A Dream Salesman.

[Ragdoll]

The concept is pretty simple, but I'm having a little trouble coming up with something that works. I'm thinking of transform of some sort. Here's the concept:

 

A mutant able to scan the dreams of sleeping people, and change or manipulate them in any way they see fit. They can experience the person's dreams as well.

 

Once the dream has ended, they can continue to watch the person's dreams/manipulate them, or pull back from them into the real world again. Once they are out of the person's dreams they can imprint the person's dreams (one or all of them that were viewed) into an object. This must take place no later then one hour after the person pulls away from the person's dream scape. The dream imprinted objects can then be experienced by anyone that touches the imprinted object. The process is voluntary and cannot be forced.

 

The mutant basically sells dreams to people. Custom made ones or ones gathered 'free range' as she likes to call them from people's minds as they sleep.

 

Any idea on how to build such a power?

[Lucius]

Re: A Dream Salesman.

 

Mental Illusions

 

Zero END

Continuous

Uncontrolled

 

Physical Manifestation

No Range

(Possibly the target limitations - must touch the physical manifestation, and must be willing - don't count as limitations, but only to satisfy the requirement that a continuous uncontrolled power have some way to "shut it down")

 

 

 

Mind Scan

Dreaming Minds only

 

Telepathy

Only to percieve dreams

 

Mental Illusions

Only to manipulate dreams

 

 

Lucius Alexander

 

Palindromedary dreams

[Ragdoll]

Re: A Dream Salesman.

 

Hm. Sounds expensive. At least the ability to imprint dreams. The others seem fairly straightforward. I did a quick calculation and it looks like 15 points per 1D6 of Mental Illusions. 4D6 at 60 points. Quite expensive, even with the disadvantages tacked onto it.

 

Mental Illusions

 

Zero END

Continuous

Uncontrolled

 

Physical Manifestation

No Range

(Possibly the target limitations - must touch the physical manifestation, and must be willing - don't count as limitations, but only to satisfy the requirement that a continuous uncontrolled power have some way to "shut it down")

 

 

 

Mind Scan

Dreaming Minds only

 

Telepathy

Only to percieve dreams

 

Mental Illusions

Only to manipulate dreams

 

 

Lucius Alexander

 

Palindromedary dreams

[Lucius]

Re: A Dream Salesman.

 

Crossposted from Susano's Song Based Characters thread.

 

That's right, Ragdoll, you and Stevie Nicks are both my inspiration.

 

Merchant of Dreams

 

Steven Hicks

Val Char Cost Roll Notes

8 STR -2 11- Lift 75.8kg; 1 1/2d6 [1]

14 DEX 12 12- OCV: 5/DCV: 5

13 CON 6 12-

10 BODY 0 11-

18 INT 8 13- PER Roll 13-

23 EGO 26 14- ECV: 8

20 PRE 10 13- PRE Attack: 4d6

10 COM 0 11-

 

3/9 PD 1 Total: 3/9 PD (0/6 rPD)

3/9 ED 0 Total: 3/9 ED (0/6 rED)

4 SPD 16 Phases: 3, 6, 9, 12

5 REC 0

26 END 0

21 STUN 0 Total Characteristic Cost: 74

 

Movement:

Running: 5"/10"

Leaping: 1"/2"

Swimming: 1"/2"

 

Cost Powers END

Now here I go again - Dreams - Unified Power, all slots Unified Power (-1/2)

 

7 1) Now here you go again: Precognitive Precognitive Dreams: Clairsentience (Mental Group, Normal Sight And Normal Hearing) (50 Active Points); No Conscious Control (-2), Asleep, Must Concentrate throughout use of Constant Power (0 DCV; Character is totally unaware of nearby events, sound asleep; -1 1/2), Extra Time (20 Minutes to get to sleep, Only to Activate, Character May Take No Other Actions, -1 1/2), Precognition Only (-1), Unified Power (-1/2) 5

 

27 2) But listen carefully to the sound: Telepathy 10d6, Reduced Endurance (1/2 END; +1/4) (62 Active Points); Receive Only (-1/2), Unified Power (-1/2), Stops Working If Mentalist Is Knocked Out (-1/4) 2

 

1 3) In the stillness of remembering, what you had....and what you lost: Eidetic Memory (5 Active Points); Limited Power Only to remember dreams (-1 1/2), Window Of Opportunity (After dreaming or co-dreaming; window remains open for 1 Hr; -1)

 

