As it stands I'm probably going to hold off from applying until Season 2, despite the fact that I have two sheets ready to submit. While this decision kind of bums me out (as I'd really like to get started already) it does provide me with helluva lot of extra time to flesh things out, which is a major plus. I'll keep an eye on this thread regardless, but yeah -- just don't expect a sheet from me until after S2 comes around.
I'm only getting my second PC approved so that way others can see it. And if they have ideas, their PC might encounter him, or want to flesh out an connection with him than we can work toward that in the time between S1 and S2. This makes it ready for S2 so we have less work in the future when we actually get into it and the details can be fleshed out too. After all, it's no fun playing by yourself in a big o'world like this one. XD
I'm only getting my second PC approved so that way others can see it. And if they have ideas, their PC might encounter him, or want to flesh out an connection with him than we can work toward that in the time between S1 and S2. This makes it ready for S2 so we have less work in the future when we actually get into it and the details can be fleshed out too. After all, it's no fun playing by yourself in a big o'world like this one. XD
In that case I might put my chars up here, assuming it's cool to refrain from posting until Season 2 arrives. Either way, I'm definitely applying -- so you guys don't have to worry about losing a potential player, lol.
<Snipped quote by Fallenreaper> In that case I might put my chars up here, assuming it's cool to refrain from posting until Season 2 arrives. Either way, I'm definitely applying -- so you guys don't have to worry about losing a potential player, lol.
Personally, I don't see anything wrong with it because of a few reasons:
1. You can get your PC all worked out and approved for S2 while you're waiting. 2. You can see the others and what they have, where they are located, and possibly come up with connections before the official start. Even ideas of how to get them connected like small arc stories or how they would cross paths, etc. 3. It gives the GMs a place to see who's the latest additions without having to find them in the OOC mountain of information.
However, that final decision is up to the GMs really. I'm just stating the reasons that I think it would be a positive thing. XD
<Snipped quote by Fallenreaper> In that case I might put my chars up here, assuming it's cool to refrain from posting until Season 2 arrives. Either way, I'm definitely applying -- so you guys don't have to worry about losing a potential player, lol.
<Snipped quote by GreenGrenade>
Personally, I don't see anything wrong with it because of a few reasons:
1. You can get your PC all worked out and approved for S2 while you're waiting. 2. You can see the others and what they have, where they are located, and possibly come up with connections before the official start. 3. It gives the GMs a place to see who's the latest additions without having to find them in the OOC mountain of information.
However, that final decision is up to the GMs really. I'm just stating the reasons that I think it would be a positive thing. XD
I don't see anything wrong with it.
Give me a little while to make my character. Also, how long do my posts need to be? About a paragraph long or such?
The ideal answer to this question would be however long or short it needs to be to get the information across. What good are a bunch of paragraphs if they are just fluff? So there isn't really a limit, but with that said, I think it would be difficult to tell these stories with only a single paragraph.
Give me a little while to make my character. Also, how long do my posts need to be? About a paragraph long or such?
How long's a piece of string?
Pretty much dependson the context.
For example, my character is in a room with a bunch of other PCs in a meeting. In this case and context I could probably spit out 2 or 3 lines responding to questions and it would be alright.
...but then stand-alone posts should be considerably longer.
Might be worth discussing S.T.R.I.K.E further with @Dedonus and @Nitemare Shape to see how well that fits your needs.
...or he could be some grunt and fell to Earth and is now trying to find his place.
...or you could round out the virtually untouched cosmic sphere of the game (which at this point might be a little lonely... but then people creating something in that space often encourages others to take note and join in).
I've got a thing in space, and actually a few players have written out some of their cosmic backstories with my being in mind.
As have I (and... there may possibly be future GM developments down the line from that sphere...). But compared with Earth/Lost Haven it's a lot less cluttered.
Space is a pretty big place.
Postscript: Don't worry, we haven't forgotten about Umbraxis, mate.
@Dedonus I would like to know about the military technologies available to S.T.R.I.K.E and if it would be feasible for them make something like that
While @nitemare shape would be able to shead more light on the inner workings of S.T.R.I.K.E. (which is comparable to S.H.I.E.L.D. in Marvel comics and whatever is the equivalent is in DC comics), we have a character (played by me) who has a power-suit that is technologically similar to what Iron Man has in the Marvel Universe. So they could have the technology for "bio-augmented super-solider". Nothing at the level of the 41st century, but still could be advanced in comparison to modern day technology.
NMS told me once that "S.T.R.I.K.E. is so large that you really can't screw it up". So there is still some leeway available here.
