THE CLANDESTINE
Created By: Alan Davis
First Appearance: Marvel Comics Presents #158 (July 1994)
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The ClanDestine is a short-lived comic book series from the mind of Alan Davis, one-half of most of the iconic moments of Brian Braddock's life, alongside luminaries such as Alan Moore & Chris Claremont. The series kind of comes off like an early
Noble Causes, as it's all about a family of metahumans- the long-lived Destine clan of England.
-Davis, drawn to both superhero stuff and group dynamics, wanted to create his own thing, "unencumbered" by long and complex continuity (but set in the Marvel Universe so he could do cross-overs). Figuring that most of the cool powers had already been taken, Davis decided to focus on originality through character interaction & development, and made the group a family. Oddly, Davis left his own book after #8, and was taken over by Glenn Dankin (no idea who that is). There was a 1996 Cross-Over series
X-Men and the ClanDestine, which is the only time I've ever heard of this group, via the advertisements playing them up as a big deal- I never read the issues, however. Another five-issue mini-series by Davis came out in 2008, which I've ALSO never heard about. Davis went back to the story AGAIN for a trio of Annuals, showing some of the backstory.
-The designs are very... "Alan Davis-y". Very smooth figures, 1980s-style costumes (oddly cut-out pieces of material on the costumes), long flowing '80s hair, organically-flowing costumes, and more. The women are packing the Meggan/Saturnyne physique (rather than the Rachel Summers or Kitty Pryde ones for women), generally with the same rounded facial features. Not many other artists have drawn the characters, so it's hard to really divorce their looks from Davis's own distinct style. He's not really lost a step after all these years, though- few artists active in the early 1980s retained their talent over the decades- he draws basically the exact same as he ever did, not getting lazy (like John Byrne) or drawing some odd facial features on certain characters (George Perez, Jerry Ordway).
DESTINE FAMILY TEMPLATE
Created By: Alan Davis
First Appearance: Marvel Comics Presents #158 (July 1994)
Role: Nigh-Immortal Wizard Family
Group Affiliation: The Destine Clan
PL 6 (90)
STRENGTH 2
STAMINA 4
AGILITY 3
FIGHTING 8
DEXTERITY 4
INTELLIGENCE 3
AWARENESS 3
PRESENCE 3
Skills:
Athletics 4 (+6)
Deception 5 (+8)
Expertise (Magic) 4 (+7)
Expertise (History) 5 (+8)
Insight 2 (+5)
Intimidation 2 (+5)
Investigation 2 (+5)
Perception 2 (+5)
Advantages:
Languages 2 (Several), Ranged Attack 2, Ritualist
Powers:
Immunity 2 (Aging, Disease) (Flaws: Limited to Half-Effect) [1]
Offense:
Unarmed +8 (+2 Damage, DC 17)
Initiative +3
Defenses:
Dodge +8 (DC 18), Parry +8 (DC 18), Toughness +4, Fortitude +7, Will +6
Complications:
Relationship (The Family)- The siblings often do not get along, but the family is closely-linked.
Total: Abilities: 60 / Skills: 26--13 / Advantages: 5 / Powers: 1 / Defenses: 11 (90)
Destine Family Members:
CUCKOO (Jasmine Destine, aka Kay Cera)- PL 10 (137): Deception +2, Attractive, Beginner's Luck, Jack of All Trades, "Transfer Consciousness" Immortality 20 (Flaws: Source- Host Body, Rearranges Body & Physical Stats With Lowered Psychic Abilities), "Astral Projection" Remote Sensing 10 (Vision & Hearing), AE: Mind-Reading 10, AE: Illusion (Vision 2, Hearing) 10 (Flaws: Mental), AE: Telekinetic Blast 10 (Feats: Indirect- Through Others' Bodies) [47]
-Adam & Elalyth's eldest child, an 800-year-old Telepath who survives by transferring her mind into mortally-wounded Host Bodies, then having her brother heal them. She's been a Japanese Princess, a Vampire, a fashion designer, and more. Unlike the others, she accepts their father's killing of Vincent. She's also generally a hedonist, and often reads people's innermost thoughts without their permission, making her controversial to her family members. Davis has admitted he designed her out of his love "of drawing impossibly-beautiful women".
