[OOC] Absolute Comics - Season Two: The Monster Within

[Bounce]

The gallant figure of the former circus acrobat smoothed the front of his tuxedo, as he crossed from the left side of the stage toward the center dias. The small doll joined him from the right. Holding out the first of several envelopes, the dark haired android introduced the first category.

"For the category of best character concept..."

The doll paused there, distracted by what seemed an awful lot of preening going on beside him. "It your tie on too tight?"

Making a show of adjusting a tie that needed no adjustment, Dick played it off cool as he casually answered, "No, I'm just preparing to accept my award."

"The category is ‘best character concept’ not most recycled 1940s cliche," the doll noted flatly.

Reaching down, Dick snatched the envelope from out of the doll’s hands. Peeling open the contents, the man perused the small square of paper inside as he read, "For the category of best character concept, the nominees are: Shazam by @ErsatzEmperor, Baal by @Stein, Guardians of the Galaxy by @HenryJonesJr, and Mon-El by @Ceta de Cloyes."

Pausing there, Dick seemed to scan back through the list. "Well, there's no accounting for taste..." the man noted finally.

Reaching up, the doll snatched the envelope back. "And the winner for best character concept is... Guardians of the Galaxy by @HenryJonesJr!"

Dick patiently went through the motions of the polite golf clap, as he waited for the applause to quiet and could continue on with the script for this evening. “Moving on to the category for best character development...” the man began, pausing as he looked down to see what appeared to be Toyboy trying to pass him a pack of Post-It notes. “Why are you passing me a bunch of yellow stickies?”

“You should take notes,” the doll stated evenly, his timing impeccable as he added, “You need all the development that you can get.”

Planting a hand on top of Toyboy’s head, Dick forcibly shoved the doll away as he held out the card and read, “The nominees for best character development are: Wonder Woman by @Star Lord, Supergirl by @Inkarnate, Flash by @Hillan, and Spider-Man by @DocTachyon.”

Sliding back across the stage, the Toyboy gave a flourish as he merrily proclaimed, “And the winner for best character development is... Flash by @Hillan!”

A light murmur of childish laughter accentuated the light patter of applause, as the android resumed it’s place at Dick’s side. Head bopping from side to side, as though dancing to a rhythm only the Toyboy could hear, the child-like doll continued, “The nominees for best season are: Captain America by @webboysurf, Guardians of the Galaxy by @HenryJonesJr, Blue Beetle by @Hound55, and Mon-El by @Ceta de Cloyes.”

Reaching down, Dick casually plucked the card from the boy’s hand as he read, “And the winner for best season is... Mon-El by @Ceta de Cloyes.”

With regard to the cheap, made in China, Oscar replica trophy, Toyboy noted, “Wait, this isn’t made of lead is it?”

The detective merely gave shrug. “If it is, we can just stick him in the Phantom Zone until another writer comes along with a reason to reference Mon-El again,” Dick commented dryly. “It’ll be fine.” Probably. Maybe.

Definitely maybe.

Running a hand through his graying hair, Dick drew the next envelope as he said, “The nominees for the category of best story arc are: Captain America by @webboysurf, Supergirl by @Inkarnate, Batman by @Lord Wraith, and Wonder Woman by @Star Lord.”

Reaching up, the doll pulled the card from out of Dick hand’s as he read, “And the winner for best story arc is... Supergirl by @Inkarnate!”

Cycling to the next envelope, the doll continued on as he read, “The nominees for best supporting cast in an RPG are: Guardians of the Galaxy by @HenryJonesJr, Teen Titans by @Retired, Captain America by @webboysurf, and X-Men by @ComradeMaxx.”

Snatching up the card, Dick read, “And the winner for best supporting cast in an RPG is: Captain America by @webboysurf!”

[webboysurf]

Some more Compendium information. Some Queen Enterprises stuff should be coming later, which will probably be fairly boiled down.

