Quote: "I'm so glad you want to help me. Together, we can accomplish anything!"
Power Level: 10
Concept: Manipulative pheromones-based mastermind
Occupation: Businessman
Real Name: Robin Holland
Legal Status: Citizen of the United States with no criminal record
Identity: public
Place of Birth: Springfield, IL
Marital Status: single
Living Relatives: none
Height: 5 ft. 11 in.
Weight: 165 lbs.
Eyes: Blue
Hair: Gray
Robin Holland - PL10
STR: +0 (10),
DEX: +2 (14),
CON: +2 (14),
INT: +3 (16),
WIS: +5 (20),
CHA: +3 (16)
Tough: +2/+5, Fort: +4, Ref: +7, Will: +11Skills: Acrobatics 3 (
+5), Bluff 13 (
+16/+20), Computers 4 (
+7), Concentration 8 (
+13), Diplomacy 13 (
+16/+20), Disable Device 5 (
+8), Drive 4 (
+6), Gather Information 13 (
+16), Intimidate 8 (
+11), Knowledge (Art) 8 (
+11), Knowledge (Behavioral Science) 8 (
+11), Knowledge (Business) 12 (
+15), Knowledge (Civics) 8 (
+11), Knowledge (Current Events) 8 (
+11), Knowledge (Streetwise) 8 (
+11), Knowledge (Technology) 8 (
+11), Language 8, Notice 8 (
+13), Pilot 4 (
+6), Ride 4 (
+6), Sense Motive 10 (
+15), Stealth 3 (
+5), Swim 4 (
+4)
Feats: Assessment, Attack Focus (Melee) 4, Attractive (+4), Benefit 6 (Wealth), Connected, Contacts, Defensive Attack, Defensive Roll 3, Distract (Bluff), Dodge Focus 3, Equipment 10, Evasion, Fascinate (Diplomacy), Fighting Style: Aikido, Grappling Finesse, Improved Grapple, Improved Pin, Improved Throw, Improved Trip, Inspire 3, Leadership, Master Plan, Minions 4 (+7 Extra Minions, Fanatical), Set-Up, Skill Mastery (Bluff, Business, Diplomacy, Sense Motive), Uncanny Dodge (Visual), Well-Informed
Powers:Pheromones (Emotion Control 10) (Extras: Action 3 (reaction), Burst Area (50 ft. radius), Insidious; Flaws: Limited to Emotion (Love), Sense-Dependent (Olfactory)) · 50pp
. .
Reward or Punishment (Nauseate 9) (Alternate; Extras: Burst Area (45 ft. radius - General), Insidious, Range 2 (perception); Flaw: Sense-Dependent (Olfactory); Power Feat: Variable Descriptor (Pain or pleasure)) · 1pp
Equipment: HQ: Skyscraper (5 floors) [17ep], Smartphone [5ep], Vehicle: Limousine [8ep], Vehicle: Private jet [17ep]
Attack Bonus: +0 (Ranged: +0, Melee: +4, Grapple: +6)
Attacks: Pheromones (Emotion Control 10) (DC Staged/Will 20), Reward or Punishment (Nauseate 9) (DC Fort/Staged 19), Unarmed Attack, +4 (DC 15)
Defense: 17 (Flat-footed: 12), Knockback: -2
Initiative: +2Languages: Arabic, Chinese, English, French, German, Japanese, Korean, Russian, Spanish
Totals: Abilities 30 + Skills 43 (172 ranks) + Feats 63 + Powers 51 + Combat 8 + Saves 13 + Drawbacks 0 = 208
Background: Robin Holland is a criminal mastermind. Not because he's a genius, but because he can exert control over the right people to achieve his goals. He's a mastermind because he knows how to get to people, hitting them where they need it (to motivate them) or where it hurts (to bring them down or over to his side).
