Asclepius Strength Agility Intellect Willpower 7x 8x 8d 9x Hand Size: 3 (17) Edge: 1 Known Powers: Immortality (s): Asclepius has grown to become an immortal being. He can be killed in battle (or by vengeful gods) but he'll eventually recover unless specific pains are made to keep him from coming back. His deific origins provide an impetus for the following abilities: * Regeneration / Disease Remission (s): supplementing his healing power, this ability allows Asclepius to cleanse a body of harmful, outside influences - whether they be virulent diseases or toxic compounds. He may do this with intensity 22 skill. * Regeneration / Healing (s): his true sphere of influence, Asclepius has the power to heal others. Wielding this power at intensity 22, he can easily heal all the wounds of any mortal in one go, granting them all of their lost cards at the beginning of the next exchange. * Regeneration / Raising the Dead (s): the power that got him in trouble to begin with, this ability allows Asclepius to actually raise the dead! He may wield this power at intensity 22, and is not limited by the duration a body has been deceased by any means. * Invulnerability to Disease and Toxins (s): in addition to his ability to cure a body of these ailments, Asclepius is essentially immune to them himself. In other words, he is resistant to the deleterious effects of toxins and plague (including drugs) no matter how deadly they are. Equipment: Rod of Asclepius (w): the Rod of Asclepius ( ? ) is a symbol of healing and medicine world wide, even if people tend to confuse it with the Caduceus. This powerful artifact serves to focus Asclepius' powers, granting him a +3 on all healing efforts. It is unknown if the Rod will allow others to wield the power of healing or will simply enhance their own skills and powers. At the very least, it should provide practitioners of Medicine a +3 to any medical actions, and if one has healing powers, it should improve them by a like amount. Hindrances: (none) Skills: Medicine: it may go without saying but Asclepius is a master of the medical sciences, having learned everything he knows form the revered centaur, Chiron. A world class surgeon, Asclepius can perform medicinal miracles even without the use of his deific abilities. Calling: Protector: though he's been known to take sides in past conflicts, Asclepius has since grown considerably, being worshiped by many people around the world. As such, he's likely to hand out liberal doses of healing to those he finds worthy - or unworthies that can meet his price. Costume: Whether or not he deigns to present himself to mortal beings, Asclepius tends to wear the same, simple garb. It primarily consists of a loose white toga and a pair of comfortable sandals. Of course, the 'look' would not be complete without his Rod in hand at all times. Personality: Asclepius is a powerful proponent for mortals, wielding his healing arts fast and loose in order to help them in their time of need. Of course he has been known to do this for the love of money, a trait that has gotten him into hot water on more than one occasion. Real Name: Asclepius (pronounced 'as klee pee ahs') Occupation: Greek god of medicine Legal Status: citizen of the multi-planar realm of Olympus Marital Status: single Alias(es), if any: Veiovis (Roman name) Group Affiliation: the Gods of Olympus Height: 6' Hair: blonde Eyes: brown Weight: 185 lbs Other Distinguishing Characteristics: Asclepius wears a full beard and moustache, and has rather curly hair. Story: The child of Apollo and Coronis, Asclepius almost died with his mother, herself the victim of a jealous rage his father felt upon finding she'd been unfaithful to him. Of course, Apollo rescued the unborn child from Coronis' womb, and thus was Asclepius born (after a fashion). Given to the centaur Chiron to raise, Asclepius learned the very best of the age's medical arts, skills he honed healing many a hero over the years. He was even present in the battle of Troy in fact, fighting alongside the Achaeans and he even cured Philoctetes after his famous snake bite. Asclepius led a reasonably full life, marrying Epione and having eight children with her. His six daughters each bore a power representative of his own mastery of medicine, and his two sons had successful careers as surgeons and medics. Life seemed to be good for the young doctor. Though wildly popular with his fellow Greeks, Asclepius quickly found his way onto the bad side of the gods. You see, he had a habit of wielding his talents to go so far as to resurrect the dead, sometimes as favors, sometimes for money, and Hades was not amused. Going so far as to petition Zeus in the matter, Hades caused the lord of the Greek gods to smite Asclepius for his troubles, striking him down with one of his mighty thunder bolts. Naturally Apollo took exception to his son being wiped out thus, so Zeus at least made one concession. Collecting Asclepius' remains, Zeus scattered them into the sky, where Asclepius became a part of the constellation Ophiuchus in honor of his good works. The idea was that Asclepius would live on in the memory of men forever - which is sort of what happened, after a fashion. You see, Asclepius developed a rather strong following after this, eventually ascending to godhood himself. Evidence of this left in the mortal realm includes temples built in his honor, the Asclepieion, and remnants of his cult, which became popular around 300 B.C. Asclepius was so popular in fact that he had others trying to cash in on his fame, such as the false prophet Alexander. This fellow was so shameless that he would praise the word of 'Glycon', a snake puppet he would introduce as a new aspect of Asclepius himself. Modern Day Potential: Though it's not readily apparent to most, facets of Asclepius linger on even in modern day society. For example, many medical institutions sport the image of the Rod of Asclepius even now. These include the American, Australian and Canadian Medical Associations, just to name a few. Furthermore, the original Hippocratic oath invoked Asclepius' name. Such signs could point to the possibility that the Cult of Asclepius has not faded into history like one would tend to believe. Asclepius could be cultivating belief in his person to continue his very existence. On the other hand, Asclepius could simply be walking the earth, going on adventures. Healing a body here, sharing his knowledge there, that sort of thing. He could easily be a most welcome site after a particularly tough battle, assuming he were in a charitable mood at the time.