More DC locations

Organizations

SHIELD

_{Founded in 1954 following complications that arose involving the Cold War and the starting of a superhuman arms race. The Strategic Hazard Intervention Espionage Logistics Directorate is an international military and espionage organization reporting to the Shadow Council consisting of advisors from the five permanent members of the UN Security Council. It’s current director is Jeffrey Mace, though other notable agents include Colonel Nicholas Joseph Fury and Agent Phil Coulson. It’s headquarters are the Triskellion.}

HYDRA

_{Founded in 1937 by Johann Schmidt (more commonly known as the Red Skull) as a German science society. It didn’t take long for the organization to become the official science division of the Nazi party. The organization was opposed by the Howling Commandos through World War II, until all of HYDRA’s leaders were either killed or disappeared. HYDRA re-emerged recently when they destroyed the UNN Aeneid over Rome.}

[Ceta de Cloyes]

Jump City

^{-
Resident Players: @Ceta de Cloyes, N/A
-}

LOCATIONS:

_{JUMP CITY IN REVIEW:}

Jump City is on the knife's edge, straddling the line between fortune and failure. The up and coming tech companies of upscale Lightwood are sure to see the city into a new age of tomorrow, but their rapid monopolization of the city's resources and great increase in robotic manufacturing wraps a noose around the working class, stretching the wealth gap with each new quarter, and twisting the promise of a brighter tomorrow into a hollow dream. The lauded technocrats, incredibly intelligent programmers, engineers, and designers, are drawn in by generous paychecks, and trapped into contracts that bind them ever closer to their wealthy employers. Local government and law enforcement are beginning to wane under the weight of bribed bureaucrats, and criminals are lured in with shiny gadgets for the low low price of using them to sabotage their competitors. Behind every nook and cranny lies a pair of eyes, alien and meta alike, wondering when it will finally be time to step into the light, and when they do, whether it will be into welcoming arms or the crack of gunfire.

_LIGHTWOOD:

Gloria's Temple - Belongs to Gloria Baaldur / Ceta
Ollive Technologies Building - Belongs to Ollive de Vil / Ceta

_DOWNTOWN:

#12 Xander Appartments - Belongs to Jazmin Cullen / Ceta
Amnesia Barshop and Hostel - Belongs to The Teen Legion / Ceta
Jump City Police Department - Belongs to The JCPD / Ceta

_{WEST BAY:}

Bay Bridge - Belongs to Jump City
Crash Alley Corner Store - Belongs to The Taurus Gang / Ceta
Downfield's Abandoned Water Park - Belongs to The Taurus Gang / Ceta

IMPORTANT PERSONS:

_CIVILIANS:

Cullen Family - Belongs to Jazmin Cullen / Ceta
Misc. Alien Bar Patrons - Belongs to Jump City / Ceta

_CRIMELORDS:

Black Mace - Belongs to The Taurus Gang / Ceta

_OFFICIALS:

Police Captain Siobhan Erin - Belongs to Jump City / Ceta

_ROGUES:

Lazon - Belongs to Lazon / Ceta

^-

[Retired]

Hopefully, my exhausted brain didn't fuck up this new post too much.

[Dblade26]

Okay so because you seemed eager for it@Retired I wrote up some thoughts on your posts thus far. Like you've been saying to others this isn't a judgement on you as a person and this is purely based on my reactions and thoughts on your writing. It's also always easier to give advice than live advice.

So yeah. Feel free to take or leave my comments and suggestions.

Prologue

Prologue

No major grammatical errors, certainly nothing inexcusable. But to me your post feels extremely labored and clunky if I'm being honest. Your word choice seems very polished and technical, but this is honestly as much a detriment as an asset as it feels unnatural to someone used to slight human errors and vernacular. It felt dense and laborious to get through. Another thing I noticed is that while you're very liberal with your adjectives and descriptors, the ones you chose didn't feel like they added much, to my mind? I barely felt any of my senses engaged with your prose style except sight and the end effect was a very shallow reading experience.

For example you call the material Kori is wearing 'odd' but you don't go into any detail about what makes it seem odd. Is it just that it's purple? If so, why? Is it the shade of purple? Is the apparent texture of it unusual? Is it made from a material Elijah's never encountered before? This is a layer to his thoughts and your world that I'm missing. You just say that it's 'odd'.

