Tuesday, December 6, 2022

Marshal Starblaze, Interplanetary Peacekeeper

This character was inspired by some online discussion about the (hypothetical) lack of healing in the game.  While it's certainly hard to stay completely ahead of the amount of damage a team of heroes will take in a fight, this guy can pile a remarkable amount of healing on both himself and one other hero at a time from Yellow status onward.  Max die Recovery on an ally and Mid die self-healing thanks to inverting self-damage is pretty great, and comes with a Min die attack as well - and that's before any bonuses.  There's even more inversion self-healing down in the Red, two strong defensive reactions to choose from to reduce the amount of healing needed by allies, and a really strong Red Overcome ability to solve other problems when things get desperate.  You might be able to eke out more raw healing with one of the "Min die Recovery for everyone in Y/R status" abilities in a large group with some bonuses, but focusing a Max heal on the most injured hero is frequently going to be better and you get a larger self heal as well.

He's also weirdly offensive for a "healer" with strong self-damaging Green abilities that become self-heals in Yellow.  Biggest drawback is that all his offense is Radiant, which can be a problem against some foes.  If he wants to inflict other types of damage he's stuck with basic Attacks, or coming up with some inventive Overcome to use the environment or other scene elements to inflict harm.  Also not very versatile if you need to Boost someone else and his Hinder game is non-existent beyond basics.  Pretty decent at Overcomes even before Red (Mastery is a broad Principle, and he's conceptually a space hero so Space should come up pretty often), and amazing when he does get there - or takes a twist to use the ability early.

Name: Marshal Starblaze

Origin: Thomas Dixon was working for Doctors Without Borders in Cambodia when he was abducted by alien slavers.  Unshaken, he proceeded to organize a resistance on board the slave ship, not only  among his fellow Terrans but among many of the other nonhuman species as well.  By the time the ship left the Sol system there was an active sabotage scheme in place, and escape plans were being made.  The alien overseers caught on at the last moment, and while they foiled the attempt to take over the ship's engineering section they lost control of communications long enough for a distress signal to be broadcast.  The ringleaders including Dixon were sentenced to be executed by spacing as punishment, but just as he was thrown into the void the Marshals of the Galactic Patrol arrived in response to the SOS, seizing the ship, freeing the slaves, and taking the slavers off to pay for their crimes.

While most of the former slaves were returned to their homeworlds, Thomas and several of the other xenos who'd led the revolt were offered a chance to join the Patrol itself and become local Marshals for their home systems of space.  Dixon took the opportunity without a second thought and has gone on to help protect the Earth and its neighboring worlds as Marshal Starblaze, Galactic Patrolman. 

Description: Fit-looking man in his early thirties dressed in a tight silver-white full-body suit that shade to deep blue on the hands, feet, and around the neck.  A seven-pointed golden star is affixed over his heart, and a golden aura surrounds him when his powers are active. 

Gender: Male             Age: Early Thirties          Height: 5'11"         Eyes: Black, Filled With Stars

Hair: Black Buzzcut                Skin: Sable Brown                Build: Lean

Background: Medical               Power Source: Relic           Archetype: Elemental Manipulator

Personality: Stalwart                  Health (G/Y/R):  30/22/11

Powers: Radiant d10, Awareness d8, Flight d8, Intuition d6

Qualities: Acrobatics d10, Alertness d10, Conviction d10, Stellar Marshal d8, Medicine d8, Technology d6

Status: Always d8

Abilities:

Green

Concentrated Starbolt (A) Attack using Radiant.  Use your Max die.  Take damage equal to your Min die.

Dual Starbolts (A) Attack up to two targets using Radiant.  Take damage equal to your Mid die.

Principle of Space (A) Overcome while in space or under conditions similar to space.  Use your Max die.  You and your allies each gain a Hero Point.  Minor twist: Who can hear you scream?  Major twist: What caused you to drift off into the unknown?  RP: You can survive in the vacuum of space without additional equipment.

Principle of Mastery (A) Overcome in a situation that uses your powers in a new way.  Use your Max die.  You and your allies gain each gain a Hero Point.  Minor twist: How did your powers fail you in the moment?  Major twist: What side effects are you suffering from your powers?  RP: You understand the metaphysics of your powers.

Recite the Oath (A) Boost yourself using Awareness.  This bonus is persistent and exclusive.

Yellow

Starlight Blaze (A) Attack using Radiant.  Use your Min die.  Take damage equal to your Mid die, and one nearby ally Recovers using your Max die.

Projected Shield (R) When another hero in the Yellow or Red zone would take damage, you may Defend them by rolling your single Awareness die.

Stellar Attunement (A) If you would take damage from Radiant, reduce the damage to zero and Recover that amount of health instead.

Red

Deflection (R) When an Attack would deal damage to a nearby hero in the Red zone, you may take d6 irreducible damage to redirect that Attack to a target of your choice other than the source of that Attack.

Masterful Solution (A) Overcome using Alertness.  Use your Max + Min dice.  Hinder all nearby opponents using your Mid die.

Prismatic Flare (A) Use Radiant to Attack up to three targets, one of which must be you.  Assign your Max, Mid, and Min dice as you choose among those targets.

Out

Lingering Light (A) Defend an ally by rolling your single Radiant die.

Tactics

Marshal Starblaze almost always opens a scene with Recite the Oath to establish a lasting bonus for himself, and may even repeat it while the scene is still in Green.  After that he relies on Dual Starbolts against weaker targets or Concentrated Starbolt against strong foes.  

Once in the Yellow zone he gains Projected Shield to Defend allies from harm and Stellar Attunement turns all Radiant damage inflicted on him (including his own) into healing.  Starlight Blaze is his go-to ability when damage output is less important than healing, and he'll allocate bonuses to it to maximize its effectiveness.  It's really quite an amazing ability, with the highest single target healing of any Yellow power and no downside at all thanks to him inverting his own self-damaging effects into healing.  

His Red zone abilities include a strong but painful defensive reaction in Deflection, which can redirect an Attack away from vulnerable heroes (including himself) at the cost of some irreducible self-damage.  Prismatic Flare is extremely versatile and combines strong damage output with even more self-healing, and can easily let him climb back into the Yellow zone if desired.  Finally, Masterful Solution is a potent Overcome option that also impairs enemies, giving him a good way to deal with challenges his Principles can't be applied to.

Outside of combat, he's an agile flyer with good speed and lifting power.  His Awareness power revolves around the ability sense both life and anti-life energies, which he's learned to augment with his medical training and general Alertness.  His Intuition stems from the subtle guidance of his Marshal's Star, while his Technology reflects the tinkering skills he learned in his time with Doctors Without Borders.  Stellar Marshal training includes self-defense skills, briefings on star systems and dimensional anomalies within his patrol zone, and how to deal with both innocent civilians and vicious criminals, whether human or alien.


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