Question
| Vic Sage (Scenesys ID: 157) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| https://tinyurl.com/UHTheQuestion | |||
| Quote | |||
| "Passerby : 'Who are you ?'
Question : 'A good Question. For now.'" | |||
| Profile | |||
| Full Name: | Charles Victor Szasz a.k.a Vic Sage | ||
| Gender: | Male | ||
| Species: | Human | ||
| Theme: | DC (FC) | ||
| Occupation: | Television reporter | ||
| Citizenship: | Dominion of Canada | ||
| Residence: | Mobile | ||
| Education: | University of British Columbia | ||
| Status: | Dropped | ||
| Groups: | Batman Family, DBC, Justice League, JL Dark, Gotham-OOC, Starling-OOC, Street Level-OOC, Martial Arts-OOC | ||
| Other Information | |||
| Apparent Age: | 36 | Actual Age: | 36 |
| Date of Birth | 2 February 1991 | Actor: | Damian Lewis |
| Height: | 188 cm (6'2") | Weight: | 84 kg (185 lb) |
| Hair Color: | Strawberry Blond | Eye Color: | Blue |
| Theme Song: | "Who Are You?" by The Who | ||
Profile
The Question is a vigilante crime-fighter and detective with an insatiable and compulsive curiosity. Everything is connected somehow, all of it part of the same web, much of it malevolent, and he is determined to discover and expose every yarn and every pin in that convoluted web. Some would call him a conspiracy theorist, he would call himself a seeker of truth.
Current Player Approved: Not Applicable
Sheet
Description
Description:
Once the eyes can be drawn away from the unnatural lack of visage, he appears more normal, though no less imposing. He appears to be a male in his adult years, standing six foot two, and possessed of an athletic physique that becomes obvious even an inch below his jawline. Corded muscle is visible in his neck, above his collar. His shoulders are broad, and through the fine tailoring of his clothing, there is a hint of muscle given actualization through his movements. His chest tapers down to a slim waist, and long, runner's legs carry him when he moves.
The rest of him is dressed in a manner oft described as dapper. A cream-coloured button down shirt, starched to a fare-thee-well lies smooth beneath a tie black as starless sky. Over them both is an exceptionally tailored suit jacket of smoky grey, very nearly black. The matching trousers are pleated sharply, and follow his motions fluidly, so it seems he almost glides or slides rather than actually walking. His shoes are black wingtips, and on his hands, with only an inch of pale skin showing after the cuff, are black leather gloves. The entire ensemble is topped off with a trenchcoat of deep black. Made of a cloth that could be oilcloth, silk, canvas, or leather, it too is tailored perfectly for the physique of the man wearing it, and for maximum ominous cinematic effect, as it seems to billow and collect shadows even when the Question is standing still.
History
History:
Vic Sage, a.k.a. Charles Victor Szasz was orphaned at birth, raised in a Catholic orphanage and in the Hub City projects unaware of his parentage or birthrights. Most of Vic's early years were spent trying to find some satisfaction in life by his moving from city to city after dropping out of college. He found that satisfaction for a while in Hub City where he became a hard nosed investigative journalist with TV station WWB. Here, he reformed a friendship with his old college professor.
When his professor came to him to ask for help, his destiny was set in motion, and the Question was soon to be formed. His professor had invented an artificial skin called pseudoderm. This great medical breakthrough was flawed, however, as it proved toxic for some patients; his professor dropped the project when he realized this. his professor's colleague and co-discoverer, however, took off with the formula so he could sell it to a Third World country. Tot helped Vic form the identity of the Question in order to retrieve it. Donning a mask made of the artificial skin that bonded to his face with a gaseous agent, also developed by Tot, Sage now seemed to have an entirely featureless face. The gas also changed the color of his hair, and his chemically treated clothing. His identity now protected, he became a two-fisted, hard boiled vigilante. He was angry, he was tough, he righted wrongs. He was an arrogant, misogynistic, self-righteous, intolerant bastard who thought he was invincible.
He fought for 4 years in Hub City against crime with his own brand of hard boiled justice, taking down wrongdoers with a bit more objectiveness that he put into his newscasts. Myths spread like wildfire through the streets of Hub City, and just mention of the Question, the man-with-no-face, with his dedicated crimefighting and mysterious calling cards was enough to strike fear into the hearts of any corrupt criminal.
