EternalPhoenix Posted June 10, 2014 Share Posted June 10, 2014 (edited) Terrifica Power Level: 15 (built as PL 10; 229/244 PP) Trade-Offs: +5 Attack, -5 Damage (unarmed); +3 Attack, -3 Damage (Terrifi-Staff Melee); +2 Attack, -2 Damage (Snare & Dazzle); +2 Damage, -2 Attack (Terrifi-Cannon); Unspent PP: 15 In Brief: Terrifica is a supergenius Cowl with Gadgeteer elements. Alternate Identites: Qiaolian Song (largely defunct), Samantha Carson (current) Identity: Secret Birthplace: Rural China (half raised in Boston, Mass.) Occupation: Associate Professor of Physics Affliations: MIT, Mensa Family: Lucas Carson (father, missing), Meili Song (mother, deceased), Cassandra Carson (great aunt), Stan Gresham (husband), Lucas Gresham (son born Aug 30, 2012), Meili Gresham (daughter born Feb 13, 2014), the Carson family (black sheep of), the Song family (black sheep of) Age: 24 (born Jun 10, 1990) Apparent Age: early 20s Gender: Female Ethnicity: Half Han Chinese, half Anglo Saxon Height: 5’ 4” (5’ 6” in costume) Weight: 115 lbs. Eyes: Dark Brown Hair: Brown Description: Finely built with athletic musculature, If Sam ever played to it she would be beautiful. Unfortunately, she’s a thinker, not a fashion model or piece of meat for ogling. She keeps up with fashion in a general way, not committing any grave faux pas, but you’ll only find her in something pricey when the occasion calls for it. That said, she does appear to be resolutely against denim and sweatclothes, as she’s never worn either. Her costume is dark blue and appears formfitting, even though it’s just thick. It covers her from head to toe, only leaving from for the bottom of her nose, her mouth, and her chin. A wide orange stripe runs down the sides of both arms and both legs. There is an orange T on her forehead, with the bottom line sliding between her eyes. She pairs it with an ordinary Badass Longcoat or a short jacket. The coat is simply the same shade of dark blue. The jacket shares the suit’s color and stripes, and has a small orange T over the left breast. History: A man named Lucas Carson went to China to spread the Good News of Jesus. He fell in love and married a local, Meili Song. They had a daughter, Qiaolian, who they cared for very much. However, the local Chinese officials slowly got wind of Lucas’s actions, and began to pursue him. Soon, it was too dangerous to bring a small child along all the time. So Lucas and his lady love began to leave Qiaolian at a local Buddhist temple that did double duty as an orphanage of sorts. One day, not long after Qiaolian’s eight birthday, they left her there again…and never came back. Qiaolian missed them terribly, but she had friends, and the monks were nice. Plus a aged Kung Fu master had set up shop and was teaching some of the children, including Qiaolian. And then her powers kicked in, increasing her IQ exponentially. She had more than enough to do. Four years later, a white man came to the temple. He worked for Cassandra Carson, Lucas’s aunt. He was looking for Lucas, but instead found Qiaolian, who calmly explained who she was and why he should care. In exquisite and exacting detail. It wasn’t a full week before Qiaolian was headed to America (Boston, specifically), home of the fairly large Carson family. Cassandra was not impressed by the “dirty little chinagirl” and immediately changed her name to Samantha. Sam blurred through schools, far too intelligent for the material in middle and high school. She became one of Boston College’s youngest students in their entire history at 16. There, her rapid pace slowed, not due to the increased difficulties of the material, but due to studying virtually everything under the sun. A teenaged Terrifica had a short career as a local crime fighter, but at the time it didn’t interest her any more than anything else and she quickly dropped it. It was during this time she met Stan Gresham, the man who would become her husband. She was 18, he was 23. Love happened. Eventually. Stan graduated and started his psychology practice, and Sam fast-tracked herself through MIT. They got married. Their son, Lucas was born. Named after Stan’s mentor, not Sam’s dad. Sam graduated MIT and took them up on their professorship offer. Meili, their daughter, was born. Sam felt…unfulfilled. A genius like her should be more than just…this. The same dark anger that propels so many super genius into madness and villainy crept upon her. But unlike them, she had Stan, her continuing piecemeal devotion to Buddhism, and