[X][Powers] You have always had a connection with the natural world and the wilds. The forest and the animals there in were never a danger to you and you would often spend your time delving into its depths, much to the distress of your caretaker's. On your sixth birthday you met a Green Woman with moss for hair and a man with a horned head and cloven feet in a dream and ever since they had been teaching you of the old ways, of magic weaving and spell singing, speaking with animals and commanding the plants.
B][x] [Powers][/B] You have always had a connection with the natural world and the wilds. The forest and the animals there in were never a danger to you and you would often spend your time delving into its depths, much to the distress of your caretaker's. On your sixth birthday you met a Green Woman with moss for hair and a man with a horned head and cloven feet in a dream and ever since they had been teaching you of the old ways, of magic weaving and spell singing, speaking with animals and commanding the plants.
Vote Tally : Rising to the Call Superhero | Sufficient Velocity [Posts: 16-50] ##### NetTally 2.2.0
Task: Origin
[X][Origin] From the New: From the New Town, the refuge of the rich away from the squalor of the poor.
-[X][Origin] You were born and raised here, as were your parents, and your grandparents, and those before them. From the first days of the University, your family had been part of the university, and before that they had all lived here for as long as could be remembered. Heavy expectations lie upon you as a student, not only to do well, but to excel like your forebears had. No. of Votes: 4
[X][Origin] From the New: From the New Town, the refuge of the rich away from the squalor of the poor.
-[X][Origin] Your parents were old money, rich and influential and you are not their prised heir and that honour goes to your twin brother thanks to him being a boy and you being a girl. You were lucky to get into university due to your sexist parents and it is thanks to your beloved twin convincing them that you got the chance. Now with your genius mind and newfound powers, you will wage a secret rebellion by fighting crime at night as a costumed vigilante in your first year of university. No. of Votes: 2
[X][Origin] From the Slums: You came from Edinburgh itself, born and raised there your whole life in the Old Town of Edinburgh, the Auld Reekie
-[X][Origin] You never knew your parents and were raised by the inhabitants of the streets. You slept under tavern tables when you were lucky and in alleys when you weren't. You did any odd job you could to get by: farming, mining, construction, cooking, cleaning, waiting tables, running messages, whatever was available. You even ran with a street gang for a time. When the Great War broke out, you signed up to fight figuring that three square meals a day and a chance to show some stuck up Brits how a true Scottsman could fight the Hun were worth the danger. No. of Votes: 1
[X][Powers] You are haunted by spirits from an early age, and of late, can lend them your strength to manifest in the material world, or borrow from their strengths, chief of which is the spirit of the University itself upon your enrolment. Unfortunately, the spirits have their own will, and must be talked into(or for the inhuman ones, lawyered into) going against thair nature. The wisdom of ages sounded a lot cooler when it didn't come with the ghosts of your grandparents enquiring about great grandchildren! No. of Votes: 4
[X][Powers] Your powers are two fold, one half based in your genius and the ahead of the art technology you make with it and the other based in your newly discovered abilities. With your genius, you had mechanised a suit of plate armour, turning into what you like to call power armour whilst also creating an belt of tools and nifty tricks. With your extraordinary powers, you can generate and control electricity, manipulating it according to your will. No. of Votes: 2
[X][Powers] Adaptability. Fighting in the Great War you learned that the dangers it posed to most men were things you deal with. When threatened with guns, you became faster and tougher. When threatened with gas, you stopped needing to breath. When threatened with shells, you healed your wounds. When threatened by spies, you developed superior senses. You developed Enhanced Traits, Immunities, Regeneration, Senses, and the Limited Variable power to develop further. No. of Votes: 1
[X][Origin] From the New: From the New Town, the refuge of the rich away from the squalor of the poor.
-[X][Origin] You were born and raised here, as were your parents, and your grandparents, and those before them. From the first days of the University, your family had been part of the university, and before that they had all lived here for as long as could be remembered. Heavy expectations lie upon you as a student, not only to do well, but to excel like your forebears had.
[X][Powers] You are haunted by spirits from an early age, and of late, can lend them your strength to manifest in the material world, or borrow from their strengths, chief of which is the spirit of the University itself upon your enrolment. Unfortunately, the spirits have their own will, and must be talked into(or for the inhuman ones, lawyered into) going against thair nature. The wisdom of ages sounded a lot cooler when it didn't come with the ghosts of your grandparents enquiring about great grandchildren!
Ghosts really aren't so bad once you get to know them, and you know them better than most. Pretty much since you had been born they were your constant companions, invisible to all save yourself, moving all over Edinburgh in their small areas of influence simply happy to talk with anyone amongst the living. Even then they've been basically invisible to you, only perceptible out of the corner of your eye, whispers in your ears rather than voices by your side.
