The Omega FAQ

+++++++++++========================================++++++++++++++ ----------- _/_/_/_/ ---------- _/ _/ ----------- _/ _/ m m eeeee gggg a -------------- _/ _/ m m m ee g a a --------------- _/ _/ m m e g g a a _/_/_/_/ _/_/_/_/ m m eeeee ggggg a a +++++++++++========================================++++++++++++++ </PLAINTEXT> </HEAD> <BODY> <H1>OMEGA-THE INTRO FAQ</H1> By Matt Rossi <HR> <H2>Table of Contents:</H2> <H3>I - The Stuff that people should know:</H3> <LI><A HREF="./faq.htm#whatis">What is OMEGA?</A> <LI><A HREF="./faq.htm#differences">What makes this place different than all those OTHER universes out there?</A> <LI><A HREF="./faq.htm#writers">Who's currently writing in OMEGA?</A> <LI><A HREF="./faq.htm#howto">All right, maybe I'm interested...how do I get involved?</A> <LI><A HREF="./faq.htm#players">Who are the major players in the OMEGA universe?</A> <LI><A HREF="./faq.htm#future">What's in store for the future?</A> <LI><A HREF="./faq.htm#backstory">What's the backstory?</A> <H3>II - ERRATA and GLOSSARY</H3> <LI><A HREF="./faq.htm#psionics">What does all this Psionic Gobbeldygook MEAN, anyway?</A> <LI><A HREF="./faq.htm#magic">What's the deal with magic?</A> <LI><A HREF="./faq.htm#gods">Gods? What's with THEM?</A> <LI><A HREF="./faq.htm#trigger">What's this Trigger you've been talking about?</A> <LI><A HREF="./faq.htm#aliens">Are there any Aliens and Other Dimensions we should know about?</A> <LI><A HREF="./faq.htm#crossovers">Will OMEGA be crossing over with any other RACC universes?</A> <HR> <H3>I - STUFF PEOPLE SHOULD KNOW:</H3> <H4><A NAME="whatis">What is OMEGA?</A></H4> Basically, Omega is a bunch of us who wanted to write comic book stories, but who didn't see anything on RACC that really fitted them. So we made something, namely the Writer's Group and Shared Universe whose FAQ you happen to be reading. The Omega group started with a post I made to RACC saying I was interested in starting a Shared World comic book universe. Other than that, I make no claim to having started Omega...What I had in mind and what this became are totally different, and this is vastly better. I love comics, always have, but I've got some problems with them...for instance, fifty zillion ways to get powers (AKA Marvelitis) or the fact that they never seem to have to take a pit stop, if you know what I mean. It's probably because artists draw the males with flat pelvic regions. :) Plus, I never understood why everybody's powers were totally different. I figured if two guys had did the same thing, why should the EXPLANATION be different? The other writers seemed to agree with me (Or just humored me...I'm not sure which.) and so we tried to come up with a unified origin, a timeline that fit, and stuff like that. Hopefully, we've done so. In the Omega stories, there are basically two types of powers: Magic based (Covenant, The Beasts) and Psi Based (So far, almost everybody else.) They are compatable, but different...Chad Imbrogno explains the heck out of that later. We try to get as much characterization as possible without sacrificing narrative, and also some humor without being distracting. And of course, we have gratuitous fights. These are comic inspired stories...damn STRAIGHT there's gonna be fights! We hope you enjoy, and if reading our stories OR this FAQ helps inspire anyone to write an Omega story...that's why we do this, so get to it and enjoy. <HR> <H4><A NAME="differences">What makes this place different than all those OTHER universes out there?</A></H4> Well, we are a lot LOOSER, continuity wise, then some other universes (Patrol, ASH) as we are younger and come out of a hodge- podge of influences and styles. That's not a slam, by the way. It's just a difference. Some people, myself included on occasion, find tight continuity can be an aid. But it isn't what we do in Omega stories. We have continuity, but we don't sweat it. On the other hand, someone once called us a 'Dark and Paranoiac' universe, and I've heard the word 'dystopian' bandied about. One thing we try never to be is SAFE. We also have what I call the Plausibility vs. Enjoyability equation. We try to keep motivations for our characters within the realm of the plausible, treating them as people with foibles and faults. Covenant is acerbic, and a bit hauty, and he's a MEAN drunk. Danny Anderson is a fanatic. Anne Benson's bewildered by the changes in her life. Loner just wants to enjoy his powers. While this is a part of our stories, we realize something: THESE AREN'T REAL. NOBODY CAN FLY IN REAL LIFE. So we don't go around trying too hard to make everything just like it would be in the real world. This isn't the world outside your window. It's BETTER. That's the POINT. Heroes and myths are real in Omega. One more thing that's different. We have a lot of unplotted time between 1950-1990 to play around in. If you are interested in writing an Omega story, there's space to spare. <HR> <H4><A NAME="writers">Who's currently writing in OMEGA?