Avenger Assembled

The flying yetis immediately began sinking down towards the snow, lulled to rest by Miss Americana's beautiful voice. They didn't actually sleep, but they did lay there with passive looks on their faces, watching the show. Desparia looked briefly tempted by the beautiful heroine's advice herself, but she rallied, firmly shaking her head. "No! No, I'm not going to go to sleep! You can't make me!" She looked a poor image of the icy-cold sorceress she was trying to project, snowflake tears in her eyes as she screamed at the heroes. "I'll freeze you all, and then I'll freeze all of Christmas!" - Across the yard in the workshop, Jack of all Blades' swordsmanship made the Nutcracker's eyes widen. "Why....no one so skilled with a blade could ever be in the service of the Rat King! Perhaps I was wrong about you...and wrong about a lot of things!" he said, his wooden cheeks developing bright red circles as he looked at Mrs. Claus. "I think I owe you an apology, madam! And you as well, good sirs!" he added to Jack and the Crusader, the elfin champion giving him a suspicious look at his rapid transformation. "Feh! Toys!" Down the hall, in a cascade of Tinkertoys, Avenger gave a triumphant shout as he liberated the prisoners! There was a melee in the hall for a moment as the prisoners spilled out; a reindeer with a nose of shimmering red, a red cloak falling down behind him, a formidable-looking woman in armor made of ice, and then finally...The Man. He was tall for an elf, bulking as big as Avenger or Jack of all Blades, his long white beard cascading down his chest as he took in the scene in an instant, his eyes twinkling. He quickly embraced his wife, then turned to the assembled heroes. "Come, my friends! We must stop a certain lady from making a mistake she'll come to regret more than any of us!" He eyed the Freedom heroes as well before adding, "I owe you both a special debt of gratitude. We shall talk later. I am surprised to see you here, Mr. Faretti." "...You know me?" "Oh yes. We have quite a file on you." Avenger winced at that, but said nothing as he followed the Christmas champions out to join the battle outside!

Sensing pursuit, the Beast turns to destroy its tormentor before she can gather aid! Move Action: The Beast Leaps into melee range of Wander Standard Action: Clobba! OK, that's a DC 33 Tou save, Wander. You don't get that Inspire bonus yet (since Edge is still technically taking that action), but he will spend an HP on your behalf if necessary.

