Gizmo

Jaci o' Cups - Initiative. (1d20+2=7)

"Wha ha ha! C'mon, boys, you'll have to do better than that!" A petite blonde woman stood on the steps to the Kirby Gallery, tossing an unconscious security guard to one side with superhuman strength as police officers crouched in firing positions behind the semi-circle of cars in front of her. As soon as the guard was out of the way, they opened fire, the bullets bouncing harmlessly off of the metahuman robber as she idly adjusted the heart-shaped cutout on her sleeveless, crimson leotard, tucked into a pair of black denim cutoffs. With a smirk, Jaci o' Cups clenched her fists, channeling the absorbed kinetic energy as she abruptly grew to just over sixteen feet tall, towering over the officers. "My turn!" she grinned broadly, sweeping a hand in front of her to send patrol cars toppling through the air and their drivers scrambling for cover.

"Sort of," Jack responded as he hopped out of the vehicle and surveyed the surreal landscape. "Looks like I'm all the way here, but Colt and Grim are... grainy." The swordsman searched for the appropriate words to describe what he was looking at. "Flickering in and out. That normal?" Though his tone was conversational, Jack's hackles were up. This hellish mental projection was ten kinds of all wrong, and he wanted to do what needed doing an be done with it.

Even if Carbon gets to transform first, which seems fair, his max Attack is +6, right? He'd only be able to hit Jack on a natural 20. Granted, with the right Enhanced Feats and transformation he could probably bring those chances up a little, but it'd still be pretty one sided.

Right, point taken.

Beads of sweat formed on Jack's forehead as he continued to hold back the flames, his eyes and throat stinging. Stupid, didn't even think about the smoke, he berated himself inwardly as he did his best to crouch down away from the noxious clouds and breath through the collar of his greatcoat. As he did, the fire inched closer, licking across his will. With a grunt, he straightened once more, forcing the hungry heat away from Avenger and the unconscious criminals. "I know I *hkk* make this look *hgh* easy," he called between coughs, "but how abo-*ghk* about hurrying this up?"

Trevor considered his options as he finished the last of his coffee. Erin had dropped two pieces of information about herself, and the dispassionate, analytical part of his mind weighed them as he decided which to pursue. Between her reticence to talk about her past and his own general lack of tact, he was determined to step lightly. Ultimately, he decided that an entire city was less likely to be the source of bad memories than a suite of chemically induced super powers. "Seattle?" he asked simply.

Trevor shook his head, still smiling. "Never. Different beans, different roasts, different blends. S'like tinkering with an engine." He emphasized the statement with a slight gesture, warming to the topic. "Been working on a custom brewer; still needs work." He swirled the cup in his hand idly. The coffee was a little sweeter than he preferred, and had a light nutty aftertaste. Fortunately it had been prepared competently; roasted recently enough that it wasn't too stale, and definitely ground immediately before brewing. To be fair, as knowledgeable as the lanky teen was about the beverage, he wasn't terribly picky when it came down to it. The fact that it was hot and strong counted for a lot. "Soap's supposed to deliver caffeine through the skin when you wash. Doesn't really work, though." After a beat, Trevor shrugged, a little embarrassed. "Disposable income. Seemed like a good idea at the time." Between the assortment of coffee and gadget-related online newsletter and sites he routinely perused, he had a habit of being among the first to test out the newest thing.

Gonna try to counter the flames in the warehouse with Jack's abilities. Power Check. (1d20+6=26) Niiice.

Somebody forget to tell me about a new tax on the word 'the'? Jack wondered as he let out a heavy exhalation and turned to look at the flaming building with a grimace. "Jeez. Uh, I guess straight through the front door; they should all still be on the ground floor." Letting the energies of his blade dissipate into the pouring rain, the metahuman swordsman interlocked and flexed his fingers. "If you can carry them out, I might be able to keep us from getting too oven fresh. Not really my specialty, but beggars, choosers, etcetera, right?" Running back toward the warehouse, he thrust his arms out in front of him, brow furrowing as he focused of pushing the fire away rather than pulling it toward him.

