Andre (Template for Sandboxen)

[Endovior]

I was inspired by Eva's post, so I went and wrote up my own glowy template. Feel free to post here or PM me about glowfic-related stuff.

Andre's character arc is "the apprentice becoming the master". He invariably used to be a mundane character, before being exposed to whatever special powers or effects are present in his world (or perhaps in some other world, if dimension-hopping is involved). He is fundamentally changed by this experience, and eventually learns to control whatever power that he acquires in this way. Depending on when in his story arc he is encountered, he either comes with a pre-existing master that he's learning from, or becomes the apprentice of some extraordinary character that he encounters.

The 'prime' version of Andre is Andre Dalton; he's a native of the World of Darkness (specifically, a version of the World of Darkness that includes Genius: the Transgression). He is Beholden to a Genius of the Peerage, and has access to some of the fruits of Mad Science. He is vaguely aware that there are a lot of strange and horrifying things out there in the world, but he's not actually familiar with any of them besides the Mania-related wonderworking of the Inspired. Being Beholden, he is part mad, part mind-controlled, and is more or less acting as an enforcer for a science-themed gang without any particular moral qualms about the resultant violence (indeed, as a Beholden, he's more or less unable to have moral qualms about his orders). The Genius he is beholden to is one Joni Dawson, a Grimm Progenitor who is obsessed with her own personal quest of vengeance, and is unconcerned with how much damage gets inflicted in that particular pursuit. The best way to progress his character at this point is to get him away from her, giving him enough of a glimpse of something else to catalyze his own Breakthrough.

Andre has a tendency towards fanaticism, and generally wants to make himself useful to someone. He doesn't particularly know what he wants, but he's very good at helping other people obtain their own expressed desires. He tends to be slightly amoral; having weak moral intuitions of his own, he's liable to adopt an 'ends justify the means' stance to whatever goal he's currently working towards. Versions of Andre that come with a master tend to be misused by them, possibly because of actual malice, but more likely because of nasty phlebotinum. He's not much for introspection, particularly at first, but as he gains power, he'll slowly start to figure out what things he actually wants for himself.

In theoretical template terms, Andre has a variety of possible origins, but his name will always be a variation on Andrew that is not actually 'Andrew' (or perhaps a variation on 'Anne', in the event of a girl-type Andre). Male or female, Andre generally comes in bisexual aromantic.

[Alicorn]

What settings can you see Andres sprouting in besides WoD, if any?

[Endovior]

Sunshine worlds, in particular; Andre is extremely likely to find himself involved in Witchcraft or evil cults where they exist to be a thing.

More generally, in any other world where magical instruction (or the use of other special powers) is a more personal thing (like Alethia, which would invoke a witch-type Anne), or where the existence of the supernatural is otherwise a secret (like Lumos, in which case he'd be more likely to be privately tutored by renegade Death Eaters or something than to attend Hogwarts).

He's unlikely to exist in worlds where everyone knows about and sensibly manages superpowers, like Gemini, or in worlds where there aren't any supernatural powers to be had, like Warp. That said, note that Andres may show up in completely mundane worlds if (and only if) they are 'destined' to be the victim of some kind of dimensional transportation thing, and have their story arc begin in a magical world.

[Bluelantern]

"Andreia" is a female variation of "Andre"

Anyway, "supernatural" could include sci-fi elements stuff like... psychic powers and mutant powers, or (similar to original Andre) super-science gadgets? (I am not familiar with the setting, but I was under the impression it was magic dressed as science).

So... how about Andre´s family? they tend to be irrelevant?

[Endovior]

It is, and that's a possible name, certainly.

Super-science may qualify, depending on the setting; Mad Science specifically does, because it's explicitly a case of "I reject your reality and substitute my own", orthogonal to actual Mage spells. Mutant powers are a different flavour than Andre's story goes; mutation tends to be something you are, rather than something you learn (plus, Mutant stuff implies superhero-type public awareness). Psionics could work.

Family-wise, Andre has parents and at least one sibling (he'll be the oldest). If his plotline hasn't started yet, he's got a sort of "rebel without a cause" thing going on; he doesn't know what he wants, but he doesn't identify with the values of his parents (probably a religious thing), and he's looking for something he can believe in, even if he doesn't quite know what he's looking for. That strains the relationship, and he'll be looking for some distance, which situation is normally resolved by him leaving for college. Non-adult versions of Andre make for rebellious teenagers looking to get as much space as they can get and possibly getting in trouble in the process.

Andre Dalton was a twenty-something college student living on his own, before having been not-quite kidnapped and more-or-less brainwashed (exposure to Mad Science has a tendency to break muggles; a condition called 'Beholden' which makes them more useful as henchmen, for various reasons). He's not currently in contact with his family as of the start of his plotline, which makes for worried parents, but ones which aren't actually in a position to do much about his situation.

[Endovior]

Incidentally, for worldbuilding purposes, here's a primer on Mad Science.

Geniuses, or 'the Inspired', are scientists who have been driven mad by exposure to something beyond their comprehension. Inspiration seems to burn away some of who the Genius was before, leaving them a somewhat different person. This process splits them along emotional lines, known as 'Catalysts'; Geniuses are often categorized based on the Catalyst behind their Inspiration (it's either this, or by the organization of fellow Inspired they choose to join). All wonders of Mad Science are powered by Mania, a sort of mental energy generated by Geniuses through various methods. Wonders react poorly to muggles, whose mere touch can damage wonders; actual scientific investigation quickly destroys them.

