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Gestalt: Architects of Change: Preview


GestaltBennie

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Reprinted from the Blackwyrm Forums, but with a 6th edition version and Hero Designer files added. Text is NOT final.

 

BELLWEATHER

Gestalt of Weather

 

Actual Name: Keith Bell

Occupation: Superhero.

Legal Status: Canadian citizen, in the United States on an extended work permit with a (now cleared) criminal record.

Gestalt Type: Bonded.

Goal: Prevent the next Hurricane Katrina.

Power Level: Respected

Height: 6'0" (186 cm)

Weight: 180 lbs. (59 kg)

Hair Color: Dark Brown

Eye Color: Brown

Birthplace: McClean Lake, Saskatchewan.

Group Affiliation: Columbia, former member of the True North, formerly attached to the RCMP.

Known Relatives: Rose (wife), Madison (daughter).

 

Description:

Keith Bell has led a meandering but interesting life in his thirty-six years on Earth. Born five weeks prematurely to a pair of engineers who were searching for uranium in Northern Saskatchewan, Keith was fighting for his life from his very first breath. Not only did he survive, he thrived.

 

Keith was a champion athlete in the schools he attended, which were many, as his parents bounced around the world. He studied for an architecture degree at the Univerity of Waterloo, had a 4.0 average, then dropped out of school. He worked numerous odd jobs, learning trade skills from their practised masters. He worked in disaster relief, and had a lot of adventures in far corners of the globe.

 

In his mid-20s, he returned home to Canada and took a job flying freight for First Nations bamds in Northern Saskatchewan. This job was the life-chnger. One evening in 2001, he was flying a sick First Nations boy from the far north to a hospital in Saskatoon. The weather was getting stormy, but Keith didn't care. He had a life to save. It was a matter of bad luck that a funnel cloud formed over the aircraft. Sensing both his death and that of his charge, Keith said a silent prayer, asking God to make the tornado go away.

 

It did.

 

Keith had prayed at the exact moment the gestalt wave hit, giving him the power to save lives. He's not sure why he's a Weather Gestalt, though he did work at that weather station in Antarctica for three months. Was the answered prayer a coincidence? He didn't care. What truly mattered was that innocent lives had been spared, and he had been given a chance to indulge in two favorite pastimes: colorful adventures that let him meet interesting people, and saving lives.

 

Keith's first costume was the gaudiest thing. He didn't mean to call himself Bellweather. He received it by accident during his first superfight (not counting his pre-gestalt battle in Bangkok, an all-comers Muay Thai challenge which nearly got him killed), a crazy affair in Thunder Bay against a creepy-looking guy robbing a liquor store who may or may not have been the Gestalt of Ooze. At the end of the fight Keith, so exhausted that he was ready to collapse on the ground beside his twitching opponent, had a microphone thrust in front of his face by a reporter. The man demanded to know his name.

 

"Bell..." Keith replied, panting. "Uh... Weather..."

 

He didn't get a chance to finish his answer with the word "gestalt?" The reporter proceeded to pepper "Bellweather" with a series of questions.

 

Bellweather attracted notice, including that of the True North, an RCMP-sponsored superteam based in Winnipeg. Keith enthusiatically joined, though he hoped that the RCMP wouldn't look too hard into his background and find that one outstanding drug possession charge from college.

 

Keith quickly earned the mantle of Canada's most powerful superhero, but wasn't content. He married a biology student and had a beautiful daughter, but something was missing. He wasn?t saving enough lives. He loved what he was doing, but always felt he could do more.

 

When Hurricane Katrina struck, Keith flew south to help with disaster relief. He knew he had a calling, to make sure he was in the right place at the right time. There was only one team who could guarantee that -- so he called Columbia and asked to join.

 

It took two years before Liberator was ready to take his request seriously, but eventually his name was leaked as a possible Columbia candidate. Keith's True North teammates were upset. Moreover, certain people in the American press who hated Columbia looked into his background, and uncovered his identity and his pot conviction. The RCMP, requested that he leave the True North. Some Canadians looked at him as "a pot smoking traitor". Keith's daughter was kidnapped and put in a coma for six months by a supervillain he'd never even met. His wife filed for divorce... but Columbia arranged for a Reconciliaton Gestalt to save their marriage.

 

Eventually, however, the charges were dropped, and President Obama approved of his work permit personally. Bellweather came to Columbia to join the superhero big leagues. He appears almost the sterotypical Canadian: quiet, polite, reserved, and a little self-righteous, and (maybe) out of his depth on the greatest and most complicated superhero team on Earth.

 

Personality:

Keith is proof that nice guys do exist, although he's a doofus when he deals with small issues or social relationships (his wife has a lot of patience). He loves adventure, particularly when it lets him see new places and meet people with interesting life stories. Living mostly in the moment, Berllweather hates routine and the feelingof being cooped up. Often things that might seem important to others ("Oh, I didn't tell you I'm going to ditch you guys and join Columbia? Sorry!") aren't a big deal to him. Those who know him well come to love (and roll their eyes) at Keith's free spirit.

 

Powers/Tactics:

Bellweather is one of the most powerful Weather gestalts on earth. That said, he's not always as versatile as he'd like and he tends to rely on the lightning bolts that spring from his hands a little too much, but he enjoys the rush he gets from using it.

Bellweather's not a great team player at the moment. On the True North was always the star that everyone else worked around, and so he's still learning how best to coordinate his attacks with his teammates.

 

Appearance:

Keith is a tall attractive man whose one-eighths Dene heritage blends well with his Caucasian features. His costume is a powder blue body stocking that covers him from his neckline to his toes, with the Columbia eagle on his left breast, and a small red maple leaf on his right shoulder.

