Zenna Hendricks / Myriad's page

Theme: Divine Teleportation
Mobility Mythos
Mystery: Where is the greatest need?
Myriad can travel anywhere to help others in need. Her goal is to help people learn to transcend mortality and evolve into higher beings, as she has, but because of the hierarchy of needs, she often has to ensure their survival before they will listen to her higher message.
Power Tags: Can teleport / time travel, can sense need
Weakness Tag: Can only travel where she is called/needed to assist. Can't travel to anyone against their will. The stronger the need, the harder it is to resist. Distance and time make it harder to sense.

Theme: Shapeshifting
Adaptation Mythos
Mystery: If I can become anything, who am I?
Myriad can appear as anything or anyone, but only on the outside. The inside is always her... an immortal higher being, whose knowledge has yet to catch up with her physical transcendence.
Power tags: Can shapeshift, can mimic voices and sounds perfectly, she is immortal (doesn't need to breathe or eat when she is disguised as a box).
Weakness Tag: She can look like and sounds like anything, but she doesn't always have the knowledge or the ability to be those other things. For instance, she can look like a ninja, but she can't fight like one. She can look like a bird, but unless she takes the time in that form to learn to fly, she can't just instantly do it.

Theme: Transcendence
Defining Event Logos
Identity: Powerful Imagination
Zenna, a struggling Sci-Fi and Fantasy novelist, during her extensive research for a Sci-Fi thriller, came across Max Markel who offered to teach her how to transcend her body. She, curious, agreed, and over the course of just a few days of his tutelage, somehow connected to a deep yearning that she had felt for a long time, gaining control over the very particles of her own being, and becoming (or remembering?) Myriad. Waking up to that advanced physical side of herself though caused her some deep emotional trauma as she questioned who she was and the very definition of self when she could suddenly "be" anything. Her new friend wasn't sure how to help her adapt, so he helped her to forget by writing out what she had "imagined" under the influence of "suggestion" and told her that it would help her to be a better writer, now that she could imagine the impossible. He was right. Her career blossomed, and she hit number one on the city's bestseller list in no time.
Power Tags: Ally Max Markel, who taught her to transcend, and to forget. Can forget things that trouble her by writing them down. Max is researching how to help her further.
Weakness Tag: She can't adapt to her new reality if she continued to sublimate it.

Theme: Popularity
Occupation Logos
Identity: Bestselling Novelist
Zenna writes out what she thinks are her imagined adventures after getting pulled into another adventure.
Power tags: Flexible schedule, moderate wealth and freedom, easy access to most information sources.
Weakness: Popularity is its own downfall. People know who she is and might recognize her almost anywhere. Privacy is a concern, as would be any extended disappearance.

=== Mobility ===
WHAT IS YOUR MYTHOS’ MOST USEFUL FORM OF MOVEMENT? Teleportation
WHAT ALLOWS YOU TO AVOID RESTRAINTS OR CONFINEMENT? Time Travel
WHAT SPECIAL RESOURCE DOES YOUR MOBILITY GIVE YOU ACCESS TO? Prayer (Perhaps that is a catchy word for "need" ... what people's souls are broadcasting as desires and needs, but which most people can't sense or act on... I can.)

WHAT IMPEDES YOU OR SLOWS YOU DOWN?(weakness) Opposed Will (To travel I have to tap into the need of another, rather than my own will, and if someone dosn't want me there, it can block me.)

=== Adaptation ===
WHAT MYTHOS POWER ALLOWS YOU TO RESPOND DIFFERENTLY TO EVERY SITUATION? Shapeshifting (the other tag I had formerly probably just merges into this one... can also shapeshift vocal cords, so can make any sound)
WHAT SPECIFIC MANIFESTATION OF YOUR MYTHOS IS YOUR FAVORITE? Immortality (Can put my body back together at will)
WHAT ATTITUDE OR EMOTION LIES AT THE CORE OF YOUR ADAPTIVE POWERS? Comfort (?? That's a hard question... I guess the character would adapt in order to make whoever is "praying" feel comfortable with her presence though, whether that is obvious or non obvious--? I am not sure how that works as a power tag though, but if it does, awesome. If not, what kind of thing were you going for?)

