RPG Solo Forums

 What is this?


This is going tro be gameplay from the PbtA game: Masks. Masks is a uperhero genre game based on the concept of teen/preteen heroes and heroines dealing with growing up and finding there own way. Think Teen Titans or Young Avengers.


How will I run this?


The party will be five members (the classic number when it comes to super teams) following a 'modified' five man band trope. For those unfamiliar to that trope (copy/pasted from TV tropes):

• The Leader — (lead singer) The leader of the group. Can be a mastermind, charismatic, levelheaded, headstrong, or some combination of the four. Often also The Hero.
  
• The Lancer — (lead guitar) Usually a contrast to The Leader. If the Leader is clean-cut and/or uptight, the Lancer is a grizzled Anti-Hero or Deadpan Snarker; if the Leader is driven and somewhat amoral, the Lancer is more relaxed and level-headed.
  
• The Smart Guy — (keyboardist) The physically weak, but intelligent or clever member. Often nerdy and awkwardly played for comic relief. Sometimes unconventionally young (early- to mid-teens). Sometimes a Trickster and a buddy of the Big Guy.
  
• The Big Guy — (drummer) The strongman of the team. May be dumb. Or mute.
  
• The Chick — (vocal effects, tambourine) A peacekeeping role to balance out the other members' aggression, bringing them to a nice or at least manageable medium. The Chick is often considered the heart of the group. This role is played by a woman or girl. Someone female. Otherwise, it is not a Five-Man Band.
  

Now the modification is obviously the 'Chick'. I'm changing that to The Heart. This opens the door for any of the remaining four (if not all) to be female.


I will also use the 9q rules, written by John Fiore. These are awesome rules for solo players and if you haven't tried them, you should. They are compatible to many solo engines and games. 

Link=>The pdf file is on the right side margin. Scroll down. Also, stick around and read the blog, it's awesome!.


Anywho, time to get started! This will be part one of the Leader, posting the playbook info up until the background information. Part two will follow after all five members are some what fleshed out, since that info will be needed for each of them.


-Character Creation-


Trope 1- The Leader (And will most likely be the focal point of the narrative. If I need a narrow focus on narration)


Q: Is it a woman?
A: Yes


(See? Right off the bat. So I'm justified in my earlier assumption of modifying the fiveman band concept.


So now it's time to check out what playbook, our leader will be. (Playbook is another way of saying 'class'. Masks call them playbooks.) Looking over the playbooks, two are specific with being a leader. Those two are the Protege and the Legacy. The Protege is basically a heroine trained by an already established Adult hero/heroine. Think of Robin, a sidekick of Batman. Legacy is someone who shares the same powerset as an established hero and is expected to carry the torch for them. Think Supergirl or Superboy and how the burden is on their shoulders to carry on Superman's burden if he ever retires.


So...)


Q: Is she a protege?
A: Yes, but...


(Off the top of my head she is a protege (and will use the protege playbook), but she doesn't want to be. Maybe she has a disagreement with her Mentor? We'll investigate this later, after she is more fleshed out.


Now I went to Randomlists.com and generated 12 random names.)


Q: Is her name Aiyana?
A: No but...


(More ambiguity. So her name isn't Aiyana. But maybe it used to be? A name change.)


Q: Is her name Ariel?
A: Yes but...


(We know, we know... it's not her real name   . That worked out, didn't it? Her current name is Ariel. Her real name is Aiyana.)


The playbook asks about her Gender, but we already answered that. Now her ethnicity...)


Q: Is she Asian or South Asian?
A: Yes, and...


Q: Is she also African American?
A: No


Q:...Hispanic/Latino?
A: No


Q:...Indigenous?
A: Yes


(Interesting. So she is Indigenous (think Native American/Tribal decent) with some Asian Lineage)


Q: Does this have to do with her name change?
A: Yes.


(Nice. So slowly her background is expanding.)


Next is her look.


Q: Does she have an Athletic body?
A: Yes.


(She is athletic, or maybe she is naturally fit? We'll learn more on this as we press on.)


Q: Is she always seen in a school uniform?
A: Yes.


(This can mean a lot of things. Maybe she lives on a campus with a strict dress code? Perhaps she has a lot of school pride? Maybe she doesn't have a deep wardrobe? Again, I shall press on, with the anticipation that this will answer itself)


Q: Is her costume colorful?
A: No


Q: Does she wear a costume similar to her Mentor?
A: Yes


(So when she is a Heroine, Ariel wears the costume similar to her mentor.


So we now move on to her abilities. She has an ability that she shares with her Mentor, an ability that she alone possess and an ability her Mentor possess.)


