Player Name: Tsa Pronouns: She/Her Are you over 18? Yes Contact: thepreciousthing Current Characters: n/a Who Invited You?:bugly42
Character —
Character Name: Dylan Brock Character Canon: Marvel Comics (616) Character Age: 14 Canon Point: Middle of Venom #200, after page 57 (Dylan in the principal's office) Link to History:Dylan Brock (616) at the Marvel Wiki Inventory: Cell phone filled with photos, texts, and videos from back home.
Powers —
Skills:
Clever & Resourceful - Dylan's shown a knack for improvisation & problem-solving with his wits and whatever he has available.
Empathetic & Intuitive - Dylan has a knack for reading people and recognizing what they expect from him, & what they need to hear.
Courageous - On multiple occasions, Dylan's shown a willingness to put himself at risk for the sake of a larger cause, both in low-stakes and high-stakes situations. He's generally not afraid to say what's on his mind even if it results in a difficult conversation, and he's not afraid to put himself in danger to stop a larger threat — especially if his family or friends are in danger.
Heavy weapons knowledge - Dylan has a surprising amount of knowledge about care & operation of heavy weaponry. He's never applied the knowledge anywhere, but he was locked in a well-stocked bunker for extended periods of time on multiple occasions, and there wasn't much there to read besides the operation manuals.
Superpowers:
Symbiote Physiology - Dylan is a human-symbiote hybrid. In canon, this mostly just gave him the ability to control symbiotes remotely. That power was purged from him by his father, who was possessed by Captain Universe at the time. Here in-game, I'd like to lean harder into the part symbiote thing and give him more traditional Venom-like powers.
It's not lost on me that symbiotes are, to use the technical term, hella OP. I plan to try to mitigate this by having Dylan discover his powers slowly & connect it to personal growth:
Generate/Manipulate Symbiote Material - Dylan can generate from his body a black, tarry substance in the form of prehensile tendrils or a suit on his body.
Camouflage - Symbiote material can change color, allowing Dylan to match his surroundings make himself harder to spot when he's in a suit of the stuff.
Enhanced Strength - He's not going to be lifting any buildings, but could probably lift a car if he tried.
Enhanced Resilience - Able to take a worse beating than the average human.
Mental Interfacing - While not able to fully bond to a host the way a symbiote normally would, Dylan can reach out to someone with the symbiote material and bond with them partially and link directly with their mind, contingent on player permission. Symbiotes have also been shown to be able to interface with computers, even non-sentient ones like PCs.
Access to Symbiote Hivemind - Possibly able to communicate with other symbiotes in-game mentally, regardless of distance (contingent on player permission for each case)
Limitations:
Weakness to Fire - The symbiote material cannot handle fire, it will sizzle away & recede.
Weakness to Noise - the symbiote material can't withstand intense sonic vibrations, and will destabilize.
Inexperience - During Knull's attack, Dylan was very suddenly thrust into the role of Most Special Boy in the Universe, charging into the thick of battle alongside the Avengers. Then, just as quickly, it was all ripped away from him — powers and all. Dylan has no experience in the day-to-day superhero grind, nor in navigating the complexities of fighting evil in a world where good and evil aren't always so black & white. He doesn't even have proper combat training.
Depression - Dylan has a lifetime of trauma that was never properly dealt with, stemming from physical abuse, neglect, abandonment, war, and an alien god's attempted brainwashing. He's since been struggling to adjust to a normal life again. He can't connect with his peers, languishes at home letting clutter pile up, and feels an emptiness inside himself where he feels a sense of identity should be. That emptiness inside him is going to skew his perception and cloud his judgment. Leading to...
Impulsive - Dylan will jump headfirst into a dangerous situation if he thinks there's something he can do, plan or not. He fully believes in his father's philosophy of protecting the innocent, but there's also a drive to fill that emptiness inside him, even if it means chasing the high of being a hero on the battlefield again.
Personality —
Dylan's life has always been an exercise in survival. From surviving his grandfather's abuse, to surviving poverty with Eddie, to surviving Knull's invasion – even surviving normal life once everything had settled. He's grown to be incredibly self-reliant as a result; He's skilled at reading a situation and recognizing potential problems, and can get a general sense of someone's intentions pretty quickly.
Of course, to make informed decisions, Dylan needs to be aware of what's happening — so he absolutely hates it when information is kept from him, especially if it's done to "keep him safe." He'd much rather know what's going on and judge for himself. He values his independence – after all, for the first 12[1] years of his life, even his own legal guardian couldn't be trusted to protect him. If he wanted to be kept safe, he'd have to rely on himself to do it.
Yet despite his struggles growing up, he's held on to his ideals. Dylan holds his father's philosophy of "protecting the innocent" close to his heart, wanting to be the kind of protector he himself needed in his early childhood. He strives to uphold that value whatever way he can, even if it means putting himself at risk.
Growing up with this trauma, Dylan has a lot of repressed anger, and much of it manifests when someone tries to hurt him or a loved one. In the face of opposition, Dylan is boisterous and defiant. He'll yell, swear, and threaten violence to protect himself and anyone who needs him. He's a fan of the edgy anti-hero archetype, and that comes out in the way he stands his ground.
Though Dylan's threats may feel sincere in the moment, it's often just his rage. He won't always follow through, even when the opportunity presents itself. For example, when he first met Eddie, Dylan did not hesitate to ask if Eddie could help him kill his abusive grandfather — but when pressed, Dylan backed down, realizing he didn't have the heart to actually follow through. On the other hand, Dylan didn't hesitate to sic vicious, feral symbiotes on The Maker as a distraction to get himself & his friend Normie Osborn to safety, fully knowing that The Maker might be killed.
