massey

I did a fight scene breakdown for Captain America a while back, using the scene from Winter Soldier in the elevator.  He ended up having something like a 40 Str and an 8 Speed.
 
 

I think there are two different concepts of honor, and we frequently confuse them.
 
Japanese honor is not chivalry.  It's not a matter of following your own internal code and being true to your ideals.  In the Japanese samurai context, honor is reputation.  It's respect.  An honorable warrior is one who people give honors to.  He might be an utter dirtbag in real life, but people perceive him as being great.  He keeps up a good appearance.
 
Personal honor in a modern western context is different.  That's more strength of character kind of thing.  It's the sort of honor you get in a hyper-individualistic society like America, as opposed to the more group-oriented societies of Asia.
 

I think the modern day gives you more opportunities for a secret ID than the 60s or 70s did.  Technology has given us lots of options to work from home.  Most people don't get to set their own hours, leave whenever they want, and still make a good living of course.  But most people don't have superpowers either.
 
I just met a guy last week with a perfect secret ID job.  He's a lawyer and a CPA.  He works from home, sets his own hours, and turns his phone off when he doesn't want to be bothered.  As he was (briefly) describing his business to me, he represents corporations and sets up some kind of tax shelter for them.  Their employees are technically his employees, and he handles all the payroll and taxes for the companies.  Somehow they save a lot of money this way.  I didn't understand it (not my area of practice at all), but just talking to him for two minutes you can tell he's an expert in his field.  Anyway he leaves his phone off most of the morning while he goes to the gym, and if somebody needs to reach him before then, that's their problem not his.  Whatever their problem, he won't be able to fix it immediately and a couple extra hours aren't going to make any difference.  It's an absolutely perfect secret ID.
 
Do most people have that job?  Nope.  But it's also not so weird that people would think he's lying about it.  He just comes across as a smart guy who figured out a way to make a lot of money and still be lazy.
 
Secret IDs also don't really have to be 100% legit.  A modern day take on Superman could have him be an internet blogger and have a small YouTube channel.  It doesn't matter if he has enough followers to make real money, because making truckloads of cash when you have Superman powers is easy.  X-Ray vision could make you a kickass poker and blackjack player (you don't have to get rich, just make enough to get by).  Or before the game began, you busted some drug traffickers and just kinda... kept the money.  That's enough to fund your zero points of wealth, middle class existence for a long time.  After that you just appear to be some Millennial hipster blogger who lives beyond his means and has massive credit card debt.  Make an occasional comment about taking online classes and applying for more student loans, and nobody will even blink.  Say things like "when my YouTube channel takes off, everything will be fine", and "my mom is pressuring me to get a real job, she just doesn't believe in my dream."   The secret ID just has to look normal from the outside.

When I watch that Skin of Evil episode, I inevitably think about the episode of Friends when Joey was written out of the Days of Our Lives soap opera because he falsely claimed in an interview that he ad-libbed most of his lines, which ticked off the writers of the soap opera.
 
The writers killed off his character by having him fall down an elevator shaft.

I love this episode.

"Starship Mine" is basically the Star Trek version of "Die Hard". Naturally it's awesome.
 
(And now I'm hearing in my mind, "Now I have a phaser. Ho Ho Ho.")

Strippers usually have to work on a set schedule. The painters usually come along right behind them and if the paint isn't already stripped, the painters have to wait.

I like having the option of a hero having neither a Secret ID nor a Public ID. People just don't really care who the person is out of costume or they assume that his costumed identity is his only identity without thinking about it too hard.
 
I think that's appropriate for a Brother Voodoo kind of character who isn't important enough in the grand scheme of things for people to bother about his identity and who can disguise himself effectively by taking off his ridiculous costume.
 
Protecting a Secret ID is an effort. Having a Public ID is an effort. 
 
Insignificant Man waving goodbye to his family as he's off to another adventure...not so much effort.
 
 

Yeah, but I think you're talking about two different things now.  In the game, a Secret ID won't be revealed to the public unless the player just absolutely blows it.  The purpose is to add another dimension of gameplay and give obstacles for the player to overcome.  Amazing Man isn't going to have his Secret ID busted by an IRS investigation or because somebody tested a hair follicle, because that would be a boring game.  That's not superheroey, so it won't happen.  But if we're talking about a "realistic" scenario where supers are hiding their identities, that's when you start wondering about how they file their taxes and which cell towers they're pinging.
 
Cool stories (and fun games) have different considerations than a realistic deconstruction of the genre.
 
