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[Mutants & Masterminds] A World Less Magical But No Less Fantastic
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<blockquote data-quote="Davies" data-source="post: 8469996" data-attributes="member: 30538"><p><span style="font-size: 26px"><span style="color: red">The Flamen</span></span></p><p><img src="https://photos.smugmug.com/My-First-Gallery/i-X8h7Xrt/0/a490d3be/M/flamen2-M.jpg" alt="" class="fr-fic fr-dii fr-draggable " data-size="" style="" /></p><p></p><p>By 1964, Augustus Malory had done many things of interest in his forty-two years. During World War II, he'd worked with the OSS in Europe, encountering terrors both human and otherwise. After the war, he'd resumed his interrupted university career and obtained advanced degrees in classical studies. Rather than become a college professor in his discipline, however, he sought and obtained work teaching Latin at a private high school in Winchester, New York, hoping to inspire a new generation of students as he had been inspired at their age. And that was where the problem started.</p><p></p><p>Malory's career started well enough, teaching the relatively small number of students each year who chose Latin as an elective and frequently being dragooned into supervising other classes as well. He was aware that his subject wasn't a very popular one, and that he himself wasn't all that well-regarded by his fellow teachers, who viewed him as an anachronism and a snob. He took refuge in his belief that those students who did take his class were being prepared to become part of an intellectual elite who would one day help to steer the country back to sanity.</p><p></p><p>That belief, and his own sanity, was shattered in 1964, when one student in the class, whom he was lambasting for tardiness, struck back by telling Malory that nothing he was teaching mattered in the real world, that he was a high priest of a dying religion that worshiped dead ideas, and then got the rest of the class to walk out on him. However, it's likely that what happened next had been building for some time, and that these events only shaped the form that it eventually took. Malory's psyche fragmented under the sudden development of his superpowers, and he seized on the idea of himself as the high priest -- the Flamen -- of the Roman religion.</p><p></p><p>Attacking anything that struck him as too modern or too vulgar, with his first target a drive-in where some of his former students were enjoying themselves, the Flamen would curse these institutions and use his powers to inflict damage or debility on either their structures or the people enjoying them. A group of opportunistic criminals, recognizing the potential profit they could obtain from looting the Flamen's targets, began accompanying him on his missions and steering him towards rich ones. Of course, his activities did not go unopposed, and he was a frequent enemy of Diane Fortune from the start.</p><p></p><p>In 1968, four years into his crusade, the Flamen became a member of the second assembly of the Agents of Destruction. Just how he was persuaded to join such a group, given his delusions, has never really been adequately explained, but one theory holds that Ayesha, then allied with Diavolus, convinced him by posing as a priestess of Isis. Regardless, after the group was betrayed by their leader, the Flamen was the only member of the group to be captured by the Institute. Tried for his part in the death of Madame Menagerie and the attempted destruction of Detroit, the Flamen was found not guilty by reason of disease or mental defect, and imprisoned in a hospital in Massachusetts.</p><p></p><p>There he remained for more than a decade, apparently impervious to any attempts at treatment. In 1982, however, he was freed after the hospital was attacked by the forces of the Pythonian Insurgency, and somehow persuaded his liberators to introduce him to Pythia herself. Recognizing her as one blessed by the gods, just as he himself was, he chose to join her struggle, and was rewarded for his perspicacity with the title of Director of Religious Studies. He held that title for the entire duration of the Insurgency, a fixed point in the power struggles that would consume it in later years.