This character started out as a minor maritime supervillain who wound up betraying his allies when they turned out to be more ruthless than he could stomach. My PCs at the time helped him foil their plans and put in a good word for him with the law, leading to him reforming and (after serving a short prison sentence) becoming a minor superhero on his own.
Including a full heroic writeup for him as a potential PC and both hero and villain lieutenant NPC versions of him. He was too minor a baddie to ever get a full villain writeup back in the day but I've done a quick and dirty writeup for him here. He's probably most useful for getting players involved in some kind of seafaring shenanigans, or helping them out of some undersea villain base if they've already gotten involved by being captured or something.
Cormorant / Sea Raven
A reformed superhuman criminal, Valence Toombs once operated under the supranym Sea Raven and now goes by Cormorant. As Sea Raven, he operated mostly as an empowered burglar and smuggler, exploiting his natural talents and his family's connections in maritime trade to earn a significant income while keeping a fairly low profile. That career ended when he got involved with the Seven Sea-Masters as hired muscle. Faced with the choice between killing in cold blood or earning the wrath of some of the most feared supervillains on (and under) the seven seas, he turned his coat and betrayed their current operations to a super-team who happened to be on a vacation cruise nearby. After assisting with foiling Doctor Dreadnought's latest scheme he earned himself a much-reduced sentence for previous crimes and, after serving his term, an in to the heroic community where he now acts as a US Coast Guard auxiliary and advisor under the supranym Cormorant. While he's no great powerhouse by superhuman standards his abilities and past history make him very useful when it comes to dealing with conventional crimes at sea.
Cormorant's powers derive from his genetics, which appear to involve some form of alien hybridization in the last few generations. He can propel himself at considerable speeds through some form of natural gravitic manipulation, an effect that works equally well below the waves as it does above. A very nimble flyer, he can outperform most conventional aircraft with ease. His hybrid physiology can survive comfortably at great heights and underwater even at abyssal depths, shrugging off extremes of cold and pressure and using bioluminescence to make his way in the deeps. Toombs also possesses inhumanly swift reaction times and a sixth sense that helps guide his movements, both when maneuvering at speed and when fighting in close quarters combat. It also guides his tongue, letting him subconsciously sense just the right thing to say to pump up his allies and get under the skin of his enemies. You can count on him to run his mouth in a fight - and outside of it.
Description: Tall, broad-chested, sharp-featured man wearing a jet black spring wetsuit, with the outline of a stylized cormorant in its wing-drying pose in yellow on the left chest. The suit is well equipped with pockets for carrying loot and contraband, supplemented with sealable watertight bags for items that need to be kept dry. His skin is naturally pale blue and his hands and feet webbed, but he can suppress the physical manifestations of his mutations to achieve a more normal appearance. Speaks with a slight California accent and speaks English, Spanish, and Russian fluently, with a smattering of many other languages. Has a nice baritone singing voice and knows a ridiculous number of shanty songs.
Gender: Male Age: 29 Height: 6'1" Eyes: Sea Green
Hair: Black Skin: Pale Blue (Caucasian When Suppressed) Build: Lithe
Background: Former Villain Power Source: Genetic Archetype: Flyer
Personality: Cheerful Health (G/Y/R): 28/21/10
Powers: Intuition d10, Agility d8, Flight d8, Swimming d8, Vitality d8
Qualities: Acrobatics d10, Banter d10, Criminal Underworld Info d8, Professional Mariner d8
Status: Green (28-22) - d10 / Yellow (21-11) - d8 / Red (10-1) - d6
Abilities
Green
Cautious Approach (A) Attack using Intuition. Defend yourself against all Attacks using your Min die until your next turn.
Get Your Game Face On (A) Boost yourself using Banter. That bonus is persistent and exclusive.
Nimble Flyer (R) When you are Attacked while flying, Defend yourself by rolling your single Flight die.
Principle of Honor (A) Overcome a situation to maintain your code of honor Use your Max die. You and your allies each gain a Hero Point. Minor twist: Your honor has been challenged, how will you answer? Major twist: Will you choose your honor or your life? RP: You are governed by a strict code of conduct. Even under coercion you will not compromise your ideals.
Principle of Speed (I) When you successfully Overcome, you may end up anywhere in the current environment. You and your allies each gain a Hero Point. Minor twist: What physical drawbacks do you suffer from going too fast? Major twist: What critical detail did you speed past earlier that is now coming back to haunt you? RP: You're fast and don't like to waste time. You like to keep moving.
Yellow
Blitz (A) Attack multiple targets using Intuition. Use your Min die.
Say The Right Thing (A) Boost using Banter. Apply that bonus to all hero Attack and Overcome actions until the start of your next turn.
Take A Breather (A) Boost yourself using Vitality. Either remove a penalty on yourself or Recover using your Min die.
Red
Agile Defense (R) When an opponent Attacks you may become the target of that Attack and Defend yourself by rolling your single Acrobatics die.
Hyperactive Metabolism (I) You have no limit on the amount of Reactions you can take. Each time you use a Reaction after the first one each turn, take one irreducible damage or take a minor twist.
Quick Recovery (A) Hinder yourself using Vitality. Use your Min die. Recover Health equal to your Max + Mid dice.
