Flambard
From Unofficial Handbook of the Virtue Universe
| File:Donald.JPG | |
| Flambard | |
| Player: Melkhor | |
| Origin: | Technology/Natural |
|---|---|
| Archetype: | Brute/Corruptor |
| Threat Level: | 50/50 |
| Personal Data | |
| Real Name: | Donald Brook |
| Known Aliases: | Don, Donnie, Limey, old hooligan |
| Species: | Human |
| Age: | 44 |
| Height: | 184 cm |
| Weight: | 102 kg (without the suit) |
| Eye Color: | brown |
| Hair Color: | red-brown (going grey) |
| Biographical Data | |
| Nationality: | British |
| Occupation: | Sin Enterprises Tactical Response Agent |
| Place of Birth: | Birmingham, England |
| Base of Operations: | Confidential |
| Marital Status: | Unwed |
| Known Relatives: | Karen Ward (daughter) |
| Known Powers | |
| None known | |
| Known Abilities | |
| Basic British military and junior officers training. Highly skilled at personal combat, excellent marksman and great experience with small units tactics. Experienced mercenary with successfully completed "tour of duties" in Congo, Zimbabwe, Ex-Yugoslavia and Kosovo, Somalia, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Lebanon and Syria.
Speaks passable German, French and Spanish. | |
| Equipment | |
| Currently in possession of a, presumably Soviet, super-soldier grade personal powered armour which has, at present been extensively modified further with both Sin Enterprises and Vanguard technology. The armour's internal, nuclear power-core is capable of generating and channelling temperatures reaching plasma-level (upper limits remain untested), and is impervious to most anything short of direct artillery fire (upper limits of stopping power remains untested). Armour contains numerous other functions and is highly compatible with modern technology. Also wields a Sin Enterprises Squad Assault Weapon (Prototype) or "Seesaw" for operations where the armour would be unsuitable along with an arsenal of minor gadgets and devices. | |
| No additional information available. | |
Donald Brook began life as a ruthlessly sociopathic power-armoured mercenary loyal to no-one but himself and willing and able to carry out any job his current employer was willing to pay for, no matter how vile or deplorable. Along the way I quickly learned that playing the character with a conscience, albeit a stunted one, made the experience much more rewarding and enjoyable and Don grew from his original roots to a far more tragic figure, haunted and scarred by the deeds of his past but uncertain of how to relate to them and utterly unwilling to redeem himself despite of it. Just like his personality evolved over time, so did his armour which went from a clunky, inefficient Soviet Cold War relic to a much sleeker, and infinitely deadlier marvel of modern engineering. Having found both a home, a family and love within Sin Enterprises, the ageing former mercenary have developed far beyond anything I had initially envision for the character. (Just like he also grew infinitely more British in both speech and personality)
Original source of inspiration came mainly from Marvel Comic's Iron Man villains Firebrand and The Crimson Dynamo. Were he ever to be brought to life upon the silver screen, British actor Jason Statham has been cast for his part.
Contents |
Affiliations
Kira Sin
Living weapon, enigma-wrapped mystery, ruthless overseer, insecure child and passionate lover. Kira Sin has as many facets as the beautifully cut diamond the young girl resembles to Don. Though he has only begun to penetrate the seemingly endless layers of mystery his young lover, and boss, wraps herself in he knows one thing without a shadow of a doubt, that he loves her with all of his heart.
Razorsong
The almost as mysterious lover of his enigmatic lover, the woman known as Razorsong represents a riddle that Don would love to, eventually, solve. Deeply fascinated with the woman that his romantic relationship with Kira has brought into his life, Don considers her a trusted friend, who might one day very well become something more as well.
Death Rush
The irreverent, fast-mouthed and insatiable Division Chief of Sin Enterprises' Black Ops division, Susan Quade is another of the few people who Don would call friend - often with benefits as well - As one of the oldest and most trusted friends of Kira, Don extends the same unconditional trust that Kira holds in her to her as well, never doubting for a second the skill, seriousness and professionalism that lurks beneath her carefree exterior.
Bolt Angel
Karen Ward is the 24 years old daughter that Don, until recently, never knew he had. The product of a drunken fling with an army nurse in his native Birmingham, Don's life took a dramatic and unexpected turn when she tracked him down and confronted him with the truth, briefly working with him as part of Sin's Powered Security. Despite initial hostility the two eventually managed to reconcile their differences and parted on amiable terms when Karen realised that the life Sin, and the Isles, offered wasn't for her. The two remain in casual contact and Don remains forever thankful that his only daughter decided to turn her back on his way of life before it became too late.
