SKILLS
Part and parcel to his martial arts training, Bruce has mastered his physical body. His particular focus is on gymnastics and acrobatics, though he is also fully capable of performing any other basic feat of athleticism -- running, climbing, jumping, throwing, swimming, tumbling, and so on -- with equally impressive competence.
Bruce is naturally talented in exerting his personality to be conciliatory or forceful, and years of careful practice have enabled him to project nearly any outward mood he likes. This makes him very likable when he wants to be, or absolutely terrifying when he wants to intimidate. He has also mastered the subtle art of acting, including precise control over his voice, facial expression, and posture.
While abroad, Bruce studied over 120 forms of martial combat, from Aikido to Yaw-Yan. This broad knowledge base has made Bruce one of the most formidable fighters on the planet, adaptable and creative, and in the physical condition to take advantage of what he knows. He is equally skilled at using his various bat-themed gadgets and devices. He can take on dozens of armed opponents at once with nothing more than his wits and bare hands and feet. Consider his powers and equipment, and he becomes a veritable one-man army.
Like his fictional hero, Sherlock Holmes, Batman can legitimately be called his world's greatest detective. He can glance at a footprint and tell how tall and heavy someone is, as well as quite likely how they are probably dressed or where they have been. He can extrapolate outcomes based on deductive or inductive reasoning, and his capacity for crime scene investigation is unmatched. When it comes to detective work, there is likely no one better, especially considering the considerable advantage granted by his enhanced senses.
Having studied at some of the greatest universities of Europe, Bruce is a master of the classical education. He is versed in history, literature, and the natural and social sciences. He is likewise familiar with biology, physics, and chemistry, particularly as they apply to the science of detection and forensics. His knowledge is broad here, and there is no academic subject in which Bruce does not have a reasonable level of expertise. Bruce has also learned many languages along the way. His native tongue is English, and beyond that he is fully fluent in Spanish, French, German, Italian, Mandarin, Cantonese, Japanese, and Latin. He speaks about two dozen other languages and dialects reasonably well, among them a functional capacity in Kryptonian which he learned from studying the remains of the ship that brought him to Earth.
Batman is a computer expert, a scientist, and an engineer. He can build complex devices on par with the best large corporations have to offer, and while he is not a brilliant designer, when it comes to maintaining and using all forms of technology, he can compete with the very best. This includes the maintenance of his various gadgets and equipment, as well as the exotic devices in his home and even commonplace items. Aided by the knowledge granted by his spacecraft, his arsenal is augmented by incorporating subtle aspects of Kryptonian technology into its design.
Survival - Competent Level
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Having lived in wilderness all over the planet, Bruce can rough it just about anywhere with only minimal supplies. He has a wide knowledge of plant and animal life for many different climates and biomes, coupled with his knowledge of physical science, stealth, and tracking.
Stealth is a major hallmark of Batman's trade, and a skill he learned well from his ninja master. If there is any cover to be had in an area, Batman can vanish into it. In shadows he can become virtually invisible, and he can move in effective silence in almost any terrain. He is also a master of legerdemain and breaking and entering, such that he could be a masterful pickpocket or cat burglar if he were so inclined.
Vehicles - Competent Level
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Batman can pilot a wide array of vehicles. He's a natural wheelman and stick jockey, and his reflexes are superhuman. His knowledge of Kryptonian technology would also allow him to pilot many alien craft, as needed.
ABILITIES
Power: Breath - Enhanced Level
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Bruce can create a number of effects by expelling air through his lips. He can cause heat dissipation, super-cooling the air like an arctic wind, able to rapidly freeze objects up to the size of a large armored vehicle. The air can be released at normal temperature or in rapid gusts or blasts, akin to gale force winds. Bruce's tremendous breath control also allows him to pull in oxygen through his nose while cycling it back out through his mouth, thus keeping up a sustained breath effect, or to hold his breath for nearly an entire day before needing to take in additional oxygen. This allows him to travel through space or underwater for extended periods.