</A></H4> A talented group, if I do say so m'self. Here's everybody I know of(Some of us are not as good about getting little paragraphs in to introduce ourselves as others...so mail them and ask.) <PRE> Umgree29@canopus.cc.umanitoba.ca--Kay Green djh4535@acs.tamu.edu v092qg5b@ubvms.cc.buffalo.edu Matt Dempster v534yynn@ubvms.cc.buffalo.edu Matt is a supposed engineering student at University at Buffalo. On the surface he is a student, who keeps switching to a new branch every 14.6 milliseconds. But in reality, he is an alien sent here to steal every paper clip on campus, as paper clips are the only thing that can harm his people. Become friends with Matt...he may find you a place in the new regime.... otherwise he hopes you taste good with A1. Tick (pmilan@fscvax.fsc.mass.edu) knows absolutely nothing about the Roswell Incident. He was never affiliated with Project Blue Book, has never beaten up Travis Walton, and has never watched "The X-Files" all the way through. And he certainly doesn't have four Zeta Reticulii bodies stored in his freezer. Nosiree bob. Marc Singer (writer of Legacy, Creator of the modern era and SIRECOM) marcs@wam.umd.edu The paragraph on Marc has been mysteriously deleted, his friends always grin nervously and say "Marc who?" when asked about him, Marc was photographed on the Grassy Knoll, and you never read this. Christopher L. Tumber aa993@freenet.carleton.ca Ted Vician (tvician@garnet.msen.com) is the writer of Wildsoul and possibly another series tenatively titled MechSWAT. In real life, he's a 25 year-old mechanical engineer who works for the Army keeping the world safe for democracy. He lives in the northwestern suburbs of Detroit, MI and is originally from Chicagoland. He reads too many comic books and bad science fiction and fantasy novels, which may explain a lot if you ever meet him. He also enjoys riding motorcycles as often as possible and is an Olympic-class bar sportsman. Jesse Taylor taylorjb@vuse.vanderbilt.edu Jesse isn't writing any stories right now (I'm working on it, ok?! :-), but happens to be the person coding this HTML, which basically means I get to speak about myself in the third person and act real smug. Chad Imbrogno (cimbrog@bgnet.bgsu.edu): NOTE: Any resemblance of characters from Covenant to any other persons, real or imagined, are probably intentional. Remeber, just because you're paranoid doesn't mean everyone isn't out to get you. Craig Rettig (a.k.a. Thrasher) crettig@ddt.occ.uc.edu or Thrasher <rettigch@ucunix.san.uc.EDU> We are Omega. Resistance is futile. You will be assimilated. I'm currently a 4th-year junior at the University of Cincinnati studying Computer Science. Outside of comics, my interests include loud and fast music, computers, whiskey, and role-playing games. Metal concerts are always on my list of fun things to do when I have the money. I also enjoy cooking and consuming mass quantities of beer. You can get the whole shebang on me by checking out my <A HREF="http://ucunix.san.uc.edu/~rettigch/Welcome.html">WWW home page</A> at http://ucunix.san.uc.edu/~rettigch/Welcome.html Matthew W Rossi III (mr.9767@acc.rwu.edu) just wants you to know that his comics PULSE and TEMPEST are literally autobiographic, and when he takes control of the planet he'll be a kind and benevolent master. He's only doing it for your own good. </PRE> <HR> <H4><A NAME="howto">All right, maybe I'm interested...how do I get involved? </A></H4> Well, the short answer is: Start Writing. But it really isn't QUITE that simple (Although we try to keep it as easy as possible.) to get involved. We have some advice we try to pass along: READ OTHER PEOPLES WORK: This is ESPECIALLY IMPORTANT if you've never done this before. Once you've read a couple series either by emailing the creator, reading them on RACC as they are posted, or even by going to the Archive at eyrie.stanford.edu, (Email Eagle@eyrie.stanford.edu and ask him how.) you'll get a good feel for Omega and whether or not you want to get involved in it. Assuming you do, we go to stage two: ASK ONE OF US. We all like to get new people involved, even those of us who don't have a whole lot of time. Just to be safe, email me first, mr.9767@acc.rwu.edu and I'll make the introductions. Stage three is START WRITING. See how simple we try and keep it? We like to free-form our way through this difficult process. <HR> <H4><A NAME="players">Who are the major players in the OMEGA universe? </A></H4> Here, for your edification, are summaries of some of the series, written by their creative teams. ENJOY! SEEKERS: Seekers was the name of a project begun by the SIRECOM agency in the early 70's. The official aim of the project was to create a team of Omegas capable of neutralizing, capturing and training rogue or emergant psis. To this end, SIRECOM recruited Omegas from all over the world, although the grand majority of them hail from the U.S. Currently, project Seekers has about 150 Omegas in various stages of training. Approximately 14 of those are ready for external combat and capture missions. OK that ought to do it.... if you need more info, let me know. I've been posting under my real name (My psuedonym may confuse our loyal readers) so I guess it's Seekers by Matt Dempster. %%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%% Dead Ahead Dead Ahead is the first of several mini-serieses which will be followed by an ongoing series picking up where they leave off. Dead Ahead is the story of Mathew Ness, who discovers the Omega effect has altered him in an unusual and deadly way. In fact, Matt is dying because of his abilities. Dead ahead will be a story in six parts: "Grief", "Anger" (2 parts), "Denial" (2 parts) and "Acceptance". The second mini-series is tentatively titled "Errand of Mercy" and features Doctor Elaine Phillips who is introduced as Matt's physician in Dead Ahead but is really much, much more. Two other mini-serieses are tentatively scheduled with a possibility of more as things progress. Finally, the ongoing series will follow the characters introduced in the mini-serieses (well, those who survive that long). Dead Ahead is not about super-heroes or cosmic powered bad-guys. It's one man's struggled to survive in a world suddenly become very dangerous and very deadly. A world where his own body is his worst enemy and time has begun a terrible countdown. A world where only the ruthless and the mighty survive. A world where Mathew Ness must find a place for himself, or die trying. Dead Ahead is written by Christopher L. Tumber and will be a weekly or bi-weekly series. %%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%% RAPIDFIRE written by Tick Crystal City was just an average city with an above-average crime problem...until a streak of black began cutting through the crime. Nobody knows who the man called Rapidfire is, including the readers.