Transcendence Now - M&M Game [Resumed!]

Three months have gone by rather fast. It's been a while since you've connected with society, but soon you'll be out. They say you're the second wave of a new generation of humanity, and it's hard not to believe that you are indeed, different. At the very least, you're not the same person you were before then.

Maybe you were desparate and in a tough spot, maybe lady luck just didn't smile upon you when you needed it. But three months ago when everything looked bleak you were visited by a two members of a private organization, and told you that you had some qualities which interested them. Maybe you were a talented athlete, or a genius in some field, or maybe you just had that drive or inner strength that could hardly be quantified, they didn't tell you what it was they were looking for and didn't give you time to ask.

They introduced themselves, the woman who drew all eyes and attention to her as Angel, and the well-dressed man with blue hair as Bastien. They made an offer, if you took it, the next three months of your life you would spend in a facility, undergoing the 'Transcendental Human Project'. In return you would become something remarkable-a transhuman, like them, given the power to take control of your life, and furthermore hinting that you could influence others, if you so chose.

The project was in the early phases, out of the first seven subjects only five survived, and you would be one of 25 being treated, now that they have fixed the process. They guaranteed your safety, and your freedom-after the three months you would be set loose, without any compensation expected. After all this was said, the man snapped his fingers and vanished, appearing in a different spot in the room and then re-appearing before repeating the trick a half-dozen more times. They then waited and made the offer again.

Three months, white walls, shelter, and food. No outside contact except via letters. In exchange, Transcendence.

For reasons of your own you took the offer, and now, in the last week of the phase you are indeed different. What will you do?

Transcendence Now is a PL 6, 2nd Edition Mutants and Masterminds game. The relative power level will remain low at the beginning, but advancement will come fairly fast, at least 5 PP per 'issue' (thread). Recruitment is not first come, first serve, and to be honest I will be biased in favor of players from Generation Legacy, simply because I already know that they're good roleplayers and can post reliably. Still, I'll pick 5-6 of the concepts which I feel are the most compatible with the game/each other.

I'm looking to run a game where 'supers' are very rare, your character will be one of the first 30 supers. There were 5 original ones, 25 which you'll be a part of, and 125 which are in the process of being transformed, since the results of your treatment were positive. I'm not looking for over the top, four color type characters so much as somewhat realistic ones, and together we'll be exploring a story about a world where super powers are just being introduced.

(Edit-The first issue or two will most likely not be very combat deadly for characters, meaning you don't have to be optimized 100% attack and defense bonus wise, that said, there would be basic self-defense and such courses offered at the facility but most likely not enough to get past a +3 - +4 bonus. I'm going to try to set it up so there's reasonable in-game downtime between issues, so that plausible PP investments can be made.)

Preferably, I'd like to run a post-a-day or at least a post every two days game if I can find enough willing people who can meet that requirement. If you can't post for any reason, it'll be fine as long as you can give a heads up or at least a decent excuse. My own PbP game track record is somewhat dubious, but its been a long while since I've run anything and I believe I have the time and stamina to run a successful one now.

For recruitment, I'd like a short backstory/description of your character concept (doesn't have to be anything extensive), the powers your character would have currently and those they might develope in the future. If you'd like, you can post a link to another PbP game you'd be a part of so I can get a feel for your style.

If enough interest is gathered, I'll judge character concepts either Saturday or Sunday and tell which players are in or not, then give another three or four days (as needed) to work out the mechanics of the characters before starting the game.

Questions?

Edit-Edited first post for spelling errors/strange grammar, shows me I shouldn't do something in a rush. Edited this post to clarify that this is a 2e M&M game.

M&M 2ed?

It seems obvious, I know, but I have to be sure before I put together a pitch.

The game concept makes me salivate. I shall try EXTER hard!

Oh god count me interested. It'll take me a bit to come up with a new hero (since none of mine so far are anything but technology oriented), but I can post daily (or more!) since school lets out tomorrow, and I've been dying to get into a Supers game.

