Zippyist
From Unofficial Handbook of the Virtue Universe
| |
| "I'm a plant!" | |
| Zippyist | |
| Player: @Michael Pullman | |
| Origin: | Magic |
|---|---|
| Archetype: | Controller |
| Security Level: | 50 (retired/deleted) |
| Personal Data | |
| Real Name: | unknown |
| Known Aliases: | Howshouldiknow, Whothehellareyou |
| Species: | Human |
| Age: | unknown |
| Height: | 5' 6" |
| Weight: | 112 pounds |
| Eye Color: | Black |
| Hair Color: | Black |
| Biographical Data | |
| Nationality: | England |
| Occupation: | alchemist, wizard, minor deity, retired hero |
| Place of Birth: | Canterbury, England |
| Base of Operations: | 6th Dimension |
| Marital Status: | unknown |
| Known Relatives: | unknown |
| Known Powers | |
| Earth Control, Storm Summoning, Fire Mastery | |
| Known Abilities | |
| Omnipotence | |
| Equipment | |
| Black Hooded Cloak | |
| No additional information available. | |
Contents |
Overview
The Zippyist was a Magic Controller in Paragon City. He was a member of the supergroup, Do-Gooders. He has been retired from heroing.
Background
Description
The Zippyist is a wizard from ancient times. Having first discovered the secret of immortality, he went on to research other magics, such as clairvoyance, elementalism, and time travel. Alas, millenia of knowledge-seeking has obviously taken a toll on him, as he exhibits unusual and erratic behavior.
History
Upon arrival in Paragon City, the Zippyist began searching for his black hooded cloak, which supposedly helped him to control his powers. Eventually, however, he opted to buy a new one from ICON instead-- it turned out that the cloak simply served as a storage compartment and as a handy place to stick Post-It reminders.
In Zippyist Stand-In, the Zippyist went on a brief vacation, leaving a local actor his powers to fill in for him. Things were largely uneventful, and his teammates were glad to have someone less insane along. And after a couple of weeks, the Zippyist returned, a healthy shade of red and sprouting horns and goat legs.
In Psychic Clockwork King, M.D., after defeating the Psychic Clockwork King, the Zippyist regained his sanity. They had struck a deal-- in return for repressing the uncontrolled influx of knowledge that drove the Zippyist mad, he would in turn restore the Psychic Clockwork King's body and return him to his own world after his services were no longer necessary.
The Psychic Clockwork King promptly attempted to take over the Zippyist's body, but the Zippyist deceived him and planted images into his brain to make it seem as if he had taken over and conquered the world using the Zippyist's powers.
The Psychic Clockwork King's brain was then handed to Sadie Shear for safe-keeping, but that turned out to be a bad idea, as Sadie Shear went mad shortly afterwards and kept the Zippyist at bay with the brain while calling a nuclear strike on Paragon City.
In Because Being a God Means Never Having to Say..., the Zippyist revealed his past. As an alchemist-turned-wizard-turned-minor deity, the Zippyist brought the powers of godhood to other humans. Unfortunately, against his wishes, these humans attempted to overthrow the other gods. After wiping out a timeline from existence in order to lure the gods out, they were in turn wiped from existence by the gods for being too dangerous to spare.
These events led to internal strife between the gods. Lughebu, who initially aided the Zippyist's disciples, was banished from the Pantheon. Ermeeth brought magic to his followers so they could protect themselves from the Zippyist's disciples, forcing Hequat to bring magic to her own followers in order to eliminate them in an attempt to purge magic from the multiverse.
Exasperated and angry, the gods punished the Zippyist by giving him the infinite knowledge of the gods in one dose (driving him mad instantly) and then banishing him into the timestream.
But now, with the Psychic Clockwork King's brain keeping him sane, the Zippyist could turn his attention toward requesting an audience with the gods to ask for forgiveness and to restore his sanity. Several multidimensional murals and various tasks of appeasement later, the gods decided to hear his plea. Temporarily arriving from the 6th dimension to possess his teammates, they agreed to give him another chance, and sent an angel to help him work on controlling the infinite knowledge of the gods.
The Zippyist opted to keep his part of the bargain with the treacherous Psychic Clockwork King, returning him back to his own world in a new (Clockwork) body.
Able to appreciate life again, the Zippyist left Paragon City to wander the timestream once again.
Personality
While mad, the Zippyist would exhibit erratic, unpredictable behavior. He sometimes attempts to attack his allies and even himself as well as his enemies. Often, he would tell his teammates completely different objectives than his contacts had set forth. The Zippyist also takes on different personas. Some personas were that of a commando, a Magical Girl, a surgeon, a smurf, a luchador, and a member of the Freakshow.
When sane, the Zippyist is coherent, yet apathetic and indifferent to the events around him, writing it off as fate. He will occasionally have an outburst of insanity, especially when mezzed.
The Zippyist has the following quirks:
Infinite Knowledge of the Gods Self +Knowledge, -Sanity
You possess the Infinite Knowledge of the Gods-- you are omniscient. Alas, the overwhelming amount of knowledge is a blessing and a curse; not only is the mind unprepared for such volumes, it is also unprepared for the shocking truths of the multiverse. This power costs no endurance and is always on.
Godly Wisdom (Only Level 40+) Self +Sanity
Your Godly Wisdom allows you to be open to all knowledge. While activated, Godly Wisdom greatly increases your Sanity.
Powers
Having studied magic for millenia, the Zippyist has quite an arsenal at the ready. As well as his clairvoyance, time travel abilities, and transmutation skills, he can also control the elements. The Zippyist favors this skill in battle, as it is the first form of magic he learned since obtaining immortality.
Earth
The Zippyist has the very earth at his beck and call. He can cause the ground beneath his opponent to swallow his enemies, or to soften up and snag them. He can also summon "Dan," a being made from rock.
Wind
The Zippyist has the power of wind, storm, and lightning at his fingertips. He can violently change the weather, causing gale winds, sleet, hurricanes, and even lightning storms in specific locations. He can also summon "Bob," a being of pure wind, to harass his foes.
Fire
The Zippyist has the ability to conjure fire and fling it at his enemies. He can hurl fireballs, which explode and splatter on impact and scorches the surroundings.
Time and Space Mastery
With the ability to control time and space itself, the Zippyist can travel anytime any anywhere he pleases.
Trivia
- The concept of the Zippyist is taken from Exile, Michael Pullman's online avatar.
- "Zippyist" is derived from "zippy," a derogatory term for godmoders in the old Webchat Broadcasting System's NinRPG chatroom. The term "Zippyist" was coined in an attempt to create a distinction between god-roleplayers and godmoders.
- According to the Zippyist, "Zippyist" is a corruption of "Zp'ist," which means "Limitless" in the ancient arcane language.
- A story arc had originally been planned where one of the Zippyist's old disciples return from hiding to assassinate him out of vengeance. Due to time factors, this story never occurred.
