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Name: Centaur Prime
Age: mid 20s
Gender: Male
Species/Race: Theataur (Centaur variant)
Height: ~6' at head, ~3' at shoulder (joint between lower and upper torsos)
Length: ~6' lower torso, ~6' tail
Main (lower) Wingspan: ~10' (tip to tip, fully extended)
Secondary (upper) Wingspan: ~5' (tip to tip, fully extended)
Weight: ~350 Lbs.
Build: Compact but muscular
Fur(Scale) Color: Chameleon color shifting from black through brown to green, usual color is black.
Eye Color: Brown
Clothing: construction/paint gear w/ Safety harness, welding cape, Run crew blacks w/ optional safety harness, or casual cape.
Occupation: Theater Technician, amerature programer.
Affiliations: Ariel (Familiar of sorts, see notes), MSU Local 42, No affiliation with the Gaming Guardians (but see notes).
Accessories:CASES, CASES accessories, bio-battery packs, talisman, belt bag w/ water bottle holder, subspace storage portal in CASES/backpack.
Pets: None
Abilities/Skills & Power Level: flight capabilities (up to ~50-60 MPH forward speed with tail wind, ~10,000 foot altitude ceiling), limited telepathy, echolocation, good with electronics, programming, construction, and lighting.
Weaknesses: While in use (as it is most of the time), Centaur Prime's CASES unit, while quite useful, is also a source of weakness. The CASES unit is not EMP resistant. The results of an EMP blast can range from annoying to deadly. On the weak end of the scale, radio communications can be disrupted. On the deadly end of the scale, the pulse running through the nurolink would cause a violent muscle spasm, leading to death from heart failure or other cause. Intermediate levels include breaker trips and a 'soft kill' (RAM wipe), a headache accompanying a 'hard kill' (magnetic media wipe), and a KO accompanying a disablement of the CASES system.
A related weakness is the Neurolink. If someone were to control the other end of the Neurolink connection, they would have full access to Centaur Prime's mind, and the ability to use him as a puppet. An efficient way to accomplish such a task is to compromise (take over) the CASES unit. As a result, he tends to be somewhat paranoid when it comes to security of the system.
To accomplish the trick of using echolocation, a sharp sense of hearing is required. The tradeoff for this sense is a vulnerability to loud noises.
Vulnerable to extended cold tempratures.
Special Effects (if any): Limited shape and color shifting
Personality: Warped sense of humor, creative, relatively friendly
Brief History: (In Progress)
Ambition: To work at a theater on his home planet's equivalent of Broadway.
Notes:
A Theataur is a lizard based 'taur, with elements of a bat and an owl for the vertical components. The feet are gecko-like to permit the climbing of many surfaces. Each foot has three forward toes and one backwards toe. The bottom of all toes and the foot have the adhesive surface of a gecko's feet. The horizontal torso has owl-like wings to assist with levitation. The vertical torso is bat-like, with hands at the tips of the wings. These hands have an opposable thumb and two fingers. The head is that of an owl. Instead of a mix of skin coverings, the skin consists of chameleon-like scales that have a wide range of possible color shifts. Theataurs are somewhere between being warm and cold blooded. It is possible for a theataur to control his/her body temperature to some extent, but not as well as a normal warm blooded creature could. Part of the control method is in the IR transparency/reflectivity of the scales. If you were to look at a theataur in the IR spectrum, some heat emissions could be spotted. For those curious about such things, Theataurs are an egg laying species. Some reference sketches can be found here.
Special note for recent Sandu Visitors: A Theataur superficially resembles a Gryffin nestling. Gryffins are more avestrian, while Theataurs are more reptilian. This is evident in the 'skin' of both species. Gryffins have a surface that's a cross between feather and scales, while Theataurs have a surface primarily composed of scales. Gryffin tails are broad and flat, while Theataur tails are rounder. Gryffin feet are more tallonlike, while Theataur feet are almost finger-like. Gryffins also lack the bat wings that Theataurs have.
In general, creatures from Centaur Prime's home world have few magical skills, although there are exceptions. In general, few are able to perform any magical tricks beyond the level of what could be considered cantips. An example of such magic are things like making a lock resistant to picking or conjuring a salt and pepper set. Similarly, telepathy is something of a dormant trait in most individuals. At one time, being telepathic was a useful trait, but the coming of electricity and other "modern" methods of communication rendered this trait less useful. Ironically, the creation of a workable neurological interface made this trait somewhat more desirable. The scientists developing this interface found that the dormant section of the brain used for telepathic operations was a convenient pathway into the mind for transmitting other information. In Centaur Prime's case, sendings are very weak at best (intense focus and physical contact are required, along with the receiver being a good telepath), and non-existent normally. When connected to the CASES nurolink interface, active sending is impossible. On the receiving side, Centaur Prime is only able to receive strong messages, either very powerful area broadcasts, or strong directed broadcasts. Weaker messages may be received, but under normal circumstances, the nurolink overpowers the reception. Mind reading is somewhat possible, although some natural barriers exist. Centaur Prime's emotional state is reasonably easy to read, along with any passive telepathic transmissions or stray surface thoughts. Deeper thoughts and long term memories are much more difficult to read, although a highly skilled telepath probably would be able to. A unique mental signature can be located if a telepath is searching for one, although it too is somewhat faint.
