PhantomTrue Name: Michael Anderson
Age: 19
Gender: Male
Race:
Homo MagiOccupation: ???
Marital Status: He's single ladies!
Base of Operations: ???
Abilities: 40
STR 0
STA 0
AGL 4
DEX 4
FGT 1
INT 5
AWE 3
PRE 3
Skills: 13
Deception 6 (+9)
Expertise (Arcana) 7 (+12)
Investigation 2 (+7)
Languages 1 (English: base; sdrawkcaB hceepS)
Perception 4 (+7)
Ranged Attack 4 (+8)
Sleight of Hand 2 (+6)
Advantages: 3
Attractive
Ritualistic
Trance
Powers: 53
Astral Projection Remote Sensing 8 (visual, auditory) [extras: Subtle 2; physical body defenseless, flaws: Feedback] 19p
AE:
Mystic Wards Force Field 10
Mystic Flight Flight 4
Magician's Might* Move Object 8 [feats: Increased Mass 3, Precise, Subtle 2]
Mystic Spells Variable 1 [extras: Action 2] 9p
Mystic Senses Senses 3 (Awareness(magical), Acute, Extended) 3p
*in the Notes section, this is what the Magic refers to. Magician's Might is Phantom's default usage of Magic.
Defenses: 9
Toughness 0/10
Dodge 6 (2p)
Parry 1
Fortitude 3 (3p)
Will 7 (4p)
Combat:
Attack +1 unarmed, +6 ranged
Damage 0 unarmed, 10 Magic (varies)
Initiative 4
Abilities 40 + Skills 13 + Advantages 3 + Powers 53 + Defenses 9 = 118 PP
Complications:
Motivations: Doing Good/Seeking Acceptance ~ Michael Anderson hopes to honor his father's last wishes to be a good person and help those in need. This is why Michael Anderson became the Phantom, and tries to become a hero accepted by other heroes as his mother was. He does all he can to become a part of the Justice League, since it will give him the recognition he desires, but will also allow him to hunt down criminals and bring them to justice as his father told him to in his dying words.
Motivation: Thrills ~ Phantom loves magic, and enjoys using it. He tends to find pleasure in using it to do good, much like Auntie Zatanna does. He is a brilliant occultist, and though not much of a stage magician, his power is growing, and he has the potential to outmatch his mentor Zatanna as well.
Motivation/Quirk: Lives in the Shadows of Greater Mages ~ As a young magician, Phantom, much like his father, hates how the superhero community are more willing to turn to the more powerful mystics, like Dr. Fate, or his Aunt, Zatanna, and when people need some knowledge about the arcane, they would rather travel half way across the world to find one of them, even if Phantom is right down the hall. Phantom hates how people look down on him and up to the other, more powerful mystics, and always seeks to rise to their level and show that he, too, is great.
Responsibility: Being a Good Magician ~ Phantom is a homo magi, and as the son of the (not as) renowned (as his sister) Zachary Zatara, he was raised to do as he pleased, so long as he did not use his gifts for evil or vile purposes. So, Michael lives by these rules, and feels like it is his responsibility to use his magic for the right cause, and though he does have fun with it, he absolutely abhors using it to do something evil. As such, he is reluctant to use dark spells or invoke dark entities in his rituals.
Enemies: The Faust Family and Other Evil Mages ~ Phantom's parents died at the hands of Felix Faust as Phantom was battling his children. To this day, Phantom blames them for their evil deeds and seeks to bring them to eternal justice. Over time, this blame has extended to all who would use the gift of magic for evil intentions, and Phantom feels that he cannot forgive any who use what he considers a blessing to do good for evil purposes.
Quirk: Supernatural Entreaties ~ When using a hero point for extra effort, Phantom can instead call upon a supernatural entity and gain a complication rather than spend a hero point to fuel his extra effort. This generally involved making a promise to do something in return for the power/action/whatever a hero point would normally be use for. Its a bit like returning a favor (Player note: this can also lead to interesting side stories as he 'returns the favor' for the entity, and could create an adventure hook)
Personality:
I picture Phantom as having Roy's inferiority complex (as shown in the Young Justice tv series) in which he desperately wants to prove himself as a worthy hero and become a part of the League. This leads him to try risky things, and disobey orders if people talk down to him, and get really mad with other heroes that treat him like a side-kick. He does have the lackadaisical manner of most homo magi, and tends to use his superb magical capabilities to do the menial things, and though his powers are great, he does not get overconfident. He tries it his all on missions, giving him this sort of dual personality. One is the one he has on missions where he is focused and analytical, and does all he can to get the mission done, and done well. He does what he has to, and then some, and is at times violent and brutal in his methods. On the other hand, when not on a mission or confronting a 'superior', Phantom is lax and a bit care-free, using magic judiciously to have fun and enjoy himself. He is prone to play pranks, still young and green as he is, but makes sure that he isn't caught or doing anything that would hamper his chances at joining the League. He does try to get along with others, but tends to be abrasive with any who demean him or insult him.
