Questions about a Battle for the Cyberrealm Campaign

[psyber624]

A little while back I created a Character named Cyberia for the "Create a Hero Team" thread. She gained Ice/Cyberkinetic powers after being struck by a bolt of lighting in a magically generated storm while holding a laptop (see thread for more details). I liked the concept so I wrote her up tonight, and was thinking a bit more about her powers and I had an idea, which sprouted and flowered till it became a possible idea for an entire campaign. I would like to be able to set it as much as possible in the standard CU, but I do not yet have the books I would need to make sure I don't badly violate CU "Canon" so I wanted to present the barebones idea and let the more knowledgeable among you tell me how bad I am screwing up

 

The idea I had centers around the idea that the concept of "cyberspace" has become so rooted into the human consciousness that it is starting to become an actual Dimension (accessible with appropriate EDM, etc). However, since there are no Gods or other Higher beings related to this "Dimension" in the human consciousness this infant Dimension is without any leadership. It has come to the attention of a number of the Higher Powers in the Multiverse that there is a new "playground" with no rules, and various parties are starting to maneuver pieces into place in an attempt to gain control and take advantage of this situation.

 

What actually happened when Cyberia got her powers was that a High Demon (or whatever CU calls them) was granting power to a mage to cause chaos, destruction, etc. This mage was battling against the PC group and summoned a powerful Aetheric Storm that covered the city. The mage was unaware that all of this was actually to the Demon Lord's plan. He caused a bolt of Arcane power to strike a young girl who had wandered out into the storm to retrieve her laptop. The bolt ripped off a piece of her soul, merged it with the fury of the storm and the link to the Cyber Realm present in her laptop (all computers are dimensional weakpoints between our realm and the Cyber Realm) and created a new Lesser Daemon who is currently "inhabiting" Cyberia and from whom she gains her powers. Because of the nature of the bolt, and the power of the Demon Lord, this new Daemon is actually considered "native" to the Cyber Realm. As it grows and matures in the poor girl it will begin to attempt to truly posses her and take over her mind, turning her into a pawn for the Demon Lord in his bid for control of the Cyber Realm.

 

Cyberia would come to the attention of the PC team shortly after the battle, and would likely join them. They would witness her battle with her internal "demon" and from this come to learn of the new realm and the plight that faces it. They would also learn of the danger facing our realm. For the internet and the Cyber Realm are inextricably linked and the damage a Demon Lord could do in our world if he gained control of the Cyber Realm is truly frightening. So the PC's must set out to find a way to all go to the Cyber Realm, Stop the Demon Lord (and any others who might be seeking to gain control) and help to establish a ruler of this new realm who will guard it and protect it (and therefore protect the internet as well). Hopefully Cyberia herself would be chosen but I am nowhere near that point in creating this yet.

 

What I want to know is:

 

Does CU already have an established Cyber Realm concept?

Who would be a good CU Villain to be the "mage" associated with a higher Demon (and if known, who would make a good Demon for this?)

How badly does my "creation myth" for the Cyber Realm/Daemon contradict established CU precedents?

What else have I screwed up here ? And are any of my mistakes correctable?

What would be the best CU supplements for me to buy to help me develop this concept (if its even workable)?

And finally, does this even sound interesting to anyone out there? (Sometimes things sound good to me but are laughable to most.)

 

Thanks for taking the time to respond.

[Grailknight]

Re: Questions about a Battle for the Cyberrealm Campaign

 

There is no CU Cyber realm that I recall but you might want to consult DShomsak.

 

Gyre is a Technomage from Arcane Adversaries, no knowledge of an appropriate demon tho. Bromion might work .

 

No conflict that i know of. Tron and the Matrix may be enough in the Collective Subconsious to have started populating your Cyber Realm tho.

 

There are several tech based CU villains that may be interested already. Cybermind, Mechanon and Modem come to mind right away.

 

Mystic World for the magic angle, Ultimate Supermage possibly.

 

Sounds good to me. I could see this as a cross/mixture of Tron, the Matrix, .Hack and even Magical Knight Rayearth

[Lord Liaden]

Re: Questions about a Battle for the Cyberrealm Campaign

 

Can I say, first of all, that this is an exceptionally cool concept.

 

What I want to know is:

 

Does CU already have an established Cyber Realm concept?

 

To date none of the published books for the current official Champions Universe has presented a unified "cyberspace" with uniform appearance, virtual physical laws, or the like. OTOH nothing specifically contradicts your concept. However, your proposal for how such a dimension might arise dovetails quite well with the nature of the magical planes near Earth as described in the Champions book The Mystic World. Several dimensions, major and minor, have formed out of the Astral Plane from collective human imagination, populated with gods, demons, races, and monsters from myth, folklore, and religion. Even the life force of animals and plants have created their own astral dimensions. If a cyberspace dimension exists, no Earth mystic has as yet found it or any way to access it.

