Member
Simple Unicycle
GreenGrenade
Red Wizard
Mixtape Ghost N
Hillan
Rosellangel
Lord Wraith
BIRTH NAME:
Odysseus of Ithaka
ALTER EGO:
N/A
GENDER:
Male
AGE:
Biologically in his late-twenties. Technically a whole lot older.
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN:
Greece, specifically the island of Ithaka.
ARCHETYPE:
Gifted, though he finds himself the pawn of Supernatural beings.
ALLEGIANCE:
The Champions
POWERS/SKILLS:
Damn good at archery, almost preternaturally so, a magnificent knife fighter, and an adept swordsman. A lifetimes experience of fighting foes who are bigger and stronger than he is, having to use his intelligence to supplement his own respectively meagre abilities. Unmatched cunning, with a genius level understanding of human psychology, though he was born centuries before psychology even became a 'thing'.
However he is just a human (to the consternation of the Olympians.) His past successes have made him overconfident, almost to the point of arrogance, as he's usually of the mind that he's the smartest man in the room. While often true, that assumption may one day prove his downfall. As he was an old man when he 'died' he is now an old soul placed into a young man's body, and as such he has trouble controlling his new, youth sharpened passions. Anger and annoyance are forever closer to the surface than he remembers them being before, something that he's still not quite got the hang of controlling yet, throwing of the unflappable cool he remembers cultivating in his past life.
On top of his strengths and weaknesses it should be noted that for Oddie, killing is a last resort, but it is still a resort. While he'd rather diffuse a situation with words and cunning, if it comes down to violence he's jaded enough to realize that sometimes violent altercations end violently, meaning somebody has to die. And he'll be damned if that somebody is him, not before he's finished his divine mission.
However he is just a human (to the consternation of the Olympians.) His past successes have made him overconfident, almost to the point of arrogance, as he's usually of the mind that he's the smartest man in the room. While often true, that assumption may one day prove his downfall. As he was an old man when he 'died' he is now an old soul placed into a young man's body, and as such he has trouble controlling his new, youth sharpened passions. Anger and annoyance are forever closer to the surface than he remembers them being before, something that he's still not quite got the hang of controlling yet, throwing of the unflappable cool he remembers cultivating in his past life.
On top of his strengths and weaknesses it should be noted that for Oddie, killing is a last resort, but it is still a resort. While he'd rather diffuse a situation with words and cunning, if it comes down to violence he's jaded enough to realize that sometimes violent altercations end violently, meaning somebody has to die. And he'll be damned if that somebody is him, not before he's finished his divine mission.
Equipment/Resources:
Light armour, forged by Hephaestus. The breastplate is nigh-unbreakable, as are the vambraces and greaves, though his arms, legs and head - as an archer he dislikes wearing helmets - are left bare. On top of that, the armour isn't shock proof, meaning a powerful enough blow, while unable to pierce the metal, could still kill Oddie. Like an egg inside a tin can that is dropped from height, his insides would be scrambled.
His fabled bow, capable of sending an arrow straight through seven axe heads. (the legends might claim it was axe handles, but this was one of the few times that they undersold the reality.) It seems to have weathered the years even better than Odysseus himself, though he suspects the hand of Hephaestus in that miracle.
He wears a quiver of thirty, carbon-steel headed arrows upon his back, along with a kopis sword and a long dagger at his side. He keeps several throwing knives secreted about his person.
Oddie is independently wealthy after some wise investments of his initial gold pieces, and money that his book series have brought him.
He lives in a houseboat, named 'Penelope'.
His fabled bow, capable of sending an arrow straight through seven axe heads. (the legends might claim it was axe handles, but this was one of the few times that they undersold the reality.) It seems to have weathered the years even better than Odysseus himself, though he suspects the hand of Hephaestus in that miracle.
He wears a quiver of thirty, carbon-steel headed arrows upon his back, along with a kopis sword and a long dagger at his side. He keeps several throwing knives secreted about his person.
Oddie is independently wealthy after some wise investments of his initial gold pieces, and money that his book series have brought him.
He lives in a houseboat, named 'Penelope'.
Biography:
You been living under a rock for the last two thousand-plus years? No? Good, then you know Odysseus' story. The Illiad, the Odyssey, the whole Epic Cycle, it's all true. I wont bore you with the time-worn details, but suffice to say that the King Of Ithaka lived a long and interesting life, had some fairly unique adventures, captured the imaginations of the common man, and died at a ripe old age. At the last he'd figured that the God's of Olympus had finished with him, and that he'd get to while out the rest of eternity in the Elysian Fields, with his beloved Penelope at his side.
How wrong he was.
You see back then the Olympians were the top dogs on the block, with plenty of worshipers making all sorts of prayers, sacrifices, and entreaties to them, which was good because prayer is the currency of the Gods. Since then their fortunes have fallen pretty sharp though, not least because of a little thing called Christianity coming along and blowing them out the water, followed quickly by the apathy towards religion created by modern science in 20th century man.