a genuine desire not to be another cliché bad girl. She thought for months on end. What could she possibly do where she wouldn’t displace anyone or cause harm to the innocent? Frickin’ duh. Superhero. Terrifica made her comeback. Personality & Motivation: The first thing to understand about Terrifica’s personality is that her parents dropped off the face of the earth when she was eight years old. She did not have her powers yet. She was just a powerless and ignorant child. Then she got a power. The best possible power for someone who felt that way. She started running away from those two feelings, and hasn’t stopped since. Yes, being superhumanly intelligent has bred a certain degree of arrogance, however the former still applies. Which is the first reason she can’t permit herself to ever be wrong. There’s any number of excuses that can salve her psyche, however. If she was ever truly wrong, then she was ignorant. If she’s ignorant, then she’s powerless too. And suddenly she’s a terrified eight year old again. Understandably, she doesn’t go there. Second thing, from the age of twelve to eighteen she was raised by her great aunt Cassandra Carson. Blue blooded aristocratic hell witch. That woman believes she’s superior to everyone because of her pure bloodline and stellar (if only human) intellect, and she hated the fact that her son diluted the precious blood. Even if young Samantha Carson tried mightily to ignore the lessons of that cold loveless house, many of them stuck. They appealed to someone who was objectively superior (in one way) and felt unwanted, unloved, and alone. She is slowly shedding those mannerisms, but negative emotions can bring it all right back. Like fear. Or anger. She knows how to treat people properly, but one’s past is never that easily conquered. Of course, that isn’t all there is to it. See Fourth, below. Third, one of the main lessons of that cold and loveless house is that intelligence is the most important quality in a human being. It was the only thing of hers Cassandra never insulted. Thusly, Terrifica considers her intelligence her only valuable asset. She is very proud of it specifically because she doesn’t believe anything else about her is particularly special. Her aunt Cassandra made very sure of that. Cassandra literally changed her name without her consent or indeed any input from her at all. She still, in some ways, sees herself as the “dirty little chinagirl” her aunt always referred to her as. Not worthless, necessarily, but certainly not someone of value. Fixing things, solving problems, making things right after they go wrong, figuring out an explanation for the inexplicable. All of these things give her that boost to her self esteem. Hence why she works so hard to prove herself, and is always thinking about everything from every conceivable angle. It’s also why someone calling her some variation of stupid causes such a negative reaction. It’s an attack on the core of her self-worth. Furthermore, it’s another reason why she must be right. Of course, she isn’t consciously aware of this inner self image. Fourth, contradicting her efforts is the fact that she also considers her superhuman intellect extremely dangerous. Walking around with a dirty nuke level dangerous. There are all sorts of terrible ramifications and consequences of using her extreme intellect on the world. There are all sorts of wonderful ones, too, but those aren’t the ones she loses sleep over. She considers managing her intelligence so that it doesn’t hurt anyone, even indirectly, the single most important responsibility she has. She is terrified to a level she fundamentally can’t grasp about failing in that responsibility. To the point that, aside from the lessons of her aunt Cassandra, that is the main reason she’s so harsh as Terrifica. The harshness comes from her knowing that people who aren’t harsh like she is. The kind ones, mannerly. They make people fond of them, and prone to listening to them. Doing what they say. There aren’t words for how terrifying a prospect that is to her. She can’t possibly account for all the variables in how her positive influence might go wrong. Being harsh is just so much easier on interpersonal relations, not to mention it’s more natural to her (again, because of aunt Cassandra). Professor Samantha Carson is a much nicer person, but Professor Samantha Carson will never be in a position to effect change in the world. Intentionally so. If Terrifica gets something wrong, people will get