Abilities:
Abilties (Click to Show)
Spoiler (Click to Show)
The buckler is made to his own secret specifications. It is essentially indestructible as far as pure physical forces are concerned. "Essentially indestructible" is used to indicate that while there is little that would actually damage it, he cannot just have the moon crash land on him and still be fine (yeah, that's a bit of a hyperbole, but I made my point).The leading edge of the buckler is sharpened into a broad-blade, and the tips of both gun barrels are pointed, making it a useful weapon for melee aggression as well. Shado has mind-blowing marksmanship, with his preferred ammo being gold. There are no clips or chambers for either gun, since he generates the bullets himself, thus giving him an infinite supply.
The spear is massive and long. The head is tear-drop shaped, making only the tip portion of it razor sharp, while the rest slowly dulls as the head broadens. **SHADO'S NUCLEAR CAPABILITIES ARE SOON TO BE REMOVED VIA AN ADDITION TO HIS STORY. DISREGARD THIS INFORMATION. UNTIL THEN, HOWEVER, YOU CHARACTER SHOULD AT LEAST THINK SHADO MIGHT USE THE NUKE. DO NOT EVER HAVE SHADO USE IT. I WILL NOT BE USING IT EITHER.** Inside the head is a small amount of plutonium imbedded into it, allowing him to detonate nuclear explosions. While these are not "Hiroshima" explosions, they will cover an area of about one city block (this is the primary blast zone of maximum damage. The actual effected area is closer to four square miles, but much of that will receive little more than some extra heat, wind, and radiation), indicating the size of the spear head.
Both the spear and the buckler-guns can be generated at will.[/Spoiler]
Spoiler (Click to Show)
Strength -- Shado's strength is indeed incredible. Chunking a car a short distance is no problem for him. He is not going to be catching any crashing jet-liners, however, or stopping the plate movements during an earthquake. Nothing doin, kiddo. Go ask the guy in ballet tights...
He is also no hulk...he is quite destructible, and a bullet to his bare face will kill him (providing he has not cooked up some crazy means of protecting himself aside from his usual armor).
In a straight up fight, however, he will easily overpower any opponent not as physically empowered as himself.
Speed -- His top speed lands him around 40 mile per hour. This is only applies to his bare (aside from clothes) body. Every single item you add to that, and his top speed drops. Thus, if he has coated himself in a thick layer of armor, AND is wielding his buckler and spear, he probably won't do more than about 10 mph, and that's hoofing it.
Related to speed is agility. Shado is remarkably flexible, but must be remembered to possess a normal skeletal structure. You tie him in a knot, you break a hell of a lot of bones.
His reaction time is definitely superhuman, but not supernatural, if you get the picture. If some master marksman is raining bullets on him, Shado will walk away (or not, as the case may be...) resembling a mesh sieve. He can anticipate actions, however, thus allowing him to...say....dodge single-shot or three-shot bullets. The same principle applies to all other attacks as well -- if they are faster than the eye can see, then Shado won't be seeing them, and therefore won't be dodging them. End of story.
Claws and Fangs -- These are of a size proportionate to his physique. Claws are thick, and about four inches long; but due to their sharp curve, they only extend two inches past his fingertips. They are always present.
His fangs (aka incisors or canines) are about two inches long, and almost perfectly straight, though usually concealed by his lips…unless, of course, he is using them.
Both of these can be coated with metal to enhance their cutting ability and durability.
Hearing and Smell – These are per the normal abilities of a wild wolf. Since Animal Planet, Natgeo, PBS Nature, etc, etc, etc. have already thoroughly covered that, I will only make a few notes;
His ears can move (see appearance), allowing him to pinpoint sounds perfectly, in addition to allowing him to listen to two different things at the same time.
He can smell aspects that humans would consider “telepathic.” Namely, these include emotions, mental state, full physical appearance, and health. No aspect of these can be hidden from his sense of smell. As a side note, his nose will provide him with a full description of a person’s sexuality. While this (typically) has little impact on a battle (might be veeerrrrryyyy “interesting” if it did…hehehe…srry…), it does affect his evaluation of someone.
These incredible senses allow him to function blind with surprising skill, including accurate ranged attacks. Still, if it cannot be heard or smelled (with reference to his heightened senses, not a human’s), then he will not know it is there (without sight).
Night Vision-- If there is the slightest, the tiniest, the most miniscule light source, Shado can see. Pitch-black darkness, however, will render him sightless (until he figures out a way to light things up…).
Sixth Sense – Shado can sense the presence of any being, along with a general evaluation of them (emphasis on general…). This can extend up to a distance of thirty miles, but that range decreases dramatically as other beings (I say beings to include non-human entities) become involved. The presence of just five other beings near him or his opponent will drop that range down to fifteen miles, ten beings – seven and a half miles, twenty – 3.75 miles…etc. The minimum range is about a half mile.
Whenever a being has an increased focus on him (Shado), however, that increases the “link,” thus allowing him to sense a being four miles away in the middle of a city street, for example. The more intense the focus of the being on Shado, the more Shado can “override” the impact of surrounding beings.
