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Piper is a dangerously cute trust fund baby who compliments her already great beauty with expensive designer original clothes and blingy accessories. She takes her appearance seriously and carries herself like a runway model even when alone. But it's not just her looks that cause people to take notice when she walks into a room or lean in to listen when she deigns to speak; there is something magnetic about her very existence that render her both enigmatic and compelling.
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Superficially Piper Smith might seem indistinguishable from any other "Simple Life" sort of debutante...but that's only until you get to know her. Behind the easy facade lies a complex and intelligent woman of inscrutable depth and an enigmatic air of knowing the answer to some kind of secret closely held by a select few...as if she knows the punchline to some cosmic joke that normal folks can't even comprehend they are the butts of.
Piper's grandmother was Elektra Logothetis, a legendarily powerful Invoker descended from a long line of the same, with a family style of Invocation cultivated over the course of several millenia and passed down matrilineally from woman to woman. Elektra had no daughters of her own to pass the art down to, and thus took Piper's training as her apprentice very seriously. Piper learned the True Names of things the way other kids learn their native language, from the time she was old enough to talk, and her magic thus comes as naturally to her as walking or breathing. Piper's father was more interested in building the family shipping business, and her mother was the very stereotype of vapid and useless former model, so Piper was extraordinarly close to her grandmother and spent a large portion of her formative years under Elektra's tutelage and protection.
However, despite the unusual nature of her heritage, Piper's life was more about being indolently rich than magic until very recently when her beloved grandmother was murdered by an old and terrible enemy from Elektra's more active past...the infamous and terrible Tudor Brezak. It is not known why Brezak sought Elektra out after the many decades since their previous encounter, but regardless of the whys of it all Piper is determined to seek vengeance. She has turned her considerable force of personality and resources to that end, finding out what she can about the Red Hand (Brezak's cult), and entering the life of a Hunter. She is not licensed by Section M, and has not yet taken any direct action, but she is prepared to do so as soon as she comes across any kind of lead that takes her closer to Tudor Brezak.
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Piper is ultimately motivated by revenge against Tudor Brezak, but she fully realizes that she is no match for him currently. Thus she seeks to improve her mastery of magic and to garner useful allies. Thus she hunts, not for money, but for experience and to gain cred. She will not commit to overly risky ventures, as she can't claim her revenge if she's dead. She also feels a responsiblity to have at least one daughter to pass her family's magic down to so as to continue the Logothetis Tradition.
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"Azaeroat, Gaerboz, Moareandur, heed my call!"
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Piper is a powerful Invoker, able to entreat otherworldly entities to grant her reality warping powers of unbounded variety. But while Invocation is like an open tap on pure primal power, it comes with commensurate risk. Entities called upon are not always accomodating, and their favor can just as soon turn to disfavor; and it sometimes seems as if reality itself takes umbrage at an Invoker's presumption. It can even be dangerous to be around an Invoker, so severe are the punishments that sometimes befall them. The Logothetis line of Invokers have cultivated a set of such entities who are not inimical, diabolical, or otherwise overtly malign but even so, trucking with outside powers is not to be undertaken lightly.
Piper also generally enjoys the favor of several otherworldly entities and often is favored by them even in every day undertakings as well as enjoying magical protection from some forms of harm. However, these boons are unreliable and not to be taken for granted.
Beyond her magic, Piper can navigate the stagnant cesspool of upper crust society within metropolitan settings with ease, allowing her to go places that less priveleged folk never could. She is also suprisingly knowledgeable and well-educated about the Supernatural World thanks to her grandmother's teachings.
Invokers are considered to be Sorcerers and thus the Accords are generally unsympathetic to the art, and Piper is on Section M's watch list, but her grandmother was close friends with Dr. Allosius Jones and several other notable Hunters of that WW2 era, and the Logothetis line have a long held reputation as benign and responsible practitioners calling upon powers that are not inimical to humanity, so Piper has been given the benefit of the doubt so far. But should she abuse her powers she will end up Sanctioned just like any other supernatural violating the Accords.
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To use Piper's Invocation, first declare a HERO System power construct you are attempting to use, the level of effect you wish to use it at, and a valid target. Advantages and Adders can be included in this declaration, but generally not Limitations. The GM has final approval on all such power constructs. Next roll up to 3d6 and compare each die to the Invocation Die Effect Chart (below) to determine the level of Invocation Effect acheived. If the level of Invocation Effect generated equals or exceeds the Active Points of the Power you may use that effect immediately, other wise it doesn't work and your action is wasted. If the level of Invocation Effect generated is a negative number, it instead represents the Active Points available to the GM to construct a suitable and appropriate Side Effect with as per the Power Limitation which affects Piper, or alternately an equivalent amount of Unluck (i.e., -5 equals 1d6 Unluck while -15 equals 3d6 Unluck, etc.) is cumulatively "attached" to Piper until such a time as the GM has her make an Unluck roll at which time all accumulated Unluck is wiped.
When Invocation is successfully used to invoke a power, Piper can reuse that same power again without having to reroll her Invocation dice for a number of extra Segments equal to the amount the Invocation Effect exceeded the required Active Points of the replicated Power. For instance, if Piper tried to invoke a RKA based power with 30 Active Points and rolled 40 points of Invocation which is 10 more than she needed, on any of her subsequent Phases within the next 10 Segments she can opt to reuse that same power.
When Invocation is successfully used to replicate Powers that are not Instant, such effects last for a number of extra Turns equal to the amount the Invocation Effect exceeded the required Active Points of the replicated Power. For instance if Piper tried to invoke a protective field based on Resistent Defense with 30 Active Points and rolled 40 points of Invocation which is 10 more than she needed, the protective field would remain in effect for 10 Turns.
1 | -10 points of Invocation Effect | 2 | -5 points of Invocation Effect | 3 | +5 points of Invocation Effect | 4 | +10 points of Invocation Effect | 5 | +20 points of Invocation Effect | 6 | +30 points of Invocation Effect | |
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