Although, this discussion has given me an idea for a story/character.  What about some kind of "SecretIDs R Us" company that sets you up with good alibis, covers your tracks, and provides red herrings to investigators?  Nobody is going to investigate your Secret ID if they think they already know who you are.  I mean, of course Batman is secretly Mark Manchester, the Gotham PD detective who got fired for police brutality 10 years ago.  His wife got killed by the Joker, and he went on a rampage putting guys in the hospital trying to catch that clown.  He almost went to prison, but the DA declined to prosecute because of the circumstances with his wife.  Mark had a big fast car, knew some martial arts, and a bunch of SWAT gear went missing right before he got fired.  He still lives in Gotham, runs a gym, and disappears for days when Batman is away on Justice League missions.  Who else could it be?  I hear he's even got an under the table connection to a big company, like LexCorp, where he gets some of his really cool stuff.
 
Imagine being a really low-tier superhuman who gets hired to be Superman's "real identity".  You're about the right height and build, and you kinda look like the Man of Steel.  You're a construction worker in Metropolis, and you sometimes "accidentally" bend a steel bar or step out into the street and get hit by a truck, surviving unscathed.  "Wow I really got lucky there" as you leave a palm print in the hood of the vehicle.  You run off during disasters and come back to work with really lame excuses.  You tell government agents that you're definitely absolutely not Superman, and then place a call from your definitely-tapped phone line to a secret number and tell the gravely-voiced Batman-sounding guy on the other end that you're running late to the League meeting.

Several years ago, a local official got a little boob grabby at his office Christmas party.  The women I worked with were furious.  They wanted him prosecuted.  He should be a sex offender for life.  We all knew the victim, and fortunately for that guy, she was very forgiving of everything and it ended with him only losing his job.  When I suggested that maybe that was punishment enough, I was told repeatedly (and loudly) about how this was a huge violation and men like that need to be arrested.
 
That summer our office went to a conference out of town, with the all-important phrase "open bar".  After a bunch of drinks, three of those same women felt empowered enough to grab my ass/lick my ear/press their breasts into my chest, all with zero prompting from me (actually I think the three instances might have been spread out at parties/conferences throughout the year).
 
Well if you think I'd pick digging up an old argument and gloating about it instead of getting laid with a drunken coworker... you'd be right.  That's exactly what I did.  And they were not very appreciative, I can tell you that.

Several years ago, a local official got a little boob grabby at his office Christmas party.  The women I worked with were furious.  They wanted him prosecuted.  He should be a sex offender for life.  We all knew the victim, and fortunately for that guy, she was very forgiving of everything and it ended with him only losing his job.  When I suggested that maybe that was punishment enough, I was told repeatedly (and loudly) about how this was a huge violation and men like that need to be arrested.
 
That summer our office went to a conference out of town, with the all-important phrase "open bar".  After a bunch of drinks, three of those same women felt empowered enough to grab my ass/lick my ear/press their breasts into my chest, all with zero prompting from me (actually I think the three instances might have been spread out at parties/conferences throughout the year).
 
Well if you think I'd pick digging up an old argument and gloating about it instead of getting laid with a drunken coworker... you'd be right.  That's exactly what I did.  And they were not very appreciative, I can tell you that.

Yeah, but I think you're talking about two different things now.  In the game, a Secret ID won't be revealed to the public unless the player just absolutely blows it.  The purpose is to add another dimension of gameplay and give obstacles for the player to overcome.  Amazing Man isn't going to have his Secret ID busted by an IRS investigation or because somebody tested a hair follicle, because that would be a boring game.  That's not superheroey, so it won't happen.  But if we're talking about a "realistic" scenario where supers are hiding their identities, that's when you start wondering about how they file their taxes and which cell towers they're pinging.
 
Cool stories (and fun games) have different considerations than a realistic deconstruction of the genre.
 
Although, this discussion has given me an idea for a story/character.  What about some kind of "SecretIDs R Us" company that sets you up with good alibis, covers your tracks, and provides red herrings to investigators?  Nobody is going to investigate your Secret ID if they think they already know who you are.  I mean, of course Batman is secretly Mark Manchester, the Gotham PD detective who got fired for police brutality 10 years ago.  His wife got killed by the Joker, and he went on a rampage putting guys in the hospital trying to catch that clown.  He almost went to prison, but the DA declined to prosecute because of the circumstances with his wife.  Mark had a big fast car, knew some martial arts, and a bunch of SWAT gear went missing right before he got fired.  He still lives in Gotham, runs a gym, and disappears for days when Batman is away on Justice League missions.  Who else could it be?  I hear he's even got an under the table connection to a big company, like LexCorp, where he gets some of his really cool stuff.
 
Imagine being a really low-tier superhuman who gets hired to be Superman's "real identity".  You're about the right height and build, and you kinda look like the Man of Steel.  You're a construction worker in Metropolis, and you sometimes "accidentally" bend a steel bar or step out into the street and get hit by a truck, surviving unscathed.  "Wow I really got lucky there" as you leave a palm print in the hood of the vehicle.  You run off during disasters and come back to work with really lame excuses.  You tell government agents that you're definitely absolutely not Superman, and then place a call from your definitely-tapped phone line to a secret number and tell the gravely-voiced Batman-sounding guy on the other end that you're running late to the League meeting.

