A Fistful of Superheroes.

[AI]

This is Old Lutown - A small, frontier town plagued by much more than shootouts at dawn, fights in the local saloon and Indians on the war-path. Struggling with the recent emergence of super-powered beings of all shapes and sizes, and the waning support of it's most famous resident Wesley Dean III, it's inhabitants are forced to etch out a simple life... Until the next alien invasion or league of super sized Sioux attack.

This is a kind of spin off of SSR, but if you have no idea what SSR is, you're in luck because it requires no prior knowledge whatsoever! This is basically Super Heroes in the Old West, set in a little outpost town in the middle of a desert that you'd struggle to find on the map. There's not all that much background, Super Heroes are a relatively new occurrence (have been around for about two-three years, maybe? If you want your origin to have been longer ago then that, PM me) and the town has been newly rebuilt after a small alien invasion... Just in time for us to knock it down again, eh? ;)

Basic RPG etiquette applies as far as posting goes. Only I'm gonna be a little bit laxer when it comes to rules and plotting and all that - Just make sure that if you make a character, it feels right and intune with the rest of the world and if you're going to take several characters, make sure you can handle it.

Right, who's in? And is there any questions or anything that needs expanding on? If there's enough interest, we'll see about kickstarting this fragger in a few weeks. :)

[Wesforce]

I'm in!

And I have a character in mind.

So am I right in thinking this will be a far more easygoing RPG? Shorter posts, more relaxed atmosphere, that kind of thing?

[AI]

Yeah, exactly what I had in mind. I'd like to try and run it like the one IK did awhile back, only with less fur and more super powers. :p

[Statalyzer]

I'd like to play. So basically all our main characters have some Super Power? Are we all good guys and NPCs are our enemies, or are some of us good and some of us evil?

[AI]

If people want to run around and cause mischeif they're more than welcome too. :color1:

I'll go more into character creation and all that when I get a profile frame up... At the moment I'm just fishing around for interested parties. But if you don't want a super power, you don't have to have one. It just might help... :p

[Nyerguds]

I am SO in :)

you'll have to wait until after the 2nd of Feb though. I'm kinda tied u in exams until then.

[Anonomuss]

*Expresses Interest in the most elegant, cunning and imaginative way possible*

[AI]

*Expresses Interest in the most elegant, cunning and imaginative way possible*
*Makes mental note to add you to my new MSN*

I left you on the freaking backupaccount when I abandoned it and only just realised recently. :dead:

Should be able to make a serious go of this soon, what with exams finishing up not far from now. :D

[Statalyzer]

Not sure if this will ever happen or not, but in case it does then I claim the ability to speak telepathically before anyone else grabs it.

[AI]

It'll get going, but I'm kinda stuck at the moment as SW Freak is in LA and VO needs to come out of WOW rehab.

[SW Freak]

Reporting in, Aiesatron. LA is fun, but humidity sucks.

Let's go.

Y'know, once everyone's ready.

[VO]

It'll get going, but I'm kinda stuck at the moment as SW Freak is in LA and VO needs to come out of WOW rehab.

I resent that. :p I'm perfectly capable of doing rpg stuff and WoW :p

[Nyerguds]

VO sez: "Hah, I can quit WOW any time I want! In fact, I've done it a few dozen times before!"

:p

[Daishi]

I guess I'll try it out. :)

[AI]

"Hah, I can quit WOC any time I want! In fact, I've done it a few dozen times before!"

Tsk, Nyer! :(

[Desolator12]

Hrm... y'know, I kinda miss the DGNF. I don't come around here much that more. I need something to do...

...I'm in :p

I have a character idea already in mind. I'll run it past you later.

[AI]

Well, what the hell! Let's get a character profile up and get rolling then! :color1:

Name: Your characters name and any aliases, nicknames or super secret idenities they may have.

Age: Doesn't have to be exact, mid-forties for example would be fine.

Appearance: What your character looks like, and the type of stuff they'd usually wear.

Background and Origin: Just a little bit about who they are, where they come from and how they got their extraordinary powers. Doesn't have to be too detailed, although origins for powers should ideally make sense.

