RocketLord

Adapted from the 3E threat report on Cortex, semi-requested by Ari. I'm well aware of the PP cost being way above 15PP/PL, but this is in part due to the conversion, and the Terror being a major threat when it shows up in Emerald City. If there's any changes to suggest, in case that won't be allowed, please let me know, and I'll see what I can do about changing it. The way I at least choose to see it, is that he is a higher PL character that haven't advanced in PL, much like player characters can, if that helps. Tier pending, will edit once I got that, based on what an Emerald City ref will decide, since it isn't my own original character.

Cortex Power Level: 10 (244/244PP) Unspent Power Points: 0 Trade-Offs: (Pulse Blasters) -2 Attack / +2 Damage, -3 Defense / +3 Toughness In Brief: Mutated super genius drug lord. Alternate Identity: Henry Todd (Secret) Birthplace: Emerald City Residence: Hidden location in Emerald City, normally known simply as the Laboratory. Base of Operations: Emerald City Occupation: Drug Lord Affiliations: The Cartel Family: Louisa Todd (Mother, deceased) Description: Age: 36 (DoB: 1982) Apparent Age: Difficult to tell, due to mutation. Appears to be at least early 40'es. Gender: Male. Ethnicity: Caucasian. Height: 5'4'' Weight: 190 lbs. (most contained in cranium and brain) Eyes: Black Hair: None Cortex is a rail thin man, standing below average height. His face twisted, his body seemingly having little fat or muscle, he would appear just malnourished, if not for his very visible mutation: A gigantic skull and brain, weighing enough to make movement all but impossible for the man, stretching down to almost at his waist. His face appears older than it should be, perhaps from the strain. Without the mechnical support pod he has built for himself, he would have difficulty even moving. He is usually dressed in loose green suit, with a large yellow belt, a yellow harness on his chest, connected to his support pod and yellow boots. History: Cortex grew up in Black Pines, a small town south of Emerald City. His mother was a former mental patient, institutionalized after she was found wandering on the highway in a state of hysteria with no memory of who she was or how she had gotten there. The doctors determined that she was pregnant, and at birth little Henry seemed normal. By the age of two, however, his head was already starting to show growth outstripping that of the rest of his body; he was also already reading at a college level and spoke several languages. As he continued to grow, so too did his frightening intellect. Louisa Todd (given a first name by a caring nurse and taking her last name from the county hospital that had delivered Henry) tried to provide for and protect her son, but she was a weak and fragile woman that never recovered from whatever ordeal had placed her on that road the night she was found. She lacked marketable skills and was prone to incapacitating panic attacks. Unable to hold a job for long, she and little Henry stayed in subsidized housing, where her son quickly became the source of amusement and target of ridicule for the neighboring children. He learned quickly and painfully that the world broke down into two fundamental categories of people: victims and victimizers. Henry Todd resolved that he would not remain a victim, no matter what it cost himself or others, especially others. Early in life, he was exposed to drug dealers, their processes for making drugs, and their business practices… and he observed the respect and fear people showed these men, as well as the money they made. By the age of five he had mastered “kitchen” chemistry to the point where he could produce marketable