- Location
- Somewhere other than where I am.
Raising Heart is the bait. Ruby is the switch.
Fragmentation (Original Superhero Setting)
- Thread starter Alivaril
- Start date
- Original
Nixeu
Lord of Madness, Harbinger of Llamas
- Location
- Your nightmares.
...I just realized that we could probably make an electronic, reusable flashbang out of an LED and a earbud, with our power. It wouldn't even require troll logic, just Upgrades. Upgrade the LED's light output, and Upgrade the speaker in the earbud to be louder. Keep doing this until both hit the correct levels of output. Bundle together, add timer.
I can think of a number of ways to use Upgrade to construct stuff more cheaply and more easily than we would otherwise, actually. I suppose you could argue that our limited daily uses of our power makes that a waste of a valuable resource, but it could help us diversify our arsenal, without requiring quite as much troll-logic. I suspect troll logic tends to be more expensive, overall.
I can think of a number of ways to use Upgrade to construct stuff more cheaply and more easily than we would otherwise, actually. I suppose you could argue that our limited daily uses of our power makes that a waste of a valuable resource, but it could help us diversify our arsenal, without requiring quite as much troll-logic. I suspect troll logic tends to be more expensive, overall.
Kai Merah
Hound Hearted Hedonist
- Location
- Somewhere in the corners of my imagination
I would rather not. Especially since we're not sure if upgrades are reversible, and we don't know how mom has modified our bodies. Also, what if we accidentally upgrade our immune system enough for it to kill us?
Kai Merah
Hound Hearted Hedonist
- Location
- Somewhere in the corners of my imagination
What do you think is the original purpose of a body then? Because it makes perfect sense that undirected upgrades work well on designed tools, which were designed to fulfill certain purposes, but I don't think our bodies are particularly designed. Would rather not risk it.
Nixeu
Lord of Madness, Harbinger of Llamas
- Location
- Your nightmares.
Body upgrades do have a number of advantages, though I think we should be a bit careful in doing them.
I suspect that 'undirected' Upgrades are just us giving our power free reign to Uograde as it sees fit, rather than following a preset logic route to it's goal. I suspect it would also prefer to take the path of least resistance, and least energy expenditure, while also making sure not to cause catastrophic failure. So I don't think this is too big a deal, as it would likely intervene if we wanted to do a harmful Upgrade.
It doesn't need to be an intended purpose, from what I can tell, just a purpose. You could probably improve the ability of a crowbar to inflict damage on a person, for instance, or make a screwdriver into a better stabbing implement. Those are potential purposes, even if they weren't intended purposes.
Also, our bodily modifications suggest we've had quite a bit more design involved in our creation than most.
Kai Merah
Hound Hearted Hedonist
- Location
- Somewhere in the corners of my imagination
Hmm, true... I'd still feel safer if we specified what we wanted our upgrades to be rather than letting it be random though. Our power is an alien consciousness after all. It might have different ideas about what's an improvement in our body than we do.
- Location
- Actually pretty lost
We could just kidnap some random mooks off the street/jerks out of prison and do these experiments on them. I don't think anyone's expecting any bad outcomes from Upgrading a body, just undirected.
The same as all other life: To successfully pass on it's genetic information to future generations. Everything about a lifeform can be traced back to that one primary goal.
A standard upgrade would probably be a small improvement across all characteristics since basically everything about a human helps that goal. Directed upgrades meanwhile have a great breath here because you can justify a lot under the goal of passing on genetic information. Just look at everything life does for example.
Nixeu
Lord of Madness, Harbinger of Llamas
- Location
- Your nightmares.
True. But if we ask it to Upgrade a particular attribute, it would help with mitigating that.
Remember that we'd likely end up effectively giving them at least minor super-powers. Maybe don't give those to criminals.
Clearly, we should use
I believe it can act on requests. Undirected Upgrades don't need to be completely undirected.
Alternatively, purpose is a flexible term that is purely imposed by humans onto objects, and an object can be used for many purposes beyond what it's makers intended. I don't think it's ever been specified that we need to stick with the originally intended purpose.
