Avenger Assembled

A tech-using enemy would be a good antagonist for Avenger; the better not to raise any suspicions.

Done and done. This is Avenger's first night out, woo!

I've recently started Avenger's debut thread over in the Fens, the sort of place where a hero of his sort is likely to function the best. If anyone else has a character who wants to run into Avenger on his very first night as a superhero (as friend or as foe), by all means, go for it. If you're a ref with a plot, same same! ;)

Because everyone's doing it these days! Folks are welcome.

"I am...the Avenger." Jack shook his head, his furrowed black eyebrows just visible behind his matte-black hockey mask. "No, that's not quite it." It was the last night, or maybe the first night. He'd spent weeks putting this costume together, assembling a "super-suit" from the materials affordable to a man who couldn't exactly go out and hold down a regular job. Black hockey mask over black ski mask for the face, heavy black motorcycle gloves on his hands, black combat boots and short black cape, with the rest of him in black combat fatigues. He was certainly very distinctive, and days of practice had gotten him almost used to moving and walking in the outfit, much less seeing it in the mirror.

Concentrating, Jack drew on the inner reserves of deception he'd cultivated for the last three years (or, if he was honest with himself, even longer), changing his voice to match the persona expressed by his menacing appearance. "I am...the Avenger," he hissed, his voice a low, purring growl of pure menace, and then he laughed an evil laugh that anyone would be proud of. He did his breathing exercises a few times, practicing making his shoulders and chest rise and fall underneath the heavy clothes that fortunately would not make him sweat, and then finally concluded he was ready.

Proceeding out of the cheap furnished rental by the window, Avenger drifted up the side of the decaying old brick hotel to the rooftop, where his heavy boots crunched against the shingled roof in a way that would have been deeply concerning if not for his faith in his own abilities to avoid a crash. From here he had a great view of the Fens, for all that it was a decidedly less-than-inspiring sight. But then again, that was why he'd picked the Fens to make his debut; the people from his regular life tended to avoid the Fens as being beneath their notice. If he stayed away from the Theater District and parts of the South Side (not to mention, of course, Lantern Hill, where no one like him in their right mind went), he'd do just fine.

"And maybe get a bite to eat while I'm at it," he muttered to himself, using Jack's voice rather than the Avenger's with no one else around. His double masks meant that no one could see his mouth when he was hungry; a definite advantage to this elaborate get-up. Drifting from rooftop to rooftop through the cluster of low-hanging bars and adult theaters scattered around his base of operations, Avenger went on the hunt for criminals. It was the Fens, fortunately, and it wasn't long before he found exactly what he was looking for.

The thug was young and probably high; he thought nothing of standing over the drunk he'd just rolled in the dark alley off 70th Street, counting the bills in the wallet with a smile on his face and all the time in the world. Avenger indulged himself on this one; drifting in for a perfect landing behind the mugger and tapping him on the shoulder. "Hey, bub." The fight was fast and hard, Avenger methodically beating the other guy into unconsciousness with several massively powerful blows. "Tell your friends that crime's been...AVENGED!" he spat, just before landing one last blow that knocked the mugger cold.

There was blood in the air, just enough to make it hard to think. Jack patted the mugger down, relieved to find a lead sap and several other wallets to go with the one in his hand. With the money removed and in Avenger's utility belt, Jack made use of the cell phone tucked away in his target's belt to call the police, letting them know that he'd just seen a brutal beating at the corner of 70th and Moore, making sure a car was on its way before hanging up and crushing the phone in his fist. With that done, Jack dragged the mugger deep into the shadows of the alley, checking again to verify that the guy was out before pulling up his masks and sinking his fangs into the unconscious man's neck.

Some thirty minutes later, a full, satisfied Avenger watched from the shadows as the police arrived, giving first aid to both the criminal and his victim alike. The drunk, from the look of him a slumming college kid, would get the help he needed...while the mugger, left tied by his own belt from the burnt-out lightpost overhead, the credit cards and personal items he'd stolen shoved into his pants, would get treatment for his bruises and broken bones that would also deal with his sudden, inexplicable anemia. And I made two hundred bucks! he thought happily, not bad at all!

The best part was, the night was still very young. A smile on his face behind his masks, Avenger headed off for further adventure, indulging himself in horseplay by leaping from narrow rooftop to narrow rooftop like he was a little kid watching Archer on television again. It was a lousy neighborhood, but he'd just done his part to make it a little better. It was a good life.

Okay, I've made the suggested changes and added the Hide in Plain Sight feat with the extra point. It made sense, given the character. Am I good to go, boss?

