Fox

"I married a doctor," Mara deadpanned, eyebrows raised. "'Everyone' who matters is just my mother, but she was delighted. She was...not around for a long time." Mara paused, tapping a finger on the table and searching for a way to explain that without raising more questions. "Not her fault. Think she was...surprised, but initially just happy to be part of my life. Got a lot of hints she was disappointed she wouldn't get more grandchildren. Otherwise very supportive." She cocked her head, hair spilling out of place as she spooled a few mother/daughter conversations back through her head. "Worries about Ellie's job." And Mara's own. "Ellie won her over, though. Mostly just get phone calls when something makes the news. Very lucky - our relationship is...odd." Her mouth did something that wasn't quite a smile and wasn't quite a frown, but she shrugged and ran a hand along the side of her head to try to get her hair back where hair should go. "But I have one good parent. Many don't have that. Yours might surprise you when she evaluates missing her own daughter's wedding."

"I turned the algorithm inside out until it stopped doing that," said Mara, as if that was a perfectly normal thing to have done. "Get lots of weird online accreditation ads now, though. Not sure it's an improvement." Mara did not have a college degree; she still wasn't sure if or how an algorithm had figured that out. She tapped her fingertips against her mug, tap-tap-tap, as she mulled several things over at once. "People already vote by fame or because they're told to," she said, "capes don't change that - would bet a hero arguing for a party would sway opinion of the hero more than opinion of the party unless they're...the Centurion, or similar. Would also have to bar actors and athletes and influencers from political spheres to make meaningful impact. Not going to hold the old Patriot against the new one, though - willing to judge them on their own terms." "Nobody on the League is elected; Patriot's just one more unelected person. They represent us or they don't." She shrugged, running a hand back through her hair in a futile attempt to get it to stay. "Understand why the government would find it comforting to have someone on the team, not really bothered by it, but think the League has better track record than government. Job's also simpler, probably, but I've met a couple and like them better than most politicians. Probably wouldn't mind too much if the plant goddess was on the ballot, as long as she was there honestly. Wouldn't vote for the dragon. Would be very suspicious of the voice, but only because his specific power is abusable to get and keep that position."

Nocturne Initiative: 1d20+5 = 19

"Definitely would not want that job," said Mara, having spent Ellie's rant trying out her tea. Good tea. She used her free hand to pat Ellie on the back. "Can barely stand business press things, or meetings with government officials during contract work." She paused halfway to another sip of tea and added, "...not really worse than big business types. Different kind of annoying sometimes." She glanced back at the television, sipping thoughtfully. As Dragonfly, she usually avoided the press; as Mara, she tried to minimize press and government both. "Do you think they show up on your doorstep if you choose a very patriotic name or costume? All hero stuff is political, and the red-white-and-blue ones are positioning themselves as leaders, representatives, whether they like it or not. Bet government has a whole PR department trying to keep up with heroes trying to represent America specifically. Lots of underpaid state workers trying to keep heroes from saying whatever things current establishments don't like, without forcing the issue. Must be awful for everyone involved."

"Cardamom tea?" was Mara's request off the menu; she was happy to follow Ashley's lead on the food. She was happier still to squeeze her wife's hand under the table, smiling the Ellie Smile that marriage had not diminished. "Not just an online problem either," she agreed. "People can be awful out of real care for you. Don't know your friends and family, but it's easy for them to try to live through you or try to make sure it's their idea of perfect for you, forget - to forget that it's your wedding, not theirs. Do what makes you both happy, remember that it's about you two and not actual ceremony or tradition. Best advice I got was from my mom, who said that the perfect wedding is one where everything goes wrong and you can still laugh about it when it's over." She paused, tapped a finger against the table, and added, "Mom never married, but apparently advice was from her mom, so...probably still good."

