WWYCD if a supers-eating wave swept reality?

[Robyn]

No EDM to help out against this one. No matter where or when your character is, they will be affected by the quantum wave sweeping through your reality. All divination powers essentially reveal the same thing: that the effect will be to harm all those better than "incompetent human" in power level (yes, this will affect most normal humans too), causing levels of disruption proportionate to the power level of the character. The "depth" of the wave is unknown; precognitive powers reveal that, at the last moment before the quantum wave fully overtook all reality, its farthest edges had not yet passed over the first areas to be engulfed, and no precognitive or time travel powers work beyond then - it's as if the time beyond simply would not exist. The best guesses are that the wave must pass "sometime", but how long that might be, noone can say. The wave is immune to anything that beings from this reality can do; unless you can generate enough Suppress to counteract 15,000 Active Points of Transform Reality (based on the cost Steve gave for destroying the universe), you're not going to stop it, and if you can stop it that way, I don't want to hear about it

 

The current prognosis for survival is grim. Most computers will be destroyed in a shower of sparks, most people will simply die, all superheroes and supervillains alike will die horribly, even the Independent Powers are not going to survive this quantum wave. But there is one hope.

 

A superheroine explains that her power may be useful to let the superheroes (and even the civilians) survive; she can Drain their power so they become just as incompetent as a regular person, if still different with their physical appearance, et all. There are problems, though; since her Suppress is itself a power, she cannot use it to render you normal "only until the wave passed", even if anyone knew how long that would be. The passing of the wave would cancel her power, and then you would revert, and you would be killed (and, with the wave disrupting your powers, you would not recover). Nor can she guarantee that your powers will come back on their own after the wave passes; indeed, as she understands them, her powers work by permanently Draining someone's strength, if she takes it past "temporarily", and she has never known anyone to recover from this. The best hope she can offer is to help you survive the wave, and then, perhaps, later on, the wave will pass and the world can be rebuilt and, hopefully, some of the powers can be reawakened. But you have plenty of time to decide, since, at the rate this wave is moving, there are still several months left before it completely engulfs your reality/Earth.

 

WWYCD?

[McCoy]

Re: WWYCD if a supers-eating wave swept reality?

 

Iron Will is a 13 y/o quadroplegic. How much more incompetent can you get? He has used his powers to create better-than-state-of-the-art life support equiptment for himself. He doubts that he would live a week without his powers. No thanks. .oO(Humm, how many supresses on a trigger do I have to prepare to get to 15K active points?)

 

Dolphin's ability is to adapt. He does not believe anything can actually hurt him. (Adolescent invulnerability.)

 

Millennium, Cheeta and Snow Leopard; variations on thanks but no thanks, the'll keep their powers to the end.

[GoldenAge]

Re: WWYCD if a supers-eating wave swept reality?

 

If most poeple are going to die anyway...

[Trebuchet]

Re: WWYCD if a supers-eating wave swept reality?

 

Look at the bright side: We now have a formidable new contender for "Stupidest 'WWYCD' Thread Ever."

[Karmakaze]

Re: WWYCD if a supers-eating wave swept reality?

 

Pretty much any character of mine would keep looking for a way to stop the wave of death. Because either (a) the campaign is ending, and we might as well go out in a blaze of glory or ( there's a way to stop it. Because actually letting a plot hammer like this fall is a campaign-ender right there.

 

I'd probably have done a WWYCD of this type more with "A wave of Champions-Universe-magic-suppress (you know, the plot device that allows magic, supertech and superpowers) is heading your way. It will reset just about everything to baseline 'normal', as it was before the Age of Supers. WWYCD? Rail against the inevitable? Continue to fight evil as a normal? Sigh in relief as they can finally retire (as the villains would be similarly depowered)..."

[incrdbil]

Re: WWYCD if a supers-eating wave swept reality?

 

Look at the bright side: We now have a formidable new contender for "Stupidest 'WWYCD' Thread Ever."

 

I'm starting to see a standard repsonse of mine for these WWYCD threads now.

 

"My character screams as they are ripped out of existance, because their character sheet just hit the trashcan as I leave the game to go do something else".

 

Crap, I need to hotkey that phrase.

[assault]

Re: WWYCD if a supers-eating wave swept reality?

 

A Super-Eating wave? It sounds like a job for Tenzil Kem!

[incrdbil]

Re: WWYCD if a supers-eating wave swept reality?

 

If it were a liefield art wave..then we'd have a real problem.

[ghost-angel]

Re: WWYCD if a supers-eating wave swept reality?