merchandise using only cheap and legally obtained materials. Effective drugs bought him allies, who sold his drugs in the surrounding area. Money bought him better material to work with, and connections, both of which he leveraged to make more powerful merchandise. By the age of ten, he had manipulated a number of older teenagers into forming the first of many short-lived gangs used solely to front his product. Where money alone failed to motivate, he supplied drugs; where money and drugs both failed to sway, difficult to trace toxins crippled or eliminated. As he grew older, those who encountered Henry learned that it was very profitable to work for him, and very dangerous to work against him. By his early teens, Henry’s mother had passed away gently in her sleep (with a little assistance) and he had disappeared from social service’s records completely. Todd took the name “Cortex” and used various inventions to portray himself as a “supervillain” simply because such beings held so much sway over certain elements of the criminal underworld. Over the past two decades, he built a sophisticated network of fronts, connections, and distributors so large it became a drug cartel all its own. Despite the fact that Cortex would rather stop designing drugs and instead follow his own interests into more esoteric research (still in the realm of biochemistry and organic engineering), his money and respect are both tied up with the cartel, so he continues to split his time between the two. However, in his mind, he now views the cartel as the source of money for his research, not the goal itself. Personality & Motivation: Henry Todd has no conscience or moral restraint. People and money are both just tools to be used and discarded as needed. As Cortex, Henry doesn’t aspire to world domination or other traditional manias associated with the villainous set. He simply wants to be left alone to pursue his research; however, he knows his kind of research usually provokes some form of interference from those with badges or costumes, and so he makes sure he has the resources and power base to deal with any such obstacles. Cortex is coldly vicious when interfered with or confronted. He doesn’t waste time with games or bluster or other egotistical displays unless he thinks such actions grant him some form of advantage. Though not a coward, Cortex is invested in his own personal safety above all else—he abandons facilities, people, and projects without hesitation if he has to choose between himself and them. He is a patient man and in his estimation, he can always get more ”tools”. Powers & Tactics: Cortex possesses superhuman intelligence. He can forecast the likely events of the future from current information and work out the past with the same certainty. Telepaths find it difficult to process his thoughts, granting him a degree of resistance to most forms of mental intrusion. His knowledge and mastery of the biological sciences knows few equals, knowledge he uses to develop and sell designer drugs ranging from horribly addictive narcotics to super-soldier treatments. Cortex’s body is highly underdeveloped thanks to his cranial deformity, but the support pod he uses more than compensates as it is capable of protecting him from even most superhuman threats with its offensive and defensive capabilities. Power Descriptions: Cortex's powers are all ultimately due to his genius. Either the cause of it, or made by it. While his grotesquely oversized brain makse him incredibly intelligent, he has created a support pod to both stabilize him when standing, protect him and aid him in combat. The support pod's most obvious enhancement are the pair of extendible cyberarms, capable of