 About The ImaginatorBuild: The Imaginator Power Level: 9; Power Points Spent: 150/ STR: +5 (20), DEX: -2 (6), CON: -1 (8), INT: +10 (30), WIS: +9 (28), CHA: +0 (10) Toughness: +12(3), Fort: -1, Ref: -2, Will: +14
Skills: (90 ranks)
Feats: Assessment, Benefit: Wealth 1 (+4 on Wealth checks), Connected, Contacts (Gather Information checks, take 10 or 20, perform in 1 minute), Eidetic Memory (+4 to remember/Use all Knowledge Untrained), Improved Initiative, Improvised Tools, Inventor, Jack of All-Trades, Master Plan, Skill Mastery (Knowledge: Life Sciences, Track, Well Informed, Equipment 3 Equipment: Smart Phone, Com Link
Toughness +1 (10 - Reinforced Concrete)
Powers:
Array wrote:
Burden of Mass (Density 9: Permanent) (Adds +4 Toughness, Immovability 3, and +18 Strength) Feat: Innate (19pts) Drawbacks: Vulnerability (Uncommon, Moderate): Gravity Effects (+50% to DC and Damage), Disability: Immobile (1/2 regular movement) Attack Bonus: +0 (Ranged: +0, Melee: +0, Grapple: +0) Attacks: Unarmed Attack, +0 (DC 20) Defense: +9 (Dodge: +9), Knockback: - Initiative: +2 Languages: English (Native), French, Spanish, German, Russian, Old Norse, Latin, Greek, Japanese, Mandarin, Cantonese, Klingon and Sindarin. Totals: Abilities 24 + Skills 24.5 (98 ranks) +16 Feats +83.5 Powers + Combat +5 Saves - 3 Drawbacks = 150 Movement: 15 ft/round Height: 5’5
Eyes: Brown
Complications: Motivation: For most of his life, lonely and somewhat involuntarily isolated, he was able to keep himself happy by immersing himself in a world he had created. Part of that was real, his status as an innovator, a genius, and a force to be watched in the technology sector, but even that was carefully constructed and separate from reality. He did all consultations remotely, keeping himself more of an internet presence than a real one. Even those who know him well, and have worked with him extensively on development projects, know him only by his voice; video conferences would display only the code he was working on, renderings of the project, or perhaps a prototype, if there was one. Beyond this, he was able to depend on his fantasy life to keep him happy. His characters are just as much family to him as his mother, and they have been his only real contacts besides her for years. When his mother was injured inadvertently by Captain Thunder, something shifted in his mind, and for the first time ever he started looking outwards. He saw the heroes that were, and how far they fell short of the heroes he knew from fiction. He realized he could be that hero; if no one real could be that pure, then someone imagined would have to be the symbol the people needed instead. Enemy: He is aware of the Foundry as a shadowy industry, and has knowledge of some aspects of their enterprises. He despises them, and not only in how his father's involvement with them led to his death; that only brought them to the fore of his attention. Ever since he became aware of them, they have become the symbol in his mind of all that is wrong with the world; corporate greed, corruption, and self interest before anything else. When the Foundry is involved, the Imaginator's attention will be on them. Grudge: While he does not consider him an enemy, nor even a rival like Captain Thunder, Arnold carries a bit of a grudge towards Daedelus for essentially abandoning his father to take his sojourn into space. If he had not left, or had provided better oversight of his interests for during his absence, then Arnold's father would not have inadvertently gone to work for the Foundry, he would not have become sick, and he would not have died. Though Arnold respects the man deeply, almost to the point of hero worship, his father's respect for him having been too evident for the young boy to ignore, he cannot help but feel that the man abandoned a friend in need, and therefor failed as an icon. Honor: As the Imaginator, Arnold has created a persona for himself that is better than anything a typical person could realistically hold themselves to. He looks back to the heydays of his most iconic idols, Superman, Batman, Captain America, and believes as they did, that if one has the power to do so, they must hold themselves to the highest possible standard, and be an example to those who struggle to do the same. As a result, The Imaginator believes in always doing the right thing, no matter the consequences, the laws, or public opinion. He is aware to an extent, that things are not always cut and dried in the real world, and that there is not always a right choice. These times are likely to cause him serious grief, as he wants to believe that doing the right thing is always a possibility. Identity: Far from being an exemplar of physical might and prowess, as so many of his avatars are, the real man behind the heroes is something entirely different. He is a physically limited, morbidly obese, nearly immobile man, so ashamed of his appearance that he has not been seen outside of his home in years. He has managed to maintain his presence in the world through immersion in the internet, conducting nearly all his business that way. While it would hurt Arnie immeasurably if the people he works with and consults for new what his condition was in recent days, it is his superhero work that and identity that he protects the most strongly. Much like the debate raging about Superman and Clark Kent, or Batman and Bruce Wayne, he has doubts about who he really is, Arnold Ravenstein or the Imaginator. Even after just a few short years, he has started to identity more with his alter-ego(s) than with his given name. Were the people that respect his heroic persona's to learn who and what he was, that the heroes he personifies are only the imaginings of a lonely man, it would crush him. How they react to that knowledge should that revelation come could make or break