So I figured I'd get this up for review so I can see what's good and what needs editing in anticipation for Season 2. In rereading the second character's sheet, he still needs some work, but having this guy up should do for now. I present to you:
| CHARACTER: |
Gareth Corrigan
| ALIAS: |
Mindjack
| SPEECH COLOUR: |
LightSteelBlue
| CHARACTER ALIGNMENT: |
Hero
| IDENTITY: |
Secret
| CHARACTER PERSONALITY: |
From childhood it was clear that Gareth isn’t one to be called “sensitive”. His demeanour is such that his calm, quiet nature is often mistaken as cold and detached, alienating much of his peers throughout his earlier years. His tendency to keep to himself earned him the reputation of being a “brooding hunk of hotness”, as coined by his late wife, Leah, in the years before their marriage. His feelings and state of mind aren’t often a topic of conversation, the only people with whom he is comfortable discussing such things being his brother and his wife, the latter of which’s passing saw Gar close himself off even more than usual.
Despite his apparent coldness, there’s a warmth in him that pulls him towards helping others, and a thirst for justice that, coupled with his wife’s death, drove him to adopting the alias of Mindjack. The former trait sees an urge to help develop within him whenever seeing someone in need – be it a hitchhiker needing a lift, or a family stuck in a burning building – he will help them. Unlike most heroes, this isn’t because he feels a responsibility to help people – not entirely, anyway. Despite his knack for avoiding people he doesn’t know, Gareth can’t help but like his fellow human being. Even after witnessing the corruption in the Grant City Police Department, after taking the blame for Leah’s death, and after all the things he’s seen during his time as Mindjack, he still believes that people are inherently good – the sole exception being William Zerilli, boss of the Zerilli Syndicate.
| UNIFORM/COSTUME: |
His Mindjack attire consists of black army pants, combat boots, a black Kevlar undershirt and jacket, and a ski mask to conceal his face.
| ORIGIN: |
Gareth Corrigan was born a child of Grant City. Growing up in the upper-middle class, he was fortunate enough to be removed from the rampant crime that plagued the city, his father never wanting him or his brother, Leon, to go near the kind of people that turned their mother into a junkie.
From an early age Gareth’s father enrolled both him and Leo in self defence classes. Gar learned boxing, Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, Krav Maga and Taekwondo all alongside his brother, albeit more intensively than Leo, who only did it to earn the approval of their dad. Gareth, enjoying the challenges they provided, continued to practice them all through his school years, carrying his skills over into adulthood.
At school, he didn’t have many friends. Many students saw his calm, quiet, almost reserved demeanour as disquieting, and many avoided him. When he moved into high school, he was no longer the “quiet weirdo”, but the “hot brooding guy”, a term he never quite understood why it was applied to him. As such he avoided, and on some occasions outright denied the advances of some girls, believing them to be attracted to who they wanted him to be, and not who he really was.
His power began to manifest at around that time. After a fearful incident involving another student, Gar began training himself to control his newfound ability, testing its limits on unsuspecting passers-by. He didn’t do this without remorse, however, often leaving his blacked-out test subjects with a five dollar tip and a note saying “Sorry”. Thus began the urban legend of the Mindjacker, going on to reach Bogeyman status among the people of Grant City.
After high school, Gareth quickly began his college education, intent on applying for work at the Grant City Police Department. It was there that he met the first person to truly understand him – the love of his life, Leah Lovell. It didn’t take long for them to move in together, and by the time Gareth was officially inducted into the GCPD, they were living happily as newlyweds.
Four years into his career as a police officer, Gar became eligible for detective work. At age twenty-five, he was officially made a part of the GCPD’s detective squad. Over the next three years, it became abundantly clear that he was one of the department’s best, earning the enmity of his fellow detectives.
He had many horrifying cases during his career, but none ever came close to those he encountered involving the Zerilli Crime Family. One of the four pieces of Grant City’s ruling criminal organisation, the Syndicate, the Zerilli Crime Family was ruthless. The bodies of those who dared disrespect them were found every other week, be it a business owner who failed to pay protection money on time, or a cop that refused to be on their payroll. Despite Gar’s burning desire to go after them, his superiors adamantly refused to let him; he would not build a case against the Syndicate, and better yet, he’d let them put him on their payroll, in order to protect both himself and his family. Gar’s frustration at the Zerillis saw him considering going outside the law to fight them with his powers, but after discussing it with Leo and Leah, he decided against it. It was sorrow and loss that drove him to vigilantism.
Leah died in a car crash at the age of twenty-eight. Driving on the freeway, she noticed too late that a truck on the opposing lane had veered into her own, crashing into her car at ninety miles per hour. She died on impact.