Are there any limits on powers? And like the guy asked before me, you're using 2e?

I might go with a pretty straight-forward elemental flavoured 'blaster' sort of character, or maybe something a bit more subtle. Not really sure yet!


Hm. Would a shadow-control flavoured character be appropriate? I'm not entirely sure of the extent of the experiment/procedure's abilities. Otherwise, I think an ice-control sort of character might be fun, too. I know they're a bit on the flashy side, but... well, I guess that's why I'm asking.

It is 2ed. I'll repost Jester over here from the other thread to get the ball rolling now that we have a home.

Makenzie Wolf

History: Makenzie was born into a travelling circus family of acrobats that worked the east cost, spending the majority of its time in the North East. The girl was a natural acrobat, like the rest of her family, she was an incredibly dexteruous acrobat capable of completing death defying stunts on a tight rope or trapezee. The girl enjoyed the rush of excitement and the twinge of fear from the crowd that she got while performing. The girl even managed a few tricks that her parent's hadn't considered, with her incredible hand eye coordination and balance, the girl was able to send throwing discs into the bullseye's of distant targets in the midst of her mid-air acrobatics.

Makenzie was making a bit of a name for herself with her throwing disc tricks, in one of her stunts she made 7 rotations throw the air as she was being passed from her brother to her father, and she sent a veritable storm of her thowing discs, into the dead center's of 12 targets arranged in a circle around her, and the crowd ate it up. One person in the crowd saw a lot of potential in the girl, and in her whole family, wanting them to pull off a museum heist for him and his gang. The Wolfs refused since the circus was leaving town anyway they didn't think it would spell any trouble for them. They were wrong. On opening night in New York, the Trapezee and safety net both were frayed sending the family to their death's except for Makenzie who had her throwing discs, wire, and a few extra seconds to react and put them together.

Makenzie was in the hospital for a month not expected to walk let alone ever be able to perform her acrobatic feats again. Her family was gone, she'd never walk again, and she wanted revenge. Thats when the program came to her, they offered her the ability to walk again, to be able to heal from almost any wound, and she gladly accepted the offer, thinking the ability to heal from anything would help her deal with T. Carter and his gang.

Makenzie is based off of Nightwing, and she is pretty much a female version of him. She wants revenge, but legal revenge. Think Batman methodology, scare your opponent into giving it up themself.
[sblock=Stats]
PL: 6 (90pp)

Abilities: STR: 10 (+0) DEX: 18 (+4) CON: 12 (+1) INT: 10 (+0) WIS: 12 (+1) CHA: 14 (+2)
Skills: Acrobatics 11(+15), Bluff 4(+6/+10), Diplomacy 4(+6/+10), Escape Artist 1(+5), Knowledge: Streetwise 6(+6), Notice 8(+10), Sense Motive 10(+12), Sleight of Hand 1(+5), Stealth 7(+11)
Feats: Accurate Attack, Acrobatic Bluff, Attractive (1), Defensive Roll (2), Dodge Focus (2), Evasion (2), Equipment (4), Fast Acrobatic Feint*, Skill Mastery (1) [Acrobatics, Notice, Sense Motive, Stealth], Sneak Attack (1), Uncanny Dodge [Hearing]

*This feat allows Jester to make an acrobatic feint check as a move action without the usual -5 penalty.

Powers:
Healing 3 (PF: Triggered by Injured; 7pp)

Equipment: (20/20 EP)
Costume (Protection 1[Subtle]) [2ep]
Mask (Commlink, Darkvision) [3ep]
Throwing Discs (Blast 2[Autofire 3, Improved Crit.(19-20)], Mighty) [11ep]
-AP: Snare Discs (Snare 4[Improved Crit.(19-20), Reversible, Tether]) [1ep]
-AP: Staff (Strike 2[Extended Reach, Improved Trip, Leaping 1, Mighty, Subtle]) [1ep]
-AP: Swing Lines (Swinging, Speed 2) [1ep]