 

Bellweather (5th edition)

Val Char Cost Roll Notes

20 STR 10 13- Lift 400.0kg; 4d6 HTH damage [2]

26 DEX 48 14- OCV: 9/DCV: 9

33 CON 46 16-

20 BODY 20 13-

18 INT 8 13- PER Roll 13-

20 EGO 20 13- ECV: 7

25 PRE 15 14- PRE Attack: 5d6

10 COM 0 11-

16 PD 12 Total: 16/28 PD (0/12 rPD)

16 ED 9 Total: 16/28 ED (0/12 rED)

5 SPD 14 Phases: 3, 5, 8, 10, 12

11 REC 0

66 END 0

50 STUN 3 Total Characteristics Cost: 205

Movement: Running: 6"/[Noncombat]"

Leaping: 4"/[Noncombat]"

Swimming: 2"/[Noncombat]"

 

Cost Powers END

20 +15 REC; Conditional Power Only When Gliding (-1/2)

25 +50 STR; No Figured Characteristics (-1/2), Conditional Power Only on the Phase After Using Lightning Powers (-1/2) 5

15 Physical Damage Reduction, Resistant, 50%; Conditional Power Only on the Phase After Using Blizzard (-1) 0

12 Healed by the Weather: Absorption 6d6 (energy, Stun); Conditional Power Only Weather Effects (-1), Only Restores To Starting Values (-1/2) 0

86 Weather Control: Change Environment 32" radius (+2 Temperature Level Adjustment, +4 Wind Levels: +4, -2 Temperature Level Adjustment, Multiple Combat Effects, Varying Combat Effects), Reduced Endurance (1/2 END; +1/4), Varying Effect Limited Group (+1/2); No Range (-1/2) 5

112 Weather Control: Multipower, 112-point reserve

7u 1) Lightning Bolt: Killing Attack - Ranged 3d6, Reduced Endurance (1/2 END; +1/4), Area Of Effect (44" Line; +1 1/4); No Range (-1/2) 5

9u 2) Blizzard: Energy Blast 4d6, Reduced Endurance (1/2 END; +1/4), Personal Immunity (+1/4), No Normal Defense ([LS : Life Support, Cold]]; +1), Area Of Effect (7" Radius; +1), Continuous (+1) 4

7u 3) Calm the Storm: Suppress BODY 3d6+1, Reduced Endurance (1/2 END; +1/4), all Weather] powers simultaneously Weather Powers (+2) (107 Active Points); Costs Endurance (to maintain; -1/2) 5

10u 4) Pea Soup Fog: Darkness to Sight Group 6" radius, Personal Immunity (+1/4), Reduced Endurance (0 END; +1/2) 0

35 Thunderclap: Hearing Group Flash 10d6, Personal Immunity (+1/4), Area Of Effect (One Hex; +1/2); Linked (Lightning Bolt; -1/2) 5

11 Mental Defense (15 points total) 0

19 Slippery Ground: Change Environment 8" radius (-4 to DEX Roll), Conditional Power Can Only Be Applied to horizontal Surfaces (-0); Linked (Blizzard; -1/2) 3

16 Shield of the Winds: Resistant Protection (12 PD/12 ED) (24 Active Points); Conditional Power Not vs. Fast Moving Attacks (attacks that move at hypersonic speeds) (-1/2) 2

30 Windriding: Flight 15" 3

35 Stormcoasting: Gliding 30", x4 Noncombat 0

15 Understand The Weather: Detect A Large Class Of Things (Weather, Know Temperature, Barometric Pressure, Wind Velocity, etc.) 13- (Touch Group), Discriminatory 0

17 Predict The Weather: Precognitive Clairsentience (Touch Group), Analyze, Discriminatory; Conditional Power Only To Predict The Weather (-2) 4

4 Climate Control: Life Support (Safe in Intense Cold; Safe in Intense Heat) 0

 

Perks

3 Fringe Benefit: Federal/National Police Powers

11 Contact: Gerald Curry (Contact has access to major institutions, Contact has extremely useful Skills or resources, Contact has significant Contacts of his own, Very Good relationship with Contact) 13-

8 Contact: Leading Washington DC Public Relations Firm (Contact has access to major institutions, Contact has significant Contacts of his own, Contact is slavishly loyal to character) 12-

 

Talents

3 Absolute Time Sense

3 Bump Of Direction

3 Environmental Movement (no penalties on)

 

Skills

3 Traveler

3 1) AK: Antarctica 13-

6 2) AK: Indochina 16-

7 3) AK: The South Pacific 17-

3 4) AK: Western Canada 13-

3 Breakfall 14-

3 Combat Piloting 14-

3 Conversation 14-

2 Language: French (fluent conversation)

3 Paramedics 13-

7 Power 15-

3 Jack of All Trades

3 1) PS: Architect 13-

3 2) PS: Carpenter 13-

2 3) PS: Fisherman 12-

2 4) PS: Meteorologist 12-

2 5) PS: Sailor 12-

3 Survival 13-

6 SS: Meteorology 15-

4 TF: Helicopters, Large Motorized Boats, Small Motorized Boats, Small Planes, Snowmobiles

 

Total Powers & Skills Cost: 587

Total Cost: 792

 

200+ Disadvantages

10 Hunted: Columbia Mystery Backer 8- (Mo Pow; NCI; Watching)

10 Hunted: The Tyranny League 8- (As Pow; Harshly Punish)

5 Hunted: US Government 11- (Less Pow; NCI; Watching)

10 Psychological Limitation: Restless, Loves Adventure (Common; Moderate)

10 Psychological Limitation: Moods Reflect The Weather Around Him (Common; Moderate)

5 Social Limitation: Alien on a work permit (Occasionally; Minor)

15 Susceptibility: When Entering a Completely Artificial Environment 3d6 damage Instant (Uncommon)

15 Vulnerability: 1 1/2 x BODY any attacks within an artificial environment (such as air conditioned or heated buildings) (Very Common)

15 Vulnerability: 1 1/2 x STUN any attacks within an artificial environment (such as air conditioned or heated buildings) (Very Common)

 

Total Disadvantage Points: 792

 

Bellweather (6th edition)

Val Char Cost Roll Notes

20 STR 10 13- Lift 400.0kg; 4d6 [2]

26 DEX 32 14-

33 CON 23 16-

18 INT 8 13- PER Roll 13-

20 EGO 10 13-

25 PRE 15 14- PRE Attack: 5d6

 

9 OCV 30

9 DCV 30

7 OMCV 12

7 DMCV 12

5 SPD 30 Phases: 3, 5, 8, 10, 12

 

16/28 PD 14 Total: 16/28 PD (0/12 rPD)

16/28 ED 14 Total: 16/28 ED (0/12 rED)