Powers: The fun bit! :D Any powers or unique abilities your character may have. Bear in mind that abilities don't make a character, so you don't all need to be Superman meets Billy the Kid. :p

Disadvantages/Weaknesses: And with great power comes great... Disadvantage. Any physical weaknesses, downsides to powers or mental flaws go here.

Gear: Any useful stuff they carry, assuming they carry any at all.

[Daishi]

/Character moved/

[AI]

Dashi, I'll admit to not reading that in full - But I picked up on enough (college, SUVs, superman comics) to realise you may be a wee bit confused. The time period is Old Western (think cowboy films) just with super heroes in them. Kind of like Clint Eastwood meet Christopher Reeves :p Check out normal SSR (which will soon be starting a new chapter, so perfect time to leap in :)) if you want to play a normal super hero.

[SW Freak]

Name: John Henry Jr. Goes by the nickname 'Shiney'

Age: Early twenties

Appearance: Shiney, as may have been gleaned from his "humerous" nickname, is a negroe. He wears his hair cropped short, has an open, honest face that sometimes manages a smile and generally wears cheap workers' clothes, nothing fancy. He's just another face in the crowd.

Background and Origin: "Welp, the story goes that a young John Henry was workin' an awful lonesome stretch o' railroad, a hammerin' away long after all the other ******s and chinks and paddys had gone off to their tents, 'cause he had'ta provide for a big family. So he's workin' hard, and suddenly he hears a voice, y'see? And it says "John Henry." And he ignores it, 'cause when ye work on the railroad all the hot day, ye get to hearin' voices sometimes, so ye learn to ignore the ones that don't call ye 'boy.' But after a while, he hears that self same voice a-callin' him again. "John Henry," it says, and then when he ignores it again, it says "John Henry, why do you wound me?"

"Now this voice that was a-callin' from nowhere was the most beautiful that young Henry had ever heard, so at this juncture he decided that he would take notice, it bein' such a persistent voice. So he lowered his hammer and he rested himself on it and he looked up and said "My name's John Henry, and I ain't never wounded no one." And suddenly there's this woman standin' there, as pretty as you like, but with a face cold as, well, steel. "You have helped those that rip me from the earth, John Henry," she says in her beautiful voice. "Those who took my ancestors and fused them together and drove me into the soil to be trampled on by your great steam-powered beasts." And it was at this point that John Henry noticed the tears on her cheeks, and the ghostly shackles around her wrist that ran into the rails at his feet, as though the girl were chained down 'afore him.

"Now, for a ******, John Henry was a smart man, and he looks her square in the eye and he says "I know who you are. You're the spirit of the very steel I work, ain't'cha? Every bit o' steel there is," he says. And she does nothin' but nod. So John Henry looks at her and thinks for a bit, an' then he says "And it were men who took your ancestors, them being iron and carbon, and stuck 'em all together any which way and made you so befuddled as to not know wheter to be angry or sad." An' again she nods. "And it were men that shackled you then, and made you theirs, and turned you into a slave." Here she gave a little sob, but still stayed silent. "Now, I never did much like the idea of slavery, so what I'm gonna do is, I'm gonna break your bonds. And you can stay, if you like, or you can go, but I'll be honest; I need'cha to finish this stretch of the railway."

"Well that girl, she looks at him and she says, through the tears, "If you let me loose, John Henry, I'll see you dead by my hand." And he says "Maybe you will, and maybe you won't. What I reckon is that you need respect to be able to think straight, and you need freedom to get respect." And afore she can get in another word, he hefts his hammer and brings it around in a great sweep, and the chains shatter, and the force of Steel's joy and fury and all her emotions sends him flying back a dozen meters . When ol' John Henry wakes up, he finds that the spirit he just set free is a-craddlin' his head with a look of love in her eyes. Well, they spent that night together, and then the soul of steel flew off into the night, leavin' just enough of herself behind that men like John Henry could work the rails.

'Course, some say that she returned after a times with a li'l baby boy, one who was human on the outside, but every bit of him was steel inside. But then John Henry wen' and got his heart all bursted, so we'll never know. Rumour is the lad works the rails around the place. But that's just a story."