You actually do this better when describing the spaceship instead, so you aren't incapable of it. Although again there, descriptors that engage more than one sense would've been welcome. You abstract the process a little too much with the way you describe spreading black marks from the heat of reentry, making it purely visual. Consider streamlining it more like:

'Its once pristine silver surface now marred with dents, scratches, and increasingly charred from the flames/heat of reentry' it's a little less verbose, but to my mind the action of charring has more sensory depth to it than black marks. Besides, the shorter phrase lets you feel each adjective more so that the dents and scratches can take on more tangible weight with the reader's mind freed up, imo.

Your description of Kori was alright though, and you give a fairly complete picture of her appearance. Although, you rely a little too much on some very samey adjectives to describe her initial language without any real comparison or substance and it leaves a weak impression of what it must sound like to a listener.

It all gives me the sense that while you're a very technically accomplished writer, likely moreso than myself, there's sort of a disconnect in your style when it comes to creating emotional and sensory engagement for me as a reader. That makes it difficult to hold my interest when combined with the density and formality of your prose.

Chapter One

Chapter One

Again, from a technical standpoint there's not much in need of correction. I'm still having issues with the way you choose to describe things though. For one, you tend towards a lot of tautologies when one descriptor will do. Charlie doesn't need to laugh in 'modest humility' because those descriptors function identically. The same applies to Garfield's hair being both 'disheveled' and 'badly in need of a haircut' to a more limited degree, as while the latter could apply solely to length it can also convey the same sense of messiness just fine already.

Once again your narrative voice also feels like a bit of an obstacle here. It's highly formal and combined with your verbose writing style it comes across as jarring, to me.

For instance, phrases like 'The various individuals surrounding Garfield began to dwindle as they neared their destination.' and 'Charlie's once honey-dipped words were now marred with crude vulgarity ' legitimately take me out of my experience of the narrative while I double-take. It's a style of writing I'd expect from a much, much older time period and while both are perfectly understandable sentences, they feel so dry and formal yet simultaneously over-the-top that I can't enjoy the feelings and events they're meant to convey. It comes across to me as far more clunky than you probably intended.

You do get into some better sensory description with Garfield suffering from the knockout dart though, it gets overshadowed by other elements for me.

Again except for the tautologies you're mechanically excellent, but your narrative style's occasional overblown language, dryness and density makes the experience less enjoyable for me personally.

Chapter Two

Chapter Two

You're more readable here so this will be shorter, your narrative voice is a little less overblown and your writing style is a little more streamlined. Again it just feels like there's this extra layer of abstractions over the things you describe that makes it harder for me personally to get invested? You do well with Elijah's motivation for heroism, but because your narrative style is so formal and precise prior to that it feels like it's just being read to me from a transcript of his brain, not like I'm feeling the weight and pride and responsibility he feels.

Your problem with tautology in description also shows up a few times here too, with Elijah for example wanting to fight against 'evil injustices' which while technically different things are similar enough that you aren't really adding anything by using both that way.

A less onerous post to read but also not one that sticks with me very strongly after I'm done with it, in spite of it likely serving as a watershed moment for Elijah's character.

Chapter Three

Chapter Three

Alright here you're showing some major improvements. I don't know if you're just hitting your stride or if it's because you have a much better grasp of Kitty's headspace or what, but I like it much better immediately. Comparing her moving through a wall to rising out of the sea is a wonderful bit of imagery. Bringing up the sensation of phasing means that for the first time, I also get to feel something your character is feeling and get my other senses engaged beyond the abstracted moment I got with the tranquilizers affecting Gar. You do it very well.

There's still an issue of abstraction, and at this point I think it might be a matter of how often you avoid absolute statements and certainty in your narrative with a lot of 'potentially' 'maybe' and 'almost' whenever you describe something or have your characters think, combined with your very passive sentence structure. More often than not you use phrases like 'She had checked every back alleyway twice by this point, as well as having taken a stroll' and use a lot of 'she would do X' or 'having done X' and 'had beens'. while it may suit you and even be better from a grammar point of view (I'm not sure) it makes for a less engaging, more clunky reading experience.