Edge's new sheet. I did a pretty heavy reworking of his powers (and probably should have kept track of stuff like the original sheet), so I've included the whole thing. [u]Description[/u]: At 18 years old, Mark Lucas is tall, rugged, and athletic, the perfect vision of a hero. With his chiseled good looks and sculpted physique, he’s the darling of the ladies of Claremont, and not a few older women as well. His most remarkable feature is his eyes, glowing with a force of personality that’s almost superhuman. Mark may be afraid, Mark may be angry, Mark may be a million other things: but you will never, ever see him doubt. His costume is a blue bodysuit with gold cape and white diamond over his chest, his face hidden by goggles. [u]Personality[/u]: Mark is a cheerful, jovial guy, often literally bouncy with energy, who’s not really sure how to handle the feelings of grief and loss that have come with his father’s departure and his own worries about the future that’s awaiting him. He doesn’t worry about his fantastic power by dint of simply not worrying about it. He’s fully conscious of his responsibility, and does his best to live up to it. Especially now. His success with women comes from his ability to hyperfocus in romantic situation: he’s very intense in a lot of ways, and when that’s turned on a girl his own age it’s something many find very attractive. [u]Backstory[/u]: Mark Lucas is the first person in his family with superpowers, but not the first hero. His grandfather Jimmy Lucas went from being the Centurion’s Pal in the 1940s to a hero in his own right after a magical adventure. “Jimmy and his Genie” were perhaps the most powerful members of the League, though by no means the most wise. A badly-worded wish by his grandfather at the end of the war meant that it was technically the genie who fathered Mark’s dad Rick, infusing magical genes into the family line. Having grown up around superheroes, it was no surprise that Rick Lucas fought alongside them. Though never more than an honorary member of the Freedom League, Rick adventured alongside every superhero of the 1960s and 1970s, teaming up with his fellow heroes all across the world for a lifetime of wonderful adventures. Only belatedly have Freedom’s super-scientists begun to wonder: was it unconscious manipulation of reality by the half-genie that made those days so bright and shining? It’s tough to say, but the world did get a lot darker when Rick left town in the early 1980s after the Silver Age League finally dissolved. He returned in 1993 with his wife Martha and infant son Mark, just in time to fight in the Terminus Invasion and watch the Centurion die. Rick raised his son to be the shining Silver Age hero he’d always admired, making sure that Mark grew up happy and contented with the perfect family. It helped that young Mark had been born with probability-warping powers obvious from an early age: he was working to make his own destiny wonderful. Perhaps that’s why Mark is so thoughtless, but it’s also why he’s so absolutely sure that a better world can be built for all mankind. Rick ultimately couldn’t handle the new era: excluded from the new League thanks to an old feud with Captain Thunder, he developed fantastic powers and went mad on his son’s temporary ‘death’, ultimately disappearing into the multiverse after creating a false vision of Freedom City. His father’s loss (not death) has made things difficult for Mark and his mother, who now supports the family with her cartooning. But Mark is still convinced that he and his friends in Young Freedom really can make a difference for everybody. It’s just a matter of believing in yourself. [b][u]Complications[/u][/b]: Allies (Heroes of World War II and the Silver Age) Enemy (Nazis) Friend (Midnight II, old chum) Reputation (Defend the family honor) Responsibility (Young Freedom, Martha Lucas) Rivalry (Rick Lucas) Turf (Claremont Academy, Lucas family house) Secret (The Lucas family has shaken many horrors from its closet) Secret ("The Terminus is coming! The Terminus is coming!") [b][u]Abilities[/u][/b]: 2+4+4+2+(-2)+12 = 22PP Str 12 (+1) Dex 14 (+2) Con 14 (+2) Int 12 (+1) Wis 08 (-1) Cha 22 (+6) [b][u]Combat[/u][/b]: 10+12 = 22PP Attack +5 (+15 Ranged) Grapple +6 Defense +15 (+4 flat-footed) Knockback -5 Initiative +6 [b][u]Saving Throws[/u][/b]: 6+6+9 = 21PP Toughness +10 (+2 Con, +8 Protection) Fortitude +8 (Con +2, +6) Reflex +8 (Dex +2, +6) Will +8 (Wis -1, +9) [b][u]Skills[/u][/b]: 48R = 12PP Bluff 8 (+14/+18 w/Attractive) Diplomacy 8 (+14/+18 w/Attractive) Gather Information 12 (+18) Knowledge: History 8 (+8) Notice 8 (+7) Stealth 8 (+10) [b][u]Feats[/u][/b]: 14PP Attractive Beginner's Luck Connected [people associated with the Golden Age and Silver Age Leagues] Equipment Evasion Fearless, Improved Initiative Seize Initiative Skill Mastery (Bluff, Diplomacy, Knowledge [History], Notice) Ultimate Save 3 (Fortitude, Toughness, Will) Uncanny Dodge (Auditory) Well-Informed [quote]Equipment: [5 ep] Flash Goggles [1 ep] Shared HQ (Young Freedom) [1ep] Swingline [2 ep] Teleport Beacon (Young Freedom) [1ep] [b][u]Powers[/u][/b]: 4+25+2+19+8+76pp= 135PP [b]Enhanced Defense 2[/b] [4 pp] 'luckily, you missed me!' [b]Enhanced Feats 25[/b] (Attack Focus: Ranged (10), Dodge Focus (9), Inspire (5), Leadership) [25 pp] 'who needs training?' [b]Immunity 2[/b] (aging, despair effects) [2 pp] 'hooray!' Luck Control 4 (cancel GM Fiat, cancel HP expenditure of others, give someone else HP, spend HP for someone else) ([i]PFs[/i]: Luck 7) [19 pp] 'fully awesome' [b]Protection 8[/b] [8 pp] 'didn't hurt!' [i]Reality Warping Array 35[/i] [70+6=76 pp] BP: [b]Create Object 15[/b] ([u]Extras[/u]: Duration [Continous], Moveable]) ([i]PFs[/i]: Innate, Precise, Progression 7 (15 cubes 1000 ft on a side), Subtle) {70} 'summoning' AP: [b]Damage 15[/b] ([u]Extras[/u]: Area [Shapeable], Selective Attack) {70} 'bad things happening to you!' AP: [b]Disintegration 15[/b] ([u]Flaw[/u]: Full-Round Action) ([i]PF[/i]: Improved Crit 2, Indirect 3, Insidious, Precise, Power Attack, Reversible, Subtle) 'you go away' AP: [b]Probability Control 10[/b] ([u]Extras[/u]: Affects Others, Area [Burst]) 'things are great now' AP: [b]Telekinesis 15[/b] ([u]Extras[/u]: Damaging, Range [Perception]) {70} 'movin stuff around' AP: [b]Teleport 9[/b] (anywhere on Earth) ([u]Extras[/u]: Accurate, Affects Others, Area [Burst], Ranged, Selective Attack) ([i]PFs[/i]: Change Velocity, Easy, Progression 4, Turnabout) 'literally warping reality' AP: [b]Transform 10[/b] (anything to anything) (1000 lbs) ([u]Extras[/u]: Duration [Continous], Ranged) {70} 'making things different than what they are' Regeneration 1 (Resurrection 1/week) [1 pp] 'too lucky to die' [b]Abilities 22 + Combat 22 + Saving Throws 21 + Skills 12 + Feats 14 + Powers 135 = 226/226 Power Points[/b] Edits done by Geez3r