Powers:

-Soul of Steel: Shiney is unbreakable. So far as he can tell, nothing can hurt him. Knifes have shattered off his skin and boulders have cracked over his head. As such, he can't be stopped, either. While not supernaturally strong, he can simply force things aside by dint of being in the space they should occupy. And he's never once understood the concept of fear.

Disadvantages/Weaknesses:

-Uneducated: Young John never got a proper teaching, past what his fellow railroad workers could tell him.

-Numb: Shiney can't feel a thing. Depressing, and sometimes dangerous, because while hitting him doesn't work, burning him seems to. Sometimes he breaks things because he doesn't know how hard he holds them, too. Those are the times he feels like a real freak.

-Heavy: John is unaturally heavy. While this may count to his favour in a grapple, it could count very much against him if he ever wanted to go swimming; he sinks like a stone. He's also found that it's not a good idea to jump around on anything from a fragile to a sturdy floor, 'cause they just don't make 'em like they used to.

Gear: Few dollars, and street smarts.

[Daishi]

Dashi, I'll admit to not reading that in full - But I picked up on enough (college, SUVs, superman comics) to realise you may be a wee bit confused. The time period is Old Western (think cowboy films) just with super heroes in them. Kind of like Clint Eastwood meet Christopher Reeves :p Check out normal SSR (which will soon be starting a new chapter, so perfect time to leap in :)) if you want to play a normal super hero.

kekekekeke I'll just move my dude over then...

[AI]

Name: Robert James Castro (Jim for short) - Sheriff of Lutown.

Age: Could be anything from a bitter 30 year old to your average, disgruntled 40+ year old.

Appearance: In appearance, Jim manages to make even the most desperate desperados of Lutown look somewhat civilised. He's scruffy, unshaven and dresses like he just got in from a duststorm, although he'd argue that it was all part of his ruggedly handsome mystique. Jim Castro is as physically unremarkable as they come, with short black hair and stubble and brown eyes. Favours browns, dirty creams and reds in clothing, almost never sports his badge of office.

Background and Origin: Nobody quite knows where Disastrous Jim Castro hails from, nor what he did in his life before Lutown. His place of birth, upbringing and past career remain as much a mystery to the inhabitants as the day he arrived - But one thing is for certain, arrive he did. Jim rode up on horseback days after a gang of outlaws had shot former Sheriff Farnoch McAndra dead, taking up office and bringing a brand of law enforcement to the town unlike anything ever seen before. Through a mix of guile, cunning and manipulation, he managed to round up the outlaws threatening people's livelihoods and even convince them to assist him in uncovering a greater threat to the town before his appointment with the gang's expert marksman Sharpe at high noon.

This was all two years ago, however, and the world has changed greatly. Superhero's have reared their ugly heads, and suddenly the humble lawman doesn't have the power or respect that once went hand in hand with the role. Now settled in, Jim has taken up a number of vices and spends more time in the saloon than his office these days, but if you have a problem, if no one else can help and if you can find him - He'll be there. Although after the first few sarky remarks, you may wish he wasn't.

Powers: Jim has nothing aside from the power granted to him by his position, his overbearing personality and ability to talk his way out of anything. Which in most cases, is usually enough.

Disadvantages: Jim isn't faster than a speeding bullet, he can't stop a moving steam locomotive with his killer abs, nor can he piss out a burning building - He's a physically normal in every respect. His rather unique world view may also leave a sour taste in some peoples mouths.

Gear: His gun, which he rarely uses (unusual for a lawman), a box of matches, a few cheap cigars and a bottle of hard liquor.

[Nyerguds]

Right, since most of my characters turn out way too responsible, I made this character a kid that thinks he's an adult :p


Name: Thunder Hawk (usually just called 'Hawk')

Age: 17

Appearance: Thunder Hawk is a rather large Indian youth. Even though his skin is nearly black, his face clearly shows he's of indigenous American, and not African origin. He usually wears Apache clothing, even though he's clearly not Apache.

