quipquipquip:Most posterchildren show signs of their powers early on, if not from birth. This can le
quipquipquip:Most posterchildren show signs of their powers early on, if not from birth. This can lead to childhood trauma, so Professor Maillardet created a system of labels to judge posthuman capabilities. These are colloquially referred to as “bands”, since the Academy uses colored silicone wristbands to identify their youngest students.The labels are imperfect, but they tend to be comforting for younger posterchildren. The bands help posters visually identify each other, as well as fostering a sense of group belonging. This is extremely important, since many posters suffer from feelings of isolation. When it isn’t clear which band color a posterchild’s abilities fit into the best, a Foundation professional will help them choose a useful path for their future career. For example, someone with the ability to teleport could fall under multiple colors, but since every team is required to have a dedicated transport, it’s rare that a teleporter identifies as anything but a gold-band.RED: Element KinesisThe ability to control the basic elements available in nature.Examples: Aerokinesis, pyrokinesis, hydrokinesis, atmokinesis.ORANGE: Body ControlThe ability to manipulate aspects of your physicality.Examples: Animal mimicry, duplication, enhanced senses, invulnerability.GOLD: TransportThe ability to move from point A to point B in a fashion that makes baseline humans look like chumps.Examples: Superspeed, teleportation, flight, summoning.GREEN: Energy ControlThe ability to gather, convert, or generate different forms of energy.Examples: Bioelectricmagnetism, solar sourcing, energy constructs, energy physiology.BLUE: Reality ManipulationThe ability to break the laws of reality over your knee. Over and over.Examples: Probability manipulation, shapeshifting, resurrection, gravity control.PURPLE: PsionicsThe ability to mentally manipulate the world around you.Examples: Psychometry, mind control, telekinesis, memory alteration.PINK: Support/PassiveThe ability to affect the powers of others. This classification is largely for powers that are not consciously controlled by the poster. The association with the color pink came from the passive nature of these abilities—-though they are some of the most devastating ones.Examples: Power sensing, power erasure, power increase, pheromone production.In addition to the seven color bands, posthumans are sorted by the strength and usefulness of their skills.Alpha-level: powers are either self-generating or not limited by their environment.Rarely exhaustible. Only 2% of the overall posthuman population are classified as Alphas. Academy training is mandatory for Alphas, subsidized by the government. They are the only posters cleared by the BPHA to lead multi-member teams.Example: Mal Underwood is a blue-band Alpha with traumatic event negation.Sometimes billed as rapid regeneration, Mal’s healing ability is a little more complicated than that. If it were accelerated healing, he would be an orange-band Beta. He is classified as a blue-band Alpha because his body summarily rejects and rewrites any reality following physical harm. Any limbs that are cut off regrow. Any wounds heal. Death itself has a reset button for him. He ages at a normal rate, though, and the cellular regeneration attached to his ability is double-edged: the hormonal imbalance following healing makes him hyper aggressive, his senses painfully acute. Mal can survive for prolonged stretches of time without basic necessities, but it interferes with his regeneration and mental clarity. Starvation is one of the few things that affect him, since even though he physically can keep going without food, his brain constantly screams at him that he needs to eat. He’s never had to find out if it’d break him—-his longest fast clocks in at just over a week, since they felt that they’d gathered enough data on his hardiness—-but it’s a real fear for him. As of yet, he has not found a limit to his regenerative abilities.Beta-level: the posthuman’s abilities are limited by the body, or by the presence/absence of elements in the environment. Is usually only offensive or defensive, rarely both. Mental powers with a wider scope of manipulation oftentimes end up in this category. To be considered for admittance in the Maillardet Foundation Academy—-and, by extension, participation on a BPHA-approved hero team—-a posthuman must be classified as Beta or higher. Since only 6% of the posthuman population are classified as Betas, only 8% of posthumans are eligible for Foundation training and legal heroism.Example: Zipporah Chance is a gold-band Beta with augmented speed. Her speed has increased with maturity and training, but at fourteen, she “only” clocks in at 150 mph. Her powers are physically-based, a combination of useful mutations. Her tears are thick and sticky and pearly—-if she had simple salt tears, her eyes would dry out when she’s running. Even so, she needs protective eyewear and footwear. If she wears usual sneakers, the friction she generates can accidentally leave small fires in her wake. Zip needs to keep up her increased metabolism and the calories she burns, so she cannot run indefinitely. She exhausts herself quickly if she hasn’t eaten or slept. Without specialized footwear, eyewear, and a highly calorie-dense diet, there is the possibility of running herself to death.Gamma-level: one-trick ponies. Usually have a physical-based power with limited applications. 12%Example: Elouise Lark is a green-band Gamma with the ability to manipulate solar energy. At first glance, it looks like Ellie should be a gold-band: she has wings. Unfortunately, said wings are far too small to support her weight. Folded, the tips brush the small of her back. Though useless for flight, her wings act as a form of solar cell. Like the leaves of a deciduous tree, the layers of feathers collect and store energy from the sun. Silicon can be used to create solar cells, and her body naturally accumulates silicon in the same way human bodies accumulate calcium (another organically inert element). She is able to convert that gathered energy to sound, giving her incredible control of her vocal manipulation. She is classified as a Gamma due to the fact that her powers are limited by how much sunlight she has been exposed to—-and as an Oregonian, she gets very little sun—-and the social implications of her inability to pass as baseline human.Delta-level: roughly 80% of posters are in this category. Mostly useless powers, or extremely limited in their scope and effectiveness. It’s popular and fashionable for delta-level posters to identify the category of their power and wear that as their favorite color.Example: Cricket Baker is a blue-band Delta with the ability to change the flavor of things. Technically, her usefulness begins and ends with changing Doritos from Nacho to Cool Ranch. Though she never attended, Cricket is an Academy instructor—-not for her powers, but for her brain. And her freaking awesome field trips.Tomorrow, I’ll be covering the history and structure of Maillardet Academy itself, so tune in.Support The Posterchildren HERE! -- source link
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