Combat: Attack +8; Defense 18 (Uncanny Dodge, 13 flat-footed); Init +4
Saves: Toughness +4 (2 flat-footed), Fortitude +3(2), Reflex +6(2), Will +6(5)

Abilities 16 + Skills 13 (52 Ranks) + Feats 17 + Powers 7 + Combat 28 + Saves 9 = 90pp

:!: Although Intially fairly low level, Jester's regen will quickly ramp up to respectable levels.
:!: Tactics: Jester is a born acrobat from a family of acrobats, to her fluid grace and tumbling are like breathing is to others. With Acrobatic bluff, Improved Acrobatic Trick, and skill mastery of Acrobatics, Jester will be feinting her opponents right and left leaving them wide open for her sneak attacks, which is about the only way for her to reach her caps. She'll generally take a move action to bluff(with 25 result) and then use her standard action to attack with her staff or throwing discs.[/sblock]

Kyle Graham

Background/History: Kyle Graham was a normal guy who liked to tinker with cars and computers, working two part time jobs to get enough money to go to college full time. Then came the offer to participate in the 'project'. Turned out that something in his family genetics had left him with 'exceptional potential' and as a result he was offered a positon on the project and in return his finacial needs for school would be paid to whatever level he wished to pursue.

Visions of a masters in Engineering in mind, Kyle took the offer and submitted to the program.
Needless to say, he was more than a little suprised when the result of the program was that his body had assumed the properties of liquid metal analogue. Recovering from the shock of his transformation he discovered certain benefits, like being able to see all around him and being able to stretch/slip into any crevice.

OOC: I'm still working on the stats.

Hi Sollir,

I'm going to work out a concept around the erratic genius theme I floated over in the Generation Legacy thread. Here's the present concept, subject to future revision and in a semi-IC context.

[sblock]Josh was a genius from birth, so far as he or anyone else can tell. Talent like his must be born. No amount of teaching would grant his innate understanding of music. He showed interest before he could walk and was in violin and piano lessons by the time he turned four. Josh excelled from the first time he touched an instrument. Within a year his parents packed him off to a conservatory in Britain that rarely had a student body of more than sixty and specialized in the training of the extremely gifted.

As Josh was born into affluence and his parents took little interest in his day-to-day raising, he had little difficulty adjusting to the conservatory. He thrived under the high pressure and high expectations and leaped far beyond even his elite peers over the next several years. By age ten he'd performed with the orchestra for royalty and begun building a reputation as a soloist on violin and piano alike. Critics praised his intensity and energyon top of his skill.

But as Josh's solo career took off he took less and less interest in his inferiors in talent among the orchestra and finally came to dislike playing among large groups of other musicians entirely. They drowned out his own work with their plodding. They were technically proficient, Josh supposed, but had nothing on him. By fifteen he'd convinced his parents that he needed an agent, who promptly got him regular bookings as a solo performer.

Josh's solo career took off and he spent most holidays away from the school showing off his talents to increasingly appreciative audiences. His time at school became more of a chore and he started frequently skipping classes to practice alone. At sixteen, he left the school without graduating, convinced it no longer had anything to teach him. He started performing full time and lived out of a series of hotel rooms and suitcases.

Up into his twenties, Josh performed and recorded steadily and thrived on the appreciation of the crowd. He made a prosperous, comfortable living for himself and enjoyed collecting his own press clippings as much as his royalty checks. But it all slowly turned from virtuoso performances where he sweated profusely and left the state exhausted to simple competence, to finally the point where he could count heads in the audience while playing. The quality of his performance didn't change, but it was all so easy that he felt like he wasn't doing anything. Composing his own pieces didn't help. Nor did switching from violin to piano and back. He could do it all in his sleep.

Josh became increasingly tempermental, losing much of his old interest in performing. He missed engagements, showed up late, occasionally drunk. He built up a new reputation as a rock star violinist, though he never reached the excesses of drugs or sex worthy of the label. His career continued to climb, but Josh lost interest. A lifetime of frenetic energy poured into performance, he felt spent. All of the accolades sounded the same. When he was twenty-three, Josh declared his intention to cut back and focus more on recording than live performances. He released two compilations of original works to good sales, but soon abandoned plans for more and went into semi-seclusion.