Background:
Michael Anderson, son of the news paper editor, Johnny Anderson, grew up a normal boy. That is, until he began to see strange colors and things floating about in the air. It was a weird experience for him, yet it led to his understanding that he was different from other people. When he began to talk to his father about it, his father broke the news to Michael that his family was known to have ties to the occult, and Mr. Anderson was not a homo sapien, but a homo magi. He broke the news to his only son that Michael was not only human, but had the potential to be a a great magician. Though Johnny wasn't able to do more than levitate objects and see magic, Michael soon learned that his father was right, and Michael had much more power than his father ever showed. Michael began to learn from his father about his family's history, and learned of how his lineage extended far back through the reaches of history. Michael learned that his ancestors were Atlanteans, sorcerer kings from before Alantis sank to the bottom of the sea. He learned of King Arion of Atlantis, his ancestor, and his other ancestors, all magicians and warlocks and soreness and alchemists, such as the philospoher Nostradamus, the occultist Alessandro Cagliostro, the alchemists Nicholas Flamel and Evan Fulcanelli and many others.
Though unable to use much magic himself, Johnny Anderson took the time to teach his son the basics of magic and how to concentrate and use backwards speech. Michael never took to sdrawkcab hceeps , he soon found that he could use his spells without needing to concentrate on speaking backwards to work his magic. As he grew older, he took to traveling, and learned much from various occultist a and magicians around the world, even meeting some other homo magi, such as the great Zatara (before his death) and his daughter Zatanna. As he started to learn more about his powers, he was reminded of his father's teachings (who passed away when he was 17).
When Michael Anderson was 17, he embarked on a roadtrip around the world, searching for answers about his mother who died when he was a child. His father never spoke about her, but when he had found a letter from someone named "Faust" on his father's desk, mentioning that something happened 'all those years ago' with Suzanna Anderson, Michael's mother, and Michael began his search for this 'Faust'. He hoped that Faust will have the answers he seeks, and after learning that Faust was a magician who could magically shield himself from Michael's spells, Michael did things the old fashioned way and did things on foot. He scoured the globe, from the deserts of the American South west and Mexico, to the plains of Africa, from the jungles of the amazon, to the depths of Atlantis, from the peaks of the Himalayas, to the streets of Hong Kong.
While Michael was on these travels, he followed the tracks that Felix Faust left, and instead found his children, Sebastian and Fauna, who he learned will villainous mages, and battled them. As he was losing the battle, he learned from Sebastian that Felix Faust was taking advantage of Michael's father's solitude to make a sneak attack upon his former foe, and would kill Michael's father. Michael immediately fled the field of battle and teleported back to New York, where he found his father dying, and Felix Faust standing over him, hands smoking from battle, Michael threw himself at Faust in rage, but Faust laughed, and blew up the building, covering his tracks, and escaping through a teleport gate.
Michael pulled his dying father out of the wreckage to hear his father tell him that his mother was once a hero, and was part of a society of heroes known as the Superfriends, a precursor to the Justice League. Faust had encountered Michael's mother on a mission, and in the ensuing spell duel, destroyed Michael's mother. Distraught with grief, Michael watched his father die, leaving him with a mission to protect the world and uphold all that was good and just in the world. Michael Anderson swore that he would do all that it took to join the Justice League and become the hero his father wanted to be, and his mother died trying to be. And so he took on the persona of the Phantom, a mystic of great power, to fight those that would use evil and villainy, and be the hero that his parents never could.
Note:
It has been brought to my attention, that when using a Variable power, DMs like to know how it would be used, and what sort of configurations it would have. Well, seeing as the Variable power is what keeps the homo magi a homo magi, I might as well share a few spells.
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tcetorp Enhanced Magic (1 AE + four points to array) {Deflect 8 [extras: Reflect, Redirect; feats: Affects Insubstantial 2]}
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raeppa Enhanced Magic (1AE + four points to array) {Create Object 6 [extras: Continuous, Movable; feats: Innate, Precise]}
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latrop Enhanced Magic (1AE + four points to array) {Teleport 3 [extras: Accurate, Easy, Extended, Portal; flaws: Limited to Extended; feats: Change Direction, Change Velocity, Increased Mass 4, Precise, Turnabout]}
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erans Enhanced Magic (1AE + four points to array) {Snare 6 [extras: Shapeable area; feats: Affects Insubstantial 2]}
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raeppasid Enhanced Remote Sensing (1AE) {Concealment 4 (normal visual, all olfactory), Insubstantial 2} remaining 4 pp from variable allowed for other stuff
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rewsna eht noitseuq Enhanced Magic (1AE + four points to array) {Aflliction 8 (Will resist; entranced, compelled) [extras: Cumulative, Secondary effect; flaws: Limited Degrees; extras: Subtle 2]}
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evom rof em Enhanced Magic (1AE + four points to array) {Move Object 8 [extras: Perception; feats: Subtle 2]}
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snoisulli Enhanced Magic (1AE+ two points to array) {Illusion 8 [extras: Selective]}
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evivrus Enhanced Flight (1AE) {Immunity (Life Support) [Quirk: Environmental Conditions is Half Immunity]}
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dnatsrednu Enhanced Remote Sensing (1AE) {Comprehend 8 (Animals 2, Languages 4, Spirits 2)}