Q: Is their shared ability a superhuman physique?
A: Yes, but...


(From the top of my head, they are both superhumans but perhaps the source of said physique are different, which could be due to Ariel's mixed heritage?)


Q: Is this because of Ariel's mixed heritage?
A: No


(...okay, I clicked Likely, but got a no. So something else is going on here. Let's press on, though.)


Q Is Ariel's own ability weapon and gadgets?
A No and


(Going to assume that it's not her mentor's either. Going to make a note of that.)


Q:...Stealth?
A: No, but...


(...but it is her Mentor's.)


Q:...Detective Skills?
A: Yes.
(So recap: They are both in possession of a Superhuman Physique. Ariel has good (or I'll even say Exceptional) Detective skills. Her Mentor is good at Stealth.


My thoughts so far is that this could be a Ninja vs. Police/Detective sort of thing. Or even a Tribe vs. Modern sort of thing. Her Mentor is strong with the ways of the tribe, but Ariel is strong with the ways of the city, perhaps? She solves problems through analysis and thought and her Mentor is more hands on (I do not want to say savage or primitive, because not all indigenous tribes are)? Complexity is forming here.


This next question (or questionS depending on the answer) is going to be huge, but those of you who haven't played Masks won't be able to see why or even know what is going on yet. I'll explain it later.)


Q: Does the Mentor embody Savior?
A: No


Q:...Danger?
A: Yes but...


(Okay. In this game, traits are known as Labels. The higher a Label, the more likely that said character has a 'label' placed on them. This is how the outside world see them and when someone increases a Label, this is what they think a character should be or how they view them.


Danger is a Label placed on someone seen as Threatening, Strong, Bloody Knuckled, and Risky.


Other people see a character as a Danger when they think they should steer clear of that character, mostly out of fear of harm.


A character views themselves as Danger when the are afraid they will hurt others and/or they feel they can take down dangerous threats.


In this case, the Mentor is someone who not only take out threats, but does so brutally and 'unseen' (remember Stealth, right?), therefore, the logical conclusion I can come up with is that of an Assassin. So perhaps the tribe is Ninja clan-ish in nature? Ariel is her new name, but in the clan, she is known as Aiyana?


Okay, that sounds decent. Now for the label the Mentor denies


Q: Does the Mentor denies Superior?
A: No


(Another Very Likely question that was shot down. I cutted to the chase and asked this because it made sense. Ariel has Detective Skills and Superior Label delves in the 'smartest person in the room' vibe. But the answer is no, so lets forge on)


Q: ...denies Savior?
A: Yes and...


(So Savior is when a character sees themselves as defending, guarding, protecting and stalwart. People se a character as a Savior when they think the character as noble, or selfsacrificing, maybe a bit over bearing and moralizing. They see themselves as Saviors when they feel themselves as a matyr, someone who gladly sacrifices to protect and defend others.


...and the mentor denies this.


This is sounding more and more like a League of Shadows, here. People who cares less about the safety and well being of others and more about the eradication of evil no matter the cost.


Can't wait to find out who he or she is and we're close to doing so. First, it time to actually find out the Labels (traits) of Ariel.


Now the Labels are (repeating the ones already mentioned for simplicty sake):


Danger: seeing yourself as threatening, strong, bloody-knuckled, and risky. Other people see you as a danger when they think they should steer clear of you because you might bring them harm. You see yourself as a danger when you believe you can take down other dangerous threats, and when you think you yourself are a threat to other people.


Freak: seeing yourself as strange, unusual, unique, and powerful. Other people see you as a freak when they think you’re odd, unlike them, something unnatural or outside of their understanding. You see yourself as a freak when you accept and own the things you can do that no one else can, and when you think you don’t belong with the people and the world around you.


Savior: seeing yourself as defending, guarding, protecting, and stalwart. Other people see you as a savior when they think of you as noble or selfsacrificing, or a bit overbearing and moralizing. You see yourself as a savior when you think of yourself as a martyr, someone who gladly sacrifices to protect and defend others.


Superior: seeing yourself as smart, capable, crafty, and quick. Other people see you as superior when they think you’re the smartest person in the room, an arrogant and egotistical jerk. You see yourself as superior when you think you’re cleverer than everyone else, and when you know exactly what to say to make the people around you do what you want.


Mundane: seeing yourself as normal, human, empathetic, and understanding. Other people see you as mundane when they think of you as all too normal and uninteresting, but also comprehending and sympathetic. You see yourself as mundane when you think you’re regular, just a person, not special, and focused on normal human things like feelings and emotions.