Sand, here is a version of Muse's sheet much more likely to be approved. Explanations available on request.

Sharl was alone. Gina was asleep, he was sure, she hadn't said anything to his last few queries, and he didn't want to worry her by yelling or doing anything else to attract a lot of attention. He was alone in this alien place, in these rooms that were a strange mirror of the world he knew, with only his 'Net connection and the television for company. He'd found himself spending a great deal of time on the terminal here paging through the physical reality of the network that had been such a miserable nightmare for him. _Do you really accept everything she said that so readily?_ he asked himself, all the while wondering if his innermost thoughts were laid bare before the cyberkinetic who'd built a home for him here. _Mom, Dad, Tronik, the Exodus, everything was a lie?_ The thought made his blood run cold as he pictured his home, his family, everyone he'd ever known, trapped in a computer on a table somewhere, ready to be crushed in an alien's hand..._It makes sense_, he thought, depression twisting in his chest. Computer error would certainly match some of the stories he'd heard about alien contact and strange events. _And it would certainly fit what happened to me._ He shuddered a little at the memory of being lost in the Network, at the feeling of reality all around him shattering into a confused, babbling madhouse. _I fell out of reality, and found the way the universe really works. More fool me._ Part of him regretted ever leaving home, regretted ever trying to push the boundaries of the universe and uncover the truth of things. _But on the other hand, I suppose I can't really go further than this, can I?_ He got to his feet and started to pace, walking a slow circuit of his cell. No, not his cell; of the refuge built for him by his friend. _I found out the way the world really works. I found out that my people need help; more help than they ever knew they did...and so do lots of other people too._ He turned back to the page he'd been looking at, an account of some of the grimmer moments in this world's histories; invasions and disasters and destruction, so many of them bettered by superheroes. _I wonder if I could learn to do that,_ he thought. _To manipulate the computer world the way Gina does, to shape it...it seems like I should be able to!_ he thought. Moving to speaking aloud now that he was alone, he added "If I am a being of stored data, I should be able to manipulate data!" Grandiose visions of returning home with fantastic powers came to him; building new roads and cities, raising new soil from the sea and even making the Sun larger and more healthful all came to mind. "I could make Bantam as big as the sun, and give Neo the same orbit as the Earth! I..._ He sighed, softly, and laughed, slumping back into his chair. "That's all really nice, Sharl," he chuckled, running his fingers through his hair, "but it's a Grue's chance in Lorton right now." He was nothing more than a powerless program right now, depending on someone in the 'real world' to give him everything he wanted. "But maybe someday," he speculated, looking up at the ceiling from his chair. "Maybe someday, I'll learn all I can from the real world, and use it to save my own people. Someday..." But first, he was going to have to get out of here! "I wonder what Gina's lab looks like," he speculated. Was it like this room, all soft blankets and woodwork? The alien architecture had to come from somehwere, and surely she'd rebuild a room like what she was familiar with. While his personal image of a 'cyberkinetic' would have been all liquid circuits and plasma coils, he'd already seen that this world's technology was (perversely enough) less than what'd grown up with. His ancestors had journeyed to the stars and beyond, while the people of Earth had barely reached their nearest satellite and the other planets of their star system. Superheroes had apparantly gone further, but they were the exception, not the norm. It occurred to him, thinking about it, that she probably could have shown him the lab easily enough. "I mean I saw her, or at least her avatar. Would it have been that hard to set up a camera for me?" He wasn't complaining; if Gina hadn't done it, she must have had a reason. But what reason could she have had? "I guess I am an alien," he said thoughtfully, "and maybe she doesn't want me getting a look at her lab so I don't try and replicate it in Tronik. If people here have computers big enough to hold a whole city, maybe they don't want us building that where we are."