"Ha." The short laugh escaped Trevor's lips before he could compose himself. It was a rich, resonant tone coming from deep in his sternum. He covered his mouth reflexively with the back of his free hand, dropping it to reveal a slightly curved smile. "Sorry. 'Coffee pie'. S'funny." The lanky teen's shoulders relaxed under his undone jacket and he raked his fingers though his dark hair as he took another sip from his cup.

Alright. I was quoting UP there, but I can see how that notation would make things easier to understand at a glance. I also can't remember 'arcs' ever coming up in actual play, but I suppose it's important for flavour if nothing else.

Alright, that looks like a good starting point. For the sake of argument, can't Detect be extended to normal range for just one more rank? UP says: With that in mind, could I swing: Super-Senses 5 (Detect Energy 2 [Mental, Extras: Accurate 2, Acute], Feats: Alternate Power) [6PP] AP: Super-Senses 5 (Detect Magic 2 [Extras]) [5PP] Beyond that, Rapid makes sense, but I think I'll have to leave that until later. I might just drop the Danger Sense out of necessity. As for Extended, I should probably just buy up his ranks in Notice, first; he can actually take 10 more before hitting caps!

Hey gang, let's talk super-senses! So it's been pointed out that Jack's energy awareness is pretty much a big bowl of inconceivable; it does not mean what you think it means. I'm willing to rebuild it to do what it should (as opposed to, I don't know, throwing a tantrum or something?) so I figured the first thing to do would be to more accurately explain what that actually is. Erik and Ellie, through their father, are scions of the House of Swords, one of four ancient aristocracies based on the four suits of playing cards (or possibly the other way around). Each of the Houses are comprised of what I like to think of as metamagi; generation upon generation of mystically enhanced mutants. If you're familiar with DC's Homo Magi, like the Posse from Blue Beetle, this might be more clear. Basically, they're functionally identical to ol' Homo Superior only, y'know magic-ier. I guess the rationale is that being born with the ability to use magic, especially in one specific way, is pretty much a mutant power anyway. Like D&D sorcerers, as opposed to wizards. The point here is that, as far as Erik is concerned, magic's just another type of energy. Of course, the rules kinda sorta disagree, so that's gotta be reflected in his powers. I'm also not really clear on what's covered by Awareness and what's covered by Detect, but it sounds like he ought to have both. Let me know what you think of something like this: Super-Senses 13 (mental; Danger Sense, Detect Energy 2, Detect Magic 2, Energy Awareness, Magic Awareness, Extras: Accurate 4, Acute 2) [13PP] Of course, that's a whopping 8PP more than he's got right now, so if anybody has any ideas on how to array this or something, I'm all ears.

Trevor murmured an agreement and looked down into his cup for a moment. Truly, if he had an Achilles' heel, it would have to be small talk. Clearing his throat lightly, he adjusted the collar of his jacket with his free hand and repositioned himself slightly in the booth. The table and vinyl bench weren't really designed for someone of his proportions; Trevor supposed he was lucky he wasn't one of Claremont's metahumanly large students. He found himself stymied. The lanky teen was by no means naturally inclined to talking about himself, but he'd noticed with equal certainty that Erin pointedly avoided discussing her past. He could understand and respect that, but it did narrow the list of possible conversation topics fairly dramatically. "Coffee's better than I expected," he tried.

Noting the pause Warren took at Mark's blithe mention of the school's metahuman focus, Trevor leaned forward slightly behind the similarly tall new arrival and solemnly intoned, "Telepaths," sharing his personal theory softly enough that it didn't disturb Mark's continuing spiel. It seemed a logical conclusion; if one's problem was an unusual concentration of powered teens, then making use of those powers was a natural means of turning a weakness into a strength. Of course, there was also the unspoken understanding among Freedom City citizens not to pry too much into the secrets of their metahuman protectors, lest they inadvertently bring about a return to the dark days prior to the Terminus invasion.

Jack's metahuman senses filled his nose with the acrid smell of ozone a split second before the massive bolt of electricity crashed down to earth. That was all the time the swashbuckler needed to launch himself backward, twisting in the air to propel himself out of harm's way. It wasn't his closest call by far, but the sheer power Positron was able to draw from the storm made finishing this bout quickly all the more important. Landing in a three point crouch, Jack immediately launched forward, fiery blade hissing as rain evaporated on contact. "'Vengey-poo, you made with the funny! I mean, it wasn't hilarious or anything, but you're trying, and that's! What! Matters!" With each word he slashed powerfully across Positrons torso, using his strength of arm and will to make each blow count.

