Dark Reign - Marvel Bobic Roleplaying

[Rip]

It has been half a year since the climactic end of what the press has dubbed "The Secret Invasion". The public, already acrimonious to metahuman vigilantes in the wake of the Superhuman Civil War, has fully embraced Norman Osborn in the role of public peacekeeper...especially when it was revealed just how many Skrulls were able to operate as trusted metahumans with zero government oversight with Tony "Iron Man" Stark at the helm. While dark rumors certainly used to circle concerning tenuous connections to Osborn and the masked terrorist known as "the Green Goblin", such reports are rarer than ever these days as Norman's steadfast devotion to public relations has created the image of a normal, home-grown, good ol' fashioned human business man who has the real America's interests at heart, and those interests do not coincide with un-human, abnormal vigilantes who think they can operate in full defiance of the will of the American people.

The public's favor secured, Norman took his carte-blanche and put it immediately to work, rounding up the most public and "dangerous" metahumans in rapid succession. First to be apprehended was notorious terrorist "Spider-Man", immediately revealed to be a local news photographer, to the indignant outrage of a long-time publisher. Next was an unknown terrorist with a metal arm desecrating the memory of Captain America, followed by former government-employed-Avenger turned treasonous-double-agent Ms Marvel, capped off with the highly bloody (and widely televised) death of the Canadian insurgent known as "Wolverine". This last event was a turning point: the yellow-clad terrorist (and known mutant) violently executed thirteen innocent members of Norman Osborn's peacekeeping force H.A.M.M.E.R. in full view of several well-placed media cameras, seemingly without provocation. His death during the ensuing shootout and contained tactical nuke explosion drew the highest ratings of any event outside the Super Bowl that year. Norman Osborn has been riding high ever since.

Currently, there is one name at the top of Norman's List: Luke Cage. With Captain America dead, Tony Stark on the run with Maria Hill and near-comatose, Thor stuck dealing with Loki's machinations in Asgard, the near-extinct mutants in exile in California, and all members of the Defenders nowhere to be found, most of the few remaining metahumans that haven't been captured have gone completely underground. Only one group, a terror cell of low-powered metahuman rights activists calling itself "The New Avengers" (in open mockery of Norman's own team of Avengers) has clung to scraps of legitimacy. Based in New York and using a rotating series of hidden safehouses left to them by Nick Fury before he dropped off the grid, The New Avengers have been striving to bring back the old ways as much as they can in any little way they can. After all, just because the public has traded jack-booted armed guards for good-hearted superheroes, doesn't mean the neighborhood doesn't still need a helping hand. It also doesn't help that Norman's H.A.M.M.E.R. agents do a very good job of rounding up former capes, and seemingly a rather a piss-poor one of curtailing more "human" crime. Maggia activity has gone through the roof, A.I.M. tech is selling to the highest bidder, and Hydra seems to have ramped up its activities in the past six months and have lost many compunctions against acting openly.

So, honestly, Luke would almost enjoy the new life of a rebel...ten years ago, that is. The Secret Invasion wore pretty hard on his mind, and he has a wife and daughter to think about now. While he is definitely the heart and soul of the New Avengers team, always there to lift his teammates' spirits with a reassuring word and a grin even in the face of the worst, lately the lack of progress has been dragging on the man, and he has been leaning more and more on his old pal Danny "Iron Fist" Rand. In the field he keeps his chin up and his plans direct; in private, he is a man consumed with worry for the family he has sent away to spare them from the giant target Norman has on his back. No one, not even Danny, knows where his wife Jessica or their infant daughter Danielle have been hidden.

All of this brings us to today: the remnants of the New Avengers have a lot to get off of their mind lately, and what better way to work out some of that aggression than with punching bad guys? Luke got a tip from one of his buddies who had quit S.H.I.E.L.D. early: A.I.M. has been supplying a lot of Latverian-produced tech to Norman's H.A.M.M.E.R. agency, but no one has been able to solidly prove it. Getting Avenger hands on a shipment direct from the source would go a long way toward turning public opinion again, not to mention putting a nice dent in H.A.M.M.E.R.'s armor and munitions supplies. The tip has lead you all to the docks at midnight, because why not; you've staked the place out and have spotted at least four armed men in street clothes clearly waiting for something at pier 42, just as Luke said they'd be.

A small black submersible has just broken the surface; all four men snap to attention and start moving toward the pier...

SCENE DISTINCTIONS (usable by anyone in place of/in addition to one of your own)
Dark Night, Harsh Light
Surrounded by the Sea

[Rip]

AND, just because I know we're all new to this (and I selfishly like playing), I will be playing too.

Luke Cage
AFFILIATIONS:
Solo - d6, Buddy - d10, Team - d8

DISTINCTIONS:
Come Get Some!
Hero for Hire
Street Smart

POWER SET:
Unbreakable
d12 Godlike Durability
d10 Superhuman Strength
d10 Superhuman Stamina

SFX: Area Attack. Against multiple targets, for every additional target add a d6 and keep an additional effect die.
SFX: Second Wind. Before you make an action including an Unbreakable power, you may move your physical stress die to the doom pool and step up the Unbreakable power for this action.
SFX: Versatile. Replace any Unbreakable power with 2d8 or 3d6 on your next roll.
Limit: Difficult Recovery. Add your Superhuman Durability die to the opposing roll when others try to recover your physical stress.