Zeus and crew are down on their luck these days, but they still dream of the dizzying heights they'd once held, and would do almost anything to get it back. Their latest scheme was to jump onto the 'superhero' bandwagon, and create a masked crusader of their own, one that would inspire the common man to glory the old Gods once more. Zeuz, Poseidon, and Athena convinced the lord Hades – the one God still in ascendancy since people still had to die regardless if they believed in him or not - to help them bring back one of their greatest heroes to serve in the role. Heracles, Perseus, Achilles, any fine demi-god would do.
Unfortunately they got Odysseus.
Zeus was appalled. No mere mortal, regardless of how cunning, would prove equal to the task. He demanded that Hades send the king of Ithaka back to the Elysian Fields, and to fetch him a real hero. It was too late though, as Hades' power was spent, and they'd be forced to wait until he was back to full strength, which could take years.
Athena managed to convince Zeus to allow Odysseus the chance to attempt the task of bringing glory to the God's in the mean time – an act that angered Odysseus himself, as he wanted nothing more than to return to the rest that he'd rightfully earned his first go-round. He argued against it, but arguing against the Goddess of Wisdom is like trying to hold back the tide with a pebble. Eventually he acquiesced, but only after the Olympians agreed to send him back to Elysian when the job was done. He was given boons to help him in his task; light armour forged by Hephastus, a pouch of gold, and his old bow, and told to go an bring glory back to the Gods.
And that's exactly what he set out to do.
His first task was to learn more about this bizarre new world he found himself in, as the Olympian's had neglected to educate him in even the smallest of details about the twentieth century. He nearly had a heart attack upon entering the first modern city he came across. How far man had come! Though he was quick to discover that man's progress was not but an outward deceit hiding his stagnant core when a grubby street dweller tried to rob Oddie upon learning the former King of Ithaka was a clueless immigrant. The attempted robbery ended in bloody fashion for the hapless thief, though the incident reassured Odysseus that he wasn't in such foreign territory after all. Men where still men, even in this new age of wonders.
It took him over two years to learn the major modern languages, then get himself up to speed on both ancient and modern history, though during all that time he prepared himself for his next step. By the time he felt secure enough in his knowledge of this new world to begin actively bringing glory to the Olympians, he'd already set out his entire plan. He would fight 'injustice' like so many other costumed heroes, but instead of toiling away for little recognition and a vague sense of accomplishment like the others, he would instead chronicle his tales, then sell them to the public, all while using his 'novels' to praise the old Gods, while encouraging the public to do likewise.
The plan was a near instant success. Millions of people worldwide lapped up his tales of adventure and heroism, buying his novels by the truck load. True, some more discerning readers realized the works where nothing more than propaganda dressed up as escapist fantasy, but their protestations went largely unheard. Oddie was an overnight sensation, and it surprised no one when, two years later, he was invited to join the newly-formed Champions.
Things went smoothly for the most part. Odysseus proved himself a boon member on dozens of occasions, even if his antiquity-styled morality didn't quite mesh with the softer values of today's heroes. More than once he was pulled up for the barbaric fashion that he dealt with some enemies, though he always stood by his actions and choices.
Before the Nagoya incident, during the planning stage, Odysseus argued against informing the local police and authorities of the Champions sting operation. The more people in the know, he said, the more likely the criminals would learn of the action. His concerns were batted down though, as other members insisted that the local authorities had to be involved, or it would seem that the Champions where overstepping their bounds. As has so often been the case, Oddie was proven right, as when the attack began, it quickly became apparent that the crooks were ready for them. The former king fought like a man possessed, felling several foemen, even mortally wounding a famed super-powered mercenary named Shinigami. It wasn't enough though, and the whole operation ended in disaster.
In the aftermath Oddie refused to help in the clean up, insisting that if his fellows had just listened to him none of this chaos would have transpired, and that if they were so keen to let the proper authorities intervene to begin with, then the proper authorities can handle the clean up. Public perception soured against him considerably in the aftermath of these comments, especially after the media found out just how many bodies where found on the scene with one of his arrows through them, though for once he was too preoccupied to care. Instead his attention fixed upon the new Schism between heroes. He remembered the last time that a rift like that was driven between two groups of remarkable men and women, a rift that led to a war the likes of which was never seen before, or since, and felt his blood run cold at the memory.
For once he doesn't care about his mission from the Gods, nor getting back to his fair Penelope, or his own self-aggrandizement.
Now all he cares about is stopping a war before it has a chance to begin.
How wrong he was.
You see back then the Olympians were the top dogs on the block, with plenty of worshipers making all sorts of prayers, sacrifices, and entreaties to them, which was good because prayer is the currency of the Gods. Since then their fortunes have fallen pretty sharp though, not least because of a little thing called Christianity coming along and blowing them out the water, followed quickly by the apathy towards religion created by modern science in 20th century man.