WHAT RESULTS ARE HARDER FOR YOUR MYTHOS TO ACHIEVE?(weakness) Study (Shapeshifting is easy, but knowledge of how to use a body or perform a skill takes time. I can't win a gold medal just because I can give myself the same muscles that a speed skater has, and I can't become a ninja just because I can mimic the body of one. Those are things that you have to learn over time, and although my ability gives me some obvious shortcuts, it doesn't just grant me that (I can know needs, not abilities).)

=== Defining Event ===
WHAT KIND OF STRONG EMOTION DID YOUR DEFINING EVENT LEAVE YOU WITH? Emptiness (?? Not sure if this can be a power tag though... I guess it can be, because it can be the impetus for helping others... It allows her to feel compassion for the needs of others, and gives her to motivation to satisfy them, even though she doesn't know how to help herself. Is there a better way to put that?)
WHAT SKILL OR MUNDANE ABILITY DID YOU PICK UP DURING OR DUE TO YOUR DEFINING EVENT? Limitless Imagination (Imagination allows me to escape my emptiness and fill it with something, anything... going to greater and greater lengths to build something to replace my loss of self.)
WHO DID YOU BOND OR CONNECT WITH IN THE AFTERMATH OF YOUR DEFINING EVENT? Max Markel

WHAT IS NOW BROKEN WITHIN YOU, PHYSICALLY OR MENTALLY, DUE TO YOUR DEFINING EVENT?(weakness) Sense of Self (Can know other's needs but have lost myself in them... can't sort out who I am or what I need apart from that. Feel like I am drifting away, not sure how to anchor myself.)

=== Routine ===
WHAT DO YOU DO WITH YOUR TIME? Write (?? Is that a power tag by itself?)
WHAT QUALITY DO YOU NOW POSSESS BECAUSE OF YOUR ROUTINE? Fame
WHAT PRIVILEGES COME WITH THE TERRITORY OF WHAT YOU DO? Upper Class (flexible schedule, access to certain social circles, moderate wealth, fans willing to bend the rules for her)

WHO OR WHAT CAN INTERFERE WITH YOUR ROUTINE? (weakness) Distractions (Fame seems to offer more freedom in many ways, but it can also interfere with what you want to do, forcing you to adhere to a book signing schedule or go places you don't really want to go, just to show your face. Fans can be demanding and potentially harmful as well as kind and accommodating.)

=== Mobility ===
--Teleportation (Be more specific) --> Um, "Need-based Teleportation"? That builds the limitation right into the ability... or we could put a range limit on the teleportation if you don't like it, or did you mean specific in some other way?
--Time Travel (Be more specific) So you also said you don't like this one in terms of it complicating things. That cuts down on some cool possibilities, but we can just trash it. So instead... something like "Need-based Distance Viewing" or something... limitation built in again, and she gets flashes of the person/situation while she is sensing a particular need, instead of just getting a generalized feeling? That would help her know what to shapeshift into.
--Prayer (perhaps switch to "can feel your needs" or desires. You character seems to be pulled in times of crisis, so needs fits better imo) --> We could go back to my original tag here, which was "Can sense need" ... does that work? I just switched to the other because it goes along with the religious themed back story based on where the "powers" originally came from... becoming a "higher being" And maybe Max Markel was an archaeologist and discovered these ancient writings that helped him learn some of this stuff, but he doesn't have the right bloodline to learn all of it, or blah blah blah this flashback stuff that we might learn in the "origins of" episode. ;) But "can sense need" works for me.
--Opposed Will (this doesn't make as much sense if you need a person's will to pull you to them anyway. It's redundant. I'd suggest coming up with a reason what else can prevent or slow down your teleportation abilities such as techno music or perhaps a book needs to be nearby, from which you literally jump out of) ... it does become redundant if we include a weakness in the teleportation originally, which we had not up to this point. That's why this weakness was here, to explain the boundaries of that... But if we include the limitation on the teleportation *in* the teleportation line itself, then sure, we can come up with another one. In the original draft I had "Strong Need is hard to resist," so maybe "Not in Charge" or "Need Trumps Will"? Things can pull her against her will, or we could do limitations on time and space making needs harder to sense, or "Requires secrecy" meaning that she can't disapparate in public, or "Resisting causes pain" ... she loses hit points (or energy or whatever it is in this game if she resists the pull, so she's basically a slave to her ability? Or all of the above? :)