His powers manifested early and he manipulated his parents and everyone around him from the time he could make his demands known. And the power makes everyone not only love him, want to do for him, want to sacrifice for him, but when the power ends, they feel like it was all their own doing. They fell in love with him, they let him down, they failed him, etc. The reward or punishment he can dole out makes the target feel good when they've pleased him or makes them feel bad when they've failed him--a reward or punishment self-inflicted. It makes the victims keep coming back; either for more reward or to make amends for failing him.
And those around him, who have been breathing in his pheromones for a long time are fanatical toward him, would gladly lay down their lives for him, and Robin uses these people like pawns. He is completely ruthless and amoral. He does whatever he wants with other people solely to suit himself. He "collects" the brightest, toughest, smartest individuals and doesn't have to worry about competition--they will do everything he asks of them and feel like it was their own idea.
And on the off-chance that someone proves immune to his power, well, he has plenty of people under his thumb to eliminate said opposition.
Robin has business interests all over the world, and while already absurdly rich, there's always a new deal to be worked out to reshape the world in his interest. And with his power to influence others, his business acumen, extensive contacts (thralls) and the like, he can pretty much make happen whatever he wishes to happen.
He's not a physically impressive man. He's quite good looking, stays in shape with a daily swim and aikido workout. But he's not a hand-to-hand combatant. He makes other people fight his battles. He's particularly fond of ninjas. He's also especially good at getting to a superhero's weakness. And if that weakness happens to be a loved one...well, Robin owns the game of love. He's the ultimate manipulator, constantly surrounded with human shields, and people from every conceivable walk of life under his power that he should prove a frightening person to encounter. Every random face in the crowd could be his eyes and ears, or someone watching the team’s HQ, or following the PCs. Is that news copter really just reporting on that traffic accident, or are they filming the heroes? If a secret identity were to be penetrated, every aspect of the heroes life would be subject to scrutiny. Anyone can be gotten to, and if confronted, they’ll take all the blame and never betray Robin.
If introduced into a campaign, it should take a long time before the PCs become aware of him, and it should prove difficult to get past the layers of protection he has set up. Everyone who has come in contact with Holland will be (or have been) Helpful or Fanatical toward him. NPCs will be just about impossible to sway (to give information on him, let alone act against him, such as testifying in court or the like).
Since his power is Insidious, it should take quite a lot of work for the PCs to work out just why everyone around Holland will do anything for him, and so willingly. The PCs should be directed toward his money at first, but eventually it will become clear that you can't buy everyone to such a degree. Holland can sew dissension among teams in their first (innocuous) meeting(s). With a villain like Holland, and a cooperative player, you could introduce a diabolical plot complication: the mole. It's most likely that a low Willed character will fall under Robin's spell and if the player is willing, could switch sides. Holland would direct the player to not directly attack his own team (and thus raise the alarm of influence), but to work subtlety against them by tipping him off to their activities, setting the team up for interference, tripping alarms when trying to work stealthfully, etc. The mole might derive some satisfaction in working against his own teammates and should be rewarded for doing dastardly things just as s/he would if they were doing heroic things. This is a common trope in the comics (heroes impersonated, mind controlled, etc) and is rarely done in RPGs. It takes much more planning, a good player (and good actor to keep the others from knowing what's really going down), or if you're blessed with a great group of players, and they're all up for it, then everyone could be in on it and keep what happens in meta-conversations out of PC knowledge.
For a 3e version of the character you'd use the Affliction power (degrees of Entranced/Compelled/Controlled, with emotion becoming a descriptor, Cumulative, Area (Burst), Insidious, Sense-Dependent (Olfactory) and Reaction). The pain and pleasure power would be an alternate Afflliction (with degrees of Imparied/Disabled/Incapacitated), and the same Extras as above. There's a little bit more work on the part of the GM in the 3e version as the powers aren't Lasting, and being Compelled or Controlled means that an individual's actions are decided for them rather than the individual's attitude toward Robin influencing their own desision making. It's a fine point, but a distinction nevertheless.
by Gilliam » Thu Oct 13, 2011 3:57 am 