Hm, I'm not sure I understand the math above. Shouldn't needing five Con worth of blood per night be a steeper drawback than 1 Con per night, assuming they have the same penalty and the same risk from starvation?

Assuming that that's true, I've gone with the understanding that Jack is drinking 1 Con worth of blood a night; that matches the Dependence drawback for the various vampire NPCs in the book.

Hope that helps!

Okay, I've explained that Jack's dependence on blood causes a cumulative -1 drain on Defense every day without blood. I think that makes sense, given that his priorities become more and more about feeding and less and less about protecting himself.

Okay, I've made all the suggested changes! Had to do some shuffling and lose some things, but them's the breaks.

Okay, I've made the suggested changes. I actually found room for a few more power-points along the way. Let me know what you think! :)

Yes, it's all coming together nicely! :)

Sounds great! We've got the makings of an interesting association, I think. I was thinking of putting Jack in one of the lousier neighborhoods in Freedom City, some place with a lot of street crime and not a lot of questions. The Fens, maybe.

Huh, that would be interesting! It looks like Wesley would be able to see through Jack's masquerade readily enough, but that would just make things more exciting. Oh, and Jack is actually a pretty sociable guy for the undead; the grim and gritty vigilante is mostly a cover.

What part of the city does Wesley operate out of?

If you go out and patrol in bad neighborhoods at night on a regular basis, you're probably in. If you're at a much higher PL than 10, well...hopefully Jack's disguise will work for a while. :D

So I have a vampire PC (under consideration) by the mods who's trying to pass himself off as a grim and gritty costumed adventurer. Any street-level types out there need a colleague?

Greetings. I'm a Northern Kentucky gamer with an interest in twists on common archetypes. Hope the holiday's been a good one! =D And a new avatar and sig, ta-da!

[floatr][/floatr]

Player's Name: Davis

Power Level: 15 (249/250pp)

Trade-Offs: +5 Attack / -5 Damage

Unspent PP: 1

Progress to Platinum: 100/120pp

Characters Name: Avenger

Alternate Identity: Jack Faretti

Height: 6'2"

Weight: 180 pounds

Hair: Black

Eyes: Black

Description: As befits a gritty urban righter of wrongs, Avenger's costume is clearly homemade: his face is covered by a hockey mask spray-painted matte black, his hands by black motorcycle gloves with the logos still visible, bulky black combat fatigues supplemented with waist-length storebought cape, and heavy black combat boots. Still, his eyes are cold and menacing behind the mask even as his voice turns from silky purr to low growl. The man behind the mask is no one to trifle with.

Jack Faretti is a darkly handsome man with black hair and eyes that make his skin look paler than they ought to be. He seems most at home in the night, and indeed generally wears prescription sunglasses during the day. He is quiet and polite, and especially handsome when he smiles, showing off perfect white teeth. He wears plaid shirts and jeans most of the time, usually white and blue respectively, and generally takes pains to look...ordinary.

History: Jack Faretti became a vampire three years ago, transforming from a college dropout and club-goer to an undead creature of the night. His new life gave him great power but little direction, and he reveled in the delicious hedonism and glory of his undead state. He was a careful predator, always mindful of human life, for all that respect for his fellow man became increasingly difficult to remember as he became more and more alienated from humanity. Though he ran with a pack, and occasionally his sire Claudia, Jack was primarily an independent agent.

(Jack and Claudia have a healthier relationship than many fictional vampires and their sires, though that's not necessarily saying much. Claudia is attracted to pretty, impressionable young men who'll do what she says and whose blood she can drink. As happens occasionally with couples, her efforts to make Jack more like her [which is to say, the undead] actually meant he lost the things she found attractive about him. They do keep in touch, though, and back each other up when the situation calls for it. Claudia is a pretty young-looking thing with alabaster skin and curly black hair, who favors the short skirts and cigarettes of her native 1920s. Though more humanist than your stereotypical comic book vampire, Claudia treats humans with the same interest as a ten-year-old girl with her favorite toys, and would feel equally as bad if she broke one.)

He didn't find new purpose in his life until only recently, when Foreshadow came calling to break up the pack of vampires that ran the club Eclipse as their own private feeding grounds. Jack had never been more than a hanger-on at Eclipse; the gang there had been territorial and prickly, with a disdain for human life that he didn't share. That left him in a perfect position to watch the fight, and something about the battle...inspired him. There was something truly remarkable about a man pitting himself in single combat against a pack of vampires, especially since he was acting purely out of defense of others. The sight got Jack watching television and reading books about superheroes, and made him think more and more about what he could do with his unlife.

