Updated: 9:50 AM Central, July 9 Try 2: original was judged to be a bit too weird. Name: Baron Brass Real Name: Archibald Smythe Age: 37 Education: Engineering degrees of various kinds. PL: 10 Points: 187 Brief Background: During his early attempts to make an intelligent, self-willed "decoyclank," Troy Bergmann was accidentally *too* successful. His frustration combined with his power to animate machinery to give what seemed to be true life to the decoyclank, if only as a shard of Troy's own id. The creation suddenly awoke, stating, "What a lovely world, I think I shall make it mine!" and then escaping. The creation, unfortunately for it, wasn't a good fit for the world it found itself in, and didn't make it far before the animating spark faded. But in its short life, it found its way into the hands of Doctor Archibald Smythe, an engineering genius who was...at loose ends. Which was to say he'd been fired again. The fools didn't grasp his brilliance. The decoyclank inspired Archibald. Such a thing was possible! True, many strange things had happened since the comet hit, so maybe they'd been right when they told him artificial life was still decades away...but they weren't right now! Archibald took the decoyclank back to his apartment and started to study it. Clearly, it wasn't playing by all the rules, but it Inspired something in Archibald. True, it had no right to work the way it did, but he could see other ways to make such creations work with SCIENCE! Eventually dubbing himself Baron Brass, he built a suit of protective armor that used holographic surfaces to give the impression that he was a clockwork automaton himself, and started to gather the resources necessary to get the respect he deserved. Abilities: STR 10(16) INT 26 DEX 14 CON 10(20) WIS 18 CHA 20 Att 4 Def 6 = 58 Skills: Bluff 6 (+11), Craft: Chemical 3 (+11), Craft: Mechanical 9 (+17), Craft: Structural 5 (+13), Diplomacy 6 (+11), Disable Device 3 (+11), Disguise 1 (+6, +26 with Morph), Intimidate 4 (+9), Knowledge: Earth Sciences 4 (+12), Knowledge: Physical Sciences 9 (+17), Knowledge: Technology 11 (+19), Language 4 (French, German, Latin, Russian), Notice 2 (+6), Profession: Engineer 4 (+8), Search 1 (+9) = 18 Feats: Attack Specialization/2 (Cane), Benefit/3 (Wealth +12), Diehard, Dodge Focus/3, Equipment/20, Inventor, Master Plan, Minions/9, Luck/3, Eidetic Memory = 44 Saves: Toughness: +9 imp Fort: +5 Ref: +6 Will: +8 = 8 Combat: Attack: 4 (8 with cane) Defense: 8 (3 flat-footed) Damage: 3 Unarmed, 10 Strike, 5 Blast Toughness: +9 impervious Initiative: +2 Wealth: 20 Powers: Total = 59 1) Armor: Device/12 (Hard to Lose; Source Super-Science, 60 point pool) = 48 A) Enhanced Strength 6 = 6 B) Enhanced Constitution 10 = 10 C) Protection 4 (Impervious) = 8 D) Impervious on base Toughness 5 = 5 E) Immunity 9 (Life Support) = 9 F) Morph 4 (One form: Look like mechanical man; Extra: Continuous) = 8 (This is holographic. With it turned off, he still looks like a metal, but he looks more like a guy in a suit than a guy made of brass and iron.) G) Leaping 4 (325' running, 163' standing, 81' vertical) = 4 H) Super-Senses 6 (Infravision, Low-Light Vision, Ultravision, Time Sense, Ultra-Hearing, Extended Vision) = 6 I) Elongation 4 (50' reach, 40' increment) = 4 2) Cane: Device 3 (Easy to Lose, Restricted x2) = 11 (15 point pool) - Strike 10 (Stunt: 5 APs) - AP Dazzle 5 (visual, +Area, -Range) - AP Blast 5 - steam - AP Obscure 5 (visual and olfactory, -Range) - AP Nauseate 5 (+Range, -Sicken) (light-based vertigo effect) - AP Corrosion 5 Abilities: 58 Skills: 18 Feats: 44 Saves: 8 Powers: 59 Drawbacks: 0 ----------------- Total: 187 Complications: 1) Rivalry: Clank 2) Temper: When treated disrespectfully Powers: Baron Brass's only real power is his inventive genius, and even that isn't really superhuman. However, he was in the right place at the right time to see something that inspired him...that one percent inspiration can make the ninety-nine percent perspiration a LOT more effective. Inspiration has carried him pretty far, though. His armor is an amazing construct, mostly using advanced technology while appearing to observers to be a crude thing of gears and steam. It does generate steam and sparks, in fact, but only as an affectation...it's not actually run by steam. The armor is proof against most weaponry, and moderately enhances Smythe's strength and vitality. Powerful memory metal springs in the legs and arms let him leap great distances (he's still working on actual flight, but some compressed air jets extend his jumps pretty far) or reach out and strike people before they can get too close. His