(And possibly the writer-Matt.) But he might be one of the following supporting characters: Detective Stephen Altman: head of the Crystal City Drug Task Force. He doesn't like drugs or the people who use them. Doctor Susannah Lipton: Head of the Nancy Spungen Drug Clinic. She doesn't like drugs, but she tries to help the people that use them. She and Altman have a "thing". William Lee: The janitor at the Clinic, he's a former junkie who may be back on heroin again. Cameron Yasbeck: A reporter with a spitcurl and glasses. THat would be a little obvious, wouldn't it? Amy Diaz: A female reporter who works with Yasbeck. Any reports that she has her hair cut in a short bob are totally false. Lawrence Delancey: Crystal City's new crimelord. Okay, so maybe he isn't Rapidfire. %%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%% TITLE: COVENANT AUTHOR: Chad Imbrogno (open to ideas for something better!) MAIN CHARACTERS: Allen Covenant Issac Warner (aka Stingray) Threll (prev. Bob Warscoviak) PREMISE: Allen Covenant, an ex-parapsychology professor, found out some dirty secrets about his new employers at Dynamax. After freeing his ex-student and triggered Omega Bob Warcoviak, he gained the aid of another ex-student named Issac Warner (along with the spirit-god he was bound to.) Together, the three find themselves on the run and unknowingly in the middle of an event that will shake the world of Omegas. FUTURE DIRECTION: Upon new revelations gained in the major event, Allen will go out and seek to find the hidden connection between the occult and Omega power. Things really begin to get wierd then... %%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%% LONER: Created and written by Thrasher. Loner, a.k.a. Alexander "Alex" Cox, tries to deal with the pressures of both his daily life and the night life surrounding his powers. As Loner uses his power more, he becomes more adept at its full capabilities. Meanwhile though, he has several confrontations with both his morals and his physical needs, especially with his dealings with one Mr. Dvorak, organizer of much of the crime occuring in the Cincinnati area. This is the story of one young man's struggle against corruption within the system and within himself. %%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%% Legacy written by Marc Singer Main Characters: Anne Benson, a young woman who has lived all her life with the secret that she possessed Omega powers. When government agents tried to arrest her, she "triggered" a whole new level of untapped psionic abilities including telepathy and telekinesis. She also discovered that her grandfather had an even bigger secret... Harvey Hauptmann: Known to Anne (and the rest of his family) as 'Otto Blume' for many years, he kept his true identity hidden for decades. He was actually an Omega of the 1930s and 40s, who inspired the comic-book hero "Overman" and secretly killed Adolf Hitler. When the government tried to arrest his grand-daughter Anne, he exposed his own Omega powers (faster than a steam engine, able to withstand a bursting shell -- but only in his prime) and joined Anne as a fugitive from the law. Dan Carter: Top agent for SIRECOM (Special Intelligence Resources Command) charged with tracking down Anne and Harvey, and bringing them in by any means necessary. Cornelius Owen: The secret power behind SIRECOM, who is directing Dan Carter's efforts, and who has been waiting nearly fifty years to see Harvey back behind bars. The basic premise is that Harvey has handed a lot down to Anne all at once: her powers, her fugitive status, her new life. They'll both have to cope with this but, while recent issues have focused on Harvey's life story, Anne will move into the spotlight. %%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%% PULSE: Written by Matt"CooCoo for Cocoa Puffs" Rossi Pulse is the story of a family that fell apart. Danny Anderson is the leader of THE COLONY, a group of Omegas who have no place else to go. Mirranda Anderson, his common-law wife, is a Psychic Healer with secrets of her own. James DeLeon is a gifted with preternatural engineering and mechanical ability, and used to be a vigilante in Florida. Warren Davis is an ex-baseball rising star who loves two things: Texas and Texans. Jen "Agony" DuFries is an Omega whose power is more trouble than it's worth, Thomas-Peter Mutsafa is a pyrokinetic exile from Nairobi who prefers to be called Conflagration, Angela Streak is a seven year old girl in a body hypersped into adulthood. The Colony is a dumping ground for runaways, both with powers and without. Pulse will deal with several storylines in upcoming months: Danny has to settle things with Jarvin Tazakles, his dark reflection and the man he hates the most. The Colony will engage in Terrorist