Holodeck Man! Illusion X (all senses) LINKED Create Object X (Extra: Movable) (6 pp/rank) Woof, pricey. You could put a Feedback flaw on it, I guess.

It was ultimately Harrier in flight that threw off the project, or rather, made things more difficult than Miss Americana had anticipated: his flightpack's eruption out his back was covered easily enough as a column of dragon's fire, but the sheer heat of the Omegadrone's internal systems were enough to throw off the disguise unit's circuitry: in rather ungallant terms, the knight had an Omegadrone's buttocks. Harrier bent over as Miss A worked on him; the robotic heroine sure that another few layers of sprayed-on insulation would prevent any further problems. "Do you have guests here?" he asked her as she worked, thinking of ways to make casual conversation.

chunkchunkchunk The armor erupted from Harrier's body as usual, but this time something was different: a flash of light burst from his body like the shine of pure mystic radiance, temporarily obscuring any onlookers from noticing the true nature of his transformation. When the light had faded, he stood revealed clad in gleaming silver armor like something from the pages of song and story, a shining beacon of truth and justice for the ages. His sword shone with mystic purity, a blade that looked like it could cut through most anything. Harrier was, as usual, silent, but she could see him taking in his transformed state by studying his hands and himself in the mirror. "Is it safe for me to fly in here?" he asked.

Harrier's skin was a little cold, and when Miss Americana brushed against the lines where his armor erupted she could feel the steel-hard metal within, like a cage under his skin. "No. There is no discomfort." He stared at her for a moment, looking through her at the past. "And these will remain in place even in combat, and in bathing?"" Talking helped, talking helped make this anything more than another lab and another scientist changing him. This was what he wanted. This was something he'd asked for.

Not one for personal initiative, Harrier headed over to her side. It wasn't that he'd ignored her instructions about the sword, it was just that it made more sense to wait until everything was in place before he tried everything. Miss Americana was very, very clever, but she didn't have the same kind of combat experience he did. He kept the pike-turned-sword in hand, still unconsciously carrying it straight up and down like a power pike. "I am ready," he offered when he was in position, studying her placidly to see what she would do.

He passes the Feint easily enough, but a nat-20 is a nat-20! He is not drained at all And this time I will Fiat, and say he passes the Toughness save. It's still an impossible save for him, so he's injured. OK, JoaB is up three HP and has injured his opponent. When will my reign of brutal ineptitude end? Miss Americana is up.

