Question 20

[The Young Pyromancer he/him]

Just finished Portland.  It was really good.

Oh and I used RNG to determine who to work for, and I got.....

Voidgaze!  Yay!

My character will probably not start with Voidgaze, but will end up with her unless Edgedancer decides otherwise.

Edited June 27, 2018 by The Young Pyromancer

[Ataraxian Wist she/her]

17 minutes ago, Drake Marshall said:

Hmmm I like the memory epic.

If they knew all of their powers, I'd say call them Lethe. This is another double meaning  Not only does the river Lethe erase memories, but it specifically takes memories from the spirits of the dead.

Also, a Reckoner's Cell in Edmonton sounds fun.

 

On another note, some minor epics:

Armory: Can summon any medieval weapon (or part of a weapon) that isn't too big/heavy to hold in his hands.

Fluke: Can attempt to use any epic power in existence, but doing so has a 50% chance of horribly backfiring and doing the exact opposite of what they wanted (for example, trying to heal themselves from an injury could result in the injury becoming twice as severe).

Mime: Has the ability to create an invisible forcefield of 3x3m in front of them by miming it out. Can only create one such barrier at a time.

Okay, Fluke is totally awesome. Mime reminds me of an idea I had for an Epic called Phantomime (pun off of Phantom, meaning unreal, and Pantomime, the competitive event name for mime acts) who could effectively create an imaginary anything but that can only be seen by and affect himself and within a certain range. Basically, he can't die of falling because he would either A) land in invisible water, B ) ride an invisible elevator down, or C) something else I can't think of right now.

[Voidus]

37 minutes ago, Drake Marshall said:

Hmmm I like the memory epic.

If they knew all of their powers, I'd say call them Lethe. This is another double meaning  Not only does the river Lethe erase memories, but it specifically takes memories from the spirits of the dead.

Also, a Reckoner's Cell in Edmonton sounds fun.

 

On another note, some minor epics:

Armory: Can summon any medieval weapon (or part of a weapon) that isn't too big/heavy to hold in his hands.

Fluke: Can attempt to use any epic power in existence, but doing so has a 50% chance of horribly backfiring and doing the exact opposite of what they wanted (for example, trying to heal themselves from an injury could result in the injury becoming twice as severe).

Mime: Has the ability to create an invisible forcefield of 3x3m in front of them by miming it out. Can only create one such barrier at a time.

I would generally suggest against randomness as a drawback in freeform RP because obviously we write it so it's not random at all. Theoretically in every single important moment of the RP you could have them do exactly what they want.
Plus even with that drawback that's not exactly what I'd call a minor Epic, that's borderline omnipotence just with a 50/50 success rate.

[Ataraxian Wist she/her]

Okay, some minor Epics I just thought of, though I'm not sure where to put them yet and am not partial to playing them.

Slagface: Can heat up all metal he sees, putting the most heat into the metal he focuses on. He cannot exclude any metal, and his name comes from his ability to melt metal into slag if it blocks his vision of other metal.

Pickpalm: Can unlock things by maintaining contact with them for certain amounts of time depending on the complexity of the lock. Can open time locks early.

Catalog: Summons books she knows the titles to, and can see and process the covers of all books within twenty feet.

Edited June 27, 2018 by Sazedezas
Accidentally posted too soon

[The Young Pyromancer he/him]

Voidus, as the master of minor Epics, what say you on my newest idea?

[DrakeMarshall he/him]

1 hour ago, Voidus said:

I would generally suggest against randomness as a drawback in freeform RP because obviously we write it so it's not random at all. Theoretically in every single important moment of the RP you could have them do exactly what they want.
Plus even with that drawback that's not exactly what I'd call a minor Epic, that's borderline omnipotence just with a 50/50 success rate.

If anything, I'd want Fluke's powers to fail at the most critical times, just for the laughs, but it's actually quite possible for it to be properly random, just by consulting random.org whenever Fluke tries to do anything.

As for omnipotence, I wouldn't really call it that because all epic powers seem to be limited in scale (except for the rumored ability to blow up the universe, anyways... that could be problematic). I would gladly pick a smaller subset of abilities than "all epic powers" though. I intend for them to be unreliably powerful, but not in ways that could be exploited, and usually pretty useless.