Zeus and crew are down on their luck these days, but they still dream of the dizzying heights they'd once held, and would do almost anything to get it back. Their latest scheme was to jump onto the 'superhero' bandwagon, and create a masked crusader of their own, one that would inspire the common man to glory the old Gods once more. Zeuz, Poseidon, and Athena convinced the lord Hades – the one God still in ascendancy since people still had to die regardless if they believed in him or not - to help them bring back one of their greatest heroes to serve in the role. Heracles, Perseus, Achilles, any fine demi-god would do.
Unfortunately they got Odysseus.
Zeus was appalled. No mere mortal, regardless of how cunning, would prove equal to the task. He demanded that Hades send the king of Ithaka back to the Elysian Fields, and to fetch him a real hero. It was too late though, as Hades' power was spent, and they'd be forced to wait until he was back to full strength, which could take years.
Athena managed to convince Zeus to allow Odysseus the chance to attempt the task of bringing glory to the God's in the mean time – an act that angered Odysseus himself, as he wanted nothing more than to return to the rest that he'd rightfully earned his first go-round. He argued against it, but arguing against the Goddess of Wisdom is like trying to hold back the tide with a pebble. Eventually he acquiesced, but only after the Olympians agreed to send him back to Elysian when the job was done. He was given boons to help him in his task; light armour forged by Hephastus, a pouch of gold, and his old bow, and told to go an bring glory back to the Gods.
And that's exactly what he set out to do.
His first task was to learn more about this bizarre new world he found himself in, as the Olympian's had neglected to educate him in even the smallest of details about the twentieth century. He nearly had a heart attack upon entering the first modern city he came across. How far man had come! Though he was quick to discover that man's progress was not but an outward deceit hiding his stagnant core when a grubby street dweller tried to rob Oddie upon learning the former King of Ithaka was a clueless immigrant. The attempted robbery ended in bloody fashion for the hapless thief, though the incident reassured Odysseus that he wasn't in such foreign territory after all. Men where still men, even in this new age of wonders.
It took him over two years to learn the major modern languages, then get himself up to speed on both ancient and modern history, though during all that time he prepared himself for his next step. By the time he felt secure enough in his knowledge of this new world to begin actively bringing glory to the Olympians, he'd already set out his entire plan. He would fight 'injustice' like so many other costumed heroes, but instead of toiling away for little recognition and a vague sense of accomplishment like the others, he would instead chronicle his tales, then sell them to the public, all while using his 'novels' to praise the old Gods, while encouraging the public to do likewise.
The plan was a near instant success. Millions of people worldwide lapped up his tales of adventure and heroism, buying his novels by the truck load. True, some more discerning readers realized the works where nothing more than propaganda dressed up as escapist fantasy, but their protestations went largely unheard. Oddie was an overnight sensation, and it surprised no one when, two years later, he was invited to join the newly-formed Champions.
Things went smoothly for the most part. Odysseus proved himself a boon member on dozens of occasions, even if his antiquity-styled morality didn't quite mesh with the softer values of today's heroes. More than once he was pulled up for the barbaric fashion that he dealt with some enemies, though he always stood by his actions and choices.
Before the Nagoya incident, during the planning stage, Odysseus argued against informing the local police and authorities of the Champions sting operation. The more people in the know, he said, the more likely the criminals would learn of the action. His concerns were batted down though, as other members insisted that the local authorities had to be involved, or it would seem that the Champions where overstepping their bounds. As has so often been the case, Oddie was proven right, as when the attack began, it quickly became apparent that the crooks were ready for them. The former king fought like a man possessed, felling several foemen, even mortally wounding a famed super-powered mercenary named Shinigami. It wasn't enough though, and the whole operation ended in disaster.
In the aftermath Oddie refused to help in the clean up, insisting that if his fellows had just listened to him none of this chaos would have transpired, and that if they were so keen to let the proper authorities intervene to begin with, then the proper authorities can handle the clean up. Public perception soured against him considerably in the aftermath of these comments, especially after the media found out just how many bodies where found on the scene with one of his arrows through them, though for once he was too preoccupied to care. Instead his attention fixed upon the new Schism between heroes. He remembered the last time that a rift like that was driven between two groups of remarkable men and women, a rift that led to a war the likes of which was never seen before, or since, and felt his blood run cold at the memory.
For once he doesn't care about his mission from the Gods, nor getting back to his fair Penelope, or his own self-aggrandizement.
Now all he cares about is stopping a war before it has a chance to begin.
Special Notes:
In the last three years Oddie has built up something of a personal rogues gallery. From the classically inspired Steel Siren, Madame Medusa and the Gargantuan Gorgons to the 21st century styled Jack Frost, Tyrannous Hex and Captain Chronos, as well as some familiar faces from Oddie's own past like the seductive sorceress Circe, and the hideous cyclops Polyphemus. On top of that he's cultivated something of a rivalry with Henry Freeman, better known as the hero 'Aegis'. Henry looks down upon what he see's as Oddie's underhand and deceitful tactics, while Oddie believes Henry is a naive idiot who's been given far too much power for his own good.