State of the Campaign World [Background]

General Roll20
1

Here’s general background information about Halcyon City, along with unanswered questions. NOTE: none of these questions need to be answered here and now! If anyone has good answers, go ahead and reply, but this is usually going to be stuff that’ll come out in play.

Halcyon City is located in North Carolina, east of Rocky Mount and south of Elizabeth City.

  • How did it come to be there, and rise up the way that it did?
  • Who are the local leaders - mayor, city council, etc.?

Notable mundanes include…

  • AEGIS
    • Agent Ted Waters
    • Agent 1337
  • Halcyon High
    • Doctor Dawes (image: Terminator’s Freeman Dyson)
    • Mr. Vigil (PE/gym, image: Bruce Campbell)
    • Ms. “No!” Rodriguez (image: Honey Lemon), Leo’s lab partner
    • Taz (image: Homecoming’s MJ), new creepy student
  • “The Ponies” (Halcyon Herd)
    • PowerPony
    • Duskshine
    • My Little Power Ranger (@PoniesAreMagic)

Notable superheroes in Halcyon City include…

  • A10 - attends school with Harry Gale, flying brick type? Played by Michelle Rodriguez
  • Halcyon Heroes League (Silver Age)
    • The Gale family of speedsters (honorary members) - Streak and Tempest
  • Hyena - mysterious veteran vigilante superheroine
  • Justice (Golden Age) - retired, may have a Protege
  • Lucius - retired, running a coffee shop, TODO name
  • The Quill family
  • Transcendent (briefly turned evil)
  • The Vindicators (Silver Age)
  • any others?

Notable supervillains in Halcyon City include…

  • Achilles Chin (formerly) - not local, but has history with the Quills
  • Alycia Chin - Jason Quill’s nemesis
  • Aquaria - defender of the oceans
  • The Dread Queen - ruler of Vyortovia
  • The Farlander- alien treasure hunter
  • Ghostheart - sniveling diabolist
  • Hannibal Lectric - cultured electric chessmaster
  • Iconoclast - anti-hero anarchist
  • King Winter - enemy of the Gale family
  • Magus Everard - selfish sorcerer supreme
  • Professor Spectre
  • Sablestar - intergalactic anarchist
  • Troll - wifi powered asshole
  • Voltaic
  • any others?

Notable organizations in Halcyon City include…

  • AEGIS
  • Excalibur legacy (including Lucius)
  • Hidden Family of the (Vyortovian) Throne, tied to Ghost Girl’s family
  • any others?

Notable locations in Halcyon City include…

  • Halcyon High - public high school, with multiple locations (North, South, Northwest, Riverside, Central, et cetera) Leo and Adam attend South.
  • Halcyon’s “superhero academy” - tends to have a lot of ‘out’ supers - Gardner Academy

Paranormal elements known to the citizens of Halcyon City include…

  • Universal Concordance - an alien intelligence
  • Ghosts of the dead
  • any others?

author: Bill G.
url: https://app.roll20.net/forum/permalink/5393777

2

Some of the players above are from a larger context. The Quill family clearly has a key presence here; while Byron Quill’s genius was largely turned to matters of global import, a lot of his inventions that had practical applications for urban life (maglev peoplemovers! hydroponic parks! pizza drones!) were funded by grants to Halcyon City, along with other, more social programs. (Byron Quill’s father, Justin, was a real estate magnate, establishing much of modern Halcyon in the post-war boom; his father, in turn, Samuel, was a tobacco farmer.)

Achilles Chin never really focused on Halcyon City. (One could make a case that Byron Quill was Achilles Chin’s nemesis, foiling Chin’s plans, more than the other way around.) His daughter, Alycia, though, is much more of a presence here, largely become of Jason choosing it for his residence.

[Btw, +3 virtual points to “Hannibal Lectric”]

History-wise, I’m quite happy to see Halcyon City completely replace Atlanta geographically and (to a degree) historically. So no harbor from which kaiju arise, but a major land transportation hub for the South, and thus by nature more industrial and more cosmopolitan than much of the region. It may well be that Justin Quill’s post-war development efforts led to it being even more prosperous than our analog city; I’ll posit a more progressive city government that put Halcyon City in the forefront of the civil rights movement, and allowed it to draw economic strength as a lodestone for the best of the South of all races flocking to Halcyon.

author: *** Dave H.
url: https://app.roll20.net/forum/permalink/5393920

3

I can also imagine a Mr. Terrific type character, a polymath genius super, basically making Jim Crow unworkable through sheer competence. Such a person could have a dramatic impact on the social mores of the region. There’s plenty of other sources of inspiration for such characters here: http://worldofblackheroes.com/black-superheroes/

author: Bill G.
url: https://app.roll20.net/forum/permalink/5393951

4

Halcyon City is located in the American South, either at or near Atlanta.