=== Adaptation ===
--Shapeshifting (This'll work I believe) Based on the Immortality change, I think we can just build in the limitation here that the shapeshifting is physical-only, because we have a better weakness to put as "the" weakness, and the physical-only thing can just be assumed, like the need thing with teleportation. So she can make the muscle, but not the muscle memory. Perhaps "Shallow Shapeshifting" is a catchy way of saying that?
--Immortality (This one doesn't make a lot of sense as a manifestation of your shapeshifting. If you limit yourselves to actual heroes from fiction, you could replace Immortality with that favored hero. Or perhaps, its an archetype of a hero that you enjoy (holy knight, adventuring youngster, etc)) I think it makes plenty of sense. If you can control everything about your body on the cellular level, then you can always keep yourself alive, in a sort of Wolverine-type way, but I get it. We can drop this one as well. So, instead... "Perfect mimic" could be a good one. I mushed that into shapeshifting for this draft, but we could go back to the original idea and split it out... she can mimic anything she sees or hears (physically only)
--Comfort (I believe this should be more about *your* attitude or emotion, not the other person's. Well, we could go with "Chameleon" or something. Part of her loss of identity could mean that she blends in really well with her surroundings, which is the positive side. There is a down side built in there too, because she can lose track of herself, but we discuss that elsewhere.
--Study (Be a bit more specific. "Training wheels not included" or something like that.) Since we're not going with the Immortality thing here, maybe the weakness should just be, "Needs to breathe" She can't hide as a box or a tree, unless she puts a mouth on it somewhere. Or we limit it even more and go "Humanoid only." She still needs to do the things that it takes to stay alive, and maybe she doesn't even know how to do that as an animal, or maybe she can't adjust her bulk, so it always has to be something the same relative size and weight.

=== Defining Event ===
--Emptiness(Perhaps "Desire to be Necessary" would work. Emptiness is a bit hard to create prompts for. I'll keep thinking on this one.) This was just the answer to your question... she doesn't desire to be necessary, because she isn't self-aware enough to really want to be needed. She's just lost (as in the weakness below). Going back to the original draft, what about "Transcendence of Self" which is what the defining event was about, and the positive side of all of it. It allows her to put others' needs first, and maybe that is why she can sense others' needs so clearly, because her self isn't getting in the way anymore. Does it have to be a strong emotion for some reason?
--Limitless Imagination (I think this should be okay) Cool.
--Max Markel (used in the example above, just give a hint to his relation to you and perhaps an adjective) Max Markel, Mentor and Resourceful Ally?
--Sense of Self (Loss of Identity might work better here. Not sure what I could invoke that against, but thinking about it) Loss of Identity works.

=== Routine ===
--Write (Its actually more of a title. So your's would be SciFi/Fantasy Author) Again, was just trying to answer the questions. My original draft was "Bestselling Novelist." Shall we return to that?
--Fame (This is more of a personal quality, some examples include: Night Owl, Finished by Deadline, or Internet Researcher) Fame is probably already part of Bestselling Novelist anyway. In my original draft I had easy access to information sources, so "Internet Researcher" would work I suppose.
--Upper Class(Upper Class is a little vague, and as you put can be used in many different situations. I'd try to be a bit more specific, but if you really can't think of anything, then it might be alright) Would straight up "wealthy" work better?
--Distractions(needs to be more specific, It could be social events your agent keeps signing you up for, or perhaps your family keeps bothering you, maybe even a boyfriend, but it should be something concrete) Was just answering your question. "Popularity" from my first draft might work better, or "Paparazzi" perhaps is more flavorful there. Maybe "Paparazzi and Lack of Privacy" or we could get more serious and add in a stalker?