The Nutcracker paused in his ranting, seeming to sniff the air, and suddenly focused his beady wooden eyes right on Jack of all Blades. "I can smell you!" he spat, drawing his ridiculously blunt wooden sword that was hardly even anatomically matched to the rest of his tubby, over-sized body as he shoved Ms. Claus aside. "I'll run you through, you Slinky-sworded buffoon!" Being evil, the Nutcracker was unaware that Slinkys are actually awesome toys, and his insult had no effect on Jack of all Blades. He did, however, catch the attention of both the costumed swordsman and his candy-cane wielding ally when he suddenly leapt into the air, did a spinning backflip that belied his massive bulk, and smashed his sword right into Jack of all Blades' midsection, over and over again with near-blinding speed! "You won't sell me to the Rat King!" he gloated. - Desparia faced the shimmering blue wall with a look of furious grief on her pinched-up face. "You think your candy-coated dream wall can stop me! I have the power of all the winters of the world!" With a shriek, she hurled a ball of flaming black ice at Jill's force fields, and somewhat ominously they exploded, sending showers of energy somehow frozen by the Snow Queen's terrible winter magic into shards of glimmering blue. It was a sight to remember, assuming they all survived. "You'll never have Christmas, you hear me!" she screamed again, flying into the middle of her crowd of Bumbles and preparing another spell. "No one will!"

I gave you bad advice earlier, Giz, so take an HP for that! EDIT: Gizmo was kind enough to correct an error in my math: another HP for him. (Since I did have to Fiat after all) Nutcracker: Look, suffice it to say, AA made some pretty goofy math errors here. Let's just say that Gizmo gets those HP, is uninjured by the Nutcracker's surprisingly agile attack, and is currently in melee combat with that fat wooden bastard! - Desparia: Standard Action: She Power Attacks Jill's shield with her Disintegrate. Their Toughness drops to -10. They're subsequently destroyed by the Damage part of the attack. I'll handwave the Blast going through the shield, though by all rights it should: that's a little harsh! Move Action: She flies into the center of her group of still-standing Bumbles. JoAB is up.

"We need to stay together," said Fusion with a quiet, otherworldly assurance. Clinging to the ceiling with long black tentacles, she looked like something undead herself as she kept a firm grip on the shadows. "Stay together, and keep records as long as you can." She reached into her costume and fished around for a few moments before coming out with a disposable camera. "It's a crap camera," she admitted ruefully, "but it'll take pictures. This was supposed to be for our victory party afterwards, and it will be...once we get these guys. How'd the murder victim die?" she asked Nick C suddenly.

DC 15 Fort save for Stun for Dragonfly Victory is up

Growling, the flying yeti formed a flying circle around Miss Americana and Dragonfly, sinister intentions in their giant lolling eyes! "We're going to put you on ice!" shouted one, earning applause from the others. "Good one, Gary! Miss D loves that stuff. "Yeah, and I'm going to CHILL you out!" yelled another, shaking a giant furry fist. "That one's not so great..." "Hey, he's trying his best! What you should have said is that the chill of the North Pole will leave us COLD to your pleas for mercy!" said another one wearing glasses and growling with a definite British accent. "And I'm going to ICICLE YOU!" shouted the last one, his fur a little more matted. The others were skeptical of that one, shaking their heads, before he added, "With my ICICLE GUN!" "Oh yeah!" And with that they all whipped out their weapons, opening fire on Dragonfly. The majority missed, but did throw her off as she tried to dodge, balanced on Miss Americana: the last freezing cone smacked her right in the face!