"No fighting in the lab," said Viktor - said Graviton - in the kind of calm but authoritative tone that could cut through a crowded room. He hadn't moved much. "You wish to fight, I will not stop you. But you do it out there, and not in here." Natalia had moved, sliding out of her chair when Canister appeared in the doorway - not giving ground, very careful to not give ground, but not standing in arm's reach, either. Mostly she was mad she hadn't heard them coming. Weakness. "That means 'back up', Vandalist," she said; little motes of black and gold were pooling around her feet, but it was more threat than action. "You can still cover the only door to the room without looming in it. Or we can push you out - I'd say it's your choice, but you clearly don't make good ones."

Mara mmh'd her assent, eyebrows disappearing up into her bangs as she looked the ring over from a polite distance. "Good appliances, too," she added, putting both little statues back in their box. "Built most of them. I did, I mean; very precise machines. I might be owed favors from a couple nice restaurants, too." Pasta bandits. That had been a weird day. "If you wanted something traditional." She paused, fingertips tapping the box. "....would she be moving in with you?" she asked, cocking her head, and deadpan as ever. "Hopefully it's something you discussed. This is not a big boat."

This thread is now locked; existing edit requests in this thread will still be honored, but please use the new thread to submit any new edit requests.

When you submit an edit request, please do not just submit a new code-blocked sheet for us to copy & paste. You must tell us specifically what you're adding/editing. For minor edits - updating a bit of math or adding a couple new skills or powers - a full sheet is not required, but for extensive edits or re-writes a sheet will make the job significantly easier. To avoid clutter and to make the thread easier to go through, please put your sheets in spoiler tags. When submitting edits for multiple characters, please make one post per character - it helps with the bookkeeping and make sure that an issue with one character edit doesn't affect another's. Also please try to limit the number of characters you post at once. While we endeavor to do these as quickly as possible we're only human, so don't be afraid to contact us if we've not gotten to your edits in a while.

Dragonfly (maxed) Americhristmas (2) Nocturne Radio Edit (1) Split the Dragonfly posts between Eclipse and Grim so that they have 1 post / 1pp each (prioritizing Eclipse if I've undercounted). Ref point to Nocturne, please.

"Mara," said Mara, by way of introduction as she accepted the box, following in Ellie's wake and letting the far more social partner break the ice. "Please take cookies. You'll save lives. Yolanda is very proud, which makes it very difficult to not eat...all of the cookies." "I will not judge you for thinking you passed as straight," she...reassured?...their host, turning her head away from her open inspection of the boat. She wanted to see the engine, even if she could guess what it was - was that weird? Did people normally want to see engines? Probably not. Mara spent too much time around engineers. "I don't have the cultural background. My childhood was nonsense. They are nice throw pillows, though; helps make it more house than boat." For lack of additional boat-related things to pry into without tools, Mara carefully opened their gift box and took one of the little statues out to inspect. "These are nice," she said, gently pulling one out of the box to show her wife. Was she supposed to know what space dust felt like? She would not comment on the space dust. She needed to look into having normal friends, this was becoming a problem. "We're reorganizing some of our shelves, these would look nice on the little middle shelves, left of the couch, Ellie? Thank you, Ashley."

No need to be sorry - rule one of games like this is that real life always comes first. I'll go ahead and pull this character out of the Character Bank and into Character Building for you. When or if you return, we'll still be here!