Edit: Lol what if they only got powers according to certain astrological events?

Edited June 28, 2018 by Drake Marshall

[Ataraxian Wist she/her]

More Minor Epics:

Boomerang: Perfect accuracy with boomerangs, which will always come back, even if they move.

Hit-n-run: Can survive all automotive crashes.

Moodring: Can detect and project the emotions of others as beacons of colored light above them.

Basket Case: Can weave intricate whicker baskets out of thin air.

Partycrasher: Can teleport to the nearest source of loud music.

[Bladestorm]

24 minutes ago, Sazedezas said:

More Minor Epics:

Boomerang: Perfect accuracy with boomerangs, which will always come back, even if they move.

Hit-n-run: Can survive all automotive crashes.

Moodring: Can detect and project the emotions of others as beacons of colored light above them.

Basket Case: Can weave intricate whicker baskets out of thin air.

Partycrasher: Can teleport to the nearest source of loud music.

Boomerang is like a direct upgrade on Longbow. I kinda want to write him as a minor a little ways into the story just for their interaction.

[DrakeMarshall he/him]

You know, armory's powers are a decent source of raw materials, and could be used to make some pretty cool looking buildings 

[Ataraxian Wist she/her]

27 minutes ago, Bladestorm said:

Boomerang is like a direct upgrade on Longbow. I kinda want to write him as a minor a little ways into the story just for their interaction.

Feel free.

[The Young Pyromancer he/him]

Portland was amazing.  I would pay money to see it continued.

[Arraenae]

4 hours ago, Drake Marshall said:

If anything, I'd want Fluke's powers to fail at the most critical times, just for the laughs, but it's actually quite possible for it to be properly random, just by consulting random.org whenever Fluke tries to do anything.

As for omnipotence, I wouldn't really call it that because all epic powers seem to be limited in scale (except for the rumored ability to blow up the universe, anyways... that could be problematic). I would gladly pick a smaller subset of abilities than "all epic powers" though. I intend for them to be unreliably powerful, but not in ways that could be exploited, and usually pretty useless.

Edit: Lol what if they only got powers according to certain astrological events?

Give them only access to Worm powers that they know about

It doesn't even have to be Worm, maybe only just powers associated with fictional superheroes.

[DrakeMarshall he/him]

11 minutes ago, Arraenae said:

Give them only access to Worm powers that they know about

But then they could access Shamrock's power and break the restrictions 

[The Young Pyromancer he/him]

Actually, I think I should add to the existing factions present at the city when the Oregoners arrive.  Sorry Edgedancer!

[Voidus]

7 hours ago, The Young Pyromancer said:

What do you guys think of a minor Epic who's only power is being absurdly attractive?  They would be really screwed if they ran across a Nighthound-esque Epic.

Minor Epics are fun.

Oh, and Edgedancer, 10/10 for Nighthound.  I don't know why everyone hates him.  He is beautifully written and is one of my favorite Epics.

Attractive is a subjective concept so sort of depends how you'd go about that. Is it an illusionary power? Or mentalism? Or shapechanging?

4 hours ago, Drake Marshall said:

If anything, I'd want Fluke's powers to fail at the most critical times, just for the laughs, but it's actually quite possible for it to be properly random, just by consulting random.org whenever Fluke tries to do anything.

As for omnipotence, I wouldn't really call it that because all epic powers seem to be limited in scale (except for the rumored ability to blow up the universe, anyways... that could be problematic). I would gladly pick a smaller subset of abilities than "all epic powers" though. I intend for them to be unreliably powerful, but not in ways that could be exploited, and usually pretty useless.

Edit: Lol what if they only got powers according to certain astrological events?

Dungeons and Dragons 5e has a really nice table of random magical effects that aren't too overpowered, something like that with defined limits is probably better than a generic 'something random' or 'some random Epic power' that has no clearly defined limits. (Google: 'Wild Magic table' if you were interested)

EDIT: Alternatively maybe they randomly emulate some display of Epic power that they have personally seen within the last 24 hours. Makes it limited by what they've seen but also has a random element to it. Or they can emulate an Epic power but only at a very weak level. So they can light a match but not incinerate a city like Obliteration.