activity, A national TV show will focus on a member who has disappeared from his old life, ala Unsolved Mysteries, and Danny may have to deal with the American government. Pulse is centered on one issue, really: How far can you go for a cause? TEMPEST: Also written by Matthew "I'm EVERYWHERE!" Rossi Tempest is the story of Eric Anderson, Danny Anderson's little brother and an Omni-Psionic with powers far beyond any previous and probably most following Omegas. Eric can do what he wants, when he wants, where he wants. In the series, Eric will be forced to deal with his true heritage, the price his powers demand, the difficulty of using them, and the notoriety of being Tempest. Eric will be harrased by the press, used by mass media and the entertainment industry, and will battle alien menaces come gunning for him. And he'll enjoy every damn second. Because Eric LIKES being on top. %%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%% CADRE ALLIANCE The Cadre Alliance (or the Cadre for short) is a band of Omegas on the run from the U.S. government, as well as any other government they happen to cross paths with. Their leader is the enigmatic J.L. Steele, a former training instructor at SIRECOM, turned rogue Omega agent. The roster currently is comprised of Image, Rift, Vesper, Rebecca, Jove, and Warstryke. Their base of operations is Mont St. Michel, which doubles as their sanctuary. There, Steele and his band have been granted asylum by the priests. J.L. Steele had worked with SIRECOM for a good part of his life until he discovered the link between SIRECOM and Dynamax labs, and what Dynamax was doing to Omegas. Angry and scared at the same time, Steele decided to make the American people aware of what their government was involved in, but realized that he could not do it on his own. Therefore, before he left he took a list of known Omegas and an Omega he was currently training, and fled to the one place he thought he would be safe -- MSM. Steele now desperately races again the clock to gather these recruits as he finds himself in the middle of a game of deception, murder, and intrigue in order to fight a war by any means neccesary. Created by: Kay Green with Technical Assists by: Matt Rossi Writer/Plot by: Kay Green %%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%% And now, an Epistolary Infoblock: <PRE> Badger, I'm about ready to release a series called Wildsoul. It's magically-based but set in the Omega universe. You should see a draft of the first issue by this weekend, but I'm away on business, otherwise I would have released it by now. Ted Vician DoD #0831 SOHC/4#0008 AMA 317378 | My opinion, no one else's. </PRE> <HR> <H4><A NAME="future">What's in store for the future?</A></H4> That, in my opinion, is totally up to the writers. The best part about doing OMEGA has been the cooperation between us in deciding our universe's fate. We have no boundaries on that, no limits on each other's characters save what we agree to. If an OMEGA writer decided he wanted to take his character out, than he does. You control your book. Together, we control the universe. So far, I'd have to say it's worked remarkably well. I'd like to say that's because we're such great guys, but the truth is closer to the fact that we are still growing. Nevertheless, the future in OMEGA is not set in stone. What will happen? WE DON'T KNOW. Isn't that great? I think so. Anyone joining up can do so without fear that there will be constraints on his or her character or plans for the future, save those that keep from impinging on the others. "The right to swing your hand ends where our noses begin." That's our only real rule on that. <HR> <H4><A NAME="backstory">What's the backstory?</A></H4> As vast a tapestry as time itself. Hopefully, this FAQ will be followed by the OMEGA TIMELINE, which should go into detail. <HR> <H3>II - ERRATA AND GLOSSARY:</H3> <H4><A NAME="psionics">What does all this Psionic Gobbeldygook MEAN, anyway? </A></H4> While not even the most exhaustive glossary could cover ALL the terms used in the Omega universe, we thought we had better try to cover the more esoteric ones. (What's ESOTERIC mean?) Anti-Psi: The psionic ability to negate or neutralize other psionic powers. Also see NULL-PSI Astral Projection: The ability to seperate the mind from the body and have it move independently. Astral Space: The zone of "Space" where telepathy occurs. It does not ACTUALLY exist in a physical sense, and can only be reached by telepathic means. Clairsentinence: The ability to sense without using one of the five senses, even at range. Clairvoyance is the Clairsentinence ability of sight. Analogs for all the other senses(Taste, touch, smell, hearing) exist, as well for senses no human has. Cryokinesis: The ability to slow molecules with the mind, thus causing cold effects to occur. See PSYCHOKINESIS. Dreamwalking: The uncontrolled use of Telepathy while sleeping in order to visit other sleepers dreams. See TELEPATHY. DYNAMAX: A biogenics laboratory which poses as a beneficient organization while in reality performing ghastly experiments on Omegas in order to determine how to duplicate their powers. The most knowledgeable agency on Omega biology, has ties to SIRECOM. ESP: Extra Sensory Perception. The Umbrella all psionic senses operate under. Telepathy, Psychometery/Retrocognition, Clairvoyance, Precognition and Clairsentinence all operate under this umbrella. Electrokinesis: The ability to control electical particles, and thus electricity, with the mind. See PSYCHOKINESIS. Gestalt: The telepathic ability for a Psi to link minds with another Psi, combining the power and minds of both. See TELEPATHY. Harrakin: An alien race of psionics bred as slaves who rebelled and began forging an empire. See WREXAKT. New Ones: The first humans to express Psi, also known as some of our earliest gods. Null-Psi: The power to absorb others Psi-Abilities in an attempt to neutralize them, this power is a hybrid of Psionic Vampirism and Anti-Psi. Omega: A psionic human. Omni-Psionic: A psionic who has all psionic abilities. Photokinesis: The psionic ability to control light. See PSYCHOKINESIS Precognition: The psionic ability to see the future. Psionic: The science of the mind, coined by John Campbell to describe those abilities seemingly OUTSIDE science, which he believed to be explainable by mental energy Psychic Surgery: The ability to use Psionic energy to induce healing. Often linked to Telepathy. See TELEPATHY. Psychic Vampirism: The psionic ability to steal life-force from another, feeding on them as a battery. See TELEPATHY. Psychokinesis: The most common Psionic ability (Only telepathy comes close) Psychokinesis is another umbrella term that covers all the ways to effect the physical universe with the mind. Electrokinesis, Photokinesis, Pyrokinesis, Cryokinesis, Telekinesis, Teleportation, and many other types of Psychokinesis exist. Any ability to affect the physical world with psionics, no matter how bizarre, is a Psychokinetic ability. Pyrokinesis: The Psychokinetic abilty to agitate molecules, causing heat and fire effects. See PSYCHOKINESIS. SIRECOM: Special Intelligence Resources Command, or SIRECOM, is the US. Governments Multi-Agency task force which specializes in Omega operatives and containment. Spirit-gods: Beings of pure mind, the spirit gods were created by the expectations and prayers of man. They conflicted with the NEW ONES for human worship. Telekinesis: The Psychokinetic abilty to move things with thought alone. See PSYCHOKINESIS. Telepathy: The psionic abilty of Mind to Mind contact, and far more. Telepathy is the second most common psionic ability. This ability includes Psychic surgery, Astral Projection, Psychic Vampirism, Dreamwalking, Illusion casting, and Telescanning (Rapid telepathic searching of other minds to find specific information) Teleportation: The Psychokinetic ability to travel from point to point without traversing the space between. See PSYCHOKINESIS. Trigger, The: The Trigger, intended to eliminate all intelligent life on earth, it now gives psionic power to those who inherit it. Wrexakt: An alien race who bred the HARRAKIN. <HR> <H4><A NAME="magic">What's the deal with magic?</A></H4> Y'know, I'm kinda glad you asked me that. Here to explain is our own Chad Imbrogno. MAGIC IN THE OMEGA WORLD--By Chad Imbrogno PART I: Magic, the Unknown Science Humanity has always tried to come up with explanations for the things that it can't understand. The sun was a chariot driven by the Sun God, the stars were pieces of ice floating in the sky, etc... Now, with the advent of science, humans know that the sun is a large ball of burning gas and that the stars are more of the same, but far away. There are still things that aren't understood, though. Vampires, werewolves, and witches still exist and still capture the mystical imagination of humans. As it turns out, many of these things turn out to have scientific explanations also. It is just that most people don't know them or don't want to know them. The bridge that leads across from the known world of science to the unknown world of the supernatural lies in the area of psychic power, often itself regarded as supernatural. But with the understanding of Omegas at hand, the world of the psycic becomes one of science and sheds a whole new light on the world of magic. We shall examine each application case by case. PART II: Untapped Omega Potential The actual ability to use psychic powers lies in an unused part of the human brain yet undiscovered. When an Omega is triggered,this portion of the brain is activated and the Omega gains limited control over its psychic potential, depending upon how it viewed itself before. There are ways, though, of temporarily activating this portion of the brain through meditation and sometimes (not encouraged here, though) the use of drugs. This is known as ritual and is the key to all formal magic in the world. The ancient Greek oracle at Delphi and Magi of Persia were examples of this. In their cases, the oracle or Magi would begin ritual chants to "exercise" the unused part of the brain, with the aid of either bay leaves or poppy. They would then find themselves able to read minds or just the general thoughts of the people and come up with prophetic insights. Being an Omega will always top someone using a ritual, as the Omega need only think and his power will act. A mage must go through lengthy rituals to work his powers. Possibly the only advantage of ritual magic over being an Omega is that a well versed mage can use a far wider variety of effects while the Omega is limited to its own abilities. Hence, many mages of ancient times could compete somewhat with the sorcerers, who were usually Omegas. PART III: Spirits and Ghosts Many of the New Ones were taken as gods in the past, but there were also many gods who weren't Omegas. The type that primarily fit this are the original Sumerian gods who had developed almost a thousand years before the New Ones arrived. Where did these gods come from? The truth is that they weren't gods as we