All Outreach: A Futuristic Superhero RP (sign up here)

[Lady Venamisa]

The year is 3032, a thousand years into the future. Earth and the humans on it are experiencing a golden renaissance in space exploration, the environment, technology, discovery of various beneficial mutations and longevity. This is thanks, in part, to the successful co-mingling of humans and various alien creatures. Earth is often called Utopia in comparison to the rest of the universe, which has been worn down by centuries of industrial, political and cosmic strife. As such, incredible opportunities are afforded to Earthlings. Space travel. A second home on Mars in addition to Earth. Space exploration and so on. Nearly anything is possible in this day and age!

Of course, not everything is sunshine and rainbows. Crime finds a way in any culture. There is a terrorist organization that plans to wipe out all alien life on Earth. There are criminal organizations that deal in various illegal drugs, tech and weapons. Mad scientists who use advancements in technology for evil and lifeforms with powers and magic that could wipe out entire cities if they wanted. In short, it's just as wonderful as it is dangerous out there.

This is where you come in! There's a world-wide program called Outreach, where people who qualify may become heroes in their local area. In order to do so, you must complete a training course with others in your area. Only those who pass the training and are approved may become heroes. Vigilantes are highly discouraged due to how much death and collateral damage tend to follow. It's said that those in Outreach are given a life of wealth and luxury in exchange for the service they provide, which attracts many applicants. Some do it for the change of universal exploration. Some want fame and glory. And others? Well, others just want to do what is right. For one reason or another, you've requested an application form. Before you start filing it out, however, there are a few rules and some particulars that need to be discussed.

Spoiler: The Rules

1: Respect your fellow players. Don't kill them off or try to undercut their big moments. I want to allow everyone their own arcs and time to shine.

2: No overpowered characters. Characters must be fair and balanced, with weaknesses that are fair and work with the character.

3) No characters from another fandom. Original only, please.

4) You are free to do a lot of things, but do not do any big plot-changing events without my approval. Otherwise the story gets derailed and everything goes to crap.

5) No one-liners or text speech. You don't have to write a novel, but try to write a minimum of two paragraphs with five sentences each. I don't expect perfect grammar, but please put in an effort.

6) Not a rule, more of a suggestion. Please come to me if you want to work out ideas about how your character fits into the world. If we work something out, you've got a way in that is natural, organic and hopefully fun. :)

Spoiler: Character Bio Sheet

Name:
Alias:
Age:
Appearance:
Race: Alien (make your own race for approval) Human, Mutant, Android, Other (please specify)
Powers, Skills and Abilities:
Strengths:
Weaknesses:
Personality:
Motivation:
Backstory:

Alright. Now that you've got the basics, please submit your applications for approval. If you are interested. I'm accepting no more than 8 people. For now, everyone only has one character. That can be subject to change.

EDIT: Regarding overpowered characters: Basically, you can't have someone that is overpowered. You can't have a mutant or alien with all the powers of Superman, or android with technology that can insta-kill a large group of people. Alien races you create shouldn't be able to read minds without severe drawback. Common-sense things, mostly.

When I've approved your application, please post your character bio in this thread: Outreach Characters here!

 

[Vasara Glyndark]

What is the difference between skills & abilities?

 

[Lady Venamisa]

It should be Powers and Skills. My bad.

 

[Baxter Peters]

Can you give a sense of scale for the sort of superheroic abilities you're looking for?

When it comes to overpowered and balanced, scale is a helpful guideline.

 

[Lady Venamisa]

I'll edit my post, but basically nothing as op as Superman for example.

 

[WishBone]

Name: Dennis Marlun
Alias/Callsign: Practical
Age: 36

Appearance:
He stands always, never wanting or finding it comfortable to be seated.
As for sleeping, if he has to be, either his leg is moving or he is deliberatly on his side and not on his back.
If you'd catch him shirtless - you would notice a full suite cybernetic latice going along where his spine would have been, going up to the base of his neck.
The technology has a story and from it, comes with its own abilities and trade offs. The arteficial nervous system goes along his arms, backs of his legs and acts as a central, secondary and redundancy nervous system.
Granting him increased reflexology only limited by his base physical fitness.
At most times, he keeps covered under layers of clothing, his eyes while a silver, one is clearly off colour and etched into his face are electrical burns along the left side of his cheek, giving him the appearance of a soldier from those poorly written movies he really hates it.