Geniuses tend to teeter on the brink of madness, since the universe tends to want to work the way they think it works. The effects of Mania on the universe is anticausal in precisely the opposite way that Materia is; instead of it being impossible to do science because the universe is hostile to your fact-finding, it is impossible to do science because any experiments a Genius is involved in will seem to confirm their hypotheses or worldview. Methodology is more or less irrelevant; Geniuses can get equal results from wonders built in a "steampunk" style, cultured organic wonders grown in vats, or even from jury-rigged bits of junk cobbled together in a hurry. Although all Geniuses affect their surrounding reality to some degree, those who come to believe themselves to be completely right about how the world works become 'Unmada', and generate an 'Unmada field', which anticausally twists surrounding reality to appear to conform to their worldview, over a radius dependant on their power. Unmada who go more insane are devoured by the light of Inspiration, and become 'Illuminated', sociopathic monsters with unpredictable, alien goals.

The Peerage is the saner of the two competing mad science organizations, holding to the explicit belief that the effects of Mania are unreal delusions... useful for the effects they produce, but not to be trusted on a theoretical basis, because mad science is, in fact, mad. It's a fairly loose-knit confederation, and is roughly organized into five different Foundations, each of which pursues different fields of study. The Lemurians are the less sane of the mad scientists, being composed of Unmada. They used to control much of the world, and even broken and defeated, they still hold considerable influence... albeit in a 'remnants of a fallen empire' sense.


The practical effects of Mad Science are divided across a variety of 'Axioms', which are independent research paths that grow more powerful as they are mastered; many wonders draw on multiple Axioms, combining their functionalities. The difficulty in attaining the higher levels mean that there are many dabblers and few real experts.

Apokalypsi is the Axiom of Discovery; it covers sensors and communications equipment. The most simple devices of Apokalypsi can easily interface with all sorts of mundane systems, and make it significantly easier to hack into secure ones. More advanced devices can scan for nearly any property that the Genius knows to look for, calculate exact probabilities to unnecessary precision, or even produce Alethiometer-like absolute Truth... quite possibly in a straightforward and unambiguous fashion. Staunen, the Inspired who catalysed out of pure curiosity, have a natural aptitude for Apokalypsi.

Automata is the Axiom of Independence; it covers AI. Automata is essential for creating wonders that can act on their own or respond to sensory stimuli. All but the highest levels of Automata produce simple sub-Human intelligences, but the pinnacle of Automata can create self-improving machines which are Inspired in their own right. Wonders of Automata, especially the more intelligent ones, are infamous for turning against their creators.

Epikrato is the Axiom of Control; including mind control and probability manipulation. Non-mental uses range from simple telekinetic effects, to manipulation of complex systems like weather or markets, to outright control of luck. Mental uses range from simply seizing control of another's body, to manipulating their emotions, to Faerie-like mind control, and peak at Keo-like mental manipulations (although Epikrato is a lot slower and more finicky than Keo's power is). Neids, the Inspired who catalyzed out of jealousy and spite, have a natural aptitude for Epikrato.

Exelixi is the Axiom of Restoration; it covers medicine and augmentations. The simplest forms make it much easier to heal injuries, cure diseases, or repair objects; more complex forms allow for physical and mental improvements, the regeneration of missing limbs or organs, the reversal of aging, or even the resurrection of the dead. Resurrection is usually considered a bad idea, since it's incredibly difficult and costly, and failure has horrific consequences. Klagen, the Inspired who catalyzed in response to a personal loss, have a natural aptitude for Exelixi.

Katastrofi is the Axiom of Destruction; it covers weapons. The simplest forms are exclusively nonlethal; progression makes the weapons more effective, more deadly, or both. Advanced Katastrofic weaponry is unspeakably destructive, and can unleash black holes, tear space-time, or simply remove unwanted things from existence. Grimms, the Inspired who catalyzed in their fury, have a natural aptitude for Katastrofi.

Metaptropi is the Axiom of Transformation; mostly including Transfiguration-like effects. It ranges from purely cosmetic effects, to illusions, to Transfiguration-like effects, to growth/shrink rays, and peaks at space-warping and invisibility. Metaptropic Transfiguration is normally non-permanent, and requires a semi-permanent sacrifice of power to make permanent, which makes it poorly suited to economic manipulations. Hoffnung, those Inspired who catalyzed based on their vision of a better future, have a natural aptitude for Metaptropi.

Prostasia is the Axiom of Protection; it covers armour and shielding. It offers straightforward and effective protection against all sorts of attacks, and can also protect against such things as radiation, scanning devices, hacking attempts, or mind control; powerful wonders of Prostasia can even be designed to reflect incoming attacks back on the attacker.

Skafoi is the Axiom of Travel; it covers vehicles and movement. It ranges from ordinary-ish (but Mania-powered) vehicles that travel on the ground, or through air or water, to FTL-capable starships, to instantaneous teleportation, to travel between alternate dimensions, to outright time travel. Note that the limitations of Mania imply that no dimensions are reached which are not part of the "worldsheaf" of the World of Darkness. Time travel, on the other hand, seems to go forward into semi-unreal Mania-fueled extrapolated timelines, or 'backwards' in a way that is maximally dangerous to the traveller while having minimal effect on the rest of the universe (barring the expenditure of seriously nontrivial power, which tends to attract the attention of time police and/or horrific monsters).