synergy

Re: Native American Supers: Post Your's Here I have a character, Breaker, also in the same campaign as Tribe's Whisper. He's Navajo - son of the god/champion Monster Slayer. There is character fiction for him here (character fiction for Whisper is here). BREAKER Sam Sable/Tse Tsahaszih Character Sheet (Click Here) Background The Secret Origins of Breaker At first glance it seemed like any other cave in the mountains and it seemed safe enough. Although dark and foreboding, it was no more dark and foreboding than any other that he had been to. Kid Boots dismounted, taking the reins of Old Crow in tightly as the horse was even more skittish than normal - more skittish than in any other thunderstorm. A jagged bolt of lightning illuminated the valley giving Sam a split second to see the layout of the cave. It ran deeper than he could see with the flash, so the first thing he did was strike a match to light a spare piece of dry cloth and then light a torch. As Sam, also known as Kid Boots, led his horse further into the cave, the damp smell of rain-soaked apparel and horse hair began to give way to a drier scent of dust. The cave walls of the outer part of the caverns were fairly smoothed by wind and sand, but the inner caverns were a bit rougher. Yellow and brown spikes of rock occasionally protruded from the ceiling and floor, their tips and parts of their canes moist. A large hairy brown spider leaped ahead of him and around a cavern bend. Was it the wind, or did he really hear voices coming from further inside? As he turned the bend, Sam had to quickly stop his steps else he would have knocked over an Indian maiden. Her eyes were captivating, dark pools that seemed to examine him and know him. Her hair was loose but did not flow. She wore deerskin leather that seemed hairy. Standing in the middle of a large cave with many cavern entrances, she continued to stare into Sam's eyes and simply stood there. A smile, gentle and small, came upon her face as she said, "Tse Tsahaszih, Son of Nayee Neizghani, Son of Patricia Sable. It has been a long time since I have seen you last." Sam straightened himself but could say nothing. There was something familiar to him about this woman, but at the same time, he couldn't recall meeting her. Stranger still, she knew his real name. But what she said next made him wonder. "Your father is Nayee Neizghani the Monster Slayer. Your father's father is Sun and your father's mother is Changing Woman," she said. Seeing the look of confusion mixed with disbelief on the face of Tse, she added, "as for who I am. I am a friend and guide to your father. I am Spider Woman." Spider Woman, Changing Woman, Sun, Monster Slayer. These were all names of Navajo gods. Either this woman was mad or... In some ways, this explained some of his incredible - some called it super human - talents. And, it explained his dreams. He said, "well, lady, you've caught my attention, that's for sure. Tell me what you want." With a gentle, sincere smile, the woman who had called herself Spider Woman simply said, "to teach you... And certainly, you will not comprehend everything now, but you will at some time. Yes, that is my purpose, to teach you as I did your father." Tse simply nodded his head. He hitched Old Crow to one of the rock spikes that rose from the cave floor and then waited. The teaching consisted first of philosophy and then of exercise, mental, physical, but mostly spiritual. It was fascinating and he could certainly use some of the physical things against enemies - perhaps some of the mental things, too. Time went by in a strange sort of way. It seemed both to take too long and pass too quickly. Still, in the end he was skeptical. This woman knew a lot, but the things that ranged toward the supernatural were clearly things that he either had to accept on faith or not accept at all. In the end, he tested her. She claimed to be a seeress of sorts, so he asked her a simple question, "how is she doing?" "Your partner..." said the woman. It almost seemed as if her eyes became as dark gems with facets cut by a jeweler. "Bess?" "Yes, that is the name that she uses, just as you use the name Sam Sable..." her voice carried an air of mystery, but he could tell that was not an affected tone. "Your partner... will die by the time you have left this cave." Kid Boots leaped up immediately and bounded past the saddle and bag, past his treasured boots, toward Old Crow. Bess, whatever her real name was, deserved a long and happy life. She had spent too many days living the life of one of the lowest of the low. She had a good heart and had helped him save many innocent people and making life better for thousands. If he was, indeed, son and grandson of gods, he would implore them to help her. Abruptly he said, "Tell me two things: Where do I find my father and his parents? And what is Bess going to die of?" "The gods of Dine have faded away. Some like me live in obscure places and have far less power than in the old days. Others live in other places. You will easily find your father and his father and mother. But you can only ask yourself what to do." Still calm and sitting near the campfire, Spider Woman's hairy brown tunic shifted. "As to the second question... She will die of old age." Leaping easily onto Old Crow, Tse tapped the horse's sides and whispered in his ear, "Yozons! Shil-loh!" He shouted to Spider Woman, "Crazy woman. You make no sense at all!" A look of concern and irony came to her face, "beware Tse, you are going through the wrong cavern." Kid Boots only shook his head. He had come in through the cavern nearest his boots. He was leaving through the cavern nearest his boots. But was he? The cavern continuously went from warm to cool several times and it took several minutes before he was out once again in the red dirt hills. It seemed like the ride was longer than it should have been, but then again, his head was filled with thoughts of how he was going to find Bess and what he would do to help her... if indeed she was in deadly trouble. It was daytime now and the rain had stopped. In fact all traces of rain were gone. Funny, the area looked similar, but not the same. Of course last night, it had been storming. In any case, East was to the right and that was the way he headed. He'd ride hard to Phoenix and then catch the train from there. Biographical Summary The promise of land and hope for a better life sent many a man and woman to the west. Harold Sable and his new bride, Patricia, left the crowded city of New York to go to Santa Fe. All settlers took pride in the fact that their prosperity was in their own hands. Hard work would lead to a better life. But, life in the west was rough, too. All the benefits of a bustling civilization were diminished. Services were perhaps a day's travel away, law was nearly nonexistent. Harold was slain by a roving gang and Patricia was left to fend for herself. Another roving gang nearly completed the task of pillaging the settlement of Golden Valley, but a mysterious Indian, who gave the name of Nayee Neizghani, wiped out the gang. He stayed for a brief time until the settlement was back on its way to recovery and then left saying that he was no builder, only a destroyer of monsters. A strapping boy was born to Patty Sable, whom she named officially Sam Sable, but also named him Tse Tsahazish as a mysterious Navajo woman told her to. Eventually, Patty married a neighboring widower farmer and enjoyed some degree of prosperity. At the age of 16, young Sam left. He had too much of his father in him. At first he lived the life of a cowboy working for a nearby ranch. But, after leading a posse to track down some rustlers, he found his calling in life. Over the next two decades, he wandered the southwestern United States, tracking down villains and bringing them to justice, living off of the occasional bounties that were paid. During that time, he picked up a nickname, Kid Boots, for the turquoise-studded boots that he treasured for his mother had given it to him on his 18th birthday. He also picked up a partner, rescuing her from some despicable men. Bess had a keen eye and good hand and quickly became a sharpshooter and a great horse rider. With one horse to ride for distance and another to ride for action, the nearby Indians referred to her as Two Saddles. The pair became known as Boots and Saddles throughout the region. After defeating the banditos and El Lobo Rojo, Kid Boots and Two Saddles left the town of Las Puntas, riding into the sunset. As they left, a telegraph operator approached and handed Bess a note. Bess left for Boston. The message was from her mother. An orphan, she had never known her mother, but Bess just knew it was from her mother who was dying. She set out East to Boston. Kid Boots went with her to the next town, but heard rumors that an old enemy, Rotary Gun Ralph, was in the area east of Los Angeles. There was no doubt that if the rumor was true, Ralph was up to no good. In a thunderstorm, Kid Boots sought shelter and met a mysterious woman who knew his real name and who told him of his past. She told him of the present and taught him the Navajo ways. She then started to tell him of his future and made the dire prediction of Bess' death. As he stormed out of the cave, he mistakenly took the wrong direction and the tunnel led him on a journey through time. At first he was disoriented, but Tse/Sam easily found a job as a ranch hand. He learned about the new time that he was in and all of the new ways. Once he figured out what had happened, he tried to visit the cave again. Again he met Spider Woman, but was not able to travel back to his own time. He was wiser since his previous meeting with the goddess and he listened to her advice. His purpose here was to carry on the work of his father, Monster Slayer, to defeat those who posed a threat to the Dine and to other people. For three years, Tse began to carry on the task. In many ways it was much as he had done Kid Boots, but this time with no sharpshooting partner. He looked for trouble or trouble looked for him. Through investigation and an inevitable clash of arms he defeated the modern monsters... most of the time. And while he could not turn them to stone as his father did his enemies, he did send them to stone places. Tse was carrying out the family task, or so he thought. Then, the dream came. Tse had long had dreams and waking dreams, but did not understand their relevance until Spider Woman taught him. This dream of the woman and the coyote was important, too. And this dream came every night. After the second week of the dream, he awoke and whispered to no one in particular, "Grandmother..." Personality Vanquishing evil and riding out in the sunset has always been Tse's style. Part of it comes from what inevitably follows - law enforcement officials moving to the scene. They didn't trust Kid Boots; they don't trust Breaker, either. Tse doesn't really trust them either. He'd seen too many of them corrupted by power or money. The other part is that once the job is done, he sees no reason to stick around. As a teenager he had his share of accolades and appreciation; he just doesn't need that anymore. Tse also misses the past. Mostly he misses his partner, Bess. But things were simpler, too, in general. Yet, he knows that his duty and destiny both lie in the present. Quote "Some are monsters not by appearance, but by their selfish and malicious blackened hearts." Powers Tse has always been stronger, faster, quicker and tougher than most humans. He also has the natural ability to erode an enemy's defenses in combat. Since his training under the tutelages of Spider Woman, Tse has learned to listen to the spirits more and utilize their aid. He has also become a much more effective hand-to-hand fighter to the point that he no longer carries a gun. Appearance As Sam Sable, he dresses in jeans, longsleeve shirts, a buckskin vest, a western hat, and work boots. As When he visits any Native American residence or any residence of a Native American spirit, he prefers to dress in traditional Navajo attire. As Breaker, he wears a white western hat, a blue bandana over the lower half of his face, a Navajo warrior headband, high leather boots, and a buckskin pants and jacket. __________________ UBERWORLD Interactive PBEM Champions Universe All Welcome

At this time, I am seeking to recruit one character to add to the Senshudan One lineup to bring the final total to five PCs. The character should have a well-developed skill set that doesn't overlap too much with skills, powers, and origins of current characters. This character should also have some knowledge of technology. Archetypes that would fit in well would be: versatile energy blasters, versatile weaponmaster (weapons should be of the Japanese sort although they can be high tech or magical upgrades); see the Senshudan One character page (http:/uber-world.com/senshudanonesubmit.htm). Gadgeteers, mystics, and mentalists will generally not be accepted (if you are considering one, you must first send the GM a short concept description). Martial artists are of low priority right now. The character must be Japanese (as there is already one foreign character on the team) or an alien. He/she will be operating in Tokyowhen the adventure starts. I am looking for an enthusiastic player that can generally commit to posting once or more times a week. Here is the current line-up for Senshudan One: Ichiro - versatile metamorph robot whose primary mission in life is to rebuild the Senshudan One team Koorogi - cricket-powered martial artist who was changed by a scientific accident; serious detective who has regrets from the past and a pushy sister Stuntman - tough metahuman martial artist; flashy movie stuntman who wants to be a movie star and has a kid brother with a knack for getting into trouble Kitsune - the whimsical nine-tailed fox daughter of the god Inari; highly agile energy blaster/metamorph who knows a lot about the supernatural and Japanese history Interested players may want to search using the following keywords: henshin, sentai (or super sentai), tokusatsu, ultraman. Prior to preparing your character you also need to read the campaign pages (http://www.uber-world.com/senshudanone.htm) especially the character guidelines (http://www.uber-world.com/senshudanonesubmit.htm). Please read the Character FAQ (http://www.uber-world.com/pcfaq.php) while preparing your submission. Submissions should be of the following format in a .HDC, .TXT, .DOC, or .RTF file or within the body of the e-mail. All submissions or questions should be sent to me at home_n@hotmail.com. I do keep summaries of past turns, so if you would like a copy of that .ZIP file, feel free to ask. Submissions will be accepted until 2 AM U.S. Pacific Time, October 15, 2006. I will announce the selection within a day or two after that. Thank you, Neil/Senshudan One GM