Tech: Costume - Basic+ Level
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The cowl is protected from impacts by a complex weave of fibers and exotic metal threads, with portions of it actually quite solid and armored. The frontal, temporal, parietal, and occipital regions of his skull are particularly well protected, as are his throat and neck. Also within Batman's cowl is a miniature communications system, linking him to his vehicles, the Batcave, and several other individual communication frequencies. This also allows access to a police scanner with local and federal channels housed in the main computer and Batmobile, as well as many radio channels. The comm system also enables voice commands for much of his equipment.
The suit itself is made from an advanced, flexible armor that he adapted from Kryptonian technology. The entire suit is fireproof and heat resistant. The cloak is made of a special adaptive fabric, shaping into a compact parcel or its batwing "glider" shape with the touch of a control, and the tips can be individually hardened for use in combat. As a last resort measure, a taser system has been woven into the suit. This one-shot defensive mechanism sends up to 200,000 volts coursing through the exterior of the suit via a micro-thin network of delivery nodes.
Tech: Equipment - Basic+ Level
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Aerosol Sprays: Batman's arsenal of miniature chemical agents includes infrared paint markers, foaming explosive gels or sealants, super-cooled electronic freezing agents, and Ver-Sed (a quick-acting knockout and temporary amnesiac) sprays.
Mask: In addition to his small re-breathers, Batman's full face mask gives him a completely sealed system. It offers a limited air supply and a rebreather, though as his powers have grown these have become less necessary.
Portable Crime Lab: Everything Batman could possibly need to gather evidence at a crime scene, all in one small case which clips to his utility belt.
Tracers: These are small adhesive discs which operate on a GPS tracking frequency monitored by the Batcomputer. They have an effective range of one mile for his portable tracker, but can be monitored globally via the satellite uplink.
Universal Tool: Shaped like a compact hammer (and serving as one when needed), this compact tool kit serves many ends. A small toolbox in handle contains wire cutters and strippers, electronic lockpicks, as well as basic small screwdrivers, wrench tips, chisels, a Kryptonian sonic-and-laser drill, and similar small tools. The hammer's head contains a series of computer connector ports, useful in adapting his belt computer to other computers, or breaking into other electronics.
Omni-Gadgets: Batman also carries up to three other miscellaneous items at a time, each of which may be rated with a range of powers up to Basic+ in effectiveness.
Power: Flight - Enhanced Level
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Bruce is able to fly by manipulating kinetic force around his body, allowing him to attain hypersonic speeds within an atmosphere. Outside of an atmosphere, he can attain much greater speeds.
Power: Heat Vision - Enhanced Level
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Bruce can utilize stored solar energy to affect heat diffusion. While his breath can dissipate heat, his eyes can focus it, allowing him to expel beams of heat at any target in his line of sight.
Power: Invulnerability - Enhanced+ Level
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Bruce's molecular density is greater than that of a normal human, but even more key to his invulnerability is a micro-thin force field that encloses his body. The field does not prohibit Bruce from touching, tasting, or otherwise interacting with the world, but it does filter out harmful effects, antigens, and nearly anything that might damage him physically. With access to solar radiation from a star of yellow or greater intensity, Bruce also heals very rapidly and completely, allowing him to regenerate from nearly any harm, even many "fatal" injuries. The force field can also be projected a short distance outside his body, protecting anything held very close to him, such as his clothing or a person or object held close against his body.
Batman's unique Kryptonian physiology empowers him in many ways. Most of these abilities are granted by the presence of solar energy from what he often refers to casually as a "yellow sun." Technically, stars of the ideal class are G-type in the blue-white through yellow spectrum. This is bolstered by his increased molecular density, making him mildly more durable than a human being even when de-powered. Bruce's Kryptonian brain also makes him vastly more intelligent than most humans, and most of his powers are psychokinetically focused by that specialized Kryptonian brain. When empowered by solar radiation, Bruce is also immune to all known forms of illness or disease, and only requires an average of four hours of sleep per night to function at peak efficiency.
Notably, his nocturnal habits as Batman for years on end have resulted in less solar energy absorbed over time, and as a result his abilities are at present considerably less potent than they might otherwise be.