11 REC 7

66 END 10

20 BODY 10

60 STUN 20 Total Characteristic Cost: 287

 

Movement: Running: 12m/24m

Flight: 30m/45m/120m/180m

Leaping: 4m/8m

Swimming: 4m/8m

 

Cost Powers END

10 +15 REC; Conditional Power Only When Gliding (-1/2)

25 +50 STR; No Figured Characteristics (-1/2), Conditional Power Only on the Phase After Using Lightning Powers (-1/2) 5

15 Physical Damage Reduction, Resistant, 50%; Conditional Power Only on the Phase After Using Blizzard (-1)

8 Healed by the Weather: Absorption 21 BODY (energy, Stun); Conditional Power Only Weather Effects (-1), Only Restores To Starting Values (-1/2)

55 Weather Control: Change Environment (+4 Wind Levels, 4 Temperature Level Adjustment), Reduced Endurance (1/2 END; +1/4), Varying Effect Limited Group (+1/2), Area Of Effect (60m Radius; +1 1/4); No Range (-1/2), Unified Power (-1/4) 4

90 Weather Control: Multipower, 112-point reserve, all slots Unified Power (-1/4)

6f 1) Lightning Bolt: Killing Attack - Ranged 3d6, Reduced Endurance (1/2 END; +1/4), Area Of Effect (100m Line; +1 1/4); No Range (-1/2), Unified Power (-1/4) 5

7f 2) Blizzard: Energy Blast 4d6, Reduced Endurance (1/2 END; +1/4), Personal Immunity (+1/4), Area Of Effect (15m Radius; +3/4), No Normal Defense (+1), Continuous (+1); Unified Power (-1/4) 4

6f 3) Calm the Storm: Suppress BODY 2d6, Reduced Endurance (1/2 END; +1/4), Weather Powers (+1/2), Expanded Effect (x8 Characteristics or Powers simultaneously) (+3 1/2) (105 Active Points); Costs Endurance (to maintain; -1/2), Unified Power (-1/4) 5

8f 4) Pea Soup Fog: Darkness to Sight Group 12m radius, Personal Immunity (+1/4), Reduced Endurance (0 END; +1/2); Unified Power (-1/4)

26 Thunderclap: Hearing Group Flash 10d6, Personal Immunity (+1/4), Area Of Effect (1m Radius; +1/4); Linked (Lightning Bolt; -1/2), Unified Power (-1/4) 4

15 Mental Defense (15 points total)

15 Slippery Ground: Change Environment (-4 to DEX Roll), Conditional Power Can Only Be Applied to horizontal Surfaces (-0), Area Of Effect (60m Radius; +1 1/4); Linked (Blizzard; -1/2), Unified Power (-1/4) 3

20 Shield of the Winds: Resistant Protection (12 PD/12 ED) (36 Active Points); Conditional Power Not vs. Fast Moving Attacks (attacks that move at hypersonic speeds) (-1/2), Unified Power (-1/4)

12 Windriding: Flight 15m; Unified Power (-1/4) 1

15 Stormcoasting: Flight 30m, x4 Noncombat (35 Active Points); Gliding (-1), Unified Power (-1/4)

15 Understand The Weather: Detect A Large Class Of Things (Weather, Know Temperature, Barometric Pressure, Wind Velocity, etc.) 13- (Touch Group), Discriminatory

15 Predict The Weather: Precognitive Clairsentience (Touch Group), Discriminatory; Conditional Power Only To Predict The Weather (-2) 4

4 Climate Control: Life Support (Safe in Intense Cold; Safe in Intense Heat)

 

Perks

3 Fringe Benefit: Federal/National Police Powers

11 Contact: Gerald Curry (Contact has access to major institutions, Contact has extremely useful Skills or resources, Contact has significant Contacts of his own, Very Good relationship with Contact) 13-

8 Contact: Leading Washington DC Public Relations Firm (Contact has access to major institutions, Contact has significant Contacts of his own, Contact is slavishly loyal to character) 12-

 

Talents

3 Absolute Time Sense

3 Bump Of Direction

3 Move through Bad Weather: Environmental Movement (no penalties on)

 

Skills

3 Traveler

3 1) AK: Antarctica 13-

6 2) AK: Indochina 16-

7 3) AK: The South Pacific 17-

3 4) AK: Western Canada 13-

3 Breakfall 14-

3 Combat Piloting 14-

3 Conversation 14-

2 Language: French (fluent conversation)

3 Paramedics 13-

7 Weather Control: Power 15-

3 Jack of All Trades

3 1) PS: Architect 13-

3 2) PS: Carpenter 13-

2 3) PS: Fisherman 12-

2 4) PS: Meteorologist 12-

2 5) PS: Sailor 12-

3 Survival 13-

6 SS: Meteorology 15-

4 TF: Helicopters, Large Motorized Boats, Small Motorized Boats, Small Planes, Snowmobiles

 

Total Powers & Skill Cost: 472

Total Cost: 758

 

200+ Disadvantages

10 Hunted: Columbia Mystery Backer Frequently (As Pow; NCI; Watching)

10 Hunted: The Tyranny League Infrequently (As Pow; Harshly Punish)

5 Hunted: US Government Frequently (Less Pow; NCI; Watching)

10 Psychological Complication: Restless, Loves Adventure (Common; Moderate)

10 Psychological Complication: Moods Reflect The Weather Around Him (Common; Moderate)

5 Social Complication: Alien living in a foreign country on a work permit Infrequently, Minor

15 Susceptibility: When Entering a Completely Artificial Environment 3d6 damage Instant (Uncommon)

15 Vulnerability: 1 1/2 x BODY any attacks within an artificial environment (such as air conditioned or heated buildings) (Very Common)

15 Vulnerability: 1 1/2 x STUN any attacks within an artificial environment (such as air conditioned or heated buildings) (Very Common)

463 Experience Points

 

Total Disadvantage Points: 758

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Re: Gestalt: Architects of Change: Preview

 

Here's the second preview, the rough text for the chapter that updates the campaign setting. Comments are welcome, as this is *NOT* final, so if you see anything that makes you unhappy, let me know.

