Jump to content

dark champions from each of the 50 states


bubba smith

Recommended Posts

Re: dark champions from each of the 50 states

 

( pic to come tonight, possibly - name suggestions welcome, as I gather Sin-Eater is taken )

 

Zeke Judgson was never one interested in the concept of sin. His father a tele-evangelist, and grandfather, big on the revival circuit, probably should have been - but both were frauds, lechers, and embezzlers.

 

With this sort of example, no wonder Zeke ended up a drifter, until that night in Georgia when one of his alcohol-fueled rants about religious hypocracy seemed to amuse the other bar-fly.

 

"Much as your views on moral relativism entertain me, I *think* I can convince you that sin is quite real, and a poison to the soul."

 

"Yeah?" scoffed Zeke "I'ld like to see that."

 

"Deal." said the other, cursing Zeke with the ability to sense and devour evil, then picking up his fiddle and leaving the bar.

 

And Zeke has discovered to his cost that the other was quite right - by seizing the wicked, he can drain their souls of evil, and if a black soul indeed, leave them comatose for life. The same power leaves Zeke stronger, faster, and more capable of hunting down the most evil men alive.

 

But there is a price - every time he drinks those sins, he experiences, second-hand, every act of debauchery, lust, and greed involved. And the added strength and power is only temporary - but very, very addictive.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Replies 111
  • Created
  • Last Reply

Top Posters In This Topic

Re: dark champions from each of the 50 states

 

Florida... Got to be a guy with Aligator abilities. A defender of the rapidly fading wetlands. Mostly fighting against crooked property developers (Is that an oxymoron?) who build golf courses and possibly the whole of Disneyworld. Then' date=' when anybody talks about 'Mr. Xxxxxx is sleeping with the fishes' this guy can just burp/belch politely and say that he doesn't think so.[/quote']

 

Relevant WIKI Entry: The Incredible Mr. Brisby (Venture Brothers Episode)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Re: dark champions from each of the 50 states

 

Would it be OK with one & all if I put up a page with all the original artwork in this thread?

 

I'm thinking something like what Egyptoid is doing in the Heroes from 50 States thread. As is clear from post #5 in this thread, he's feeling a bit overwhelmed with the page he's doing, and I don't think it would be fair to dump another such job on him. ;)

 

If it's cool, I'll put up the page late tonight, or tomorrow. I'll contact folks via private message before putting up their work.

 

One note: I'll be resizing pictures to 600 pixels high.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Re: dark champions from each of the 50 states

 

by all means' date=' put up a page. still trying for proper net access here tho, so if somebody else wants to put together an unkempt preacher-type for Zeke, feel free.[/quote']

 

Is this anything like what you had in mind? Is there anything different you'd rather see?

 

Or would you rather I dropped/removed this until you can do something of your own?

 

BTW, I didn't see anything using the name "Sin-Eater," so why not go for it? :D

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Re: dark champions from each of the 50 states

 

Q: How many Anarchists does it take to change a light bulb?

A: None. Anarchists can't change anything.

 

Wrong, my friend. This Anarchist seeks to change his neighborhood for the better by getting rid of the kind of scum that prey on the weak and defenseless. He may not have much respect for Law and Order, but he has some pretty definite ideas about Justice. If you cross him, you won't provoke his rage--just a well practiced beat-down with fists, knives, or a steel pipe. The Salt Lake County Sheriff's office wants him behind bars, the local gangs want him dead, and the hospitals of Salt Lake City wish they had fewer opportunities to witness his handiwork. He is...

 

SLC PUNK!

 

SLCPunk.png

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Re: dark champions from each of the 50 states

 

Geoffrey Pricer was born in the USA, born right in Centralia

to a dynamic and comfortably well-off family,

he had a mom and a dad,

a young cousin, Felicia, lived with them.

mother birthed him in a swimming pool,

using the natural birth idea.

Regulus conjuncted Mars that day, but only

the astronomers at State College took note,

the family was just happy that the boy was born

healthy under the crystal clear sky.

 

His father was a trusting wood-cutter who liked

to play at being mysterious than his normal life ever was.

 

His mother also worked as an Interpreter, since she spoke

3 languages and could read and write in seven total.

and she loved listening to her expensive multi-band radio to stations

all over the world, much better than TV she always said.