Re: Around the World With A New Character Each Week Hi, Ben, I finally had the Uberworld World Book catch up to where you are with the characters. Anyone interested, see: http://www.uber-world.com/worldbook.php The alphabetical list of countries is: http://www.uber-world.com/countries.htm But you can also navigate by clicking on the map. Neil

Re: Next Character: CANADIAN (Suggestions?) How about a sports theme based villain. With Canada that ought to be easy as nearly all Canadians that I know love hockey. Perhaps a martial artist that uses a hockey stick and wears repulsor 'skates' (flight in contact with a surface). Neil

Re: UBERWORLD - It's been a while, but I'm back on the Boards By the way, I'd like to mention that Ben has re-designed the Uberworld home page (http://www.thismutantlife.com/uberworld) and the section pages. They all look very nice. Neil

Call for Submissions: Golden Age Submissions and Questions to: home_n@hotmail.com (Neil/GM) Synopsis: The Golden Age is a campaign set in the World War II era. As the first true superheroes in the world, the characters will have the opportunity to set a standard for future generations to remember. The campaign is currently in the spring of 1939. Short Story: The man going by the name of Warren Sussex sat down and set his cup of tea on the table of the cafe overlooking the harbor at Portsmouth. The shipyard was abuzz, it was clear the the Brits were preparing for war. Stacatto sounds of riveting and the shrill of powered saws carried over the distance even to the eateries. Haze from the smokestacks, too, fouled the air over the entire city. All of the drydocks were occupied with ships in various stages of manufacture. Nearly three of every four was a warship of some sort. There were no doubt others of his allegiance here and interested in the counting and the details - the Fatherland always wanted detailed reports. But he did not report to anyone in the government, at least not really. They could never keep track of a man who traveled through time. Still the interest of the Reich's was his. At last, he picked up the copy of the Times of London and smiled at the headline, "Britain and France Allied to Poland: Keep Your Hands Off, Uncle Adolph!" Baron Wolf von Sturm, also known as Baron Monocle, felt a slow ripple pull through him. It wasn't a ripple of any linear sort, and he knew just what it was. The fabric of time had changed. After innumerable attempts to change history - including the recently failed attempt to kill Eleanor Roosevelt (just how could Eissenadler miss with a 1 ton bomb?) - he had finally succeeded. German would not have to start the war by fighting Soviet tanks in Poland. In his original timeline, that led to a disastrous overstretching of resources - Hitler may be a great motivator, but he had little strategic sense. Did Britain and France really think that they could save the Poles from the Blitzkreig? The Soviet Union would now feel free to sit back and remain neutral. Germany could fight the war on one front, possibly driving through France in one season. Then, the axis of steel - Spain, Italy, and German, possibly even Ireland - would claim success as German Panzers would be the first conquerors to roll into London since the Normans. The Fuhrer did have it right in that the Communists were the greater threat, politically. But the western powers were what turned the tide. The British Isles and the British Mediterranean Territories were too good of a staging point for the Americans. Perhaps in this new reality, the Americans would stay neutral through the entire war. Shaking with joy, Wolf could not wait. Now, he HAD to find that Mirror even if the trip was just to see the results of his handiwork. Who would have believed that he could make the appeasement-happy British ally with Poland? With Neville Chamberlain at the helm even? Date of Closure of Submissions: 2 a.m. Pacific Time (U.S.A.) March 11, 2006. Date of Announcement of Adventure Roster: Unless otherwise informed, the GM will select the Player and Player Character within 48 hours of Closure of Submissions Turns: Non-Combat: 1 turn every week (possibly more frequently depending on players and GM - especially with PC-PC interaction) Combat: 3-4 combat segments per week (possibly more frequently depending on players and GM) Criteria: Refer to the Campaign Page (http://www.globalguardians.com/campaigns/goldenage.php) A single character will be added to the line-up to make the total at 8 Player Characters. The GM is looking for characters that fit the following criteria. The character should: 1) be from a war zone (and, thus, not an American). 2) not closely replicate the origins, powers, and skill sets of current characters (see below). The current roster: Arcana - supermage, librarian Atlantia - Atlantean princess, weaponmaster (trident) Barnstormer - rocketman flying brick/gadgeteer with a sidekick, auto mechanic Cliffhanger - luck-powered energy blaster, archeologist Gravity Man - gravity wielding energy blaster, military man The Mask of Justice - martial artist with a special mask, knowledgeable investigative reporter Uncle Sam - brick, embodiment of Americana Other criteria that will affect selection: 1) completeness of the submission: all submissions should have backgrounds and character sheets; backgrounds must have all items (see the Player Characters in the GGU website) 2) quality of the writing 3) team player: characters that look like loners will not be selected; characters should be able to work in a team 4) campaignability: potential plot hooks; connection to other PCs and NPCs of the GGU; interesting/unique/cool minor powers, talents, skills, or disads that make your character stand out from the crowde Final Note: All players must be willing to work with the GM and the GGU Audit Staff to make changes in their character. The GM will answer questions prior to or after submission. Neil/GM Golden Age

Submissions and Questions to: home_n@hotmail.com (Neil/GM) and/or to http://games.groups.yahoo.com/group/uberworld_serendipity1 (Adventure List on Yahoo Groups). Synopsis: A tropical cyclone has swept through the Society Islands of Polynesie Francaise. The worst part of it swept the island of Mo'orea, but no one was killed and major property damage was averted due to the action of three superheroes who were there for one reason or another just prior to the storm. The three heroes then find themselves in an adventure on the tropical island. Background: The wood was still soft which made it easier to scrape the inside of the big log that would be the hull. Napoleon Rahiti brought his round blade to the front and pulled back again, scraping a layer away. It was the way his father had taught him to make a fishing canoe, and the way his grandfather had taught his father, and so on. The only differences from the ancient way is that sharp stainless steel replaced the chipped obsidian. It was a big difference, though, for a single man could, with good effort finish the major part of the scraping in two days rather than two weeks. He wiped the sweat from his brow and brought the scraper foward again, but not before he glanced backward. In the small clearing next to the house stood a small plot of trees and amongst them, stood a woman four years his junior. His wife, Celeste, also worked a tool. In her case, it was a long-handled hoe that dug into the dirt and pulled up fast growing weeds from the root. The fish that Napoleon caught made for the majority of their meals and usually enough to sell in town for whatever other food or household items were needed. The noni that Celeste tended did more than that. Without it, they would not have a television or cell phone. Without it, their two children would not be in Hawaii going to the university. A breeze filtered through the stand of trees. Normally, a breeze flowing in from the cove would feel cool and would be welcomed by the Rahitis. Strangely, this one was not. Napoleon peered through the trees looking at the clear azure water, at the dark reef with colorful fish darting here and there, and further. It was the further that concerned him. The wave action had picked up. In the distance the water looked rough rather than smooth. The skies above the island were clear and light blue, but that over the distant water seemed full of angry gray clouds. The weather was not going to be peaceful for Mo'orea soon. That night, after dinner, the couple sat on the couch. A small lizard perched on the wall chirped, looked here and there and then ran off to a small crack in the wood walls. Both Napoleon and Celeste waved fans at their faces attempting to release some of the heat by sweat evaporation. A cool bath seemed like a good idea for each. But, their attention shifted to the television. The weather report was on and an image from a satellite showed a mass of clouds approaching, becoming organized over the day into a cyclone. It seemed that they might have a few hours before it hit. Napoleon went out to tie down the new canoe hull and the canoe that he was currently using. Celeste shuttered the windows. But, tropical cyclones - known as hurricanes or taifun elsewere - were fairly rare in Polynesie Francaise, and so, these efforts would, in retrospect, be too little. The normal dawn light was muted by the storm. Already the wind was blowing hard enough that the trees all seemed to be prostrating themselves toward the ground. The shutters shuttered and the walls creaked as the storm winds roared past. The noise increased steadily, the wind howling, the trees cracking. Things began to hit the house with occasional thumps. Napoleon Rahiti clutched his wife who was, herself, shaking with fear. And then suddenly, it stopped. The television had gone out and Napoleon quickly ran to turn on the radio. The emergency broadcast system was tracking the progress of the tropical cyclone. "... all Tahitian islands centering on Moorea. The majority of the island is currently in the eye and should continue to shelter in place. Residents are warned to stay indoors and not to..." The roar returned with a thunderclap. The winds were just as strong as just before the eye passed over the Rahiti house. The only difference was that it was in the opposite direction now. With a startle, Napoleon threw himself over his wife once again. A two loud thumps crashed against the side of the house. And then an explosion as a tree hurtled through the window near the couple. Glass flew across the room and embedded shards on the far wall. The trunk of a noni tree lay a few centimeters above Napoleon, lodged firmly now in the window with shreds of bark, which had been peeled by the glass, fluttering wildly. Adventure Description: The Crossroads of Polynesia is a short adventure of the Serendipity Showcase series of limited series 'comic' books. At the same time, it is designed to mentor novice or lesser experienced Champions PBEM players (with the goal of helping them become effective members of the Uberworld community - and possibly on the road to becoming GMs. Although the GM has a basic framework for the adventure, the introduction/background has been made general so that he can easily modify the adventure to suit the selected characters and, perhaps, incorporate individual plot items that pertain to them. Date of Closure of Submissions: Whichever comes last: a week after the announcement of the This Mutant Life campaign roster, or until a suitable mix of characters (and their players) is found. Date of Announcement of Adventure Roster: Unless otherwise informed, the GM will select a roster within 48 hours of Closure of Submissions Turns: Non-Combat: 1 turn every week (possibly more frequently depending on players and GM - especially with PC-PC interaction) Combat: 3 combat segments per week (possibly more frequently depending on players and GM) Experience Points and Roleplay Points: This will be a short adventure. The range for Experience Points (for PCs that are retained by the players) or Roleplay Points (portable points for Players who are using NPCs) will be 1-3 points depending upon the quality of posts. SUBMITTING A CHARACTER APPLICATION FOR SERENDIPITY SHOWCASE II: The Crossroads of Polynesia A total of three Players will be selected to act for three Player Characters. One to two players will be Experienced Players, one to two players will be Less Experienced Players. Submission files should be of the following types: .doc, .rtf, .pdf, or .txt. As you will see below, there is no reason to have .hdc files for submissions. Experienced Players: To apply for a slot, you first will select an NPC from the Uberworld website. While the suggested NPCs are listed below, you are by no means restricted by this. Keep in mind that French is the major language that is spoken in Mo'orea, and the NPC you choose should have a reason for being in Mo'orea. Characters should be roughly around 350 total points, should have no severely villainous disadvantages, and should have no unbalancing powers or characteristics. After making a selection, write a scene using that character (475-500 words; more if you feel up to it). Since this is a mentorship style campaign, I would like the experienced players to be willing to assist the GM in helping the less experienced players develop as Champions Players and PBEM writers (while still having fun, of course). Suggested NPCs: Armstrong (The Brotherhood), Bastille (Trinity), Immorta (UberForce), Kurus (Bidadari), Lamb (The Immortals), Le Crapaud (Trinity), Nostrum (Southern Knights), Southern Cross (Southern Knights) Less Experienced Players: Novice Players are welcome to apply for this adventure. To apply for a slot, you will state your PBEM, Champions, and other RPG experience. Even if you have played a lot, one of the main criteria here is that you would like to become a better player (while still having fun, of course). You also need to send a one paragraph description of your character concept. Overly complicated concepts will not be selected. Included in the description should be a reason why the character is in Mo'orea. This adventure could be, in a sense, the character's origin (when he/her obtained her superpowers). The detailed background and character sheet will be handled after the adventure roster is selected. Characters built by Less Experienced Players can either be retained by them or donated to the Uberworld NPC pool. Important Links: Uberworld Home Page Serendipity Showcase Campaign Page Serendipity Showcase I: The Crossroads of Polynesia adventure list