Centaur Prime also has the ability to shape shift to a pair of alternate forms, although the majority of the time, he's in his Theataur form. The first form is that of a traditional centaur of about the same size/shape of Centaur Prime. The fur color is a reflective silvery color and the tail is a brilliant gold. While in the centaur form, he is unable to fly, but has a faster ground speed. The second form is that of a harpy. The harpy form is as tall as his other forms are, but doesn't have the rear legs and lower torso of the other forms. The body is black and the hair is red. It is better adapted for flight than the other forms, but is slower than the other forms at walking and lacks the hands of the other forms. While in Theataur form, Centaur Prime is able to color shift in a spectrum ranging from black through brown to green. Some shifts in IR characteristics occur, but they are refleive rather than controlable.
CASES stands for Computer Augmented Sensory Enhancement System. CASES is a computer that is mounted in a backpack. The computer can run at different speeds, consuming different amounts of power. Centaur Prime's unit has 4 CPUs, and 2 or 3 of the CPUs can be shut down to conserve power while permitting the computer to still run. When the computer runs at normal/full speed and all CPUs are active, the primary battery can typically last 12 hours if no energy-intensive accessories are used. If the system is clocked down to low/emergency speed and 3 of the CPUs are shut off, the 12 hours can be stretched to 24 hours. If the main battery is exhausted, an emergency 2-hour battery can be used in emergency mode only. The computer is able to interface with a variety of hardware. Some of the hardware that is typically used include network cards (tethered or wireless), a cryptographic coprocessor, a matrix-style nurolink, a combination HUD and headset unit (video display, headphones, microphone, electronic glare filter (usually used for welding), IR/low light camera, and a normal camera), welding gloves (requires external power source and gas tank), sensor gloves (useful for probing circuit boards, and other delicate circuitry), input gloves (used for virtual input devices or keyboard type input devices), a radar unit, an aircraft navigation system, and video input devices.
Some time before entering the dream, Centaur Prime found an old talisman. The talisman is a leather disk, about the size of a coster, with numerous runes engraved on it in a small font. The different runes glow depending on what spells are active and what state they are in. Attached to the back of the talisman is a lightweight cord that the talisman hangs from. Soon after finding it, he discovered that it was much more than it appeared to be. Some time in the past (~300 years before), Ariel had been bound to the talisman by a malicious magician. By accident, Centaur Prime summoned her from the pocket dimension within the talisman. After some initial problems, Centaur Prime gradually became friends with Ariel and accepted her as a business type partner.
In addition to being a living place of sorts, the talisman also contains several other enchantments. These enchantments are a binding spell (attached to Ariel and her bracelet.), a pocket dimension, a confinement spell, an anti-loss spell, a magic limiter spell, and a trap spell. The anti-loss spell prevents the owner of the talisman (Centaur Prime) from losing it or having it stolen. The pocket dimension provides a living space for Ariel inside the talisman. The confinement spell allows the owner of the talisman to force and keep any bound creatures in or out of the dimension. Centaur Prime almost never uses the spell. The limiter spell limits the strength of the magic used by anyone bound to it or touching the bracelet. It also limits the magic use by anyone inside the pocket dimension. If anyone under the limiter spell exceeds the limit, they freeze for a some amount of time while under the influence of the spell. The trap spell is present on the talisman, but is inactive. It can only be activated by the owner of the talisman. With some assistance from Kabbalist, the talisman was carefully modified to allow it to be controlled from a card that can be connected to Centaur Prime's CASES unit.
The bio-battery packs are external battery packs that can be used to extend the time needed between recharges for the CASES unit. Unlike conventional batteries, these are biological devices, and are recharged through biological processes. The primary fuel source for these batteries is refined sugar, although simple starches (such as flour) also work. Drawbacks of these batteries include a need for the batteries to breath, and an inability to provide high-amperage currents. These batteries are also still in the late beta stage. Development was halted when Hole in the Wall Labs shut down, although Centaur Prime kept the beta unit. The beta unit has 3 cells. They are housed in a beltbag package that Centaur Prime wears around the joining point for his torsos.
Within the Gaming Guardians organization, a being with the name of Centaur Prime holds the position of Guardian Staff Sergent for Logistics. This being is essentially a carbon copy of the Centaur Prime in the Dream, but is a distinct entity. The two do not share memories, and the Dream version of Centaur Prime is unaware of the existence of his GG counterpart. Both versions are controlled by the same PG. Any actions by the GG version will be in green, rather than black. Posts by the GG version will also have a signature designating the rank within the Guardians.
Quotes, art, old threads, and stuff:
Intro (Napping Cat Theataur)
Cookout at Two Thousand Feet
MZDM Awards Ceremony
Gifts from Vanvanarmo
Hole-In-the-Wall Labs II
Hole-In-the-Wall Labs III
Kabbalist's Cottage
Theataur and small sprite,
Centaur Prime and Ariel,
backstage's their calling.
- Haiku by Porter
Gecko lizard, bat and owl
A Theataur is on the prowl
Not showing off on stage like me
But past the curtain you will see
I only shine for you tonight
when Centaur Prime provides the light
--Val's Incantation
Of noble feathers all in a row,
the elegant Centaur takes up the call.
Never to be put off by such things as duty,
he's there in a flash to put down any that might cause a snotty.
Never fear for he is of loyal breeding,
our constant watch and monitor of stature,
Centaur.
--Poem by Silver Fox
Sprite image by Thalamasa
Drawing by Drake Stormm
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