Cascade City: a Mutants and Masterminds Campaign.

[Teflon Billy]

Hey Folks...this is my first attempt at a story hour, so please bear with me through any little burps and hiccups along the way.

I want to immediately get one thing out of the way: A big fat thanks goes out to Toren "MacBin" Atkinson for doing so many of the illustrations that grace this thread. Super Hero gaming goes a lot better with it's own comic art, and Toren has really come through for my gaming group. Thanks big guy

Anyway, on with the show...

First I'll start with a brief intro to the setting, Cascade City. In truth, it's none other than my own hometown Vancouver, BC, Canada--only with a superhero bent to it (in much the same fashion that Gotham is New York with a comic book coat of paint on it )

The City has been the setting for my Super Hero rpg's for ages now, and as such has a lot of history that will likely be referred to by the players (or their GM) in the course of the campaign. I will try and keep obscure references to the past explained, but if at any point something being said isn't making any sense, please feel free to call for a clarification.

Some Things that will likely come up

• The 1930's: The "dirty thirties" were a dark age for Cascade City, as corrupton by organized crime had infected nearly every sector of public service, law enforcement and government. It was in this era that ostensible "heroes" such as The Cackling Man, The Whisperer, Black Fedora and The Crimson Skull started waging war on organized crime from the shadows.
  
  It must be said that the heroes of this age were not the common do-gooders of years to come. These were grim, ruthless men, whose "crimes" were often as not as bad or worse than those they worked against.
  
  But with the aid of the fledgling newspaper The Cascadia Chronicle, public opinion turned, as light was shone on the criminal masterminds who had been running things; Malcolm Factor, Dr. Zombo, Deacon Dark, and The Fat Man.
  
  The tide changed dramatically as the civic elections of 1938 saw slate of candidates running on "Law and Order" platforms. The bravery of these candidates cannot be overstated as attempts on their lives by those in power were virtually guaranteed.
  
  It is now roundly accepted that the changes in the 1938 began due to these officals being elected, and the fact that they survived to serve their mandates can be placed almost entirely at the feet of the era's "Mystery Men"
  
• The Rise of the Costumed Super Hero: During WW2, the first recorded "Costumed Hero" appeared on the scene. Justiceman spent the entirety of the war on the home front fighting saboteurs and keeping morale (and recruitment) up. Justiceman (or JM as he was known familiarly) was the first of a new breed; he did not conceal his face, He did not break the law and he was a charismatic speaker available to the press.
  
  As his fame grew, Justiceman assembled a team of like-minded "Super Heroes" (as the press was beginning to call them) including such luminaries as The Alternator, Maxitron: The Robot Avenger, Bluejay, The Zipster, The Atlantean and The Cackling man.
  
  Together, they became known as The Freedom Legion and fought crime, remedied disasters and inspired a new generation of heroes. All but The Cackling Man revealed their actual identities to the press.
  
  It was not until years later, in the early 1950's, when they were called before the HUAC and asked to "name names".
  
  Justiceman alone did so. At this treachery, The Freedom Legion disbanded. Maxitron, despite his sentience, was declared a device, and was assigned to the U.S Army, running amok in Saigon during the Vietnam war. He is curently at large.
  The Alternator retired to a life as a electrician. The Zipster died of a drug overdose in the 1960's. The Atlantean returned to the sea, occasionally surfacing to aid humanity.
  
  The Cackling Man, alone in posession of his secret identity, returned to his old haunts and continued his war against crime.
  
  The lesson was not lost on the heroes to come.
  
• The Hoon Invasion: In the late 1990's The alien shapeshifter race The Hoon, set about replacing Quebec politcians and using the usurped positions to press for secession from the rest of Canada. Their eventual plan was to use a seceded Quebec as a staging ground for a full invasion.
  
  The Super! magazine promotional super-team The Justice Hurricane (Battery, Windman, Mirror Image, Brown Bear, Kinetica, the Mistress of Motion, and Blackwing) were forced to battle the Central Canadian Sentinels (L'Habitant, Loup Garou, Fleur De Lys and Le Chat) who had been assigned to bodyguard the "Politicians".
  
  During the battle, one of the Hoon imposters was knocked unconscious and reverted to form in front of the national TV Cameras.
  
  With their plot exposed, The Hoon signalled for a the full invasion to commence, lest they fail entirely.
  
  Long story short, thans to the efforts of the earth's heroes, The hoon were repulsed.

