[Shatterworld] - Out of Character Thread

[Draxx]

Remember when comics used to be fun? When we could enjoy them? This is game is a tribute to what we used to love about comic books. To the Silver Age style adventures, the old cartoon series, the minor characters who nobody cares about anymore. The Marvel and DC univserses are the most widely recognized superhero settings, so a lot is taken from them, but this world encompasses every comic imaginable, as well as anime, and television, film and and everything else that fits in the paradigm of adventure. It is tenuously connected to the lynchingverse, however it's apart enough that you don't really have to know anything about that.

This is not a traditional roleplaying game. It's all free-form, and people are free to take over extras, or drop them, or do things that most games won't let you get away with. Because this epitomizes taking the collective body of adventure-themed fiction for the past few centuries, and turning it into a grand world history, then getting to explore it all as your favorite characters. And what could be more fun?

So welcome to Shatterworld. I hope we can all enjoy this. Use this page for character stats (just a picture, some basic personality traits, and strengths and weaknesses). No own characters thanks, we don't do that. Also, out of game discussion, introductions, and any fiction you want to write as the stories progress.

In Character thread here, and history so far.

[industrious]

Dermott Arkane
"...And that's the message."

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+ Godwalker of the Messenger; the most connected with the Archtype of the Messenger, with plans to replace the Archtype with his own interpretation: The Heisenberg Messeger, who tells not truth but uncertainty, not facts but opinions. The idea of the Messenger is linked with the idea of Truth, and to change one is to change the other.
+ As an avatar of the Messenger, his words cannot be denied. When he speaks a true statement about something of importance, people must acknowledge what he has said is true, or suffer mental damage
+ When Delivering a Message to an audience, no obstacle may stand in his way. Should he will it, gags will break, cars will not break down if he is driving them, locks will open, and bonds will loosen. However, people are immune to this power, and if something is merely in his way, not holding him back, it will not open for him.
+ The Messenger knows the news. He may learn an important fact about a person, place or thing he is near. This fact must be able to be expressed in roughly three words or less, be concrete, and the subject of his inquiry must be in his presence.
+ The Messenger goes to where the news is. Provided he knows it is occurring, not about to occur or having just occurred, The Messenger can appear at any event important to more than one hundred people. Dermott Arkane has an earbud constantly feeding him top world events for this reason.
+ As Godwalker, Arkane may interpret the Messenger one other way: The Painful Truth. With this power, he may divine the truth that an individual least likes to hear, and when speaking that which cannot be ignored, drives a man insane.
+ Vast knowledge of ritualistic magic; Dermott has a number of "proxies," individuals who will be affected in his stead if he should be targeted with hostile magic. Most of them are unaware of this fact.
+ Extreme Charisma - not like a politician, but like a reporter or anchorman, or a political pundit that you like and agree with.
+ Decent skill with handguns - not superhero levels, but better than your average policeman by far.
+ Followers, mostly in the form of political individuals who approve of his writings (he runs a blog outrageous slanting and biasing news stories).
- He's as human as the next man, and he's also pushing 70. He's in very good shape, but still - he's no spring chicken.
- His attempts to replace the Messenger are not unnoticed. The Archtype is in conflict with him; stories about Dean's flaws and crimes, real or imagined, are often printed. He is on the most wanted lists of most countries for a number of crimes he hasn't committed.
- Dean is connected the Archtype on a close level. As such, he cannot deny the truth. He may passively conceal, and lie by omission, but if confronted with a lie point-blank, he cannot deny it.

I know the strange tides on which destiny ebbs and flows. I know that fate sometimes needs a guiding hand. I know how to place the pieces on the board. I know what has been and what must be. I know the greater game.

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For I know what evil lurks in the hearts of men.
The Shadow Knows.

1. A network of agents, those he has saved and those who owe him favors. They do not know who they are themselves, but they serve the Shadow.
2. Complete control of his vocal chords; the ability to mimic any voice perfectly, and to throw his voice whereever he might actually be. He has perfected a chilling laugh to strike fear and paralyze his enemies.
3. Master of Disguise. Has fooled Batman on at least two occasions.
4. A master of stealth and espionage. He worked undercover in World War I under the name "Dark Eagle"
5. Longevity. The Shadow may yet be immortal. Or perhaps his time is not yet up...
6. The ability to cloud men's minds, or to hypnotize them. He cannot fool many at one time, nor, if one is sufficiently trained.
7. The Girasol Gem, worn upon a ring. The dead have no secrets from the Shadow.
8. Expert Marksman, with 2 Colt M1911 Pistols.