 

 

----------

A campaign world cannot remain static, and Gestalt was always meant to have a political and social verisimilitude that allowed it to change with the times. The setting reflects the time in which it was created, and not just in the timeline; looking back, for example, it's clear that the Deregulators are villains who best fit the country's mood in the days after the Oklahoma City bombing and 90s incidents like the Waco siege, which now makes them appear quite dated.

 

Likewise, some of the later elements in the book, such as the America Men, reflect the concerns of North America in the heyday of the Bush-Cheney administration, which is over now, for better or for worse. It's 2009, and the world situation has undergone another quantum shift in the zeitgeist. The setting is increasingly diverging from our timeline, however, there are still enough similarities that it changes are necessary in the setting to reflect the spirit of the times.

 

This section does touch on some of the mysteries of the original book. If any events in your campaign contradict what's written here, the canon as established by your game group must take precedence.

--------

 

Discovery!

In September 2008, 7 1/2 parsecs away from Earth, on the fifth planet orbiting the star Beta Hydri, Ted Chess discovered artifacts from a long-extinct alien culture, tall towers of woven metal, spun like spider webs on the surface of a crater-marked dead world. Utility objects were found beneath one of the towers, though other traces of the civilization vanished long ago. This was earth's first contact with aliens who are unknown to the Ar and the Eiko, prompting one observer to call it "the first home we've discovered that belongs to a local neighbor".

 

They were dubbed "Known Alien Species 4" (KAS-4, or "Kasfor") by Columbia University xenobiology professor Dr. Phillip Dansen, who estimates that the Kasfors flourished close to a billion years ago. Chess found evidence that they possessed psychic talents, as he detected faint telepathic emissions from one of the structures. Chess is lobbying NASA and the EASA to recruit a telepath to travel with him for further investigation; Kasfordia's thin atmosphere and high radiation levels make it extremely inhospitable to humans.

 

Election 2008

On November 4, 2008, Barack Hussein Obama defeated Mitt Romney and his running mate, John McCain to become 44th president of the United States.

 

Major issues included the campaign against the Tyranny League, a looming war with Iran (precipitated by the USMC Vanguard's raid on Iran's nuclear program in June), and a downturn in the economy. Accusations that Obama was an Oratory gestalt led to him taking a public examination for gestalt powers several times during the campaign, though his detractors refused to believe the results.

 

Obama's election was considered to mark an improving trend in gestalt relations (though observers noted a warming trend in the last year, especially on the part of President Bush). One of Obama's first actions as President-Elect was to fast track the immigration of several foreign gestalts into Columbia, which had been opposed by the Bush administration. Rumors that Obama and Columbia were working together to bring in an army of foreign gestalts to impose a gestalt totalitarian order were dismissed as paranoid fantasies. Columbia refrained from comment on the election, except for Starbird and Carnival, both openly ardent Obama supporters.

 

Obama promised not to disband the America Men (now known as "Action America"), though Flying Fortress's recent departure was said to be at the request of the president-elect, following a controversial battle in Cincinnati where Railgun was critically injured (many presume that Fortress was trying to settle an old score from his supervillain days).

 

The election campaign was marred by several tampering attempts by gestalts, including a report that a Gestalt Protector of Democrats had gone into an apartment fire in Atlanta and telepathically determined how people were planning to vote, only rescuing those with "correct" political leanings.

 

The ATF superteam stopped an assassinaion attempt against Obama at a rally in Philadelphia. Obama was uninjured but several bystanders were badly hurt. The attempt was complicated by a well-meaning gestalt illusionist who made everyone at the rally look like Obama in an effort to foil the assassin, which resulted in injuries to many bystanders and the escape of one of the two assassins, Timothy Derek-Jones, a Grey Army operative, who remains at large.

 

In California, Proposition 8 passed, overturning the state's ruling on gay marriage. A proposition to bar privately sponsored superhero teams -- clearly directed at the Hollywood Knights, was widely defeated when the measure was shown to have been initiated by Weaponsmith. The passage of Proposition 8 has motivated several gay organizations to urge the world's most famous gay superhero, Surfer Joe of the Hollywood Knights, to refrain "from heroing in a state which opposes gay rights". Joe's answer was indeterminate and (some say) deeply confusing.

 

Opening the Door

In December 2008, the supervillain Portal made his first play to conquer the world. Making contact with a Fantasyscape dimension in the Gestalt ruled by the Iron Republic of America, the villain persuaded that world's President for Life, General Powell, to sanction an invasion force. Taking advantage of the transition between presidencies, 50,000 troops suddenly appeared in strategic locations throughout the continental United States, attacking key installations. Columbia and Action America set aside their differences long enough to coordinate resistance, and many superheroes and even a few villains joined them. The invaders were soon beaten back.

 

Rather than face defeat, the alternate universe Powell decided to lead one last attack in his "Iron President" battle armor targeting President elect Obama. The armor (a custom crafted battlesuit) had the ability to drain people's life force, which he used to maintain his own faltering life. He planned to take symbolic victory by draining Obama's life energies, but was stopped by the near miraculous intervention of the original America Man, accompanied by our world's version of Colin Powell.

 

Columbia, after a brutal struggle with the Iron Republican Guard, captured Portal when the Tyranny League chose that moment to launch an attack. Seriously weakened, Columbia was forced to retreat, but Kid Mercury was captured. Kid's current condition and whereabouts is unknown. Portal has now become an associate of the Tyranny League, and while the portals to the Iron Republic have been closed, the idea of extra-dimensional invasions has sent national security agencies into a panic. Furthermore Fort Bragg, Fort Hood, and Naval Station Norfolk, all primary targets, were almost completely wiped out in the initial attack. Nearly sixty surveillance satellites were shot out of orbit. This, along with damage to other installations, leaves serious gaps in America's defense against the upcoming Eiko threat.

 

One other troubling outcome from the Portal incident: the prototype for the Schwartzkopf Mk I battle armor, that was stored at the Aberdeen Proviing Grounds has gone missing. Security footage suggests that the theft was a surgical strike planned to coordinate with Portal's invasion, however no one has positively identified the thieves. The Tyranny League, Weaponsmith, and Starfinder are the prime suspects.

