The world's wealthiest orphan decides to tackle the root causes of crime.
BatQuest: A CK2 Batman Quest
- Thread starter Etranger
- Start date
- Superhero
- Created
- Status
- Ongoing
- Watchers
- 381
- Recent readers
- 0
- Threadmarks
- 15
-
Statistics (7 threadmarks, 7.9k words)
User Total Etranger 7 -
Loading…
-
Loading…
Opening Post
- Location
- the Republic
- Pronouns
- He/They
Today is November 9th, 1940. Your name is Bruce Wayne and you are eight years old. Last night, you went to the world premiere of The Mark of Zorro with your parents, Thomas and Martha Wayne. Last night, your father decided to take a shortcut back to the car, through a dimly-lit alley. Last night, your parents were gunned down by an armed robber for their money and jewelry.
You wake up in your bedroom, having slept very little. The skies are cloudy. The great manor in which you live is almost completely silent. As you look over at the endtable, you see the ticket stub from the movie, left there when you emptied your pockets the night before. You stare at it for a long time.
You are Bruce Wayne, orphan and heir to Gotham City's first family, and today is the first day of the rest of your life.
[+100 Prestige, +100 Popularity (inheritance); +100 Popularity (public sympathy)]
[Wealth held in trust until 1957]
Welcome to BatQuest, a Crusader Kings 2 development quest about Batman. This quest will focus initially on Bruce Wayne, the wealthy orphan who saw his parents killed in front of him, forever altering the course of his life. In the comics and movies featuring Batman, as a result of this traumatic experience, he is convinced to wage a one-man crusade on crime. I've taken inspiration from Boney's Divided Loyalties and Lunaryon's Usagi Quest; much thanks and credit to them.
I'm not going to strictly adhere to the fictional canon. I'm looking to write a quest about what might happen if the wealthiest person in the world had a formative traumatic experience that convinced him of the need to radically and permanently change both himself and society. The narrative will hopefully cover not just the development of Bruce Wayne into the iconic figure of Batman, but the development of the relationships and organizations that are just as, if not more crucial to the war on the root causes of crime.
However, because this is still a Batman quest, it will definitely also include putting on a costume and beating up bad guys. I'm not totally heartless, and I unironically love Batman as a character and a media franchise. You'll get your cape stuff.
Finally, if this goes long enough, we'll get into succession and generational change, but that's something for the distant future.
Today is November 11th, 1940. Your name is Alfred Pennyworth, butler to the Waynes, and you are barely keeping it together. Your long-time employers, Thomas and Martha Wayne, were brutally murdered two nights ago while out in their city with their son, Bruce. You, with all your combat and bodyguard training, had been left at home with the flu. Master Thomas had reassured you that all was well, that the threats hadn't come for months now, and you believed him. Fool.
Master Bruce is holding up remarkably well for a boy of his tender years. You suspect that he's constructed a calm facade to conceal his inner feelings, that his true pain is lurking somewhere beneath that emotional armor. Your instructors taught you that there is a certain distance between employer and employee that must be retained, no matter the cost. You've never been good at that, and when you hugged the boy the night his parents died, that last wall of reserve came crumbling down. He cried in your arms, and you wept with him.
Now, two days later, there are matters to which you must attend. As only children and parents of an only child, the Waynes didn't have any other relatives to whom they might turn in the event of their demise, and so their will makes you sole executor and trustee. For a man who never went to college, this is a stupendous amount of responsibility. Nevertheless, you will manage.
The most important thing to determine is the immediate future of your ward. Up until now, Master Bruce has been taught by tutors at home, but the intention of his parents had been to send him to school next year. Current events have rendered the fashionable European schools unavailable, and so he will need to be educated somewhere closer to home.
No stipulations were made as to the exact method by which Master Bruce was to be educated, and so how he will spend the next few years is left entirely to your discretion. You must now ask yourself: what is best for him?
[] Tutoring
Given the shattering nature of the personal tragedy Master Bruce has just endured, perhaps it would be for the best if he was to continue being educated at home for the time being. This would allow you maximum input over his curriculum and incidentally keep a close eye on him. It might also lead to him being overly sheltered or to otherwise develop unevenly.
[???]
Note: Will trigger a sub-vote on curriculum and free time.
[] Day School
A day school splits the difference between home school and boarding school. A private institution in which children only attend during weekdays, as with public schools, a day school will expose Master Bruce to a wider social circle than tutoring would naturally allow while also guaranteeing you regular contact on nights and weekends.