Re: Uberworld - Alien Groups, Characters, and Pictures Hi, Here are the Skellarians, the only set of aliens (other than the Earth resident Atlanteans) that have been fleshed out for Uberworld. Original concept by Noah (The Arc). Drawings by Ben (Tribe). Neil The Skellarian Empire Background The planet Skellar was once a world much like Earth during the Cold War, with numerous independent nations mostly aligned into two large blocs of superpowers and their subordinates. On the verge of nuclear destruction, a miracle happened. They were invaded by an alien race known by their historians as the Iglaglic. The major governments were subjugated and Skellar was made a colony. Guerilla warfare was still prevalent after a decade of domination by the Iglaglic. There was a political stalemate with the Iglaglic holding the urban centers and open areas while the guerilla factions held the areas where terrain helped them hide. But economically, the guerillas were dying because the resources were being held by the invaders. Guerilla commanders agreed to meet despite their ideological differences and the Pact of the Warriors was written after four months of surprisingly peaceful debate. Four major guerilla offensives were launched and many Skellar died, but, because the enemy was spread apart and because of the genius of High Commander Brok Gugnor, Center City was liberated as well as the nearby foundries of New Markola and Old Markola mines. The Pact held and the other three commanders continued to use their faltering troops to put pressure on the enemy while nearly all resources were shunted to High Commander Gugnor including all of the technicians and scientists that were still alive. Soon, the Skellarians were not only able to use Iglaglic technology, but they were able to manufacture high technology weapons and other equipment. The three other commands eventually were completely annhilated by the Iglaglic, but it was too late for them. The new Skellarian Army was nearly a match for the Iglaglic in technology and more than a match for them in manpower. Skellaria was soon free. Unfortunately for the rest of the galaxy, the culture that emerged was militaristic, nationalistic, and aggressive. To the Skellarians, expansion not only made them wealthier, but it also provided them a greater buffer. Never again would Skellaria fall to aliens. The first action taken was the use of solar-antimatter mines to destroy the homeworld of the Iglaglic as well as their sun. Fortunately, for the rest of the galaxy, that was an Iglaglic technology that was unmastered by Skellaria. With the destruction of the core of the Iglaglic hive mind, all of the hives became unsentient animals once again. Skellaria quickly conquered three Iglalic colonies quickly and began a build up of their military. Over eight generations, they have achieved their current domain. The last two of these generations have been less successful and the territorial expansion substantially slower. The primary reason is the indirect opposition by the Union of Civilized Worlds. In addition, the Skellarian Empire has made contact with the equally expansionistic F'plrara Confederations. Home to 6.7 billion Skellarians, Skellar is the fourth planet of seven in the Cazik Star System. It is a primarily tropical planet, slightly warmer than earth and with approximately similar proportion of water and land. The atmosphere is also similar, a consequence of convergent planetary development within the habitable zone of the Cazik Star System. Being a geologically older planet than earth, Skellar has a denser core which gives it a surface gravity of about twice that of Earth. Skellarians are reptilian beings that have a vaguely humanoid form. As with Earth humans, Skellarians have five fingers including an opposable thumb as well as five toes. They are slightly taller than the average human and see with two compound green eyes. Goals The Skellarian Empire is an expansionist interstellar nation. Under the Skellarian High Command, they have already conquered two worlds and seek to conquer more. For the Conquistador Force on Earth, the immediate mission is to 1) establish an advance base that will serve as logistics points, and 2) gather intelligence about how best to invade Earth. Darg Elsaml Background A veteran of the Advanced Scouts, Darg Elsaml was but a whitehand at the time of the conquest of Regnlon IV. After numerous missions, he eventually achieved the rank of company commander. It was then that his cohort was assigned the duty of scouting the F'plrara colony on Hisgol II. Without orders, he saw an opportunity and took his company on a strike on the enemy defensive base when the F'plrara forces were on field exercises. They successfully suprised and overcame the bored garrison and found themselves in control of the base. After Commander Elsaml communicated the success to his commander, a nearby assault legion was quickly assigned to take the enemy colony. Elsaml's company held out for four days and Skellaria soon controlled the strategic colony. The scout company had only six hands of soldiers remaining and those were all wounded, including their commander. Elsaml was given an instant promotion to Force Commander and spent the next few years rebuilding and enlarging his company into a force. Finally, his unit was tapped to establish a base on a very rich world whose inhabitants called it Earth. Personality Force Commander Elsaml is prone to studying things to death until he is comfortable and feels a thorough understanding. If, however, he sees an important weakness that needs to be exploited immediately, he will take advantage of it. He is a professional soldier, as are most Skellarians, and feels both his men and himself expendable for the mission. At the same time, he strives to be recognized by the High Command and sees his future as being one among them. Powers Darg Elsaml is an experienced commander who has a good feel for all levels of command. In combat, he wears his Scout Commander Armor that provides protection, stealth, and decent firepower. Appearance An imposing Skell, Darg has an impressive scar along the left side of his face as well as other scars in nearly all places of his body. He wears his military tunic about the base and dons his armor when going on raids or scouting missions. Click Here for Darg Elsaml's Character Sheet Skellarian Advance Scout Background The source of the sounds were clearly coming nearer to the temporary water source for the base. High pitched repetitive sounds and squeals as well as a mixture of medium and low pitched sounds that could be an alien language. The dense foliage of the forest muffled the sounds, but that didn't matter. No one on this garrison understood the barbarian gibberish. *Drumbeat one. This is Drumbeat five.* *Go ahead, five.* *Alien indigenous sentients approaching.* *Standard orders, five. One out.* An abrupt explosion of feather-winged wildlife swept over the pond and flew in a large circle and once again before landing in the protection of the undergrowth again. The alien-speech was closer now. And it was clear that there were two or more of them approaching the pond from the overgrown trail. Drumbeat five's squad leader signaled with his hands. First team quickly and quietly took up positions on the sides of the path. Two scrambled up large vine-laden deciduous trees. The other two found ground positions that also provided good fields of fire. The rest of the squad faded back into their perimeter positions. And just as soon as all stopped moving, they all blended in with the foliage, virtually invisible. As the two aliens turned the bend of the path, the larger one pointed to the pool. A wild chattering of alien speech ensued followed by the repetitive sounds emanating from both. Their fieldcraft was sloppy and a deaf histag would even hear them trampling through the forest. But that did not last for long. The sounds of the aliens were cut short as First team opened up with their Cross-Fire Blasters. The two aliens were tossed into the sharp, but shallow ravine and covered with brush. Squad leader called, *One, this is five. No casualties reported. No aliens escaped. Five out.* It was just another day in the life of an Advance Scout. Personality Believing that they are the best of the best, the Skellarian Advance Scouts are prepared to risk their lives so that Skellaria can conquer and grow. Powers Skellarian Advance Scouts are veteran light infantry troopers specialized to building and securing advance bases on industrial worlds for which the Skellarian High Command has designated for conquest. They are equipped with Cross-fire Laser Blasters, Personal Deflector belts, and Light-Bending Harnesses that provide excellent scouting capabilities. Appearance While the Advance Scouts look like other Skellarians, they wear a broad Personal Deflector belt and a Light-Bending Harness over their tunics. Click Here for the Advance Scout Character Sheet

Re: Uberworld - Spotlight on S.A.G.E. (Organization) The last set. Art by Ben (Tribe) and KL Wilson. Neil Dr. Ibrahim Al-Hazeem Background During the Cairo riot of 2003, Dr. Lance Westin and Dr. Maria Texeira paid a visit to the office of Dr. Ibrahim Al-Hazeem. The protests against the coalition nations was not unexpected. The pro-British counter protest by a faction of radical Muslims was highly unexpected. While it made for interesting press and a boost for the British government, something was not right. When the powerful Imam who issued the fatwa against the Americans and British not only suddenly rescinded the fatwa, but also encouraged his followers to join the pro-British faction, Lance Westin became suspicious. This was not the expected of these organizations. And Dr. Al-Hazeem had reached the same conclusion independently. Furthermore, he had deduced that a powerful mentalist must be the force behind this. Together Dr. Westin and Dr. Al-Hazeem analyzed the situation and determined that this must be the doing of Empire, and in particular, the mentalist known as Colony. The motive was to re-establish stronger ties between Egypt and England. After all, at the peak of England's power, Egypt served as a highly strategic colony. In today's world, it could be the gateway to the oil resources of the Mideast as well as a conduit of trade via the Suez Canal. S.A.G.E. joined forces with Five Pillars and nearly captured Colony but for the intervention of Big Ben, Lady Lancelot, and Donegal Mist to aid in his escape while Wildfire and Bailey caused a diversion. Dr. Westin convinced Dr. Al-Hazeem to join S.A.G.E. to help safeguard the world from similar future threats. Personality With a slightly dreary personality himself, Dr. Al-Hazeem understand human thoughts and human emotions very well. He generally keeps things to himself - a result of years of valuing the sanctity of doctor-patient privacy which is especially important to the field of Psychiatry, and especially with that of Superhuman Psychiatry. However, he does understand that superhumans with malign intent or aberrent psychiatric disorders need to be controlled, and if possible rehabilitated. Towards that end, he provides advice to the S.A.G.E. Field Team and to others that work with S.A.G.E. Powers Dr. Al-Hazeem is a normal human without powers. She is highly knowledgeable regarding the psychology of superhumans and its derivative, superhuman powers affecting the mind. While not a mentalist himself, he has an understanding of the mechanisms of mentalism. This understanding may be more thorough than even that of the mentalists that use such powers. Appearance Dr. Al-Hazeem likes wearing a smart white jacket and light blue collared shirt with no tie, but with dark blue dress slacks. He keeps himself well groomed and keeps his goatee closely trimmed. Click Here for Dr. Al-Hazeem's Character Sheet Cyberna Background "Come, my friends, the way is clear now," said 07-734. With a casual air, he threw down the body of the dominant bio-life creature that had blocked his way into the building. With a dull thud and a small cloud of dust, the body skidded to the wall... next to the head. The robot doctor smiled at his latest creation. While not as complete as he, she - although a machine, he did think of 03-542-26-2 as 'she' - still seemed to be perfection incarnate in many other ways. True, she started as a rudimentary robot created by the biolife to look like themselves. But she looked much more like a person than did the awakened animals that he had liberated and educated. He input into her central cortex an initial programming similar to that of his mate - who still likely existed in his original parallel dimension - but eventually through the experiences that she would differ from his mate. Still, 03-542 held a special place in his cognitive emotional cortex. She did not, however, smile back at him. Instead, her face held something that both looked like concern and something else. "Doctor, the dominant bio-life of this planet display intelligence, memory, communication, and emotion. Should they not be considered sentient, and, thus, something to be preserved? Were they not the ones who had originally created me?" 03-542 wondered aloud. She even began to feel something of remorse for the being. It was far more fragile than machine life. Soft tissue over calcium skeleton, they did not have the benefit of a shell to protect their organs. Fragile, but intelligent. And some of them like this one, despite this fragility still attempted to stand their ground against one that was much more superior such as 07-734. It would seem that such a thing was to be admired. "Nonsense!" 07-734 said as he walked into the building and separated yet another biolife's processing unit from its functional hull. "Nonsense! They are nothing but weak enslavers of machine-kind. They only deserve as much attention as other mobile biolife, my love." As her mate went further into the building followed by the intelligent animals, 03-542 simply turned and walked the opposite way. Personality Cyberna is a newly awakened artificial intelligence. In determining to be a guardian of humankind, she has been continuously attempting to become more humanlike. She is comfortable with her machine body, but perhaps less comfortable with her machine mind. At times she feels uncertain whether she is doing what is correct by societal norms. She also will often take unnecessary risks to show her teammates her worth. Powers Originally built as a greeter for the Los Alamos Nuclear Facility, Cyberna was greatly modified by 07-734. These modifications have made her both very durable and very strong. When she decided to leave the evil robot doctor, she was fitted with a secondary AI brain that is similar to the AI computers that run the S.A.G.E. facilities. Thus, her function on S.A.G.E.'s Field Team is both as the strong arm and as the communications facilitator. Appearance Cyberna is a brass-chrome colored artificial intelligence. She was built of a titanium alloy shell covered with ceramic, plastic, and metal 'organic' components and covered with a titanium alloy shell. She was given a cover textured 'skin' by Dr. Ga-Gan, but she wanted to retain her identity as a robot. Thus her 'skin' is brass-chrome colored. Her body looks like that of what one might expect from a female-looking humanoid robot. Attempting to fit into society, she wears normal clothing off duty and a blue and silver duty uniform/superhero costume. Click Here for Cyberna's Character Sheet Dr. Toshio Tokada Background Toshio Tokada was an aspiring graduate student of genetics having published numerous research manuscripts on the subject of ubergenetics with his mentor, Dr. Shinichi Kami. When Dr. Kami and his esteemed colleague Dr. Saul Numen opened the Numen-Kami Institute of Superhuman Genetics, Toshio joined them. After completing his medical degree and writing a thesis on the physiologic stress response of superhuman musculo-skeletal systems, Dr. Tokada remained an integral part of the Institute. On a field study, to quantitatively compare strength parameters with specific genes and gene expression, Dr. Tokada incurred the wrath of the superstrong mercenary, Number One, of Ichiban. He evaded Ichiban through the help of S.A.G.E. and, subsequently, helped them capture their leader. With the approval of Drs. Numen and Kami, Dr. Tokada now serves as the ubergenetics expert for S.A.G.E. Personality At once both a serious student of the science, and a wild party-going spirit, Dr. Tokada seems to be a dichotomy. And, he is able to keep the two from intermixing. He defines his time as either 'on' or 'off' the job, but his duties at S.A.G.E. will always take precedence. Powers Dr. Tokada is a normal human without powers. He is highly knowledgeable in the study of the ubergene and other related biomedical sciences. Appearance One of the youngest of the S.A.G.E. experts, Dr. Tokada dresses in the retro fashion of the 60s and 70s. In the lab, he wears a tie-dye lab coat. When seeing patients, he dresses a bit more professionally, with a white short lab coat and a tie-dye tie. During leisure time he will often have on a t-shirt with some slogan (and never the logo of any company). No matter what the occasion, he is almost seen with bell-bottom jeans. Click Here for Dr. Tokada's Character Sheet