Grabbing someone by the buckle/eyelets/etc. makes a certain amount of sense, but it does put the onus on your GM to decide whether or not it'll (1) be enough to actually grab someone, and (2) when and how it'll apply. You may get inconsistent results! If you're okay with that, I'm okay with it. Bending a stop sign to "grab" someone is probably more of a Ranged attack than a Perception one; imagine the Incorrigible Copyright-Safe Arachnid-Person fighting Doctor Professor Telekinesis. If the Doctor 'grabs' Arachnid-Person directly, there isn't really anything Arachnid can do - they're just instantly grabbed! But if the Doctor picks up some stray pipes and tries to wrap them around the hero, that's something Arachnid-Person can duck away from. Auto-hit vs. attack roll. Make sense? If you want to do both, it may be worth separate powers in an array (and I have something similar on my geokinetic hero, who can both move earth directly and make earth 'hands' to act indirectly). The metals-only power can be flawed down to...well, to metals only, which makes it cheaper (and thus you can use those points to make it stronger!). The use-metals-to-do-other-Moving power will be more expensive, so slightly less powerful, but that makes a fair bit of sense. The range limitation is a little harder since it isn't something the game does super well; it doesn't have a range step between "Ranged" (limited range, roll to hit) and "Perception" (unlimited range if you can perceive it, auto-hit). It may depend on how limited you want it; if his range is generous (e.g., easily big enough to cover most combat or action scenarios) but not actually unlimited, that might be worth a Complication where the GM can say, "Alas, the canister of Evil Zombie Liquid has fallen out of your range!".

Mostly small math stuff here: With +2 Base attack and +1 Strength, Thumper would have a Grapple modifier of +3. You may also want to list the Grapple modifier of the Move Object powers (+20) in case you want to use them to grapple someone or something. With +12 Toughness, up to 5 of which is Impervious, Thumper would have a Knockback modifier of -6, or -8 with the impervious active, usually written as something like "Knockback: -6/-8 (w/ Impervious)". Speaking of those Move Object powers: without being flawed down to ferrous material, as-written you can grab absolutely anything with them at Perception range, without having to make an attack roll; that makes sense for mentally controlling metal (telekinesis-type powers are very often Perception range!), but if you're grabbing something not made of metal that's a slightly tougher sell. I may be misunderstanding the power, though - if a villain was fleeing across the rooftop, would Thumper use Move Object to try to catch that person? What would that look like? Forming a hand or platform of metal to catch them is probably Ranged, rather than Perception, but I don't want to make you overcomplicate your build if we don't need to. (As an aside: we don't see the +Explosion extra much, and this is a really nice use of it. Well done.) The tally at the bottom of the sheet lists 19pp for Saving Throws, rather than 17pp; once corrected I believe it still adds up to 150pp, though, so you should be on-budget.

"That makes sense. The explanation, not her blaming herself," Mara amended. She had never gone to school, and had arguably never had a chance to be a teenager, so she genuinely appreciated the context. "And thank you for the clarification." She had already started trying to design some kind of hallway-monitoring surveillance system with school-budget level technology. It was probably too late to stop now, but she could keep that in the back of her head where it wouldn't cause trouble. Mara did not have a gift bag to carry, which left her free to shove both hands in the pockets of her layered winter jacket - even with her riding gloves on, she was happy for a chance to warm them back up after the ride over. That, though, only after she'd used her off-hand to try to fluff the helmet out of her hair. She grew those wavy blond locks long in the winter, and sometimes regretted it. "Seem a little nervous, but I promise to be awkward enough to distract her from it," she deadpanned. "I will be weird enough for the both of us, won't notice tooth-pulling until it's too late and she's already our friend. Will be a very clever trap." Beat. "Unless she's actually fun police. Then no friendship, we keep the cookies."

"Accepting seems like the reasonable gamble," said Natalia, who'd spent the last few minutes of drama inspecting her nails. "If they're trustworthy enough to call off the invasion, it gives everyone else more time to counter-attack; if not, perhaps it buys time to set up a better defense. Either way, it brings me closer to the person who thinks they can force my hand that crudely." Seemingly satisfied with her manicure, she folded her hands in her lap, legs crossed, back straight. "It's a dangerous gamble," she admitted. "Unless they fell for my beauty at first sight - which isn't unreasonable - they likely know I'll be uncooperative and may have other threats or dampeners or the like to try to deal with me. I think I nevertheless like those odds better than trying to fight an entire invasion force, and in the worst case - if they're fully irredeemable - I can try to collapse the leader and their power structure before they can bring me to heel." Something about the way she said 'collapse' implied it wasn't a metaphor. "I'd have no intent to fulfill my end of the bargain, though."