[+20 Prestige]
Note: Will trigger a sub-vote on free time.
[] Boarding School
The up-state boarding school Master Bruce would attend is a thoroughly elite institution filled with the children of the most prominent and influential families. It would provide him with a top-flight education and an unparalleled opportunity to network with his fellow scions. It would also mean that you'd only see him at holidays.
[+40 Prestige]
This first of three prologue votes (and any subsequent sub-votes) will cover 1941 through 1946, or ages 9 through 14. The prologue will last until 1957 (age 25) and be largely from the perspective of Alfred Pennyworth, Bruce Wayne's butler and guardian.
Prestige represents top-level and upper-class renown, and will provide a modifier when dealing with elites and major institutions. Popularity represents street-level and working-class appeal, and will provide a modifier when dealing with regular people.
Once we get out of the prologue, we'll do six-month turns interspersed with character events.
As a note: While Bruce Wayne will indeed become Batman, the method by which he dons that identity and the means and methods he uses in that role are entirely up in the air. You might end up with someone very different than who is portrayed in the comics, movies, games, etc.
24 hours to vote.
You wake up in your bedroom, having slept very little. The skies are cloudy. The great manor in which you live is almost completely silent. As you look over at the endtable, you see the ticket stub from the movie, left there when you emptied your pockets the night before. You stare at it for a long time.
You are Bruce Wayne, orphan and heir to Gotham City's first family, and today is the first day of the rest of your life.
[+100 Prestige, +100 Popularity (inheritance); +100 Popularity (public sympathy)]
[Wealth held in trust until 1957]
Welcome to BatQuest, a Crusader Kings 2 development quest about Batman. This quest will focus initially on Bruce Wayne, the wealthy orphan who saw his parents killed in front of him, forever altering the course of his life. In the comics and movies featuring Batman, as a result of this traumatic experience, he is convinced to wage a one-man crusade on crime. I've taken inspiration from Boney's Divided Loyalties and Lunaryon's Usagi Quest; much thanks and credit to them.
I'm not going to strictly adhere to the fictional canon. I'm looking to write a quest about what might happen if the wealthiest person in the world had a formative traumatic experience that convinced him of the need to radically and permanently change both himself and society. The narrative will hopefully cover not just the development of Bruce Wayne into the iconic figure of Batman, but the development of the relationships and organizations that are just as, if not more crucial to the war on the root causes of crime.
However, because this is still a Batman quest, it will definitely also include putting on a costume and beating up bad guys. I'm not totally heartless, and I unironically love Batman as a character and a media franchise. You'll get your cape stuff.
Finally, if this goes long enough, we'll get into succession and generational change, but that's something for the distant future.
Today is November 11th, 1940. Your name is Alfred Pennyworth, butler to the Waynes, and you are barely keeping it together. Your long-time employers, Thomas and Martha Wayne, were brutally murdered two nights ago while out in their city with their son, Bruce. You, with all your combat and bodyguard training, had been left at home with the flu. Master Thomas had reassured you that all was well, that the threats hadn't come for months now, and you believed him. Fool.
Master Bruce is holding up remarkably well for a boy of his tender years. You suspect that he's constructed a calm facade to conceal his inner feelings, that his true pain is lurking somewhere beneath that emotional armor. Your instructors taught you that there is a certain distance between employer and employee that must be retained, no matter the cost. You've never been good at that, and when you hugged the boy the night his parents died, that last wall of reserve came crumbling down. He cried in your arms, and you wept with him.
Now, two days later, there are matters to which you must attend. As only children and parents of an only child, the Waynes didn't have any other relatives to whom they might turn in the event of their demise, and so their will makes you sole executor and trustee. For a man who never went to college, this is a stupendous amount of responsibility. Nevertheless, you will manage.
The most important thing to determine is the immediate future of your ward. Up until now, Master Bruce has been taught by tutors at home, but the intention of his parents had been to send him to school next year. Current events have rendered the fashionable European schools unavailable, and so he will need to be educated somewhere closer to home.
No stipulations were made as to the exact method by which Master Bruce was to be educated, and so how he will spend the next few years is left entirely to your discretion. You must now ask yourself: what is best for him?