ALBERT DESTINE- PL 6 (159): AWA +2, Expertise (Monk) 8 (+11), Teleport 12 (Extras: Extended, Portal +2), AE: Healing 10 [69]
-A Monk living in Nepal, able to heal others. He was badly-affected when he tried to stem the Black Death in Europe, and was sent to a temple by his family members in order to recover. He frequently chides Cuckoo in the use of her powers, and has informed her that he will no longer heal the bodies she "jumps" to (this effectively dooms her to die some day). He never forgave their father for killing Vincent.
GRACE DESTINE- PL 8 (114): Expertise (Archaeologist) 8 (+11), Ranged Attack 4, "Telekinesis" Move Object 8, AE: TK Blast 8, AE: Communication 2 (Mental) [24]
-"Gracie" is an archaeologist born in 1503 with the "Jean Grey Power-Set" that got so over-used in the 1990s. Kind of an assist-based character, she accidentally summoned a demon a long time ago, and frequently has to deal with it.
NEWTON DESTINE- PL 6 (116): INT +5, AWA +1, Inventor, Ultimate Technology Skill, Treatment 6 (+14), Expertise (Science) 8 (+16), Technology 10 (+18) [26]
-A super-genius, he ended up on Etherea (is a cross-over with
She-Ra in the works?), putting his consciousness into a much larger, more-muscular body (ST 5, STA 5) for this purpose. He usually sticks with his normal body for scientific pursuits.
ARGENT (Samantha Destine)- PL 9 (139): FIGHTING +2, PRE -3, Improved Critical (Body Weaponry), Move-By Action, Variable 7 (Body Weaponry & Armor) [49]
-An artist who can shape Armor & Weapons around her body. "Aloof, brooding and exotic" thanks to her finding regular flesh repulsive due to her powers. Davis admits that her armor shifts in shape solely because he didn't feel like drawing it accurately in every panel
.
WALLOP (Walter Destine)- PL 10 (127): FIGHTING 2, Fast Grab, Improved Critical (Unarmed), Growth 10 (Str & Sta +10, +10 Mass, +5 Intimidation, -5 Dodge/Parry, +1 Speed, -10 Stealth) -- (42 feet), Protection 2 (Extras: Impervious 9) [37]
-"Wallop" is a romance novel writer, and turns into a Blue Hulk, more or less- excessive use of Growth can lead to him losing his temper and going berserk. Changing forms back actually takes him a good deal of time. He is the guardian of Rory & Pandora, and is treated as a strict parental figure who resents the other siblings just popping into the kids' lives on a whim.
HEX (Dominic Destine)- PL 10 (120): FIGHTING +4, INT +1, AWA +1, Investigation 8 (+12), "Pressure Points & Nerve Clusters" Affliction 8 (Fort; Dazed/Stunned/Paralyzed), Senses 11 (Acute Scent, Extended Vision, Hearing & Scent, "Tremorsense"- Ranged Radius Touch 2, Analytical Vision & Taste) [30]
-An illusionist and escapologist, Dominic refuses to forgive Adam for killing Vincent. He's a great deductive reasoner and "quite brilliant", but often exiles himself because his sensory powers can't handle large cities. He can get "Dazzled" easily- a bite of chocolate can basically K.O. him, and his vision can be buggered by infra-red, microwaves or sonic emissions. Even being scanned by certain things can cause him pain. Even being PUNCHED is super-effective, because he's so physically-sensitive. All of this makes him quite aggressive and volatile, but the ultimate Glass Cannon.
VINCENT DESTINE- PL 6 (116): Movement 6 (Time Travel 3, Space Travel 3) (Extras: Instantaneous, Portal +2), Shrinking 10 (Extras: Affects Others Only +0) [26]
-The "Bad Son", Vincent was declared to be "evil" by his father, and was killed after he destroyed the family manor. This is all part of the backstory of the series, and the reason the family split up. When he was finally shown in a 2012 story, he was revealed to be kind of a Time Traveling Hipster, whining about how his family were disaffected from human suffering, acting like "parasites". His destructive potential was unleashed by a demon that had possessed his body, which is why Adam snapped his neck.
OTHER KIDS: William "Oz" Chance (Peak Human Strength & Agility- an actor in action movies), Nathaniel (a beter mystic than Albert), Thaddeus (second-oldest child; died years ago after being tossed off a cliff by an evil Inhuman. He had Vixen-like powers to copy animal traits), Florence (Killed by Lenz's creatures; acted as Rory & Pandora's grandmother), Maurice Fortuit (Killed by Lenz's creatures; had some kind of Energy power), Three unknown siblings (Garth, Sherlock & Lance; only seen as headstones).