In my own head-canon, superheroes have several layers of protection for their secret IDs.
 
At the top level, you've got other superheroes.  They can fill in for each other, or use their resources to provide somebody assistance in setting up and maintaining their ID.  Remember that time when Batman saved Bruce Wayne on national television?  Or when Clark Kent interviewed Superman live on TV?  It's really handy to be friends with the Martian Manhunter.  And Bruce has really good accountants and tax lawyers on his staff who will help you legitimize some of that extra income you make on the side.
 
At the next level, you've got close friends who know you're a superhero.  They cover for you when you need to leave work suddenly, or they will say "oh yeah Bill was over at my house last night".  They go out of their way to prevent people from wondering why you disappear all the time (as opposed to people investigating who Amazing Man really is).  This is your Alfred.
 
Then you've got friends and acquaintances who may suspect, but don't care.  They could very easily put two and two together, yet they never do.  This is your Jimmy Olsen/Perry White/Commissioner Gordon type.  They are actively not curious about the hero's identity, sometimes even ignoring obvious clues.  They know Amazing Man, they like Amazing Man, and if Steve Stephenson just happens to run to the bathroom right before Amazing Man appears (every single time), well a man's bathroom business is his own.  Some of these people may be local authorities who would be the ones most likely to interact with the hero on a day to day basis.
 
I also think the best source of protection for superhero secret identities are the supervillains themselves.  Why would the government be so fired up about uncovering Superman's secret identity, shouldn't they be worried about stopping Brainiac?  Or where will Metallo strike next?  No, let's devote all our time and resources to digging up dirt on the guy who saved that busload of kids and then fought off an alien invasion.  Riiiiight.  The problem I always had with this "government vs the superheroes" thing (including superhuman registration) is that supervillains don't become less active when you do that.

In my own head-canon, superheroes have several layers of protection for their secret IDs.
 
At the top level, you've got other superheroes.  They can fill in for each other, or use their resources to provide somebody assistance in setting up and maintaining their ID.  Remember that time when Batman saved Bruce Wayne on national television?  Or when Clark Kent interviewed Superman live on TV?  It's really handy to be friends with the Martian Manhunter.  And Bruce has really good accountants and tax lawyers on his staff who will help you legitimize some of that extra income you make on the side.
 
At the next level, you've got close friends who know you're a superhero.  They cover for you when you need to leave work suddenly, or they will say "oh yeah Bill was over at my house last night".  They go out of their way to prevent people from wondering why you disappear all the time (as opposed to people investigating who Amazing Man really is).  This is your Alfred.
 
Then you've got friends and acquaintances who may suspect, but don't care.  They could very easily put two and two together, yet they never do.  This is your Jimmy Olsen/Perry White/Commissioner Gordon type.  They are actively not curious about the hero's identity, sometimes even ignoring obvious clues.  They know Amazing Man, they like Amazing Man, and if Steve Stephenson just happens to run to the bathroom right before Amazing Man appears (every single time), well a man's bathroom business is his own.  Some of these people may be local authorities who would be the ones most likely to interact with the hero on a day to day basis.
 
I also think the best source of protection for superhero secret identities are the supervillains themselves.  Why would the government be so fired up about uncovering Superman's secret identity, shouldn't they be worried about stopping Brainiac?  Or where will Metallo strike next?  No, let's devote all our time and resources to digging up dirt on the guy who saved that busload of kids and then fought off an alien invasion.  Riiiiight.  The problem I always had with this "government vs the superheroes" thing (including superhuman registration) is that supervillains don't become less active when you do that.

Or they were really cheap and had only one shot glass for everyone on the flight (including the pilot).

Shouldn't the title be "Q-Squired"?

What crossed the line for me was when he erased that crew-woman's face because he was angry and didn't want to hear people laughing. That gave me nightmares when I first saw it as a kid. In comparison, making people simply disappear comes across as pretty clean and painless.
 
No question, Charlie X was a terrifying monster. But he was made into one by circumstances he couldn't understand.

See if you can talk them into doing an MRI first.
 
Magneto is much more powerful than Spider-Man.

I toss the duplication rule out personally.
 
You can create a form that's more expensive iirc. It's been a while since I've read it.

It would be funny if Foxbat could actually do this.

I did feel pity for Charlie Evans, because despite being physically adult he was obviously still a child. No training or experience in social context or emotional self-control, never having had to take responsibility for his actions, turned loose in an environment where he could do whatever he wanted without consequences. The result was inevitable. But all he really wanted was what he never had, acceptance and companionship from others like himself. And when that was finally in his grasp it was taken away.

describe to me in English what this power does---
It is a 10,000 deg plasma wash (blast) for .2 mico seconds (only going to cook surface)

Bald chick was very sexy.