It may have marked you as strange looking constantly at thin air to see things that were not there, but you started to investigate the names of those you heard even as your parents looked on with concern and pride in equal measure at their precocious child.
And so you grew, a bright spark of the community, loved by your parents, cared for by your brother and looked on with great expectations by the world, eager to live up the great name of your family.
But, when you were just starting to grow into an adult...your life changed. The war...the great War. Your brother, an officer conscripted to fight died in the trenches, blown apart by an artillery strike. There was not even enough left for a body.
Never before had you felt so hopeless, your world turned upside down, your parents collapsed with grief and the spirits...the whispers also changed. There were always whispers in the back of your mind, caught upon the wind, but they increased by orders of magnitude, a whaling cacophonous symphony of horror and sadness that you could not see and could do nothing about while the living around you also fell into blackest despair.
For years there was nothing, but misery the horror of life, punctuated and amplified by the nightmare of the voices within your mind, as your studies ground to a halt, the world turned to gray and all felt like it had fallen into ashes. A void into which no light could be found.
It was only with aching slowness that you started to return to life...that your family started to return to life. And only after the war that the voices faded back to a degree of normalcy even if the ever present whispers of agony never quite faded. But you would never know that again. For although you had not fought on the front lines you had learned true sadness and misery, the horror of war that you would have otherwise stayed isolated from and learned how fleeting...how easily life could be snuffed away and how easily it could be discarded until it was taken.
You thrust yourself back into your studies, burying yourself in books and learning to try and forget the last few years. To move on and ignore the incessant whispers that claw at your mind. And for a time it works. You catch up at school, you apply to the university and get in, your life for the first time in years is going smoothly, your parents are rousing themselves from their own depressions. At the young age of 18 you arrive at the university in 1920 and go through the first semester without incident.
And then a few days before the start of the university's second semester, on a rainy day in January, the voices vanished from your mind, to be replaced with apparitions you could see in the flesh. Men and women in clothes that had not been worn for centuries, animals that talked and laughed with human voices and other stranger things.
It took days before you worked up the courage and went up to a man in the garb of a night's watchman with a dog by his side, but before you knew what had happened Greyfriar's Bobby licked your face. The kind, loyal dog that had stayed besides his master's grave for fourteen long lonely years until at last he had died and been reunited with him. And it was warm...and wet...and dog like.
You thought you were going mad...finally lost it completely, but you went across Edinburgh and talked to them. You spoke to the recently dead Peter Tait who eagerly lectured you on mathematics and physics, debated philosophy with David Hume and his coterie of like minded spirits were more than happy to elucidate you on the intricacies of his beliefs, and to your awe and wonder found Mary Queen of Scotts who graciously walked you across the castle speaking of her life and eventual death.
They were real. At you thought they might be as you conversed with long dead spirits…and strange embodiments of Edinburgh's secret places. And at first you were more than happy with this, talking excitedly with the spirits of the university, eager to sup from the wisdom of your predecessors, but your desire for learning quickly turned to ash.
A gang fight, something previously unheard of in the New Town, between two groups you did not know as you were walking back to your home and you were caught there in the middle of it. And there you sat, surrounded by the bodies of the dead, your mind drawing you back to those tortured souls from the war, your gut heaving at how casually these lives had been broken, used and discarded. Had man learned nothing from the war? From the death and calamity?
Two in ten people in Edinburgh were dead, and people kept on fighting.
No more weeping. No more sadness. Now was the time to act. Now was the time to preserve your city and preserve the lives within it, to stop the misery that came with death. And with their help you may even succeed, and so you trained to enact your dream.
What did you train, or what did you learn to be useful for your new mission? Pick 2
[] [Skills] The art of Fighting: You may not have interacted much with normal people of your own volition, but you certainly bullied by those who saw you as strange or weak for crying over the death of your sibling. Thankfully long dead knights and soldiers are excellent tutors. (Awareness increased, Close Combat: Unarmed and Weapons increased)
[] [Skills] The art of the Voice: Words as it has always been said are the most powerful weapons known to man, and in your case this is very literal. Your ability to talk to a wide range of people and beings has been honed from a young age. (Presence increased, Deception increased, Expertise: Politics, persuasion increased)
[] [Skills] The way of Strength: When you were at your weakest you refused to let your body waste away, and the routine that you established for yourself then has kept you strong to the now. (Strength and Endurance increased, Athletics increased)
[] [Skills] The way of Form: Speed was of the essence, darting from place to place, trying to make best use of your limited time in this world before the next, this you were keenly aware of. ( Agility increased. Acrobatics and Stealth increased.)