Gareth wasn’t a grieving kind of guy. Yes, the loss knocked air out of his lungs, and yes, he felt like a piece of himself was now gone, but Leah’s death never crippled him – no matter how much he wanted it to. He attended the funeral out of love and respect for his wife, enduring her mother’s accusations, as she had never liked Gar to begin with, and when she was put in the ground he paid his respects and left the graveyard and Leah’s family, left his job and sold his home, seeking any change that might distract him.
He found that change in Mindjack.
| HERO TYPE: |
Psychic
| POWER LEVEL: |
Street Level
| POWERS: |
A form of mind control, you shouldn't be fooled – this is not mind control in the traditional sense. Gareth isn’t a mind controller so much as a mind invader, meaning that he can transfer his consciousness into another person’s mind, effectively pushing theirs to the background – mindjacking. While in somebody else’s mind, Gar can see everything – their thoughts, their memories, their secrets – and control them as the dominant consciousness. He sees everything through their eyes, and every movement is translated through their body, as Gar’s remains immobile, mindless. After exiting a host, they black out as their mind “resets”.
However, this isn’t without its limitations. Gar can only enter the minds of those that are within a 33ft radius (10 metres). Anyone who’s beyond that point is too far away, “inaccessible” to Gareth’s mind. When inside a host, Gar can only remain there for a limited amount of time, the longest he’s ever done being three minutes. Any longer runs the risk of “fading him out”, as the host body’s consciousness fights to regain control. Staying in a host for prolonged periods of time also takes a toll on Gar’s body; for reasons he cannot determine, the longer he’s in a host, the more strain is put on it, the side effects upon returning ranging from headaches, nosebleeds and blacking out entirely. In addition, controlling other superhumans is significantly harder than controlling regular humans, and drains Gar much more than usual. It’s probably needless to say that when in a host, Gareth’s physical ability is limited to that of the host’s; as such it would be much harder for him to run as a 250lbs couch potato as opposed to a fit Olympic athlete.
Furthermore, other psychics seem to negate Gar’s ability entirely; he couldn’t take control of them no matter how hard he tried. Also, a correctly-powered individual (e.g. a telepath) could, depending on skill level, “intercept” Gareth’s consciousness as he makes the jump from his body to another, or vice versa, effectively killing him as his mind and body deteriorate in a limbo. One cannot survive without the other.
| SKILLS: |
Martial Arts | Gareth is rather proficient fighter, a necessary skill for his line of work. Knowledgeable in Taekwondo, Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, Krav Maga and boxing, Gar is quite capable of holding his own in a fight.
Firearms | A former cop, Gareth has come to be skilled with firearms, primarily handguns, which he’s come to favour, but also widened his range to carbines, shotguns and even sniper rifles when taking on, and controlling, Bill Zerilli’s men.
Deduction | Previously a detective in the Grant City Police Department, detective work comes easy for Gar. Where others see a mess of unrelated objects, he sees evidence; a useful skill when taking on the Zerilli Crime Family.
Interrogation | A skilled interrogator, Gareth knows just how to extract information from suspects – without torture. Using skills learned during his time as a police detective, his interrogative techniques have come in more than handy during his nighttime hobby.
| ATTRIBUTES: |
Strength Level | Normal Human Speed/Reaction Timing Level | Normal Human Endurance at MAXIMUM Effort | Normal Human Agility | Normal Human Intelligence | Above Average (but not a genius) Fighting Skill | Trained
| RESOURCES: |
Average
| WEAKNESSES: |
Despite his power, Gareth is still only human. As a result, it wouldn’t take much to severely injure or kill him; he faces death every time he takes on a mobster, let alone another superpowered individual.
| SUPPORTING CHARACTERS: | More to be added soon.
ALLIES, FRIENDS AND FAMILY:
Leon Corrigan | Gareth’s little brother, Leo is only a few years out of high school. A genius in his own right, he’s managed to land a job at Altman Laboratories, working in the tech department under the watch of the workplace’s titular owner, Scott Altman. Diagnosed with both clinical depression and social anxiety disorder, Leo has a hard time connecting with people – just like his brother. Regardless, they’re both very close… or as close as two can be with their mentalities.
Rick Maynard | Gareth’s former partner in the GCPD, and perhaps the only clean cop left there. Gar’s closest (and only) friend, Rick remains intent on standing on the right side of the law, unwilling to accept the Syndicate’s blood money – and frowning upon vigilantism.