Well, this introductory post has been long enough. Nextt ime I'll post the PC's

Thanks for you time

 

[Teflon Billy]

First off we have KRONUS: MONARCH of the TITANS.

In the heart of darkest Africa is a land of magic, where beasts of
legend walk the earth. The valley of the Titans.

Ancient legend speaks of a lost valley in the shadow of a volcano in the country of Zamboula. Ruling over this wild land is the tribe of apes known as the Titans. Though small in number, these apes resemble gorillas, but vary from twice to 10-times the size of mountain gorillas, and are at least as intelligent as humans - some super-intelligent, and capable of psychic feats.

Known only to a few locals who keep their secret - some say out of fear of the mighty Titans. They are each gifted with strange powers, some great and some small, and each one different, but all of them possessed of great strength almost unimaginable by mankind. In days past, they warred with humans for the rich valley and its wonders, but the Titans have always had the might to repel any invaders.

It was into this milieu that the mighty Kronus was born. Blessed by the tribe of spirits of the fiery mountain Stantalla-Bor (the nearest thing to worship the animistic but atheist Titans allowed themselves), Kronus was the ruling son, first amongst the Titans, as his father before him.

Of the mightiest bloodline, Kronus' power was unrivaled, except perhaps for Hyperion, his misshapen half-brother. Though the two were fast friends, many shook their head in sadness, knowing that the friendship would end in tragedy.

Kronus gifted a fief to Hyperion, who used his newfound influence to gather a cabal of warriors loyal to him, unknown to Kronus, who saw only the kind face of Hyperion at court, and not the ruthless face of an ambitious despot.

And though his friendship with the king was sincere in the beginning, years away from his court turned his brother's friendship to simple convenience.

As his brother grew more and more distant, Kronus paid more heed to the rumors of forbidden alliances, that Hyperion sought aid from dark earthly powers of death and decay. Sensing the king's ire, Hyperion rebuffed his many invitations.

When the invites turned into a formal summons of he and his vassals, Hyperion knew that the winds had shifted against him. In a daring act of rebellion, his forces (including the sinister allies now revealed) struck against Stantalla-Bor's tribe of
elemental spirits.

Their first assault was a ploy, with the dark earthen elementals
apparently acting alone, drawing the kings most loyal warriors to the aid of their ancient allies and symbols of royal power. But Hyperion's forces struck from ambush with the aid of the dark elementals, destroying the loyal forces and Stantalla-Bor's children alike.

Hyperion attended the ill-defended Kronus, demanding that he relinquish the throne or suffer the consequences. He refused the generous offer of exile, and was instead sold as a slave to Dr. Tamoken, a human scientist of evil genius. The forces of darkness became the symbol of the new regime, replacing the elemental spirits of the mountain lord.

Dr. Tamoken used science to master the will of the mighty Kronus, and he fought as one of the AfriCorps in the Hoon invasion. Later the AfriCorps repelled an invasion of the Republic of the Congo by Hyperion and the Titans.

Though the Titans were the aggressors, Kronus' people now regarded him as a traitor. In the fury that followed, Kronus somehow overcame his mental restraints, but was subdued by team AfriCorps. Imprisoned, he was freed through the unlikely help of the last surviving Stantalla-Borean, Tephra

The two escaped, putting as much distance between themselves and Hyperion as they could, eventually finding their way to North America...

PLAYER: Theo
HEIGHT: 9'
WEIGHT: 1600 lbs
EYES: Red

STR: 20
DEX: 20
CON: 20
INT: 10
WIS: 14
CHA: 16

BASE ATK: 9
BASE DFN: 7

DFN: 26
SPEED: 60 (7680 sprint)

SAVES:
Will: 7
Ref: 10
For: 5
Dam: 9 (5 prot)

POWERS
Growth +5 (FL: Permanent)
Super Speed (EX: Mach-One Punch, ST: Wall Run) +5
Amazing Save: Will +5
Amazing Save: Damage +4

FEATS
All-Out Attack
Move-By Attack
Rapid Strike
Leadership
Inspire
Startle
Indomitable Will

SKILLS
+9 Intimidate (6)
+9 Diplomacy (6)

WEAKNESS
Disturbing

 

[Piratecat]

Hey, welcome back! We missed you; there's even a thread in Meta of Clay stalki -- err, wondering about you.

And this, my friend, is going to be a fun story hour. I'm looking forward to it!

 

[Teflon Billy]

Hey!..Thanks PC

Anyway, next up.....