You don't always do this anyway, a few lines down where you begin with 'she stopped suddenly' the way your sentence is structured is much more immediate and attention-holding. You maintain this fairly well and your sentences get less clunky here, maybe because you're more focused on the action. There's still a little bit of clunk during fragments like 'she began to continue moving through the wall' when just 'resumed' or 'continued moving' or 'went back to moving' would have felt smoother.

Also the 'had been' abstraction problem shows up again when you're describing the third figure's gender and it's really blatant and unfitting. It makes it feel like he had been a man a second ago, but she's not sure now. 'Was' should work fine here in my book.

You re-engage my sense of touch and hearing describing her heartbeat here at the end which is good, and overall you finish strong re-telling Gar's kidnapping from another point of view.

Thoughts on story

Some separate notes on story

A lot of my comments were focused on your writing style and how it engaged or failed to engage me as a reader, so I thought I'd make some space to talk about your actual story since it's such a positive. I like what you're doing, slowly introducing and assembling the Titans then sort of pairing them off. It lets us get to know each of the characters and their histories in miniature before we get to the team, so ideally we're invested in them as individuals and as a group. The world-building you're contributing to by tying them into ongoing metahuman struggles, the military and espionage world, and the more cosmic and interplanetary side of things among the four of them is something I definitely appreciate.

The specific tie-in to Overwatch is also something I'm very grateful for, thanks.

Overall I think you would improve engagement with your audience if you streamlined your narration style a bit and used slightly more direct language and tenses. Don't be afraid to really try and describe what your characters are thinking with more emotional content when explaining their motivations and thoughts. Also try to engage senses beyond sight more often, like you did in the latest post with Kitty. On that note though, watch out for your tendency to use tautology in your descriptions, since they bog you down and add to word-count without adding meaning.

You're a more technically proficient writer than a lot of people in the group, including me. If you can just remember that the goal is as much to have us empathize with your characters and react emotionally to your stories as it is to impress us with your writing, you'll go from good to amazing. Your third post is already doing better at it.

I haven't read your latest post yet, I may add it in after I do.

[Bork Lazer]

Dakota City

Current Players: @Moskau Spieluhr as Vixen and @The Bork Lazer as Static

---

---

Let's get this out of the way. I'm no historian but I'm not a tourist at all. You pick up a lot of things at the dinner table when your father is a community worker. I've lived in Dakota all my life and although, those old coots down at Sadler could bore you with stories about how Dakota was founded by Governer Mc blah blah blah, I'm gonna give three straight facts about Dakota from the defender of Dakota City, the Kilowatt Kid and definitely not the son of Black Lightning.

Fact number one. Dakota is not dead. At least yet.

I'll say this. Dakota was and still is a city of potential. Besides, why would every Wall Street investor pump millions of dollars into our ports five years ago? Every citizen of Dakota City has an unwavering tenacity to them in the face of inescapable hope. We work our hardest everyday to make sure the city doesn't fall apart, even as it collapses around us.

Fact number two. Dakota was not better before the Big Bang.

Every local person I've met gets teary-eyed about the days, reminiscing about the good old days before the Big Bang. I'm sorry to burst that big bubble of yours but Dakota never experienced a golden age in its entire lifetime. It lagged behind the rest of America when the Industrial Revolution came knocking. Due to its position on one of the Five Great Lakes and the complete lack of government oversight, bootlegging and trafficking across the Canadian-USA border prospered. Every gang in Dakota City can trace their origins back to these mules.

About all of that investment? Well, even with all those fat stacks of cash, the city council decided to spend all of it on vanity projects just to pump their own egos. Who needs larger hospitals when you could have a marina that no one uses unless they want to fork out a ludicrously large sum of rent? The predictions of economists failed to take into account corruption. And don't even get me started on how skewed the election process for becoming mayor is. My dad's stories of his own campaign are enough on a indictment already.

Fact number three. Dakota City has the highest concentration of meta-humans on the mid-eastern region.

At least, one paper from S.T.A.R Labs officially said so until the city council denied the possibility of there. The official state census is that there are currently 10 existing and alive Bang Babies within Dakota City.

Why is it then that I faced more than 15 different Bang Babies during those first weeks of chaos?

Why is it that the hospitals are currently reporting melted doorways, busted walls and empty hospital beds with over 80 unaccounted people who were exposed to the Big Bang?

