[hider=Nocturne] [center][img]https://media.discordapp.net/attachments/710908524602851461/1024425394318872656/unknown.png[/img][/center] [center][indent][indent][indent][color=9524f8][i][b]"Were you expecting me to say something philosophical related to darkness? Something like how there is always a light in the dark? Well, it's not a thing, it's a person. And that person is me."[/b][/i][/color][/indent][/indent][/indent][/center] [center][h3][color=9524f8][u]Jack Hawthorne[/u][/color] | [color=9524f8][u]"Nocturne"[/u][/color] | [color=9524f8][u]28[/u][/color][/h3][/center] [center]__[/center] [color=9524f8][h3][u][b]Powers: Umbramancy[/b][/u][/h3][/color] [indent][indent]Nocturne's powers are the ability to form and manipulate absences of light in a way that some would consider almost magical. This power is a result of prolonged exposure to the energy of a world known as the Shadowlands, and includes anything from pulling shadows off of the wall and making them three-dimensional to make a weapon, or turning a well-lit room pitch black. Any place where light is obstructed or blocked has to potential to be used as a weapon by Nocturne, and he can alter the properties of darkness as if it were a tangible form of matter. This includes forming solid forcefields out of a single shadow, or as Nocturne prefers, forming weightless weapons to use against an enemy. Nocturne's connection to the Shadowlands allows him some control of the "dark energy" that flows into the material world. He can collect this energy for using what he refers to as Shadow Magic. [hider=Umbramancy Techniques] [color=9524f8][u][b]Energy Drift: [/b][/u][/color]Using the energy that flows through him, Nocturne can partially negate gravity to float through the air or cross wide gaps with ease. This is similar to outright flying, but is too loose to have fine control needed for flying like other superheroes. [color=9524f8][u][b]Dark Barrier: [/b][/u][/color]A simple forcefield capable of stopping bullets and other physical attacks. [color=9524f8][u][b]Night Vision: [/b][/u][/color]Having spent years in a place where light does not exist, Nocturne has no need for light to see what's in front of him. [color=9524f8][u][b]Shadow Scythe: [/b][/u][/color]A weapon that Nocturne learned to use in the Shadowlands. It weighs virtually nothing, and can cut through solid steel as if it were paper. [color=9524f8][u][b]Gloomhaven: [/b][/u][/color]A three-dimensional sphere of darkness that can be used to close off an area or imprison someone within. Light cannot penetrate the Gloomhaven's area, so anyone else inside of it is completely blind. [color=9524f8][u][b]Black Gate: [/b][/u][/color]Nocturne stretches a shadow over a flat surface and connects it to a nearby location up to a hundred feet away, turning the shadow into a portal. The shadow used has to be near pitch-black for this to work. [color=9524f8][u][b]Unseen Door of Midnight: [/b][/u][/color]If the conditions are right, Nocturne can open a portal into the Shadowlands. A large area must be rendered pitch black, and cannot be illuminated by any light whatsoever for as long as anyone is inside. The portal acts like an anchor for anyone who crosses through, meaning that if it is compromised, anyone inside the Shadowlands will be cut loose from the material world, and potentially afflicted with the darkness like Nocturne. Nocturne can theoretically use this to banish someone from the material world permanently, as long as they don't find a way back. [/hider] [/indent][/indent] [color=9524f8][h3][u][b]Power Weaknesses[/b][/u][/h3][/color] [indent][indent][indent][color=9524f8][u][b]Dark Energy: [/b][/u][/color]Like all magic, this requires certain conditions or requirements to be met beforehand, and Nocturne has developed various techniques based on this which depend on dark energy to function. The problem with relying on dark energy is that it cannot be created through his powers, only collected through obscuring light in sufficient volumes. As the light of the material world removes darkness, it removes the energy of the Shadowlands that bleeds in from beyond, which means that a sufficient source of light would be enough to render Nocturne's abilities useless. Nocturne is heavily dependent on darkness for everything he does. Even a small, faint shadow can likely be put to some use, but in open daylight away from shade, it is very easy to lock his Umbramancy out of use. His reliance makes him virtually defenseless with the ability to manipulate darkness. It also leaves him without the ability to open something that requires two hands... [color=9524f8][u][b]Glass Cannon: [/b][/u][/color]Nocturne's method of dealing with villains or similar threats comes down to one of two things. Either he locks down an area by turning every shadow into what is essentially a magic bear trap, or he constructs a scythe to deal with enemies up close. In the presence of enough light, he can do neither of these things. Nocturne handles physical combat very, very poorly when unarmed and unable to access his abilities. In such a situation, he could be taken out with little effort by most people. [color=9524f8][u][b]Black Heart: [/b][/u][/color]The Shadowlands are an inherently evil place. When Nocturne first entered, a piece of him fractured from his being and was left behind. That piece left behind a hole that was filled by the dark energy of the Shadowlands. That darkness is now a part of Nocturne, and gnaws at him from the inside like a knife stabbing at weak points in a brick wall. Nocturne depends on this as the method through which he accesses the rest of his abilities, but it has a mind of its own. In cases where Nocturne's state of mind is compromised, such as intense anger or an attack that weakens