supporting Cortex's weight, fine manipulation and being used in combat. Less obvious are the protective force field that keeps Cortex safe, and the gravitic pulse generator that not only helps keep him upright, but also allows him to fly. The onboard systems include computer and navigation systems, and tools to enhance Cortex's senses, allowing him greater clarity as he works on new drugs. The support pod's weapon systems include pulse blasters, gravity wave discharges and neurotoxin aerosol dispensers. While the exact origin of Cortex's mutation remains unknown, his father might have been involved. Was his mother abducted and experimented on by aliens? Did she escape some secret lab where research on the DNAscent process was being conducted? Or is he simply a mutation or Terminus Baby? Or something far more sinister in pedigree? Complications: Disability: Cortex’s grossly overgrown cranium and brain are larger than the rest of his body. He needs artificial support for his head to keep his neck from breaking and would barely be able to crawl without its support. Motivation - Power and Fortune: In the back of Cortex’s mind, he is never very far from the roach-infested countysubsidized housing where he grew up hungry and ridiculed. Power and money are his security blanket and he can never have enough of either. He may find the cartel and its upkeep tedious now, but they are too necessary to discard. Rival - The Labyrinth: Cortex has created many enhancement drugs and cutting edge bio-modification technologies. This has put him into competition with other fronts for the Labyrinth’s DNAscent enterprises. Todd suspects there is more to his competition than is apparent, but is far from piecing together Taurus’s involvement. Abilities: -2 + 0 + 2 + 20 + 8 + 2 = 30PP Strength: 8 (-1) / 18 (+4) Dexterity: 10 (+0) Constitution: 12 (+1) Intelligence: 30 (+10) Wisdom: 18 (+4) Charisma: 12 (+1) Combat: 8 + 14 = 22PP Initiative: +0 Attack: +4 Base, +4 Melee, +8 Ranged (+4 Base, +4 Attack Specialization), +10 Cyberarm Smack (+4 Base, +6 Accurate) Defense: +7 (+7 Base, +0 Dodge Focus), +0 Flat-Footed Grapple: +8 Knockback: -6 Saving Throws: 0 + 0 + 6 = 6PP Toughness: 13 (+1 Con, +12 [Force Field]) Fortitude: +0 (+0 Con, +0) / Immune Reflex: +7 (+0 Dex, +7 [Enhanced Reflex Save]) Will: +10 (+4 Wis, +6) Skills: 200R = 50PP Bluff 15 (+16) Computers 15 (+25) Craft [Chemical] 15 (+25) Craft [Electronic] 15 (+25) Craft [Mechanical] 15 (+25) Diplomacy 9 (+10) Disable Device 8 (+18) Intimidation 6 (+7) Investigation 6 (+16) Knowledge [Business] 9 (+19) Knowledge [Life Sciences] 15 (+25) Knowledge [Physical Sciences] 15 (+25) Knowledge [Technology] 15 (+25) Medicine 12 (+16) Notice 9 (+13) Profession [Drug Lord] 12 (+16) Sense Motive 9 (+13) Feats: 27PP Attack Focus [Ranged] 4 Benefit 1 (Status: Head of drug cartel) Benefit 3 (Wealth: Multi-millionaire) Connected Eidetic Memoery Equipment 10 (Underground Lair, 3 Abandoned Warehouses) Inventor Languages 5 (Japanese, mandarin, Chinese, Russian, Spanish, whatever else needed by GM) Well-Informed Equipment: 10PP = 50EP The Laboratory (Headquarters; Underground Lair) (19 EP) Secret Labs in Abandoned Warehouses x3 (Headquarters; Abandoned Warehouse) (10x3EP = 30EP) Powers: 19 + 90 = 109PP Computer-Like Mind 3.8 (19PP Container) [19PP] (Mutation, applies to all powers in Container) Impervious Will 10 [10PP] Quickness 10 (Flaws: Mental Only; x1000 normal speed) [5PP] Super-Senses Rank 4 (Postcognition; Flaws: Limited [Requires evidence to study]) [2PP] Super-Senses Rank 4 (Precogntion; Flaws: Limited, [Macro-scale trends]) [2PP] Support Pod 22.5 (112/112PP Device; Flaws: Hard-to-lose) [90PP] (Technology, applies to all powers in