 

Both Mom and Dad, and Felicia, kept large broods of dogs,

and sold them. They sold the registered samoyeds all the time.

 

Our hero Jeff's favorite thing in the whole world

was Raquel, the alpha bi1ch samoyed, from whom

most of the others were descended.

 

Whenever Jeff wandered around town, people knew him

and loved him, he never met a stranger.

 

Mom and Dad encouraged him all through school to make

the best grades, and give the teacher's extra, and almost

always he did.

 

in junior high, Jeff got the astronomy bug and bad,

and he spent pretty much all his money on telescopes,

star guides, etc, and he had to go to the big city planetarium

whenever the school or anyone could take him.

 

In high school, his parents could not keep him in bed at night.

he was not a bad kid, didnt do drugs or anything like that,

but he would watch he stars and take notes till the wee am

so Mom and Dad made him at least always take a dog along,

and his favorite, Roddy always went with him each evening.

 

His freshman year, the fire started in the old coal mine.

 

in his junior year of high school, Felicia was taken to the doctor,

and when she and her mother got home, Mom was ashen sick

and pale in the face. they would not tell Jeff what the doc said,

and he didnt pry. he went out to look at the stars, just for a little

while, it was mostly cloudy that night anyways.

 

Felicia met him on the hill at 2:30 am and said goodbye. She was older

than him and he didnt press her for details on anything. They had been distant

since he bcame a stargazer anyways. She walked off for good.

 

Jeff's dad died his senior year, fires in the wooded areas caused some

kind of accident where he had been lumberjacking. But his face was contorted

with fear, not pain, and it seemed unnatural. the official cause was stated

as smoke inhalation, but that seemed inconsistent. plus there was black

dog hair on clothing, and samoyeds are pure white. he had dog bites

and dog scratches on his body, which the police wrote off to his hobby,

but Jeff and Mom knew that was not the case, something was fishy.

 

Jeff's mom was living on her writing and the insurance now,

and he would go to college on his scholarships he had won at science fairs.

they sold off 90% of the dogs.

so he had few worries, even some girls at school liked him, but he would

be leaving in the fall, so he didnt get serious with any of them.

but still sometimes when he was doing his escapism, as his mother labeled

his stargazing, he couldnt help but drift back to how did dad exactly die.

 

on the night of the spring equinox, he had to go over to the woods to look around.

Roddy was close by his side. other's dogs had been lost, due to the

fire and sinkholes. Roddy would not go into the woods, would not.

Jeff pressed in, and he switched his telescope around in his grip.

he would sock someone over the head with it if need be,

this was not his main pricey scope.

 

around the spot where his father died was a tremendous burning hole.

and it was glowing evenly, not burning at the edges like a coal fire would.

and the only smoke came from the occasional limb that fell in, not from the embers themselves.

he gazed at the crackling coals, and it struck him, that the jagged edges

of the red-hot clearing were star shaped, if seen from the air. he counted off

twenty one points in the star, and then he heard the breathing.

 

behind him were several sets of orange eyes, and more in the distance.

they stared at him, and he barely made out the shapes behind the eyes,

difficult, since they were pitch black: wolves. they were like hounds of hell,

black with fiery eyes. they had him surrounded, with the fire-star on the fourth side. strangely,

he wasnt afraid, he was proud he had figured out the claw

and bite marks on his father's body, from the wolves, and he laughed at himself

for this irony.

 

right after he made that chuckle, then he got afraid, for the noise provoked

a reaction from what must be the lead wolf, and the reaction was speech.

"are you evil or good, human boy?" A hundred things went through his mind all at once.

 

  • this is what they asked dad
  • real wolves can't talk
  • I should never had come here
  • how did Dad answer?
  • that mousie Helen at school will probably get my scholarship
  • I'm not evil, I don't do half the crap my classmates do...
  • real wolves dont have burning coals for eyes.
  • Roddy was smarter than I am.
  • will my cause of death be "smoke inhalation"?
  • I'm not good either
  • I am frikkin dreaming, drooling on my astronomy notebook up the hill.

a harsh voice nixed out his reverie: "answer man-child; are you evil or good?"

and the wolf came 3 steps closer, as did the circle.

in fear Jeff, not wishing to commit, not wanting to gamble on a wrong

asnwer, blurted out the last witty thing he had read in astronomy monthly:

"When a distinguished but elderly scientist states haughtily that something is impossible, he is always wrong"

"clever, but insufficent, monkey, are you evil or good?" and again with the 3 steps.