Josh played every day, but only for himself. He thought about taking a job teaching at a conservatory or pursuing further education. He read and tried to teach himself languages. But he continued to drift. New compositions couldn't meet his standards and he could find nothing else to distract him. Collaboration was impossible; Josh hadn't worked with another musician in almost a decade.

Then he met Bastien and Angel.

"So you don't want me to perform. You don't want anything to do with music. You don't want to write a book or do an interview."

He reached the peak of human achievement, and reached it early, they told him. Josh couldn't disagree. He hadn't heard another musician in his league since he was eighteen. But he could go further, he could become transhuman, posthuman. Then they proved it. A new start, another place to excell. Josh could hardly pass it up.

Powers

I see Josh as a developing telekinetic/telepath with the focus on the TK. The telepathy would almost surely be subtle. I'd buy up the TK suite as the first priority in powers, a force field for defense, with telepathy coming later and depending on how the math works out.

Personality

Josh probably looks damned radioactive judging from his background, but I see the transformation as having a very positive effect on his outlook. He's very competitive, but just being powered gives him a permanent edge over most of humanity so he feels fairly secure. Likewise he's very much in the learning phase, so his obsessive drive to meet his own rather high expectations is keeping his ego well in check. It's also pretty much impossible to have a natural talent for powers, so he would be starting at the same level as everyone else even in his own mind. He's not in the process of burning out or feeling like his life's work is over anymore. So it works out to more driven, eccentric, and a bit obsessive than arrogant, abrupt, . He'd be well-disposed towards other transhumans, especially given their rarity. The goal is that he's about average in his likeability.[/sblock]

I'll gladly take suggestions and criticism. I especially have only a vague idea of how musical education for the extremely gifted works out.

EDIT: Tentative stats, again always welcoming feedback.
EDIT2: Realized that he couldn't use a computer and has a lot of combat skill for a guy who went to music school. Took a point out of attack bonus and tossed it into skills and the selective feat on the force field.

[sblock]JOSHUA LUCAS TREVIN
PL: 6 (90 pp)

ABILITIES: STR: 10 (0) DEX: 16 (+3) CON: 10 (0) INT: 16 (+3) WIS: 14 (+2) CHA: 8 (-1)

SKILLS: Bluff (-1), Computers 4 (+7), Concentration 11 (+13), Diplomacy (-1), Disguise (-1), Escape Artist (+3), Gather Info (-1), Handle Animal (-1), Intimidate (-1), Art 5 (+8), Notice 7 (+9), Keyboards 11 (+10), String Instruments 11 (+10), Search (+3), Sense Motive (+2), Stealth (+3), Survival (+2)

FEATS: Benefit (1), Eidetic Memory, Skill Mastery (1), Dodge Focus (2)

POWERS: *Telekinesis [6] - DC:21:tough, Damaging [6], Perception [6], Precise [1], *Force Field [6], Subtle [2], Selective [1],

COMBAT: Attack 2 [Unarmed +0 (Bruise)] Defense 16 (12 flat-footed) Init 3

SAVES: Toughness 6 (6 flat-footed) Fortitude 3 Reflex 6 Will 8

DRAWBACKS:

Abilities 14 + Skills 13 (52 ranks) + Feats 5 + Powers 34 + Combat 12 + Saves 12 – Drawbacks 0 = 90 / 90


Explanation of Stats

Benefit: personal fortune from a career performing and recording classical music.

Skill Mastery: Concentration, Knowledge (art), Perform (keyboards), Perform (stringed instruments)

All powers are psionic.[/sblock]

Sollir, are you going to be using the wealth rules?

I'm liking the look of this, and am willing to give it a shot. Here's a concept I've been sitting on for a while, I won't bother fussing over the crunch aspect of the character unless he's given the thumbs up.