The base stats for a Protege are Danger -1, Freak 0, Savior +1(+1 to make that +2, more on that in a sec), Superior +2, Mundane 0


I get to add +1 to one of these and based on the above info (The fact that Ariel disagrees with her Mentor and that her Mentor denies Savior), +1 goes to Savior. So she sees her self as smart and clever, as well as a person who will sacrifice her self to save others.)


Next is her backstory. The playbook conveniently has questions set up for me to ask. XD)


Q: How did you (Ariel) first meet your mentor?
A: Trust/Travel

(So Ariel trusted The Mentor once upon a time. And they traveled together. Let's break away from the background questions for a second to investigate a few key important facts:


First, the Mentor. We know the Mentor is likely a Ninja or Assassin. Very hands on, but also values keeping things clean and unseen. Not too keen in self sacrifice or saving others (possibly because the clan itself doesn't believe in emotional attachments).


Q: Is the mentor a woman?
A: Yes.


(So Woman Ninja. A Kunoichi. And I'm calling the Clan, the White Lotus. Why?


Aiyani, Ariel's clan name, means “Blossoming” or “Eternal Flower”. So the name scheme matches the Clan. What to name the Mentor?


One Google search later: Hamsini. “One who is on a lotus”. Very on the nose. Very Comic Booky. I love it. However, the travel thing. Why were they travelling together?)


Q: Are they related?
A: No, but...


(So they share a bond, but are NOT related. Not by blood, anyway)


Q: Why were they together?
A: Praise/News


(Praise and news? Praise is linked to religion. News could mean anything information related. Religious information in comic books is usually a prophecy. A prophecy links them together? Or maybe a religious ritual within the clan linked them together. The travel part could be them isolating themselves for said ritual. The trust could have gathered from same. They relied on each other so heavily, that they couldn't help but trust each other.


With that settled, let's continue the background questions


Q: When and why did you choose to train with them?
A: This was already answered. The White Lotus Ritual.


(But to flesh things out: The White Lotus follow the same teaching similar to the Jedi/Sith, that being that there is a master and an apprentice.)


Q: Why did they agree to train you?
A: Ritual. Moving along.


Q: Who else, outside the team (implying that the team already knows, a fact I'll delve into in part two), knows about your training?


A:Inspect/Jealously


(Inspect and Jealousy? I thought of an interesting twist here: Ariel's foster parents. Perhaps detectives themselves? Further more, the 'Jealousy' part could be coming from the 'Motherly' competition between Ariel's mom and Hamsini, both competing to raise Ariel in their image.)


Q: Why do you care about the team?
A: Move/Technology


(I like to thank my anthropology college teacher for this one. 'Technology' is more than just computers and such. Technology is a way of life. Setting a fire, for example, is a form of technology. The wheel is a form of technology. Copy/pasted:


“Technology can be the knowledge of techniques, processes, and the like, or it can be embedded in machines which can be operated without detailed knowledge of their workings. The human species' use of technology began with the conversion of natural resources into simple tools.”


The Team must've helped her settle into her new home. The team may even be her extended family?


Anywho, this concludes the Leader part one. Aiyani, the Eternal Flower (Or even, the Eternal Lotus? I'll stick with that, as it sounds even more awesome!)


The character creation will continue next post with the Lancer part one!


Till then, I'll like some feed back. Any thing you feel I should flesh out or clarrify with Aiyani? 

Continuing the character creation for my solo campaign.

Last time I completed the first half of Aiyani, the Eternal Lotus. She is the Leader of this intrepid group.

This post will be part one of the Lancer. The Lancer is almost the opposite of the Leader. Since we've established that Aiyani is a bit of a strategic thinker and a bit of a softtouch when it comes to violence and aggression, then the Lancer is going to be the opposite. There are three Playbooks that fit the bill here.

The Bull is the traditional one. This fits the 'Wolverine' of the group. The Nova is all about destruction. A person whose powers can obliterate if they don't give it complete concentration. Finally, there is the Delinquent, a person who is brash, anti-lawful and a bit of an outcast.

Time to find out which one will be our Lancer!

Q: is The Lancer The Bull?
A: No

Q: Delinquint?
A: No, but...

(...hmm. No, but s/he's not a Nova, either? Already we have a twist. What other play books can we check out?

Well, I was sticking to core playbooks, but since I got a “No, but...” I think I'll give the newer plabooks a look. Fitting a Lancer who is care free, is The Star, basically a hero/heroine who is out to look as good as possible while fighting evil. Think Human Torch. And then we have The Reformed. A former villain who had a change of beliefs... but still have problems with old habits.

