The Mentat War

[Aragon]

In the not-too-distant future, in a dimension parallel to our own, on a planet that looks precisely like our own in every way (even in the cities), it's not unusual for someone to be born with some sort of mental ability. There are mentats that excel in Psychokinesis, Telepathy, Self-teleportation, Mentally-controlled flight, and other things. The only thing one cannot do, is control another mind. That, unfortunately for the occasional evil overlord, is impossible. A person's power always shows up on their twenty-first birthday. Never sooner.

There is a tendency for the public to build technology for their own benefit. Often, one can find leather goggles that have computer readouts in them. One might also construct devices that can augment their strength. These devices have a distinctly steampunk appearance.

And now, a pall of black war is hanging over the entire world, and most of the world is on the side that wishes to eliminate those with mental powers. A cult has arisen, stating that those with powers are demon-possessed, and most of the world, even some with powers, believe this.

You are born into this world of war. You now have a choice to make. What side are you on? Will you be a Cultist, seeking the death of the Mentats? Will you be a Mentat, on the side of the Cultists? Or maybe you are Friend of the Mentats, defending them with weapons and technology? Or are you a Mentat, fighting against the Cultists? If you are a mentat, what is your skill? What technology do you possess?

Rules:
The powers are simple. Telepathy cannot control minds, but can send messages, read overall mind states (without a touch), and read memories (when the side of the head is touched). Memories cannot be manipulated.

Psychokinesis is limited by two things: Distance, and how much practice one has. Self-Teleportation and Flight often go hand in hand. One may only teleport to a location he has seen, and only within a two mile area. One must rest between each teleportation for at least one hour. Flight can last for an hour, and may go at the speed of a typical bird. You may move objects with your mind, but you are limited to a distance of twelve yards. You are not limited in speed, or in the size of the item, but if you do lift a very large item, you must rest for a moment, before doing it again.

The Skill of Apparition can be used to create a temporary illusion, such as a wall, or a being, but is limited to a small area, no bigger than twelve yards on either side of the caster. One can hide himself easily with this, for a limited time, dependent on his ability, and practice.

Please stick to these abilities. You are limited to two abilities. You may use technology to assist your ability. Use this character sheet.

Name:

Age:

Gender: (Male, Female, Other)

Alignment: (Choose between Cultist, Cultist Mentat, Mentat, or Mentat Ally)

Ability: (Choose 2)

Assistive Technology: (Please describe, use no more than three items)

Appearance: (Describe your character's appearance, include a pic, if you have it.)

Background: (Tell about your character's history)

--------------------------------

This RP will develop its plot throughout the story.

 

[Thomas McTavish]

What about Pyrokenisis, the ability to use one's mental ability to manipulate energy within a small radius and create fire?

 

[PPBG]

Can telepathic people attempt to 'block' other telepathic people from intruding upon their minds?

 

[Aragon]

What about Pyrokenisis, the ability to use one's mental ability to manipulate energy within a small radius and create fire?

I think that would come within the perview of telekinesis.

 

[Aragon]

Can telepathic people attempt to 'block' other telepathic people from intruding upon their minds?

To a limited extent, and dependent on willpower, training, etc.

 

[Yiyel]

Is this really based on a future after the Fallout series, or did you just stick with the name of that particular thing (Mentat?)

At any rate:

Name: Jenosa Arma

Age: 29

Gender: Female

Alignment: Mentat

Ability: Telekinesis, Flight

Assistive Technology: Field Object Lobbing Device (FOLD) - A device which can dispense and lob at a very small velocity an object with the size ranging from a medication pill to a marble. The object is worn on the forearm and hand, and can dispense up to 20 marbles (which translates to 50 pill-sized objects) before needing to refill using scrap material.
Advanced Exoskeleton: Due to an incident during Jenosa's life, her bones have been rendered rather fragile and as such was outfitted with a powered frame that follows her limbs (and supports her ribcage) from the outside, providing the support that her bones fail at giving. She CAN live without it; but if she has to run without, tough luck. It has a few advantages though; it gives her slightly more strength than average when wearing it, and features a few light sources for the darker areas. It's powered by an ultracapacitor that has a 12h charge, with a spare 12h in a wind-up spring on the back that kicks in automatically and that can be rewound by Jenosa - although she has to take it off to be able to, which leaves her vulnerable.


Appearance: Jenosa's always been short - even adult, she's barely 5'5" - and is quite thin ever since she was forced to use the exoskeleton, seeing it provided all the strength necessary for tasks above little life - but that didn't trump her mother's traits: bright red hair held in a ponytail, soft and gentle facial traits, bright green eyes and a smile that can get her mostly anything. Her exoskeleton prevents her from wearing loose clothing, which may snag in it, so she sticks with a comfortable blue jumpsuit.

