Character Name: T'Challa T'Chaka
Alignment: Hero
Character Speech Color and Font: Black New Gothic
Powers and Abilities:
T'Challa has full authority regarding the Wakandan nation, legislations, military, and resource management. Additionally, he has a fantastic deal of wealth, weapons, vehicles, and tools stemming from his possession of Vibranium. He personally is an incredible genius with an authoritative knowledge of many sciences and other bodies of knowledge. Finally, he has peak human athleticism and super sharp senses, reflexes, and superb combat instinct.
Character Origin
6,000 years ago in Southern Africa, a meteor shower landed a barrage against the planet's surface. Livestock, flora, and the regional natives were nearly wiped out. One of the survivors was the reigning lord of the Wakanda clan and head of the Panther Cult, Bashenga. Exploring the wreckage, he found huge, concentrated amounts of a mysterious metal. It was beautiful, but difficult to mine. Realizing its value to neighboring peoples, he quickly created tight borders around the deposits, sealing his territory off from all outsiders.
Upon the death of Bashenga, his son took the throne. Attributing his success to the intervention of the Panther god Bast, the head of state was named the Black Panther while Panther worship became the state religion. Millenia rolled by and the Wakandan people studied the metal before using it as a basis for increased military strength. For this reason, the nation had never been conquered.
During World War II the fight was kept off of Wakandan soil, however they contributed to the Allies effort indirectly by selling them feeble amounts of Vibranium, their mysterious metal. During this time, Wakanda began advanced scholarship programs to send its foremost students to learn from the greatest teachers in the world, creating the foundation of a functioning local economy and scientific advancement.
T'Challa was the son of T'Chaka, a Black Panther. During his lifetime, T'Chaka built a reputation as a man of reason and tolerance, going so far as to build a reservation for mutants and adopting an American boy as his son despite the public's xenophobic outlook. His downfall came at the hand of Ulysses Klaw, a 'scientist' who intended to rob the country of its vibranium reserves, but killed the Black Panther upon his discovery of the scheme.
In retaliation, T'Challa cut off Klaw's hand before the foreigner retreated. Because T'Challa was unready to face the trials of the Panther at his age of fifteen, his uncle S'yen took over for a time. Years passed and the country developed itself technologically, while T'Challa prepared himself psychologically. Travelling to America, he attended Oxford University to gain a degree in physics while learning the nuances of other sciences, physically training himself all the while. S'yen's tenure as Wakanda's leader lasted nine years.
Major Events
Year One:
- Completes the trials of the Black Panther, officially becoming Wakanda's leader
- Consumes heart-shaped herb reserved for Wakanda's ruler
- Negotiates an alliance with Atlantis despite not being coastal
- Designates Genosha as a sanctuary and government sponsored Mutant-sanctuary
- Repels an invasion at the hands of Man-Ape and the Jabari tribe
Year Two:
- Advanced jet fighter of unknown origin with the only identifying mark being the word 'Soundwave' lands on Wakandan soil
- The Kimoyo card is developed
- T'Challa visits America to retrieve the Metal Men, bringing Will Magnus to investigate cellular activity in the plane.
- Disbands the Zahut Zeraze, secret police, and exiles The White Wolf
- Reverse engineers the plane to produce his own craft
- Enlists 'Adored Ones', Dora milaje, of other nations to create a royal guard honoring foreign relations
Year Three:
- Is confronted by Erik Killmonger, who attempts to remove every white man from the nation
- Narrowly defeats Killmonger, but only because of the intervention of the Dora Milaje
- The American government requests a listing of all mutant inhabitants of Genosha, which T'Challa refuses
- Genosha is invaded for a census by the Suicide Squad.
- The League of Shadows offers T'Challa an alliance given that his government is literally one of the only non-corrupt nations on the planet, but it is refused
- The Bronze Tiger is sent to kill The Black Panther, but instead is imprisoned
- Upon seeing Quraq is occupied by a mercenary force, T'Challa gathers his own, politically-negligant team, The Outsiders, to liberate the country.
Year Four:
- The Wakandan Space Program to visit Mars is sabotaged from onboard the satellite that it belongs to.
- A 2nd gathering of Outsiders remove The Reach from onboard the International Space Station, in the process freeing a green martian from the mind controlling aspects of the Scarab
- Wakanda is plagued by a sudden and inexplicable drought caused by Achebe, who is stopped by The Black Panther and Garth, an Atlantean warrior-mage sent by request
- The Black Panther is attacked by The Black Knight, who's sword is taken as a trophy.
- T'Challa designates W'Kabi as his second in command and proxy head of state in his absence
- Assisted Wonder Woman with apprehending and stopping the Cheetah
- Begins talks with SHIELD regarding possibly joining the Avengers and does the same regarding the Justice League.
Why this character?
I like the Black Panther a lot. But I'd like to see him take an active role in the Singular Universe's scene this time around. It'll be fun to shift him between tribal management, world-saving, and political interactions. His similarities to Batman make him interesting, but its everything else that makes him special to me.
What can you bring to the RPG?
An underappreciated classic with a blend of foreign 'DC' elements and this maddeningly awesome other stuff. Decent writing skills, and a story you haven't read before. Oh, and a Decepticon invasion. Kinda building on aspects of my work in the old game, but significantly better I hope.
Provide a short sample post as your desired character, in three paragraphs or more and featuring at least one line of dialogue:
"Don't expect me to fall into your political mousetraps, Ms. Waller," T'Challa, the Black Panther, warned the prominent espionage overseer from across the table. He eyed her as a lion would to a crocodile while sitting wholly upright, keeping a formal posture contrary to the tension saturating the air.
They sat in a small, dry room, with air conditioning freezing the sweat that Waller had built commuting through the country.
"Fine, wanna play hardball?" her eyebrows mashed together as she tilted her head. "You've violated countless international laws with your personal army stomping over borders and spitting on anyone who claims sovereignty. You understand policy, now what would convince you that this is acceptable? If the United States did this, they'd accuse us of trying to police the entire world!"
"Well," he gestured his finger against his Kimoyo card,
"who better to police the world?" Audio feed to SHIELD eavesdroppers was cut and the transmission nullified.
"Everyone knows about watergate, the National Security Agency, and all of America's international intrusions. The super soldier program is out in the open and America is a big red, white, and blue bullseye. The Green Lantern Corps is all but outright rejected by humanity. But Wakanda? Wakanda's borders have been sealed for centuries. I am Wakanda. You move against me, you fight Wakanda."
"I am not afraid of Wakanda," she stated coolly, crossing her arms. "In fact, SHIELD is legally ordering you to disband the Outsiders or face sanctions against your nation."
"Tsk, tsk, tsk. Where has your tact gone? Besides the fact that no one has ever conquered my nation, we have absolutely no need for trade, protection from SHIELD, or anything else you may threaten to withhold. In fact madam, I'll take your ultimatum and raise you another. The Outsiders are ordering you to cease this harassment or face World War IV."
"Four...? What about three?"
"Fighting Wakanda and Markovia is a given, but can America really stand against Quraq, Bialya, Atlantis, Attilan and Latveria while juggling a civil war over mutantkind? That's before four even rolls around."
"They may not necessarily be Wakanda's allies, but it is no stretch of the imagination to say that they hardly form the beginning of nations who'd like to see America fall apart. The king stood up slowly before letting the silence weigh his words into her mind.
"Do you know what this is called in Chess, Ms. Waller?"
She sighed, "Checkmate."
"Yes. But in plain, simple English?" He slid her a manilla folder with several images of famed assassin Floyd Lawton entering Genosha.
"It is suicide. The Outsiders refuse to disband."