I rather love the idea of shared universes. Different people getting together to share a story, adventure, or even characters for a larger tale. It is one of the reasons I love Jenny Everywhere. Not only is she a fun character, but she is also one everyone can use. Because of that, I feel a responsibility to keep her safe so she can go on to be in someoneelse's universe.
While researching that post, I also came across other public-domain and open characters. Many of these, like Fantomah, have lapsed into the public domain; others, though, were released into the public domain by design. One such character is Eve Halloran, aka All Hallows Eve, created by David Eveleigh. She is an open-source character.
Here is her introduction and statement of Open Source.
Long ago, Jack O'Lantern was cursed to wander the night forever as a restless ghost. Now, to make up for the crimes that he committed in life, he has chosen a champion, someone who can use his supernatural powers to set his wrongs right. Her name is Eve. All Hallows Eve. All Hallows Eve is an open-source character. She may be used by anyone, for any purpose, totally free of copyright and restrictions.
What I like about Eve is she strikes me as a Magic Girl stuck in a Slasher Movie. Remind you of anything? She doesn't have the reach or popularity of, say, Jenny Everywhere, but she is fun, and I like her.
Eve in Jackson
I started wondering. What would Eve be like in the time of my Jackson, IL setting? Older sure. Jaded? Likely. I went back to an earlier idea of tired magic girls and applied the same logic to Eve. Maybe she has grown into a John Constantine-like character.
She would come to Jackson chasing some sort of monster, ghost, or something. What it is really isn't important; in fact, that is the point. It is just another monster in a seemingly endless supply of them.
In 1986, at 47, Eve's attitude is not that of the perky teen of the 1950s (excuse me, 195Xs) or even the college girl of the 1960s. Her outlook now is "you fight, or you die." She is the cautionary tale for the Jackson characters. Witches in the game, such as Larina, Stephanie, Faye, and Vera, will see her legacy of witchcraft. Normal characters like Denise, Candy, and even Andy see what happens when you stay in the fight too long.
That is Eve's role here. Yes, she can be the "cool, older soldier" in this fight, again, another Veteran of the Supernatural Wars, but she is also the cautionary tale. She is what happens when the Powers that Be make too many demands on their teen heroes.
There is some evidence that, at least by 2022, Eve is a ghost in David Eveleigh's own comics. Granted, as an Open-source character, I can do what I want, but I do try to be respectful to the character and not do anything that would break canon such as it is. But there is a very, very good chance that Jackson, IL could mean the death of Eve. I certainly want to leave that option open in your games.
According to her bio, she has the following powers.
- Supernatural Strength And Speed
- Flight
- The Samhain Ray, a concentrated form of Jack's evil energy that can be used both as an attack and to create a pumpkin-shaped shield.
- The Phanto-Power, a ghostly aura that lets her turn invisible and walk through walls.
- The power to look like a total doofus at any given moment.
- Weakened by "holy" items like crosses, stars of David, crucifixes, churches, holy ground, and similar items. Witchcraft pentagrams do not have this effect on her.
I can easily recreate these in NIGHT SHIFT. The last one is common to every game.
AKA All Hallows Eve
Human Female Witch, Level 10
Base Abilities
Strength: 24 (+5) n
Agility: 22 (+5) n
Toughness: 16 (+2)
Intelligence: 12 (+0)
Wits: 12 (+0)
Persona: 20 (+4) A
Fate Points: 1d10
Defense Value: 9
Vitality: 50
Degeneracy: 0
Corruption: 0
Check Bonus (A/N/D): +5/+3/+1
Melee Bonus: +2 (base)
Ranged Bonus: +2 (base)
Spell Success: +100%
Saves: +5 to Spells and Magical effects (Witch)
Witch Abilities
Arcana, Arcane Powers (4): Innate Magic, Arcane Bond (Stingy Jack), Blaster (Samhain Ray)
Witch Spells
First Level: Chill Ray, Detect Undead, Magic Missile, Protection from Evil
Second Level: Cause Fear, Invisibility, Phantasmal Image, Protection from Evil 10' Radius
Third Level: Clairvoyance, Protection from Undead, Speak with Dead
Fourth Level: Arcane Eye, Death Ward, Hold Undead
Fifth Level: Dispel Evil, Telekinesis
Heroic Touchstones
1st Level: Increased Strength and Agility
2nd Level: Increased Strength and Agility (again)
3rd Level: Flight
4th Level: Phanto Power* (move through walls)
Archetype: Former teen witch protector, now a jaded middle-aged woman.
Quote: "Use me however you want. Damn, 30 years later, that still sounds wrong."
Quirks: Really tall
Theme song: Spooky - Classics IV
Born: January 13th, 1939. Age: 47 in 1986
Hair: Blonde
Eyes: Green (one is slightly pale due to damage)
Height: 6'3"
Weight: 165# (she is lean but muscular)
Of course, it dawns on me that Eve would also make a great Pumpkin Spice Witch.
Links
- Eve Halloran, aka All Hallows Eve, at Public Domain Superheroes
- David Eveleigh
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