Aw, man.
In case you can't tell, I'm putting up the first few weeks of these builds quietly, not promoting them at all, so I can have at least a vague concept of what I'm doing before I open myself up to criticism by the greater gaming community. So far, I've only done two builds: a C-league mastermind and a C-league villain from the pages of a now-cancelled comic book. No harm, no foul.
This week? Ego. Ego the frickin' living planet.
Aw, man.
If I were better at this, I'd probably do something cool where Ego isn't statted up as a character but is instead a nested series of Scene Distinctions, or he's a series of encounters with the smaller pieces of him that eventually lead up to a big brawl in his brain. There are two problems with this - I don't know how to do the former, and the kind of people capable of the latter are, well, Galactus. And he usually loses.
Needless to say, this means I had to make Ego one bad mother.
The good news is that have at least a passing familiarity with the character from a variety of sources - the original Thor comics, a Marvel Adventures title, his appearance on the animated Avengers series, and a couple of issues of the time he spent hobnobbing with the Eternals of the Universe. I have at least a basic understanding of how he works, if not a perfect one.
Consequently, this time around I'm going to try writing up the History, Personality and Powers & Resources sections. The history section will only go up the end of the entry in the Official Handbook I'm working from.
(Note: I'm giving him Warp Flight because that makes him a more interesting villain - I know he's had that ability fairly rarely, but I think it works here. In some scenarios, I'd consider making the warp engine into its own Power Set, with a tendency to throw out complications.)
Ego
Solo 5d10
Buddy 3d6
Team 4d8
Distinctions
Giant Ego
Power Hungry
Slightly Crazy
The Living Planet
Appendages 1d12
Biosphere Control 1d12
Energy Blast 1d12
Godlike Durability 1d12
Godlike Stamina 1d12
Godlike Strength 1d12
Shapeshifting 1d12
Warp Flight 1d12
SFX: Fear My Great Power - Spend a die from the doom pool to ignore any stress from any source.
SFX: I Am Everywhere - Add a 1d10 and keep an additional effect die for each additional target.
SFX: I Draw Your Strength From Your Bones - Whenever you inflict physical stress, step back any stress or trauma by 1.
SFX: I Give You Eden - If you target emotional or social stress with Biosphere Control, increase the effect die by 1.
SFX: I Summon My Defenders - When you create a Biosphere Control stunt, you can create an antibody instead. If the effect die of the stunt is above 1d12, you can create an additional antibody.
SFX: I Will Turn Your Power Against You - On a successful reaction against an energy attack, convert your opponent’s effect die into a The Living Planet stunt or step up a The Living Planet power by +1 for your next action. Spend a die from the doom pool to use this stunt if your opponent’s action succeeds. If the reaction was against a cosmic energy attack, you do not need to spend a die from the doom pool if your opponent’s action succeeds, and step up your effect die by +1 on your next action.
SFX: None Shall Harm Me - When you would take physical stress, spend a die from the doom pool to prevent that stress and immediately put an antibody into play.
Limit: No! It Cannot Be! - When Biosphere Control is shut down, shut down The Living Planet power set and add 1d12 to the doom pool. Activate an opportunity to reactivate Biosphere Control and The Living Planet power set.
Ego
Psychic Resistance 1d12
Telepathy 1d12
Total Awareness 1d12
SFX: I Am Everywhere - Ego can use Telepathy on anyone and everyone he is aware of on his surface.
SFX: Vicious Mockery - 1s and 2s count as opportunities when rolling against Ego.
SFX: You Dare Mock Me! - Add a die to the doom pool to put your emotional stress die into the doom pool and step it up 1.
Limit: If any Ego power is shut down, shut down all powers and Ego becomes inert.
Specialties: Cosmic Grandmaster 1d12, Menace Grandmaster 1d12, Tech Master 1d10
History
Like the Elders of the Universe, Galactus and other beings of cosmic consonance, Ego is either almost as old as the universe, or older. His interactions with humanity have only beginning relatively recently, when Thor went to his apparent home in the Black Galaxy and persuaded him - by force - to not venture toward Earth.
Despite this, Ego has attacked Earth, both directly and indirectly, several times in the ensuing decades, although these intrusions have always been fended off by some combination of Earth’s mightiest. Most recently, he was among those who fought Thanos during the mad Titan’s latest bid to destroy and/or conquer all of reality.
Personality
Ego has earned his sobriquet - he’s immensely prideful, hatefully arrogant and cruel. That great, thundering ego has proved to be his greatest weakness as he often underestimates the power of the mortals he interacts with. He’s also duplicitous and untrustworthy, to the extent that people are more likely to side with Galactus when those two come to blows.
On occasion he’s shown a more tender and nurturing side, taking in refugees or stray life forms from the cosmos, but soon enough these moods turn and he wipes his biosphere clean and starts again.
Powers and Resources
As a planet, Ego doesn’t really lack for much. He has total control over every inch of his surface which he frequently uses to create “antibodies” to harry and attack foes on his surface, and cosmic power so tremendous it made Galactus feel like a “mote.” The scale of his power is pretty well incalculable, but he isn’t without weaknesses - most of the time he lacks his own source of propulsion and has been sabotaged in the past by simply guiding him to a dead zone of space and abandoning him there.
He has few allies at this point, although the Elders of the Universe have worked with him in the past and might do so in future, if it suits one of their far-reaching and complex designs.
Anitbody
Solo 1d6
Buddy 1d8
Team 1d10
Distinctions
Mindless Brute
Persistent
Made Of His Flesh
Superhuman Durability 1d10
Superhuman Stamina 1d10
Superhuman Strength 1d10
SFX: Durable - Add a die to the doom pool to add your physical stress die to the doom pool.
Limit: Bound to the Planet - Antibodies can’t act against anyone that isn’t in Ego’s atmosphere.
Limit: Natural Extensions - When Ego is shut down, shut down all antibodies. When Ego takes stress, all antibodies take stress.