William “Bloody Bill” Zerilli | The son of Antonio Zerilli, founder of the Zerilli Crime Family, Bill took over as head of the organisation following his father’s death. A ruthless, violent man, he is feared by all throughout the four ruling families of Grant City – perhaps the only man not intimidated by him being Francis Lothry, head of the Irish mob, and the most powerful man in the Syndicate.
| SAMPLE POST: |
Cajun Quarter, Pointe Bordeaux
March 18, 2016
Gareth ate his breakfast at a small restaurant, Serenade, in the Cajun Quarter, a family-owned eatery serving “the best pancakes in town”, as proclaimed by the sign resting just outside its doors. He’d come across it during his first week in Pointe Bordeaux, reading the large, chalky letters with a level of scepticism that prompted him to see if they told the truth, if not because he was curious then because he was starting to feel hungry. He’d entered the restaurant, dressed in jeans and a grey shirt, and was soon attended to by a plain young woman, no older than twenty, who placed him at a table near the restrooms, meekly apologising as she explained that the rest of the free tables were reserved.
Gareth smiled at her. “That’s okay,” he said, before pretending to browse the menu. “Is it okay if I order now?”
“Of course,” the waitress said, a little less meek now, a pinkish red colouring her cheeks. Gareth’s smile widened a fraction in thanks, and her cheeks deepened to crimson. He ordered their signature buttermilk and ricotta pancakes, along with poached eggs and avocado on toast in case he was still hungry afterwards. The waitress, whose nametag read Delphine, departed with the menu to deliver his order.
He waited for his food, sipping on a cup of cold water she’d poured for him as he pretended to mull over his options, and ten minutes later she returned with two steaming plates of cuisine that looked like they belonged in a fine dining restaurant in the Carib Gardens, not here, in what was supposed to be a simple eatery run by a local Italian family.
Gareth thanked Delphine, then dug in. He was pleasantly surprised to find out that not only were the pancakes the best he’d ever eaten, but that the poached eggs and avocado on toast were to die for. He concluded that the food they served here was magic on a plate, and he made sure to let Delphine know as he paid the check in cash. Her cheeks went red again as she giggled, and she shyly told him that she hoped to see him here again.
And so here he was, three weeks into his stay at Pointe Bordeaux, eating his now regular meal of pancakes, poached eggs and avocado on toast as he watched slivers of rain drizzle on the street outside. Delphine came to his table to check that everything was okay, and they engaged in their routine small talk. Over time Gareth had gotten to know her, and as she revealed small things about herself he came to the conclusion that he liked her. A hyperhuman sympathiser living amongst a family of racist, conservative Italians, Delphine longed for the day that she could cut ties from them and their restaurant, trying her luck as a journalist in the big city. But for now, she explained, she was stuck here, in a generally unbearable job; unbearable, that is, until Gareth came along. She told him that the highlight of her day was when he came to eat his breakfast, when she could talk to a polite customer with an open mind, and, for the brief hour he was there, escape from the chaos that was her family.
But a few days earlier she’d expressed just how appreciative she was of him as she served his food. Swallowing past a lump in her throat, she asked him if he was free that night, and if he maybe wanted to go out for dinner with her, if, you know, he wanted.
For seconds he just stared at her, unsure if she was being serious, before looking down at his plate and saying, “I’m married.”
In that moment Delphine went redder than she ever had in his presence, apologised, and scurried away behind the counter, busily attending to the coffee machine although she’d already cleaned it but a few minutes earlier.
But that was Tuesday, and when Wednesday came Gareth made sure that she knew that there was no harm done.
It was now Friday. Gareth chewed slowly on his slice of pancake, savouring its maple syrup-covered sweetness for as long as possible. As she refilled his water, Delphine talked of the weather, and of the rally that was taking place at city hall.
“Are you going to go?” she asked, resting the jug of water back on his table.
It took a moment for him to answer. His mind was preoccupied. Ever since he entered Serenade this morning, he couldn’t help but feel that his doing so was the last time. He didn’t know what it was, but the more he thought about it, the more certain he became… but why? Why would today be the last day he spends eating here? Why would it be the last time he gets to speak with Delphine? He kept at asking himself these questions, shouting into the void, not expecting an answer – but eventually, he gave himself one.
He’d come to Pointe Bordeaux for one reason: to join a hyperhuman convoy in the hope of evading law enforcement for long enough to find a safe haven where he didn’t have to run from his past as Mindjack… or go back to it. He knew from the start that the longer he stayed, the more he risked getting caught. And now he was being given the chance to leave, the chance to search for a new home, where he wouldn’t getting prosecuted for being what he is, for trying to use his power to help people.
A convoy was in the city. He was sure of it. All he had to do was find it.
“No,” he answered, coming out of his trance, “No, I have somewhere else to be.”
When he finished his food, he paid the check and tipped Delphine. He was headed for his hotel, where he’d pack all his things and check out before starting his search.
As he handed his money to Delphine, he told her goodbye, and that she should take care of herself, knowing that she was unaware of the finality of his words.
With that he exited the restaurant, the lingering taste of maple and avocado the only relic of his time there, knowing that it, too, would soon be gone.
