[X] Rhys Garnder

I'm back. Great chapter, let's go make the Wade family combo.
 
Name: Soldier X, True Name Unknown
Keywords: Fitness, Regeneration
Faction: The Defiance Unit
Potency: 1
Name: Daggermaw, Christian Soler
Power: Transformation, Enhanced Strength, Enhanced Senses
Faction: New Dawn
Potency: 1
Name: Steadfast, Lamar Thompson
Power: Invulnerability
Faction: New Dawn
Potency: 2
Name: Adamant, Rakeem Wade
Power: Transformation, Enhanced Strength, Regeneration
Faction: Justice Unlimited
Potency: 3
These are the general directions I want our new dude to take. Specifically with the emphasis on Transformation, because it would again help explain the recency of their reveal by clouding the exact moment they got their power. This is especially effective because we know this dude is great at Espionage. Also I just love the fluff of having a spy/stealthy dude be our Transforming Tank/Brute build.

Also we can't afford to boost his potency at the moment right?

edit: oops, his limit was 6 so no exact mix.
 
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[X] Rhys Gardner

Let's talk about what DNA profiles we're going to give Rhys.

I don't think we should give him the Steadfast + Adamant + Dragonsteeth combo. I know, QM said this is a busted combo. But the combo almost certainly gives the same kind of power that Menagerie Witch has: A Construct Creation, minion summoner type power. Right now, we need a punch-type hero to round out our capabilities, rather than doubling down on an area we've already got a powerful hero covering. More importantly, it'd be very much not a great idea to immediately follow up recruiting Menagerie Witch by creating a hero who's like her, but more powerful. It's just not the right time to try out that combo.

(As a more minor objection, Lady Leizi notes Rhys as not being leadership material. I'm not sure how much that would translate to using a summoner type power, but it could hurt his ability to use it well.)

What we might want to try to do is get another Synergy. We know from Black Swan that [Energy Manipulation] + [Elemental Manipulation] + [Solar Absorption] = [Fundamental Force Manipulation]. And we can guess that Steadfast + Adamant + Dragonsteeth probably creates a synergy as well. While I'm not sure where to go about guessing at other potential synergies, getting another hero with [Fundamental Force Manipulation] isn't hard to do. Crimson Soprano has both [Solar Absorption] and [Energy Manipulation], (and is our only hero with [Solar Absorption],) meaning we just have to pair her profile with one that has [Elemental Manipulation], and we have three of those.

But I'm not sure we can spin those into a punch-type hero. I think we'll want the [Enhanced Strength] tag for that, and if we take Daggermaw + Adamant for 4 Potency, we can't afford to try for [Fundamental Force Manipulation] at the same time. We'd have to guess at what could be a Synergy, or go without.
 
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[X] Rhys Gardner

Let's talk about what DNA profiles we're going to give Rhys.

I don't think we should give him the Steadfast + Adamant + Dragonsteeth combo. I know, QM said this is a busted combo. But the combo almost certainly gives the same kind of power that Menagerie Witch has: A Construct Creation, minion summoner type power. Right now, we need a punch-type hero to round out our capabilities, rather than doubling down on an area we've already got a powerful hero covering. More importantly, it'd be very much not a great idea to immediately follow up recruiting Menagerie Witch by creating a hero who's like her, but more powerful. It's just not the right time to try out that combo.

(As a more minor objection, Lady Leizi notes Rhys as not being leadership material. I'm not sure how much that would translate to using a summoner type power, but it could hurt his ability to use it well.)

What we might want to try to do is get another Synergy. We know from Black Swan that [Energy Manipulation] + [Elemental Manipulation] + [Solar Absorption] = [Fundamental Force Manipulation]. And we can guess that Steadfast + Adamant + Dragonsteeth probably creates a synergy as well. While I'm not sure where to go about guessing at other potential synergies, getting another hero with [Fundamental Force Manipulation] isn't hard to do. Crimson Soprano has both [Solar Absorption] and [Energy Manipulation], (and is our only hero with [Solar Absorption],) meaning we just have to pair her profile with one that has [Energy Manipulation], and we have four of those.

But I'm not sure we can spin those into a punch-type hero. I think we'll want the [Enhanced Strength] tag for that, and if we take Daggermaw + Adamant for 4 Potency, we can't afford to try for [Fundamental Force Manipulation] at the same time. We'd have to guess at what could be a Synergy, or go without.
In my (totally non-biased opinion) Sir Suffering is still on the table, and lava powers are a good in-between for punch and hiding.
 