Device) Extendible Cyberarms 2.8 (14PP Container) [15PP] Damage 6 ("Cyberarm Smack"; Flaws: Limited [Extra Limbs Only]; Feats: Accurate 3, Mighty) [7PP] Elongation 2 (Flaws: Limited [Extra Limbs Only]; 10 feet) [1PP] Enhanced Strength 10 (Flaws: Limited [Extra Limbs Only]) [5PP] Extra Limbs 2 [2PP] Gravimetric Pulse Generator 2.8 (14PP Container) [14PP] (Gravity) Enhanced Reflex Save 7 [7PP] Flight 2 (Flight Speed 25 mph, 220 ft./rnd) [4PP] Flight 3 (Flaws: Distracting; Flight Speed 250 mph, 2200 ft./rnd) (Stacks with Flight 2) [3PP] Onboard Systems 1 (5PP Container) [5PP] Features 2 (Computer, Navigation System) [2PP] Super-Senses 3 (Analytical Auditory, Analytical Visual, Radio) [3PP] Protective Fields 10.8 (54PP Container) [54PP] (Kinetic Energy) Force Field 12 (Extras: Impervious) [24PP] Immunity 30 (Fortitude Effects; Extras: Linked to Force Field) [30PP] Weapon Systems Array 10 (20PP Array; Feats: Alternate Power 3) [24PP] BP: Blast 10 ("Explosive Gravity Wave Discharge"; Extras: Area [Burst (50 ft. radius)]) {20/20PP} (Kinetic, Gravity, Impact) AP: Blast 12 ("Pulse Blasters"; Extras: Secondary Effect 8, Feats: Autofire, Incurable) {20/20PP} (Kinetic, Impact) AP: Stun 10 ("Gravity Knockdown"; Extras: Alternate Save [Reflex], Area [Burst (50 ft. radius)], Flaws: Daze) {20/20PP} (Kinetic, Gravity, Impact) AP: Stun 6 ("Neurotoxin Aerosol Dispensers"; Extras: Area [Cloud (30 feet diameter)], Feats: Subtle 2) {20/20PP} (Pharmaceutical, Gas) Drawbacks: (-0) + (-0) = -0PP DC Block Name Range Save Effect Attack bonus Unarmed 10 ft. DC19 Tou (staged) Damage +4 Cyberarm Smack 10 ft. DC25 Tou (staged) Damage +10 Explosive Gravity Wave Discharge 50 ft. radius DC25 Tou (Staged) Damage +8 Pulse Blasters 120 ft. DC27 Tou (staged) (DC23 secondary effect) Damage +8 Gravity Knockdown 50 ft. radius DC20 Ref (staged) Dazed +8 Neurotoxin Aerosol Dispensers 15 ft. radius cloud DC16 Tou (staged) Dazed/Stun/Unconscious +8 Totals: Abilities (30) + Combat (22) + Saving Throws (6) + Skills (50) + Feats (27) + Powers (109) - Drawbacks (0) = 244/244 Power Points Cortex tends to use criminals that he enhance with his drugs as foot soldiers. While they can be different, these are their common stats. Enhanced Soldier Power Level: 7 (70/70PP) Unspent Power Points: 0 Trade-Offs: +2 Attack / -2 Damage, -2 Defense / +2 Toughness Complications: Drugged Loyality: Addition to the drugs provided by Cortex means that the enhanced soldiers are fanatically loyal to the drug lord. Abilities: 2 + 2 + 4 + 0 + 0 + 0 = 8PP Strength: 12 (+1) / 20 (+5) Dexterity: 12 (+1) Constitution: 14 (+2) / 22 (+6) Intelligence: 10 (+10) Wisdom: 10 (+0) Charisma: 10 (+0) Combat: 10 + 10 = 20PP Initiative: +1 (+1 Dex) Attack: +5 Base, +5 Melee, +5 Ranged Defense: +5 (+5 Base, +0 Dodge Focus), +0 Flat-Footed Grapple: +6 / +10 Knockback: -4 Saving Throws: 3 + 4 + 1 = 8PP Toughness: +9 (+6 Con, +3 [Body Armor]) Fortitude: +9 (+3, +6 Con,) Reflex: +5 (+4, +1 Dex) Will: +1 (+1) Skills: 24R = 6PP Climb 4 (+9) Drive 2 (+3) Intimidation 3 (+3) Knowledge: Tactics 4 (+4) Notice 3 (+3) Profession: Soldier 4 (+4) Swim 4 (+9) Feats: 12PP Attack Focus [Ranged] 4 Equipment 7 Fearless Equipment: 7PP = 35EP Assault Rifle (Blast 5) [16EP] (Ballistic damage) Body Armor (Protection 3) [3EP] Assorted other Equipment worth up to 16EP Powers: 16 = 16PP Chemical Enhancement 8 (Container) [16PP] (Pharmaceutical, Physical) Enhanced Constitution 8 [8PP] Enhanced Strength 8 [8PP] DC Block Name Range Save Effect Attack bonus Unarmed Touch DC20 Tou (staged) Damage +5 Assault Rifle 50 ft. DC20 Tou (staged) Damage +9 Totals: Abilities (8) + Combat (20) + Saving Throws (8) + Skills (6) + Feats (12) + Powers (16) - Drawbacks (0) = 70/70 Power Points

