Post by Kitten4u on Apr 1, 2016 10:46:03 GMT -7
These stories take place on a world not so different from our own. It is the early twenty-first century, with familiar celebrities, countries, and technologies. Most people live utterly mundane lives. But there is one critical difference between this world and ours: the existence of superpowers.
A tiny percentage of the human race has always had an innate ability to tap into paranormal forces. In ancient times, these people were known as wizards, monsters, shamans, or demigods. They were far from all-powerful, and combined with their extreme scarcity, this led to reports of paranormal activity being dismissed as mere superstition until quite recently.
Throughout the 1990s, paranormal effects began undergoing a rapid increase in severity which continues to this day. Where paranormal powers had previously been limited to the user's immediate vicinity, the end of the 20th century saw the emergence of people capable of moving mountains, directing hurricanes, and burning whole cities to the ground. The public became aware of these powers for the first time, and in accordance with the popular culture of the time, those capable of using these powers became known as "superheroes," "supervillains," or simply "supers."
It has now been over 20 years since superpowers became common knowledge and the world has adjusted to their presence. Industries have pushed for strict regulations to keep superpowered individuals from rendering them obsolete with unlimited power generation or paranormal manufacturing techniques. Supers are harshly shunned from using their powers for political or entertainment purposes, as a large portion of the populace harbors distrust and insecurity toward anyone with so much innate ability. Most supers end up being driven to crime, and even the more morally-inclined ones face layer upon layer of red tape preventing them from using their powers for the police. Thus, supers largely find themselves drawn into cooperation and competition with one another, forming associations away from distrustful eyes either to seize wealth and control or to protect the unpowered innocents using vigilante justice.
Supers usually show early signs of their powers during their teenage years. Those who develop superpowers tend to already be exceptional in one way or another, often displaying great talent, eccentric behavior, extreme popularity, or extreme social isolation. The nature of an individual's power is generally related to this exceptional trait. The power starts weak, but grows over time without apparent limit.
In light of the social stigma against supers, and in order to avoid legal consequences for their superpowered behavior, most young supers who recognize what's happening to them are careful to conceal their powers from their regular associates, even close friends and family members. It's safest to only use one's powers with one's identity protected by a mask. Of course, as a super's powers are highly distinctive, people will inevitably start connecting incidents and reaching their own conclusions about the perpetrator, and many supers choose to head this off by announcing their own codename and even wearing a themed costume. Not all supers go to such efforts to keep their mundane and masked identities separate, but it's more common than not.
Most prominent supers are young, less than 30 years old, corresponding with the increase in superpower strength throughout the 1990s. The rate at which a super's powers increase with age is outpaced by the rate at which the powers of new supers are becoming stronger, and some of the strongest supers are still teenagers. The lack of older supers is due only in part to the dangers of life as a superhero or supervillain. After all, heroes and villains are both treated as social outcasts, forced together by the rejection of mundane society, and going out of one's way to kill other supers crosses a line that might prompt the others to join forces to take the killer down. The main killer of supers is something else entirely.
Inhuman monsters with paranormal powers have also existed since ancient times, and in the modern day they are all known collectively as "dragons." They aren't all reptilian, and in fact no two of them share precisely the same shape. Their only shared features are their twisted, alien nature and their propensity for singleminded destruction. They target older, more powerful supers and teleport in without warning, annihilating their target and the surrounding area, then rampaging until put down by the combined efforts of any supers willing to help. Even a weaker dragon is far more powerful than any one super, and recent years have seen both a rapid increase in the number of dragon attacks and the rise of truly unstoppable dragons that continue to carve a swath of destruction across the countryside with no end in sight. Mundane weapons have little effect on them - the existence of dragons and the need to fight them is the only thing that stops the fearful, suspicious populace from cracking down on superpowered activity.
Emerald City is a bustling metropolis on the west coast of the United States. It's a historical hub for air and sea travel all over the world, and many supers flock there for a chance at greatness. Multiple groups of supervillains vie for control over the city's criminal underworld, prompting the local vigilante superheroes to organize and strike back. The authorities try in vain to put a lid on superpowered activity, but things are already boiling over. The stage is set for superpowers to clash, and there's no telling what the outcome will be.