[] Tutoring
Given the shattering nature of the personal tragedy Master Bruce has just endured, perhaps it would be for the best if he was to continue being educated at home for the time being. This would allow you maximum input over his curriculum and incidentally keep a close eye on him. It might also lead to him being overly sheltered or to otherwise develop unevenly.
[???]
Note: Will trigger a sub-vote on curriculum and free time.
[] Day School
A day school splits the difference between home school and boarding school. A private institution in which children only attend during weekdays, as with public schools, a day school will expose Master Bruce to a wider social circle than tutoring would naturally allow while also guaranteeing you regular contact on nights and weekends.
[+20 Prestige]
Note: Will trigger a sub-vote on free time.
[] Boarding School
The up-state boarding school Master Bruce would attend is a thoroughly elite institution filled with the children of the most prominent and influential families. It would provide him with a top-flight education and an unparalleled opportunity to network with his fellow scions. It would also mean that you'd only see him at holidays.
[+40 Prestige]
This first of three prologue votes (and any subsequent sub-votes) will cover 1941 through 1946, or ages 9 through 14. The prologue will last until 1957 (age 25) and be largely from the perspective of Alfred Pennyworth, Bruce Wayne's butler and guardian.
Prestige represents top-level and upper-class renown, and will provide a modifier when dealing with elites and major institutions. Popularity represents street-level and working-class appeal, and will provide a modifier when dealing with regular people.
Once we get out of the prologue, we'll do six-month turns interspersed with character events.
As a note: While Bruce Wayne will indeed become Batman, the method by which he dons that identity and the means and methods he uses in that role are entirely up in the air. You might end up with someone very different than who is portrayed in the comics, movies, games, etc.
24 hours to vote.
Last edited:
Character Sheets
- Location
- the Republic
- Pronouns
- He/They
Current Year: 1950
Bruce Wayne
Born April 7, 1932 (Age 18)
Resources
Prestige: 120
Popularity: 200
Wealth: In Trust
Attributes
Diplomacy 4 (12)
Martial 1 (7)
Stewardship 5 (9)
Intrigue 7 (12)
Learning 7 (12)
Traits
Attractive (+1 Diplomacy)
Genius (+3 All)
Personality
Ambitious (+2 All)
Brave (+2 Martial, -1 Stewardship)
Merciful (+2 Diplomacy, -1 Martial)
Allies
Edward Nashton (mentor; out of contact)
Harvey Dent (childhood friend; out of contact)
Kathy Kane (childhood friend; out of contact)
Tommy Elliott (childhood friend; out of contact)
Equipment
N/A
Facilities
Wayne Manor (Locked until 1957)
Institutions
Wayne Industries (Locked until 1957)
---
Alfred Pennyworth
Born August 16, 1898 (Age 52)
Attributes
Diplomacy 6 (10)
Martial 5 (9)
Stewardship 9 (11)
Intrigue 7 (7)
Learning 5 (5)
Education
Tough Soldier (+3 Martial, -1 Learning)
Profession
Butler (+1 Diplomacy, +2 Stewardship)
Traits
Diligent (+1 All)
Kind (+2 Diplomacy, -1 Intrigue)
Bruce Wayne
Born April 7, 1932 (Age 18)
Resources
Prestige: 120
Popularity: 200
Wealth: In Trust
Attributes
Diplomacy 4 (12)
Martial 1 (7)
Stewardship 5 (9)
Intrigue 7 (12)
Learning 7 (12)
Traits
Attractive (+1 Diplomacy)
Genius (+3 All)
Personality
Ambitious (+2 All)
Brave (+2 Martial, -1 Stewardship)
Merciful (+2 Diplomacy, -1 Martial)
Allies
Edward Nashton (mentor; out of contact)
Harvey Dent (childhood friend; out of contact)
Kathy Kane (childhood friend; out of contact)
Tommy Elliott (childhood friend; out of contact)
Equipment
N/A
Facilities
Wayne Manor (Locked until 1957)
Institutions
Wayne Industries (Locked until 1957)
---
Alfred Pennyworth
Born August 16, 1898 (Age 52)
Attributes
Diplomacy 6 (10)
Martial 5 (9)
Stewardship 9 (11)
Intrigue 7 (7)
Learning 5 (5)
Education
Tough Soldier (+3 Martial, -1 Learning)
Profession
Butler (+1 Diplomacy, +2 Stewardship)
Traits
Diligent (+1 All)
Kind (+2 Diplomacy, -1 Intrigue)
Last edited:
- Pronouns
- She/Her
[X] Day School
Let's try and have Bruce at least somewhat socialized.
