Ultimate One Universe RPG: OOC Thread

[Carnage27]

Character Name: Logan

Alignment (Hero, Villain, Walking the Line): Hero

Character Speech Color and Font (actually say what it is, like Blue Comic Sans): Georgia Bold Crimson

Powers and Abilities: Logan is a mutant with incredibly powerful healing factor, as well as animal senses. Logan's healing factor has retarded his aging. So much so that even at almost 200 years old he physically looks like he's only in his 50s. The healing allows him to recover from almost every known injury. He also has advanced hearing, smell, sight, and taste due to his animal nature. Logan also has claws that extend from his hands.

Logan's bones were also coated with the impenetrable metal adamantium, rendering him basically invincible.

Character Origin/Backstory: The man known as Logan was born James Howlett in the Canadian Rockies in the early 1800s to a fairly well off family. His father and mother loved him, though his older brother Victor was jealous of the new baby. When baby Logan became boy Logan and still received all the attention, something snapped in young Victor, and he went after James.

On that day, both of their mutant powers emerged, and Victor's ferocious nature almost overwhelmed James, and in the battle, both their mother and father were killed. At the sight of their bodies, James's claws emerged, and he was able to fight off his older brother, who ran, laughing at what he had done.

From there he adopted the name Logan and became a street rat, drifting south into the United States of America, becoming a cowboy, and eventually fighting for the Union in the America Civil War, because he believed no people should be in chains.

From there, Logan continued his violent ways, believing he was an animal and animals were born to fight.

He traveled the world learning every conceivable way to fight, from Japan to Africa. He fought in World War I, World War II, and Korea earning the nickname Wolverine and before being approached by a man saying he knew what Logan was, and he was with the Government. He wanted to recruit Logan to a team that would help the burgeoning mutant population.

Logan was taken to the X-Force, a task force designed to locate and protect mutants while also eliminating anti-mutant threats. In order to become stronger, X-Force gives Logan adamantium to coat his bones.

Logan and his team took out many a target. Compounds of anti-mutant terrorists, leaders of aggressive anti-mutant states, as well as putting mutants in protective custody.

That is until one of the team found out the truth. They were really part of the Weapon X program, and were being send to destroy the program's enemies, and round up mutants. This sent the team into a rage, and they destroyed the facility, freeing any mutants left.

Ashamed and broken, the team split up, and Logan went into seclusion, acting as a protector of the weak everywhere he went. He fought for mutant kind, the poor, and the oppressed.

But now it's been three years since Logan has popped his claws, after saving the small Tibetan town he now lives in from an attack by a warlord. He lives in peace among the monks, protecting them from a future attack.

But Logan's past is about to catch up with him, and mutant kind will need him once again.

What Makes This Version "Ultimate": Logan is tired of conflict. He's not the normal berserker we're used to seeing, and instead only fights when he's called to action by his sense of morals. Also, he's more of an old man in this reality. His healing factor doesn't retard aging as much as his 616 counter part. Also, no amnesia. He knows everything he's done in his life.

I also have some of his enemies and adventures from his exile to tell.

What can you bring to the RPG: A new twist on a classic character, bub.

Provide a short sample post as your desired character, in three paragraphs or more:

I push my horse to the max, speeding across the small plane, before reaching the mountain which houses my small village. The storm is approaching quickly, and I need to warn them to batten down the hatches. The old girl speeds up, knowing what our situation is.

The climb up takes slower, as it always does. The path is narrow, and one wrong step from her will send us both tumbling down, and only one of us is walking away from that. Luckily, she knows the path better than I do.

We reach the top quick enough, and I tell the village elder what's on the way. And he in return, he tells me I have a visitor. Leading me into the village common house, I'm greeted by the face of someone I haven't seen in decades.



"Hello, Logan."

"Wraith. What do you want?"

[Byrd Man]

Alright, it's been 48 hours. With no competition,

Originally Posted by Johnny Blaze

Character Name: Peter Parker, soon-to-be the Spectacular Spider-Man

Alignment (Hero, Villain, Walking the Line): Hero

Character Speech Font and Color: Red, georgia, for Peter, same and bolded for Spider-Man

Powers and Abilities: When he becomes Spider-Man, Peter will be able to cling to, and walk across, most surfaces, even in adverse conditions. Peter has superhuman strength (10 ton range), extremely heightened agility (able to dodge a spray of bullets), and natural web-glands in his wrists that can shoot an extremely strong and durable, and sticky, "spider's web."
Peter also will gain some heightened senses from the transformation, such as enhanced vision and sense of hearing.

His most precious gift though is his precognitive early warning, "Spider-Sense", that warns him of impending danger. Coupled with his agility and other heightened abilities, Peter is able to avoid most attacks thanks to his Spider-Sense.

Character Origin/Backstory: Peter Parker grew up in the care of mother, Mary, and father, Richard. His father was a famous geneticist and worked for the at-the-time fledgling company, OsCorp and rarely was hope for Peter and his mother. Peter barely remembers his father, save for the one night he came home, afraid.
Peter was eleven when his father and mother took him to live with his Aunt May and Uncle Ben. His parents told him they would only be gone for a little while, and would be back for him soon.
Peter never saw them again.

To their credit, Ben and May Parker took care of Peter as though he was their own, and instilled a good set of morals, and a hard work ethic in Peter. Peter began showing he possessed a gifted mind in science, and received straight "A"s at Mid-Town High in New York. He was thankful to graduate and leave, as he would finally be rid of the constant bullying from the resident king jock, Flash Thompson.
But high school was not all bad to him, as he made some close friends in Harry Osborn and Mary Jane Watson. And Mid-Town is where he met his current girlfriend of five years, Gwen Stacy.

With his aptitude for science, Peter was given a choice of the most prestigious schools of the country. Eventually Peter chose to attend Metropolis University, and quickly into his freshman year it became apparent that he had a gift for genetics, much like his father did. Peter excelled at MU, graduating in the top percent of his class at the early age of twenty-two.

After graduating from MU, Peter was approached almost immediately with a job offer from OsCorp. Peter immediately became the personal assistant to the brilliant Professor Anthony Ivo in OsCorp's gene manipulation laboratory. Peter learned under Ivo for two years, and eventually took over the lab when the Professor was transferred to another special project.

It was also at OsCorp where Peter met a similar brilliant mind in a man only a few years his elder, one Otto Octavius. Otto, a genius in the field of alternative energies and robotics, and Peter became friends during Parker's years at OsCorp.
The two have a friendly rivalry going on between them, seeing who can come up with a breakthrough in their experiments first and gain the most funding for their projects.

Now twenty-five years of age, Peter Parker has been running the genetics lab at OsCorp for a year, and has been working on a gene splicing tech that could revolutionize medical science. But Peter has been facing setbacks, and getting constant pressure from the CEO of OsCorp, Norman Osborn.
Peter is facing an uncertain future if he is unable to deliver, but thankfully he has a wonderful family and friends to help see him through these frustrating times.
Peter lives in a spacious apartment in Queens with his girlfriend, Gwen, who is an up-and-coming photographer for the Daily Bugle.

What Makes This Version "Ultimate": This Peter is starting out as Spidey much older than the other versions. Also, this Peter is embracing his inner geek fully, becoming a well-respected scientist and expert in the field of genetics.
He has been dating Gwen for a little over five years now, and Ms. Stacy is the photographer for the Daily Bugle, not Peter. Peter absolutely sucks with a camera.
Oh, and Uncle Ben isn't dead.

What can you bring to the RPG: Experience, and my favorite hero who helped begin my love for comics.

Sample Post (provide a short post of at least 3 paragraphs and 1 line of dialogue for your character):

"That was a great meal, Aunt May", Peter grinned as he leaned back in his chair, wiping his mouth with the napkin.

"Yes, thank you, Mrs. Parker. As always, it was fantastic."

"Please, Gwen, like I've said a thousand times, call me May", Aunt May smiled as she chidded Gwen Stacy.
"No need for formalities here, my dear. You're among family."

"So, Peter, how's work at the 'Evil Empire' going?"

"Excellent, Uncle Ben", Peter replied, ignoring the dig at OsCorp.
"We're really close to a break through on the project...I can feel it."

"And this project is..."

"Ah, ah, ah", Peter mockingly waved his finger at his Uncle.
"You've been asking me that for over a year now. And you know if told you, I'd have to kill you", Peter smirked.

"Smartass."

"You did always did say not to be a dumbass, right?"

Ben Parker laughed loudly from his gut.
"Hahaha! I did, but I don't remember using that particular phrasing. I'm glad that you're close to something, Peter, just..."

The smile on Uncle Ben's face faded away, replaced by a serious look, almost a hint of fear.
"Just be careful. People like Norman Osborn...all they care about is their bottom line. They don't give a damn about who they hurt along the way, so long as they can profit from it."

"Don't worry, Uncle Ben", Peter smiled, getting up from the table and helping Aunt May clear the dishes, "you all raised me better than that."

"Besides...", Peter mockingly winced as he stretched his neck and rubbed his shoulder with his hand,
"I got myself a gorgeous blond to help keep me grounded, and who also gives the best back messages...hint-hint."

Gwen just smirked, rolled her eyes, and shook her head, "You see what I have to put up with?"

I hereby dub JBizzle APPROVED!

[Johnny Blaze]

Huzzah! Many thanks, sir!

Originally Posted by Byrd Man

Ultimate One Universe Characters Application

Character Name: Charles Xavier

Alignment (Hero, Villain, Walking the Line): Hero

Character Speech Font and Color: Bold Arial and Gray

Powers and Abilities: Charles is a mutant with the power of telepathy. Charles is perhaps the world's strongest telepath. In addition to his telepathic powers, Charles is also a gifted geneticist, teacher and an astute chess player.

Character Origin/Backstory:
Charles Xavier was born in England in 1982, to a nurse and a wealthy nuclear physicist. When he was eight, Charles moved with his parents to upstate New York, living in a mansion in Westchester County.

Charles was thirteen was when he started hearing voices. Voices all around him voices that made him scream in terror. His parents had him briefly committed. It was during his time at the mental hospital that he began to realize what the voices were. They were thoughts. Charles was hearing the thoughts of everyone around him. In a padded cell, his arms bound together, he taught himself to block those voices out, use his gift to turn his telepathy on and off at will. After a few months, he was released back into the care of his mother and father.

