Copland's Application

Name: Hunter Hardwick
Nicknames: Hardwick

Looks

Age: 26 years old
Gender: Male
Eyes color: Brown
Hair color: Brown-black
Height: 5' 10"
Weight: 150lbs
Physical Description: Hunter has a very youthful appearance and a lean but athletic build. He wears geek chic in the real world, as he works indoors at a software company. He needs glasses for reading the computer screen. Given his nerdiness, Hunter still spends real life time in the gym. Being fit in the real world helps his performance in the virtual one.

Personal Details

Family and Friends: As an orphan who’s parents made their living swindling others, Hunter is only really close to his fellow co-workers at Mainframe. The closest person to him is his company mentor and supervisor, Grimm. The grumpy old man is like a father to him. One who made sure Hunter used his skills to assist others.
Birthday: February 17
Occupation: Mainframe, Inc. IT
Strengths: Great problem solver, almost as if he was born knowing how to fix computers.
Weakness/Flaw: Never really had a stable family structure until later on in his life, therefore he has no real bonds to anyone.
Residence: Mainframe, Inc headquarters
Personality: Hunter is the stereotypical geek, as evidenced by the t-shirts he wears. He lives in the guts of the computers he works on. He is very easy going.

HISTORY
Hunter had a rather unusual childhood. He was the son of two enterprising parents. Yet it seemed odd that they were the only employees for such a seemingly sizeable company. He never questioned it and went about his life as though nothing was wrong. Hunter started taking computer classes in high school and had quite the knack for various programs. After taking a course in website design, his parents asked him to build one for their company. And that’s where his life turned upside down.

It turned out that Mr. and Mrs. Hardwick were running a Ponzi scheme out of their kitchen. The website started generating too much attention towards their little project, which brought down the FBI and the IRS upon the family. Hunter was still a minor at the time and the district attorney did not believe his involvement with the scheme was criminal. It was argued that that his own involvement actually put an end to the fraud. Unfortunately, that meant Hunter no longer had any sort of legal guardian as he had no other next of kin. He had taken a few paid jobs during the summer vacations building websites. This gave him grounds to file for emancipation at the age of sixteen.

Hunter got into college through academic scholarships. He majored in software engineering and computer repair. While not a 4.0 student, he still attracted the attention of an IT firm known as Mainframe, Inc. They hired him right out of college, and he has spent the last five years in their employ. He is now the supervisor of his department, which does a lot of work inside the Conduit. He gets paid to perform system updates and repairs inside the construct.




Handle: Copland
Nickname: Copland

Looks

Gender: Male
Eyes color: Brown
Hair color: Brown-black
Height: 5' 10"
Weight: 150lbs
Physical Description: Same as the real world; however, Copland has no need for glasses. His body armor (see the above picture) makes him look like a superhero, but he doesn't always wear the cloak. When not geared for a particular Adventure, he wears a metallic blue wet suit with reinforced black shoulders and knees. A black segmented utility belt holds all his gear.
Goal: Copland is actually quite content with his life. He's got a job inside the Conduit, to the envy of most of the players. He'd actually like to have more free time within the construct. Perhaps even upgrade the Pathfinder and enter it into the big space races. He has no desire to become a cyber-celebrity.

Playby: Joseph Gordon-Levitt


Personal Details

Occupation: Fixer (internal system repairs)
Affiliation: Mainframe, Inc.
Play style: Copland is a wanderer, drifting from system to system and affecting any repairs he either stumbles upon or gets contracted out to do. This allows him to meet new people all the time. If a player has a vessel, he might sign on to be the mechanic as payment for his travels.
Residence: His ship, the Pathfinder.

Abilities

Skills: Copland seems to have a knack for understanding the base code of the Conduit. He can perform in game system repairs almost as fast as any diagnostic program. Understanding the rules of the worlds makes him a jack of all trades wherever he goes. However, he is not as great a caster as one would expect. He prefers weapons for offense instead of magic. He is an expert hacker, which ironically helps him repair a wide variety of things. In order to fix something, you have to know how it was broken. He can go in and bypass system code to start repairs.

Crafting Skill: Copland can build just about anything he needs from the materials at hand. These items only make temporary fixes, although he can devote more time to create his own modifications. The only things he does make for sale are some customized tool kits.

Inventory

Equipment:
Utility belt- Copland’s standard issue Mainframe, Inc. inventory device. It always has a diagnostic and repair kit stored inside.

Hovercam: This clay pigeon sized disc is remotely controlled by Gadget (see Artifacts) and has a built in camera. Copland sends it on ahead to scout out potentially dangerous sectors or to just get into a spot he cannot fit in.

Egyptian Reaper’s ankh: While it looks like two katanas joined at the hilt, this weapon is called Egyptian for some reason. Copland learned two weapon fighting in case he runs out of bullets.

Edgetech Pistol: The extended barrel increases the effective range without reducing the stopping power. It also serves as a “Don’t Mess With Me” statement.


Armor: When it comes down to getting dirty, Copland opts for the armor seen above. The is made of a heavy duty leather that still allows a great range of motion. Its gauntlets are reinforced to parry melee attacks. The rest of the armor set is black tactical pants with boots.

Battle Cloak: This tightly woven fabric is resistant to knife strikes and grazing bullets. When in a defensive stance around his body, the cloak increases Copland's defensive stats. It makes him a bigger target, but the surface area masks where his body actually is. Since the cloak obstructs the view of other people, Copland can hide when he is drawing a weapon from them. A successful cloaked strike does not take into account all of the opponent's defenses on the initial strike. Copland can lash out with the edges of the cloak to disarm, grapple, or blind an opponent by covering the face. The edges of the cloak are also woven with a special material that can slice exposed skin.