To be honest, the Reformed sounds perfect. If it's not Reformed, then it's Star. Unless the Solo engine throws another curve...)

Q: is the Lancer The Reformed?
A: Yes

Q: Is the Lancer a woman?
A: Yes

(Two women out of a five person team. Alright, time for Randomlist.com for names.)

Q: Is her name Nathaly?
A: Yes, but...

(Okay. I am not going with the changed name gimmick again. It'll be funner if we go a new route. So her name is Nathaly, but she doesn't like that name, for some reason. “Nate” then? She hates people calling her by her full name.

Continuing)

Q: Is she African American?
A: Yes.

(I skipped Asian, because we already have one on the team, and I planned to skip indigenous as well. Next time, African American will be off the list. Diversity is the name of the game here.

I'm not going to ask about her eyes and clothes as her being a Lancer answer those questions. Opposite of Ariel. Her eyes will be flashy, so either Technicolor or Gorgeous)


Q: Her eyes Technicolor?
A: No and...

(Their not Gorgeous either!!! Curse you!!!

...sigh. Alright, time to go down the list.)

Q: Does she have sad eyes?
A: Yes, But...

(I'm guessing that not many people see her sad eyes. She hides her emotions well. Or rather, she is adept at hiding behind a shell.)

Q: Does she wear expensive clothing?
A: Yes

(This was very likely. As an opposite to Ariel, who adhere's to her schools uniform policy like a plain Jane, it makes sense that Nate is a bit more stylish. I wonder, though...)

Q: Does Nate go to the same school as Ariel?
A: No and...

(I had to ask and got an interesting answer. So not only does she not go to school with Ariel, she doesn't got to school with ANY of the remaining team. A loner, perhaps?

Lets not get side tracked, but this is an interesting subject to delve into later.)

Q: Does she wear a Tattered costume? 
A: Yes.

Her costume is tattered. Of course those 'rips' are going to be stylish. Punk Rock themed?

Anywho, time to see what she does. The playbook provides a list to choose from. Let's go down it, shall we?)

Q: Does her powers involve poison, venom, or acid control?
A: No

Q: ...ferrokinesis? 
A: No, and...

(For the record, ferrokinesis is being able to summon and control metal and other ferrous material. Would've been nice. Oh well.

Going to assume that 'and' means she's not a Fear manipulator either, which was next on the list. Here is the crazy thing though... next on the list is

Q: weapons and martial expertise?
A: No, but...

(Would've been crazy if we had two hand to hand fighters on this team. However, I am going to say that Nate is a great hand to hand fighter, regardless. A street fighter who fights dirtier than Ariel. Continuing, we have two left, unless Solo engine throws a curve. There is vitality absorption, meaning she has the ability to steal life from organics, or she is going to be a geokinetic. I'm pulling for Geo Kinetic due to it's destructive capability, but Vitality absorption will be quite interesting as well. Here we go...)

Q: ...Vitality absorption?
A: No, but...

(First things first: She is a Geo Kinetic. An Earth Bender, if you will.

But it involves Vitality Absorption in some way...)

Q: How does her Geokinesis involve Vitality?
A: Negligence/Extravagance

(Ah... if she is not careful, she'll do more than control Earth Energy. She'll steal life as well...)

Q: Is this ability magical in nature?
A: No, but...

(This ability is natural. It's an innate ability and doesn't involve a spell. However, perhaps the powers themselves has a magical origin to them? Another thread to follow later.

Label time.

Danger +3 (The +1 went here), Freak +1, Savior -1, Superior 0, Mundane 0.

Danger gets the bump because this woman has no cut card. Remember she is the Yin to Ariel's Yang. Ariel isn't to keen on the Danger label, thanks to her Mentorship. Thus, it's only natural for Nate to have max danger.

Backstory time.)

Q: Who mentored you in supervillainy?
A: Heal/News

(A villian who Heals? A villian who spreads News as well. Perhaps she worked with a villian who saw him/herself as a hero, spreading the news that his exploits were for the greater good.

I'm going to say that this is a man. A lot of women so far, time to balance it out some what.)

Q: What is his Supervillian name?
A: Usurp/Nature

(Usurp Nature? Maybe he was trying to Usurp the nature of things?

Eureka. Earlier, we had Heal. Now we have someone who usurps nature. And then spreads news about it. I have an idea.

He's a Doctor. He 'Usurp Nature' by either enhancing or manipulating DNA. Thus explains Nate's abilities. They are Magical in nature because the Doctor enhanced them with Magic somehow! She can control her Geokinesis by borrowing energy from other sources!