SPECIALTIES:
d10 Menace Master
d8 Business Expert
d8 Covert Expert
d8 Combat Expert
d8 Crime Expert

MILESTONE
Got My 200 Dollars from Doom
1 XP when you offer a direct, blunt approach to a complicated problem.
3 XP when you start trouble by punching a bad guy in the face or inflict mental stress on a hero who is over-thinking his problems and being an angst-ridden idiot.
10 XP when you either defeat an enemy through direct physical confrontation or take a step back and elect to use more subtle methodology.

History
Framed and imprisoned for a crime he didn’t commit, ex-gang member Carl Lucas hoped for a chance at escape or parole. When Lucas volunteered for an experiment in cell regeneration and disease control, a vengeful racist prison guard sabotaged the experiment. Instead of death or injury, the experiment transformed Lucas, giving him superhuman strength and resistance to injury. Using his newfound powers to escape, he changed his name to Luke Cage and became the “hero for hire” known as Power Man, later finding a lifelong friend and long-term business partner in fellow hero Iron Fist. Eventually, Luke cleared his name but chose to put his old life as Carl Lucas behind him and remain Luke Cage. For years, he and Iron Fist worked as partners, often doing heroic jobs for mundane pay. Luke also joined super hero groups such as the Defenders and the Fantastic Four, though usually preferring to assist such teams as needed instead of staying a long-term member. Over the years, Luke has grown to become a respected member of the super hero community. He’s married to ex-super-hero Jessica Jones and they have a new baby together, Danielle. He stands shoulder to shoulder with the Earth’s mightiest heroes without missing a beat. He rarely goes by Power Man anymore, preferring to face foes as the man he was forced to become and chose to remain, Luke Cage.

Personality
Luke is an honest, often blunt, strong-willed man. He has the instincts of a street hustler and the heart of a hero. He is extremely devoted to his friends and family, but also cares for his community. He loves “sticking it to the man” and will go out of his way to fight, embarrass, or confront those who think their power and privilege lets them cheat or abuse others. After all, this is the guy who once flew all the way to Latveria to confront Dr. Doom about an unpaid bill.

Abilities & Resources
Luke Cage is superhumanly strong, and his body tissues have the density and strength of steel, making him highly resistant to injury. He also recovers
from injury more quickly and completely than a normal human. Cage is a trained combatant, using a mix of street brawling and martial arts training
learned from his friend Iron Fist and others. Cage is also an experienced businessman, able to turn his superhuman abilities into profit more readily than most heroes, though his kind heart often leads him to take cases for little or no money. Luke has numerous allies he can call on for aid. Chief among them are his girlfriend, Jessica Jones, and his best friend and partner, Danny Rand AKA Iron Fist. Luke has also worked with the Fantastic
Four, the Defenders, the Daughters of the Dragon, and Spider-Man on numerous occasions. Outside the super hero community, Luke is considered a great hero and role model among many of the poorer sections of New York and other major cities, as well as within the African-American community. This role as a symbolic figure of resistance to "The Man" is what has proven to be the deepest thorn in Norman Osborn's side.

[Rip]

((SO! Turn order goes by nomination and starts with the fastest character. I'm going to rule that in this case the New Avengers' fastest member will act first, since they have the drop on these guys. "fastest character" means who has the highest die of a Reflexes power, which in this case is a four-way tie between Gambit, Cypher, Deadpool, and Iron Fist. So I'm ruling that whoever of those four gets here first, they act first, and then nominate the next person. You can choose any of your fellow players, Luke Cage, or just say "Villains!" and I'll act for any bad guys here or as yet unrevealed in the shadows.

If you want to act but don't really know what to do or how to do what you want, ask me for ideas in the OOC thread))

[Zengus]

((Do I tie on that as well? Uncertain if it is the d8 Enhanced Reflexes power you are referring to that all those characters share, or something else))

[Rip]

((You do tie for exactly that reason actually, sorry that I overlooked that. We're a fittingly jumpy group of outlaws. So Zengus, if Hawkeye would like to take point, by all means..))

[Zengus]

((My objective is to make a "distracted" complication for the enemies so that my allies can add that to their dice pool. I want to fire an arrow stealthily at something that will draw their attention in the opposite direction as us. I intend to use my d10 Team asset, d8 Peerless Marksmen, d8 Enhanced Senses (sight) from Exceptional Training to counteract the harsh lighting, d8 weapon from Bow and Trick Arrows, and my d10 Combat Master specialty, leaving me with a dice pool of d10, d8, d8, d8, d10))

As the men's attention shift, Clint takes a quick step out of the shadows and into a better firing line. His eyes settle on an air conditioning unit on top of a warehouse, just a slight bit farther down the dock than the armed guards. He draws a bead on it with his bow, and whispers "trickshoooot" under his breath as he lets fly, then sinks back into darkness

Dice result as rolled by hand:
6, 4, 4 from d8's, 7, 10 from d10's
(I tried to upload a picture of this roll for posterity and my phone shit a brick for some reason, I can still do this if you would like, though)

[Zengus]

((Also, I nominate Gambit for next action))

[Rip]

((Excellent start, Zengus; I've had a family emergency, but I will post the reaction to your roll ASAP tomorrow so gambit can then take his turn.

Also, and i apologize for not posting these reminders in the first place, but everyone starts out with 1 Plot Point, and the Doom Pool is at 2d6))

[Samurai]

Hope you and yours are okay, Rip.

[Zengus]

((Indeed, hope all is well, man))