  • _Where, specifically? Is it a port city?
    _
  • How did it come to be there, and rise up the way that it did?
  • Who are the local leaders - mayor, city council, etc.?

For a lot of this, I’d like to lean in the direction of the material in the book, except for any part that directly goes against stuff we’ve come up with ourselves - that always wins.

Atlanta was what we’d talked about before, but upon review, I need a little more geographic diversity, so please see the attached map.

474×512 37.3 KB

I want some coastline, and I’d like some ocean, since I might want to put weird islands off the coast and things like that. The location I’ve indicated doesn’t have any major cities nearby (I think it’s a wildlife preserve IRL), but it’s within shouting distance of Philadelphia, Washington, NYC, and (inland) Raleigh. Should give us all the stuff we’d been aiming at, culturally and historically.

**How did it come to be here:
**I’m pretty good with pages 15 and 16, especially the city being big (10 million people), well established, and the single greatest confluence of superheroic, metahuman, supernatural, and impossible activity in the world.

author: Doyce T.
url: Community Forums: State of the Campaign World [Background] | Roll20: Online virtual tabletop

5

Notable superheroes in Halcyon City include…

  • The Gale family of speedsters
  • The Quill family
  • any others?

I’ll probably have something like the Halcyon Heroes League (which the Silver-age Gales are at least honorary members of), the Vindicators (also silver age).

For specific established heroes, I’ve got nothing specific in mind, but I’ll be influenced more in the direction of Astro City, I imagine. Halcyon is big and multicultural, with “Little [region]” parts of town for just about every culture out there. That attracts a lot of ‘local’ heroes. I’ll bring in (and expect you guys to introduce) heroes as we need them.

author: Doyce T.
url: Community Forums: State of the Campaign World [Background] | Roll20: Online virtual tabletop

6

Notable supervillains in Halcyon City include…

  • Achilles Chin (formerly)
  • Alycia Chin
  • Hannibal Lectric
  • any others?

I believe Kay mentioned the Gale’s arch-nemesis is a cold-powers guy?

A few others I see coming up, from the Villains deck for Masks:

Aquaria is a defender of the oceans, by any means necessary, and with Halcyon City right on the coast, that might come up.

Iconoclast is a young anti-hero anarchist sort trying to bring down the whole superhero system.

Sablestar and the Farlander are both extraterrestrials who seem to have a history with the Concordance, if not Concord himself.

Ghostheart is DEFINITELY going to show up.

Magus Everard is the … let’s say Masks equivalent of the Sorcerer Supreme, this generation’s Doctor Fate or “Shaman” from The Authority… except he’s a selfish prick who’s got the power and is using it for himself.

He’s also the source of the magic that brought Ghost Girl into the world - he was duking it out with either Dominus or Doctor Infinity (also villains by most standards) - accounts vary.

The fact GG was created by the clashing powers of two supervillains, and is also you know DEAD, does not immediately garner a lot of trust in the public’s mind.

So… that’s some cosmic people, some time travel people, a touch of magic. I also have my eye on a few tech-based guys, like Voltaic and probably Professor Spectre.

The city is chock-a-block with supers, so lots of stuff will come up, but I’ll at least TEND to focus on the mystical, cosmic, and technological for now (fewer mutants, for example) since that’s where the group is personally is focused. (Also not a lot of punisher-types, though power-driven corporations are likely.)

author: Doyce T.
url: Community Forums: State of the Campaign World [Background] | Roll20: Online virtual tabletop

7

Bill G. said:

I can also imagine a Mr. Terrific type character, a polymath genius super, basically making Jim Crow unworkable through sheer competence. Such a person could have a dramatic impact on the social mores of the region.

I like it!

author: *** Dave H.
url: Community Forums: State of the Campaign World [Background] | Roll20: Online virtual tabletop

8

Aside from that, I don’t have a TON of idea for big events, except that there have been dozens. Alien invasions. Magical apocalypses. Time vortexes.

Halcyon City natives don’t freak out if an alien shows up in front of them - they freak out if it starts SHOOTING, you know? It’s not the weird or freaky that’s the problem. It’s if it’s actively dangerous. Otherwise, they get on with their lives.

The Silver Generation is still in power, though they’re retiring out of the game in many cases.

The Bronze Generation has made their marks in niche areas, but they were never a bigger deal then the Silver Generation, as a group.

