10 (+3/+0) Combat: 16 + 8 = 24 pp ATK: +8 (+9 Melee) DEF: +9 (+5 Dodge Focus, +4 Base, +2 Flat-Footed) Init: +7 Grapple: +14/+22 w/internal fires Knockback: -5/-2 Saves: 3 + 5 + 6 = 16 pp TOU +11 (+5 Con, +6 Protection) FORT +8 (+5 Con, +3) REF +8 (+3 Dex, +5) WILL +8 (+2 Wis, +5) Skills: 68 r = 17 pp Acrobatics 12 (+15, SM) [bluff 4 (+7)] Climb 5 (+10) Concentration 5 (+7) Diplomacy 5 (+5) [Diplomacy 9 (+12)] [Gather Info 4 (+7)] [intimidate 4 (+7)] Knowledge: Civics 4 (+4) Language 1 (Braille, English [base]) Notice 12 (+15, SM) Sense Motive 12 (+15, SM) Stealth 12 (+15, SM) Feats: 19 pp Acrobatic Bluff All-Out Attack Attack Focus: Melee Challenge (Fast Acrobatic Bluff) Defensive Attack Dodge Focus 5 Evasion Fearless Improved Initiative Move-By Action Power Attack Second Chance (Concentration checks) Skill Mastery (Acrobatics, Notice, Sense Motive, Stealth) Takedown Attack 2 Powers: 45 + 5 = 50 pp Device 11 (Devil's Ring, 55 points; Flaw: Hard to Lose; PF: Restricted [Fearless]) [45PP] Enhanced Charisma 6 (to 16/+3) [6DP] Enhanced Skills 16 (diabolic enhancements; Bluff 4, Diplomacy 4, Gather Info 4, Intimidate 4) [4DP] Feature 1 (Library) [1DP] Flight 1 (10 MPH/100 feet per move, PF: Subtle) [3DP] Force Field 6 [6DP] Immunity 3 (environmental heat, sleep, starvation and thirst) [3DP] Magic 13 (26 points; PFs: Alternate Power 3) [29DP] BE: Blast 10 (infernal blasts; PFs: Accurate, Indirect 3, Precise, Variable Descriptor 1 [flame/shadow]) {26/26} AP: Enhanced STR 12 (internal fires, to 32/+11, Extra: Autofire [10]) {22} + Super-Strength 2 (Effective STR 36, Heavy Load 1.5 tons) {4} {22+4=26/26} AP: Strike 6 (infernal weapons; Extra: Autofire [10], PFs: Extended Reach, Improved Crit 2, Improved Trip, Knockback 5 [as DMG 16], Variable Descriptor 1 [flame/shadow]) {26/26} AP: Teleport 8 (infernal stride, 800 ft/2000 miles, Extra: Accurate, PFs: Easy, Turnabout) {26/26} Super-Senses 4 (Buys off Blind Drawback) [4DP] 6+4+6+1+3+3+29+4 = 55/55 Super-Senses 5 (Danger Sense [auditory], Ultra-hearing; Enhancement: Accurate 2, Uncanny Dodge [auditory]) [5PP] Drawbacks: -4 pp Disability: Blind (common, major) [-4 pp] costs abilities 30 + combat 24 + saves 13 + skills 17/68 + feats 19 + powers 50 - drawbacks 4 = 150 pts ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Design Notes: So once there was a young acrobat, blind as a result of a childhood accident, who was fortunate enough to manifest a mutant ability like the echolocation of bats - similar to the human echolocation that's a real thing even now, but even better! It wasn't much, but it was enough for him to pull off remarkable feats like continuing his gymnastics career and working his way through law school, all with the goal of being a superhero by night and a tough, crime-busting prosecutor by day! That way he could bust guys like the criminals who murdered his dad, and find the evidence against them in his costumed identity. One night, though, after an encounter with a hitman for the Irish mob that left him beaten and nearly dead, the hero was approached by a demon who offered the hero great power if he only signed away his soul - being a young man of excellent character (and immune to the demon's terrifying war-form appearance) the hero fought off his would-be tempter, and even stole from him a black ring forged in some unknown infernal furnace. Succumbing to temptation, the young hero put on the ring some days later - and found that he could see. Now he's a better lawyer than he ever was, and a far more powerful hero, gliding from rooftop to rooftop, summoning an infernal trident and hurling gouts of shadowy flame. The ring is full of useful advice and suggestions, particularly about magic, but the hero is smart enough to wonder when he hears that tempting voice. Did he really beat that demon after all? OK, so it's Matt Murdock with a power ring from Hell! Guardian devil indeed. He's a perfectly fine PL 7 Daredevil if you drop the ring, like many of mine (and other) builds like this. Note that he really is blind if you take the ring away; sure he can fight, but he can't read computer screens, recognize faces without a die roll, and otherwise is pretty legitimately impaired. His ring has a lot more depth to it than shown here, I figure he's deliberately not explored the more arcane aspects of his new toy to avoid temptation. In play he'll look a lot like a blind Jedi from Hell! I think he'd be pretty fun to play.

