Is Building Batman Possible?

[Solo]

Must be a factotum of some sort.

[SorO_Lost]

Wonder Women: Direct deity granted powers that are removed when a man ties her up. Did I mention she loves bondage and gets tied up hourly?

This puts Wonder Woman in a whole new light. I think I actually like her now.

You didn't know? Try reading her wikipedia entry, or TVTropes.

Cthulhu lives in the ocean.

Your argument is invalid.

Not really. Aquaman can speak too, not command, aquatic creatures. Further Cthulhu is a cosmic entity and not marine life so only Orin (the most powerful version of aquaman) can telepathically speak to it. A feat that would break his brain if he tried.

But you did make me think of something else for later use.

The dragonzoid lives in the ocean and is commanded by music.

[kevin_video]

The dragonzoid lives in the ocean and is commanded by music.

I remember that episode.

And Dragonzord.

[dark_samuari]

The only problem I have with Factotum is that it has spellcasting.

[kevin_video]

The only problem I have with Factotum is that it has spellcasting.

So does Vigilante, but a lot of people are okay with that. And Artificers have infusions, but that gets ignored as well. I think it depends on the spells chosen. Reading up on Vigilante, there were a few that I could see him taking just because thematically it fit. So as long as you're taking thematic spells, and not meteor storm as opposed to identify or ventriloquism, it works.

[juton]

As to the power level of the comics, there are heroes or villains capable of plane shifting (without error), teleporting, going ethereal, creating cages of pure energy and limited forms of scrying. Hell, Magneto's helmet basically gives him most of the benefit of Mindblank and Flash is fast enough to act during your timestop. While most characters lack the versatility of a 20th level Wizard, a lot have abilities that rival the Wizard in power.

[dark_samuari]

The only problem I have with Factotum is that it has spellcasting.

So does Vigilante, but a lot of people are okay with that. And Artificers have infusions, but that gets ignored as well. I think it depends on the spells chosen. Reading up on Vigilante, there were a few that I could see him taking just because thematically it fit. So as long as you're taking thematic spells, and not meteor storm as opposed to identify or ventriloquism, it works.

It doesn't matter if they are thematic spells, they are spells and when breaking down Batman to the core of the character he possess no supernatural capabilities.

To give Batman anything beyond extraordinary powers it to immediately destroy the foundation of said character.

[kevin_video]

The only problem I have with Factotum is that it has spellcasting.

So does Vigilante, but a lot of people are okay with that. And Artificers have infusions, but that gets ignored as well. I think it depends on the spells chosen. Reading up on Vigilante, there were a few that I could see him taking just because thematically it fit. So as long as you're taking thematic spells, and not meteor storm as opposed to identify or ventriloquism, it works.

It doesn't matter if they are thematic spells, they are spells and when breaking down Batman to the core of the character he possess no supernatural capabilities.

To give Batman anything beyond extraordinary powers it to immediately destroy the foundation of said character.

You mean it'd make him the Adam West Batman where he'd have all the bat gimmicks, like Bat Shark Repellent, when spells aren't that out of character for him. He's not a mage, but he did learn everything regarding magic, illusions, and escape artistry from Zatana's father when he was a teenager. And he does perform ventriloquism.

[dark_samuari]

The only problem I have with Factotum is that it has spellcasting.

So does Vigilante, but a lot of people are okay with that. And Artificers have infusions, but that gets ignored as well. I think it depends on the spells chosen. Reading up on Vigilante, there were a few that I could see him taking just because thematically it fit. So as long as you're taking thematic spells, and not meteor storm as opposed to identify or ventriloquism, it works.

It doesn't matter if they are thematic spells, they are spells and when breaking down Batman to the core of the character he possess no supernatural capabilities.

To give Batman anything beyond extraordinary powers it to immediately destroy the foundation of said character.

You mean it'd make him the Adam West Batman where he'd have all the bat gimmicks, like Bat Shark Repellent, when spells aren't that out of character for him. He's not a mage, but he did learn everything regarding magic, illusions, and escape artistry from Zatana's father when he was a teenager. And he does perform ventriloquism.

No it would make him Batman, there is no proper reason you can provide to illustrate why Bruce Wayne should possess anything beyond human capabilities. Gimmicks & gadgets are covered by skill use and his knowledge of the arcana is well knowledge (arcana).

You know who else can perform ventriloquism? Ordinary people, it isn't that spectacular. 