Nocturne [4 posts = 1pp, +1 ref = 2pp] Radio Edit (4) Ref point to Nocturne, please.

A very quite November indeed, but things were already a bit slow and the holidays always put the brakes on posting a bit. Lots of illness going around, to boot - stay healthy, people, as much as you can! ----- Ari Rainshadow: 0 posts = 0pp + 1 (guide) = 1pp AvengerAssembled Fast-Forward: 0 posts = 0pp + 1 (ref) = 1pp Dr Archeville Artificer: 0 posts = 0pp + 1 (ref) = 1pp Fox Nocturne: 0 posts = 0pp + 1 (ref) = 1pp Gizmo Chitin: 0 posts = 0pp + 1 (ref) = 1pp KnightDisciple Patrioteen: 0 posts = 0pp + 1 (ref) = 1pp Nerdzul Nightscale: 2 posts = 1pp Nick Arcana: 0 posts = 0pp + 1 (admin) = 1pp RocketLord Nevermore II: 0 posts = 0pp + 1 (guide) = 1pp Spacefurry Paper: 2 posts = 1pp Blackstaff: 0 posts + 1 (GM) = 1 post = 1pp Chimera: 0 posts + 1 (GM) = 1 post = 1pp GM: 1 post x2 = 2 posts TheAbsurdist Jotunn: 0 posts = 0pp + 1 (ref) = 1pp Thevshi Multigirl: 0 posts = 0pp + 1 (ref) = 1pp trollthumper Temperance: 0 posts = 0pp + 1 (ref) = 1pp

"There's rich and there's rich, Cricket." Natalia had moved to rest her head on the back of one hand, listening with manufactured disinterest. "I'm sure you could engineer your way to wealth that would blow the knight's iron-plated socks off without exploiting anybody or giving yourself interesting new arm joints." She eyed Naomi and Wilona and hesitated in what could be charitably interpreted as well-intentioned restraint. "...billions with a 'b' may be as much a liability as anything else, but even that could probably be used for a good cause. If you're looking for charity ideas, Owain could use a tour of some sweatshops and slums." To the latter she shot a smile - though it was neither sincere, nor trying to be. Really, it looked more like the last thing a mouse might see after venturing too far from home. "Medicine and average living standards have improved but less has changed than you think. Allow yourself as few illusions as possible."

"Don't feel too bad, Wilona," said Natalia. It might have been comforting if she didn't sound vaguely bored. "Ryder has that effect on people. The only point I think I'd disagree with is that power implies responsibility." She shrugged. "I don't expect it to be a popular opinion, here of all places," she added, "but I don't much expect every person to spend their short lives toiling for the greater good. Even powerful people could satisfy themselves with quiet lives in which they do neither great help nor great harm, surely. I wouldn't judge them for it." She paused, looking up at the ceiling, brows neatly furrowed. "No, that isn't true. I would judge them - they'd aspire to mediocrity, and I'd treat them accordingly. But I don't think I'd count it as a moral failing."

"I try not to make friends with the weak-minded," said Natalia, straightening one of her sleeves. "I suppose I should feel insulted on the behalf of the hypothetical idiot, whether or not their idiocy was induced sympathetically." She sighed, settling into the question proper. "I am not well-suited for the...touchy-feely diplomacy this kind of issue might take," she said, gesturing at the card with one hand, "but I know people who are. I assume I'd draw from their wells of advice or make the appropriate introductions. If they were ever worth being my friend, there must be something of value there and their support network may grow - ideally, the supremacist rhetoric would starve itself in their brain once they had better influences in their life." She paused, lip curling, and added: "In the absolute worst and most dire case, I might throw Ryder at them. It's a bit like stopping an ant with a tactical bomb, but it does get the job done."