“Suffering amnesia after crash landing in the Soviet Union in 1949, a stranded star pilot became Nikolai Ulyanov, scientist for the Red Menace. Granted mastery over magnetism by an act of Communist sabotage, a stranger in a strange land, he yearns to return to a home he has never known…”

Stan Lee fails to present: MAGNETIK: THE COSMIC COMMISSAR

Vance Stromm woke up in the wastes of Siberia amid the crash wreckage of his spacecraft. Amnesia left him without a past, the only memories he retained were of space travel and conflict.

On the verge of death, he was soon captured by the Soviet military and turned over to government scientists, eager to learn about this alien in their midst. Once they realized the depth of his scientific knowledge, his value in the impending Cold War skyrocketed.

His amnesia, coupled with his total isolation, rendered Vance susceptible to Marxist conditioning and he became an active member of the Communist Party. His Soviet handlers wanted their hold on him to be complete, so a new identity, Nikolai Ulyanov, was invented for him. As the years passed his already foggy memories faded and his new identity and belief system became more dominant. While he began to identify himself as Nikolai Ulyanov, loyal Marxist scientist, he still retained lingering memories of a past life that would never leave him.

Nikolai became an integral, yet secret, part of the Red Army’s aeronautics program. His vast knowledge of science and technology far in advance of anything known to either the Soviets or their American rivals proved invaluable to early spacecraft production and the space race.

His often bizarre behaviour stemming from his desire to fly in to space was excused by the government for years because of his value during the Cold War. As the arrival of such figures as StarWoman and Space Hawk allowed the American’s to gain the upper hand in the space race, members of the Politburo who wished to purge embarrassing elements from the past decided that Nikolai’s usefulness had had reached it's end.

The government granted him permission to pilot an experimental rocket they told him was carrying magnetic equipment to disrupt the American Distant Early Warning system and it’s associated communication satellites. The rocket was, in fact, carrying a magnetic bomb that was detonated in orbit.

The magnetic pulse wave coupled with Cosmic rays reacted with Nikolai’s alien DNA, pulling a cocoon around him of the rocket’s debris. This protected Nikolai as he crashed to earth, this time in the United States.

When he awoke, Nikolai discovered he had gained control over magnetism. He could manipulate metal, and fly (by manipulating the Earth’s magnetic field) and shoot waves of magnetic force with but a thought. Using his new-found powers to survive in the very new environment of America, Nikolai maintained a low profile to avoid any connection to his past.

This continued until the Hoon invasion, when Nikolai took up the defence of his new home under a nickname once given to him by none other than Joseph Stalin himself: The Cosmic Commissar.

Though not a hardline communist by any stretch of the imagination. Magnetik does believe in the basic tenet "from each accoriding to his ability, and to each according to his needs".

He seeks to use his powers to do the greatest good for the greatest number of people, for "with great power comes great responsibility".

PLAYER: Mike
HEIGHT: 6'2"
WEIGHT: 215 lbs
EYES: Black

STR: 14
DEX: 20
CON: 16
INT: 16
WIS: 14
CHA: 16

BASE ATK: 7
BASE DFN: 10

DFN: 29/28 (Dodge feat)
SPEED: 50 flight (200 sprint)

SAVES:
Will: 2
Ref: 12
For: 3
Dam:3 (+10 force field)

POWERS
Energy Control (Magnetism)(Alien) +10
*Extra: Flight
*Extra: Force Field
*Extra: Deflection (metal)
*PS: Energy Blast (Magnetic Force)

Super Dexterity: +5 (Alien)

FEATS
Attack Finesse
Dodge
Lightning Reflexes
Penetrating attack (Magnetic Blast)
Point Blank Shot
Precie Shot
Rapid Shot
Attack Focus (Magnetic Blast)

SKILLS
+22 pilot
+6 Diplomacy
+9 Gather Information
+15 Alien Science
+6 Languages
*Russian
* English
*German
*French
*Persian
*Mandarin

WEAKNESS
none

 

[Memory]

This looks very cool! Of course it's only serving to remind me how much I want to play this game.

 

[Teflon Billy]

Next up is THE MORMODILLO.

At the height of the Hoon invasion, The White Warlock assembled the greatest sorcerors of the Western Hemisphere (Rune, Mortis, and Arcane amongst others) to summon aid from another dimension – A figure who would inspire America to fight back against its alien oppressors through a combination of superpowers and symbolic inspiration. There was no hero more appropriate, more perfect for the job in the opinion of the assembled Wizards than the square-jawed Captain America of the alternate dimension Earth: Marvel. And so, on Independence Day, the Fourth of July, the spellcasters assembled to craft their spell and open a dimensional portal, summoning the personification, the spirit of America.