him. Obsession: Doing what is right. Where other heroes might hark on Justice, or the American Way, The Imaginator is about doing what is right! Quirk: Wants to be liked, and is very sensitive to criticism. Even when projecting the appearance of a larger than life hero, he is likely to be watching closely as to what others think of him. Relationship: Arnold lives with his mother, who is rather advanced in age (68), and has medical issues and infirmaries well beyond those typical for a young senior citizen. Her health is fragile, and her mobility extremely limited, though she can still walk (though she prefers to have a scooter, walker, or at least a cane when she goes out). The long term affects of carrying her odd child are still felt, as most of her abdominal organs have been compromised to one extent or another. In addition, the accident caused by Captain Thunder shattered her body, and surgery and recovery has been a never ending cycle ever since, as the surgeons and physiotherapists try to get her muscular-skeletal system back into a functioning semblance of its former self. Arnold cares very deeply for his mother, and would do anything to protect her. Rivalry: The Imaginator dislikes Captain Thunder. It was the accident that really brought the man to his attention, even if he'd always been aware of him on some level. He had always felt vaguely disappointed in the all too human hero, particularly when it came to making compromises and playing politics. When the accident nearly cost the life of his mother, his opinion darkened even more. It made him feel that Captain Thunder was either an impostor, portending to be a hero for the accolades, or more likely just dangerously incompetent. Though Captain Thunder is probably oblivious to his very existence, The Imaginator is likely to be skeptical of the hero in any dealings that might come up, and he key focus will likely be on answering the question, fraud or fool. He believes to an extent that the Captain believes he is doing good, and would therefor not try to impede or hurt the man, but he would be very reluctant to follow his lead. Secret: While the internet has provided no end of information and fuel for his imagination regarding the birds and the bees, Arnold has no idea how to interact appropriately with women. He believes in respect, and doing what is right, but fights with the way his immersion in the internet conditioned him to objectify women. Given that everything he knows about relationships comes from comics, storybooks, and internet adult entertainment, the prospect of a real relationship happening at some point is both appealing and terrifying.
Core Concept: The Imaginator is an unassuming man, reclusive and rarely seen outside the home he shares with his mother. And endless dreamer and hopeless romantic, he at some point discovered that he could project his imaginings into the real world, merely by willing it hard enough. Being able to assume control his creations, he alternates using a few different heroic characters as his Avatars to allow himself to be a Superhero in the real world. People who know his personas as various heroic icons have no idea that they are all aspects of the same person, or that they are not exactly 'real'.
The role that The Imaginator will play in the group will depend somewhat on the composition of the team selected. The simplest might be a classically confident and charismatic Paragon type. I am picturing something rather akin to Metroman from the Megamind movie (which is pretty good, if you haven't seen it). While the character he presents will probably give off a 'Is he for real' kind of cheese and cornball factor, it will have it's own kind of charm as well; like a Golden or Silver age hero somehow being transported into the modern era, while somehow remaining oblivious to the change. This to a degree kind of reveals a bit about how the Imaginator thinks: he is an idealist and a dreamer, and like Invictus would help serve as a moral compass for the team, always pushing them towards doing what is right, and not compromising for the sake of convenience, practicality, or politics. I see his main role as being the spiritual heart of the team. As for the Imaginator himself, he is brilliant, and a master of lore, knowledge, and technology. Should the team ever become aware of his true nature, he will make as strong an addition to the team in himself as any of his avatars. In combat, he could be the on the ground tactical leader; he has the Intelligence, the Charisma, the knowledge of tactics, and the Masterplan feat all there to help him set things out and moving smoothly. His actual combat role will cover whatever niche needs the most assistance given the composition of the team, be it a flyer, energy manipulator, infiltrator, healer, shapeshifter, speedster, or tank. He'll design a persona best suited to fill that role, with the powers to match via his Summon Minion power. In a pinch, any of his other characters from his comic-book style imaginings can pinch hit, should his regular avatar be ill suited, or the regular teammate covering that role be unavailable. In this way, he represents an extremely versatile addition. Backstory: Albert Rosenberg was due to be born into a loving home. His parents were overjoyed at the expectation of their first child. His mother Linda was a homemaker by trade and supported by her husband Harold; a dedicated and brilliant researcher in the development of sophisticated computers. Inspired as a child by the development of computers like Eniac, Harold moved his young wife and expected family to Freedom city in order to go to work with _______; one of the greatest minds in computer research. A dreamer and a hopeless romantic, Harold had high hopes for the future generations of computers, and what they could do for society at large.