Initiative: 6 Flying Bumbles: 26 Jill O'Cure: 19 Victory: 17 Nutcracker: 15 (goes first, as he has the higher init) Desparia; 15 Jack of all Blades: 12 Miss Americana: 11 Dragonfly: 8

Citizen: Real World Fusion: Dark Mother White Saturday Walked Alone Vignette Edge: Brit Machine Rusty Cage Heroes of Our Past Harrier: Vanquish and Vitriol Security Precautions Vignette GMing: Grapevine Holidays Humble Put my GM points towards Edge, please

"Holy macaroni!" Edge exulted at the rapid-fire capture of Adamant and just as rapid escape by the giant Beast. Gathering up daka crystals, he said "Okay, Wander, grab me and carry me along! Midnight too if he doesn't have his jetpack handy! Looks like the Beast is headed away from the city, so we don't have to take him down immediately, but we'd better do it fast! If he gets out of Dakana and away from all these daka crystals, there'll be no stopping him! Remember, we're the best there is, and we're going to show that Beast that freedom never sleeps! Go Young Freedom!" As usual with Mark, the sheer power of his belief made his words especially weighty.

Sharl spent the next few hours watching television, flipping from channel to channel as he tried to take in all he could about the strange new world around him. He'd get online and search the local version of the 'Net later, he was smart enough to know he couldn't do research without knowing what to look for. _This is it,_ he thought with a low whistle as he watched Jack of all Blades rip through the Crime League, watched Lady Liberty punch through a Communist robot's face, saw a thousand other acts of heroism big and small. _This is what I've been looking for all my life. Beings of great power and great character, who want to use their great powers to make a better life for everyone else._ He hadn't expected to fall asleep, but he did anyway, dozing off in his chair to guilty thoughts of his worried family. But when those passed, and he was alone, the computerized reflection of a man dreamed of flying.

Quo-Dis didn't look convinced, but she did subside a bit. "I suppose that works for your people," she finally said, "just as our way works for my people." So much for choosing your mates freely, she thought irritably. Why couldn't a society that practiced such free love practice some of that free love with her? "I certainly don't want you to think I have any sympathy for the monsters who've caused so many problems for your people," she said, looking at him earnestly. She hadn't mentioned her cousin to him, and she wasn't likely to do so now. She squeezed his thigh imploringly, batting her big blue eyes. "What can I do to make it up to you?"

24 Mark will Inspire! 22 Good roll for the Beast. So we're: Edge Wander The Beast Midnight

"Okay, I guess I'll do that," said Sharl, who hadn't really expected anything better. "I mean..." He gestured to the room all around them, rooms now that Gina had added so much, "this is much more than I could ever have expected. I'll keep studying, I guess, and trying to think of what I'm going to tell my parents when I get home." His shoulders settled, but he didn't look defeated so much as he looked tired. "Are you a superhero?" he asked her. "Like the other people I saw on TV with powers."

Quo-Dis didn't have any strong feelings on visiting Kansas City either way, but agreed with Corbin that the trip sounded interesting. "Wings are all right," she said lightly, "but I find normal quadruped humans much more attractive," she said with a wink at Corbin, putting her hand on his thigh under the table. "I mean, what will people think if you pass down genetic impurities?" she asked, sounding legitimately worried by the process. "You might be thrown out of the group, or denied the right to mate!"

"I DUNNO, YOU'LL HAVE TO AZK THE GIRLZ. I DON'T GO OUT MUCH. ITZ DANGEROUZ!" Beearthur seemed determined to share his plans for interior decorating with the two heroes in lieu of explaining exactly what was going on with the radiation symbol nearby, but luckily a frost-rimed Beatrizz arrived back at that juncture to give more information: after pressing deeper into the hive for warmth. "ITZ VERRY VERRY COLD OUT!" she explained, the bees having evidently tried to fly above the clouds on the way back only to have run into further problems. When she was alongside two of her sisters, and everyone deep inside the foyer of the giant rocky hive, the building lit only by what looked like an iridescent rock glowing on some of the walls, an exotic compound no doubt helpfully provided by the building's maker, Beatrizz explained as she warmed. "ITZ UNDERGROUND AWAZAWAY ON A METAL ISLAND THING, OUT IN THE WATER. I FOUND IT WHEN I WAZ EXPLORING AND WANTED TO MAKE ZURE YOU HEARD. IZ A VERY DIZTURBEEING PLAZE, AND THERE ARE NOT MANY ANIMALZZZ AROUND THERE!"