walking stick is crammed with weapon systems...none very powerful, but he'd rather be versatile himself and leave the firepower to his hirelings. Meanwhile, he's been successful enough in his endeavors to start hiring well-trained henchmen, and equips them with his own inventions. Sometimes all he does is put a cosmetic flair on regular weapons and vehicles, but other times he sends them out with his latest (and possibly untested) creations. Appearance: Out of armor, Archibald looks like an Archibald. Skinny, thinning hair, but with a smoldering intensity that generally keeps people from treating him too lightly. He dresses in lab attire when working, but thanks to his ill-gotten gains can now afford to dress quite well when out and about socially. Wearing the armor with the holographic plating disabled, he looks like someone in modified military body armor, with a helmet containing various sensors and filters. Thanks to Morph, though, he can look like a mechanical Victorian gentleman in longcoat and stovepipe hat, but all in metal plating. The hat is an actual stovepipe, emitting smoke or steam. His eyes glow red, although may shift to other colors as he employs different sensory filters. His walking stick resembles a length of brass pipe with a 3" diameter spherical crystal at the top. It contains a number of clever devices that help him in the event he has to fight on his own (although he prefers to let his minions do the dirty work). Personality: Arrogant, convinced that he's of a "better sort" and rightful ruler of the "lower classes". Practically a parody of Victorian gentlemen, with occasional diversions into "ties lasses to railroad tracks" dastardy. If James Bond were active in the 1890s, Baron Brass would fit right into his rogue's gallery, temperment-wise. Suffice to say, he was never very stable, and his Inspiration has taken him down a rather odd path. He is fascinated by any supernormals using obvious high tech, always seeking new Inspiration. He has a special focus on Clank, however. Clearly, Clank is related to that strange little mechanism that got him on his current path, and thoughts of what Archibald could learn by dismantling Clank make him fair unto swoon. When he eventually (inevitably) finds out that Clank is magical, that won't really stop him...he's certain that SCIENCE can unlock any secrets given time and enough experimental subjects. Minions: Despite his mechanical genius, Baron Brass is unable to make intelligent constructs of his own. He's convinced that he'll work it out eventually, but until that time, he has an extra reason to want to study Clank. Instead, Baron Brass hires human minions and equips them with special gear and vehicles. He's also willing to let them use modern gear, but will look down his nose at "cheap, shoddy equipment" of that sort and encourage his minions to carry steam-powered weaponry of his own design. Which, surprisingly, is usually better than the modern stuff, since it only LOOKS like it's steam-poweed. His elite minions have usually learned this lesson and are enthusiastic about loading up with anything he can make for them, while the cannon fodder bay be thugs straight out of the rulebook. Typically has 6 ranks of Minions dedicated to having 90 point goons and 3 ranks to bumping their numbers to 10. In a pinch, use the Soldier stats and give them a 10-15 point Device of some sort. Once in a while he'll have a single mechanical minion, such as the "Robot, Colossal" from page 235. However, since he's PL10, it will have only 12 ranks of Growth (STR 34, Attack 2, Defense -6, Damage 12, Toughness 20 (all Impervious)). This saves 20 points (16 from Growth, 4 from dropping Defense to stay under PL10 cap-shift), so he has 29 points extra to spend to bring it up to his maximum allowed. Or give him 14 points of stuff on the robot and he can have two of 'em! Suggestions: Dimensional Pocket to represent internal cargo/control areas, movement powers, area effect blasters. These robots are not self-aware, and usually require a pilot of some sort, either the Baron or a flunky. Vehicles: Armored Velocipede - use armored car stats, 11 points. Steam Monocycle - use motorcycle stats, 9 points. Can Progression be applied to get several of these for the minions? Assault Dirigible - use Military Helicopter stats, but Colossal and only Toughness 10. 45 points. Base: Your basic abandoned warehouse sort of arrangement. Typically Medium, no Toughness enhancement, with features such as Concealed, Defense System, Garage, Laboratory, Living Space, Power System, and Workshop for 8 points. Some add Hangar and bump up to Large for 10 points.