Theme: Teleportation
Mystery: Where is the greatest need?
=== Mobility Mythos ===
PT: Need-based (non-self) Teleportation Does that solve the issue?
PT: Need-based (non-self) Distance Viewing, 30 foot radius, line-of sight Better? ... Not a pre-cog thing, but just seeing the person in need and their immediate surroundings (if in line of sight from the person). It *could* help her know how to shapeshift, but it's not tied to that... it only helps her know the person in need's situation ahead of traveling there. And honestly, we can switch this out if you have a better idea. Just trying to find something that fits as part of this theme since you didn't like the time travel thing.
PT: Can Sense Need
WT: Need Trumps Will

Theme: Shapeshifting
Mystery: If I can become anyone, who am I?
=== Adaptation Mythos ===
PT: Shallow Shapeshifting
PT: Perfect Auditory Mimic Does that clarify / help, or does it still seem wrong? ... just trying to say that she can sound like someone else, or mimic other sounds, as well as the physical shapeshifting mimicry of just looking like them from the last tag.
PT: Chameleon: automatically adjusts to fit in. Kind of like the time travel idea of the universe protecting its own timeline, but in this case only in the present. Many things happen to her against her will, and "the universe" forces her to "fit." After she is pulled and changed, then she starts being able to make choices again. ... Imagine Quantum Leap (no choice initially, but then he can "fix" things, right?), except she isn't pulled into someone *else* ... she just appears as someone that fits in that environment. If the person in need is in the hospital, maybe she comes in as a nurse, or whatever.
WT: Living Things Only

Theme: Transcendence
Identity: Powerful Imagination
=== Defining Event Logos ===
PT: Fear; Chosen Forgetfulness I think this is the last one where I don't really know what you are going for... is this somewhere close? This seems like a weakness instead of a power, but the forgetfulness could kind of be a power because it keeps her functional until she learns to cope. I wish I could capture the idea of becoming a higher being here and leave this part as the weakness, but the transcendence thing doesn't really tie into emotion, because as cool/wonderful as that is, what came out of it (at least initially) is fear of being herself. If this doesn't work, maybe we should drop this one and try a different question? I don't think she has any positive emotions (yet) about her transformation. She still needs to come to terms with it, and right now just tries not to think about it on a conscious level. What do you think?
PT: Limitless Imagination
PT: Max Markel, Mentor and Resourceful Ally
WT: Loss of Identity

Theme: Popularity
Identity: Bestselling Novelist
=== Routine Logos ===
PT: Bestselling Novelist
PT: Internet Researcher
PT: Wealthy
WT: Popularity / Lack of Privacy

Where I didn't add comments, I think we already agree... let me know where I still need changes. Sorry again that this is taking so long. Maybe I am too rigid in who she is, and should just drop some things like her not accepting it yet?

Theme: Teleportation
Mystery: Where is the greatest need?
=== Mobility Mythos ===
PT: Need-based* Teleportation
PT: Glimpses of the Needy*
PT: Can Sense Need*
WT: Need* Trumps Will
*Note: All of these apply to others' needs, not her own needs.

Theme: Shapeshifting
Mystery: If I can become anyone, who am I?
=== Adaptation Mythos ===
PT: Shallow Shapeshifting
PT: Perfect Auditory Mimic I was thinking being able to say other things in a certain voice, but if you want it to just be replication of exact things, we can do that.
PT: Auto-Chameleon
WT: Loss of Identity Switched this over from the revised theme... I think it fits here better, maybe as far as the more time she spends as something/someone else, the harder it is to remember and get back to herself? That would mean in general that she would have a wider range of shifting, but a shorter duration, and a need for help from Max or someone else to pull her back out at times. Is it an okay substitution?