Reflex Save vs. DC 24. (1d20+15=30) Hells yeah, Evasion 2! Right, let's try to get this done with. Another DC 28 Taunt (does he get +1 if he failed the last one?) and another Power Attack 5. (1d20+13=32) Nice, that's a crit. DC 39. Save against that, chump.

Can I make the check with Jack's Bluff? That'd be 33 cold, if I can.

Across from her, Trevor took a sip from his cup as he considered the question. With his mask and gloves packed away and his jacket unzipped, his costume could easily pass for generic biker wear. He's left his fedora in the Night Cycle's saddlebag, though; no point in pushing his luck. After a long moment he spoke, his unfiltered voice soft enough to carry no further than the booth. "It's... good," the dark haired youth replied judiciously. "Different."

Nearby the school's entrance, a long form lay on the grass, stretched out beneath a matte black motorcycle. Surrounded by tools and parts resting on oil stained rags, Trevor Hunter went about the habitual tinkering which kept the Night Cycle performing at peak levels. Reaching out for a cloth to wipe his hands upon, the thin teen sat up unhurriedly at Mark's arrival with Faith, his head tilting slightly to one side as he took note of the introductions made by the brown haired girl in glasses. He was mildly surprised at the number of new students Claremont had been receiving so close to the end of the semester; he'd assumed he was to have been the exception to the rule. Some sort of drive by the administration? he mused. Retrieving his beaten fedora from the bike's handlebar, he deftly set it upon his head and began packing up for the day.

Trevor gave Erin a subtle nod of recognition before folding his hands behind his back and falling in at the back of the impromptu tour group. His natural inclination was to gracefully bow out of the gathering given the opportunity. Though not uncomfortable around other people per se, he was not a social creature by nature and felt he had little to contribute to Warren's orientation beyond his simple presence. Even so, he'd finished the tune ups he'd wanted to make to his motorcycle before wandering over in the first place, and would only spend the rest of his day cooped up in his dormitory if left to his own devices. Having made a resolution to make new friends at Claremont, it seemed wise to at least make himself available. If nothing else, the lanky teen suspected he could learn a thing or two from observing the gregarious Mark.

Jack winced involuntarily as Avenger spoke. "Do you have to make it sound so... kinky, Captain Leather?" the swashbuckler asked as the two men grappled before him. "I don't want Sparky here getting all excited and telling his pals we double teamed him, y'know?" With the electrically powered villain still pinned in place by Avenger, Jack made another swipe at him with his fiery blade, kept lit in the downpour by his will. "Actually, can we wrap this up?" he added more seriously. "I'm a busy guy, and it looks like the scumbags back there have an appointment with a collapsing building I was really hoping to crash."

Alright, well, let's go with a DC 28 Taunt followed by another Power Attack 5. (1d20+13=26)

Well, I think the counterpoint would be that Erik's made it very clear to both Dok and Ace that he considers the tracking down of his secret identity and particularly his family to be a massive invasion of privacy, to the point were he's never completely trusted Dok since and is still vocally annoyed with Ace. I can't see either of them just spilling the beans to Avenger on that stuff. Even so, I imagine he'd have a comprehensive understanding of Jack's powers and usual tactics, know some general stuff about the Interceptors (membership, goals, maybe where the brownstone is, depending on how much you think Dok would reveal to Avenger about his secret project), know about Jack's more public battles, about the whole 'hellfire thing', about his protectiveness of the West End and that he has a sister, probably even that she's been introduced to Dok as 'Jill' although that's clearly a pseudonym. I don't see this coming up, but he would know that Jack's somehow involved in some tournament sort of deal with his counterparts, and that Jack himself doesn't know what's up with that at all. Avenger would probably even be savvy enough to know that Jaci o' Cups and Coinpurse Jack clearly have European backers and that Jakken Staff, who's only show up once in Jack's backstory, is by far the most dangerous of the four. If there's anything specific you think he should know, give me a heads up and I'll mull it over.