For clothing, in most things its either a full jumpsuit with the long sleeves tied around his waist revealing a simple long sleeve back shirt underneath - when actually in the field he opts to be working with the combat suit he moves and self built. His combat attire ranges from a full tactical vest to a light flight vest. Depsite his drawbacks for being a full blooded human - there are things about him that do give him the edge to almost - almost be on parr. Its the fact that he doesnt try to go further than needed is the real kicker. Standing at 6.2ft, well build and muscular due to the routine exercises and gravity increases to ensure his body is able to handle the demands. For the more academic, its noticable how he handles himself in a crowded room. Most times, near to the doors and almost always the quiet one - who prefers the actions to speak the words that he struggles to often find in situations.

For shoes these tend to be the standard ankle supporting boots. As for weapons and having been brought up to speed, he tends to prefer the kinetic weapons over funky laser weaponry.

Race: Human
Powers: None

Strengths:
Practicals strengths lay in his actual mastery and dedication to his craft of close quarter warfare against external threats, street smarts and underhanded tactics. This paired with a fully replaced central nervous system and the introduction of the medication to avoid rejection has induced a latetent dejavu effect. While under the effects of the medication - he can for up to a three to four second window glipse the possibility for precognition whch has close 80% accuracy, allowing him to make changes if in a high stress engagement. Thing is this is unreliable. Other times with the medication it makes him sleep easier.While not his greatest power, most of it just comes down to his latent talent and renewed muscle memory.

Weaknesses:
Unresolved trauma - for all Dennis's work on the hellworld of earth - at an early age he endured the horrrors of what peoplele deemed unacceptible persons of society.
While he tried for a time taking up as a rookie in the employment of being law enforcement and protection militia for settlements against criminal forces he developed a distated towards others not of his origin. While not a racist, it was more the fact that he felt humanity was loosing itself to the external factors and that the real human race was slowly being erroded into obscurity. The deep trauma shows that he struggles to trust and lastly has issues laying on his back and accepting physical contact.

Personality:
While relaxed, its clear he's still counting and despite being from the past - his dated views and lack of understanding in the more advanced gear and life experience, Its clear he lacks the diversity to understand or empathise however - he tends to find those that do - to address the short fallings as long as they themselves do not cause great harm to others needlessly. In most cases - he isnt afraid to get his hands dirty, or bloody in correcting anothers attitude. Even if it costs him in the long run. The other hand, he is a fast thinker, intelligent in the streetsmart sense.

Motivation:
Revenge.

Backstory:
Earth wasn't the most peaceful place a millenia ago with rampant war, famine and disease. With the collapse of the normal societies, humanity was driven to the darkest part of its age where those who developed skills survived and those who couldn't often died. He was born towards the end of the wars and the earliest beginnings of where the start of the golden age began, after suffering serious grevious injury against what would have been a leathal weapon to certain envoys. The fact that the result destroyed his nerves agressivly over a prolonged period, the act was instead one of mercy - to prevent further rapid degredation he would be placed into stasis where eventually the technology would exist to remove his destroyed nerves and replace them entirely without complication. As the golden age reached its peak, the project Thaw began with honoring the request to bring a human - non changed or altered back and address his grevious wounds.

It took almost three years before he was able to fully walk, talk and function. With no where to go and no connections - he was left on Earth to exist, however with no real place to go - he was directed to Outreach.
What better a fresh start.
Shame that the history clung to him despite the time in the deep sleep.

 

[_rigel_]

I'll go write up a thing about my character's alien race first for confirmation if that's fine

 

[Lady Venamisa]

Sounds like a good idea, Rigel!

 

[Lady Venamisa]

Name: Dennis Marlun
Alias/Callsign: Practical
Age: 36

Appearance:
He stands always, never wanting or finding it comfortable to be seated. If he has to be, either his leg is moving or he is deliberatly on his side and not on his back. If you'd catch him shirtless - you would notice a full suite cybernetic latice going along where his spine would have been and going up to the base of his neck. The technology has a story and from it, comes its abilities and trade offs. The arteficial nervous system goes along his arms, backs of his legs and acts as a central, secondary and redundancy nervous system. Of which he keeps covered under layers of clothing, his eyes while a silver, one is clearly off colour and etched into his face are electrical burns along the left side of his cheek, giving him, the warrior look when in truth he really hates it.