http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/4336785/ The Meta-Grue goes on 16 So our order is - Wraith: 23, +1 Complication HP Foreshadow: 19 Meta-Grue: 16 Crimson Tiger: 12 Blod: 11 Incidentally, the Meta-Grue's sheet is cartoonishly awful. You should assume I am using a version of him where he has used his Shapeshift to hit his actual caps as a powerhouse - so he has a DEF of +9, a TOU of +17, a melee ATK of +12, and an unarmed damage of +14.

Fast-Forward With his wife's hand in his, Richard Cline zipped up to the front security gate of Freedom Hall, putting the speedster and the psychic just on the edge of the fortress-like building's lawn. He looked up at the familiar structure and took off his sunglasses, twenty years falling away in an instant. For a moment, he wasn't a confident celebrity speedster on his way to a meet-and-greet with fellow heroes - he was a scared kid with superpowers, running his way through the end of the world. Vivid images of this building in flames, then smashed to rubble, the sky swarming with Omegadrones all around him, flashed briefly before his mind's eye. But as his hand tightened on Paige's, their gloves crinkling, he remembered the intervening years again. "Well well well!" The voice from above caught both their attentions, and Richard looked up to see a very familiar figure making a landing by them. Lady Liberty, Beth Walton-Wright, had flown in wearing a red Christmas sweater with a white star on the tree and blue jeans - Richard appreciated her adherence to a theme. The exemplar of law and order smiled at the two ex-supervillains, then hugged them both. She was of their generation, old enough that she'd been a hero back when the two of them were criminals, and she'd been in Freedom City twenty years before too. "If it isn't my favorite celebrity criminals. Merry Christmas, Richard and Paige."

For his part, Richard had taken out an instant camera and started snapping pictures of Will's colorful display - but put it away, agreeing with his wife. There was time to do everything here. "C'mon, boy, save it for sparring practice!" he said, zipping around the group to punctuate his sentences. "You don't want them thinking you're Hollywood." He kept pace with the group as Mali led them through the tour, keeping the camera well away once other students started walking around. He remembered being a teen with a secret ID pretty well. Once inside the gym, he kept busy by zipping along and checking out the pictures of Claremont's very active intramural sports community. The tour was taking a while, at least to his own enhanced perceptions, but that wasn't so bad - a few extra minutes with his boy before they left him there didn't seem quite so bad. In his wife's direction, he thought idly, Wonder if any of these kids want to be on TV. before moving on as they circled the Zen garden. He slipped back and put an arm around Paige as they watched Will, wanting to let the moment last just a little longer - this close they really were an iconic couple, at least if you watched the Discovery Channel. "Just think, Holly-girl, a couple more years and this'll be your school too!" He'd missed the psychic conversations entirely.

"Pfft, no way! Nobody wants to let some alien take over the Crime League! Especially not Mr. "Ooh I'm So Scary and Evil now that I got canned from my crappy space-cop job", I mean he might as well sit around eating doughnuts and drinking crappy coffee all day, you know what I'm saying?" He added in a shout, "If you can hear me over all the squealing pigs, that is! Yeah, that's right!" He looked back at the heroes and said, "Anyway, all Blackstar really wants to do is get with Star Knight. Sure he talks about how he wants to blot her and the rest of the Knights from existence, but in my experience, a gentleman doesn't talk about a lady that way if he doesn't want a little of the old hmm-hmm." He gave them a wink. "You fellas know what I'm saying, er...sorry, little girl!" he added, seeming to take note of Glow for the first time. "What are you people doing letting this little kid in here anyway?"

aw yeah, it's initiative time, sports fans.