He would go by his normal name, Dr. Darius Norman Abner, but people call him Doctor DNA.)

Q: Who first showed you that you could do good?

(Off a gut instinct idea, I'm adding a side question...)

Q:... was it Aiyani?
A: No

(Had to ask it. Would've been a nice connection if it was. Anywho...)

A(To the previous question): Violate/Adversities
 
(Violate Adversity? An activist who is against Dr. DNA's agenda of 'improving' DNA? Perhaps, then, it's someone who cherishes life? Amazonians are known to be that way (I saw Wonder Woman, so sue me), perhaps it was an Amazon who revealed that Dr. DNA's improvement wasn't as good as Nate was lead to believe?)

Q: What was your Goal as a villain?
A: Before answering this, we already have a partial answer: She was helping Dr. DNA. She felt indebted to him and was helping him 'fix' other Hero's.

But here is an interesting question that arises from that...

Q: What was wrong with Nate prior to Dr. DNA 'fixing' her?
A: Refuse/Pleasures

(Hmmm... She can't have pleasure. So this could mean that her powers was preventing her from the pleasures of everyday life. Maybe when she got angry, happy, excited or aroused, her Geokinisis kicks in and starts obliterating her surroundings! She needed help in controlling it. Dr. DNA discovered that she need more energy to keep her abilities in check and infused a magical artifact on her that siphons energy into her to help her keep her powers in check. This emerald, however, does this by taking life energy, so if she is not careful, that life energy could come from humans.)

Q: What caused you to switch sides?
A: Just like Aiyani, things are writing themselves. The obvious route is that she accidentally stole someone's life force (not dissimilar to Rogue). 

Q: Was the Lifeforce stolen belonged to the Amazon?
A: Yes, and...

(...and the Amazon died as a result. The Amazon's life force powers the Jewel, which sustains Nate. But this sacrifice and loss of life is what ultimately lead to her turning her back on Dr. DNA.)

Q: Why do you care about the team?
A: Harm/Peace

(Harm peace. She lacks inner peace (sad eyes, remember? Also, she is a loner as well). She killed and has the capacity to easily do it again if she pushes her powers too far. The team helps keep her in check.

And boom, there we are... but there is one thing missing that I accidentally neglected. A heroine name.

Geo Girl? Best I can come up with for now. Maybe you guys can think of a better name?

Next up will be the brains of the group: The Smart Guy/Gal!)

And we're back. This time doing Trope 3- Smart Guy/Girl.

As a reminder:

“The physically weak, but intelligent or clever member. Often nerdy and awkwardly played for comic relief. Sometimes unconventionally young (early- to mid-teens). Sometimes a Trickster and a buddy of the Big Guy.”

So keeping that in mind lets look over the playbooks that I'll choose from:

The Delinquent- Due to the high base Superior label. Also a trickster.

The Outsider- Superior base score. Also could provide Alien high tech and alien high intelligence. Furthermore, different Alien Physiology could make her super young in Earth years, but very mature in Alien years (or vice versa)

The Newborn- We already have a non-core Playbook active, so everything is fair game now. The Newborn could range from being an Artificial Intelligence (like The Vision) To a bio engineered creation/clone. Being Newlyborn, it fits the Abnormally Young criteria, as well.

So... lets do it.

Q: Is this person a woman?
A: No, but

(...but not a man either.)

Q:  Is it Man-made?
A: No.

(Outsider it is. And it's Gender-less as well. I'm going to assume that it is like the Asari from Mass Effect. For sake of simplicity, I'll refer to it as a 'she' (cause referring to it as an 'it' is a bit disconcerting)

 Q: Does she have a strange body?
A: No

Q: Does she have an Animalistic body?
A: Yes

Q: What Animal is she most related too?
A: Return/Friendship

(An animal that Returns Friendship. A dog comes to mind (Dogs become loyal to those who care for them. Cats can sometimes show this trait as well (though we all know how evil cats can be. Don't believe me, look it up on Youtube).  A Google search later and I found five more animals that can be loyal as well. I'm going to go down this list and see what bites...)

Q: Does she look like a Rabbit?
A: No and...

(...and she does not look like a Guinea pig either (the next on the list). So skipping that...)

Q: ...a rat?
A: No

Q: ...a Cockatiel?
A: No

Q: ...a Bearded Dragon Lizard?
A: No, but...

(She carry Lizard Traits. Will explore this in a second. We have two left. If she is not a Dog, cat it is!)

Q: ...Dog?
A: Yes

Q: What Lizard Trait does she carry over?
A: Stop/A burden

(Armor. So she has Lizard like Scales.)

