Living Supers Judge
First Post
Origin of Powers:
On New Years Eve, of 1999, amid fears of Y2K and mass panic, the event happened. A comet, undetected by radar or telescope, passed close to earth, and was pulled into a low orbit. The comet made several trips around the earth, slowly decending further and further into the atmosphere, before it finaly burned itself up. Little was known of the strange comet, or it's odd behavior, and it's study is still an expanding field today.
What is known is the series of events that can perhaps only be linked to it. It was gradual at first, but things were different. While the most public event was the November 2001 incident where noted actor Marlon Gibson spontaniously ignited at a publicity appearance for his upcomming movie. Strangely, when he was finaly put out, he was unharmed, but rescue squads were unable to approach him. Sadly, he died later that night in an unexplained car explosion. But there were signs of oddities well before this. Rumors of men and women with extrordinary abilities were already circulating before that.
It seemed that some event had changed the fundimental rules of life, or perhaps unlocked them. Practicers of the Occult found that magic they had practiced with no results now functioned. Men who had spent their lives training found they could perform feats they once thought impossable. Some with known genetic abnormalities found them amplified to an increadable degree, sometimes good, sometimes bad. Researchers found new and once unheard of uses for technology, and technology once thought to be at an end of it's usefullness found new and strange life again. Most have been uneffected, but the cases begain to add up till it was impossable to hide from the truth that things were changing. The Chicago Tribute coined the phrase "Unlocking Humanity's Potential", which seemed as good an explanation as any, and quickly cought on.
July 2002 - Pointing to research indicating the occurance of people with enhanced abilities, Resolution 527 is put before the UN by Major Christopher Nueworth, which was written Seth Sharpman with the advice of several UN medical specialists. The resolution, termed extreme and uncalled for, is promply burried in a subcomittee for further investigation.
October 2004 - Rising Super Power Criminal incident rates come to head with the most public appearance of a super happened when a mutant, dubbed Rocky for his rock hard skin, tried to rob several banks in Switzerland, and eventualy was taken down by several tanks when he was unable to be pacified.
December 2004 - Citing events from Switzerland, the UN subcomittee investigating Resolution 527 gives it's full support and recomendation for approval.
April 2005 - After much debate and public outcry, the UN passed Resolution 527 on the recomendation of the investigating subcomittee, enabling the formation and funding of a task force of super beings with the backing of the UN to help protect the world from those who would abuse their powers and threaten peace and prosperity in the world.
October 2005 - Under the direction of Seth Sharpman, the first Task Force HQ is established in Kingston on the coast in New Jersey, and begins openly recruiting. The Team Leader is Major Nueworth, though he is simply there for recruiting purposes, and he and Seth intend to take a hands of approach once things are set in motion. The next Task Force HQ, to be located somwhere in the UK, is still being built.
November 2005 - The first recruits for the Task Force are accepted, and missions begin. The media quickly nicknames members of the team "Resolutes" refering to Resolution 527.
Timeline information beyond this can be found in the Timeline Thread
The Task Force, otherwise known as 'The Resolutes'
The Task Force is run by Seth Sharpman and Major Christopher Nueworth under the direction of the UN. They have taken a hands off approach other than condicuting some of the initial interviews with potential heroes.
Seth Sharpman helps deal with funding issues, PR issues, and any of the other unique chalenges a team of supers creates. Basicly, he handles the messes created by the heroes, so they can handle their duty.
Major Christopher Nueworth has provided some much needed military input into the project, and has helped with much of the initial recruiting, as well as being an occasional tactical consultant. He generaly reports to the UN, and helps create a buffer between the UN and the Task Force.
----------------
Behind the scenes:
There are 6 basic origins of powers (Seperate from the power source mechanic in M&M), though many supers are a combination of them. They are Alien (Superman, Martian Manhunter), Mutant (X-Men), Altered (Spiderman, Hulk, Fantastic Four), Training (Daredevil, Batman), Magic/Mystic (Witchblade), and Technological (Iron Man).
In this background, with the 'unlocking of potential', all of these but Alien would be acceptable origins of powers for any potential PC. Perhaps it will change as the world develops, but definately not at the moment.