Lastly, this Sixth Sense gives him a small level of empowerment based upon his abilities and affinities. In short, his metallic abilities gives him a resistance to heat and radiation. The fact that his power is derived from a supernatural source gives him a resistance to demonic/angelic/magical attacks. Lastly, because of the Reaver’s blessing (see Story), his physiological status is enhanced, allowing him to push through intense pain, take unnatural amounts of damage, and have resistance to poison/illness. It is important here to specify that “resistance” does not mean “immunity” – it just means that its potency against him is greatly reduced.[/Spoiler]
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Weaknesses
Spoiler (Click to Show)
2) His buckler is relatively small, so helps little against area-effect skills. The most he can do is protect his head and upper torso in this circumstance. Also, it can be damaged by explosive and magical attacks, forcing him to either abandon it or repair it. Once damaged, its effectiveness against physical forces is reduced as well.
Unfortunately, the high mass and size that makes his spear so deadly a melee weapon and thrown missile also renders it rather slow in close action. He will usually either try to do a single, sweeping blow to knock his foes away, or switch to his claws and powers.
3) Despite the many benefits of being part lycan, it also affects his close-combat speed. For one -- or even two or three -- rapid attacks, his foes will find he has remarkable agility and reactions. He is no ninja, though, and will end up on the worst end of the deal in a close, high-speed combat. He will usually try to get out of this situation quickly, or land one massive blow that tips the scales in his favor. To be blunt, as far as close combat is concerned...HE SUCKS!
4) Shado has been into the Netherworld and back. There is not much that can frighten him. He cannot, however, help instincts. If he senses death – not an aggressive sense, but just nameless death – it will usually set him on edge. Illness has a similar effect, though less drastic (though often certain illnesses will give him a sense of death).
5) Shado hates to kill (or cause to be killed) an innocent person. If he can stop someone from killing an innocent person, he will do so. He will surrender himself before he lets someone innocent die. This does not mean that he can be taken for a fool, though. He will carefully weigh his options, and has been known to allow innocent people to die, or even to kill them himself, if it is for a greater good.
[/Spoiler]
[Spoiler=Rationalizing The Shadowolf -- is he really an OP Toolbox?]
This does overlap info given in several other sections. This is designed to be a concise compilation for those who are having difficulty understanding The Shadowolf.
I have come to realize that many people think of SHado as a bit OP or toolbox-ish. Shado is not a “toolbox” by definition. He does not have a multiplicity of skills; he has only one skill, one ability modifier, and two specialty weapons. He is an extremely well rounded multitool, but not an OP toolbox. I will address these issues below, helping to rationalize all that I have written about him.
His skill (since his metal powers are one of the main issues here, I presume) is relatively easy to get around if you know what you are doing –
First, he does not control all metals. Modern alloys, titanium, and aluminum are some of the most prevalent examples.
Second, he is fully mortal. His strength allows him to take more damage than a normal person, but not much. While he can “coat himself in metal,” at the absolute MAX this is a half inch, and even that is pushing it. After all, he does need to be able to move, expand his lungs, etc. While this sounds like a lot, according to the Smithsonian a 1500’s proto-gun called a harquebus could shoot through well over an inch of steel plate. Though Shado usually uses tungsten (due to its greatly increased hardness), his armor is still mainly for light-to-moderate melee, light handguns, and machine guns.
Third, the metal will never seal off his mouth, nose, eyes, and ears (the outside of his ears are coated, but not the ear canal). Any damage dealt without his armor (or being blocked by his shield) will be fully felt. This includes things that target the exposed parts I just listed
Fourth, if you know even a little science, you will know that his powers help precious little with many forms of damage. Electricity (such as from Vern’s char Agent Gamma’s staff, or an EMP rifle, EMP grenade, tazer, etc.) will conduct through any of his metals (some less than others, but none are insulators). Acid will damage his skin, eyes, nose, and lungs…Flash grenades will blind him. Water will drown him. Napalm (though he is heat resistant, he is not fireproof) will burn him…you get the idea.
Fifth, the size/complexity factor of what he generates cannot be over-emphasized. Shado does not go “bippity-boppity-boop” and make anything he wants appear. He has to create it, and while he is extremely intelligent, and his mind is geared for using his power, he still has a normal brain. Most of what he works with – though often rather large – are relatively simple creations: steel columns, chucks of iron, molten ore, blades and spikes, chains, etc. Sure, if he really wanted to, he could build himself a giant Mecca suit and go on a rampage on his opponents. He will (probably…) never do that, though, since such a creation would literally take days for him to complete, and require insane multi-tasking to make function once he did complete it.
Sixth, his focus can be interrupted. If he is working on a more complex job (like his special weapons), putting too much pressure on him will prevent him from being able to focus well enough to complete his task. In cases such as this, he will usually only be able to use simple creations, perhaps a very basic gun or melee weapon at best.
As for his Lycanic abilities…
First, these are limited to mortal power. He is immensely enhanced, but he is not comic-strip guru. He is fast, but not Flash. He is strong, but not Superman. He can take a lot of damage, but he is not the Hulk.
Second, his senses match those of a wild wolf (except for the fact that he sees in color, and has a human’s range of vision). While his sense of smell, hearing, and sight are vastly better than a normal human, they are not supernatural. Their weaknesses are the same as well. Put a dog-whistle (or similarly high pitched sound) next to his ears, and you will cause his great pain (though not insurmountable). An extremely powerful low pitch (like the sound waves generated by earthquakes) will cause him even greater pain. Pepper spray will affect him more than the average person, even bringing him near unconsciousness with a direct, concentrated blast. (He does not have whis