Q: Does she walk upright?
A: Yes

(Asked this so I can envision her better. She walks like a human on two legs. For the sake of Comic Book simplicity, she has hands and feet like a human. She'll have scales with fur growing from between the cracks in between each scale.)

Q: Does she have glowing eyes?
A: Yes and...

Q: ...and Animalistic eyes?
A: Yes.

(Glowing Canine Eyes.)

Q: Does she like wearing flashy clothes?
A: Yes

(This says something about her personality. She could also be hanging around with Nate as well.)

Q: Is her heroic costume her native world's uniform?
A: No

Q: ...is it her Station's uniform?
A: No

Q: ...is it a practical costume?
A: Yes, but...

(Being that she is smart, and by definition logical, it makes sense that she wears a costume that accentuates her abilities. How ever something is impractical about it, as well. We'll work on this when we get to see what her powers are. Which is now.

Now, the play book says that she can fly and that she is pretty tough. She also has two traits from a given list. Time to go down it.)

Q: Does she have density control?
A: Yes

Q: Does she have Stunning beauty or phoremones?
A: No

Q: Alien Weaponry?
A: No

Q: Heliokinesis (Solar energy control)
A: No

Q: Radical Shapeshifting
A: No.

(By process of elimination, her other power is Telepathy and Mind blasts. Density Control and Telepathy. Perhaps what makes her heroic costume impractical is due to the density control?)

Q: Is she used to Earth's gravity?
A: No, and...

(...and she needs a device from her costume to keep her from suffering from Earth's different gravity. Boom. She doesn't need the whole costume, but it's very noticiable and it gets in the way.

Before we go any further, she needs a name. 

I'm not going to tell you how I came up with it, but some of you may figure it out, any way.

Liats T'sthe

And no, I'm not saying how you pronounce it. Lets just say that her teammates call her “Lia” or “Tee” for short. 

So, Labels

Danger -1, Freak +2 (+1 went here, see why below), Savior 0, Superior +2, Mundane 0

Now we have an interesting delimma here. It makes sense to put the +1 to Superior. HOWEVER there is one point I failed to bring up in the first two characters: Having +3 in a trait is not always a good thing. In the game, there is such a thing called shifting labels and when a Label get's shifted past +3, it leads to complications. This is the equivalent of someone being so smart, they look like a jerk. Lancer can get away with it because she's the lancer. But Lia, not so much. Being that she is a Lizard/Dog hybrid looking thing with glowy Canine eyes, I'll go the safe route and add +1 to Freak

Now for the back story.)

Q: Where do you come from?
A: Befriend/Attention

(She comes from a world that wants to be found. Perhaps it's in danger of something?)

Q: Why is the planet in danger?
A: Agree/Pain

(Their planet is hurting, but it's and Agreeable hurt. Maybe they are low on Resources and as a resort, their planet is dieing? Perhaps the feel that hurting their planet is a good thing? A warring planet, perhaps?

A google search found out about the Discovery of the Trappist-1 system. The native name of the planet she is from is unpronounceable in human Tongue, so to the team and others, it's called Trappist.)

Q: Why did you come to Earth?
A: Spy/Jealousy

(Oh dear. So Trappist is jealous on how much natural resources Earth has and sent Lia to spy on it?)

Q: Is Lia aware that she is a spy?
A: No

Q: Is she alone?
A: No, but...

(Okay... Lia was a part of an envoy. However their true mission to to gather intelligence about Earth. Lia is in the dark about this, she thinks this is a diplomatic mission.)

Q: Why do you want to stay here (for now at least)?
A: Overthrow/Animals

(Who would she consider 'Animals'? Not earth, remember, she has no idea about the spy mission. Maybe she is doing this to spite her own people? She's angry about something?)

Q: What is it about her people, that Lia is angry about?
A: Take/Elements

(SO! Her people takes resources. Like animals. Makes sense, after all, they found it agreeable to harm their own planet. Thus, in the back of her mind, she suspects that her people maybe thinking about doing this to Earth as well!)

Q: Why do your people want you to come home?
A: Trust/Environment

(They like Earth. They REALLY like Earth. But why does it require Lia to come home? After all, couldn't they just invade and steal resources if she was there?)

Q: Why is it 'required' for Lia to come home before an invasion?
A: Punish/Status Quo

(Ah! She is required for punishment based on their laws. She did something wrong, and they can't invade without putting her on trial. For what?)