The initial HQ is in Kingston, New Jersey in the USA, though other HQ/PC meeting places may appear later.
----------------
On the Nature of Magic, Powers, and Power Levels from Pre-Comet (Pre-2000) Days
Though unknown or unbelieved by most, true magic and superpowers did indeed exist on Earth of the Living Supers campaign before the Comet Event of 2000. The best way to describe it is that the Comet massively amplified human potential (both in terms of frequency of powers and the intensity of those powers), but that potential was still there, in minuscule amounts, beforehand.
Pre-Comet powers were all extremely minor and non-extravagant in nature. Minor precognitives (someone who could anticipate which specific episode of a given syndicated television show was going to air) or folks with an innate direction sense of time sense (Super-Senses), or someone who's exceptionally steadfast (a rank in Immovable), or who heals quickly but not inhumanly so (a rank in Regeneration, to recover from being disabled 1/5 hours rather than 1/day). Enhanced Traits (Enhanced Feats and Skills) would also be possible (again, at low ranks), to represent someone with a definite knack for a certain skill or activity. Same deal with magic -- Artificer and Ritualist could be found in assorted practitioners over the millennia, though the low PL of pre-Comet folks sets a definite limit on how much they could do (due to limits on skill ranks); the Magic power per se would have been very rare (and even when present would be at a low rank and have a few Flaws and Drawbacks). Similarly, Power Level was simply not as high pre-Comet as it can be now -- pre-Comet, it would be almost unheard of for anyone to be PL 6, and those who were were either hailed as heroes (or gods), or feared as monsters (or gods), or otherwise seen as truly exceptional. (This is not to say that any actual gods or other non-human beings were limited to PL 6 -- though such beings had very limited interaction with humanity -- only that actual humans were so limited.)
A god guideline is "if it would feel appropriate in a Pulp comic (Doc Savage, The Shadow, Tarzan, Zorro, etc.), an episode of Wild, Wild West, or an Indiana Jones or James Bond movie, it should be alright for a pre-Comet power." Even these minor abilities were unknown to most, though, and were lost in the legends and myths and supermarket tabloids.
On New Years Eve, of 1999, amid fears of Y2K and mass panic, the event happened. A comet, undetected by radar or telescope, passed close to earth, and was pulled into a low orbit. The comet made several trips around the earth, slowly decending further and further into the atmosphere, before it finaly burned itself up. Little was known of the strange comet, or it's odd behavior, and it's study is still an expanding field today.
What is known is the series of events that can perhaps only be linked to it. It was gradual at first, but things were different. While the most public event was the November 2001 incident where noted actor Marlon Gibson spontaniously ignited at a publicity appearance for his upcomming movie. Strangely, when he was finaly put out, he was unharmed, but rescue squads were unable to approach him. Sadly, he died later that night in an unexplained car explosion. But there were signs of oddities well before this. Rumors of men and women with extrordinary abilities were already circulating before that.
It seemed that some event had changed the fundimental rules of life, or perhaps unlocked them. Practicers of the Occult found that magic they had practiced with no results now functioned. Men who had spent their lives training found they could perform feats they once thought impossable. Some with known genetic abnormalities found them amplified to an increadable degree, sometimes good, sometimes bad. Researchers found new and once unheard of uses for technology, and technology once thought to be at an end of it's usefullness found new and strange life again. Most have been uneffected, but the cases begain to add up till it was impossable to hide from the truth that things were changing. The Chicago Tribute coined the phrase "Unlocking Humanity's Potential", which seemed as good an explanation as any, and quickly cought on.
July 2002 - Pointing to research indicating the occurance of people with enhanced abilities, Resolution 527 is put before the UN by Major Christopher Nueworth, which was written Seth Sharpman with the advice of several UN medical specialists. The resolution, termed extreme and uncalled for, is promply burried in a subcomittee for further investigation.
October 2004 - Rising Super Power Criminal incident rates come to head with the most public appearance of a super happened when a mutant, dubbed Rocky for his rock hard skin, tried to rob several banks in Switzerland, and eventualy was taken down by several tanks when he was unable to be pacified.