For anything that's been domesticated, we could probably Upgrade the purposes for which they were bred. So, in the case of various kinds of dogs, for example, sheepdogs would get better at herding, terriers would become better at hunting, and chihuahuas would become tastier and/or more nutritious.
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Shard
One and Many
- Location
- Malaysia
This is why I wish to experiment on defining and declaring purposes, then using those purposes to upgrade traits.
In theory Upgrade is all-encompassing, or nearly so.
I desire to enter this room. The wall prevents me from entering the room. A superior wall will not prohibit me from entering the room. It's function to me, it's purpose, would therefore be served better. UPGRADE.
In theory Upgrade is all-encompassing, or nearly so.
I desire to enter this room. The wall prevents me from entering the room. A superior wall will not prohibit me from entering the room. It's function to me, it's purpose, would therefore be served better. UPGRADE.
Nixeu
Lord of Madness, Harbinger of Llamas
- Location
- Your nightmares.
Aside from flashbangs, we could also make various kinds of Taser-type devices fairly easily with our powers. We could also Upgrades the traits of various materials to bring them up-to-spec for various applications. Upgrading bits of PVC piping to be able to serve as gun-barrels, for instance, would probably only take raising the melting point and strength of the plastic, along with maybe a few other traits.
We could also gather cheap, crappily made objects, and Upgrade them to the point where they equal more expensive versions. Turning RC cars or planes into drones, for example, or really bad toy robots into actual robots. It'd be expensive in-terms of our power supply, sure, but if we can't get the needed tools in sufficient numbers quickly, such things might make a good stop-gap measure.
Mind you, a lot of these ideas, barring the flashbang (which has some definite advantages over a regular flashbang) are pretty much only useful while we're just starting out, and having to scrounge to get the materials we need. But they could help a lot in getting ourselves set up quickly.
See, the alternative purposes are generally in-line with some root purpose. Tools are supposed to help people do things, so making them bettter at that is valid, but I don't think you could change a screwdriver into a wall, or a cocker-spaniel, just because it's convient. Adapting animals to better suit their (potentially artificial) niche is similar.
Walls, however, are architecture. So it's would like be best to justify uses pertaining to that, rather than our own desires.
We could also gather cheap, crappily made objects, and Upgrade them to the point where they equal more expensive versions. Turning RC cars or planes into drones, for example, or really bad toy robots into actual robots. It'd be expensive in-terms of our power supply, sure, but if we can't get the needed tools in sufficient numbers quickly, such things might make a good stop-gap measure.
Mind you, a lot of these ideas, barring the flashbang (which has some definite advantages over a regular flashbang) are pretty much only useful while we're just starting out, and having to scrounge to get the materials we need. But they could help a lot in getting ourselves set up quickly.
The issue with that is that I think we need to convince our power that's how it works. And I don't think it'll buy that one.
See, the alternative purposes are generally in-line with some root purpose. Tools are supposed to help people do things, so making them bettter at that is valid, but I don't think you could change a screwdriver into a wall, or a cocker-spaniel, just because it's convient. Adapting animals to better suit their (potentially artificial) niche is similar.
Walls, however, are architecture. So it's would like be best to justify uses pertaining to that, rather than our own desires.
- Location
- Somewhere other than where I am.
All this talk about body upgrades is reminding me of Mordin from The Light of Our Solus. He has increased strength, toughness, tentacles, full body regeneration, and dragon scales. He can also make any flavour ice cream.
Edit:On that note: Pockets are meant to hold things. It would be better if they could hold more. Upgrade!
Edit:On that note: Pockets are meant to hold things. It would be better if they could hold more. Upgrade!
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Nixeu
Lord of Madness, Harbinger of Llamas
- Location
- Your nightmares.
Oh...oh, but that's a beautiful idea.
Anyone think they could come up with a generally applicable reasoning for shrinking parts for tech? Size constraints can be a SERIOUS impediment to packing all the functionality you want into a creation. Particularly for small stuff, like gadgets. So if we can maintain all other characteristics, while shrinking the parts...
(And yes, that is probably a factor in why Armsmaster from Worm is such a good Tinker. Specializing in packing as much machinery as possible into as small as space as possible opens up a LOT of possibilities.)