Soon after arriving in Freedom City, Linda began having problems with the pregnancy. The child was not growing as quickly as expected, was very late in quickening, and displayed very weak and hard to detect vital signs. Despite the challenges, Linda gained weight far more rapidly than would be expected, but without increasing any more in size than would be expected. She started suffering a variety of problems related to her internal organs, the kind usually associated with an overly large fetus, though all tests indicated the child was only slightly larger than average, if at all larger. However, how the baby was positioned at any one time appeared to cause major distress to the young mother, and a sudden shift of the baby could result in internal organ damage that threatened her intestines, liver, kidneys, and bladder. Doctors pleaded with the couple to terminate the pregnancy, but Linda refused, being determined to bring her child into the world. After a ruptured bladder nearly resulted in her death, she was hospitalized on bedrest. Strangely, the damage did not appear to lessen, and her body reacted as though her organs were being compressed under a significant weight. After more complications, a specially manufactured bed was created that allowed her to lie belly down, and supported her growing belly, as inadequate support could result in the skin tearing under the weight. The baby was delivered by cesarean section on July 26, 1966, nearly two months before due, but otherwise healthy. While appearing to be a fairly normal, if premature, baby, his initial bath and weigh in caused one nurse a back injury while trying to lift him, and broke two infant scales. When a strong enough scale was located and jury-rigged to weigh the child, they found that the preemie sized baby weighed an astounding 53 lbs 4 ounces; about 10 times what a child his size should weigh. While all sorts of tests were conducted, the doctors could find no cause or explanation for the baby’s incredible density. As the child himself appeared otherwise healthy, and seemed able to move himself as well as any other child his age, he was discharged home with his family as soon as he was deemed strong enough to do so. His mother unfortunately continued to suffer ongoing complications from the strange pregnancy, and required numerous surgeries. She was left with severe gastrointestinal complications, constant pain, and much to her distress, was also rendered unable to have any further children. Saddled with massive amounts of debt, Harold was forced plead for extra hours at the research centre, and eventually supplemented this with a second job. Despite all this, he was a dedicated father, and spent a great deal of time with his son, passing on his idealistic vision of the future, his interests in art, poetry and music, as well as his love of all things legendary and fantastic. Lord of the Rings, the Tales of Narnia, and Star Trek the television show were all prominent features in the young child’s life. Harold continued to care for his wife and her sometimes fragile health as best he could, but her life continued to be a constant struggle. Albert himself developed relatively normally, though his weight continued to grow along the same trends it had prenatally. By the time he was 5 and getting ready for school, he secretly weighed nearly 400 lbs, though he actually looked a bit small for his age. This began to make numerous elements of schooling problematic, as he frequently crushed public stairs and punched holes in regular floors by walking on them, effectively broke the school bus that tried to pick him up each morning. In addition, playground equipment was hopeless for putting up with his intense weight. As a consequence, he developed a more sedentary lifestyle, exploring the world through books, science, letters and correspondence, and technology like ham radio. He also loved computers and television, of course. Numerous problems at school necessitated transitioning Albert to homeschooling as well, his mother and father both taking active roles in teaching him. Another consequence was changes to his living requirements; they were forced to move around several homes, as they couldn't find one he couldn’t destroy through the most benign of accidents. A fall would send him through the floor and into the basement, or even crack cement slabs. Thankfully, the young boy seemed extremely resistant to injury, and never suffered any major problems from these falls - though they did tend to make him even more cautious and reluctant about moving around. Eventually, they moved into a specially constructed single level home, designed with reinforced, hardened concrete floors. Unfortunately, this placed an even greater financial burden upon the family. Whether due to stress, fate, or overwork, Harold did not fare well in the long term. His health began to fail, and after a few heart attacks, he finally passed away in his sleep from a stroke. He was only 44, and his son barely 11. His pension and life insurance allowed them to recover somewhat from their debts, as well as giving them something to live on, but to Albert, his father could never be