Power: Senses - Enhanced Level
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Bruce's senses are psychokinetically augmented by the solar energies within him. This allows him to see as far as the curvature of the Earth allows, to pick out sounds miles away and both hear and see in wavelengths far beyond the human perceptible range. This includes the ability to hear the entire range of audible sound and to see along the entire infrared spectrum. The clarity of his vision is also microscopic as well as telescopic, allowing him to see the structure of matter down to the atomic level.
As a Kryptonian, Bruce absorbs solar energy from stars of yellow intensity or greater, such as Earth's sun. This energy is stored within his body, serving as a power source for his race's latent psychokinetic abilities. Unlike a true psychic, Kryptonian powers operate by instinct and physical focus, taking the form if such abilities as are described throughout these traits. If Bruce's solar energies are depleted, he can be rendered nearly as powerless as an ordinary human, though his molecular density still grants him modestly enhanced strength and toughness.
Power: Strength - Enhanced+ Level
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Bruce's strength is enhanced via a tactile telekinetic field that extends to any object he touches. This field grants the vast majority of his invulnerability to damage, and it also allows him to exert much greater physical force than most other beings. In addition, this field grants stability to whatever he touches, allowing him to perform such feats as using a lamp pole as a viable weapon, where it would otherwise shatter in his hands if he forcefully swung it at anything. Bruce's solar reserves also grant him effectively limitless stamina and sustenance, allowing him to subsist with minimal rest or nutrition for weeks at a time.
Power: Super Speed - Enhanced Level
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Though his speed is modest by the standards of a Speed Force user, Bruce is still capable of moving at supersonic land speeds within the Earth's atmosphere. He is able to perform various physical tasks at roughly one hundred times the speed of a human in optimal physical condition. However, due to his limited solar exposure, he is capable of only bursts of super speed up to a few seconds at a time.
Tech: Utility Belt - Basic+ Level
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The utility belt is where most of Batman's equipment is stored, where nearly every square millimeter of space has been put to good use. It is resistant to damage at Enhanced level, and it contains the following in addition to his other equipment: Batcall (Attracts nearby bats); Digital Microcamera; First Aid Kit; Pellets (Enhanced-level Explosive, Regurgitant, Smoke, Tear Gas); Handcuffs (Enhanced-level restraint); Batlines (Enhanced-level durability); Holographic Computer (Projected from within the belt).
ADVANTAGES
A Superman For All Seasons
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Clark Kent, AKA Superman, AKA Kal-El of Krypton, is a native of Earth 1, also known as Superia. However, in his various adventures he has come to know a number of other versions of Kal-El from other Earths via Hypertime. These individuals are in some cases long-term residents of Superia, while in other cases they may travel back and forth from their native reality. This could be a veritable "Legion of Supermen," but in reality they are not at Clark's beck and call. Each tends to be off doing his own thing. They may appear in scenes, but only one version of Kal-El will appear in any given scene without a specific, staff-approved plot reason.
The network of allies Batman can depend upon is his most vital resource. Among these are Commissioner James Gordon of the Gotham City Police Department, Nightwing, the various Robins and other bat-allies, Alfred Pennyworth, Lucius Fox, Dr. Leslie Thompkins, and of course, the "real" Bruce Wayne, himself. Bruce from Earth 93 might not have had the same advantages as his local variant, but being accepted as Earth 1 Bruce's proxy allows him access to Batman's allies, headquarters, vehicles, and other such advantages.
Ranging far broader than those Batman calls his friends or allies, he has an extensive list of contacts. As Batman, these tend to be in crime fighting circles, police, criminal organizations, and other "professional" venues. Bruce Wayne's tend to be in social and business circles, particularly on the Eastern Seaboard of the United States. Both are well-connected enough that if Bruce (or Batman) needs something, he can usually get it.