Here are a pair of combinations of powers I think are worth considering:

Deadman + Adamant: Base 8 Potency, 2 Potency Reduction, Elemental Manipulation, Regeneration X2, Transformation, Enhanced Strength

This pairing seems like it could produce something useful. I'm hoping that Adamant's Transformation trait will be able to counteract Deadman's needing to take a fatal wound before the rest of his powers activate. Even if it doesn't, the powers are already fairly similar, in that they involve parts of the user turning into something that can be manipulated. It's just that in Deadman's case, it's magma, while in Adamant's case, it's his adamantium.

Daggermaw + Crimson Soprano + Adamant: 6 Potency, Transformation X2, Enhanced Strength X2, Enhanced Senses, Flight, Solar Absorption, Energy Manipulation

This also seems like a potentially nice combo. Adamant's Transformation might overwrite Daggermaw's permanent transformation, or at least give him an on-off switch, while he's sure to get Enhanced Strength of some sort with this combo. Crimson Soprano doesn't quite fit in with the other two, but her Flight and Energy Manipulation tags would give Rhys some nice tactical flexibility, by giving him more movement options and a possible separate ranged power.
 
Soldier X + Daggermaw + Steadfast + Adamant. 7 Potency, taking 1 Potency Reduction. Tags: [Enhanced Strength] x2, [Transformation] x2, [Regeneration] x2, [Fitness], [Invulnerability], [Enhanced Senses]

This combo has a bunch of good tags including the punch-hero necessary of strength and durability. I'm also hoping to get a Synergy here with Transformation+Regeneration+Invulnerability for someone extra-extra unkillable.
 
So . . . I'm hearing maybe I should just lock up the vote. Poor John Henry, you can go all Liam-Neeson-in-Taken later.

Also, I'll say the Wade/Thompson Family Combo for $9.99 isn't the only busted combo you have access to and that it does not have a power synergy. I tried to leave a hint for one in the last update, but, tbh it was more to get you guys to think creatively about power combos. If you just make Superman with lasers everytime, that game gets boring.

Also, if a powerset looks to close to what someone already has on Justice Unlimited, I'm gonna give them something different for variety's sake.
 
I'll leave the power talk to you guys for now as I'm concentrated on other stuff.

I kinda find it funny that Menagerie Witch is ready almost immediately. Black Swan and the other heroine options get their art as well. But Lady Leizi? Still needs to cook a bit. Anyways, really good art as always BKNK.

I gotta say, before I knew about Apiary being a single AP cost, I was gonna propose this mission to accompany with our two meetings:
Smoke on the Water (AP 1, ESPIONAGE 4, OPERATIONS 4): The Demon Flamez were a gang of metahumans notable for their lack of concern for collateral damage and their fire-based powers. They were inmates of Wonderland until recently, and word is they've made moves to secure their former territory in the Old Industrial District. Which makes it all the odder that you've received a private communication from one of their members asking for a clandestine meeting. (Unlocks mission Fire in the Sky, Intel of current state of Horizon, Chance of new metahuman DNA, +1 to control of OID)
Just for its oddity of negotiating with criminal elements. It feels fitting having a talk with former Wonderland inmates when New Dawn could potentially be one of those meetings as well, helps with info-gathering and metahuman DNA, not to mention gets +1 control on OID in the same turn as Four Seasons, which could also have a chance of doing that. Just wanna say what part of my former plan was. Anyways, now that Apiary is 1AP cost, we just have to get it with its bigger immediate rewards, especially with what we know of its deep labs.

And of course Bitterman gives us more missions, with Uiara's looking pretty time-limited. Also new villain on the loose for 20 years, yikes.
 
I also think that for turn… maybe 4, we've got to lock up Uiara's thing first, we should do Cenotaph. It only has new candidates as a prize (and some small REP), so I'm thinking that those candidates might be crazy. Also in character.

And THEN, we can finally see what's up with the Magical Girls.
 
I've also been speculating what consequences could come from not taking Global Justice, and considering their leader's blatant desperation to meet with us, he's definitely in a hurry. I think it's to do with Powers maybe and if we don't do something, he'll either be forced to turn to Powers, or they themselves go to him and get crushed.

There's also why certain people like Wolong and Stockpile are maybe looking for Leizi specifically despite her supposedly dead, which I think they clocked immediately on when Mona did her first testing and suspect Justice Unlimited has something on their sleeves (the Ambrosia) even if they don't know yet what it is. I think Wolong might just be looking to combine forces, but for Stockpile, i suspect he probably really wants our hidden ace otherwise why go out of his way to try and meet with us despite Justice Unlimited being in a very similar position as them as well.
 
