Need help with a name.

[Manic Typist]

Right now, I am wracking my brain for some sort of name for his crimefighting persona. So far all I have is "Reroute," for how he takes the drugs off the street so that they can only hurt himself and no one else. However, I'm open to suggestions, especially ones that invoke conotations of philosphy, or ironic justice. Anything that ties in to his education and his perception of how he is a "dark" champion.

 

Ed Warrinbough was not your average college student. He was an exceptional college student, earning high marks in all of his classes, participating in a wide array of extracurricular activities and clubs. A member of the SGA, president of the Honor Council, and a fierce competitor in the campus Ultimate Frisbee league: Ed’s years at Wreeker’s Point University were golden. He graduated in the top three percentile of his class, and was looking forward to pursuing an internship on in the Mayor’s Office, and then onward to something even larger in local politics. However, he should have been paying more attention to his surroundings on his graduation night. Ed liked to go for long walks through the city to help him clear his head and center himself. Eventually, parting ways with his jubilant friends, Ed went his own way in order to reflect on his life so far. He suddenly realized that he was deep in the Barrows, and wasn’t sure on how to get home. Right as the gravity of the situation began to sink in, a beer bottle was smashed into the back of his head.

***

Ed came to in a haze of pain and confusion, unsure of how much time had passed. He looked up from the sidewalk to see himself surrounded by a group of street thugs, who were obviously out “celebrating†their own special occasion by harassing people on the streets. They began to prod and kick at Ed, while letting out wild whoops of laughter at his reactions to this assault. Finally, one bent down in front of the battered Ed, and said, “Aww! Does the wittle man have a headache? Does he need a band-aid? Does he want to run home and cry to mommy? Here, have some of this!†and with that he shoved a few capsules of “Halo†into Ed’s mouth. Gagging from this sudden intrusion and beating he had taken to his face, Ed accidentally swallowed the drug. “Now you’ll know what it feels like to be a real man,†the streetdog whispered conspiratorially. As Ed began to feel the effects of Halo working their way through his system, one of the other thugs began to complain, “Hey! What do you think you’re doing man? Just giving away my stuff for free?â€

“Oh come off it pal! You can spare some, and besides this twit has earned a little something hasn’t he?â€

“Not yet he hasn’t, but he will! I’m gonna make him pay for those tabs,†and with that the group renewed their assault, although Ed wasn’t in much of a state to care, especially once he saw a boot approaching his face and suddenly everything went black.

When Ed woke up in the morning, he felt great. Angry, but great. He wandered the streets of the Barrows, seemingly at random, yet he felt as if he was being led by something. Strange images flashed before his eyes, smells he couldn’t explain, glimpses of figures out of the corners of his eyes that weren’t there when he turned his head: all acted to drive him inexorably onward. People saw something written in the blood encrusted skin of his face and scurried out of his way. Eventually, he arrived in front of one of a hundred slum houses.

Walking up the front steps, Ed steeled himself, but for what he didn’t know. He kicked the door in and stormed inside, where he was confronted by the sight of his attackers from the previous night, incapacitated by their own revelries. Ed went to work. At first, they were too far gone to really notice what was going on. The bleeding and broken form of one was tossed out the front window. Another was throttled to death while he slept. A third was thrown down a flight of stairs and lay still at the bottom, his neck bending at an impossible angle. The fourth had been roused by all of the previous racket, and went for his gun. Ed broke his arm and executed him while he begged. The final culprit, the one who had forced the drugs into Ed’s mouth, was saved for last. He had barricaded himself in a dingy little bathroom. Ed’s blood roared in his ears, drowning out the shots of his new pistol as he destroyed the locks on the door and forced his way inside.

