T is for Captain Transylvania

First Appearance
Lady Blacksteel had a scrapper character named Lorena that was vampire themed. I decided to make an appropriate companion for her and being in the middle of a fascination with shield tankers Captain Transylvania was born. Afterwards, if Lorena went out on a run CapTrans was my default choice for our team-up.

There they are, right in the thick of things, as usual.

Origin
From his CoH file: Longtime patriotic defender of his homeland and onetime leader of the famed Blood Dragon knights, Drago VonCarsten was forced to leave his beloved home due to a change in government policies and some questions about his past. Making the best of it, he has come to Paragon City in search of his "friend" from long ago, the Legendary Lorena, who is rumored to fight crime somewhere in this vast metropolis.

I think that covers the gist of it.

Personality
Drago is not a nice, friendly superhero. He's a vicious, bloodthirsty combatant who has chosen to use his powers for good. This doesn't mean that he doesn't know how to behave but once a fight breaks out he has little restraint and his goal is to take down opponents by the most efficient means possible. he knows his own capabilities and has long, long experience as a fighter. Outside of a fight he has a surprising knowledge of European history and a taste for the finer things.

 Captain Transylvania for ICONS

PDF is here

Attributes

Prowess: 9 (Monstrous) - He has been fighting for centuries

Coordination: 7 (Incredible) - faster than human

Strength: 6 (Remarkable) - he is quite strong

Intellect: 3 (Typical) - he's not dumb he just doesn't care that much 

Awareness: 6 (Remarkable) - supernatural senses

Willpower: 6 (Remarkable) - old and stubborn

Stamina: 12

Determination: 1

Origin: Transformed (extra power)

Specialties: Occult Expert, Stealth Expert

Powers:
Life Drain 6 - Vampiric Touch Increase Stamina Close Range Affects Incorporeal 

Force Field Device 5 - Shield of the Red Chalice 

Flight 5 - Vampiric Flight 

Immortality - Eternal Vampire Lord 

Life Support 7 (Cold, Breathing, Eating, Heat, Pathogens, Radiation, Toxins) - Vampiric Immunities 

Qualities

Epithet : "The Last Vampire Lord" - it may or may not be true, but no one has challenged him on it yet.

Connections : Lorena, Vampire Underground - he is plugged into the old network and he has one person in particular that he is attached to.

Motivation : Protect his Queen - even if she doesn't know that she is his queen just yet.

Challenges

"Looks Like a Vampire" - with his pale skin, red eyes, and fangs Captain T does not look like a normal person. Now in a world full of costumed heroes and villains this is not as much of challenge as it might be otherwise, but it's not a mask he can take off. 

Enemy: The Council - back in WW2 some organizations delved into the supernatural with an eye towards using them for the war effort. This included vampires. One of the organizations survived to the present day and has a stable process that creates artificial vampires. Captain T has encountered these in person and fights against them as an abomination and other members of "the Council" as foolish mortals who do not deserve to live.

Notes: At 65 points Captain T is one of the most expensive characters I have created. Again we run into the situation with ICONS where lesser powers like Life Support and Flight count as much as attacks and defenses and high stats which makes broader characters like this more expensive. That said he is quite capable. His Life Drain works at a short range so he can hold out a hand and begin draining Stamina. With Flight 5 he can zip over anywhere he can see in one panel and start slapping them around.

For flavor he could use some super-speed (probably at least a 5) and some language specialties but I decided to leave these out to keep him at 65 points. You have to draw the line somewhere and that's where I drew it. He could also add a Patriotic Quality but I'm not sure that's going to come up a whole lot in play.

 Captain Transylvania for Mutants and Masterminds (3E)

PDF is here

Captain Transylvania - PL 12

Strength 7, Stamina -, Agility 4, Dexterity 1, Fighting 12, Intellect 1, Awareness 2, Presence 4

Advantages

All-out Attack, Attractive, Benefit, Status: Vampire Lord, Benefit, Wealth 3 (millionare), Daze (Intimidation),

Fearless, Improved Grab, Improved Hold, Improved Initiative, Move-by Action, Power Attack, Startle

Skills

Expertise: European History 5 (+6), Expertise: Magic 5 (+6), Insight 6 (+8), Intimidation 8 (+12),

Perception 8 (+10), Persuasion 4 (+8), Stealth 10 (+14)

Powers

Shield of the Blood Chalice: Protection 10 (+10 Toughness; Impervious [8 ranks only])

Alternate Power: Shield Bash: Strength-based Damage 5 (Alternate; DC 27)

Speed: Speed 4 (Speed: 30 miles/hour, 500 feet/round)

Spider-Climb: Movement 1 (Wall-crawling 1: -1 speed rank)

Vampiric Bite: Weaken 10 (Affects: Stamina, Resisted by: Fortitude, DC 20; Grab-based, Limited: Drains 1 rank per round)

Vampiric Invulnerability

Immortality: Immortality 5 (Return after 1 day; Limited: Not When Staked or Beheaded)

Immunity: Immunity 30 (Fortitude Effects)

Regeneration: Regeneration 10 (Every 1 round; Source: Blood)

Offense

Initiative +8

Grab, +12 (DC Spec 17)

Shield Bash: Strength-based Damage 5, +12 (DC 27)

Throw, +1 (DC 22)

Unarmed, +12 (DC 22)

Vampiric Bite: Weaken 10, +12 (DC Fort 20)

Defense

Dodge 14, Parry 14, Fortitude Immune, Toughness 10, Will 12

Complications

Dependence: Captain Transylvania must feed on blood or weaken and eventually go dormant

Distinctive Looks: with his pale skin, red eyes, and fangs Captain T does not look like a normal person.

Now in a world full of costumed heroes and villains this is not as much of challenge as it might be

otherwise, but it's not a mask he can take off.

Enemy - "The Council": back in WW2 some organizations delved into the supernatural with an eye

towards using them for the war effort. This included vampires. One of the organizations survived to the

present day and has a stable process that creates artificial vampires. Captain T has encountered these in

person and fights against them as an abomination and other members of "the Council" as foolish mortals

who do not deserve to live.

Languages

Native Language

Power Points

Abilities 52 + Powers 69 + Advantages 14 + Skills 23 (46 ranks) + Defenses 22 = 180

Notes: This version is a little different - he can run fast and spider-climb but he cannot fly! he still has the shield and can bash with it for full damage, or he can punch someone for slightly less damage. His life drain here is a grab & bite attack that is a Weaken - this and a lot of the basic vampire parts of the character were taken from Dracula as written up for the Threat Report, but a lot of the other details are different. Captain T is less of a seducer/persuader and doesn't turn into mist or summon wolves. He's also not weakened by sunlight, so there are some positive tradeoffs here. 

He's favored Dodge and Parry over Toughness to represent that super-agile-speed thing we see sometimes in the movies. He's still a 10 Toughness (Impervious 8) so he's not exactly a slouch but I liked where this came out.

I have not dealt with a Weaken effect in our games so I'm not sure how combat effective it is but he has enough grab boosts so he can certainly grab on and drain. I can see him hanging on to a big target and draining as fast as possible to help a team.

Anyway, there's Captain T! Tomorrow: A character that does not use a shield!