Dylan's not blind to his father's flaws, but Eddie displays sincerity that Dylan's never gotten from authority figures before, and that's worthy of Dylan's respect. In addition, Dylan admires Eddie's willpower and tenacity, struggling to maintain his ideals in the face of hardship.
Yet now that life has begun to resemble something normal, Dylan's more lost than ever. He has a stable home & money in the bank, but the father who promised to be there for him is disappearing for days, even weeks thanks to new responsibilities spanning the whole Universe. Dylan's left to fend for himself while settling into a new school & dealing with his own trauma. He has the company of his symbiote brother Sleeper & their other father, the Venom symbiote, but despite their efforts they're not equipped to give Dylan the help he needs.
During the battle with Knull, Dylan was told that the symbiotes created him to fight this war. With Knull defeated, his purpose has been served and his powers have been taken. What's leftnow? What does he do with all this anger, this trauma, this loneliness? Who does he talk to when none of his classmates could ever understand what he's going through?
Suffice it to say, Dylan's on a downward spiral of depression, and that's where we find him as we bring him into Metaheroes.
Gameplay —
Areas of Interest / Brainstorming:
I've already been brainstorming with Max extensively about ideas for how we're going to handle the "family reunion" between Dylan and his Alternate Universe Dads.
Dylan Struggling with his identity, both with what he is biologically & what he's supposed to do with his powers. Find other half-humans & superheroes his age to bond with. I think it might be fun to explore both good and bad influences on him, and have him struggle with what his definition of "doing good" should be.
Dylan finding a healthy outlet for his repressed anger. Maybe get him a guitar and have him start a band? That'd be a good hook for a lot of social media posts, and to catch the eye of the general populace outside of just heroic deeds.
Also I'd like to see Dylan overestimating himself and getting in over his head in a larger plot.
[1] While the Wiki says Dylan was 9 when he met Eddie, his age is never officially stated, and dialogue in later issues suggests he was older than 10, most likely 12. (Back to Personality)
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
Pronouns: She/Her
Are you over 18? Yes
Contact:
Current Characters: n/a
Who Invited You?:
Character Canon: Marvel Comics (616)
Character Age: 14
Canon Point: Middle of Venom #200, after page 57 (Dylan in the principal's office)
Link to History: Dylan Brock (616) at the Marvel Wiki
Inventory: Cell phone filled with photos, texts, and videos from back home.
Skills:
Superpowers:
It's not lost on me that symbiotes are, to use the technical term, hella OP. I plan to try to mitigate this by having Dylan discover his powers slowly & connect it to personal growth:
Symbiotes have also been shown to be able to interface with computers, even non-sentient ones like PCs.
Limitations:
Of course, to make informed decisions, Dylan needs to be aware of what's happening — so he absolutely hates it when information is kept from him, especially if it's done to "keep him safe." He'd much rather know what's going on and judge for himself. He values his independence – after all, for the first 12[1] years of his life, even his own legal guardian couldn't be trusted to protect him. If he wanted to be kept safe, he'd have to rely on himself to do it.
Yet despite his struggles growing up, he's held on to his ideals. Dylan holds his father's philosophy of "protecting the innocent" close to his heart, wanting to be the kind of protector he himself needed in his early childhood. He strives to uphold that value whatever way he can, even if it means putting himself at risk.
Growing up with this trauma, Dylan has a lot of repressed anger, and much of it manifests when someone tries to hurt him or a loved one. In the face of opposition, Dylan is boisterous and defiant. He'll yell, swear, and threaten violence to protect himself and anyone who needs him. He's a fan of the edgy anti-hero archetype, and that comes out in the way he stands his ground.
Though Dylan's threats may feel sincere in the moment, it's often just his rage. He won't always follow through, even when the opportunity presents itself. For example, when he first met Eddie, Dylan did not hesitate to ask if Eddie could help him kill his abusive grandfather — but when pressed, Dylan backed down, realizing he didn't have the heart to actually follow through. On the other hand, Dylan didn't hesitate to sic vicious, feral symbiotes on The Maker as a distraction to get himself & his friend Normie Osborn to safety, fully knowing that The Maker might be killed.
Dylan's not blind to his father's flaws, but Eddie displays sincerity that Dylan's never gotten from authority figures before, and that's worthy of Dylan's respect. In addition, Dylan admires Eddie's willpower and tenacity, struggling to maintain his ideals in the face of hardship.
Yet now that life has begun to resemble something normal, Dylan's more lost than ever. He has a stable home & money in the bank, but the father who promised to be there for him is disappearing for days, even weeks thanks to new responsibilities spanning the whole Universe. Dylan's left to fend for himself while settling into a new school & dealing with his own trauma. He has the company of his symbiote brother Sleeper & their other father, the Venom symbiote, but despite their efforts they're not equipped to give Dylan the help he needs.
During the battle with Knull, Dylan was told that the symbiotes created him to fight this war. With Knull defeated, his purpose has been served and his powers have been taken. What's leftnow? What does he do with all this anger, this trauma, this loneliness? Who does he talk to when none of his classmates could ever understand what he's going through?
Suffice it to say, Dylan's on a downward spiral of depression, and that's where we find him as we bring him into Metaheroes.
Samples: Here!
[1] While the Wiki says Dylan was 9 when he met Eddie, his age is never officially stated, and dialogue in later issues suggests he was older than 10, most likely 12. (Back to Personality)