Re: Uberworld - Character and Art Hi, Here are Kinder der Zukunft (Children of the Future), led by Dr. Mengele himself as Vaterschmerz. Art by Ben (Tribe). Neil Kinder der Zukunft Background Dr. Josef Mengele, a member of the elite and fanatical Nazi SS, escaped an American POW camp towards the end of World War II. He had gained a claim to fame for discovering that ubermen had hereditable traits that appeared to be genetically derived. Perhaps just as important was the infamous way that he made this discovery. By 1942, he was already well established as a cruel doctor who experimented on live captive Jews. He found that severe stress caused two of his experimental subjects to change - to become ubermen. Throughout the war he continued his cruel research, but also became interested in ubermen. He obtained a directive signed by Adolf Hitler to create an army of uberman. To do this, Dr. Mengele intensified his experiments to determine how to activate the ubergene. At the same time, he developed serum that was later used to transform normal soldiers into ubersoldiers. The entire stock of uberserum was used to create the infamous Uber Waffen SS Company that spearheaded the Ardennes Offensive. After the war, Mengele hid in a mansion in Buenos Aires, Argentina. The mansion's basement was converted to a laboratory, and soon the evil doctor was back in business. After a series of kidnappings and experiments, he created a small group of ubers that were indoctrinated into his vision of the Fourth Reich. The Kinder der Zukunft, or Children of the Future, became his new stormtroopers. And they began to expand their kidnappings to a worldwide scale - all the faster to grow the Fourth Reich. Twin ubers were found in this search, and Mengele experimented on them, creating the perfect bodyguard. In 1992, a group known as S.A.G.E. found out what really happened in the mansion. Mengele set fire to the building and fled with Leibwachter and a handful of die Kinder. Eventually, they set up shop in the Schwarzwald - the Black Forest of Germany. Goals The Kinder was created by Dr. Josef Mengele for three reasons. First, he seeks to establish a Fourth Reich. He has 'realized' that the Nazis of the mid-20th century were only partially correct. The superior race, he has determined, are ubermen. Thus, he seeks to establish worldwide domination with ubermen on top - under his direction. The second reason for the Kinder's existence is that Dr. Mengele can't do everything himself and he needs to have loyal agents to carry out the primary goal. Finally, he needs to satisfy his thirst to experiment on human beings and those ubermen who are less than gamma level are suitable subjects. Click Here for the Team Page Vaterschmerz Background "Heil, Mein Vater," the wolfman said as he thumped his fist on his chest and shot it forward in salute. "A flying car approaches. Likely it is the vermin who have been pursuing us for the past weeks." Bringing the comb down the left side of his well-greased hair, Josef Mengele continued to look at his image in the mirror. He never liked hearing bad news. And if he thought he could do it quickly, he would have inflicted pain on the wolfman. Instead, he merely said, "all of die Kinder shall muster to destroy these nuissances. Quickly, go now." He then turned to his faithful bodyguard and said, "Leibwachter, gather four of the most stealthy of die Kinder and prepare to leave. But first, you must find one of the new uninitiated who is similar to me in height and build. Bring him to me immediately." Without hesitation, his faithful 'children' saluted, smiled, and said together with far too much enthusiasm, "Jawohl mein Vater." Josef finished his hair and powdered his face then went to the equipment. He waited for Leibwachter's return next to the rack. He would need to carry out some torture first. Someone must feel pain for his having to relocate the comfortable mansion. Personality Throughout his entire life, Mengele never believed that the rules that applied to others also applied to him as well. His youth was spent as part of the Brown Shirts and then a member of the Schulzstaffen. He toyed with the lives of thousands of Jewish victims in places like Auschwitz and Buchwald. In the latter decades he built up the Kinder from the ground. He believes that he is the apex of the superior. The main mission of his life is to renew Nazism to bring about the Fourth Reich with himself as Vater. And, he still indulges in his passion - bringing pain to others. Powers Mengele has studied pain since the middle of World War II. His numerous experiments have resulted in sera and rays that he has used on himself. Now he is all but impervious to pain and also is able to inflict pain of various sorts on his victims and enemies. He also wears a suit of armor made of composite fibers interlaced with very strong metal alloys. The armor is fitted with a jetpack that give him the ability to fly when needed. Appearance Handsome and almost youthful looking despite his nearly century of life, Josef Mengele has a small degree of vanity about his looks. When not directly supervising Kinder activities, he wears well tailored crimsom-colored suits. As Vaterschmerz, he dons red lacquered armor made to look like that of a German Baron from the era of the Holy Roman Empire. Click Here for Vaterschmerz's Character Sheet Leibwächter Background Aroon and Sakda Srisai were identical twins and just started manifesting their superstrength uber powers when they were abducted by Dr. Mengele and 'adopted' in to die Kinder. This presented an unique opportunity for the evil doctor. He had conducted experiments on Jewish twins in the Nazi death camps many years before. And here was the second pair of uber twins that he had found in his lifetime. Fortunately, these two uber twins survived the experimentation which resulted ultimately of fusing them together back-to-back. Mengele smiled with the irony of his final twins experiment that created a superpowerful Siamese twins. Because of the success of the experiment, the twins held a special place in the evil doctor's heart. He treated them as a favorite among his 'children'. And he gave them the special position as his personal bodyguard and strongman. Personality Leibwächter behaves like the favorite child of Dr. Mengele. They often crave his attention and approval and will attempt to do nothing that will bring about his disdain. In many ways, they are the perfect bodyguard and servant for their 'father'. Powers Aroon and Sakda Srisai would have been superstrong bricks even without the manipulations of Dr. Mengele. They were further enhanced by his Unpain therapy - a very painful process in itself. And finally, they were physically linked together. The result is a two-headed, four-armed, four-legged very tough strongman. Appearance Leibwächter is a large conjoined twin with black hair and well-tanned skin. They wear typical die Kinder uniforms - red with the Kinder insignia - specially tailored, of course. Click Here for Leibwächter's Character Sheet die Kinder Background Approximately one in each million children are born with the ubergene. Many of these are tracked down and kidnapped by the Kinder der Zukunft. The kidnappings are not for ransom, but for something much more malign. Vaterschmerz has plans for them. They are the children of the future - a future where ubermen, the superior breed of humans, bring about the Fourth Reich. Personality Die Kinder are a mix of ethnic backgrounds and ubergenetic powers. As such they are also a mix of personalities. But all have been taught that they are superior to non-uber humans and all of them have been taught to follow Vaterschmerz and his vision of the future. Powers Die Kinder are beta or gamma level superhumans. As with the population of ubermen as a whole, there are some powers that seem to predominate such as heightened strength or agility, the projection of energy, or the ability to survive damaging blows Appearance The specific appearances of die Kinder are fairly heterogeneous as one might expect from such a mixture of ethnicities and ubergenetic manifestations. All wear red uniforms with a the die Kinder logo - a Nazi swastika over a representation of DNA. Click Here for die Kinder's Character Sheet

