Viridian v.2.0.2 has been released! Everyone go download the patch!
[sblock=Background and Description and...stuff]Thessaly is the daughter of Paul DesJardin and his wife Violet, a college professor of history and a real estate agent, respectively. The family is solidly upper class, due in large part to Violet's savvy for home markets. Thessaly's strongest relationship is with her father. His love of history, especially ancient history, infected her early on. Her relationship with her mother is rockier, both of them being strong-willed 'alpha female' types. A good deal of Thessaly's teen years were defined by Violet's efforts to exert control over her, and her finding ways to elude or refute that. Even now that she's in college (a history major, natch), there are remnants of the old battles lying around like unexploded cluster munitions bomblets. Thess' hair is still half pink for one thing, with the darker natural brown having grown in since her impulsive dyejob. She still likes dressing in what she calls 'comfortwear' and what Violet calls 'homelesswear,' baggy cargo pants, tank tops and halters and ripped or threadbare T-shirts, and a battered old leather jacket that was a present from her grandfather on Paul's side...genuine WWII aviator jacket.
She got a present from her grandmother on Violet's side too...but there's a whole other story behind THAT present.
Violet's family was rural Russian and Black Sea mostly. Her father and mother had immigrated, but after her father died (as an old man), her mother moved back to the family home, near the extended family. Violet was horribly guilty for some time, since she suspected the move was at least partially because she'd been considering putting her mother in a rest home. Twice a year, Maghda would come to visit when Thessaly was little. Violet and Thessaly's birthdays (both birthdays were in the same week, albeit years apart), and Christmas. Thessaly was both intrigued and scared of her grandmother. The old woman could be stern and harsh, or warm as summer rain, and Thess was never sure what made her go one way or the other. She had a thick Slavic accent, and odd, antiquated notions of things that made talking to her hard sometimes. Worst, she was blind, her eyes whitened by cataracts, and when she sat still she looked like a dead old woman.
She gave Thessaly a pendant on a chain. An old, heavy thing made of silver and iron that looked like it'd been made by hand, and not by a professional smith either. It was in the shape of a small five pointed star, with a circle around the endpoints. If one looked closely, one could see tiny letters of a foreign language scribed in every clear surface of the metal.
Thessaly was fascinated by it, and not just because Violet thought it was hideous. It was special. She'd known it right away, without quite knowing how or why. It was hard to articulate, but it seemed to her that the old tarnished thing was just a shell...and under it, or -behind- it somehow, was something else. It's true self, something far brighter and more beautiful. When she wore it, she felt...warm. Safe.
It would be nice to say that Maghda, her dear grandmother, had been a witch and trained Thessaly in magical arts. It might have even happened that way. There was no doubt that Maghda traced her heritage from magic-rich backgrounds in the old world. Still, magic or no, witch or no, the amulet was her only legacy to Thessaly. She passed away when visiting America five years later, for Thessaly's twelfth birthday. And while Thess knew the amulet was special, it wasn't until she was in high school that she learned exactly what it was, what it could do, and why she herself was also special.
It was during her freshman year in college, quite by accident, that Thessaly met Hana. During class Hana's pencil rolled off her desk. The amulet slipped out of the neckline of Thess' shirt as she bent over to pick it up. As it happened, Hana was part of a small, largely ignored wiccan coven of students there, and because of the pentacle amulet she thought Thessaly must be one too. Thessaly wasn't, of course, but in talking with Hana, her interest was piqued. She agreed to sit in on a meeting or two.
Obviously a coven of high school students wasn't up to much in the way of 'real' magic. It was largely an excuse for a few otherwise kind of unpopular girls to socialize and have fun and feel powerful for a little while. But for Thessaly it stirred something else; something deeper. The tiny rituals they used were like the amulet itself...small things covering large ones. Great lights behind opaque doors that were closed, but might be opened. With growing intensity, Thessaly immersed herself in that culture. She stripped every library she could get to of their books on occultism, especially those books dealing with the practical casting of spells. Most she promptly returned. Others...a select few others...went overdue. Thessaly didn't limit herself to contemporary wiccan lore either, but went back. Drawing on her father's resources, she looked at ancient Egyptian sorceries, Greco-Roman rites and invocations, and the ancient pagan underpinnings that predated the Torah and formed the basis of Gnostic heresies throughout the Old and New Testaments. Even Hana was concerned by Thessaly's zeal. The concern turned to shock when Thessaly demonstrated to Hana her first 'real' spell.
There was nothing ambiguous about it. No subjective 'funny feelings,' or flickering lights. No half-glimpsed shapes, or half-felt touches. No chains of coincidence that just happened to lead up to the desired results. She gestured and said something in Hebrew, and a chair rose into the air. Then it sank back down. It took Hana several minutes to adjust to this. They tried the spell several more times, testing its limits. After an hour or so, Hana was as excited as Thessaly, and the two of them started working on more.
One thing they quickly learned was that spells worked for Thessaly. They usually didn't for Hana, and when they did, they left her dead on her feet exhausted. Thess seemed to have either a reservoir of energy suitable for magic that Hana didn't...or else a talent that let her cast spells without using nearly as much power. At first, this didn't seem to deter Hana in the least. As their focus on spells caused the two to drift away from the others in the group, Hana and Thess became inseparable friends. It was in their junior years, as they contemplated their futures, that Hana suggested Thessaly be a superhero. She'd learned enough magic, Hana pointed out. And the amulet, who's protective function they'd unlocked, would keep her safe. The only stipulation Hana imposed was 'only white magic.' That was, only magic that didn't actually cause lasting harm. Hana insisted it was for Thessaly's own good, and while dubious, Thessaly agreed.
The first few times were a riotous success. Her getup was her green workout leotard, a black cape (from a Halloween costume) and a sequined sparkly green masquerade mask that fit over her eyes and nose. Because of all the green in the improvised outfit Thessaly took the name 'Viridian.' She stopped a couple of muggings, and even stopped what might have turned into a high speed car chase before it could get off the ground.
Then she bumped into a supervillain, and nearly died. A Poe-inspired man in a scarlet skull mask, with the predictable name of Red Death. His powers seemed to be gas-based, and the amulet didn't do much to stop it (obvious in hindsight, since it let air in for her to breathe). Thessaly's intervention allowed Red Death's intended victims to escape though, even if the villain himself also got away. The incident became the focus of a huge row between Hana and Thessaly. Shocked to the core by Thess' near death experience, Hana changed her tune, demanding that she stop the superhero thing. Thessaly though realized the magnitude of what she'd stopped, even if it had nearly killed her. She realized that she couldn't stop now. Clearly she needed to learn more spells, spells she could use to protect herself and others...but she couldn't stop.
Hana, lashing out from fear, accused Thessaly of arrogance and addiction to magic. Thessaly accused Hana of being jealous and trying to control her. It got uglier from there. They didn't even congratulate each other at graduation, and Thessaly moved shortly afterward to attend college. She deeply regrets the rift now...but now is too late, as her attempts to find or reach Hana have failed. There were spells she could use...but it felt wrong. Besides, if Hana was still angry, if it came down to another fight... No. Better just to regret the whole affair and pretend that she knew Hana regretted it too. That they'd be friends again when they met...even if she wasn't at all sure that was the case.
A new school, a new city, a new life. Learning spells was harder without Hana's help, and with all the distractions of college, but Thessaly still managed to moonlight a bit as a heroine in what she called her 'workouts.' Her costume's been in a state of flux since she learned to use simple glamours to create it instead of actually changing clothes. Because of that, and her reluctance to make a public spectacle of herself, Thessaly was fairly sure she'd avoided most attention.
Until the mysterious message on the TV. Was it for real? Only one way to find out...[/sblock]
[sblock=Game Stats]VIRIDIAN
Real Name: Thessaly DesJardin
PL: 11 (165 pp)
Hero Points: 3
ABILITIES: (30pp)
STR: 10 (+0) DEX: 14 (+2) CON: 16 (+3) INT: 16 (+3) WIS: 20 (+5) CHA: 14 (+2)
COMBAT: (12pp)
Attack
Defense +6 (+3 flatfooted)
SAVES: (13pp)
Toughness +4 (+15 w/force field, +3 without leather jacket)
Fortitude +8 Reflex +7 Will +8
Tradeoff: 4 defense for 4 toughness.