Then he bit off more than he could chew. One of his targets hired a infamous lady assassin and international mercenary, an almost peerless martial artist, who easily beat him. Sage was shot in the head and dumped in a river. But the assassin had seen in him a true warrior's spirit. She saved him from certain death and send him to study under world-class martial artist in a mountain retreat.
When Sage came back after a year of instruction, he was a changed man. He had developed his fighting skills to a remarkable level, and learned a philosophy of life that shaped his moral and ethical outlook. Instead of imposing his own unsubtle answers to the world, he was now looking for the truth. He investigated as a reporter, but was mostly seeking the truth about himself, about his thirst for violence, about philosophical questions and about the world. Vic Sage had become a cultured philosopher-warrior.
He made a huge impact on Hub City, destroying the government run by drunken Mayor Wesley Fermin and his puppet master Rev. Jeremiah Hatch. Sage's former girlfriend had been suckered into marrying Fermin in the year that Vic had disappeared. When Hatch threatened to kill her mentally challenged daughter Jackie (who was growing up in the same orphanage that Vic grew up in), she ran him through with a nearby knife. All evidence of this was destroyed, burned in a fire that turned the mayor's mansion to ash, but his ex, even though duped into marriage took her vows seriously, and was still bound to her marriage to Fermin. Vowing to help her clean up the city, and still sticking by his pledge against crime, Vic decided to continue to stay in Hub City.
History2:
As Mayor Fermin's term ended, his wife decided to run for mayor herself. She lost by one vote, but later won when the new mayor-elect was found dead in his car. When she gave her acceptance speech, her husband shot and nearly killed her claiming she was a 'commie' and would ruin the city. She entered a coma, and Fermin, charging in drunken rage into a hostage situation later that day, died a hero. She recovered eventually, and Vic helped her more than ever to keep Hub City clean as her guardian angel.
But a lone man could not prevent a city that was traveling down a highway to Hell at breakneck speeds. The city was beyond redemption, even the federal government gave up on it, and Vic, his ex, and her daughter, along with his master decided to leave Hub City behind them. As his ex approached the helicopter though, she had a change of heart and realized that she couldn't just abandon her mayoral duties. She entrusted her daughter Jackie into his care as she walked back to the city after professing her love to Vic. Together, Vic and Jackie traveled to the Amazon rain forest to find peace of mind. During the stay in the Amazon, Jackie was kidnapped by Brazilian drug dealers, and Vic was forced to murder their leader. When Jackie was dying of complications relating to her retarded physical and mental growth, Vic came back to Hub City, but now moves from burg to burg, wherever crime rears it's ugly head.
Personality
Personality:
He's the masterless man, the ronin , the man carried by the wave, never fitting in the system, outside yet looking in with the curious gaze of the sage.
Before he started training with his master, Vic Sage was angry at feeling so empty inside. He was one of the good guys, but clearly not a nice man. He overcompensated for his lack of identity and sense of self.
Since he was quite a hunk and a tough jock, he built himself around a macho attitude. Young Vic was overconfident in his physical abilities, violent, sexist. He seduced a number of women but not keeping any stable relationships.
Sage was a warrior, but he was also an insensitive jerk. As the Question he was blunt and brooding. He defined himself as a driven man of action, holding the Truth as the self-evident goal of his crusades. As he was denouncing corruption as tearing down the masks of profiteers and criminals, he was hiding from himself.
The teachings of his master, strongly based on Taoism and Zen, allowed Sage to embrace the void inside him. His lack of a past, of a real goal, of an identity, of a life. He simply became able to gracefully flow with the current, humbly accepting he was a rootless man and that he actually knew nothing.
His quest for a moral, two-fisted Truth to be exposed became a far more philosophical quest for truth. About what he really is, about what other people really are, about the world.
This genuine curiosity is a driving force in Sage. He simply *has* to know the straight dope, and hes unable to let a mystery rest. He does so with an open mind. Although he still appreciates justice and doing the right thing, he no longer forces right upon the world. He simply wants to know.