The Big Bang has made Dakota City into one big chemical reaction that's waiting to happen and trust me, just when it seems like it's settling down, someone's gonna be stupid enough to light the fuse.

When it does happen, I hope I'll be there to meet it head-on.

LOCATIONS:

HEMINGWAY - Belongs to [The Bork Lazer/Static]

PARIS ISLAND - Belongs to [The Bork Lazer/Static]

SADLER - Belongs to [The Bork Lazer/Static]

UTOPIA - Belongs to [The Bork Lazer/Static]

WASHINGTON AVENUE - Belongs to [Moskau Spieluhr/Vixen]

IMPORTANT PERSONS:

Christina Martinez- Belongs to [Moskau Spieluhr/Vixen]

Robert Campbell - Belongs to [Moskau Spieluhr/Vixen]

Tarmac - Belongs to [Moskau Spieluhr/Vixen]

ORGANIZATIONS:

DAKOTA 7 EYEWITNESS NEWS - Belongs to [Moskau Spieluhr/Vixen]

FREEMAN COMMUNITY CENTER - Belongs to [The Bork Lazer/Static]

HEMINGWAY HIGH SCHOOL - Belongs to [The Bork Lazer/Static]

EVENTS:

THE BIG BANG - Belongs to [The Bork Lazer/Static]

[Retired]

Just to help clarify for future IC posts: mutants and metahumans are the same in this world. Metahumans are the 'official' term for those born with the metagene (also known as the X-Gene). Mutant is the derogatory term originally coined when metahuman numbers began to increase. Modern metahumans have been trying to retake the term for themselves.

This has been established through comments in the IC already, but just to avoid future confusion.

[Lord Wraith]

A N N O U N C E M E N T S:

---

RE: CONTIUNITY

We had quite the debate this morning in the Discord over shared continuity and the reach one player has. To those of you who weren't there and don't want to read 700+ messages of squabbling, I'd like to reiterate that the primary goal of the game is to tell your story within a shared universe. What this means is that while we like to see elements shared across players, you're under no obligation to do so and outside of GM mandated status quos (IE Crises), nothing needs to be treated as universal.

Keep in mind that each story is told through the perspective of its narrator. The X-Men are going to be more in tune with the anti-mutant populace because they're on the receiving end of it. Wonder Woman is going to be more hesitant to work with a government who wants to persecute her for using lethal force. But neither of these stories needs to affect your character unless you want them to.

Additionally, please bear in mind that the RP has no regulated time scale. Unless an event is referenced there's no guarantee two stories are even happening at the same time. For instance, my entire Batman arc has occurred over the course of one afternoon, excluding the Flashbacks. Doc's Spider-Man has happened over the course of days, if not weeks. So that's something else to keep in mind regarding our shared continuity. You're under no obligation to squeeze everything into your story.

If anyone has any further questions on this, I'd be happy to discuss them with you in private.

[Bounce]

Requested by @Lord Wraith in Discord.

[Lord Wraith]

That will never be requested.

[Natty]

Didn't realize I was the 250th IC post. Everyone cool with me editing it out and replacing it with a dabbing Thanos?

Hoping to start work on my own compendium entries at one point this weekend, as well as giving out some rewards!

[Hound55]

Very early preliminary stuff, don't put it up yet. I'll tinker with it over the next few days.

------------------

Boston

PLACEHOLDER

LOCATIONS:

Palmer MediTech Center - Belongs to [Nobody/Ray Palmer – Currently Free To Use]

K.O.R.D East Division - Belongs to [Hound55/Ted Kord]

IMPORTANT PERSONS:

Police Chief Warner - Belongs to [Nobody/Free to Use]

Reporter Cassie Arnold - Belongs to [Nobody/Free To Use]

Thomas Kord - Belongs to [Hound55/Ted Kord]

Murray Takamoto - Belongs to [Hound55/Ted Kord]

Melody Case - Belongs to [Hound55/Ted Kord]

Jeremiah Duncan - Belongs to [Hound55/Ted Kord]

Angela Revere - Belongs to [Hound55/Ted Kord]

Randall Truman - Belongs to [Hound55/Ted Kord]