hurt, and she will have failed in her responsibility. This is absolutely unacceptable, so she (once again) must be right at all times. Fifth, to not fail or ever be wrong she has developed a very controlling personality, in addition to being harsh and caustic. Because she must be right and in order to do that she requires all the information she can get. And that comes from being the person in charge of a given situation. It’s not that she minds taking orders, it’s that she is deeply concerned about the fallibility of those giving the orders. A fallibility she will not permit herself to share. Even when things go wrong, and objectively it isn’t her fault in the slightest…she still considers it to be her fault. Her failure. She can, of course, be perfectly reasonable about this, but it doesn’t mean the feeling goes away. That she could have done better. Done more. Sixth, she doesn’t really understand people all that well. Knowing psychology is one thing, practicing it in person is another. To be fair…she’s not like regular people. Her extreme intelligence and high mental speed are unique among superhumans. There is only a tiny amount of people on earth who know what it is like to even have one of those two abilities. Let alone both. So in a very real sense, she has no idea what it’s like to be a regular person. She doesn’t know what they think or what they feel. She can only theorize. And god, does it show. Of course, it always bothers her, because of all that above. Finally, with all that said… Terrifica is also a woman with a deep well of compassion, a strong sense of ethics, and an endless supply of kindness. Once you get to know her, anyway. She doesn’t make it easy, as she will only show even the slightest emotional vulnerability to someone who has very much earned her trust and respect. Which is a task in and of itself, considering all her other issues. Her goal, her true goal, is not to dominate and control. Not to keep the people where they were and let her do all the thinking. NO. A thousand times NO. Her goal is to bring the common person up to her level. To apply enough education and training that the entire human race improves dramatically from its present state. Then, and only then, can she walk beside them as equals. This is her dream. One of the two things she wants most in the world. The other being to finally find out what happened to her father. It’s not out of love at this point, though she does still cling to his memory. It’s because being unable to solve his disappearance has become a failure. And as has been said, this cannot be allowed to stand. Power Descriptions: Terrifica would have been a rare genius without her metagene activating. With it, she’s smarter than anyone in the world, with a brain that in its functioning resembles a computer much more than a bundle of neurons. Additionally, she is well schooled in Kung Fu, dating from childhood. Her self made costume, the Nano-Fiber Battlesuit, is more protective than your average hero costume, increases her strength by a moderate amount, helps her see in the dark, and has a few modifications so that it can worn year round. For the record, its descriptors are chemical, not technological. She’s thought ahead in that regard, with the exception of the suit’s Datalink. That, however, is independent from the rest of the suit. She carries a multi functional quarterstaff she calls the Terrifi-Staff. Because Terrifica is a nerd. Also, she adores brand naming. She can just hit people with it, obviously, but it has a high powered taser on one end and an energy emitter on the other. The emitter can well, emit, a flash on energy that can screw up a person’s hearing and vision, a heat displacer beam that can freeze someone in a block of ice, or charged particles in the form of a heavy particle cannon. The best part? It’s collapsible, so she can wear it on her belt. Powers & Tactics: Some heroes (and people) go with violence first. Or second. Terrifica does not. She prefers to solve problems with a minimum of pain and suffering on both sides due to the influence of her Buddhist beliefs. She’s a thinker, not a thug. She’s more likely to call in a tip about street crime than actually punch the thugs out herself. That said, when she does fight, she doesn’t hold back. The faster enemies are defeated, the less they have to be injured. With the Terrifi-Staff available, she’ll Snare or Dazzle weaker foes at range, and Stun anyone who gets too close. With the Staff’s improved power and