[Draxx]

Thanks. Would you mind introducing Dermott Arkane yourself? I'll work him in, but it would help if you did.

[AnimeKid]

Here are my characters Drax

KOS-MOS

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+KOS-MOS
+Battle android from the future
+This is her fourth and final upgraded form and is by far the strongest.
+Has access to multiple weapons via materialization. Ex. twin Chainguns.
+Super strength.
+Is pure awesome (check out cutscenes from Xenosaga 1 or 3 for confirmation.)
+Superspeed

+Has access to her Phase transfer cannon, it is very powerful (Read:A Very Powerful form of energy emission in the form of powerful plasma beams this likely refers to the direct conversion of mass to energy according to Einstein theory which eventually led to atomic weaponry. This would be therefore similar to what happens when anti-matter comes into collision with its corresponding matter resulting in the release of massive amounts of energy hence Shion's comment "You could vaporize a whole star with this."

+Has a long-range sensory array, a set of energy wings, a body is formed from some sort of highly advanced nanomachines that allows her to morph parts of her body (specifically her arms) into various energy projectile and melee weapons. This body is also able to self-repair and is very durable though not indestructible, and she is also protected by a force-shield.

+Contains the Consciousness of Mary Magdalene.

+also has the Hilbert affect-The Hilbert Effect is an anti-Gnosis system used to draw the Gnosis into our plane of reality, allowing us to come into contact with them, instead of them being able to interact with our plane's matter at will also Hilbert waves can also be used to disable many high-end sensors using cross-interference. This means it also affects local systems as well. Most ships have buffering which helps to prevent this in open spaces. However, when the Hilbert Effect is used without amplifiers in enclosed spaces, all sensor systems are affected, and Ether based weaponry is rendered useless. Concentrated Hilbert waves can interfere with Realian systems as well, but it appears to have no effect on humans,but in actuality can make enemies weaker.
-Tends to sometimes unnerve people with her robotic voice which is void of emotion or inflection.
-When KOS-MOS tends to perfer pragmatism over morals

"That's not messing around, THIS is messing around"

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Generator Rex

Rex is a young amnesiac EVO with the ability to grow various machines out of his body and then absorb them back into himself or discard them when done. He can also use his nanites to communicate with and control nearby machines, and to absorb the activated nanites from some other EVOs, curing them of their mutations (though this requires the consent of the other EVO). Control of his powers is linked to his emotional state, and can fail with low self-confidence, agitation or inner conflict.

+Can produce various machines from his body
+Generally a good guy who tries to do what's right
+Loves being a hero
-is your typical teenager with little respect for authority
+Always has Bobo his talking chimp friend with laser pistols (Would this make him occupy my second character slot?)
-Powers are linked to his emotional state as mentioned above

[darkblade]

I had no idea how Tommy would fit into this but damn the Tournament of the Seven Cities...I'm looking forward to whatever other crazy martial artist you have planned to show up for this.

[Draxx]

Yeah, but I wanted to start out with the basics of genre, two-fisted stories that require, nay demand this sort of thing.

As to what crazy characters will be appearing, well I'd hate to spoil the surprise. But it will be a blend of serious and ridiculous.

[AnimeKid]

SO Draxx are Rex and KOS-MOS okay? Cause if so I can write out an entrance for them.

EDIT: nevermind.

[Fan]

Welp, I've been directed here so I'd like to attempt to put in a character who I THINK fits in with the power level set here (And is an actual Silver Age villain.)

Snow Flame:

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Name: Snow Flame

Equipment: Cocaine.

Weapons: Cocaine.

Description: Snow Flame is a man of unknown alias outside his Super Villain identity, standing at an even 6"2 and in possession of glorious silver tresses that cascade down his back. He is SNOW FLAME, and every cell of his being is suffused with the white hot ecstasy of COCAINE.

Weaknesses: Cocaine dependency.

Powers:

Super Strength: Snowflame is in possession of super strength not exceeding 15 tons, allowing him to lift even large vehicles and use them as weapons.

Super Speed: Enhanced by how much cocaine he uses, the more he does, the faster. At base level he is able to run as fast as an armored car, speeding up with higher dosages of cocaine puts him at mach level. Keep in mind reaching this requires POUNDS of cocaine, and doing as such takes significant amounts of time that would be inviable in real combat.