 

All my characters would commit suicide before they'd let Lefield draw them... even the ones with resurrection.

[input.jack]

Re: WWYCD if a supers-eating wave swept reality?

 

Actually, I dont think this topic is as bad as people are saying. (Dont let them get to you, Robyn). Its taking a look at how your character is wired to face a "no win" situation.

 

Revenant would try to find out if the wave was actually a real thing, or some sort of scam. Assuming that it could be confirmed that it was real, (say, by having American Eagle fly into space and see if it really -is- everywhere), then he would try to find a way to stop the wave. But since he cant fly into space or weild magical powers or anything, hes stuck with just plain science, and presumably the other inhabited worlds that this wave has passed have had -their- scientists working on it too, to no avail.

 

But hed try.

 

He would want to know if there was some intelligent force behind this wave, or if it was a natural event. If theres a force behind it, it can be stopped there.

 

He would also consult with Doctor Midnight, Ankhesenisis, Deathwalker, and the Guardians of the Green to see if there was a mystical way around it. Anhkesenisis is an old friend, but she runs in MUCH more powerful circles than he does, so maybe she could shield the world from the wave or something.

 

If he concluded that there really was no way around it, he would continue to do his regular patrols and investigations as though nothing were wrong, until the wave hit. In his mind, if hes lucky, there wont be a need for him anymore, and he will finally have peace. If not, perhaps the wave will render him the -only- Super left, and he would continue to protect the incompetent defenseless innocents against their now incompetent criminal predators.

 

(OMG. A whole world where the most skilled criminals are all just like my nephew @_@)

 

Black Hawk would freak smooth out.

 

Then, after she got her act together a little bit, she would fly to her sister and see if she had any useful visions. After that, shed talk to her grandfather, and then if she could, Doctor Midnight.

 

Once it became apparent that there wasnt anything to be done about it, shed want to continue to be a hero for as long as posssible, but then eventually shed let herself be Transformed, because to her mind, its the -heart- of a hero that matters, and if she survives the wave, that wont have changed. She can continue to help people afterwards, even if shes been debilitated.

 

OOC: If there -really- is a wave, and it -really- cant be stopped by anything the characters do, -then- Id likely quit the game a few sessions after it happened, once it became clear that there was no way to reverse the effect. Because now the game isnt the game I signed on to play.

[David Johnston]

Re: WWYCD if a supers-eating wave swept reality?

 

Turn himself into a moron to survive? Not likely. Actually now that I think about it, he'll cryogenically freeze himself and anyone else who might want to go for the long shot in the hopes that someday humanity will once again be at least moderately intelligent again and will be able to reverse the process.

[Robyn]

Re: WWYCD if a supers-eating wave swept reality?

 

Actually' date=' I dont think this topic is as bad as people are saying. (Dont let them get to you, Robyn). Its taking a look at how your character is wired to face a "no win" situation.[/quote']

 

Exactly. I figured a "no win" situation could be created, and I found inspiration in The Mantle of Kendis-Dai, a novel where rippling quantum "curtains" (I don't remember the exact word) hang in space, affecting the laws of reality. Species that develop interstellar travel rapidly learn that they have to design their spaceships to be capable of both scientific and magical travel, and to integrate with each other in areas where both are equally, if moderately, applicable.

 

He would want to know if there was some intelligent force behind this wave' date=' or if it was a natural event. If theres a force behind it, it can be stopped there.[/quote']

 

A natural event. Theories are that one of these crossed into the universe several millenia ago, enabling humanity to evolve. Of course, with what this implies about the depth of a wave, it's a very depressing theory. But if superheroes came into existence more recently (say, a few centuries), it implies that waves can pass more frequently, and there would be a theory about that too. Of course, whether there's evidence of some variation in wave depth or not, everyone admits that they don't have enough experience with these quantum waves to say what the ranges are for depth, so it's entirely possible that this one will pass in a few years.

 

eventually shed let herself be Transformed' date=' because to her mind, its the -heart- of a hero that matters, and if she survives the wave, that wont have changed. She can continue to help people afterwards, even if shes been debilitated.[/quote']

 

Just like the "If your powers are only 'on' during the day, and there's an adventure at night, will your PC play?" thread. Good answer.