"Remember to pose when they announce you," the manager went on. "So they can do a freeze-frame and run your bio underneath. The manager is watching from behind the black screen ten yards up on the far wall; everything else is cameras and holoprojections. Think black box theatre." She turned to leave, counting down with her fingers to signal the heroes to move forward, and just as she disappeared through a cunningly-concealed door in the side of the wall added, "Remember who the real enemy is!" Once the heroes were down the corridor, they found themselves in a place that looked oddly less grand than the fully-edited arena they'd seen on the screen. It wasn't that the picture they'd had was false - but it had obviously been created through heavy use of CGI. The bars and obstacles were all there, the arena towering high over their heads, the scaffolding on the walls to let non-fliers ascend, the cover provided by what looked like fallen statuary and an overturned high-tech chariot; but the blue sky, the stands full of screaming fans, those were replaced by black matte paint dotted with thousands of shimmering dots that looked like tiny camera lenses, no doubt the source of that seamless camera work they'd observed in their practice bouts. It all looked heavily armored, too, the kind of room that could hold multiple super-battles to first blood...or more. A hatch on the bottom of the 'stage' showed where their target would be making its entrance, based on the videos they'd seen before. Once they all were inside, the doors swung shut, leaving them in an 'arena' about as big as Claremont's soccer field. They had a moment to compose themselves before a female announcer's voice came on from speakers overhead, from the sound of things near that manager's window they were watching for. "Presenting the NEW BIRDS OF PREY!" Trumpets played as the voice went on, her throaty tone rising in excitement, "the terrible TENGU! The sinister SILVER SHRIKA! The silent SCREECH OWL! And her vicious husband; the nasty NIGHT OWL! Together, they are the NEW BIRD OF PREY!" A clanking came from beneath the stage as the hatch slid open, its thick metal frame showing impervium, or maybe something more exotic, that could hold in a true super-battle. "And now, in a VERY special presentation, we have a BRAND-NEW trophy in the CIRCUT MAXIMUS! He came to Earth to steal our minds and conquer our world, but we've beaten him time and time again! And now, it's time to see his BLOOD SPILL! Ladies and gentlemen," and now a voice was breaking through from the stage as a figure rose on the concealed platform beneath, struggling against chains that bound him to the floor, his eyes wide with hate as he glared at the heroes and shouted threats at those above, and oh it was an all-too-familiar figure who loomed above them. "THE META-GRUE!" Darr'Kan looked them in the eye and said with venomous hate, "I will get out of this, and when I do, none of you are safe, you-" and then he screamed in agony as the collar around his neck, the same binding collar that had held the other 'trophies' in place, lit up with an eerie red glow that soon was matched by a mindless glow in his eyes. He roared like a mindless, wounded animal now, his body swelling into something ferocious and multilimbed like a red-skinned serpentine spider as the announcer yelled, "Let the combat - BEGIN!"

Temperance recognizes the other three heroes - the ringbearer, his apprentice, and the reformed villainous psychic well enough. She knows who Medea is. Tonya appears to have been partially transformed into something that looks like certain fantastic depictions of a volvar - an Anglo-Saxon mystic and witch. But Anglo-Saxon lore is almost entirely fictionalized these days, only surviving in the pages of certain arcane tomes and the one great surviving work of Anglo-Saxon poetry - Beowulf. Interestingly, on looking at her file, Temperance will see that she and Tonya share the same birthday. ---- In her investigations after the heroes go their seperate ways (perhaps the most fruitful so far), Temperance will find that Unferth may well _be_ the Unferth of legend - or at least he first appeared after archeological investigations in Denmark in the late 1960s were interrupted by the disappearance of one of the archaeologists and Unferth's own appearance (raiding a jewelry store in Copenhagen) some days later.

I'd be happy to help you with a thread, Rob.

Well, that doesn't tell you anything right now - TT, Electra, need to hear from you here.

The stretch limo was luxurious on the inside, complete with wet bar and accouterments, with the driver's opaque partition rolled up to allow for complete privacy. The heroes found a note inside in a variant of flash paper that crumbled to flameless smoke when they'd all finished reading it - "'Arrive via stealthed teleporter. Big event' promised tonight. 'Grand Barbarian Venatore.' Stay alive and wait for my signal. Remember who the real enemy is. -R" A short drive carried them down a few blocks to what turned out to be another deserted-looking warehouse, albeit one with brightly-glowing security lights outside and a single metal door that hung wide open - the 'glare' from inside the building (which was of no natural light) making it impossible for the heroes to see inside. Once they steeled themselves to step through (still having seen nothing of their chauffeur), they found themselves elsewhere. - "Good, good, you're here!" They were elsewhere, in a metal-lined corridor that ended in a blank wall from which they'd stepped and led out to a broad set of double doors. "I thought you'd never make it!" With her multi-colored hair, sharp professional dress, and flashing eyes, the tall, close-to-middle-aged Eurasian woman who greeted them could have been any one of a thousand of her type. "The crowd's getting restless. We've even got the ET feed running, and the subspace feedback's gonna be like Khania on wheels if we don't get it started in five. New Birds of Prey - Names?" she asked seriously, holding up a clipboard as she studied the four disguised heroes.