For clothing, in most things its either a full jumpsuit with the long sleeves tied around his waist revealing a simple long sleeve back shirt underneath - when actually in the field he opts to be working with the combat suit he moves and self built. His combat attire ranges from a full tactical vest to a light flight vest. Depsite his drawbacks for being a full blooded human - there are things about him that do give him the edge to almost - almost be on parr. Its the fact that he doesnt try to go further than needed is the real kicker. Standing at 6.2ft, well build and muscular due to the routine exercises and gravity increases to ensure his body is able to handle the demands. For the more academic, its noticable how he handles himself in a crowded room. Most times, near to the doors and almost always the quiet one - who prefers the actions to speak the words that he struggles to often find in situations.

Race: Human
Powers: None

Strengths:
Practicals strengths lay in his actual mastery and dedication to his craft of close quarter warfare against external threats, though with the addition of a central nervous system and the introduction of the medication to avoid rejection has induced a latetent dejavu effect. While under the effects of the medication - he can for up to a three to four second window glipse the possibility for precognition whch has close 80% accuracy, allowing him to make changes if in a high stress engagement. Thing is this is unreliable. Other times with the medication it makes him sleep easier.

Weaknesses:
Unresolved trauma - for all Dennis's work on the hellworld of earth - at an early age he endured the horrrors of what peoplele deemed unacceptible persons of society.
While he tried for a time taking up as a rookie in the employment of being law enforcement and protection militia for settlements against criminal forces he developed a distated towards others not of his origin. While not a racist, it was more the fact that he felt humanity was loosing itself to the external factors and that the real human race was slowly being erroded into obscurity. The deep trauma shows that he struggles to trust and lastly has issues laying on his back.

Personality:
While relaxed, its clear he's still counting and despite being from the past - his dated views and lack of understanding in the more advanced gear and life experience, Its clear he lacks the diversity to understand or empathise however - he tends to find those that do - to address the short fallings as long as they themselves do not cause great harm to others needlessly. In most cases - he isnt afraid to get his hands dirty, or bloody in correcting anothers attitude. Even if it costs him in the long run. The other hand, he is a fast thinker, intelligent in the streetsmart sense.

Motivation:
Revenge.

Backstory:
Earth wasn't the most peaceful place a millenia ago with rampant war, famine and disease. With the collapse of the normal societies, humanity was driven to the darkest part of its age where those who developed skills survived and those who couldn't often died. He was born towards the end of the wars and the earliest beginnings of where the start of the golden age began, after suffering serious grevious injury against what would have been a leathal weapon to certain envoys. The fact that the result destroyed his nerves agressivly over a prolonged period, the act was instead one of mercy - to prevent further rapid degredation he would be placed into stasis where eventually the technology would exist to remove his destroyed nerves and replace them entirely without complication. As the golden age reached its peak, the project Thaw began with honoring the request to bring a human - non changed or altered back and address his grevious wounds.

It took almost three years before he was able to fully walk, talk and function. With no where to go and no connections - he was left on Earth to exist, however with no real place to go - he was directed to Outreach.
What better a fresh start.
Shame that the history clung to him despite the time in the deep sleep.

I love the backstory! I was worried at first, but this actually fits in quite nicely with the lore I have planned. We can definitely go with it.

As for precognition and how it works, I'm going to allow for outcomes based on a coin flip I do. Flipped twice and the results in your favor. Works with the unreliability of it. If you can accept this stipulation, you are very much accepted!

 

[WishBone]

I love the unreliability and - yeah the character is a bit of a WIP - think captain America just with a new spine and when given medication poorly understood precognition <inspired from Katana Zero, on steam>.

The way I am going to play him is more the quiet achiever - but not the attention seeker.

 

[Lady Venamisa]

Perfectly fine. Given the war-torn era your character comes from, it's going to be quite the ongoing character arc. :)

 

[_rigel_]

Spoiler: Umbrans

The Umbrans (also called the Atlaghush (ałëğëwš in their primary language)) are a species of sentient humanoid creatures occupying a region in space called the Umbran Plane which contains a set of rogue dwarf planets. They are actually indigenous to the dwarf planet Atlasakh (the "heart" of the Umbran Plane), but throughout history they have seized other sentient life forms in their home planet and eventually across a range of planets within the Umbran Plane.

