ThePriest

You do realize you can only have one tornado out at once, right? Casting it again kills the old tornado and starts a new one. Unless something changed in the last 2 issues...

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High above, another watched his flight from the scene. It hovered, unnoticed by the crowd milling below. It had watched the entire incident, for much the same reasons that Lucas had. Radiant Cascade was newly arrived on Earth, and had been directed by Sunstorm to seek our a willing, and worthy, host. A hero just cutting his teeth in the fight against evil would allow himself, as well as his host, to carve a new destiny for themselves.

Cascade was surprised when no hero showed up to fight the blaze, and was further shocked when the young boy had charged into the building without other assistance. That the boy had been successful only fueled the intrigue. Thus when he ran, Cascade followed.

He watched as the boy snuck quietly back into his room, and observed the small form rocking gently on the bed.

"Why didn't anyone show up? Why? " Tears rolled down Colston's cheeks, forming small rivers of soot. Angry red burns covered his arms and neck.

"You did." Cascade's voice seemingly came from everywhere, and nowhere, within the room.

The boy shot upright from his bed, grimacing as the action tugged at his burns. "Who is there?" he asked defiantly.

Cascade phased into view, a wisp of light that illuminated the bedroom. "I am called Radiant Cascade. Your people call my kind Kheldians. Peacebringers."

The tension drained out of the boy's face slightly. He'd heard of Peacebringers. The police radio had talked about their own Kheldians, the Awakened Division. They were the last line of defense for the blue shield. "What do you want?" he asked.

Again the voice came from everywhere and nowhere. "To bond with a hero. To become more than the sum of our individual parts."

"Then why are you here?"

"I've found my hero."

The boy's jaw hung slack as he considered the statement. Moments passed before he replied. "I'm no hero. You're looking for someone like Back Alley Brawler or Manticore. Positron or Synapse. Swan or..."

"I've found my hero." the voice interrupted, this time with an edge to it. "None of those threw themselves into the flames today to save those that needed saving. You have no powers to call your own, no training, but you did what grown men with both were unwilling to do. I choose you."

"I just did what had to be done."

"Boy, I have lived for thousands of years amongst many people. In all that time, there has never been a better definition of heroic action than what you just said. You are a worthy partner. Let us help each other."

The boy looked to the wall where his Statesman poster was hung. It was signed by the hero himself, shortly after Colston's father had died. "Strength and courage, Lucas" it said in broad, sweeping strokes. It was a living testament despite Stateman's passing. "Ok. What do I…" His breath cut off in a gasp as Radiant Cascade entered his body, the two becoming one. The burns disappeared in an instant, replaced with smooth unbroken skin. And in his mind…

Memories from dozens of lifetimes, hundreds, cascaded through his consciousness. He witnessed the death, birth, and life of stars. The exploration of comets and asteroids. His arrival on Earth. His rescue of the trapped women, seen from high above. All of these memories and more flashed by before settling to a deep, abiding peace of mind.

*Are you there?* he thought to himself.

*I will always be here.* Cascade's voice echoed inside their mind.

*What do we do now?*

*What you did tonight. What is right.*


Several months have passed since Colston and Cascade bonded into the Peacebringer known as Incarnate. He currently serves as a member of the Shining Stars, alongside Twinshot, Grym, Dillo, Flambeaux, and Proton. He finds great enjoyment in his new metamorphic abilities. To the outward world as Incarnate, he looks to be an athletic man in his mid 20's. Only when he returns home to visit his mother does he revert back to the boyish figure who recently turned 15.

As a hero, Incarnate displays all of the youthful exuberance that comes with Colston's young age. His Kheldian counterpart is often exasperated, in a fatherly way, with the adolescent urges to leap without looking. Cascade seeks to temper that recklessness, without squashing the enthusiasm behind it.