accuracy, the Snare and Dazzle are even more impressive. Also, the Cannon’s improved power means she typically refrains from using it on garden variety foes, and indeed anyone without some demonstrated degree of Impervious or ridiculous durability feats. Complications: Dark Secret: Terrifica is directly responsible for the death of the Chinese official who had her mother killed. She didn’t murder him with her own two hands, but she did set up his comeuppance. She could have shown compassion. Let him have life in prison. Instead she watched him die slowly. Somebody else might regret this. Terrifica does not. Justice was served, she says, and that’s the end of it. A GM may award a hero point for this coming back at her. I’m A Brain, Not A Fist: Terrifica vastly prefers to solve matters without violence, due to her blended Buddhist/Christian upbringing. She will always try to talk things out, use stealth, or whatever nonviolent option is available. A GM may award a hero point whenever direct combat is the best (or only) choice and Terrifica doesn’t accept that. I’m The Most Intelligent Person In The World: Terrifica, god bless her, is a supergenius. The problem is that she’s extremely aware of it. Thus she’s developed a belief that there isn’t anything she can’t understand given enough time. Her plans will always succeed, because they are made by her. Her ideals and principles must be correct, because they are hers. She is virtually incapable of being wrong about anything whatsoever. Anyone who can’t see that is (according to the Carson house lessons) either misguided, misinformed, or an idiot. And (of course), they need to be informed of their status. A GM may award a hero point for Terrifica’s personality flaws getting the better of her. Oh, Now That’s Interesting: Terrifica loves to learn things, acquire new knowledge, figure things out, and etcetera. It’s a passion of hers, bordering on (if not outright falling into) obsession. So much so that she will purposefully delay stopping a criminal scheme until she’s figured out exactly how it works. Or not stop that death ray blastin’ robot until she’s mapped out how it was meant to be shut down. Oh, Right. Heroes Save People, Don’t They?: Terrifica doesn’t quite share the same moral code as most heroes. Yes, saving puppies and small children is very important, but that mass murderer falling off a roof she’s pretty much unconcerned about. Put simply, she doesn’t care about the lives of morally reprehensible individuals. She’ll let them die, be maimed, or whatever other terrible thing. Innocents she’ll protect, but the guilty will have to look after themselves. A GM may award a hero point when this becomes a problem. People Don’t Just Disappear: Her father disappeared without a trace when she was eight years old. She’s spent years pursuing every lead, no matter how small. She is absolutely obsessed with finding him. It is both the thing she wants most in the world and the last thing in her life that makes no sense. And everything in creation is supposed to make sense. Secret Identity: Terrifica keeps her identity and life as Samantha Carson extremely secret. She will do anything up to but not including directly murdering someone to keep it that way. What’s Wrong With You People?: People who take pride in their lack of intelligence infuriates Terrifica to no end. Why on earth or anywhere else would you be proud of being lesser? Happiness or satisfaction she can and does tolerate, but remaining stupid and ignorant out of pride in those conditions is the one thing that can make her truly hate. A GM may award a hero point for Terrifica behaving irrationally because of this. Abilities: 4+8+6+14+4+6=42 Strength 20 (+5) [14 (+2)] (Enhanced Statistic) Dexterity 18 (+4) Constitution 16 (+3) Intelligence 40 (+15) [24 (+7)] (Enhanced Statistic) Wisdom 28 (+9) [14 (+2)] (Enhanced Statistic) Charisma 16 (+3) Combat: 16+10=26 Initiative: +15 (+4 without powers) Attack: +8 Base, +9 Melee, +12 Snare & Dazzle, +13 Stun & Strike, +15 Unarmed Grapple: +14 Defense: +10 (+5 base, +5 Dodge Focus) +3 Flat Footed Knockback: -5 Saving Throws: 4+6+1=11 Toughness: +10 (+3 Con, +5 Protection, +2 Defensive Roll) Fortitude: +7 (+3 Con, +4) Reflex: +10 (+4 Dex, +6) Will: +10 (+9 Wis, +1) Skills: 64 Ranks = 16 PP Acrobatics 11 (+15) SM Bluff 12 (+15)SM Craft (Electronic) 1 (+16) Craft (Mechanical) 1 (+16) Computers 1 (+16)SM Concentration 1 (+10) Diplomacy 7 (+10) Disable Device 1 (+16)SM Investigate 1 (+16) Knowledge (Life