Pyrokinetic Aura: As Snowflame becomes one with his god, Cocaine, he is able to project an aura of it's glorious burning divinity around him that scorches any who touch him, and enhance his attacks.

Drug induced Pain immunity: When SNOWFLAME is in the embrace of Cocaine he becomes numbed to the attacks of lesser mortals who do not know his god's embrace allowing him to survive fighting people with super strength at his own level. Keep in mind.. he doesn't exactly have super durability, so after the fight he's still going to be in trouble.

Biography: Cocaine.

[Draxx]

…Takes all sorts to make a world, doesn't it? Not that there is a designated power-level for this game. Anything goes, really.

Welcome to the crew. I'll introduce you right away.

[darkblade]

Dark age, Snowflame was a late nineties villain. Comics code would not have passed a cocaine powered supervillain in the silver age.

That comic is all kinds of crazy awesome though.

[Draxx]

I did think that sounded a little unlikely, yes.

[AnimeKid]

Draxx did you need me to narrow down KOS-MOS location more? Or should I just have her jump in at some point.

[Draxx]

No, I'm good. Just figuring out what to actually do with her. When I have an idea, I'll update her.

[Fan]

Dark age, Snowflame was a late nineties villain. Comics code would not have passed a cocaine powered supervillain in the silver age.

That comic is all kinds of crazy awesome though.

He was in the years after Crisis on Infinite Earths. 1988-1989. Part of the "New Guardians" run in that period.

Not quite Dark Age there, or late nineties at all. =p

Still, he's just a bit on the edge of being Silver Age, but it's before the dawn of the damned "Super Mullet".

[darkblade]

I could have swore they came after the Bloodlines event but it appears you are correct.

Still I'd consider 89 to be the cusp between the Bronze and Dark ages.

[Cracklord]

The 90's isn't really a period, it's a state of mind.

Anyway, I'd better finish this arc so I can play my other two characters. Here you are. Note, for those interested in reading the rest, you can find them all from here. Along with some other players contributions as well.