Having left Earth 93 in search of his lost home planet, Krypton, Bruce Wayne was caught in a vortex and pulled through to Earth 1, also known as Superia. There he encountered Earth 1's Batman, and upon getting to know one another, the local Bruce helped the visiting Bruce to establish his identity as a distant cousin, Tom Wayne. When Earth 1's Bruce was caught up in serious matters and unable to keep up his affairs in Gotham, he called on Tom Wayne to step in as his double. Tom, who looked close enough to pass for Bruce with a little theatrical preparation anyway, was only too happy to take up the mantle of the Bat again, just as he had on Earth 93. Now, there are very few who know that "Tom Wayne" sometimes masquerades as Bruce, and if Batman sometimes wears a slightly different costume? Well, it's not as though Batman hasn't been known to wear a variety of them, anyway.
Bruce Wayne is a respected philanthropist and businessman, though he does little in the way of serious business negotiations. He's more of a public figure and spokesperson, but he's a bit of a celebrity and very well-liked by those who know him (or think they do). Batman's reputation is far murkier, an urban legend to some and a fact of life for others. He may be given professional respect, fear, or grudging admiration, but Batman is gaining renown. While Bruce of Earth 93 is known as "Tom Wayne" on Earth 1, he often enough appears as the local Bruce's double that he does enjoy some of the benefits of his reputation.
WEAKNESSES
In the course of his career, Batman has made quite a few enemies. Some in fact blame him for their existence, and in turn he takes them as his personal responsibility. Most of these enemies are very dangerous, and quite a number of them are absolutely bent on Batman's destruction. The least of Batman's worries are the many organized crime families who would love to see him dead.
When Krypton was destroyed, some of the planet's matter was charged with radioactive energy from its star, Rao, interacting with the crystalline material of Krypton's planetary body. The end result was the gemlike green substance known as "Kryptonite." The molecular and radioactive properties of Kryptonite make it harmful to Kryptonian cells, thus making it harmful and toxic to them. If Bruce is struck by a Kryptonite weapon, he will be harmed as a normal mortal would. Even being near Kryptonite causes him to feel physically ill.
However, the rate of recovery once removed from the emissions is as rapid as the rate of damage, and Bruce will be back to normal in under an hour after exposure if he can directly absorb enough solar energy. Kryptonite radiation can be blocked by lead or super-dense materials. Bruce routinely undergoes Kryptonite serum treatments of his own design. As a result, the toxic effects of Kryptonite are much reduced for him. It can still harm him when used as a weapon, but it takes much longer for the toxic effects to weaken him, and even if they do, he is much more likely to be incapacitated than killed.
There are other, rarer forms of Kryptonite as well, such as red Kryptonite, which induces bizarre effects for a period of about twenty-four hours, or gold Kryptonite, which temporarily suppresses most Kryptonian powers in a manner similar to red solar radiation.
Against the powers of magic or various mental psychic powers, Kryptonians have no special defenses. They are not explicitly "weak" against these forces so much as they cannot especially resist them. Many psychic powers and magical effects can ignore Bruce's various defenses and resistances, harming him or affecting him much as they would an ordinary Earthling. Notably, however, Bruce has an exceptionally strong will, and after several bad experiences with being mentally influenced, he has undergone extensive training with various allies. As a result, it is now virtually impossible to affect him with mind-control or other mental compulsion. This gives him no protection from direct mental attacks, which he weathers about as well as a strong-willed human being.
Batman adheres to a strict moral code which never allows him to put innocent people in danger and never allows him to kill. His very drive fuels this, but it runs deeper than that. This is a personal code he lives by, though it is not so simple as mere rules. He has a subjective view of what is right, but he always does his best to follow that belief. Part of this is a deep, unswerving loyalty to those few who can call Batman friend, and a strong dedication to all his allies.
Bruce requires solar energy to function at peak capacity, or his powers fade to greatly reduced levels or disappear entirely if his solar reserves are empty. Bruce cannot absorb energy from the lower frequency of orange K-type stars, and the radiation from red M-type stars actually disrupts his absorption process. Under the light of such a star, he will begin to lose his power at a slow but steady rate. Within a few hours of such conditions, he will be effectively drained of his powers.
Batman has kept his identity a secret to protect those he cares about. If his identity were to become public, he would put his allies and those he loves at risk. The very thought of it terrifies him, and he must take great precautions to maintain his secret.
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