Artifacts: Gadget- a circular shaped device strapped over the back of Copland’s left hand. Gadget is a mildly intelligent diagnostic computer that can scan for a problem and offer repair suggestions. It is also a voice activated multitool that rearranges itself to match the configuration of a named tool. For example: If Copland calls out “Gadget, arm”, the artifact seems to grow a crane arm to assist in the handling of components. Gadget can form itself into basic handheld tools and has a few energy based functions as well. Since Gadget and Copland work for a repair company, Gadget has been designed to function on planets like Rorgar where advanced technology is usually deactivated. On these worlds, the multitool resembles an oversized pocket watch and the individual tools look either clockwork or steampunk.

Ring of Force: This clear crystal ring grants the wearer basic telekinetic powers. Copland can create a barrier of mental force before him to block a flurry of bullets or hold back a small group of humanoids. It is taxing, so the barrier only lasts for a few seconds. The only exception to this is if he uses the barrier for a passive purpose like to plug a hole or build a temporary bridge. The ring also lets him push or pull a handheld object within a twenty foot radius. It is good for getting that hammer he dropped from the top of the ladder.

Onslaught Crossbow: This six shooter revolving crossbow came from a steampunk planet Copland did some work on. A special chamber located under the rear scope converts mana into bolts, loading the bolts into the empty portion of the chamber. A dial in the stock changes the bolt type between fire, cold, shadow and electric. Fire and electric bolts glow red and blue respectively, meaning their path can be tracked. Cold and shadow bolts are more difficult to see, making them great stealth bolts. The chamber recharges slowly on its own on a magical planet. Otherwise, Copland must refill it with a full mana crystal. Refilling in this mana takes the same amount of time as reloading a mundane crossbow. Copland still has to pull back on the bowstring before firing again.

Vehicles: Copland owns an air board, a device that resembles a surf board. As the name suggests, air boards move through the air in any direction. It stows away into a blade when he is not riding it. The board follows Copland like a loyal pet if it is activated but not being currently used. It is great for moving short distances in fast amounts of time. Copland can make a quick scouting run and return in a matter of minutes. While he could use it to travel around a planet, there are far more efficient means. However, the board allows him to get to areas not reachable by standard vehicles. Travelling on the board automatically generates a pair of goggles to protect his eyes. If used in conjunction with the wetsuit, Copland can perform space walks. The combination generates a personal shield from the simulated vacuum of space as well as an oxygen supply if the board has sufficient power levels. Like Gadget, the board has been modified to operate on planets like Rorgar. It turns into a ten by ten foot Persian rug.

Pathfinder: Copland owns a personal transport vessel that is light on both armor and weapons. It is very maneuverable, although it has taken fire a few times. There are weapons mounted on the wing tips so it is not completely useless in a dogfight. It serves as his in game home, providing a bed and a kitchen for the purposes of healing his avatar. There is also a basic medical and cargo bay. Another view.


RP SAMPLE
The Pathfinder touched down in the Core space docks. Copland ran through the post flight system shutdown and made his way to the customs desk. There were a few crates of spare parts he had offered to run to the central planet on behalf of a small business on Samora. The agent scanned the code inside the cargo blade and waved him on through. Fortunately, his contact was already waiting for him in the terminal. Copland accepted the trade request and placed the blade in the man’s hand, simultaneously getting credits added to his account. The two nodded their thanks and went on their separate ways.

Finding the exit, the Mainframer joined the rest of the crowd trying to get out into the hustle and bustle of the digital city. It must have been rush hour because there was no way he was going to hail a cab in this traffic. But he didn’t need roads. Copland fished another blade out of his utility and pressed the button before tossing it on the ground. A surf board grew out of the compact dimensions and floated half a foot above the ground. Copland stepped onto the board and adjusted his vision as protective goggles instantly formed over his eyes. It was particularly bright today, so he was glad for the accessory.

He joined the aerial traffic and swung his left arm before him. “Gadget, system scan.” A screen formed on the wrist mounted circular device. Numbers and figures accessed the Mainframe, Inc. network and searched for any problems on Core. Of course there weren’t any, but it was a good habit for the internal repair man to maintain. The device beeped, letting him know he was receiving a call. “Answer,” he replied.

The screen switched from zeros and ones to his handler inside the Conduit. Copland could have opened up a vidwindow, but that violated the hands free law….not to mention the window would obstruct his view of traffic. “Hey, Dixon. Did something change while I broke atmo?”

[npc]Just a simple job for you. Merle’s Dress Shop reported a small tear just formed in the front door. You’re the closest one to it and I hoped you’d be able to swing by real quick.[/npc]

“No problem, boss. I’m actually coming up on it right now. See you soon. Tell Grimm I said hello.”

Copland guessed Dixon nodded and signed off, because he didn’t hear anything else from her. Grimm was his old mentor and usually didn’t like to be disturbed. Dixon was probably just going to wait until the obvious grump came in with a better mood. He angled his board for the shop and made sure his badge was in place. Tears weren’t anything serious, but they made people uncomfortable.

{I guess there is a rational fear of your avatar getting shredded to bits by a line of unstable code.}

The fixer landed just before the tear. There were plenty of onlookers, but they knew well enough to stay back. “Gadget, patch.” The device detached from his wrist and zoomed off towards the rip. A conical beam emitted from the screen face and enveloped the tear. After a moment of analysis, the floating crack in the reality engine grew together like an accelerated healing skin wound. The multitool went back to its perch when all was set.

Copland stepped off the board and into the shop. His ride maneuvered through the door after him. “It’s all taken care of. Anything else I can do for you?” he asked the shopkeeper. Merle shook her head and thanked him for his trouble. He assured it was no bother and smiled as his credit count rose for the second time today.