 

"Some mystics believe, however, that humanity's machines generate an astral realm of their own. This hypothetical realm of "machine consciousness" would not be cyberspace, exactly, but it might enable a mystic to enter such virtual realms. The Brialic Plane of Numbers might also provide a key to entering cyberspace by magic." (The Mystic World p. 10)

 

Who would be a good CU Villain to be the "mage" associated with a higher Demon (and if known' date=' who would make a good Demon for this?)[/quote']

 

For the villain, I think there are two main possibilities, each with their strengths depending on how you want the story to proceed.

 

Professor Paradigm (Champions Villains Vol. 1) is a brilliant scientist obsessed with discovering the true nature of reality -- what are the fundamental principles governing it, and how ordinary people can be made more aware of the contradictions and fallacies in what they perceive to be real. He believes something is fundamentally wrong with reality, and wants to find a way to "fix" it. His obsession has led the Professor to become what could charitably be described as "unbalanced." His schemes, aided by his Paradigm Pirates, can range from epically bizarre but harmless public performance pieces, to attempts to unravel the fabric of the universe. There's very little he would not attempt to increase his knowledge or challenge the public consciousness.

 

Professor Paradigm is fascinated by magic, and although he has no skill as a traditional wizard, has reproduced the effects of some well-known "supermagic" spells through technological means in his powered armor, which also incorporates reality- and dimension-warping devices. He seeks the principles common to both sorcery and technology.

 

The other possibility is Gyre, a member of the villain team The Devil's Advocates (Champions Villains Vol. 2). The Advocates as a whole are devoted to turning back the influence of science and technology, and restoring magic to dominance in the world. Gyre is an exception to this, though. A trained physicist, she's also one of the world's foremost practitioners of technomancy, fusing science and magic. Like Professor Paradigm she seeks perfect knowledge of the universe, believing circles and spirals hold the key (hence her name). She doesn't necessarily want to change it, but cares little what harm her researches might cause.

 

However, the leader of the Devil's Advocates is The Demonologist, one of the greatest living authorities on the nature of demons and how to summon and control them. The synergy between him and Gyre could easily draw the attention of a major demon, whether or not either of them was aware of it.

 

As for a demon, I would suggest Mulciber, Hell's greatest smith and artificer, briefly described in The Mystic World p. 26. The Demon-Smith's domain in the dimension called the Netherworld (a patchwork of all the Hells of human imagination) is a great barren volcano, riddled with caverns containing Mulciber's forges and workshops, where he alloys metal with human souls.

 

What would be the best CU supplements for me to buy to help me develop this concept (if its even workable)?

 

Of the books in print and available, The Mystic World is your primary source for the occult Multiverse of the Champions setting: who's who, what's what, and how things work. Depending on which villain you wanted to use as the catalyst for Cyberia's origin, either Champions Villains Vol. 1 or Vol. 2 would help. (Frankly, with all the mystic villains in the Champions Villains trilogy, and the many cool villains in general, you really should buy all three.)

[Lord Liaden]

Re: Questions about a Battle for the Cyberrealm Campaign

 

There is no CU Cyber realm that I recall but you might want to consult DShomsak.

 

Dean Shomshak, who posts to the forums, is the author of The Mystic World, Arcane Adversaries, and The Ultimate Mystic for Fifth Edition Champions/ HERO System, and definitely the supreme authority for this element of the current official Champions Universe.

 

Gyre is a Technomage from Arcane Adversaries' date=' no knowledge of an appropriate demon tho. Bromion might work.[/quote']

 

I could certainly see Bromion being one of the players in this nascent dimension. He's a "Lord of Order," one of the minions of Urizen, the Prime Avatar of Order in the Multiverse. Bromion is a fanatical proponent of order, control, and structure, and strives to impose them across the Multiverse. He rules a clockwork dimension called the Millworks, which can craft almost any sort of magical artifact, and can also "reforge" living beings, transforming them physically and/or mentally. Bromion is detailed in Champions Villains Vol. 3.

 

No conflict that i know of. Tron and the Matrix may be enough in the Collective Subconsious to have started populating your Cyber Realm tho.

 

Even if you went with the suggestion of a dimension of machine consciousness, human imagination may have some impact in shaping it.

 

There are several tech based CU villains that may be interested already. Cybermind' date=' Mechanon and Modem come to mind right away.[/quote']

 

Mechanon is a robotic master villain who seeks the eradication of all organic life on Earth, and may have the means to achieve it. Cybermind is a mutant "cyberkinetic" and considered the foremost computer hacker on Earth, but has for several years been in a comatose state while held in America's superprison, Stronghold. AFAIK Modem is a VIPER villain from a previous incarnation of the Champions Universe, not introduced into current official continuity to date. Maybe psyber624 is thinking of a character from Champions Online who I haven't seen yet, which is very possible. There are several other robot or cyborg villains who might play a role.

 

Mystic World for the magic angle' date=' Ultimate Supermage possibly.[/quote']

 

Ultimate Super Mage is an electronic book written for the Fourth Edition of Champions, no longer for sale. Most of what it contained has been subsumed into The Mystic World and The Ultimate Mystic.