 

Gauntlet

The Ar'Kayadin champion, the Invincible Ar'aax, has sent an emissary to Earth to formally challenge Earth's champion, Trevor Griffin, to a formal Ar'Kayadin dueling ritual. If the Ar'aax wins, the Titan will be forced to bow down to him, recognize his supremacy, and assist him in any action he takes on Earth (the stakes he originally demanded were higher, until Tarradan explained the limits to what humans would accept). If he loses, then Trevor becomes the new Ar'aax and takes everything that Zaruk owns, including his lands, titles, and even his family.

 

Normally, Trevor would refuse such a challenge out of hand, but victory offers the prospect of gaining much needed Ar'Kayadin help in the upcoming Eiko invasion. The Titan is canvassing the superhero community, asking for their opinions. Although it may seem like just another fight, the Titan is the Gestalt Champion of Earth and his defeat would have numerous ramifications for the human species.

 

The unhappiest man at the news of the challenge is Tarradan, who's been fighting a losing battle to gain Ar'Terran sympathies, and who, ignored by Ar'aax and a pariah among all but a handful of Earth's governments, has quietly contacted the Gene Guard to discuss the situation with the Ar on Earth and the possibility of "serious action" to advance the Ar'Kayadin civilization. The Gene Guard and the Ar'Kayadin are dealing with another internal problem: a wildly popular separatist movement has sprung up on the Ar'Kayadin world of Vettar.

 

Playing with Power

March 2009 saw the reappearance of Dr. Power, not Theresa Power, but her long dead father Matthias. He attempted to blow up the Brooklyn Bridge to announce his return, but was stopped by Kinestar and (the recently vindicated) Bronco. Matthias fell from the bridge and was confirmed dead, but his body was stolen by Gyrfalcon and Silverfist a few minutes later.

 

During the recovery operation, Bronco was badly beaten by Silverfist and captured, while Gyrfalcon's psionic powers induced a stroke that left Kinestar partially paralyzed. Kinestar has undergone intensive therapy to recover from the injuries. The injuries did not stop the heroine from announcing her engagement to her long-time friend Simon Goldstein, a research scientist. Also, a new gadget-using crimefighter has stepped up to take Kinestar's place, the black clad Applejack.

 

Matthias was spotted several months later in Toronto, where he tried to poison the Sheltie's dogs and ran afoul of the Canadian Shield. He was reportedly killed (again) by Merc Six, when he broke into the organization's operations center and demanded that Alan Throne cede control to him. Again, Theresa's agents recovered the body. These two incidents have triggered speculation that Theresa's learned how to raise the dead (prompting an uncharacteristically wry comment from Imperator about the new Matthias being "Plan Nine from Dr. Power").

 

"The Great National Transformation"

At his state of the union address, President Obama made three "calls to action" regarding gestalts. First, he pledged closer cooperation with Columbia. Second, he called for the creation of a national team of gestalts under FEMA, to serve as an emergency response team, with powers to rescue and rebuild destroyed sections of the country. Third, standing with Lament (in her capacity as a grief counsellor), he called for gestalts across America to step forward, work with regulatory agencies and professional associations, and use their powers for the national good.

 

However high-minded Obama's principles may be, they've been criticized by some right-wing commentators as the first step toward a "Gestalt World Order". One right wing news network begun airing a television series to highlight "hypothetical" scenarios for "Us Versus Them: The Coming War With Gestalts".

 

More reasonably, others have questioned how much money will be devoted to training these gestalts to get professional credentials and how many phony gestalt schemes will take advantage of the program, concerns magnified by the current economic crisis, while others point to history and question the wisdom of using gestalts as "a miracle drug".

 

One of the first acts of the Obama administration was to appoint a cabinet advisor on Gestalt affairs. The position was given to Mitchell Grace, the recently retired Boston superhero Argent.

 

Market Forces

On October 6, 2008, Failsafe, the Artificial Intelligence governing the New York Stock Exchange failed, leadiong to the collapse of major lending institutions throughout the world. Iceland's economy collapsed. Several heroes learned that Failsafe itself had been compromised by Computor, and managed to generate versions of themselves to infiltrate a cybernetic dimension within the Gestalt and retrieve the lost data.

 

These heroes discovered Computor was working with Economics Gestalt Ben Aiachi, and arrested Aiachi, who exposed Computor's true identity as that of Richard Greer, the world's leading computer genius, and designer of the Trident processor.

 

Computor's personal agenda is now history. Greer fled to the sanctuary of the Tyranny League, to Imperator's delight. Computor has always been a member in good standing with the League, however his libertarian goals put his long-term agenda at odds with Imperator's, which was a matter of some tension in the League's leadership. That conflict is now a thing of the past: Greer is determined to make people pay. On the bright side (from his point of view), he embezzled close to a trillion dollars to himself and the League, all beyond the world's ability to trace.

 

Hopes that Failsafe's dismantling would shore up the American banking system were quickly dashed, and the world fell into a deep recession.

 

The exposure of Computor's true identity has shaken the world computer industry; and computers with Trident processors, widely believed to be engineered to facilitate Computor's control, are being abandoned or dismantled. As the Trident is the backbone of the world's computing system and many companies can't afford to "upgrade" to slower, less efficient processors, the chaos that this is causing cannot be understated. A Zhengcorp technologies group, Zhengtech, is leading the development of a "supervillain-free" processor, and is about to market their new system, featuring the Shoucheng ("Harvest") chip, worldwide.

 

Breaking Up is **NOT** Hard To Do!

Perhaps it was only the post-Christmas blahs, but the Firestarters broke up in early January 2009, surprising virtually no one. After a botched operation that brought a warehouse down on top of Gordion and Flayer, the team turned on Dissenter, leaving him for dead. Dissenter recovered and attempted to join the Tyranny League. Imperator feigned interest, then betrayed him to the authorities. Dissenter is currently serving a life sentence in the Icebox.

 

The Crimson Commander, now redubbed Hellflame, has joined Los Animales. Flayer and Gordion are a pair of killers loosely aligned with the Tyranny League. Most unfortunately of all, Wormwood and Apparition have fallen under the influence of the Blood Red King, and are now his faithful (and lethal) servants.

 

Other changes to established groups include:

 

The America Men: With Obama aligning his administration with Columbia, this team of "Bush league heroes" is struggling to find its identity. The team officially changed its name to "Action America" in January 2009.