Pooling their powers, the magicians rent open the fabric of space-time and pulled through – The Mormodillo.

When the smoke cleared, The White Warlock was horrified to discover that he had summoned a strange half-humanoid beast clad in a bony exoskeleton and a very peculiar pair of glasses, brandishing a spear dripping with blood.

Although the Mormodillo was all too enthusiastic to assist in liberating America from its alien oppressors, his arrival was not well-received. The Warlock and his cohorts naturally assumed that Hoon agents had interfered with the Ritual and not, as it later turned out, that the apple pie used in the spell was made partially out of corn flour. There was little the Mormodillo could do for his part as he spoke only Nahuatl, Mayan, Iroquois and Quechua.

The Mormodillo came from the alternate dimension Earth: Ballam where he was, indeed, the equivalent symbol of Captain America, being a Totemic version of the most recognizable indigenous North American animal of the colonial age, armed with the relics of North America's most recognizable indigenous religion: Mormonism (He is armed with both the legendary Javelin of Teancum and the Seer Stones of Zahrahemla, which have been fashioned into a pair of irregular glasses)

Rejected by those who summoned him, the Mormodillo nonetheless fought valiantly against the Hoon as he traveled south to Mexico in search of someone with whom he could converse. It was there that he first made the acquaintance of Senor Misterioso the famous Mexican hero who taught him Spanish and English and explained the ways of this world. He briefly served on the Mexican super-team, Los Hombres, before returning north on a pilgrimage to the legendary (to him) holy site: Salt Lake City, Utah.

The Mormodillo remains perplexed to this day as to his lack of popularity both with the public at large and those whom he perceives as his natural allies – the Mormon church and American patriots; he has, however, developed a small following amongst Native Americans and is the unofficial hero of the state of Oklahoma.

Still, this following does not compare to the mass following he enjoyed on Earth: Ballam and the absence of such a following continues to upset him.

What is more American, after all, than a giant corn chip eating armadillo wielding the holy relics of the Mormon church?

“Nothing,” the Mormodillo will tell you.

PLAYER: Stuart

HEIGHT: 7'0"
WEIGHT: 800 lbs
EYES: Black and Beady

STR: 20
DEX: 20
CON: 20
INT: 10
WIS: 8
CHA: 10

BASE ATK: 5
BASE DFN: 4

DFN: 19
SPEED: 50 (tunneling) (800 sprint)

SAVES:
Will: 1
Ref: 5
For: 8
Dam: 7 (10 prot)

POWERS
Flight +1 (Magical)
*limited: levitation

Protection +10 (Alien)

Tunneling +10 (Alien)
*Partial Extra: Rapid +4

Swimming +1 (Training)

Weapon (The Javelin of Teancum) +10
*Extra: Ranged/close (returning)
*Extra: Dual Damage
*Extra: Mighty

ESP device (The Seer Stones of Zharahemla) +7
*Extra: Sensory Protection
*Extra Postcognition
*Interdimensional
*PS: Penetrating Vision

FEATS
Endurance
Immunity: Suffocation
Attack Focus: Javelin
Great Fortitude
Toughness
Durability
Iron Will
Point Blank Shot
Precise Shot
Ricochet Attack

SKILLS
+6 knowledge: Mormonism

WEAKNESS
Disturbing

 

[Teflon Billy]

Face Front True Believers!!! It's time for THE ARC-ANGEL to make her presence felt.

I think I will let her tell her own story this time...

"I grew up in Cascade City; a Godless place but my home nonetheless. I never really fit in with the crowd, but that was alright. I had more important things to do with my time than gossip about boys or hair, like worship. God is a very real force, if you know how to see his workings. It just so happens that I do.

I spent a lot of my youth in the big old churches of the city, where I would stare up at the archways over the nave, down through the pews to the base of the altar and through incense smoke to stained glass windows soaring high overhead. Forget Jesus, that blood red glass and spirit soaked wood belongs solely to God; Old Testament God. I wanted to build it, expand His influence, spread the Word.

So to engineering school I went after high school, where I continued to be the one on the outside, but this time I was the one on the outside with the most information. Graduated top of my class, and began soliciting church work. Cathedrals, really. And within a year I had a contract.

