Wormwood [Wormwood]

[ShockArcl1te]

Player Nickname: Wormwood

Name: Unknown (Top known Aliases: Bob Kennedy, Harvey Lee, Jim Hoffman, Lennon Johnson, Pat McGoo, James Fleming, Tim Mason, Ed Hoover, Markus Feltman, ect...)
Codename: Wormwood (Other known Aliases: ValWood, QuickSand, Mr. Darkshine, Jabberwocky, Chappell, Turncoat, Nameless, "Q", Matchstick, #6, Boogeyman, Mothman, Bogart, ect...)
Age: Unknown (Late 20's to early 30's)
Date of Birth: Unknown

Height: 6'1"
Weight: Aprox. 190lbs.
Hair Color: Brown
Eye Color: Green
Place of Origin: Unknown
Nationality/Race: Assumed American/Caucasian
Classification: Mutant

Status: Other
Occupation: "Games and Theory"

Personality Profile: An obsessive/compulsive by nature, the man who calls himself Wormwood is ever searching for the next great conspiracy. While host to a number of minor disorders, Worm somehow manages to maintain something that passes for a social life with the few friends who would tolerate his occasional rant on the dangers of tap water or the method by which xerox machines can control your thoughts. In spite of his oddities, Worm is quite loyal to those he trusts and is often willing to lend a hand to a good cause. Other may think of him as purely delusional, but hidden under all the wild theories and shadow games is a rather keen intellect that pairs well with his powers to make him a formidable detective and strategist, though his plans can go a little overboard and his conclusions can become far fetched.

Physical Description: Wormwood seems to be an average medium build, Caucasian male, pale with short brown unkempt hair and soft features that frame a hard, sleepless stare from his greenish/blue eyes. His face only sees a razor once a week and his nails usually need to be trimmed on the rare occasion they are seen outside his gloves. Most of the time these details are hard to catch anyway, as he almost religiously wears the same worn and weathered trench coat, dark leather shoes and matching gloves. His slacks and button-shirt are perpetually wrinkled and seem to cycle regularly through combinations of green, khaki, dark brown and black and while his leather belt seems to be a regular feature, it is debatable if a tie has ever touched his neck. Many of these details are obscured by the coat, which he seems to use as a sort of shield against the outside world, going so far as to have the collar of his coat flipped up for added protection.
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Powerset: Omni Awareness- Wormwood's x-gene appears to have given him an incredible degree of environmental awareness. Though the range this sphere extend out to about fifty yards and is unobstructed by most barriers, the accuracy and level of detail that go with his powers are greatly diminished at a distance. At just under fifty yards he will know a target exists, but won't be able to gather any other information. Conversely, at less than ten feet, Worm will be able to scan nearly every detail of a given target. Another important feature of his powers is that they are almost exclusively limited to the visual spectrum. He can scan for visual detail, but this does not extend to his other sense such as touch or smell. Worm can focus on many different events and details going on around him, but in an extremely crowded or chaotic area he tends to become overwhelmed and develop debilitating migraines until he can reach a safe distance. Alternatively, this ability comes with small benefits. For example: Though his powers are limited to the visual spectrum, they don't require any of the determining factors of visual input I.E. light, clear line of sight, ect... As such Worm can navigate in total darkness, blinding light or when blind folded. He tends to avoid this, however, as it begins to feel like trying to walk down a winding path while looking through high powered binoculars.

Ability One: Remote Viewing- Wormwood's power allows him to detect- often with startling accuracy- any and all persons, places, or things within his sphere of awareness. This level of detection is not limited by obstacles or barriers with the possible exception of special shielding of a psychic, high tech or supernatural nature. This means that Worm can sense nearly every detail of, in, or on a given target as though these things were openly apparent to all of this five other senses. Without a glance, Worm can know how many items are in someone's pocket, read the fine print on the chapstick and count their money. This power doesn't require touch or deep concentration except for the time needed to mentally assimilate key details such as the nutritional facts on the side of the gum or calculating that person's exact change. As the ability does not extend to interfacing with technology, he is unable to remotely access say, a person's cell phone but with some focus, he can read the serial number off the inside of the phone's casing. There are two special limitations to this power: 1. He can only scan visual detail. If the target is somehow invisible then he wont be able to see it. The power also does not extend to his other senses, so he might be able to detect the unlabeled container that has spilled two floors away, but he won't be able to smell it, taste it or feel it. 2. Worm's detection is limited to the "what" and "where" (and maybe "who" if they happen to have their wallet) but that's all. His power doesn't let him know the "why" or "how." He might be able to connect the shade of lipstick on someone's neck to the phone number in their pocket, but he can't know why they threw it away or for whom the scowl was intended. He has to put together those pieces himself.

