Came up with an NPC concept I enjoyed too much to not share.
Alias: Cryptomancer (seldom used since the creation of OpenSorcery)
(Medium Power character)
Name: John Zamora
Before Ragnarok, John was a hacker for a cause. The cause tended to change from week to week, but he wanted to fight against corruption and speak truth to power- even if that meant leaking a few secrets to the press. However, it was after Ragnarok that he dipped his toes into the waters of magic. During a sleepless night, he was browsing torrent sites when he came across an intriguing PDF scan of an ancient grimoire. On a whim, he downloaded the file and read it, finding himself fascinated by the text. He began binge-reading all he could find on the subject of magic, scouring countless deep web sites for what base raider groups called 'the real deal'. However, it was the early days of base raiding, and there wasn't much to read. Wanting more, he decided to take up base raiding on his own. Though he barely got out alive of his first job, he managed to get a couple tomes out of a sorceror's sanctum. But instead of just keeping the books for himself, he made scans of them and uploaded them so others could read it. This generated a lot of good will towards John, which gave him an idea. He called up a few of his hacker colleagues, got a server up and running, and established OpenSorcery. Originally intended to just be a database of digitized spellbooks and grimoires, it expanded to include a forum for self-taught sorcerors and professional practitioners to discuss working with magic, and even a resources site for raiders seeking help with magically-inclined bases.
It was then that John decided to stop base raiding and manage OpenSorcery full time. He put out what's now referred to as the 'OpenSorcery Manifesto': a short text document outlining OpenSorcery's mission: to teach everyone willing and able how to utilize magic and become empowered through the mystical arts. As John put it, with the superheroes gone, it was up to the civilians to protect the world from danger, and the best way to do that was to promote what he called 'arcane literacy'. The Manifesto's release was quickly noticed by the Underground and became quite a divisive subject: some thought John was an altruist, some thought he was just doing it for attention, and some thought he was just being foolish. However, nobody could deny that OpenSorcery had become something big, and they invited John to join them. Finding himself thrust into the spotlight and unsure, John asked the members of OpenSorcery if they were willing to work with the Underground. Though some hesitated, citing concerns about their privacy and possible censorship of OpenSorcery content, most viewed collaboration as the best way to fulfill the plan laid out in the Manifesto. So, John accepted the invitation and relocated to The Underground, making connections with some of the movers and shakers there. Now, he contracts out to other base raiders, requesting the retrieval of spellbooks and other bits of magical knowledge so he may archive it for everyone else to see.
Aspects
Magic User: eBook of Thoth
Background: Hacktivist
Conviction: Promote Arcane Literacy
Obsession: Arcane Knowledge Wants To Be Free
Aspect: Founder of OpenSorcery
Conviction: There's So Much Work To Be Done
Aspect: Always Question Authority
Complication: Mystics Hate Him! Technocrats Hate Him Too!
Skills
Great (+4): Computers
Good (+3): Computer Integrated Ritual Array (S),
Fair (+2): Wizrd App (E), Resolve,
Average: Empathy, Investigation
Unique and Strange Skills[/b]
Computer Integrated Ritual Array
Power Tier: Superhuman (-2 refresh)
Craft, Dismantle, Examine, Information, Repair, Research
Ritual
Major Delay
Room-Sized (As per Vintage Villainy)
Cost: 2 Skill points (6 trappings, -2 for Ritual, -2 for Major Delay, -3 for Room Sized)
A sprawling, tangled mess of occult paraphernalia and modified computers fills the workroom. The Computer Integrated Ritual Array (or CIRA for short) is proof of John's theory that arcane principles and computer programming have tangible parallels. Though it's essentially permanently located in John's basement (and taking up almost the entirety of said basement), it proves invaluable in John's work and functions like any ritual magic set up.
Wizrd App
Power Tier: Extraordinary (-1 Refresh)
Variable X 3
Spell
Minor Focus: Modified smartphone
Cost: 9 Skill points (Variable X3, -2 for Spell, -1 for Minor Focus)
Having been too slow on the draw with a spell more than a few times, John developed a program he could load into a phone that uses non-Euclidean geometric calculations and various ancient mathematical systems to do the brunt of the work for him, allowing him to cast spells with a single tap.
OpenSorcery Network
Power Tier: Extraordinary (-1 Refresh)
Esteem, Influence, Networking
Minor Complication: Mystics Hate Him! Technocrats Hate Him Too!
Conviction: There's So Much Work To Be Done
Cost: 1 Skill point (3 trappings, -1 for Minor Complication, -2 for Conviction)
As founder of OpenSorcery, John has amassed influenced within the Underground, perhaps even being on speaking terms with Iconoclast and Beatrice. As a result, he's able of calling favors in from OpenSorcery members, who are more than happy to help. However, not everyone approves of John's philosophy towards how the arcane arts are to be used. Veteran Mystics in particular strongly dislike John's work. They find his mixing of technology and magic obscene, and view his mission of giving the secrets of magic to the masses as a threat to their plans. The Technocrats despise John even more, as they find his willingness to 'corrupt' technology with something as chaotic as magic as the work of a dangerous fool.