With their rapid technological advancement, they have also explored other star systems—even to Earth, where they have been heavily likened to vampires, fallen angels, or trickster demons throughout human history—but have not attempted to seize control over ones outside their galactic region as they did not have the military capacity and the appropriate technology and population to do so.

Eventually, after the demand of many Umbrans for a more pacifist lifestyle and beneficial economic and political connections, they formed treaties with neighboring civilizations to put an end to their long history of planetary colonization. Today, only Umbrans and migrants from other star systems make up the population of the Umbran Plane.

As Umbrans typically reside in their rogue dwarf planets, the only light in the sky they have is starlight, hence their name. Umbrans resemble humans, with their major differences being their black feathered wings (they could fly up to seven meters, which was a trait used to climb trees and cliffs in their home planet), pale skin, gray eyes, and black blood. They used to feast on the vital essence of other lifeforms, hence their sharp upper canines (and this diet has led to other sentient species in the Umbran Plane to be wiped out entirely), though they have resolved to consuming plant-based produce or other domesticated life forms which contain a blood-like substance in their system. They have the ability to smell the scent of blood or other tissues necessary for life from an average of 50 meters away, though this trait is declining with the younger generations as their need to consume blood is declining as well. They typically live up to 150 years, though this number is slowly declining to the lifespan of a human as more of the Umbran youth are beginning to live more humanlike lifestyles.

Umbrans, as well as other beings near the Umbran Plane, heavily appeal to aesthetics and are extremely inclined to art and thought. Very specific fields such as typography, machine design, fashion, and the study/creation of art media are extremely sophisticated studies in Umbran academia; several life forms across nearby galaxies typically commission Umbrans for specific design work as many Umbrans may spend decades perfecting their knowledge on such fields.

^ There you go.

I'm thinking of making my character a linguist (who also specialized in typographical design because language + art = cool) on the outside while also secretly being a vigilante or criminal trying to take down large corporations and organizations in line with Outreach, os I guess he's slightly villainous at first but he'll probably change his way of thinking because of character development and such.

 

[Lady Venamisa]

I like this idea of someone with less than good intentions being brought into Outreach, only to change over time. It'll be a fun bit of character development. Also, the Umbrans are wicked cool. The aesthetic, lore and everything else about them just oozes cool. :)

 

[Vasara Glyndark]

Moved to character sheet thread.

 

[Lady Venamisa]

All in all, this is an interesting character. Very complex, with a wonderful backstory. I think she will make a great addition and her motivation to clean things up is pretty good. Going from a vigilante to a proper heroine will afford her a lot more reach and resources to help the place she has come to call home. I even know where the scientist fits in and could form a plot with you for later on down the line.

The strengths and weaknesses are fair and balanced. Potentially very powerful, but you've given realistic (by superhero standards) ways for her to be defeated. You are accepted.

 

[Vasara Glyndark]

I didn't say in the backstory but I am thinking it's been at least 100 years since she became the Spirit of Vengeance. So anyone involved in the scientist's death is more than likely dead or retired unless they are long-lived like Valentyna.

 

[Lady Venamisa]

I see. That does put a kibosh on what some ideas I had. Something is bound to come out as things are fleshed out more, however. We've got three potential players and someone else who showed interest. If we don't get anyone else by Friday or the limit is reached by then, I think we'll have our group.

 

[Vasara Glyndark]

Just because it happened 100 or so years ago doesn't mean the organization isn't still around.

 

[_rigel_]

might have half-assed it a bit but here's my character. I'll probably find a pic or make a drawing of him if I'm not lazy:

Name: Vyrys Attan-Loqachva
Alias: Specter (vigilante/villain alias)
Age: 57
Race: Umbran

Appearance:
Vyrys looks as if he were in his mid-20s if you were to compare him with a human. He has black hair, pale skin, gray eyes, and black feathered wings at his back.
His usual daily outfit is his work uniform, which is a white dress shirt with slightly puffy sleeves, a black vest, black pants and polished shoes, and his sapphire broach in between his collars. He also carries his Umbran typographer license with him, usually in the left pocket of his black vest. As Specter, he wears a black cloak and a white mask covering the upper part of his face.