Flamecrow
Almost since day one it has seemed as if the cast-iron bitch, fiercely dedicated and deathly loyal Carolina Perrone's and Don's fates have been intertwined. Despite having been at each other's throats on countless occasions, Don secretly counts the Old Crow as his perhaps closest friend and staunchest ally within Sin. Of similar outlook and disposition the two ex-soldiers have more in common than either of them would care to admit but, despite persistent rumours to the contrary there has never been, and never will be, anything beside friendship - and occasional enmity- between them.
Mhia
Alessandra Mhia Knight was, once upon a time, a trusted friend, a valued support and favoured "personal minion" of Don within Sin Enterprises. Despite the immense antipathy he felt, and continues to feel, for her then fiancé, now husband and soon-to-be Ex, Naipe, Don personally gave her away at her wedding at her request. He also did his best to support and stand by her through the unexpected complications of a somewhat unorthodox pregnancy and never, through all of this paused to consider his true feelings for the young woman. After a chance late-night encounter revealed that both of them felt more for the other than either realised led to a passionate night of infidelity Mhia is now preparing herself for what promises to be extremely ugly divorce and custody procedures, while the two of them have begun tentatively exploring the new path that has opened before them together.
Angela Sin
The flirtatious, buxom and outgoing twin sister of his girlfriend Kira, Don holds his boss Angela in high regard and does his utmost to ensure the safety of her and the company she and her sister built. Though as different as night and day, Don knowns and understands that the twins share an unbreakable bond and that Angela is effectively the other half of his lover's soul.
Razormind
Doctor Rachel Cohen is Sin Enterprises' resident psychiatrist and Don's therapist. This remarkable woman is almost single-handedly responsible for saving him from a downwards spiral of self-destructive, paranoid madness that could only have ended with his death. One of the only people that Don regularly opens his innermost thoughts and feelings to, her importance in his life cannot be easily downplayed. Though he, early in their professional relationship, found himself attracted to the unique woman, her position as a dear and close friend is now firmly entrenched into his heart and mind
Shivan Wrath
An eternal source of grief and frustration, the always wise-cracking, snickering devil-may-care Ryan Matthews is nonetheless the closest thing Don will ever have to a son, though he'd die in horrible pain sooner than admitting it. Despite his incurable and insufferable antics and a demeanour that's an almost polar opposite of his own, Don realises that the lad compliments him in his work in ways that few others could hope to, and in truth the pair of them makes for a frighteningly effective team both in and outside the field. In short, while he may be a pain in the ass, he's HIS pain in the ass
Supergroup: Sin Enterprises
Personality
To most, Don projects a gruff, no-nonsense exterior of almost permanent aggravation when not in the field and more than a few people have commented on his almost uncanny knack for pressing other peoples' buttons the wrong way, hard. Utterly devoted to his own standards of "professionalism" Don has little time for those unable or unwilling to conform to this, and holds them in even less regard. First and foremost in his own mind is the number one tenant in his personal code "Never enjoy it!" He kills, maims, burns and destroys if he has to, but never for the sake of his own, or anyone else's, enjoyment. He dedicates himself completely to the tasks put before him and always strives to complete any given assignment to the best of his considerable abilities. Given this code it's no wonder that he's exceedingly ill at ease amongst thrill-killers, sadist or other deviants who indulge in their bloody work for the sake of their own twisted amusement and he has, until recently, firmly stuck to an old rule of his; "Working FOR a psycho is fine as long as he doesn't get actively involved, but working WITH a psycho will get you, or him, killed!"
Don's Birmingham origin permeates every fibre of his being and his Brummie accent is thick enough to cut with a knife. He's proudly working-class and there are few people alive in this world that he despises more than Lady Thatcher. He also remains a devoted Aston Villa fan to this day.
There are, however, much softer, more introspective and much more affectionate sides of his personality though these are generally only let out when in sessions with his therapist Doctor Rachel Cohen or in the company of Kira Sin or, more recently Mhia, on their personal time.
Powers
Donald Brook possess no powers of note other than remarkable reserves of willpower and stamina and a stubborn streak a British mile long.
Sin Enterprises Squad Assault Weapon (Prototype), "Seesaw"
The SESAW is one of the new generation of electrically-fired, multi-barrel heavy weapons, and as such combines a devastating RoF with higher reliability and carry capacity.