And this is why it will be hard for devs to add/change powers. MY PB in human form is a scrapper. Heavy single target damage, 45% S/L Def, permanently capped resists, and permanent Inner Light. That's how I like to play him. I need AoE I switch to Nova. I need a Breakfree or taunt to get enemies off of squishes, I go Dwarf.

I'd HATE to see him lose some of his Scrapperish traits and be forced into more of a defender role in human form. Hate hate hate. Just like some of you probably hate my number 3 above when I suggested the devs make them MORE Scrapperish.

There's no way that we a PB players can decide on how to best improve certain powers that the AT has, because we all play our PB's different and like them that way. How can we then expect the devs to make changes to powers that won't have half the PB community up in arms? The most I think we can hope for in regards to improvements are the QoL thinks like toggle suppression, and enhancements to existing powers rather than changes.

It's funny, I feel exactly the opposite. Out of each of the different EAT types, Peacebringers have always been the most fun for me to play, followed by Huntsmen (only taking Cloak from Bane), then Warshades, then all of the other Villian iterations.

To be fair, if the Warshade colors were adjustable, it might be a different story. I'm a light over darkness, do the right thing even when it hurts, stand in the gap sort of player. Peacebringers flat out ooze these characteristics and theme. There's something awesome about smacking the bad guy around with pure white energy. More awesome is that I have an outstanding mix of single target melee (I count Blast and Bolt as melee for my PB, since I'm using them when up in someone's face anyway) and AoE abilities. Radiant Strike is that cool of a skill. Not to mention I can run +4x8, solo AV's, etc... without any problem.

The instant form change is going to make it that much more awesome. Now I can (hopefully) revisit my "Peacebringer alpha" of Nova Cone, Nova AoE, Solar Flare in a bambambam nature instead of having to wait for the transition back to human to finish.

Can't wait. Best change in forever.

Having softcapped defenses, permanently capped resists, and three heals is kinda op, honestly. When you throw in a permanent damage boost as well it just isn't fair. I've gotten lots of /tells recently from people in-game that said I've changed their minds on a PB's usefulness to teams.

I'm not saying that the above is better than a Warshade can do. My wife loves hers, but I really like the overall theme and feel of PB's more...and this is the most effective PB I've been able to build.

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Human name: Lucas Colston
Kheldian name: Radiant Cascade
Peacebringer name: Incarnate

Lucas Colston was, and in some ways still is, an average fourteen year old boy living in a city full a super heroes. He avidly collected the latest newspaper clippings of good triumphing over evil in all its forms. His comic book collection of real and make believe heroes rivaled the best his classmates had collected. In short, he was a hero worshiper who had no illusions of grandeur for himself.

Lucas knew that he would never amount to hero material, and he was content with that. He was bright, but not brilliant. He was athletic, but not exceptionally so. And while he could track down who ate the last of the cookies his mother had baked before, he was no great detective. Besides which, the city had enough heroes to save itself a hundred times over.

Every night after PCN had finished its recap on the heroic exploits of day, Lucas would lock himself away in his room. Sitting at his desk, he'd retrieve the hidden police radio that his uncle had given him in secret several years prior. Volume turned down low, he would listen for hours as police called in the help of heroes across the city. Bombings were averted. Hostages rescued. Villains brought to justice.

Much to his dismay, the broadcast that went out one evening involved a building just two blocks away from his home in Steel Canyon. Hellions had set fire to an apartment complex, and so close to home. He knew he shouldn't go. It was something he had promised his uncle upon receiving the gift in the first place, that he would never use the radio to see a crime in progress. But this was his chance to see his heroes in person! See Positron deploy some gadget to snuff out all of the fires at once. See Synapse run fast enough to extinguish the flames. The possibilities lured him quietly out his window, and towards the inferno.

The flames were intense. The PFD were on-scene, but it was clear that they were no match for the roaring flames. Worse, the shadowy forms of Hellion arsonists would occasionally duck out from behind the building to rebuild a blaze that the PFD had extinguished. It was intense, and Lucas soaked it all in while waiting for his expected heroes to appear.