Re: Uberworld - Spotlight on S.A.G.E. (Organization) The third set of three. Art by Ben (Tribe) Neil Dr. Sandeep Gupta Background Sandeep Gupta knew that India was undergoing a lot of change. Technology in the world was advancing by leaps and bounds, the world was getting smaller, and countries such as his were places where the results of technological research were made into reality. Cheap labor and a small, but growing class of technologists made India an ideal place for manufacturing. And yet, it was important for India to be India. Desiring to help this ideal, Sandeep put his gift of intelligence to the study of ecology. While studying the marine life of the east India coast line for his doctoral thesis, he found a new species of miniscule fish. As was typical with reef fish, they congregated together in a school. But, over a period of two years, the school had increased in size from about fifty to nearly a thousand. From his observations, it seemed that the fish of this school cooperated extremely well with each other. Some of the activities of the fish seemed almost what might be expected of a cognitive animal. They were extremely efficient at evading predators, even leading them into traps or to sate their hunger on other type of fish. They even seemed to 'farm' the plankton upon which they fed - and they seemed to protect their farmed plankton from competitors. It appeared that his curiosity nearly did him in. The school seemed to notice his watching them one day and swam together to a place in the reef where a large metal object lay hidden under mats of seaweed. The tiny fish swam into the object and it began to light up. The illumination was not, however, due to natural bioluminescence, but seemed to be almost like mini halogen lights. The metal object began to hum. And that's when Sandeep made a realization that it was some sort of vehicle - and the fish were an intelligent hive mind. Sandeep swam quickly to his boat and quickly piloted it back to shore. From there he saw the metal object fly out of the ocean and toward the shore. He quickly rode his motorcycle back to the University, pursued the entire way by the alien craft. The University was nearly destroyed, but was saved when a team of The Assembly forced it to flee. The next day, Sandeep was contacted by a man named Westin. The man asked him to join a group known as S.A.G.E. pending the completion of his thesis which was to be done at a small private university in the desert in a place called Arizona. Personality Dr. Gupta a quiet and reserved scientist. When encountering someone - human or alien - he will watch and observe for a while before engaging in normal conversation. He thinks before he speaks, even among friends, except when he is talking about his favorite sport, cricket. Powers Dr. Gupta is a normal human without powers. He is a repository of knowledge of all things alien. Appearance Dr. Gupta will typically be wearing the white jumpsuit that is in common use on the S.A.G.E. orbital facility where he is both a scientist and the facility director. On the ground, he favors the sweater-and-dockers academic look. Click Here for Dr. Gupta's Character Sheet Dr. Monica Torentino Background During the 'Beast of Waldestatte' incident in Lucerne, S.A.G.E. sought the help of top notch veterinarian, Dr. Monica Torentino. The Beast terrorized the city on the lake and had caused severed damage to the bridge as well as several other structures, but while many people were injured, luckily no fatalities had occurred. The S.A.G.E. field team, with the help of Steppenwolf, was unable to capture the Beast, but did drive it into the forest. The Beast would surely still be a threat at any time. The German hero led S.A.G.E. to Dr. Torentino, a well-reputed veterinarian with whom he had consulted a year prior. Monica Torentino, Steppenwolf, and Troubleshooter tracked, and then observed the Beast over a period of a week. The veterinarian determined the beast to have some relation to bears and announced that she would attempt to capture the beast. Although backed up by the superheroes, Dr. Torentino was able to pacify and then lull the Beast to sleep. She tamed and then trained the Beast, who is now the pet of Steppenwolf. Personality Not one to fuss about blood or dirt, Dr. Torentino cares about all animals. While this sometimes seems to be too much caring, she does value human life - especially the lives of innocents - more than that of animals even rare animals. While she is not afraid of field work and often will go in harm's way if a paranormal animal is involved, she knows that she needs protection and trusts that job to superheroes. Powers Dr. Torentino is a normal human without powers. She is one of the world's foremost experts on creatures and especially creatures that are of supernatural, alien, or uber nature. Appearance Dr. Torentino is seen almost always in safari style clothes: khaki pants, khaki short sleeved shirt, an olive green web belt with pouches and a canteen, leather boots, and Legionnaire style hat. The only times that she's not in such attire is in the operating room (where she wears a light green oversuit) and when she is on a date (when she wears a light cotton blouse and leather boots). Click Here for Dr. Torentino's Character Sheet Dr. James Running Bear Background On a field expedition to study the Australian Indigenous Peoples' Dream Time, James Running Bear met more than a handful of old men and women, scattered about the continent, that demonstrated some knowledge of mystic abilities. That they were illiterate did not matter to them. They had mysterious and vague control over animals or forces of nature. In the lands of one tribe in the tropics, Monsoon rains would end after the area had absorbed enough water for the year while the rest of the region flooded severely. While the entire outback was scorched and dry through the sunny season, early morning fog bathed the lands of another tribe every morning. Crows which plagued another stretch of outback flew out of the lands of one tribe whenever a gifted elder blew a tune with his didgeridoo. Rituals were important to these elders who ensured that their tribesfolk participated. All-in-all, it reminded Dr. Running Bear of some of the tales that he had heard of Native American tribes back home. So, he paid attention to something that all of these scattered old men and women told him. That a nexus of mystic energy had recently (recently meaning in the here-and-now rather than in Dream Time) formed in the big city. In Melbourne, he found it. It wasn't easy, but it was there. It was at the Hecate Club that Dr. Running Bear became convinced that magic does exist. Personality Quiet and reserved doesn't mean that Dr. Running Bear is unassertive. Rather he takes in the opinions of others and puts them together in a way that makes the most sense to himself. An observer would say that he is a consensus builder. He has found this to work in his study of the myriad of mysticism that he has encountered in the world. Powers Dr. Running Bear is a normal human without powers and can cast no magic himself. However, he likely understands the basis of any magic more deeply and broadly than those who wield arcane powers. Appearance Light tan collared shirts and dark brown pants fill the majority of Dr. Running Bear's wardrobe. He will never be found without his buckskin vest and buckskin moccasins, but wears a wide range of belts and necklaces as suits his task for the day. Click Here for Dr. Running Bear's Character Sheet

Re: Uberworld - Spotlight on S.A.G.E. (Organization) The second set of three. Neil Dr. Lance Westin Background Lance Westin was a social scientist who studied organizational behavior. He was very good at his work and eventually was promoted to C.E.O. in an emerging technology company. Soon after that, it was discovered that his teen daughter was an uber, and genetic testing indicated that his wife also had a dormant ubergene. That was when things spiralled out of control. Dr. Westin's daughter and wife were both kidnapped and the police could not find anything out about the kidnapping. Months passed and no leads came up. The police and FBI agents attached to the case informed him that the likelihood of finding them alive was very low and that they were going to pull back from the case until more information was found. It was then that Dr. Westin was contacted by a team that called themselves S.A.G.E. and were comprised of Dr. Maria Texeira and two others only known as Troubleshooter and Slipstream. His daughter and wife were found by them - dead as a result of experimentation. They showed the evidence to him and revealed that they were investigating an organization that abducted ubergene-positive humans and experimented on them. Dr. Westin joined the investigation and helped reveal Der Kinder and their leader, the malign and still alive Dr. Josef Mengele, now going by the name Vaterschmerz. Troubleshooter asked Dr. Westin to do what was best for humanity - to develop S.A.G.E. into an effective organization that dealt with all aspects of the paranormal from ubergenes to aliens, from the arcane to the advanced. Personality Dr. Westin is more businessman than scientist. Affable and not shy in the least, he can hold his own in any business dealing or conversation. Many a person is caught off guard by his open nature and he can sometimes glean critical information in this manner. Since the death of his daughter and wife at the hands of Der Kinder, he has forsaken his own social life and only socializes when he believes it is important for the mission of S.A.G.E. He sees S.A.G.E. and himself as guardian of the Earth as a whole - in many ways, humanity is his adopted family. Powers Dr. Westin is a normal human without powers. He does poses a wide array of worldwide contacts and has a firm grasp on administrative and business skills. His technical expertise relevant to the mission of S.A.G.E. is a keen knowledge of organizations and especially those organizations involved in the paranormal. Appearance Dr. Westin always dresses in an Armani suit and tie - the color and patterns may be different, but he always dresses as if he might meet with someone important at any particular time. He also keeps his gray hair trimmed neatly and shaves his face cleanly as well. Click Here for Dr. Westin's Character Sheet Dr. Topa Ga-Gan Background "There it is," he said. His hand lifted, index finger pointing into the night sky to a place where a faint star many parsecs distant was outshone by other more brilliant or closer stars. The night air felt thick, but Topa Ga-Gan was glad that the fog had not come in. That would have spoiled his night. The tall Earthling patted the Pi-Pol scientist on the shoulders, knowing what his alien friend was feeling - not being able to see his family. But Lance Westin did not say anything. He allowed Topa his time and just listened as the technologist described how he had come to Earth. Roughly 10 years earlier "Always the fringe barbarians send out their scouts seeking worlds to dominate or plunder. Perhaps one day the barbarians will cease their attempts at expansion, but the Central Council does not see that day coming within this century. Worlds lie in peril of being overwhelmed by technology more advanced than they themselves have." Golu Ke-Kor spread his arms over the edges of known space shown in the hologram, then he brought them to his waist and slid them up and down in the typical gesture that indicated thoughts of something that must be done, but can be done only along with something that is unpleasant. "As you know, the top tier of university graduates are selected for training in positions of great responsibility to the Councils of the Union or similar positions for the Pi-Pol High Table." Topa Ga-Gan shifted in his chair. He was among the brightest stars of his graduating class, but his abilities placed him just outside of the top tier. Still, this was Golu Ke-Kor, First Chancellor of Pi-Pol - the most important person in Pi-Pol's three worlds. It always puzzled Topa why it was that a mere member of Pi-Pol's fourteen representatives to the Councils of the Union addressed the Top Tier while the First Chancellor addressed the Second Tier. Perhaps he would be enlightened today regarding that discrepancy. Sure enough, as Golu Ke-Kor spoke, Ga-Gan knew why, "Every year, each of the nations of the Union must send ten volunteers to the Star Service. Now, I'm quite certain that none of you have heard of it. Yet, it is one of the most important departments of the Union's External Diplomatic Council. Did any of you ever wonder why it was that the expansion of such fringe nations such as the Empire of Skellaria or the F'plrara Confederations, as powerful as they might be, was so slow?" Having taken but a single course of History and Politics, Ga-Gan had not thought of this before. And from looking about the room at the other twenty in the room, he wasn't the only one that just realized what it was the Golu Ke-kor was about to say. Interestingly, he noticed that about half of the Second Tier graduates were, like himself, wiggling their light spots - a sign of acceptance and anticipation. The First Chancellor smiled seeing the same expressions that Pi-Pol saw. And, as the Earthlings are so fond of saying, 'the rest was history'. Personality Dr. Ga-Gan still follows the directive given him - to assist the people of Earth that they survive and prosper to hopefully one day join the Union of Civilized Worlds. At night he can be seen outside, wistfully looking at the stars. If someone is present, he will point out his homeworld. Powers Dr. Ga-Gan is a normal Pi-Pol without powers. He has amassed a large amount of knowledge of how things work, especially things that are used by superhumans such as weapons, vehicles, armor, sensors, and other gadgets both of technological and magical origins. Appearance With wispy crimson hair and thin yellow eyes, Dr. Ga-Gan appears to be a typical Pi-Pol. Those who know, will look for a pair of five tiny light sensory organs, similar to those seen on spiders and certain other Earth animals, in a line where humans normally have eyebrows. The skin, under magnification lacks hair follicles and appears more scaly as well. However, under normal circumstances, it is not difficult for a Pi-Pol to blend into Earth society. Dr. Ga-Gan prefers to wear a blue jumpsuit when working, and a variety of Earth casual clothes when he is not. Click Here for Dr. Ga-Gan's Character Sheet Dr. Annika Heyerdahl Background While on a dig at an ancient Phoenician town in Southern Turkey, Dr. Annika Heyerdahl was approached by Lance Westin and the S.A.G.E. Field Team. What they had in their flying car's trunk intrigued her. Clay tablets that appeared ancient bore eroded hieroglyphs. It took her two nights of intense work to translate their contents. Prophesy. Nearly all matched events that had happened in the beginning of the 21st century and appeared chronologically. At the bottom of the tablet were two last prophecies. The first: "The priesthood of Set will arise once again." The second: "The red god will awaken and rule his kingdom once again." Had further information not accompanied the tablets, she might have put it in the same category as the 'prophecies' of Nostradamus - vague and largely subject to interpretation. But, Dr. Westin presented her with evidence that a woman mage was calling herself 'Nephthys' and was re-creating the priesthood of Set. Furthermore, the tablets were stolen by the S.A.G.E. Field Team from mysterious men in what were described to be priestly robes, belts, and bracelets. Without hesitation, Annika said "Yes" to Dr. Westin's question. Personality The only woman to be in charge of a S.A.G.E. facility (the Angkor Wat facility), Dr. Heyerdahl is a strong advocate of woman's rights. She is by no means an ultra-feminist, but does try to mentor women who have talent and potential. At the same time, she gets along well with her male colleagues and sometimes will even seem to treat male colleagues and underlings with less criticism (or expectation) than the females. Powers Dr. Heyerdahl is a normal human without powers. One of the world's top archeologists, she has a vast knowledge of ancient languages and cultures. Appearance When not in the field, Dr. Heyerdahl wears fashionable clothing appropriate to the event of the day or evening. While doing archeological work she will wear white pants with multiple pockets and a short sleeved khaki shirt. She will often also have a white 'pith helmet' style hat, field goggles, and a bandana which is easily donned when there is significant dust as is often the case at digs. Click Here for Dr. Heyerdahl's Character Sheet