[] [Skills] The way of the Mind: You were raised in a household steeped in learning, and your studies with the spirits have only aided that. (Intellect increased, expertise science, medicine and history increased.)
[] [Skills] The way of the Sight: Always watching, always listening. Hearing things only you could hear, has taught you how to see things others overlook whether you like it or not. (Awareness increase, Investigation, perception, Insight increase)
But, first you had to test your theory. The spirits you knew would be your greatest asset in your battle, but they were limited. Confined to single areas that they had been known for in life. But with everything changing as it was...perhaps you would be able to bring them...with you. And so you went to a spirit that you knew well and may be willing to aid you in this. That spirit was
[] [Spirit] John Gray and Bobby: Grayfrair's bobby is legendary amongst the people of Edinburgh, the eternally faithful dog, who stayed by his master's side until the very end. You though know the happy conclusion to that ending, with master and dog eventually reunited. Now they both remain in the Grayfriar's Kirkyard. The Nightwatchman and the loyal Dog would certainly aid you, you thought? (Contract the spirits of the Nightwatchman and Grayfrair's bobby.)
[] [Spirit] Mary Queen of Scotts: She may have been killed in England, but she was always the Queen of Scotland and her spirit had been brought here after her death. Always kind to you, she had shepherded you throughout the Castle and taught you so much of understanding and generosity that it made you wonder how any could have brought themselves to execute her. (Contract the spirit of Mary Stuart Queen of Scotts.)
[] [Spirit] The Piper: In actuality the Piper of Edinburgh Castle is Alexander McAchtur who was executed under the Castle for agitating rebellion against the King in the 12th century. The real piper as it turns out was more of a minstrel, although given his abilities with a claymore and pipes it is easy to see why most thought him some kind of evil demon. (Contract the spirit of Alexander McAchtur of Clan McAchtur)
The actual contracting was...overwhelming.
A blast of pure power thrummed through your entire being as the ghost turned into pearlescent smoke and moved into your body, infusing you with their memories, skills and strengths. You collapsed to your knees and wretched, as their voices fell silent, until you recovered and breathed again normally.
They were there...within you. Sleeping until you called upon them. But when you did your form changed, becoming itself ghostly, yet very much real.
And now, with your first contracted spirit you ventured forth into the night of Edinburgh...but first...who are you and when are you doing this?
What is your name, your actual name?
[] [Name] i.e. Alastair Duncan
[] [Name] Write-in
What shall the first arc be?
[] [Arc] Making a splash: This will be your first night out, your introduction to the nightlife and crime of the city.
[] [Arc] Hitting them hard: You've been active for a few weeks now. Its time to do some damage.
***
Right first things first determines the rest of your background, specializations, first big power use etc. Second is name which also determines gender since that wasn't specified by either of the previous write ins and I don't want to take that choice away, superhero name can be determined in the next vote, and of course what do you want to see first? The stumbling confusion of a completely new super, or someone with a little more experience who's probably way in over their head?
First if you have any questions do not hesitate to ask me, and before you ask your power is rather Presence (diplo stat) heavy.
Please point out the spelling and grammar and again thank @Oshha
[X] Plan: Piper powered punching!
-[X] [Skills] The art of Fighting: You may not have interacted much with normal people of your own volition, but you certainly bullied by those who saw you as strange or weak for crying over the death of your sibling. Thankfully long dead knights and soldiers are excellent tutors. (Awareness increased, Close Combat: Unarmed and Weapons increased)
-[X] [Skills] The way of the Sight: Always watching, always listening. Hearing things only you could hear, has taught you how to see things others overlook whether you like it or not. (Awareness increase, Investigation, perception, Insight increase)
-[X] [Spirit] The Piper: In actuality the Piper of Edinburgh Castle is Alexander McAchtur who was executed under the Castle for agitating rebellion against the King in the 12th century. The real piper as it turns out was more of a minstrel, although given his abilities with a claymore and pipes it is easy to see why most thought him some kind of evil demon. (Contract the spirit of Alexander McAchtur of Clan McAchtur)
-[X] [Name] Morag MacMannanan
-[X] [Arc] Hitting them hard: You've been active for a few weeks now. Its time to do some damage.