Anyone think they could come up with a generally applicable reasoning for shrinking parts for tech? Size constraints can be a SERIOUS impediment to packing all the functionality you want into a creation. Particularly for small stuff, like gadgets. So if we can maintain all other characteristics, while shrinking the parts...
(And yes, that is probably a factor in why Armsmaster from Worm is such a good Tinker. Specializing in packing as much machinery as possible into as small as space as possible opens up a LOT of possibilities.)
Personal Knowledge: Family Cape Associations
- Location
- A single human dimension
- Pronouns
- She/Her
The number of capes you know are closely associated with your family can be counted on one hand. There are almost certainly dozens more, but you've never really cared enough to meet or learn about them aside from their occasional mention in stories. Celes has.
Serious Heroes
Overseer: Nicknamed "Big Brother," Overseer was a Researcher active approximately two decades ago. He specialized in cheap flying drones and the mass production thereof.
Overseer is best known for trying to establish a nationwide surveillance net in order to eliminate crime and prevent villains from freely committing crimes. He'd intended to keep the movement secret, but the net was still incomplete when an unknown (presumed powered) individual broke into his HQ and copied his records. Nine days later, a two-hour video titled "Best of Overseer: Highlight Wheel (raw data in description)" was released onto the Internet. It got taken down in very short order due to age-inappropriate content; apparently, the thief had decided to prioritize displaying the most blatant invasions of privacy he could find.
When it was put up on a different site, one which permitted such content, Dreadnought's third-generation AI assistant "Stacy" released a virus intended to target and delete the video on any computer connected to the Internet. It is almost certain that multiple copies survived in offline storage, but those possessing them did not try to publicly re-release the content.
Regardless, Overseer was soon bombarded by a slew of lawsuits. He subsequently went into hiding and continued trying to, as he put it, "stop crime." He was somewhat successful in the areas he targeted, but his expansions were frequently answered by attacks from any capes living in the region, hero or villain.
After two years, an anonymous individual stepped forward and claimed Overseer had been convinced to retire. This came soon after Overseer's reveal of Cyclone's civilian identity, a villainous aerokinetic known for multiple high-profile abductions. Overseer himself publicly apologized, claimed he'd seen the error of his ways, and vanished from public view.
Several Minds have since stated that Overseer was both terrified and lying through his teeth. Other Builder-type capes with similar specialties have since confirmed that he still lives.
One could argue that Overseer's overall net contribution to society was positive, even if both villains and heroes opposed him. After all, your parents met and bonded over opposing his expansion.
Null: One of the few power nullifiers on the planet, Null is able to negate the powers of every cape within twenty yards. Aside from Progenitor, he is the only cape you know of who is also capable of negating the effects of those powers on the world itself. Rocks thrown solely with telekinesis would abruptly stop, cyrokinesis-caused ice would vanish, every part of a pyrokinesis-caused fire would be snuffed out, and so on.
Null's ability to undo such effects has been the source of many headaches for those who wish to puzzle out how his ability is supposed to work. It doesn't help that his ability is incapable of undoing damage already inflicted by a power-caused effect. Like most power nullifiers, he frequently commissioned new equipment from Builders and made a living off hunting down capes with bounties on their heads.
As for Null's relationship with your family? Thanks to the aura of fear, it's near impossible for Father to find people willing to stay near him. Yes, he can suppress the aura while in the human form Mom made him, but he claims it's unreasonably uncomfortable. Null has no such problems.
Aside from that, you don't know Null very well. You know he took up a teaching position at Paragon a few years back, but that little factoid didn't really make any difference on your decision-making process. On the one hand, family friend. On the other, that very relationship would be likely to encourage him to work you even harder and hold you to higher standards. No, thank you.
Non-combat Hero(es)
Intern: A mid-grade healer, Intern is excellent at dealing with most injuries, but incapable of effectively eliminating healing-resistant diseases. Like many such healers, she is forbidden from even trying outside of major emergencies. Incomplete removal is how healing-resistant diseases were created in the first place.