Brothers Wilson #11 special edition, with extra material, limited stocks

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Felicia was the younger sister of Selina Kyle - she was put in the same institution as Selina and Maggie, but lost contact with them as she was the only one young enough to be successfully adopted. Her adoptive father, Walt Hardy, was a cat burglar of no small repute, but knew that the best of the best was Gotham’s feline fatale, and when she followed his footsteps she had something of an obsession in regards to her big sister, trying hard to outdo her.
And as Catwoman’s barely manageable romantic entanglement with the Batman grew hotter, Felicia spitefully put the moves on Nightwing, who had just broken up with Starfire. **** Grayson couldn't help but fall head over heel for the manipulative minx, and much shouting ensued as Bruce warned **** of Felicia’s real intentions, **** shouted at Bruce that at least he wasn’t afraid of his feeling and acting like a frigid jerk like Bruce was acting toward Selina. Troia, certain her best friend was being manipulated by Felicia, tried to have a showdown with her, only to clash violently with Catwoman, who wasn’t about to let some teenage girl manhandle her kid sister, even if she absolutely deserved it.
Wanting the drag **** away from the Titans and feeling weak because she couldn’t deal with Troia on her own, Black Cat had volunteered for treatments against her better judgment at the hands of the Brotherhood of Mutants, who found she possessed a latent X gene which they activated shortly thereafter with formula borrowed from the High Evolutionary, and by the time it was done she had proportional strength, speed, prowess, senses and claws of a cat. She vanished for a time, trying to come to terms with this, then found that her powers had further developed into bad luck powers. Felicia and **** eventually broke up after a particularly venomous verbal cat fight between Selina and Felicia. **** and Bruce were attempting to mend their father/son relationship, but Bruce had started a quasi-regular relationship with Catwoman and it soon became obvious that one of the four had to leave. Felicia, now genuinely in love with ****, chose to leave so he could patch up things with Bruce; even admitted she didn’t mind Selina being happy with Bruce.
But how had she got here? It was all Ted Grant's fault. Looking to reinvent herself, she'd decided to make the hero thing more permanent then just 'following a boy'. So she went to learn from the best. Wildcat, Ted Grant, the only Heavy-weight boxer to successfully defend the title of world champion for a grand total of 30 consecutive years, all but undefeated the entire time. And so she'd resolved to learn from him, as generations of martial artists have, and they'd had an affair, as generations of attractive women have, which had been spectacularly fulfilling before she broke it off.
But it seemed to have skewed her priorities. Since him, she'd found her taste in men had changed. She'd used to like men her own age. Parker. Grayson. Parker again. Grayson again. Young, confident, boyishly charming and good-looking. Now, she had a thing for vigorous older men, tough and self-assured. First Thomas Fireheart, or Puma if you preferred, and now Wolverine.
Which had been perfect in a way. She'd needed to get out of New York now that Fisk had muscled back into power and was looking to put her head on his wall and feed the rest of her to some dogs, so some time in the wilderness had seemed like a good idea, and the two of them had bonded.
Unfortunately, it seemed to have dragged her into more then she could handle this time. She looked up at Deathstroke as he got out of the jeep and casually walked her way. Deathstroke. Finest assassin in the world. Before going legitimate, or at least using her talents for good, Felicia had hung out with the worst crowd that would have her, then but she'd never met him before.
Slade's voice was not how Felicia imagined it at all. It wasn't gruff or harsh. It was calm, collected, and cool enough to make her feel chilled. "Wilson Fisk would pay me the entire contents of the First National Bank for your head. And twice that, if the rest of your body was attached." He looked at her thoughtfully. He had a deep, personal hatred for Nightwing developed over the years to something that gnawed at his heart like a cancer, and it would be tempting, so very tempting to use her against him. He considered mailing Titans Tower her fingers one at a time and watching him go crazy, then, with difficulty, dismissed it. He had other priorities for the moment. Fun for another day, right now he had more important things to do. "Run off then. Today, I have other concerns."
Felicia got to her feet, and flexed her fingers. "You think I'm going to let you just kill him?" She asked incredulously, bending her legs and getting ready to spring.
Slade looked at her thoughtfully a moment, then conceded her point with a nod. Then he shot her in the knee, or tried to. Thanks to the most unlikely of chance, the well oiled slide caught, and the gun jammed. Bad luck powers had never been so welcome. She tilted her head, let out a relieved sigh, and got ready to fight.
With a frustrated sound, he slung the weapon back into place, then cracked his knuckles. "Well, since it would be a shame to murder such a pretty girl -" There was a blur, and she slumped, Slade's hand pressed almost gently to the side of her neck "You should take a long sleep. Rest. Dream of better times."
Wade nudged the unconscious body with the toe of his boot, then nudged his brother with his elbow. "Dibs."
"Don't be disgusting."
"Disgusting? Oh. Ohhhh. No. Not like that. No, I wouldn't force her to do anything, or drug her, or pressure her or anything like that. What do you take me for? Some kind of savage? Shame on you." He shook his head, more vigorously then necessary. "Shame. No, I'd just keep her locked in my apartment, completely dependent on me for everything, and I'd be stern but fair, and over a few days she'd really get to know the real me. Then we'd talk a bit, and then we'd start to bond, and then she'd start to open up and even to smile, and then I'd start to confess things about myself I'd never told anyone else, and -"
"Stockholm Syndrome's not really any less distasteful."
Wade bristled. "Then why is Beauty and the Beast a kid's movie, and part of an even bigger cash-cow franchise then me?"
Slade shrugged. "Double standards about attractive women?"
"No, I think we're supposed to call that fanservice."
Slade sighed. "It's all irrelevant. We're leaving her."
"Right. Because leaving her skimpily dressed in the snow miles from shelter is far more humane then imprisonment in my apartment, and possibly marriage to the world's most eligible bachelor."
"She'll probably survive. Not my problem."
"And if she does, she'll get back to civilization and tell everyone it was us."
"I suppose so. But we'll be done by then, so who cares."
"And what happened to anonymity? You know, not getting caught? Not having guys who can bench-press planets and happen to like the guy we killed coming after us? We should kill her."
"Alright then. Do it."
Wade looked at her for a moment. He'd killed plenty of people, but there seemed something repellent about killing an unarmed, beautiful girl while she was unconscious. It wasn't as though she'd done anything wrong as such (to him, that is), and… "Well… when I say we, I mean you."
"I say keeping our names out of this stopped being useful, so might as well be discarded. Let her tell anyone she wants anything she likes." Slade replied. "We're about to go after the X-Men, brother. I can name at least three who can do things to the universe that it's not designed for with their brains. Time to stop worrying about it."
"You're loco, brother." Deadpool muttered.