[X] Plan Talk To The Hand
-[X] [Skills] The art of Fighting: You may not have interacted much with normal people of your own volition, but you certainly bullied by those who saw you as strange or weak for crying over the death of your sibling. Thankfully long dead knights and soldiers are excellent tutors. (Awareness increased, Close Combat: Unarmed and Weapons increased)
-[X] [Skills] The art of the Voice: Words as it has always been said are the most powerful weapons known to man, and in your case this is very literal. Your ability to talk to a wide range of people and beings has been honed from a young age. (Presence increased, Deception increased, Expertise: Politics, persuasion increased)
-[X] [Spirit] The Piper: In actuality the Piper of Edinburgh Castle is Alexander McAchtur who was executed under the Castle for agitating rebellion against the King in the 12th century. The real piper as it turns out was more of a minstrel, although given his abilities with a claymore and pipes it is easy to see why most thought him some kind of evil demon. (Contract the spirit of Alexander McAchtur of Clan McAchtur)
-[X] [Name] Morag MacMannanan
-[X] [Arc] Hitting them hard: You've been active for a few weeks now. Its time to do some damage.
[X] Plan The Lady and her Watchmen
-[X] [Skills] The art of the Voice: Words as it has always been said are the most powerful weapons known to man, and in your case this is very literal. Your ability to talk to a wide range of people and beings has been honed from a young age. (Presence increased, Deception increased, Expertise: Politics, persuasion increased)
-[X] [Skills] The way of the Mind: You were raised in a household steeped in learning, and your studies with the spirits have only aided that. (Intellect increased, expertise science, medicine and history increased.)
-[X] [Spirit] John Gray and Bobby: Grayfrair's bobby is legendary amongst the people of Edinburgh, the eternally faithful dog, who stayed by his master's side until the very end. You though know the happy conclusion to that ending, with master and dog eventually reunited. Now they both remain in the Grayfriar's Kirkyard. The Nightwatchman and the loyal Dog would certainly aid you, you thought? (Contract the spirits of the Nightwatchman and Grayfrair's bobby.)
-[X] [Name] Maeve McAllister
-[X] [Arc] Hitting them hard: You've been active for a few weeks now. Its time to do some damage.
[X] Plan The Watcher
-[X] [Skills] The art of Fighting: You may not have interacted much with normal people of your own volition, but you certainly bullied by those who saw you as strange or weak for crying over the death of your sibling. Thankfully long dead knights and soldiers are excellent tutors. (Awareness increased, Close Combat: Unarmed and Weapons increased)
-[X] [Skills] The way of the Sight: Always watching, always listening. Hearing things only you could hear, has taught you how to see things others overlook whether you like it or not. (Awareness increase, Investigation, perception, Insight increase)
-[X] [Spirit] John Gray and Bobby: Grayfrair's bobby is legendary amongst the people of Edinburgh, the eternally faithful dog, who stayed by his master's side until the very end. You though know the happy conclusion to that ending, with master and dog eventually reunited. Now they both remain in the Grayfriar's Kirkyard. The Nightwatchman and the loyal Dog would certainly aid you, you thought? (Contract the spirits of the Nightwatchman and Grayfrair's bobby.)
-[X] [Name] Maeve McAllister
-[X] [Arc] Hitting them hard: You've been active for a few weeks now. Its time to do some damage.
I copied Osha's name for the character because I'm terrible at coming up with names
The idea behind this character is a somewhat batman-like vigilante. John Gray probably knows how to fight and at least something about investigating crime, and so I'm thinking we operate as a vigilante who carefully investigates, finds the important criminals, and goes after them. An additional source of intel avaliable to us is recent spirits, who we could ask for information.
[X] Plan The Lady and her Watchmen
-[X] [Skills] The art of the Voice: Words as it has always been said are the most powerful weapons known to man, and in your case this is very literal. Your ability to talk to a wide range of people and beings has been honed from a young age. (Presence increased, Deception increased, Expertise: Politics, persuasion increased)
-[X] [Skills] The way of the Mind: You were raised in a household steeped in learning, and your studies with the spirits have only aided that. (Intellect increased, expertise science, medicine and history increased.)
-[X] [Spirit] John Gray and Bobby: Grayfrair's bobby is legendary amongst the people of Edinburgh, the eternally faithful dog, who stayed by his master's side until the very end. You though know the happy conclusion to that ending, with master and dog eventually reunited. Now they both remain in the Grayfriar's Kirkyard. The Nightwatchman and the loyal Dog would certainly aid you, you thought? (Contract the spirits of the Nightwatchman and Grayfrair's bobby.)
-[X] [Name] Maeve McAllister
-[X] [Arc] Hitting them hard: You've been active for a few weeks now. Its time to do some damage.
I wanted to go for a more intelligence/charisma build but it seems we are a spandex wearing type of hero and that doesn't seem to match up much at all.
