Lugubrious

Epithet Erased - A down-to-earth modern adventure with funky powers

@Crimson Raven You've got some good ideas rummaging around!

For Highfalutin, I love the idea of a character getting stronger the more his or her own ego rises and the more others think of him or her. As an added bonus, instead of just general stats increasing, it could be a specific ability. Since people who're highfalutin put on airs and thinks themselves above others, the person could have wind-based powers that increase in intensity with ego, but if the person gets knocked off his or her high horse, the power blows in a different way. I do think getting Lucifer and devilry out of it might be a bit of a stretch.

Comb also means to make more presentable, particularly in terms of appearance; to make more glamorous. That could take an illusionist turn, with the user able to cast glamours over him/herself or others. Or, it could just confer hair-related techniques. Would definitely be an ace for a stylist!

Sisterhood brings to my mind predominantly female groups like nuns and witches. That could lead in holy or unholy directions, with connotations of community, mutual support, and bonds either way.

Im just kinda debating on the nuclear fire manipulation thing for my character. Kinda op, since it's bound to set a building or two on fire. .-.

@Majoras End

Nuclear fire manipulation might be taking it a bit far. No epithet is by its nature OP. Just keep it on a less-grand scale, if that's the one you want. Moderate flashes of light and temperature would be both effective and appropriate.

Epithet Erased - A down-to-earth modern adventure with funky powers

Keep in mind they can encapsulate any meaning.

For jingle: bells, clear sound, cleansing, peace. Christmas, snow, giving, cheer, belief, and wonder (Santa and so forth). A rhyme or tune for advertisements, a slogan, loud and frenetic and attention-grabbing. Repetitious, unforgettable sounds. Ring any bells?

For stride: long stride, heavy stride, a lot covered or done with little effort or simple movements. To take something in stride means to weather, acknowledge, or confront it without problem or distress. You're taking it to mean speed because you want someone with superspeed, but that could also take the form of blinking or flash-stepped, moving a distance in a single stride.

Neo means new, an iteration or evolution of the old, the future. Such an epithet could allow a character to upgrade objects to futuristic versions. Shoes to rocket boots, water gun to a laser blaster, and so forth. Or the character could exhibit hyper-adaptation, able to adjust and grow stronger in response to new stimuli, with the new changes reverting when not in use.

Epithets should not be viewed simply as superpowers, but as powersets or suites of magic stemming from one's conception of the word. When one thinks 'stride' would one really jump to 'super fast'?

See, this is why I asked because I was developing this whole back story based around it seeming like he's a useless brown noser because he can't prove he's actually doing anything.

I'll re-work something.

@Gentlemanvaultboy

That could still apply. Maybe your character doesn't have a strong command of his epithet yet. As long as he's not at the point where its too powerful I'm down.

Epithet Erased - A down-to-earth modern adventure with funky powers

I don't want to build my character entirely because I want to see what scenario they'd be in, but I have two powers I'd like to run past you.

Absolutely Superb! ~ With a single compliment the entire world may change. Whenever an ally succeeds at anything they may be complimented, and when they are complimented reality reorders itself so the greatest success possible under the circumstances was achieved. To put it in RPG parlance, he can change any allies ordinary success into a critical success. The ally must be able to hear the compliment for the effect to go off, and he can not apply this effect to himself.

A For Effort! ~ While his first ability is a success magnifier, is one is a failure minimizer. When any ally fails at something he can tell them they were just doing their best and the consequences of their failure are retroactively minimized to the smallest degree possible under the circumstances. If his first power is changing 1 into 10, this one is changing -10 into -1.

@Gentlemanvaultboy

Sorry taking a while to get back to you. I like the ideas, although their strength and the whole rewriting reality thing bring to mind another aspect of epithets: epitomes.

Epitomes are the flat-out most powerful use for any epithet. They go beyond the meanings of the word for the user and touch the core concepts related to the word--superset rather than subset. They are extremely rare and can be developed only by individuals with the toughest constitutions, sharpest wits, and creative minds after countless hours of training and use.