The current SESAW prototype fires 7.25mm caseless FMJ ammunition (the weapon is not currently configured for specialty rounds such as HEAP, but FMJ may be augmented by a flechette/fragmentation round in future production runs). Rounds are fed from a patented wrap-around spiral magazine (capacities of 450 and 1500 rounds currently in production) into the rotary barrel system. Each of the three barrels has its own recevier; the barrel-receiver system 'floats' around a central carbon-composite axle on three liquid bearings. Rounds can be fired in 5- 10 and 25- unit bursts, as well as in full-auto mode. Safeties (mechnical, electronic, and optional fingerprint), selector, and trigger are all at the rear of the weapon in a shielded butt grip, reducing weapon cross-section. A single hand-width stud is used as a forward stabilizer; the system is light and balanced enough that testers as short at 4'9" and light as 94# have been able to handle it with ease.
During firing, a small primer charge is ignited by high-induction electrostatic; this primer then ignites the main charge. The caseless rounds burn with roughly 72% efficiency; waste gasses are vented through equatorial ports to maintain weapon stability under full-auto conditions. The wrap-around magazine also contributes to the balance of the weapon.
While the individual rounds lack the penetration and stopping power of a heavier full MG round or a dedicated sniper rifle, the round-on-target rate (225 round/sec at full auto) prove far more efficient against soft to medium targets.
The barrel system of the SESAW is surprisingly long for a portable weapon- .8 meter. This provides remarkable accuracy for a fully automatic delivery system, as well as allowing for an integral flash supporession/noise suppression system. The sleek shape allowed by the wraparound magazine and the low recoil of the weapon makes it easily manuevrable in all but the tightest combat scenarios.
Current runs of the weapon include hardpoints for bayonet, tripod for entrenched defense, and bracket arm for IFF 'smart' targeting-assistance rigs; the magazine may also be replaced by a belt feed, though this reduces the fire rate of the weapon somewhat. the SESAW is also fitted with a Phased IR Laser Optics (PIRO) beamer, for integration with in-helmet HUD targetting.
Smart Gadgets
When deployed for field operations without his armour, Don compliments his SESAW prototype rifle with numerous gadgets borrowed from Sin Enterprises R&D department. These include but are not limited to personal force-field projectors, nervegas grenades, anti-personnel mines, web-grenades and various anti-infantry devices. Even without his suit he is, quite literally, a walking arsenal.
Powered Armour
Don's trademark powered suit has come a LONG way since its not-so-humble origins as a forgotten Soviet Super-Soldier program. Extensively modified and altered over the years the current version of the armour is barely recognisable as the Cold War relic it used to be and has transformed Don into an almost unstoppable juggernaut of destruction, when working properly, that is. The internal nuclear power-core of the suit feeds directly into the main weapon-systems of the armour, twin short-range plasma projectors mounted in the palms of the gauntlets. When activated they project a stable plasma-cutting field out to a distance of 3-6 feet vaguely sword-shaped in nature. Though obviously limited by their short range, these fields can cut through nearly any known substance and inflict grievous wounds on most living organisms. To avoid draining the power-core too severely the fields are normally projected for no longer than a few seconds at a time though this is normally more than adequate to slice or burn through whatever might be at the receiving end of the blow. The technology behind this weapon-system is still not fully understood, least of all by Don himself, but so far he has adamantly refused any and all inquiries from scientists interested in examining them closer.
Aside from the plasma-projectors the suit is capable of utilizing the reactor core itself as a weapon by venting the super-heated and highly combustible gasses that build up inside the suit during operation through external exhaust ports both in a focused line in front of him, effectively working as a flame-thrower, or as a searing inferno around himself.
The suit can also initiate a controlled reactor overload which boosts the energy output to exponential levels above the operating norm, rendering Don almost utterly unstoppable for a brief period of time. Unfortunately, this state cannot be safely sustained for more than 3 minutes at a time without risking a catastrophic meltdown and cataclysmic self-destruction, and the emergency shut-down procedure that must be initiated to prevent this not only shuts down the suit completely but also leaves Donald in tremendous agony from neural feedback, not to mention a sensation of being boiled alive in his own armour.
In addition, the suit offers exceptional protection against nearly all sources of physical damage, includes considerable psionic dampening technology (pirated from Vanguard anti-Rikti tech) and has several hours worth of internal air-supply. The suit is also capable of injecting concentrated doses of Endorphines and painkillers directly into his bloodstream to countermand injury and keep him fighting and on his feet despite horrific injury. Highly advanced scanners and targeting devices allows Donald to detect most hidden and/or invisible foes and the suit currently sports an experimental phase-shifting and teleportation device as well though both remain untested.