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Wolverine awoke in pain. Searing pain, tearing pain. The kind of pain he'd suppressed when they'd bonded the metal to his skeleton, peeling back the flesh piece by piece to expose each bone. He felt like he had been torn apart, piece by piece, all over again. Which was essentially what had happened.
"So how do we keep him dead? Since it doesn't seem to matter how much of him we cut off or how much blood he loses, even if he can't heal?" Deadpool asked. "I mean, look at him. We've really worked him over, both lungs punctured, heart stabbed out, every artery he has opened, ten of those special bullets in his chest, and he still has vitals signs. I know I die if my head gets cut off, but all this should work on him."
He was in a dark place, that felt underground. His senses were too overwhelmed by pain to be much more useful then that.
"Suppose we'll just have to destroy all his soft-tissues." Deathstroke replied, sounding almost bored.
"What, like lower him into a pool full of acid and let him dissolve? Or a pool full of sharks with freaking lazer beams attached to their heads? Or maybe a pool of acid, with a shark that breathes acid in it…" He paused. "I don't think you have one of those, more's the pity. And pet shops refuse to sell sharks wholesale. Looks like we'll have to just let him go… Release him back into the wild, and help he can re-acclimatize to his new environment."
Slade made a sucking sound. "Or we could strap him to the business end of a cyclotron."
"Where the hell are we supposed to get one of them?" Deadpool asked. "You might as well suggest we…"
Slade shrugged. "The internet?"
Deadpool conceded that with a nod. "Alright then. Long as I can keep it for my headquarters." He been planning on forming his own group of costumed adventurers called 'The Deadpool Corps', and a cyclotron was just the thing for their ever-so-secret hide-out (soon as he found one). Maybe a Phantom Zone projector, and a portal to the Negative Zone. The mainstays. "And if that doesn't work?"
"Toss him into space. He'll drift around for a while, and eventually become the Skrulls problem or something."
"…Uhhhh," Wolverine forced out.
Deadpool made a sympathetic noise. "There's our little trooper. How's he doing? Wow. You're a mess. You want a band-aid or something?"
Slade took a comically over-sized syringe usually used for basing roasts, loaded it up with enough oxycontin and phencyclidine to sedate a herd of elephants. "Go back to sleep. And don't wake again, or I'll shoot you some more." He said, and jabbed it directly into his carotid artery.
The world went dark.

And that gets me period. You can post for me now.

[Draxx]

Excellent. Anybody wants to repost fiction, feel free.

[darkblade]

Come on guys this game is far too young to die.

[AnimeKid]

I think everyone is waiting on Draxx. Maybe some stuff turned up IRL?

[Draxx]

Sorry about the delays in posting. Though, for a change, it's good news that has distracted me.

[AnimeKid]

Ohh! You can't just say that and then leave us hanging. Do tell!

[Draxx]

One of my closer friends is getting married, and my cousin recovered from open-heart surgery without complications (an infection in the chamber she picked up in Thailand). There was also a birthday, but it didn't get much consideration between those two events. So I've been busy, with all the champagne and the rest.

Anyway, I'm not really a once a day poster at the best of times, so sorry to leave you all hanging. I'll try to come up with a regular schedule or whatever.

[industrious]

Congratulations, and I'm sorry for your cousin.

Also, happy birthday (belated), if it was yours.

[Draxx]

22's a bloody useless age, no point in celebrating it, though the sentiment is appreciated. And Eugenie is well on the road to recovery, two surgeries down and back in Australia. Travel Insurance has yet to find a reason not to pay (despite their very best efforts to do so), so apart from getting her to eat and regain some weight, (she's always been slight, but now it's bad) things are well in the clear. So nothing to worry about there.

[industrious]

Good to know, Draxx.

Anything for Arkane?

[darkblade]

Well now I feel bad for pressing you.

To make up for it here have a series of lectures by Brandon Sanderson on writing.

[Draxx]

Thank you.

[Colesign]

Hey guys!

Sorry about being absent and posting incrementally.

I think I want to take a break from the plot for the span of this game to recharge my roleplaying batteries, but I'm still enthused about hanging out and talking about stories, if that's cool with you all.

And say Indy: is that an Unknown Armies character you're playing?

[industrious]

It is indeed.

[Draxx]

Shame to have this game without you, Colesign, but you do what you need to do. Should you change your mind, feel free to step in.