For instance, the epithet Sundial might just be able to tell the time of day, and the weather. But the epitome of Sundial can control the progress of any ongoing process with a beginning and end, accelerating, stopping, or reversing.

This isn't to say that I want any epitomes running around, of course. I mention it because maximizing successes and minimizing failures through rewriting reality is pretty incredible. Could be broken.

Other uses of superb could avoid that risk. It can mean excellent, impressive, splendid, top-class. It could be used to improve the quality of materials or devices, refining them, or just making them look better or flashier. I personally have only ever heard people say the word in reference to really good food, so that could be an example. Maybe the character is a chef who can make food so good it confers miraculous, magical effects!

Just spitballing here, of course. But hey, it's fun.

Epithet Erased - A down-to-earth modern adventure with funky powers

Here's what came up:

For Rockin Strings

Jingle
Stride
Schiamachy
Descriptive
Neo

For Crimson Raven

Highfalutin
Comb
Kettle
Sisterhood
Hornsnake

Expolar

Aries
Panda
Itemizer
Liver
Gyte

Epithet Erased - A down-to-earth modern adventure with funky powers

@Lugubrious I have a couple ideas

Broker
An epithet that allows the user to "buy" and "sell" other epithets. Essentially, they can temporarily steal another epithet, but the catch is they can only hold one at a time and must return the current epithet to its owner before snagging another. They can also temporarily switch the epithets of other people.

Byway
The user isn't forced to use any of the "main roads" of life. This grants the user the ability to create various types of spacial byways including linked portals that allow travel between them and static portals that go straight through solid objects.

@Jarl Coolgruuf

You're on the right track, with Byway especially, creating shortcuts around and even through obstacles and offering escapes where others would be stuck. Your idea for Broker might be a bit overstated, especially since buying and selling involves trade and not just giving or taking. Maybe it makes for a good support epithet, allowing him to sell temporary epithet or ability power-ups so long as others pay him, and if they can't or won't he can temporarily take some of their power to use or trade with. He could also spend his assets to debuff others. That way, it's more like buying and selling than stealing and swapping.

Epithet Erased - A down-to-earth modern adventure with funky powers

@Lugubrious Spare a list, kind sir?

@Jarl Coolgruuf

You bet.

For Jarl Coolgruuf

Tulip
Page
Goofy
Byway
Broker

Oh geez. >3< Might take me a second to think of something.

@Sonnenschein

Part of the reason I'm doing this so early is so that we can bounce ideas off of one another. If you like, I'm sure we could help you out.

List me please! :D
Make it a short list...
3 words
;)

@Dark Light

As you wish.

For Dark Light

Deviltry
Green
Escargot

Epithet Erased - A down-to-earth modern adventure with funky powers

I have some ideas for Download and Face, but what could I do with Cepheid?

@Majoras End

Cepheid stars pulse regularly, increasing in light and temperature. Bursts of light and heat, flashes, glows, blinding and burning. Maybe a character could leave small pulsing lights floating around. Such stars are also extremely distant, in the reaches of space. That could carry connotations of darkness or emptiness. Since they pulse, maybe they're the sort of twinkling stars people on earth might look up to see and wish upon.

Epithet Erased - A down-to-earth modern adventure with funky powers

Color me interested ;o
Might I have a list as well?

@Sonnenschein

Of course!

For Sonnenschein

Symphonic
Adust
Muddled
Teratoid
Seven

Epithet Erased - A down-to-earth modern adventure with funky powers

So what's the plan with PCs? Are we sticking with one or two the whole way through or swapping out a la Anime Campaign?

@TruthHurts22

We'll stick with our chosen characters. There might come chances for players to act out the parts of less-important NPCs, but their mains will stay their mains throughout.

Tentatively interested. Feel like I've been seeing these EE int cheks a lot recently...regardless, hit me with that list?

@ERode

Sure, here you go.

For ERode

Ginger
Disco
Exception
Sanguine
Stomach

Epithet Erased - A down-to-earth modern adventure with funky powers

Psst, where is my list?

@Reflection

Why, it's right here.

For Reflection

Urban
Dreamy
Pewter
Riot
Thirst