He waited. And waited. The flames grew more intense, and the cries for help from within the building grew more urgent.

"No one is responding on the radio!" the Fire Chief said.

Lucas' head whirled towards the Chief in shock. No heroes? None? No one coming to rescue those within the building?

"Are you sure?" one of the firefighters yelled back over the raging crackle of the fire.

"I'm sure! Skyway and Atlas reserve firefighters are on the way, but that's it." The Chief eyed the blaze again. "They won't make it, this building is going to come down any minute. Start pulling your people back."

"NO!" Lucas shouted, stepping out from car he was hiding behind. "There are people still in there!"

"Son, anyone still in there is behind our reach." the Chief said sadly. "Without the heroes, we can't get to them."

Lucas then did what any fourteen year old would do: he acted without thinking the situation through. Pulling up his collar around his face, he charged blindly into the burning building, homing in on the noise of crying from the upper levels. He wasn't trying to be a hero, that was the furthest thought in his mind. Indeed, his brain caught up with his body moments later and he stood paralyzed in the stairwell.

"What am I doing?!" he asked himself aloud. His body turned back to the entrance on his own accord, driven by an all-consuming fear. He took two steps before a cry for help pierced his consciousness.

"Help us! HELP US!" came the voice just one level above where he stood.

He had a choice. His adolescent brain had forced him into the building. Fear had turned him away. He was tired of his choices being taken from him. He knew he could leave the building and no one would think any less of him. None of the firefighters had rushed in. Or he could do what was right. What was called for in situations like these.

He headed towards that cry for help.

Minutes later he and two women, a mother and her four year old daughter, emerged from the building covered in soot. Lucas struggled to breathe from the smoke he'd inhaled, and struggled all the more when the mother threw her arms around his neck in a fierce embrace.

"Thank you! Thank you thank you thank you." the woman mumbled into his shoulder over and over again.

News cameras had arrived on the scene while he had been inside, their lights blinding him. Reporters droned on about the situation, but it was readily apparent that they wanted statements from Lucas.

For the second time in the night, he froze. He wasn't supposed to be out this late, nor by himself. He wasn't supposed to have the police radio that let him head here in the first place. He had broken more of his mother's rules in one night than he had in the previous six months. Instead of answering any questions, he ran.


High above, another watched his flight from the scene. It hovered, unnoticed by the crowd milling below. It had watched the entire incident, for much the same reasons that Lucas had. Radiant Cascade was newly arrived on Earth, and had been directed by Sunstorm to seek our a willing, and worthy, host. A hero just cutting his teeth in the fight against evil would allow himself, as well as his host, to carve a new destiny for themselves.

Cascade was surprised when no hero showed up to fight the blaze, and was further shocked when the young boy had charged into the building without other assistance. That the boy had been successful only fueled the intrigue. Thus when he ran, Cascade followed.

He watched as the boy snuck quietly back into his room, and observed the small form rocking gently on the bed.

"Why didn't anyone show up? Why? " Tears rolled down Colston's cheeks, forming small rivers of soot. Angry red burns covered his arms and neck.

"You did." Cascade's voice seemingly came from everywhere, and nowhere, within the room.

The boy shot upright from his bed, grimacing as the action tugged at his burns. "Who is there?" he asked defiantly.

Cascade phased into view, a wisp of light that illuminated the bedroom. "I am called Radiant Cascade. Your people call my kind Kheldians. Peacebringers."

The tension drained out of the boy's face slightly. He'd heard of Peacebringers. The police radio had talked about their own Kheldians, the Awakened Division. They were the last line of defense for the blue shield. "What do you want?" he asked.

Again the voice came from everywhere and nowhere. "To bond with a hero. To become more than the sum of our individual parts."

"Then why are you here?"

"I've found my hero."

The boy's jaw hung slack as he considered the statement. Moments passed before he replied. "I'm no hero. You're looking for someone like Back Alley Brawler or Manticore. Positron or Synapse. Swan or..."

