C: I have superpowers of my own. When the meddling heroes guys come knocking, my employers know they have a fighting chance when I answer the door. This game will focus more on action.
A: Remember that Alien/Demon/Mole People/ect invasion a few years back? I was one of the invading officers who missed his chance to retreat. I was a mistrusted non-human with nothing but a stockpile of highly advanced gear to my name. Where else but villainy could I turn? +Stockpile of Alien Tech, +Additional Minor Superpowers, -Mistrusted by Most Humans
Like many incubi, the being known as Daydream (I'm also fond of giving my name as 'Whatever you think it is, darling') was mass-spawned in the pits of hell to provide minions for a demonic lord I never saw. In my natural form I look like some kind of pitch-black cephalopod about the size of a basketball, but me and my squad were fitted with stone shells- what mortals would recognize as gargoyles- to serve as shock troopers rather than infiltrators. We were fed bland rations of processed mortal emotion, trained in suicidal lightning strikes on fortified positions, and sorted according to worth. I came out on top, naturally.
My forces served dutifully but unexceptionally, punching through light resistance (this world's 'police barricades' are not especially effective fortifications) and feasting wildly on the sweet terror, vibrant hope, and juicy defiance one can get straight from the tap up here, at least in the middle of a demonic invasion. When the portal was sealed, my squad was too far away to make it and too unimportant to hold for, so we were discarded. We managed to evade the worst of the cleanup and get to ground, where my minions gradually splintered off to pursue their own opportunities in the criminal underworld.
You leave the party as early as appropriate for the guest of honor. Your stone shell prevents you from enjoying the mortal food and drink, and none of the two dozen or so gathered mostly geriatric ex-villain's find it attractive. You say your goodbyes, accept a few small badges and trinkets symbolic of your promotion, and climb up to the roof, where you take off from the helipad on large stone wings.
It takes about 55 minutes to fly from EAEAS headquarters on Long Island to your home in Detroit. You can't help but find long distance high-altitude flights like this boring, as unless you want to slow down and tail an airliner, you cannot smell delicious mortal emotions from so high up. Usually you occupy your mind by reflecting on your powers and abilities; re-running old battles in your head and imagining how things might have gone different.
Powers, Abilities, and Personal Artifacts:Powers:
True Form- You are a basketball sized pitched black squid. Your tentacles are incapable of fine motor control, and you possess no great physical strength. You can crawl across any surface at a maximum of 5 kmph, even vertically or upside down. You can levitate several feet off the ground at a maximum speed of 30kmph. You can smell human emotions from about 1 km out, although if somebody is not particularly emotional, you are unlikely to smell them at any significant distance. You are invulnerable to most mortal weapons, although you must be mindful of particularly powerful explosives and mortals clever enough to dip their ammo in holy water. Sunlight disorients you and saps your strength. Targeted prayer and sanctified places are harmful, perhaps even lethal, to your true form.
Stone Shell- You are an 8ft tall winged humanoid carved from enchanted stone with monstrous features. You can run upwards of 50 kmph, and sprint at nearly twice that speed for short durations. You possess the significant physical strength required to move your large mass at such high speeds. You can fly at similar speeds to your sprint while retaining good maneuverability, and can max out at just below the sound barrier when traveling through the air in a straight line. The shell is enchanted with protective wards, which remove your usual weaknesses to sunlight and holy things. The wards also protect you from most threats you are aware of; While in your stone shell, you need only worry surprise attack capable of breaking stone, incredibly strong beings capable of restraining you, magic users with command over minerals, and some very specific acids capable of reacting with the shell. The shell is military equipment, designed for military use; It focuses your supernatural senses, blinding you to all emotions except for those deemed by your creators to be of use on the battlefield: Hope, Rage, and Despair.
Officer's Shell (Active)- A smaller, human sized, version of the stone shell designed for ceremonial purposes, interrogation, and optimized use of human gear and equipment. The reduced mass offers the small drawback of weaker punches and tackles, and you are too small to carry heavy weaponry, but in this form you can best interact with the human world while retaining most of the boons granted by a stone shell. The officer's shell also allows the detection of non-military emotions within 20m, useful for interrogation once the battle ends. This is your typical form, and will be used unless otherwise specified.
Emotekenesis- You can amply an existing emotion that you can smell within a nearby mortal. Someone who is slightly peaved may become a raging bezerker. Someone who is hopeful may become sucidely overconfident. Someone who is sad may become a crying mess. You may also likewise suppress a human's dominant emotion, although the results of doing so are not predictable; The subject may be overtaken by a secondary emotion, or may enter a state of near-emotionless calm. For most incubi, this ability requires total concertation, rendering them utterly useless and defenseless while doing so, but your military training allows you to continue operating - albeit in a distracted and somewhat ineffective state, while messing with emotions. When you break your concentration, the affected emotion with quickly return to normal in about the span of a minute. As this ability is tied to your senses, the emotions you can manipulate may be limited by your choice of form.
