This villain is a bit of a mixed bag. On the one hand he's good at being a manipulative sneak and always greedy for money to pay for his exorbitant lifestyle. On the other, he really likes a good brawl and enjoys showing off by making heroes look like fools. Sometimes it's hard to balance the two motivations.
Libertine
Roger Raymond had always thought it was his looks and winning personality that made life easy for him both in school and after he dropped out at 16 to work his grifts on the strip in Vegas. Then he got busted for theft after helping himself to a little too much of the money his latest lover had left lying around the apartment. That should have led to some jail time, but when he jokingly asked the arresting officers if they'd rather just let him go to save the paperwork, they promptly took his cuffs off and let him go with batting an eye. That was when he realized there was more to him than a pretty face and knack for using people.
Since then, he's reinvented himself as the super-thief Libertine, a mercenary villain who's willing to tag along on any reasonable job for a cut of the profits. He's very convincing when it comes to talking his way into the action, and more than a few more experienced villains have found themselves wondering how this guy wound up along for the ride after the job was over. Welcome or not, Libertine is a real asset on a heist, able to talk his way past guards, conceal his allies, and bypass many physical obstacles with his inhuman grace and acrobatic skills. He's also a fair hand in a fight, and positively enthusiastic about a good brawl.
That said, he's also got a rep for always looking out for himself first and foremost, and he's bailed on previous partners in crime when things went sour. He's also a real problem on long jobs. When he gets bored Libertine tends to amuse himself by romancing whoever (or whatever) happens to be around, and he takes malicious pleasure in starting love triangles (or squares, or pentagons, or...well you get the idea) just to watch his partners fight over him. All in all, he's kind of a terrible person, even by supervillain standards.
Description: Libertine looks like Fabio, if Fabio wore a shiny black bodysuit, black musketeer boots, and a long green sash knotted around his waist. He carries a pair of weighted batons but is equally happy grabbing improvised weapons or using his bare hands in a brawl. His fighting style is flamboyant and full of showy acrobatic moves. When he's trying to avoid attention (something which truly pains him to do) he can look like almost anyone with Illusions, or simply be overlooked altogether using Suggestion.
Gender: Male Age: 26 Height: 6'0" Eyes: Green
Hair: Blonde Skin: Deeply Tanned Build: Athletic
Approach: Disruptive Archetype: Guerrilla
Health: 40 + (5 x H)
Powers: Agility d10, Suggestion d10, Illusions d8, Leaping d8
Qualities: Close Combat d10, Acrobatics d8, Amoral Criminal d8, Persuasion d8
Status: (# of Enemies Engaged) 4+ - d10 / 2-3 - d8 / 0-1 -d6
Abilities:
Barroom Brawler (I) If you are outnumbered by nearby opponents, reduce all damage dealt to you by 2.
Confusing Move (A) Attack using Suggestion. Use your Max die. A target dealt damage this way Attacks an ally of your choice by rolling their single largest power die.
Don't Even Think About It (R) Whenever a target takes a Hinder action against you, first Hinder that target by rolling your single Suggestion die.
...Hold Your Enemies Closer (A) Attack one target using Close Combat. Use your Max + Min die. Defend against all Attacks from targets other than that target with your Mid die until your next turn. All Defended damage is dealt to the target of your Attack instead.
Upgrades & Masteries (optional):
Group Fighter (I) +20 Health. When you take an action that lets you make an Attack, also make an Attack using your Mid die.
Man Behind the Curtain (I) As long as you are not directly involved in the fray and are using your influence indirectly, automatically succeed at an Overcome to manipulate a situation.
Tactics
If it comes to a fight, Libertine likes to use his enemies against one another, either by getting in close with ...Hold Your Enemies Closer if he wants defense or Confusing Moves at any distance for more offense. Barroom Brawler and his status mechanic make him happiest when he's being ganged up on. He's harder to debuff than most villains thanks to Don't Even Think About It, which becomes a strong group defense if it's reacting to a multi-target Hinder (where the reactive penalty will reduce the impact on everyone targeted).
With his upgrade he's even better at fighting a mob. His mastery encourages him to stay out of the fight, usually disguised with Illusion and using Suggestion + Persuasion on bystanders, environment targets, etc. to quietly achieve his goals or amp up the general chaos while his allies fight. In general, Libertine likes being part of a team of supervillains but operates independently during a fight, looking to tie up two or three heroes while the other villains pound the rest.
Libertine's Suggestion and Illusion powers appear to be some kind of low grade reality warping rather than a purely mental effect, since they work fine on robots, security cameras, zombies, etc. Basically what he wants someone to do often happens, at least while he's in their immediate presence, and what he wants people to see is what they see. The range is pretty short though, and his fine control is limited - it's more like he hopes for an outcome and gets something close enough, usually. Victims of the effect (and abilities like Confusing Move) often feel like they were disconnected from reality for a moment.
No comments:
Post a Comment