"I've found my hero." the voice interrupted, this time with an edge to it. "None of those threw themselves into the flames today to save those that needed saving. You have no powers to call your own, no training, but you did what grown men with both were unwilling to do. I choose you."

"I just did what had to be done."

"Boy, I have lived for thousands of years amongst many people. In all that time, there has never been a better definition of heroic action than what you just said. You are a worthy partner. Let us help each other."

The boy looked to the wall where his Statesman poster was hung. It was signed by the hero himself, shortly after Colston's father had died. "Strength and courage, Lucas" it said in broad, sweeping strokes. It was a living testament despite Stateman's passing. "Ok. What do I…" His breath cut off in a gasp as Radiant Cascade entered his body, the two becoming one. The burns disappeared in an instant, replaced with smooth unbroken skin. And in his mind…

Memories from dozens of lifetimes, hundreds, cascaded through his consciousness. He witnessed the death, birth, and life of stars. The exploration of comets and asteroids. His arrival on Earth. His rescue of the trapped women, seen from high above. All of these memories and more flashed by before settling to a deep, abiding peace of mind.

Are you there? he thought to himself.

I will always be here. Cascade's voice echoed inside their mind.

What do we do now?

What you did tonight. What is right.


Several months have passed since Colston and Cascade bonded into the Peacebringer known as Incarnate. He currently serves as a member of the Shining Stars, alongside Twinshot, Grym, Dillo, Flambeaux, and Proton. He finds great enjoyment in his new metamorphic abilities. To the outward world as Incarnate, he looks to be an athletic man in his mid 20's. Only when he returns home to visit his mother does he revert back to the boyish figure who recently turned 15.

As a hero, Incarnate displays all of the youthful exuberance that comes with Colston's young age. His Kheldian counterpart is often exasperated, in a fatherly way, with the adolescent urges to leap without looking. Cascade seeks to temper that recklessness, without squashing the enthusiasm behind it.

Why is this the case? I understand that Shield Charge does more damage on the Scrapper...but why is "the combo" better on a Scrapper than a Brute? Is it something more than just Shield Charge?

Could you elaborate on these latter two items? Why are these things true in particular?

Scion Omega - Levels 1-12

My goal here was to play something "normal esque". Despite being a big weak on the blasting, Dual Pistols really appeals to me visually...winning out over Assault Rifle and Archery. My secondary was a bit more wide open, but I finally decided on Mental Manipulation for a couple of reasons: 1) I liked the idea of a former military officer on the Praetorian side developing limited psychic powers through natural human potential...and what would then happen to said person when Mother came calling. 2) I most commonly team up with a Brute, and the thought of duoing some AV's with her seemed appealing (aided by MM's -regen).

While primary/secondary combination seemed overly safe. Pistols and Subdual at 1, Dual Wield at 2, Empty Clips at 4, Swap Ammo at 6, Bullet Rain at 8, Psychic Scream at 10, and Stealth at 12. One note to make here: Eventually I'll probably swap out of either Empty Clips or Psychic Scream, just keeping one or the other. Also, I should have probably taken Maneuvers at 10 rather than Stealth. But hey, I was eventually going to pick it or a Stealth IO up...and I can always swap out of it later if I decide on the IO path.

At level 4 I got swept up onto a team, and just over an hour later I was suddenly 12, and it was late. I had to start saying over and over to myself, "You are playing a Blaster, not a Brute. You are playing a Blaster, not a Brute." Suffice to say, it took more than a few times to remember just how squishy I was, and to not go in guns blazing until AFTER the Brute/Tank/Sucker soaked up the aggro first.


I do plan on fully IO'ing this guy out and seeing what type of content I can conquer both solo and duo. I already had a level 12 Achilles -RES recipe drop, while will be going into my Pistols sooner or later. A nice start if I do say so myself.

That's all for now, more to follow tomorrow.