 

It's been a tough time for America Man II (who, after the original's return, changed his name to "the American Spirit") mostly due to tension between him and Silver Star over team leadership. Flying Fortress was expelled from the team for "callous disregard for the lives of bystanders" during a battle with Railgun, and Pathfinder and Blossom are also rumored to be leaving the fold.

 

The American Task Force: The team's roster has remained stable in the last few years. The team, though greatly despised by many civil libertarians, is said to have the full confidence of President Obama. Recently they were charged with protecting a scientific expedition that was using a portal that the Magician had made into the Gestalt Dimension. The portal closed several days after they departed, trapping all of the team except American Avenger and Big Red (who were absent on other matters) within the Void.

 

Columbia: As mentioned earlier, Kid Mercury has been taken prisoner by the Tyranny League and is presumed dead. Bellweather has joined the team, and the team is looking for new members. Pathfinder of Action America has joined them on several missions. Dynamo Jack has also seen action alongside them, and tabloids report that he's almost a sure bet to join (though he and Edge do not get along).

 

The Hollywood Knights. Athena is associating with the Knights more frequently and the rift between her, Ricochet, and Paladin that led to her departure is slowly healing. Peacekeeper, however, vanished under mysterious circumstances, replaced by a local vigilante, a Justice Gestalt who calls himself Justice Machine. Surfer Joe has officially settled down, marrying team founder Foster Erickson's former companion, Michael Martin (himself a gestalt), the team's activities coordinator. Thrust into the public spotlight, Martin immediately charmed the press with his verbal skills and hunky good looks, but has down played speculation that he'll join as a team member. (Those in the know understand that Mike is something of a coward, haunted by witnessing his parents' murder as a teenager).

 

The July 2007 wedding of Jim "Stuntman" Goddard and Lily Gordon ended in tragedy within a year, after Los Animales kidnapped Lily and her son Greg and caused Lily to miscarry. She filed for divorce in September 2008. Stuntman took a long leave of absence from the Knights to work with the Obama campaign, but rejoined in April 2009. Lily is finding some solace in the arms of her ex-husband, John Johnson (aka Wild Card of the ATF, Greg's biological dad). No one suspects that the turn of events was actually engineered by Powerjack, who used it to smear Stuntman and the Knights' reputation.

 

Millennium: Last July, Red Dog and Brawl formalized their partnership by announcing the formation of a superhero team, called Millennium. Red Dog, Brawl and Kinestar are the core, but they've recruited a few other talents: Slammer, a telepath named Embrace, and a flamboyant speedster called Twisted Sister. Bronco briefly joined the team after his exoneration. Kinestar's recent injuries have proven to be a setback for the nascent squad; Applejack has not joined the team.

 

The team has spent most of its time fighting Octavian, who's become a major player in the New York drug scene, introducng a bizarre narcotic whose side effects make people believe they are citizens living in ancient Rome. This drug ("Rexmundi") implants detailed information on the history and culture of ancient Rome into the addicts' brains via the facilitation of telepathic impressions. The identity of the pharmacist who engineered it is a mystery.

 

The Deregulators: The Deregulators spent most of the last two years in prison, but were finally freed by the Psionic Seven. The team has remained strongly loyal to each other; snce his release, Freedom Smith has been quietly recruiting militiamen to assist in their operations, though he was nearly killed when one of the militia recruits turned out to be a Dawn Brothers infiltrator.

 

The Menagerie: Folliowing the death of Dr. Canus at the hands of Action America, the team broke up, though some were later seen working with the Anti-American. Reports that Super-Gorilla and Mister Monkey were founding a "Secret Society of Super-Simians" turned out to be an April Fool's Joke, as were reports that Super-Gorilla contacted two other super simian masterminds from universes in the Gestalt Dimension to launch a "Plan of the Apes".

 

The Psionic Seven: The Seven's roster has changed. Evo, the Post-Human, bored with waiting for mercenary assignments (and never all that fond of working with "animals" in the first place), has left the team, replaced by a powerful Motion Gestalt named Thrasher. Evo did not part on good terms, leaking the location of the Seven's Carribbean base to Columbia. Ominos allowed herself to be captured, but only to serve as a diversion that allowed the rest of the team to escape; she was broken out of prison within 72 hours, thanks to a "mutual rescue" pact with Starfinder.

 

The Seven have vowed to kill Evo for his treachery, and word has slipped that he's turned to the Tyranny League for protection, causing the already chilly relations between the League and the Seven to get even colder. To make matters worse, Psycho-American's actions are becoming increasingly chaotic; the rumor mill speculates that he may not be a member for much longer.

 

The Blood Red King. The Lord of Misery was mostly quiet throughout most of 2007 and 2008, but reemerged in India, where he raised Dr. Typhus from the dead to engineer a new Red Plague. His actions did not go unnoticed; Garuda attacked the pair, killing Typhus and forcing the "Khoonrayzi-Rajah" to retreat. However, several plague dogs engineered by the reborn Typhus were not recovered, but placed by Typhus's long time assistant Mari Paagalpan into cryogenic storage. Garuda, knowing that a new Red Plague could hit India at any time, are frantically searching for Mari and the lost dogs.

 

The King's artistic side was spotlighted in a New York City Gallery show "Prison of Blood", in which patrons of a show by the "acclaimed artist" Roy Albert Redd (a moniker that prompted Kinestar to roll her eyes and lament how the King was getting cute in his old age) to be captured and drawn into surreal paintings, leaving behind their blood on the floor. 32 victims were captured by this living death, the one attempt to use an Art Gestalt to free a victim was successful, however the person reemerged without a drop of blood in his body and promptly died.

 

In March 2009, the King hijacked a San Francisco talk radio show and offered to turn three listeners into monsters, saying it was "just like suicide, except you can get vengeance on the society that hurt you." The King was driven away from the studio by a cadre of Technarch's CounterCrimeDroids, however over a dozen people showed up at the station to take the King up on his offer.

 

The King has also opened up a seminary where his acolytes and cultists could train to develop the inner darkness of their souls. Hard economic times has encouraged the rebirth of his apocalyptic cult, and the post-Eiko invasion period is also likely to nurture the fatalistic impulse

 

Hannibal Poole: Poole was dealt a serious blow when, at the behest of a superhero team, Stuntwoman betrayed him and exposed him to the FBI. Though all charges were dropped due to lack of evidence, Poole's reputation is in shambles. He's consolidating his criminal holdings and preparing a legal team to clear his reputation; he's also had to employ several superhuman bodyguards to protect him from vigilantes who have tried to assasinate him.