often think of them but spirits. Unlike their New One counterparts, these gods didn't have a physical form unless they exerted a large amount of energy to temporarily form one. These spirits were actually vast pools of psychic energy that had developed its own intelligence. These pools were formed by the combined mental offerings of people worshipping concepts that didn't have a physical form. So in ancient Sumer, war was given the name and persona of Nergal and prayed to. These mental offerings formed the "body" of the entity and the actual nature of the prayers formed the intelligence, based off of the worshipers expectations. These spirit-gods were actually the creations of those that had worshipped them. Eventually, worship was pulled away from these spirit-gods by the New Ones, who were physical and present and held great power. Further more, what spirit-gods were left found their worship decline even more when the New Ones left. Many of them withered away and ceased to exist, some went mad, and a few barely survived. There are still spirits left today. Some are remnants of older religions like the Sumerians, some are new spirits formed by new ideas like Christmas (the secular version), and some are just little bubbles of energy created by mystics in order to have a power source to tap. It is possible for a non-triggered human to call one of these spirits by name. If the proper ritual is acted out while calling, the spirit may be controlled by the human. This can be a powerful source for someone in need of power. Often a spirit has more psychic power available to it than most Omegas. Using that much often drains the spirit to near lifelessness, but in an emergency it may be deemed as necessary. Books such as the Necronomicon and Grimorium are all about how to call these spirits. Finally, sometimes a human will create a spirit after dying. These ghosts are simply weak spirits with only one thought embedded in it's consiousness, often it's last thought. So a man who is murdered and had time to despair greatly may activate his unused part of the brain in his death throwes and leave a psychic imprint that replays his murder over and over again. Sometimes these ghost take on more of the person's intellect and act and behave exactly as the person did in life. This is usually only possible with people who posess powerful minds. The power level of a ghost varies greatly. Some are very powerful and can alter the environment around them like a Omega. Some are simply visual apparitions that can't even talk. What causes these differences is unknown. PART IV: Misc. Many other supernatural event are psychic related also. As an example, the Bermuda Triangle is a great area of psychic disturbance that causes shorts in both electronic equipment and human minds. It was caused by a great war between warring factions of New Ones that left many dead. The dying New Ones left powerful and disturbing psychic imprints in that area. On a final note, not all supernatural things are explainable through science. There are still ghosts that aren't psychic imprints, etc... Also many religions that weren't based on New One or spirit-gods remain a mystery. Feel free to have weird things that exist outside the scientific realm. The above explanations are meant to bring a connection between the realm of science and a majority of the world of magic. Often things get confusing when a world that has two different systems of power (like DC) has them come together. Questions arise like, "Who would win between the Spectre and Superman?" Superman is the supreme hero in the DC universe and meant to be top dog, but the Spectre is the Wrath of God. How do you deal with that? It's two incompatible systems of power. With this outline, we can now easily say that Eric from Tempest is on par with a powerful Sumerian spirit-god and that Anne Benson from Legacy could read the mind of a ghost or average spirit. <HR> <H4><A NAME="gods">Gods? What's with THEM?</A></H4> Again, isn't it a good thing that we have Chad Imbrogno to answer all these questions for us? Now, if only the ancient greeks had him, we'd have conquered the universe by now... GODS:<> Who They Are And Why They Don't Accept Dinner Invitations Any More --By Chad Imbrogno, based on concepts by Chad Imbrogno and Matt Rossi The first gods to take any form of power were evil spirits, the things that lurked in the dark that mankind didn't understand. Early humans believed that there were things in the dark that they could not see and had great power. Things that needed to be appeased. This created the need for many early luck charms, such as the mysterious Red Earth and cannibalism. Eventually, around 7000 BC, humans began to learn the secret of the harvest and the Mother Goddess was born, the first concept to take intelligent form. She was goddess of fertility for both humans and harvest. The Mother Goddess is not to be confused with Gaea, who was a New One later to be discussed. Around 5000 BC, humanity began settling down in different parts of the world and developing more identities for their concepts. Most notably were the Sumerians who set up one of the first civilizations known. Among their gods who took spiritual form were Marduk (the big leader), Enlil (the all-father), Tiamatt (The ancient menace of death), Innanna (the love goddess), and Nergal (the war god.) For nearly two thousand years these spirit-gods had supreme authority over both the Sumerians and other cultures who worshipped similar concepts under different names. Then, around 