replaced. He retreated more and more into his private life, creating worlds in his imagination, and becoming more obsessed with television and computers, his loneliness and burning desires to have a more exciting life permeating nearly every aspect of his existence. He would not be able to remember at what point it first happened, because truth be told he did not notice, but at some point his imagined fantasy life began to blend into the real world. He had long ago started to interact with the characters and places in his imagination, and he never even noticed when they went from figments of imagination to elements of reality he could interact with. Once into his teens, he had retreated further into isolation, rarely seeing anyone but his sickly mother, who still required a great deal of care. His weight kept increasing with his size, and his size grew exponentially given his sedentary lifestyle. By adulthood, he was morbidly obese, and would appear to most to weigh at least 400 lbs, where in reality he weighs more than ten times that, clocking in at more than two tons! An endless dreamer, like his father, he long lived within his fantasies, no one else aware of what he could do. He trained as a computer expert from home, designing and patenting more than a few new computer designs and technologies, becoming a relatively well known consultant for some of the best technological research firms in Freedom City, if only my name and reputation, as he almost never leaves the home, and has never met any of his contacts in the computer world. When the internet came along in the 90’s, he embraced it wholeheartedly, and it enabled him to become even more reclusive. It was ironically an injury to his mother that brought him out of his shell. She was mugged while on one of her infrequent trips from the home. The mugger pushed her, probably not intending violence, but just trying to get her valuables and get away. Unfortunately, she broke her hip in the fall, and ended up losing much of the limited mobility she had left. Albert was outraged by this event, and started looking about him for the first time in years; decades really. It was 2007, and a massive economic slump was just beginning. However, time had moved on about him. He hadn’t realized when it had happened, but the home his father had built them in an idyllic suburb of Freedom City was now in a rather rough neighbourhood, and his mother was often fearful of going out, even before the attack. He decided to do something about it. He put aside the video games he was writing and the comic books he had drawn; the superheroes he had created would serve a far different purpose now. Rather than merely being his friends and companions, his escape, entertainment and pastime; they would go out into the world and do something! He would not allow his neighbourhood to be overrun, his city to be threatened, and his father’s home to be threatened. Though no one would ever know it, he would be the Imaginator! And from then on, the heroes he created would make a difference! Power Scheme: He has the ability to project figments from his imagination into the real world, and even take over the characters he creates, using their bodies and directing their actions. There seem to be few limits to what he can create, so long as he can imagine it, but creating things seems to be the limit. (Create Object/Summon Minion) He can project his imagination into the real world, but he can’t alter or change anything that already exists. That is to say, he could create a ladder or a rock just by thinking about it, but he couldn't change a previously existing real ladder into a chair, or create a door in a solid wall where none previously existed. His creations are for all intents and purposes ‘real,’ and they can interact with the real world, crafting things or destroying them, just as any real individual could do. The characters he creates can also have powers, being larger than life heroes, inspired by all manor of books, movies, comics, and stories. However, the powers they have are limited by the same token as his own; they can act upon the environment, but they can’t fundamentally alter it. They also tend to have limited autonomy, and can’t seem to do much without Albert's attention, directing them to do it. As a result, he tends to create only a single hero at a time, evoking the most appropriate hero from his catalog of creations for whatever the job at hand might be. Personality: Albert is extremely idealistic, and to a degree, somewhat naive. Though he would probably come across as rather timid and awkward in person, he is actually a brave, genuine, and caring man. He is a hopeless romantic, and his view of the world, how one should behave, and the way things should be have been indelibly influenced by television, heroic fiction and above all, comic books.
He is very aware of his real physical form and the way people would probably perceive it, and he would probably be mortified if anyone, even other heroes and friends, were to discover who he really was. Which of course sets out the perfect story arch, once he is the member of a team.
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