Jeff raised the telescope over his head like a club, and answered shakily: "I am both and neither at the same time!"

"correct, lucky youth, but you have satisfied only the question, yet blood must still be had"

the wolf pack circled away from him and put noses to ground.

Jeff followed, starting to get his curiosity back from somewhere deep in his sweat soaked underwear.

the black pack took off in the direction of his house. Jeff ran desperately to keep up.

The first thing they came across was Roddy, and they tore him to shreds.

Jeff waded in swinging, but it too horribly late. Plus he discovered, as

he suspected, his crude weapon did little good against these wolves of death.

 

His nights of counting meteors had given Jeff keen eyes.

21 wolves had gone down the hill from the fire. 22 later ascended. Roddy was somehow therein.

Jeff ran up to the ring. The wolves ran right into the orange and blended away.

Its star now had 22 points around.

 

Jeff sat by the fire til dawn, all cried out, and unsure what to do or say.

He went home, and mother was making eggs, as always.

She said little about his horrible appearance, because astronomy

keeps you up late nights.

He asked her, why did Felicia leave.

"I dunno. she said. when you were born, Felicia was 5 years old.

she was left to us because great aunt Roxanne had died.

She was smart for here age also. When I took her to the doctor,

she should have been 20 years old, but she didnt look a day over 13,

and she had never ever gotten her monthly cycles.

If this wasnt the modern day I'd say she was a changeling."

She probably was Mom, that stuffs not silly folklore at all.

Mom was startled by the surety of his answer.

 

The next night, he went back to the hill, and tried talking to the wolves

and the fire. No one answered, nothing stirred.

Later, a voice called his name. I was Karen, the one girl who liked

him at school. He hurried up to meet her.

"Hey Jeff...

Karen its dangerous here

You're out here !

Yeah but I know what's going on

You'll protect me, you're a clever guy.

"yeah but you don't..."neither of the two saw or heard the black wolves circle up.

"are you evil or good, human girl?"

Karen naturally yelped, and stammered, staring round eyed at Jeff,

shocked at his ability to stay calm in this horror show. "uh, I uh, uh, ohhh..."

"answer woman-child; are you evil or good?"

Jeff grabbed Karen by the shoulders, caught her eye and told her

very firmly: "Say 'Both and Neither' ".

"uh Both a..." she started.

"The breaker of the rules must pay blood," the wolves eye Jeff.

"and the wrong cheating answer..." the wolves eye Karen.

 

Eleven black wolves dive on Karen, and we need not read a graphic description of her ending here.

Jeff pleaded with the wolves not to kill her, but he was fighting for his own skin now.

 

But Jeff fenced and fought his way up a hill, and though he was bleeding,

he was not run to ground yet, nor ripped yet like a prey animal would be.

Oddly, 2 of the wolves of his eleven kept leaping at him, and feinting at him,

scaring him backwards, and causing him to retreat a certain way.

Finally, when Jeff was cut in several places, limping, and running out of breath,

dreadfully knowing that any stumble would get him killed, one wolf bit at his legs, and he swung his telescope,

but unnaturally, one wolf just laid right behind his feet, and Jeff tumbled back. He expected to hit the ground, and then wonder sickly:

how many teeth would get his throat next, as the evil orange eyes darted.

 

But he had fallen into the fire itself. He had unknowingly retreated (or been led?) up that hill.

It burned, and it hurt, beyond the scorching and searing,

and he could not breathe, yet he felt no diminishment, did not black out.

The pain would not stop, and the howling of the black wolves would not subside.

 

 

CENTRALION.jpg

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Re: dark champions from each of the 50 states

 

what is his name Basil asks . . . Depends on who you ask.

 

 

The filename said CENTRALION.jpg ; He was born Geoffrey Pricer.

 

The local spirits call him Star-King Coal-Fire. ; The Black Wolves of Hell call him the Cheater.

 

The big city newspapers do not mention him or the wolves at all,

as they are run by progressive intellectuals who cannot equate

the disappearance of scholarly boys and stray dogs with old wives tales.

 

He is barely human anymore. He is in pain almost all the time,

but he can lie in the fire on the hill, and look up at the heavens

and relax.