3000 BC, the "New Ones" who had for almost seven thousand years lived in harmony, destroyed their island in the Atlantic with a great war. One side was known as the Titans, and two ancient myths were born: the tale of Atlantis and the tale of the Greek Titans. These New Ones entered the normal human's civilizations and integrated themselves in a variety of ways. Some simply hid their powers and lived as normal humans (mentioned later.) Some made themselves out to be mages and witches of great power. The rest made themselves out as gods or demi-gods. One Gilgamesh of Uruk claimed to be 2/3 god, in relation to the already established Sumerian gods. This began what was known as Sumer's "Heroic Age" as New Ones claiming divine heritage made themselves known as heroes. The spirit-gods didn't mind these New Ones moving in and claiming to be their kin since it added to the god's fame. What they did mind occured in Egypt, where the clash and transition of powers first began. As usual, the spirit-gods had moved in on the Nile dwellers. But around 3000 BC, when king Menes conquered lower Egypt to begin the Dynastic Age, the New Ones showed up as well. Most notable of these were Isis and Osirus, two very powerful New Ones who were able to fend off the spirit-gods. So in Egypt, there were a mix of New One gods and spirit-gods who were constantly at each others throats. One thing must be understood about how the New One gods operated. At first, they may have been rulers of nations like Osirus, but eventually they learned that if they ruled directly for too long the people would begin to see them as normal mortal rulers and revolt. Hense, most New Ones would drop out of the picture after a few decades. Most pantheons had a specific place in which the New One gods lived where normal humans couldn't reach, such as Greek Olympus or Norse Asgard. From there, they read the minds of their supplicents and did what they could to make their presence known, popping in for a visit now and again. The great triumph for the New Ones came around 1400 BC, when the Greeks had more or less imposed their culture on the land. The Greeks' pantheon was made of entirely of New Ones. These New One gods refused to let any of the Spirit-gods exist for their follower and destroyed any who might infringe on their people. Typhon, who was also the spirit-god Tiamatt and Anubis before, was defeated by Zeus and imprisoned in another dimension. These News Ones also served as the role models for the Roman divinites. But it all came to an end around 500 BC, when Apollo killed Gaea over the ownership of the Temple of Delphi. This, and the disturbing war in the north called Ragnarok, convinced the New Ones that if they didn't remove themselves from the affairs of humans, they would end up destroying themselves. Thus the Concordat was agreed upon and the New One gods disappeared into their own pocket dimensions modeled after their Earthly dwellings (the Greek gods went to the dimension of Olympus, etc...) The human worshippers, finding a large portion of their dieties were no longer responding, became disillusioned and worship of pantheon gods as a whole dropped off. This weakened the remaining spirit-gods to a point where they couldn't convince new worshippers to join their followers. In addition, Christianity eventually took off and was followed eight hundred years later by Islam (Baal: "Hey! Where'd they come from?") This caused many of the spirit-gods to eventually wither away and die from a lack of support. Notable casualties include Baal (Arab father god), Marduk, and Innanna (love was love now.) In the modern world, there's only about one spirit-god left per concept, usually the Sumerian equivilant. Their power levels vary from severe butt-kicker (Nergal) to near non-existent (Kutulu ie Cthulu). These wee beasties are kept alive from the general practice of their idea (in war time, Nergal gets worshipped without the worshipper even knowing it) and from the few survival cults that hide in the shadows. H.P.Lovecraft will tell you all about these nuts. As for the New Ones, almost all of them are in their own little worlds partying the unending party. Except for the handful who became mortals. These few are still wandering about today, posing as mortals while being immortals. Most don't even remember how to use their powers and just intend to live forever. And no, you don't have to cut their heads off in order to kill them. A note on summonings: The rituals that call upon spirit-gods work because the spirit-gods are dependent on their worshippers for survival, so any one who knows the "secrets" must be obeys lest their beliveability drop. New Ones can be called by rituals, but they don't (and usually won't) have to answer. Well, that's it. Direct any questions you might have about ghosts, ghouls, and goblins to me, Chad Imbrogno at cimbrog@andy.bgsu.edu. <HR> <H4><A NAME="trigger"> What's this Trigger you've been talking about? </A></H4> My turn to explain, I guess, since I came up with it. The Omega Trigger is very misunderstood by both Geneticists and Laymen. This is an attempt to explain it simply, so as not to strain the genetic knowledge of the average person on the street, and yet to allow for coherence. The leading theory is that the Trigger is a mutated form of a genegineered virus, unleashed upon humanity by an unknown party. It has been traced back a few million years. At this time, Humanity as we now know it did not exist as such. Various competing strains of hominids (Homo Erectus, Austrolopithecus