"It's a matter of trust, then," said Natalia. "And consequences." She was not sitting with the group so much as on its periphery, with the easy excuse that she'd already been there and hadn't bothered to move, legs crossed as she delicately mulled the problem over. "I agree that, in good faith, we have to assume the threat is credible, and that lesser violence won't do in the long term. I disagree that we have enough information to decide - even in the moment, we'd know more than we do now." She raised a hand, floating an eraser around her fingers. "If the villain is can be trusted to keep her word and she isn't an immediate threat, then letting her go isn't the worst option - we can always strike at her later from a better position, after safeguarding who we can or dismantling her network; she'll be busy for a time with securing her escape and lying low, which buys time to see to the safety of friends and family. Or, ignore her entirely, if she's likely to extend us the same grace...killing is messy, and I have it on good authority that it rarely improves anything. But if she can't be trusted to keep her word when released, or if the threat she poses is too great when loose? Then the best choice may be to crush her." The eraser flexed outward in a rather painful-looking way before collapsing into rubber shreds. She looked up at the others, raising an eyebrow. "Intimidation is messy," she acknowledged, nodding to Ryder, "but there's something to be said for sending a message, or so I'm told. The consequences of letting the villain free are not limited to that one villain - now each and all would know how to escape your grasp, and the threats against your loved ones only increase...and if this enemy is willing to spill your secrets to their friends in and from prison, who else will they tell? If there are consequences for those threats, others are less likely to attempt them. But it isn't ideal in any case, and the devil's in the details."

A very quiet October - lots of people have lots going on, so it's not too surprising. If you don't see your name below (or if you're listed at 0 posts when you're sure you were active!) then you may not have posted your threads - Late Thread Counting may be a resource for you to leverage there. Without further ado: Ari Rainshadow: 0 posts = 0pp + 1 (guide) = 1pp AvengerAssembled Angelic: 0 posts = 0pp + 1 (ref) = 1pp Dr Archeville Horrorshow: 0 posts = 0pp + 1 (ref) = 1pp EternalPhoenix Queenie: 0 posts = 0pp + 1 (ref) = 1pp Fox Nocturne: 0 posts = 0pp + 1 (ref) = 1pp Gizmo Chitin: 0 posts = 0pp + 1 (ref) = 1pp KnightDisciple Patrioteen: 0 posts = 0pp + 1 (guide) = 1pp MoonSimply La Puma Negra: 6 posts = 1pp Nerdzul Nightscale: 5 posts = 1pp Spacefurry Paper: 5 posts = 1pp TheAbsurdist Jotunn: 0 posts = 0pp + 1 (ref) = 1pp Tiffany Korta Zhenschina-voin: 0 posts = 0pp + 1 (ref) = 1pp trollthumper Cavalier: 0 posts = 0pp + 1 (ref) = 1pp

My most immediate concern is that the character doesn't meet their combat caps on offense - Mirage's only offensive abilities are unarmed combat (fighting at PL4.5), Nauseate (at PL7), and damaging Illusions (at PL5). New characters need to hit combat caps for their power level, so Mirage is going to need some kind of combat-useful ability that can function at PL. Fortunately, I think you have the budget to make that happen. Every new player starts with two PL10/150PP slots and a PL7/105PP slot, adding additional character slots as they play via Veteran Awards; you can use a PL10/150PP slot to build a PL8/150PP character if you want, and those extra points will help you round Mirage out. Lesser notes are mostly just house rule or helpful things: A character of average wealth (e.g., no Wealth Benefits or Drawbacks) can be assumed to own a cell phone and a normal, every day computer or laptop; no need to buy it with Equipment unless yours is fancy somehow. The +Area Progression on an Illusion power is a Feat, not an Extra; the cost is correct here, just looks like the notation went astray. The 5th D on the Illusion being "Damaging" got a genuine laugh out me. Nicely done.

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