So, the following is my attempt at switching to a new theme... instead of focusing on the event, this focuses on her self-realization that selfishness was one of her big problems, and so her new mission as a writer is to, in her novels, try to promote an agenda of acceptance, kindness, and love of the "alien" in others... love of people who aren't like us, the recognition that we are all one community, and through her craft tries to get people outside themselves, ready to help and protect others. I think Max still fits because Max is still why she had the realization. Moved the losing herself part to a previous theme, and just dropping imagination and forgetfulness entirely. The event still happened, and she is still having problems with her self-identity, but she can remember now without going catatonic. Imagination is probably just moot since she already has shapeshifting and bestselling novelist... that was just meant to supplement/enable those, but likely unneeded.

Theme: Make the World a Better Place
Identity: Force for Change
=== Mission Logos ===
PT: Desire to Promote Unity Sorry, I don't know what the question is here, because the quick start guide doesn't have questions... so this is just a stab in the dark. If you tell me what the question is, I will try to fit it in. The idea is to help others to transcend themselves as Max has helped her. Maybe they won't reach the higher being stage as she has, but she wants to give everyone that chance.
PT: Max Markel, Mentor and Resourceful Ally
PT: Includes Ancient Clues to Transcendence in her Books Clunky... but the whole thing that Max found, she is trying to share it with the whole world. Dangerous in some ways, but she thinks it will help the world evolve into something better. Ideas for making it catchier?
WT: Producers and Rights Her multi-book contract doesn't give her script authorship for movies made from her books, only royalties. The producers can turn them into gloriously selfish human versus alien shoot-em-ups if they choose to, and they usually do. So a lot of people love her for the totally wrong reason, completely opposite to what she is trying to accomplish.

Theme: Popularity
Identity: Bestselling Novelist
=== Routine Logos ===
PT: Bestselling Novelist
PT: Internet Researcher
PT: Wealthy
WT: Popularity / Lack of Privacy

Theme: Make the World a Better Place
Identity: Force for Change
=== Mission Logos ===
PT: Desire to Promote Unity
PT: Max Markel, Mentor and Resourceful Ally
PT: Includes Ancient Clues to Transcendence in her Books
WT: Producers and Rights

So, about the overall character concept... I wasn't really thinking of it in two separate pieces like that. It's more this struggling writer who has had some success, but still has to maintain a day job because her writing income isn't steady enough, and a lot of who she is is focused on survival and making ends meet, and hopefully someday writing something good enough to go big... and the more she immerses herself in her characters the better the writing is, because she's always writing from the outside... things she's never done or seen--just researched or read about or invented. And so when she gets a nice contract for three books she uses the upfront money to go on a trip, and she is trying all these new things, focused on having new experiences so that she can get deeper into those characters. And then one day she meets this guy (Max), and in talking to him she starts to realize that part of her problem is that she is so focused on herself. She wants to learn how he can pour himself into other people like he does (figuratively; she doesn't witness anything but some very remarkable empathy and compassion--nothing superhuman), and he offers to teach her.

She has a self-transcending experience with some ancient artifact that Max has that helps people move beyond themselves (evolve into a higher being sort of thing), but it is much, much stronger working on her than it worked on Max or anyone else he has shown it to (very few), and he doesn't know why. She starts shapeshifting and hearing "needs" in her head and she is overwhelmed by everyone else and can't find her way back to her own thoughts or shape. She collapses and he does what he can to help her hold onto who she is, by talking to her for a long time and framing the whole thing as fiction--she's learned to really tap into that deep imagination and write about things that she could never imagine with such detail before. Some background part of her obviously knows that he is lying, but she holds desperately onto that lie (at least at that point), because it helps her remember who she is... the core of her own shape and own desires.

TL;DR: Selfish girl has an experience with something otherworldly and it changes her completely, making her totally other-centric, but maybe too much, because she is having a hard time knowing who she is anymore and holding on to that, or knowing where the boundaries of helping others and taking care of herself are. I wouldn't really call it "crazy" ... just maybe she is on the verge of losing everything she has been and going all the way to something new. Whether that is good or bad, I don't know, and different people that she knows would probably have different opinions about that.