World of Freedom 3.2 Setting Detail

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Shock
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Re: World of Freedom 3.2 Setting Detail

Post by Shock »

The only reference I got was the Parr Ruling but that one was fairly obvious
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Davies
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Re: World of Freedom 3.2 Setting Detail

Post by Davies »

Correct.

The two different Manhunters are a reference to the two different characters of that name who existed in DC's Golden Age, as well as to the computer games Manhunter: New York and Manhunter 2: San Francisco. The mention of a hero named Defensor is a nod to the single-appearance Marvel character of that name, relocated from Argentina to Catalonia.

The most involved and obscure reference is the Alvarado case. The 1980 film Times Square, about a pair of troubled young women (Trini Alvarado as Pamela Pearl and Robin Johnson as Nicky Marotta) who embark on a punk musical career, was originally supposed to feature a song entitled Shadows of the Night. This song would later be recorded by Pat Benatar, and be featured in a music video where Ms. Benatar portrayed a factory worker who dreams of being a member of a flying squad of World War II resistance fighters, with her plane labeled 'Midnight Angel', which term also features in the song's lyrics. (The 1956 date for the original Midnight Angel's death is when the Captain Midnight TV show went off air, for maximum obscurity.)

Yeah, that one would have made the Ellery Queen writers accuse me of being unfair. Then again, I am the guy who made First We Take Manhattan into the basis for a bunch of supervillains.
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greycrusader
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Re: World of Freedom 3.2 Setting Detail

Post by greycrusader »

My attempt at squaring my version of Helen Wainwright used in The Super-Team Handbook with that depicted inc this setting:

Years after going missing during Project Freedom's mission in the Oblivion Zone, the prototype inter-dimensional gateway the team once used to access that apocalyptic plane of reality suddenly crackled with energy, re-activating long enough for a woman in the battered remnants of a Japanese power-armor suit to stagger forward, before burning out entirely. That woman was Helen Wainwright.

Except she wasn't the SAME Helen Wainwright.

While retinal scans, fingerprints, and brainwave analysis also corresponded with Ms. Wainwright's medical records, this Helen Wainwright appeared to be an Asian-American woman; though apparently of the same chronological age, her bio-markers were that of a woman ten years younger, a result of a anti-aging drugs and a more rigorous exercise regime. For obvious reasons, her claims were viewed with great suspicion at first, but given that all testing showed her to be a baseline human with no special powers, along with what appeared to be genuine confusion and a desire to comply with authorities, the ultimate determination was this was the Helen Wainwright of a close parallel world, one nearly identical but with a few small scale differences.

Through extensive debriefing (and a consensual telepathic scan), it was confirmed this Helen Wainwright's memories and personality traits largely jibed with those of her counterpart, though certain aspects of her personal background and her world's Project Freedom differed markedly; figures such as Panda and Raccoon and The Commander apparently never existed in her timeline, or at least were never empowered. Their place in Project Freedom's exploits were taken up by entirely different individuals-Vindicatrix and Vibron (NOT the late David Lawson) were wife and husband mainstays of the team in its early days, and ex-cult member,ex-U.S. super-solider Mr. Magnum served an analogous role to The Commander. Their foray against the forces of Oblivion were largely confined to a series of running skirmishes, mostly engaging hordes of Omegadrones and oblivion troopers, though they also managed to defeat a couple minor Annihilists.

Helen Wainwright II (no, she doesn't care for the designation) had never encountered the artifact of Tomen the Archiver, and hence never gained the enhanced intellect of the Wainwright who was MIA; still, since crossing over into the latter's timeline, she had somehow gained a near encyclopedic knowledge of the all the pertinent AEGIS personnel, villains, and heroes which that Wainwright had encountered over her time with Project Freedom, though it was all of a "textbook" type knowledge, with none of the emotions associated with actual memories. Still, this allowed her to rapidly acclimatize herself and prove her worth to the PF personnel of this world. To this end, she has been (tentatively) allowed to integrate into the ongoing PF, and is actively assembling files on a new team of promising recruits. Her existence has yet to be revealed to the public.

How'd I do, Davies?

All my best.
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Davies
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Re: World of Freedom 3.2 Setting Detail

Post by Davies »

I like it!