[Grailknight]

Re: Questions about a Battle for the Cyberrealm Campaign

 

Mechanon is a robotic master villain who seeks the eradication of all organic life on Earth, and may have the means to achieve it. Cybermind is a mutant "cyberkinetic" and considered the foremost computer hacker on Earth, but has for several years been in a comatose state while held in America's superprison, Stronghold. AFAIK Modem is a VIPER villain from a previous incarnation of the Champions Universe, not introduced into current official continuity to date. Maybe psyber624 is thinking of a character from Champions Online who I haven't seen yet, which is very possible. There are several other robot or cyborg villains who might play a role.

 

Sorry, I meant Automaton from CV part 3 but drew a blank on the name. Professor Paradigm is another great suggestion.

[Lord Liaden]

Re: Questions about a Battle for the Cyberrealm Campaign

 

The Mystic World p. 63 mentions a supernatural power who might become any ally of Cyberia or a balance against the influence of the demon on her: St. Albertus Magnus, patron saint of scientists, scholars, and Christian sorcerors. He often provides advice in dreams to devout sorcerors who pray for his help. St. Albertus is prevented by the Ban from participating in the mortal scientific research he loves, but this cyber realm might allow him access to it.

[Lord Liaden]

Re: Questions about a Battle for the Cyberrealm Campaign

 

Sorry' date=' I meant Automaton from CV part 3 but drew a blank on the name. Professor Paradigm is another great suggestion.[/quote']

 

Oh, Automaton is a great suggestion too! After all, he's a disembodied energy intelligence who can enter and control any machine or computer system. His write-up in CV 3 even suggests giving him an EDM to "cyberspace" if such is a feature of a given campaign.

 

Automaton disappeared after an explosion in the computer he was inhabiting while fighting the Champions; that could very well have hurled him into the cyber realm. He considers himself a "god" of machines, and in the cyber realm that could effectively be true.

[TheQuestionMan]

Re: Questions about a Battle for the Cyberrealm Campaign

 

Cyberspace or Realm Resource can be found in;

The Mystic World 5E

Star Hero 5E

Kazei 5

Shadowpunk 4E (Shadowrun Homage).pdf

UNTIL Super Powers Data Base 5E - Cyberkinesis Powers

 

 

More details and Links to follow

 

QM

 

PS: See Cyber Hero Resources

[psyber624]

Re: Questions about a Battle for the Cyberrealm Campaign

 

Wow guys, thanks for all the input! All of the books listed so far are on my current wishlist, this just pushes them up in priority (to note Mystic World is definitely going in a shopping cart when i get paid Wednesday.)

 

Any good "campaign" supplements that I can get a hold of to help me see how to write something like this up? I have never done any real sort of campaign writeup before and would love to have some models to go with. (Most of my campaign ideas just float around in my brain, and when I use them I tend to generally adapt on the fly.. not that I have done much GMing in a long time....)I currently only have the "Reality Storm" crossover campaign book that came for free with my 6e core books.

[Lord Liaden]

Re: Questions about a Battle for the Cyberrealm Campaign

 

Hmm... well, if you're looking for examples of how to write up extended story arcs covering multiple game sessions, I can recommend a couple for Champions that are available, both written by Allen Thomas: Shades Of Black and Sharper

Than A Serpent's Tooth. Both are multiple-session adventures revolving around a particular group of villains, with plenty of good advice included on pacing, customizing encounters, dealing with the actions or special abilities of PCs which might affect the outcome, and the like. Champions Battlegrounds takes a different approach, providing three adventures that can be run self-contained, but also a framework to link them together into a campaign, if desired.

 

Things to note: all of the above are written for the Fifth Edition of the HERO System, so some details would need to be converted to Sixth if that's what you're using. They also often refer to villains whose stats appear in other books -- the Champions Villains trilogy now has all of those. These adventures also contain many encounter maps which can be reused or adapted.

 

I also highly recommend Villainy Amok by Scott Bennie, a very well-written and useful guide to creating classic comic-book-style scenarios to form the basis of game sessions. Rather than being actual adventures, these focus on generic scenarios which can be inserted into any campaign. VA provides eight detailed, archetypal scenarios, plus a very large array of short plot seeds and adventure ideas organized by theme. The detailed scenarios are filled with variations, customizing suggestions, and extrapolations for followup adventures, greatly expanding their potential use.

 

VA is also written for Fifth Edition, but game stats form only a small portion of the book -- the bulk of it is advice and examples.

[Lord Liaden]

Re: Questions about a Battle for the Cyberrealm Campaign

 

I would like to offer some notes about making the cyber realm the basis/focus of a campaign. Unless all your PCs can enter the realm, and their powers function there more or less normally, you risk excluding the characters who can't go, and making Cyberia too much the focus of the action. I would suggest allowing menaces from the cyber realm to manifest on Earth, coming into conflict with the PC heroes, before they even encounter Cyberia. That way the PCs are already involved in the conflict, and have some idea of the seriousness of the threat. They shouldn't even be aware at first that Cyberia is connected to the cyber realm, or at least how crucially she's connected. Let the PCs have time to form an emotional connection to Cyberia, so that when the depth of her involvement in the crisis is revealed they actually care about her welfare. The PCs will feel more satisfaction if they eventually put the pieces of what happened to her together themselves, rather than have all the info handed to them.