[DrakeMarshall he/him]

1 minute ago, Voidus said:

Attractive is a subjective concept so sort of depends how you'd go about that. Is it an illusionary power? Or mentalism? Or shapechanging?

While I'm already referencing obscure parahumans from Worm: Oliver (Noelle's caretaker) had a power that made his appearance match his own perception of attractiveness.

5 minutes ago, Voidus said:

Dungeons and Dragons 5e has a really nice table of random magical effects that aren't too overpowered, something like that with defined limits is probably better than a generic 'something random' or 'some random Epic power' that has no clearly defined limits. (Google: 'Wild Magic table' if you were interested)

Hm, spell tables is a sensible idea for what sort of effects could be produced. I'm partial to the idea that Fluke's powers can do the opposite of what was intended, so how about the set of powers is the effects of any 1st level spell in Dungeons and Dragons? This covers a nice range of functionality without being particularly overpowered. Fluke doesn't even necessarily need to be aware of where the powerset comes from, although they would probably figure it out eventually.

So for example, Fluke could try to light an attacker on fire, but might accidentally light themself on fire instead.

They could try to summon an invisible servant to fetch something, but it's just as likely that the servant will ignore Fluke's orders and start playing practical jokes on them.

[Voidus]

4 hours ago, Drake Marshall said:

While I'm already referencing obscure parahumans from Worm: Oliver (Noelle's caretaker) had a power that made his appearance match his own perception of attractiveness.

Hm, spell tables is a sensible idea for what sort of effects could be produced. I'm partial to the idea that Fluke's powers can do the opposite of what was intended, so how about the set of powers is the effects of any 1st level spell in Dungeons and Dragons? This covers a nice range of functionality without being particularly overpowered. Fluke doesn't even necessarily need to be aware of where the powerset comes from, although they would probably figure it out eventually.

So for example, Fluke could try to light an attacker on fire, but might accidentally light themself on fire instead.

They could try to summon an invisible servant to fetch something, but it's just as likely that the servant will ignore Fluke's orders and start playing practical jokes on them.

Works for me
I like the random backfiring part, it's just better to have at least some limits on the scope I think so that it doesn't feel as much like a Deus Ex Machina if he uses some new power that gets him out of a bind.

[Edgedancer he/him]

13 hours ago, Comatose said:

The Reckoners could be NPCs, and anyone who wants to play one could do so and check in.  They’d likely be aligned with the vanillas but would probably keep to the shadows.

I’m thinking of bringing my unused Lorist Ian Buhler over so maybe he can connect with them.  

Reckoners are always a good addition. Though, seeing how their involvement in the other locations went, we should probably have an actual plan for their involvement.

13 hours ago, The Young Pyromancer said:

What do you guys think of a minor Epic who's only power is being absurdly attractive?  They would be really screwed if they ran across a Nighthound-esque Epic.

Minor Epics are fun.

Oh, and Edgedancer, 10/10 for Nighthound.  I don't know why everyone hates him.  He is beautifully written and is one of my favorite Epics.

Thanks. People always loved to hate him.

Edit: Oh and you might want to check out the first half if the last Artoria post.

6 hours ago, The Young Pyromancer said:

Actually, I think I should add to the existing factions present at the city when the Oregoners arrive.  Sorry Edgedancer!

So no joining Voidgaze?

Edited June 28, 2018 by Edgedancer

[Bladestorm]

Has anyone claimed the vanilla faction yet? If not, we could have the reckoners mission be to start a revolution. 

[MacThorstenson he/him]

51 minutes ago, Bladestorm said:

Has anyone claimed the vanilla faction yet? If not, we could have the reckoners mission be to start a revolution. 

I think that we have to be careful though. The reckoners didn't do big stuff like that. They tended to lay low, kill a few Epics.Then move on. Davids cell was the only ambitious one.

In fact, correct me if I'm wrong, reckoners only targeted epics with PI's.