 

The loneliness of his now changed body,

and Noone lives in his town anymore, the coal fire

ran off almost everyone, and scary junk ran off everyone else.

He cannot walk in the light of the sun.

He spends nights underground, or in the fire.

Unless he concentrates, he sets things on fire.

It is difficult for him to concentrate...except when looking at

dogs or stars.

 

He kills criminals he finds, and he scares away any other people

before the wolf pack can assimilate them.

 

He is lonely, and tragic, and he burns like an Ember all the time.

The fringe groups, and underground papers, and the supers-watch groups

call him the Burning Man of Pennsylvania.

but what is his name ?

some tidbits from his character sheet;

KS: Celestial Science

PS: Astronomer

PS: Dog Handler

Animal Handler

Psych Lim: Hears wolves howling for his blood.

Psych Lim: hates to see animals hurt.

HKA vs ED - Damage Shield, almost always on

Acc.Change: misty smoke form at 1 body or less.

DNPC: mom, nearby city

Berserk: when the wolves torment him (others cannot even see this, unless they are near death, so it seems random, and that he is crazy)

Susceptibility; sunlight, 1d6 per turn.

Psych Lim: astronomy geek.

Phys lim: inhuman body

Rep: Ghost Legend of Central PA

Social: noone really knows or believes what happend to Jeff Pricer.

Social: powers preclude normal social life.

social: lives in ghost town.

Phys Lim: powers linked to central star shaped fire in middle of coal fire.

 

 

finally, I answer Basil's question:

 

He named himself Astrolabe:

because when he sights the sun, he must turn for home.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Re: dark champions from each of the 50 states

 

Q: How many Anarchists does it take to change a light bulb?

A: None. Anarchists can't change anything.

 

Wrong, my friend. This Anarchist seeks to change his neighborhood for the better by getting rid of the kind of scum that prey on the weak and defenseless. He may not have much respect for Law and Order, but he has some pretty definite ideas about Justice. If you cross him, you won't provoke his rage--just a well practiced beat-down with fists, knives, or a steel pipe. The Salt Lake County Sheriff's office wants him behind bars, the local gangs want him dead, and the hospitals of Salt Lake City wish they had fewer opportunities to witness his handiwork. He is...

 

SLC PUNK!

 

SLCPunk.png

 

First thing I thought of when I read this:

 

Stevo: You see life is like that. We change, that's all. You see, the guy I am now is not the guy I was then. If the guy I was then met the guy I am now he'd beat the shit out of me. Those are the facts.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Re: dark champions from each of the 50 states

 

Something that crawled out of the Hudson and eats muggers?

 

Don't you have that now?

 

And if we don't have something Lovecraftian for Rhode Island we're not trying

 

Heh, bring Lovecraft himself with the resurrection formula from Case of Charles Dexter Ward and give him some very dark dream-related powers which he uses to defend Providence from the gangster/real estate developer (and his ghoul flunkies) who's trying to tear down all the historic buildings just so he can install his drug and smuggling operations in the new buildings...

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Re: dark champions from each of the 50 states

 

( pic to come tonight, possibly - name suggestions welcome, as I gather Sin-Eater is taken )

 

Zeke Judgson was never one interested in the concept of sin. His father a tele-evangelist, and grandfather, big on the revival circuit, probably should have been - but both were frauds, lechers, and embezzlers.

 

With this sort of example, no wonder Zeke ended up a drifter, until that night in Georgia when one of his alcohol-fueled rants about religious hypocracy seemed to amuse the other bar-fly.

 

"Much as your views on moral relativism entertain me, I *think* I can convince you that sin is quite real, and a poison to the soul."

 

"Yeah?" scoffed Zeke "I'ld like to see that."

 

"Deal." said the other, cursing Zeke with the ability to sense and devour evil, then picking up his fiddle and leaving the bar.

 

And Zeke has discovered to his cost that the other was quite right - by seizing the wicked, he can drain their souls of evil, and if a black soul indeed, leave them comatose for life. The same power leaves Zeke stronger, faster, and more capable of hunting down the most evil men alive.

 

But there is a price - every time he drinks those sins, he experiences, second-hand, every act of debauchery, lust, and greed involved. And the added strength and power is only temporary - but very, very addictive.