Charles went to Harvard and then Oxford where he studied genetics. It was there that he discovered the cause of his telepathy. Charles had a mutation in his genes. From studying, he discovered that he wasn't the only one with said mutations. At Oxford, he found records of Holocaust victims the Nazis had operated on. These people had genetic structures similar to them. He tracked down a descendant of one of the Holocaust victims in Poland. A man named Erik Lensherr. Charles discovered that Erik was a mutant as well. He could control and distort magnetic energies. In Erik, Charles discovered a deep seated anger at being a Jewish man who had been victimized in the past by anti-semitic people. Together, the two men bonded on their common background as mutants and decided they would work together to find more mutants.

With Erik's help, Charles built a device that could amplify his psychic powers a thousand fold. He could reach out across the globe and touch every mind. With the device, he could identify mutants and where they were located. The device was built and dubbed Cerebro, the Spanish word for brain.

As they built Cerebro, Charles began noticing a disturbing trend with Erik. Whereas Charles wished to find mutants and educate them on their abilities, Erik was interested in cultivating an army. Finally, Cerebro was ready. Charles plugged in and his mind went out across the world. He could see millions of mutants in every country, millions of men, women, boys, and girls who were frightened and scared of what they were.

While Charles was in Cerebro, Erik began to whisper into his ear. He asked Charles to attempt to go into the minds of the humans. Make them suffer, make them bleed. Speed the progress of nature. Wipe Homo Sapien off the map to make way for Homo Superior. Charles refused and Erik attacked him while in Cerebro. The physic back lash from the fight caused the entire planet to black out for thirty seconds. Charles and Erik fought, Charles entering his mind just moments before he blacked out.

When Charles came to, he was in a hospital with government agents watching his every move. They had took notice of the global black out and tracked him down. Erik was in custody elsewhere, paralyzed from the waist down. During their fight, Charles had accidentally used his abilities portion of the brain that controlled walking. While in government custody, he heard that Erik had managed to use his powers escape.

Charles, suffering guilt over what he had done to his friend and the rest of humanity, did not attempt to argue or protest as the government forced him to work on the emerging race of mutants. After repairing Cerebro, Charles used the device again under armed guard and reached out to find five people he could use and they were recruited. On the island of Utopia off the coast of San Francisco, Charles trains the five young people to be agents of the government.

His students are:
16 year old Scott Summer
16 year old Jean Grey
18 year old Henry "Hank" McCoy
15 year old Jefferson Pierce
17 year old Rex Mason

Together, the five of them are the students of Xavier. His first class in the upcoming defense of humanity against the very mutants he wished to help.

What Makes This Version "Ultimate":
For starters, Xavier can walk and he actually hair. In addition to that, Charles and his students are hesitantly working for the government at the start of the game. Xavier is also battling the dark feelings Erik woke in him, and doing his best to atone for damage he did to his former friend.

What can you bring to the RPG: Decent RPer, activity, and a commitment to do right by the men of X.

Sample Post (provide a short post of at least 3 paragraphs and 1 line of dialogue for your character):

Utopia
San Francisco

Charles sat cross-legged across from Jean on the floor. They were in her room, a concrete block was between them. Posters of pop stars adorned the pink walls of Jean's room. She had pictures on shelves of her and her fellow "students" here at Utopia. While there were candid photos of all her friends, there were no pictures of family. Charles knew why.

~Focus, Jean,~ Charles said telepathically.

The girl crinkled her nose and closed her eyes. The brick began to levitate off the floor. Charles went into her mind and began his psychic assault. Xavier felt a mental backlash from Jean as the brick dropped to the floor.

~I can't do it,~ she said, her eyes snapping open. ~I just can't focus and stop you from attacking my mind.~

~You can if you focus,~ Charles said. Then, giving her a slight smile, added ~Instead of thinking about how Scott smiled at you earlier today...~

Jean's face turned the color of her hair. She threw her hands up in the air and narrowed her eyes at Xavier

"Hey!" She said out loud. "You said you wouldn't pry into our memories."

"No prying required," he chided "It's so much on the surface of your thoughts that all I need to do is scratch the surface of your mind to see it. You're thinking about that and not focusing."

Jean rubbed her forehead and sighed. "It's exhausting, Professor. It really is."

Charles nodded and stroked his chin before smiling. "Since the stick isn't working, perhaps we should try the carrot. You levitate this block across the room while I poke holes in your mental defense. Pull it off, I will reassign lab partners in chemistry. Rex will be partners with Hank, and you will be partners with Scott. Deal?"

Jean looked at her instructor and arched an eyebrow in response to his offer. "Hmm... Fine. Deal."

Jean closed her eyes again and began to concentrate on levitating the cinder block. Once it was in a few feet in the air, Charles began to attack her mind with psychic blasts. He flinched slightly as he felt his attacks be knocked back by Jean's barriers. He opened his eyes as the concrete block fell on to the bed across the room.

"Alright," Jean said, opening her eyes and smirking. "It'll be good to have a new lab partner. Rex keeps sucking in the gas from the bunsen burner and belching it out like fire. That's why I want a new partner."

"Right," Xavier said with a slow nod. "That's it entirely, I'm sure."

Originally Posted by Batman

Wonder Woman app forthcoming, just need to finish the sample. In the meantime...

Ultimate One Universe Characters Application

Character Name: Donald Blake

Alignment (Hero, Villain, Walking the Line): Hero

Character Speech Font and Color: Royal Blue Verdana

Powers and Abilities: None at the moment. Blake is a gifted surgeon in training, specializing in neurology.

Character Origin/Backstory: Growing up in Louisiana, Donald Blake has led what some would consider a very curious life. At only 13 years old, Blake found himself on his own after fleeing his childhood home and an abusive father that plagued him for years. But despite overwhelming odds, Blake survived his first few years as an adolescent drifter, garnering a number of odd jobs to save up enough money to make a crude living on. He eventually settled into an apartment in Manhattan, living a modest existence as a volunteer social worker. It wasn't until he turned 21 that Blake's life went progressively downhill once again. Arrested on a few DUI's after developing a drinking problem, he was given the ultimate wakeup call when a car accident spurned on by his innebrieation rendered him a cripple - the accident had severed off his right leg. Nursed back to health by a young surgeon named Jane Foster, Blake was forced to live with the life-changing injury and soon began walking on a prosthetic, dedicating himself to sobriety. After a brief affair between him and Foster, the two eventually parted ways, only rediscovering eachother three years later at the Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, where she was teaching as Blake sought medicine as a potential career.

Several months into his enrollment, Blake began having recurring dreams of something he has never been familiar with - a great, ancient battle. Warriors caught in vicious bloodshed. Flashes of light culminating in monstrous creatures, the likes of which he has never seen, and doubts anyone ever has. And perhaps most prominently of all, a loud succession of thunder echoing across the snowy, death-ridden terrain.

As Blake tries desperately to interpret these dreams, even going as far as to regularly visit a psychiatrist, what little discoveries he finds does little to comfort him or shed light on why he'd be having such memories. All that he knows is that during these nightmares, there is a brief glimpse of one woman walking through the rainbow clouds above the battlefield. A woman that bears a striking resemblance to a woman in his class, similarly going through a lifechanging ordeal of her own.

Her name is Diana Prince.

What Makes This Version "Ultimate": For one, he's not technically a doctor, at least not yet. There's another pretty major faction of his life that I've left out in the description, and you can probably guess what that is, but I actually want to take the slower approach to having Blake discover what his dreams really mean and how he can bring life to them. There'll be some other changes here and there, such as the fact that he's actually an amputee rather than just being partially disabled, but I think the biggest change is just how intertwined into Diana's story that he is. I'm actually going to be treating him as a supporting character to her journey for a little while, helping her reach her potential as Wonder Woman before I get to... well, his own little transformation.

What can you bring to the RPG: Since I plan to treat this as an extension of Wonder Woman for awhile, I shouldn't have problems with posting regularly or using his appearances wisely. I mostly wrote up the app to avoid sticking any potential player in a corner by being slave to my story. That, and I actually have always been partially intrigued at the prospect of playing his alter-ego...

Sample Post (provide a short post of at least 3 paragraphs and 1 line of dialogue for your character):

"Attention, the Museum will be closing in fifteen minutes. If you're still browsing any of the exhibits, please locate the nearest exit as soon as possible. Thank you, and have a nice day."

I grimace at the announcement over the intercom. Just as I was beginning to learn something, they decide to shut the doors on me. Pretty typical of my luck, I guess I shouldn't be surprised. With a sigh under my breath, I grab the crutch laying off to my side and stick my arm through it, using it to lift me off of the bench in the middle of the hall. Flustered, I check my watch, hoping for some better news. And being equally as disappointed.

"Damn."

Knew I'd stay here way longer than intended. Forgot to cancel my appointment with Dr. Quinzell. Now I'm just gonna have to pay extra. I tell myself that it'll be worth it just to hear her tell me how crazy I am, after I start to relay some of the dreams, but the sting I already feel in my checkbook doesn't really hurt any less. Heh. Guess there's a price to be sane.

Not that I really know I'm going insane. That's just my own little personal diagnosis. These paintings have actually really helped me begin to understand what I've been seeing in my head. Like the one that I begin to pass on my way out, the Nordic one. "The downfall of the Æsir". I saw glimpses of that in my head whenever I started having the nightmares, and I know I've never seen this painting before. There was another one above the next hall, too, that I actually wound up staring at for nearly an hour. "The World Tree And Fall of The Gods". An expressionist depiction of Ragnarök, the big battle that led to the fall of Norse mythology. Or would lead.

Hell, maybe my mind's been telling me to pursue being a mythology buff all along. That'd explain why I'm gonna make such a lousy doctor. That, and I'm beginning to spend more time in museums like this than actually study.

Speaking of which. Better go and hail a cab before the night rush hits. I'm due for a presentation tommorrow in class, and I haven't so much as cracked open a book in the last week.

"Need any help, sir?"