[Comatose he/him]

1 hour ago, Bladestorm said:

Has anyone claimed the vanilla faction yet? If not, we could have the reckoners mission be to start a revolution. 

 

22 minutes ago, MacThorstenson said:

I think that we have to be careful though. The reckoners didn't do big stuff like that. They tended to lay low, kill a few Epics.Then move on. Davids cell was the only ambitious one.

In fact, correct me if I'm wrong, reckoners only targeted epics with PI's.

Also if we have a vanilla faction that is in charge of its area, it would be less of a rebellion and more of a campaign against other factions.  

I kind of like the idea of the vanilla faction and the Reckoners being cross purposes, just to make things interesting.   Maybe the vanillas are seeking diplomacy with their epic neighbours and the Reckoners are causing trouble?

For PI targeting, the Reckoners always targeting epics with PIs is what helped David guess they were tracking Fortuity.

Since I want to being Taylor Swift in, what if the Reckoners are tracking/hunting her?

We could also have the Reckoners responding to steelhearts death and becoming more bold, possibly leading to friction with the Alberta Government.  

[Voidus]

4 minutes ago, Comatose said:

 

Also if we have a vanilla faction that is in charge of its area, it would be less of a rebellion and more of a campaign against other factions.  

I kind of like the idea of the vanilla faction and the Reckoners being cross purposes, just to make things interesting.   Maybe the vanillas are seeking diplomacy with their epic neighbours and the Reckoners are causing trouble?

For PI targeting, the Reckoners always targeting epics with PIs is what helped David guess they were tracking Fortuity.

Since I want to being Taylor Swift in, what if the Reckoners are tracking/hunting her?

We could also have the Reckoners responding to steelhearts death and becoming more bold, possibly leading to friction with the Alberta Government.  

The Reckoners do seem like the most likely faction to radically change their behaviour based on Steelhearts death and would have the most information about the event and what it means.
Or it could be a cell tracking the Oregonian refugees to prevent the massive destruction that happened in Oregon from repeating itself.

[The Young Pyromancer he/him]

They might join Voidgaze, but not necessarily.  Also, I think we should go back to the crisis meeting idea.  Here's a summary of the factions except the orbit and the vanillas, because I don't know if they control a sector or not.

Factions:

Sector controllers:

1: Epoch.  A time manipulation Epic responsible for the borders.  He charges a toll to pass through. Though he is not strong at combat, the other sectors tollerate him because of the convenience of his powers and the fact that he could wreak havok on the system they have set up.  His faction has more authority outside of its territory than the other factions. Public Visibility: 10

2: Unknown    Public Visibility:   10

3: Unknown     Public Visibility:   10

4: Unknown     Public Visibility:   10

5: Phyotomagnet.  A plant manipulation Epic responsible for supplying food.  The other sectors would not be able to support themselves for long if Phyotomagnet withdrew his support.  Parts of this sector are under a moderate time-boost. Public Visibility: 10

Minor groups:

The MEC (minor Epic coalition) is a group of less powerful Epics united under one banner.  Following the footsteps of their Oregonian brethren (the MEE/Minor Epic Empire), these demi-humans seek to make the public respect all superhumans, high Epic or not, at any cost.   Public Visibility: 6

A Reckoners squad has been sighted in the area!  What could they want? Besides dead Epics… Public Visibility:   1

A High Epic, Voidgaze, and a support unit recently entered the city.  She is rumored to have been in Oregon when the “great disaster” happened.   Public Visibility: 5

Nicroburst, an Enhancer Epic with a twist, is currently holing out in east Edmonton.  His location is wanted by multiple parties, but they are moving discreetly. Public Visibility:   3

Armageddon, an Epic who is convinced that the world must be destroyed, arrived about the same time as Voidgaze.  He has already converted a large group of people to his cause, though fortunately no Epics yet. Public Visibility:   8

Edited June 28, 2018 by The Young Pyromancer
Clarity

[Comatose he/him]

I like that breakdown Young Pyromancer!

I was thinking the Vanillas could control a sector (maybe Sherwood Park if its not taken, so they can be kind of 'ruling in exile' or one of the suburbs).  