 

Like the Sin-Eater idea, but just to be fussy that's more of an Ozark thing...

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Re: dark champions from each of the 50 states

 

Phillip Carter-Cox is a painter of consummate skill, and student of the notorious Pickman. Odd, when Pickman vanished under mysterious circumstances 80 years ago.

 

But then, few things are impossible to one who walks the worlds of Dream.

 

He sought inspiration in these realms, and took it upon himself to heal the troubled sleep of shallow dreamers - and punish those responsible by painting those responsible into his canvases. More than one mundane monster has committed suicide rather than spend another night starring in humanity's darkest nightmares.

 

Not the most ostentatious of heroes perhaps - but on the other hand, he also has to deal with those entities that climb back *up* the stairs to Deeper Slumber...

 

( For Rhode Island - a Dreamer, and investigator of the eldritch and squamous. Mental Illusions & Dimensional Travel seem appropriate )

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Re: dark champions from each of the 50 states

 

Sin-Eate? Ozarks? dang, then I won't get get to use the 'Devil Went Down To Georgia' link

 

ah well - glad you liked the idea anyway.

 

Re the pic earlier, yes, he probably did look a lot like that when he got cursed, but I'll see if I can produce something post-change on my father-in-law's comp tonight.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Mister Massachusetts

 

VuCephalux.JPG

No, he's a crimefighter, he only looks satanic.

and he only comes out at night.

plus he reads a lot of dusty old books

and he's more at home in the caves and rivers.

plus he researches a lot into genealogy

and he tends to leave criminals in strange predicaments.

 

the Detective of Dunwich, he fights crime !

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Re: dark champions from each of the 50 states

 

Sin-Eater? Ozarks? dang' date=' then I won't get get to use the 'Devil Went Down To Georgia' link.[/quote']

 

Don't worry. Sin-eating goes back to (at least) seventeenth-century England. It came over to "the colonies" with the English.

 

Anyway, always remember the Ozarks were settled from Appalachia. Any folk rituals you find in the Ozarks you'll find in Appalachia.

 

So, sin-eating and Appalachia go together just fine. :thumbup:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Re: dark champions from each of the 50 states

 

If brooklyn's taken' date=' what other state could use an anthropomorphic albino sewer-gator? I've got a pic for that one, at least.[/quote']

 

Well, as far as I'm concerned, a state isn't "taken" until a picture is up.

 

If there's more than one pictured Dark Champion for a state, I'll go with whichever has an origin/background. If two or more show up for a given state, I'll ask for general opinion.

 

So, go for it Drhoz; in any event, I'd love to see an anthropomorphic albino sewer-gator. :D

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Re: dark champions from each of the 50 states

 

OK, I've decided to go ahead and post a page to hold the pictures we've gotten so far.

 

Take a look here and see what you think. Tell me (in a private message, preferably) if something doesn't work on your browser.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Re: dark champions from each of the 50 states

 

Michigan's can be 'The Sportsman' who has a hunting motif, but since there are a few gun-toting heroes listed already I submit the following:

 

The Lakesman (amphibious guardian of the Great Lakes)

or

Motorhead (for the auto industry, an auto-themed gadgeteer)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Re: dark champions from each of the 50 states

 

Alaska - The Mosquito. An alternative day walking vampire who needs massive amounts of blood in order to survive but has made the moral choice to only suck the blood of law breakers. Unfortunately, when he starts, he can't stop until they're as drained dry as bottle of Thunderbird at a Wino's convention. This causes him some angst, especially as Alaska doesn't have that large a population and he's almost at the point of taking people fishing out of season, people driving under the influence of alcohol and people wearing Hawaiian shirts at barbeques.

 

(I passed through Alaska some years back on the way from London to Tokyo. There are mosquitoes up there that can fly in formation with B-52's!)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Re: dark champions from each of the 50 states

 

OK, I've decided to go ahead and post a page to hold the pictures we've gotten so far.

 

Take a look here and see what you think. Tell me (in a private message, preferably) if something doesn't work on your browser.

 

Looks like we're off to a great start. Thanks for posting all the pictures in one place.

 

You must spread Rep yadda yadda yadda.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.

Guest
Unfortunately, your content contains terms that we do not allow. Please edit your content to remove the highlighted words below.
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

Loading...
  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...