Africanis and Robustus, et al) were all alive in different regions. THE TRIGGER'S EFFECT ON HUMANITY The Trigger was, at that time, a very versatile and unique killer. But, A virus that kills its host too rapidly keeps the virus from reproducing effectively. Therefore, within a decade of introduction, the virus had mutated to become a recessive genetic adaption, riding the genome of its host rather than striking immediately. Only at times of stress, or sometimes pubescence, or if two people who were both carrying the Trigger mated, would there be an activation. In most strains of Proto-Humanity, it did indeed lead to extinction. But in one strain, it activated the psi potential of the host in an non-lethal way. This strain was known as Homo Sapiens Sapiens, (Thinking man who thinks...redundant, but accurate) and it spread. The triggers were still very rare (They had killed the other homid branches who carried them) and after millenia of sexual reproduction, Parents to Children, had become more of a genetic passenger than a virus. An RNA addition replicated along with the genome of the hosts. THE NEW ONES AND THE TRIGGER Eventually, a statistical quirk happened, even though it took millions of years. Many humans with the Trigger were settled in one place, and isolated from others. Soon, on this atlantic island, trigger carrying human would mate with another...the chances for the Trigger to activate rose. And rose. And eventually it did go off, and the beings resulting from this were the first true psionics in the history of the earth.(For a history, read Chad Imbrogno's article GODS.) TODAY - THE AGE OF THE OMEGA The depletion of the Trigger after the events of the Deluge and Concordat from humanity was so thourough that even today, what was once present in half the genepool (Albeit a much smaller genepool) is only present in %12.5 of the population, and is latent in the vast majority of those cases. There are three ways to activate the Trigger. These are: 1) Extreme Agitation. Sometimes (%0.01) a latent who is subject to extreme emotional or physical trauma will kick in his Omega, allowing him access to the psionic portion of her mind. This does not happen often enough for me to sanction putting one's self in the line of extreme danger. 2) Proper Genes. If two latents marry and have offspring, those offspring have a one in four chance of being Omegas. If they are, they will express their Omega's usually around pubescence (Ages 12- 21) but later and earlier triggers are known. 3) Unknown. There is an X-Factor at work in the Trigger...something not readily explainable. Some Omegas report "Self-Triggering", wherein they managed to access their powers by force of will. Sometimes the Trigger causes massive physical changes, and sometimes it ignores the rules I have already set down. It is extremely difficult to predict or control. Okay, there it is on the Trigger...feel free to play with it. <HR> <H4><A NAME="aliens"> Are there any Aliens and Other Dimensions we should know about? </A></H4> The New Ones and Spirit Gods reside in other dimensions, but that really hasn't been explored too much. So feel free to be the first! Write a whole SERIES set in an alternate OMEGA dimension if ya wanna! On a related note, we haven't done much with Time-Travel and alternate timelines, either. Like I keep saying, it's a young universe. That's the beauty of it. You can explore these options to your hearts content. As far as aliens, we know of a few, but so far in OMEGA we've barely begun to explore our own galaxy. Eric "Tempest" Anderson has been out in the Spiral Arm that Earth is in, and there are a few buried alien ships on Earth itself, but other than that we know very little. Here's what we DO know: THE WREXAKT: Apparently a dead race, they are rumored to somehow be related to the Trigger, and may have had something to do with the ship that Eldin Vincent found in L'Ange Aux Meadows. THE NEYSAR: A race of Anti-Psionics and members of the weak and battle-weary ALLIANCE. THE KAARTHA: Another Alliance race. THE HARRAKIN: Warrior-Psionics who hunt for a legendary homeworld, they have some sort of unrevealed relationship with Tempest. They are the main enemy of the Alliance. THE MARN: Only appearance in TEMPEST 3, the race died at the hands of a being called GOD KILLER. THE LOKAR: An insane offshoot of the Harrakin. THE WOLDA: Draconic mages who live at peace with the universe. Everything else is still unknown. Feel free to add to and explore. That's what it is all here for. <HR> <H4><A NAME="crossovers"> Will OMEGA be crossing over with any other RACC universes? </A></H4> I don't rightly know. Individual Omega books might, as their writers have absolute control over their characters. As a group, we've just finished a VERY, VERY large crossover entitled RIG VEDA...I don't know how many of us are really up to a large crossover right this second. But, I am sure that we will eventually welcome such a move. It's up to the other guys. If SUPERGUY, or PATROL, or ASH, or even the NTB/LNH worlds (Or any of the ones I'm forgetting like Byron Molix's world) have interested writers in them who want to try and work something out, I'm sure we could talk. After all, we all like to write, and that's SOMETHING. <HR> That's the Omega FAQ for now...Updates to Follow. Matthew "BADGER" Rossi, Signing off <HR> Well, er, and this is Jesse Taylor, another guy who'll code HTML's for food... Report any errors in this document to: <ADDRESS>taylorjb@vuse.vanderbilt.edu</ADDRESS> Fin. </BODY> </HTML>