The Question is an element of change, randomly carried by the universe into a situation and laying bare the secrets and lies. This attitude of genuine interest and curiosity lead him to ask pointed questions and have quasi-Socratic discussions with many people with whom he interacts.
The old Question would have beat a man attempting to commit murder to a bloody pulp. The current Question will stop the killer with the least amount of force, and will ask why the killer wants to kill, and what he hopes to achieve.
Those questions and highly perceptive, clear-thinking remarks often do more to break the killers will than the Questions kung fu.
Furthermore, having a faceless, remarkably calm and charismatic man wander in from nowhere asking razor-sharp questions can be disconcerting. Even inebriated street punks with an IQ not very far in the double digits tend to pause as they realize that that dude has no face.
Despite all his Zen strength, meditation and physical skill, the Question has not laid his old demons to rest. Life is more complicated than that. He still has an affinity for violence, and some degree of anger, as well as a desire to kick arse and take names in order to right wrongs.
He is aware that he sometimes resorts to violence that is not strictly necessary. He knows that, to a degree, hitting the mean streets is just an excuse to bust heads.
His old college professor, a pacifist, often mocks him about this. Sage sometimes points out that violence is often the most effective solution, especially against Neanderthal-like thugs. But he knows that its not entirely truthful.
The Question will almost always calmly offer a chance to surrender without violence. But sometimes his heart is not really in it. Of course, its a fact that people almost never surrender anyway.
Some degrees of his old pride and thirst for justice occasionally come back, too.
Sage is now a nice, charming, calm, strong, brilliant man with a great sense of wit and obvious experience. As the Question, he tends to be a bit flippant, even vaguely smug. He's nigh-fearless, welcoming suffering and trials as an occasio
Abilities
Charisma:
Vic is very charismatic and has a magnetic personality. His charisma is on par with those of many actors, television personalities, and musicians. As Vic, he is charming, polite, and generally easy going tending to get along with most people, as The Question, he uses his charisma to be intimidating and threatening.
Fast Reflexes:
Vic's martial art training has left him with lightning fast reflexes. Due to his training, Vic has the ability to react a touch faster than most normal humans. His reactions have helped him dodge bullets, and have played part into his continued ability to breath throughout his crime fighting career.
Flexibility:
Vic is incredibly flexible. Though his course of teachings, his body has become very limber. In the course of his normal meditations it is not uncommon for Vic to be in normally uncomfortable poses, such as one leg up and behind his head, or back arched to where he is almost bent in half.
Hardness:
Even though Vic has exceptional training and fast reaction time, he does tend to get hit fairly often. However, due to his physical conditioning Vic is able to take a punch (or five) and still be standing. He has also been stabbed numerous times and is able to keep on fighting. He can take a decent amount of punishment before going down, much like a professional boxer, or martial arts champion.
Learning Ability:
Skills
Acrobatics:
During his training with a world renown martial artist, Vic was also trained in acrobatics and gymnastics, honing his skill to an exceptional level. He is not as gifted as others, but he would do well in Olympic competition, or in the Cirque de Sole. He can easily avoid blows, roll with punches, and is also adept and tumbling and climbing.
Brawler:
Vic, before the teachings of a world renown martial artist, was primarily a brawler. He had some Martial Arts skill, but his fights tended to end up in normal fisticuffs. While his Martial Arts skills are superior, he does on occasion resort back to a flat out brawler when the need calls for it.
Computer Operation:
Vic is familiar with Computers. While not the elite hacker, Vic is able to recognize most operating systems, and use a computer to a normal level. Normal computer operation such as the copy and deletion of files, as well as normal maintenance like swapping a hard drive are within his ability. He might be able to even piece a network together, but once you start talking about flashing a bios, or replacing a motherboard Vic would start to ask for assistance.
Criminology:
Vic has a working knowledge of Criminology, the study of crime, criminals, their behavior and also punishment. Developed mostly during his time as an investigative reporter, he also uses it to a large degree as his alter ego, the Question. He is not as proficient with the study as Batman, but is able to figure out most common crooks behavioral patterns.
