This isn't a comicbook setting, but given
how a few people act in a world
without apparent powers, would-be 'superheroes' (and some 'supervillains') are quite likely in a world that suddenly
does have them. It's just that most will either have to be very careful to avoid charges of vigilantism and related crimes, be arrested quickly for doing said crimes, be shot and probably killed by criminals and/or the police, or have some pretty significant (and rare) advantages, like this guy (who also has a
really high point-cost for this setting):
'Superboy' (Conner Elias), 2023
Age: 38 (effectively 16)
Attributes
ST 10 (19/80) [0]; DX 11 [20]; IQ 12 [40]; HT 10 [0]
Secondary Characteristics
HP 10; Will 14 [10]; Per 13 [5]; FP 20 [30]
Basic Lift: 20 lbs (72/1,280 lbs)
Thrust: 1d-2 (3d+1/9d); Swing: 1d (2d-1/11d)
Judo Parry: 8
Basic Speed: 5.25; Move: 5; Dodge: 8
Air Move: 4/65
Astral Move: 6
Social Background
Languages: English (Native) [0]; Spanish (Accented) [4]; Latin (Broken/Accented) [3]; 'Kryptonian' (Broken) [2].
TL: 8, (6+3)^
Cultural Familiarity: 21st century Western [0]; 'Kryptonian' [1].
Subtotal: 115
Advantages
Handsome [12]
Reputation (Hero and probable victim of police brutality; Chicago residents, all the time) +2 [5]
Voice [10]
Astral Form (Cross-World Communication, +10%; Barrier Breaking, +60%) [120]
Reawakened [10]
Tactile Telekinesis! (Telekinetic Control; Super-Effort, +300%; Melee Atack, C, -30%) 9/70 [266]
Unaging [5]
Regeneration (Very Fast; FP Only, +0%; Special Recharge: Solar-powered, -70%; Psionic, -10%) [20]
Perks
Body Discipline (Judo Art). [1]
Dabbler ('Kryptonian': Electronics Repair (Psychotronics)/TL(6+3)^ 8, Engineer (Psychotronics)/TL(6+3)^ 8, History (Kryptonian) 8, Religious Ritual (Raoism) 7, Theology (Raoism) 7). [1]
Special Exercises (FP can exceed HP by 100%). [1]
Skill Adaptation (Telekinetic Control based on Will). [1]
Style Familiarity (Torquasm Rao). [1]
Style Familiarity (Torquasm Vo). [1]
Subtotal: 454
Disadvantages
Code of Honor (Heroic) [-10]
Compulsive Crimefighting (9) [-15]
Delusion ('I am Superboy!') [-10]
Enemies (Unknown: Villain of the week; Hunter; Less powerful; 9 or less) [-10]
Enemy (Chicago PD; Hunter; Large organization; 6 or less) [-15]
Pacifism (Cannot Harm Innocents) [-10]
Partial Amnesia [-10]
Reputation (Crazy, dangerous vigilante; Chicago police and criminals, all the time) -3 [-5]
Quirks
Distinctive blue eyes. [-1]
Lapsed Catholic. [-1]
Mentally sixteen, though somewhat mature for that age. [-1]
Out-of-date slanguage (1990s teen). [-1]
Reflexively becomes visible when using Tactile Telekinesis. [-1]
Subtotal: -90
Features
Skills
Area Knowledge (Chicago) [IQ/E] [2] 13
Autohypnosis [Will/H] [1] 12
Bicycling [DX/E] [1] 11
Computer Operation/TL8 [IQ/E] [1] 12
Electronics Operation (Media)/TL8 [IQ/A] [1] 11
Electronics Operation (Psychotronics)/TL(6+3)^ [IQ/A] [1] 11
Games (Baseball) [IQ/E] [1] 12
Hobby Skill (DC comics) [IQ/E] [2] 13
Judo Art [DX/H] [4] 11
Mathematics (Applied)/TL(6+3)^ [IQ/H] [1] 10
Meditation [Will/H] [1] 12
Mental Strength [Will/E] [4] 16
Mind Block [Will/A] [2] 14
Mind Sense [Per/A] [1] 12
Photography/TL8 [IQ/A] [1] 11
Religious Ritual (Catholic) [IQ/H] [1] 10
Sports (Baseball) [DX/A] [1] 10
Swimming [HT/E] [1] 10
Theology (Catholic) [IQ/H] [1] 10
Astral Movement [DX/H] [4] 11
Astral Travel [IQ/H] [4] 12
Telekinetic Control [Will/VH] [12] 12*
*Includes -3 from crossing the astral barrier.