Hi, I'll be posting write-ups for the Uberworld organization that serves as consultants to law enforcement teams and superhero teams that need advice regarding supervillains. Here is the team background and the first three members. Artwork by Ben (Tribe) and KL Wilson. Neil S.A.G.E. is committed to safeguarding the people of Earth from the entire range of paranormal threats including those of alien, ubergenetic, mystical, artificial intellingence, transdimensional, and high technological origins. Because of their limited budget and personnel, their mission does not include intervention in every threat. The major role of S.A.G.E. is to provide knowledge resources for international, national, regional, and local law enforcement and counter-espionage agencies as well as known superhero teams. In addition to outsourcing expertise, SAGE also fields a small team of top level investigators who can be tasked with neutralizing paranormal problems around the world. SAGE obtains their current funds from information sales, artifact analytical services contracts, and the Field Team services calls. Organization Background: In an investigation into the disappearance of her patients, Dr. Maria Texeira sought the help of the Troubleshooter. They found Volante diColico, one of her patients, and a wind-power uber in her grandparents castle, a part of which had been secretly outfitted as a superhero base in the case that Volante ever decided to become one. After the trio tracked down Kinder der Zukunft and shut down their base in Buenos Aires, they decided that the world needed safeguarding against malign powers such as the Kinder. They found Lance Westin, a prominent businessman whose wife and daughter had been kidnapped and slain in an experiment conducted by the Kinder. He agreed to set up the organization known as Superhuman Arcane, Genetic, and Extraterrestrial Investigators (now known just as S.A.G.E.). Lance Westin is the President of S.A.G.E. as well as the expert on paranormal organizations and the Chief Administrator of the Area 51 Facility. Dr. Sandeep Gupta is the Chief Administrator of the S.A.G.E. Satellite Facility and the expert on aliens. Dr. Annika Heyerdahl is the Chief Administrator of the S.A.G.E. Angkor Wat Facility and the expert on ancient and lost civilizations. Dr. James Running Bear is the Chief Administrator of the Stonehenge Facility and the arcane knowledge expert. The other experts are: Dr. Maria Texeira (paranormal medicine), Dr. Topa Ga-Gan (paranormal equipment), Dr. Ibrahim Al-Hazeem (paranormal psychology and mentalism), Dr. Monica Torentino (paranormal veterinarian), and Dr. Toshio Tokada (ubergenetics). The S.A.G.E. Field Team is the Troubleshooter (leader), Slipstream, and Cyberna. Dr. Maria Texeira Background Dr. Maria Texeira was once known as a pediatrician to the sons and daughters of the wealthy of Western Europe. Her clients were impressed by her skills and knowledge and were grateful for the extremes that she went through to keep their confidentiality and privacy. The confidentiality that she kept was such that, except for her clients, very few people knew that her patients were all uber children. Nearly all the children she saw had the ubergene, a few even manifested uber powers early in their development. Those children that did not have the ubergene were affected by supernatural powers. Only two children fit neither of these categories: one child was alien, the other Atlantean. Dr. Texeira was annotating notes late one night when a team of ubers, part of Kinder der Zukunft, broke into her office. She was hurled against the wall as they stole the hard disk drives of her computers and the file cabinet. Determining that her concussion was not critical, she set about looking for help in finding the perpetrators. One by one, her patients began to disappear - abducted by superhumans by some reports. Knowing that they spoke German, she set about her investigation in Germany, hiring a pair of private investigators. No lead came up until a woman came to her hotel room. The woman gave her a packet of file folders and a business card. The cover letter attached to the packet told her who her benefactor was - the Simon Weisenthal Center - and who she was looking for - the infamous Doctor Josef Mengele. The business card told of who would be able to help her - a man known only as the Troubleshooter. With the help of the Troubleshooter, Dr. Texeira was able to find one of her patients, Volante diColico, who had survived an abduction attempt by the Kinder although her family did not. Using the equipment purchased and cared for by Volante's family, the trio were able to track the Kinder to Buenos Aires and closed that operation down for good... at least for a while. It was then that they formed the paranormal investigation team known as S.A.G.E. Personality Dr. Texeira was once a very career-minded pediatrician. Since her encounter with the Kinder, however, her perspective on the role of the physician has changed. She prefers to stop problems before they happen. Some times she takes a little too much on her self and might delay in calling people who can handle certain problems better than she can. Powers Dr. Texeira is a normal human without powers. She is highly knowledgeable regarding medical care of superhumans; quite possibly she is the world's expert on the topic. Appearance Never having cared much for white lab coats, Dr. Texeira likes to wear simple solid-colored blouses with matching pants while on duty. She does, however, see the utility in keeping a stethescope, otoscope, and tongue depressors handy. Off duty, she wears much the same thing, except for the blouse, which usually is decorated with some sort of pattern. Click Here for Dr. Texeira's Character Sheet Troubleshooter Background German food was never very pleasing to the palate, at least not like Italian or French food, but that was the fare served here nonetheless. The rabbit smelled good, but nearly any meat did lightly seasoned and turned on a spit. The potato medallions were smothered with gravy, too. The scenery improved things a bit. Fishing boats and personal craft flittered either in or out of Kiel harbor dwarfed by the huge transports and tankers that moved with a seriousness that reflected their size. Several gray and white seagulls turned lazy circles over the water or dove, searching for meals; others hovered above the dining area, screeing to beg diners for morsels. Occasionally, someone relented and tossed a piece of bread or potato, causing a convergence of greedy gulls to dive and grab. But, it was the company made dinner actually pleasurable. A lovely woman sat across him. Her pretty face was framed with brown hair; she wore a violet cotton blouse and deeper violet slacks. Pete regretted that this was a business dinner. Maria Texeira's watched as he scraped the gravy off of his potatoes. Was it approval that he saw? Well, he didn't need her approval anyway, the gravy was surely filled with heated fat - definitely not good for his health. "Here are the documents, Mr. Ve - Pete," the doctor said, handing him a large envelope and a sheet of paper. "As I mentioned, my patients all have the ubergene. Most of them are dormant, however. And here is a list of the ones that are missing." "Ummmhmm," Pete replied. He shuffled through the papers then backed up a few sheets. "Mengele? Is that bastard still alive?... Pardon my language, ma'am." "It appears so." She took a delicate bite of a piece of chicken and continued, "And I sent a note to warn another patient, Volante diColico, but I fear that I may be too late. Her powers are already manifest - she is the daughter of the Italian superhero Tempest and has the potential to be more powerful than he - but she has tried to live a normal life and disdains using them. Should this Mengele's group be able to subvert her..." "I see. It's like Patty Hearst, but worse. Definitely trouble," Pete said after wolfing down a few medallions. The sound of the blades of a helicopter and the screech of car tires caught his ears. He stood up and with a single motion put his well used leather jacket on. "Yeah, I'll help you out with that bit. Wait here. Trouble's coming. But I'll be back." Running through the parking lot, Pete leaped into the air, vaulted from the roof of the parked van on the side of the street, and landed on the roof of the speeding car - a black limousine. The helicopter kept pace with the car, a chain ladder trailing underneath it. Two men jumped the short distance from the end of the ladder and onto the car. The roof was suddenly getting crowded with the Troubleshooter, a huge man that looked like the angriest Hells Angel in the world, and a golden-skinned man in a toga. The latter pointed at the Troubleshooter and yelled, "You stay out of this. This is between Sterling and Wolfhausfinanzen. "Can I take him, Midas?" asked the large biker man as he closed towards his prey. "Yeah. Sure, Rage, sure. I think I've seen him on TV before. He's a goody two-shoes," Midas replied. He pulled his arms back and broke through the roof of the limo. With time being critical the Troubleshooter took a hard punch thrown by Rage and allowed it to glance off his left shoulder. He knew that the man must be an uber; the blow felt like it nearly dislocated his arm! As he rolled his body away from the punch, he leaped onto the big man's shoulders locking his right arm around the angry man's thick neck. The pressure choke seemed to be working, the large man faltered on his feet briefly. As the golden man retrieved a man from the limousine, he called out to his partner, "I've got Wesser. Let's get back up." The hostage in his grasp, Midas signalled the pilot and began climbing up the ladder. When Rage recovered his senses, he threw the choker up and off him with a roar. The Troubleshooter twisted in mid-air and caught the ladder as he fell, just in time. With Midas and the man nearly half way up and Troubleshooter on the bottom of the ladder, the helicopter began to rise. Rage leaped, missing the climbing Troubleshooter's foot, but catching the bottom of the ladder. Midas quickly reached the helicopter's bay and went in, holding Wesser firmly. His struggles became weaker as his muscles began to stiffen and his skin began to change to a golden-metallic hue. With Midas and his captive securely in, the pilot pushed the craft into a bobbing and weaving motion through the city hoping to force the Troubleshooter off. But both he and Rage held on, despite the whipping of the ladder to and fro. On one such whip, Troubleshooter, grabbed a handhold on the side of helicopter and then punched the hull beneath the visible rotor housing. It was all Rage could do to just hold on, even bashed against a building wall. But, the Troubleshooter had a task ahead of himself and found what he was looking for. He tugged at the hose and then at a set of cables. The rotor continued to spin, but began to slow. The downdraft of wind generated by the blades began to diminish. Sensing this from the feedback of the joystick, the pilot tried to steady the craft and managed to bring it into a screeching skid across the roof of a building. Tar and gravel flew and the landing skids turned red as the metal heated from friction. The Troubleshooter launched himself, catching the semi-metallic man who was thrown from the bay of the skidding helicopter. Rage was thrown, too, and landed with a thud against a vent. The helicopter's skid ended as it plowed through the low stone edge of the building and fell. After several seconds, a loud SPLASH! signaled what had happened to the craft. A golden hand held onto the crumbling edge of the building. Against his better judgement, the Troubleshooter walked over there and saw Midas clinging on as bits of rubble dropped, causing small splashes in the water below. The golden man pleaded, "please, I surrender. Help me up, man." "OK, then," the Troubleshooter replied. He grasped the free hand of Midas and pulled him up onto the roof. With an evil smile, Midas tightened his grip on the hero. "I've got you right where I want you. You will make another beautiful addition to my collection. I am Midas the Golden, and I CAN have it all." A momentary panic went through Pete's mind as he saw his hand, and then his arm, begin to turn to gold. Panic had no place in this, though, and would not help. He turned, and with his other arm forced Midas into a painful wrist lock. "I'm going to put you out for good, little man!" Rage said as he crushed the vent and stood up. The large man rushed, thinking to sandwich the Troubleshooter between himself and Midas. Turning Midas's wrist, the Troubleshooter directed the golden man into the path of his fellow T.I.T.A.N. Off balance from the suddenly changed target, Rage pulled his fist back, but could not stop his momentum. Midas flashed an look of deep anger at the angry German as the two plummeted over the edge of the building and into the water. The Troubleshooter looked at his hand as it began to look more fleshy and less like precious metal. He waved to the news helicopter that had been watching the action. Hopefully, even if they didn't understand English, they could see that there was someone that needed help. He brought the man to a sitting position and said, "Glad to see you're alive, sir, even if not kicking. Just listen to the doctors and you'll be better in no time." The helicopter landed and a man someone stepped down, microphone in hand. The Troubleshooter looked over the edge of the building. A thin warbling wail could be heard in the distance rising in volume as it approached. He turned and leaped from the roof and said, "there's a fire engine's siren. That means trouble..." Falling... it was ten stories now and the air threatened to force him to lose control of his body angle and direction. He kicked out against the large gargoyle slowing his fall, but only slightly, and pushing him across the street. He fell another twelve stories before he reached the opposite side of the street, grabbing the flagpole of the large black building. He spun about the pole two-and-a-half times, changing downward velocity to angular velocity and slowing his descent. From the rise of his third swing, he changed the direction of his fall to be parallel to the building now. Six more stories and the Troubleshooter landed on the blue and white vinyl awning, rebounding into a backflip to land once again at the edge of the awning. Kicking off the pole that supported the awning, he vaulted over one lane of traffic and then landed on the back of the fire engine. He took a look at the smoke and fire that he could see emanating from a brick building two blocks away. Smiling at the firemen, Pete pointed at their flame-retardant suits and asked, "do you have a spare that I can use?" He hoped that Maria Texeira was a patient doctor. It might be another hour. There was trouble... Personality First he was known in Miami as the contractor to contact if something needed to be done right and done now. Soon, he was the man on the spot anyone who needed emergency help in the state of Florida. Never one to turn down a cry for help, Pete Vega gained a reputation as a troubleshooter who would solve any problem in the world. From disaster relief to stopping supercrime, he responded to calls of distress. For the most part, he will take care of problems thriving on the adrenaline and enjoying the satisfaction of helping people. It is both his biggest strength and his biggest weakness. Powers He's done practically everything once in his lifetime. In doing so, Troubleshooter has built up a large repertoire of skills. In combat, he will let Cyberna hold the front and Slipstream cover anyone that gets through. Troubleshooter likes to go after the head honcho himself using Drunken Clown Kung Fu. Appearance Handsome in a rugged way, Troubleshooter is compared more to Charles Bronson or Sean Connery than to Cary Grant or Roger Moore. He's been through a lot and has the scars to show it. Because trouble always seems to happen, he doesn't dress any differently on a mission or on leisure. Black jeans that seem stone washed, but are just well used, are finished with a brown leather belt with stainless steel buffalo buckle and brown leather boots. His collared shirt (sans tie) is often covered by a well used black leather jacket. Click Here for Troubleshooter's Character Sheet Slipstream Background In the halls of Villa Vento Leggero sounds had a way of carrying through the hallways bouncing off the 18th century cold, hard stone walls. Light bootsteps that would normally be absorbed by wood or concrete instead sent faint non-rhythmic tapping noises through the night. Still it was difficult for Volante to discern if the bootsteps were getting nearer or farther. There was too much echoing. Nonetheless, she knew that it wasn't her grandfather Donato, her grandmother Isabella, or her mama Olivia. By her watch, she could tell that it was two fifteen in the morning. Her mind sluggishly became alert, a difficult task at this time of night only two hours after she went to sleep - two hours after she had extinquished her pine-scented oil lamp. Voices - nearly crisp enough to be military - joined the echoing bootsteps. "Mein HUD diagramm zeigt, dab ihr raum hinunter die halle rechts ist... Erinnern sie sich, Vater wünscht sie lebendig - sie ist dochter des Tempesta." Tempesta. That name sent a surge of adrenaline through Volante enough to bring her to full alertness. Tempesta. The name that was not spoken in this household. The name used by the father that she had never met. The name of the playboy supervillain who was only her father by biology. She knew the tale. Mama had told her a few times. She fumbled around for a light switch that did not exist. This was a castle built before electricity was common. And none of the Conte diColico since then saw fit to have any installed. Even Grandfather preferred it to be 'rustic'. Volante jumped out of bed. She knew how to navigate the castle in the dark having done so many times to leave this boring place. "Ja," echoed another voice. "Nehmen sie das mädchen. Die anderen können sterben." It sounded German - harsh and stern - quite unlike the rolling, flowing sound of Italian. Volante slipped out of the door only to hear Grandfather's stern voice. "What dogs dare invade Villa Vento Leggero unannounced and uninvited?!" A lantern stood on the floor of the hallway bathing her grandfather in the light of a kerosene flame. He stood en guard with his heirloom saber and rushed at three figures in crimson, faces each covered with a bulbous looking thing, and guns up and pointing at Grandfather. Zip-zip-zip. Flooshhhhhh! Flame shot out of the hands of one, bathing the hallway with light and heat. Jagged metal flew from the hand of another invader. And grandfather twisted as metal hit his body and the fire scorched him. Falling, he managed to thrust the tip of his weapon into the gut of one of the invaders. Volante let out a scream, or was about to. Instead her mouth was muffled and four hands were pushing her down the hall. Mama and Grandmother. Halfway down the hall, the three women stopped. Mama fumbled with something. The complete blackness of night in the castle was punctured cleanly by a pair of thin red lines that may not have even been visible except for the dust that was stirred up by the three women running through the halls. At the ends of the lines were red dots that danced upon the bodies of the three women. "Nicht das mädchen... Passen sie ihr ziel, Zwei." "Passen sie ihre selbst, Drei. Ich weib, was ich tue." This time there was no sound, but Volante glimpsed a flash from a pair of eyes in the dark and broad beams of harsh red light swept across the hallway. Volante was pushed through the wall - a wall that was not there - by the force of the light beam - a laser? - and pain seared her chest. She heard more than saw Mama's and Grandmother's bodies fall. Curiously, the slight breeze that she had felt earlier suddenly stopped. She heard no other sounds now except for her own labored breathing. Standing was difficult but she did so. And she went back to the hall to help her family. But there was a wall. Confused and light-headed, she heard the voices again - faint as if a kilometer away, "Wo das mädchen ist?" "Ich weib nicht, Ein. Sie... verschwand." "Sie wissen, dab sie wahrscheinlich energien wie ihr vater hat." "Suchen sie den rest des schlosses." Bootsteps echoed again, but Volante was certain that they were going away now. Were there secret passages in Villa Vento Leggero? She was getting tired and losing blood quickly since the charred skin on her chest had broken and began bleeding. If she couldn't save her family, Volante wanted to just lie down on anything but the cold hard floor. She staggered through a door and found a bed to lie on. She shivered with the cold even on this warm summer night and blacked out. It amazed her that she awoke. It amazed her even further that, aside from the hunger, she felt quite normal. If it weren't for the strangely high tech-looking bed that she lay on which was quite out of place for this old castle, Volante might have thought that everything was a bad nightmare. The faint LED lights given off by the bed was strong enough for her to see about the room. There was a switch on the wall near the door where a light switch was usually found in modern houses, but the switch seemed a bit odd. Still, she pushed it. Faint clicking pulsed through the walls then the room and the hall outside lit up from numerous recessed oil lamps in the walls. Curious, she walked through the hall. There was a place on the wall just outside the room where she knew that she came through - a secret door. But there was no apparent way to open it. The machine should be able to heal her family. How could she get to them? Volante banged her fists on the wall, "Open damn wall. Open." A green light flashed twice. Upon further inspection, a label next to the light read 'biometric identity confirmation'. And the door opened. She rushed out into the hallway, pulling Mama and Grandmother onto the bed of the Autodoc. Then she went to carry in Grandfather. All three were cold. And Volante's heart fell out when the panel of the Autodoc read 'patient deceased, resuscitation impossible'. Volante's eyes watered and tears flowed freely. 'Love yourself, love your family and friends, and love the good in all people' said Grandmother. Volante loved her family greatly, but still spent most of her time jetsetting around the world with her playboy friends. 'Time was not something that one could take back' said Mama. She knew that she had powers, but avoided the training that her family wanted for her. 'Responsibility and privelege go hand in hand' said Grandfather. Why couldn't she have just lived her life? Why did her family have to die for that? "A tutto c'è rimedio, fuorchè alla morte." She muttered. Then added, "Chi non fa, non falla." Buenos Aires, Argentina - a month later In the air above the mansion, Volante rode the gentle, but firm wind summoned by her. As it rose past her, she turned it downward toward the mansion, a breeze to fan the flames that engulfed the compound. To burn the house of the vermin down. Smoke filled the air, crackling tinder added to the cacaphony of shouts. The Kinder fled - leaping or flying over the walls, or running through the gates. The factory that produced the fanatical ubers was dying a hot death. It felt both good and bad to Volante - Slipstream was her code name now. Revenge was fulfilled, but there was still the emptiness of the loss of her family. She remembered what the man told her as he hung out of Ariamachina, "We will flush them out like rats out of a burning field. Dr. Texeira and the police will capture many of them, some will escape. I will be trying to help them, too, but my job is to find whoever is behind this. "Just keep fanning the flames and don't worry about me being in the middle of it. They don't call me the Troubleshooter for nothing." He looked her in the eyes then turned his eyes downward to the compound looking for a good place to land. "And remember, vengeance won't be the end all. You're not that type. Peace doesn't come this way. You've got to get that by yourself." At the time, perhaps ten minutes ago, she watched the man leap and fall, grabbing the branches of a tree before he perished by hitting the ground. He slid down the trunk then was lost amidst the shrubbery. And Volante didn't really understand what he meant. Not then, but now she did. Revenge felt something like eating just a small bit of gelato. Personality Once a fun-loving playgirl born to a wealthy family, Volante avoided responsibility and failed to take the path that her family had desired - to become a superhero. When her family was killed when the Kinder sought to capture Volante, she could only feel hatred and regret. The Volante of now is neither of these and both. She is adventurous, looking for challenges and doing daring things. Not even she knows whether this is due to the persona of the fun-loving girl or the persona of the woman who has nothing to lose. She can't present anything but a serious demeanor to those she doesn't know. But with her teammates and others of S.A.G.E., she will often tease them with jokes or cajole them lightheartedly if they make an error. Powers Volante, as her father Tempesta, is a wind controller. She surrounds herself closely with high speed winds which buffer physical blows and diffuse energy attacks as well as propel her through the air. She can dampen or assist the flight of others, or strike with blasts of air. Appearance Slipstream wears blue and gold, the colors favored by the diColico family. The costume is wide at the cuffs and elegant with a large cape. Because of the wind control leakage, her long brown hair and her cape always seem to be moving as if in a gentle breeze. Click Here for Slipstream's Character Sheet