Background: Despite the war, Jenosa lived a pretty calm life; the war directly affecting her 3 times before she reached 21 when her grandfather, brother and house got hit two years apart, which gave her a fighting spirit. Her powers only gave her the will to actually join the war; training them vigorously. However, at 22, she might have been a little too vigorous... She was practicing her telekinesis on a small glass pane, to practice her accuracy, until she got startled by an insect... which applied so much force on the pane that it shattered, sending shards everywhere at high velocities. She survived, but needed to undergo operations. That event left her bones horribly weakened, which in normal times would have put her out of the war. But she was too strong-willed for that, the little life was too boring for her. It's at this point that Jenosa acquired her exoskeleton. She continued training more carefully, tinkering things on the side, eventually creating a weak lobbing weapon - but that was no longer a problem, if it needed to be thrown harder she had her powers to compensate. At age 26, a bitter rage soured her usually good personality when all of her family got captured and executed by Cultists for raising a Mentat.

 

[Aragon]

Is this really based on a future after the Fallout series, or did you just stick with the name of that particular thing (Mentat?)

I have not played Fallout. I have, however, read Frank Herbert's Dune. I used the word, because of my love for his writing. The essence of the Mentat of this RP is of my own creation.

 

[Yiyel]

Ah. In Fallout, Mentats are a sort of candy-mint things that improves one's intellect in different ways (some increase raw intelligence, others charisma or agility)

You should play Fallout 3 or New Vegas anyway. They're great games.

Also, I'm assuming that the character is okay? I wasn't sure whether it was pure fantasy (because of the general feeling) or futurepunk (because of the "Not so far future" part)

 

[Aragon]

Ah. In Fallout, Mentats are a sort of candy-mint things that improves one's intellect in different ways (some increase raw intelligence, others charisma or agility)

You should play Fallout 3 or New Vegas anyway. They're great games.

Also, I'm assuming that the character is okay? I wasn't sure whether it was pure fantasy (because of the general feeling) or futurepunk (because of the "Not so far future" part)

The character is fine. Thanks.

 

[Yiyel]

Awesome. ETA before start?

 

[Aragon]

Awesome. ETA before start?

As soon as I get about two more players.

 

[Aragon]

[quote=" It's powered by an ultracapacitor that has a 12h charge, with a spare 12h in a wind-up spring on the back that kicks in automatically and that can be rewound by Jenosa - although she has to take it off to be able to, which leaves her vulnerable."[/quote]

Would this wind-up generator be accessible by an ally, eliminating the need to remove it?

 

[Catstatify]

Spoiler

Name: Dimitri Teslov

Age: 27

Gender: Male

Alignment: Mentat

Ability: Telepathy, Apparitions

Assistive Technology: Esper Reading Interruption Blocker (ERIB): A device that blocks the mental connection that Telepaths create when reading ones thoughts by constantly emitting a frequency of sound that is almost inaudible and disrupts the brain signals that direct telepathic ability. They are often in the form of headphones that have been altered.
Esper Reading Enhancer: Usually in the form of hearing aids, these devices send signals to the brain through a frequency that allows a person to delve slightly deeper into reading ones mind, not as far as memories but to dig deeper into the consciousness from a distance. When used while reading memories, ERE's allow a telepath to delve into older memories that may have been forgotten depending on the strength and concentration of the Telepath.

Appearance: Dimitri is a rather tall young man, standing at a solid 6'3" with an athletically lithe build that speaks of a hidden grace. He is an albino young man with snow white hair, piercing blue eyes, and although he has built up a small amount of immunity to the harmful rays of sunlight, almost deathly pale skin. He is often seen wearing a blue sweater and jeans along with his ERIB's. His hair is short and whispy and he has a rather masculine, yet boyish continence.

Background: Even with the war, Dimitri lived a fairly well off life. He was the doting older brother to his sister Katelynn and often took care of her more than their parents were able to, however the first time the war truly affected him was when his parents were captured and killed for being and housing a Mentat: his mother being able to teleport herself short distances. After this incident, Dimitri hardened a bit and spent all of his energy taking care of Katelynn in their parents stead.
On his 21 birthday, his powers were revealed and he struggled even more to take care of his sister while practicing and repressing his abilities; a feat for someone with severe ADHD and fluctuating abilities. At age 23 Dimitri befriended an inventer that was trying to supress and amplify the abilities of Mentats and agreed to be his 'lab rat' if the man would take him and his sister in. Since then Dimitri has trained his abilities with the help of Adderal and the functioning, but always being adjusted ERIB's and ERE's that repress and amplify his abilities, respectively when needed.

 

[Yiyel]

[quote=" It's powered by an ultracapacitor that has a 12h charge, with a spare 12h in a wind-up spring on the back that kicks in automatically and that can be rewound by Jenosa - although she has to take it off to be able to, which leaves her vulnerable."

Would this wind-up generator be accessible by an ally, eliminating the need to remove it?[/quote]

Yes it would. I thought of it like a small-ish (inch-and-a-half thick, 8 inch diameter. That gives roughly 3cm thich and 18 cm diameter if you're metric) cylinder that's affixed to the back of the support suit, although since it's a spring that holds a lot of potential energy, it probably wouldn't be able to be fully cranked by an ally lest they were especially strong (lift a small car/a motorbike strong). But they sure as hell can give her a few hours extension again and again without her having to remove her suit. In theory, since I intended the spring to be loaded using her powers, using mirrors to assist her with that could be done too.