December 2004 - Citing events from Switzerland, the UN subcomittee investigating Resolution 527 gives it's full support and recomendation for approval.
April 2005 - After much debate and public outcry, the UN passed Resolution 527 on the recomendation of the investigating subcomittee, enabling the formation and funding of a task force of super beings with the backing of the UN to help protect the world from those who would abuse their powers and threaten peace and prosperity in the world.
October 2005 - Under the direction of Seth Sharpman, the first Task Force HQ is established in Kingston on the coast in New Jersey, and begins openly recruiting. The Team Leader is Major Nueworth, though he is simply there for recruiting purposes, and he and Seth intend to take a hands of approach once things are set in motion. The next Task Force HQ, to be located somwhere in the UK, is still being built.
November 2005 - The first recruits for the Task Force are accepted, and missions begin. The media quickly nicknames members of the team "Resolutes" refering to Resolution 527.
Timeline information beyond this can be found in the Timeline Thread
The Task Force, otherwise known as 'The Resolutes'
The Task Force is run by Seth Sharpman and Major Christopher Nueworth under the direction of the UN. They have taken a hands off approach other than condicuting some of the initial interviews with potential heroes.
Seth Sharpman helps deal with funding issues, PR issues, and any of the other unique chalenges a team of supers creates. Basicly, he handles the messes created by the heroes, so they can handle their duty.
Major Christopher Nueworth has provided some much needed military input into the project, and has helped with much of the initial recruiting, as well as being an occasional tactical consultant. He generaly reports to the UN, and helps create a buffer between the UN and the Task Force.
----------------
Behind the scenes:
There are 6 basic origins of powers (Seperate from the power source mechanic in M&M), though many supers are a combination of them. They are Alien (Superman, Martian Manhunter), Mutant (X-Men), Altered (Spiderman, Hulk, Fantastic Four), Training (Daredevil, Batman), Magic/Mystic (Witchblade), and Technological (Iron Man).
In this background, with the 'unlocking of potential', all of these but Alien would be acceptable origins of powers for any potential PC. Perhaps it will change as the world develops, but definately not at the moment.
The initial HQ is in Kingston, New Jersey in the USA, though other HQ/PC meeting places may appear later.
----------------
On the Nature of Magic, Powers, and Power Levels from Pre-Comet (Pre-2000) Days
Though unknown or unbelieved by most, true magic and superpowers did indeed exist on Earth of the Living Supers campaign before the Comet Event of 2000. The best way to describe it is that the Comet massively amplified human potential (both in terms of frequency of powers and the intensity of those powers), but that potential was still there, in minuscule amounts, beforehand.
Pre-Comet powers were all extremely minor and non-extravagant in nature. Minor precognitives (someone who could anticipate which specific episode of a given syndicated television show was going to air) or folks with an innate direction sense of time sense (Super-Senses), or someone who's exceptionally steadfast (a rank in Immovable), or who heals quickly but not inhumanly so (a rank in Regeneration, to recover from being disabled 1/5 hours rather than 1/day). Enhanced Traits (Enhanced Feats and Skills) would also be possible (again, at low ranks), to represent someone with a definite knack for a certain skill or activity. Same deal with magic -- Artificer and Ritualist could be found in assorted practitioners over the millennia, though the low PL of pre-Comet folks sets a definite limit on how much they could do (due to limits on skill ranks); the Magic power per se would have been very rare (and even when present would be at a low rank and have a few Flaws and Drawbacks). Similarly, Power Level was simply not as high pre-Comet as it can be now -- pre-Comet, it would be almost unheard of for anyone to be PL 6, and those who were were either hailed as heroes (or gods), or feared as monsters (or gods), or otherwise seen as truly exceptional. (This is not to say that any actual gods or other non-human beings were limited to PL 6 -- though such beings had very limited interaction with humanity -- only that actual humans were so limited.)
A god guideline is "if it would feel appropriate in a Pulp comic (Doc Savage, The Shadow, Tarzan, Zorro, etc.), an episode of Wild, Wild West, or an Indiana Jones or James Bond movie, it should be alright for a pre-Comet power." Even these minor abilities were unknown to most, though, and were lost in the legends and myths and supermarket tabloids.
Last edited:
