TITAN-ic (Inactive)

Game Master Elsine

welcome, my fine people!

I'll have plenty of questions for you, once your characters are up. I can't wait to see them all!

Kid Quickman is the son of Dynamo City's favorite speedster Quickman. He's inherited his father's molecular vibrations that let him phase and create whirlwinds...but none of his father's speed powers.

And yes, he very much resents being called "Kid Quickman" when he's actually a bit on the languid side. He's very thoughtful and takes great care before acting, much to his impulsive father's chagrin.

Hero name: Kid Quickman
Real Name: Quentin Hansen
Playbook: The Legacy

Look: Man, white, comfortable clothing, modem costume (complete with cool trench coat, impractical for running) double lightning bolt insignia (like his father's but with inverted colors)

Abilities: Regeneration, Phasing, Air Manipulation

Danger: -1
Freak: 1
Savior: 2
Superior: 0
Mundane: 1

Legacy Moves:
Never Give Up, Never Surrender
The legacy matters

Legacy:

Quickman is still active and prominent in the city
The Terrible Terrapin is the greatest foe my legacy has ever faced...and is still at large.

Backstory:

When did you of officially become a part of your legacy? Kid Quickman was 13 when he first slipped through the floor. After a series of lengthy tests, his father discovered that he had no super speed at all, but many of the side benefits of super speed. It's not entirely clear how he can vibrate his molecules so fast he passes through solid matter, or spin his fingers so fast that he can knock over bank robbers, but he CAN'T run faster than a 14 minute mile.

What’s the greatest accomplishment of your legacy? Quickman once outran the pulse beams of Gorthor the Omega Man, running around the globe and causing the blasts to hit Gorthor in the back. Even superhero physics is iffy on that one being possible.

How does the public perceive your legacy? Quickman is known as the jokester of the Paragon Alliance. He's the fastest man alive and is universally beloved.

How does your legacy tie into your reasons for being a hero? Lots of pressure from his father and the other children of the Paragon Alliance. Kid Quickman knows he has a great responsibility to use his inherited powers for the good of humanity, but he would have rather not been Neo-Abled and have become a lawyer instead.

Why do you care about the team?We support each other in our efforts to do good. That's important, no matter what.

Real Name: Richard Pryce
Hero Name: Sorrel, Guardian of the Forest
Playbook: The Transformed

Look
transgressing, latino, strange eyes, untouchable flesh, strange costume
Sorrel is hard to miss. At seven feet tall, he has chestnut brown hair, large, dark eyes like inky pools, smooth, tanned skin covered in fine hair, and the body of a doe below the waist. Obviously, that last part complicates things.

Sorrel appears to be a cervid centaur. He secretes a powerful hallucinogen from his skin. Under normal conditions, his medication keeps the hallucinogenic oils from evaporating into the air. What's more, nearby flora is filled with verdant life, and small local plants sprout in his hoof-prints.

His costume is the only outfit he has that is tailored to his unique anatomy. The green-and-black padded vinyl combat armor takes a lot of punishment on the field, so he can't wear it 24-7. Out of it, he is extremely body-conscious.

Abilities
Superhuman Senses
Plant Affinity

Moves
Wish I could be
I am not my body
Be the monster

Backstory
Who were you before?
Richard Pryce was a B student at an under-privileged school in a remote rural town. He was as much a delinquent as he was a star student, cutting class to shoot cans in the back of his uncle's garage as often as he could without being held back. He had tons of friends, and a steady girlfriend before...

When did you change? What caused it?
One evening, Richard shot a deer. Nothing has been the same since. Sorrel doesn't like to talk about sixth grade. The changes came very slowly, and have have only recently turned from medical enigma to body horror nightmare. There's no sign that the changes have stopped.

Who, outside of the team, is helping you understand your new body?
Dr. Dhalia Coolidge is the scientist that was sent to investigate the toxin Sorrel excretes. She's since kept tabs on him, and provides him with the pills that increase the oil's evaporation temperature. While her specialty is in botanical toxicology, she has several degrees including zoology, botany, and endocrinology. Her frank and clinical disposition has made a lot of embarrassing conversations bearable.

Why don’t you just try to hide yourself away?
Sorrel can't stand to be alone. Hiding means no pills, which means no people. Alone in a forest sprouting at his hooves, Sorrel would lose what little of Richard Pryce remains.

Why do you care about the team?
Running with the team is the only thing in Sorrel's life that makes sense and even comes close to validating everything else that's happening to him.

Hero name: Solmira, Celestial Princess
Real name: Lios
Playbook: The Outsider

Look: Woman, human body, glowing eyes, flashy clothing, your people's uniform

Solmira makes a point of standing out. Her clothes are generally brightly coloured, or otherwise designed to draw attention. She works hard to keep her tan skin immaculate, and her hair pristine and carefully highlighted. Having eyes that glow amber helps too.
She relishes those moments where someone turns to look at her as she passes by, of knowing she's made an impression.

But when time comes to fight, she wears the clothes she wore when she first came to this place - a long-sleeved black skinsuit covered in glowing yellow rings, running from her shoulders down her arms, and from her sides all the way down to the bottom of her legs, with one final larger ring illuminated on her back. All that finished with a scarf that seems to be made from the light itself, tinged the colour of the rising sun.

Abilities: Flight, density control, heliokinesis, and generally being pretty tough.

Moves:
Alien tech
Alien ways
Not so different after all

What does Heliokinesis mean? Can you control the sun?

Not yet, though possibly. Odds are that's out of my power level.

As my googling has turned up, Heliokinesis can otherwise be called Solar Manipulation, or otherwise the ability to manipulate solar energy/all aspects of the sun. How far this can be taken might need to some defining, but most of the time it'd be assumed you can make and control electromagnetic radiation, like light and infrared/heat, with the more capable possibly being able to make solar flares.
Less commonly, you might see limited nuclear manipulation, or even gravitic manipulation - though I'm pretty sure there's some loose logic on the latter, and a breadth of power like that is more Nova territory anyways. I'll probably stick to the EM stuff generally, and I might consider nuclear emission later on, but I'm not touching all the gravity craziness.
At least I'll never need sunglasses, or get sunburnt.

Who are we waiting on?

YoricksRequiem - delinquent?
Meech - ???

Alts:
Cwethan - ???
Sbodd - ???
inxpitter - ???

If there isn't a Doomed, Sorrel will take the doom advancement early on. Seems to fit the narrative.

Oh yeah, Yorick.
Meetch is Kid Quickman.
Should inxpitter get in/have gotten in, they look like they'd be a Janus.
I'm rather glad I got in - I wasn't expecting a 'first come, first served' situation.

Any idea what you'd do with the doom stuff?

I'm Meetch.

I've been accepted as a Janus. Working on character concept still but will post when finished.

Oooh, goody! Welcome!

Ah, I see where I made my mistake. Conwall is Meetch. *self-deprecating eye roll* Sorry Meetch!

No trip. Good luck getting stabbed in Dungeon world!

Okay, so we're currently waiting on Sbodd, and Yorick, who I kinda remember runs a few games, and sometimes doesn't have an incredibly fast posting rate.

but, while we're here, i'm adding one thing to the "Origin story" section of your playbooks: "Why do you spend time at the Taylor institute?"

Quick question, anyone here read the web serial WORM?

Quentin is being groomed to take over his father's role in the Paragon Alliance when Quickman retires, dies or is subsumed into the Quick Effect and forms the energy that caused the Big Bang.

Daddy has neither time nor patience to train, so Kid Quickman is taking hero courses at the institute.

Still here! Got my Legacy almost done, post up tonight/tomorrow.

Umm... Sbodd... The legacy got taken already.

What about the Legacy attracts you? The protege might be a good choice, if you want the authority figures.

Sbodd, if you have your heart set on a legacy speedster, if Elaine is ok with it, we could be siblings that split daddy's powers. You'd get speed and speed reading and regeneration and I'll take air manipulation, phasing and regeneration. We'd just agree not to unlock the whole power set...

I think you mean the Large Explosion. Samuel McRaptor is currently building off of Einburg's theory of Uncommon Differentiation and Thread Theory to disprove it ever even happened.

Why do you spend time at the Taylor institute?
The alternative is to spend time in public, and while he attracts questions and stares at the institute, it beats the thrown rocks and screams of terror he gets in casual public settings. If he could someday become a household name, join the Paragon Alliance, maybe he could go to TunnelBus and order a veggie footlong without ruining someone else's day.

Agh, I meant Protege, not Legacy.

I'm excited to see what you roll out.

I haven't read WORM, though since I found out about it, I have intended to. It sounds interesting.
I do remember a bit about the idea, though. Taking bug control as a power, inxpitter?

re: Worm

Apparently, I do now.

also, loving the characters thus far.

Did Lios fly through space without a spaceship?

Of course not. Solmira's traversal to Earth was carefully planned, and her health conditions were pre-existing. It wouldn't do to send her this far carelessly, exemplar she is.
(Yes, it was a terrible idea in retrospect, and the above is filthy, filthy lies.)

Question: how do I take influence on an NPC? I have a move that gives me a bonus when I take influence over a member of my legacy, but I don't know how to do that. It's not as clear cut as strings in Monster Hearts.

Influence works like most things in MASKS—it’s both descriptive and prescriptive, fictional and mechanical. If a move gives someone else Influence over you, then it means that you care about what they think now. You might hate their guts! But their words still hit home.

If you think that your character cares about what someone else thinks, then any time you want you can give them Influence over you if they didn’t already have it. Don’t be shy! It’s fun to admit that other characters matter to your hero.

You can’t just take Influence away from someone, though—it’s not that easy to decide that you don’t care about what someone thinks. There are only a few ways to take Influence away from someone, and until you get such an opportunity, you’re stuck caring about what they think.

Right...how do I get influence from them?

I figured it out though. I can get it from provoking them or defending them.

yeah, or piercing the mask, asking "how could I gain Influence over you?" and then doing that.

Heh, oh yeah. I guess there's a lot of ways.

Hurry up team! Kid Quickman is patient, but Mitch wants to play nooooooow

As far as NPCs go, Elsine can hand out influence over NPCs in the same way we can give out influence over our characters, as I understand it. Saying/Doing the right things will get you influence any time - Pierce the Mask just tells you what the right things are.

And yeah, I wanna play too. I just hope nobody vanishes on us.

I should have warned out to clear your schedule, WORM is pretty addicting. And I thought about emulating the main character (who controls bugs), but decided against it. Just finishing a few details.

We should get a check in from anyone who hasn't posted to the discussion thread.

I'll PM Yorick.

also, does this mean I finally get to meet a Janus who didn't take the "Vermin control" power (which, I'm like 90% sure is a direct shoutout to worm)

I now know what it says on the button in my Skinner box:

F5

I'm getting the impression you guys might be a little enthusiastic here...

I'm getting the impression you guys might be a little enthusiastic here...

Only because Conwall is still waiting for a room description.

I myself know when people have posted pretty quickly.
That hasn't stopped me from trying to search through aliases on everyone who hasn't posted yet for who they'll be playing, though.
So...yeah, I'm enthusiastic alright.

Solmira, not trying to be a backseat driver, but you've set yourself up for getting conditions. Alien Ways slides Superior up one, but if you go past +3 you get a condition. You're at +3 now, soooo...

I picked my moves for "how to play my character" reasons, and chose that +3 for "how they currently are" reasons. I realised what would happen during that process, and I think the result of that fits.
Though I do wonder how obvious the thought process behind that is. Not that it matters too much - it'll probably become obvious what the result is soon enough.

It's her "dump" stat. Any time she has to reduce a lable, she reduces sup, then she has a way to recover.

... or so I figure.

The good news is, The stats change a bunch in this game, really fast. until you get some of your stats locked down, friends and grown-ups can make you re-evaluate everything about yourself (which, from the few memories of high-school I haven't successfully repressed, is basically how it went)

It's her "dump" stat. Any time she has to reduce a lable, she reduces sup, then she has a way to recover.

I hadn't actually thought about that, though I don't think you usually get to choose like that.

Oh, that makes sense.

I didn't realize that two people was the legacy minimum, not the maximum.

Madam Quick is Kid Quickman's paternal grandmother, retired and quite judgemental. She was a speedster hero who became a being of pure electricity and retired from heroics (but not from criticism towards her son and grandchildren)

Lucy Hansen is Quentin twin sister and another possible inheritor of the legacy. She got the speed, he got the fine molecular control. Lucy takes hero classes from te institute too. Lucy and Quentin have an adversarial but cordial relationship. There's only room for one of them in the Paragon Alliance.

Alright, here we go. Apologies for the delay!

Still not 100% sold on the hero name, open to suggestions. Also open to thoughts on the third resource - a vehicle seems useful, but I don't have immediate thoughts on what our signature ride should look like, and could be talked into something else instead.

Protege

Hero Name: The Chameleon
Real Name: Michael Crofton

Look: man, white, lean body, casual clothes, simple costume

Shared (power mimicry) / mentor (powerful armor)/self (impossible fighting skills)

Michael's body has an affinity for neo abled powers. Sometimes, if something like that hits him, his body reforms to temporarily grant a similar power.

Mentor

The Guardian Mirror
Embodies savior, denies danger

Mirror's mimicry allowed her to actually reflect other neo-abled powers. In her gleaming mirrored armor, she was an iconic defender of the city. For reasons unknown, she retired from the institute some years ago.

Michael's impatient and aggressive, tendencies that the Mirror is trying to train out of him, in favor of a more cautious, defensive approach.

+1 freak
Moves: venting frustration, fireside chat, mindful of surroundings
Resources: communicators, a med lab, a vehicle?

How did you first meet your mentor?
Mirror was initially assigned to me by TITAN when my mimicry powers began to manifest.
When and why did you choose to train with them?
Years later, after he'd quit the life, I sought him out; our powers work differently, but he was both the best mimic I'd ever seen, and the smartest.
Why did they agree to train you?
Guilt? Unfinished work? I was his project before he quit, and true mimics are rare enough that TITAN could only do so much. Plus, I'm useful to his research.
Who else, outside of the team, knows about your training?
Not sure, really. Someone at TITAN might, depends how close they're monitoring me.
Why do you care about the team?
Working as a team, we get taken seriously in a way that doesn't really happen otherwise.
Why do you spend time at the Institute?
Practice. Best place to get hit with neo powers by people not trying to kill you. Plus, it's a good place to hang out when a weirder mimic happens...dragon wings, say, draw a lot less attention here.

This is what I've got so far, tell me what you think?

Also, can't decide on a secondary power for the life of me. Help!

Real Name: Jae-Lin Park
Hero Name: Bane
Playbook: The Janus

Look
Man, Asian, Elegant Clothing, Concealing Costume, featureless mask
Elegance. That one word sums up the world's view of Jae-Lin. His long black hair almost reaches his slim waist, and almost no on can claim to ever see him without a polite smile on his face. His fingers are long and deft, and he is usually seen with perfect posture.

His costume is simple enough. He wears a generic, grey sweatshirt and jeans. The only thing separating the masses from himself, it the white full face mask he dons, with two thin slits for his eyes and the gas mask-like attachment the mouth.

Abilities
Venom (Essentially variant poison he can create)
[not sure...]

Moves
The Mask [Danger]
I am what you see
Dangerous Web

Secret Identity
Job: Host (plays up his "perfect person" identity)
Home: Paying Bills (lives alone, on the condition that he maintain his parent's standards and meet all payments)
Social: Best Friend (Co-worker at his Host job, helped patch him up after the incident)

Backstory
When did you first put on the mask? Why?
I discovered my powers after being jumped in an alley on my way home from work. I was coughing blood by the time they were done with me, but imagine my surprise when they started to stumble and fell unconscious. I did the right thing of course, kicked them a few times and then called 911. I found out later that they had somehow been poisoned, something lowering their blood oxygen level to the point they were passing out.

A week later, I began to experiment and put on this *taps mask* ever since.

Why do you keep a secret identity?
I started to do the whole vigilante thing. It helps that I can take care of most small fry by flicking a bit of paralysis toxin on them. After half-a-year? I've made a lot of enemies. And the police and media aren't exactly keen on a hero that uses poison as a method of dealing with bad guys.

Who, outside of the team, knows about your dual identity?
Well....don't laugh. Honestly, it's the janitor at my workplace. I sneak in with my key, and having been stabbed with a knife I'm bleeding toxin everywhere (I think it was something to skyrocket blood pressure this time around) and the janitor is just standing there, staring at me. He helped patch me up and even gave me a few tips to wash away any of the toxins that accidentally spilt during a fight. DNA isn't too much of concern as my body fluid turn into pure poison after a while, but wouldn't want some random dog to lick that up.

Who thinks the worst of your masked identity?
The media. Hands down, the media. It's like they got handed five years worth of tinder material and their field day is going to last for years. I've been brought in as an example of the dangers of masks, and everytime someone dies of natural consequences, they always break down the events and see if they can pin it on me as if I was some sort of hitman.

Why do you care about the team?
They don't treat me contaminated refuse. There's something....about people who know you can do them harm but welcome you openly, even trying to help.

Why do you spend time at the Taylor Institute?
I heard they might be able to help me control doses. I've had a few close calls before, almost overdosing targets with toxins, but if I can get the control right, then I can start getting creative.

Also, can't decide on a secondary power for the life of me. Help!

Supernatural senses and impossible mobility would complement venom if you want a snake theme.

Not sold on hero name...need third resource

Chameleon sounds like more like hiding. You're about mimicking and giving them a taste of their medicine.

Rubber Boy (especially if you're on the younger side. I'm rubber, you're glue etc.), Silverback (to go off the mirror theme). Reflecto. Fresnel (a type of lens that reflects energy), Copycat, Me2, Xerox, Duplecato, Omiboy, Multiman, etc.

Simple robots could be cool, or a supercomputer.

Okay, looks like we're pretty close to being ready to begin.

A few questions, first:

Sorrel: What do you most miss being able to do?

Kid Quickman: Who is the most notable hero from your generation.

Solmira: Who, besides the team and staff, is nice to you?

Michael: The villains of your generation have just started coming into their own, and gaining notoriety. which two villains most worry Guardian Mirror.

Jae-Lin: just a week ago, you saved Amelia Clarke, a waitress at your restaurant. She's been talking about it ever since. What does she think of Bane?

also, you guys should do your histories.

And, you guys have a few questions about when you first came together. I'll just put them all here.

When we first came together...

We saved the life of someone important, either to the city or to us. Who was it? Why are they important?

All things considered, we did well and impressed an established hero. Who was it?

We didn’t trust each other at first, but that changed. How? Why?

We stuck together after all was said and done. Why? How’d we keep in contact?

We drew attention and ire from plenty during the fight. One important person in particular now hates and fears us. Who is it?

Decide on the answers to these together, and tell me what happened.

Either Sparrow, The Raptor's kid sidekick or Dark Claw's comically deaged clone Lil' Bub.

I trust Bane and told him an important secret about my legacy, which I'll PM to him (and you, Elsine.
Solmira and I were caught breaking into a warehouse to catch Twinnings VonLukefish, despite being told he was way outside our power class.