The Furions

The Furions are the strongest force in The Terminus in opposition to Omega. They are the incarnate thoughts of the Alphians, living vessels of their rage against Omega, fighting alongside the few superhuman champions who didn’t join The Annihilists, and (occasionally) a superhuman from another world. The Furions’ name comes from their ferocity in battle; every Furion, however easygoing though they may be in other situations, houses an inner rage unleashed when they battle the traitor, Omega, and his servants.
Megapolitan, one of the first and most powerful of the Alphians, created Freedom Bird, the first of the Furions and the only one to have spoken with the Throne before he vanished into the Doom-Coil. It’s rumored the Throne gave him a mighty secret, a Primal Word to be used only at the most desperate hour. Freedom Bird remains silent on the matter.
To mock Freedom Bird, Omega stripped Megapolitan and froze him into a kneeling position with his hand outstretched. He is now a living cup-holder, posed at the side of the dark titan’s throne, though when he hears Freedom Bird has outwitted the Annihilists, he’ll manage a brief bitter laugh Omega finds infuriating. The one time Freedom Bird was executed, a tear streamed down Megapolitan’s face (although later he learned Freedom Bird had faked his death in order to escape Omega’s clutches).

Structure

Freedom Bird

Freedom Bird is the swashbuckling leader of the Furions. He often seems the most light-hearted of the team, though no one who’s ever seen him fight through a horde of Omegadrones can ever accuse him of not being a true Furion.
Freedom Bird’s immunities are a little unusual. His immunity to crushing damage is what allows him to exit and enter even black holes unscathed. His immunity to the Terminus Stream is unique; he’s the only one ever known to have survived passing entirely through it. His immunity to the Warpwold means its mind-affecting influences; he’s still capable of manipulating warpwold in the same way everyone else can: with him, however, the Warpwold doesn’t “push back.”
To humans, Freedom Bird appears to be a well-built 6’3” Caucasian man with long, reddish-blond hair, green eyes, and a broad, clean-shaven face. He wears a sleeveless red bodysuit with a gold bird emblem and a winged gold half-helmet.

Max Muscle

Max Mostel grew up like many kids in Freedom City, idolizing superheroes. He did everything he could to be like one; he learned to swim, rock climbed, took CPR classes, signed up as members of “Dr. Tomorrow's Future Freedom League”—he even joined his high school wrestling team. However, he was small, and he saw himself as a 98-pound weakling (though he was actually strong for his size).
One day, a mysterious man handed him a magazine entitled “Heroes of the Beach,” a bodybuilding guide. Max followed the instructions in the magazine to the letter, and in just 3 weeks, he grew into a 6’6”, 330 lb. muscle-bound hunk. Furthermore, it was obvious he was superhumanly strong.
The magazine also contained instructions on enrolling in a school for heroes. It was not, however, for the Claremont Academy. Instead, Max was directed to a small, abandoned bookstore on Lantern Hill. Max opened the door, walked through it… and stepped into the Silver Tree of the Furions!
The misunderstanding that transpired between Max and Freedom Bird was soon put to rights (Freedom Bird still holds a grudge, although Max thought it was “the best wrestling match evar!”). Max christened himself “Max Muscle” and became the apple of nearly every Furion’s eye.
Max found himself not in a superhero academy, but a war zone. However, The Centurion was Max’s idol as a kid, and getting a chance to strike back at his killer is about the most superheroic thing he can think of. Max is an enthusiastic kid, well liked by the Furions for his innocence and enthusiasm, though a few (recognizing Tomen the Archivist's handiwork) wonder about the reasons for his “coincidental” arrival.
Max is 6’6” tall, 330 lbs., with a muscle-bound physique that befits his name. He has short brown hair, blue eyes, and a handsome face. He wears a blue harness across his torso, matching blue leggings, and a long gold cape.