Q: ...for what?
A: Cruelty/Wishes

(Cruelty towards their wishes. She is in the way for what they truly want. I could keep digging, but it's time to come-up with my own conclusions:

Lia's race of Canine/Lizard people (Let's call them, the Cazarthi) is a race of peoples who go from homeworld to homeworld, soak up the planet's natural resources to powerup their own warmongering, and then moves on. Earth, among other planets, are on their hit list. However the envoy they sent to Earth, lead by Lia, hasn't returned, so they can't make final plans against Earth without that critical data.

While Lia is ignorant towards the true threat, she isn't ignorant with how selfish her people are about natural resources. Seeing how beautiful Earth is, she is taking her sweet time in returning to the Cazarthian fleet, hoping to find compelling evidence or... something to convince her people that they shouldn't bully Earth.

Sounds nice. 

And now, final question.)

Q: Why do you care about the team?
A: Open/Extravagance

(I guess through them (or by them), she sees how beautiful Earth is, and it's potential.

So finishes part one of Liats T'sthe. Next is the Big Guy/Gal, the powerhouse of the group.)

And it's me again, continuing in the generation of of our intrepid team in my solo game.

In this installment, we will create the Big guy/gal. The resident strong person. 

Also note: to limit word count, I omitted some questions I asked.

There are three Playbooks we can possibly use here:

The Transformed- Think Hulk or the Thing and you'll understand.
The Bull- Powerset includes Super strength
The Legacy- Same as Bull.

First thing first:

Q: Is this character a woman?
A: No

(Our first man of the team! Alrighty...)

Q: Is he a Transformed? 
A: Yes

(Alright.)

Q: Is his eyes strange?
A: No

Q:  Upsetting eyes?
A:  Yes, but...

(So his eyes are unsettling... but maybe they aren't always. The same way the Hulks eyes turn green only when he gets extremely pissed off...

Now to check out his transformation...)

Q: is his flesh metallic?
A: No, but...

(But it carries metallic like qualities.)

Q: Is his flesh scaled? 
A: Yes.

(So metallic-like scales)

Q: Does he have a terrifying costume?
A: No and...

(...it's not strange either.)

Q: ...unnerving costume?
A: No

(By process of elimination, no Costume. Knowing the comic code, this must mean that his scales covers him completely

For Abilities, only two things makes sense here: Impenetrable Armor (his metallic scales) and Inhuman Might (because he's the Strong Guy! Duh!) So moving on...

Using Randomlists, I came up with his name: Keegan Taylor (I need last names for the first two characters. Will do so when we turn to finish their sheets.

Label time. +1 will go to his Freak stat.

Danger +1, Freak +3, Savior 0, Superior -1, Mundane 0

Rather smooth and straight forward so far. That could change as it is backstory time!).

Q: Who were you before? 
A: Praise/Magic

(Digging into this with unlisted questions, I came up with the fact that Keegan is Cape chaser: a normal person who collected information on any hero/heroine he came in contact with. He's obsessed with them.)

Q: When did you change? What caused it? 
A:  Triumph/Allies

(He was at a battle while following a particular favorite of his. because of 'Allies' this person is, or soon will be, a close friend.

And he does have a friend that is established. Remember the smart guy description?

“The physically weak, but intelligent or clever member. Often nerdy and awkwardly played for comic relief. Sometimes unconventionally young (early- to mid-teens). Sometimes a Trickster and a buddy of the Big Guy.”

Liat. So the two of them are friends. Maybe in the midst of rescuing him from a danger, he ended up transforming?)

Q: Who, outside of the team, is helping you understand your new body? 
A: Ruin/Disruption 

(A division, formed by the FBI, who are charged with investigating Metahuman affairs. They have a science division that is working to try and see just how they can reverse Keegan's transformation.)

Q: Why don’t you just try to hide yourself away? 
A: Remote event/violate

(This lead to something interesting. I investigated the 'remote event' that he didn't want to violate)

Q: What is he honoring? 
A: Carelessness/food

(After a bit more probing, I came up with Dr. DNA (remember him) stole some equipment from the Cazarthian embassy, leading to Liat giving chase. This chase zoomed over Keegan's school, where he ditched to follow. In a supermarket freezer, Dr. DNA caused an explosion of of chemicals that, thanks to the intense cold, caused a cacoon like shell to splash and solidify over Keegan. Liat had to allow DNA to escape cause Keegan was in serious danger.)

Q: Why do you care about the team? 
A: Propose Joy

(They make him happy. Where other people makes fun of him, he finds solace with the team.

Not too eventful. Simple origin, simple character. Kind of a moment of solace after the heavy laced backstories of Ariel, Nate and Liat.

One more person to go, the Heart is up next!