Wouldn't it be remarkable if a vampire turned to the defense of others? Not out of a horror of his undead state the way the much-ridiculed Nightrage had a generation earlier, but out of a genuine desire to make a lasting monument to himself and humanity at large? And what better way to make sure _he_ didn't have to fight with any superheroes than hide amongst them behind a mask? With his cunning plan in mind, he began accumulating the accouterments he'd need for a costume, along with a "persona" of a tough, take-no-prisoners street vigilante.

The night was about to get a lot more interesting.

Personality & Motivation: Faretti/Avenger is a basically amiable fellow who pretends to be a dark and gritty street avenger. He remains attached to humanity, especially since he can walk among them by day, but it's hard to think too much of people when they're so delicious. He protects the poor through a sense of noblesse oblige, one inherited from his sire and wealthy suburban family background, but is not a "blue collar" guy by choice. If he had more money, he'd live in a better neighborhood.

Jack is from a lineage different than the line that produced Melinda, Nightstalker, and Nightrage. His Eastern European lineage is somewhat closer to that of the 1897 Dracula; very tough and powerful, functional in sunlight, but vulnerable to holy items and to a bowie knife through the heart.

Complications:

Enemy (other vampires who object to his modus operandi)

Hatred (is the undead)

Reputation (crazy vigilante)

Responsibility (Child: Jack Jr., Spouse: Phantom, Friend: The Scarab, Team: The Midnighters, protecting own humanity, Keeping Freedom City's vampires on the straight and narrow)

Rivalry (Fleur de Joie)

Secret (is the undead, Power Behind the Throne of Freedom City's vampires)

Weakness (needs blood to survive)

Stats: 16 + 16 + (-10) + 0 + 4 + 8 = 34pp

Str 26 (+8)

Dex 26 (+8)

Con - (-)

Int 10 (+0)

Wis 14 (+2)

Cha 18 (+4)

Combat: 10 + 26 = 36pp

Attack +5, +9 @ night, +16 melee, +20 melee @ night

Grapple +22, +26 @ night

Defense +15, +6 flat-footed

Knockback -12, -7 vs. blessed/magic/silver

Initiative +16

Saves: 7 + 12 = 19pp

Toughness +15 (Impervious 15 [Not vs Blessed, Fire, Holy, Magic, Silver, or Wood/Piercing Damage)

Fortitude -

Reflex +14 [+7 Dex, +7]

Will +14 [+2 Wis, +12]

Skills: 120r = 30pp

Bluff 14 (+18, +22 Attractive, Skill Mastery)

Diplomacy 14 (+18, +22 Attractive)

Gather Information 19 (+23, Skill Mastery)

Intimidate 19 (+23, Distract, Skill Mastery)

Investigate 4 (+4)

Knowledge (arcane lore) 6 (+6)

Knowledge (streetwise) 6 (+6)

Language 2 (Cantonese, English [Native], Old Slavonic)

Notice 10 (+12)

Search 4 (+4)

Sense Motive 6 (+8)

Stealth 20 (+27, Skill Mastery)

Feats: 48pp

Attack Focus (Melee) 11

Attractive

Connected

Contacts

Distract (Intimidate)

Dodge Focus 2

Equipment 3 (15EP)

Evasion 2

Fascinate (Diplomacy)

Favored Environment (Night) 4

Fearless

Grappling Block

Hide in Plain Sight

Improved Grab

Improved Initiative 2

Improved Pin

Luck 4

Power Attack

Second Chance (Stealth)

Skill Mastery (Bluff, Gather Information, Intimidate, Stealth)

Sneak Attack

Startle

Takedown Attack 2

Ultimate Skill 2 (Intimidate, Stealth)

Well-Informed

"The Lair"

Shared with Phantom

Size: Medium; Toughness: +20

(Communications, Computer, Concealedx5, Defense System x4 (Suffocate 15 (Aura); air pumps; Paralyze 15 (Aura) (arcane sigils on floor)), Fire Prevention System, Library, Living Space, Laboratory (Arcane), Pool, Power (Immunity 9, Life Support, 9/30pp), Power 2 (Nullify Insubstantial 11, Feats: Progression [Area] 1 [10ft/rank = 110ft radius], Extras: Area [General, Burst], Duration 3 [Continuous], Selective, Flaws: Range [Touch], 56/60pp), Power System (gas & bike pumps) Security System x3 (DC 30), Workshop (Arcane))

Powers: 23 + 4 + 30 + 1 + 7 + 15 + 9 + 2 + 3 = 94pp

Terrifying Vampiric Array of the Undead 7.5 (15pp; PFs: Alternate Power x8) [23pp]