Scavros the Scarred

Scavros the Scarred is the “Furion of Vengeance.” Grim and utterly dedicated to the fight against Omega, this gruesome carnifex is the most skilled tactician of the Furions. Whereas Freedom Bird likes to charge in and use shock tactics, Scavros is a patient devil who likes to find just the right moment to unleash his righteous rage. He wields a spear tipped with a burning shard of the Terminus Stream, linked to its energies so it produces a similar annihilating effect when it is uncovered. Scavros is naturally suspicious and has no sense of humor, so too-flippant human heroes often end up on his bad side (and are even more surprised to learn he has a good side).
Scavros appears to be a tall, slender man, ethnicity indeterminate, who is covered in terrible scars. He wears a death mask; his Fearsome Presence feat requires him to remove the mask to show his true face
-
Freedom Bird’s lieutenant is Nikkon the Brooder. Where Freedom Bird is a free spirit given to recklessness, Nikkon is the compulsive worker who makes the trains run on time. Nikkon was created from the thoughts of Philothume, a brooding Alphian who brought philosophers from a hundred universes into a “thinking circle” to ponder the deep mysteries of the cosmos. Nikkon shares his creator’s contemplative streak, but bitter times have made him more pragmatic. He believes he should be the leader of the Furions and sometimes challenges Freedom Bird for command. However, in every contest, from racing to wrestling to riddle-duels to manipulating warpwold, Freedom Bird has beaten him. It’s made for a complicated relationship between the two men; neither likes the other, and each constantly strives to outdo the other, yet their rivalry has also led to deep mutual respect and loyalty. Regardless of appearances, neither would ever betray the other.
The glue that holds the Furions together is Gemma, keeper of the castle. Whereas Nikkon is the brooding planner of the Furions’ grand schemes to oppose Omega, and Freedom Bird is the swashbuckling leader who carries them out (or ignores them and follows his own instincts), Gemma is the heart of the outfit, coordinating everything from logistics to recreation. Sometimes even Freedom Bird has to acknowledge she’s the only adult in a group of children.
These three form the core of the Furions, but they are far from the only ones. Max Muscle is a young human hero sent by Tomen to assist the Furions , although Freedom Bird suspects the Archivist has ulterior motives. Strong, handsome, and extremely likable, the human lug has tugged at many Furion heartstrings. This has aroused an uncharacteristic jealous streak in Freedom Bird, intensified by the fact that Max can beat him in every athletic contest except racing (“I can escape from black holes formed by collapsing galaxies and even the tendrils of the DoomCoil itself, yet I can’t break out of some muscle-bound oaf’s headlock!”). For his part, Max is a wide-eyed innocent, awestruck at the Terminus and idealistic in his dedication to the Furion cause. (In other words, he’s got some painful growing up experiences ahead of him.)
Jacksmith the Builder is the technology geek of the Furions, a female counterpart to the Annihilist’s Shadivan Steelgrave, her archenemy. Jacksmith built the defenses, powered by the Tree, that protect Silverwood from Omegadrone attacks. She and Shadivan Steelgrave are actually the same person; after Steelgrave pledged allegiance to Omega, Omega sifted out the “worthless” bits of Steelgrave’s character: his humanity, compassion, dedication to ideals, and any willingness to resist the proposition that “the ends justify the means,” and hurled it into the Doom-Coil. Freedom Bird rescued that essence before it could be devoured and placed it into the body of a dying Furion. The result was a reborn super-genius with the powers and ideals of a Furion. Jacksmith has been a thorn in Shadivan’s side ever since, and he hates her as a living reminder of the hero he once was.
Scavros the Scarred is the grim warrior of the Furions. He is a Furion drawn from the Alphians vanquished into the Ouroboros Skin. An alien telepath once came to Omega and proposed an alliance, and then tried to seize control of Nihilhor and use the trapped rage of those locked within the Ouroburos Skin as a psychic weapon. Omega defeated his plans, but the telepath inadvertently awakened enough of the Alphians’ subconscious to form a Furion from their combined rage: Scavros. He is the warrior hound of the Furions, always eager to strike against Omega and his installations and anxious to kill Omegadrones and Annihilists.
Beyond these six, there are dozens of Furions, outriders and warriors who patrol the Terminus and help guard their home base. They salvage within the Warpwold or gather and shape warpwold into substances to supply the Furions with their basic needs.

Assets

The Furions live on the world of Silverwood. The name is derived from the presence of the Silver Tree, the only survivor of the great Alphian Woods. The tree encompasses Castle Furious, the Furions’ home base, providing it with an endless energy source and a defensive structure, for ivy has grown from the radiance of the tree that’s stronger than cosmic steel. It also powers the Liberty Shield that protects Silverwood by interfering with the control circuits of the Omegadrones, preventing them from reaching the castle.

Type

Adventuring Party