Abilities:
- Blood Sense - Like other Umbrans, Vyrys can detect the scent of blood or other vital bodily fluids of a lifeform from a maximum of 10 meters. In some cases, he may identify the type of blood or fluid as well as what species the blood is associated with, but if the scent is hidden from his sight, he may not tell if a being is either alive or dead, or whether there is a being or if there is only bloodspill.
- Flight - Vyrys may fly up to about six meters and can fly for a maximum of 40 seconds before he must land in order to regain energy. His flight speed can reach 32 miles per hour, though that would take much more energy. He can glide for about a minute before losing too much energy.

Skills and Strengths:

• Polyglot - Vyrys is adept in about 5 languages and counting; multilingualism is a skill utilized in his career as an Umbran typographer as it aids him in knowing design interpretations of calligraphs in other languages.
• Linguistic Knowledge - Vyrys has knowledge on the phonology, structure, grammar, and orthography of several languages. He also utilizes this in knowing how language is perceived by and affects different people, which is something he takes note on whenever he designs typefaces and logos.
• Stealth - Vyrys has trained himself to hide in the shadows and to sweep away his tracks without a trace. Vyrys is not an active fighter, and he tries to make his kills quick and clean.

Weaknesses:
- Bloodlust - Unlike other Umbrans, Vyrys still holds strong impulses of the desire to feed on blood, which makes his kills noticeable. It is quite easy for the authorities to tell that Specter was somewhere when they find a body with two canine holes on their neck. This may consequently lead to the demonization of Umbrans or other sentient beings with sharp canines.
- Past Trauma - Vyrys's past has led him to some sort of craze; he is very impulsive and sometimes acts before he thinks, and he may be tormented with the voices of his past which may bring panic attacks, often halting his work flow or his vigilante escapades.

Personality:
Vyrys typically paints a big smile on his face and is usually seen in a joyful mood. However, he may be manipulative toward his companions and may get emotionally frustrated when occurrences do not follow his ideas or intentions. He may passively-aggressively talk down on his peers whenever his suggestions are not agreed upon.

Motivation:
To bring down corporate power and to put an end to Outreach

Backstory:
Vyrys was born and raised in Qashyq, a dwarf planet in the Umbran Plane known for its high poverty rate and rapidly increasing population density. As proper food access was severely scarce in Qashyq, many Umbrans in the area resulted back to their ancestral bloodthirsty diet, bringing murders int he dwarf planet to a higher frequency.
Vyrys always had a passion for the arts and found that language can be an art form; thus, he studied in the Umbran Academy of Linguistics and Typography in hopes of achieving his dream and bringing his family and peers out of poverty. However, as a student in a top academy of the Umbran Plane, Vyrys tried to learn to control his bloodlust.
•
Years ago before the RP's storyline, an Outreach incident occurred with his family directly on the line—a commissioned hero from a beta Outreach subprogram which aimed to bring heroes across the universe rather than just Earth brought the demise of most of his family in a single half hour. The press dubbed it as simply a "rogue hero which needed more training—heroes make mistakes too!" Was the hero drugged? Did they think his family members were criminals? Were the people of Qashyq not worthy enough for Outreach? Vyrys knew nothing of Outreach's side to this, but with the way both Outreach and the press handled the incident, Vyrys was raged with the impression that Outreach cared not for the lower class beings and only served as an idealistic model for people with money and power.
The incident drove Vyrys into a frenzy as it happened right before him. In the early years of his academic career, he began digging holes toward Outreach's secrets, making sure that no one gets in his way.
Now, Vyrys is hired for many commissions on Earth as a typographer, which brings him closer to Outreach in spite of learning more about his family's unfortunate death as well as how the incident played out within Outreach's shadows. Despite the incident being years ago, Vyrys believes that the higher ups of the program still hold valuable secrets.

 

[Lady Venamisa]

might have half-assed it a bit but here's my character. I'll probably find a pic or make a drawing of him if I'm not lazy:

Name: Vyrys Attan-Loqachva
Alias: Specter (vigilante/villain alias)
Age: 57
Race: Umbran

Appearance:
Vyrys looks as if he were in his mid-20s if you were to compare him with a human. He has black hair, pale skin, gray eyes, and black feathered wings at his back.
His usual daily outfit is his work uniform, which is a white dress shirt with slightly puffy sleeves, a black vest, black pants and polished shoes, and his sapphire broach in between his collars. He also carries his Umbran typographer license with him, usually in the left pocket of his black vest. As Specter, he wears a black cloak and a white mask covering the upper part of his face.

