[hider= The Tortoise]
Birth Name: Wilbur Allthorpe

Alter Ego: The Tortoise

Gender: Male

Age: 56

Country of Origin: Birmingham, England. 

Archetype: Augmented

Allegiance: Splinter

Appearance: Wilbur is a fairly short man at 4'5 and skinny as a rake. He lost his hair in his early 50s and as such, is completley bald. He wears a pair of black thick rimmed square spectacles. Usually he wears a green button up shirt with the sleeves rolled up and a pair of light brown overalls with simple brown leather shoes and white socks. He also has a black tool belt around his waist. 

Powers/Skills:

His greatest ability is the large mechanical exoskeleton shell he pilots, constructed out of titanium, containing multiple energy based booster units for movement and armed to the teeth with weapons including missiles, standard firearms, a flamethrower, an electrical arc cannon, a high powered laser, a small explosive dispenser and a reflector shield. The entire shell can also be used for physical attacks. Wilbur pilots the shell from within, usually using a small visor at the top to watch or ducking inside the shell for stronger attacks. The exoskeleton shell is extremely dense and hard to crack by most forms of attack. 

The shell however, has its limits. Without a pilot, it cannot act on its own and is vulnerable. EMP attacks can also disable the shell until Wilbur can get it working again. Additionally, outside of the shell, Wilbur is fairly weak and small and is thus, far more vulnerable and no easier to hurt than an average pedestrian. The shell also runs on a large lithium ion battery pack and should it run out of power or be removed, the shell will cease to function The battery is also more heavily drained by energy projection mechanisms, making the reflector shield and the high powered laser the most energy draining moves. The shell is also not protected from chemical or gas based attacks and whilst the reflector shield protects the shell from almost all forms of damage, it does not protect against force and strong forces will push the shell even with its shield up. 

Outside the shell, Wilbur is heavily tech savvy, able to recognise kinds of machinery very quickly, draft up inventions within days and thinking logically around problems. He is also very intelligent and somewhat analytical, using tactics in battle and figuring out the weaknesses of his opponents and using his shell's vast array of tools to strike at them. For Wilbur, every problem just needs the right tool to be solved. 

However, outside of his shell, the tortoise is an older man who is not particularly strong or durable, thus, he cannot put up much of a fight without his exoskeleton. He is also untrained in other forms of science such as chemistry and physics, and whilst he is a critical thinker, it means he cannot fight well against unpredictable opponents. 

Equipment/Resources: Outside of his shell, Wilbur usually carries around a small tool belt with some replacement batteries, spare parts and a spanner in case he needs to make quick repairs to his shell. He also carries around a small tazer should he ever need to defend himself. He also carries a phone in case of emergencies. 

Biography: 
Wilbur was born to Martha and Gareth Allthorpe in Birmingham, a pair of experimental weapons mechanics working for the biotech company Zillion Corp. Wilbur enjoyed a fairly upper class childhood with a large sum of money to keep him happy, put into the best high schools and given the best possible schooling that could be afforded. He grew up intelligent if not bullied by the older children, jealous of his wealth and his smarts in class, also by his somewhat meek demeanor and small stature, suffering from his father's short stature. 

When he left school, he went on to Cambridge university and graduated with a degree in engineering, going on to work with his parents at Zillion Corp, dedicating his research to a new form of exoskeleton to support someone like him as he continued to be a weak individual. This eventually led him to creating his shell exoskeleton and in practice, it was a huge success. Feeling a surge of pride, he immediately made use of it, patenting the designs for himself and leaving the company before Zillion Corp could mass produce it, a move that was looked down on by his parents. 

He outed himself properly as a superhero, calling himself The Tortoise due to the design of his shell and how he had always been mocked as 'hiding in his shell.' He was practical minded, earning donations for his work but keeping a diligent mindset, that he must be careful with his great gift and not abuse it for his own purposes. Eventually he ran across a fellow hero Roger Redbrook, nicknamed the Hare for his incredible speed, dexterity and high jump powers. The two didn't see eye to eye and became rivals, the Hare being optimistic whilst Wilbur was more a pessimist. Their rivalry became incredibly well known across the country and after the pair briefly joined forces in defeating a large crime gang, the pair decided to become a true team. 

The Hare and the Tortoise became a notably loved duo in their home country, battling crime and solving problems together. So when the champions initiative came about, they happily joined forces and were among the team's first members. The Tortoise's brilliant mind and gadget wizardry made him an invaluable asset to the team, using inventions to amplify his friends abilities and weaponry, as well as providing analysis and coming up with battle plans for their missions, whilst Hare simply provided a good point man and charming face for the public to love. 

The pair were no match for the Nagoya mission, sadly. Hare simply went along with the plans whilst Tortoise was drafting up their movements and using radios to direct them piece by piece. All it took was an unexpected blurt of static to muddle up the plans and their frequency to be discovered before it all went wrong and both Hare and Tortoise were forced into battle. Wilbur panicked amidst all the chaos, unable to analyse or strategise and forced to attack blindly, causing a lot of destruction in his wake. When the dust had settled, The Hare was among the superheroes who were found dead at the scene, crushed under rubble. With his long time partner dead, Wilbur's opinion soured heavily and he became negative toward the idea of the champions continuing with him, choosing to leave for the splinter group as without his partner to balance him out and the outcry against him, he could not act with them anymore. 

Special Notes: Some speculate that Hare and Tortoise were once romantically involved, but both have continuously denied this, though rumors circulate regardless, it is a common press hitting point for the pair. He is also among the wanted due to the destruction his shell's tech caused.
[/hider]