Your father frequently calls her in when civilians have been caught up during a cape fight. You've met her a few times and are relatively ambivalent; the middle-aged woman seems to have an eternal aura of exhaustion and stress, even when she's laughing and enjoying herself. She's not completely immune to Father's aura of fear, but she claims she can just constantly heal her brain to remove the effects.
You don't know why Intern chose that particular name. You don't have a good enough grip on her sense of humor to figure it out, either.
Neutral
Retcon: A presumed reality warper capable of "removing" the effects of one event up to two minutes in duration. Can only target events 2-26 hours in the past. Participants will still remember the original timeline and may find themselves in better or worse condition than they were previously. Most wounds caused by an event could be fixed, but Retcon cannot undo death. This apparently-arbitrary restriction has confused many and helped contribute to the theory of reality warping instead of temporal manipulation.
You honestly can't do a better job of explaining it; that's basically all your mother told you. Since her summaries are usually significantly better, you're guessing she's as unsure as you are.
Regardless, Retcon seldom gets involved in the cape scene, only using his abilities when he's paid obscene sums of money to do so. Your mother apparently met him when they were both going to college and they've stayed in infrequent contact since then. You've never met him yourself.
Lives in New York.
- Location
- Somewhere!
- Pronouns
- She/Her
You can heal mental effects away?
For some reason this sounds weird.
wertsir
Knower of the Unknown
- Location
- Lost in A Deep Fog
It is weird. especially since fear is not a harmful effect, quite the opposite it is often necessary to continue living.
It also seems likely that she is suppressing her own need for sleep, but that she is unable to fully counteract the negative effects, hence her constant exhaustion.
Presumably the sleep-suppression aspect is why she chose her name, since interns and college students are known for getting very little sleep. I also imagine that the fear-suppression ability is somehow related to the specifics of her powers, though we are unlikely to have that confirmed anytime soon IC, since that is the kind of detailed information you try to keep quiet.
Perhaps rather than healing she is just able to super-charge or suppress the bodies autonomic processes? with the healing being her essentially just telling the body to heal itself faster? that still seems weird. but eh.
If that were the case she might be able to do the reverse of what she (presumably) does to herself and boost other peoples need for sleep. making her moderately more useful in a fight. or possibly even something else, like increasing pain sensitivity.
Though it is also possible that these are two separate sub-powers. as that seems common enough from the prologue.
If we operate under that assumption it seems that she is able to heal brains, at least her own. (if she were able to modify other peoples brains that way she would be extremely powerful so lets assume she cannot) that might have other useful effects, but would also probably be extremely dangerous. she could do things like disable her pain sensors, or her need for sleep, but she could also do things like disable empathy, or pump up endorphin release and once she has done that she might not want to switch it back, end up a psychopath/self-medicated potato.
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Vebyast
Nascent Transhuman
Sounds like the same story as Panacea, just without the grimdark.
...I would've sworn he was a villain given his interlude.
I guess he's just a very applied teacher, CONSTANT VIGILANCE style?
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wertsir
Knower of the Unknown
- Location
- Lost in A Deep Fog
Gassing kids is just a bit of harmless fun. better they learn their lesson from him in a contained classroom setting than from Dr. Calamito when it really matters....I would've sworn he was a villain given his interlude.
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Vebyast
Nascent Transhuman
...If you'd said this on reddit, you'd be headed right to the top of /r/nocontext. Well done.
- Location
- Somewhere on Earth
I'd say it was pretty obvious, but then he did only directly mention he was teaching at Paragon once in his internal monologue during the interlude....I would've sworn he was a villain given his interlude.
Though I can't say that I could see him going out for a night on the town with an eldritch monstrosity as his drinking buddy, he seems a little bit more antisocial than that.
Vebyast
Nascent Transhuman
Yeah, between the name of the class ("Shade"), the antisocial behavior, and the "students are the enemy" line, I'd expected a villain that'd been asked to teach the "CONSTANT VIGILANCE" class at Paragon. Maybe an anti-hero?
- Location
- Hyperborea
I liked Null from his interlude, so I'm glad we might be able to meet with him even without going to Paragon.
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