I pause, and turn to face a frail looking elderly janitor, leaning over a broom. Appreciative of the gesture, I shake my head and wave off the assertion.

"I'm fine, thanks. Just gotta wade through the crowd."

He looks at me, curiously.

"If ya don't mind my askin'... what crowd?"

I go to indicate the crowd of people that were just at the other end of the hall, but by the time I look back, everyone in the museum's gone. Just me and the janitor. Lights are already shut off and everything. I raise an eyebrow, checking my watch. They said fifteen minutes, right?

"Huh. I'll be. Guess I was standing here longer than I thought."

The janitor smiles. "It happens. Take care."

Giving him a nod in response, I begin to slowly make my way out. But I'm stopped whenever he speaks up again, staring up at the same paintings that I was looking at before.

"This all really went down, y'know."

I stop in place and turn, looking over my shoulder. "Excuse me?"

He indicates the paintings.

"Long time ago. Up in the clouds. Allfather got mighty pissed at a few of the factions, so he declared war on the Nine realms."

Look at my watch again, just to make sure I really am allowed to still be here. Funny enough, my watch just stopped. Looking back up at the janitor, I catch the tail end of what he's saying and realize that it's inaccurate.

"Actually, the myth is that nobody really knows who started Ragnarök. There are references to Jotunheimr and the sons of Mim, and a serpent, but I haven't read anything about an Allfather."

The man turns to me with striking eyes. Eyes that I never really noticed were a vivid, almost glowing green until now. The way he speaks is with a reverence that takes me off guard, nearly causing me to double over.

"It's no myth. And y'can be sure that the Allfather was responsible. Odin's temper was legendary."

I chuckle, mostly to play off the nervousness. Is this guy for real?

"Right. Well, I can agree with that part, at least. I wouldn't have wanted to be any of the guy's sons, with the way one ended up."

He seems to sneer at this, as if offended. And I go back to being confused. What the hell did I say to get that kind of response?

"Listen, uh... it's getting late. I wouldn't want them to shut the doors on me."

Subsiding his apparent displeasure, wherever that came from, he nods and silently begins shuffling his broom. I don't even give a second's thought to turning around and forgetting to tell him goodbye, because frankly, I just want to get out of here. I'm still startled by the way that he was speaking about the Norse stuff. It was... weird. Like he was an expert or something, or took it way too seriously.

Well, then again. Who am I to talk, lately?

As I cross into the hall, I take another glance back at the odd janitor. Only to find that he's disappeared aswell, provoking me to carry on faster, adding my eagerness to get out of here. Whatever just happened over the last few minutes was way too creepy for me to want to try and comprehend, and I have bigger problems on my plate. I'm just glad I don't have to keep talking to the old man.

"Whoah!"

I sidestep a collision with a stone maquette, sitting outside of the main entrance. For a moment, it captivates me for reasons I can't even begin to explain. Then I start to realize it's because I didn't notice it here before. I mean, I know it's crazy to think, but I honestly begin to wonder if it actually even was here when I arrived. Taking a final look, I compose myself and limp out of the museum entirely, putting my thoughts and discomfort to rest in the search of a cab willing to drive me back to my apartment.



"Weird..."

And now it's my turn...Double Approved!

[Batman]

Originally Posted by Johnny Blaze

Character Name: William Mathews, Thanos

Alignment (Hero, Villain, Walking the Line): Villain

Character Speech Font and Color: Just bold for William, but impact for Thanos

Powers and Abilities: As William, he has no powers. He is a good fighter with no understanding for the concept of a fair.
As Thanos, he possess the following (taken from the Marvel Wiki)
Thanos possesses the superhuman strength, endurance, reflexes, and agility. His skin in nearly invulnerable, particularly against heat, cold, electricity, radiation, toxins, aging, and disease, and he can survive indefinitely without food or water. His mind is also invulnerable to most forms of psychic attack, and can project a psionic blast of energy as well as blasts of plasma/cosmic energy from his eyes and hands.
Thanos is a genius strategist, adept in sciences far beyond Earth technology, and possesses some mystical knowledge.

Character Origin/Backstory: William Mathews grew up in a broken home in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. His father was the quintessential abusive drunk and his mother an uncaring whore and a junkie. Mathews grew up a problem child, getting into fights and expelled from multiple schools. With no guidance at home, young William turned to different role models, criminals.

Working his way in and out of jail his entire life, Mathews was seemingly headed for a life behind bars. Unfortunately that end was cut short on a balmy August night when William participated in a bank job and seemingly snapped, killing two civilians, his three partners in the crime, and three cops before finally being taken in alive.

William received the death penalty after a short trail, and was pushed through the system quickly to be facing the electric chair in December. Before a small group of people, William Mathews was killed by electrocution in the evening of December 31st, 2011.

On Friday, January 13th, 2012, William Mathews opened his eyes to the bright lights of Los Angeles, disoriented and frightened. He knew what had happened to him, but the memories were...blurry. Almost like they happened many years ago. But one thing was clear. William remembered being electrocuted and dying.
So how in the hell is he standing here now, alive, and on the other side of the country?

With nothing more than just the ragged clothes he had on, Mathews has set out into LA to try and discover the answers to his burning questions....

What Makes This Version "Ultimate": This version of Thanos is the avatar of Death that has been around since Life and Death began, and has no connection to the Titans or Eternals. Thanos is a powerful sentient force of destruction that possesses mortals deemed worthy of Death's blessing. Every one-thousand years a Thanos emerges, with the purpose to kill Life's avatar and send the universe to it's Mistress' cold embrace.
I got the idea from reading the Thanos Imperative and Carnage's Annihilation Wave story in the OE game.

What can you bring to the RPG: Experience and a horrible **** of a villain.

Sample Post (provide a short post of at least 3 paragraphs and 1 line of dialogue for your character):
The sky burned and fell to the Earth. Mountaintops blew apart, scattering debris for hundreds of miles, as magma erupted from within them. Seas, lakes, and rivers began to grow hotter and hotter, slowly killing the animals living in them.

The Tyrannosaur bellowed as the trees shriveled around it. Suddenly, a giant torrent of bright energy engulfed the "King of the Dinosaurs" and wiped it from existence. The large purple being walked towards the dark scorch mark where the animal had once stood in defiance.

"Stupid creature", the humanoid sneered, cosmic fire still streaming from his eyes.
"You resistance is foolish. For I send you to a better place...to my Mistress' loving embrace."

The being casually walked the landscape as the world went to ruin around him. He was Thanos, the "living" avatar of Death, and he was as old as time itself. Thanos smiled and inhaled deeply from his nostrils, enjoying the sweet scent of destruction and doom.
He lifted his right hand and loosed an energy blast at a panicking heard of hadrosaurs, turning them to ash. Thanos walked through the dinosaur remains as the ashes blew away into the hot, howling wind.
Thanos sighed and smiled, "Ah...I do so love a good extinction event."

[Byrd Man]

You deleted the double approvage, MB? Aww. I already had your reward ready...

Spoiler!!! Click to Read!:

[Batman]

Also, I swear I'm gonna have that Wonder Woman app up eventually.

[Batman]

Originally Posted by Optikal

Character Name: Blastaar

Alignment (Hero, Villain, Walking the Line): Villain

Character Speech Font and Color: Arial Black

Powers and Abilities: Blastaar has superhuman strength, endurance, and durability. He is able to lift approximately 50 tons, and is incredibly resistant to injury; conventional weapons and even ballistic missiles could have no effect on him. His superhuman constitution can withstand extreme variations in temperature and pressure. He is virtually tireless. He can live without nourishment for several weeks and survive in the vacuum of space by inducing himself into a state of hibernation.

He can project blasts of highly concussive kinetic force from his hands. He can channel the same concussive force to give him flight by propelling himself through the air like a rocket, and can maintain this thrust almost indefinitely. This self propelled flight can reach escape velocity. His energy blasts can temporarily disrupt the molecular integrity of the Eternals.

He is also highly trained in the arts of warfare and has access to advanced technology from his home world such as starships and powerful plasma-based weapons. Most often, however, he only uses his powers without augmentation.

-ComicVine

Character Origin/Backstory: The King of Baluur, the greatest power in the Negative Zone held a trusted council of mystics, seers and scientists. The Being known as Blastaar was the head of the Science Council..

It was claimed by Blastaar that his studies had revealed that the Negative Zone was devouring itself and would destroy all of existence within the universe. However, this proclamation was lambasted by the rest of the Kings Council and Blastaar was made a laughing stock. Finding himself with no one heeding his warning he sought out the Tyannans, the mortal enemies of the Baluurians.

They chose to secretly create a Being strong and powerful enough to save the Negative Zone from its own destruction. With no-one else willing, Blastaar chose to experiment upon himself in order to break his own prophecy and become the saviour of the universe. However, before their plans could be completed, the Baluurians learned of Blastaars defection and destroyed his work, leaving the young man as an unfinished experiment.

Under the charge of conspiring with the enemy and the greater charge of treason, Blastaar and his wife, Nyglar was exiled from Baluur and forced to live on an uncivilized planet in the outer rim of the Negative Zone. Within days, he had already come close to a brutal and gruesome end at the hands of the warring savages that inhabited the planet. Nyglar was taken captive and sacrificed in order to break the warrior. However, fuelled by pain and rage, he managed to survive. Slowly, he discovered that his efforts to change himself into a higher Being had not been entirely in vain. He had power, great power that lifted him above the savages and even above his own people. For centuries he toiled and fought and conquered until eventually the savages were united under his iron fist.

But he found himself not content, the knowledge of the universe itself collapsing could not be ignored. And now he had a people under his own rule that needed saving. He turned his sights back to Baluur and the advanced technology that resided there and knew that his course had been set.

Blastaar took his armies to his homeworld and though the war was long and brutal, he emerged from the carnage victorious, looking out from the steps of the Throne Palace as General Blastaar, Lord of Baluur.

What Makes This Version "Ultimate": It's a complete reboot of the character.

What can you bring to the RPG: Posts.