Melissa “Mims” Jenkins (nee Gold) - Belongs to [Hound55/Ted Kord]

ORGANIZATIONS:

Corporate Headquarters for: Kord Omniversal Research and Development - Belongs to [Hound55/Ted Kord]

Criminal Gang: The Squid Gang - Belongs to [Hound55/Ted Kord]

EVENTS:

Entry information - Belongs to [player/character name]

OTHER:

Entry information - Belongs to [player/character name]

[Hound55]

END OF SEASON AWARDS:

◼ BEST CHARACTER CONCEPT

Baal, The Flash, Guardians of the Galaxy, Old Man Grayson and Robin the Toy Wonder, The Shadow

These are the off-the-wall ideas, notions that have made me look at the game, double-take on the character sheet and wonder how they’re going to be pushed forward. Unfortunately a few happened late in the season with limited opportunities to see them really flesh out until next season (The Shadow and Baal). It was incredibly difficult to hold my tongue as time zones and good fortune saw Endgame drop down my neck of the woods first, when the finishing point in the movie seemed to have snatched [@HenryJonesJnr]’s character sheet straight off the boards.

It was a tight two man race between @Hillan’s Thawne Flash and @Bounce’s Commish Dick and the Boytoy. And since it comes down to a race, I’m going to give Thawne the edge… slightly… by a rapidly telescoping robotic boy’s nose.

---

◼ BEST CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT

Captain Marvel, Daredevil, Magik, Static, Wonder Woman (*Bonus honourable mention Green Arrow)

Going on a curve here – this is the character’s who have seen change, growth or depth built to them over the course of the season. I gave @Dblade26’s Green Arrow a bonus honourable mention for the rate of change despite such a late start. Which I’m now regretting since I selected my 5s before writing the actual award descriptions and I’m just now realizing he showed up everywhere anyway…

Bounce’s Billy had great depth built to him as we caught glimpses of an immortal alien altered God-like child referenced over half a century. We saw Daredevil actually shown fear and pushed beyond his breaking point. Magik has experienced great trauma and is trying to meet that past head on with a little help from her friends. Static had a full character arc where he faced a life with diminished powers and whether it was ever really the power or the man. Wonder Woman, like Daredevil, was pushed to breaking point as well, and we’ve seen it early enough that we’re watching her experience the consequences of those actions, and the way she chooses to face tomorrow after them.

I’m going to give this one to Static. I think this might be a sleeper to some people, but to me… I think it was a major theme throughout @The Bork Lazer’s arc as a whole, and was handled brilliantly.

---

◼ BEST SEASON

@webboysurf. @Bounce. @Lord Wraith. @Roman. @Natty.

I’ve worked these awards a bit different. Best season to me is IC content. Posts. By all characters combined. If you’ve put out quality production with more than one, frankly it’s going to help. These have been the engine that’s kept the thread moving.

I’ve got a 3 horse race between @Bounce, @webboysurf and @Roman. Wraith has kept the game moving with beautifully detailed posts over a few varied characters. Natty (and Hexflexagon, honestly… there was a hair’s breadth between 5 and 6) maintained individual characters throughout the whole season, producing wonderfully detailed posts in the magic corner as well.

This one’s brutal… but, I think Bounce has to just edge this one out. He’s managed to spin plates and provide a full Grayson and Toy Wonder on limited time, whilst still pushing forward with Billy relentlessly. Webbs finished strong with Arsenal, and has locked down an action niche. Whilst Roman finished STRONG with Daredevil, but lacked time to work in Constantine with the season waning.

---

◼ BEST STORY ARC

Ragged Souls by Magik. Welcome to the Masquerade by Batman. Static + Shockers (not the name… try it on though). Queen’s Heir by Green Arrow. Homecoming by Zatanna (is that Zatanna’s arc name?)

Running out of time at work. Keep it short. These have all been major strengths in this season. The magic corner, Lord Wraith world-building and Bork’s character development. I’m giving the nod to Bork’s Static who made good use of the full season.

---

◼ BEST POST

Static’s finale. First post of The Shadow. Daredevil vs Kingpin.