Toxic will hate it, and so will the original Wainwright's daughter, but I like it!
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greycrusader
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Re: World of Freedom 3.2 Setting Detail

Post by greycrusader »

A bit more elucidation on THIS version of Harriet Wainwright:

She isn't particularly keen on the current situation either; she has a daughter of her own-same age, strong resemblance, similar personality-but not identical. Not even as close as she is to the Harriet Wainwright who inhabited this world prior to her arrival. She had been running Project Freedom-her version of the program-for close to another decade past her counterpart's ill-fated mission in this timeline. Harriet-nicknamed "Etta" by the AEGIS and PF staff, much to her annoyance-was even dating again, for God's sake! She expected to either go home to her own world or not at all when she led the Freelancers expedition into the borderlands of Omega's territory, the first time she had seen field action in over seven years.

(The above is meant to explain "Etta" Wainwright's background more-very similar up to 2008, but there was NO mission against Omega until late 2016-the power armor she came through the portal in was proportionately more technologically advanced, further verification of her tale. Her mainly administrative and advocate duties help explain why she has poorer combat abilities, despite being in slightly better shape than the Wainwright who went MIA while still only in her fifties. )

A story that may help bring some closure and healing to Toxic is that in Etta's timeline, it was discovered the chaos-goddess Eris had laid a curse down on the family of MorphoGenic Man, in retaliation for key role in their Freedom League's defeat of a coalition of her father Ares. This affected her mother, brother, and Toxic herself (codenamed "Caustic" there but otherwise the same person). It is entirely possible the same might be true here as well.

All my best.
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Davies
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Re: World of Freedom 3.2 Setting Detail

Post by Davies »

greycrusader wrote: Sun Sep 22, 2019 11:06 pm It is entirely possible the same might be true here as well.
<flat> Nope.
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greycrusader
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Re: World of Freedom 3.2 Setting Detail

Post by greycrusader »

Davies wrote: Tue Sep 24, 2019 11:12 pm
greycrusader wrote: Sun Sep 22, 2019 11:06 pm It is entirely possible the same might be true here as well.
<flat> Nope.
As stated, Etta never got to see a page from Tomen's Archive. She's fallible.

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Davies
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Re: World of Freedom 3.2 Setting Detail

Post by Davies »

Timeline:

August, 2016: With Ultimaid's betrayal now confirmed, concern over the possibility that she has shared confidential information with her new allies hampers superheroic response to what are now dubbed the Children of the Night. Roughly a month after the battle in Denver, Dracula's cultists launch an assault against MEDUSA, kidnapping the infant daughter of Juliana Psion (Empath). Gorgon and her allies are unable to pursue as they are subjected to a second assault by several of the Legendary Angels, apparently seeking to "rescue" the child who was just kidnapped.

September, 2016: The wedding of Jessica Prentiss and Mitchell Allen is, after a month-long delay, held in Emerald City. To everyone's surprise, the celebration is not interrupted by supervillainous attack, and indeed goes off without a hitch ... aside from the unexpected appearance of Dolorosa, who quietly offers Jessica and Mitchell her condolences, without further explaining what she means, and then departs. A few days afterward, Superior is lured into a trap and captured by the forces of the Oblivion Knight, with Petka first coming to the Knight's attention at this time.

October, 2016: Templar, having infiltrated the Children of the Night while posing as a zombie, discovers their ultimate intentions, and contacts every superhero he has ever even briefly associated with to beg them to intervene. A massive battle takes place in Yellowstone Park, involving the Freedom League, the Atom Family, Sentinels, Champions, and the Legendary Angels, as well as numerous unaffiliated heroes. After the eruption is prevented by The Rimer Queen and a group of mystics led by Zalman, Dracula is slain by a combination attack from Leroy Dutch and Olivia 'Ripper' LeHane. Ultimaid is prevented from murdering Superior by Charlie Graham, who then gives Superior a good swift kick in the, well, never mind. Herald Sisyphus throws Empath's daughter towards a lava flow, laughing, even after the child is rescued by Frederik Zane, then vanishes after proclaiming that she has achieved her goal. The Oblivion Knight manages to open a portal to the Terminus through which her master, Mistress Oblivion, briefly steps through, only to be repelled by an attack from Trouble and the newly-arrived Daedelus -- Trouble's peace, Daedelus' hope, and their mutual love -- and, unknowingly, that of the Oblivion Knight -- proving too much for her. In the aftermath, the combined forces of MEDUSA arrive on the scene, threatening to extend the battle beyond what the exhausted heroes can endure if Empath's daughter isn't turned over to them ... but 'generously' compromise by taking Superior into their custody instead. Video footage of this last episode is presented by the King campaign as further evidence that the superheroic population must be brought to heel, further swelling Hieronymus King's polling numbers.