SKILLS: 72 ranks (18pp)
Bluff (+6/+10), Concentration (+15), Craft: Artistic (+15), Diplomacy (+7/+11), Knowledge: Arcane (+15), Knowledge: History (+10), Knowledge: Theology (+10), Notice (+10), Sense Motive (+10), Languages (+5)
LANGUAGES:
English (native), Latin, Greek (2), Hebrew (2)
FEATS: (7pp)
Artificer, Attractive, Luck +2, Quick Change, Equipment (5), Ritualist
POWERS:
Battle Magic 40pp
"Evil Eye" - Mental Blast (Sense Dependent (Sight), PF Incurable, PF Reversible) +11 (35pp)
"Thicken Blood, Bind Bones" AP - Paralyze (alt save: Fort, Perception) +8 (32pp)
"Silver Countermagic" AP - Nullify (all magic powers, perception) +11 (33pp)
"Chains of Thought" AP - Snare (Shapeable Area, PF Reversible) +11 (34pp)
"Unseen Hands" AP - Telekinesis (Perception, Damaging, PF Precise) +8 (33pp)
"Voice of Command" AP - Mind Control (Conscious, Sustained (lasting), Sense Dependent (hearing), PF Subtle) +11 (34pp)
Utility Magic 29pp
"Transmutation" Transform (Any inanimate to any inanimate, Contiuous, Perception, Full round) +4 (24pp)
"Master the Animal Mind" AP - Emotion Control (Area, Full round, PF Subtle) +11 (23pp)
"Warded Circle" AP - Create Object (Continuous, Affects Insubstantial, Limited: Only a Dome, Full round, PF Subtle, PF Trigger) +11 (24pp)
"Glamour" AP - Illusion (visual/audio, Sustained, Selective Attack, Full round, Phantasm, PF Progression: Area +2) +7 (23pp)
"Eyes Unbound" AP - Scrying ESP (Sight, Sound, standard action, PF subtle) +11 (23pp)
"Doorway to Anywhere" AP - Teleport (Accurate, Portal, Long-Range, Medium - Doors, Distracting, 1 minute activation, PF Easy, PF Change Direction, PF Change Velocity) +11 (24pp)
Warding Amulet: Device +3 (12pp)
- Force Field +12
- Mind Shield +3
Mage Sight: Super Senses +4 (4pp)
- Magical Awareness (special), radius, extended, acute
EQUIPMENT
Laptop Computer 1
Digital Camera 1
Cellphone 1
Flashlight 1
Leather Jacket 1
COMPLICATIONS
- Is currently in college, with all the attendent woes. Homework, studying, classes, tuition. She lives off-campus though, so is spared a roommate. Money is largely from family.
- Potential local religious issues with a self-identified 'witch' being a heroic figure.
- Thess is especially motivated to deal with supernatural threats
Abilities 30 + Skills 18 (72 ranks) + Feats 7 + Powers 85 + Combat 12 + Saves 13 – Drawbacks 0 = 165 / 165[/sblock]
Changes:
1) Folded Ritual pool into Utility pool. Removed Summoning spell. Made changes to Teleport and ESP to fit new point totals.
2) Increased battle magic to 35pp. Increase ranks of most powers in array to suit.
3) Altered Illusion to match Elric's suggested changes.
4) Moved Mind Control to Battle magic, removed Full Round action flaw, replaced with Sense Dependent (Sound) flaw. Added Sustained duration extra.
5) Replaced Subtle feat on Mind Blast to Incurable.
6) Added 2 points to Reflex save, and 1 point to Fort save.
7) Added a rank to Device, making room for 2 more points of Force Field and 3 points of Mind Shield to be added. All powers in Device are linked.
8) Added Extended range to magic awareness, and changed Accurate to Acute.
But I've finally got a background, yahoo!
)