Emoteovore- You can feed off a mortal's strong emotions. The process takes several minutes of physicals contact with a suitably emotional human. During this time the victim is helpless and incapacitated. In your true form, you are vulnerable while feeding, anchored to a much larger catatonic humanoid. In your Officer's Shell, you can balance your meal over your shoulder with one arm, allowing you to eat and move. In your full sized Stone Shell, you can latch a human to your utility belt and feed almost completely unhindered. An incubus trained as a spy or seducer can make radical changes to a mortal's memory and personality while feeding on them, but as a soldier unskilled in the subtle arts of your race the best you can manage is the deletion of a few hours off your meal's memory.
Possession- While in your true form, You may attempt to possess anything vaguely humanoid shaped, although as a soldier unskilled in the subtle arts of your race, attempting to possess anything other than a properly prepared shell risks extreme damage to the mind and body of both yourself and your victim. It takes about two minutes to enter or exit a prepared shell, but risky possessions can take hours to attempt.
Gear:
Artifact Agonizer Fork- The agonizer is the standard issue weapon of the Incubus Invasion Forces. It takes the shape of a devilish pitchfork, which fires devastating beams of energy from its prongs. The beam of an Agonizer contorts mortal flesh, tormenting and permanently maiming, but never killing outright. This renders the victim useless and emotional, to be fed upon and/or executed at the invading demon's convenience. In addition to these properties, as an officer you have been giving an Agonizer that is a custom artifact. Your Agonizer is indestructible to all but the mightiest of magics, can change size to match your form, and its beams can harm both holy beings and demons. As a powerful artifact, however, your agonizer makes you vulnerable to those who practice the magics of oracle and prophecy, who can track such mighty tools or even tie them to your fate in an undesirable way. To avoid this, you may choose to grab a non-artifact Agonizer from your stash, which is too large to use in any form save for your standard stone shell.
Armageddon Launcher- A heavy weapon similar in shape and function to a Rocket Propelled Grenade launcher. The Armageddon Launcher has five power settings, scaling in power from 'anti-vehicle' to 'tactical nuke'. Using the higher power settings quickly drains the battery, which is shared with your Agonizer. You are trained to accurately fire an Armageddon Launcher at any target in your line of sight, and with help of a trained spotter, you may also use it as a mortar to hit targets up to 17km away with indirect fire. The Armageddon Launch is to large to be used unless you are in your full sized Stone Shell.
Syphon Pendant- A piece of jewelry that can be worn in any form, which links your biology to your weaponry. The Pendant houses a demonic battery, which powers your Agonizer and Armageddon Launcher. Unless you are using your Armageddon Launcher to level city blocks, a battery should be good for two weeks of intensive combat use, or a year of idle charge. The Pendant serves to charge the battery by syphoning emotions that are not easily digested whenever you feed while wearing it. Depending on the exact emotional state of the mortals in question, 3-5 feedings will bring a battery from empty to full. You can also, of course, change the battery in the Pendant; You have many batteries, both empty and full, in your stockpile. Fully charged demonic batteries may also be of value to demonologists and mad scientists.
Since the economic collapse and decay of the late 00's and early 10's Detroit with its many abandoned neighborhoods has become a popular location for minor evildoers such as yourself to set up lairs. As it is now 2:30 in the morning, and yours is the only occupied building on its street, you have no problem landing right in the middle of the road in full Officer's Shell and walking through the front door.
The building looks like a church, and indeed was originally constructed to house the faithful, but the neon sign on the door states that it is now called
St. Pete's Theatre and Nightclub. Inside you find the place's namesake, and your chief henchman, Peter Westmoreland, sitting in one of the few remaining pews, editing a video on his laptop.
Peter is the sort of college student who has been attending class for the better part of a decade, but has yet to graduate. His major is film, his hobby is demonology, and he has been working on a documentary on the Incubus Invasion for several years. His absolute loyalty only costs you a few Demon Batteries that he sold on the black market to set up St. Pete's, where he screens films by himself and other student filmmakers, and the occasional filmed interview for his project.
Peter bills himself as an 'amature demonologist' but you are sure the human is selling himself short. As you had no childhood, and very little pre-earth experience, he actually knows alot more about demons and hell than you do. His knowledge of incubi in particular is quite impressive. He helps some of your former soldiers who still reside in Detroit hone their possession and feeding abilities beyond their limited military training, and has been instrumental in the rehabilitation of Blacklight, your other henchperson.
