Val CHA Cost Roll Notes 15 STR 5 12- Lift 200 kg; 3d6 HTH Damage [3] 18 DEX 24 13- OCV: 6/DCV: 6 18 CON 16 13- 10 BODY 0 11- 13 INT 3 12- PER Roll 12- 13 EGO 6 12- ECV: 4 15 PRE 5 12- PRE Attack: 3d6 14 COM 2 12- 6 PD 3 Total: 6 PD (0 rPD) 5 ED 1 Total: 5 ED (0 rED) 4 SPD 12 Phases: 3, 6, 9, 12 8 REC 2 36 END 0 30 STUN 3 Total Characteristics Cost: 82 Movement: Running: 6"/12" Leaping: 3"/6" Swimming: 2"/4" Cost Powers & Skills Martial Arts: Classic Comic Book/Crimefighter Training Maneuver OCV DCV Damage 4 Block +2 +2 Block, Abort 4 Disarm -1 +1 Disarm; 25 STR to Disarm 4 Dodge -- +5 Dodge, Affects All Attacks, Abort 5 Kick +1 -2 7d6 Strike 3 Legsweep +2 -1 4d6 Strike, Target Falls 4 Punch +0 +2 5d6 Strike 5 Spin Kick -2 +1 7d6 Strike Perks 1 Reputation: Altar Boy, associate of The Confessor (People of Astro City) 8-, +1/+1d6 Skills 10 +2 with HTH Combat 10 Surplice: +3 with DCV versus Grabs; IAF (-1/2) 3 Acrobatics 13- 3 Breakfall 13- 2 CK: Astro City 11- 0 CK: Buchanan Corners 8- 3 Climbing 13- 1 Criminology 8- 2 KS: Superheroes 11- 0 Language: English (idiomatic; literate) 0 PS: Bus Boy 8- 3 Shadowing 12- 3 Stealth 13- 1 Streetwise 8- 0 TF: Two-Wheeled Muscle-Powered Ground Vehicles 71 Total Powers & Skills Cost 153 Total Character Cost 75+ Disadvantages 0 Normal Characteristic Maxima 10 Psychological Limitation: A Touch Reckless (Common, Moderate) 5 Psychological Limitation: Ashamed Of His Father's "Failings" (Common, Moderate) 10 Psychological Limitation: Wants To "Be Somebody" (Common, Moderate) 15 Social Limitation: Secret ID (Brian Kinney) (Frequently, Major) 38 Experience 153 Total Disadvantage Points
Background/History: Brian Kinney is a young teenager who has come to Astro City to escape the shadow of his father's death. He also wishes to go somewhere where he can "be someone" and not be known as "the Kinney boy."
Arriving in Astro City, Brian's first job is bussing tables at "Bruisers" run by one K. O. Carson, a former superhero called "Black Badge." After a day of work, Carson sent Brian over to an exclusive club named "Butler's." There, Brian worked for a mere three days before getting caught in the middle of an attack by the supervillain Gluegun. Thinking quickly, Brian knocked Gluegun out with a spin kick. This action impressed the Confessor to the point where he approached Brian about becoming his assistant.
Naturally Brian accepted, jumping at the change to be important. With the Confessor's help, he returned to school, and began to continue his training in the martial arts, as well as certain skills needed for crimefighting.
As luck would have it, the Earth was in the process of being invaded by a alien race known as the Enelsians. Using their shapeshifting powers, they infiltrated various world governments and managed to turn public opinion against heroes. Confessor, recognizing what has happening (or due to happen) attempted to expose the plot. The aliens, however, knew his secret, and killed him with a combination of holographic crosses, holy water and a wooden stake gun. Confessor went down fighting, however and killed the Enelsian who was masquerading as the mayor of Astro City.
After the battle, Brian reconciled himself with the fact that both is father and Confessor were dead. Realizing that his choice for the future was obvious, be spent the next four years training, finally returning to Astro City to as Confessor II.
This version of Altar Boy represents him midway though his career with Confessor, before the the alien invasion and Confessor's death. Obviously, a write-up for Brian as Confessor II would have to take into account four years of travel and training.
Personality/Motivation: Simply put, Brain wants to be "somebody." He feels his father was a failure, who died in debt and was laughed at by the rest of the Buchanan Corners community. Brain wants to avoid a similar fate and be a big name. Working with the Confessor, Brian does become somebody - Altar Boy, Confessor's "sidekick." This satisfied his desire for importance, but doesn't yet allow him to come to grips with his father's death.
Quote: "I'd been angry, and wanted to hurt him [Confessor]. I'd belittled him, told him the danger he was in—and it didn't slow him down. All he saw was some sort of danger to others—patterns, something that didn't fit, and all I could feel—all I could feel—was shame."
Powers/Tactics: Brian has no superpowers beyond extensive athletic training. For five years he biked twenty miles to the only nearby dojo, which accounts for a lot of his strength, endurance and martial training. The rest was taught to him by the Confessor.
When fighting, Brian looks to try to put his foes down quickly, with a minimum of fancy moves or stunts. he will block or dodge an incoming blow and then respond with a powerful punch or kick. The disarm is usually used against guns and other forms of small arms.
When dressed as Altar Boy, Brian wears a surplice that is weighted to stay out of his way, but also is coated to prevent his being grabbed by it. Game Masters may want to up the DCV bonus, or give Altar Boy a STR bonus that is "Only versus Grab" if they feel the design is underpowered.
Appearance: Brian is a young man of about 16 or 17. He is of average height, with a lean, but strong build. His reddish brown hair is somewhat curly, and comes down over his ears just a bit. He dresses casually when in his Secret ID, but as Alter Boy he wears a loose black jumpsuit, gloves and boots. Over that goes a white musketeer's surplice, marked with a gold cross design.
Designer's Notes: Altar Boy makes a good Robin to Confessor's Batman. I built Brian to be strong and fast, at least by normal human standards, as he certainly exhibited those qualities in the story. Note that his surplice might be armored, but that would be up to the Game Master. Nothing I saw specifically indicated it was, but it isn't an unlikely idea.
(Altar Boy created by Kurt Busiek, Brent Eric Anderson and Alex Ross, character sheet created by Michael Surbrook)
Altar Boy's Hero Designer File
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