There's gonna be a Global Justice focused back issue before the next vote.

As for the art, Lady Leizi is getting a full character sheet which is more involved than the art for Black Swan or Menagerie Witch.

Fun fact, LL is the last member of Justice Unlimited I came up with. She was a minor antagonist for a while, but I liked writing her and she made the JU dynamic more interesting.

This whole setting comes from an unwritten story where Valiant Silver was the main character. The events of that story are what happened ten years ago and inform much of the back issues.
 
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Adhoc vote count started by Bitterman on Aug 15, 2024 at 12:27 PM, finished with 49 posts and 18 votes.


Seeing as the votes are 9 for Rhys, 8 for Rhys with a misspelled name, and 1 for John Henry, I'm gonna call a two hour warning.
 
I kinda find it funny that Menagerie Witch is ready almost immediately. Black Swan and the other heroine options get their art as well. But Lady Leizi? Still needs to cook a bit. Anyways, really good art as always BKNK.

b-better late than never, right...? 😭😭
THANK YOU GUYS btw!!!! so glad the art is fun!!!! leizi has been cooking in my head since the beginning and I'll do her next I PROMISE!!!
 
Adhoc vote count started by Bitterman on Aug 15, 2024 at 2:54 PM, finished with 54 posts and 19 votes.


Vote closed. Will open the voting for the powerset tonight with a little update.

Question! Both times, the candidate with the highest tolerance won. Is that the main factor you guys consider in a candidate?
 
Adhoc vote count started by Bitterman on Aug 15, 2024 at 2:54 PM, finished with 54 posts and 19 votes.


Vote closed. Will open the voting for the powerset tonight with a little update.

Question! Both times, the candidate with the highest tolerance won. Is that the main factor you guys consider in a candidate?
I wasn't here for the first vote, but I voted for Rhys this time out of a combination of him seeming to fit what we're looking for in terms of needed teammates, and...I think the best way of putting it would be "ease of working with him". It's said in his porifle that while he might not be leader material, he'd still be a decent soldier or teammate. Meanwhile, John is pointed out as being somewhat more inclined to do things his own way. I simply think that Rhys would be easier to work with given those descriptions.
 
Question! Both times, the candidate with the highest tolerance won. Is that the main factor you guys consider in a candidate?
John's whole "revenge quest" thing felt like a mid-game thing to me. I'd rather do the Puella and the deceased Justice Unlimited quests first than do the Flamez, who don't seem nearly as interesting.

Also, you're the one who said that finding 8+ Tolerance characaters would be hard, so that was a partial consideration.
 
Hey, just asking! I wanna make sure the game aspect is fun is all.
I didn't mean to insult or be aggressive with that, so sorry if I came off that way. I just took your advice in thread as a big directory.

And also, I just liked Rhys a bit better. No reason why, I just do.
 
Question! Both times, the candidate with the highest tolerance won. Is that the main factor you guys consider in a candidate?
EHhh *shakes hands in so so gesture* maybe? A higher tolerance means we have an easier way combining powers and maybe getting esoteric results so a lot of people may gravitate to those. On the other hand, like some questers have said characterization might imfluence them to choose a character instead, both candidates are good but one of them, beacuse of the desc. Is seen as a "safer" choice. But honestly till we get more candidates the debate between tolerance vs character vs stats wont really start. Besides dependimg on our choices a low toleramce character could end up with a broken powerset thanks to prioritizing a couple of power words instead of shoving as many DNA samples as possible. Just look at MrKermie Mister Suffering plan, 2 samples that could end up with a broken ability (if a little traumatizing).
I got 0 clue how to get some of the more stupid combos but thats half the fun of it i guess.
An example thats probably in the future would be a power that grants wings, this might end with something to... hmm idk Hawks from MHA. A hero whose power is wings that can grant flight, can detach to grab people or be used as swords (how they cut metal at that states is a mystery to me at least). Now mix things like Adamants metal and now we have a Bird version of Wolverine, add fire and we have a pseudo Pheonix, add a Lighting or wind power and now those "little" feathers can shoot with force of arrow.... a armor piercing arrow. You can really get wild, but i digress the system is good but till we reach the point where we have a lot of candidates with different stats, backstories or tolerances the current system is MORE than good. You do good Bitterman.
 
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