22 4) I see the crystal visions: Mind Scan 3d6+1, +6 ECV, Reduced Endurance (1/2 END; +1/4), Cumulative (76 points; +1) (65 Active Points); Limited Class Of Minds Dreaming Minds (-1), Concentration, Must Concentrate throughout use of Constant Power (1/2 DCV; -1/2), Unified Power (-1/2) 3

 

43 5) It's only me who wants to wrap around your dreams: Mental Illusions 10d6, Reduced Endurance (0 END; +1/2) (75 Active Points); Unified Power (-1/2), Stops Working If Mentalist Is Knocked Out (-1/4)

 

27 6) Have you any dreams you'd like to sell: Mental Illusions 3d6, Uncontrolled (willing targets only) (+1/2), Reduced Endurance (0 END; +1/2), Cumulative (72 points; +1), Continuous (+1) (60 Active Points); No Range (-1/2), Unified Power (-1/2), Physical Manifestation (an object that must be touched) (-1/4)

 

Talents

12 Combat Luck (6 PD/6 ED)

 

Skills

1 Thunder only happens when it's raining: SS: Meteorology 8-

3 It's only right that you should play the way you feel it: Power: Dreaming 14-

 

Total Powers & Skill Cost: 143

Total Cost: 217

 

200+ Disadvantages

5 You say you want your freedom....Dependent NPC: Rebellious Teenager 8- (Slightly Less Powerful than the PC)

15 Well who am I to keep you down? Psychological Limitation: Wiilling to invade dreams and even manipulate them for artistic reasons, but refuses to try to establish control or domination of a person by means of dream powers (Very Common, Moderate)

5 Loneliness, like a heartbeat drives you mad Psychological Limitation: Lonely (Uncommon, Moderate)

5 Players only love you when they're playing - Hunted: Villains who want to persuade him to abuse his powers, but haven't resorted to anything really threatening - yet. 8- (As Pow, Mildly Punish)

10 Say women, they will come and they will go - Dependent NPC: Current romantic interest 8- (Normal)

15 I keep my visions to myself - Psychological Limitation: Doesn't pass on dreams that can identify an individual or subject them to embarrassment. (Very Common, Moderate)

5 It's only me - Reputation: Sells dreams for profit., 8-

 

Total Disadvantage Points: 60

 

 

Quote: When the rain washes you clean you'll know

 

 

You can thank Ragdoll for inspiring this one.

 

The concept is pretty simple, but I'm having a little trouble coming up with something that works. I'm thinking of transform of some sort. Here's the concept:

 

A mutant able to scan the dreams of sleeping people, and change or manipulate them in any way they see fit. They can experience the person's dreams as well.

 

Once the dream has ended, they can continue to watch the person's dreams/manipulate them, or pull back from them into the real world again. Once they are out of the person's dreams they can imprint the person's dreams (one or all of them that were viewed) into an object. This must take place no later then one hour after the person pulls away from the person's dream scape. The dream imprinted objects can then be experienced by anyone that touches the imprinted object. The process is voluntary and cannot be forced.

 

The mutant basically sells dreams to people. Custom made ones or ones gathered 'free range' as she likes to call them from people's minds as they sleep.

 

Any idea on how to build such a power?

 

I would have to say that what I have here is not quite yet a complete character. For a real viable Champions mentalist you'd need to "beef it up" partly because it's only 217 pts now. For a heroic level character, or a "mere" dream merchant not intended to ever have to hold his own in a superheroic arena, a Limitation of "only to read dreams" and "only to influence dreams" can be put on the Telepathy and Mental Illusions powers, and even at a standard heroic level he can take another 15 points of Disadvantages.

 

 

The song “Dreams” by Stevie Nicks of Fleetwood Mac.

 

Character sheet by

 

Lucius Alexander

 

Copyright Palindromedary Enterprises

[Lucius]

Re: A Dream Salesman.

 

I did some background work.

 

 

Background/History: It started with the Weather Report. That's what mom and dad called it - Stevie would tell them over breakfast what the day would be like, especially the weather. They thought he just had a knack for it, that something in his brain could put together what the clouds looked like and which way the wind was blowing and figure out what the weather would do for that day. He thought so too, because how else did he always know? They bought him books about weather and climate and said he'd be a great meteorologist some day, and at 14 he was already making a list of colleges to consider...but he was beginning to doubt that he was born to be a weatherman. For one thing, it wasn't just weather - he predicted all kinds of things, and was right too often for it to be chance. And sometimes he remembered how he knew - he had dreamed it. But that was crazy, so mostly he ignored it and carried on with a "normal" life, going to college and studying weather and meeting a girl....and sleeping with her....and dreaming with her. And finding that if he really wanted to, he could know what she was thinking - and she was thinking it was strange that they kept having the same dreams together, even on nights they were apart. One morning he lay there clutching a pillow to his face, trying so hard to hold onto that crazy beautiful dream....and that night she found herself in the dream as soon as she lay her head on that same pillow. This was too much - she left, never to share his bed again. It was only later they found out she was already pregnant.