</p><p></p><p>When the end came, it came strangely for him. A group of JSOT troopers discovered him conducting a mock-Roman ceremony in the Insurgency's headquarters, accompanied by several dozen non-combatant workers employed within the group. Rather than fight, he promptly surrendered and commanded his fellow celebrants to do the same; they did so at once. While tried for aiding and abetting treason, the Flamen was once again found not guilty and returned to his sanitarium, where he remained for another half-decade before passing away of old age in 1998.</p><p></p><p>But it has been noted that one of the few unifying traits of the Pythonian remnants active within the prison system, still recruiting new members to this day, is the practice of the religion that the Flamen taught. And some experts believe that the Flamen's surrender may have been part of Pythia's grand strategy that has endured even after both of their deaths.</p><p></p><p><strong>The Flamen -- PL 9</strong></p><p><strong></strong></p><p><strong>Abilities:</strong></p><p><strong>STR</strong> -1 | <strong>STA</strong> 0 | <strong>AGL</strong> 0 | <strong>DEX</strong> 0 | <strong>FGT</strong> 2 | <strong>INT</strong> 4 | <strong>AWE</strong> 5 | <strong>PRE</strong> 3</p><p></p><p><strong>Powers:</strong></p><p><strong><em>Curses!:</em></strong> Array (28 points)</p><ul> <li data-xf-list-type="ul"><strong><em>Curse It!:</em></strong> Perception Range Damage 9, Subtle - 28 points</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul"><strong><em>Curse You!:</em></strong> Perception Range Cumulative Affliction (Resisted by Will; Vulnerable, Defenseless), Limited Degree, Subtle - 1 point</li> </ul><p><strong><em>Perceive Those Likewise Touched by the Gods:</em></strong> Senses 1 (psychic awareness) - 1 point</p><p></p><p><strong>Advantages:</strong></p><p>Defensive Roll 2, Evasion, Luck 4, Ultimate Effort (Will resistance).</p><p></p><p><strong>Skills:</strong></p><p>Expertise: History 8 (+12), Expertise: Religion 6 (+10), Insight 6 (+11), Intimidation 8 (+11), Perception 6 (+11), Persuasion 6 (+9).</p><p></p><p><strong>Offense:</strong></p><p>Initiative +0</p><p>Unarmed +0 (Close Damage -1)</p><p>Curse It! -- (Perception Range Damage 9)</p><p>Curse You! -- (Perception Range Will 9)</p><p></p><p><strong>Defense:</strong></p><p>Dodge 3, Parry 5, Fortitude 3, Toughness 5/0, Will 11</p><p></p><p><strong>Totals:</strong></p><p>Abilities 26 + Powers 30 + Advantages 8 + Skills 20 + Defenses 15 = 99 points</p><p></p><p><strong>Offensive PL:</strong> 9</p><p><strong>Defensive PL:</strong> 5</p><p><strong>Resistance PL:</strong> 7</p><p><strong>Skill PL:</strong> 7</p><p></p><p><strong>Complications:</strong></p><p><strong><em>Power--Motivation. Delusional</em></strong> (I am the Flamen of the Roman Empire, which still exists.) <strong><em>Power Loss</em></strong> (must speak or gesture to use Curses!)</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Davies, post: 8469996, member: 30538"] [SIZE=7][COLOR=red]The Flamen[/COLOR][/SIZE] [IMG]https://photos.smugmug.com/My-First-Gallery/i-X8h7Xrt/0/a490d3be/M/flamen2-M.jpg[/IMG] By 1964, Augustus Malory had done many things of interest in his forty-two years. During World War II, he'd worked with the OSS in Europe, encountering terrors both human and otherwise. After the war, he'd resumed his interrupted university career and obtained advanced degrees in classical studies. Rather than become a college professor in his discipline, however, he sought and obtained work teaching Latin at a private high school in Winchester, New York, hoping to inspire a new generation of students as he had been inspired at their age. And that was where the problem started. Malory's career started well enough, teaching the relatively small number of students each year who chose Latin as an elective and frequently being dragooned into supervising other classes as well. He was aware that his subject wasn't a very popular one, and that he himself wasn't all that well-regarded by his fellow teachers, who viewed him as an anachronism and a snob. He took refuge in his belief that those students who did take his class were being prepared to become part of an intellectual elite who would one day help to steer the country back to sanity. That belief, and his own sanity, was shattered in 1964, when one student in the class, whom he was lambasting for tardiness, struck back by telling Malory that nothing he was teaching mattered in the real world, that he was a high priest of a dying religion that worshiped dead ideas, and then got the rest of the class to walk out on him. However, it's likely that what happened next