 

OOC: If there -really- is a wave' date=' and it -really- cant be stopped by anything the characters do, -then- Id likely quit the game a few sessions after it happened, once it became clear that there was no way to reverse the effect. Because now the game isnt the game I signed on to play.[/quote']

 

It's entirely possible the effect will be automatically reversed once the wave passes; your characters should still have their potential, and just as the wave causes a disruption of superpowers when it arrives, so too should it cause an explosion of reawakening superpowers when it departs. The question is partially how much the player will metagame; how likely that, like ghost-angel, they'll assume that the GM is just trying to end the game without saying so, and rip up their own character sheet instead of trying to play it out. Whether the wave passes in months, or in years, now . . . that may be a change to the campaign world. After a few years of everything being stripped back to "normal" levels, the PC's get to help rebuild in a world where the villains, restored to their normal power levels as well, are trying to take charge of the survivors.

 

Characters with technology-based powers would have to wait a little longer to rebuild their own, but there are months to prepare. Humanity has history books; it could read up on how people survived in the Dark Ages, offer free public training courses on such matters, take their advanced knowledge and print it up and seal it all in a vault somewhere, to be taken out again when the wave had passed and humanity could make use of it. If the wave passed within the characters' lifetime, they could readily gain access to raw materials again, and rebuild their technology.

[Robyn]

Re: WWYCD if a supers-eating wave swept reality?

 

If most poeple are going to die anyway...

 

There's a superheroine offering to turn as many of them as are willing, into Incompetent Normals (which would save them from any disruption).

[Lethosos]

Re: WWYCD if a supers-eating wave swept reality?

 

Queen of Spades would prepare for this... Hrmm, if this quantum wave only affects this reality... anything she puts into a pocket dimension will still function; it just can't be taken out until after the wave has passed.

 

So she'll do her best to be capable of recording all she can on how to rebuild the "connector" device that she wears as a bracelet in Secret ID, and forgo superheroing--even accepting the Incompetence Effect (most of her abilities are battlesuit stuff--the rest are skills and stuff that can be boosted again over time.)

 

She'd still lament the loss of her natural beauty and charms, but better to survive and fight again.

[Robyn]

Re: WWYCD if a supers-eating wave swept reality?

 

Hrmm' date=' if this quantum wave only affects [i']this[/i] reality... anything she puts into a pocket dimension will still function; it just can't be taken out until after the wave has passed.

 

Sounds fair. Normally I'd say that it would still need to be evaluated for point values, but the idea with "No EDM to help out against this one." was to prevent characters from stepping sideways into another dimension and waiting it out or even trying to still affect the dimension they left behind (like the Green Goblin).

[input.jack]

Re: WWYCD if a supers-eating wave swept reality?

 

Queen of Spades

She'd still lament the loss of her natural beauty and charms, but better to survive and fight again.

 

 

Black Hawk is assuming that her level of competence is changing, not her looks. Besides, Comeliness is CHEAP!

[Weldun]

Re: WWYCD if a supers-eating wave swept reality?

 

Whisper would be quietly nervous, and then panic when the superheroine's power doesn't work on him. His powers are innate. He'd then check to see how the Mirrorwall is being affected by the wave. After finding that it to is being knocked down (with cool shattery effects, yeah!), he'll really begin to loose it. Without the supress or the sanctuary of the mirrorwall, he's toast, and for the first time in a long time, he's faced with his own mortality. He won't take it well. In fact, he'd probably snap completely, and begin trying to "consume" any former super in a fit of spite. Fortunately, Bethany would probably become upset by that, and we can't go upsetting "the Mistress" now, can we?

The Specter would begin trying to spread out as many copies of key parts of the librabry of congress. With a world made up entirely of the lowest common denominator, he doesn't see civilisation lasting much longer after the wave hits. As for his powers, well, he would be shocked at his own feelings on this matter. As much as he likes helping the common man/woman/thing, he also likes being superior.

 

Thanks for the thread Robyn! It's interesting to see how my characters respond to the choice of life vs. power. One question though. What happens to the IncNorms in the field if they actually try to better themselves, and train to say, competent levels?

[jkwleisemann]

Re: WWYCD if a supers-eating wave swept reality?

 

Humanity has history books; it could read up on how people survived in the Dark Ages' date=' offer free public training courses on such matters, take their advanced knowledge and print it up and seal it all in a vault somewhere, to be taken out again when the wave had passed and humanity could make use of it.[/quote']

 

I would pose that most folks in the Dark Ages weren't qualified as Incompetent Normals by any means, but that's a matter of debate.

 

If there really is no way to stop it, no way for it to be shifted, then the only option that really *does* exist for the characters is to do just that; write down everything they can (after all - they might have months, they might have less), offer crash courses in survivalism as a sub-average normal (take a quick look in the for incompetent normals - even 'average normals' rate 2 points too high), and pray that 6 billion or so individuals who have suddenly lost goodly portions of their mental and physical abilities can weather the storm.