 

The Leviathans: The Leviathans have been dealt several serious blows over the last few years. The attempt by Hanshun Lung to create a nuclear crisis between China and America was foiled when his plans were exposed by several superheroes and Huo Lei Feng ("living in the way of Lei Feng", allegedly the gestalt reincarnation of iconic PLA soldier Lei Feng, who died in 1962 and was lionizd by Mao for his good deeds, cheery attitude, and dedication to the Chairman). Hanshun Lung was forced out of Shanghai and has made his court somewhere in Hunan Province, where he plots revenge against the Chinese government.

 

Worse, a large team of gestalts was gathered by Victor Eismann and sent into the Gestalt Dimension to attack the Palace of the Fifth Eye, the headquarters of the Leviathan King, and disrupt his program to corrupt protogestalts in the Void. Many future gestalts were saved. Eismann will sponsor a second expedition at this year's Copenhagen tournament.

 

The Leviathans did achieve one major success. Unwisely turning away from the Hollywood Knights, the Oracle Gestalt Insight was murdered by Wolniwolnos. His final prophecy was:: "Fire in heavens... the lonely ones... the deaf that search for the song... the light they must not see.. darkness must swallow the light... the silence of the song...."

 

Armaggedo. Armaggedo has made several guest appearances on the Colbert Report, where he's named Colbert as his official sidekick. He's also taken on the costumed identity of Professor Fiend, who has pulled off the astounding feat of being even weirder than the original; disturbingly, people who are involved in Fiend's plots have a habit of breaking out into musical numbers.

 

Return of the Glorious Hero to Heaven!

In September 2008, the world mourned as Kim Jong-Il, long time despot of North Korea, tragically perished when a meteor fell out of the sky and landed directly onto him as he addressed the North Korean army. This was initially believed to be an attack by an evil pro-American or Japanese gestalt, however the glorious truth soon spread that transcendent Kim, far too noble to exist on this mortal plane for too long, was called by heaven to embrace his eternal destiny. After a month long period of mourning, Vice President Song Yong-Sun took up the reins of power. At hsis inaugration, he vowed "to be half as capable a defender of socialism as our beloved Kim, which will make me mighty indeed."

 

Western hopes that Song would be more amenable were quickly dashed when Song and Ar'Kayadin ambassador Tarradan announced a formal alliance, with Tarradan declarng that the Ar'Kayadin would assist North Korea in developing an industrial base and improved infrastructure and agriculture, but would not provide military assistance. Despite the latter promise, the prospect of extraterrestrial interference in the internal affairs of an earth nation have alarmed most countries, though the American response, knowing about the upcoming Eiko invasion, has been muted.

 

Other major world events include:

 

Canada: The True North added the Steelsman to their ranks to replace Bellweather, who left to join Columbia. The North have found themselves embroiled in an escalating war with Merc Six, who've been commissioned by a wealthy patron to bring down the Canadian government. Several Canadian members of Parliament have been murdered, including a Cabinet Minister, prompting the government to invite Columbia to intervene (a move that did not sit well with Canadian Crusader, who took Bellweather's departure as a personal insult).

 

Two transitional members of Merc Six, Tunnel and Carapice, were captured, and the four core members were forced into hiding for months. The Tyranny League is widely suspected as Merc Six's backers, however a recent alliance with the Dragon of the Woods suggests that their backer is none other than Weng Chiang.

 

South America: Sinistrado, rebuffed in his third attempted conquest of Brazil, has changed his sights and is now targeting Brazil's neighbor Paraguay. He's taken control of key personnel in the Patriotic Alliance for Change, the ruling coalition, and the opposition Colorado Party, and is urging them to revoke what many Paraguans feel is an extremely one-sided arrangement in their hydroelectric treaty with Brazil. Such an act would (at the very least) heighten tensions in the region, which Sinistrado intends to exploit when he launches another attack on Brazil.

 

England: The Destruction Society met an ignoble defeat at the hands of London Crusade and have been imprisoned in the Icebox. The Crusade discovered the whereabouts of Invincible (though after being buried alive for nine years, the British stalwart was in no mental shape to resume his superhero career; after months of psychiatric counselling, he looks to be pursuing a new career as a television actor) .

 

If the Destruction Society were murderous thugs with pretentions, the Stormcrow has proven to be a far more versatile adversary. His crows turned on Protectorix, nearly killing the heroine, severing her connection with her gestalt permanently. The secrets he's uncovered has allowed him to extort favors in the highest British political and security circles, and he's secretly turned the Archivist against the London Crusade. In July 2009, he was responsible for an army of scarecrows that invaded downtown London, which was stopped by the fourth appearance of the Intrepids, who were joined by a tall guntoting man named Jonathan Torch ("gay action heartthrob of the future").

 

Continental Europe: Team Alpha, now called Europa, is fracturing. Black Agnes left the group in 2007 to become a Tyranny League attache, and Kosuacu and Munter followed in 2009. Uveir is seeking replacements in what he hopes will be Europe's premier team, but no one's joining.

 

Russia: Since Vlastitel's defeat, the Russian government has attempted to cultivate warmer relations with gestalts, with limited success. More successful, however, have been Russian campaigns to recover territory lost during the collapse of the Soviet Union. With Chechnya quieted, Prime Minister Putin used the August 2008 Ossetia crisis as a pretext to invade Georgia, which he conquered after two months of fighting. He also sent a force to occupy disputed land in the Ukraine. When members of Chyestnost protested, they were imprisoned for months.

 

Putin has also been cultivating ties with the Ar'Kayadin, becoming the first terran government to send an ar'ixta ambassador to Aggadi (Olympic wrestling champion Buvaysa Saytiev, who has introduced many Russian poets and authors to the Ar sub-cultures).

 

China: In early 2009, the Pan-Blue coalition forced a referendum in Taiwan to gauge willingness to hold talks leading to reunification, citing China's recent industrial reforms as justification. The pro-unification vote was much closer than expected, with the '"yes" side losing out by a 62-38% margin, much higher than polls had indicated. Allegations that China had psionically influenced the vote were dismissed as laughable.