"I should introduce you to real drink sometime," Frost opined. "The Buryat of Siberia make drink called Tarasun, whisky brewed entirely from mare's milk! Your Buryat drinks his Tarasun when he needs strength, and when he needs pray to his god. A very sensible people, the Buryat." He nodded at that, rather enjoying the rare spectacle of a pretty woman on his lap as he nodded back to Fleur de Joie. "Holidays can be difficult for those of us denied certain earthly delights. With work in toyshop, of course," he added, tugging at his rubber-banded beard. "But there are ways to get them, for a clever man. Or lady," he added with a wink her way. "Like dancing, for example. I have had some experience with this...but never Charleston with lady so pretty as you."

This week, I am grading finals and finally graduating from college (i.e., being formally hooded for my Ph.D). In order to do so, Electra and I are driving 20 hours without a break, starting at 8 PM tomorrow night. We will then spend time with my parents, then drive another eight hours to the house of Electra's parents, and be there through the holidays. While we will be around, things will also be craaaaazy!

Hi, Elias! Do you have a supername? My mom says I have to wait till I'm 16 before I can have a supername, but I want to be Superstar! That'd be cool. I just got my powers so we have to move out to Freedom City so I could go to Nicholson and my brother can go to Claremont he's just got speed powers like my dad but he's pretty fast I guess. There was a momentary quiet in Elias' head before the eager child's voice went on. Crud I think my mom is listening! This girl didn't seem very fast; Richard wasn't that worried about Will and her after all. Remembering lectures from his wife, he reminded himself that this Mali couldn't help it - she'd probably grown up in a dojo, doing nothing but fighting monsters all day, and never had a chance to see the real world. "Not gonna say that when the 'rents are around, eh? That's okay, I know how it is. Nothing like Mom and Dad to ruin a bodacious time." He fell back, distinctly humming 'Fight For Your Right' as he zipped around the group. Despite his playful manner, he was taking in everything in the seconds between the conversation, his eye not that much less observant than his wife's keen perceptions. At least for visible things...

"It would be difficult for them to do that," replied Steve with his usual frankness. "So we have nothing to fear." Being a tall, muscular man with a scarred face and imposing features, he had been picked up several times by the Freedom City police early in his time in Freedom City. It had been a surprise to learn, from a mortified Lady Liberty, that none of those officers had been aware he was an Omegadrone. "They will come and see us. We will speak and we will eat, and things will be fine." He sat next to her and added, "I have spoken to both Gabriel and Jack about what to say in these situations, and they have given me useful advice," he said reassuringly, wanting to make sure Gina knew that he'd gone to the two most socially-adept men he knew about how to deal with this situation. "Your family will not know there is anything strange about me but what they can see. And they already know that you are their sister. "

"I still don't see why your people need to bother with these silly things anyway," Nina was saying, her Received Pronunciation accent thickening as it usually did when she was excited. "Your friend here wields an ancient magic ring and his woman is some sort of goddess from space! Why not simply announce themselves as champions of justice and let your righteous society crush their enemies for them?" She crossed her arms and gave Mark that look that seemed to ask "Hmmmm?" "Well, then, why doesn't your dad call himself King al-Darsah?" Mark challenged in return. "He calls himself Typhoon all the time! He even makes _you_ call him Typhoon! You can't say it's silly for superheroes to protect their identity and still think it's great your dad goes by his supername all the time!" It was not a new argument with his girlfriend. "Because that is...different. That is because he is a king, and...you are changing the subject!" She looked away and hesitated. "Anyway...we shouldn't talk about politics, we'll spoil your friend's party." "All right." Mark slipped an arm around her waist and said, "Besides, the snake people were at _your_ party last time, so you owe me."