Background and Origin: Around the age of fourteen, the elders of Hawk's tribe sent him to the top of a mountain, to complete the Ritual of Growth, that would give him his adult name.
However, instead of going to the top of the mountain, the young man wanted to impress the tribe by spending the night at a sanctuary made to calm and please the destructive spirits of nature in the area.
That night, a terrible storm raged over the area, and the next day, the tribe found the sanctuary completely pulverized by lightning. In the middle of the chaos, they found the body of the boy, burnt black.
However, Hawk was not dead. In fact, the blackness of his skin wasn't even burnt. The elders decided that although Hawk had proven himself and deserved his adult name, his recklessness caused him to be possessed by a raging storm spirit which could spell doom over the tribe. He was sent out to learn to control the power within him, or ban the spirit from his body forever.

Since that day, Thunder Hawk wandered around alone, meeting other tribes, following groups of white people, learning new things, and generally minding his own business. Since he picked up the habits of the white man quite easily, he had no trouble surviving around Lutown. He works for the town's blacksmith.

Powers:
-Thunder Hawk can call upon the chaotic powers of nature, ranging from fierce winds to thunderstorms.
-He can shoot lightning bolts from his hands.
-Heat and lightning feed the energy needed to shoot lightning bolts, which means he can't be burnt or electrocuted.

Disadvantages:
-Thunder Hawk has no way of really controlling the chaos of nature he summons. He can't use his powers to calm the elements, or use them for a specific purpose. He is also quite hot-headed, and this sometimes triggers his powers.
-His ability to shoot lightning is not infinite. He needs to be fed by lightning bolts to maintain this ability. At night, he is often found on high places, meditating, summoning storms, and waiting for lightning to recharge him.
-He's not physically stronger or faster than any normal human.
-He seems to be in a mental struggle with the nature spirit that possessed him.

Gear: A tomahawk with a metal head, and the Apache clothes he most probably stripped off a dead man after an Apache raid. He probably has some money too.

[Desolator12]

Tell me if this needs any improvements, please

Names: Ahiga; Ahiga of the Navajo Tribe; The Wanderer; Ma'iitso

Age: Somewhere in his late 20s

Appearance: Ahiga generally wears what he can get his hands on. That being said, he prefers the clothing native to his people, when he can get his repaired or replaced. He stands roughly at 5'10", with his hair a dirty grey color, and his skin a dark tan.

Background and Origin: Ahiga belonged to a tribe of Navajo Indians. Sometime after his coming of age his father, who saw that his son wasn't doing well in the hunts, made a deal with Coyote to help his son to be as ferocious as the bear, as swift as the hawk, and just about every other animalism out there. The return to Coyote was anything the god could desire. Coyote granted this, but Trickster gods rarely do what someone originally means.

The next eve of the crecent moon, odd markings appeared on Ahiga's body, resembling shamanistic ritual paint. However, it would not come off, and the tribe's shaman believed Ahiga to be cursed. To protect the tribe, Ahiga and the shaman agreed that he needed to go. So Ahiga left, never knowing what his father had done. Coyote reveled in this, and was thusly paid in part.

Several nights later, the food he was given by his tribe had been eaten, and Ahiga was hungry. Suddenly the change overtook him, and he changed into the form of a wild cat. He would have been surprised if not for the fact that the rather delicious scent of a Jackrabbit... how did he know that?... assailed his nose. He was off, and after a few minutes, sating his hunger. However, while doing this, he was assailed by a bear, and had to flee from his half-eaten meal.

Since then, Ahiga has managed to control his ability to change. However, every time he does something positive in his life, something negative occurs.

Powers: "Nádleehé Hastiin" - Roughly translated, 'Changing Man'. Ahiga has the ability to change into various animals.

Disadvantages/Weaknesses: The Curse of Maii': Quite literally, the curse of Coyote. Bad luck seems to follow Ahiga wherever he roams, as a sort-of 'tag-along' to his powers.

Uneducated: He's a wanderer, but he can only learn so much from his surroundings.

Gear: A walkingstick and some food.

[Nyerguds]

Heeey, you stole my background story!
Just kidding, lol.

Though the "bad luck" curse seems kinda hard to translate to an RPG IMO...