Detective Skills:
Relying on intuition, observation and keen reasoning Vic' ability to look at a crime scene and analyze the clues is remarkable for someone with no formal training. His natural inquisitiveness and instinct don't allow much to escape detection during an investigation, and his ability to piece the clues together to form an analysis of the clues is just shy of some of the better known masked vigilantes. Complicated or scientific clues such as DNA or blood typing would be impossible for Vic without the assistance of a lab, but he does have enough experience to capture a fingerprint properly, or handle evidence at a crime so it would not be tainted.
Disguise:
Beyond his mask, Vic is familiar with the art of disguise. Usually one need only change a few small things about their appearance. A change in hair color, a bit of skin complexion, and include one distracting feature. Then add a change of clothes to fit the location and you'll have a successful disguise. While he wouldn't consider himself the world's master of the art, he has found it quite useful on many occasions. Further, the art requires a skill in deception. Not only must you look the part, but you must also handle yourself in a way that makes you belong. It lets you blend in and become a part of the scenery. Calling attention to yourself only if needed. If you are attempting to pass yourself off as a particular person all of the above applies, but you also need information. Something that Vic is very good at gaining.
Dodge:
Trained by one of the best Vic is an expert fighter and superb athlete. He is mobile, nimble, and agile. Vic follows the saying that the best defense to not be there for the punch to hit. Though he can roll with most any fall, throw, or punch, Vic has also learned to dodge, duck and weave to have blows miss entirely. He is not as adept as most acrobatic vigilantes, but is slightly better than some, being able to even dodge bullets if he has an inclining they are coming his way.
Driving:
Vic has a slightly higher than normal skill level in regards to land based vehicles. His skill is not at professional grade, but he can and has driven at high rates of speed when being chased (or chasing someone else). In fact, Vic used to have a VW Bug that had a Porche engine, racing shocks, and a Ferarri transmission and had the ability to go over 100 miles per hour. Vic would be able to figure out how to operate most vehicles with similar functionality. (IE Cars, Buses, Light trucks up to and possible including an eighteen wheeler.)
Intimidation-Persuasion:
Vic is a very charismatic individual and he knows how to use it. He is able to use his charm as Vic to help persuade others to see his point of view. As The Question, Vic is able to use his charsima and presence to intimidate an bully information out of people. His skill at using his natural charisma isn't as well practiced as the likes of Superman or Batman, but he is able to use it well enough to assist in his gathering of information from the common street thugs he tends to meet.
Intuitive:
Vic is exceptionally intuitive. Usually his instincts are spot on, and he is able to read people, too sense when people are speaking the truth or lying to him. This combined with his keen observation skills make him an excellent detective.
Keenly Observent:
Vic is keenly observant. He doesn't seem to miss much. A small bloodstain on a carpet, to something that just appears to be "out of place," Vic seems to be able to spot it. This combined with his intuition skills make him an excellent detective.
Lockpicking:
Starting with his past as a street orphan, continuing through his career as an investigative reporter and up through his current 'occupation' as a masked vigilante, Vic has gained experience and knowledge with most common tumbler locks (Normal key locks as well as combination locks like on a safe), and how to successfully unlock them without the key or combination. While not as good as the elite of the professional thief world such as Catwoman, Vic's skill at successfully manipulating the tumblers on a lock would be on par with the likes of Robin or Nightwing.
Martial Arts:
Vic Sage has been trained to the level of one of the foremost martial artists in the world by one of the best in the world. Even an infamous martial artist assassin has been heard to say Sage is the finest practicing martial artist in the world today. If he is not in the in the top 10, then he is most certainly in the top percentile of martial artists worldwide. He has a passing familiarity with dozens of different styles, but his most well-known style is the particular style of kung-fu taught by his master, which incorporates the techniques of the countless substyles. Vic has most clearly proven himself as a master of this style, and by adding a few elements of other arts and styles into his overall fighting style, he has become a truly magnificent hand-to-hand fighter. The Question is easily on par with most vigilantes in terms of combat ability, and perhaps would have a slight advantage over them. He possesses an excellent blend of both offensive and defensive capability. His fighting style does not possess any inherent weaknesses, but of course, he can be outfought by an opponent with superior skills, vastly superior numbers, or combatants with metahuman abilities to supplement their skills.