Sample Post (provide a short post of at least 3 paragraphs and 1 line of dialogue for your character):

The sun had barely rose above the dark red cliffs of the Ask'lo, a planet of extreme natural beauty in the Baluurian Empire. Blastaar stood alone, watching out over the lapping shores hundreds of feet below where he stood. Once he had been an outcast, a laughing stock amongst his own kind. Now though, he was their ruler, a hero of his people. Not all people had been so welcoming though and various resistance groups had risen up to overthrow the new King. The Empire was no less at war with the crown upon his head than it was before his bloody and violent ascension.

Behind him, footsteps fell in a fashion that Blastaar recognised instantly as militaristic. He turned and regarded the four men in front of him. Two to each side were dressed in the typical Baluurian soldier garb. The two in the center though were different, dressed in robes typical of clerics and politicians.

“We have searched long and hard for you, General”. The larger of the two clerics stated.

“Well you succeeded in finding me” Blastaar responded just as icily.

“We bear grave news, My Lord” the smaller added in. “The Empire is fractured and at war. The senate has done its best to hold the shattered pieces of our people together, but ever since the home-world was taken, it has been a terrible struggle”.

Blastaar regarded the two men with no show of emotion. “You have come a long way in order to tell me facts which I already know. Your journey is wasted and you are disturbing my peace. Leave me be”.

The King turned back to the sea, not paying attention to the quartet standing once more behind him.

“We are at war General, It is not just the Rebellion though, others have joined”.

“The empire needs your leadership”.

He turned back to them, fire sparkling in his dark eyes. “Who?”

“We don't know. They came upon us like a swarm and have been demolishing our forces. We need your skills, General. Our forces need someone to lead them”.

Blastaar stepped to the men and walked past them, heading back down the slope from the cliff face to his dwelling at the foot of the hill. “We walk. You talk. Tell me everything, leave no detail uncovered and we shall give those thirsty for blood all they desire and more”.

Originally Posted by Byrd Man

You deleted the double approvage, MB? Aww. I already had your reward ready...

Spoiler!!! Click to Read!:

Dammit, first you and EB's avvy finally convert me aboard the Allison Brie-is-hot bandwagon, now you use her to taunt me. Where will your treachory end?!

[Byrd Man]

Blastaar was already approved by JB!

Surprise, mutha****a!

[Batman]

Originally Posted by Carnage27

Character Name: Bruce Wayne/The Batman

Alignment (Hero, Villain, Walking the Line): Hero

Character Speech Font and Color: Trebuchet MS for Bruce, Bold for Batman

Powers and Abilities: Bruce has no powers of his own, but through almost 15 years of training he has made his body into a living weapon. He is a master in almost all known forms of combat, both armed and unarmed, though he refuses to use firearms due to his parent’s murder.

Bruce is also a deductive genius, and is proficient in physics, materials, chemistry, and engineering, spending his time not training his body training his mind.

Character Origin/Backstory: Bruce Wayne was born with the proverbial silver spoon in his mouth, born to Thomas and Martha Wayne, owners of Wayne Enterprises. They were one of the richest familes in the world, and the company was one of the leaders in all forms of technology, medicine, and agriculture.

Bruce was a happy child that was instructed by the family butler, Alfred Pennyworth. He yearned to go to regular school with other children, but his parents insisted on keeping him out of the public eye as much as possible. They believed it would keep him as safe as possible, due to Gotham being an incredibly dangerous city.

Bruce had few friends during his childhood, but one was Harvey Dent, the neighbor’s child. Dent and Bruce were inseparable, and said they would always be best friends. The two also made friends with the Dents’ housekeeper’s daughter, Selina Kyle.

But on one trip to the opening of a theater which the Waynes were invited to, Bruce was frightened by the show, and ran, exiting into an alley. When his parents went to retrieve him, the three were confronted by a hitman, who shot and killed Martha and Thomas in cold blood in front of Bruce. He then turned his weapon on the young boy, before Alfred emerged from the theater and fired on the assassin, driving him off.

Pennyworth then collected the boy, telling him a corporate enemy of his parents was most likely responsible for their deaths, and that he would be the next target. Alfred revealed to Bruce that he was much more than a butler. He had fought with his father overseas, and was private security hired by Thomas long ago. They both had come up with a plan in case the elder Waynes were killed. Bruce and Alfred would flee the country and go into hiding, living on stores of cash hidden in safe houses around the world, due to him most likely being the next target.

Bruce fled with Alfred, both adopting false identities set up long ago. When they did, Roman Sionis and Roland Daggett snatched up the parts of Wayne Enterprises, believing Bruce to be dead as well. Wayne was dissolved, save for a small engineering arm that was bought out by Lucius Fox, then a member of the Wayne Board.

Bruce didn’t return to the States save for one occurrence on his 15th birthday, when he visited his parents’ mausoleum to finally pay his respects to his parents.

Before heading to the crypt, Bruce travelled the city, seeing how much worse things had gotten since he left. Organized crime now ran rampant, and most citizens lived in fear of what could come next.

Entering the cemetery and climbing down the stairs into the labyrinth below, where the hundreds of years of Wayne descendants dating back to the beginning of Gotham were put to rest, Bruce finally reached his parents graves, as well as his own, at the bottom. There, from a crack in the bedrock, emerged a flock of bats. The occurrence scared Bruce to the core but also awoke in him a higher purpose. Standing in the place where his parents rested, with great fear rushing through his veins, Wayne resolved he would train himself to strike fear into the heart of criminals while also searching for the truth behind their murders.

He returned to Alfred, and asked for the man to train him in combat. Alfred taught him what he could, but Bruce thirsted for more training. He wanted to know about the mind of criminals. He wanted to know every way of fighting. So Alfred sent him to contacts across the globe to finish his training, Bruce only returning to him in England to attend random spurts of school before leaving again.

Bruce Wayne is now poised to return to Gotham to take to the streets to root out the evil of his city, and reclaim his birthright as Gotham’s favorite son.

What Makes This Version "Ultimate": Bruce will return to Gotham without his vast resources that he is used to having. He will be a much more rough character than the man who's used to being rich. Wayne Enterprises has been dissolved save for a small engineering firm in Gotham. He will have to work harder to get the equipment he needs to be Batman, even going as far as possibly stealing it, and will also need to rebuild his parent’s company while trying to clean up Gotham and find the truth behind their murders. His training regime and Alfred’s change of character will also be different, as well as changed villains.

The Bat Cave will be in a new location, and I have a few ideas for some of Batman’s more famous villains.

What can you bring to the RPG: A good story, and a character I’ve never played but have always wanted to.

Sample Post (provide a short post of at least 3 paragraphs and 1 line of dialogue for your character):

This city is rotten at its core. That much is obvious at this point. The mob owns the streets, police, government, and about everything that comes in and out of the ports. Sure, Sionis Enterprises and Daggett Industries are here as well, but I’m not naïve enough to believe their hands are clean. Someone put the contract out on my family’s head. And it’s someone living in the lap of luxury in this city as it disintegrates underneath them.

All isn’t lost though. In the few weeks that I’ve been back, I’ve witnessed some extra ordinary feats of charity and bravery throughout the city. There are a few cops, a select few, which do a good job. They keep their heads down, arrest the people they know won’t get them or their families killed by a pissed off mob boss. And the poor and middle class of the city are desperate for change.

All they need is something to rally behind.

I walk by the low-income apartment Alfred and I have moved into, deciding to take a stroll in the moonlight, specifically against his wishes. But it’s time to see what the scum of this city can do.

Ducking into an alley a few blocks down, I stash my jacket and hat behind a dumpster, revealing the all black I have on underneath. Once the excess clothing is safely hid, I pull a black ski-mask from the jacket pocket and slip it over my face, the cheap fabric scratching my face.

I then scramble up the nearest fire escape, and onto the rooftops of Gotham. Up here, it doesn’t look all that bad. Gotham has always had a pretty skyline. But I’d be lying if I denied that it was prettier when the tallest building on the skyline read “Wayne”.

But one day, it will again. “I’ll make sure of that. I swear.”

And then, sirens blare from the street below me, and I take off in their direction, praying I get there to help before they do.

To no one's surprise, Batman is always the character I'm most skeptical of when it comes to others' reinterpretation. Even when it comes to my own, despite two runs in UDC and my initial gut-reaction of beginning a Batman app for this game aswell, before deciding on Wonder Woman and Blake instead. So to judge this, I went in a bit more critical than I'd normally ever be.

I'll be damned if you didn't win me over. With several of your concepts that are quite intriguing, and even one that had never even occurred to me as the most logical step up from Batman's canonical origin, I hereby dub you...

[Carnage27]

Thanks, MB. That means a lot. Hopefully I live up to that glowing endorsement!

Also...

VIDEO-CLick to Watch!:

[Batman]

Character Name: Wonder Woman

Alignment (Hero, Villain, Walking the Line): Hero

Character Speech Font and Color: Palatino Linotype Bold, Dark Red

Powers and Abilities: As an infant, Diana was ceremonously blessed by the greek pantheon of Gods in a variety of ways. From Aphrodite, she received timeless beauty and a great capacity for love. From Athena, she was simultaneously given the instincts of history's greatest warriors and a mind capable of wielding such knowledge. From Artemis, she was given a spirtual connection to Earth's animals, able to both track and hunt any living creature in the world and tame it. From Hestia came the ability to overcome man's deception, honed by a mystical lasso that has been passed down through generations of demigods. And lastly, Hermes granted Diana both the grace and speed that would allow her to avoid most obstacles in her path.

Character Origin/Backstory: At 23 years old, Diana Prince was living life as a promising medical student at Columbia University in New York. But that was virtually her only academic success, as Diana spent her days growing into the role of an infamously known civil rights activist, picketing Wall Street and protesting in the streets for the downtrodden and oppressed. Despite her well-intentioned actions, her choice of a lifestyle had provided her with more harm than good, landing her in jail on more than a couple occassions and severely limited her education to the point of near explusion. Her adoptive mother, Etta "Candy" Carter, did little to help matters as she constantly lectured her daughter about being responsible for her own life before dedicating herself towards the good of others. The simple truth of the matter was, Diana often found herself caring too much.