Techniques
Judo (A) Judo Art-3 [2] 10
Astral Crossing (H) Astral Travel-8 [6] 9
'Telescopic X-Ray Vision' (H) Telekinetic Control-3 [4] 12
'Heat Vision' (H) Telekinetic Control-5 [5] 11
'Freezing Breath' (H) Telekinetic Control-5 [6] 12
Subtotal: 71
Total: 550
Notes
(Since it probably needs to be said, Conner's backstory is not a reference to anyone
specific, and as I've been working on the character for over a year, not anything recent; it's a mix of a variety of incidents that happened at different times in the 1990s and 2000s, in various US cities including Chicago and NYC.)
Astral Form is 'Astral Travel 6' for those who have lost their physical body (or never had one); 'Projection, -50%' is replaced by 'Always On, -50%.' 'Barrier Breaking' as an enhancement changes 'Substantial Communication, +40%' to 'Affects Substantial, +100%.' 'Cross-World Communication' as an enhancement allows one to become visible and audible at will with no roll, but does not require one to be.
'Villain of the week' is a special case of 'Unknown Enemy' that has been discussed in various places on the forums. The Chicago PD's low frequency of appearance is largely because he's rarely still there by the time they arrive, or they're there but don't have the opportunity to do anything to him. He has more disadvantages than I'd expected, but they make sense with his backstory and situation.
The son of a mostly-Hispanic father and a mostly-Irish mother, Conner was a true child of the American Melting Pot. When he was sixteen, a bigotted cop saw a group of teenage boys (including Conner) who were a little too tan and speaking Spanish in the mostly-white, upscale neighborhood where the Elias family lived. The cop chose to confront them in a hostile manner, which understandably made them nervous; the cop took that as a sign that they were up to no good and lying about one of them living nearby. Thus the confrontation escalated, the kids got scared and tried to run, and the cop started shooting. Conner had been in a coma since then, and was exposed to a flawed catalyst machine in late 2021, in a desperate attempt by his parents to wake him up; instead, he manifested Astral and Psychokinetic abilities. His body died later due to the police using an experimental astral barrier-field generator (
Psi-Tech p18) in his hospital room in an attempt to determine whether he was indeed the Superboy, and if so, to trap him - this item was based on Experimental Gormellian devices, included in public database as the Irari did not consider them a threat. The political backlash from this (including national attention and Presidential commentary) has made the city government extremely reluctant to try anything like this again, and has severely impeded the CPD's ability to do anything serious about him, much to their resentment.
If Chicago's police department had been less blatantly corrupt and racist, 'Superboy' would likely have been rather less successful with the public, if he got into this state at all. Even then, if the police had a reliable way to contain him, he wouldn't still be at large (trapping an unwilling spirit with strong PK in an 'astral cage' is very tricky, even if you have one that works). His success is unfortunately a factor in encouraging others, most of whom are less capable of helping people, more vulnerable to bullets, and lack his ability to escape.
His astral body's default form was originally quite close to his idealized self-image, which is how he was identified. Since his body's death, the look has gradually become a mix of his own at sixteen and that of Dean Cain at around sixteen (apart from the blue eyes, which remind people of Christopher Reeve). In both cases, he appears to wear red boots, blue jeans, a blue Superman t-shirt, and a red leather jacket with the S-shield on the back. Vocally, he sounds more like a young Tom Welling or Dean Cain than like his pre-coma self. His Unaging is a side effect of being an astral entity. In terms of abilities, he's mostly like the Superboy in the comics of the 1990s and early 2000s, with some elements of 'Superman, when he was a boy.'
A lot of criminals (including some of the cops) tend to assume that because this Superboy is less active at night, and has admitted in interviews that he is solar-powered, that he isn't dangerous at night, or in locations cut off from the sun. This is not true. He's less powerful that way, but he can still act. He's just limited to his FP recovering at ten minutes per point, instead of one second per point.
His martial arts skills make use of discussions in the
Kryptonian Martial Arts thread. Judo being a Technique of Judo Art is a
houserule from PK's site (scroll down a bit, there).
His 'Vision' and 'Breath' techniques were mainly eyeballed out rather than precicely calculated. 'Telescopic X-Ray Vision' is Extra-Sensory Awareness using PK feedback (which is to say, a very low psychokinetic pressure is cast over a wide area, and his mind builds a three-dimensional map of areas of resistance), with 'Increased Range,' 'Penetrating,' and 'Nuisance Effect, sensed by touch at Per-7.' 'Heat Vision' is Pyrokinesis 9 with 'Nuisance Effect (red glow at eyes and target).' 'Freezing Breath' is Cryokinesis 9 with 'Nuisance Effect (Must blow at target).'
Due to his high point-cost, I suggest that in this setting, Conner should not be used as a PC if he appears at all. He could be a powerful ally, a weird patron, or a dangerous complication in an adventure, or depending on how the party operates, even an Enemy.
The Template 'Unexpected Psi' from
GURPS Psis (p19, boxed text) was used in making him, though of course he doesn't totally fit within it.
Thoughts?