Sciences) 1 (+16) Knowledge (Physical Sciences) 1 (+16) Knowledge (Technology) 1 (+16) Language 2 (Mandarin Chinese, Cantonese Chinese; Base: English) Medicine 1 (+10)SM Notice 6 (+15)SM Sense Motive 6 (+15)SM Stealth 11 (+15)SM Feats: 37 PP Assessment Attack Focus (Melee) 1 Attack Specialization (Unarmed) 3 Beginner's Luck Benefit 1 (Wealth 1) Challenge 2 (Improved Feint, Improved Taunt) Defensive Roll Dodge Focus 5 Equipment 5 [25EP] Improvised Tools Improved Trick Inventor Jack-of-All-Trades Luck 3 Master Plan Online Research Precise Shot Redirect Skill Mastery 2 (Acrobatics, Bluff, Computers, Disable Device, Medicine, Notice, Sense Motive, Stealth) Takedown Attack Taunt Uncanny Dodge (auditory) Well-Informed Enhanced Feats Eidetic Memory Speed of Thought Equipment 5 (25EP) Terrifi-cycle (Vehicle) [15EP] Size: Medium [0EP] Strength: 25 (Medium Load: 533 lbs.) [3EP] Defense: 0 [0EP] Toughness: +10 [5EP] Features: [1EP] Remote Control Powers: [6EP] Morph 1 (+5 to Disguise; Ordinary Motorcycle) [1EP] Speed 5 (250mph / 2,500ft per Move Action) [5EP] Terrifi-Labs (Headquarters) [10EP] (Location: Hanover, Freedom City) Size: Diminutive [-2EP] Toughness: +10 [1EP] Features: [11EP] Communications Computer Fire Prevention System Garage Gym Laboratory Library Living Space Power System Security System Workshop Powers: 22+19+40+16=97 Device 5 ( 25 PP Container; Power Feats: Restricted 2 [Only Usable by Terrifica]; Flaw: Hard-to-Lose ) [22PP] (Nano-Fiber Battlesuit) Datalink 1 [1PP] Enhanced Strength 6 (to STR 20/+5) [6PP] Immunity 12 (Cold, Heat, Mental Effects) [12PP] Protection 5 [5PP] Super Senses 1 (Low Light Vision) [1PP] Device 6 ( 30 PP Container; Power Feats: Subtle [collapsible]; Flaw: Easy-to-Lose ) [19PP] (Terrifi-Staff) Terrifi-Combat (Array 13 [26 PP], Power Feats: Alternate Power 4) [30 DP] Base Power: Damage 12 ( Extra: Ranged; Power Feats: Improved Range, Precise) [26 DP] (Terrifi-Cannon) Alternate Power: Dazzle 8 (Affects Vision & Hearing, Improved Range, Precise) [1 DP] (Sonic Flash Burst) Alternate Power: Snare 8 (Power Feats: Accurate 2; Extra: Secondary Effect) [1 DP] (Freonic Ray) Alternate Power: Stun 7 (Power Feats: Accurate 2, Extended Reach) [1 DP] (Terrifi-Staff Shock) Alternate Power: Damage 2 ( Power Feats: Accurate 2, Extended Reach, Mighty,) [1 DP} (Terrifi-Staff Smack) Container 8 (40 PP Container) (Superhuman Brain) Enhanced Feats 2 (Eidetic Memory, Speed of Thought) Enhanced Intelligence 16 (to INT 40/+15) Enhanced Wisdom 14 (to WIS 28/+9) Quickness 10 (x2500 Flaw: Limited to Mental Tasks) Super Senses 3 (Analytical Vision, Analytical Normal Auditory) Gadgets 2 (Utility Belt; 10PP Variable Power, Any Power, Multiple Powers At Once; Extras: Action [Move] Duration [Continuous]; Flaws: Hard-To-Lose) [16PP] Sample Allocations: Spoiler Speed 1 (Extra: Linked [+/-o]) + Super Movement 2 (Slow Fall, Swinging; Extra: Linked [+/-o]) (Grapple Gun) {5PP/5PP} Super Senses 5 (Infravision, Ultravision, Analytical Full Vision, Microscopic Vision 1 [dust-sized]) (Visual Scanner) {5PP/5PP} Concealment 4 (All Visual Senses; Power Feat: Close Range; Flaw: Blending) (Chameleonic Field Projector) {5PP/5PP) Corrosion 1 (Cutting Laser) {3PP/5PP} Enhanced Skill 1 (Disable Device +4) (Masterwork Thieves Tools) {1PP/5PP} Enhanced Skill 1 (Knowledge [physical sciences] +4) (Physical Science Pamphlet) {1PP/5PP} DC Block: Unarmed (+15 Hit, DC 20) Terrifi-Staff Smack (+13 Hit, Touch w/ 5ft Reach, DC 22 Toughness) Terrifi-Staff Shock (+13 Hit, Touch w/ 5ft Reach, DC 17 Fortitude) Sonic Flash Burst (+12 Hit, Ranged, DC 18 Reflex) Freonic Ray (+12 Hit, Ranged, DC 18 Reflex) Terrifi-Cannon (+8 Hit, Ranged, DC 27 Toughness) Totals Abilities 42 + Combat 26 + Saving Throws 11 + Skills 16 + Feats 37 + Powers 97 = 229/244PP Edited March 31 by trollthumper +1PP for February 2024 Link to comment
Avenger Assembled Posted June 10, 2014 Share Posted June 10, 2014 I have no serious issues here, though you'll have to clean it up a bit to get the formatting right. This is a solid take on an untrained gadgeteer, someone who's in fantastic physical shape but still new to combat. Is there a reason why she doesn't meet caps with the staff? Link to comment
EternalPhoenix Posted June 16, 2014 Author Share Posted June 16, 2014 All right. She's formatted and prettied up. The staff...that's a mind game. Most people who wield them are best with them. People who think Terrifica is one of them are in for a rude, fist and foot based shock. Link to comment
Recommended Posts