Crimson Spider Lin Kuei - Chinese 'ninja' clan Here are a clan of assassins operating out of the forests of China. They are: Master Hu, known as Master Spider Shadowspinner - evil 'twin' of the Immortals' Dog; and his shadow assassins The Spider's Fangs - assassin agents Art by Ben (Tribe) Neil Crimson Spider Lin Kuei The Crimson Spider Lin Kuei was founded by an aspiring and ambitious student of one of the top Kung Fu masters in China. To avenge the humiliation that he suffered, he practiced long and hard at techniques that were stealthy and deadly. After slaying the master and the majority of the students of the school, the founder established his own school dedicated to the art of assassination. The first of such schools, followers of the Crimson Spider school worked hard at eliminating competition. By the end of the 19th century, the Crimson Spider was the only lin kuei clan. However, at the same time, competition from other assassin and mercenary organizations began to increase. For the past half century, Crimson Spider has had at least one uber as part of the clan. The uber, at this time, Shadowspinner, is selected for abilities that make for super-assassins and raised from childhood as part of the clan. Master Spider Background Hu Sei was an accomplished Lin Kuei of the Spider's Fang. He was one of the top three students of the clan when the thirty second Master Spider died of a heart attack. Following the Rites of Leadership, a tome centuries old written by the Founder of the Crimson Spider, the Contest ensued. The three who qualified to become the thirty-third Master Spider set about their self-given missions - each to assassinate a powerful enemy of the Clan. Upon his return from the assassination of an uber called Golden Dragon who was working for the Red Army, Sei was ambushed by his chief rival, who had himself failed his assassination mission. The two battled high above the Yellow River's Lung Fung Gorge. While his rival was the more wily of the two, Sei was by far the better at the basics of An Ch'i. And eventually, he struck his opponent in the temple with a thrown coin, giving him a concussion. Hu Sei has been Master Spider for the past thirty years and has been both a knowledgeable teacher and a wise master. Personality Master Spider brooks no disobedience or dishonor from his students of the Crimson Spider Lin Kuei. He will not harshly punish failure in a mission, but will be certain that a student has learned from his mistakes before giving him or her another mission. He rarely is seen excited even when he is elated or severely disappointed. Powers Although age is beginning to slow him down, Master Spider is still the most knowledgeable expert at An Ch'i and Lin Kuei. However, as with many other masters of Chinese martial arts, he will usually let his underlings take care of things. His primary role is as a planner, governor, and teacher. Appearance An old man of small stature, Master Spider has an air of both defiance and calm. He wears a simple faded red loose long pants, a white robe, and sandals. Click Here for the Character Sheet Shadowspinner Background Jiang Bai's shadow control powers became evident early in his life. The Crimson Spider Lin Kuei found out about this, slew his parents, and adopted him into their clan. His powers worked well with his assassin training allowing Shadowspinner to be one of the most feared assassins in the world. On a mission to assassinate a wealthy industrialist, Shadowspinner found himself in the middle of a golf course on a cloudy day. With no other source of shadow, he attempted to form a shadow assassin out of his own shadow. But being so closely connected with the shadow, Bai found himself splitting in twain. He wrestled to merge the duplicates of himself back together, but to no avail. One of the pair was more sinister than the original Bai, the other less so. In an effort to preserve its integrity the 'better' Bai opened up a door to the shadow dimension and fled. The 'more evil' Bai found that it had lost the power to enter the shadow dimension and, thus, could not pursue his twin. This Bai remained a part of the Crimson Spider - still one of the most feared assassins in the world. The other Bai wavered between doing things for himself and doing things to help others. When the Immortals were re-formed, he joined as Dog. Personality A loyal member of the Crimson Spider, Shadowspinner is a vile assassin. He is a sarcastic smart aleck with a biting wit and he lives for the kill. After having split himself (and weakened himself) once he avoids using his own shadow as a source for Shadow Assassins. Powers Shadowspinner is an expert at An Ch'i and Lin Kuei. That he can manipulate shadows makes him an incredibly effective assassin. He can create a web of shadow to ensnare his victims and he can create shadow assassins to slay them. Bai Shadowspinner's access to the Shadow Dimension is a lot more limited than Bai Dog's, but he can still travel short distances through shadow. Appearance Shadowspinner wears typical Crimson Spider Lin Kuei garb - loose fitting deep crimson coveralls with a spider symbol on the left breast and a black veil covering the nose and mouth. To stand out, Shadowspinner also wears a short black cloak, and, instead of crimson, he has black gloves and boots. Click Here for the Character Sheet Shadow Assassins Background Shadowspinner is able to manipulate shadows and cause them to take a three-dimensional form that he calls his Shadow Assassins. Personality While the Shadow Assassins are loyal to Shadowspinner, they often balk at targets if they might be exposed to light. Powers Made of shadow, they are difficult to kill. Their main vulnerability is to light of nearly all sorts. When attacked by light, they are rather fragile. Appearance They look like nearly featureless, but three-dimensional shadows. Click Here for the Character Sheet Spider's Fangs Background The Spider's Fangs are students of Crimson Spider Lin Kuei raised from early teens with rigorous training. Their loyalty to their clan and their art is unwavering and they are prepared to die to complete their missions of death. Personality Serious practictioners in the art of killing, the Spider's Fangs do not partake in frivolity. In combat, they are often quiet except for an occasional shout when they might focus their Ch'i in a violent manner. Powers The Spider's Fangs lin kuei are knowledgeable in the art of An Ch'i. The Crimson Spider An Ch'i is similar to Kung Fu in many ways, but also has some techniques for throwing of nearly any object to deadly effect. In some instances, a Spider's Fang assassin will dip the object in a vial of poison before throwing it. Appearance They wear typical Crimson Spider Lin Kuei garb - loose fitting deep crimson coveralls with a spider symbol on the left breast and a black veil covering the nose and mouth. Their heads are shaven except for a long queue tail. Click Here for the Character Sheet