Rocket-powered jump jets
Don's powered armour is far too heavy to make flight a viable option as the thrust-to-mass ration required would render such an upgrade far too bulky and energy draining. Instead, rocket-assisted jump jets allow him to traverse long distances swiftly and, in most cases, get within striking reach of airborne enemies.
Leadership
Don has extensive experience in small-units tactics and is a skilled leader both in and off the field. He has decades of experience as a military (and paramilitary) instructor and can usually motivate whatever team he's currently leading to go that extra mile. When wearing his powered armour his normal position is usually in the heat of battle which somewhat limits his tactical awareness and scope. Outside of the suit, he is much more capable of bringing the full weight of his skills and experience to bear.
Abilities
Don had completed basic British military and junior officers training and is highly skilled at personal combat (armed and unarmed), marksmanship and small units tactics. He has over 2 decades of experience as a mercenary, military instructor and personal aide with successfully completed "tours of duty" in such diverse theatres as Congo, Zimbabwe, Ex-Yugoslavia and Kosovo, Somalia, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Lebanon and Syria.
He also speaks passable German, French and Spanish.
Weaknesses and Limitations
Outside his suit, Donald is only human, and slightly over-the-hill at that. Until recently, His right arm, which he lost several years ago in Russia had been replaced with an extremely temperamental low-grade cybernetic prosthesis which was prone to malfunction at inopportune times, causing him no end of grief. However, after a run-in with the Black Scorpion left him one-armed yet again he has had the missing limb replaced with a state-of-the art model custom built for him by some of Sin's finest in the field. It is doubtful that this new arm will prove nearly the problem for him that the old one did, but the psychological ramifications of the loss might still return to haunt him in the future.
Even with the psionic dampeners installed in his helmet, Don still remains quite vulnerable to mental assaults and psionic attacks and outside of his suit he's got nothing but his own stubborn will to resist such tampering with.
Due to the extensive modification, jury-rigging and haphazard combination of wildly varying technology Don's armour is temperamental at best. Under extreme duress, individual systems are prone to unexpected malfunction or extremely erratic behaviour. In most cases, Don's familiarity with the suit, and the extensive number of back-up systems and emergency procedures prevents this from becoming a serious issue but this is, unfortunately, not always the case.
Despite extensive therapy by doctor Cohen, Don's mind is still deeply scarred from the deeds of his past and the bleeding wounds on his soul remains an obvious Achilles' heel for any enemy able to exploit them. Don tries to keep his own mind and subconsciousness strictly under control at all times but he has been known to fall prey to his own mind, even during combat situations before.
His short temper, stubborn streak and rather acidic tongue often puts him in difficult positions in social situations and even at the best of times "diplomatic" is never a word one would use to describe him.
Finally, the deep-seated love and affection he feels towards Kira Sin, his recently realised attraction to Mhia and his newly awakened paternal feelings for Karen Ward could all easily be used against him as he'd recklessly expose himself to almost any kind of danger in order to assist or aid either of them.
Character History
Donald Brook never had a privileged life, growing up in the lower-class neighbourhood of Aston in Birmingham, England. Saddled with an explosive combination of a fiery temper and a razored tongue Donald spent most of his youth getting himself or others in trouble, including a glorious, if short, career with the Aston Villa hooligan firm, the C-Crew, until he decided to try out military life to get some order on his existence. This proved the ideal environment for the young Brook, until one day his temper got the better of him again, ultimately resulting in a dishonourable discharge. From there Donald exploded into the shady scene of the mercenary, making quite a name for himself as a soldier of fortune, finding himself in the heat of conflict in trouble-spots all over the world. It was while serving as a personal aide of a Turkmeni dictator that he was presented with his suit of armour, the forgotten result of an old Soviet super-soldier program. A revolt eventually put an end to the job, but Brook kept the armour and set course for Rogues Island to make a new name for himself, as Flambard.
Once in the Isles Don quickly became part of Sin Enterprises powered security staff where he eventually rose through the ranks to his current position as a Tactical Response Agent. Recently, his job with Sin has also lead him to be re-united with a daughter he never knew he had and a surprising romantic relationship with his 22-year old boss, Director of Sin Enterprises, Kira Sin.
Presently, a series of bewildering events have seen him suffer both a temporary paranoid breakdown and a suspension placing him on forced medical leave from which he is currently recovering, as well as a shocking new budding romantic relationship with his long time co-worker and favoured "minion" Mhia with disastrous consequences for her marriage. Curiously, his relationship with Kira seems to have suffered no damage whatsoever from this surprising development. How Mhia's soon-to-be Ex-husband, former Sin Enterprises employee Esteban Montilla also known as as Naipe, will react to this remains to be seen.
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