Ability Two: Mental Screen- As side effect of Wormwood's powers is a lesser mental screen against psychic probing or mind reading. The likely cause for this is that the sheer degree of sensory input and mental noise is enough to overwhelm all but the most talented telepaths. It should be noted that this is a passive effect and Worm has no way of knowing when he is being probed, or by whom. In addition, this power is significantly different from standard psychic invisibility in that it does not render his mind undetectable, just unreadable.

Ability Three:

Drawbacks & Weaknesses: As noted above, Wormwood's powers come with limitations to their range and scope. His sphere of awareness doesn't extend to extreme ranges and while he can sense the "What" and "Where" of a target, he can't detect why or how an item will be used. Large crowds present a problem for Worm and he can't handle too many active targets simultaneously without suffering extreme headaches. In addition, Wormwood's powers are more or less constantly active, meaning sleep is very difficult to obtain without some form of drugs or medication. By this same rule, any drugs, toxins or mild concussions will significantly throw off his sensory powers, impairing range, relative position, and detail. Aside from these, Wormwood is has all the fundamental weaknesses and resilience of a typical human being.

Projected Power Growth & Development: Along with expanding the range and clarity of his powers, Wormwood might learn new ways to utilize his abilities. In time he may learn to sense subtle changes in environment and develop this into a sort of danger sense that allows him to react to danger before it actually takes place. Also, with enough practice and study, he might learn to sense slight changes in mannerisms, heart rate and brain activity in others, making him into a human lie detector.

Skills: In spite of his obsession with conspiracy theory, Wormwood's articles show a fair talent for writing and imagination. His grasp of deception and shadow games means he knows the value of strategy, though he still has yet to master -when- to use it. His technical knowledge is just good enough for him to build and repair his own devices. His powers serve him well in any setting where filing or organization is involved and he has proven to be a very capable librarian, file clerk and DVD rental associate.

Background: Wormwood's past is clouded in mystery, as could be expected of one as paranoid and secretive as him. Few details can be gleamed from his physical description and his finger prints appear to have been burned off. It is no strange coincidence that all attempts to capture him have met largely with failure, as his powers make him extraordinarily difficult to surprise or trap. When asked about his past, he will often defer to some half-cocked theory or an event that may or may not have taken place under one of his many aliases. What is known about him is that his finances are conducted entirely in cash and seem to be immense enough that he can continue his clandestine pursuits. It is unclear how he came into possession of this money, though theories range from government pension to cleaning out an entire Vegas casino. (though it should be noted that any of these theories may be of his own devising.) None know of when or where Worm's powers first manifested though evidence supports that they appeared later in life, which is rare for the x-gene.

Criminal Record: Of the many names Wormwood has gone by, at least three of them have a criminal record, though it is not known if these names were taken from someone else or if someone is stealing his aliases for their own use. When Worm appears edgy around authority figures, it is impossible to determine if it is from a legitimate fear or if he is simply worried "they" have come for him. In fact, it is so difficult to separate the false identities from any real ones that many local police departments have given up completely trying to identify him, settling on him being a crack-pot at best and having no apparent criminal motives at worst.

Quirks, Extras, Random Character Facts: Wormwood has a number of puzzling aversions. He refrains from card games, though this may be due to the obviously unfair advantage he has in being able to see his opponent's cards. It is theorized that he made a small fortune in a casino from using his powers, but this has never been proven. In addition, Wormwood seems to avoid guns, which is as odd as it is comforting. If Worm ever found himself with a firearm and the inclination to use it, his dominance in a close quarters gun fight would be absolute. Not only would he know the location of his opponents, what they were armed with, and how many rounds they had left, he would also be able shoot his targets through walls, ceilings and floors with disturbing ease. In spite of, or perhaps because of this, he foregoes the use of guns, favoring instead to try and gain the upperhand by uncovering his foe's secrets and using that knowledge against them.