Robin's trying to push the detective's hand and gun up, so he'll shoot into the sky again. What check do I need to make?

Aw, c'mon. Why couldn't it have been that nice cop from the other day, when Robin had stopped that mugger? He'd been a real sweetheart. Detective Kidd was just looking for trouble here. And causing it. Robin had no idea that Blowfish was building this place, which gave her pause for a moment, but just because someone was paying for it, did that mean that the place wasn't good? Especially if he was doing it all legally, right? So. Another wrinkle to this whole issue. Just great. She wasn't about to let Detective Kidd shoot the guys in the back with a lethal weapon. No way. Time to bring out the bigger guns, so to speak. Phone out. Code entered. Maybe transforming in front of Detective Kidd would be enough to give him pause, but at any rate, she had to stop that. "Henshin!" The Justice Driver belt made its announcement as the Justice suit appeared, all red and gold, while Robin moved forward, reaching out for Detective Kidd's hand and pushing it up as fast as she could. "That's not justice, detective!"

I was thinking Acrobatics, I think. Check's good enough for keeping up, but not getting closer.

GM The exits to the building were not far from the exit to the arena. As the Duke of Despair chased, he saw the faint light outside the glass doors, which were slowly closing. It was already far away, but in the relative darkness outside the royal arena, the light stood out all the more. It was heading South, towards the apartment buildings that stood between the Royal Arena and the great nature area called Fælleden, other the Commons in English. Wherever it moved, the street lights would turn off, leaving behind a path of darkness. Maybe the Sultan of Sorrow would be able to catch up, but unless it changed direction, its course was clear.

Feel free to make any Athletics or similar rolls to try catching up to the glowing figure.

GM It wasn't long before Oswald had stepped in that he heard frantic tapping on the floor coming for him. The man, now fully a penguin, with a butterfly no less, came running towards him, its beak opening and closing rapidly, as it shouted in the same deep voice as before. "Out! Out! You have not been allowed to enter! Begone, you tramp!" It was quite a ridiculous sight, actually. But on the other hand, it was also fascinating. After all, this appeared to be nothing less than a talking penguin. How often would one see something such as that? The penguin was running straight for him, flapping its flippers. What would Oswald do?

I'm thinking a single post for each of you, then we can close this, unless either of you want to continue this in any way?

GM Midas was running, as best as he could. More like a very excited hobbling. He couldn't make out what the young heroes were yelling, but he knew htat it was nothing good for him. So, he ran, a golden goose making his way through the city, with people spreading to let him get away. After all, had he not just caused the giant explosion, and was he not wearing a battle suit, tacky as it might be? Hearing the whistling sound of something flying through the air at great speed, he turned around just in time to see the ever-changing Facsimile coming at him. Just enough of a second to realize what was going to happen. *CLANG* The collision was fast, and head on. Facsimile's collision was more than enough to send Dr. Midas to the ground, knocked out with a single, well placed hit.

Go for it. I think we can move beyond needing to actually roll now, as Midas really isn't much of a threat at this point, with his failing armor and everything.

Dog was perhaps not the right word, though there seemed to be something in the animal kingdom. As Oswald continued to look at the man, he was slowly starting to seem less human, and more like, well, a penguin. He was short. The black gloves on his hands seemed to be slowly fusing together into flippers. His nose was long, and his face was growing rather dark. Almost as if there were something that had covered him, but was slowly starting to fade away. By the time he turned with a loud "Hmph!" and walked away, Oswald could swear that he was waddling, rather than walking, and had lost at least a foot in height. Would he try to enter, or simply wait? The door was open, but the servant had not made his intentions clear, after all.

Oh, great. Someone deciding to escalate things. Robin looked over her shoulder in the direction of the sound, and looked at the 70'es fashion reject. Now, she was far from being into fashion at all. It just didn't matter much to her, but this was so far behind the curve that it wasn't even funny. And he wore sunglasses, at night. Even if his little speech didn't settle it, Robin could quickly peg him for the kind of guy that would cause trouble. His speech just made her certain of what kind of trouble Detective Kidd would be causing. "Well, its not like these guys are trespassing or anything like that, if anything, they're the ones with a legal reason to be here, unlike, well, everyone else." Robin countered, having turned to fully face Detective Kidd. Putting herself between a shotgun and 5 great big hammers. Great plan there, Langley. "I'm Justice. Guess my name's still not a big deal, I guess. I'm not here to take any sides, Detective Kidd. I'm just here to try keeping anyone from getting hurt. People got the right to build this place, and other people got the right to protest. No reason for anybody to get hurt over that, is there?" Maybe she should have put on the full suit immediately. Be less random girl with domino mask and more actually a super hero.

Creative! I'll allow it! Facs is up!

GM What had happened? The stage hand was panicking, just as much as Luther was himself. His awe at the great Zambo! what all but disappeared, and he rattled something in Danish, almost completely incomprehensible "Børnene! Børnene er væk! Der var noget som tog dem!" He paused, shaking his head. This was Zambo! Of course he didn't speak Danish. "There's about 20 children missing! They just disappeared when the lights went out, nobody saw where they went, nobody saw them being taken! They were just gone!" There were little joy for the Void to feast on here. It would starve. And yet, at the corner of Luther's eye, there were something. A small measaure of a joy. He just managed to see a small glowing figure disappear into one of the exits from the arena itself, in the direction of the exits to the great building.