Blacklight was a soldier under your command, who found herself trapped without a Stone Shell. In desperation, she attempted to possess a human. The process destroyed the host's mind, and left Blacklight stuck with human fears and morals. The human body was able to walk out of the situation undetected, but the experience left Blacklight less than useless. Before Peter started working with her, she was a sobbing mess who did little but eat, sleep, and cry over her wicked deeds. Nowadays she is able to help out with small tasks around the Theatre, and can make good conversation, but is still afraid to fight or even leave her human host. She also sleeps alot, which you are guessing she is doing now as she isn't at Peter's side.
"How was the party boss?" Pete asks as he hears your heavy stone footsteps approach.
"About as bad as I expected. Glad to have it over and done with darling. I'd of much rather you hosted the event here. The crowd is so much better."Your henchman nods.
"I'm screening one of my professor's films tomorrow night. A biopic on one of those terrible Roman Emperors if you want to come upstairs and watch. Not sure what kind of crowd its gonna draw, but I bet it will beat Johnny Jungleblade and company."As you consider Peter's offer, the human brings something else up.
"Oh. Boss. Lustarms dropped by to get some feeding lessons from me, and went down into the basement afterwards. Not sure if they took anything. I'll do inventory after I finish up this scene if you want."You groan. The dozen or so former soldiers under your command who live in Detroit often feel entitled to help themselves to your stockpile of military supplies at will.
"I got it Pete. I don't need to sleep, but you should catch some winks at some point tonight dear."Peter grunts in approval, and you head down to the basement to count your assets. Nothing is missing. Lustarms was likely just oggling the Hellpheonix Shell again.
Assets:Property:
St. Pete's Theatre and Nightclub- A venue that hosts parties and film screenings several nights a week. Peter just about breaks even in running the place. The large basement and attic serve as your home and base of operations.
57 Stone Shell Loadouts- Each set consists of a Stone Shell, Agonize Fork, Armagedeon Launcher, and Syphon Pendant. Any being capable of possession should be able to operate this gear, but non-incubi will have issues maintaining their batteries.
9 Officers Shell Loadouts- Each set consists of an Officers Shell, Small Agonizer Fork, and a Syphon Pendant. Any being capable of possession should be able to operate the shell, and even a human could be taught to use an Agonizer Fork, but non-incubi will have issues maintaining their batteries.
1 Hellpheonix Shell Loadout- A massive bird shaped Stone Shell equiped with multiple armagedeon launches, agonizer forks, and conventional firearms, powered by a large advanced Demonic Battery. Capable of near hypersonic flight, It is the incubus equivalent of a nuclear bomber and air supeiority fighter rolled into one. Sadly, you no longer have contact with anybody trained to opperate such a weapon.
5+ Demonic Battery Crates- Each crate holds 666 freshly charged batteries. You have five sealed crates, and one open one about 40% full.
3 Advanced Demonic Batteries- A demonic battery the size of a VW Bug. Used to power Hellpheonix Shells and other terrifying machinery.
1 Charging Cell- A chamber that drains human lifeforce to refuel Advanced Demonic Batteries. 3 Human Lives are usually enough to charge a battery, but military protocol says that you should use five victims, just to be safe.
3 Crates of Hellticks- Each crate contains about ten thousand demonic bugs that seek to latch onto a human host, and convert them into an empty shell suitable for even an untrained incubi to possess safely. You know that opening a crate activates all the bugs inside, and that they have a short shelflife once activated, but aside from that they are a mystery. One of your former soldiers absconded with the instruction manual.
Scrap Pile- You have about 50 Stone Shell Loadouts and 16 Officer's Shell loadouts that are broken or otherwise inoperable. Perhaps some mad scientist or demonologist could make use of the refuse.
Mooks and Henchpeople:
Peter Westmoreland- Human filmmaker, nightclub operator, and 'amature' demonologist. Very loyal, Knows more about your history and biology than you do.
Blacklight- Damaged Incubi who refuses to leave the human they are possessing. Hindered by human morality, but otherwise loyal. Has adopted the human female gender.
Rolodex of Incubi Soldiers- You know six of your former soldiers who would drop everything and report to serve you on a moments notice if asked. You could probably round up another 10-20 more given a month or so of effort.
You spend the remaining night and some of the morning checking and doublechecking everything to make sure you were not robbed. You eventually return to the main floor of the club, where Blacklight is enjoying a breakfast of human food. The damaged soldier has also put out another suit that is fitted to your officer's shell and tough enough to survive flight.
"Am I going somewhere, Blacklight?" You ask.
She shrugs.
"Perhaps. I figured you might be in a hurry to get back to New York and sign up for your first official Underling Job. That is up to you, of course, boss."You consider the idea. If you wait too long to pick up a contract, it may reflect poorly on you as an underling. Signing such a long term deal to work with a more notable villainy, however, would likely take you away from your base of operation for some time. Perhaps there is some housekeeping in Detroit you would like to take care of before getting to work.
Do you want to look for work? Or is there something else you want to do first?
Author
Topic: (SG) Underling, a Supervillain Game (Read 4061 times)