him mentally, there is a chance that the darkness inside of him will find a foothold and rip away the control he has over his mind and body. After this occurs, Nocturne's body takes the form of a living shadow, and acts on a twisted sense of instincts and self-preservation, attacking anything presents itself as a potential target with reckless abandon as an ever-expanding well of dark energy. Light is drained from the surrounding area to make way for the creature, causing it to grow stronger as time passes. The creature, which Nocturne refers to as the Penumbra, lacks a sense of self-awareness equal to a human being, it only cares about satisfying the base impulse of causing ruin and spreading the dark into the world. In the event that the Penumbra has awakened, any hero with an energy-based power should attack with full force: Fire, lightning, radiation, especially visible light, all cause extreme damage to the monster, and can weaken it enough for Nocturne to regain control. The odds of this happening again are virtually impossible due to Nocturne's experience, but the Penumbra is always there in the back of his mind, waiting for the slightest break in mental fortitude which it can latch onto and burrow out through. Light is its greatest weakness, and if Nocturne is lucky, he can throw himself under a high-powered spotlight for a while to keep a breakout from happening if he suspects he is losing control. [/indent][/indent][/indent] [color=9524f8][h3][u][b]Personality[/b][/u][/h3][/color] [indent][indent][indent]Patient | Composed | Caring | Mellow | Reserved[/indent][/indent][/indent] [color=9524f8][h3][u][b]Experience[/b][/u][/h3][/color] [indent][indent][indent]Roughly eight to nine years in the Shadowlands, a few weeks in the Justice Society.[/indent][/indent][/indent] [color=9524f8][h3][u][b]Appearance[/b][/u][/h3][/color] [indent][indent][indent]Shoulder-length black hair, a scar across his face, and an entire fashion sense that seems to revolve around Autumn. Those are the most stand-out things about Nocturne's appearance aside from his left arm, which is a solid black shadow. He lost the real one during a fight in the Shadowlands a long time ago.[/indent][/indent][/indent] [color=9524f8][h3][u][b]Backstory[/b][/u][/h3][/color] [indent][indent][indent]Many years ago, Jack Hawthorne fell through a hole into the Shadowlands, and went missing for three years. It was here where he was exposed to the dark energy that he now uses for fighting evil. While lost in another world, he learned to survive in a land where there was no light, or sympathy for a human. He learned to shape darkness into blades, call it to protect him, and see through it where normal eyesight had failed him. He was hardened and strengthened by its energy, but found himself constantly at war with his own mind over the years to control something that buried itself deep inside of him. Jack hunted the creatures that called the Shadowlands home, and ate their flesh to survive, fading in and out of a human form and its consciousness until time seemed to blur like the shadows around him. Eventually, he was found in one of these low periods by a man they called the Shade. He was one touched by the Shadowlands the same way, but he had control. The Shade showed Jack mercy, and helped him learn how to grapple with his inner darkness. After what could have been eons or only seconds of time in the real world, Jack gained a tight grip on the Penumbra, and the Shade taught him a trick that could open doors in and out of the Shadowlands. It was on the other side of one such door where the Shade revealed his background as an anti-hero to the young man, and offered him an opportunity to join him. Jack refused, and left without looking back. Shortly after, he was actively participating in the hero scene as Nocturne, brandishing a scythe and devouring villains whole in their own shadows. The Justice Society took notice of the man and his abilities after a few years. and offered him a position in their ranks, which he accepted. [/indent][/indent][/indent] [color=9524f8][h3][u][b]Sample Story Arcs[/b][/u][/h3][/color] [url= https://youtu.be/EYjGbwTZTOw]The Endless Night: [/url] In the late hours of the Winter Solstice, the shortest day of the year, the Shade arrives to prevent the sun from rising. Nocturne, whose understanding of darkness rivals the Shade's, must find a way to help the Justice Society make the sun rise again before the Shade's power grows too strong. [url= https://youtu.be/CBLVnAMxO2M]A Helping Hand: [/url] Following an intense battle that left Nocturne's magic temporarily burnt out, he is left without the ability to use umbramancy or his left arm. When evil doesn't rest, Nocturne can't stand by without putting up a fight, but struggles to be useful on the battlefield. Through the help of his friends, he learns that there is more to being a hero than magical powers. [url= https://youtu.be/CDq5TO05NcQ]The Beast in Black: [/url] Something inside of Nocturne begins to kick up dust as he is compromised by a side of his powers he thought to be long dormant. When a creature of all-consuming, malevolent darkness takes hold of Nocturne's mind and body, it is up to the Justice Society to contain him, and scour his recorded knowledge on the primordial darkness of the Shadowlands for answers before it is too late. [url= https://youtu.be/GA5FcJyMYQI]Live by The Scythe: [/url] After a crippling defeat that leaves Dermont unable to use Nothung, Nocturne uses the opportunity to help him train to fight. The two learn valuable lessons from each other about the ability to adapt to unfavorable circumstances, and what it means to set an example for others. [color=9524f8][h3][u][b]Secondary Character[/b][/u][/h3][/color] The Shade [/hider]