The man had backed up against the stained tile wall of the closet-sized bathroom. “Please don’t kill me!†he screamed. He began to sob, “It was just a joke! Besides, it helped you deal with the stuff we put you through! I swear man, we weren’t trying to kill ya or nothin’!â€

Ed stared straight into the crying man’s eyes, completely emotionless. Finally, his visage darkened and stated simply, “I’m not laughing.†With that, he lunged and grabbed the thug by the back of his head, and dragged him downwards. Fighting, kicking, and screaming, the thug was eventually forced onto his knees, and then Ed slammed his head into the toilet bowl. Ed rode out the man’s thrashing and attempts to free himself as he slowly drowned while Ed held his head below the waterline. His fingers scratched at Ed’s arms, drawing blood but no other reaction. His feet kicked wildly, unable to find a purchase on the smooth floor of the bathroom. He heaved with his back, but to no avail. Finally, the struggles ceased. Ed stayed for five minutes, long enough to be absolutely sure that there was no chance of resuscitation, not that it was likely that anyone would try and save the life of this scum. Then he released the body.

As he was leaving, Ed noticed some bags of Halo lying on a table. Unable to resist, he snatched it up. In order to justify this to himself, he ransacked the house, taking all of the money, Halo, and weapons that he could find and shoving them into a bag. After all, he didn’t want to leave anything for some other lowlife to use when he came and set up shop in this house. However, Ed couldn’t fool himself completely as he destroyed all of the drugs except for the Halo. Finally, he went home.

Ed was wracked by pain as he came down off the high. Bruises, cuts, scrapes, and torn muscles all screamed their indignation at him. Lying on his bed, Ed suffered an even more intolerable agony inside his soul. He knew he was dead. Not in the biological sense, but to his own perception, he might as well have been dead. He knew the effects of the drug, and he knew he was addicted. He couldn’t return to his old life like this. He refused to put his family and friends through the pain of dealing with an addict, dragging them down into his pit of desperation. He resolved to disappear, and reinvent himself. Ed told his parents that he was joining the Peace Corps for a few years, to give him a chance to take stock on his life and see the world. They supported him, and promised to write.

Ed was as systematic in his new life as he was in his old one. He setup a system by which he could receive the mail that his parents sent, and reply so that it appeared that it was traveling a circuitous route via several nations before returning to Arkana city. He took night classes at the university, focusing on sharpening essential skills that he would need. He used money that he had saved up to rent an apartment down in the Barrows, so that he could immerse himself in his new world. He bought lab equipment, supplies, and weapons, and made a few contacts. He spent over a year and a small fortune getting ready.

Finally, it was time for Ed to return to the Barrows in truth. He would show the entire city that it could not get away with its disgraceful behavior. He would stop those who sought to victimize others like he had been victimized, and try to save the lives of others who would otherwise be destroyed as he had been. Finally, he was determined to track down the creators of Halo, and destroy them, utterly. He would work his way through the links in the chain, eliminating every dealer, lab, and storage place until he found whoever was responsible, and make them reap the seeds of what they had sown.

[Basil]

Re: Need help with a name.

 

Horns.

 

It's the opposite of a halo, right.

 

Extra cool if he goes around in a devil-mask.

[Lucius]

Need help with a name.

 

Some Halo related names.

 

He could adopt the name Simon Templar and the code name "The Saint." Not very original, though.

 

Dark Saint.

 

Night Saint.

 

Dark Angel.

 

Kushiel. (An angel of punishment.)

 

Azriel. (An angel of death.)

 

 

The Barrow Wight.

 

The Barrow Wraith.

 

Lucius Alexander

 

The palindromedary ruminates.

[Manic Typist]

Re: Need help with a name.

 

I like these.

 

So far, what I'm really loving is a name posted on another board, "The Fix."

 

But I might incorporate a devil's mask with horns into it... to get the whole "opposite of Halo" bit.

 

Any other ideas?

[Lucius]

Re: Need help with a name.

 

The opposite of halo would actually be shadow. Maybe a name like

 

Shade.

 

Lucius Alexander

 

Did the palindromedary eat my tagline?

[Manic Typist]

Re: Need help with a name.

 

Interesting...

[freakboy6117]

Re: Need help with a name.

 

umbra perhaps

[The Monster]

Re: Need help with a name.

 

Umbra (or Penumbra, Eclipse)

 

Justicar; Retributor

 

Rebound

 

Corpsman; Hardcorps

 

Bad Karma

 

Hellslight (as in Hell's Light)

 

(I'll refrain from suggesting "The Toilenator" from "Kids Next Door"...)