[The_Mad_Linguist]

Not really. Aquaman can speak too, not command, aquatic creatures.

A) He commands them  (no save)
B) Godzilla.
C) He can also give people seizures and influence their thoughts.


Also, "peak human performance" in comic books is beyond superhuman IRL.

[kevin_video]

You know who else can perform ventriloquism? Ordinary people, it isn't that spectacular. 

Under what skill check? And even if Batman did have ranks in that skills, would he really max that out for the one chance he MIGHT use it? Unlikely. For him to be damn near godly at every skill, he'd have to be in the high 30s for levels.

[dark_samuari]

Batman is known for being able to press/lift around 800 lbs. So that would roughly translate to him probably possessing a strength score of 20, which is certainly within the realms of peak human capability.

[dark_samuari]

You know who else can perform ventriloquism? Ordinary people, it isn't that spectacular.  

Under what skill check?

Perform (Comedy) used in conjunction with Bluff, that should properly cover it. And if it doesn't that is a fault on the game mechanics, lets try not to elevate something any amateur magician can do to magical proportions.

And even if Batman did have ranks in that skills, would he really max that out for the one chance he MIGHT use it? Unlikely. For him to be damn near godly at every skill, he'd have to be in the high 30s for levels.

Yes. Have you ever read a Batman comic? He specializes in everything and has trained for every contingency. He is insane when it comes to this so yes Batman would have a level of skill in ventriloquism because it may, possibly ten years down the road, be useful for him.  

[The_Mad_Linguist]

Batman rolled all 18s in character gen.

[kevin_video]

Yes. Have you ever read a Batman comic? He specializes in everything and has trained for every contingency. He is insane when it comes to this so yes Batman would have a level of skill in ventriloquism because it may, possibly ten years down the road, be useful for him.  

Batman you say. Nope, sorry. Never even heard of the guy. Must be some new fangled device thing those pesky/crazy kids are getting themselves into.  
And he didn't have a rank in the skill that gave ventriloquism during the Scarface arc. He had to learn it quickly after he realized what was going on between the two, and their split personality. You can see him reading the book, and doing a crash course. My guess is, he was retraining a skill point that he figured he didn't need for that particular battle, and then put it back after he leveled up.

[pixledriven]

+1 Factotum

Furthermore, I move that we from now on refer to using Cunning Knowledge as "Batmaning" the skill check.

 

[Solo]

What do we call "Supermanning", then?

[pixledriven]

What do we call "Supermanning", then?

Iron Body + Fly + Flee from glowing green rocks

[dark_samuari]

Okay, I'll concede that point through your good example but you have to understand what examples I was using.

Robin, having been trained by Batman, is similarly prepared. In his own comic, while fighting another vigilante, they fall through the roof into a bowling alley, with Robin landing on an enormous display bowling ball. He stands up, and uses his feet to start rolling it toward his opponent, thinking, "Believe it or not, I actually trained for this. I told Bruce it was stupid at the time. We'll have a good laugh when I get back home."

In an issue of Gotham Adventures, a criminal "artist" named Kim escapes from Arkham and begins leaving clues at crime scenes in a manner reminiscent of the Riddler. Riddler is furious that someone is stealing his gimmick and tracks Kim down himself. As they fight, Riddler asks what all the "clues" were supposed to mean. Kim reveals that they were actually references to an ultra obscure film by an ultra obscure director, and he was merely making an artistic statement. Riddler rants about how that is completely pointless, as nobody will ever understand such a reference, and the entire point of leaving clues is to give your opponent a fighting chance. Whereupon Batman shows up and reveals that he understood the clues just fine. When asked why he would watch unknown films and memorize the biographical information of their directors, Batman replied "In case I had to."

Rather infamously in JLA 59 Batman engineered the defeat of Polaris to end with the JLA victorious, Superman's healing accelerated by the hole in the ozone layer and himself standing on a teleportation disk he had hidden in the arctic for just such an occasion. Appropriately he ends the comic with the words "always plan ahead".

In Batman #666, it was shown that in a possible Bad Future, Damian Wayne would become Batman. However, since he knows he's not as skilled as his predecessors, he makes up for it by booby-trapping every major building in Gotham in case he has to fight there.

[Maat_Mons]

He specializes in everything and has trained for every contingency.

Reminds me of bardic knack combined with jack of all trades.  At 20th level, you effectively have 10 ranks in every skill that exists.