I designed the Eye of God to be the biggest, grandest tribute to the Lord in the city. It would tower over the other, lesser churches and put the fear of God into the unholy. Or at least that was the plan, and to a great extent I must say, it has succeeded.

Midway through the construction I discovered that my contractors were building something that wasn’t in my plans – an extensive subbasement complex with tendrils and tunnels leading off it into the city sewers and (I assume) adjoining buildings. As you can imagine I was livid, but mostly I was confused. Who had changed the plans? Bribed the inspectors? And the men, to keep them from telling me what was going on? It was a plan of immense magnitude that amounted to an affront to God and my plans for the cathedral.

I undertook an investigation of the basement without telling anyone that I had found out about it, wanting to see what was going on without letting the cat out of the bag so to speak. What I found was far more than merely shocking for me. The basement was the rudimentary beginning of some sort of scientific compound, studying who knows what? Around corners I glimpsed head Church officials running about in strange robes (not of the church), carrying odd instruments and books I could not identify. Cells had been built, again I don’t know what for, and the beginnings of a security system were already in place.

I was preparing to leave and call the police when the accident happened. A huge power cable snapped free of its mooring on the ceiling and fell directly onto me. I don’t remember much except the feeling of the shock and then the burn, and finally nothing. They tell me I died for a while, but I came to in the ambulance when they used the electro cardio-paddles to resuscitate me. they needen't have bother. the Lord had another plan for me.

I sat up in the ambulance and already I could feel it, the Power. It surrounded me with a crackling halo of force, making every hair on my body stand up. I leaned against the wall of the ambulance and I could feel it, the Power, course through me and through the metal walls so that the vehicle stopped where it was and the paramedics leapt away.

That’s when the memory came back – the memory, and the Message. I believe it was from the time I spent dead. It wasn’t an out of body experience strictly speaking, but I had a distinct sense of floating, and a sort of special tangible light that tingled like electricity. It’s not a very good description but then again, how would you describe a meeting with God?

I know I’ve been sent back with a purpose, though truth be told I forget the exact wording of the pledge. I know it has something to do with the number five, and a place or person called Nakamura. And I know that I have been charged with the responsibility of righting the wrongs against God that occur on this earthly plane. To this end I have been given the shocking power of God Himself, the flow of killing force that I am entrusted to use to further His goals.

I am not bound by the commandments; I may kill if the sinner has committed a mortal sin so that the sinner can then be sent to their final Judgment. In this and other ways I am able to act outside the commandments, but that only makes sense, because I am no longer human, and am not bound by their rules. The wings that grow from my back, and the lightning that courses through my blood tell the whole story: I am no longer human...I am in fact something greater – I have been transformed into an angel, a physical embodiment of God’s might and justice on this earth. I will root out the occult and eldritch evil that lives under the Eye of God...

...and of course, number five and Nakamura."

PLAYER: Jessica

HEIGHT: 5'6"
WEIGHT: 140 lbs
EYES: Blue

STR: 10
DEX: 20
CON: 16
INT: 14
WIS: 16
CHA: 16

BASE ATK: 10
BASE DFN: 10

DFN: 25
SPEED: 25 (Flight)(100 sprint)

SAVES:
Will: 3
Ref: 5
For: 3
Dam: 3

POWERS
Energy Control (Electricity)(Mystical) +10
*Extra: Energy Field
*Extra: Force Field

Flight +5 (Mystical)
*Flaw: Restricted-Wings

Healing +8 (Mystical)
*Flaw: Empathic

Regeneration +10 (Mystical)

FEATS

Move-By Attack
Immunity: Electricity
Penetrting attack (Lightning Blast)
Indomitable Will

SKILLS
+10 Acrobatics
+10 Balance

WEAKNESS
None

 

[King_Stannis]

Hey there T-B!

I love Magnetik: The Cosmic Commissar - it brought an instant smile to my face. Love the Hoons, too.

I don't get as much time to keep up with story hours as I used to, but I'll try to keep tabs on this one.

Hope all is well with you, too, my friend.

 

[Caliber]

Personally I think the Mormodillo is the best character in the lineup.

Not owning M&M though, I have no idea what the character sheets mean.

Still, looking forward to the story. The Mormadillo shall conquer!

 

[Gospog]

Awesome History!

Maxitron, despite his sentience, was declared a device, and was assigned to the U.S Army, running amok in Saigon during the Vietnam war. He is curently at large.

Dude, you just made my day!

"We will be following your career with great interest."

This is so cool, thanks for sharing!