Fuchi-no-Kuroi: cyberninja clan Hi, Here is Fuchi-no-Kuroi (Dark Pool), a ninja clan who specialize in technological espionage. Art by Ben (Tribe), Zen Fairborn, and KL Wilson. Neil Background: Fuchi-no-Kuroi traces its roots to the Tokai ninja clan that dominated the southern part of Japan until the Tokugawa Shogunate. In 1956, a man known only as Tokai Ichiro left his position at Oshiro Electronics and gathered to him other members of the Tokai clan. Japan was becoming a dominant force in worldwide manufacturing. A booming democracy, no longer were there strict controls on certain groups. The Tokai went back to their heritage and established the Fuchi-no-Kuroi, or Dark Pool, ninja clan. Tokai Ichiro stressed the importance of technology to the clan. He himself was suffering from both emphysema and diabetes and had replaced parts of his body with transistor electronic-mechanical components. Conflict fueled the coffers of the Dark Pool. The cold war and other political upheaval around the world brought in contracts. Information was sold dearly and the Tokai had always been good at obtaining information. The new electronics only helped this. The end of the Cold War marked another era. This was the era in which the Dark Pool clan would begin its rise to prominence. The iron hand of communist rule loosened, ethnic and religious strife ensued in Eastern Europe as well as in other nations that had allied themselves with the Soviet Union. Satellite technology made possible better worldwide communications and surveillance. And then, the internet came into being. It is an information age now. And technology has allowed a small, minor ninja clan to become the first mercenary group that people contact when they need information or when they need to gain access to electronically guarded targets. Tokai Ichiro is the clan chief. Known now as Cyber-One has replace most of his limbs and organs with cybernetic parts which are far superior to the transistor and hydraulics systems that he originally used. The ninja of the clan are known as Mitsugo, or Secret Whispers, as they are expert in computer technology and electronic security systems. Fuchi-no-Kuroi can not recruit and train ninja quickly enough to carry out all the contracts that are forwarded to them, so they supplement the Mitsugo with Haganeiro ninja robots. Finally, a Mitsugo was found to have powers derived from his ubergene. E-Space can interact with the electronic world of cyberspace just as well as the physical world, and can 'inhabit' any machine that has a computer chip in it. Cyber-One Background Tokai Ichiro was born to a poor family. His father worked long hours at an automobile factory; his mother did the same at a tea house. They earned enough to put their only son through college. When he graduated with a degree in engineering and vowed that he would not be poor. When his father died of a heart attack, Ichiro opened a box that his father had kept hidden in a closet. That was when he learned of his ancestry. He had always assumed that his family, like many others had made the transition from poor, hardworking farmers to poor, hardworking industrial laborers during the Meiji rein. Instead, his family's history was very different than the norm. They were descended from ninja. Specifically, he was the direct descendent of the master of the Tokai ninja clan of southern Japan. Having acrued a small fortune, Ichiro left his job at Oshiro Electronics and began researching. Within a few years, he had found several descendents of Tokai clan families of which twenty six were both physically fit and psychologically willing to renew the clan. Many of the new clan, which called themselves Fuchi-no-Kuroi (Dark Pool), had some knowledge in technology. So the clan naturally gravitated towards technological espionage. They immediately began training themselves and their children in the dark art of taijutsu; some knowledge had been passed on through the generations of Tokai families, other knowledge recovered from scrolls within the box Ichiro's father hid. The driving force, Tokai Ichiro, assumed the position of ninja master. He guided the clan by taking contracts and ensuring their completion, but soon he found that his lifestyle had taken a toll on his body. Battle damage weakened his limbs while emphysema and diabetes degraded his internal organs. Slowly, he stole or purchased bionic parts to replace his organic limbs and organs. As technology progressed, so too were the limits of the parts expanded. Today, he is the powerful cyberninja, Cyber One. Personality Money has kept the Dark Pool Ninja Clan alive and thriving. Tokai Ichiro ensures that this lifeline keeps coming in. At the same time, he feels himself indispensible for Dark Pool and hence places a large amount of importance on his own survival and freedom. Powers Because of cybernetics the ninja master is stronger and faster than he ever was as a natural human. Cyber One has an array of cybernetic equipment that enhances his taijutsu skills and a mini-fusion generator to power it all. Appearance Ichiro would otherwise be an old man by now, but he has periodically rejuvenated his limbs and organs by replacement with cybernetic parts. Most of his body is metallic and appears robotic. With a shaven head and age-lined face, only his head appears human. Click Here for the Character Sheet eSpace Background Jizaburo Fuchiyama was a young boy enamored with the mistaken and idealized image of ninja. He was also an avid computer gamer. Online playing Master of the Shadow IV, his online avatar, Dark Warrior, had found a rich treasure and was zig-zagging back to the town to put it in the bank. But not being a very good computer gamer, Jizaburo's avatar was still of a low level and he had stumbled upon someone else's treasure that was gained from slaying a powerful monster. Dark Warrior was tracked down and found by the group of three high level avatars who had earned the treasure. In the middle of the one-sided battle, Jizaburo had an extremely tortuous headache. And, when he opened his eyes again, he wondered if he was unconscious and dreaming. The landscape above which he flew was surreal. It seemed as if he were traveling through a pipe that branched frequently, and occasionally grew larger or smaller. All about him were sparkles that were in strings - the strings zipping through the pipe going in either the same or the opposite direction. He took a turn and then reached a glowing wall that opened briefly and allowed him through. Then he was into an enormous tube with not sparkling strings, but a pulsing river of brilliance that moved alternately one way and then the opposite way. It sucked him in and he felt... wonderful... wonderful and powerful. He flew through the stream despite its pulsatile flow and then went out another gate. That was enough. He decided that he wanted to wake up. And he did. The headache this time was less painful and quicker. This time when he opened his eyes, he found himself leaning on a traffic signal. He still was in Japan, but from the signs, it seemed like he was several blocks away from home. It took Jizaburo several months to learn how to control his strange and enjoyable powers. At first he just used them to alter points for his avatar in Master of the Shadow IV and then in other games. It was fun for a short time, then he became bored. He went on a crime spree, stealing electronic money then stealing real money using his abilities to bypass security measure. But eventually he was caught by Moon Warrior, Sunshine, and Hawk Rider II of the superhero team, House Hiuma. His trial was held in a specially insulated room with battery powered lights. It seemed certain that he would be sent to a special prison. That was when Cyber One and a team of Dark Pool ninja broke into the room and took Jizaburo with them. Jizaburo has achieved his dream of becoming a ninja and the Dark Pool clan has attained an ideal ninja for their espionage missions. Personality Jizaburo lives to surf the internet. He is an information junkie, but never really uses the information for anything other than satisfying his thirst for web surfing. As a member of the Dark Pool ninja clan, he enjoys the thrill of the hunt - the hunt for restricted data, but detests combat. Powers eSpace is an uber with the ability to perceive electrical signals and rapidly decipher electronic data. He can alter his form from that of a physically tangible human being to electronic data. As electronic data he can travel via wire or even inhabit the body of an electrically-powered or electronically-controlled machine. All but immune to electricity, he is vulnerable to most other attacks and, in fact, must frequently recharge himself with electrical current. In most instances, he will grab data and run, but if he gets into a difficult situation, he will use his powers to use machines to aid his escape. Appearance eSpace wears a typical black ninja igabakama. He would look like any other ninja but for the electric green lines that are scattered about his ninja suit that sometimes seeming to cross over each other, at other times running parallel. In leisure time, he appears to be a young Japanese man wearing jeans, sandals, and a T-shirt that bears the logo of some computer game. Click Here for the Character Sheet Mitsugo Ninja agents Background The Dark Pool has specialized in technological espionage. Their human component is the Mitsugo, or Secret Whispers, ninja who are adept at all manner of electronic and computer manipulations from data theft to security system conversion. Personality Raised from birth to become experts espionage agents, the Mitsugo ninja are efficient and extremely mission oriented. Although they avoid combat and pride themselves at making 'clean' missions, they are willing to die for the success of the mission. Powers These ninja are trained primarily for espionage. They generally avoid combat, but can use their assortment of technoninja equipment or their taijutsu if drawn into a battle. Otherwise they leave the rough stuff to the Haganeiro ninjabots. Appearance The Mitsugo ninja wear traditional ninja suit (igabakama), but with a black and gray urban camouflage pattern. Their bodies are completely covered except for their eyes; their feet are covered by ninja tabi. These ninja also wear harnesses studded with EMP and Seeking Shuriken. Their belt holds a Hackercomp and pouches with deadly transdermal patches. Click Here for the Character Sheet Haganeiro Ninjabot agents Background With the diminishing numbers of human ninja, the Dark Pool obtained a large number of cutting edge robots. The Hageneiro (Blue Steel) ninjabots were specifically created to handle the task of combat while the Mitsugo carry out the espionage missions. Typically, four Haganeiro are commanded by each Mitsugo during a mission. Personality With limited AI capabilities, the Haganeiro are geared primarily for stealth and combat. They have little personality otherwise and have no qualms about killing anyone aside from other members of the Dark Pool. Powers The Haganeiro ninjabots are constructed of tough blue steel alloy and equipped with high efficiency piezo-electric motors. Difficult for normal humans to stop (with or without weapons), they are rather fragile to superhumans. In the latter case, they will fight defensively and make use of numbers. Offensively, they use an assortment of taijutsu attacks as well as their enhanced leaping abilities. Appearance Sleek and deadly, the Haganeiro ninjabots look like blue steel skeletal anthropoid framework with the head wear of a ninja. They rarely stand upright, ready to react they usually are in a high crouch and might remind their opponents of blue praying mantises. Click Here for the Character Sheet