All three of these were epic masterpieces. I put down 3 because I couldn’t keep it to 5. After these 3 there was no natural cut-off to me. All three actually made me verbalize when I was reading them (think along the lines of “Oh shit!”, “Whoa!, or similar…)

That said, long story short, this is getting unfair. @Byrd Man knows how to strike joy in my heart, just as he knows what evil lurks in the hearts of men...

---

◼ BEST ANTAGONIST

The Mad Hatter by @Lord Wraith. Kingpin by @Roman. Brick by Ben Folds Five @Dblade26. Electrocutioner by @The Bork Lazer. The Suit by @DocTachyon.

I feel frustrated, because I know I’ve gone early and Wraith isn’t done with The Mad Hatter…

I like subtlety, which is why the Black suit got a mention. Thought Doc’s done a good job with the odd inflection, bringing an insidious presence that’s wearing away at Pete without being outright overbearing. The other three brought it home strong at the end of arcs. I’m going to give the slight nod to Brick (and thank God… because we know Connor’s got a pretty limited rogues gallery to pick from) as the multi-faceted top-dog who has been holding back the torrent of chaotic unfettered crime in Star City, but has to prove a point.

---

◼ BEST SUPPORTING CAST

Blade’s Supporting Cast by [@SimpleUnicycle]. Captain America’s Supporting Cast by @webboysurf. Magik’s by @Natty. Spider-Man’s by [@Doc Tachyon]. Valor’s by @Ceta de Cloyes.

Making me pick between Tasky and the Spider-gang… you monsters.

Ugghhhhhhhhhhhhhh… Spidey.

Shout out to Ceta’s great work in limited time though and I’m looking forward to the Legion’s expansion next season. And of course Uni’s supporting cast for Blade – a man who shares my own taste in the humour of seeing the star get regular comeuppance at the hands of that supporting crew.

---

◼ BEST WORLD BUILDING

Namor by Lord Wraith… Hup, you played yourself. Captain Marvel by @Bounce. Magik by @Natty. Zatanna’s by @Hexaflexagon. Supergirl’s Metropolis by @inkarnate. Guardians of the Galaxy by [@HenryJonesJnr]. Special mention: Teen Titans by @Retired

Wraith… you had this! Those Namor Atlantis posts were masterpieces and you not only threw in the towel, you deleted them!

Love it when any of these drop. Doesn’t happen often, but you won’t find people up for this one rushing stuff. These guys are the prestige Oscar chasers (although this isn’t Cannes, @inkarnate, and we don’t give awards for short pictures!) Worth a mention, Retired, who had a late start and ate into his own time helping out, reviewing others’ posts.

I’m going with nnnnnnnnnggg! Magik. So tough though.

---

◼ BEST CROSSOVER

Arrows Red and Green. Spidey and the X-Men. A Couple of Old Wardogs.

I think these just got better as the season wore on. I’m going with Red and Green Arrow.

Bears mentioning though… Doc is a joy to work with, and tolerates my foibles with aplumb.

---

◼ THE ABSOLUTE BREAKOUT CHARACTER

Green Arrow. Old Man Grayson and the Toy Wonder. Arsenal. Raven. Blade.

These are the characters that raised the eyebrows. Surpassed my expectations in terms of where I thought my interest would be. I like Raven as a Titan, but have struggled reading solo comics with her before. Blade seldom interests me in the comics (although the first two movies surpassed the comic material to me)… but I should have known better, because Uni finds a way to keep interest. Connor’s probably down the list on archer’s to me, Dblade then compounded that with Felicity… and then somehow made it far surpass what any combination of the parts should have any right to be. Likewise, I’m not terribly into post-Speedy Roy. Again, webs made it work.

But I’m still trying to figure out what the Hell happened to bestow Old Man Grayson and Robin the Toy Wonder upon us all… and I’ve got nothing.

---

◼ THE ABSOLUTE MVP

@webboysurf. @Lord Wraith. @Retired. @Inkarnate. [@Saint Maxx]. @Hillan.

These are the people who inspire activity. Whether it is from post frequency, pushing on conversation about character work and posts as a whole, reviews, or a combination of any or all of these.