Melee Weapons:
Due to Vic's martial arts background and training, he has a familiarity with most common martial arts melee weapons (Bo Staff, Tonfa, Sai..etc). He is able to use these weapons with some degree of skill, however since he rarely uses them he is not as mastered with them. However, when faced with normal opponents wielding table legs, or pool cues with little or no training, Vic would be able to defend himself. Vic has also been known to throw, toss and kick items into people and objects with a remarkable accuracy.
Reporter:
Vic has had several years of experience as a television reporter both in Hub City, as well as Gotham. His main experience comes from investigative reporting, however he is familiar with the inner workings of a TV news station, and can make a decent living as a TV news anchor or field reporter as well. His typical style lends itself more to television, but if need be he could probably make the jump to print journalism as well.
Security:
Vic has a working knowledge of Security systems, alarms, and locks. From his days as a street orphan, to an investigative reporter, to his masked career as the Question, Vic has learned about the various security systems that are used.
Sneaking-Stealth:
Vic is familiar with all the aspects of stealthy movement and intrusion. He knows how to walk softly, to move with minimizing sound when he needs to be sneaky. He is skilled in being able to blend into the shadows when trying to shadow someone, and how to hide when the situation calls for stealth. However, Vic sometimes tends to throw caution to the wind and rely on good old fashioned gusto, witty comments, and bravado instead of surprise to put people off guard.
Streetwise:
Vic grew up on the streets of Hub City, one of the roughest cities in America. He has a good feel about how life on the streets operates, and can usually figure out who he can trust, who he can't and how to get things done. He also knows how to avoid or cause trouble within the streets. Obviously he knows Hub City best of all, but each city has it's back alleys, and though the turf may change the "rules" on the street don't tend to vary often.
Surveillance:
Resources
Belt Buckle:
Vic Sage wears a special belt buckle, that has a compartment for his mask, as well as a dispenser for the adhesive gas which attaches the mask to his face, and changes the color of his clothes/hair.
Cards:
Not used as much anymore, but in the past the Question has used special calling cards. These chemically coated cards appear blank, but then a chemical reaction occurs and in a wisp of smoke, a question mark appears on the card.
Gas:
This special gas (which is released from his belt buckle)chemically adheres the Question's mask to his face, as well as altering the color of his chemically-coated clothing and hair. The gas itself can be used as a smokescreen, or even a scare tactic.
Mask:
Weaknesses
Corruption:
Vic hates corruption. He has seen the corruption of the government first hand under Hatch and Fermin oppress the people of Hub City. He felt the oppression when growing up in the orphanage. Vic now makes it a point to expose and fight such corruption when he finds it. Before the Question was born, Vic used to use the local TV news to detail the corruption. Now, since the Question was born, he tends to take a more fists on approach in his righteous quest to end the corruption he sees in the world.
Curiosity:
Curiosity killed the cat, and almost Vic a number of times. Vic has a unrelenting "need to know." He is insatiably curious, and tends to get obsessive about finding out the answers to the questions that life poses to him. It is this curiosity that first drove him as an investigative reporter, and then later on in his vigilante activities as the Question. Quite a few times, his curiosity does get the better of him, and leads him into dangerous and sometimes life threatening situations, almost leading to his death once already when he dug to far into Hatch and Fermin's ploys early on in Hub City.
Emotionally Driven:
Vic is very emotionally driven. When he remains calm and keeps his temper in check he can be precise in thought, and in action. He tends to think clearer and when in a fight, he fights better. However, when Vic looses his center, and he starts to get angry and emotional his abilities seems to shift. His ability to defend himself reduces, he isn't as "clear" in thought, and his 'luck' takes a turn for the worse.
Philosophical:
Always filled with questions, Vic has become more philosophical about the world since his master's teachings. His Zen philosophies tend to make his viewpoints on life's questions a bit obscure at times. Also due to his teachings, Vic tends to be a very laid back individual for the most part, but when faced with any true wrongdoing or injustice Vic's hot temper does raise its head.
Provocative:
Vic tends to provoke other into trying to find out the answers to their own life questions. He can be abrasive and downright offensive when he attempts to have people look at things from different viewpoints. He doesn't shy away from the tough questions when attempting to make others seek their own answers.
Secret Identity:
The identity of The Question is secret. If people found out that Vic was The Question, the people he cared about, as well as himself, would be in constant danger.