But there was reason for that, and it lied within a heritage she wasn't even aware of. Thousands of years ago, the realms of immortals - primarily among them, Asgard and Olympus - were thrust into the position of war once the beginning of Ragnorok commenced amid treachery and deception. Countless warriors shed their blood in the clouds above Zues and Odin's respective kingdoms, threatening to end the reign of Gods for all time. So despite their bitterness, the two were the first to cast aside the war and offer to make amends. But this would come as a price to both, as Asgard was torn into nine equal parts and made into the Nine Realms, and Olympus could only channel it's power from a utopian island that had grown in the shadow of war. This island was called Themyscira, and it was home to twelve beings known as The Amazons.

Protected by a shroud of devine mysticism, Themyscira was created as a paradise for all who were allowed to grace their shores - namely women, as the souls of men were reserved for the higher calling of Valhalla, per Odin's arrangement. For a time, the island was peaceful, granting all of it's inhabitants immortality and protection from the outside world. But all manner of peace would come to an end through the conquest of one mystic, the sorceress Circe, and a mysterious ally that had provided her with what she had needed.

Accusing the Amazons of treason and convincing the women of the Island that their Gods were a lie, the Amazons were cast out of their home and driven to the shores, where their immortality would fade and they would perish through a thousand years' existence that could not be sustained. Queen Hippolyta, leader of the original twelve, pleaded for one final prayer to her vengeful subjects before she succumbed aswell. They agreed to allow her this final request.

She prayed for a daughter. One gifted by each of the Gods, capable of bringing the truth to light and restoring peace to Themyscira. As Hippolyta was killed, the Gods silently granted her request, and in the night, a child was born submerged underneath the mystical clay, given each of the fallen Amazons' great strengths and wisdom. Smuggling the infant away from the Island before she could be found and killed aswell, Hermes raced her to the shores of Patriarch's World, where she would be found by a human family and raised to maturity.

Diana, now unaware of her fate, has began to notice a strange man that watches her from afar in the middle of class. A paraphelegic would-be surgeon who has been taunted with dreams that show cryptic images of both his own destiny and her's aswell. Only he holds the key to Diana's true potential as the last of the Amazons, and the spirit of Truth.

His name is Donald Blake.

What Makes This Version "Ultimate": Well, aside from the powers and her heritage, everything. She was never raised on Themyscira, so she hasn't adopted their customs or their mannerisms like the Diana of the comics. Instead, she's a modern day woman, complete with character flaws and a temperment, making her unable to at first comprehend the level of her birthright. This presents her with a very different personality, a very different take on the mythos, and a very different journey for her in becoming Wonder Woman. Not to mention the fact that Asgard and Donald Blake will play a heavier part in everything, even moreso than mentioned above, giving the two worlds of Asgard and Themyscira a bit of a relationship.

What can you bring to the RPG: I've wanted to try my hand at Wonder Woman for years, so I would hope that'd spurn me on to post often. I've got a hell of alot of mythology to cover, so maybe that'd be extra incentive to keep me regular.

Sample Post (provide a short post of at least 3 paragraphs and 1 line of dialogue for your character):

God, this is humiliating.

Five hours after my initial arrest, and they finally decided to release me under my cellmates' numerous threats of bringing a lawsuit down on the entire NYPD. Some people would say I deserved to be in longer for the amount of laws I'd broken, but right now, I really can't bring myself to care about that. My face still aches from being manhandled and forced onto the sidewalk by the SWAT team that subdued anyone in attendence of the rally, even if - to my surprise - there wasn't so much as a blemish by the time that I was processed. But my pride took a much deeper wound than my physical being, given the way everything escalated. I don't even know how it began. We were stationed outside of City Hall, and I made it clear that everything was supposed to be organized in a peaceful fashion. It was the only way that the police wouldn't be able to remove us from the block, and I knew that the only way to get through to City Council was a demonstration of civility.

Then some idiot threw a beer bottle at a squad car. Probably a drunk who didn't even know what he was doing, but it nevertheless sparked something that I had never intended. Soon, people were fighting eachother, hostilities increased, the police were brought in full force - it was a complete travesty. The worst part is that at the forefront of it all, I was to blame for starting the protest in the first place. My face is likely going to be spread all across the evening news for something I didn't even do, and who knows how long I've got before an expulsion from school. Mom's definitely never going to let me hear the end of it.

Why did I even do it in the first place? I know that I was trying to help, and I still believe in the cause, but a few layoffs and an unfair lack of widespread compensation that one company inflicted wasn't a fight worth losing everything over. Even if it was my friend. God, Zola has to be mortified by all of this. I doubt she'll ever even speak to me again for making such a big spectacle.

"Diana, you've always gotta stick your nose into other people's business". Heard that my entire life. I guess it just wasn't until now, walking through the hallway of my dorm with a partially bloodied nose and a throbbing headache, that I decided to treat it with any kind of seriousness.

Sticking my spare key into the door, I push my way inside and close it tightly behind me, resting the back of my head against it. There's so much I could do to have right now. A freshly brewed pot of coffee. Some music. A hot shower.

"Hey there, Di! Be out in a minute!"

And a slightly less cheerful roomate.

Pushing my agitation aside, I walk past the bathroom that she's using to brush her teeth and begin to remove these very putrid-smelling clothes from my stay in the holding cells. By the time that I've replaced them with a t-shirt and pajamas, Cassie pokes her head out of the room and grins at me, toothbrush still stuck between her teeth. I love her like a sister, but now's really not the time for her incesscant positivity.

"So how'd your statement against 'the man' go, Wondergirl?"

I don't even really face her as I fall back on my bed, exhausted. Don't even really acknowledge that really annoying nickname that she's taken to calling me the past few weeks.

"You don't really want to know."

"Aww, c'mon. I'm sure it wasn't that bad."

I look up at her and grimace.

"Let me guess, you haven't been watching the news?"

"I just got home. Had that date, remember?"

I pause, having genuinely forgot. I gave her the go-ahead to go out with my ex.

"Oh. That's right. How did that go?"

"Amazing! It was so amazing. I don't know what you were talking about, Di, but Steve acted like such a gentlemen to me."

Even under the circumstances, I can't help but allow a smirk to form across my face.

"Hmm. Give it another three dates, and I'm sure you'll change your mind..."

"Oh, what-ever. Maybe I'll want him to propose by the third date, if anything. I swear, he was so dreamy. He took us up in the air after dinner, and I've never been flying at all so I was like, 'oh my god', but he made it so comfortable for me and I---you're not listening at all are you?"

Between the fact that I was staring off into space or the fact that I had laid back down, I don't know how she could tell.

"Sorry, Cass. Rough day. What were you saying?"

She smiles and lays down with me, gripping me in a tight hug.

"Eh, doesn't matter. The point is, you okay? You seem a little down."

I look up at her, and despite wanting to just chew her ear off with everything I've gone through, I can't bring myself to burden her with any of that after having such a nice time. Even if it was with a certified pain in the ass, it just makes all of my troubles seem less important to see her so happy. So instead of making tonight all about me, I simply hug her back.

"Oh, I'll be fine. Really. But thanks for the concern. It means way more than you'll ever know."

"Hey, what are roomies for?"

In the end, I guess that despite how terrible everything went today, I still have alot to be grateful for to keep me willing to see tomorrow. My life isn't exactly the most rewarding, but it's certainly exciting, to a degree. I still feel proud of being able to try and stand up for people who can't stand up for themselves, even if it got me nowhere. And despite a few annoying quirks, I at least have a great friend in Cassie to give me support when everyone else won't. When it comes down to it, I really wouldn't trade any of that for the world.

"So now that you're home, wanna watch Jersey Shore with me? I picked up the second season on DVD."

Well... except that.

That I'd gladly trade for the world.

[Carnage27]

So just kind of wanted to run this by everyone to get the geography down for the game.

Gotham will be where Newark/Jersey City/Union City is in Northern New Jersey, right across the bay from New York. Blackgate will be just outside the city, and Arkham will be on an island in the bay.

[Johnny Blaze]

Being a big fan of the ancient myths, I'm digging your Thor/Wonder Woman take, MB.

[Johnny Blaze]

And since your Wonder Woman is pretty much connected to your Donald Blake, who has already been approved, I'm going to go ahead and 86 the 48 hour rule for this one.
Wonder Woman is Approved.

[Eddie Brock]

Originally Posted by Batman

Dammit, first you and EB's avvy finally convert me aboard the Allison Brie-is-hot bandwagon, now you use her to taunt me. Where will your treachory end?!

Funny you mention that...

[Batman]

Originally Posted by Carnage27

So just kind of wanted to run this by everyone to get the geography down for the game.

Gotham will be where Newark/Jersey City/Union City is in Northern New Jersey, right across the bay from New York. Blackgate will be just outside the city, and Arkham will be on an island in the bay.

That's completely fine by me. JB? Byrd?

Originally Posted by Eddie Brock

Funny you mention that...

...is there just no shortage of amazing gifs for this woman?

Originally Posted by Johnny Blaze

And since your Wonder Woman is pretty much connected to your Donald Blake, who has already been approved, I'm going to go ahead and 86 the 48 hour rule for this one.
Wonder Woman is Approved.

That's a helluva gracious gesture, JBiz. Didn't expect it. Much obliged nonetheless.

[Batman]

Originally Posted by Andy C.

Here we go.

Character Name: Superman, The Man of Tomorrow

Alignment (Hero, Villain, Walking the Line): Hero

Character Speech Font and Color: Georgia, Dark Slate Blue

Powers and Abilities:

Superman is a Kryptonian, one of quite possibly the most physically advanced beings the universe has ever known. Clark's abilities develop slowly during his early life, but seem to continually grow more and more potent as he goes on. Like exercising a muscle, the more he uses an ability, the stronger it becomes, some improving only gradually, some scaling up dramatically after repeated use. While by all appearances they are the classic set of super-powers the character has had for over half a century, the exact origin of them is significantly different.

Kryptonians were a race that prided itself in its technology and ingenuity, and in order to survive and thrive on the unforgiving environment of Krypton, they had actually taken control of their species' evolution. Utilizing methods far beyond anything humans would consider to be any known form of genetic engineering or biotechnology, they shaped their own cellular structure to cope with their planet's crushing gravity (the fact that they had not evolved along those lines already suggesting that they may not have originally been from Krypton at all), transforming every cell in their bodies into microscopic fusion generators capable of manipulating the pull of gravity around them.