Let's try and have Bruce at least somewhat socialized.
Theaxofwar
Definitely not a Bunny Cat in disguise.
- Location
- Standing right behind you
[X] Tutoring
You can't learn to punch clowns in the face at boarding school. Well, maybe you can, but even so
You can't learn to punch clowns in the face at boarding school. Well, maybe you can, but even so
Random Member
Gardener of Human Happiness
- Location
- Behind You
[X] Day School
- Location
- Te Ika-a-Māui
- Pronouns
- She/Her
[X] Day School
- Pronouns
- He/She/They
[X] Day School
Looks like the only way of getting Bruce both meaningful interaction with Alfred (his de facto parent) and socialization with... anyone else.
I think we can relegate any potential martial arts training to the weekends for now; the kid's literally 8 years old
Looks like the only way of getting Bruce both meaningful interaction with Alfred (his de facto parent) and socialization with... anyone else.
I think we can relegate any potential martial arts training to the weekends for now; the kid's literally 8 years old
Last edited:
AnotherPerson
Security Officer, Sector C Test Labs
- Location
- Black Mesa, New Mexico
[X] Day School
Definitely want to give Bruce a chance at making friends early, and letting him stay in contact with the closest thing to a family figure after such a traumatic event is probably a good idea for his mental health.
Definitely want to give Bruce a chance at making friends early, and letting him stay in contact with the closest thing to a family figure after such a traumatic event is probably a good idea for his mental health.
always_confused
Perpetually unwanted
- Location
- SEA
[X] Day School
- Location
- California
[X] Day School
Might help a little with Bruce's eventual anti-social tendencies, but also helps maintain his bond with Alfred which will probably remain his most important bond until he begins adopting every black-haired blue-eyed orphan in the tri-state area.
Might help a little with Bruce's eventual anti-social tendencies, but also helps maintain his bond with Alfred which will probably remain his most important bond until he begins adopting every black-haired blue-eyed orphan in the tri-state area.
Last edited:
[X] Tutoring
[X] Day School
For the case of not being complete social wierdo.
For the case of not being complete social wierdo.
- Location
- New York
- Pronouns
- He/Him
[X] Day School
[X] Boarding School
While day school is a nice middle ground, consider how much development and trauma this can give Bruce. Cut off completely from his only living "family" and his own home. He'll be bullied or be forced to bully to survive. Now, I know that sounds bad for Batman, but consider the potential story there. Alfred overcorrects for showing that closeness and thinks being with boys his own age will be good for Bruce, but ends up giving him a lot of baggage for the future. It could also cause Bruce to be more aware of his emotions and drives at an earlier age because there is no safety blanket at a boarding school.
Consider, Sterling Archer. He had a fucked up childhood. It was great for us the audience. We don't want Bruce to be that dysfunctional, but some level of dysfunction would be compelling and possibly amusing.
While day school is a nice middle ground, consider how much development and trauma this can give Bruce. Cut off completely from his only living "family" and his own home. He'll be bullied or be forced to bully to survive. Now, I know that sounds bad for Batman, but consider the potential story there. Alfred overcorrects for showing that closeness and thinks being with boys his own age will be good for Bruce, but ends up giving him a lot of baggage for the future. It could also cause Bruce to be more aware of his emotions and drives at an earlier age because there is no safety blanket at a boarding school.
Consider, Sterling Archer. He had a fucked up childhood. It was great for us the audience. We don't want Bruce to be that dysfunctional, but some level of dysfunction would be compelling and possibly amusing.
[X] Boarding School
Was gonna go for tutoring, but I gotta admit Fission, you convinced me. Some dysfunction should be interesting. Though yeah I wouldn't want him to be as bad as Archer.
Was gonna go for tutoring, but I gotta admit Fission, you convinced me. Some dysfunction should be interesting. Though yeah I wouldn't want him to be as bad as Archer.
neutronium95
Mad Rocketeer
- Location
- The launch pad
[X] Day School
LuxemburgLover69
There are more things between Heaven and Earth...
- Pronouns
- He/Him
[X] Day School
This quest idea absolutely rules. Glad to see it.
This quest idea absolutely rules. Glad to see it.
[x] Day School
- Pronouns
- He/Him
[x] Day School