Retired’s had a colossal impact on the game since his late start, and the sacrifices which cost him a legitimate chance at the World Building award are basically what wins him this one to me.

[Natty]

Made a start on some compendium entries. Will finish the rest once i get a chance!

Compendium

New York City

LOCATIONS:

The Sanctum Santorum - Belongs to [Natty/Magik/Free To Use]

IMPORTANT PERSONS:

Doctor Stephen Strange, The Sorcerer Supreme - Belongs to [Natty/Magik/Free To Use]

Wong - Belongs to [Natty/Magik]

Gotham

LOCATIONS:

Rags 'n Tatters: Pawnshop / Part-time Yunkyard owned by Rory Regan - Belongs to [Natty/Magik]

Outside Time and Space

LOCATIONS:

The Oblivion Bar: A safe haven for magical individuals, the Oblivion Bar is located within its own pocket dimension. The establishment has many entrance portals scattered across the globe that are only visible to those skilled at magic. - Belongs to [Nobody/Free To Use]

IMPORTANT PERSONS:

Jim Rook, Nightmaster: Bartender and owner of The Oblivion Bar. - Belongs to [Nobody/Free To Use]

Limbo

[HenryJonesJr]

Hey all, just checking in. The honeymoon was great but I feel like I lost a huge chunk being ex-communicado for so long haha. Actually going to have a post in the next few hours finally finishing up my Warworld story. Can someone update me what's going on in-game? And is the season almost over? Considering the awards? lol

[Supermaxx]

@HenryJonesJr
Here's Wraith's announcement from last Sunday I'm definitely not behind on writing that Crisis post, though- damn you employment

The Crisis will be launching this week. We're still taking a head count for those who are interested in participating. We're trying to make it as accessible as possible for everyone who wants to participate but in the event that you aren't able to, there will be others in future seasons. We're really looking forward to wrapping up this Season and giving it a proper send off so be on the lookout for that.

@Lord Wraith

With the coming end of the season we're doing awards, too. Though I'll note here that the end of the season will not necessarily mean you have to be finished with your current story arc, either. There won't be any gamewide time-skip or anything like that, and the season's end will not be marked by a change of thread like it was in UOU. It'll be more of a milestone for the RP and an easy jumping on point for any new applicants who want to come in for the next season

[HenryJonesJr]

@HenryJonesJr
Here's Wraith's announcement from last Sunday I'm definitely not behind on writing that Crisis post, though- damn you employment

<Snipped quote by Lord Wraith>

With the coming end of the season we're doing awards, too. Though I'll note here that the end of the season will not necessarily mean you have to be finished with your current story arc, either. There won't be any gamewide time-skip or anything like that, and the season's end will not be marked by a change of thread like it was in UOU. It'll be more of a milestone for the RP and an easy jumping on point for any new applicants who want to come in for the next season

@ComradeMaxx

Okay cool. In that case I'll say I'm in for the crisis as long as it can affect me out in space and I don't have to get the team to Earth. Once this next post is up, the Guardians will be together, and if the season is almost at a close I won't bother jumping into the next arc for them.

[Retired]

@HenryJonesJr We also are all in the Discord. It's not to replace the OOC, but there's a lot of dialogue there between pretty much everyone. In case you cared to join.

[Supermaxx]

<Snipped quote by ComradeMaxx>

Okay cool. In that case I'll say I'm in for the crisis as long as it can affect me out in space and I don't have to get the team to Earth.

@HenryJonesJr

Unfortunately we've tailored this first Crisis in such a way that we can't really extend it to that sort of scope. A certain part of the fallout may be felt by the Guardians, though, depending on a lot of different factors that verge into spoiler territory. Once the cat is out of the bag we'll be able to discuss that connection, in-depth, though!

[HenryJonesJr]

<Snipped quote by HenryJonesJr>

Unfortunately we've tailored this first Crisis in such a way that we can't really extend it to that sort of scope. A certain part of the fallout may be felt by the Guardians, though, depending on a lot of different factors that verge into spoiler territory. Once the cat is out of the bag we'll be able to discuss that connection, in-depth, though!

@ComradeMaxx

Okay, I'll probably sit on the sidelines of this one then. I just don't really have a good reason to have them head to Earth.