Sunday, March 24, 2013

Marvel Hero-brew: The Suit


This character exists in a universe wherein the Atlanteans and the Mu Empire wiped each other out in our prehistory. The two cultures had similar themes of mixing magic with technology and used those abilities to sink each other into their respective oceans.

D'Rin Tarengal was a young Atlantean nobleman learning to become an arcane-technician when the Cataclysm began. He was placed in cryostasis...and awoke in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean in the modern age, grasping to the lid of the stasis chamber to remain afloat. He would later discover that an underwater earthquake was recorded in the area at that same time, possibly shaking his stasis chamber loose from the remains of his civilization.

D'Rin was rescued by a fishing boat and was led back to the United States to make a new life for himself. Without any record, a limited knowledge of English that he quickly learned on the fishing boat, and his claim of "memory loss", he was declared a John Doe and began a new life in America.

Learning English in almost a week, a simple language compared to the beautiful intricacies of Atlantean, D'Rin found life among the humans to be...unsatisfying. He was an Atlantean, a god compared to these neanderthals who had yet to reach the height of his own civilization though they had been given more than enough time. And they had entirely forsaken the great art of magic. For D'Rin, this was an outrage. The Atlanteans had to return.

Formulating a plan, D'Rin realized that the only way to return the Atlantean race and culture back from the dead was through a combination of cloning, genetic alteration, and deep sea diving for any remaining stasis pods that might be occupied. All of this would require a great deal of money in the human world. D'Rin began inventing.

Twenty years later, his technological expertise has led him to the top of his field as the C.E.O. of Atlantic Technical Industries, his own Atlantean nobility keeping him from settling for anything less. Now known as Daren Smith, he has become the face of the American Dream: coming from nothing and becoming everything.

But it was never enough. The apes of the city living below his penthouse were a danger to themselves and others. The recent and sudden rise of superpowers in the world had made everything a little more interesting than board room meetings and pie charts of company growth, and D'Rin couldn't resist. He spends his evenings dressed in nothing more than a business suit and a replica of an old Atlantean warrior's mask, using his magic to save lives and protect his own interests.

The Suit, Daren Smith [Secret] / D'Rin Tarengal [Atlantean]
Solo d10, Buddy d8, Team d6
Distinctions
Almost Human, Atlantean Noble Ego, C.E.O. of Atlantic Technical Industries
Power Sets
Atlantean Arcanics
Sorcery d12, Telekinesis d10, Teleport d10, Transmutation d10, Mystic Blast d8, Subsonic Flight d8

SFX: Constructs- When creating magical assests, add a d6 and step up the effect die by +1.
SFX: Multipower- Use two or more Atlantean Arcanics powers in a single dice pool at -1 step for each additional power.
Limit: Conscious Activation- If stressed out, asleep, or unconscious, shutdown Atlantean Arcanics. Recover Atlantean Arcanics when stress is recovered or you awake. If mental trauma is taken, shutdown Atlantean Arcanics until trauma is recovered.
Limit: Growing Dread- Both 1 and 2 on your dice count as opportunities when using an Atlantean Arcancis power.

Atlantean Warrior Belt
Enhanced Durability d8, Enhanced Stamina d8, Enhanced Strength d8

SFX: Invulnerable- Spend 1 PP to ignore physical stress or trauma unless caused by magic.
SFX: Gear- Shutdown Atlantean Warrior Belt and gain 1 PP. Take an action vs. doom pool to recover.
Limit: Power Surge- Shutdown any Atlantean Warrior Belt power to gain 1 PP. Recover power by activating an opportunity or during a Transition Scene.

Specialties
Business Expert d8, Mystic Expert d8, Tech Expert d8

Milestones
Cloning Atlantis
1XP when...your plans to revive the ancient race advance.
3XP when...you are forced to take extreme measures to keep these plans secret.
10XP when...you begin the cloning process or choose to allow your race to die with you.

In Sheep's Clothing
1XP when...you reveal your Atlantean nature to someone that doesn't know your secret identity.
3XP when...you reveal your Atlantean nature to someone that knows your face.
10XP when...you willingly reveal your Atlantean nature to the public or it is forced upon you.

Character Notes: D'Rin joins the forces of good as a means to keep his magic in practice. He isn't a bad guy, but will do what it takes to ensure the resurrection and survival of his race. As a character theme, he is someone who teeters on the edge of villainy and it is the ongoing events of his life that will push him one way or the other.

To properly clone his people, D'Rin will be using a combination of magic and technology, which the humans had never thought to do in their own attempts at cloning. The entire operation is his own personal side project operating within his penthouse. No other soul knows of it, as far as he knows or allows.

D'Rin is not the only survivor of the Cataclysm. A fellow Atlantean, most likely a noble rival or a criminal (maybe both) rose with him in the earthquake that shook their stasis chambers from the bottom of the ocean. There could also be a number of Mu that survived the event that have staked a claim in the modern world. I imagine D'Rin, as Daren Smith, would have a number of business rivals as well and as the Suit would have any number of magical or otherwise enemies. Life is surely not boring for him.

As an Atlantean, D'Rin is not entirely human. His species was a branch of the same line, so he can pass for one, but if someone was to examine him even under a microscope, the differences would be obvious. He uses his Sorcery to alter any fluids that are taken for medical tests and is forced to rely on his own magic for medical aid which he is not trained to do. At some point, he will have to let an ally in on his secret if he was in dire need of services.

Atlanteans also age at a slower rate than homo sapiens. D'Rin has been magically altering his looks slowly to match the age progression of his "fellow humans". Truthfully, he appears to be in his early to mid 20s while Daren Smith is on record as being approximately 43. D'Rin does not look forward to the day when he has to find a reason to have a "long lost son" take over the business or restart all of his work entirely from nothing.

Designer Notes: The Mu is a thing! I swear! Check out that link at the top! Not a lot of people in the Western culture know about it. I admittedly only know that it's a thing.

Edit (2013/04/21): Altered a few power traits, added a few, and added a Limit on the Belt. Also modified the wording of the In Sheep's Clothing milestone. It now fits the feel of the character and, in my opinion, keeps it balanced.

This datafile was created for use in the Marvel Heroic Roleplaying game by Margaret Weis Productions, Ltd.

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