[sblock=Background]Lukas Clausewtiz is a statuesque and charismatic man of Prussian ancestry. His family, originally of a military slant, gradually moved over to economics without losing the discipline and efficiency they possessed in their military traditions. Today the family runs a large corporate conglomerate that rivals the largest of Europe.

Lukas was hardly the eldest sibling, however, and held no hopes for inheriting anything of particularly significant value, so he was never able to maintain an interest in economics. He turned instead to the study of history (and to a lesser extent the occult) out of interest for the conversion of Prussia to Christianity by the Teutonic Knights. Although history was what inspired him to study, his interest shifted to the occult and paranormal, and thusly the various sciences that were most relevent to them. He soon became one of the youngest people in Germany to have earned a Doctorate degree, and his extensive academic achivements, keen intellect and ruthless tactical talent brought him to the attention of the 'Transcendental Human Project'.

After the three months he was left with a power that he was particularly impressed with, deeming it very useful in the current age. He could generate precise and powerful magnetic forces. With the dominance of metal in modern society, plus the many effects magnetism had in the various sciences, he viewed himself as having infinite potential. His powers are new to him, and he is only now beginning to explore his capabilities, but he hypothesizes that with extensive research, practice and experience he could expand his powers to unimaginable limits.

Lukas isn't an evil person, but he certainly isn't a good person either. His primary concerns are academic, exploring his abilities and potentials and determining new ways in which to use his power. With other Transcendents soon to be added to the mix he's curious not only to explore the potentials of his own abilities but also how they measure up to the powers of others. Research on the Trancendents' abilities in regards to morality hasn't crossed his mind yet, nor is it likely to pose much interest to him without a lot of convincing. He is highly unlikely to perform acts of evil without a solid research hypothesis, and is willing to regularly put his powers to the aid of others mostly as an opportunity to test his abilities in the field. He can, more or less, be considered a 'goodguy', but probably not a genuinely good guy.[/sblock]

[sblock=Description]Lukas is a classic example of the tall, dark and handsome stereotype. Short dark hair, deep brown eyes, stubbled and well-tanned from studies afield (funded either from his own pocket or a research grant, more often than not a grant). He tends to wear a pair of rectangular reading glasses low on his nose as he likes how studious they make him look. It's worth on that point noting that he is exceptionally vane. He possesses a powerful charisma, and a natural (albeit ruthless) sense of tactics which seem to have come naturally with the genes of the talented military officers in his ancestry. He still wears the stereotypical academic attire common among scholars much older than himself (turtle-neck, coat with leather elbow patches, etc.), though he has been cooking up an outfit in his mind that caters to his sense of vanity now that he has Trancendent capabilities. He hasn't sought to have it made yet but his hesitation does not come from suspecting he lacks the economic means, he's just wondering whether a 'super-hero' outfit would be suitable (read: fashionable) this early in the rise of Trancendents.[/sblock]

I don't have the time to go over character concepts at this moment but I'll answer the basic questions.

Shayuri/RobotRobotI -> like Shalimar mentioned it is indeed a 2nd edition M&M game. I haven't had a whole lot of character building experience with M&M 2e but I'm familiar with the first edition and have looked through the book once, but I imagine there will be some initial rules rough spots early on.

As to limitations of powers, I'm going to say 'all powers are allowed' although your character's particular power combination might be part of the deciding factor of what I like. I mentioned to Samnell I'm very dubious about the Datalink power because "I'm a bit wary with computer control especially when it comes to a superhero and hacking and such in a world that's so technologically dependent. A) I don't think I could describe any of the scenes with justice and B) when you can do a lot from the comfort of your own home it makes some heroics seem less heroic." That said, I like powers that fit well with your character's theme, though I don't mind strange concepts, usually. It is a lower than usual PL game so I don't see anyone going too overboard, although if I like a character concept but dislike the particular build (overpowered/underpowered heavily, emphasis on heavily) I might ask you to tone it down/find a better suited way for the game.

Samnell -> With the wealth rules, I haven't honestly delved too deeply with them but I will tomorrow when I have the time and then get back with you.