BE: Concealment 10 (all senses; PFs: Close Range, Selective; Flaws: Phantasm), Linked Flight 1 (10 MPH] / 100 feet per Move action; PF: Subtle) and Leaping 1 (x2), [Drawback: Not during daylight] [15 pp]]

AP: Drain Constitution 15 (blood drain; Flaws: Requires Grapple; PFs Improved Crit, Reversible, Precise, Slow Fade x4 [1 hour]) [15pp]

AP: Drain Constitution 5 (Extras: Insidious; Flaws: Requires Grapple; PFs: Precise), LINKED Mind Reading 15 (Extra: Sensory Link; Flaws: Range 2 [Touch], Requires Grapple; PF: Subtle), LINKED Super-Senses 4 (Postcognition; Flaws: Medium [blood]) [14 PP]

AP: Drain Constitution 4 (Extra: Insidious; Flaws: Requires Grapple; PFs: Precise), LINKED Emotion Control 15 (Extras: Duration [Continuous], Insidious; Flaws: Limited to love, Range 2 [touch], Requires Grapple; PFs: Mind Blank, Subtle) [14pp]

AP: Concealment 8 (All Visual/Auditory/Olfactory/Mental/Radio Senses; PF: Close Range; Flaws: Limited [While Moving]; [5PP] and Speed 10 (10,000 mph / 100,000 feet per Move action; PF:Subtle), (Drawback: Not during daylight) [10PP])- Speed of the Dead [15pp]

AP: Insubstantial 2 (gaseous; (PF: Selective]; Extra: Linked Flight 2 (25 mph / 250 feet per Move action; PF: Subtle; Drawback: Not during daylight]) [15 pp]

AP: Mind Control 15 (PFs: Mental Link, Precise, Subtle; Extras: Conscious, Duration [sustained]; Flaws: Action [Full], Distracting, Sense-Dependent [Auditory]), Unreliable [5 uses a day] [11 pp]

AP: Obscure 4 (Summoned Bat/Rat Swarm, 50-ft. radius, All Senses; PF: Slow Fade [1PP/one minutes]; Drawbacks: [Not during daylight hours]; Extras: Independent, Total Fade; Flaws: Action [Full], Range [Touch]) and Immunity 1 (own powers; Extra: Affects Others, Ranged) [15 pp]

AP: Vampiric on Unarmed Damage 8 (Bite; PFs: Improved Critical 2, Incurable, Precise, Reversible, Sedation, Subtle) [15pp]

Concealment 4 (all visual; Flaws: Limited- Machines only, Permanent Duration) [4pp]

Immunity 30 (Fortitude effects) [30 pp]

Immunity 2 (Bluff skill; Flaw: Limited [Not In Combat]) [1]

Impervious Toughness 15 (Flaw: Limited [Not vs Blessed, Fire, Holy, Magic, Silver, or Wood/Piercing Damage]) [7pp]

Protection 15 [15pp]

Regeneration 18 (+14 recovery bonus [+9 total due to no Con], Injured 1/ 20 minutes, Resurrection 3/five hours [not when staked or beheaded]; Flaws: Source [blood]) [9pp]

Super-Senses 2 (Darkvision) [2pp]

Super-Movement 1 (Wall-Crawling 1; Power Feat: Alternate Power 2; Drawback: Not during daylight) [3pp]

AP: Leaping 2 (x5; Drawback: Not during daylight)

AP: Speed 2 (25 MPH; Drawback: Not during daylight)

Drawbacks: 13pp

* Vulnerability (Fire, Frequency: Common, Intensity: Moderate [150% DC]) [3pp]

* Vulnerability (Silver, Frequency: Uncommon, Intensity: Moderate [150% DC]) [2pp]

* Vulnerability (Wood [Piercing]; Frequency: Uncommon, Intensity: Moderate [150% DC]) [2pp]

* Vulnerability (vs. Holy; Frequency: Uncommon, Intensity: Moderate [150% DC]) [2pp]

* Vulnerability (vs. Magic; Frequency: Uncommon, Intensity: Minor [+1 DC]) [1pp]

* Weakness (Holy Symbols, dazed for one round by losing an opposed Charisma check; Frequency: Common, Intensity: Moderate) [3pp]

DC Block:

ATTACKS --- SAVE DC --- DAMAGE TYPE:

Unarmed --- DC 22 (24 sneak), Toughness --- Bruise/Injured

Bite --- DC 24 (26 sneak), Toughness --- Injured

Claws --- DC 24 (26 sneak), Toughness --- Injured

Costs: Abilities (34) + Combat (36) + Saves (19) + Skills (31) + Feats (48) + Powers (94) - Drawbacks (13) = Total Cost 249/250pp