Effects and whether it passed coming next IC post.

Succes. Effects will be shown in my next post after yours.

Can I get a notice check?

The man looked suitably unimpressed, simply looking up at Oswald with just about all the disinterest he could muster. "I see. That is a most interesting proposition. And what possible reason you could you give? Curiosity? Looking for a certain ingredient, that one of my master's pets might hold?" His voice was as deep as before. It was obvious that he was looking down on Oswald, having decided to barely acknowledge his presence in the first place. "Do be quick about it, so I can turn you away before it takes too long."

Can I get a Notice check?

One knock. Two knocks. Three knocks. At the third knock, the door opened, revealing a man dressed very much like a stereotypical butler. A penguin suit, so to speak. He was short, broad at the bottom, narrow at the top. His hair was dark, neatly brushed, falling flat against his head. His eyes were halfway open, halfway closed, almost like he was in a daze of sorts. He eyed Oswald for a moment, appraising him, trying to recognize this strange new man at the doorstep. "And what brings you here, kind sir?" he finally asked, his voice a deep baritone.

Rev made it! As Facsimile fell and tumbled through the sky, she caught him in her arms. Hurt and tired as she might be, her friend was saved. Now, they only had two problems that they had to solve: Getting down to the ground, and catching up with the good doctor who had finally taken the chance to try and flee, slowly running down the street. Apparently, they fighting had damaged whatever part of his armor that let him fly!

"I'm Justice. I know, I'm pretty new at the whole super hero thing, and I don't really know if you've heard of me, but please, just listen a moment, alright?" She had her back turned to Jack Jackson, and did her best to keep it like that. It was a good idea to at least try to keep him out of her hair as long as possible. Might actually get to talk a bit with these people, then. She pointed over her shoulder with her thumb, right at Jack Jackson and Blowfish. "You see those guys over there? The one that doesn't look like a puffer fish is Jack Jackson. He's a tv personality, usually specializing in super heroes, but I guess he got some interest in the center." She quickly looked over her shoulder, just to make sure Jack was still talking with Blowfish. "From what I've seen, he's not above twisting the narrative. If you guys come out with your hammers up like this, or do anything at all that can make you seem threatening? He's gonna make sure that you look like the bad guys here. And hammers or not, look at all these people. They'll rip you apart."

GM The audience was dead silent, as the show began. The flash hit Zombo! on the stage, as the music played. The beat was thundering, and the flashes of pictures being taken on various smartphones were quite clear, yet not enough to disturb. Everyone was enthralled, as the music boomed and Zombo! put on his great performance. And something else was watching. Something stranger. He was known around the world, and for good reason. There were scares, there were laughs. A few lucky kids got invited on the stage, taking part in card tricks, or trying to escape "zombified" dancers. All a part of the act, all a part of the scare and the fun. They all returned safely to their seats, to the safety of their family. And something else was watching. Something weirder. Finally, with thunderous applause, the show came to a stop. With a final, thundering beat, the entire hall went dark. The great Zombo! had put on a performance that would be remembered by the attendees for a long, long time. They had been frightened, they had been awed, they had seen sleight of hand, they had heard music, seen dances, seen magic and all the strange things that happened when Zombo! was around. And as the darkness remained and the thunderous applause echoed through the great hall, something else happened. Another reason that they would all remember the evening for time to come. For something else had been watching. Some older. Something stranger. Something weirder. Something that had taken what it wanted in the darkness. As the lights came on, the screams began. All over the arena, children were missing. Not all, far from it, but enough. With an audience of almost 16.000 souls, it was hard not to notice several missing kids. As riot threatened to break out in the arena, would the great Zombo! take action, or leave it to the security? The happiness that had filled the room mere moments before had turned to despair. And the Void would go hungry.

I'll let Facs get a chance to react/respond before my post.