Character Background Feedback Please
I know, I know, I suck at reacting to other people's such requests, but normally it's because others have well-posted by the time I get there as well as I just don't feel it's my strong suit. So at least you know why...
Here's my writeup of a character (PC) I'm intending. Please let me know your thoughts.
Wallace Gold was the son of Horatio Gold, better known in his superheroic identity of Captain Photon, the mutant who could manipulate light, even creating force walls and energy blasts of concentrated light particles. Horatio, though, was also fairly well-known as a captain of industry, the founder and still-CEO of Shopping World, one of America's premier mass-merchandise stores, rivaling Wal-Mart. Wallace was born with some, but not all, of Horatio's powers, most likely as a result of genetic dilution as Horatio's wife was a regular human.
As Wallace's powers began to manifest just before puberty hit, Horatio realized the importance of teaching his son responsibility. The father had always been domineering in his son's life. Horatio was a self-made man, born to poor farming parents, and resolved to make good in his life. He was a noble man to most, and as an industry leader as well as a hero he tried to do what was right at all times. Unfortunately, though, he was intolerant of his son's "softness" having grown up in relative luxury and was so concerned that Wallace would become more like his "unambitious" parents that he drove the boy too hard. Lessons on handling his powers were no different - as Horatio heard one of his superheroic friends' teenager offspring had become an active superhero, he "hinted" to Wallace to follow that path. In some part Wallace eagerly embraced it - after all, he wanted to please his father. But in large part he was forced into it by his heavy-handed father.
As such, Wallace grew to resent the role. He was a much more academic sort of kid, inclined to study in his room rather than engage in physical pursuits. And in school he was mostly ostracized for being a nerd; withdrawing into his books made life easier. But as he got to know the other teens (he was the youngest of the lot, barely having turned 13) he did enjoy their company, mostly. In fact he found like-mindedness in a couple and learned a lot about how to deal with people.
His father's sense of competition rubbed off on him in a way, though, in that he perceived a rivalry with the other kids, a rivalry he felt he was on the losing end of. Certainly some rivalry existed - teens hardly have a strong sense of self - but not to the degree he envisioned. As the "going got tough" and they took on larger challenges, he always felt under-powered and too much of a "bit player". While he socialized a lot with a couple members of the groups, others he remained a bit distant from.
As High School completed and he readied for college, his opportunities were wide open, and he chose to go to MIT. He specialized in physics, particularly quantum physics. Naturally, leaving Chicago and becoming absorbed in his studies kept him from adventuring.
When he completed his Bachelor's his father began to demand he come "home" and work in the family business - adding that "you can continue your career here, the city needs you." Wallace wasn't so thrilled with the idea. He hardly considered his studies done and, after considerable explaining, finally convinced his father that for his field a PhD was necessary.
Upon completion of his PhD, by this time 28, he was one of the world's foremost minds in the world of quantum physics (feel free to modify that, I just think it'd be cool, but might be over-the-top for your game). His father appreciated the son's accomplishments and banished the thought of working in Shopping World. Instead, he used his influence to get him a job working in (insert whatever formidable scientific-oriented private enterprise you like here, your choice), which "happened" to have offices in Chicago. Wallace was displeased - he didn't want to work in corporate world, he wanted to remain in academia or work for a think-tank of sorts. But he shut up, as he knew that his father was helping, and, besides, he knew that his father wasn't going to accept well the one thing he would not compromise on - no more adventuring.
Horatio was crushed and even berated his son for a "lack of responsiblity". Wallace explained that he was hardly self-centered - his work was being leveraged for the good of mankind and it left no time for a superheroing life. He skirted the issue that he felt inadequate, but he did press that he was not nearly so powerful as his father. Horation never agreed and a serious divide arose between them. They still spoke, they were still social, and to say they didn't respect eachother would certainly be going too far - but under the surface they had lost some mutual respect and a gnawing bitterness ate at their souls.
This is the setup point. A few years have gone by and Wallace has naturally lost touch with most of his former associates - largely out of a way to reject his former life more easily as well as due to his work. Being in Chicago of course he runs into a couple of them with some frequency, but most of the time it amounts to "oh we should do lunch sometime" - but without the lunch ever happening. By now Wallace is ensconced in his career. He loathes being in the corporate world but for the most part he is happy as he does get to tinker and study. They do try to keep him happy, but between bureaucracy and corporate culture there is inevitably some conflict. At some point I well imagine Wallace getting back into the academic world directly.
Wallace’s powers have hardly been used since his adventuring days. What he doesn’t realize is that with age they’ve grown more powerful – but unexercised that won’t be apparent at first. In fact, they are so powerful that they exceed his father’s by far. One problem he will experience is that if he isn’t careful they go “critical mass” and trigger a massive and deadly blast. Like Cyclops, he has to carefully watch himself. This means he cannot push his powers, and the limit expressed on his character sheet is there because he can’t control it beyond that level.
Whether the father is alive or dead when the game starts is up to the GM, btw. More editing is required, but anyway this is fairly servicable. Thanks in advance for any/all comments.
KTR - as Sinatra said "try a little tenderness"
Kindness,Tolerance,Respect
Yes, We Can - we can overturn 16-20 years of increasing acrimony; we can change the level of political discourse; whether liberal or conservative, it isn't just that we can, it is that we must
I AM the letter C. Look upon my works, and despair!
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Originally Posted by zornwil
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