Since Clark has grown up on a planet where the environmental hazards are virtually nonexistent compared to Krypton, the energy created in his cells has built and built, and his gravity-manipulating abilities can produce several different effects. Superman can negate the pull of gravity around him, allowing him to fly, and by generating a field of anti-gravity that pushes away air molecules and makes him essentially frictionless, he can move at incredible speeds. This is also the source of his super-strength and invulnerability, as he can expand his gravitational field around any object he touches, increase the density and energy-output of his muscles, and generate a skin-tight aura of anti-gravity that reflects potential damage. These are all reflexive abilities, things that he can do at once without even really thinking, but with concentration, he can increase the potency of one power at the expense of others--so by willing himself to move faster, he makes himself more vulnerable, or by concentrating on his strength, he diminishes his speed or his flight, et cetera.

In addition, Superman's senses are greatly enhanced, particularly his eyes. Kryptonian eyes have evolved to contain an intricate series of focusing lenses, allowing him to see the entire electromagnetic spectrum, as well as focus his vision further than any telescope short of the Hubble, or as minute as an electron microscope, or a combination of both--seeing through the atomic structure of an object and 'zooming' past it to see another, giving him his famous 'X-Ray Vision.' Since his body is usually brimming with excess bio-energy, he can emit that energy through his eyes' lenses, giving off energy beams of all sorts of frequencies, most usefully in the form of incredibly intense X-Ray lasers that, when focused, can cut through inches of solid titanium.

The limits of his powers would start out rather low, approximately the same level as he was in the 90s animated series--not completely invulnerable but still very tough, not flying at relativistic speeds but still very fast. As the game progresses, Superman would grow into his powers, learning how to control them, focus them, and exercise them to make them more powerful. With this would also come a fair amount of uncertainty, as he finds himself taking a larger and larger role in the world, slowly but surely transitioning over time from protector of a single city to champion of an entire world.

Character Origin/Backstory:

Across the infinite gulfs of space and deep into the unthinkable reaches of time, there was a world. This world began as a savage planet, teeming with dangers of all kinds, until it became host to a people unlike any other. Its people worked wonders the likes of which the universe had never seen before or since, and the world became the shining jewel at the heart of a civilization that performed miracles across the universe.

Then, suddenly and inexplicably, they disappeared. The world and its people simply vanished, gone from time and space, leaving awe-inspiring ruins and incalculably powerful artifacts scattered across the cosmos as the only signs that they had existed at all. Still, their influence touched countless civilizations, and every race that ventured into the stars came to know of them.

The Shi'ar covet their empty ruins with almost religious fervor.

The people of Rann tell legends of them the way primitives tell myths of gods and monsters.

The Kree and the Skrulls have warred with each other for millennia over artifacts that were comparatively little more than children's trinkets.

The Daxamites boastfully claim to be lost descendants, a claim vehemently refuted by the Rigelians.

Even the Guardians of Oa, ancient and wise beyond all others, are known to affect a tone of reverence and awe when they speak the name of that long-lost world:

Krypton.

The ideal of that world has driven innumerable civilizations to greater heights and more cataclysmic falls than can ever be known, and its loss was as if a bright light in the universe had simply gone out.

However, the legacy of Krypton is more than just lost relics and half-believed legends. On an isolated, seemingly insignificant little world tucked away where the greater forces in the cosmos had not noticed, lives the last surviving member of a people that did the impossible. His destiny may come to affect the fate of worlds beyond his imagining, though he does not know that yet.

In his own mind, he's Clark Kent, an aspiring journalist from Kansas, raised by two loving foster parents, taught to always seek the truth, to see the good in people and to do whatever it takes to bring out the best in everyone.

Despite his friendly nature and unshakable faith in people, Clark grew up isolated from others, having to keep himself increasingly closed off from his classmates as he developed his powers. His only friends throughout school were fellow outcasts and rejects: the introverted science whiz-kid Lana Lang, and the debate team captain and closet homosexual Pete Ross. Clark bonded with both of them, knowing how hard it can be to be different, and how much it hurts to have to pretend to be someone you're not.

At eighteen, Clark learned the truth about himself. He had begun developing his abilities at an early age, exhibiting incredible strength and speed, able to see things no one else could see. While at first he thought he was a mutant, when they believed he was ready to know the truth, the Kents told Clark of how they found him, alone in the middle of a field, amidst the wreckage of what they could only assume was some kind of spacecraft. Stunned by the revelation that he was not even human, Clark ran away from home, spending the next chapter of his life on the move, trying to find his place in a world where he clearly did not belong.

Seven years passed as Clark traveled the world, working as a freelance journalist, helping people whenever and wherever he could, though it often drove people away when they learned what he could do. He thought of the examples set during the 1940s by Captain America and the JSA, as well as the writings of Charles Xavier, and began to believe that he could use his powers in a way that would benefit humanity, without instilling fear or distrust in them. Still, he doubted himself, put those thoughts aside......until he made a discovery that would spur him into action.

What Makes This Version "Ultimate":

Well, the way his powers work is different, and a fair amount of the details in his origin are different as well, though I don't want to give away a lot of the details in that because they end up being pretty intrinsic to some of the stories I want to tell. But the city of Metropolis, the villains he faces, the history of Krypton, all of that has been tweaked and reimagined-- those big blocks of text in the spoiler tags are just a couple of molecules on the tip of an iceberg the size of freaking Hoth.

What can you bring to the RPG:

At the Pacific Rim panel at this year's Comic-Con, Guillermo Del Toro said that when dealing with large-scale projects, you can either "get lazy, or get crazy." And I fully intend to get all kinds of crazy up in here.

Sample Post (provide a short post of at least 3 paragraphs and 1 line of dialogue for your character):

"I've been telling Perry this for months now, but he won't run the story without evidence. These things can't just be coincidence!"

"Well, I mean, he does have a point, Lois. If you make accusations like that but don't have the proof to back it up--"

"I know, I know, it's compromising my journalistic integrity."

"Not to mention it's libel."

"Yes, thank you, Jimmy, I'm aware of that."

It's called the Singularity. An event that has implications so profound and far-reaching that life before said event bears almost no resemblance to life after it. It can be a historical event, like the signing of the Magna Carta or the assassination of John F. Kennedy. It can be the introduction of new technology, like the Internet or the atomic bomb. Whatever the exact nature, it's a change that is irreversible. Like the gravitational singularity at the heart of a black hole, it's a point of no return.

"Look, for what it's worth, I believe you. I mean, I've seen a few things over the last couple of years that back up your story. That's why I came here."

"Then if you believe what I'm telling you, you'll know that there's no way I can tie any of these things to him-- the Symkarian bombings, the Olmec Dawn in South America, the alleged Cadmus labs in the third world-- because he's got the connections to make the proof disappear. So you came right to his doorstep?"

"Well, sure, I mean......if it's all connected like you're saying, then why not just go right to the heart of it?"

"Hah. Well, maybe you're not as spineless as I thought, farm boy."

Seven years ago, I had a singularity event in my own life, when my Pa told me the truth about how they found me. It shook me so hard, I ran away from it. For seven long years, I've been traveling the world, tucked away in corners where nobody would look for me, hoping that the truth would never catch up with me. I've listened to and told the stories of thousands of people, hoping that nobody asks me about mine. I've been trying to pretend that it didn't happen, that it didn't change my entire world forever, that I'm still meek and awkward old Clark Kent, the bookworm and misfit who had to hide the things he could do.

For seven long years, I've been running and hiding from the truth.

Until I saw some things that made me turn around. Things that made me realize that maybe the truth about me isn't something to fear, that I can do more, that I have to do more, to help people than I've ever even thought.

"Guys? We might wanna wrap up Crazy Conspiracy Chat for a bit. I just got a police bulletin-- there's some kind of attempted hijacking going on at STAR Labs."

"Well, don't just sit there, let's go! You've got enough memory in your camera this time, right?"

"One time, one time, I mess up...."

Seven years of running has led me here, to Metropolis. The City of Tomorrow, they call it. The media hub of the Western Hemisphere, home of the entertainment empire of Morgan Edge and of the Daily Planet, the last true free press in the modern world. Heart of the Mannheim Syndicate, the largest and most extensive organized crime family on the planet. And the most technologically advanced city in the world, compliments of Lex Luthor.

If I'm going to do this, then it has to be here.

"You guys go on ahead, I, um....I think I left my phone in the bathroom."

"Well, if it's gonna gonna be a second, we'll just--"

"The story waits for no man, Jimmy! Now come on! Move! Vite! Andale! Schnell!"

I've read all of the old stories. Steve Rogers and the Justice Society of America. Men who could do incredible things, and toppled the forces of evil. Men who, in their time, were inspirations to the world. A lot of people are going to think that I'm following in their footsteps. And in a lot of ways, I am.

But the things I've learned over the last seven years.......the things I have in mind.........this is going to be something else entirely.

"Well.........here goes nothing."

The Singularity. The event that changes everything.

My world was changed forever when I found out who I really am.

Today, though...........



......everyone finds out who I really am.

With no one to post a competing app (and really, who the hell would?), Superman is...

[Eddie Brock]

Originally Posted by Batman

...is there just no shortage of amazing gifs for this woman?

...



Nope.

[Johnny Blaze]

Originally Posted by Batman

That's completely fine by me. JB? Byrd?

I'm cool with making Gotham the Jewel of Jersey. Besides, might be funny to see Bruce and Snookie hook up.

Originally Posted by Batman

That's a helluva gracious gesture, JBiz. Didn't expect it. Much obliged nonetheless.

No problemo. With Diana being a major part to your Donald Blake character, didn't want you to get completely hosed.

[Johnny Blaze]

I'll put an IC Thread up in a bit. Stay tuned, True Believers!!!

[Johnny Blaze]

Ok, I have yet to even write post numero 1 for him yet, but I'm dropping Thanos.

Saw a movie today that gave me what I thought would be a fun idea to try and interpret it to the game in a way.
And now that that's out of the way...