Out
Shared Sixth Sense (A) Boost an ally by rolling your single Intuition die.
Tactics
In Green, use Get Your Game Face On to establish a lasting bonus, possibly repeating before your zone changes to fish for a larger bonus (+3, or even +4 with serious luck). If at all possible try to re-establish a persistent bonus whenever you lose yours, as even a +2 makes a big difference to your effectiveness. Cautious Approach is the safer of your two offensive options, and can be pooled with either Acrobatics or Banter depending on whether you're mostly relying on precise blows or mockery for effect. Staying airborne will make you much harder to hurt thanks to Nimble Flyer. If you can find a chance to use your Principle of Honor you can also get a free move and a second Hero Point with Principle of Speed if you succeed.
Once you reach Yellow, Blitz offers a second offensive maneuver good against multiple weaker targets, and it too can be pooled with Acrobatics or Intuition depending on what you're doing. Say The right Thing is a modestly effective team support move and will often be your best option when there are three or more allied heroes active. Take A Breather offers a modest stackable bonus and potentially some healing, but it's most likely to get used for removing a large persistent penalty when needed, or to buy a little more security from going straight Out from Yellow.
Your primary goal in Red is to survive long enough to use Quick Recovery. Agile Defense gives you a stronger damage prevention reaction that isn't dependent on Flight and can be used to cover teammates in a pinch, and Hyperactive Metabolism lets you use that reaction every single turn until you can get to heal back to Yellow. You may be forced to take other actions in Red due to the scene tracker, but that's never going to be a great option for you.
Shared Sixth Sense lets you contribute a little bonus support even when Out.
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Cormorant d10 lieutenant version
Description: Same as the full hero writeup above.
Amphibious Flyer: You may move as though you had Flight d8 and Swimming d8. Gain a +1 bonus to saving throws against damage while flying or swimming.
Motivational Speech: When you Boost, affect all nearby allies in the same location.
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Sea Raven
Cormorant was a much nastier guy during his days as Sea Raven, but a lot of it was a front and he was still no killer. He used his sharp tongue to hamper foes rather than aid allies, and was very focused on getting away with the loot rather than fighting foes. On rare occasions he'd arrange to work with some henchmen to provide support, but usually only for big high-profit heists.
Description: Same as the full hero writeup above, but the cormorant icon is bright red and he wears a black hooded mask that conceals his facial features and tight black gloves to avoid leaving fingerprints.
Gender: Male Age: 29 Height: 6'1" Eyes: Sea Green
Hair: Black Skin: Pale Blue (Caucasian When Suppressed) Build: Lithe
Approach: Underpowered Archetype: Inhibitor
Health: 20 + (5 x H)
Powers: Swimming d8, Agility d6, Flight d6, Intuition d6
Qualities: Banter d10, Acrobatics d8, Maritime Criminal d8, Fitness d6
Status: (# of heroes with penalties) 0 - d6 / 1-2 - d8 / 3+ - d10
Abilities:
Cruelty (A) Hinder using Intuition. Either use your Max + Mid die, or use your Max die and make that penalty persistent and exclusive.
Hybrid Metabolism (I) Whenever you would be reduced to zero or fewer Health, prevent that damage and reduce all of your power dice by one die size. If this reduces any die below d4 you are knocked out.
Keep On the Move (A) Attack multiple targets using Agility. Use your Min die to Defend yourself against all Attacks until your next turn.
Punishing Block (R) When Attacked by someone with a penalty you created, Defend by rolling your single status die. The Attacker also suffers that much damage.
Trust To Luck (A) Attack using Intuition. If you roll doubles, add that value to the Attack. If you roll triples, add all three dice to the Attack.
Upgrades & Masteries (optional, very rare):
Mook Squad +0 Health. Gain Grab the Loot, People (A) Replenish your Petty Criminal minions up to the number of heroes in the scene.
Master of Profitability (I) If you have access to great wealth and other resources, automatically succeed at an Overcome to leverage those resources to get even richer, no matter who pays the price.
Tactics
If he can't escape a fight, Sea Raven's usual opening move was to use Cruelty for a lasting penalty, improving his status, followed by using Keep On the Move against crowds or Trust To Luck versus single enemies. If he has the time he'll try to put out more penalties to make Punishing Block easier to use, and his Hybrid Metabolism will give him time for one more attempt to flee a losing battle.
His upgrade and mastery only show up for the biggest jobs when he's willing to divide the profits with his backup.
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Sea Raven d10 lieutenant version
Description: Same as the full hero writeup above, but the cormorant icon is bright red and he wears a black hooded mask that conceals his facial features and tight black gloves to avoid leaving fingerprints.
Amphibious Flyer: You may move as though you had Flight d8 and Swimming d8. Gain a +1 bonus to saving throws against damage while flying or swimming.
Talks A Good Game: When you Hinder, affect all nearby enemies in the same location.
Petty Criminal d6 minions (see Grab the Loot, People above)
Description: Nondescript henchmen who are more interested in loot than getting in a fight.
Perfect Fall Guy: You may sacrifice yourself to allow a villain or lieutenant to escape the scene.
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