November, 2016: Hieronymus King is elected the forty-fifth President of the United States of America. Herald Sisyphus laughs some more.

To Be Continued ... I hope.
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Voltron64
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Re: World of Freedom 3.2 Setting Detail

Post by Voltron64 »

Davies wrote: Fri Nov 08, 2019 5:52 am November, 2016: Hieronymus King is elected the forty-fifth President of the United States of America. Herald Sisyphus laughs some more.

To Be Continued ... I hope.
She's behind him, isn't she? Maybe not directly, but behind him not the less.
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Davies
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Re: World of Freedom 3.2 Setting Detail

Post by Davies »

Voltron64 wrote: Fri Nov 08, 2019 4:24 pm
Davies wrote: Fri Nov 08, 2019 5:52 am November, 2016: Hieronymus King is elected the forty-fifth President of the United States of America. Herald Sisyphus laughs some more.

To Be Continued ... I hope.
She's behind him, isn't she? Maybe not directly, but behind him not the less.
No, but she recognizes the work of the Lord of Bitter Laughter when she sees it.
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Voltron64
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Re: World of Freedom 3.2 Setting Detail

Post by Voltron64 »

Davies wrote: Fri Nov 08, 2019 5:36 pm
Voltron64 wrote: Fri Nov 08, 2019 4:24 pm
Davies wrote: Fri Nov 08, 2019 5:52 am November, 2016: Hieronymus King is elected the forty-fifth President of the United States of America. Herald Sisyphus laughs some more.

To Be Continued ... I hope.
She's behind him, isn't she? Maybe not directly, but behind him not the less.
No, but she recognizes the work of the Lord of Bitter Laughter when she sees it.
That's fair, just one more person after those two to punch repeatedly in the face and/or gut.
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Davies
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Re: World of Freedom 3.2 Setting Detail

Post by Davies »

If you really think punching a PL X entity will do something, punch away.
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greycrusader
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Re: World of Freedom 3.2 Setting Detail

Post by greycrusader »

Was Ultimaid captured after the rescue? And is the investigation of the motivations behind the various "Children of the Night" turning up any clues? Was Dracula truly destroyed?

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Davies
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Re: World of Freedom 3.2 Setting Detail

Post by Davies »

greycrusader wrote: Fri Nov 08, 2019 9:34 pmWas Ultimaid captured after the rescue?
Yes. As of November 2016, she's currently being held in a power-draining cell in Buckner Ridge. The Ultima Prime has not yet washed his hands of her, but her people are divided in their response to her actions.
greycrusader wrote: Fri Nov 08, 2019 9:34 pm]Was Dracula truly destroyed?
He was staked and decapitated -- with a certain Bowie knife that the Harker family loaned to Ripper for the purpose -- and Dutch then shoved garlic wafers in his mouth. It seems fairly likely that this really is it. Buuuuuuut ...

Everyone's motives, except possibly Herald Sisyphus', are fairly well understood. Just what she did to Elizabeth Anne Psion (currently being raised by her father, Max Atom) remains unclear, as Herald Midas told Songbird (after the latter talked her down from pressing the Heralds' claim to the child) that the girl could still become the next incarnation of Herald Endymion.
Herald Midas: <very quiet> Robin, do not ask this of me.

Songbird: If you'd rather I begged --

Herald Midas: I am begging. You know me, Robin. You know the countless grim choices I have made to preserve her legacy. You know I have done horrific things in the hopes that one day I could stop doing them, when she came back to us. And there she is, and you ... it's been more than twenty-five years, Robin, how much more of this do you want me to take?

Songbird: ... I want you to give her the same chance to be a human being that Anne had, before she has to become your messiah, Emiriko.

Herald Midas: <closes eyes> ... damn you. Very well.
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greycrusader
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Re: World of Freedom 3.2 Setting Detail

Post by greycrusader »

Why were Ultimaid and Oblivion Knight allies with Vladimir? Sorry if I’m being obtuse, but Ultimaid seemed a straight up hero, and Amanthi’s cause really doesn’t dovetail with the Vampire Lord’s dreams of horror and conquest.
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