Exceptional! I heard about Masks recently, and went out and bought a copy to see how well it would solo play.

I then found this site this morning, and the first thing I spot in the forums is someone else soloing Masks! Really looking forward to seeing the last team member, and following your play.

And after a vacation, I'm back!

It's time to tackle the moral center of the team, The Heart!

“A peacekeeping role to balance out the other members' aggression, bringing them to a nice or at least manageable medium. The Heart is often considered the heart of the group.”

Lets get straight to the action!

Q: Is the Heart a male?
A: No

(So a female. This makes this team consisting of Three women, an Alien and one man.

So, playbooks. Going to start with the most obvious, the Doomed. One of the most iconic Hearts can be considered a Doomed/Nova hybred: Jean Grey. Of course, she was 'doomed' because if she lost control, she had Dark Phoenix knocking on her door.)

Q: Is she Doomed?
A: Yes

(So, she's doomed. To save word count, here is a summary of her look based on asked questions

-Her name is Selma McKenzie
-African American
-Haunted Eyes
-Unassuming clothing
-Her costume isn't a regular costume. It's grim, but there is something more to it. We'll return to that later.
-Her Abilities are telekinesis, psychic constructs, superhuman strength and speed

(One final thing before I resume posting questions: Asking about her costume lead to her being a hard light controller. Sweet irony, with a Doomed, normally a dark gloomy character, brandishing light.

So, before we talk about what makes her doomed, the playbook has us discussing her Nemesis. This Nemesis embodies her doom, so this will go a long way in describing her doom.)

Q: Who is her Nemesis?
A: Divide/Extravagance

(A division of Extravagance? Someone who spends too much of something, then divide it.)

Q: Divide what?
A: Dispute/Ambush

(My thoughts: There is a group who is similar to the Green Lantern Corps. They are villains, however, this evil force does it's will through chosen Avatars. Selma accidentally came across this energy, not knowing that by doing so, she risks being sacrificed to this energy. Her Nemesis is obviously a chosen Avatar... perhaps the true owner who has some of it's power, but wants it's full effect?

Ambush donates sneak attacks. To cut to the chase, shadow. Her Nemesis uses Hard Darkness and she uses Hard Light.)

Q: Who is this person?
A: Trust/Dispute

(Disputing Truth? A deceiver. In DnD, there is a group known as Blackguards, almost like Anti-Paladins. I could call this guy, the Blackguard. Selma, then, will be known as the Paladin.

For her Labels, her +1 is going to Mundane (She is the Heart, remember?) So:

Danger +1, Freak +1, Savior +1, Superior -1, Mundane +1 Pretty well balanced.

Backstory time

Q: When did you first learn of your doom?
A: Harm/Energy

(I have an idea, but first...)

Q: Was this occurrence AFTER she became a heroine?
A: Yes

(Alright. She became aware of her doom after the very energy she used to help others actually harmed her.)

Q: How?
A: Guide/Lies

(The Blackguard embraced his powers and uses deceptions and lies. Perhaps this is the inevitable end of the wielder of this power? She was guided to use the same tactics, and in doing so, nearly lost control of herself?)

Q: Where did you get your sanctuary?
A: Recruit/Realities

(It was given to her as a recruit to this power.)

Q: Why do you oppose your nemesis?
A: Judge/Animals

(She oppose the deceiver because she is being judged? Perhaps by beating him, she earns the right to the full power, thus denying it from him.

You may notice that I'm avoiding questions towards this power and it's origins. This is because I'm waiting for part two of character creation, where her Doom can get fleshed out)

Q: Who, outside of the team, is crucial to defeating the Nemesis?
A: Communicate/A plan

(Hmmm... So, someone who communicate's a plan? That would be a leader. But it can't be the Eternal Lotus, Aiyani, because it has to be outside the team... so what about her foster family? Remember Communicate and 'A Plan'? Perhaps Aiyani presented Selma's problem to her family for ideas?)

Q: Why does the team matter to you?
A: Passion/Food

(A passion for food? A passion to eat? Why would 'eating' be a reason to stick with the team? Does she have the opportunity to eat at home?)

A: No and...

Q: Is Selma homeless?
A: Yes and...

(No parents either!)

Q: Is Selma Adopted?
A: Yes, and...

(… considering what we came up earlier, why not have her parents be Ayumi's foster parents (hence why they are essential to taking down The Blackguard.)

I think this is a good point to end for now. All five have been through the first half of character creation.

We'll return to Ayumi next post for the second half of her playbook. Now that we know her supporting cast, we can now finish her of (especially with relationships). Till then, you all take care, and thanks for reading.)