Character Name: Frank Castle, the Punisher

Alignment (Hero, Villain, Walking the Line): Walking the Line

Character Speech Font and Color: Bold, Arial Narrow

Powers and Abilities: Frank is an expert at hand-to-hand combat, trained in a variety of techniques. Frank is a highly skilled marksman, and is proficient in the use of many firearms and military weaponry. Frank is also deadly with a blade, particularly the 12' combat knife that's strapped to his thigh.

Character Origin/Backstory: Frank grew up in in the Bronx in the care of his single mother. She worked constantly to provide for Frank and make sure he had as good a life as possible. She loved Frank and little Frank was happy. But all that changed when Frank was twelve.

It was ten at night and they sat on the couch watching cartoons when the men kicked the door in. They beat him and his mother, slitting his mother's throat when she resisted them. They pistol whipped Frank and knocked him out as they robbed the place blind.

They never caught the men who did it, and Frank, his world now shattered, went to live with his uncle in Texas. His Uncle was a career Marine, and under him Frank learned discipline and the military life style. At eighteen, Frank enlisted in the Marines and was sent directing to the Middle East when Desert Storm began.

Frank became a distinguished soldier, serving multiple tours in both Iraq Wars, and serving tours in Afghanistan. He and his squad would become known as the Elite, the toughest group of Devil Dogs that's ever been assembled upon God's Green Earth.
The job was good, and life was good. But it was in Afghanistan when Frank became jaded by his own government when he discovered the secret oil pipeline that the US wanted.
The war wasn't about protecting freedom...it was about protecting profits.

Frank was disgusted, but before he could leave the pipeline, his squad was spotted and attacked by the mercenaries guarding it. Most of Frank's squad was killed, but he and three others were able to escape. Now on the run, Frank and his men have gone AWOL.

Now calling himself the Punisher, Frank and his team are a group of hired mercenaries called The Elite. They travel the globe, taking jobs that are worthy and staying one step ahead of the Corporation that is hunting them down.

What Makes This Version "Ultimate": Well, pretty much his entire origin has been changed. Frank isn't a one man war on crime. He and the Elite are the top hired heroic hitmen money can buy. And the Elite are completely different than their original counterpart. None of them have super powers, and they function more like an A-Team meets the Expendables.

And, speaking of the Elite, here they are...

David North, Maverick: Has served with Frank since the initial invasion of the 2nd Iraq War. North is Canadian survival expert, and loves being out in the wilderness. David is usually a easy going guy, but when it's time to go to work it's as though he goes completely cold.

Kasper Cole, White Tiger: Kasper also has served with Frank since the initial invasion of the 2nd Iraq War. Kasper is skilled with blades and is a highly talented martial artist. Kasper has studied the ways of martial arts since a young age, and is the seemingly always perfectly calm and collected, even in the most dire of situations.

Floyd Lawton, Deadshot: Deadshot is an expert marksman and is the team's primary sniper. Floyd has known Frank the longest, having served with him since Desert Storm. Floyd loves the mercenary life of the Elite, and wants things to stay just as they are.

The Unknown Soldier: He joined the Elite during the Madripoor mission, having earned Frank's trust by saving their life from a crime lord. His face was horribly disfigured in an accident, and the accident also caused the Soldier to lose his memory. With no memory of who he is or who he was, he has taken the moniker of the Unknown Soldier. He is a master of espionage and the Elite's spy.

Walter Kovacs, Rorschach: Walter joined the Elite in Cape Town, South Africa in 2009. A former street vigilante turned hired gun, Frank let Kovacs join the group because they shared a lot of the same ideals. Rorschach is known for his twisted brutality, often giving their enemies an eye-for-an-eye demise.

What can you bring to the RPG: Experience in RPing.

Sample Post (provide a short post of at least 3 paragraphs and 1 line of dialogue for your character):

"Get some! Get some! Get some!!!"

Power Man shouted over the roar of the mini-gun, firing a barrage of rounds into the charging squad of assassins. It was the middle of the night in Egypt, just outside the great Pyramid of Giza. The Elite had been charged with retrieving a stolen hard drive from a business man in Cairo.

The Elite fought their way into the compound and got the hard drive. But, unfortunately, the man had powerful friends in the form of the League of Shadows.

The ninja's were being mowed down by the rainstorm of bullets that descended their way.

"Close range", Frank shouted as he tossed down his rifle and pulled out his combat knife just as an assassin attacked. The ninja swiped at him with his sword, but Frank ducked the blade and ran his knife into the man's gut.
With one mighty jerk, Frank eviscerated the ninja from stomach to throat and tossed him aside like a rag doll.

Frank looked down at the blood covering his clothes and frowned.
"Dammit...I really liked these pants..."

Now it's party", Lawton laughed as he stole the sword from one of the ninjas and sliced the man's head off with it.
"Now you *******s pissed off the Punisher!"

[Byrd Man]

Oh, ****!

Also...

Originally Posted by Eddie Brock

Character Name: Steven Grant Rogers / Captain America

Alignment (Hero, Villain, Walking the Line): Hero

Character Speech Color and Font (actually say what it is, like Blue Comic Sans): Bold Navy Arial

Powers and Abilities: Steve was the first success in the Super-Soldier serum experiments. As such, he is at the peak of human athletics and strength. He can run, jump, and swim with the skill of an Olympic athlete. Though he possesses no superhuman strength, he is considerably stronger than the average person - on a par with champion weightlifters. He has greater endurance than most athletes, being able to perform at maximum effort for extended periods of time.

Moreover, the serum increases Steve's metabolism and immune response. Therefore, he is more resistant to illness and disease, and he heals from wounds quicker than the average man. It is also responsible for slowed aging, accounting for Steve's appearance and strength despite his advanced age.

Character Origin/Backstory: Steven Grant Rogers was born in Brooklyn, New York, in 1920. He was a first generation American, born to two Irish immigrants. Steve was hardworking, modest, and fiercely loyal. However, he was an asthmatic with a frail frame, and he matured physically at a much slower rate than his peers. As a result, he was not very athletic, and he was often the target of bullies and tough guys. Despite his shortcomings, Steve was fearless, often tackling the bullies head-on - though he rarely won a fight.

War broke out in Europe while Steve was a young man. Watching the atrocities committed by the Axis powers on the newsreels, Steve became convinced that America should enter the war. He attempted to enlist in the US Army but was swiftly rejected for his physical weakness and frailty. Undeterred, Steve continued to pursue his dream. His relentlessness caught the attention of Army recruiters, and he was finally referred to Dr. Abraham Erskine to participate in Operation: Rebirth.

Erskine, a German defector working with the United States, was working on a Super-Soldier serum that would turn ordinary men into superior physical beings. Impressed by Steve's spirit and determination, Erskine allowed Steve to compete in order to be the next candidate to test the serum. Through sheer force of will, Steve convinced Erskine and the Army trainers to choose him above the other candidates. Steve received the Super-Soldier serum and was transformed.

Unfortunately, the moment of sheer elation was brought crashing down by a Nazi spy overseeing the experiment. The spy shot and killed Dr. Erskine, the only living man with complete knowledge of the Super-Soldier formula. Steve hunted down the Nazi spy and nearly killed him. With Erskine dead, the Army was unable to recreate the Super-Soldier serum, leaving Steve Rogers as the only successful test subject.

Disappointed, the United States government decided to make the best use of their one successful Super-Soldier. They shaped Steve Rogers into a symbol of freedom and liberty: Captain America. Serving both as a propaganda icon and America's best counter-intelligence agent, Captain America fought Hitler, the Nazis, and the mysterious Red Skull in WWII. He also joined forces with The Invaders, a group of similarly-fashioned "superheroes" combating the forces of evil in Europe. The Invaders and Captain America became legends, and they are widely credited with the defeat of Hitler and the Third Reich.

Steve Rogers returned home to America, ready to accept his next call to action. It came five years later in the form of the Korean War. Captain America once again went overseas and helped lead the United States to victory. However, the world was changing in the wake of nuclear arms race. Seven years later, Captain America went on the ground in Vietnam to once again fight for his country. This time, everything was different. Despite Cap's effort, America lost the war - and paid a heavy price in morale. Steve's treatment upon returning to the States sickened and jaded him, and he was never quite the same.

Following his participation in the Persian Gulf War, Steve's unflagging patriotism was shaken. He had watched the changing attitudes and climate in the country, and he had grown increasingly disillusioned. Hanging up the costume and the shield, Steve enters a self-imposed exile somewhere in the Rocky Mountains. Living entirely off-the-grid for almost twenty years, Steve is completely disconnected from modern society. His only human contact comes when he drives down to a small town nearby for supplies. In a world that no longer needs a Captain America, Steve has become a hermit.

What Makes This Version "Ultimate"?: Well, obviously, Captain America didn't die in WWII. He survived, helped the Allies win the war, and got to come home. He then proceeded to participate in every major US conflict between the years 1945 and 1991. Steve has watched his friends grow old and his country decline, and he has lost all faith in the world around him.

What can you bring to the RPG?: The means to fight injustice, to turn fear against those who would prey on the fearful. Also, I've never played Captain America, but I've always wanted to try my hand at it. I love the concept of a Captain America who got to see 'Nam and the Gulf War and the War on Terrorism. It's interesting to think what Steve Rogers might've thought of these events.

Provide a short sample post as your desired character, in three paragraphs or more:

"--Fowler takes a pitch high and outside for ball two. He's worked the count back to two-and-two. Saunders comes set, and now the pitch. Fowler gets a hold of that one, sending it deep to left center. It's gonna hang up there just long enough, however, as Kubel settles under it. And he's got it for the second out--"

I lean back in my chair, flipping through the pages of a first edition copy of Of Mice and Men while the Rockies game plays on the television. I glance up at the small screen to watch Carlos Gonzalez approaching the plate. At my feet, my chocolate Labrador - Scout - gives a tired snort. I smile before turning my attention back to the book, one of my personal favorites.

"--Gonzalez settles into the box, and Saunders is ready. He starts him with a breaking ball, low and away, for ball one. Rutledge takes his lead off first. Saunders looks in for the sign--"

Without warning, Scout pops to attention. Alertly, he turns his head towards the door. I close my book gently and watch him. "What is it, boy?" I ask. I must be getting old, because there used to be a day when my hearing was as sharp as any hound's. Scout scrambles to his feet now. I turn my gaze to the window but don't see anything.