[SW Freak]

Not at all, methinks, provided Deso is responsible and ensures bad things do occasionally happen, and that Aies makes sure he uses it.

[AI]

And that Daishi isn't playing Deso's character in the first place. :p

[SW Freak]

Hehe, oops.

Uh, I mean, whatever are you talking about, Aies? (ninja edit) :P

[Desolator12]

Heeey, you stole my background story!
Mine is more accurate :p
Those are real Navajo words, although "Changing Man" is spliced together from 'Changing Woman' and 'First Man'

...though apparently there is no such thing as any kind of 'Curse of Coyote'. I had to make that up from what I knew about Trickster Gods (Basically Loki :p ) and some of the mythos around Coyote.

I'm pretty sure that me and AIes can work together to make this work. It basically entails that AIes decided whether something I do has repercussions beyond normal... for example, Ahiga manages to get someone out of a jail, but in the process he's either harmed, gets captured himself and takes the previous person's place, or AIes is nice and he gets out without a hitch :p

Oh, and Nyer, if it counts, I was reading the beginning and thinking 'I'm gonna be a shapeshifting indian', and then I saw you as an indian and I went '****!' :p

Edit: Though I would appreciate it muchly if you didn't kill off my character due to bad luck :shifty:

[AI]

Ahiga manages to get someone out of a jail, but in the process he's either harmed, gets captured himself and takes the previous person's place, or AIes is nice and he gets out without a hitch :p
Or Aies isn't going to be nice and Ahiga will trip, fall and land into a giant, experimental steam powered blender which eats up the entire towns coal supply mincing your character into bitesize chunks! :color1:

[Desolator12]

Hehe

"Ahiga dust. Don't breathe this."

[Anonomuss]

Name: Hoban McGurke

Age: Early-to-Mid Twenties

Appearance:
He is a young man, handsome, but dosn't look like he's suited to being unshaved and long-haired. He has black hair and blue-ish gray eyes. He wears the remnants of what would have been a good suit. The jacket of the suit is missing, replaced by a long-coat, and his tousers support two holsters on either side of the waist. He also wears long-ish tight leather gloves and boots.

Background and Origin:
Hoban was once the son of a wealthy cattle-rancher, in a town not too far from Lutown. He was well-schooled and cared for but always had a longing for the outdoors. As he grew older, his father was given the job of being the bank's public representative, because of his numerous dealings with them. On by one his father was forced to reposses properties for the bank. Those who were without homes grew bitter and resentful, and began to petition other folk in the town to their cause. One day they attacked Hoban's house, along with their sympathetic supporters. Hoban's fater was killed, along with his wife. Hoban, only 16 at the time, watched as they shot them, horrified. He grabbed what money and supplies he could before leaving the house and fleeing the town. He lost most of his money gambling and living beyond his means. As he began to understand the nuances of life, he invested the rest of his money in two six-shooters and ammunition. He's been doing what it takes to live ever since. A year later he accidentally discovered his power, as a bank sent someone to break his legs, because of an overdue loan, but they came off in their hands. Suitably shocked they left leaving him unhurt, but amazed, as he found he still had control over them.
'Some folk say he should have been dead, that's why his body started acting las though he was.'

Powers:
Corpsified-Hoban's body acts as though he was dead, in some respects. He can remove parts of his body, and still have control over them but they simply re-attach. He has no blood, but seems to be maintained by an unearthly life-force.

Schooled-He's literate and has a tactician's mind.

Disadvantages/Weaknesses:
Unpredictable-He dosn't have a massive amount of control over his powers and his arms and legs can sometimes come off unexpectedly.

He also feels pain like a normal person.

Gear: 2 six shooters, a knife and a small amount of mone

[Nyerguds]

Well in my defence, about the accuracy, I actually got some distant family member in the USA who's called Thunder Hawk :p

...not that I ever met the kid, but still :D

And yes, he's a Native North American. Well, partly, of course. Otherwise he couldn't be part of my family.

[Statalyzer]

Name: Martin Gregoire

Age: 30ish.