A tiny percentage of the human race has always had an innate ability to tap into paranormal forces. In ancient times, these people were known as wizards, monsters, shamans, or demigods. They were far from all-powerful, and combined with their extreme scarcity, this led to reports of paranormal activity being dismissed as mere superstition until quite recently.
Throughout the 1990s, paranormal effects began undergoing a rapid increase in severity which continues to this day. Where paranormal powers had previously been limited to the user's immediate vicinity, the end of the 20th century saw the emergence of people capable of moving mountains, directing hurricanes, and burning whole cities to the ground. The public became aware of these powers for the first time, and in accordance with the popular culture of the time, those capable of using these powers became known as "superheroes," "supervillains," or simply "supers."
It has now been over 20 years since superpowers became common knowledge and the world has adjusted to their presence. Industries have pushed for strict regulations to keep superpowered individuals from rendering them obsolete with unlimited power generation or paranormal manufacturing techniques. Supers are harshly shunned from using their powers for political or entertainment purposes, as a large portion of the populace harbors distrust and insecurity toward anyone with so much innate ability. Most supers end up being driven to crime, and even the more morally-inclined ones face layer upon layer of red tape preventing them from using their powers for the police. Thus, supers largely find themselves drawn into cooperation and competition with one another, forming associations away from distrustful eyes either to seize wealth and control or to protect the unpowered innocents using vigilante justice.
Supers usually show early signs of their powers during their teenage years. Those who develop superpowers tend to already be exceptional in one way or another, often displaying great talent, eccentric behavior, extreme popularity, or extreme social isolation. The nature of an individual's power is generally related to this exceptional trait. The power starts weak, but grows over time without apparent limit.
In light of the social stigma against supers, and in order to avoid legal consequences for their superpowered behavior, most young supers who recognize what's happening to them are careful to conceal their powers from their regular associates, even close friends and family members. It's safest to only use one's powers with one's identity protected by a mask. Of course, as a super's powers are highly distinctive, people will inevitably start connecting incidents and reaching their own conclusions about the perpetrator, and many supers choose to head this off by announcing their own codename and even wearing a themed costume. Not all supers go to such efforts to keep their mundane and masked identities separate, but it's more common than not.
Most prominent supers are young, less than 30 years old, corresponding with the increase in superpower strength throughout the 1990s. The rate at which a super's powers increase with age is outpaced by the rate at which the powers of new supers are becoming stronger, and some of the strongest supers are still teenagers. The lack of older supers is due only in part to the dangers of life as a superhero or supervillain. After all, heroes and villains are both treated as social outcasts, forced together by the rejection of mundane society, and going out of one's way to kill other supers crosses a line that might prompt the others to join forces to take the killer down. The main killer of supers is something else entirely.
Inhuman monsters with paranormal powers have also existed since ancient times, and in the modern day they are all known collectively as "dragons." They aren't all reptilian, and in fact no two of them share precisely the same shape. Their only shared features are their twisted, alien nature and their propensity for singleminded destruction. They target older, more powerful supers and teleport in without warning, annihilating their target and the surrounding area, then rampaging until put down by the combined efforts of any supers willing to help. Even a weaker dragon is far more powerful than any one super, and recent years have seen both a rapid increase in the number of dragon attacks and the rise of truly unstoppable dragons that continue to carve a swath of destruction across the countryside with no end in sight. Mundane weapons have little effect on them - the existence of dragons and the need to fight them is the only thing that stops the fearful, suspicious populace from cracking down on superpowered activity.
Emerald City is a bustling metropolis on the west coast of the United States. It's a historical hub for air and sea travel all over the world, and many supers flock there for a chance at greatness. Multiple groups of supervillains vie for control over the city's criminal underworld, prompting the local vigilante superheroes to organize and strike back. The authorities try in vain to put a lid on superpowered activity, but things are already boiling over. The stage is set for superpowers to clash, and there's no telling what the outcome will be.