"--the one-one pitch is belted deep to right field. Upton gives it a look, but that one is long gone! A two-run shot to right field by Carlos Gonzalez, and the Rockies take the early lead! Saunders knew it as soon as the ball left the bat. You can see him pound his fist into his glove--"

I close Of Mice and Men and shut off the television. Scout wanders over to the door, giving a low growl. I rise slowly, tentatively. In the distance, the red sun creeps beneath the treeline. That's when I see them. Headlights. Scout's barking like a madman now. I open the front door and step out onto the porch, holding Scout by the collar. He resists me, but I won't let him run out. Not yet. Not 'til I know who this is.

The car pulls up as darkness begins to set in over the land. It's a black SUB. I know immediately it's some government type. My grip on Scout's collar tightens. His barks are echoing now. I set my jaw and wait. The driver of the car kills the engine, and the place goes silent - save for Scout's racket. All four doors of the SUV open simultaneously, and three black-suited men step out. Spooks. I should've known.

Out of the backseat, a fourth men exits the SUV. My eyes strain to see him in the twilight. When I finally do get a look at him, I scowl. Scout does the same. The man steps forward as his men stay with the car. "Took us a while to find you, Steve," he announces. "You know how to keep a low profile."

"You've got fifteen seconds to explain yourself," I begin, "before I let Scout here off his leash." I nod to the growling Labrador.

"That won't be necessary," the man replies with a cocky smile. "We just want a word."

"Can I come in?"

EB is APPROVED

[Hound55]

Ultimate One Universe Characters Application

Character Name: Charles Victor Szasz, Vic Sage, The Question

Alignment (Hero, Villain, Walking the Line): Walking the Line

Character Speech Color and Font (actually say what it is, like Blue Comic Sans): Bold, Dark Blue, Microsoft Sans Serif

Powers and Abilities: Genius level intellect, possesses pseudoderm mask and bonding agent in a gas form invented by Professor Aristotle Rodor (one of the few people on earth who can tolerate Vic), expert martial artist (primarily in hand to hand combat), brilliant detective with a strong background in investigative journalism, moves remarkably well/deceptively quick for a man in a trenchcoat, can be charismatic/charming.

Character Origin/Backstory: Abandoned at an orphanage by parents who were unable to support him, Charles Szasz fought, scrapped and studied his way against all odds to go from that very public Catholic orphanage in Hub City to receiving a full education with honours. Not done there, he used his journalism degree to climb the ranks from Hub City radio, to television, to having his own news spot on Hub City’s KBEL. Selling himself more and more in the process for fame and fortune, even going so far as to change his name to a more streamlined, TV-friendly “Vic Sage”. Finally after swearing years ago that he would climb out of Hub City’s slums and never return he signed a contract with FOX News which would move him to New York, ensuring his news segment “Sage Words” would be shown coast-to-coast.

Not coincidentally, a faceless figure not dissimilar to one who was rumoured to once stalk the streets of Hub City has now been seen by some of the city’s homeless, meting out his own brand of justice in New York...

What Makes This Version "Ultimate": This version of Vic Sage is not an altruistic character. He’ll be publically hypocritical with absolutely no conscience for a buck, a hardened cynic he believes little of what people do and even less of what they say. The ability to locate the single nugget of truth amongst all of the dregs of bulldust is what first appealed to him. He knew how to ask all of the right questions. But with each year that passed, experience jaded him and he began to separate career from interest. Ironically, he’s a reporter who seeks no truth by day for pay, but his driving interest – finding truth, the single flame of light amongst the darkness, he does for free outside of office hours.

By day he peddles easy answers, by night he is far more hard-hitting... that is the Question.

What can you bring to the RPG: Hopefully posts and a complex character. Generally I know my limitations and I think I’m far better suited to street level guys (and the occasional nutbag). Create-A-Hero saw me roll out a shades of grey street hero, I think I can get a good handle on this.

Provide a short sample post as your desired character, in three paragraphs or more:

A man in his early twenties runs across the set. “Sage! Fifteen minutes to go time! Prompter wants your script!”

“No script, not my style.” The reporter dismissed.

“Not your style?? Mr Tabacoff!”

The Mr Tabacoff the crew member was hollering for was Dave Tabacoff an executive producer at FOX News and “Sage Words” designated showrunner.

“Boy, don’t start this with me. Go get me a coffee and end this now before it gets ugly.” Vic growled.

David Tabacoff approached the young stage hand openly. “Yes?”

“Mr Sage said he doesn’t have a script for the prompter, said it’s ‘Not his style’” appealed the worker.

“Yes, that’s right. Mr Sage here is on a unique contract. Due to his previously impeccable résumé he isn’t subjected to most meetings, nor does he have to turn in a script. It’s a deal which the senior heads believe will be most lucrative for all parties.” The producer clarified. Sage glared at the young stage hand.

“Is he bothering you, Mr Sage?” enquired the showrunner.

“Nothing I can’t take care of, Mr Tabacoff, thank you.”

The executive producer took his leave, dotting the “i”s and crossing the “t”s on the dozens of other things which needed his attention before the first show of Fox News’ latest big coup.

Vic looked down at his watch and then back at the stage hand, checking the executive producer was beyond earshot.
“Boy, you have 25 seconds to make yourself useful; get me a coffee and a bearclaw, or you can get the f*** off of my set.”

“Yes, sir!” the stage hand scurried off.

Vic turned and watched the finished version of the opening graphics for “Sage Words” on a monitor. He winced.

“Is it just me or is that a little 80s? Kind of clashes with the idea of ‘Sage’ doesn’t it?” he said to a light technician standing nearby.

“Uh, I just run lights, Vic. But the ‘Sage’ is only in there because of your name...”

“Well, yeah. Of course it’s because of the name. But surely you’d think ‘Sage’ might seem to evoke somewhat classier imagery wouldn’t you?”

“What did you want? Did you expect them to cut to you in a suede chair in front of a fireplace with a snifter of cognac? ‘Sage’ or not it still has to fit the Fox News motif and general theme across the line.”

“...”

“Why am I talking to you anyway, light-jockey? Don’t you have s*** to do?”

The stage hand hurried rushed over breathless, clutching a pastry and a miraculously unspilled white and one.

Vic lightened the man’s load greedily with surprisingly fast hands, and then took a brief glance at his watch. “Thanks... but that’s 42 seconds. You’re 17 seconds slow, it’s a fast-paced world, kid, and you just missed the bus. Door’s that way, don’t let it hit you on the ass on the way out.”

The stage hand’s face dropped. Dejected, he moped his way to the exit without a word of protest.

Vic took a swig of coffee and pulled away in disgust. “Ugh, white and one? There goes that kid’s hopes for a positive reference...”

Making his way back again Dave Tabacoff handed Vic a sheet of paper.

“I told you, no scripts... Wait, what is this?” With eyes scanning the page.

“It’s just a list of sticking points and talking issues that the network likes to remind the public of their newsworthiness. We were told that while you wouldn’t be working from scripts or requiring meetings that you would be willing to work within...”

“Yes, yes. I just didn’t expect to get it now with... 13 minutes left until airtime.” Vic checked his watch again.

“Well, if you’ve been watching much of the news you’d be familiar with many of these already. There’s...”

Vic had found an odd one.

“Wait, what’s this one? Spider-Man?”

“Oh, that’s a new mandate. Yes, seems we’re going to be addressing the Spider-menace. Probably a back-scratching thing from the network heads... they’ve been talking a lot with J. Jonah Jameson from the Bugle and distribution has sky-rocketed for them ever since they went on the aggressive against him, even though they’ve been running pics from some young girl photographer Gwen Stacy. Rookie photographer, so it can’t be the pics, it has to be the angle. We’ll be jumping on the Squash-a-bug angle as well.”

“Arachnid.” Sage corrected.

“What?”

“Spider’s an arachnid, not a bug... an insect. And truth be told I think the girl’s pics are pretty good for a rook.”

The executive producer gave him a sneering sideways glance.

“I’ll still take the stance. I’m just saying... for the sake of accuracy. Can never take that for granted in our profession.” Vic said, attempting a disarming smile. Too little, too late.

“I know your record, Sage. Five years, no retractions...” the producer started.

“So you’re a fan..?” Sage asked, his interest piqued.

“...But in those 5 years we couldn’t find 5 people who worked with you who’d be willing to do it again...”

“Good pep talk, put me just in the right mood to make a show...” Vic Sage offered sarcastically.

“...and you’re here because the Network heads disagreed with me and believe you’re worth the risk. Because you barely need 5 people to put your show together. It’s a streamlined cut-cost show because of your shallow showmanship and ability to write your own material on the fly. Which somehow, despite flying in the face of all that they teach to us in the business, has turned out to be less risky than hiring more journalists and researchers to fact check...”

“Yes, sir. Feeling the love...” the sarcasm continued.

“...Because somehow, despite going on the air back in Hub City with seemingly nothing prepared and spouting absolute bulls***, your bulls*** managed to always skirt within the right side of slander and libel laws to the point where nothing ever crossed the line.”

“Alright! I AM READY for some JOURNALISM! Boo-yah!” Vic pumped the air with his fist in mock excitement.

“Are you done?” the producer volleyed.

“Are you?” volley returned.

Dave Tabacoff shook his head at the upstart reporter and walked away.

“Don’t sweat a thing. Spidey, bad. Democrats, bad. Republicans, good. Chicken-Fil-A, good. You’ve got your tv-monkey!”

The lights engineer looked at him, having just arrived, catching the end of his exclamation.

“Go get me a banana.”

Turning to go and fulfil his request, the lights engineer walked away. Vic grabbed him by the shoulder and pulled him back, sighing all the while.

“No... don’t get me a banana. Hate the things. That was just a joke.”

“A joke?”

“Don’t worry about it... At all.” Vic walked off, to get final touch-ups on make-up.

“A**hole...” muttered 4 different crew members simultaneously as they saw him leave.

[Eddie Brock]

Watchmen are in play, eh?

[Johnny Blaze]

Yeah, like the UDC RPG, you can play with any character under the Marvel or DC banner, provided you can work them into the world.