Appearance: About 5'10", average build, sandy brown hair about shoulder length, short full beard. Usually wears a dark hat and a loose, cool shirt.

Background and Origin: Half American, half French-Canadian, he migrated southward in his mid 20s after his business failed due to his partners questionable practices that they kept hidding from. He's a very welcoming, friendly, easygoing man, and so far the general store that he opened has done well. He's great with animals and hopes to open a livery stable as well if he can save enough up from his store profits.

His main personality strengths are loyalty and compassion. He'd never intentionally desert someone in trouble, be inconsiderate to someone in need, or double-cross anyone. He's also very patient and unlikely to rush into rash behavior. His primarly personality weakness is pride - he tends to think of himself as a really good person and view anyone who hasn't proven themselves to him as suspicious untrustworthy, and is also sometimes a bit of a braggart, so he can come across as arrogant in a conversation despite his friendly demeanor and genuine interest in others' well being.

Somewhere on his trek from Quebec down to the Southwestern USA, he had a dream. A voice was speaking to him from a shapeless void but when he opened his mouth to speak back, no sound could be heard. He had the dream again the next night, and merely thought the words without talking. The Voice responded this time, and when he woke up he realized that sometimes he could hear his own thoughts as if they were whispers. When he realized nobody else could hear them, he tried directing his thoughts towards certain people, and from their reactions he could tell they heard him, although they couldn't identify him as the speaker. The next day he had the dream for the 3rd and final time, and the last thing the Voice from the Void said was "This is your calling."

Powers: Telepathic communication. He can speak to anyone else using thoughts alone, and that person will hear his audible voice in his or her head. He can speak to them from any distance as long as he can think about the person - so he could talk to a random stranger but he'd have to be able to see the person. Any noise his mouth can make, he can transmit with his mind, so he could also drive people up the wall with a constant humming or screaming sound in their ears. He can also hear other people's thoughts, if he is focused on them while they are thinking about him.

Disadvantages/Weaknesses: He can't speak telepathically to anyone he can't specifically think about. For example, he couldn't help a friend by notifying their friend in the next town of something, or talk to "The president of the bank in the next town" since he doesn't actually know who that person is. He can only talk to multiple people if he can think of them all at once individually, not just as a group. Talking out loud to one person and telepathically to someone else would be difficult since it's hard to say one set of words while thinking another set.

Since people don't always think in pure words, and sometimes think in words faster than they could actually speak those same words, his thought-reading abilities are limited. He might hear their thoughts but the words might come too fast for him to really comprehend.

He's neither a very accurate gunman or especially quick on the draw. Also only about average in fistfighting skills, it gives him an advantage in a fight if he can focus enough to deduce from their thoughts what they plan on doing, or if he can distract them with voices or noises in their head.

Gear: Does always carry a gun. Wears steel-toed boots. Keeps a fair amount of money from his business on his person (being suspicious of banks), in a hidden pocket he crafted on the inside of the hip of his trousers (being suspicious of any potential pickpockets).

[VO]

Profile coming soon. Expect Leyton Chasey, Railman/Priest, depending on which I think is cooler at the time.

[AI]

Just to make clear: The new topic posted is not the start of this RPG - I'll get to work on this one asap. No problems with any characters thus far though :color1:

[Desolator12]

Just to make clear: The new topic posted is not the start of this RPG - I'll get to work on this one asap. No problems with any characters thus far though :color1:
What gave that away AIes? Buttons on the Lift? Staring at a TV Screen? You mean they didn't have those back in the wild (wikki) wild west?

[Nyerguds]

Background and Origin: Half American, half French-Canadian

Small remark... I think in that time, "American" or "French-canadian" didn't count as origin yet. It's kinda pointless if you've only got a few genenrations of colonists.

[AI]

American did - This is the time of westward expansion afterall, and the Ammurikans are all pretty nice and settled over in the east (despite just going into/fighting/just coming out of the civil war... Haven't decided yet. x.x) but they didn't call the North 'The Union' for nothing, y'know.

[Statalyzer]

His mother was from the United States. His father lived in Canada and was of French heritage (Canada was mostly British at this point, but not completely).