I think it would be good to start placing some of these factions as well.  Depending on his range, Epoch likely needs to be somewhat central.  If the players in charge want to start picking spots on the map.  Orbit wanted the WDM, right?  And Phyto needed somewhere on the edge (or perhaps a large park) to use his powers to grow food (lots of agricultural land around Edmonton, so that wouldn't be difficult).  Maybe the vanilla faction and Phyto have an agreement/treaty whereby some of them work on his farms to supplement the vanillas that Phyto commands?  

Then one thing not on the list is, if we are going with it, the territory of a recently deceased high epic?  @Edgedancer had mentioned that concept initially I think and I still like it.  Maybe, emboldened by Steelheart's death, the Reckoners brought this High Epic (who perhaps led a faction and was in the process of expanding), bringing one faction into chaos, and giving the others an opportunity to expand?  

Most of my characters will be arriving incognito I think, but I would like to add Taylor Swift to the list (I know I haven't added her to the main sheet yet, but I will).  I'm thinking that sometime before the Dalles was destroyed, Reader discovered her weakness, and the Reckoners got their hands on it somehow, forcing her to go more underground.  A Reckoners squad has since been hunting her, and she's been fleeing, while waiting for an opportunity to get the jump on them and kill them (maybe she was headed to Edmonton because she heard about the Dream Storm, and thought to use it as a back up to get rid of the threat?

1 hour ago, Voidus said:

The Reckoners do seem like the most likely faction to radically change their behaviour based on Steelhearts death and would have the most information about the event and what it means.
Or it could be a cell tracking the Oregonian refugees to prevent the massive destruction that happened in Oregon from repeating itself.

Building on that, and my idea for Taylor Swift's intro, I really like the idea of a squad keeping careful track of the Oregonians and attempting to prevent the Oregon situation from happening again.  

EDIT:  Just saw Phyto's location is on his epic profile.  I'll look more closely at some of those since I may have missed actual locations.

[Edgedancer he/him]

1 hour ago, Comatose said:

I like that breakdown Young Pyromancer!

I was thinking the Vanillas could control a sector (maybe Sherwood Park if its not taken, so they can be kind of 'ruling in exile' or one of the suburbs).  

I think it would be good to start placing some of these factions as well.  Depending on his range, Epoch likely needs to be somewhat central.  If the players in charge want to start picking spots on the map.  Orbit wanted the WDM, right?  And Phyto needed somewhere on the edge (or perhaps a large park) to use his powers to grow food (lots of agricultural land around Edmonton, so that wouldn't be difficult).  Maybe the vanilla faction and Phyto have an agreement/treaty whereby some of them work on his farms to supplement the vanillas that Phyto commands?  

Then one thing not on the list is, if we are going with it, the territory of a recently deceased high epic?  @Edgedancer had mentioned that concept initially I think and I still like it.  Maybe, emboldened by Steelheart's death, the Reckoners brought this High Epic (who perhaps led a faction and was in the process of expanding), bringing one faction into chaos, and giving the others an opportunity to expand?  

Most of my characters will be arriving incognito I think, but I would like to add Taylor Swift to the list (I know I haven't added her to the main sheet yet, but I will).  I'm thinking that sometime before the Dalles was destroyed, Reader discovered her weakness, and the Reckoners got their hands on it somehow, forcing her to go more underground.  A Reckoners squad has since been hunting her, and she's been fleeing, while waiting for an opportunity to get the jump on them and kill them (maybe she was headed to Edmonton because she heard about the Dream Storm, and thought to use it as a back up to get rid of the threat?

Building on that, and my idea for Taylor Swift's intro, I really like the idea of a squad keeping careful track of the Oregonians and attempting to prevent the Oregon situation from happening again.  

EDIT:  Just saw Phyto's location is on his epic profile.  I'll look more closely at some of those since I may have missed actual locations.

I do like working in the Reckoners with my original idea, but I'm not sure if making a new faction for it would be worth it. What we could do is say that the Epoch and Orbit used to work for the same High Epic in charge, who got reckonered. So now they have a succession war on who gets to call the shots. Which might also explain why they haven't reached some kind of equibilirium by now.