Abilities:
- Blood Sense - Like other Umbrans, Vyrys can detect the scent of blood or other vital bodily fluids of a lifeform from a maximum of 10 meters. In some cases, he may identify the type of blood or fluid as well as what species the blood is associated with, but if the scent is hidden from his sight, he may not tell if a being is either alive or dead, or whether there is a being or if there is only bloodspill.
- Flight - Vyrys may fly up to about six meters and can fly for a maximum of 40 seconds before he must land in order to regain energy. His flight speed can reach 32 miles per hour, though that would take much more energy. He can glide for about a minute before losing too much energy.

Skills and Strengths:

• Polyglot - Vyrys is adept in about 5 languages and counting; multilingualism is a skill utilized in his career as an Umbran typographer as it aids him in knowing design interpretations of calligraphs in other languages.
• Linguistic Knowledge - Vyrys has knowledge on the phonology, structure, grammar, and orthography of several languages. He also utilizes this in knowing how language is perceived by and affects different people, which is something he takes note on whenever he designs typefaces and logos.
• Stealth - Vyrys has trained himself to hide in the shadows and to sweep away his tracks without a trace. Vyrys is not an active fighter, and he tries to make his kills quick and clean.

Weaknesses:
- Bloodlust - Unlike other Umbrans, Vyrys still holds strong impulses of the desire to feed on blood, which makes his kills noticeable. It is quite easy for the authorities to tell that Specter was somewhere when they find a body with two canine holes on their neck. This may consequently lead to the demonization of Umbrans or other sentient beings with sharp canines.
- Past Trauma - Vyrys's past has led him to some sort of craze; he is very impulsive and sometimes acts before he thinks, and he may be tormented with the voices of his past which may bring panic attacks, often halting his work flow or his vigilante escapades.

Personality:
Vyrys typically paints a big smile on his face and is usually seen in a joyful mood. However, he may be manipulative toward his companions and may get emotionally frustrated when occurrences do not follow his ideas or intentions. He may passively-aggressively talk down on his peers whenever his suggestions are not agreed upon.

Motivation:
To bring down corporate power and to put an end to Outreach

Backstory:
Vyrys was born and raised in Qashyq, a dwarf planet in the Umbran Plane known for its high poverty rate and rapidly increasing population density. As proper food access was severely scarce in Qashyq, many Umbrans in the area resulted back to their ancestral bloodthirsty diet, bringing murders int he dwarf planet to a higher frequency.
Vyrys always had a passion for the arts and found that language can be an art form; thus, he studied in the Umbran Academy of Linguistics and Typography in hopes of achieving his dream and bringing his family and peers out of poverty. However, as a student in a top academy of the Umbran Plane, Vyrys tried to learn to control his bloodlust.
•
Years ago before the RP's storyline, an Outreach incident occurred with his family directly on the line—a commissioned hero from a beta Outreach subprogram which aimed to bring heroes across the universe rather than just Earth brought the demise of most of his family in a single half hour. The press dubbed it as simply a "rogue hero which needed more training—heroes make mistakes too!" Was the hero drugged? Did they think his family members were criminals? Were the people of Qashyq not worthy enough for Outreach? Vyrys knew nothing of Outreach's side to this, but with the way both Outreach and the press handled the incident, Vyrys was raged with the impression that Outreach cared not for the lower class beings and only served as an idealistic model for people with money and power.
The incident drove Vyrys into a frenzy as it happened right before him. In the early years of his academic career, he began digging holes toward Outreach's secrets, making sure that no one gets in his way.
Now, Vyrys is hired for many commissions on Earth as a typographer, which brings him closer to Outreach in spite of learning more about his family's unfortunate death as well as how the incident played out within Outreach's shadows. Despite the incident being years ago, Vyrys believes that the higher ups of the program still hold valuable secrets.

i love the thought, time and effort you put into this character! You are approved! Can you post both your race and your characters here: Outreach Characters here!