Armored Time Traveler PL: 10 (150) Abilities: 0 + 4 + 6 + 14 + 4 + 6 = 34 PP STR 10 (+0) DEX 14 (+2) CON 16 (+3) INT 24 (+7) WIS 14 (+2) CHA 16 (+3) Combat: 8 + 8 = 16 PP ATK: +4 (+8 Suit Array) DEF: +10 (+3 Dodge Focus, +3 Shield, +4 Base), +2 flat-footed Init: +2 Grapple: +4 Knockback: -5/-3/-1 Saves: 5 + 6 + 6 = 17pp TOU: +10/+7/+3 (+3 Con, +4 Defensive Roll, +3 Force Field) FORT: +8 (+3 Con, +5) REF: +8 (+2 Dex, +6) WILL: +8 (+2 Wis, +6) Skills: 60 r = 15PP Bluff 7 (+10) Climb 5 (+5) Computers 3 (+10) Craft [Electronic] 3 (+10, SM) Craft [Mechanical] 3 (+10, SM) Diplomacy 8 (+11) Disguise 0 (+3/+13) Knowledge [History] 3 (+10, SM) Knowledge [Technology] 3 (+10, SM) Languages 2 (Algonquin, English [base], Future English) Medicine 3 (+5) Notice 3 (+5) Sense Motive 8 (+10) Survival 3 (+5) Swim 5 (+5) Feats: 12 PP Benefit (Wealth) Defensive Roll 2 Dodge Focus 3 Eidetic Memory Improvised Tools Inventor Second Chance (Survival checks) Skill Mastery (Craft [Electronic], Craft [Mechanical], Knowledge [History], Knowledge [Technology]) Uncanny Dodge (auditory) Powers: 49 + 1 + 6 = 56 PP Device 12 (Armor, 60PP, Flaw: Hard to Lose, PF: Restricted [DNA scan]) [49PP] Comprehend 3 (speak, read, and understand any one language at a time) [6DP] Concealment 4 (all visual, Flaw: Passive) [4DP] Immunity 9 (Life Support) [9DP] Morph 2 (any humanoid, PFs: Covers Scent, Precise) [6DP] Movement Array 3 (6PP, PFs: Alternate Powers 3) [9DP] BE: Flight 3 (50 MPH/500 feet per move) {6/6} AP: Burrowing 6 (50 MPH/500 feet per move) {6/6} AP: Swimming 6 (100 MPH/1000 feet per move) {6/6} AP: Super-Movement 0 (Extra: Portal [+2]) {6/6} Suit Array 6 (12 PP, PFs: Accurate 2, Precise, Variable Descriptor 1 [heat/light]) [16DP] BE: Strike 12 {12/12} AP: Blast 12 (Flaw: Distracting) {12/12} Protection 3 [3DP] Shield 3 [3DP] Super-Senses 4 (infravision, radio, ultra-hearing, ultravision) [4DP] Feature 1 (Temporal Inertia) [1PP] Super-Movement 3 (Temporal, any era) [6PP] costs abilities 34 + combat 16 + saves 17 + skills 15/60 + feats 12 + powers 56 = 150 pts ------------------------------------------------------- Design Notes: Here's my build for a concept that I've been kicking around - the armored time traveler. The idea is that this young man was born with an innate ability to travel in time, an ability that manifested well before he had the power to control it. He spent a terrifying few years bouncing around through the history of Freedom City, ranging from an age when it was an isolated cropping of islands protruding above a Cretaceous sea to a far-distant future where man has long since left the Earth behind, before the heroes of his own era helped the young man learn to stabilize his powers. He became an engineer and scientist, using some of what he'd learned about both the past (like the location of buried treasure!) and the future (glimpses of even a little far-future technology) to become a scholarly businessman and entrepreneur. Still at risk of the occasional involuntary journey, he decided to build something to keep himself safe on his trips - a suit of armor designed more for survival than combat. With his armor, he can get around in the distant past and the far future, disguising himself as a local or just becoming invisible in eras when there are no humans around, and keep himself going until he makes his way back to his own era. His 'weapons' are more survival oriented than anything else, cutting torches and lasers that let him cut down trees and build shelters, or just start fires if he needs to. Gradually, though, as he saw more and more heroes across more and more ages, he decided to become a hero himself! Obviously this build's Super-Movement is potentially a problem in stories. I've gone ahead and given him the full Super-Movement power, but you could certainly justify buying it down with an Uncontrollable or Unreliable flaw. As it is, his inability to just pop back to the immediate past or into the near future "What, and meet myself? Do you know what that does?!?" is best-treated as a Complication, though not one you should abuse! The history of Freedom is pretty wide open, Freedom's 'future' doesn't go much beyond the 26th century, so the far future is yours to play with. As to the source of his power, maybe he's a Clockwatcher raised on Earth, or a parent was - perhaps he's a descendant of 60s groovy bad guy the Tick-Tock Doc? If you don't like the time traveler angle, this build would work just fine as someone with a Dimensional Movement power. The picture is of Eric Bana, who has played both superheroes and time travelers in his film career...