 

After that, as it's coming through, about all anybody can do is bend over, put their head between their knees, and kiss themselves goodbye. If you've been drained sufficently, it probably just means you'll die slow. If you haven't been, you're probably gonna go out early in the wave.

 

Of course, most of the characters capable of it will probably go out trying their darnedest to shift the danged thing, but if it's really a no-win scenario, particularly one this extreme, there's probably not too much that can be done either way.

 

Survival courses only do so much when you're getting them prior to losing most of your capabilities.

[Robyn]

Re: WWYCD if a supers-eating wave swept reality?

 

Thanks for the thread Robyn! It's interesting to see how my characters respond to the choice of life vs. power. One question though. What happens to the IncNorms in the field if they actually try to better themselves' date=' and train to say, competent levels?[/quote']

 

You're welcome! It's nice to see that practice has improved my skills at coming up with a good WWYCD thread. I think that the IncNorms would be prevented, since the change to reality would make it impossible to be better; so, for a while, everyone would be the same in skill levels. (Hmm, interesting . . . this is beginning to sound like the canon Dying Earth setting ) Over time, though, skills would shake down to their "relative" levels, and a sort of "grading curve" would enter the picture.

[input.jack]

Re: WWYCD if a supers-eating wave swept reality?

 

Actually, recent archaeological evidence supports the hypothesis that, for several hundred thousand years, the near precursors to Humans were not very....bright. A global cataclysm wiped the Human population down to about 2000 world-wide, and the overwhelming majority of the survivors were the "geniuses" of their era. After the calamity, we see a rapid spike in artistic and intellectual expression amond prehistoric communities, so Ive little doubt that their children were intellectual giants (relative to the original proto-Humans) as well. These people were near enough to us to have quite possibly passed unnonticed on a modern city street; they just werent that bright.

 

So its possible that a race of "Incompetent Normals" could survive, if they were geared the right way. Theyd still have thumbs and the knowledge of basics like leverage and the wheel, as well as fire. Thats a pretty solid starting point.

[jkwleisemann]

Re: WWYCD if a supers-eating wave swept reality?

 

So its possible that a race of "Incompetent Normals" could survive' date=' if they were geared the right way. Theyd still have thumbs and the knowledge of basics like leverage and the wheel, as well as fire. Thats a pretty solid starting point. [/quote']

 

Oh, I could give you that one (though how many people you'd meet today, crash course or none, competent or not, could actually survive in a world where most technology had failed, as was implied in the setup?)

 

I just hold that our known history, like with the Dark Ages, wouldn't quite apply, as there were numerous quite competent individuals around back then.

[GoldenAge]

Re: WWYCD if a supers-eating wave swept reality?

 

All my characters would commit suicide before they'd let Lefield draw them... even the ones with resurrection.

 

Agreed. A superhero's life is worthless without wrists or feet.

[massey]

Re: WWYCD if a supers-eating wave swept reality?

 

Sentinal would build a dimensional portal that would allow everyone to leave Earth and go to an alternate "empty" Earth where none of this was happening.

 

Red Enigma would fly up to the reality wave and punch it unconscious.

[Lethosos]

Re: WWYCD if a supers-eating wave swept reality?

 

Sounds fair. Normally I'd say that it would still need to be evaluated for point values' date=' but the idea with "No EDM to help out against this one." was to prevent characters from stepping sideways into another dimension and waiting it out or even trying to still affect the dimension they left behind (like the Green Goblin).[/quote']

Fair enough; I would like to point out that there's no actual atmosphere in those pocket dimensions, anyways. So there's no way she's gonna get herself stuck in there--there's no "point of origin" reference back to Mundis Mundis.

 

Besides... as per the Multiverse rules, what's to say that the quantum wave won't affect anything in them as per the nature of the "reality" contained in them? (I'm a big fan of Unicorn Jelly/Pastel Defender Heilotrope; the creatrix behind the universes in those two is quite brilliant.)

 

Red Enigma would fly up to the reality wave and punch it unconscious.

Ah, yes... the ol' "I waste 'em with my crossbow" KotDT approach...

[ghost-angel]

Re: WWYCD if a supers-eating wave swept reality?

 

The only issue I have with this no-win situation - whether or not there's possibility of character development is no matter what you do YOU DIE.

 

I mean, seriously. Stand With Powers or Stand Without Powers either way you DIE.

 

not even a You can Die With Your Powers or You Can Live Without Them. You just DIE.

 

I'm with Trebuchet, this one is particularly stupid. At least the mirror one was creative, that one I liked.