had been building for some time, and that these events only shaped the form that it eventually took. Malory's psyche fragmented under the sudden development of his superpowers, and he seized on the idea of himself as the high priest -- the Flamen -- of the Roman religion. Attacking anything that struck him as too modern or too vulgar, with his first target a drive-in where some of his former students were enjoying themselves, the Flamen would curse these institutions and use his powers to inflict damage or debility on either their structures or the people enjoying them. A group of opportunistic criminals, recognizing the potential profit they could obtain from looting the Flamen's targets, began accompanying him on his missions and steering him towards rich ones. Of course, his activities did not go unopposed, and he was a frequent enemy of Diane Fortune from the start. In 1968, four years into his crusade, the Flamen became a member of the second assembly of the Agents of Destruction. Just how he was persuaded to join such a group, given his delusions, has never really been adequately explained, but one theory holds that Ayesha, then allied with Diavolus, convinced him by posing as a priestess of Isis. Regardless, after the group was betrayed by their leader, the Flamen was the only member of the group to be captured by the Institute. Tried for his part in the death of Madame Menagerie and the attempted destruction of Detroit, the Flamen was found not guilty by reason of disease or mental defect, and imprisoned in a hospital in Massachusetts. There he remained for more than a decade, apparently impervious to any attempts at treatment. In 1982, however, he was freed after the hospital was attacked by the forces of the Pythonian Insurgency, and somehow persuaded his liberators to introduce him to Pythia herself. Recognizing her as one blessed by the gods, just as he himself was, he chose to join her struggle, and was rewarded for his perspicacity with the title of Director of Religious Studies. He held that title for the entire duration of the Insurgency, a fixed point in the power struggles that would consume it in later years. When the end came, it came strangely for him. A group of JSOT troopers discovered him conducting a mock-Roman ceremony in the Insurgency's headquarters, accompanied by several dozen non-combatant workers employed within the group. Rather than fight, he promptly surrendered and commanded his fellow celebrants to do the same; they did so at once. While tried for aiding and abetting treason, the Flamen was once again found not guilty and returned to his sanitarium, where he remained for another half-decade before passing away of old age in 1998. But it has been noted that one of the few unifying traits of the Pythonian remnants active within the prison system, still recruiting new members to this day, is the practice of the religion that the Flamen taught. And some experts believe that the Flamen's surrender may have been part of Pythia's grand strategy that has endured even after both of their deaths. [B]The Flamen -- PL 9 Abilities: STR[/B] -1 | [B]STA[/B] 0 | [B]AGL[/B] 0 | [B]DEX[/B] 0 | [B]FGT[/B] 2 | [B]INT[/B] 4 | [B]AWE[/B] 5 | [B]PRE[/B] 3 [B]Powers: [I]Curses!:[/I][/B] Array (28 points) [LIST] [*][B][I]Curse It!:[/I][/B] Perception Range Damage 9, Subtle - 28 points [*][B][I]Curse You!:[/I][/B] Perception Range Cumulative Affliction (Resisted by Will; Vulnerable, Defenseless), Limited Degree, Subtle - 1 point [/LIST] [B][I]Perceive Those Likewise Touched by the Gods:[/I][/B] Senses 1 (psychic awareness) - 1 point [B]Advantages:[/B] Defensive Roll 2, Evasion, Luck 4, Ultimate Effort (Will resistance). [B]Skills:[/B] Expertise: History 8 (+12), Expertise: Religion 6 (+10), Insight 6 (+11), Intimidation 8 (+11), Perception 6 (+11), Persuasion 6 (+9). [B]Offense:[/B] Initiative +0 Unarmed +0 (Close Damage -1) Curse It! -- (Perception Range Damage 9) Curse You! -- (Perception Range Will 9) [B]Defense:[/B] Dodge 3, Parry 5, Fortitude 3, Toughness 5/0, Will 11 [B]Totals:[/B] Abilities 26 + Powers 30 + Advantages 8 + Skills 20 + Defenses 15 = 99 points [B]Offensive PL:[/B] 9 [B]Defensive PL:[/B] 5 [B]Resistance PL:[/B] 7 [B]Skill PL:[/B] 7 [B]Complications: [I]Power--Motivation. Delusional[/I][/B] (I am the Flamen of the Roman Empire, which still exists.) [B][I]Power Loss[/I][/B] (must speak or gesture to use Curses!) [/QUOTE]
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