The Modern generation already has more active supers in the game than either the Silver or Bronze generation currently does… but at the same time, they have a bare fraction of the power and influence, and they’ve surely noticed that discrepancy.

author: Doyce T.
url: https://app.roll20.net/forum/permalink/5394250

9

*** Dave H. said:

Bill G. said:

I can also imagine a Mr. Terrific type character, a polymath genius super, basically making Jim Crow unworkable through sheer competence. Such a person could have a dramatic impact on the social mores of the region.

I like it!

Me too! I want to dig into that website you linked, when I have a second.

author: Doyce T.
url: Community Forums: State of the Campaign World [Background] | Roll20: Online virtual tabletop

10

Doyce T. said:

For a lot of this, I’d like to lean in the direction of the material in the book, except for any part that directly goes against stuff we’ve come up with ourselves - that always wins.

Atlanta was what we’d talked about before, but upon review, I need a little more geographic diversity, so please see the attached map.

Okay, I’ll read the book on that stuff. :slight_smile:

And I’m fine with the coast of North Carolina, too. Margie, in particular, can do a fine North Carolinian accent.

author: *** Dave H.
url: Community Forums: State of the Campaign World [Background] | Roll20: Online virtual tabletop

11

Doyce T. said:

I want some coastline, and I’d like some ocean, since I might want to put weird islands off the coast and things like that.

Well, you have “Kill Devil Hills” there, and that’s gotta be good for at least three episodes.

author: *** Dave H.
url: Community Forums: State of the Campaign World [Background] | Roll20: Online virtual tabletop

12

Doyce T. said:

Halcyon City natives don’t freak out if an alien shows up in front of them - they freak out if it starts SHOOTING, you know? It’s not the weird or freaky that’s the problem. It’s if it’s actively dangerous. Otherwise, they get on with their lives.

So, yeah, time to break out the Astro City books for a re-read. :slight_smile:

author: *** Dave H.
url: Community Forums: State of the Campaign World [Background] | Roll20: Online virtual tabletop

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I’ll confess, I love a lot of the place names in that area. :slight_smile:

author: Doyce T.
url: https://app.roll20.net/forum/permalink/5394271

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*** Dave H. said:

Doyce T. said:

I want some coastline, and I’d like some ocean, since I might want to put weird islands off the coast and things like that.

Well, you have “Kill Devil Hills” there, and that’s gotta be good for at least three episodes.

Also? Like… 30 miles from Roanoke.

author: Doyce T.
url: Community Forums: State of the Campaign World [Background] | Roll20: Online virtual tabletop

15

A few possible street or location names for the City:

  • Tandaquomuc
  • Batts
  • Chowan

Well-known historian and tenured professor at the University: Fletcher Freeman.

author: Doyce T.
url: https://app.roll20.net/forum/permalink/5399656

16

*** Dave H. said:

Bill G. said:

I can also imagine a Mr. Terrific type character, a polymath genius super, basically making Jim Crow unworkable through sheer competence. Such a person could have a dramatic impact on the social mores of the region.

I like it!

Let’s have that super named Justice - with a few long-running conspiracy theories about who they might have been, back in the day (all wrong). Justice is now in their late 70s, and set their mask aside long ago in favor of an influential life as ‘normal’ citizen. There might be a bronze-era ‘heir to the mask’ still active.

author: Doyce T.
url: Community Forums: State of the Campaign World [Background] | Roll20: Online virtual tabletop

17

Interesting historical note - this part of NC was home to the highest population of freed blacks, anywhere in the south, prior to the Civil War. There was also a lot of intermarrying between european or black settlers and the native tribes in the region.

A good RL anchor-spot for the highly diverse Halcyon City.

author: Doyce T.
url: https://app.roll20.net/forum/permalink/5399744

18

Also of note in the roster of Bad Guys - The Dread Queen

She’s the sovereign ruler of a small island nation. Reports on the location of said nation… vary. Vyortovia mostly keeps to itself, and the Queen seems content to merely strengthen her nation’s reach via deals, diplomacy, and judicious application of her country’s impressive (and somewhat inexplicable) technological superiority.

There will be some others, but the ones I’ve mentioned are the ones that sort of tie into the larger global picture more than most.

author: Doyce T.
url: https://app.roll20.net/forum/permalink/5406874

19

Updated with some Halcyon High and other mundane NPCs.

author: Bill G.
url: https://app.roll20.net/forum/permalink/5661687

20

Added Ghost Girl’s family conspiracy, plus some AEGIS and Excalibur NPCs.

author: Bill G.
url: https://app.roll20.net/forum/permalink/5787735