Stubborn:
Logs
To Refresh Character's Log List Click Here. Then hit the resulting button to dump the old cached list.
| Title | Date | Scene Summary |
|---|---|---|
| Making a Connection | February 19th, 2020 | Airports are hell. |
| A Contrast of Styles | January 31st, 2020 | An assassin, a hero, and a wrestler meet in Central Park. Here's a Question. |
| City Fall: at the beginning for organization | January 10th, 2020 | Shredder shows up at Vic's office for a bit of a chat |
| We Live in a Society | January 6th, 2020 | The Question and Iron Fist serendipitously meet in a Williamsburg alley. There, they face Anaconda and discuss the potential rise of a new and improved Serpent Society! |
| The People You Meet In Hell's Kitchen | December 16th, 2019 | It's a slow night at Club Mjolnir, so Elle took the time to go out to mingle with the few patrons in attendance. A few interesting people were spotted, and some who have a death wish too. Club Mjolnir is an interesting choice for people with death wishes. |
| Knock Knock. Whose there | December 9th, 2019 | Shiva visits Vic at his apartment. |
| City Fall: Questions, answers, and stitches. | November 15th, 2019 | Vic wakes up to an unfamiliar ceiling and has his injuries tended to. Information is exchanged. |
| Question's incoming | October 28th, 2019 | The Question visits Svetlana and asks her some questions |
| Age of Darkness: Celebration of Life | October 12th, 2019 | It was the Memorial Celebration for Superman, and it was a sombre event for everyone to be a part of. |
| Asking the Proper Questions | October 11th, 2019 | Summary needed |
| City Fall: Black Mask | October 4th, 2019 | The Question and Shadow interfere with a gang meeting in Gotham. They manage to disrupt the Shredder's plans, but it comes at a cost. |
| Looking for clues | September 27th, 2019 | Vic asks Stephanie to come in for an interview about her father and Arkham |
| Question(s) at the Watchtower | September 20th, 2019 | Vic is doing his mandatory monitor duty when a guest arrives. |
| Updates on Framejobs. | July 24th, 2019 | Summary needed |
| Good Job DA | June 29th, 2019 | Barbara, Tim, Damian and Stephanie are joined by Question in taking down a group of human traffickers on the docks of Gotham. |
| A round of Robins. | June 21st, 2019 | Two Robins meet, and leave with a lot of Questions |
| Do you have any Questions | June 14th, 2019 | The Question Meets J'onn and gets the watch tower tour as well as some help with another question at hand. |
| JL and Age of Despair: Epilogue | June 8th, 2019 | The ending of the Age of Despair TP, with the heroes of the Justice League, banding together to bring Superman back from the abyss! |
| A New Question Arises | June 8th, 2019 | Question discusses the case that led him to Gotham with Batman. (This is a backdated scene and takes place before the events of Superman's reawakening in the Watchtower) |
| A bird and the wrong Bats. | June 7th, 2019 | Tim Drake was just getting a burger when he unexpectedly runs into two "bats" but its not who you think and that raises a Question. |
| A quick pit stop. | June 5th, 2019 | One hero, one investigative reporter, both needing car repairs end up at the same shop. They meet its owner, Mercy, for the first time. |
| Date Night | October 9th, 2017 | Summary needed |
| Red wine | September 19th, 2017 | Summary needed |
| A Rough Night | September 18th, 2017 | Summary needed |
| The Apartment with the Revolving Window | August 26th, 2017 | The Question has a proposal for Lady Shiva, and it involves Renee Montoya. |
| Questioning Shiva | August 23rd, 2017 | The Question approaches Shiva, asking for her help with someone he believes is worthy of being trained. |
| To ask the right question you first need The Question | August 1st, 2017 | Summary needed |
| Old...friends | July 12th, 2017 | The Question and Shiva meet |
| To Question the Question or Not to Question the Question, That is the Question | June 25th, 2017 | Renee is visiting a murder scene she shouldn't be at, and runs into The Question. |
| Old Times | June 6th, 2017 | Summary needed |
| When Should Crime Not Pay | May 30th, 2017 | Summary needed |
| Justice Framed in Black and White | May 23rd, 2017 | Summary needed |
Cutscenes
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| Title | Date | Scene Summary |
|---|---|---|
| No logs submitted yet. | ||