As for Steven, he'd reached the point where it was crazier to deny the truth than to accept it. The inside of other people's minds, especially dreaming minds, were not closed mysteries to him. Even the future - flowing and malleable as it was, changing with every chance and choice in the present - was his in glimpses. And strangest of all, he could imbue an object with the essence of a dream, his own or another's that he had shared.

A friend often dreamed of falling. Steven changed that dream one night, to one of flight, stored the dream in a figurine of a bird, and gave it as a present. "Trust me. Hold this, and close your eyes. Take a deep breath and relax. You need an open mind...ah...yes. You see it don't you?" That was the first one.

Soon he had dropped out of school. People were willing to pay for dreams made solid. Several months and many dreams later, he spent a long time staring at the IRS form. He hadn't kept such good records so he had to estimate what his income had been. And then there was the line at the bottom marked "Occupation." Steven Hicks smiled to himself and wrote in "Dream Merchant." Then he made sure that, whatever questions they had about the numbers, anyone who handled that paper would know exactly what a dream merchant was. It's very hard to make dreams stick to something as banal and soulless as a bureaucratic form, but it can be done.

 

 

Personality/Motivation: Dreams are often paradoxical, and so is the Dream Merchant. He shares the intimacy of their dreams with countless strangers, and yet he is often lonely. Some people are fascinated by his powers, but even so they are often frightened or just see him as too strange and otherworldly to really be emotionally close to. On the one hand he has no compunctions about invading the privacy of dreamers by observing their dreams, but on the other he is strictly ethical about what he reveals - dreams he sells are either carefully chosen, or edited, to keep the dreamers anonymous. On the one hand he freely manipulates the dreams of people, but on the other he is very wary of manipulating people through their dreams. Part of the reason most of his relationships are brief is that women often feel uncomfortable sleeping next to a man they know can walk right into their dreams, and another part is his own fear that if he lets someone get too close and stay too close he will unconsciously begin to bend them to his desires by controling their dreams. His first paramour would have long since vanished from his life, except that he continues to pay child support and maintains a relationship - however strained - with his only child.

 

Quote: When the rain washes you clean you'll know

 

Powers/Tactics: His psychic awareness allows him to act and react in combat far more efficiently than normal (SPD 4, Combat Luck) and he enjoys the benefits of a good diet and cardiovascular exercise (because he's had nightmares about what happens to his body if he doesn't take care of it...) but the Dream Merchant has NO training or experience in physical combat and will most likely resort to his waking dream power (Mental illusions) - if he can't simply run, hide, or talk his way out.

 

Campaign Use: Dream Merchant is far to weak to be a player character mentalist in a normal game of Champions unless his powers are considerably expanded. A good candidate for a power to add would be some form of astral projection. Changing the Psychological Limitations could make the Dream Merchant a diabolically subtle but low-points villain. Other than superhero games, he can appear in certain sorts of urban fantasy or "weird" games with a paranormal bent. For a heroic level character, or a "mere" dream merchant not intended to ever have to hold his own in a superheroic arena, a Limitation of "only to read dreams" and "only to influence dreams" can be put on the Telepathy and Mental Illusions powers, and even at a standard heroic level he can take another 15 points of Disadvantages.

 

Although unlikely to be a combatant, it shouldn't be hard to find ways the Dream Merchant can be involved in adventures. He learns a LOT of secrets, and his "Dreamwalker's Code" of ethics aside, if he learns of some villainous plot, he may decide to warn the heroes. He may enter the dreams of the player characters to give them such warnings, thus helping them solve one mystery and creating another - "The night before the mad bomber destroyed that warehouse, we all had a dream about it. That's got to mean somethng - but what?!" He may also need protection if some villain decides to try to force him to use his powers for evil - say, by learning a hero's Secret ID. Which he may already know....

 

Appearance: Oddly enough, people meeting him who are unaware of his abilities often say "He looks just like a weatherman."

 

 

 

The song “Dreams” by Stevie Nicks of Fleetwood Mac.

 

Character sheet by

 

Lucius Alexander

 

Copyright Palindromedary Enterprises

 

And the palindromedary wonders when _I_ am gonna start charging for stuff like this...