[Basil]

Re: Need help with a name.

 

He was "reborn" covered in gore, so how about

 

Blood Phoenix.

[Remjin]

Re: Need help with a name.

 

So far, from what I've seen, I liked "The Fix" best as it has that double-connotation you were looking for... involving his habit and what he's about. Its simple, it works, its not overwrought with testosterone and flash image gimicks. If not that, a play off it like FixIt, TrueFix, etc.

 

If you want to follow in that general path, then perhaps sum it up as "Irony." Not so sure its such a good name though.

 

Perhaps Transcendence, though that sounds very uppity. I better stop before I sound any more hokey.

[Manic Typist]

Re: Need help with a name.

 

Yeah, but I'm getting good ideas for future characters.

 

I'm trying to decide if The Fix will wear a devil mask...

[Remjin]

Re: Need help with a name.

 

Devil Masks are so passe'... Try something different, if he has that much of a guilty conscience, mayhap an affectation with less caricature appeal. Devil faces are just behind skulls for generic.

 

Hmm... all my ideas are sounding hokey to me, though... surgical mask, scarf to cover his face, perhaps a more stylized set of horns, perhaps wrought from a golden ring on his head. Then you could work the halo and the devil imagery together in a sense and have an incongruent mix of symbols that are easily recognizable. When I say ring, I mean more like a circlet for his skull rather than an actual floating thing, like a minimalist crown. Afterall, Lucifer was an Angel once, too.

 

*shrug* Just some ideas.

[mattingly]

Re: Need help with a name.

 

The Patron. It ties into the "patron saint" aspect, and also identifies himself as a drug "buyer/user."

[Manic Typist]

Re: Need help with a name.

 

Devil Masks are so passe'... Try something different, if he has that much of a guilty conscience, mayhap an affectation with less caricature appeal. Devil faces are just behind skulls for generic.

 

Hmm... all my ideas are sounding hokey to me, though... surgical mask, scarf to cover his face, perhaps a more stylized set of horns, perhaps wrought from a golden ring on his head. Then you could work the halo and the devil imagery together in a sense and have an incongruent mix of symbols that are easily recognizable. When I say ring, I mean more like a circlet for his skull rather than an actual floating thing, like a minimalist crown. Afterall, Lucifer was an Angel once, too.

 

*shrug* Just some ideas.

 

 

I appreciate it.

 

While it might be passe', it would also cover his face nicely (most important). Besides, this is my first DC game, and I would like the opportunity to touch base with some of the standard conventions. They can be fun too.

[Remjin]

Re: Need help with a name.

 

While it might be passe'' date=' it would also cover his face nicely (most important). Besides, this is my first DC game, and I would like the opportunity to touch base with some of the standard conventions. They can be fun too.[/quote']

 

That is also very true... sometimes, you have to embrace the conventions to really enjoy it. I mean, how many guys themed after animals could there be? Or why wear the spandex in Champions? Why are there always so many trench-coats in DC, even if in real life we hardly ever see them? I can understand that one... perhaps you could make the devil face more your own if you gave it an additional affectation... not sure what, though.

 

I'd stay away from names with "blood" in it... very Liefeld, and that's a curse no one wants but too many of us are tempted into. I kind of liked "Patron" since it had that layered meaning thing going. More of a Wild Card kind of name which is also nice.

[The Monster]

Re: Need help with a name.

 

Devil Masks are so passe'... Try something different, if he has that much of a guilty conscience, mayhap an affectation with less caricature appeal. Devil faces are just behind skulls for generic.

 

Hmm... all my ideas are sounding hokey to me, though... surgical mask, scarf to cover his face, perhaps a more stylized set of horns, perhaps wrought from a golden ring on his head. Then you could work the halo and the devil imagery together in a sense and have an incongruent mix of symbols that are easily recognizable. When I say ring, I mean more like a circlet for his skull rather than an actual floating thing, like a minimalist crown. Afterall, Lucifer was an Angel once, too.

 

*shrug* Just some ideas.

 

Instead of a golden halo, make the halo flaming red, as if made of magma, or even with actual flames if possible. Then a simple domino mask can look threatening...