 

Kurdistan: the Kurdistan War is over. In July 2008, a new Turkish offensive, supported by NATO, finally smashed Kurd resistance. Vowing to continue his struggle for a Kurdish homeland, the Kurd superhero Serhildan has fled into Kurd-held territory in Iraq. Iran, the Kurds' not-very-covert supporter, has withdrawn its support, and (no longer needing them as a buffer state) now occupies the Iranian and Iraqi lands they gave to the Kurds. The United States is no longer involved in a very unpopular war, and Turkey hopes the war's end will smooth their entry into the EU.

 

The USMC Vanguard was noticeably absent for the last six weeks of the war. Their current wherabouts is a secret: they're off-planet, training with the Ar'Turodain to fight against the upcoming Eiko invasion.

 

Africa: In November 2008, the city of Kuumahali was the site of a bloody battle as Askari and his summoned army of mercenaries attempyed wipe the city off the map. He was rendered powerless and imprisoned in the heart of the city, but it required Soulkeeper to sacrifice herself by transforming into a living prison in order to neutralize the villain. A number of superhumans are attempting to reverse the process. Kore Addebabaye has taken over leadership of Kuumahali, along with BloodWater, an American evangelical missionary who's the Gestalt of Wells.

 

One Step Forward, Two Steps Back

The fall of Richard Greer was a devastating blow to scientific research, however a few intrepid knowledge seekers have managed to make headway in a number of scientific areas.

 

The most promising technological advances are in medicine, particularly in the area of using stem cells to create skin, cartilage, teeth and hair cells. The first practical use of these cells to treat burns is already undergoing clinical trials, while the hair regrowth treatment is promising to answer the dreams of generations of men: a cure to baldness!

 

While computer development has snagged, research in robotics, particularly in Japan, has seen several major advances, including building two-legged robots to mimic human walking motion, and in buiding sensory systerms that are more sensitive in simulating the sense of touch than previous robotic generations.

 

The Tyranny League has successfully halted work on battlesuits in the United States, with the notable exceprion of the Astra X-Suit. the Astra Brigade is up to 60 suits, however forty of these have been sequestered away from the public eye: they're being held in reserve to fight the Eiko invasion. Furthermore, the suit is now bolstered by an experiment portable psi-shield that offers defense against psionic attacks. The development of anti-psionic technology is beginning to pique Influence's interest in the same way that battlesuits attract the Tyranny League, and the two villain factions, traditionally rivals, are now getting closer to a collaboration.

 

MONDO, the first space elevator, was completed in 2009. The completion of the project was marred by the controversial revelation that Major Korgun had gone behind the Ar'Turodain's back and passed along Ar technological secrets to the Astra Foundation, particularly in the area of material sciences, that facilitated its completion. The economic collapse has, unfortunately, discouraged the development of the industrialization of space.

 

In November 2008, the Titan and the Warder escorted the Vulcan III expedition to Mars, and astronaut David Wolf became the first non-Gestalt to set foot on the surface of the red planet. The mission was the last hurrah for the Bush Administration, however previous landings by gestalts (and the presence of gestalt "baby-sitters" to accompany the mission) were major factors that contributed to public disinterest.

 

The Oberth project, a set of automated telescopes set on the farside of the moon, was completed in June 2009. With three times the resolution of the Tombaugh and thirty times that of Hubble, the visible light telescope will probably be the star of the show, however the radio and infrared telescopes may prove to be the most valuable additions.

 

The New Breed

The most recent Gestalt wave produced a number of gestalts to defend and harrow the earth. While some of them have been mentioned earlier in this chapter, a few other notables from this new generation of superhumans include:

 

Battle: An American Bounty Hunter gestalt, not particularly well-liked by the authorities, but very good at his job. He hasn't gone after a lot of gestalts (yet), though he's run afoul of Hannibal Poole's organization and played a game of cat and mouse with Stuntwoman.

 

Lampsman: A Gestalt of Artificial Illumination? Who commits crime? Who throws light bulbs at people while artificially heating them, causing them to explode and shower people with hot shrapnel? Sometimes even people with seemingly goofy powers can be effective if they put their imaginations to work.

 

Jump: A new Chicago-based villain, and another apparently very silly gestalt: the Gestalt of Leaping. Nonetheless, someone who can make people spntanteously leap great distances away from a fight (including into Lake Michigan) or cause people who leap out of the Sears Tower with no ill effects, they may need to be taken more seriously.

 

Continuum: The Gestalt of Alternatives, transforms people into what they might have been if they'd made a different decision at some point in the past. (As his powers only affect the person who made the choice and not those affected by its ramifications, this gestalt creates plenty of confusion). Continuuum likes to find people who were forced to make drastic and dramatic life choices; as he imposes his powers on those who don't want to receive them, he's considered a supervillain.

 

The Three Maidens: A team of three pure gestalt supervillains with a classical motif: Anika, Child of Guilt (a small child like girl who can summon a devouring spirit of terror, revisiting the worst thing has ever done a hundredfold on them); Phoebe, Lady of Lusts (a Sex Gestalt who brings out illusory sexual fantasies), and Moira, Crone of No Denials, who tramsforms people into decrepit old folks. Twice they've been hired as support by Concordia, and Hel has taken a liking to them.

 

The Noose: The Living Gun's ropey cousin, a flying noose that, for kicks, tightens itself around people's necks and hangs them.

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  • 2 years later...

Re: Gestalt: Architects of Change: Preview

 

Anymore updates Scott?

 

I had gotten back to work on it recently, but a broken finger has curtailed my writing. I'm facing either surgery or therapy; if I go the surgery route, it'll delay me for a month, if I choose the therapy route, I won't have a hand in a sling and will probably start up again a little sooner. The timeline updte will definitely need a rewrite.

 

Glad you folks are still interested.

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Re: Gestalt: Architects of Change: Preview

 

Progress has been slow. I'd just dedicated myself to giving it another push, Dave had contacted me to encourage me -- and then my computer died. Hopefully it can be easily fixed. I do have a backup of the InDesign file so it's not lost, though I need to check the file and see how much data needs to be redone.

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